"Well, if it isn't Uno..." Shunsui Kyōraku noticed Muten Natsu's expression and tugged at the pink haori draped over his Captain's haori. "Muten Natsu, huh? Come out to take over my shift?"
The 4th Division's General Treatment Ward was filled with wounded patients. If the enemy attacked, the consequences would be disastrous.
Shunsui Kyōraku wasn't the only one guarding the area. Jūshirō Ukitake was there as well.
With the Captain-Commander missing and Retsu Unohana's strength yet to recover, Shunsui Kyōraku and Jūshirō Ukitake were now the most senior Captains present.
However, Jūshirō Ukitake was in poor health, so when they sensed Muten Natsu wandering around, it was Shunsui Kyōraku who came out to see what was going on rather than Jūshirō Ukitake, despite the latter being closer to Muten Natsu.
Muten Natsu glanced at Shunsui Kyōraku without saying anything.
"Don't look at me like that. With this many wounded here, I'll definitely take my duty of protecting the 4th Division seriously." Shunsui Kyōraku gave the sake bottle in his hand a little shake. "Want a couple of drinks?"
Muten Natsu looked at him. "Do you even hear yourself?"
"Everyone needs to relax once in a while. A little sake won't hurt." Shunsui Kyōraku poured himself a cup. "Don't like drinking?"
"Not my thing."
"This is some finely aged sake, you know~" Shunsui Kyōraku swirled his cup. "You wouldn't know if you don't drink, but the longer it ages, the smoother and richer it becomes, and the deeper its aroma grows."
Muten Natsu gazed up at the night sky. "As far as I know, it depends on the type. Some improve with age, while others actually get worse if they're stored too long."
"You know more than you let on~" Shunsui Kyōraku smiled. "But what matters most is the quality of the sake itself. Bad sake won't become good no matter how long you store it. Good sake, though, can be harsh, bitter, and raw if it hasn't aged long enough. It won't have time to develop its proper richness and fragrance. Doesn't that sound a little like people?"
Muten Natsu turned toward him. "What are you getting at?"
"Me." Shunsui Kyōraku pointed to himself. "I'm like a jar of mediocre old sake. I've been aging for a long time, but I'm still nothing special. You youngsters, though, are like excellent new sake. You may be a little rough around the edges now, but give yourselves enough time to settle, and eventually you'll develop..." He took a satisfied sip and smacked his lips. "Ah~ Delicious!"
He looked every bit like a hopeless drunk.
"I think I'd better stand watch." Muten Natsu still wasn't entirely reassured.
"You know perfectly well how limited your Reiatsu perception is, especially without Bokukō." Shunsui Kyōraku held out a hand. "How about this? Will this put your mind at ease?"
The instant Shunsui Kyōraku's hand touched his arm, Muten Natsu felt his perception being guided and amplified.
For a moment, he had the illusion that he was floating high above Seireitei, looking down over the entire city.
Shunsui Kyōraku's Reiatsu hung over all of Seireitei. It had almost no detectable presence, yet it undeniably existed.
Muten Natsu had only ever encountered Reiatsu this powerful and yet this impossible to sense from one other person.
Sōsuke Aizen, after evolving several times through the Hōgyoku.
"Don't look at me like that. I really wasn't slacking off back then." Shunsui Kyōraku withdrew his hand. "My Bankai just isn't suited for use around large crowds. Now that Katen Kyōkotsu isn't here, I can release my Reiatsu like this. So, want a drink?"
Muten Natsu answered without hesitation. "No."
"You know, I've always felt like you're pretty hostile toward me. That isn't just my imagination, is it?" Shunsui Kyōraku rubbed his chin. "Is it because of those rumors? I was only analyzing them from a literary perspective."
"It's not really hostility," Muten Natsu replied bluntly. "I just hate how you always beat around the bush."
For someone like Muten Natsu, who preferred to solve problems directly and thoroughly, Shunsui Kyōraku's way of doing things was irritating whether he was dealing with enemies or allies.
"Can't be helped." Shunsui Kyōraku shifted slightly. "Muten, you look troubled. Why not tell me what's bothering you? I'll put my wisdom and experience to work and give you some advice."
"...No thanks."
Shunsui Kyōraku raised his cup. "So, want a drink?"
Muten Natsu sighed. "Do you really have to be this persistent?"
"More persistent than you can imagine~" Shunsui Kyōraku poured himself another cup. "Since you don't want to tell me about your troubles, how about listening to mine instead?"
Without waiting for Muten Natsu to answer, Shunsui Kyōraku continued. "I really am troubled, you know. I don't know who else I could talk to about it, and you happen to know a little about sake."
He gently shook the bottle and tilted his head, listening to the liquid slosh inside.
"I brewed this jar of sake myself, and I was the one who sealed it away. With every passing day, every passing year, she grows mellower and more fragrant."
Muten Natsu: "...She?"
"I call her Shindai. Nice name, isn't it?" Shunsui Kyōraku drawled. "But the more I knew she was becoming richer and mellower with age, the harder it became to suppress the longing in my heart. I knew she would only become better with time, but I still couldn't resist opening her. The moment I smelled her fragrance and tasted her flavor, I completely lost myself in it..."
Shunsui Kyōraku took a deep breath, intoxication spreading across his face before giving way to regret.
"But once I came to my senses, I began to regret it and wanted to seal her away again. No matter how hard I tried, though, she could never return to the way she had been before. I still find myself intoxicated by her, but every time I taste her, I can't help feeling a trace of guilt. Eventually, I started thinking that perhaps someone else could appreciate her beauty more purely. Anyone other than me, the one who brewed her."
Shunsui Kyōraku held the cup out toward Muten Natsu.
"So, want a drink?"
"Tasting sake and brewing it are two different things. There's no rule saying the brewer can't drink what he made." Muten Natsu lowered his eyes. "If the sake had a will of its own, then of course it could understand what the brewer was thinking. But understanding and accepting are two different things. Opening it was wrong, so does that automatically make pushing it away right?"
Shunsui Kyōraku froze for a moment, then drained his cup and pressed down on the brim of his straw hat.
"I thought you only knew a little about sake. Seems I underestimated you."
"You didn't misunderstand me. You misunderstood your own feelings." Muten Natsu looked up at him. "You don't really see the sake as sake, yet you keep insisting that it is."
"For someone who hates beating around the bush, you're awfully good at it yourself." Shunsui Kyōraku laughed. "You've turned into the kind of adult you hate."
Muten Natsu turned to leave.
"That's exactly why I hate it."
Shunsui Kyōraku watched him walk away, then poured himself another cup.
"And in the end, he still didn't drink any."
"Captain." Nanao Ise emerged from the corner. "If I remember correctly, Shindai is still sealed away. The sake you're holding is a new batch."
"Huh?" Shunsui Kyōraku scratched his head. "Is that so?"