Chapter 263: An Unfamiliar Female Character
"Uh, no, wait a moment."
Satoru raised his hand, interrupting Shiba Shota.
"Shiba Kaien... should be almost old enough to start school soon."
"If he's a genius, he might be able to shoulder heavy responsibilities within twenty or thirty years."
"You're still so young—why do you talk as if you can't even wait that long?"
Hearing Satoru's words, Shiba Shota showed a somewhat strange smile.
"Captain Satoru, how old do you think I am?"
Satoru looked puzzled: "You look quite young regardless. I'll take a wild guess—four hundred years old?"
Shiba Shota shook his head.
Under Satoru's gaze, he smiled and said: "I'm eight hundred and twenty years old this year."
"?"
Satoru couldn't help but form a question mark in his mind.
Although Shinigami have long lifespans, their appearance changes as they age.
Shunsui is only six or seven hundred years old but already looks nearly fifty.
And this is considering his powerful strength, which gives him a longer lifespan than ordinary Shinigami.
No matter how capable Shiba Shota is, he couldn't possibly compare to his own senior brother, could he?
At over eight hundred years old, it wouldn't be strange for him to be as aged as Ginrei Kuchiki, withered like dry wood.
As if guessing Satoru's thoughts, Shiba Shota cupped his hand near his mouth and lowered his voice:
"If a Shinigami wants to maintain a younger appearance, it can be achieved through Reiatsu control."
"Captain Unohana of the Fourth Division... she's a powerhouse who's been active since a thousand years ago. If we think normally, wouldn't she be... hmm?"
Satoru sucked in a breath and quickly stopped himself.
That was a slippery slope he couldn't even touch!
But, to be fair, after Shiba Shota's explanation, it was indeed much easier to understand.
Scratch that last line.
After hearing Shiba Shota's words, Satoru roughly understood.
This old man who was good at maintenance, due to his power level issues, didn't have as long a lifespan as Yamamoto or Retsu.
Over eight hundred years old was already properly considered old age for him.
Just like Chogiso Sora, all kinds of old injuries and illnesses had been tormenting him constantly.
If nothing unexpected happened, he would soon step down from his captain position and be replaced by someone new.
If that new person was Shiba Isshin, that would be even better.
Satoru could completely understand Shiba Shota's request.
But, he wasn't very interested.
The people he had picked up would all become fresh forces for the Eleventh Division in the future—they were his own people.
As for Marechiyo, he was kept around because Satoru had a good relationship with his father, plus the compensation was generous.
Shiba Isshin, although he was the father of the original protagonist and could be considered an important character, wasn't anything special to him.
Thinking this, he stood up, preparing to take his leave.
Seeing Satoru's movement, a flash of disappointment appeared in Shiba Shota's eyes.
But, just then, a voice suddenly sounded in Satoru's ear—
["Satoru, bring me some things when you come back"]
The source of the voice was a small mechanical device he had placed in his ear.
Hearing this familiar voice, Satoru coughed.
"Captain Shiba, may I borrow your restroom?"
"?"
Shiba Shota found it strange.
Satoru's previous actions clearly indicated he was about to leave, so why did he suddenly want to use the restroom?
Though puzzled, he quickly gave Satoru directions.
Hiding in the restroom, Satoru coughed.
"Bring what?"
["You're at the Shiba family?"]
Aizen didn't answer, but instead asked a question with a somewhat amused tone.
"Yeah... that old guy from the Shiba family really treats me like a daycare center, he actually wants to send his kid over too."
"My Eleventh Division isn't some place you can just join whenever you want!"
["The Shiba family's child? Who?"]
Satoru found it strange: "Called Shiba Isshin. Speaking of which, why are you suddenly so interested in the Shiba family?"
Normally, when Aizen heard things related to nobles, he would usually just listen to the general idea and be done with it, rarely asking so detailed.
["Oh..."]
Hearing Satoru's response, Aizen raised an eyebrow.
Shiba Isshin—he knew this name.
["Satoru, agree to him. Bring Shiba Isshin back."]
["Don't worry, you won't need to do anything after that. Leave it to me, I'll train him."]
Hearing this, Satoru nodded and agreed.
Although he didn't know why Aizen wanted Isshin, since he wouldn't have to do any work himself, he might as well do the Shiba family a favor.
Hmm... speaking of work, what has Kisuke been up to lately?
Should he come up with some new work for him, make him work hard and utilize his remaining value?
...
...
Shiba Shota was very pleasantly surprised.
Unexpectedly, after Satoru went to the restroom, he actually agreed to his request when he returned.
Could it be that his own bathroom possessed some magical power that had changed Satoru's mind?
He was overjoyed, almost wanting to erect a monument to the bathroom.
To express his gratitude, he gifted Satoru a pen.
As long as he remained the acting head of the Shiba family, Satoru could bring this pen at any time and ask him to do anything within his power.
Satoru didn't pay much attention to this.
Not to boast, but anything the Shiba family could currently accomplish, he could pretty much do as well.
Compared to the value implied by the pen, he actually liked the pen itself more.
The tip was moderately soft, and the shaft felt comfortable to hold.
Having obtained such a fine pen, he even felt like writing something.
Hmm... when he had time, he'd go find Head Captain Yamamoto and add something to his study.
After agreeing with Shiba Shota on the time to take over for Isshin, Satoru stood up to take his leave.
Leaving the Shiba residence, Satoru went to the Eighth Division to find his good senior brother.
The two friends with quite an age difference found a courtyard and comfortably drank warm sake while enjoying the snowy scenery.
Midway through their drinking, Jūshirō arrived.
He had brought some dried persimmons, originally planning to give some to Shunsui first, then deliver Satoru's portion to the Eleventh Division.
Unexpectedly, both were here, saving him time.
Seeing Jūshirō wrapped in a fur cloak with a somewhat pale complexion, Satoru shook his head.
"Ukitake-senpai, with your health, you should go out less during winter."
As he spoke, he patted his Zanpakutō.
"Risō Jakumetsu, provide some warmth."
The Zanpakutō vibrated slightly.
Then, it emitted a faint heat that warmed the area around the small table just right.
Jūshirō smiled and nodded.
"Thank you, Satoru."
After three rounds of drinks, Satoru stretched and stood up to leave.
When departing, he didn't forget to take his share of dried persimmons.
Although they looked ugly, their taste and texture were quite good.
He'd share them with everyone back at the division.
Carrying the paper bag of dried persimmons, Satoru hummed a tune as he walked back.
Halfway there, he suddenly stopped and looked into the distance.
A familiar Reiatsu was coming from there.
Sensing this Reiatsu, Satoru broke into a smile.
"Finally! I've been waiting for so long!"
With a flash, he disappeared into the snow.
...
...
Shihōin Clan territory.
Satoru appeared mid-air using Flash Step.
From afar, he could see a figure sitting on a large tree branch, leisurely swinging her legs.
Beside her, a petite figure stood guard duty.
Seeing the two, Satoru felt genuinely happy from the bottom of his heart.
He dispelled the Reishi platform under his feet and descended from the sky, landing before the large tree.
"Long time no see, Yoruichi, Suì-Fēng."
"Judging by the aura you're emitting, should I offer congratulations?"
Yoruichi looked down at him from the tree, grinning.
"Whether congratulations are in order... why don't you see for yourself?"
"Gladly."
Satoru nodded cheerfully.
As soon as he finished speaking, Yoruichi flashed and appeared before him.
"Is Suì-Fēng not joining?" Satoru asked.
Yoruichi shook her head.
"Although Suì-Fēng and I often fought together during training, what I want to show you today isn't suitable for having teammates."
"Oh?"
Satoru's eyes revealed an expectant gaze.
As Yoruichi landed, Suì-Fēng used Flash Step to create distance, appearing on a small hill not far away.
Satoru discarded his haori and assumed a ready stance.
Seeing the discarded haori, Yoruichi curled the corner of her mouth upward.
In the next instant, dazzling electric Reiatsu erupted from Yoruichi's body!
Shunkō!
Wreathed in crackling lightning, Yoruichi vanished instantly and charged toward Satoru.
So fast.
Satoru felt some surprise at Yoruichi's speed.
Even before her secluded training, Yoruichi's speed had been unmatched in the Onmitsukidō.
But now, enhanced by lightning, her velocity had reached a whole new realm!
Boom!!!
Satoru raised his left arm to block in front of himself.
Almost simultaneously with his movement, Yoruichi's whip-like leg came swinging toward him.
The lightning-wrapped leg struck the outer side of his forearm, making Satoru feel pain for the first time in what felt like ages.
Hmm... Just the fact that she could make him feel pain meant this training hadn't been wasted.
Satoru offered silent praise in his heart.
While thinking this, he continued to execute a series of defensive maneuvers.
Yoruichi's attacks were not single strikes that ended abruptly, but rather an unceasing storm of blows raining down from all directions like thunder.
If Satoru was built with balanced strength and agility, then she was undoubtedly someone who allocated just enough points to strength before pouring everything else into agility.
Had they been at the same level, Satoru would have found it nearly impossible to block all of her attacks.
Unfortunately, real battles didn't come with level balancing.
In just a few seconds, Satoru had deflected nearly a hundred of Yoruichi's strikes.
"Hehehe, little lady, these fancy moves are quite the spectacle, but they're hardly enough to harm this young master."
"If you've got no other tricks, I'll be taking you back with me to enjoy the finest pleasures life has to offer~"
From a distance, Suì-Fēng narrowed her eyes, her blood pressure rising slightly.
Yoruichi spun into a roundhouse kick, using the momentum of being repelled by Satoru to create some distance between them.
As she looked at Satoru standing there smiling, not having moved an inch since the beginning, she couldn't help but feel a pang of emotion.
Every time she thought she was catching up to that guy, she'd frustratingly discover that not only was she not closing the gap, but as time went on, she could barely even see his back anymore.
What frustrated her even more was that initially, she would feel anxious about this gap and strive to catch up.
But now, she had gradually come to accept reality.
Surpassing Satoru was an impossible task.
Even so, she wanted to show Satoru that she hadn't given up on moving forward!
Under Satoru's gaze, Yoruichi revealed a wild grin.
"Satoru, you'd better be careful with this next move."
"If you get hurt by accident, don't say I didn't warn you."
Satoru laughed heartily: "Alright, bring it on!"
Yoruichi took a deep breath.
Then, she slowly lowered herself into a crouch.
Not flat on the ground, but gradually placing her hands on the floor before stretching and arching her body, raising her shapely hips.
Like an elegant cat that had just woken up, giving a full-body stretch.
With this movement, the golden lightning surrounding her began to grow unstable.
Originally, Shunkō's lightning was fixed around her shoulders and back.
But now, the electricity danced restlessly across her entire body.
As if the lightning itself was feeling "uneasy."
What kind of technique could make even lightning feel uneasy?
Satoru grew curious.
He was certain Yoruichi had never used this move in the anime.
Not even when fighting Aizen.
Could this be a change brought about by his own butterfly effect?
As he pondered this, he saw a small cluster of lightning gather above Yoruichi's head, forming a pair of golden lightning cat ears.
Satoru chuckled with delight.
"Oh, I like this."
Then he noticed parts of Yoruichi's body were actually transforming into feline features.
Her legs shifted into hind limbs adapted for quadrupedal movement.
A long black cat tail extended from her rear, swaying back and forth in the air.
Crackle!!
The golden lightning finally solidified, tightly covering Yoruichi's limbs.
So closely fused with her skin that at first glance, it appeared as if her limbs had transformed into lightning itself.
"Nya~"
Yoruichi opened her mouth and let out a meow.
Satoru couldn't help but shiver.
Not because he slipped—don't get the wrong idea.
By the way, the moment Yoruichi opened her mouth, he noticed that even her uvula was tinged with golden lightning.
What would it feel like to be hit by that... Probably death, in every sense of the word.
Satoru grinned wryly.
Then, Yoruichi's figure vanished from his sight.
"?!"
Almost instinctively, he threw a punch to his left.
Zap!!
The cat-like girl wreathed in golden lightning reappeared to his left.
But Satoru's near-prescient punch didn't even graze Yoruichi.
The moment Satoru swung, Yoruichi had already vanished again. After feinting three times in a row to deceive him, she swiped her claws, leaving a long scratch across his body.
Feeling the pain on his back, Satoru's eyes lit up.
So fast, so sharp!
Watching Yoruichi retreat after a single strike without overcommitting, already poised for a second attack in an instant, he couldn't help but ask curiously:
"What's this move called?"
Yoruichi didn't answer him.
The moment Satoru spoke, her figure flickered left and right before disappearing again.
"Oh... so serious? Refusing to talk to focus entirely on the fight?"
Seeing Yoruichi's intensity, Satoru's excitement soared.
Yoruichi, transformed into a lightning cat demon, fought in a style vastly different from her usual approach.
If he had to describe it... it was somewhat similar to his own.
Both abandoned structure and purpose, surrendering entirely to instinct.
This feeling of emptying his mind, focusing only on how to defeat his opponent, was utterly exhilarating.
Among all the people in the Soul Society, aside from himself, Satoru had only felt this kind of joy when facing Zaraki.
He never expected to experience it again today with Yoruichi.
"Such purity! I'm happy for you!"
After shouting his thoughts, blue flames erupted from Satoru's body.
Since Yoruichi was using Shunkō to decide the match, he would naturally respond with Shunkō too!
Thunder and fire, speed and ferocity, cat and Satoru.
For a moment, the crackle of lightning and the roar of flames filled the sky.
Suì-Fēng watched the battle from afar, momentarily stunned.
This guy Satoru... wouldn't hurt Lady Yoruichi, would he?!
The frenzied fight lasted nearly half a minute.
Sensing the sounds of combat fading within the billowing dust, Suì-Feng swiftly waved her arm, using wind-based Reiatsu to disperse the haze.
There, she saw Satoru pinning Yoruichi's arms, pressing her to the ground.
"Mrrow!"
Even subdued, Yoruichi showed no signs of yielding, continuing to voice her displeasure.
Only then did Satoru realize that Yoruichi's earlier silence might not have been by choice.
Perhaps in this form, she couldn't speak...
Maybe even her human thoughts were temporarily suppressed.
He didn't know whether to laugh or cry, glancing toward Suì-Fēng.
The young girl had already Flash Stepped over to them.
"Lady Yoruichi!"
Suì-Fēng knelt to check on Yoruichi's condition.
Relieved to find her unharmed, she finally let out a sigh.
"Suì-Fēng, how do we undo this state of Yoruichi's?" Satoru asked, still holding Yoruichi down to prevent her escape.
"Wait a moment!"
Suì-Fēng vanished in a flash.
Soon, she returned, holding a few stalks of foxtail grass.
Hesitating for a moment, she handed them to Satoru.
"Scumbag... ahem, Lord Satoru, Lady Yoruichi's current state is no different from an ordinary cat."
"Pressing down on her like this won't calm her down."
"Please use these catnip to soothe Lady Yoruichi's mood."
Upon hearing this, Satoru was somewhat surprised.
Although he had speculated earlier, hearing such a setting directly from Suì-Fēng still felt amusing.
Has she really become half-cat?
He eagerly took the catnip and began teasing Yoruichi.
Sure enough, before long, Yoruichi transformed from her initial furious state into a cheerful one.
"Ah, this is fun, this is really fun!"
Satoru grinned widely.
While teasing Yoruichi with the catnip, he took the opportunity to gently stroke her nose, ears, and other parts.
"Hmm..."
Suì-Fēng stood nearby, her gaze filled with both anger and envy.
If she had known earlier, she shouldn't have cared about hierarchy and should have personally soothed Lady Yoruichi herself!
However, what surprised her was that Satoru's cat-petting skills were quite impressive.
He would stroke her chin, scratch her cheeks, and pat her... ahem.
In short, under Satoru's various techniques, Yoruichi soon yawned and drifted into slumber.
The lightning cat ears and lightning claws on her body gradually faded away, dissolving into Reishi that scattered into the air.
Satoru breathed a sigh of relief and stood up.
Just as Suì-Fēng was about to say something, she suddenly froze.
Earlier, her attention had been almost entirely on Yoruichi.
Only now, with Yoruichi asleep, did she notice the numerous large and small wounds covering Satoru's body.
Some of these wounds were merely scratches from Yoruichi's "cat claws," superficial injuries.
But others were inflicted by the lightning-attribute Shunkō, with flesh torn and skin curled.
"Lord Satoru, your body..."
"Hmm?"
Satoru glanced at her, following her line of sight to his own appearance.
Then, shaking his head with a smile, he said:
"Don't worry, it's nothing."
"Yoruichi's cat transformation technique is strong, but it's not difficult for me to defend against if I want to."
"These injuries are just because I was afraid she'd hurt herself when attacking me, so I let her scratch me on purpose."
"They'll all heal in a few days."
Hearing this, a gentle look appeared in Suì-Fēng's eyes.
Although they hadn't seen each other for several years, the scumbag-sama was still the same good person as before.
She reached into her bosom and pulled out a jar of ointment.
"Sama, please sit here."
"This is a healing medicine that Yoruichi-sama and I used during our training. Applying it to wounds promotes rapid healing without leaving scars."
After beckoning Satoru to sit on the ground, Suì-Fēng used her slender fingers to scoop out some ointment and gently applied it to Satoru's wounds.
With his back to Suì-Fēng, Satoru comfortably narrowed his eyes.
Ah... it's been so long since I've enjoyed Suì-Fēng's care.
Intentionally lowering some Reiatsu defense to get injured was definitely the right decision.
Soon, Suì-Fēng finished treating the wounds on his back and came to face Satoru.
Kneeling on the ground with a focused expression as she applied medicine, Satoru took a deep breath and slowly leaned closer.
Noticing Satoru's movement, Suì-Fēng complained:
"Scumbag-sama, don't mess around. The wounds aren't properly treated yet."
"Ah, the wounds don't matter anymore. Let's do something important first..."
"You can't... Yoruichi-sama is still over there..."
"Don't worry, we'll just do a little. It won't take long."
"...Then you have to be quick."
Suì-Fēng slightly turned her head away, tacitly permitting someone's actions.
...
...
After an unknown amount of time, Yoruichi opened her eyes.
Intense fatigue made her unconsciously stretch.
The unfamiliar ceiling before her told her that she had returned to the long-unseen Seireitei.
Turning her head, she saw Satoru and Suì-Fēng sitting by the bed, both looking at her.
"Yoruichi-sama, you're awake!"
Suì-Fēng's face showed delight.
Yoruichi nodded, revealing a bright smile: "Thank you, Suì-Fēng. You helped when I couldn't remove the Black Cat Battle Princess form, right?"
Before the battle, she had been so focused on wanting to open Satoru's eyes that she forgot to explain how to remove her form.
Fortunately, Suì-Fēng was there, or this would have been a big joke.
Hearing this, Suì-Fēng initially wanted to nod subconsciously.
But then, as if suddenly remembering something, she froze for a moment.
Under Yoruichi's somewhat strange gaze, Suì-Fēng's face reddened, and she shook her head vigorously.
"It was... it was Satoru-sama who did it! I didn't do anything!"
Yoruichi: "?"