Squad One.
Shunsui Kyōraku acted as the host entertaining their guests, while Yamamoto, oddly enough, behaved like a server. He remained in the corner of the tearoom, silently brewing tea and serving snacks for everyone from beginning to end.
Tsunayoshi glanced at Yamamoto and immediately understood his mindset. All reforms concerning the Seireitei had been handed over to Shunsui Kyōraku. If Yamamoto were not still the Captain-Commander in name, he probably would not even have attended.
Kyōraku and Billy spoke in great detail. The two of them thoroughly explained the situation of their respective Soul Societies, and the discussion dragged on for a very long time. For those waiting on the side, it was unbearably boring.
"Hey, Tsunayoshi, why don't we let the old man keep talking here while you take us out for a walk?" Ninny tugged at Tsunayoshi's sleeve and leaned in, whispering.
Noel also looked at Tsunayoshi expectantly. The administration of Reverse London had nothing to do with frontline workers like them, and having to sit through this oppressive atmosphere was dull beyond belief.
Before Tsunayoshi could speak, Yamamoto had already quietly approached them.
"Let us leave. We can leave this place to them."
Tsunayoshi himself had wanted to leave for a while, but he had been worried that leaving Billy alone to face both Kyōraku and Yamamoto would put too much pressure on him. That was why he had not excused himself.
Yamamoto had also noticed Tsunayoshi's bored state of mind, so he took the initiative to leave, handing the situation over to a one-on-one exchange between Kyōraku and Billy.
Tsunayoshi gave Ninny and Noel a look. The three of them quickly followed Yamamoto out of the tearoom.
"Sawada Tsunayoshi, you were the one who brought them here. Are you certain you do not wish to participate in their discussion?" Yamamoto asked in the corridor.
Tsunayoshi yawned in boredom.
"What you're discussing is all Soul Society business. As long as I protect my little patch of land in the World of the Living, that's enough for me."
Whether it was the Eastern Branch or the Western Branch, both were part of Soul Society. Tsunayoshi did not think that he, a human, had any reason to get involved.
Moreover, Tsunayoshi had no particular ambition. Once Yhwach was dealt with, he probably would not visit Soul Society more than a few times a year.
Watching Tsunayoshi walk away, Yamamoto shook his head helplessly. Tricking Tsunayoshi into taking the Captain-Commander's position was still going to be a long and difficult road.
Once they left Squad One, the oppressive atmosphere vanished instantly. Ninny recovered her lively nature at once. There was no helping it. Under Yamamoto's discipline, Squad One's environment had become far too rigid and solemn. It was not something ordinary people could easily endure.
"Tsunayoshi, where are we going next?"
Ninny was extremely happy to be in the Seireitei. In the World of the Living, her fame was so great that she had to cover her face in various ways just to move around freely. The Eastern Branch was wonderful. No one recognized her at all, so she could finally act freely.
"I'll take you to find Yachiru. She knows plenty of places to have fun."
If he had to say where in the Seireitei was actually fun, Tsunayoshi himself had no idea. So he simply threw the problem to Yachiru.
"Great, great!"
It was not just Ninny. Noel also showed an excited expression. After only a brief interaction, Yachiru had already become friends with them.
Two days later, someone knocked on the gate of the Sawada Residence.
When Tsunayoshi opened the door, he saw Billy hovering on the verge of life and death.
"Huh? How did you find this place?"
"Brother Kyōraku sent a squad member to guide me here. Ninny and Noel have been staying with you lately, right? Do you still have any spare rooms?"
Billy asked while yawning, his head nodding bit by bit. He looked as though he might fall asleep at any moment.
"Come in. You two… don't tell me you didn't sleep at all these past two days?"
"We talked in detail. Perfectly normal…"
Before he could finish speaking, Billy collapsed on the sofa.
Tsunayoshi casually carried him to an empty guest room. With the Kuchiki Clan's involvement, the rebuilt Sawada Residence was several times larger than before, and there were more rooms than he could count.
Billy slept all the way until dinner. Only when he smelled the food did he finally get up.
Ninny and Noel were still outside fooling around with Yachiru. Taking advantage of the opportunity, Billy gave Tsunayoshi a rough summary of what they had discussed over the past two days.
To put it simply, the Eastern Branch and the Western Branch had reached a cooperative agreement. The Seireitei needed Reverse London's experience with modernization, as well as its technology for integrating Hollows into daily life. Reverse London's target, meanwhile, was Hueco Mundo.
In Reverse London, the number of dragons was limited, and Reverse London could not directly open a gate to Hueco Mundo. Therefore, in order to obtain more reserve forces, Reverse London needed the Seireitei's assistance in jointly developing Hueco Mundo.
That was the rough plan for now. The specific implementation period was set for two years later. During that time, Billy would also come over from time to time to exchange opinions between both sides' higher-ups.
"That's more or less the situation. Check whether there are any plane tickets tomorrow. I need to head back quickly," Billy said.
"That urgent? Are Ninny and Noel going back with you?" Tsunayoshi asked.
"No. They'll still follow the original plan and protect your parents, then go to London together with them."
"Protect them, or monitor them?"
By now, the abilities of the Sawada couple had gradually taken shape. Ordinary Hollows were no match for them. Since they had the ability to protect themselves, there was no real need for Noel's protection.
"Of course it's protection. Letting Noel-chan spend more time with you will strengthen the connection between our two sides."
"I'll just pretend to believe that for now," Tsunayoshi said, making it clear he did not believe a word.
"Fine, then allow me to show you my sincerity once more."
Billy's gaze sharpened, and his eyes turned toward the ground beneath his feet.
"I wonder whether you people know this, but there is something strange within the shadows of this Eastern Branch."
Tsunayoshi immediately stood up.
Of course he knew there was something strange inside the shadows of the Seireitei. Wasn't the Wandenreich hidden within the Seireitei's shadows?
After the investigation into the Seireitei's shadows had been handed over to the Research and Development Institute, there had been no results. If not for Tsunayoshi's strength backing up his claim, people would probably have started gossiping long ago.
And yet Billy, who had never been to the Seireitei before, had actually said there was something inside the shadows. That was what shocked Tsunayoshi the most.
"What did you sense?" Tsunayoshi asked.
"Looks like this matter is very important to you."
Billy calmly lit a cigarette.
"From the moment I arrived here, I felt that something was strange. The Eastern Branch feels as though it has been covered in stealth magic all along."
"Strictly speaking, calling it stealth magic is not quite right either. I can sense it, but I have no way of truly finding what is inside."
Billy flicked away some ash.
"That is why I never fully cut loose when I fought."
When Billy fought Kenpachi Zaraki, he had kept defending with two fingers precisely because he was wary of the people hiding in the shadows.
However, after observing things for the past two days, Billy discovered that whatever was hidden in the shadows was very likely not something the Seireitei had hidden on its own initiative. That made things interesting.
Using this information to gain Tsunayoshi's goodwill was, in Billy's opinion, extremely worthwhile.
Magic?
The word flashed rapidly through Tsunayoshi's mind. Could it be that the power of the Western Branch and the Quincy shared the same origin, which was why Billy could sense something?
But because their powers had developed along different branches, Billy could at most perceive it, and could not actually locate the Quincy hiding in the shadows.
"Mr. Billy, can you help us drag the people in the shadows out?"
Hearing Tsunayoshi's form of address change, Billy knew that his plan had succeeded.
"I'm very sorry, but I cannot stay here for long. If I don't return the day after tomorrow, London will send people here."
This was a measure meant to protect Billy. If Billy failed to return, it would become a serious diplomatic incident.
"Then can London send over a wizard who knows stealth magic? Compensation won't be an issue," Tsunayoshi said.
"There's no need to make it that troublesome. I imagine you also don't want us to know exactly what is hidden in the shadows, correct?"
Billy waved a hand and suggested,
"Doesn't the Eastern Branch have an ability called Kidō? I can stay one more day and teach you stealth magic."
"But the principles behind magic and Kidō are somewhat different."
"Then modify it. That general store owner is a technician, isn't he? Wouldn't it be better to convert stealth magic into a stealth-type Kidō that you can use?"
Billy's suggestion was indeed tempting.
Without thinking too much about it, Tsunayoshi picked up his phone, preparing to contact Kisuke Urahara.
"Please wait a moment."
Watching Tsunayoshi's back, Billy smiled.
Although he had not been in the Eastern Branch for long, he had clearly sensed that the Eastern Branch's overall combat power surpassed that of the Western Branch.
Whether it was Kyōraku, who had chatted with him in Squad One, the old man who had poured tea, or the woman who had healed him, all of them were formidable. Most importantly, there was Sawada Tsunayoshi, the first person he had come into contact with. He was the greatest danger to the Western Branch, even if he had not shown any hostility for now.
For the strong, it was always easy to receive goodwill from others.
Whether it was having Noel protect the Sawada couple or telling Tsunayoshi about stealth magic, both were acts of goodwill Billy had taken the initiative to offer.
Soon, Tsunayoshi returned.
"Mr. Billy, please teach us stealth magic. In exchange, you may ask for any compensation you need."
Billy shook his head and extinguished his cigarette.
"Mr. Sawada, you only need to know that this is Billy's goodwill. There's no need for compensation."
Tsunayoshi felt somewhat helpless. Favors were the hardest debts to repay. Since things had already come to this, he could only take one step at a time.
At the testing ground of the Research and Development Institute, Billy formally witnessed the full strength of the Gotei Thirteen.
All the captains had gathered, along with Mayuri Kurotsuchi's recording equipment and data analysis, all for the sake of learning stealth magic in the shortest possible time.
"Then, let us begin."
Billy felt a little overwhelmed.
He had not expected the Eastern Branch to have over a dozen people who met the captain-class standard. Surrounded by a group of powerful individuals like this, he would never have agreed to demonstrate it in such a manner if Tsunayoshi had not been standing nearby.
"Special Magic: Stealth…"
Before Billy could finish speaking, his entire body melted like liquid. After a short while, only a black shadow remained where he had been standing.
Billy had already hidden himself inside the shadow.
"Interesting. Our current equipment really can't find him!"
Mayuri Kurotsuchi muttered to himself while rapidly operating the devices. The instruments displayed various analyses of Billy's magic.
The Kidō experts among the observers were not idle either. Each of them kneaded a small mass of Reiatsu in their palm, making it look very much like they were in the middle of creating a new Kidō spell.
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