(If you are wondering why chapter 6 and not chapter 1 please read the first part of the book it has 5 chapters and this the continuation)
Karakura Town,
Mitsumiya
In the past few years, the land of Karakura Town has become extraordinarily important to the Soul Society. It has been known as a Jureichi—a concentrated spirit zone—for quite some time and has even been in the sights of Sosuke Aizen. Karakura Town is the place where Isshin Shiba once met a human woman during a conflict, resulting in the birth of the man who would change the history of the Soul Society. But even before that, the town was known as a place to be wary of because it often spawned Hollows. Whether it has any relation to those things is unknown, but a unique shop that can be found in no other place exists on this land: the enigmatic candy store known as Urahara Shoten.
Even among the residents of the neighborhood, not a single person has certain knowledge of just when the store first appeared; however, none find that odd, and the shop seems to meld into the scenery of the town without the slightest sense of being out of place.
The primary minders of the store include an incredibly large and brawny man, some children who are believed to be relatives, and a mysterious man who occasionally makes an appearance and wears a hat pulled down over his face.
The residents of Karakura Town know the store as a place that carries an extensive range of sweets, including trendy confections, sweets bundled with toys from small manufacturers that are only familiar to connoisseurs, and truly suspicious, odd candies that do not seem to be sourced from legitimate manufacturers. The store is seen as a hidden gem that only a few candy collectors in the know are aware of, essentially an old shop set on a road with little foot traffic.
However, there are a select few who recognize the shop as something else. To those who know about the existence of Hollows and Soul Reapers, this store serves an entirely different purpose. The place is both a temple to run to when one finds oneself in a troublesome tango with a dangerous spirit and a place in which one can sever ties with any previous mentality one has conformed to during the peaceful days until that moment.
Karakura Town's underground bigwig uses the store to manage spiritual issues related to the town's being a Jureichi. This man, once the captain of the Soul Society's Twelfth Company, is the sweets shop manager whom the surrounding residents know as a curious man who looks dapper with his pulled-down hat. However, all those who are aware of the man's true power know him as the one who established the Seireitei's Department of Research and Development and its first director: Kisuke Urahara.
"So, I was thinking that's how I'd introduce you, Mr. Urahara."
"Oh, Mr. Hisagi…I'm impressed you could keep a straight face reading that all the way to the end." Kisuke Urahara—the man who wore his hat pulled far over his eyes—held a folding fan over his mouth as he responded to Shuhei Hisagi, who had deliberately read the entirety of a preprepared manuscript.
"Huh? Was there something that shouldn't be in it?"
"No, I wouldn't say that, but don't you think that introduction is aimed more for people in the world of the living? I'm not sure the people over there would have much interest in Karakura Town."
"Ah… I wanted to use this as an opportunity to explain what Karakura Town is again, but I also didn't know how much I could write about your past with the Soul Society…"
Hisagi apologetically lowered his head. To him, Urahara was someone who had saved the Soul Society from crisis countless times. Since he had also been a superior among superiors in the Thirteen Court Guard Companies, Hisagi just couldn't operate on equal footing with him. As an assistant captain, he had looked into the man's personal history from several hundred years ago. Urahara had been banished from the Soul Society due to a false accusation, which was why they were having this conversation.
"No, no. Looks like you went out of your way on my account. Sorry about that."
"The article is a little long, so I think we'll need to cut some of it when we run it in the magazine."
"Well, of course you'd need to. Oh, but I'm tickled by the phrase 'enigmatic candy shop,' so maybe you could just leave that in there. One way you could go is to pair it with the text 'mystery market.' Also, you can describe me as a 'shady guy' rather than 'mysterious'…" As he said that, Urahara once again turned his eyes to the copy and addressed Hisagi. "So 'Isshin Shiba once met a human woman'… Seems like you're being pretty discreet about this too."
"Yes. I didn't know how far I could delve into that. Well, it doesn't directly relate to you, so I think we'll probably cut it."
Isshin Shiba was Ichigo Kurosaki's father. Though Hisagi was aware from his news coverage that Isshin's wife, Masaki Kurosaki, was a Quincy, he hardly thought that would be a matter he could casually disseminate, so all he could do was represent it in this way.
Though Ichigo himself might not have cared, if it was picked up on by those in the aristocracy who still believed Ichigo Kurosaki was an "outsider," even after all this time, there was a chance they would make some sort of false charge against him. Though the war was over, the Soul Reapers still were fundamentally hostile to the Quincies. Since there were also supporters like the Ishidas—a father and son pair who had lent Ichigo a hand in the decisive battle against Yhwach—the issue might have resolved itself with time. However, at the moment it could be said that making it known to the world that Ichigo Kurosaki's mother was a Quincy would be premature.
"Well, putting that aside, I'd like to thank you for your cooperation today."
Hisagi once again bowed his head to Kisuke Urahara after pulling out an interview recorder that made use of a spirit recording bug. As Hisagi lowered his head humbly, Urahara snapped his folding fan closed and handed the reporter a sheath of papers he pulled from his chest pocket.
"Well, I get it. I've got the answers to everything you wanted to ask, compiled right in here."
"Huh?! But you didn't have to go out of your way…" Though hesitant, Hisagi accepted the papers and ran his eyes down a page. "'The secret formula! How to make Urahara Shoten's original candy, the Hollo-hollo-hollow! First, combine a massive amount of sugar and salt in equal quantities and knead it together with a good dose of honey. This is the most important point! When you add a ton of vegetable oil and butter at this moment, it'll transform the flavor! You'll be crying yourself hollo-hollo-hollow!'"
"Wow, I didn't think you'd actually read that out loud."
Pressing his folding fan against his lips, Urahara slid away backwards. When Hisagi had finally internalized the contents of the page, he uttered, "But this is just some candy recipe! And it seems ridiculously unhealthy too!"
"Yes, it's our secret trick. We can't let it get out of the shop primarily because of those issues with health and flavor!"
"You should have just kept this thing a secret!" Hisagi replied, putting the recipe into his equipment bag nevertheless. "Well, I might be able to use this for news content at some point, so I'll accept it anyway."
"Oh, so that's what you're going to do? Well, you can have it, but you really shouldn't try it yourself. Mr. Hirako will complain about it no matter what it tastes like, so that's what I'd recommend."
"Please, give me a break. I'm going to be the one Captain Hirako yells at if I do that." As Hisagi spoke, he remembered that he'd had a similar conversation with Hirako himself right before coming here.
"Well, if you're headed to Kisuke's then you'll also get to see Hiyori. If you do, make sure to tease her for me."
"Come to think of it, does Miss Sarugaki live around here?"
"You mean Miss Hiyori? I think she's been working part-time for the neighborhood Odd Jobs Service lately. I'm guessing that if you take a march around town, you'll spot her Reiraku spirit ribbons."
"I see. Thank you."
He had said I see since he had been directed by Hirako to "tease her for me"; however, he didn't have a particular reason to go and see her.
Well, wait a sec. I might be able to interview her to get a different point of view.
As Hisagi was thinking that over, Urahara once again spoke while opening his folding fan. "But, to be serious, there isn't anything I can tell you about that war at this point."
"What are you talking about? Because of the pill you made that covered us in Hollow reishi, they couldn't steal our Bankai—and we were able to get into the Reiokyu because of you too."
"Yes, that's why I have nothing else to talk about beyond those facts. I just happened to use a preventative measure I'd cooked up when the moment presented itself. That's all. Actually, I'm the one who should be grateful for being put in a situation where I could implement my plan."
Although Urahara waved his fan as he spoke, Hisagi knew better. The "preventative measure" he happened to have was just one of a thousand—or ten thousand—such plans Urahara had stored up. Or it could have been that he responded to the situation at hand by spontaneously coming up with yet another brilliant tactic.
In order to carry out such a plan, just how much wit and knowledge, not to mention skill and experience, would one need?
There were many people other than Hisagi who wanted to understand the secret essence of Kisuke Urahara, this man of multitudinous mysteries, and what it was about his inner workings that gave him the ability to come up with an infinite number of strategies.
But trying to ask the man himself would likely result in noncommittal answers as he tried to elude the questioner. Moreover, trying to get answers from Yoruichi Shihoin or Mayuri Kurotsuchi, who knew about his past, would present an even more difficult path.
I feel like they'd find a way to dodge any question.
After hearing that Hisagi would be interviewing Kisuke Urahara, Shinji Hirako had said to him, "That guy's not the type who would ever give a direct answer in an interview," and Hisagi could practically sense the aura of total evasiveness coming from Urahara's demeanor. Though one might at first mistake his responses as yielding, one would eventually realize they represented a clear warning for people not to trespass carelessly on his territory. But if Hisagi surrendered now, there wouldn't have been any point to his getting formal permission and sealing away a part of his power in order to come here to the world of the living.
Hisagi steadied his breath slightly, then said with a serious look in his eyes, "Mr. Urahara… No, former chief of the Department of Research and Development, I came today to expose your past."
When Urahara heard that, the man narrowed his eyes ever so slightly at Hisagi. However, it wasn't enough to constitute a change in expression, and after a moment, he grinned and shrugged.
"Please don't show me your scary side all of a sudden like that, Mr. Hisagi. What'll you do if Jinta bursts out crying from where he's watching from behind the sliding door? He might start wetting his bed again."
In the next moment the sliding door slammed open and a boy with grim eyes who looked to be about middle school age came in, roaring with rage.
"I wouldn't cry and I haven't ever wet my bed, ever, you crummy shopkeep! I'll pummel you!"
Jinta Hanakari, the boy with sharp features and red hair swept to the back of his head, tried to leap right into the room, but a brawny arm seized him around the neck and he ended up writhing in midair, immobilized.
"Ow ow ow. Tessai, you little…!"
"Hmph. You cannot threaten others with violence, Mr. Jinta—especially not in front of a guest."
Holding up the struggling Jinta with a cool expression on his face was a bespectacled giant sporting a brawny physique. Then a girl who also looked to be middle-school age peeked out from behind the man called Tessai and started to tickle Jinta while he was held captive.
"Ha ha ha ha gaha… U-Ururu, you better not be doing that to my feet again… I'll kill ya—ha hwah!"
The girl he had called Ururu was dexterously tickling Jinta's feet with her own hair as the boy suffered all manners of agony. The girl continued to tickle Jinta as she turned to face Hisagi, dipped down into a bow, and said, "I'm sorry. Jinta's body went through a growth spurt, but the same can't be said for his brain…"
"Oh…uh, I don't mind."
After bowing her head one more time, Ururu next turned to face Urahara. "Mr. Kisuke, I'm going to get the bulk purchases done."
"Yes, thank you. We've got to stock up on five hundred kilograms of bouncy balls, so please take Jinta with you to carry the goods."
When Urahara said that with a bright face, Jinta attempted to shout in protest, "Grr…what the heck is with that?! Five hundred kilograms is just comical, no matte—hya ha ha ha ha!"
But with Tessai locking him at the neck and Ururu tickling his feet, Jinta was carried away before he could get his mouth to form a decent reply and was dragged out of the shop.
"Yes, if it's comical, then please laugh your heart out as you do your work. Give it your all!"
As he watched Urahara see off the boisterous group, Hisagi released a large sigh.
"I'm not sure how to put this, but they seem like they've simultaneously changed and stayed just the same… Though when I first saw them, it seemed like that Jinta kid was the one teasing the girl."
"Well, this is when they're going through growth spurts, and Ururu is actually three years older. He used to make fun of her for having 'hair like a cockroach,' so do you think tickling him with her hair is revenge for that?"
"I'm not sure there's any point in asking me that." Though Urahara was clearly attempting to redirect the conversation, Hisagi decided to go along with the shopkeep. "Soul Reaper or human, I just don't get the way kids think."
Then, nonchalantly, he attempted to extract a bit more from Urahara. "The way their Reiraku feel… They both seem to have unique ones."
"That was a bit obvious for a leading question. Since we've been used to Mr. Tosen's interview style, don't you think that's a crude way to try to get at people's weak spots?"
This counterattack struck a painful spot for Hisagi. It was true that the former editor-in-chief Tosen would have either asked about it straightforwardly, without dancing around the point, or he wouldn't have touched on the matter at all.
Although Hisagi personally was curious, he didn't actually want to know what the true nature of the boy and girl was, and he had sensed Urahara's unwillingness to talk about it.
However, Hisagi could be calculating in his own way. His strategy was to touch upon something that was difficult to talk about in the beginning, then, as though in exchange for retreating from that line of questioning, he would jump right into a topic that was just a slight degree less sensitive. It was a risky strategy that could result in the interviewee indignantly cutting off the interview at the beginning. However, after the last few minutes of their conversation, Hisagi had realized he wouldn't be able to draw out information from Urahara using conventional methods. Although it wasn't his true nature, he hardened his heart and devoted himself to being a reporter.
As though he had seen right through the young man's stern resolve, Urahara said, "So? What do you think those two are?"
So that's how he wants to do this.
Hisagi was bewildered when Urahara said that, as though the shopkeep were testing him instead of the other way around, but he offered the first reply he could think of. "Gikongan… I guess they wouldn't be, though."
"Well, the temporary souls in Gikongan generally don't grow. Though they will 'learn' to a certain extent from the user's position and commands, there are limits as far as that's concerned."
"You said they're generally like that, so that means there are exceptions."
At that moment, Hisagi recalled the stuffed lion toy that made frequent appearances in the Soul Society and looked serious as he said, "For example, a mod soul."
"Oh my, you're sharper than you seem, Mr. Hisagi. But that doesn't mean you're right."
"Well, other than that…the only thing I can think of is that they're something like Miss Nemu from Captain Kurotsuchi's…"
Urahara opened his folding fan in front of Hisagi's mouth to stop him from continuing.
"Whoa there. If you say something like that, Mr. Kurotsuchi will use them for his experiments. Their insides are quite different from Nemu's. I'm sure that Mr. Kurotsuchi already knows that and is imagining my bitter expression as he dances for joy about Nemu's growth, thinking, 'I've surpassed Urahara.'" At that moment, Urahara snapped his folding fan shut and shook his head.
"Well, I guess he wouldn't actually be able to imagine that."
"Why is that?"
Urahara grinned like a mischievous kid at Hisagi's question and replied with what could be taken either as the truth or a joke.
"That's because I've never genuinely been bitter in front of Mr. Kurotsuchi. ♪"
≡
The Soul Society,
Department of Research and Development
"What's wrong, Captain?" Assistant Captain Akon asked quizzically when Twelfth Company Captain and head of the Department of Research and Development abruptly paused at his work.
"I suppose you could say something foreboding is bugging me." Looking unamused, Mayuri resumed his work. "The quantum spirit bugs I inserted in my cerebellum are throbbing. I'm sure it's just the jealous ramblings of some banal scientist, going on illogically."
While ignoring the "bugging" that was no metaphor, Mayuri turned his eyes to the image receiver in front of him. What was displayed there appeared to be the Rukongai as seen from high above. If a person from the living world were to see it, they would have likely concluded it was a shot of a desolate village taken from a satellite or airplane. However, the Soul Society naturally had no satellites in the air.
When Akon saw the image, which was leagues more sophisticated than the best satellite surveillance images from the living world, he was half impressed and half dubious, remarking, "That's pretty precise, though I should expect that from you. But why'd you go to all that trouble to devote yourself to building a surveillance system from scratch? It would've been a heck of a lot easier to just build it on top of the Visual Department's system… Actually, wouldn't that have been more efficient?"
The Visual Department—that was the general umbrella organization that managed the visual surveillance system that spread like a net primarily over various places in the Soul Society and the living world and, in recent years, even a section of Hueco Mundo. Its ties ran deep with the Department of Research and Develoment, and by joining forces, they could access all types of intelligence from various sources and use that as a basis for analyzing the current state of affairs.
For starters, Hiyosu from the Department of Research and Development, who had been analyzing the information coming in through the Visual Department, was able to find Rukia Kuchiki operating in the living world using a gigai. Thus this collaboration was recognized as being extraordinarily important, continuously recording the turning points in the Soul Society's history.
Because of that, no one outside the Visual Department or Department of Research and Development other than a select group could access the information. Since the Department of Research and Development so frequently used this data, and because of the crucial nature of the research, it was even jokingly remarked that the Visual Department was already a part of the Department of Research and Development.
So why was Mayuri creating an entirely separate surveillance system from the Visual Department at this time? He had certainly improved the resolution of the visuals and performance of the other sensors substantially, but wouldn't it have been easier to just update the versions they already had?
That question floated in Akon's mind as Mayuri gloomily replied, "We're going to cut the Visual Department out of the Department of Research and Development's work."
"Huh?"
"Though we'll continue to pretend we're using it like we have been all along. The data coming from them is less reliable than a drunkard's gibberish."
Though Mayuri had spoken abruptly, Akon didn't seem all that surprised. As though he recognized that this was business as usual, he spoke in an indifferent tone. "Ahh…well, if it's about reliability, I don't even have to think twice to know that the system you created is better. Did something happen?"
"Blind faith is a poison that weakens performance. Please just say 'Though we put together our flawed minds and inspected it, the mechanism that Mayuri Kurotsuchi created was undoubtedly better in every way.'"
He felt that even if he were to say that, the captain would respond that the time he spent deliberating over something so obvious was a waste. And then Akon realized that even thinking about it now was a waste of time, so he simply nodded obediently and asked again, "Is it because of that whole incident with the aristocracy interfering with the surveillance system?"
Just the other day, the Soul Society's surveillance system had picked up an odd spiritual pressure, but one of the Four Great Noble Clans had directly notified them that the individual responsible was not to be interfered with. Akon and the others could hardly believe that the captain would simply comply.
When he reflected on it, he realized that the captain would most certainly create his own surveillance system in response to something like that. In fact, he had once inserted bugs and germs into relevant Soul Reapers and people in the living world for surveillance purposes, so in a sense you could say the Department of Research and Development already had their very own private intelligence system set up.
"They so blithely attempt to joke about it. Really, now. They must be idiots if they think that just because they're backed by one million years of history they can manipulate those who are far more resourceful on a whim."
"I'm sure the Visual Department is having a heck of a time being on the receiving end of that." Akon shrugged, at which point Mayuri turned his eyes to the scientist and said, "What are you saying? There are no whims here—they're in on it."
"Excuse me?"
"Ah, I see. You never had any interest in the constitutional government. You should dedicate this to mind regardless—in order to continue with your research undisturbed, you need the skills to lead the incompetent around by the nose. Really, now. Though it's required for the sake of a functioning society, it is an obstacle to freely implementing my ideas, and that just shows that the laws are still far from maturity." Mayuri's complaint displayed extreme insolence toward all of the Soul Society. He went on indifferently in response to Akon's questioning, "Right now, decorative aristocrats are taking turns operating the Visual Department, but it was established and is managed behind the scenes by the Four Great Noble Clans."
"That's…the first I've heard about that."
"If I were to be even more precise, there is one family in particular among the four that is involved."
Mayuri adjusted the coordinates depicted on a screen and continued both tediously and politely, "If we call the Shihoin family the Tenshi Heisoban because they are the heavenly defenders of the realm, and they have the role of managing the arms that the Soul King supposedly bestowed on them, then the Tsunayashiro are the ones managing the past itself. Before the establishment of the Dai Reisho Kairo Underground Assembly Hall's Great Archive for gathering and accumulating information, the Tsunayashiro family were the sentries recording all history."
"They're the sentries of history?"
"If you're researching a specific bit of history, you're required to get their permission to research the historic remnants, and passages for publication are heavily censored. I have also heard that the historian's whereabouts became unknown in a considerable number of cases."
Without scorn or resentment, Mayuri spoke dispassionately of this issue with the Four Great Noble Clans.
"I believe that striving throughout your life until you get results is itself a talent. I don't exactly intend to ridicule those historians, but if they had really wanted to pursue the truth, they should have prepared numerous countermeasures. To the degree that it's insufficient, working on 'The Soul Society's Million-Year History' or suchlike is a troublesome barrier that stands in front of the work of us researchers. Then again, as I said earlier, such a barrier means nothing to a clever person such as myself. Muttering that last bit to himself, Mayuri turned his eyes to a specific place on the monitor. "There, I've found our guinea pigs. I'm heading out to the experiment without a moment's delay. I will leave analyzing the data to you, Akon."
Mayuri had simply run an automatic tracking and recording program through the surveillance system and was heading out to the actual place himself.
While executing his orders, Akon threw just one more question at the captain as though he were still curious. "Captain, at least tell me the ending to your lecture. Why are we separating from the Visual Department?"
"It's simple." Mayuri shrugged as though nothing else could be done about it and didn't even turn around as he answered, "The man who has the slacker job of managing the Visual Department, a man who was ridiculed by the aristocrats he came from, killed all the leaders of a single family and became the head of the Tsunayashiro. And I have come to the conclusion that this man will hinder my research. That's all there is to it."
≡
The Rukongai
"We're being watched…"
On a road at the outskirts of the Rukongai, Kugo Ginjo was heading over to the Shiba residence where he was freeloading. He kept his gaze facing forward and muttered in a voice that only his companions, who were walking behind him, could hear.
"An enemy?"
"Hm. I can think of several people it could be."
Shukuro Tsukishima and Giriko Kutsuzawa, who had heard the muttered warning, replied in a way that would likewise prevent their watcher from catching on that anything was out of place.
"It's just a hunch, though. I feel something unpleasant in the air, like back when I felt something off about the deputy badge."
Ginjo put his hand to the pendant on his chest with an instinctive motion.
"I guess the most rational explanation…would be that the upper crust have come to erase nuisances like ourselves since that Hisagi assistant captain guy actually went and investigated us?"
"That may be the case. Though I think a bit too much time has passed for that to be the cause."
Ginjo internally agreed with Giriko. Based on Hisagi's personality, he likely went inquiring to the "Captain General" immediately after the fact in search of the truth. It had been several days since then, and if they were really serious about crushing Ginjo and the others, they'd had many earlier chances to do it. Or, if they had waited this long to do it, there was a chance they'd worked out a plan to strike at their weaknesses. Either way, Ginjo had the thought that he shouldn't let his guard down, but…
Their attacker did not give him the chance to mull it over any further.
Something came flying down the horizon—a flash of lightning.
To be more accurate, it was a single, extremely ruthless arrow entirely covered in high-voltage electricity.
"Hey, you freakin' serious?"
Though it was much slower than an actual lightning bolt, the reishi arrowhead was quick enough that it could appropriately be said to be going at "lightning speed." Even if he could just barely sidestep it, there was no way he would be unharmed if he were to get caught up in the electrical discharge. But Ginjo used the large sword that had appeared in his hand to cast away the reishi that filled the air as well as the lightning, causing it to disperse. He readied his sword in the direction from which the lightning-imbued arrow had come as a bold smile formed on his face.
"Hah. That's pretty slow for lightning. Was that supposed to be your most lethal move or something?"
Though Ginjo was provoking this enemy that had yet to make an appearance, Giriko spoke indifferently from a slight distance away. "Hm. Lightning is far from the speed of light, though people mistakenly believe it to be. Then again, atmospheric pressure and the humidity in the air influence its speed and can easily effect a change. Really, now, speed is so fickle compared to the flow of time."
"Why're you spouting weird trivia all of a sudden?"
While vigilant of his surroundings, Ginjo at least replied after the interruption. However, Tsukishima, who had at some point leaned back against a nearby tree, butted in again. "Believing that the flow of time is fixed is such a blind assumption. It's not just some scientist's theory. We all know about how Dankai messes with time and about Yukio's Fast Forward."
"You think that way, Tsukishima, because you simply have not entrusted yourself to the god of time in a true sense. Relativity and playing with time and space is meaningless compared to the flow of time that dwells within you."
"Okay, like I said—what're you two babbling about?"
Ginjo was exasperated as he turned to glance at the two of them, but once he saw what they were doing, he smiled to himself. Going with the flow of the conversation, Giriko had naturally picked up his pocket watch, and Tsukishima had already closed his book on the pretense of starting a conversation with Giriko and had his hand on his bookmark. Ginjo had no idea how much the enemy knew about them, but at least all three of them were holding their weapons.
"Well, they're not coming to attack us. In addition to being dull, that thing might be slow to recharge. That technique just wasn't anything to write home about…"
Ginjo stopped short in the middle of his comment. Though he had been joking around, his caution hadn't wavered for even a second. That was exactly why his spine froze when he suddenly heard a voice call out to him from behind, "And who exactly…are you calling dull?"
It was a young woman's voice. At the same time, a spiritual pressure that was different from any Soul Reaper's or Hollow's swelled from the middle of Ginjo and his two companions. She must have used something like a strange coat equipped with optical camouflage, or perhaps she pulled it off using some other method. The woman, who had appeared abruptly almost as though she had oozed out from the shadows themselves, was wearing white plasma all over her body.
Her white Western clothing, which was wide open at her chest, seemed as though it had been modified to fit her tastes; its design showcased her stomach, including her belly button. They could see traces of experimentation all over her, including on her exposed skin, but Ginjo had no time to concern himself with those details.
Just then the woman who had appeared from the shadows yelled, in a voice mixed with scorn and irritation, "In that case…you should all hurry up and die already!"
Accompanying her violent words, a small bolt of lightning stretched into the sky from her raised hand, and instead of an arrow clad in electricity, a genuine flash of lighting roared as it came down on Ginjo and the others.
≡
Karakura Town,
Urahara Shoten
"Now then…since you cleared everyone out, can I assume you'll give me some answers?"
They were in Urahara Shoten after Jinta and the others had left. In response to Hisagi, whose question was asked in a grave tone, the shop's owner shrugged.
"Well, who knows? I may simply be trying to evade your questions in a more flamboyant way."
"Please rest assured that no matter how much you jest here, I'll make sure every person who reads the Seireitei Bulletin will think 'Kisuke Urahara is a hero'!"
"Isn't that more or less fraud?"
When he teased Hisagi in his usual way, he hid his mouth with his folding fan, and his eyes narrowed sharply behind his hat as he looked in Hisagi's direction.
"Actually, it appears the person hiding their sentiments and true thoughts is you rather than me. Did something make you panic? You're making the same face as a trainee coming across their first Hollow right now, Mr. Hisagi."
"What?! That's just…"
As though something had come to mind, Hisagi froze for a while. Though he felt guilty about asking questions that pertained to his own circumstances in a formal interview, if he was going to pause here because of that, he might as well go for it.
Hisagi made up his mind.
"From here on, half of this is relevant to my work, but the other half is relevant to my own interests."
"I see. I've never made a distinction between personal and business matters, so I don't mind. Just give it to me straight."
"Actually…before I put this interview into the article, I'm going to have to publish a special edition."
"A special edition?" Urahara snapped his fan closed, and a bold smile spread over his face. "Is it…about the unveiling of the new Tsunayashiro family's head?"
"Huh! You already knew?!"
"Nah, I just happened to hear from Miss Yoruichi that the head of house was changing."
At that point, Urahara turned his eyes down and something like self-derision seemed to resound in his next comment. "She said it seems the new head of the Four Great Noble Clans is quite the overachiever or something."
"So you know something about him then…about Tokinada Tsunayashiro."
"Hmm. Well, it's not as though I've had direct contact with him, and I think Mr. Kyoraku would actually know a lot more about him."
Though Urahara averted his eyes for a moment, he didn't try to redirect the conversation and replied nonchalantly to Hisagi, "I know about the ties between Mr. Tosen and Mr. Tsunayashiro, but it happened a long time before I became a captain… Well, I can give it a guess, but making speculations about a person's past is pretty rude."
"I'm having a hard time being convinced about his past too, but I didn't want to ask about that. I just ran into a Soul Reaper kid who was involved with him, and that kid just didn't seem normal, so I'm looking for a lead about who that could have been."
"A Soul Reaper kid, you say?" The smile disappeared from Urahara's face as he replied with interest.
"Yes, and I don't mean like Captain Hitsugaya either—that kid acted like a normal kid, mentally."
"Oh? Don't you think it's unwise to bring up Captain Hitsugaya as your example?"
"W-well… Please don't tell him…"
"Oh, sorry. Please go on. No need to get distracted. I'm quite fine with you just telling me what you saw as your eyes perceived it."
Though Urahara said that lightheartedly, Hisagi felt as though he could sense the intent it contained—Urahara wanted exact data, free of any individual speculation. So he quietly inhaled and matter-of-factly described his experience.
He talked about how he had heard about the Tsunayashiro family directly from Captain General Kyoraku.
He talked about how he had departed to head over to the pharmaceutical clinic that was run by Hanataro Yamada's older brother Seinosuke Yamada in order to get an interview.
Then he talked about how he had met a child Soul Reaper who went by the name of Hikone Ubuginu.
He talked about how, though the kid had been severely injured, this child claimed to be Tokinada Tsunayashiro's servant and how, when Hisagi had tried to restrain the kid, Hisagi himself had been rendered helpless before he knew it by the child's martial arts. Hisagi went on without hiding anything.
Several minutes passed.
Urahara listened to everything, nodded several times, and then spoke in a reminiscing tone. "So Mr. Seinosuke Yamada, huh… Yes, I knew him from when I was back on that side. He was the Fourth Company's assistant captain."
"To be honest, I've never seen kaido like that. Hanataro Yamada also has amazing abilities, but the man really did just feel like Hanataro's older brother. Though he doesn't have the same bearing or speak like his brother at all."
Listening to Hisagi's character sketch, Urahara had started to draw on his memories of his former colleagues from the Thirteen Court Guard Companies.
"That man certainly has remarkable skills. He might even be the same type of person as me. It's in his nature that he can't feel satisfied unless he's prepared countless strategies in order to reach his goals. However, I did things with my own life in mind… In other words, in order to win a battle, Mr. Seinosuke was different from me in that he did things only for the sake of the patient in front of him."
"Doesn't that make him a model doctor?"
"But when it came to anything other than helping the injured and sick before his eyes, his ethics were pretty screwed up… He was always getting into quarrels with Miss Unohana over that. But these were only superficial disagreements; they really did have respect for each other. I think you'd find that the veteran soldiers still trust him."
"Being acknowledged by Unohana is nothing to scoff at."
Though Hisagi once again felt admiration for the impressive Seinosuke Yamada, Urahara seemed as though he intended to put a damper on that and with a sardonic smile he added, "Having said that, it was true that he was deliberately mean, and the Fourth Company soldiers' apprehension was nothing to scoff at. After Mr. Seinosuke was headhunted, I heard that the Captain General had this in mind when he appointed a more approachable kid as assistant captain. I was already here by then though."
Urahara stopped talking for a moment and, after thinking things over for a few seconds, returned to the information Hisagi had given him.
"So, you said you felt an odd spiritual pressure coming from this Hikone kid?"
"Y-yes, I did. But I wasn't sure whether you'd believe me after what I told you… I was so flustered back then, I couldn't really tell for sure, but now that I think back on it, it felt like there was something mixed in with his Soul Reaper spiritual pressure."
"Something was mixed in there, you say?"
"It was like I felt hints of Hollow and normal human in him, and even something like Quincy…and he came out of a hole like a garganta rather than a Senkaimon to begin with. It was kind of like he was this ridiculous patchwork of stuff, and even Hanataro Yamada was saying that treating him was difficult because of that."
Urahara's eyes narrowed behind his hat.
Feeling like things had taken a turn from the expected, Hisagi hesitated to utter his next words. With Hisagi wavering in front of him, Urahara mumbled half to himself, "I see…so that's how far the Tsunayashiro family is willing to go. But the Hollow element wasn't supposed to be a requirement…or maybe they were trying to achieve something different…"
"Huh?"
When Hisagi tilted his head quizzically at the inscrutable mutterings that he heard, Urahara whacked his own hat with his fan and said, "Oops. Sorry about that. Just got lost in my thoughts."
"Not at all. It was my first time feeling a spiritual pressure like that and I was so bewildered that I…"
"Are you sure it's correct to say it was your first time feeling something like that?"
"Huh?"
While Hisagi was bewildered, Urahara began questioning him instead. "You can't think of anything at all? When it comes to people with diverse spiritual pressures mixed together, I believe there's someone you're already aware of."
Hisagi suddenly recalled the very thing he had read out loud a bit ago.
Shiba once met a human woman during a conflict, resulting in the birth of the man who would change the history of the Soul Society.
"Ichigo…Kurosaki."
"Yes. Though in general his spiritual pressure is fundamentally made up of human and Soul Reaper, there're Hollow and Quincy factors hidden deep within him. You know that as well, don't you?"
"Now that you mention it, Yamada was saying the kid was just like Ichigo, but he meant it in a different way…"
But what does it mean?
I heard that Kurosaki has two sisters, but it's not like Hikone is one of them.
The issue isn't whether or not they're similar. There's something fundamentally different between Kurosaki's spiritual pressure and the kid's.
As though to reassure Hisagi as he was immersed in thought, Urahara threw him a lifeline. "Well, I don't think that's any reason to fuss about Mr. Kurosaki. Actually, there was another Soul Reaper with a similar nature."
"Huh? Who was that?"
Hisagi's eyes grew wide with surprise. He breathed out quietly and waited for Urahara to speak, the tension showing on his face.
"Though they're not strictly the same…there used to be someone who had the essence of a Hollow, the powers of a Soul Reaper, and another, different power, all at once."
"There used to be? So he's not around anymore?"
"That's right, not over here."
"'Over here'?"
Urahara matter-of-factly continued, describing to the dubious-looking Hisagi a person with a nature similar to Hikone's and Ichigo's. "I heard rumors that he assisted Mr. Kurosaki at the Reiokyu. Do you happen to know about that? Well I would think someone in your position would have seen his wanted posters, at least…"
"There's no way."
"After all, it seems that his cadaver rather than his konpaku was once taken to the Seireitei. It would be odd if you hadn't heard of him, actually."
However, that wasn't a lifeline at all—instead it drove Shuhei Hisagi's mind even deeper into uncertainty.
"This Deputy Soul Reaper, Kugo Ginjo… Just how much do you know about him, Mr. Hisagi?"
- end of chapter
wait till next week for chapter 7