After a long silence, the hand he'd been hovering over the hilt finally relaxed.
"…Thank you. Also, I may not be able to see, but please don't act so deliberately. Treat me like a normal person."
"Heh. You've got a lot of pride, don't you?"
"I'm only reminding you that people with disabilities don't need excessive concern."
Watching him drain the cup in one go, Arima Shizuya tilted his head and smiled.
"Then tell me—what's your name?"
"Tōsen Kaname. Class 2–6."
Short. Forceful. Straight to the point.
And it made Shizuya sigh inwardly at the state of the world.
What kind of luck was this?
Yesterday it was the world's number-one hair-gel tyrant.
Today it was this—Aizen's number-one loyal hound.
So I'm just destined to clash with the Aizen faction, is that it?
Truth be told, Shizuya didn't have that deep an impression of Tōsen Kaname, and he hadn't expected Tōsen to be a Shin'ō Academy student too.
Only one year ahead of him…
No—wait.
Most people in the Gotei Thirteen were Academy graduates anyway. The Eleventh Division was the special case.
Tōsen stepped down calmly. One hand brushed the item hanging at his waist. His gait was still unsteady, but far better than yesterday.
He stopped in front of Shizuya, voice heavy.
"Arima Shizuya. I am grateful for your help. But it would be best if you did not stay too close to me…"
He'd provoked nobles. If they chose to pursue it, things would get troublesome.
"Yeah, yeah—I get it. No need to remind me. If something actually happens, I'm definitely the first one to run."
Shizuya understood exactly why Tōsen was like this.
He would join the Gotei Thirteen for revenge.
His friend had been murdered, and the perpetrator hadn't suffered the punishment they deserved.
That was why a proper asauchi hung at his waist.
Because it was his friend's keepsake—and also standard equipment for a Shinigami.
During their time as students, they could only handle real blades during class. Those were essentially loaned out temporarily. To truly own an asauchi, you had to wait until graduation.
Tōsen Kaname had his own understanding of justice. He held to it, and eventually rose to become Captain of the Ninth Division.
Shizuya had always assumed he was the type to endure humiliation and bide his time.
He hadn't expected him to be so easily provoked.
Time really was a butcher's knife.
It polished even a reckless, stubborn blind man into something smooth.
At Shizuya's response, Tōsen fell silent for a moment.
He walked to the dorm doorway and spoke without turning back.
"Arima-kun… thank you."
Shizuya grinned brightly, teeth flashing—though of course, a blind man wouldn't see it.
"Hah. Don't mention it!"
…
Because he'd taken time to look after Tōsen, Shizuya was late to class today.
And of course, it had to be Kidō—taught by the strictest instructor of them all.
He was forced to stand as punishment, and his auditing privileges for the class were revoked entirely.
To top it off, the teacher even filed a complaint.
So after class, when Shizuya was about to take a short break, he looked up and saw Aizen waiting outside the door.
"Shizuya-kun. Let's talk for a moment."
There was no room to refuse.
He followed behind Sōsuke Aizen as they walked the corridors of the academic building, exchanging idle words.
"So—did something happen?"
Aizen didn't take him to an office. He chose a more public place instead, a relaxed posture in itself.
He wasn't looking to assign blame. He was simply talking.
Shizuya didn't hide anything. He told Aizen everything about Tōsen Kaname.
Aizen's expression didn't change, but there was a faint sigh in his tone.
"I see… So you were late because you helped someone. That does sound like you, Shizuya-kun."
"Huh? You're believing me that easily, Aizen-sensei?"
That Kidō teacher this morning had said it was "all excuses."
Aizen laughed openly.
"I believe I understand what kind of person you are, Shizuya-kun. You aren't the type to make excuses to dodge responsibility. If there wasn't a reason, you wouldn't have been late."
That kind of understanding—like the effortless trust between close friends—hit Shizuya harder than he expected.
He almost felt moved.
"From the standpoint of an instructor, I hope you will become an upright and kind person. But the world is unpredictable. Just as with that student you mentioned—Tōsen—people are troubled by things they can't foresee, things that don't go as they wish."
"Then what should you do in times like that?"
Aizen laughed softly.
"Try thinking proactively, once in a while. Three minutes. Tell me your answer afterward."
He led Shizuya down to the first floor and had him wait for a moment.
When Aizen returned, he was holding two warm onigiri.
"Back from the dōjō, taking care of Tōsen Kaname, then rushing to class… You likely didn't have time to eat."
Damn.
This guy really did have terrifying charisma.
Shizuya's stomach growled audibly.
"It seems there's no room left for stubbornness."
Just as Aizen said, Shizuya could only accept them with a quiet thank-you.
Both were for him—one filled with salmon, the other with pickled plum.
"So," Aizen asked, "have you found your answer?"
Shizuya hummed, then spoke.
"Either endure it… or overturn everything."
One was compromise. The other was rebellion.
Both had meaning.
But in Aizen's eyes, it wasn't that simple.
"Oh?"
He adjusted his glasses and sat beside Shizuya.
"That is an uncommon view, Shizuya-kun. It seems you possess wisdom beyond the ordinary."
Not really, not really…
I'm just standing on some king-of-trash-talk's shoulders and borrowing his lines.
"It was just a thought. But Aizen-sensei—how would you answer that question?"
"A counterquestion? My… It can make one feel disrespected. But I suppose I don't dislike it."
Aizen considered.
He rested an arm on his knee, fingers interlaced, the back of his hands supporting his head. Behind the lenses, his eyes were calm as still water, without the slightest ripple.
"If it were me… I might lament the unfairness of fate."
"You wouldn't think of resisting?"
"You say dangerous things so lightly, Shizuya-kun. You truly are different."
Shizuya could sense that Aizen still held a proper reverence for the rules.
After thinking for a moment, he asked tentatively—
"Sensei… have you ever thought about standing in the heavens?"
Aizen looked surprised.
His brow lifted slightly, and he murmured as if weighing the words.
Almost reflexively, he turned his gaze toward Shizuya—
And yet something about it felt strange.
As though he had chewed on the question, swallowed it, digested it—
And only after that did his lips begin to curl upward.
Like someone hearing a child's naive provocation—amused to the point of almost laughing.
"Standing in the heavens?"
"What an interesting—and arrogant way to put it."
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