Not long after leaving Hitsugaya Tōshirō's house, Yoshio stopped again.
"Alright, stop watching. Come out."
As soon as he finished, footsteps sounded beside him. A blonde, blue-eyed, voluptuous woman stepped out, a bit surprised. "My, you noticed."
"Of course I did, didn't I? You didn't hide your spiritual pressure at all." Yoshio looked at the woman, thinking she must be Matsumoto Rangiku, the future Lieutenant of the Tenth Division.
He checked Rangiku's Souls Ability.
["The Animals: Your soul becomes a special tonic that can separate a portion of itself to promote the completion of an object, a person's task, or the evolution of a soul."]
This ability…
Is a bit strange.
It's not self-serving at all—it purely benefits others!
Splitting off a portion of one's soul to help others finish tasks, even to evolve successfully.
Is that why Aizen Sōsuke obtained Rangiku's soul to complete the Hōgyoku?
If memory serves, Matsumoto Rangiku's soul contains a soul king fragments—that is, the Soul King's fingernail.
Aizen Sōsuke extracted that fragment from her soul and fused it into the Hōgyoku.
That made the then-struggling Aizen, who was seeking to complete the Hōgyoku, realize that soul king fragments could assist in its completion. Thus, Aizen's Hōgyoku began fusing with soul king fragments.
Perhaps because of this, Rangiku's soul acquired the "The Animals" trait.
"If I devour my own soul fragments, could that also promote my own evolution?"
Yoshio wasn't sure, but he knew he should befriend Rangiku to gain this ability.
In any case, he didn't mind having more abilities; who knew when they might come in handy down the line.
"Which Squad are you from?" Rangiku hadn't seen Yoshio before, so she asked first.
"Shouldn't I be asking you that?" Yoshio replied. "The patrol assignment for West Rukongai today should be mine, right? Why is there another Shinigami here?"
"Ohoho." Rangiku chuckled. "Because I'm not here to patrol—I snuck out to play in Rukongai."
"I'm Matsumoto Rangiku of the Tenth Division. Self-introduction done. Your turn."
"Yoshio Kamado of the Fifth Division," he said. "Why are you tailing Hitsugaya Tōshirō?"
"Oh… so his name is Hitsugaya Tōshirō." Rangiku suddenly understood. "I thought the kid had talent. What's he to you? Ever considered getting him to become a Shinigami?"
"His friend is my friend." Yoshio strolled along Rukongai, then said, "His friend also asked me to come. The moment I saw him, I knew the kid should become a Shinigami."
"So you needn't say more. I've already convinced him and his grandma. Tomorrow morning I'll take him to the Spiritual Arts Academy."
"That's too much!" Rangiku pouted. "I found him first! Even if he becomes a Shinigami, he should join our Tenth Division."
"…"
Her words did give Yoshio pause.
Right—now that he'd discovered Hitsugaya Tōshirō, would he still join the Tenth Division?
Wouldn't he end up in the Fifth after graduating?
Although most Shinigami are assigned to squads through the Academy, captains' special requests and extraordinary talent grants the right to choose.
A genius like Hitsugaya Tōshirō, with no prior reservation from the Tenth—if Aizen Sōsuke noticed him, he'd surely recruit him into the Fifth, right?
If that happened, wouldn't he be changing history the very next day?
"Hey, why'd you zone out?"
Seeing Yoshio fall silent after she finished, Rangiku complained.
"No, I was just thinking about something."
Yoshio then answered her earlier question.
"Just because I discovered Tōshirō doesn't mean he'll join the Fifth. Which Squad he goes to depends on the Academy, the captains, and his own wishes."
"If you want him in the Tenth, I suggest you persuade your captain and have him sent to the Academy."
"Huh?" Rangiku was taken aback.
"You don't want Tōshirō to join the Fifth, do you?"
"Well, I'd certainly welcome it, but I respect people's choices more."
Of course Yoshio hoped to be in the same Squad as Tōshirō; that way he could spend more time building rapport. Once favorability hit eighty, he could permanently obtain "Child of Kirin."
"You know, you're a good guy."
Rangiku patted Yoshio's shoulder. "Alright, I approve of you. How about we grab a drink together when we're back in Seireitei?"
"I'm on outdoor patrol these days," Yoshio's eyes lit up, then he said with a touch of regret, "If I've got time when I get back, we can have a few."
"Hahaha, I'll be waiting."
Rangiku waved with a smile. "Alright then, I'll head back to Seireitei. I'll leave the kid to you."
"Mhm."
Yoshio waved as well, seeing Rangiku off.
By now he'd already gained Rangiku's temporary ability, which meant her favorability toward him had reached sixty.
She was easy to get along with; he'd gotten sixty with little effort.
Not bad at all. He didn't need [The Animals] right now, but who knew when it might come in handy.
After Rangiku left, Yoshio officially began his patrol.
In the Soul Society, Seireitei is certainly the safest place, but Rukongai outside Seireitei is another story.
Since Rukongai lacks the Shakonmaku's protection and the deterrent of Shinigami, Hollows often come here to cause trouble.
They might even lure one or two lower-ranked Shinigami, since Shinigami souls are excellent nourishment for Hollows.
The area Yoshio was responsible for was Districts 1 through 5, which are relatively safe overall.
He had thought it would be a routine patrol, but on the way back from District 5, something suddenly felt off.
At the time, he was still in "Strict Teacher Produces Outstanding Students" mode, which made him extremely sensitive to the flow of reishi.
Moreover, he could bring all the abilities he currently possessed to their peak. In other words, at this stage, [Strict Teacher Produces Outstanding Students] was definitely more than just something he could impart.
It made him, in essence, an excellent "strict teacher" himself!