Chapter 85: Post War Settlement
Comprehensive Treatment Center, Third Floor Ward.
The warm breeze drifting in from outside was unusually gentle. The curtains rustled as they swayed, soft and quiet, barely louder than breathing.
When Takeru opened his eyes, the first thing he saw through the window was a slice of high, clear blue sky.
It was, undeniably, much better than staring at some unfamiliar ceiling.
In that calm atmosphere, his foggy consciousness slowly sharpened.
"Do you want a glass of water?"
A cool voice came from his side.
Takeru turned his head and saw Soi Fon seated in a chair against the wall.
"How long was I out?"
"From the moment you were brought here to the moment you woke up, twenty five hours, three minutes, and forty seconds."
"…You remember it that precisely?"
"Because it might be useful for your death report."
Clang.
A full glass of water landed heavily on the bedside table. Soi Fon's pretty face carried a faint irritation, and her gaze raked across him like a blade.
Takeru calmly picked up the glass and took a few small sips. "Thank you."
Seeing how indifferent he was, Soi Fon snorted.
"When I first heard you died together with the escaped convict, I thought that even if you were a sinner, dying for Soul Society could count as a worthwhile end."
"So I prepared to go collect your body."
"I did not expect Kurosaki Ichigo and that Substitute Shinigami to actually bring you back. I ended up making a pointless trip."
"I thought I was dead too." Takeru put on a solemn face. "I was thinking how lucky it was I cleared things up with you before coming here. Now I have no regrets."
"You bastard."
Soi Fon snapped. In an instant, she leaned forward and grabbed the collar of his hospital gown.
"What is it?"
"…You. The one even my Bankai could not kill. If you died to some escaped convict, where would I, the Commander in Chief of the Onmitsukido, put my face?"
"Do not say something like that again. Otherwise, forget having a peaceful life. I will have the Executive Militia watch you every day."
"…"
Soi Fon narrowed her eyes. "What is that look supposed to mean?"
"I am just surprised you are sitting here waiting for me to wake up." Takeru's tone stayed flat. "And it turns out the Captain Commander did not send you to monitor me."
"Huh? No, that, I…" Soi Fon's eyes flicked away. She stiffened, then blurted out, "Wait. He did. The Captain Commander did send me."
Takeru calmly straightened his wrinkled collar.
"Then tell me everything that happened after I passed out. In detail."
"?"
Soi Fon's eyes widened slightly, as if she had just heard the most ridiculous thing in the world.
Is that the tone a monitored criminal should be using?
Even so, the request itself was reasonable. She swallowed her annoyance and, with clear efficiency, spent the next five minutes recounting everything.
Tosen Kaname and Gin Ichimaru kidnapping Central Forty Six. Capturing Kisuke Urahara. Defecting to Hueco Mundo. She held nothing back, even describing the reactions and thoughts of those present.
Her report was as sharp and thorough as any chief secretary's.
"Tosen and Ichimaru defected, and Central Forty Six is gone…" Takeru paused, then returned to the root cause that had kept him unconscious for a day and a night. "So what about Kuchiki Rukia's execution?"
Soi Fon sounded uninterested in Rukia, answering in a cold tone.
"Ichimaru revealed the execution was meant to draw out the Hogyoku through the Sokyoku, but he failed."
"At this morning's captain meeting, we suspected that failure made him seek out the master of the Sokyoku, Arturo Plateado, to continue extracting the Hogyoku from Kuchiki Rukia's body."
"Now that the Hogyoku has left her body, her crime no longer meets the criteria for a judgment vote. The execution is void."
"All objections are dismissed. We will revisit it after Central Forty Six is rescued."
She looked at him.
"Those were the Captain Commander's exact words."
Takeru raised an eyebrow.
"The execution was changed from the original sentence. If it is voided, then she has no sentence at all."
"Yes." Soi Fon's displeasure sharpened. "Acquitted and restored to her original post. It is ridiculous."
She was not attacking Rukia so much as the chaos of orders changing overnight.
"What about Inoue Orihime?" Takeru asked next.
Soi Fon's expression darkened.
"Can you worry about yourself a little more?"
Then she answered anyway, clipped and direct.
"That ryoka never killed anyone, and she did everything she could to disrupt the enemy's plan. She is considered meritorious to Soul Society."
"The Captain Commander explicitly permitted her to operate in the Human World as a Substitute Shinigami."
"And Yoruichi?"
"?"
"I am glad you still remember me."
A black cat squatted on the windowsill. It had a cat's face, but the expression was so human it looked outright offended.
"I am not the type to repay kindness with hostility." Takeru glanced over. "If you had not lent me your spiritual power, there is no way I could have beaten that guy."
"Of course." The black cat leaped lightly onto the bed. "There are not many shinigami who have defeated an Adjuchas, and that one was not some ordinary Adjuchas."
"Even if we were both at our peak, we might not have won. I would have judged it that way if I had not personally seen you unleash everything."
"So rather than saying I lent you power so you could win, it is more accurate to say we only won because you were able to use that power."
"This was a victory we traded everything for. Neither of us owes the other a favor."
She flicked her tail.
"That said, I will not do this again. I thought you were a cool headed strategist like Kisuke. I did not expect you to turn so violent once you started fighting."
"Before you kill yourself next time, hurry up and dissolve the contract."
"I also want to go home and discipline that idiot younger brother. This form is terribly inconvenient for showing off my might."
"I think the main reason you are eager to dissolve it is because you want to show off your might," Takeru said dryly.
Even while bantering, he still did as she asked.
Soi Fon's eyes narrowed. She looked between them, completely shut out.
"Wait." Her voice sharpened. "What are you two talking about? What contract? What lending spiritual power? Since when did your relationship get that good?"
"A Shihoin clan secret technique." Takeru did not even blink. "I cannot reveal the details. Ask her yourself."
He pricked his finger, drew the Shihoin clan mark over his heart, then lifted the black cat and let it lick the faintly glowing spiritual mark until it faded completely, leaving no trace of blood.
The contract dissolved. The spiritual power returned.
"Phew. Having my power back feels amazing."
Yoruichi immediately reverted to human form, stretching with a grin.
Then she felt a wave of chill.
The brown skinned cat goddess turned her head and found Soi Fon staring at her with pure frost.
"What is it, Soi Fon?"
"Get off him." Soi Fon's veins throbbed at her forehead. "Is it fun to sit on an injured person in that indecent posture?"
"Indecent? Sorry, sorry. I am getting up."
Yoruichi looked down with a completely nonchalant expression, the same kind of calm that Takeru wore. If anything, she looked a little embarrassed about sitting on an injured man, not about indecency.
But as she tried to stand, her legs went weak.
She tumbled right back down onto Takeru.
"Ah…" Yoruichi sighed shamelessly. "My spiritual power just returned and I am not used to it. I did not know this technique had that side effect. Those old geezers did not bother to mention it in the notes."
Clang.
Soi Fon drew the short sword from her waist and slashed straight for Yoruichi's throat.
Fast. Sudden. Clean.
Yoruichi tilted her head back and dodged.
"What are you doing, Soi Fon?"
"Cleaning house for the Shihoin clan." Soi Fon's voice was ice. "Do not worry. After I kill you, I will commit suicide to apologize."
"What are you even saying? Kisuke was captured. The case from a hundred years ago obviously has nothing to do with us." Yoruichi's eyes narrowed. "Well, at least nothing to do with me, so I am innocent now."
"That sounds convenient." Soi Fon advanced. "But the Captain Commander intends to reopen that old case. Until the truth is settled, Urahara is a temporary suspect, and you are under continuous observation."
"If you do anything suspicious, I can take you down without reporting it first."
Her gaze sharpened.
"And I find you very suspicious right now."
"What is suspicious about me?"
"Trying to use your beauty to corrupt and lure the rising star of the Gotei Thirteen." Soi Fon's voice dripped contempt. "Is that enough?"
"…Ah."
Yoruichi's expression turned subtle.
"I thought you had changed a lot, but now… it seems nothing changed at all."
She stared at Soi Fon, as if finally seeing it clearly.
"You just switched roles."
"Are you treating me like Kisuke?"
"I do not have time to waste talking." Soi Fon's blade flashed. "Die."
Steel flashed past Takeru's eyes.
Yoruichi, using her cat transformation technique, slipped away effortlessly. She sprang onto the windowsill and taunted her back.
"The shy little girl from back then has gotten arrogant."
"You think that swordsmanship can hit the famous Flash Goddess Yoruichi?"
"Go train for another hundred years and you might catch up to me."
She grinned.
"Well, the me from a hundred years ago."
"What?"
Soi Fon's fury exploded. She chased the black cat straight out the window, vanishing.
Takeru shook his head.
They had caused a scene in his hospital room, fought, and then ran off. The least they could have done was pour him another glass of water.
He swung his legs out of bed and tested his body with a few small movements. Fairy Tale Dragon Blood did wonders for recovery and endurance. Even after sleeping for a full day and night, he did not feel stiff.
His wounds were almost entirely healed.
If nothing changed, he could probably be discharged tomorrow.
Takeru poured himself a glass of water, walked to the window, and let the warm breeze wash across his face. Sunlight spilled in, turning his skin pleasantly warm.
"It is August…" he murmured. "In the blink of an eye, there is only half a month left until summer break ends."
A lot had happened.
He was just about to reflect on his efforts and scrape together a sense of accomplishment when a sudden commotion from the courtyard made him freeze.
Shouts. Threats. The sound of chasing feet.
Who was bold enough to cause trouble on Fourth Division territory, especially now, when everyone's nerves were raw after the battle?
He leaned forward to look and saw a white haired boy chasing a black haired girl and an orange haired boy.
The voices were clear enough that he could catch the argument word for word.
"Stop right there, Hinamori. I am going to kill you!"
"Why, Shiro chan? Should you not be happy to see I am still alive?"
"How dare you ask why. You colluded with Aizen and the others to deceive me and make a fool out of me!"
"Then why are you not just chasing Miss Hinamori? Why are you looking for me, Toshiro?"
"It is Captain Hitsugaya. Kurosaki, how dare you even ask."
He clenched his teeth.
"No. I underestimated your shamelessness. After all, you were able to write that kind of suicide note."
"And worse, I did not even realize someone else wrote it. This will be the most humiliating memory of my entire life."
"What are you talking about? Yes, I wrote it, but it was not just my idea. Shimiya was the one who pushed it the most!"
"The fact that you wrote it is enough!"
"Hey, listen to me. It was all Shimiya."
A beat of silence. Then Ichigo's voice rose like he had just been struck by lightning.
"Wait. Damn it, so that is what happened."
"Shimiya"
Clack.
Takeru calmly closed the window, sealing out the summer breeze and the steadily intensifying chaos.
Then he returned to his bed and stared into empty air.
As if answering his desire to distract himself, ink wash characters surfaced in front of him.
[The former King of Hueco Mundo has fallen. Not as a Spirit Arts Academy freshman, but as a powerhouse, you bathed in his blood and bared your fangs to Seireitei. The machine soul is greatly pleased.]
[As the victor, you feel pride, yet you do not indulge in it. You constantly warn yourself that you are still not powerful enough.]
[This extremely strong will is the key to becoming the strongest, and your unique trump card for defeating opponents.]
[In order to defeat more enemies, and even yourself, you recall him, the blond warrior who, like you, is skilled in transformation.]
[If you lack time to grow, then you must fight for time.]
[You have comprehended the Hyperbolic Time Chamber manufacturing technique.]
"?"
Before Takeru could even process it, a vast flood of knowledge poured into his mind.
It arrived the way a memory arrives, as if he had studied it himself over years. There was no discomfort, no tearing headache, no disorientation.
And yet, if that knowledge were converted into written words, it would be an absurd number. Ten years might not be enough just to read it, much less grasp every technique hidden inside.
The Hyperbolic Time Chamber was a sacred training ground in a certain world. Time inside and time outside did not match. Worse, the environment itself was harsh, a forge meant to temper those desperate to grow stronger in too little time.
But what Takeru obtained was not the Hyperbolic Time Chamber itself.
It was the manufacturing technology.
In other words, if he wanted to use it, he would first have to build it.
That was not difficult.
Takeru understood the knowledge in his mind as thoroughly as the original creator. He knew his Hyperbolic Time Chamber was not the original version.
It was a reishi constructed space that could also distort the flow of time between inside and outside, with an environment so unique it could not be replicated by ordinary means.
The construction difficulty was not high.
At least, not for him now.
The technique was complete. Even the sections involving Bakudo and other Kido were mastered the moment the knowledge settled into him.
The only real issue was the workload.
If he tried to do everything alone, the labor would be enormous, and it would demand money and relentless energy. Compared to his goal of gaining time to grow stronger, that would be completely backwards.
But it was still manageable.
Compared to running around collecting bizarre materials like a game, where a single ingredient was an entire quest line and gathering them all was a super long chain quest, this was much simpler.
Besides, why should he do it alone?
Takeru's thoughts moved to the contacts he had built.
"If everything goes smoothly…" he murmured, eyes steady, "it might be finished before the end of the year."
He wondered if, by then, he would be placed on the Zero Division candidate list.
<><><><><>
[Check Out My Patreon For +50 Advance Chapters On All My Fanfics!]
[[email protected]/FanficLord03]
[Every 100 Power Stones = +1 Bonus Chapter]
[Join Our Discord Community For Updates & Events]
[https://discord.gg/MntqcdpRZ9]