I
Responding to the message conveyed to them by the trusty hell butterflies, nine captains of the 13 Court Guard Squads made their way to Squad 1, where the Head Captain had summoned a meeting.
“As you all know,” Yamamoto said once everyone had settled down, “we are short on three captains. The Captain of Squad 3 died a few years ago, the Captain of Squad 5 was promoted to the Royal Guard just recently, and the Captain of Squad 9 was killed in the World of the Living. I am happy to inform you that we have found new captains for two of these three squads. The Captain’s Test was conducted, and these candidates were found eligible. Enter, Captain of Squad 9.”
The double doors opened and in walked Yoruichi Shihoin, her full-sleeved captain’s haori with the number nine printed on its back billowing majestically behind her as she walked up to the Head Captain.
Soifon couldn’t suppress a gasp of surprise.
“Lady Yoruichi...!”
Even Byakuya couldn’t help but regard Yoruichi with confusion in his eye.
“Welcome back, Yoruichi Shihoin. Central 46 has given you another chance. I hope you don’t gamble this one,” Yamamoto said.
“Don’t worry, Head Captain. There won’t be need for me to repeat my earlier actions.”
“Very well, then. You may take your place between Captains Komamura and Zaraki.”
Yoruichi wordlessly walked over to her assigned spot and stood with her eyes shut, for it made her uncomfortable to look at her neighbors, who were both a great deal taller than she was.
“You used to be the Commander of the Stealth Force, huh? Wonder if you’re any good at fighting,” Zaraki sneered.
Yoruichi adjusted the golden scarf around her neck superciliously, but didn’t deign to respond to Zaraki.
When Zaraki was about to make another comment, the Head Captain spoke.
“We have also found an eligible captain for Squad 5. Enter,” he said.
Kisuke Urahara entered through the double doors that Yoruichi had left open.
“Close the door,” Yamamoto commanded.
Starting slightly—since he tended to become nervous whenever he was looked upon critically by a large group of people—Urahara shut the doors as noiselessly as he could, and walked up to the Head Captain, much less dauntless than Yoruichi had been a few minutes before.
Urahara was by no means an intrepid man when the matter involved the Soul Society or its elements. He felt a lot safer at his store. But Central 46’s order was Central 46’s order—something that couldn’t be disregarded that easily. Of course, had Urahara not wanted to return, they would have an infernally hard time looking for him. Somewhere deep inside, he wanted to return to the Soul Society, and he’d have been a fool to turn down an invitation to return—possibly a greatest honor a soul can get aside from beind crowned Spirit King by a popular vote.
“What’s he doing here?” Mayuri spat, pointing a deprecating finger at his former boss, the likes of whom he had hoped he wouldn’t have to see ever again when Urahara had flecied the Soul Soty and left the entire Department of Research and Development, as well as the 12th Squad, at his disposal.
“Hold your tongue, Captain Kurotsuchi,” the Head Captain said in irritation. “I have neither the time nor the patience to put up with your peevishness. Now, where were we? Yes. Captain Urahara, Captain of Squad 5, you have returned upon condition that you shall not perform experiments that threaten the peace of the Soul Society.”
Urahara nodded.
“What happened that time was purely an accident.”
Yamamoto ignored him.
“You may take your place next to Captain Komamura.”
Urahara went and stood next to the Captain of Squad 7. He would have been asked to stand between two people had there been a Captain of Squad 3. Unfortunately for him, his position rendered him completely exposed to the Head Captain’s scrutinizing eye.
“As for Squad 3, I am afraid it shall have to wait. We have not found a captain for it yet,” Yamamoto said. “And now, I will tell you of some very important alterations that myself and Central 46 have made to the 13 Court Guard Squads. As you know, the Quincies—humans with extraordinary powers that were banished from the Soul Society years ago—have become active. It has become imperative that we expand our forces. Therefore, Captain Shihoin has not only been made Captain of Squad 9, but also Commander of the Stealth Force.”
Yoruichi had the distinct impression of being the center of attention at that moment.
Somewhere deep inside, Soifon felt humiliated. The Head Captain had stripped her of the title and given it to someone else just like that, and in front of all the other captains, too. But the greater part of her agreed that Yoruichi deserved the title more than she did, and was more than willing to surrender it to her.
“Captain Soifon, on the other hand,” proceeded Yamamoto, “shall be Commander of the Punishment Force. Heretofore, both the Punishment Force and the Stealth Force referred to a singular group of people. Now, the Stealth Force has been expanded and divided into two divisions for more efficiency. The Punishment Force’s task, as you would have guessed, is to battle and eliminate anyone who poses a threat to the peace of the Soul Society. The Stealth Force, on the other hand, shall carry out missions involving espionage and reconnaissance and their likes. Any questions?”
There were none, although that could attribute itself to the fact that nobody could gather the courage to ask anything.
“Very well, then,” Yamamoto said. “Let us get down to business immediately. There was a third order from Central 46 that I have not disclosed to you yet. We have been ordered to cooperate with the Hollows under Sosuke Aizen. They, too, have been issued similar orders by Central 46. I have invited Aizen and his immediate subordinates to the Seireitei. They should be here in another week or so. Any questions?”
“Just one, Old Man Yama,” Kyoraku said, raising his hand; “Why do we have to work together with the Hollows?”
“It is Central 46’s order,” Yamamoto said curtly.
“That isn’t what I meant.”
“It’s only logical, since the Quincies are inimical toward the Hollows, and the latter group functions under Central 46’s command, just as we do. Did you not know? As a rule, a minimum of twenty and a maximum of twenty-three members of Central 46 at any point are Hollows. In any case, the Quincies despise both of us. They are our mortal enemies, and of the Hollows, as well. Moreover, they are terribly powerful, since—and this is something we should be ashamed of—they stole the documents containing information on achieving immortality that the Department of Research and Development made.” Yamamoto explained, and Mayuri straightened his cravat uncomfortably. “They are several times stronger then when they were first banished from the Soul Society. It is unlikely that we alone could defeat them.”
Silence ensued as everyone was trying to imagine what sort of powers these enhanced Quincies could possess.
“Head Captain,” Unohana said, “as I recall, there was a Quincy boy among the Ryoka that invaded the Soul Society during Rukia Kuchiki's execution.”
Before Yamamoto could say anything, Mayuri let out a derisive laugh.
“Do you really think a group as powerful as the Quincies would keep someone as weak as that boy among their ranks?”
“It’s funny you should say that, Kurotsuchi,” Zaraki said. “I heard that kid beat the crap out of you.”
Kurotsuchi snorted in indgnation.
“I deliberately held back because I wanted him as my research subject.” This was true to an extent. “And if I hadn’t spent so much time studying him and his manner of attacking, do you think I would have realized that the boy was not among the Quincies that the Soul Society fears so much? Of course, nobody except me could have noticed that the boy’s manner of using the bow was more than slightly different from the way the Enhanced Quincies handle them. He is obviously estranged from the Quincies.”
“Is that right?” Zaraki said, sneering. “Or is that an excuse you came up with just so people don’t think you were defeated by the enemy?”
“Why you—!”
“That’s enough,” the Head Captain said sternly, hitting the ground with his staff.
“Captain Ukitake,” he proceeded when silence was restored, turning the Captain of Squad 13, “I would like you to go down to the World of the Living and bring back the Substitute Soul Reaper, Ichigo Kurosaki, and his friends. Their help is invaluable.”
“Yes, Sensei,” Ukitake said.
“Very well,” Yamamoto said; “This meeting had now ended. Return to your respective squads and carry on with your work normally until further notice.”
As the captains dispersed from the Head Captain’s chamber, Yoruichi walked over to Byakuya, unknowingly evading Soifon, who was desperately trying to engage her in conversation.
“So, Byakuya-bo,” Yoruichi said, “how’s life?”
The time she had spent in the World of the Living reflected in her language, which Byakuya was unfamiliar with.
“One is either alive, or dead,” he replied vaguely.
Yoruichi laughed loudly as she was wont to do.
“You’re so funny sometimes, you know? What I meant was, How are you?”
“Alive.”
“Oh, so now we’re wisecracking, are we? I see that the shadows of your past still linger underneath your stoic exterior.”
“What is your point?” Byakuya said, not looking at Yoruichi.
“My point? Why should there be any point in a conversation between friends?”
“Your friend is calling you, by the way,” Byakuya said, alluding to Urahara, who was waving at Yoruichi. “And my office is in the other direction.”
Yoruichi stared after Byakuya as he walked away, not turning back even once or showing any sign of being happy that Yoruichi was back.
“Can you believe him, Kisuke?” Yoruichi said. “It’s like he never even knew me!”
“Yeah, well,” Urahara said, adjusting his hat, which was an exact replica of the one he wore while in the World of the Living, except for its being black all over to match his Soul Reaper uniform. He’d be a clown with no self-respect or a sense of fashion to wear the white one with green stripes in the Soul Society. And what was worse, the Head Captain might feel offended by his flippancy.
“What were you saying, Kisuke?”
Urahara smiled.
“It’s good to be back, isn’t it? Returning after living like an outcast for a hundred years feels like a being relieved of a terrible cramp.”
“I see what you mean,” Yoruichi said.
“The only downside is that I won’t be able to experiment as often and as freely. It’s not fair that you get your old office back and I don’t.”
Yoruichi smirked.
“The Head Captain obviously thought someone as clumsy you could turn the Soul Society upside down once again.”
“What do you mean, Once again, huh?”
“Later, Kisuke. I have to meet with my new squad now. You should do the same.”
“Yeah, I guess I should,” Urahara said, straightening his hat and walking off toward Squad 5’s building, his clogs making loud sounds against the hardwood floor.
Yoruichi walked off toward her own squad. Her lieutenant had better not a be a wuss like Soifon’s. Maybe her former apprentice could tolerate douchebags with no fighting skills, but she couldn’t.
She sighed in relief, therefore, when she was told by Captain Unohana that her lieutenant was a scarred and tattooed hunk.
“His name is Shūhei Hisagi,” Unohana said as she walked alongside Yoruichi, “and he is a very nice boy. Determined in battle, yet soft and gentle on the inside.”
The soft-and-gentle element was the last thing Yoruichi was looking for in a lieutenant. However, Unohana and she parted ways before she could say anything in response.
Yoruichi sighed. Day 1, and she already had to effect the intensive training session she hadn’t planned on starting until at least a week after her she was appointed Captain.
*
Unohana hadn’t been overstating when she had described Shūhei’s appearance to Yoruichi: the boy had more scars than she could count. And not small, insignificant ones, but real, deep scars.
The first thing one noticed when they saw Shūhei for the first time wasn’t the suggestive 69 tattoo on his cheek, but the scars. A perceptive person would extrapolate from that that Shūhei was either incredibly brave or really slow to flee from danger. Yoruichi, judging from what Unohana had told her (that Shūhei was soft and gentle on the inside), was predisposed to believe that it was the latter case with Shūhei.
“Welcome to Squad 9, Captain Shihoin,” Shūhei said once Yoruichi had settled down in her office.
“Thanks,” Yoruichi said, and was about to impetuously tell Shūhei to refer to her simply as Yoruichi, but checked her in time, realizing that she was a captain once again, and Soifon was the only subordinate of hers who was ever permitted to refer to her using her first name.
“You will find in the drawer of your desk a list of things you have to do—”
“Excuse me?”
“I mean, you’ll find everything you need in the drawers of your desk.”
Yoruichi nodded.
“Anything else?”
“Yes,” Shūhei said; “Squad 9 is also in charge of the weekly, The Seireitei News Magazine. Every week you have to—”
“You take care of that.”
“But—”
“I don’t like writing.”
“Yes, Captain.”
*
When Urahara met his lieutenant, Momo Hinamori, he got the impression that she was sexually and regularly harassed at home. She was meek to the point of appearing to belong to the same species as Ururu—his kid assistant back in the World of the Living—and looked as though she could start crying buckets at the drop of a hat.
Urahara unconsciously straightened his hat.
He proceeded cautiously, not intending to make his lieutenant cry on his first day as Captain.
“So... er, I’m your captain now,” Urahara said.
Momo sniffled and wiped a tear from her eye.
Urahara tensed.
“W-what’s wrong?”
Before he knew it, Momo began crying.
“Er, Momo...?”
Momo flung herself onto Urahara.
“I’m... sorry...” she said through sobs. “It’s just that... I miss my old captain a lot. She was... like a mother to me. She’s retired...”
Now, why did that sound familiar to Urahara? Oh, yeah. Because he was always the one stuck with a bereaved lieutenant when their captain was promoted to the Royal Guard.
“It’s okay,” Urahara said, patting Momo on the back like a father who has no experience in parenting.
“No, it’s not!” Momo persisted, crying harder.
“Why not?”
“You’ll find everything you need... in the drawer of your desk.”
“Oh?”
“Yes,” Momo said, drenching Urahara’s robes with her tears; “I’m sure you’ll be a very nice captain.” She began crying even harder.
“Thanks.”
“Don’t mention it.”
And just when Urahara thought the girl couldn’t cry any harder, she kicked it up a notch.
Urahara made a mental note that in order to keep his lieutenant happy, he must consistently convey bad news to her—the worse the news, the better—since she seemed to be an emo at heart.
II
“Captain!” Rukia exclaimed.
“Captain Ukitake? What’re you doing here?” Ichigo said in surprise when he saw the white-haired captain of Squad 13 standing outside his bedroom window.
“Let me in and I’ll tell you,” he said, alluding to the fact that the window was locked from Ichigo’s side.
Ichigo let Ukitake in.
“So tell me, what’s going on? Is it... the Quincies again? Heard them say something about it the last time.”
Ukitake nodded.
“The Quincies have been growing more and more powerful. Central 46 has issued several orders,” Ukitake asseverated, “and that’s where you come in.”
“What orders are you talking about?”
Ukitake told him everything, starting from the appointment of their two newest captains, to the point where Aizen and the Hollows came in.
“So,” Rukia said, “Ichigo, Orihime, Chad, Uryū and I need to go the Soul Society as soon as we can?”
Ichigo was still digesting the fact that Urahara and Yoruichi had appointed captains again.
“The three humans can use the Senkaimon with the Reishi-convertor at Urahara’s store. He said that Tessai would be there to set up the gate. He also said that he would be spending a couple of hours every week in the World of the Living, so there is no need for you to be angry with him for abandoning Karakura Town.”
“I see,” Ichigo said. “And that’s that?”
“That’s that.”
“Then let’s go to the Soul Society without wasting any more time,” Rukia said.
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