"Hey, Kisuke. That girl Soifon seems to have gotten stronger."
Yoruichi Shihōin watched the familiar figure in the distance, her lips curling into a faint, involuntary smile.
"Mhm, Miss Soifon must have been training hard these past few years..."
Kisuke Urahara cleared his throat, sounding a bit guilty.
"It's a pity Unohana is there. Otherwise, I would have liked to see Soifon for a moment."
Ever since Unohana appeared, Yoruichi Shihōin's interest had waned, though her eyes never once strayed from Soifon.
Kisuke Urahara pulled down the brim of his hat. "We don't know where Aizen is watching from. If we act rashly..."
"Perhaps Miss Soifon would be forced to become a 'traitor' to the Soul Society, just like us."
Upon hearing this, Yoruichi Shihōin pursed her lips, her small face falling. She understood the logic, but it didn't improve her mood.
Back on the scene, the dust had settled.
Unohana stood beside Soifon with a gentle smile, looking at the two children not far away. "They... seem to be able to see us?"
Soifon nodded without skipping a beat. "They're likely just children with a bit of spiritual power nearby."
She wasn't yet certain of Unohana's current stance toward the Quincy, so she had no intention of revealing their true identity.
Seeing the two of them look over, Ryūken Ishida slowly retreated with Kanae Katagiri, his young face pale.
He wanted to manifest a spirit bow in his heart, but his nervousness prevented him from gathering spirit particles. This, ironically, saved his life.
"Is that so? Then don't mind them. Let's head back, Soifon."
Unohana Retsu laughed dismissively, thrusting her blade into the air to open a Senkaimon.
"But leaving two children here is a bit too dangerous," Soifon said, walking toward the kids. "I want to take them to a safe place."
Unohana, who was about to step into the Senkaimon, turned back in surprise. She stared at Soifon intently for a few seconds. "Fine... then be quick about it, Soifon. I'll wait for you here."
(Did Soifon... not realize those two children are Quincy?)
Unohana didn't particularly care, but she was uneasy about leaving Soifon alone. The appearance of that Hollow earlier had left her feeling unsettled.
Nodding, Soifon walked quickly to Ryūken Ishida and Kanae Katagiri.
"You are..."
"I am a Shinigami. I'm responsible for taking you two home now."
Soifon didn't give Ryūken Ishida a chance to continue. She scooped both children up and tucked them under her arms, kicking off the ground to soar into the sky.
"Master Ryūken..."
Kanae Katagiri, who was somewhat afraid of heights, whispered softly, her small hand lightly tugging at the boy's sleeve.
Looking out over Karakura Town, Soifon adjusted her grip on the two children. "Where is your home?"
As Soifon asked, Ryūken Ishida's body grew even more tense, his throat bobbing. "Are you... going to kill us?"
Noticing Soifon's displeased expression, the girl pointed a small hand. "Over there!"
For the sake of Ryūken Ishida's safety, Kanae Katagiri was sensible enough to lead the way.
In the distance, Kisuke Urahara and Yoruichi Shihōin, who had witnessed the entire scene, wore increasingly strange expressions. They glanced at each other.
—Was Soifon always someone who liked children this much?
—Maybe, maybe not.
And it would be one thing if they were ordinary children, but those two were Quincy.
Based on Yoruichi's understanding of Soifon—or rather, the logic of the Soul Society's noble class—the way to handle an encounter with a Quincy was nothing more than two options: kill them or ignore them.
A Shinigami helping a Quincy was something she had truly never seen before.
With a series of rapid movements, Soifon brought the two children to the front of a grand villa in the blink of an eye.
Sensing the fluctuation in Spiritual Pressure, Sōken Ishida pushed open the door. When he saw his child standing next to a Shinigami wearing a Captain's Haori, his heart sank halfway.
—A Captain-level Shinigami is very difficult to deal with.
However, Sōken Ishida quickly regained his composure. "Lord Captain, to what do I owe this honor?"
Soifon patted Ryūken and Kanae on the back, pushing the two children toward Sōken Ishida.
"Watch your children, Quincy." Soifon didn't care about his wariness. "If they stumble into a battlefield between Shinigami and Hollows again, they won't be so lucky."
Sōken Ishida looked surprised. He was still weighing his words, but Soifon had no intention of chatting further, turning to vanish into the night.
Only the conspicuous number [Two] on the white haori remained burned into the eyes of Sōken Ishida and the two children—and also Masaki Kurosaki, who was peering at them from a window on the second floor.
...
In front of the Shin'ō Academy gates.
The Senkaimon opened, and Unohana and Soifon stepped out of the portal side-by-side. The graduates who had participated in the Konso internship were all waiting here for the return of the two Captains.
"Teacher Soifon!"
"Are you alright?"
The moment they appeared, Rukia and the others swarmed them, circling Soifon several times. They only felt relieved after confirming she was unharmed.
"Alright, I'm fine."
Soifon pressed her hands on the heads of Rukia and Momo Hinamori, comforting them with a pat.
To the side, Unohana said with a smile, "Soifon, you're quite popular with the students..."
Once all participants had returned, the Captain-Commander and Aizen, who had been waiting for a long time under the nearby school building, slowly walked toward the students.
Captain-Commander Yamamoto first gave a few formulaic opening remarks, then praised the courage of the students during this assessment, noting their composure under pressure and their ability to follow orders in the face of a powerful enemy.
Immediately following that, he announced that everyone had passed the assessment. In a few days, members of the Gotei 13 would come to post the recruitment notices.
After the Captain-Commander finished his speech, Aizen approached with an easygoing smile. "Captain Soifon, it's wonderful that you returned safely."
"Captain Aizen has been waiting since the start of the assessment," Unohana added. "He was very worried about the students' safety."
(Really? I don't believe it.)
"I was just lucky." Soifon glanced at Aizen out of the corner of her eye. "The power of that Hollow was very strange."
"Oh? I wonder what Captain Soifon means by 'strange' power...?"
Aizen was interested now. He was curious how Soifon would describe the power of that failed Arrancar.
"It was clearly an Adjuchas, yet it seemed to have lost its sanity..." Soifon crossed her arms, tapping her finger against her bicep. "It was almost as if it had regressed into a Gillian, yet its power was quite strong."
"In short, it was a failed creation." Then, Soifon wore an expression of pure disgust. "I wonder if the Hollows in Hueco Mundo have all taken the wrong medicine lately? It wasn't even as impressive as the Adjuchas I killed back then."
His gentle smile stiffened for 0.01 seconds. This was the first time Sōsuke Aizen had been mocked so directly to his face.
"That Hollow looked like a skeletal humanoid, somewhat resembling the characteristics of a Vasto Lorde."
"However, its Spiritual Pressure was too weak," Unohana added.
...
When Soifon returned to her quarters, a long-awaited System mission surfaced before her eyes once again.
[Mission Triggered: The Intersection of Three]
[Mission Completed]
[Mission Reward: Kikaitō (Optimized Portable Version; you can bypass the Seireitei's surveillance to travel to the World of the Living and Hueco Mundo)]
"Kikaitō?" Soifon toyed with the crystal in her hand, which emitted a blue fluorescent glow. "I remember that thing didn't look like this."
Rather than Kisuke Urahara's Kikaitō, it looked more like a mini version of the Soul King's crystal coffin.
Stuffing the Kikaitō into her pocket, Soifon wouldn't have to worry about how to smuggle herself into the World of the Living anymore; it was a good thing.
Most importantly, she no longer had to worry about the issue of Aizen "standing in the heavens."
—Fine. He goes to Hueco Mundo, we go to Hueco Mundo too. Someone, go throw the Captain-Commander into Hueco Mundo!
____
New Story: ZZZ: Mr. Ethereal Does Not Want to See a Tragedy
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