Chapter: 44
Choji and Renji reached a quieter part of the street, away from the morning noise. Renji kept glancing around, making sure Arisa wasn't secretly following them.
"Relax," Choji said, smirking. "If she was following us, I'd know."
Renji sighed. "Yeah, I guess you're right…"
Choji reached into his pocket and brought out a small, smooth crystal shaped like a teardrop. It glimmered faintly, even under the sunlight.
Renji blinked. "You've been carrying that around this whole time?"
"Of course," Choji said. "Takeda gave it to me for a reason. You weren't ready to see him back then. But now?"
Renji swallowed hard. "Now I am."
Choji held the crystal in his hand and whispered a few words. The crystal lit up softly, and a faint vibration passed through the air — almost like the hum of mana, but calm, not threatening.
"Done," Choji said after a moment. "Takeda knows where to find us now. He'll come to us when he's ready."
Renji suddenly felt a lump form in his throat.
"Wait—he's coming here? Right now?"
Choji raised an eyebrow. "Nervous?"
Renji looked away. "I'm not nervous. I just… don't know what to say to him. What if he knows something about me that I don't want to hear?"
Choji was quiet for a moment, then patted Renji on the back.
"Then you deal with it. Whatever is happening to you, you're still you. I know that. Lily knows that. And honestly, even Takeda probably knows that."
Renji let out a small breath and smiled faintly. "You make it sound easy."
"It's not easy," Choji said simply. "But we're not running away from this, right?"
Renji nodded slowly.
They found a small park nearby and sat on a bench to wait. The park was quiet, with a few children playing far away and a breeze carrying the smell of grass. Renji sat forward, elbows on his knees, staring at the ground.
Every time he blinked, he saw it again the flames, the piles of bodies, that figure fighting the gods. And that figure's face… his own face.
"Was that really me?" he whispered to himself.
Choji didn't answer, just sat beside him, letting him think.
Minutes passed, and then suddenly Renji felt it.
That presence.
It wasn't hostile but it was powerful, calm, heavy like a mountain.
He turned his head and saw Takeda walking toward them from the other side of the park, hands in his pockets as if he had all the time in the world. His tall frame and sharp features drew the eyes of everyone around, and yet there was something comforting about the way he moved, like nothing could shake him.
Renji stood up without thinking.
Takeda stopped a few steps away, his calm gaze meeting Renji's.
"You called for me," Takeda said. His deep voice carried easily through the quiet park.
Renji nodded, his throat dry. "Yes. I… I need to talk to you."
Takeda's eyes softened slightly. "Then talk."
Renji hesitated. He didn't know where to begin. The dream, the fear, the feeling that something inside him was waiting to wake up all of it was too much to put into words.
"I…" he started, then stopped.
Takeda stepped closer, his presence filling the space between them. "You've been seeing things, haven't you?"
Renji's eyes widened. "How do you?"
Takeda gave a small smile. "You're not the first person to feel this way when their soul begins to awaken."
Renji blinked rapidly. "Soul… awakening?"
Takeda nodded once. "Sit. I'll explain."
Renji and Choji both sat back down, and Takeda stood in front of them, the faint sunlight casting a long shadow behind him.
"Renji," Takeda said slowly, "there are things about you that are… complicated. Your soul isn't like everyone else's. It carries weight, power — something very old. And when something that old begins to stir, it shows you pieces of what it once was."
Renji clenched his fists. "So those things I saw—those bodies, that battle"
"Were echoes," Takeda said. "Memories. Not of your life as Renji… but of something deeper."
The park was quiet, but Renji's heart was loud. He could still feel Takeda's calm but heavy presence standing in front of him.
Takeda glanced around, his sharp eyes catching every detail of the park. "This isn't the place," he said softly. "Come with me."
Renji blinked. "Huh?"
"I don't want to talk about this here," Takeda said, already turning away. "Follow me."
Choji stood and gave Renji a look that said trust him. Renji hesitated for a moment before getting up and following.
They didn't take a car. Takeda walked, and even though his pace was calm, it was like every step had weight. Renji kept his hands in his pockets, his mind racing.
He could still feel that dream burning inside him the fire, the bodies, the figure fighting the gods. What if he knows? What if Takeda tells me I'm not even human anymore?
Choji stayed close by, giving him a small, reassuring smile every now and then.
After a few streets, they reached Takeda's apartment building. It was simple from the outside, but Renji could tell it was expensive — the kind of place someone like Takeda would live.
Takeda unlocked the door and gestured for them to enter.
Inside, the air smelled faintly of coffee and something clean, like fresh rain. The place was tidy but not empty — books stacked neatly on shelves, a sword mounted on the wall, a framed picture of Takeda with other hunters standing proudly together.
"Sit," Takeda said, pointing to the couch.
Renji and Choji sat down. The couch was soft, almost too comfortable, and Renji sank into it.
Takeda walked to the kitchen, poured three glasses of water, and placed them on the table in front of them. Then he sat in the chair across from them, his sharp eyes fixed on Renji.
For a moment, no one spoke.
Renji felt the silence pressing down on him, until finally Takeda broke it.
"You've been seeing things," Takeda said calmly. "Haven't you?"
Renji's fingers tightened around his glass. "I… yeah. I don't even know how to explain it. It feels real. Like I was there. There was fire, and bodies everywhere, and… and someone fighting these… these godlike things."
Takeda didn't look surprised. He nodded slowly. "And this figure you saw it looked like you."
Renji's breath caught. "Yes. How do you know that?"
Takeda leaned back slightly in his chair. "Because I've seen this before. Not with you — but with others. Rare cases where a soul carries something much older, much more powerful than the body it was born into."
Renji's heart pounded in his chest. "So… what does that mean? Who am I?"
Takeda's gaze softened. "You are still Renji. That will never change. But your soul carries weight… history. It carries a power that even I can't fully understand."
Renji swallowed. "Then why now? Why is it waking up?"
"That," Takeda said, "is something I don't know yet. But the fact that it's happening means something is coming. Something big enough to stir a soul like yours."
Renji looked down at his hands. They were shaking.
"I don't want this," he whispered. "I just want to live quietly with Lily. I don't want to be… whatever this is."
Takeda's voice was steady. "Wanting peace doesn't make you weak, Renji. But you can't run from this forever. Whatever is inside you whatever you are, will keep waking up, piece by piece."
Renji closed his eyes, hearing again the screams from his dream.
Choji put a hand on his shoulder. "You're still you," he said softly. "No matter what you saw."
Takeda nodded. "Listen to him. Power doesn't erase who you are — unless you let it."