"Yo, Ōko—home so early today?"
"Huh, Ōko, your complexion keeps getting better!"
"Ōko, something to celebrate lately? You're even humming!"
As the days passed, the neighbors in Rukongai noticed that the once listless Yushima Ōko was slowly turning back into the upbeat young man he used to be.
He was confident again.
And along with his spirits, his body was improving too.
"Shuuichi-sama, I'm back!"
Another day—pushing open the door, Yushima beamed at Higashino Shuuichi, who was seated inside leisurely reading the latest issue of Seireitei Communication.
"What's got you so happy today, Ōko?"
Shuuichi set down the magazine and looked up.
"Because I made a special trip to the 9th Division and gave a proper thrashing to all those guys who used to laugh at me!
Hahaha! Shuuichi-sama, you should've seen their faces when I actually achieved Shikai (Initial Release)—their eyes nearly fell out!
I almost died laughing!"
Ōko chattered as he pantomimed the highlights, giddy with triumph.
"You… honestly."
Shuuichi shook his head. The kid did have outstanding talent, and after nearly half a year of targeted training, his physique had skyrocketed compared to before.
But Ōko's temperament still needed tempering.
"You mastered Shikai only yesterday, and today you're parading through the 9th? What's next—when you learn Bankai (Final Release), you'll say 'don't bully the young and poor' right to the captains' faces?"
"Heh, not impossible, Shuuichi-sama!" Ōko scratched his head and grinned, apparently missing Shuuichi's subtext. "You once took on five captains without losing ground. When I get Bankai, I've gotta do at least two-on-one, or I'd be letting you down, right?"
"You want two-on-one?" Shuuichi shot him a look. "If you can beat one, thank the heavens."
He had hoped to deflate Ōko's swelling confidence a little—
but Ōko's eyes lit up instead. "So even you believe that once I master Bankai, I'm sure to defeat a captain and become a captain myself, right?!"
A line of question marks marched across Shuuichi's face. How were they not on the same channel?
"Think whatever you like. Did you prepare the items I asked for?"
Shuuichi let it drop. In a sense, Ōko wasn't wrong.
According to how things might go, Yushima Ōko could indeed become terrifying—handling several captain-class Shinigami alone would be routine.
If you considered his almost pseudo-invincible zanpakutō ability, a bit more reiatsu and he might even arm-wrestle an old guard like Kyōraku Shunsui.
"All ready, Shuuichi-sama!"
Ōko nodded and pulled the requested gear from his pack:
A pair of glasses; a facial mold fabricated from reigai (Spirit Body) offcuts; and a mock-up zanpakutō.
Only someone inside the 12th Division could have arranged these.
Kisuke Urahara in the Living World could make them in theory, but freshly defected as he was, he lacked the surplus materials.
As for why Urahara would later enjoy bottomless supplies—Shuuichi figured that was thanks to Yoruichi Shihōin spending a century-plus brazenly "shopping" in and out of Soul Society.
With her status and strength, so long as Yoruichi didn't care about appearances, she could come and go as she pleased. Compared to pre-defection, she might have a few more inconveniences—but not many.
Those without the strength to catch her couldn't; those with the strength generally chose to look the other way.
Aizen wouldn't be an exception—if anything, he'd prefer Kisuke hurry up and "discover" things so he could force Soul Society's hand.
Given the political climate, and how little actual damage Kisuke's escape had caused compared to the Kasumiooji incident, and how quiet they'd stayed since—the Central 46 clearly wanted the matter to fade.
"But, Shuuichi-sama, are you really going to enter Seireitei with me like this?"
Watching Shuuichi don everything—his appearance and aura transformed into someone else entirely—Ōko couldn't help asking.
"Of course. There are things I need to discuss with your current captain, Kurotsuchi Mayuri, in person. If anyone else brings it, your captain won't believe a word."
Shuuichi nodded.
"But…"
Ōko's worry remained. In the end, Shuuichi was a wanted man—famous, at that. Ōko could feign indifference, but if Shuuichi was discovered in Seireitei, Ōko's fate wouldn't be pretty.
He'd only just begun tasting what it meant to be strong. He wasn't about to give that up.
"Relax. I know Seireitei's kekkai (barrier) system well. It flags any entity with a high reishi density, and deploys countermeasures—but it can't actually identify true reiatsu. As long as you cover me as a 12th Division 'experimental subject,' and with my completely altered face, they won't recognize me."
Shuuichi read his mind and soothed him.
Truth be told, if not for that damn barrier system, Shuuichi wouldn't have needed this rigmarole—he would've stormed Seireitei half a year ago.
When he was still a vice-captain, the barrier's existence meant nothing to him. Only after becoming a "traitor" did he appreciate how tricky it was.
Seeing how composed Shuuichi looked, Ōko knew more persuasion was pointless, so he switched tracks. "Alright then, Shuuichi-sama. I'll bring you in tomorrow. For today… training?"
"Of course."
Now fully in disguise, Shuuichi nodded. At the same time, a Reishi construct dropped from the ceiling—its reiatsu calibrated to match Ōko's.
Shuuichi spread his palm and, after the full incantation, a reversed triangular prism of binding reishi snapped into place, sealing Ōko and the construct within.
Bakudō #73: Tōzanshō (Inverted Mountain Crystal).
At Shuuichi's current level, a fully chanted Tōzanshō he erected was not something Ōko could hope to break.
It had become the perfect cage for Ōko's training—enduring the relentless lash of the Reishi construct.
With Ōko sealed for drills, Shuuichi settled back into his seat and picked up the Seireitei Communication he'd only read half of.
To be honest, this magazine—just launched by the new 9th Division Captain, Tōsen Kaname—already had the sheen of a future classic.
And because it was a taichō's project, most captains and fukutaichō had shown support:
— 1st Division Captain Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni on "Precepts of the Bushi."
— 1st Division Lieutenant Sasakibe Chōjirō on Western confections.
— 3rd Division Captain Ichimaru Gin's column, "This Is Too Much."
— 4th Division Captain Unohana Retsu's thoughts on ikebana.
— 5th Division Captain Aizen Sōsuke's calligraphy copybook.
— 13th Division Captain Ukitake Jūshirō's serialized novel "Twin Fish," Chapter One.
… and more.
Shuuichi had never seen most of these captains and lieutenants from these angles. His newest guilty pleasure was savoring each line and imagining what they'd felt as they wrote.
No doubt about it—great fun.
Sometimes he even wondered: if not for that incident forcing him to throw in with Urahara and flee to the Living World, he'd be a captain by now.
What would he serialize?
"Why not a novel titled 'Bleach: Siding with Unohana'?"
With Unohana's popularity, readers would flock to it!
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