Chapter 89: Lord Shimiya, the Responsive One
Over the following week, Takeru's footsteps covered almost every squad jurisdiction.
At best, he was just a temporary hand borrowed by the First Division, with no official rank to speak of. But the Seireitei was in a state of instability, and every department was bleeding manpower. Nobody had the luxury of being picky. If someone could help, that was already a blessing.
Especially when that someone was a firefighter who worked fast, could plan, and could actually solve other people's problems.
Takeru's real results made every squad, and even the administrative offices of the Seireitei, look forward to his arrival like rain in a drought.
So when he reached the Fifth Division on Sunday, the last day of the week, a line had actually formed at the entrance of the barracks. The moment he appeared, they bowed in unison.
"Lord Shimiya! Thank you for your hard work!"
Takeru paused and stared at the spectacle.
"What is the meaning of this?"
His eyes landed on a familiar old seated officer in the crowd.
"Please pay it no mind," the man said, standing straight with a solemn face. "Everyone is simply impressed by your achievements and wishes to express their respect."
Other squads might have been awkward doing something like this.
But the Fifth Division was different.
After all, the two most talked about figures right now, Takeru and Ichigo, were Captain Aizen's disciples. That made them family. Their success brought honor to the division, so of course the welcome would be turned up to two hundred percent.
Thinking back, when the two had first arrived, there had been quiet complaints. Some members privately grumbled that Captain Aizen favored his disciples too much, letting them use the spiritual power restoration chamber whenever they wanted, while ordinary members could barely get in once a week.
Now nobody said a bad word.
Only praise.
"Where is the teacher?" Takeru asked, stepping into the barracks like he was coming home.
"The Captain and the Vice Captain went to the First Division for a meeting," the old seated officer replied at once.
Takeru nodded, not surprised.
His temporary services were in demand precisely because the squads were being crushed. If the squads were busy, how could the captains and vice captains be free?
A short time later, they reached the location tied to the current mission.
Takeru stood on a hillside, looking down at scorched earth. Something subtle and hard to name stirred in him.
The old seated officer beside him wore an expression just as complicated.
"Because of the great war, this area took severe damage," the man explained. "Although our division budget has always been generous under Captain Aizen's leadership, the cost of repairs is still too high."
"If the entire cost is covered solely by the division, we will be short on funds for the next few months. So Vice Captain Hinamori hopes you can help us think of a solution, even if it only saves a little."
"…I see."
Takeru's eyes narrowed slightly.
"She wants me to use the First Division's name to pressure the Seireitei Management Bureau into giving a subsidy, right?"
He saw through Hinamori's little scheme instantly.
She looked delicate, weak, pure, and sweet, but at her core she was a sharp and capable Kidō expert. She was not introverted, and she was not naive. Her nerve was considerable.
Now that the First Division had become the center of power in the Seireitei, she wanted to borrow Takeru's connections and influence to negotiate subsidies for construction repairs, reducing the Fifth Division's burden.
To be fair, it was not an outrageous request.
And asking for money under this pretext was completely legitimate. It would be unreasonable for the Management Bureau not to approve it.
Takeru did not mind helping the Fifth Division, and he did not mind helping the girl who had spent a stretch of time showing up every day to drag him to meals.
But the problem was different.
"Unfortunately," Takeru said, shaking his head, "the Seireitei Management Bureau is also short on cash."
"What?"
The old seated officer's eyes went wide.
That bureau oversaw more than ten departments, including household registration, high level spiritual ranks, and shinigami personnel management. It used to answer directly to Central 46. Strictly speaking, even the Noble Council fell under its jurisdiction.
How could it possibly be short of money?
"Because they fell out with the Second Division," Takeru said. "The Palace of Penitence was destroyed, and the First District of the Seireitei also suffered major damage. Those are all areas the bureau is responsible for."
"They first approached the Second Division, hoping Captain Soi Fon would take responsibility for the destruction of the Palace of Penitence. The staff they sent got thrown out immediately."
"The Noble Council donates funds periodically, but that money was taken by the Captain Commander to handle the ruins of the old street he demolished. He is turning it into a new commercial district to boost the Seireitei's industrial development."
"The Second Division refuses to compensate. External funds were diverted. And the Captain Commander demands quick repairs."
"And since many buildings in the Palace of Penitence were built with killing intent stone, even the materials are giving them headaches."
"So even if they have money, they are going to clutch it like their life depends on it. They will not allocate anything unless it is absolutely necessary."
Takeru's explanation made the old seated officer sigh.
"In that case, we will have to find a solution ourselves."
"Do not worry," Takeru said. "That is exactly why I came."
The old seated officer's eyes lit up.
"Do you have another way to raise funds?"
"If it were other squads, I might just raise funds the way you suggested," Takeru replied. "But the Fifth Division has run into a serious problem. And since it is partly related to me, I will help you solve it completely."
As he spoke, he pulled out his denreishinki and sent several electronic messages.
The old seated officer waited nearby, quiet, expectant.
A moment later, the denreishinki rang again and again.
Takeru opened the replies, and the tension in his mind instantly settled.
"Alright," he said. "Problem solved."
"Huh?"
The old seated officer's eyes bulged. Solved just like that?
"I divided the project into two parts," Takeru explained patiently. "The first is the streets and natural environment. It is not difficult to rebuild, but the workload is massive."
"The second is the training ground and key facilities damaged by the disaster. That part is harder, and the materials are expensive, but the workload is smaller than the first part."
"I asked the Second Division vice captain for a donation. Afterward, tell the teacher to have all squad members jointly write a letter of gratitude. Have Hinamori deliver it to his home personally."
"Use the donation to repair the first part."
"Leave the second part alone. I already found someone to fix it."
The old seated officer nodded repeatedly, engraving every word into his memory.
Securing a donation through a few electronic messages alone was impressive. Combined with Takeru's calm promise that he would completely solve the Fifth Division's problem, it made the old seated officer feel ready to welcome whoever handled the second part with the best food and drink the division could offer.
Then Orihime rushed over.
She activated Sōten Kisshun. Her blades swept across the land, smoothing the scorched ground, and the training field returned to its original condition at a visible speed.
The old seated officer went blank.
Best food and drink?
To treat her like that?
Would that not be insulting her?
"Hoo… hoo… Takeru kun, is this enough?"
Orihime finished repairing the ground and hurriedly turned to confirm.
In the next instant, two figures flashed into existence and dropped to their knees in front of her.
One raised a tea tray over his head. The other held a basin of water with a clean white towel draped over the edge.
"Lord Inoue! Please have some tea!"
"Lord Inoue! Please wipe your sweat!"
"Eh?!"
Orihime jolted, then looked awkwardly toward Takeru.
"Just consider it my gratitude," Takeru said calmly. "You would not want me to pay you, would you?"
That one simple sentence put Orihime completely at ease.
She really was thirsty, and she really had been sweating.
Even if the workload was not enormous, it was still a lot for one person.
"Speaking of which," Orihime said, taking the tea, "I never realized my ability could repair damaged objects. I should be the one thanking you."
Her smile was warm and sincere.
"I have received so much care from Rukia, Rangiku, and so many others these past few days. I felt comfortable even though I was new here."
"So I am truly happy to help. Please do not thank me. It makes me embarrassed."
"I figured," Takeru said, raising the denreishinki slightly. "That is why I did not hesitate to call you over as a volunteer with an electronic message."
Instead of being upset, Orihime relaxed so much she even joked, which was rare for her.
"Speaking of volunteers, are you and Kurosaki kun not volunteers too? I have been staying with the Tenth Division lately, and Rangiku told me you two have been working extremely hard. You earned a lot of trust and respect."
"Now, just by doing this small favor, I can receive the same treatment you two get. Even if you regret it now, I will not leave."
"Is that so?" Takeru glanced up at the sky. "Then let me tell you some more good news."
"If you can finish before dinner time, you will not just get the same treatment as us. You will also get to enjoy a rich and delicious dinner."
"?"
Orihime's breath caught. Her eyes gleamed with terrifying brightness.
It was like an invisible flame ignited across her whole body.
She could not be urged. She did not need to be.
With her fighting spirit fully lit, the work that had originally been quite a lot for her was conquered at an astonishing speed.
Takeru was a little surprised.
Everyone else did not even know how to react.
Wherever Orihime went, stunned silence followed.
Then, after people calmed down and asked around, they learned she was a Substitute Shinigami from the Human World, and immediately lost their calm again.
Before night fell, the two reached the last location marked in heavy red.
"There is no one here," Orihime said, looking around in confusion.
If there was nobody, it usually meant the facility was at risk of collapse and had been evacuated. But even so, it should not feel this deserted. It was hard to even tell what it had been used for.
Takeru looked down at the map in his hand and confirmed it again.
"That is right. It is here. South Thirty Sixth District. Marked heavily in red. Used for research and storage."
They walked inside.
The huge structure had clear signs of collapse. It was dangerous. But dust layered the floor like the building had been abandoned for years.
There were no traces of research. No signs of storage.
Logically, a place like this should not have been marked as a key facility at all.
Then Takeru noticed a broken corner of the floor.
A dark void revealed an underground space.
He understood at once. The key was buried beneath.
Orihime saw it too. Curious, she walked over, crouched, and peered through the opening.
Her eyes widened.
"What is that?"
Takeru came up behind her and looked over her head, catching most of the scene inside. His eyebrow rose.
The underground chamber was enormous, and it was not even dark.
Because a red sphere, at least a dozen meters wide, glowed naturally like a beacon, refusing to be swallowed by shadow.
"That sphere feels like it has very strong spiritual pressure inside it," Orihime said, uncertain.
Takeru felt she was being far too gentle.
It was not merely strong.
If that thing exploded, it would be enough to destroy one tenth of the Seireitei.
Its official name was the Pure Realm Chapter.
It was a relic of the Seireitei Research Institute from a thousand years ago. Later, Central 46 took it over and shelved it until today.
A massive energy source was not used. It was sealed and treated as a dangerous explosive.
That alone would have been fine.
At least, if they had maintained it properly.
Takeru seriously suspected this generation of Central 46 had long forgotten about these dangerous goods. They were simply repeating the old tradition of marking key facilities in red, with almost nobody understanding why.
Sealing it as an explosive was a waste.
Takeru thought about his spirit time house, a reishi space that could adjust internal and external time flow. A stable energy source would be essential to maintain it long term.
It would not be hard to transform the Pure Realm Chapter into the energy core of the spirit time house.
But right now, he could not move it.
And there was no suitable place to store it.
Most importantly, he did not need it yet.
So it could stay here for now.
Even so, leaving it like this was not safe.
"I should inform the Captain Commander," Takeru said.
First, seal every Pure Realm Chapter properly. Then, when he wanted to use them in the future, he could apply. Since he would be solving a major hidden danger, the Captain Commander could not possibly refuse.
As for Mayuri Kurotsuchi, there was little to worry about. The Twelfth Division did not lack energy sources. Reishi amplification devices, reishi gathering devices, and countless alternatives existed.
The moment Mayuri grasped the essence of the Pure Realm Chapter, he would lose interest.
Compared to that, the special species accidentally created by its developers, the Bount, would attract him far more.
So there was no real conflict.
"Inoue," Takeru said seriously, "this is dangerous. Keep it secret."
"I, I understand!"
Orihime panicked immediately once she heard the word dangerous.
After forcing herself to repair what needed mending, she practically dragged Takeru away from the place.
It was like she was afraid someone would notice them and pull them into another storm.
And honestly, Orihime's imagination did exactly that.
She pictured assassins suddenly targeting them. She pictured them fleeing to the Human World. Then running for prime minister. Then leading citizens to separate their souls from their bodies. Then boarding a spaceship to sail the sea of stars.
Somewhere along that endless train of thought, the roles even flipped.
It became Takeru taking her to the central commercial street of the Seireitei.
"Takeru! Inoue!"
Takeru turned toward the voice and saw Ichigo standing at the entrance of a restaurant.
"It is Kurosaki kun," Orihime said, delighted. "What a coincidence!"
"What coincidence?" Ichigo blinked. "Did we not agree to have dinner tonight? I just got here too."
"Huh?"
Orihime froze, then looked blankly at Takeru.
"Did I not tell you a sumptuous dinner was waiting tonight?" Takeru asked calmly. "Or do you mind if there are too many people?"
"No, no, no, how could I!" Orihime waved her hands quickly. "I just never imagined a couples set meal for two!"
"What are you talking about, Orihime?" Ichigo said, already walking in. "Hurry up. I am starving."
He glanced Ichigo up and down.
"And look at you. Which division did you go suffer at today?"
"Thirteenth Division," Ichigo said, scratching his face. "That Rukia. Even though she is just a squad member, she acts like some senior boss and orders me around. Damn it. Just you wait!"
"I suggest you dye your hair black when you become vice captain," Takeru said, deadpan. "You will definitely be able to train her into shutting up."
"Huh?"
Takeru and Ichigo kept bickering as they walked into the restaurant.
Orihime exhaled in relief and quietly followed behind them, suddenly too shy to speak.
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