At the break of dawn the next day, Mirai arrived right on time at the meeting point outside Junrinan.
A large number of Shinigami had already gathered, cleanly split into two distinct groups.
On one side stood the 13th Division—impressive in scale. From seated officers down to the rank-and-file, it looked as if nearly everyone had been mobilized.
The size of the formation alone made one thing obvious: the situation in the World of the Living was anything but optimistic. They needed an overwhelming amount of manpower for guidance and Konsō.
At the front of the 13th, Mirai spotted a serious young man with short black hair.
Shiba Kaien, 3rd Seat.
The 13th Division didn't have a Lieutenant at the moment. Captain Ukitake Jūshirō was absent due to illness, which meant Kaien was effectively leading this mission.
He was speaking quietly with several seated officers, coordinating assignments for the moment they passed through the gate.
Across from them stood the members of the 11th Division.
They were fewer than the 13th, but every one of them looked brimming with energy. Their eyes gleamed with anticipation, as if they were headed to a festival rather than a mission.
Captain Kuruyashiki Kenpachi hadn't arrived yet. Lieutenant Ashido stood silently at the front of their line, steady as stone.
Kaien was only a 3rd Seat, but he had experience and ability. Still, a Captain from the 11th Division was participating in this joint operation. By tradition, overall command belonged to Kuruyashiki Kenpachi.
And Kuruyashiki had a very particular personality—so the detailed planning and logistics were likely being handled by the calm, dependable Ashido.
Kaien didn't object. He maintained a cooperative attitude throughout.
Mirai remained an outsider. He stood at the edge of the area on purpose, neither joining the 13th Division nor standing near the 11th. He kept a subtle distance, as if refusing to belong to either side.
His gaze shifted to the center of the grounds.
It wasn't the standard platform used for a permanent Senkaimon.
Instead, a machine of mismatched metal parts and crude circuit boards sat there like a messy heap someone had forced into working order. It gave off a faint hum, and small lights crawled across its surface in restless lines.
A familiar small figure with short blonde hair bounced around it.
Tools in hand, she smacked and adjusted components while shouting nonstop:
"Hey! You—over there! The Reishi output loop is wired wrong! You want the gate to collapse halfway through, baldy!?"
"And you! So what if you're a Lieutenant? If you mess up basic parameters, you fix it! What, you trying to kill someone mid-transfer?!"
"Everyone shut up and listen to me! All of you—bald morons!"
The sharp, angry cries of "Baldy!" rang clearly through the crisp morning air.
Mirai's face twitched every time she yelled.
Still, he took a slow breath and forced the urge to comment back down.
In the next instant, his expression settled into cold indifference. Back straight, posture composed, he looked distant and unbothered—like someone trained not to react.
The 12th Division was responsible for setting up and maintaining the Senkaimon this time.
The blonde girl had outstanding technical skill and a terrible temper. She was Sarugaki Hiyori, the new 5th Seat of the 12th Division.
She moved briskly through the machine's tangled structure. Her mouth was foul, but her work was neat—orderly, precise, and fast. Even in chaos, her hands never hesitated.
A moment later, she slammed a control panel and barked:
"Done! Start it up!"
The messy machine shuddered violently. Circuits across every section lit up at once as streams of energy ran through the pathways.
Vmmm—!
The air in front of it began to churn, producing a low, heavy sound that pressed against the ears.
Light drew inward, folding and tightening, until a slowly rotating black vortex formed in midair—steady, dense, and unmistakably open.
"Finished!"
Hiyori planted her hands on her hips and lifted her chin.
"This is a new model. Stable runtime's up to one hour! Impressive, right? I helped overhaul this whole thing!"
But no one sounded surprised, and no one praised her.
Most of the Shinigami from the 13th and 11th Divisions simply stared at the gate. They swallowed, nodded, and returned to their preparations.
These were veteran Shinigami who traveled frequently between the World of the Living and Soul Society. To them, there wasn't much difference between a gate lasting ten minutes and one lasting an hour. They only needed a few minutes to cross.
An extended runtime sounded nice, but it didn't feel essential.
Hiyori's expression soured. She clicked her tongue under her breath.
"Hmph. Bunch of baldies who don't understand technology…"
Just then—
Clap. Clap. Clap.
Clear, steady applause cut through the quiet.
Everyone turned.
Mirai stood there, hands coming together with deliberate calm, wearing a faint smile of genuine appreciation.
He stepped toward the machine and Hiyori, offered a slight nod, and spoke clearly:
"That is a truly impressive improvement."
His words drew attention immediately.
"Increasing a Senkaimon's stable runtime from ten minutes to one hour isn't just a change in numbers."
Mirai looked at the rotating vortex, his expression serious.
"It means the Reishi architecture has reached a higher level of structural integrity. The circuits are more stable, the energy output is smoother, and the spatial corridor is far more secure."
He turned to Hiyori, his praise measured—but sincere.
"This kind of reliability reduces the risk of transfer accidents. For example… in the past, Shinigami were occasionally thrown off-course and 'lost' in the Dangai—or sent into unknown locations—due to instability in the corridor."
His eyes narrowed slightly, as if weighing the implication.
"With this level of stability, that probability should drop sharply. It may even disappear entirely."
He paused, then concluded:
"For everyone who travels between the two worlds on a regular basis, this is a real improvement to safety. It is genuinely well done."
Only after Mirai finished did the other Shinigami finally react.
That was true. The gate had been unstable before. People had been lost. Rarely—but it happened.
If the corridor was more stable, it wasn't just convenience. It was insurance.
At first, the clapping was scattered.
Then more hands joined.
The applause spread.
Hearing it—and seeing Mirai's sincerity—Hiyori's gloom vanished instantly.
She lifted her chin, pride returning, and her tone softened despite herself:
"Hmph. At least you've got some taste. And stability is only step one. Next is portability and rapid deployment. When that happens…"
She abruptly stopped. Her expression tightened.
As if remembering something she very much didn't want to remember in front of everyone, she reached into her clothes and pulled out two books.
A hardcover edition of The Loneliness and Arrogance of a Genius Youth and a brand-new copy of The Killer of Meteor City.
Staring at the ground and refusing to meet Mirai's eyes, she thrust them toward him. Her voice came out quiet and strained:
"Sign… Sign them."
Mirai's eyes lit up.
In an instant, he put on a flawless "fan service" smile.
He took the books, took a pen out of his clothes and signed quickly. Underneath the signature, he added a small sketch of a flower as decoration.
"Here. Please keep them safe."
"Thank you very much for liking my work. Your support is my greatest motivation to keep creating."
Hiyori snatched the books back and shoved them into her clothes as if afraid someone might see them.
Then, to hide her embarrassment, she snapped her head up and shouted at the Shinigami:
"What are you staring at?! Move it! Even if the gate's stable, it still consumes Reiryoku! Learn to save energy! You bunch of baldies!"
After that, she darted behind the machine to hide. Only her blonde hair was still visible.
Mirai watched her for a moment, smiling.
Then he turned away.
The instant he did, the warmth vanished. His face became cold.
Without looking at anyone, he walked towards the spinning black vortex and entered the Senkaimon, disappearing from view.