"Ding. Taoyuan Road stop. Passengers getting off, please take your belongings and exit from the rear door."
Higashino Shuuichi dragged his tired body off the bus.
In a blink he reached the tiny place he rented downtown.
He opened the door—inside stood Rangiku in a sexy apron and a maid's headdress.
"Welcome home, Shuuichi-sama~!"
She bent at the waist to hand him slippers.
From that loose apron dipping low, hills and valleys came into view.
But before any suggestive scene could really form in his mind, another beautiful girl stepped out of the bedroom—hair done up, dressed in a white shiromuku wedding robe.
"Good work, Shuuichi-kun~"
"Sayako."
Shuuichi froze. It was the first time he'd seen Kabuma Sayako this healthy.
Before, even on that frail body of hers, you could tell she was a striking beauty; but seeing her like this in front of him still stunned him.
"Aren't you supposed to be in the Kabuma clan's basement?"
The words slipped out.
Then he went stiff again—why did he say the Kabuma clan's basement?
Where even was that?
Right—hadn't he always lived alone?
Then why was Rangiku from the anime Bleach in his apartment?
And this Sayako—why did she feel so familiar?
Bleach…
Yeah. He'd crossed into the Bleach world.
Threw in with Aizen.
Orchestrated the Kasumiooji family's rebellion.
Even went to Hell.
"Hah…"
Shuuichi's eyes snapped open. In the cramped field of view he could only see a dim ceiling.
He remembered. In the fight with Gin and Kaname, he'd been stabbed by Aizen… and then Hollowfied.
"You're awake?"
That voice—Yoruichi?
Shuuichi followed the sound and saw Yoruichi sitting on top of a cabinet.
"I'm still alive?"
He asked as he reached a hand to his face.
A mask covered it, solid and tight.
That was the Hollowfication mask.
But something was off. The proper process should be Kisuke using the Hōgyoku (Breakdown Sphere) to draw out the Hollow within him, create a bona-fide Hollow, then he would defeat that self to gain Hollow powers.
The whole thing should be a lot like obtaining a Zanpakutō's Bankai (Final Release).
Yet Shuuichi felt like he'd just taken a nap and had a sweet dream. He didn't remember fighting his Hollow self at all.
Also, because this Hollowfication was done with an incomplete Hōgyoku, the power should be manic and uncontrollable.
After that he ought to train and fight repeatedly to gradually master the Hollowfication, switching freely between Shinigami and Hollow states.
But Shuuichi didn't feel that frenzy in him.
If he'd Hollowfied with a complete Hōgyoku, it wouldn't be a problem.
And Hollowfication with an incomplete Hōgyoku shouldn't allow what the complete Hōgyoku can: a Hollowfied Shinigami performing Resurrección (Return Blade).
If Shuuichi wanted to pull off a Resurrección like Kaname in the future while Hollowfied, he'd still have to ask Aizen—who had fused with the complete Hōgyoku—to help him one more time.
Even so, this imperfect Hollowfication was more than enough for him right now.
So long as he mastered it, the ceiling that had plagued his spiritual pressure would be gone.
Because in Hollowfied state, spiritual pressure is almost without limit.
If he were willing to act like a Hollow—by killing other Hollows and devouring them—he could keep raising his own.
"You got lucky, Shuuichi," Yoruichi said, explaining. "Feel your chest."
At her words, Shuuichi touched his chest.
There was a blade stuck there—and the hilt felt intensely familiar.
"The Kabuma clan's sacred artifact, Seyabasa?"
Shuuichi blurted out, surprised.
He'd figured he would lose that Zanpakutō after this battle.
Even if Kisuke didn't return it to the Kabuma clan, as Seyabasa's true owner, clan head Kabuma Sayako should've reclaimed Shuuichi's right to use it.
But now…
No doubt about it—Kabuma Sayako had borrowed Hell's power through Seyabasa, and together with Kisuke's Hōgyoku temporarily suppressed the Hollow within him, letting him maintain this delicate Hollowfied state.
It also meant he had no usable Zanpakutō on hand.
He obviously couldn't swing Seyabasa again; do that and he'd immediately relapse into Hollowfied coma until he defeated the Hollow inside.
"Sayako said she trusts you—that even if you were Hollowfied and became a Hollow, you wouldn't do anything monstrous."
Yoruichi paused, then seemed to recall something else. "By the way, just how many girls have you ensnared? Our Soi Fon is pleading your case. That tenth-division girl who was crashing at your place—Rangiku—is, too. And your old Fourth Division even submitted a joint petition on your behalf."
"They're… pleading for me? I'm already like this."
Images of that dream-Sayako flashed through Shuuichi's mind.
And Rangiku. And Soi Fon.
And those Fourth Division members.
"Of course—because Central 46 has branded you all as Hollows and wants you executed."
Yoruichi's expression turned grave.
"'You all'?"
Shuuichi asked, feigning puzzlement.
He did know he wasn't the only Shinigami Hollowfied, but his identity wasn't supposed to know that—so he had to ask.
Yoruichi gave him a look, then turned her head and pointed to his side.
"Those ones: Third Division Captain Rose, Fifth Division Captain Shinji, Seventh Division Captain Love, Eighth Division Lieutenant Lisa, Ninth Division Captain Kensei, his lieutenant Mashiro, Twelfth Division Lieutenant Hiyori, and the Kidō Corps Vice-Chief, Hachigen."
"That many?"
Shuuichi frowned.
"You know who did it?"
Suddenly Yoruichi hopped down from the cabinet and, catlike, pressed herself against Shuuichi—warm breath spilling over his mask as one hand settled on his chest, teasing.
"Fifth Division Third Seat Gin and Ninth Division Fifth Seat Kaname?"
Shuuichi didn't flinch at her antics; he asked, confused.
Feeling his heartbeat wasn't racing, Yoruichi chuckled.
She stepped back, shook her head, and her eyes hardened. "It's the Fifth Division lieutenant—Aizen."
"Him? No way! Yoruichi-taichō, are you sure you've got the right man?
I know Vice-Captain Aizen. He's always gentle to subordinates, patiently tutors people in calligraphy. I've even seen him at a few mixers Captain Kensei hosted—he's a very mild Shinigami."
Shuuichi let shock and disbelief flood his face.
"I know it's hard to accept, but these are the facts. Just like you said about Gin and Kaname—until you said their names, I couldn't imagine them doing something like this either."
Yoruichi shook her head. It was a pity Shuuichi had woken a bit late. Kisuke and Tessai had already been taken to Central 46 for trial; with two more witnesses the odds would've been better.
But maybe just Aizen alone would still be enough? So she thought.
Reality, though, was cruel.
By the time Shuuichi and Yoruichi had sat in that room until dusk, the bad news arrived.
Kisuke was stripped of his posts as Twelfth Division Captain and Head of the Shinigami Research and Development Institute, and temporarily thrown into the Maggot's Nest that seals Shinigami reiryoku—pending whether he'd reveal the whereabouts of this group of Hollowfied captains and lieutenants like Shuuichi, after which they'd decide whether to send him to Muken (Infinite Hell).
The Kidō Corps Chief Tessai received similar, even harsher treatment: not only was he removed as Chief, Central 46 directly ripped away the forbidden art "Jikanteishi (Time Stop)" from him.
From now on, Tessai would never again use that time-stopping taboo.
He, too, was locked in the Maggot's Nest, custody transferred to the Sixth Division, to await judgment alongside Kisuke.
"How is that even possible?!"
Yoruichi stood in the room, unable to accept it.
For obvious reasons, she'd been strictly barred from participating in Kisuke's trial.
She never imagined that with solid witnesses and evidence, things would still end like this.
Shuuichi put on a matching mask of angry disbelief.
But inside, he was more surprised by the person who had tipped them off.
"Do you know the specifics, Shūsuke?"
he asked.
Yes—the courier was Kisaragi Shūsuke, who had only just graduated from the Shin'ō Academy this year.
And the bigger surprise: Kisaragi Shūsuke had a Bankai (Final Release).
Everyone knows Bankai isn't guaranteed just because you have captain-class spiritual pressure. There are plenty in Soul Society with captain-level reiryoku who never touch Bankai.
When Shuuichi returned from Hell, Kisaragi Shūsuke was still a talented rookie with captain-class pressure who hadn't even brushed the edges of Bankai.
Even before Shuuichi's Hollowfication coma, Bankai was beyond him.
By the normal path, he needed at least ten or even dozens of years to get there.
But in the mere two days Shuuichi was out, Kisaragi Shūsuke achieved Bankai.
Shuuichi knew there was only one explanation: Kisuke had completed that bug-tier device—the Tenshintai (Divine Transfer Body).
What is the Tenshintai?
Put simply, it's a tool that forcibly traces a Zanpakutō's true form and makes it manifest.
And to master Bankai, the first, hardest step is to manifest your Zanpakutō's spirit.
Compared to that, step two—defeating your Zanpakutō and forcing it to tell you its true name—is far easier.
A broken-monster of a Zanpakutō like Shuuichi's is rare.
So the Tenshintai basically lets a Shinigami skip the hardest step to Bankai.
As for why Kisuke would seek out Kisaragi Shūsuke during his coma and generously lend him the Tenshintai—
Shuuichi didn't need analysis to know Kisuke's play.
Kindness?
Hardly.
Kisuke must have guessed from scattered hints that the post-incident trial might go sideways, so he strengthened "their side" ahead of time to prepare for what came next.
And Kisaragi Shūsuke had an unwavering resolve for Shuuichi and was willing to fight—plus he had the stats.
Shuuichi couldn't decide whether to scold Kisuke for dragging Shūsuke into deep waters without asking him…
or thank him for lending out the Tenshintai so selflessly.
In the original story, the only people who got that privilege, besides Kisuke himself, included a certain "Heaven-blessed genius" who lived on luck.
"Shuuichi-sama, I heard it's because the students and teachers who went to the World of the Living this time can all testify for Aizen, proving he was with them the entire time the Hollowfication incidents occurred in Soul Society—never left them even once.
And there's a stain Kisuke-taichō can't explain away—the follow-up report on the Kasumiooji rebellion five years ago. Even though he knew the true cause of the Hollowfications, he concealed it and handled the whole thing passively."
Kisaragi Shūsuke relayed everything he'd learned.
"Kisuke knew the truth? What a joke. Who started that rumor? Do those nobles believe anything?"
Shuuichi spoke up for Kisuke.
Yoruichi winced at the side. "That… is actually true."
"Huh?"
Shuuichi looked at her, wrong-footed.
"It's a long story."
Seeing his questioning gaze—and because Shuuichi had behaved flawlessly so far—Yoruichi decided there was no point hiding it anymore.
She told him all of it: how Kisuke and former Twelfth Division Captain Kirio had collaborated to develop the Hōgyoku using artificial souls from reishi cadavers, and how they discovered it could induce partial Hollowfication in Shinigami.
Before Shuuichi could respond, Kisaragi Shūsuke stepped between them, tense.
"You're trying the same trick again? Fooling the Kasumiooji family wasn't enough—you want to fool Shuuichi-sama now?!"
Not knowing the details before, Kisaragi reacted just like Central 46 after hearing Yoruichi's explanation.
The room's air went tight.
But Shuuichi had no intention of falling out with them here—he still needed Yoruichi to unseal his Zanpakutō.
"Shūsuke! I trust Yoruichi-taichō and Kisuke-taichō. They must have had their reasons."
Shuuichi set a hand on Kisaragi's shoulder. Kisaragi grudgingly backed to his side, though his guard toward Yoruichi was obvious.
Fortunately, Yoruichi didn't care about Kisaragi's attitude. Seeing Shuuichi understand her and Kisuke, she relaxed.
"Here's the thing—Kisuke told me back then the Hōgyoku's power was far too dangerous. After a few tests he sealed it completely. I didn't expect we'd be forced to use it like this… and someone would catch a whiff."
Now Yoruichi understood the line Kisuke left her before he was taken.
This whole affair might be a setup aimed straight at him, with the goal of getting the Hōgyoku.
"If Captain Kirio is willing to testify for Kisuke-taichō—state that during his Hōgyoku research he did nothing to endanger Soul Society, and that he sealed it afterward—that would clear part of Kisuke-taichō's name, right?"
Shuuichi started offering "advice."
"But Kirio already joined the Zero Division. Without something extraordinary, we can't reach her—much less get her out of the Soul King Palace and back to Soul Society."
Yoruichi shook her head, shooting it down.
Given how things were going, Yoruichi was almost sure Kisuke couldn't wash this off. Maybe even Kisuke's second explanatory report back then had been quietly intercepted by Aizen.
He'd been laying groundwork since then for today—waited even until a key witness like Kirio ascended to the Zero Division—then moved.
In Kisuke's words as he left yesterday: if they lost this round, they wouldn't be able to complain.
But if there's a next time—that's another story.
Watching Shuuichi across from her, head bowed as if working on countermeasures, Yoruichi made up her mind.
"Shuuichi, can I ask you for a favor?"
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