Bleach Cfyow Read Online – CHAPTER FOUR – Part 2

HALF AN HOUR LATER, ELEVENTH COMPANY LOUNGE

“Well, that’s basically what we saw. Did that help?”

“Actually, we were pretty much just watching during the fight. Lotta loose ends. Oh, and I kind of hate to admit it, but Nemu’s fight was pretty beautiful.”

Hisagi knitted his eyebrows at Yumichika and Madarame, who had just explained the basics of what had happened. “I already heard that Captain Kurotsuchi was being as nuts as usual. I hope that Nemu heals okay.”

“She’s not really healing. Her new body’s supposed to be done pretty soon.

Akon’s saying that she’ll be whizzing around doing shunpo in a couple of years.”

“I wonder what that’ll look like?” Unable to imagine it, Hisagi cocked his head to the side and didn’t venture any farther on that topic. “So, you’re sure that Captain Kurotsuchi was talking about the Reio’s left arm, right?”

“Yeah, but I have no clue what it all meant.”

Hisagi had heard rumors about the battle and had specifically gone out of his way to ask these two about the details. He was trying to figure out if there was some sort of connection between the Reio’s right arm that had been inside Captain Ukitake and the Reio’s left arm that had, for whatever reason, been with the Vandenreich.

An indigenous deity named Lord Mimihagi had been dwelling inside of

Jushiro Ukitake. If that deity had really been the Reio’s right arm, how had the royal arms come to be severed? The answer might reflect on Ukitake’s dignity, so Hisagi wanted to be clear about the difference between truth and rumor. But as this interview was rapidly making evident, there was a lot of confusion surrounding the situation.

“That guy changed his tune and was saying some pretty weird stuff, wasn’t he? Like ‘always a Quincy’ or something.”

“Huh…?” Hisagi once again knit his brows at Yumichika’s sudden words. “No, that can’t be right. Why would the Reio’s left arm have been a Quincy?

One of the Quincies must have gotten their hands on the Reio’s left arm and absorbed it like Ukitake did or something like that.”

“How should I know? It’s not like we heard the entire conversation.” “Madarame, what do you think?”

“It’s not like I have anything to add about something Yumichika doesn’t understand. Ask Captain Kurotsuchi.”

Hisagi sighed at that point, although he knew they were right. “I’ve tried submitting interview requests for other things like what happened to Kira, but he’s apparently been busy for the last half year. He’s rejected all interviews. Supposedly he’s got a load of new research to do.”

Hisagi realized he sounded like he was complaining and let his shoulders slump. “Well, it’s probably mostly to do with the Seireitei’s reconstruction and Nemu, so I guess that’s just the way things go.”

“Sounds tough. And it’s not like you’re cut out for desk work.”

“It isn’t whether I’m cut out for it or not. Madarame, you wouldn’t listen if someone told you ‘Stop fighting because you’re not cut out for it,’ would you?”

“No way. If somebody tried pulling that on me, I’d start by slicing them up.”

Before he could sigh at Madarame’s disturbing answer, Hisagi remembered something. “Hey, don’t you have a younger sister? When I looked up who was currently in charge of Karakura Town, I was surprised that the name Madarame came up.”

“Yeah, you’re talking about Shino, right? I don’t really know if she’s my sister or my cousin though. Apparently on the very first day she got to Karakura Town, about ten Huge Hollows got the best of her, and Ichigo had to step in.

She’s still got a long way to go. I’m glad I told her that she really wasn’t cut out for Eleventh Company. Can’t have her getting mixed up with the rough boys here.”

Though he said it bluntly, Madarame seemed worried about his maybe-sister.

Before Hisagi had a chance to say anything, Yumichika pointed out exactly what he was thinking. “Well, even a normal Soul Reaper from the Eleventh Company would probably die after facing about a dozen Huge Hollows alone.”

“That’s right, Madarame. Not everyone is like you and Captain Zaraki,” Hisagi interjected ambiguously, eyes looking down.

He was thinking about the time when he was still a student at Shinoreijutsuin Academy. A Huge Hollow had attacked right as he was taking the junior students out to train, and he had lost a friend named Kanisawa.

Hisagi hadn’t been able to do anything at the time, and in the end Aizen and Gin Ichimaru had appeared and scattered the Hollows, and that had been the end of that.

I wonder if I’m as strong now as Aizen and Ichimaru were back then? He admonished himself for the thought, since obtaining strength hadn’t been his intention. Tosen had given him a path after he had learned fear in that fight, and he reminded himself of that now. He also brought to mind the name Kyoraku had mentioned.

Tokinada Tsunayashiro. The man who was the reason Tosen had strayed from his path. Is that guy really going to be head of the Four Great Noble Clans?

“Hey, what’s wrong with you, Hisagi?”

“Huh? Right, sorry. Just thinking about something.” Madarame’s voice brought him back to himself. Hisagi chided himself as he returned to the topic of the Reio’s left arm.

“Did anyone else see the fight? I want to gather as much information as I can.”

“Yeah, there was somebody.”

“Who?” Hisagi, who had been convinced that Madarame and Yumichika had been the only witnesses, asked with interest.

Madarame stated the name of the other person lightly. “I’m pretty sure Yamada was collapsed right next to us. Yeah, he’s that third seat from the Fourth Company.”

≡

HALF AN HOUR LATER, FOURTH COMPANY BARRACKS

“Well, uh…I really was just collapsed and paralyzed…”

Hisagi started to think he was barking up the wrong tree as he cocked his head to the side. Hanataro was staring at his face and twitching for some reason.

During the battle against the Quincy Pernida, who was supposedly the Reio’s left arm, Hanataro had been seized by Mayuri Kurotsuchi’s zanpaku-to abilities, and every muscle in his body had been paralyzed.

“Why are you so scared of my face?”

“Huh? Well, uh…you looked pretty scary earlier when I saw you on the road, so I thought that you might be in a bad mood…”

“Oh, sorry. I was just a little irritated earlier.” Did my face really make it that obvious?

Hisagi contemplated that as he offered a few more words in order to get Hanataro off his trail. “I’ve got to go to the aristocratic district to research some stories some stories after this. I didn’t know how to get started, so I was a little irritated.”

“Huh? You’re going to the aristocratic district?”

“Yeah, I got authorization to enter. But I wasn’t sure which establishment to start with or what to do… Captain Kuchiki and Ms. Yoruichi seem busy too, and all the Central 46 and Aristocratic Assembly procedures seem like a pain.”

He hadn’t said the latter bit to change the topic—he really felt that way.

Although he had gotten permission from Kyoraku to enter the aristocratic district to cover Tokinada, he needed to receive separate permission to cover each aristocratic establishment. Hisagi, who thought that going straight to the Tsunayashiro manor would be premature, had been thinking of starting with the literature in the Dai Reisho Kairo archive that Nayura Amakado oversaw, but—

“Uhh, I actually know someone who knows a lot about the aristocratic district.”

“Huh? In the Fourth Company?”

“N-no…not in the company… But he said he had today off, so I think it would be all right…”

“Huh? Who the heck is it?”

Hanataro seemed somewhat apologetic question as he lowered his head and answered Hisagi’s question uncertainly. “Y-yes…it’s Seinosuke Yamada… My older brother…I think. He just left, so I think he’ll be at home or in the Shino- Seyakuin in the aristocratic district right now.”

“Really! Actually, the rep in the Shino-Seyakuin is named Yamada, isn’t he!? I had no idea he was your brother! He made his way into a lot of articles before I

became the editor-in-chief, so I remember him. Hey, what’s with the ‘I think’?” “…Unlike me, my brother has kaido skill, so…sometimes I wonder if we’re

really related…”

“What’s the use of worrying over that?”

Sighing, Hisagi tried to cheer Hanataro up. “Don’t worry about it. Your kaido reputation is top notch, even according to the Seireitei Bulletin opinion poll.”

“…But… Huh…? M-my brother might have pitied me so much he bribed everyone to vote… S-sorry, I’m so sorry!”

“Why is everyone, including you, Captain Kotetsu, and the entire Fourth Company, so negative about your skills…?”

I wonder if it’s because Unohana was a strong-minded Soul Reaper compared to others. Even as he thought that, just seeing Hanataro’s kaido showed that it was more than strong enough. Even though Hanataro called himself inept, if hard work alone had gotten him to his current level, there shouldn’t have been any hesitation in saying that his gift for kaido was more than sufficient.

Although some of the feedback the Seireitei Bulletin had received said, “His negative facial expression isn’t reassuring,” most of it was about his skills and attitude, and that he was positive when it came to medical treatment.

Even after the war, he had been far from timid. He had gone with Inoue and the others to the front line treatment centers, and all those who had seen him making the rounds had acknowledged that he was a respectable Soul Reaper.

Hisagi, who had been among those people, thought again about Hanataro’s suggestion. If the guy was the top of the Seyakuin in the aristocratic district, there was a very high chance that he’d know a lot about the aristocrats and their reputations. In that case, making a connection there definitely wouldn’t hurt.

Well, if he’s Hanataro’s brother, he’s got to be friendly. Assuming it would be an easy meeting and feeling positive about it, Hisagi decided to take Hanataro up on his proposal. “Sorry, Hanataro, but it’d be a lifesaver if you could introduce me to your brother.”

He had no idea how drastically that decision would change his fate.

≡

AT THE SAME TIME,

FIRST COMPANY BARRACKS

While Hisagi had been meeting with Hanataro, another meeting had been unfolding simultaneously in the First Company barracks.

“Been a while, Shunsui. Since you sent me to the Maggot’s Nest, right?”

Tokinada Tsunayashiro had entered the First Company barracks with a large entourage and ordered everyone to clear the room so he could have a one-on-one with the Thirteen Court Guard Companies’ Captain General.

“Has it been? I heard that you were under house arrest for several hundred years.”

“That’s a foolish story. The head family was embarrassed that they had to charge me with a crime and were attempting to pretend I never existed. If that was their plan, they should have just given me an official judgment and executed me or exiled me instead. And what were the results of hesitating to banish a criminal from their home? Just look, that very criminal stole everything from them.”

If one listened to just his words, they could be taken for self-deprecation. But Tokinada spoke with a full smile on his face, and Kyoraku gathered that the man was genuinely mocking all of the previous members of the Tsunayashiro family.

“So can I take that as a confession that you plotted to get rid of your predecessor?”

“Of course not. Can’t you tell I’m just being sarcastic?” Tokinada smiled wryly then narrowed his eyes. “But supposing that were the case, I am already head of the family. Even if something surfaces later, it will be a simple job to hush it up. It won’t be just a reduced sentence like the time I killed my friend and wife. I can make it as though the crime itself never occurred.”

“Would it really go that well? The current Central 46 are very different than the ones in the past.”

“But aristocratic society itself hasn’t changed, has it?” “…”

“Even though they were nearly decimated by the horde of Quincies and did nothing but hide, most of the aristocrats in the Seireitei still haven’t found it within themselves to change. What has changed is those of you who have experienced the world, such as you and Kuchiki, and a part of the Shihoin family. Having just two of the Four Great Noble Clans fight on the front lines was laughable. If you include the Shiba family as part of the Five Great Noble Clans, I suppose that would make it three.”

The Five Great Noble Clans. They were the first five families, supposedly involved in the creation of the Soul Society, and included the Shiba family,

which had completely fallen to ruin in recent years.

The Tsunayashiro family was considered to be the head of the five clans. And once you excluded the Soul King and Squad Zero, who all eschewed politics, the Tsunayashiro could be said to be the most influential beings in the Seireitei.

The current head of that Tsunayashiro family twisted his mouth into a vulgar smile. “Of course I haven’t changed in all these years. And that includes my grudge against you, Shunsui Kyoraku.”

“That grudge is mistakenly directed. I stopped you because you were headed toward committing a crime.”

“You completely blindsided me. I was planning to pretend to be the grieving husband whose friend and wife betrayed him with no one the wiser. But I had no idea that a man like you who chases after women’s behinds would be so shrewd and competent. Really now, you did quite a job exposing my crime.” The twisted smile remained on Tokinada’s face as he indifferently spoke of the past.

“I didn’t expose anything at all. As soon as I came to the conclusion that you must have killed your friend at the end of an argument and then killed your wife when she rebuked you, all the evidence was in the testimonies.”

Having said that, Kyoraku gave the noble something of an apology. “There’s something I need to ask your pardon for.”

“Are you apologizing to me? I can’t imagine that you’re going to say sorry and ask my forgiveness for revealing my crimes, are you?”

Kyoraku shook his head lightly and looked at the man from the Four Great Noble Clans with sober eyes.

Had Tokinada’s aristocratic escorts still been with him, they would have been in an uproar over the disrespect in the way Kyoraku was looking at him.

Kyoraku pinned the noble with his eyes and spoke dispassionately of his own crime. “To be honest, until I knew the truth, I kind of suspected you of inciting the rebellion caused by Rukia’s scheduled execution. I thought you might have been working behind the scenes at Central 46 and given her a harsher punishment than she otherwise would have received.”

“Oh my. So was I about to be blamed for a crime because of Aizen? But what would have made you suspect me? I had no reason to kill Rukia Kuchiki. Why, I’ve never even met her.”

“The Kuchiki weren’t the only ones talking when Byakuya Kuchiki married Hisana, a resident of the Rukongai, or when he tried to adopt Rukia. The Tsunayashiro raised objections too. If someone like you had put in a word after you’d been reinstated, you could have done something secretly through the

Tsunayashiro family.”

“Like I said, I had no reason to say anything in the first place, did I?”

Tokinada shrugged as Kyoraku said, “You didn’t need a reason. You did it just to pass the time, to rile people up. Especially the aristocrats you happen to dislike the most.”

“…”

“You’d go that far just to upset people. Isn’t that your true nature, Tokinada?” “Stand down, Shunsui. Are you sure you want to talk about me like that when

you’re only the Captain General of the Thirteen Court Guard Companies?” Tokinada, contrary to his implication, had a full smile on his face. It was as though he were commending Kyoraku for getting everything exactly right.

Kyoraku didn’t smile back. He simply asked flatly, “And so? What business brought you all the way up here? If you have complaints about the Court Guard, I’d rather you send those through the Gilded Seal Aristocratic Assembly or the Central 46.”

“Oh, it’s a simple matter. I want you to get in touch with some people for me.

Yoruichi Shihoin doesn’t seem to receive communications through the aristocratic network. Even the Gilded Seal Aristocratic Assembly don’t know where she is. Kuchiki is another matter entirely, but you should at least know how to get in touch with that shrew, am I right?”

Tokinada handed Kyoraku a paper with a message for Yoruichi written on it.

Kyoraku remained expressionless as he ran his eyes down the message. “She’s already given up her position as head of the family to her brother Yushiro. What are you scheming?”

“Nothing in particular. I just have a very straightforward proposal for the sake of fostering harmony in the Soul Society—no, for the sake of harmony in the world of the living and Hueco Mundo too.”

The Captain General grew even more suspicious at Tokinada’s words, which Kyoraku knew he could not trust in the slightest. “Is that really the only reason you came?”

“I also came to see your face. We’ve been whittled down quite a bit these days, our generation from the Reijutsuin Academy. It’s stirred up my resentment.”

Tokinada’s smile didn’t reveal whether he was serious or joking. Then he added, as though he had just remembered, “Oh that’s right! Ukitake croaked, didn’t he?”

“…”

“How glorious for the poor in the Rukongai that he kept the Reio’s right arm in his vulgar body.”

Tokinada spoke as though he were trying to provoke Kyoraku, but Kyoraku didn’t rise to the bait and instead asked, “Kugo Ginjo—do you know that name?”

“Yes. If I recall correctly, he was the first deputy Soul Reaper, wasn’t he? I heard that he was that rabid dog who betrayed the Seireitei. But I suppose he set the precedent that got us our hero Ichigo Kurosaki. So Ukitake got the quality he paid for there. But why would you ask me about that man?”

“I was just confirming a little something. And you shouldn’t discount Ukitake’s preparedness that way.”

Tokinada shrugged again and, as though to indicate that he was done talking, turned his back on Kyoraku. “Nothing in this world is precious, especially in the Soul Society where everything is a fraud.”

He took a few steps forward, then stopped and turned to look at a corner of the captain’s room. “Oh, and I’ll let you in on this—Of course I didn’t have anything to do with your mother’s execution, Nanao Ise.”

In the corner of the room, at the back of a space that seemed empty, a presence held its breath.

“It’s not as though I’m the shadowy mastermind behind everything. If I’d had authority back then, I wouldn’t have made it such an easy end. I would have teased her as much as possible, the way Rukia Kuchiki was tormented, and made a big deal out of killing her. And I would have given Kyoraku a front row seat in the Garden of Judgment.”

Tokinada smiled fiendishly at the empty space and then added, “I wonder if Kyoraku would have gone so far as to destroy the gallows for your mother the way someone did for Rukia Kuchiki? Would he have tried to save her even if it made the Seireitei his enemy, the way Ichigo Kurosaki did? I think it unlikely. Kyoraku would have failed your mother. He would have abandoned her. And he would have done it to protect you, Nanao Ise!”

“Could you wrap up talking to yourself, Lord Tokinada head of Tsunayashiro house?” Though it sounded like one of Kyoraku’s usual easygoing jokes, Tokinada sensed a cold spiritual pressure, like submerged ice, from the feigned politeness of Kyoraku’s tone.

At that realization, Tokinada narrowed his eyes, then put his hand on the zanpaku-to at his hip as he continued. “Oh, how frightening. I wouldn’t want to be pulled into the depths to have my throat cut. I’ll take my leave for today.”

After confirming that Tokinada and his entourage had indeed left the barracks, Kyoraku stepped toward the corner of the captain’s room and lightly batted at the empty space with his hand. The space contorted like fabric, and Nanao’s pale face appeared from behind the twisted image of the room’s scenery. She was in a cold sweat, and Kyoraku grasped her quivering shoulders and enveloped her in warm spiritual pressure to console her.

“Are you all right, Nanao?”

“Y-yes… I apologize, Captain General.”

“I can’t believe you set yourself up to eavesdrop without me noticing. You’ve grown so much! Is this Lisa’s influence?” It was possible that he mentioned Lisa Yadomaru, once an assistant captain and now being eyed as a candidate for the eighth company captainship, to reassure Nanao with thoughts of a familiar face.

Nanao Ise knew Kyoraku was being thoughtful of her feelings. She regained her pep and calmed her breathing.

“You must have been scared. On top of that behavior of his, he has an unpleasant spiritual pressure.”

“I wasn’t able to move when I was immersed in the late Captain General Yamamoto’s spiritual pressure, but this was completely different.” If Genryusai Yamamoto’s wrath had made her feel like a frog being stared down by a snake, then this recent moment had been more like a snake being slithered on by a slug and melted by its slime.

The bottomless eeriness of that spiritual pressure had eaten away at Nanao’s mind more than the irritation at having her mother’s memory used to insult Kyoraku had.

It wasn’t just the pressure’s unknowable nature that frightened her.

Tokinada’s ability to see through her concealment technique when even Kyoraku hadn’t been able to made Nanao shiver faintly as she spoke with what little voice she had left. “Captain…I’m against it…I’m against him becoming the head of the Four Great Noble Clans.”

Kyoraku considered how long it had been since Nanao had expressed her own opinion on personnel as he quietly tilted his face up.

“I’m right there with you.”

Then, as he thought about the request he had been given to contact Yoruichi, he said to himself, “This has really stirred up trouble—a lot of it.”

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