At dusk, Higashino Shuuichi returned to the Urahara Shop with one hand hauling the utterly exhausted Kisaragi Shūsuke. Before he even stepped through the door, Matsumoto Rangiku's voice rang out.
"Shuuichi-sama! You woke up and didn't even come see me!"
At the entrance, Rangiku stood in a black kimono, hands on her hips, displeasure written all over her face.
"You were drunk, remember? I couldn't bring myself to wake you. Besides, I only took Shūsuke out for a bit. Didn't delay anything."
Shuuichi smiled as he explained.
Maybe it was because she'd been in the World of the Living for a while and "filled out" a little, or simply because she wasn't in that same old shihakushō (Shinigami uniform) anymore—either way, Rangiku carried a different charm now.
"By the way, Shuuichi-kun, what happened to Shūsuke-kun?"
Kabuma Sayako, who'd also been waiting at the door, eyed the limp Shūsuke in Shuuichi's grasp.
"Him? He just doesn't train enough. Did a tiny bit of work and totally wiped out."
Shuuichi chuckled.
Hearing that, Nagasawa Satomi, quietly following at Shuuichi's side, went pale.
Terrifying. Performing Konsō (Soul Burial) for nearly a hundred people was only a "tiny bit of work" to these Shinigami?
All at once, she regretted agreeing to come back with them simply because Shuuichi had promised to help her find Kurosaki Mai.
"What if I end up like that…?"
Her mind flashed an image of herself rolling up sleeves, muscles bulging everywhere.
She shook her head hard.
Dame, dame! No way was she becoming that.
"So, Shuuichi-kun, are you planning to have Satomi-san join us too?"
Sayako couldn't help a snort-laugh at Satomi's random head-shaking. How had she not noticed before how cute Satomi-san was?
"Yeah. Satomi's a very kind girl—just like you, Sayako. If she joins, you won't be bored when I'm out."
Shuuichi narrowed his eyes, smiling.
"Eh?"
"Excuse me?"
Right on cue, his words drew instant protests from the two other ladies present.
"Shuuichi-sama, are you saying I can't keep Sayako-san company during the day?!"
"Shuuichi, what's that supposed to mean? You calling me out?"
The black cat lounging on the second-floor balcony—Yoruichi Shihōin in feline form—leapt down and planted her paws squarely on Shuuichi's head.
"Th-the cat can talk?!!"
Satomi was the first to yelp, stumbling back several steps and pointing a trembling finger at Yoruichi.
"What's wrong, Satomi-san? You don't find Shinigami strange, but a talking cat shocks you this much?"
Yoruichi's interest shifted to Satomi at once.
"B-because… I've known about Shinigami for a long time…"
Realizing she'd overreacted, Satomi tried to defend herself, awkward.
"Alright, small stuff. You know now, that's enough. From here on, think of this place as your home. We're all very easygoing~"
Shuuichi reached out and snatched Yoruichi from midair just as she was about to spring at Satomi.
Look at you. In Shinigami form I can't do anything to you; but as a cat—you think I can't grab you?
Yoruichi bared tiny teeth and flailed her paws in his hand. Shuuichi felt he'd finally vented a little pent-up frustration.
Just you wait, Shuuichi!
Faintly, he could read those words in Yoruichi's eyes.
Too bad for her—he wasn't playing that game now.
As an open ally on paper, she wouldn't dare bind his zanpakutō with those bandages again. If she tried, most of the people awake in this house would flip on her—never mind Shuuichi himself.
And if he hadn't willingly handed over his zanpakutō at the time, she wouldn't have sealed it so completely—at best, a temporary seal.
Beyond sealing his zanpakutō, he didn't fear any "payback" from Yoruichi.
As the sun set, the former Kidō Chief, Tsukabishi Tessai, finished a day's work and—model of reliable manhood—took the initiative to make dinner.
Most of them didn't strictly need to eat, of course.
"So Shūsuke-kun, your 'family' is this big?"
Seeing the Urahara Shop grow lively again at mealtime, Satomi suddenly felt a pang.
Back when she'd lived with Kurosaki Mai-onee-san, she hadn't cared about this sort of warm bustle. A year ago, when Onee-san Mai and her husband suddenly left in a rush, she finally learned the feeling called loneliness.
Even surrounded by people who bowed to her—some even kneeling—Satomi knew she wasn't the same as them.
If she had to describe this mood now, it felt like "finding her group again."
"Not really."
To her surprise, the newly recovered Shūsuke shot her thought down without thinking.
"Shūsuke-kun…"
Satomi hesitated.
They were sitting tucked in a corner; no one else noticed them. But Satomi, used to dealing with outsiders, knew this wasn't the right setting for an emotionally charged topic.
Fortunately, Shūsuke wasn't lacking in social sense. He left it at that.
He still remembered what Yoruichi had confessed that day:
Kisuke Urahara had studied Hollowfication long ago.
He'd known something was off about the incident long ago.
So why had he done nothing?
When you got down to it, everything about Sōsuke Aizen was just Kisuke Urahara and Tsukabishi Tessai's side of the story.
What if the whole thing had been Kisuke's plot from the start? He got exposed at the end, tried to toss out a big enough name to take the blame, and by rotten luck picked Aizen—who had a rock-solid alibi.
So in the end he had to awaken Shuuichi-sama, using his kindness. Knowing Shuuichi-sama wouldn't want to see innocent captains and vice-captains executed, he'd banked on Shuuichi risking everything to create a path for their escape.
Shuuichi-sama never said any of this, never pressed the details—but Shūsuke believed his own judgment couldn't be wrong.
And even if it was—was Kisuke Urahara not wrong to drag Shuuichi-sama into it, make him face a mob of captains alone, and almost die?
(Shuuichi: ??? Kid, which eye of yours saw me "almost die"?)
So—Kisuke couldn't be trusted. By extension, neither could Tsukabishi Tessai or Yoruichi Shihōin, who were close to him—not with more than eighty percent trust, anyway.
Here, Shūsuke trusted only Matsumoto Rangiku, who'd once lived side by side with Shuuichi-sama, and Kabuma Sayako, who had indirectly saved Shuuichi-sama's life and was now willing to abandon her lofty status as one of the Five Great Noble Houses for Shuuichi-sama.
(Former-basement Sayako: Me? Lofty?)
On the other side of the room, the vibe was heating up.
"Yo-ho! C'mon! To celebrate two comrades waking up in two days—say no more. Shuuichi, let's play that—uh, Rangiku, what do you call the thing you taught me?"
Still wearing his skull mask—since he hadn't mastered Hollowfication yet, he'd merely come to terms with the Hollow inside and lost access to Shinigami powers—Kensei Muguruma planted one foot on the table and raised his cup, pumped.
"A drinking game! Drinking game!"
Rangiku lifted her cup too, delighted. This was her kind of party—big cups, hard drinking!
"Get your foot off the table!"
Kuna Mashiro, deeply unimpressed, yanked her captain back down. To her, he was being embarrassing.
Newly awakened and having tamed the Hollow inside her—thus regaining her Shinigami state—the former 8th Division fukutaichō Yadōmaru Lisa showed little reaction. Her old taichō had been even less proper than Kensei on most days.
"No need to celebrate. And I don't recommend you drink too much, Captain Muguruma. Our priority is to master that power as soon as possible."
With an outsider (Satomi) present, Lisa didn't spell it out.
"It's fine~ We're celebrating both Lisa-san and Shuuichi-kun waking up. Training can wait a day, right~"
Sayako basked in the lively mood.
"Exactly, exactly, Lisa-san~ Here, drink with me!"
Rangiku flashed beside Lisa in a blur, slung an arm around her shoulders, and pressed close.
"No. I won't. I don't—glug—"
Lisa refused, firm—until Rangiku's persistent nudging had her take a sip.
A soft blush bloomed on her cheeks at once.
"Another?"
"Another!"
"You got it!"
Who'd have guessed Lisa was a one-drink lightweight—and drunk- Lisa outdrank even Rangiku. The two of them tore through most of the sake Tessai had set out.
Shuuichi smiled wryly, then lifted a slice of sashimi to his mouth. It melted on his tongue—fatty, fresh, and bright.
Had Tessai learned to make it in the last year, or knew it already in Soul Society?
With those skills, he could've opened a restaurant and made a killing. Having Urahara use him like a day-laborer every day was a waste of talent.
Feeling indignant on Tessai's behalf, Shuuichi popped another slice in his mouth.
Mm. Delicious~
The celebration went on past midnight. When those who should sleep had drifted off, Shuuichi stepped out onto the second-floor balcony to catch the cool night breeze.
"What's your plan?"
Kisuke Urahara's voice came from behind. He appeared at Shuuichi's right a moment later.
Shuuichi knew exactly what Kisuke meant.
"If I'm not mistaken, when we fled from Soul Society to the World of the Living that day—you reclaimed the Senkaimon (World Gate), right?"
Hands on the railing, Shuuichi peered into the dark distance.
In this era, Japan's nights weren't ablaze with lights yet.
"Going to him? Not a bad choice. He wouldn't care about such things."
Kisuke, sharp as ever, understood with one hint.
"Still—are you so sure Kurotsuchi Mayuri will help you?"
"Then how about you help me, Kisuke?"
Shuuichi looked over with a grin.
"Spare me. I told you—I'm not touching that. No need. No point."
Kisuke smiled it off.
He heard the steel in Shuuichi's tone.
For all that Shuuichi seemed to put everything in the open, there was a puzzle about the man. His manner, his inexplicable convictions—Kisuke could never quite tell what he was after.
One thing he was sure of: Shuuichi would never sit still. Kisuke might have to think about putting distance between them before long, or else—
Suddenly, countless firelights flared across the dark street. Ranks of armored samurai—mounted and on foot—charged straight for the Urahara Shop.
Finally here, huh?
Seeing this, Shuuichi allowed himself the expression of someone whose suspicions had just been confirmed.
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