Chapter 36: Visitors from Soul Society
Both sides were stunned.
But the reasons behind their surprise were very different, tangled together into something too messy to explain at once, and a strange silence settled over the street.
"Hey, Shimiya, from the way they are reacting it feels like they know you."
The ever lively Hachihara could not stand the quiet and was the first to break it.
She nudged Takeru with her elbow. She tried to keep her voice low, but in the pin drop silence every word was crystal clear.
"It is not 'feels like,' and it is not just 'me.' It is 'us'… To be precise, they are acquaintances of Brother Kurosaki and me."
Takeru glanced at Rukia, then at Orihime beside her in a Shinigami uniform, and sank into thought.
Ichigo, being named, did not think too deeply about it. Once he got over the initial shock, he raised a hand and greeted her with a hint of mischief.
"Yo, Shinigami. Long time no see."
"It is not 'Shinigami,' it is Kuchiki Rukia."
Rukia's expression was serious as she lifted her chin.
"I seem to recall telling you two this great name before."
"Great or not, it has been a while. Who would still remember that?"
Ichigo pouted. He had no fond feelings toward the petite woman who had calmly sent him off to Soul Society.
"It has only been a few months. Compared to a Shinigami's lifespan that is just the blink of an eye. If you cannot remember something so recent, it only proves you are still far from being a proper Shinigami, kid."
Rukia snorted.
Her words were sharp, but inside she was far from calm.
They had parted only a few months ago. In that short time their growth had surpassed anything she could have imagined.
At this distance, a dense, suffocating smell of blood hit her.
Hollow blood.
It still carried the residual stink of Hollow spiritual pressure.
Countless traces of battle.
She and Orihime had not relaxed for even a second in their fight against Hollows either. They had battled across the same town, on the same night.
Yet even on the same battlefield, the scale of their fights could not have been more different.
For first year students who had only just entered the Academy, this was unthinkable.
Even for a Shinigami like her, who had lived for over a century and could barely be called "elite," just imagining that intensity made her scalp prickle. Her chest tightened as if someone had put a hand around her throat.
And yet the blond kid in front of her, the black haired one beside him, and the two unfamiliar students behind them all stood there like it was nothing.
Completely unfazed.
It made no sense.
Had the Spiritual Arts Academy merged with Eleventh Division and turned the whole student body into battle maniacs?
Or… were these people simply the abnormal ones?
While Rukia was spinning through these thoughts, Takeru suddenly spoke.
"It has only been a few months, but you have changed quite a lot too. Your spiritual power is almost completely drained. Are you planning to retire and grooming a successor in your place? Though from the looks of it, she is not even a spiritual body."
The moment he said that, Ichigo, Rindo Yu, and Hachihara all turned their eyes on Orihime at once, making her flustered and unsure what to do.
Because at this moment, Orihime was indeed not a soul.
She clearly wore a Shinigami uniform and carried a Zanpakuto.
But she was still human.
Ichigo frowned and could not help asking, "What is going on? Inoue, how did you end up with this guy, and how are you using Shinigami powers while still being alive? That should not even be possible."
"Eh! Um… you are Kurosaki kun, right?"
"…Hey, we might not be that close, but we are both Tatsuki's friends. You cannot have forgotten me, right? I still remember you bringing your little brother to my family's clinic for treatment three years ago. Strictly speaking, that makes us more than just friends of a friend."
"Eh!? That was Kurosaki kun's family clinic?"
Orihime's eyes widened in surprise.
The two of them shared a close friend.
But all through middle school, they had never really spoken. The only reason they knew anything about each other was through Arisawa Tatsuki.
Calling them familiar strangers would not be wrong.
Until tonight, Orihime had always thought of their relationship that way.
"…Well, that is not really your fault. Given what happened back then, it is only natural you could not spare much attention for other people. I get it."
Feeling the subtle looks from Takeru and the others, Ichigo's cheeks flushed slightly and he hurried to drop the topic.
"Anyway, you are still an acquaintance. If that guy forces you into anything dangerous, I am not going to sit back and do nothing."
"Hey! What do you take me for?!"
While she held back the fuming Rukia, Orihime rushed to explain, "Please do not misunderstand. Miss Kuchiki did not force me to do anything against my will. She even gave me her power and saved my life."
"?!"
"What!"
"Oh ho."
[…]
Orihime's confession sent a visible shock through everyone.
The only one who remained calm was Takeru, who had already guessed as much.
"N no… that… I…"
Realizing she had let something crucial slip, Orihime panicked, her words tangling together.
Rukia, seeing her distress, finally stepped in with a sigh.
"Forget it. You are terrible at lying anyway. Let me handle it. I have been mentally prepared for this ever since the trip here."
She then quickly recounted what had happened.
The way she spoke made Takeru feel like she had drafted this explanation in her mind countless times, revising it over and over, just waiting for the moment she would have to recite it under interrogation.
There was no attempt to defend herself.
She laid out every detail flatly, from a completely objective viewpoint.
And because of that, the weight of every word only grew heavier.
It was obvious even she did not hold much hope for her own outcome.
The "mental preparation" she had mentioned on the way here was not for the act of telling them now.
It was for the judgment she would eventually face.
So even when everyone at the scene understood and accepted what she had done, not a hint of joy crossed her face.
"Shimiya, is giving your Shinigami powers to someone else really that serious?"
Watching her steady, solemn look, Ichigo felt deeply uncomfortable.
Truthfully, he was furious.
She had saved someone and fulfilled her duty as a Shinigami. Yet she would be punished for it.
The irony made his blood boil.
"According to spiritual law, it is a serious crime."
Takeru cast him a sidelong glance, his tone quiet but heavy.
"The reason is simple. Everyone's spiritual power is unique. Casually handing your Shinigami power to someone else is equivalent to handing over your identity. It touches on fundamental moral issues and brings the same kind of chaos that cloning technology could cause in the World of the Living, plus the hidden risks it poses to the existing political and class structures."
"In my opinion, that last part is the real reason it was written as a serious crime."
"And what usually happens to someone like that?"
"Hard to say. But most likely, execution."
death.
The answer brought Ichigo no comfort at all.
If anything, the tight set of his jaw only grew harsher, and his expression darkened.
"…Is that so? Then is there anything we can do?"
"Idiot, stop saying stupid things. As long as you do not report me to Soul Society, I will already be grateful. Beyond that, do not do anything unnecessary. Just pretend we never met."
Before Takeru could respond, Rukia cut in sharply.
"Huh? What kind of attitude is that? Did you not come here to ask for help?"
"What are you talking about? I sensed abnormal spiritual pressure gathering here and thought something had happened again, so I dragged Inoue with me. I did guess someone from Soul Society might show up, but I was confident I could hide it, as long as Inoue was not discovered."
"But then you ran straight into us."
"…That is because you all bunched up together and suppressed your spiritual pressure. I could not pinpoint your exact position, so I ended up here."
"In that case, stop acting tough. You have not done anything wrong. There is nothing shameful about honestly asking your comrades for help when you are in trouble."
"Comrades? You mean you, who have not even graduated from the Spiritual Arts Academy? If you ask me, that black haired kid over there is more reliable than you."
"Urk… I cannot deny that, but you sure have gotten arrogant for someone in such a terrible position!"
"…"
Watching the two of them bicker like there was no one else around, faces flushing as they went back and forth, Takeru, Hachihara, and Rindo Yu quietly moved a few steps away to avoid the stray crossfire of spit.
Conveniently, there was an open spot nearby, with several large concrete pipes stacked together like makeshift seats.
Hachihara flopped down on the topmost one, looking completely drained.
Rindo Yu crouched beside an anthill, studying it with vague interest.
"Come over and rest for a bit."
Takeru waved to the bewildered Orihime.
"They…"
"This is how they relax."
Convinced by that explanation, Orihime hesitated for a moment, then walked over and sat down next to him.
"Is it not a pain carrying that sword around everywhere?"
"Eh? Not really, because I can do this."
Orihime smiled and released her Shinigami state.
Her Shinigami robes and Zanpakuto dissolved into motes of light and gathered at her temple, forming a six petaled hairpin that nestled quietly in her warm orange hair.
Takeru took one look and could not help thinking of Ginjou Kuugo.
"Being a Substitute Shinigami must be rough. Especially on a night like this."
"…Yes."
Orihime nodded lightly.
But there was no complaint on her face. Her gentle gaze rested on Rukia, who was still arguing with Ichigo nearby.
"Even so, if I did not have this, I would have died a long time ago."
"Kuchiki mentioned you were almost killed by your own brother, right?"
"Yes."
Takeru's question was blunt, but Orihime did not get angry. She had long since come to terms with it.
"After my brother died, I made new friends. The girl Kurosaki kun knows. We got very close. So close that my brother thought I had forgotten him. That is why he got angry."
"I do not blame him. I was in the wrong too. I should have told him I did not want him to worry. Thankfully, I finally did. Now my brother can rest peacefully in Soul Society, no longer controlled by Hollow instincts."
"Miss Kuchiki not only saved me, she also resolved the misunderstanding between my brother and me. She saved both of us. She is my benefactor, and I feel like no matter what I do, it will never be enough to repay her."
"So I will fight. Even if I am scared and even if it is hard, I have to protect Miss Kuchiki now that she has lost her powers."
Takeru, Hachihara, and Rindo Yu all listened quietly as her emotions flowed out, gentle and steady like a stream.
"Come to think of it… I still do not know everyone's names."
Orihime suddenly realized this and tilted her head.
"My name is Shimiya Takeru. That is Rindo Yu over there, and the one lying on top is Hachihara Kumao. As for Brother Kurosaki, I do not need to introduce him. We are all classmates from the Spiritual Arts Academy."
Takeru gave a simple introduction.
"I see. No wonder you all get along so well."
Orihime nodded in understanding, a trace of envy flickering in her eyes at their tight little group.
"It is nothing special. Hachihara is a social butterfly, and Rindo is in the same living group as me, so we could not stay strangers even if we wanted to. As for Brother Kurosaki, there is not much to say. He and I were killed by the same car."
Takeru leaned back, settled into a more comfortable posture, and finally let himself relax completely.
With his eyes closed, he did not notice the look of surprise on Orihime's face.
"Shimiya kun also died in a car accident…"
"Yeah. Strictly speaking, I dragged him into it, so he got killed for nothing. That is why whenever something good happens, I always think of him. I even shared some extra lessons with him before."
"…I see."
Takeru's matter of fact tone made Orihime think of her own past, completely missing the strange looks Hachihara and Rindo were giving him.
A car accident.
Someone else caught up in it.
The guilt that followed.
The difference was that she had survived.
If she had gone out with her brother that day and died together with him, then right now… everyone might be meeting in Soul Society instead.
"Ah. Ah. Look what I found."
A sarcastic voice, thinly veiling its anger, suddenly cut through the night.
Takeru slowly opened his eyes and looked at the roof of the small detached house across the street.
Two figures stood silhouetted against the sky.
"Appearing out of nowhere, huh… Who are you supposed to be?"
Ichigo stopped arguing mid sentence and frowned up at them.
"For a Spiritual Arts Academy student to not recognize the important figures in the division he will probably end up in… that is pretty bold. Let me give you a quick lesson."
The red haired man's tone was full of condescension as he rested his hand on the hilt at his waist.
"I am Abarai Renji, Lieutenant of the Sixth Division of the Gotei 13. As for the person with me, I do not need to say his name."
His sharp gaze shifted and locked onto Rukia.
"Because someone here definitely recognizes him. Right, Rukia?"
"…!"
Rukia's whole body trembled.
It was not just the crushing pressure rolling off the man at Renji's side.
More than that, it was fear.
Of the silent noble who stood there without a word.
"Brother… Brother Byakuya!"
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