Chapter 249: Just Doing My Part
"First question. What is the primary focus of patrol work?"
Isshin Shiba raised his right hand, looking enormously pleased with himself, and wagged one finger back and forth in front of Matsushita Yusuke's face.
Matsushita Yusuke tilted his head and rubbed his chin.
Let me think about this.
"Ensuring absolute safety within the patrol zone?"
"...You're serious right now?"
Isshin blinked. He glanced left and right to confirm no one was within earshot, then leaned in and dropped his voice to barely above a whisper.
"Finding a good spot to take a nap."
Matsushita Yusuke looked at his face. He was completely serious.
This man has been on the job for less than a month and he's already thinking about this.
Isshin seemed to register the mildly appalled quality of the look, because he coughed twice, straightened up, and rearranged his expression.
"Right, that was a joke. Obviously. The real answer is responsibility. The responsibility to protect the peace of Soul Society."
"If you're going to say something for public consumption, you should probably rehearse it a little. It builds credibility."
"Ugh."
Footsteps approaching from behind put an end to the bickering.
"Captain! Captain Matsushita..."
It was a Squad 10 member coming up at a jog, the badge placement suggesting something around a seated officer rank.
Matsushita Yusuke had no strong impression of this particular person and no particular urge to contribute. He stood off to the side and watched as Isshin switched registers, shifting into the more composed version of himself he used for actual subordinates, and started working through the handoff.
Which gave Matsushita Yusuke's thoughts room to wander.
Half a month.
That was how long the two squads had been running joint operations.
The patrol teams had produced nothing in the way of results. Which was entirely expected.
If I don't make a move, of course there's nothing to find.
"No unusual activity on your end? Understood. Send them back in then, have everyone rest properly."
The squad member's expression lit up. A proper salute.
"Received! Take care out here, Captain!"
"Absolutely. Full attention, the whole time."
Even at captain level, being present in the field was a statement. Yamamoto had assigned this, which meant it deserved actual participation. Two captains both turning up to check in was its own kind of message.
That said, Matsushita Yusuke was not here exclusively for the optics.
He watched the squad member's back as he left, thought briefly, and said in an easy tone:
"Captain Isshin, since we're both here anyway, how about we just send the rest of your team back to rest too?"
Both of them looked at him.
He gave them his most straightforward smile.
"Everyone's been going flat-out for two weeks. Surely a few hours is something the two of us can handle on our own."
No prior discussion. Completely out of nowhere. A different kind of impulse.
But Isshin bought it entirely.
He thought for a moment, then turned to his squad member directly.
"Captain Matsushita makes a good point. It's rare for both of us to be on-site together. You all might as well take the opportunity to get some actual rest."
"But Captain..."
"No buts. Two captains working this stretch. You really think that's going to go worse than your version?"
That was hard to argue with.
The squad member visibly wrestled with it, made a sound of resignation, and then the expression shifted to something genuine.
"I'll let everyone know, Captain. And Captain Matsushita, thank you too!"
Matsushita Yusuke waved a hand cheerfully.
"Happy to."
Once the footsteps had faded, Isshin stood up a little taller and exhaled.
"Honestly, I'd almost forgotten how tired everyone's been. You're right to point it out. Thanks for that."
"Easy to lose track of things when you're in the middle of them. Nothing to feel bad about."
Matsushita Yusuke offered that and then shifted the conversation without any particular transition.
"Speaking of which. This has been your main focus for the past two weeks, hasn't it?"
"Ha, yeah. It's Captain-Commander's orders, so I can't just quietly drop it. Minimum a month before I can even think about winding down."
That was the right attitude.
And it was exactly what Matsushita Yusuke needed it to be.
He nodded with no particular emphasis and said something vague and noncommittal while his thoughts moved to the actual subject.
For Ichigo Kurosaki to exist, certain arrangements had to fall into place.
The practical summary was simple enough.
Get Isshin into the living world. Let the bull-head encounter him. Let his wife handle the rest. Let the power transfer happen through that.
Looking at it from the outside, in the original story, the whole thing had come together through coincidence piling on coincidence. Even Aizen had called it something close to miraculous. Given that higher-order forces of the Soul King type had been theorized to be operating at that level, there was a case to be made that the outcome had been arranged from above.
But Matsushita Yusuke preferred to handle things himself.
I'll push this particular piece of history forward personally.
The first step was getting Isshin moving in the right direction.
Without breaking his easy tone, Matsushita Yusuke said:
"Speaking of which. Yesterday, over in the Rukongai, western thirty-ninth district. There was an attack incident. Do you remember seeing that report?"
Isshin paused slightly. Then nodded.
"I read it. There was something to it. Is it significant?"
"Your version of the report might be missing some follow-up. What came in after suggested a possible Hollow in the area. A high-appetite type."
Isshin's brow pulled together visibly.
He rose to his feet slowly. His right hand came to rest near the hilt at his waist.
"Can't leave that alone."
That sense of responsibility was one of the variables Matsushita Yusuke had been counting on.
He watched Isshin step into the arrangement without resistance, and said in the same easy tone:
"I'll come with you. Nothing else pressing right now."
"Really? Two of us going in together makes this simple. Thanks, Captain Matsushita!"
The corner of Matsushita Yusuke's mouth lifted slightly.
The Squad 10 members who could have sent word back to anyone had been cleared from the area. The destination was a location that had been prepared in advance. Everything in position.
Like watching something walk slowly into the web and start to settle.
"Just doing my part," he said.