"I'm not doing it."
"Come on~ What's the downside?", I asked as we all sat at the table, Yuzu, Kaoru and Karin looking at Macy in awe while she frowned as she looked towards me.
"A dragon slayer does not work with those Soul Reapers, especially after what they did," She said while looking pointedly at Isshin, who whistled as he looked away while I raised an eyebrow.
"You seem to work pretty well together while we were still fighting."
"Yes, and I hated every second of it. How would you feel if you had to work with someone from the same race that killed off every family member you ever knew? Hell, the only reason I was even born is because my grandmother managed to escape the culling and left for England."
"Wait, you're telling me your dragon slayer group originated in Japan?", I asked, feeling slightly shocked as she crossed her arms and nodded.
"Yeah, how do you think I knew what Shinigami and Hollows were?"
"If it's any consolation, I am deeply sorry for what our people did," Isshin spoke up and she looked to him before shaking her head.
"I thank you for it, but your apology means nothing unless it's from the ones that ordered our deaths."
"And who would that be?"
"Central 46 and Genryusai Shigekuni Yamamoto," She answered and I sighed while Isshin grimaced.
"Well, there's two problems with that."
"And what are those?"
"Firstly, Central 46 was wiped out a few days ago by a Shinigami called Aizen that turned rogue."
"Seriously?"
"Seriously. I was there when we went to rescue a friend of his son," I said and she frowned before nodding.
"Fine, what's the second?"
"Yamamoto would rather die than apologize and that's me being nice," Isshin answered and I nodded as she looked between us before I looked to Ikumi as she spoke.
"Surely one person can't be that arrogant."
"Genryusai Yamamoto has been alive for a little over two thousand years. To him, everyone is a child that does not understand his thought process," Isshin was the one to say that and Ikumi grimaced as I smirked.
"That and he doesn't feel any guilt when he needs to kill off someone if it means that the Shinigami have kept the peace."
"You know, the more I hear about these Shinigami, the more I wonder how you're so different, Daddy," Yuzu muttered as she looked to her father, who gave an eccentric grin.
"That is because no one is able to stop my enthusiastic and chaotic joy, my dear daughter!"
"That and the Shiba Clan are all known to be wild cards even amongst the noble houses of the Seireitei. Yes, I know who you are. I met your niece and nephew and to be honest, they were so much like you that it's a wonder Ichigo didn't figure it out," I answered as he looked at me with a shocked face, the others looking just as surprised while Macy narrowed her eyes before they widened.
"Isshin Shiba. If I remember correctly, Division 10 was the division that helped my family, but you were not the ones there when we were attacked.
"Yeah, I kind of didn't want to so I got put on house arrest for a decade along with every Division member. That's why I wasn't there to help," Isshin spoke with a shrug before looking to Karin as she grabbed him by the chin and made him look at her.
"You're telling me that not only are we some kind of royalty to these Shinigami, but we also have cousins?"
"Pretty much, yeah, though I didn't know that they were still alive. I just thought that everyone was killed off in the process when they ousted the Shiba Clan from the Five Noble Houses."
"It's the Four now," I answered and he hummed before looking to Macy who was listening intently.
"See? We're kind of the same there. You lost most of your family and I lost most of mine."
"And yet, you still have a few family members left," She answered while flicking her gaze to the twins, to which Isshin smiled before Karin huffed and Yuzu giggled as he ruffled their hair.
"I do and I believe that you could do the same."
"Besides, you said that Cinderella was the last dragon, right? What are you going to do now that it's gone?", I asked, watching as she looked to be in thought before grinning as she sighed.
"Very well. I will try this unit thing, but if it does not work out, I will return to London and live out the rest of my days."
"Great! Then, you're officially the third member of the group."
"Who's the second?", She asked and I smirked as I looked to Isshin who raised an eyebrow at me.
"Seriously?"
"It's either you or those two over there," I spoke while pointing at Yuzu and Karin, who both looked excited before being disappointed as Isshin nodded instantly.
"Fine, I guess I'll take the second spot."
"Good."
"Wait, are we still in this unit, then?", Yuzu asked, Karin looking just as interested as I looked to Isshin with a raised eyebrow.
"You're the parent here so it's your call."
"…Are you girls going to listen if I say no?"
"Not really/ Absolutely not," Yuzu and Karin answered respectively, to which the man sighed before nodding his head.
"Fine, then. I guess you two can join but only if you agree to stay out of the big fights unless you're truly needed. That is non-negotiable," Isshin spoke with a frown and the two girls nodded immediately before I turned to Kaoru as he spoke up.
"So, can I get my powers now?"
"No, your mom would tear me a new one if I did that."
"Oh, no. See, that means you'd still be alive," Ikumi spoke with a smile and I just pointed at her as Kaoru groaned while Macy narrowed her eyes.
"Are you two perhaps in a relationship?"
"Not at all."
"Oh really? Then what's this I hear about you coming to see if I'm back every morning since I left?", I asked with a teasing smile, amused at her half-hearted glare while she crossed her arms.
"Who said I was here?"
"The guy that's currently not here," I said, remembering that Nakamura was gone for the day after the whole dragon chaos as he wanted to go rest up.
I really should get him a nice gift for putting up with me for as long as he has.
"Hmm, is that so?"
"Leave him be. It's his job as my assistant to tell me who's come looking for me," I spoke with a smile as I caught the look in her eyes and she huffed before I looked to Macy as she hummed while looking at me.
"I must ask. How are you capable of casting using the Kido spells of the Shinigami?"
"Like I said before, I have no idea myself, but I do have a theory."
"What is that theory?", She asked and I smirked before shrugging.
"I have always been able to manipulate the reishi in the air and my own reiryoku in order to make my Kan'onballs or my Kan'oncape. I believe that since I spent the majority of my life refining my control and enhancing my own capabilities, I have become able to reinvent the spiritual arts through instinct alone. At least, that's how I see it."
"You're saying that you recreated one of the four spiritual arts of the Shinigami through instinct alone?", Macy asked and I smirked as I shook my head.
"It's more like I just did what felt natural. Scanning through a Shinigami's energy when they used Kido for the first time, I realized that my Kan'onballs are quite similar so I just replicated it on my own."
"Many people train for decades to master Kido spells of levels 60 or below and here you are recreating them like it's nothing," Isshin spoke up with a smirk and I chuckled as I shook my head.
"Like I said, I haven't figured out why I can do it, but the how is just being obsessed with my spiritual energy and a need for survival…with the extra addition of a little flair."
"More like a lot of flair," Ikumi added dryly. "I've seen him attempt a double corkscrew to shoot out a smoke bomb."
"That was needed considering I had two dozen arrows being fired at me from both sides," I said while looking at the suspects in question, to which Karin just smirked as Yuzu gave a sheepish smile.
"Oh, yeah. I meant to ask. How are they capable of using the reishi in the air to form bows and arrows considering you're a Shinigami? Unless…", I trailed off, slowly connecting the dots and smirking as Isshin gave me a pointed stare while the two girls just looked confused.
"Don't say anything."
"I see. Well, I'll leave it to you to tell both them AND Ichigo, right?", I said, watching as he looked at me before nodding with a sigh.
"I was going to tell them tonight while I gave Ichigo some time to rest."
"Then it's none of my concern."
"Back to the matter at hand, what does being in this unit entail?", Macy asked, drawing the conversation back as I scratched the back of my head with a frown.
"Quite honestly, we're a back-up for the Shinigami, But! We do not work under them. 'The enemy of my enemy is my friend' is the phrase that would fit here."
"So, you're only working with them because there is a bigger threat than you right now, correct?", Macy spoke and I nodded as I caught Isshin's frown.
"Yeah, and I plan to recruit a few more people. Some of Ichigo's friends have become spiritually aware and if we don't help them control their powers, it might lead to them hurting their loved ones."
"Really? Like who?", Karin asked and I hummed as I began to try and remember their names.
"Uh, the Tatsuki girl most definitely considering I've seen her looking at a few souls. There is also Keigo, Mizuiro and that one girl that's always trying to molest Orihime…uh…"
"Chizuru?", Karin asked with a knowing look and I smiled as I nodded.
"Yes, her. On top of that, there is also a few others more, but for that to happen, I need to speak to Urahara."
"Why would you need to do that?", Isshin asked and I smirked before shrugging in response.
"How else am I supposed to find out where the Visored live?"
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"…I assume you read up on them in the Kido Corps' archives, yes?", Kisuke asked as the two of us sat at his table and I nodded as I noted his usual smirk missing as his attention was fully focused on me.
"I did. Shinji Hirako, Love Aikawa, Kensei Muguruma, Rojuro Otoribashi, Hiyori Sarugaki, Mashiro Kuna, Lisa Yadomaru and Hachigen Ushoda. They were all former members of the Gotei 13 and the Kido Corps until an incident a little over a century ago where they were turned into Hollows and banished along with the criminals Kisuke, Tessai and Yoruichi. However, I didn't believe that they just spontaneously turned into Hollows and with Aizen's whole speech of how he wants to tear down the boundaries between Hollow and Shinigami, I assume he's the one who did it."
"You would be correct in your assumption, Mr. Kanonji, but there's one little problem. The Visored would rather die than work with any Shinigami no matter if they're allied with the Gotei 13 or not."
"What about a human that's willing to give them a chance to take out Aizen?", I asked and he leaned back before his eyes narrowed.
"That might work to your advantages. The Visored are many things, but the most important thing you need to understand is that they're wounded. They were betrayed, hunted and erased from the records by the very people they dedicated their lives to protect and while you are correct about Aizen being behind it, their pain is not from just him but also from the Seireitei's silence."
"And yet, they haven't made a move, not against Aizen nor for themselves," I spoke, staring at Urahara as he looked back. "May I ask why that is?"
"Because they don't trust anyone," He responded with a sigh while taking a sip from his tea. "They've been surviving in the shadows for a century and only act when pushed or when given a reason worth the risk."
"…Then perhaps I can become that reason."
"…You're serious?"
"I have to be. I'm crossing lines that shouldn't even exist especially after my latest recruitment and if I can reach the Visored, maybe I don't have to face off against Aizen with just two members of my unit," I answered and Urahara looked at me before exhaling slowly.
"You'll need more than idealism, then. They'll test you and push you. The one thing the Visored hate is false promises, especially from those tied to the Soul Society."
"I'm not tied to them. I'm tied to what is right and if that makes them listen, I'll take the hits," I spoke with a smile, to which he gave a dry chuckle.
"You sound just like Shinji when he still trusted people."
"Heh, then perhaps I might be able to give him a reason to fight again," I answered and he nodded as he finally stood up with a grunt.
"I'll tell you where they are, but I won't reach out on your behalf."
"No need to. If I'm going to ask for their help, I'll need to do it myself."
"Then you better be prepared," He spoke as he turned, walking towards the door before glancing over his shoulder with a slight smile. "Shinji Hirako may smile like a clown, but remember that he's sharper than even the best captains I've ever knew."
"Good. I like the challenge."
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"Okay, so it's supposed to be he-No, it's one further down," I murmured as I walked to the third of the warehouses before stopping in my tracks as I caught sight of the number of the building.
"That's 3 and it's supposed to be 2 so I should go one ba-two back. That works out," I nodded as I turned and began walking before stopping in my tracks as I saw the one.
Looking back at the address gave me, I looked at what was written and back at the two warehouses in front of me.
'One and thr-two, three…one, th-two, three…three, o-two, one…This is a Kido Spell, isn't it?', No matter how much I tried, I couldn't say one and then th-two…Fuck this.
"Okay! I know you're there and I know you're the reason I can't say skip the number two when counting 'one, th-two, three'! Can you just come out? Kisuke Urahara was the one who gave me the address!", I shouted out loud, waiting patiently as nothing happened before I blinked as I found myself staring at three warehouses instead of two.
"…Was that a spatial dislocation barrier?", I asked the blonde of the two standing in front of me, but she didn't seem to want to answer as she wore a red track suit and stared at me with a glare.
The other was a man of gigantic proportions, towering over probably everyone I know and had a gentle expression on his face as he wore an olive-green tux with a yellow bow tie and…pink hair?
'It is a bit confusing to see pink hair and a pink moustache in real life.'
"Alright, baldy! Who the hell are you?!", Hiyori shouted and I raised an eyebrow at the rudeness before shrugging.
"The name's Don Kanonji, exorcist and Hollow hunting expert. I'm looking for a group called the Visored. Would you perhaps be a part of that group?"
"No, now go," Hiyori spoke with a scoff and I just looked to the larger man who gave an apologetic smile.
"We are the Visored, but we are not looking to talk to anyone today."
"Ah, and here I was with an offer to kill someone named Aizen. Well, I suppose I'll go an-!", As I turned around, I blinked as I found myself staring at a hunting knife held in my face, its silver-haired wielding staring at me with a glare while a blonde man kept him from stabbing it through my skull with a smirk.
"Why are you stopping me, Shinji?"
"The guy doesn't feel like a Shinigami. No need for him to lose his life," Shinji spoke and I watched as Kensei scoffed while taking his Zanpakuto back with a frown.
"So, you said something about Aizen, right?", Their leader began as he looked to me and I simply glanced at the group of Visored that had surrounded me before nodding.
"I do."
"Start talking."
A/N: And just like that, the new arc is beginning~! Kanonji is recruiting people for his new unit, but will they agree or will they leave?
Find out on the next chapter: Recruitment and Truths.
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As always, read, enjoy, review and until the next one...
Ba-Bye~!