"From this moment on, you three are under my personal training, cough, I mean protection. Just stick with me and you'll be fine"
Shirō Emiya said.
What he didn't expect, though, was how ridiculously coincidental this assignment would turn out to be. Randomly assigned a team? Sure. Three girls? Fine. But all of them were familiar faces?
Was this fate?
He had just been complaining about how Soul Society had no "normal" women, and now the heavens had sent him three at once?
Well… mostly normal.
Each had their own issues.
The first was the timid, bullied-looking girl who had just spoken, Isane Kotetsu.
Even now, she already had that signature 4th Division vibe. Shy, gentle, soft-spoken, if not for her height, she was the image of a traditional healer. Even later, after she became a vice-captain, she still carried that nervous air.
Honestly, she might be the most "normal" woman Shirō had met in Soul Society.
If you didn't count her build, that is.
Because seriously, despite being a first-year student, she was already as tall as Shirō. And that was… deeply unsettling. If her future height reached 187 cm as he remembered, Shirō wasn't at all confident he'd ever catch up.
[OG author note:] (Isane Kotetsu. Though not yet a vice-captain 110 years ago, she might've already held a seat. Plus, with a younger sister in the ranks, she likely wasn't too young either. So I'm placing her a little earlier in the timeline.)
"Hmph, you sound pretty strong, huh?"
Another girl eyed him from head to toe, voice oozing with skepticism.
Her tone and posture both screamed disrespect.
It was, of course, Hiyori Sarugaki.
With her boyish haircut, oversized attitude, and permanent scowl, she was your classic tomboy. Honestly, if Shirō didn't already know what she was like, he would've hated her on sight.
Even now, he didn't exactly like her. Definitely not his type.
But wow, she was tiny.
Standing next to Isane, they looked like an adult and a child. And yet, the "adult" stood there nervously, while the "child" acted like she owned the world.
Classic Hiyori.
"Heh. Not bad. Name's Shirō Emiya. You've probably heard of me."
Shirō smiled, deciding to at least maintain some dignity in front of the juniors.
The third girl, who had been glancing around absentmindedly, suddenly turned and pointed at him.
"Oh! I know you! You're that guy who gets top marks in class but still hasn't manifested his Zanpakutō!"
That airheaded but cute voice came from Mashiro Kuna, the bouncy-legged girl whose mind always seemed… a little unhinged.
And so, these three were the ones Shirō would be responsible for, guiding, protecting, and leading them into the Human World.
Lucky him.
It seemed Shirō's reputation had spread quite far, even if it was for… less flattering reasons. In a way, his situation now mirrored what 69 (Hisagi Shūhei) would become later on: respected, but also known for one major flaw.
"Oh, you're that Shirō Emiya, huh?"
Hiyori sneered.
"Still can't summon a Zanpakutō and you're talking like you're hot stuff? Forget it. Just take care of yourself, I don't plan on babysitting you too!"
"Hiyori! You can't say that!" Isane panicked.
"He's still our senior!"
"Yeah yeah!" Mashiro chimed in.
"Even if it's true, you shouldn't say it out loud! That's really hurtful, right, senpai?"
Shirō turned his head away silently.
He was seriously tempted to draw his sword and cut them all down right there.
"See?! He is hurt!" Mashiro pointed at him like it was breaking news.
"I told you! You can't just blurt things out like that! Are you okay, Shirō-senpai?" Isane asked anxiously.
"Forget it," Hiyori waved them off.
"If his skills are that bad, and his mentality's just as weak, I might as well lead this team myself. Come on, let's go kill some Hollows!"
Shirō's mouth twitched.
Excuse me?
You three are first-years. You're here to observe. The job of killing Hollows falls on me, thank you very much.
And even if you want to steal the kill, you might want to check your level first before charging at the boss mob.
They hadn't even left yet, and Shirō already wanted to scream.
This team was going to be a nightmare.
Was it too late to swap?
No wonder he pulled number 44, the most unlucky number of them all.
At last, all the groups were finalized.
Shirō looked over at Soi Fon's group. All three of her students were practically worshiping Kōraku Aya (Soi Fon's classmate and standout talent).
Then he glanced at his squad.
The tallest was staring at the ground. The shortest was glaring at the sky. The one in the middle was still spinning in circles.
The gap between people really was unfair…
Finally, the actual squad members from the Gotei 13 arrived, the ones tasked with leading and protecting them.
They looked confident. Some might say arrogant.
After all, to these Academy students, they were senpai. Accomplished warriors.
That pride was especially strong in the nobodies, the ones who had no other place to feel superior.
Still, among the group were two names Shirō instantly recognized.
"Ughhh, why do I have to do this kind of stuff? I'm busy, you know?"
Shinji Hirako yawned, strolling over casually.
"Orders are orders. And besides, I don't remember you ever being busy."
Kensei Muguruma replied, arms crossed.
These two weren't captains yet, but they were already high-ranking seated officers, essentially the leaders of this entire training operation.
If anything really dangerous showed up, Shirō figured they'd be able to handle it.
"Man, I wish I was already a captain," Shinji muttered.
"Captains have even more responsibilities," Kensei pointed out.
"Do they? 'Cause Kyoraku-Taichō seems to be taking it real easy," Shinji scratched his head.
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150 P.S = 1 Extra Chapter