Chapter 1: Forming a String
Soul Society
West Seireitei Gate, the Hakutōmon.
A young man in a white yukata stood before the towering stone wall that separated the Seireitei from the Rukongai. Beside the gate, a giant wielding twin crescent axes loomed over him.
"Halt. Show your pass if you wish to enter the Seireitei."
The giant's voice boomed from above. The young man looked up at the figure standing roughly ten meters tall.
"I am Jidanbō of the West Gate, guardian of this entrance. If you lack a pass, turn back now."
Jidanbō paused, then looked down at the boy with barely concealed anticipation. "Of course, you're welcome to try defeating me and forcing your way through."
The young man glanced at Jidanbō, who had already gripped his twin axes eagerly, then down at the ordinary katana hanging at his own waist. After a moment's hesitation, he pulled an ID card from his pocket. Realizing he couldn't reach high enough to hand it over normally, he tossed it up to the giant instead.
"Let's see here... Yuzuru, from the 80th District of West Rukongai. Entering Seireitei as a..." Jidanbō's eyes widened slightly. "New student at the Shin'ō Academy."
Jidanbō looked down at Yuzuru with genuine surprise. It was rare for anyone from a place as chaotic as the 80th District to make it this far. Still, he didn't comment further. Though he'd hoped for a good fight, he wouldn't delay a Shin'ō Academy student from reporting in. After pocketing Yuzuru's pass, Jidanbō turned and lifted the Hakutōmon with his massive frame.
"Alright, go on through."
"Thanks." Yuzuru crossed through the gate and officially entered the core of Soul Society—the Seireitei.
Walking down the street, Yuzuru glanced at the address on his enrollment notice. His thoughts were a mess.
'Six months ago, I was just an ordinary person on Earth. Now I'm standing in Soul Society, about to enter the Shin'ō Academy...'
'And it was the Soul King himself who brought me here.'
Yuzuru's journey hadn't been normal; he'd been "personally" recruited by the Soul King.
According to what remained of that supreme being's will, although balance existed between Soul Society, Hueco Mundo, and the living world, the future held too few "variables." The world was becoming a straight line converging toward a single, inevitable end.
The Soul King didn't want everything to reach that conclusion, so he'd pulled Yuzuru from countless possible worlds and planted something deep within his soul, a seed "similar to the Hōgyoku."
Not quite the same thing, but more like "controllable miraculous power."
It could sense the desires and patterns of surrounding souls, guiding spiritual energy to evolve in the direction he wished. However, it currently remained dormant, requiring a string of spiritual energy and willpower to be formed before it could awaken.
The problem was, Yuzuru had only heard the phrase "similar to the Hōgyoku" at the time. He had no idea what his cheat ability actually did.
'Besides, other isekai protagonists at least get some kind of tutorial or system interface. Me? I didn't even get proper instructions. Sure, I look exactly like I did before, but is this soul transmigration or body transmigration? I don't even know.'
'And I have no clue what point in the timeline this is. Damn you, Kubo, with your cryptic poems and style-over-substance storytelling. The timeline's so vague that everyone jokes you're just a fashion designer who doesn't actually understand Bleach.'
Yuzuru's thoughts wandered as he walked. The Shin'ō Academy wasn't far from the Hakutōmon, only a few hundred meters.
Today was the new student enrollment day, and plenty of figures moved through the area. After all, this was Soul Society's only premier institution for training Shinigami. Every soul with spiritual power dreamed of graduating from here, becoming a Shinigami, and living a comfortable life.
Looking at the queue ahead, Yuzuru couldn't help but imagine: some arrogant noble would suddenly appear, sneer that trash from the Rukongai didn't belong here, and attack without warning. Then Yuzuru would effortlessly defeat him with a casual display of skill. All the academy instructors would be shocked and immediately report to the captains and Head Captain Yamamoto himself. The entire Gotei 13 would scramble to recruit him.
'When that happens, which captain should I choose? What if they fight over me? Man, being a genius really does attract attention wherever you go.'
"Excuse me, you must be Yuzuru-sama, recommended for enrollment by Lieutenant Ōmaeda Marenoshin of the Second Division. Please come with me."
The receptionist's voice shattered Yuzuru's fantasy.
Right. He'd been recommended by Ōmaeda's father, who'd been on a mission to the 80th District. Because of Yuzuru's unusual spiritual talent, Ōmaeda had reported it up the chain. Technically, this made him a second-generation connection.
'Not to mention, there are guards everywhere. That kind of cliché confrontation wouldn't happen here anyway. I've read too many webnovels. My first instinct in any situation is to fantasize about showing off and face-slapping. Reading novels really does rot your brain.'
Still grumbling to himself, Yuzuru followed a senior student into the classroom. The long rows of desks and the blackboard at the front reminded him of university lecture halls from his previous life. He found a random seat, and the familiar atmosphere immediately made him drowsy.
"Excuse me. Could you let me through?"
A deep, calm voice beside him jolted Yuzuru from his half-asleep state. He quickly stood and moved aside.
"Sorry, sorry. Old habit, I get sleepy the moment I enter a classroom."
The newcomer nodded politely and sat in the seat to Yuzuru's left. Yuzuru sat back down, his gaze briefly sweeping over the person beside him. Short brown hair, black-rimmed glasses, and an air of composed serenity.
'I feel like I've seen this person somewhere before, but I can't place it...'
"Hello. I'm Aizen Sōsuke. I look forward to learning with you."
Noticing Yuzuru's stare, the man smiled and extended his hand with gentle courtesy.
"I'm Yuzuru. Nice to meet you..."
Caught staring, Yuzuru gave an awkward laugh and shook the offered hand. It seemed like a perfectly normal introduction between classmates...until Yuzuru processed the name.
The familiar name hit Yuzuru like lightning. His eyes widened involuntarily, and his grip on Aizen's hand tightened without thinking.
'Aizen Sōsuke. Future captain of the Fifth Division. Traitor of Soul Society. Emperor of Hueco Mundo. Is he sitting right next to me? My luck's either incredibly good or incredibly bad. At least I won't be falling asleep in class anymore.'
"Oh?" Aizen gently withdrew her hand and adjusted her glasses with one finger. Behind the lenses, she studied Yuzuru with curiosity. "This should be our first meeting. Why does my name surprise you, Yuzuru-kun?"
"Would you mind telling me why you lost your composure?"
To be fair, Aizen's voice really was pleasant, the kind that put people at ease. If you didn't know what he was capable of.
"Ah, your name just reminds me of someone I knew before I died. Guess I was mistaken."
Yuzuru composed himself and offered an excuse. Souls entering Soul Society kept their memories of life, so the explanation wasn't suspicious. Besides, he had a Soul King-granted cheat ability. Why would he be afraid of Aizen?
'Heh. Maybe I should subdue him before he creates the Hōgyoku. Eliminate the problem before it starts.'
"I see." Aizen smiled, only slightly surprised that Yuzuru had offered such a straightforward reason. "It seems we're fated to meet, then."
Of course, Aizen didn't believe the explanation. A person's expression when lying rarely lies. He could tell Yuzuru's reaction came from associating the name "Aizen Sōsuke" with her 'actual' appearance.
'It seems my time at the Shin'ō Academy won't be as uneventful as I imagined.'
Aizen had no way of knowing that the boy who'd climbed up from the 80th District carried a "variable" planted by the Soul King himself, dormant deep within his soul.
From this moment on, the world's trajectory had quietly shifted.
[End of Chapter]
Ohayo!!, how are you doing, my friends hope well and well, here's a Bleach fanfic, but with a twist, we all love and hate, it's GENDER BENDER TIME! Let's GOOOO!!!!
C'mon, you can't tell me you didn't come here because of who was in cover. He~ He~ HE-HE-HE.