Everything was ready. All that remained was to wait.
Higashino Shuuichi waited for Yoruichi Shihōin to come to him of her own accord, and every now and then he also enjoyed some blissful time with Kabuma Sayako.
Until one day, Shuuichi suddenly noticed something strange—Hinamori Momo was already the vice-captain of the 5th Division, and Shiba Isshin had already been tricked by Aizen into going to the World of the Living.
Logically speaking, if everything had returned to the "proper track," then the captain of the 10th Division should be Hitsugaya Tōshirō by now.
But the current captain of the 10th Division wasn't Hitsugaya Tōshirō.
It was Kisaragi Shūsuke.
And Hitsugaya Tōshirō was somehow still just a first-year student at the Shin'ō Academy.
"Can Kisaragi Shūsuke really be a captain?"
That night, Higashino Shuuichi lay in bed, holding Kabuma Sayako—who had just come out of the bath, her whole body still warm with steam—and asked.
"Why can't he be? With Shūsuke's strength, being a captain is more than enough."
Sayako asked, confused.
"Because of my relationship with him!
What kind of relationship do Shūsuke and I have—what noble and what captain in the Gotei 13 doesn't know?
And they still let Shūsuke be a captain?
Honestly, I'd find it more reasonable if Madarame Ikkaku from the 11th Division became the 10th Division captain than Shūsuke becoming one."
Shuuichi truly couldn't understand what Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni was thinking.
The 10th Division captaincy was a very important position—responsible for the security of most of Rukongai, as well as Seireitei's outer defensive work.
Putting someone like Kisaragi Shūsuke in that seat… was it really fine?
"Mmm…"
In Shuuichi's right hand as it slid lower, Sayako let out a soft, breathy sound. Her body went limp in his arms in an instant, flushed red as she struggled to speak.
"Yamamoto… Sōtaichō, at first… didn't… agree…
It was… a lot of the minor nobles… in Central 46… proposing it, so… so…"
"So what?"
Shuuichi gave the Sayako in his arms a meaningful smile and deliberately stopped moving.
Sayako bit her soft, rosy lip, unwilling to continue, and only pouted in a coquettish voice.
"Shuuichi~
It's late~"
"Yeah, it's late. Time for a midnight snack!"
After Shuuichi said that, he pulled the blanket over them, and soon the room began to shake intensely.
Sayako didn't need to say any more. Shuuichi could already guess—those minor nobles were using this opportunity to curry favor with Kabuma Sayako.
After all, even if you don't want to do certain things, plenty of people will still feel afraid.
That was only human.
But compared to Kisaragi Shūsuke becoming the 10th Division captain, the truly bizarre part was that Hitsugaya Tōshirō, even now, had only entered the Shin'ō Academy a little over a year ago.
Because if things followed the original timeline, Hitsugaya Tōshirō should have become the 10th Division captain a long time ago.
Was it the butterfly effect?
Or was it the Soul King's will, deliberately engineering this?
Shuuichi figured he was free anyway—tomorrow, he might as well go see this so-called genius Shinigami with his own eyes.
After a whole night of… commotion, Kabuma Sayako had absolutely no energy to wake early the next day.
Meanwhile, Higashino Shuuichi—refreshed and clear-headed—quietly slipped out of the Kabuma estate.
The Shin'ō Academy was still exactly where his memory said it would be, unchanged in the slightest.
But when he arrived, it felt oddly quiet.
"Shin'ō Academy's morning classes should've started by now, shouldn't they?"
Relying on the little memory he had left of school life, Shuuichi immediately sensed something was off.
There were too few people.
Normally, the sensible choice would be to grab a passerby and ask what was going on.
But Shuuichi clearly had a better option.
"So these past few days are their practical training period in the World of the Living?"
Sitting on the windowsill of the Shin'ō Academy's teachers' lounge, Higashino Shuuichi looked at the bespectacled male teacher inside and asked.
"Yeah. Just from that confused look on your face, I can tell—you've been away from school too long, Shuuichi, and you forgot about this, didn't you?"
The teacher replied with a smile.
The reason he could say Shuuichi's name so naturally was because he knew him.
Because he was the captain of the 5th Division:
Aizen Sōsuke.
As a powerful Shinigami with keen insight, Aizen had long since seen the future trend of Soul Society—commoner Shinigami would become the main force of the Gotei 13.
So becoming a teacher at the Shin'ō Academy would be extremely useful for Aizen. It let him learn the Zanpakutō abilities of talented commoner Shinigami early—
Which in turn allowed him to make targeted arrangements when planning for the future.
After all… who would guard themselves against a gentle teacher who patiently guided them?
"I think it's Aizen-sama who's been at school too long, so you forgot how our Shin'ō Academy schedule used to be.
Back then, Hueco Mundo wasn't under your control yet, Aizen-sama~
Hollows back then weren't anywhere near as obedient as they are now!
Trying to drive Hollows to a specific location at a specific time, while also making sure their combat power didn't exceed the limit—how could that be easy?
So in our day, first through third years didn't have practicum courses at all. Only fourth years and above got a chance like that—once per academic year at most!"
Shuuichi shook his head.
Then he hopped down from the windowsill and, standing outside with his back turned to Aizen, asked casually,
"Then Aizen-sama… you wouldn't happen to have made some arrangements for this practicum, would you?"
No answer came from behind him.
Which was the best possible answer.
Shuuichi didn't even need to turn around—he could already picture it. Aizen behind the desk would definitely be wearing that signature false smile of his.
Aizen had definitely made at least a small arrangement.
There was no doubt about it.
Shuuichi felt that if he were in Aizen's position, he'd do the same.
Because Hitsugaya Tōshirō truly was a genius. Compared to someone like Ichimaru Gin, he was still a notch below—but that was only because the comparison was Ichimaru Gin.
Against ninety-nine percent of other Shinigami, Hitsugaya Tōshirō was absolutely someone worth paying attention to.
Especially his Zanpakutō ability—and his potential.
If Shuuichi were Aizen, he'd definitely want to find a way to test it.
And he'd do it before Hitsugaya Tōshirō graduated from the Academy.
Because once Hitsugaya joined a division, going after him would be trampling on a division's face.
If Hitsugaya ended up in "friendly" divisions like the 5th, 3rd, or 9th, that would be one thing… but if Hitsugaya ended up in divisions like the 10th or 4th…
Shuuichi felt that no matter how arrogant Aizen was, he'd still have to weigh the consequences.
Forcing Shuuichi onto the opposite side early was not a good choice.
Not to mention… Aizen wasn't that reckless right now, either.
So—Hitsugaya Tōshirō entering the Shin'ō Academy later than he should have, Kurosaki Masaki who still hadn't "ended up" with Shiba Isshin yet, Kisuke Urahara hiding in the World of the Living, plus an Aizen Sōsuke who wanted to stir trouble…
Alright. Higashino Shuuichi had already put together an entire grand drama in his head.
He even had a faint feeling—
Could this be the Soul King's own "correction plan"?
Trying to use this opportunity to make Kurosaki Masaki and Shiba Isshin "end up" together?
"Hm… it's not impossible.
If that's really where this is headed, then doesn't that mean…"
After thinking it through, Shuuichi felt the likelihood was actually pretty high.
And if it really developed like that, then wouldn't it mean… he might not even need to find Yoruichi Shihōin to have a chance of finding Kisuke Urahara?
Because no matter which of those two—Shiba Isshin or Kurosaki Masaki—ran into trouble, that was absolutely not a result Kisuke Urahara wanted to see.
In other words—
When the time came, Kisuke Urahara would definitely be watching from the shadows.
And as long as Kisuke Urahara dared to appear, with Shuuichi's current strength, was he really going to fail to notice Urahara's presence?
So about ten minutes later, beneath the 12th Division captain's quarters, deep underground—
Mayuri Kurotsuchi, who had been in the middle of an experiment, saw the travel-worn Higashino Shuuichi appear, and the corner of his mouth twitched beneath his mask.
"I knew you'd come back sooner or later, but isn't this kind of 'return ceremony' a bit rude?"
Mayuri didn't stop what his hands were doing, but his mood had changed—just a little.
Because moments ago, the layered defensive arrays he'd set up between the underground lab and the surface-level captain's room hadn't even had time to send an alarm down to him—
Before Shuuichi bulldozed through them all in a shower of sparks and crackling force, dismantling everything by brute strength.
"I don't really want too many people knowing I'm back this time. Who knows—maybe you wired some of those alarm devices straight to the 1st Division or somewhere else. Tearing it all down is obviously safer."
Shuuichi dusted off his hands, completely calm.
Then his left hand shifted slightly to the side, and a barrier appeared out of thin air—
Bakudō 81: Dankū (Severing Void).
A small Zanpakutō was stopped dead in midair.
"So this is the artificial human you made later on, using the technical foundation I gave you?"
Shuuichi asked knowingly.
Because the female Shinigami who'd tried to sneak-attack him was none other than the artificial being from the original plot—Kurotsuchi Nemu.
Also jokingly called Mayuri Kurotsuchi's "daughter."
And originally, she was the vice-captain of the 12th Division.
But now… she should be the 3rd Seat.
After all, as long as Yushima Ōko didn't go courting death himself, his vice-captain seat should be unshakable.
"Her? More or less."
Mayuri glanced at the female Shinigami who'd attacked Shuuichi and spoke blandly.
"Oh, right. Nemu—he is Higashino Shuuichi. The genuine article."
Mayuri added a final sentence that left Shuuichi completely lost.
What did he mean, "He is Higashino Shuuichi"?
Did Mayuri really need to introduce him like that?
Just as Shuuichi was baffled, he suddenly felt the aura of the female Shinigami beside him… change completely.
"Father?"
"Father?!"
Higashino Shuuichi's brain went blank. Why was Nemu calling him Father?
And what was even more bewildering—
Was the attack she launched next.
"Hadō 4: Kaze・Byakurai (Wind: Pale Lightning)!"
A completely invisible pale lightning shot from Nemu's fingertip, then scattered in midair.
The sensation was disturbingly familiar.
Ordinary Shinigami couldn't sense Byakurai in this state, but for Shuuichi it was a trivial matter.
The spiritual pressure gap between him and Nemu was so vast it could crush any petty tricks outright.
So Shuuichi simply extended his left hand again and crushed the invisible Byakurai into nothing.
But Nemu's attack didn't stop.
Nemu didn't have a Zanpakutō, so what followed was a hakuda-like blade technique swung with her hand like a knife.
"Bungetsu-giri (Crescent Moon Split)!"
Shuuichi leapt high, narrowly avoiding the strike.
But his heart was already pounding.
This damn familiar feeling…!
And above him, another move was already waiting.
"Reishi constructs・Kaze・Kidō Junkyō (Wind: Demon Arts Burial Sacrifice)!"
All around Shuuichi, countless Reishi constructs that had long since blended into the environment burst forth—
And in the same instant, they all unleashed the strongest Kidō (Demon Arts) they could use, aimed at Shuuichi.
It was still Shuuichi's own old move.
And Nemu had even thoughtfully given it a brand-new name.
No… wait.
With Nemu like this, could she even still be called "Nemu"?
Higashino Shuuichi stared at the countless Kidō spells screaming toward him and suddenly fell into deep thought.
A terrifying explosion erupted in the underground laboratory.
Thankfully, spatial techniques were now one of Mayuri's proud specialties. With Nemu's level of spiritual pressure, actually destroying Mayuri's laboratory was still difficult.
For Higashino Shuuichi, it was even more impossible.
Even though, at the very last moment, Shuuichi had given up resisting and simply drifted into thought—
When the dust finally settled, he still hadn't suffered so much as a scratch.
That was the sheer, crushing difference in spiritual pressure between them.
But as Shuuichi looked at Nemu—staring at him with eager expectation—he couldn't help turning his head toward Mayuri.
"What did you do?"
Mayuri answered openly, wearing the look of someone who had long since stopped caring what others thought.
"It's nothing, really. The artificial human project started smoothly thanks to my research into soul modification, but it had one fatal problem—too weak.
And there was no way for them to develop potential like normal Shinigami, or awaken a Zanpakutō.
Until one day, I had a sudden inspiration. I incorporated your genes—and made them the primary base.
And it worked. Nemu, who carries the vast majority of your genes, didn't awaken her own Zanpakutō, but she was born with the same Zanpakutō ability as you.
Unfortunately, to this day this is the only successful case. I don't have any other Shinigami genetic material that can reproduce Nemu's 'miracle.'"
"So… she's doing this because…?"
Shuuichi nearly went silent from shock. This sort of thing probably could only happen in a world like this.
"I don't know. But my guess is she's trying to show you her strength and gain your approval.
Because I have backups of everything you've done in the past. Nemu almost watches through your records once every day before she sleeps."
Mayuri explained.
To him, it didn't matter—Nemu was, at most, an unexpectedly successful product.
But to Higashino Shuuichi, the existence of Nemu—no, "Higashino Nemu," in a sense—was now… slightly special.
"You did great, Nemu."
Shuuichi looked at her and said solemnly.
As expected, after hearing that, Nemu gave him a radiant smile.
"Thank you… Father!"
//Check out my P@tre0n for 30 extra chapters on all my fanfics //[email protected]/Razeil0810