Youhun Street, District 1, Runlin'an.
Countless wandering souls walked on the streets, and people came and went in a crowd.
Compared to the Yuhun Street area, which is obviously "scarce" in resources and "far away" from the Soul Society, and is numbered relatively low, the Runlin'an District, numbered as Sequence One, is undoubtedly the safest area with the most resources.
At least there is an apparent order here, even if it is not perfect.
Perhaps because Runlin'an District is close to Seireitei, you can often see black-clad Death Gods passing by on the streets where wandering souls live.
The Shinigami wore the same uniform clothing and accessories. Almost all of the Shinigami wore the jet-black kimono known as the Shinigami hakko, and at their waists were weapons resembling katanas, specifically designed to slay evil spirits. Of course, these were no ordinary katanas, but rather the Zanpakutō, a weapon used exclusively by Shinigami.
Whenever a Death God passed by the street, the wandering souls on the street would unconsciously stand up straight and cast awe-inspiring glances at these powerful Death Gods who enjoyed "privileges"...
At this moment, the Shinigami soldiers who were supposed to protect the Soul Society and maintain order in the three realms, allowing the evil spirits called "Hollows" to dissipate and letting the spirits called "Wholes" come to the Soul Society to continue "suffering", were standing in front of a ramen restaurant located on Runlin'an Street in the first district of Yuhun Street.
"As expected, the captain has come here to eat noodles again."
"So that's what's going on, right? The noodles made by other people are just better than the ones in the team cafeteria?"
"Really? Throwing your duties aside and always running to Yuhungai to eat ramen, what will it look like if people tell others about this? If the soldiers of other squads find out, they'll think our captain is irresponsible~"
"Shh, keep your voice down! Don't let the captain hear you, or you'll definitely get a beating."
Two Shinigami soldiers, dressed in pitch-black Shinigami uniforms, stood in front of the ramen shop, talking quietly, oblivious to the surroundings.
They did not choose to enter the ordinary ramen shop in front of them, but stood cautiously outside the door of the ramen shop, constantly peeking into the interior of the ramen shop through the crack in the door.
Among them, from the complaints in the words of these two Death God soldiers and their tightly furrowed brows, it can be seen that they are helpless against the existence of a certain person in the ramen restaurant.
"What do you say now?!"
"Anyway, we still need to call the captain out of the store, right? The other soldiers are still in the barracks waiting for the captain to hold a meeting!"
"That's true..."
"Come to think of it, last time I went to the store to ask the captain for help, I was not only scolded, but also beaten up by the captain in the name of teaching! This time, it should be your turn, right?"
"Eh? Didn't we agree that I just had to come here with you? What you're saying now is completely different from what you said when you asked me to come here! If I had known I would need to go inside to ask the captain, I wouldn't have come with you."
"Shut up! Do you really think I don't know what you're thinking? If the position of vice-captain of our Sixth Division wasn't vacant, would you be so kind as to accompany me here?"
"Don't think I don't know. In fact, you are just as dark as I am! You and I are just trying to get the position of vice-captain of the Sixth Division, so we frequently run to the captain to show our face."
The two Death Gods looked at the ramen shop in front of them with great distress, as if there was some kind of ferocious beast inside the shop. No one dared to go in first...
In the end, because the two Death Soldier soldiers had different opinions on who should enter the ramen shop first, they started arguing in front of the ramen shop's door. Both of them held their own reasons and could not convince the other.
Yes, the relationship between these two Shinigami soldiers is very similar to the relationship between the two third-place officers of the Gotei 13th Division in later generations, Sentaro Kotsubaki and Kiyone Kotetsu.
Yes, although they are soldiers in the same squad, they trust each other and can back each other up!
However, because they are both the third seat in the squad, they are in a relationship of competing with each other for the vice-captain of the squad, which leads to their dislike for each other.
"What happened?"
"have no idea..."
"I've never seen anything like this before. It seems like the Death Lords are arguing with each other."
As the voices of the two Death Soldier soldiers grew louder, many residents of the Wandering Soul Street who were curious about the scene before them began to look over here.
Therefore, there was a strange sight where two Death Gods stood in front of the door of a ramen restaurant on Youhun Street and kept "bargaining", attracting countless wandering souls to stop and watch.
While the two Shinigami soldiers were humiliating themselves in front of the residents of Yuhungai, a fight was also unfolding in the medium-sized room of this seemingly ordinary ramen shop.
Logically, this ramen shop was located in the safest and most prosperous area of Soul Society's Yuhungai! Even with the chef's limited skills, the restaurant should still be packed with customers. However, the current situation was rather unusual!
As for the scale of this store, no matter how you look at it, it can be considered relatively "luxurious" for the ramen industry where people can just push a cart and sell things. At this moment, there is only one customer in the house.
Unfortunately, although there are many tables and chairs in the ramen restaurant, even the bar built around the kitchen is equipped with a row of chairs, and the room opposite the bar is of a suitable size and has seven or eight longer tables with chairs naturally placed closely around them, the number of tables and chairs still cannot change the fact that there is only one customer.
And the only customer in the store at the moment didn't look like a good person either.
The only customer in the shop was a young girl, but she was like a rose with thorns. Although she was charming, she also gave off an aura that kept strangers away, as if anyone who came near her would be pricked by the poisonous sting.
Opposite the girl, in the kitchen surrounded by a bar, stood a rather handsome young man.
The young man was the owner of this restaurant and also worked part-time as a chef. He was standing in the kitchen, looking at the bad girl sitting in front of him with a look of disgust. She was also the only customer of his restaurant.
As for this 'guest'.
If you only look at the guest's appearance, no matter from which angle you look at it, this girl with lavender twin ponytails, a delicate face and exquisite features is a beauty.
However, the guest's demeanor at this moment was really not good, and no matter how you looked at her, she looked like a bad little girl.
Yes, the girl's demeanor is so 'violent'!
The girl was sitting in front of the young man, leisurely crossing her long, beautiful legs. Her long, flowing purple hair was tied into two ponytails, and her fair legs swayed back and forth rhythmically.
"If you want to eat noodles, eat them quickly! If not, please turn left."
"One more thing! Stop shaking, it makes me dizzy."
"If you keep shaking...get out of here too."
Finally, the young man inside the bar could no longer bear the girl swaying in front of him, and spoke to her in a bad mood.
Honestly, if it weren't for the girl's identity, the young man really wanted to slap her to the ground and then grab her two pigtails tightly, shouting at her: "I let you shake! I let you shake! Let's see if you can shake this time!!"
Ahem…
"Hey, hey, hey! Is this how you talk to customers?"
When the girl heard this, there was a hint of displeasure in her eyes as she looked at the young man in front of her.
"Customers? Why don't I see my customers?!"
"You don't think that just because you enter my store, you are my customer?!"
"I'm sorry! I'm a person with principles. In my eyes, anyone who doesn't spend a penny and doesn't eat a bowl of noodles can't be called a customer."
The young man spoke calmly to the girl.
"Oh, you profiteer! When you see a customer, regardless of whether they buy anything or not, you should at least offer them a glass of water. That's common sense!"
"Also! Listen up! Don't look at me like this, I'm a Shinigami! And I'm the captain of the Gotei 13."
As the girl spoke, she immediately put her hands on her hips, which was really amazing!
"Eating noodles at a noodle shop owned by a low-class Youhun Street dweller like you is really giving you a lot of face!"
"You can brag to the other wandering spirits later that even the captain of the Gotei 13 praised your noodles!"
After hearing what the ramen chef said, the girl frowned tightly and said to the young man in front of her.
"so what?!"
However, the young man didn't buy the girl's trick at all.
"you..."
Upon hearing this, the girl showed her sharp fangs.
At the same time, she stared fiercely at the young man in front of her with her sharp eyes. At this moment, the girl thought silently in her heart: "Damn Araki, you will fall into my hands sooner or later. Then I will have plenty of time to have fun with you~"
When the girl thought of this, her eyes gradually softened, and at the same time, there was a hint of teasing in them.
This made the young man at the bar frown and said helplessly in his heart: "It turns out that being too handsome is a trouble. I always get targeted by inexplicable bad women~Alas~"
If this scene were seen by other wandering souls on the Wandering Soul Street, or the two reapers guarding outside the ramen shop, they would definitely be shocked!
Because, the bad girl sitting at the bar of the ramen restaurant is not an 'ordinary person'!
Just as the girl said, her true identity is a Shinigami, and not just any ordinary Shinigami, but the leader of the top Gotei 13!
In fact, anyone who knows a little about Soul Society can tell the girl's identity and status from her attire.
In this vast Soul Society, not counting the royal spies and the retainers of the upper nobility who possessed ample resources and wealth, there were only thirteen individuals in the Gotei 13 who could wear the white haori, a symbol of status and value, over their jet-black Shinigami hakama.
These thirteen people are called the captains by countless Shinigami soldiers of the Gotei 13!
It is not only a symbol of strength but also a symbol of power!
On the back of the girl's white outer and red inner haori, there is a big Chinese character "Six" written on it, which means that the squad she is in charge of is the Sixth Squad of the Thirteen Gotei Squads!
Yes, the girl in front of him was none other than the captain of the 6th Gotei Squad, one of the 13th Squads that protected Seireitei.
With the privileges she held, even if she drew her Zanpakutō and killed the ramen chef in Yuhungai because of his rude words, no one would say anything...
Because to the Soul Society, it was just a wandering soul seeking death that bumped into the captain of the squad, that's all.
"Who said I don't eat noodles? Give me some tonkotsu ramen!"
However, surprisingly, the girl sitting at the bar did not get angry at the young man's words. Instead, she actually ordered a bowl of tonkotsu ramen. Yes, in the end, the girl still gave in.
"Okay, fifty taels in total."
"Pay first, order later! We don't take credit!"
In response to this, the young man at the bar was not happy that the noodles he ordered were about to be eaten by the captain of the squad. Instead, he calmly asked the captain in front of him for money for the noodles.
It seems that in the eyes of young people, money is above everything else.
"Fifty taels? You want fifty taels for a bowl of ramen? Why don't you just rob it?"
"The price of this piece of money is already shocking! How come it has increased again after just a few days?!"
However, when the girl heard the price of ramen, her eyes widened.
"Sir, you must be joking. I'm a decent citizen and I never steal..."
"My money has increased to fifty taels since you came in."
"If you don't want to eat, you can just leave. Our store may not be big, but our main focus is on mutual consent..."
"Just in time! I see your squad's soldiers are here to pick you up again. As the captain of the Gotei 13, the team that protects the Soul Society, please don't always make things difficult for your soldiers~"
The young man in the bar seemed to be very familiar with the girl. He knew her identity clearly and his attitude remained tough.
Yes, the young ramen chef was not only not excited or flattered by the girl's identity, but rather felt a bit disgusted! After all, it was because of the girl's presence that all the customers in his shop were scared away!
Of course, the young owner of the ramen shop did not blame the customers who ran away. After all, anyone would be scared away if they saw the killer leaders of the first Gotei 13 while eating.
However, this did not prevent the young man from madly cutting leeks from the girl in front of him!
To be honest, the cost of opening a ramen shop in this location is still very high, so he had to blame the losses he suffered from customers on the captain of the Gotei 13 in front of him.
"I eat, of course I eat..."
Upon hearing this, the girl reluctantly took out fifty taels of silver and placed them on the counter. Then she turned to glance at the soldiers of the Sixth Division stationed outside the ramen shop with a hint of disdain in her eyes. "Hmph! Really, they're haunting me! I'm only here to rest for half a day, are you so anxious to send me back?!"
"Thank you for your patronage!"
On the other side, the young man at the bar took the girl's small change from the table and brought a bowl of steaming ramen from the kitchen. Well, judging by the young man's actions, it was hard to say that he had not prepared it in advance.
"So fast…"
The girl stared at the steaming bowl of ramen in front of her, her eyes widening. Even her eyesight couldn't see clearly how the young man in front of her made the ramen.
"Also, I ordered tonkotsu ramen! Yours is clearly clear broth noodles!"
The girl first sighed at the speed of the ramen chef at the bar, then immediately complained about the bowl of watery noodles in the clear broth at her table.
In particular, the girl really couldn't understand how the young man could cut the slices of meat so thinly as a cicada's wing. It must be said that the young man's knife skills were definitely at the captain level.
"You don't want to eat?!"
In response, the young man at the bar had no intention of indulging the girl and pretended to remove the ramen from the table.
"Huh? Who said I don't want to eat? I paid for this!"
The girl watched the young man's actions and grabbed the bowl of noodles on the table to prevent him from taking the noodles away.
"Oh..."
The young man looked at the girl's double-talking and shook his head. She said no, but her body was honest.
However, the concept of tsundere has long been out of fashion.
"Slurp~"
On the other side, the girl who had protected her food, while munching on noodles, asked the young man at the bar, "Hey! Araki, don't stay in Yuhungai and run your ramen shop anymore! Why don't you come with me to the Gotei 13? It's a waste of Soul Society's resources to keep such people here."
The girl, who rarely showed any tsundere attitude, instead looked at Araki with great sincerity as he extended his invitation. After inviting Araki, the girl just stared at the young man in front of her quietly. In fact, the girl herself couldn't even remember how many times she had extended an invitation to the young man in front of her in the past few decades...
Unfortunately, every invitation she extended over the past few decades was met with rejection from the young men.
"Um."
The young man named Araki remained silent in response to the girl's invitation. He seemed to be thinking about something.
"So you still don't want to join the Gotei 13?"
"That's fine, but I won't give up. I'll keep inviting you until you really agree to go to Seireitei with me."
The girl sighed helplessly as she watched the young man in front of her remain silent for a long time. Although she felt a little disappointed, she had expected this.
"The Gotei 13, right?!"
"Okay! Let's go!"
However, just as the girl was waiting for Araki's rejection again, she heard the young man, Araki's voice of consent.
"Huh?!"
"What did you just say?!"
The girl, the leader of the Gotei 6th Division, put down her bowl of noodles upon hearing this. Her eyes widened in surprise once again. This was the second time she had been shocked by Araki's words since arriving at the ramen shop. The last time she had been shocked was when she heard the damned high price of noodles.
"…"
Compared to the girl's surprise, the young man whom the girl called Araki was much calmer.
It was simply because Araki's exclusive quest system in his mind had just successfully launched a quest to Seireitei. Everything was just a tool to make him stronger.
youth,
Let's call him Araki for now.
He is a time traveler.