"Huh?"
Hearing those words, Nel quickly let go of Kyoraku Shimo.
"Sh-Shimo, are you alright?"
"Don't scare Nel like that!"
Her voice was already choked with tears.
Yoruichi Shihōin couldn't stand by any longer. She poked Shimo in the side and muttered under her breath:
"That's enough, little Shimo."
"If you make Nel cry, I'll deal with you myself."
His breathing was steady, his spiritual pressure completely calm—hardly the condition of someone who'd passed out.
Only someone as innocent as Nel would believe Urahara's claim, along with Kyoraku Shimo's over-the-top acting.
"Ahem!"
Shimo 'leisurely' came to, gently stroking Nel's soft, sea-green hair as he comforted her:
"There, there. I'm fine."
Tears still welling in her eyes, Nel looked up at him. When she saw he was awake, a warm smile slowly spread across her face.
In her simple, childlike heart, as long as Shimo was safe and by her side, the world was at peace.
"What are you doing in the Human World?"
Yoruichi's expression returned to seriousness as she looked at Shimo, questioning him directly.
He was sitting cross-legged on a white cloth, glancing toward Urahara, who sat nearby in the same position.
"Yare yare… Don't look at me like that," Urahara said in his usual teasing tone. "I'll explain everything."
Yoruichi, who frequently traveled between Soul Society and the Human World, didn't always have access to complete intel—unless she was on a mission specifically to gather it.
"A while ago—right after your last visit to the Human World, actually—"
Urahara leaned back in thought, tapping his chin.
"I encountered a woman in Karakura Town tainted with Hollow Reiatsu."
"Her name is Masaki Kurosaki. A pure-blooded Quincy."
"She came into contact with that Hollow Reiatsu because she had just fought an unusual Menos Grande. Its spiritual contamination triggered Hollowfication symptoms in her."
At that, Shimo's eyes narrowed slightly. He had a vague idea of what this was leading to.
After the first White Hollow was killed, it seemed Aizen had created a second-generation version. His experiments in the Human World continued as planned.
Shimo's interference may have altered the course slightly—or perhaps not at all.
Masaki Kurosaki had become one of Aizen's observation subjects. And in the process, she crossed paths with Isshin Shiba.
"She fought that Hollow to save a Shinigami."
Urahara's tone turned solemn.
"And that Shinigami was the captain of Tenth Division—Isshin Shiba."
"To save her, Isshin gave up his Shinigami powers and infused her soul with his own."
Yoruichi and Shimo listened quietly, neither interrupting, even though Yoruichi was clearly already aware of this story.
"The rest, you probably know."
"Isshin gave up his post as Captain and went into hiding in the Human World."
"Oh, right—he said something about opening a private clinic?"
Urahara suddenly perked up. "Ah! Today's actually the grand opening! We should go support him!"
—
At Urahara's insistence, the four of them headed to the newly opened Shiba Family Clinic.
There was no fanfare. In fact, the only people there to support him were the four of them.
"Oi? Shimo!"
Isshin, in the middle of organizing things, looked up in surprise.
Clearly, Urahara hadn't told him they'd be coming.
"You're here?"
Urahara peeked out from behind Shimo and smiled. "I told him."
"This guy drops into the Human World all the time because of Yoruichi and Nel."
"There's no way you could hide here without him finding out."
At present, Isshin had completely lost his spiritual pressure. While still physically stronger than a normal human, the difference between him and a Shinigami like Shimo was staggering.
Masaki Kurosaki was nowhere in sight.
"Was it worth it?" Shimo asked calmly, finally voicing the question that had been on his mind.
Isshin blinked, then burst out laughing.
"Worth it? That's a dumb question."
"Let me ask you something, kid."
He slung an arm around Shimo's shoulders like he always used to.
"If Nel, Yoruichi, Rukia, or even Kukaku were in the same situation as Masaki… and you had to choose—what would you do?"
Shimo fell silent.
"I understand."
"I'll keep your secret from Soul Society."
The mood, heavy for a moment, lightened again with Isshin's boisterous grin. He truly didn't seem troubled by the loss of his powers at all.
But Shimo… couldn't relax so easily.
...
Jealousy? Trouble Brewing?
Yoruichi and Nel each clung to one of Shimo's arms.
"Who's Rukia and Kukaku? Are they trying to steal Shimo from Nel too?!"
"Little Shimo, I didn't think even Kukaku was on your list… impressive," Yoruichi teased.
"Ahem!"
Shimo tried to cough away the awkwardness, then gave a serious answer to Nel's question:
"Rukia and Kukaku are like you—people I deeply care about."
He gently placed a hand on Nel's head and tousled her hair.
"I won't abandon anyone important to me."
Nel beamed with joy. She was easy to please—a single affirmation could keep her happy for days.
Yoruichi, on the other hand, wasn't going to let him off the hook.
"Come on, little Shimo—spill it. How'd you 'get involved' with Kukaku?"
Shimo shot her a look, then playfully messed up her long purple hair.
"It was a marriage arrangement set up by my foolish uncle, alright?"
"You better not laugh too hard, or next time you'll be the one playing second wife."
Yoruichi grinned even wider.
"Oh my… already thinking about ranking, are we?"
Damn it… completely outmatched by this damn woman!
---
After the clinic visit, Isshin followed them to Urahara's underground base.
"Shimo, that's all there is to my story."
Isshin remained as cheerful as ever—no sign of regret or sorrow despite his lost powers.
"You don't need to worry about me."
He gave a bright thumbs-up.
"But I am very interested in you and Kukaku's situation."
"Cough, cough!"
Shimo cleared his throat forcefully.
"Let's skip that part for now. I actually came to talk about something else."
Isshin raised an eyebrow.
"Wait—you didn't come here just to see me?"
Shimo sighed.
"That was the reason… until I noticed something else."
He turned serious.
"Have you noticed? The spiritual pressure here—it's chaotic. Hollows and Shinigami Reiatsu are mingled together, like we're on the brink of war."
Urahara and Yoruichi exchanged glances, their faces tinged with frustration.
"You tell him," Yoruichi said. She didn't seem eager to get into it.
Urahara organized his thoughts.
"My guess? It's Aizen."
"Recently, a massive number of Hollows have been pouring into the Human World from the Garganta."
"We've been helping from the shadows, but due to… circumstances… we can't reveal ourselves to the Gotei 13."
Shimo nodded. If Soul Society discovered Urahara's location, they'd dispatch multiple captains to arrest him.
"As a result, the stationed Shinigami in Karakura Town and nearby cities have all been wiped out."
"In the near future, I expect replacements will be sent."
Urahara's brow furrowed.
"I suspect Aizen is trying to lure out Shinji Hirako and the others."
The Visored—victims of the Hollowfication incident over two centuries ago.
Back then, Shinji had grown suspicious of Aizen and made him his lieutenant to keep a closer eye on him—only to fall into his trap and undergo Hollowfication himself.
Shinji, Urahara, Yoruichi, and the others had fled to the Human World, where they remained to this day.
They'd since learned to control their Hollow masks.
Shimo had encountered them not long ago. But despite Urahara and Yoruichi vouching for him, the Visored remained distrustful—not just of him, but of Soul Society as a whole.
"Looks like things are getting dangerous in the Human World," Shimo murmured, glancing down at Nel sleeping peacefully on his lap.
Urahara noticed his concern and reassured him.
"You don't need to worry too much. My place is still pretty secure."
"With Tessai's Kidō barrier, we're well hidden. It's not easy to detect us."
Shimo relaxed a bit.
"In that case, I'll lend a hand."
Everyone blinked in surprise, watching him walk toward the north end of the underground base.
"What are you doing?" Urahara asked.
"Strengthening the barrier."
Shimo didn't specialize in forbidden or advanced Kidō, but his mastery of conventional Kidō rivaled Tessai Tsukabishi's.
In fact, in certain aspects—he might be even better.
'Master-level Kidō' wasn't just a title.
Kidō encompasses Hadō, Bakudō, and Kaidō… but also includes deeper applications—silent casting, dual incantation, post-casting effects, anti-spiritual techniques.
Barrier construction was among them.
From what he had observed, Tessai's barrier had at least three weak points.
With the right detection spells, it was possible those flaws could leak spirit particles—exposing Urahara's shop to danger.
Shimo decided to fix all of them.
Tessai soon arrived—and when he saw the Kidō formula Kyoraku had drawn, his eyes lit up behind his thick-rimmed glasses.
"A flawless fusion of Soul-Binding Barrier and Bakudō #81: Dankū…"
"Not only does it block spiritual interference, but it also provides high-level defense."
He pushed up his glasses.
"Mr. Kyoraku Shimo's Kidō mastery is on par with mine."
"If he ever learns forbidden Kidō, he might just qualify as the next Grand Kidō Chief."
Everyone was stunned.
"My, my… I didn't realize Shimo-kun was this talented in Kidō too," Urahara chuckled, fanning himself.
"Zanjutsu, Kidō, reiatsu… I think I'm starting to see the future of Soul Society."
He was clearly aware of Shimo's fight with Kenpachi Zaraki—how he obliterated the entire Eleventh Division barracks in the process.
Now, Tessai had just said Shimo's Kidō was on par with his own.
As for forbidden Kidō? Urahara knew better than anyone—that Shimo probably didn't need them.
After all, the Shikai of his Zanpakutō… could stop time.
And as the first person to ever experience it, Urahara knew—just how dangerous and terrifying that ability truly was.
-----------------------///
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