One hundred and fifty years ago.
For a Japanese person from the year 2020, that number might bring to mind the Meiji Restoration. For a Westerner, perhaps the declaration of the French Third Republic. For me, Hinamori Momo, it was the moment I swore to dedicate my life to shattering Toshiro Hitsugaya and hearing him scream my name: "HINAMORIIIIII!"
While Japan, my homeland in a past life, was clawing its way from feudalism to imperialism through staggering effort—enduring the Boshin and Satsuma Rebellions, the Sino-Japanese and Russo-Japanese Wars, two World Wars, and then pivoting to democracy; while it experienced the economic rollercoaster of post-war reconstruction, rapid growth, the bubble bursting, privatization, the Lehman Shock, the TPP, Abenomics, and the COVID shock; while it was building its history through countless earthquakes and disasters... I was spending that exact same stretch of time, all alone, meticulously planting the seeds that would one day blossom into my twisted pleasure.
I can't count how many times I've come to my senses and wondered what on earth I was doing, but any shred of sanity is easily washed away by the sheer thrill of a 150-year-old plan coming to fruition.
It's time. Bleach canon has officially begun.
"—Squad 13 member, Rukia Kuchiki, is hereby appointed to a station in Karakura Town in the World of the Living."
Lord Aizen, having realized early on that Urahara had failed to destroy the Hōgyoku and was instead attempting to hide it in the World of the Living by embedding it within a Gigai that would fully humanize a Soul Reaper, took advantage of Rukia's unresolved guilt over Lieutenant Kaien's death. Just as in the original story, he sent her right to Ichigo.
And so, here I was, visiting Karakura Town with Gin, who had nothing better to do, to witness the very first scene of the series.
"...My, my, Momo. So you had former Vice-Captain Shiba killed by Rukia just for this? You really do have everythin' in the palm of your hand. How frightenin'."
"Hey! Don't make it sound so sinister. It's only because Captain Aizen was slacking off that I had to take care of everything myself..."
Before our eyes were Ichigo Kurosaki, now a high school student, and Rukia, staring in utter shock after he had taken all of her Soul Reaper powers. Ah, we finally made it this far...
Meanwhile, Gin was standing next to me, smirking as he watched me tremble with emotion. What is it?
"But Captain Aizen is the type of person who likes to connect coincidences into a grand narrative of inevitability, ain't he? You, on the other hand, seem like you can't rest until you've forced everythin' to be inevitable from the start."
"I'm not as smart or as confident as Captain Aizen. I can't just adapt on the fly, and I'm not bold enough to think, 'I'll even make use of pure chance in my plans' like he does."
"From a simpleton like me's perspective, you're both pretty much the same."
Honestly. All I did was try to perfectly replicate the canon created by the one true god, the Master of Style himself, and I get called the root of all evil. It's unforgivable. If anything, he should be thanking me for preparing the hero who will help him achieve his own dearest wish. So unfair.
"...I'm sure Captain Aizen knows more, but the Hōgyoku is actually like a wishing star that grants its owner's desires."
"Oh, is that right? I heard from the Captain that it was a device for manipulating the boundary between Soul Reapers and Hollows."
"That's just because Kisuke Urahara tried to use it for that purpose. His wish this time was for Ms. Kuchiki to become a normal human and hide in the World of the Living along with the Hōgyoku, so it probably just granted that wish instead."
"...Huh. That ain't what I thought at all."
Gin was teasing me, so I changed the subject with a little lie.
In fantasy stories, items that "grant wishes" often twist the results due to various factors, but the Hōgyoku is a relatively straightforward entity. However, the correct interpretation of its power isn't that it "grants the owner's wish," but rather that it "reveals a path for the wishes of those around it to be fulfilled." The keys are "those around it" and "reveals a path."
This first canon event is a perfect example of it granting the wishes of everyone involved—its owner Urahara, and Rukia and Ichigo who were nearby—in the best possible way.
According to Lord Aizen in the manga, Rukia's heart longed for release from the guilt of killing Lieutenant Kaien, and Ichigo's heart simply wanted the power to protect his family and friends. The reason Rukia lost all of her power was due to this confluence of multiple desires, including Urahara's scheme. It was the "strong hearts of those nearby" manifesting their will through the Hōgyoku.
It's hard to tell at this stage, but in the manga, the Hōgyoku seems to have a will of its own. Not that there's a person inside it, but it seems to choose whose wishes to prioritize. This is something even Lord Aizen shouldn't know yet.
Still, it would annoy me to no end if someone later smugly told me, "Your actions themselves are the will of the Hōgyoku," after all my running around to reproduce the canon story. So, to get ahead of that, I'll just make a wish right here and now. "Please let the canon story proceed as written."
"What're you doin'?"
"Oh, you know, it seems like praying to that little wishing star might bring some good luck."
"...Momo, are you always this much of an idiot, or is this a special occasion?"
If canon doesn't proceed as planned after this, I swear I'll donate that little power stone to the neighborhood association as a prize for the Karakura Town Kite-Flying Contest.
Right. Now that the first iconic scene is over, there are still plenty of events in the Substitute Soul Reaper arc that Lord Aizen's faction was involved in.
Next up is the Grand Fisher fight, which even got its own OVA in the Bleachanime. It's one of my favorite episodes, where Rukia really shines as the heroine. While there were some minor differences, I managed to replicate the general flow of events.
I was worried about information leaks, so I refrained from recruiting the Hollows in the World of the Living into Lord Aizen's faction for the time being. I had the Numeros watch over Grand Fisher, and as soon as Ichigo and Rukia met, I gave them their orders.
"—Aisslinger, D-Roy. Make contact with the target Hollow and guide it to engage in predatory behavior near Ichigo Kurosaki as naturally as possible."
"Yes, my lord!" they cried out.
"Until you receive new orders, conceal your identities... yes, pretend you're from a secret Hollow cult or something. Keep the existence of our Arrancar army hidden. Let me know when the stage is set. I'll come to watch."
"Y-Your Excellency, the Lord Commander, will be gracing us with your presence...!"
Aisslinger Wernarr, who looks like an oddly charming mosquito, and D-Roy Rinker, who resembles a caterpillar wearing a rugged shell, were thrilled with my instructions.
These two were actually the very first Arrancars to appear in the Bleachmanga, way back in volume three. They were shown healing a wounded Grand Fisher and turning him into an Arrancar, so it seemed like they knew him. I put them in charge of gathering intel in Karakura Town to help with my scene replications, and they did a pretty good job. Aisslinger was the one who first reported that Ichigo's mother had been devoured by Fisher, which allowed me to approach Ichigo at the perfect moment while he was wandering alone and complete the seal on his powers without anyone noticing. For their crucial work, I've promised them a second Arrancarization as a reward.
Well, Aisslinger is one thing, but D-Roy needs to be in his humanoid form from the manga. I've temporarily borrowed him from Grimmjow's group for this.
And so, fast-forwarding to June 17th. The three of us are hiding under a spirit-pressure-concealing cloak, our hearts fluttering (an old-fashioned phrase, I know) as we watch one of the most iconic Ichigo-Rukia scenes in all of Bleach.
"Lord Commander, I have brought the visual recording device."
"Oh, thank you so much! Why don't you two sit down and watch with me?"
"W-We couldn't possibly be so bold...!"
I'm only saying that because you two are huge, and having you kneel right next to me is distracting. I had them move out of my line of sight and went back to peeping on Ichigo and Rukia's tender moment with a huge grin on my face.
You know, back then, Rukia really was more of a heroine than a co-protagonist. As someone who got into the Bleach world through the anime, I was sure those two would end up together, so Orihime's late-game surge was quite a surprise. I always loved the moving relationship between the cheerful, quirky Orihime and the cool, stylish Ulquiorra... Why, Master Kubo, why did you have to kill Ulquiorra...?
Anyway, after successfully capturing Rukia's lap pillow scene on video, I left Aisslinger and the others to secure Grand Fisher and begin his Arrancarization. That was it for the day. The only remaining canon events from the Substitute Soul Reaper arc involving Lord Aizen's faction are the appearance of the Menos Grande and Squad 6 coming to arrest Rukia. I'll lay the groundwork to ensure those happen without a hitch—
And then, finally. After a long, long time—long enough for two entire eras to pass—my life's grand project, the one I have literally bet everything on, will truly begin.
The Soul Society arc is about to start...!
I'm coming for my harvest soon, Toshiro...
***
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