Well, the twists and turns of fate are strange. Here we are, sitting in front of the academy director. All of us. Me, this copy of myself—who they thought was my sister—and bushy-browed and blond. We sit, listen to the director's lecture, and remain silent. There's nothing we can do. He can easily expel us, and he won't even consider the fact that we're in the 1st Class.
"And in conclusion," the old man said, "don't cause any more trouble. It will be severely punished. This time, I will forgive you because you are newcomers."
"Please forgive us!" we said in unison.
I couldn't help but notice a slight smile flicker across his face. He clearly didn't mind our little performance. Rather, he was pleased that the newcomers were quite strong—but he still needed to rein us in. So he gave us a proper scolding.
Oh well.
We left the principal's office, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief.
"That was close," the redhead said, wiping the sweat from his brow. "I thought we were going to be expelled."
"That's unlikely," the blond replied. "We're 1st Class, so they probably wouldn't expel us. But they could've lowered our Class."
"That would be unpleasant," I grunted.
"By the way, who are you?" my clone asked me.
"I'm Kuroki Karasumaru," I introduced myself.
"So they stuck me your last name," she said, showing me a sheet with her information. "They assigned it to me."
"Hm." I frowned in thought. "So that's why they asked me earlier." The memory clicked. "They must have mistaken me for you and asked for my last name—so I gave them mine. That… turned out badly."
"What now?" she asked.
"Hell if I know." I shrugged. "But we shouldn't just stand here. We need to pick up our things from the warehouse and check in."
"Good idea."
We decided to postpone the proceedings and headed to the warehouse. But it was so crowded that we chose to wait until there were fewer people. We moved aside and sat down under a tree.
"Help yourselves," I offered, taking out some onigiri. I didn't mind sharing—Momoto-san had packed plenty for the road.
"Thank you," the bushy-browed guy said, accepting one.
"Yeah, thanks," my copy added.
"Thank you," the blond said with a smile.
We sat and ate.
"I think you should introduce yourselves. I still don't know your names," I said.
"He's right," the blond agreed, scratching the back of his head. "I'm Izuru Kira."
"Abarai Renji."
"Rukia… Kuroki…" she said, embarrassed.
"Well, now we've met," I chuckled.
Funny bunch. A strange company indeed. The blond is clearly from a noble family—his clothes are high quality, even if not new. The other two look like they're from the lower districts. Renji doesn't bother with manners, and both of them eat with impressive appetite. Seeing how hungry they were, I gave them the rest of the onigiri.
In general, I guess it's fate. We're all clearly very colorful characters. And if I want to achieve my goal, I'll need loyal friends.
"I'm looking at you and wondering," I began. "What brought you here? Why did you become shinigami?"
"Why did you?" Renji shot back.
"I have big plans for this place. But it's not hard to guess why you're here."
"That's right," Abarai chucled. "We're from West Rukongai. One of the poorest districts. We've been stealing since childhood just to survive. Becoming shinigami is the only way to escape poverty and crime. Street kids have only two choices: here, or a gang. Rarely does anyone make it out."
"Chatterbox," Rukia said, smacking him on the back of the head. "You'll never become human at this rate. Monkey."
"What did you say, shorty?" he growled.
"Pff." She turned up her nose proudly.
"They're like a married couple, aren't they, Kira?" I asked.
"I agree."
"Hey! Are you two already in cahoots?" they protested in unison.
"Heh."
"Well… I want to become someone," Izuru said with a sigh. "I don't have a family. And I think it's stupid to just sit around like an impoverished aristocrat—like my parents—waiting for life to return to the old days. I'd rather achieve everything myself."
"That's a good goal," I nodded.
"What about you?" Rukia asked. "You ask questions, but say nothing about yourself."
"I'm from the 10th district. I died not long ago and lived there for five years. And I want to become a shinigami in order to…" I paused. "…to change the world!"
"Ha!" Renji chuckled. "Big words. But can you do it?"
"I'll find out. But to become a lever that can change the course of a river, I need to grow stronger, make connections, and find allies." I smiled. "It's not an easy task, but I'll accomplish it."
"Where will you start?"
"I've already started," I said, amused by their faces. "I help who I can. I do what I can. Everything begins with small things."
"That's a very ambitious goal," Renji grunted. "You sure you can pull it off?"
"I'm not looking for an easy road. No matter how long it takes, I'll do it."
"He-he-he," I heard a familiar laugh. "You guys are so funny," said the snake-like girl perched on a tree branch above us. "Changing traditions that have existed for thousands of years… that's something. Do you really think you can change the order of the universe?"
"I don't care about the universe," I replied. "I want a just world—at least as just as possible."
"Hehehe." She laughed softly. "I like you. You're determined. I'm Kotoe Nakano, but call me Hebiko. Everyone does."
"I think you already know our names," I said with a shrug.
She hopped down, sat with us, and immediately took my last onigiri.