After the captains' meeting, Shunsui made his way out of the First Division's hall with an uncharacteristically serious expression. His goal was clear — he intended to visit Shigure and inform him in advance about the upcoming captain's assessment.
However, before he could even reach the Eleventh Division's barracks, news came that the Eleventh Division had already gone out to intercept a Hueco Mundo invasion. Reports confirmed that several Menos Grande had breached the boundary between the worlds and entered the Soul Society.
Not long after, another Hell Butterfly arrived carrying a distress signal — the invading group included a Menos Grande of the Adjuchas-class.
In the past, this would not have been a matter of concern. So long as a Kenpachi commanded the Eleventh Division, there were few beings — short of the most powerful Vasto Lorde — who could stand before them. But things were different now.
The Eleventh Division had no captain.
This made the situation unpredictable.
Although the division's combat strength remained formidable, losing their captain had unsettled their coordination. Fearing severe casualties, the Gotei 13 decided to send immediate reinforcement. Normally, the Fifth Division would have been the rescue unit assigned to assist, but with Hirako Shinji newly appointed and not yet fully oriented to command, Shunsui volunteered to take charge himself.
He gathered his Eighth Division members and a team of Fourth Division medics, moving swiftly toward the battle site.
Even so, he doubted the Eleventh Division would fall so easily. After all, they were the fiercest fighters in the Gotei 13. The division's reputation was built on its sheer bloodlust and unshakable pride, and with Shigure — a vice-captain with captain-class reiatsu — among them, defeat seemed unlikely.
Still, Shunsui preferred caution.
He remembered well the incident years ago when Kuruyashiki had encountered a Hueco Mundo raid before being challenged by Kenpachi Azashiro. Though Kuruyashiki had slain the invading Menos Grande, he'd warned afterward that those hollows might have been acting under the command of something far more powerful.
And now, seeing an Adjuchas appear in Soul Society again, Shunsui couldn't shake that same unease.
But as it turned out — his worries were unnecessary.
By the time he and his squads arrived, both the Gillian and the Adjuchas had already been slain — their spiritual bodies scattered into the wind.
The battlefield still crackled faintly with leftover reiatsu, thick and oppressive, like ozone after lightning. Shigure stood amid the carnage, calm as always, his Zanpakutō dripping faint traces of light.
However, several lower-class hollows still lingered nearby, darting through the wreckage.
Shunsui's expression hardened. "Members of the Eighth Division — assist the Eleventh in exterminating the remaining hollows! Fourth Division, tend to the wounded!"
His voice carried authority but also an easy rhythm that put everyone at ease.
The shinigami who had followed him immediately obeyed, dispersing into the chaos. Within minutes, the battlefield was cleared.
When the fighting finally ceased, the surviving Eleventh Division members began tending to the dead. Broken blades, shattered Zanpakutō fragments, and severed hollow masks lay strewn across the barren soil.
One of the Eleventh Division's seated officers bowed deeply. "Captain Kyoraku, thank you for your assistance!"
Shigure approached soon after, his uniform torn in places but his composure untouched. "Captain Kyoraku," he said evenly, "thank you for your assisstance."
Shunsui chuckled softly, waving a hand. "It's nothing, Gosuke. Even without me, your strength would've been more than enough to finish this. Still—" His tone grew faintly teasing. "—on a battlefield, it's better to be cautious. You never know when something unexpected might happen, hm?"
Shigure's gaze lingered for a moment, then he nodded. "You're right. It's better to have support than to have none at all."
The phrasing was casual, but Shunsui caught the weight behind it. He smiled faintly yet said nothing more.
'He's not like most from the Eleventh.' he thought. 'He fights, yes — but he thinks, too.'
In truth, Shigure's words reflected something far deeper. He was remembering his past life — the countless mistakes born of arrogance, the deaths that had come simply because he hadn't expected the next accident.
Reborn in Soul Society, he had learned his lesson.
He would never make that mistake again.
Shunsui, unaware of the full extent of those thoughts, spoke again. "Well, under your command, the Eleventh Division has done the Soul Society proud once more. We should celebrate the victory, don't you think? A little battlefield drinking party, perhaps?"
"Drinking party?" Shigure tilted his head slightly.
Before he could even respond, one of the Eleventh's senior officers raised his voice eagerly, "That's a great idea! We haven't had one in ages!"
"It just so happens that the Eighth and Fourth Divisions are here." another added. "Let's all drink together — it'll be lively!"
"Yes! Let's do it!" someone else shouted.
Within moments, the decision was made for him.
Before Shigure could answer, the Eleventh Division had already begun preparing. Sake jars were produced from supply crates, and makeshift tables were fashioned from broken debris. The smell of alcohol soon replaced the scent of Hollow ash in the air.
Laughter echoed across the wilderness as the three divisions mingled freely.
For the Eleventh Division, it felt like something sacred — a return to their old ways.
Somewhere among the crowd, a few veterans fell silent, their expressions tinged with nostalgia.
This scene… was exactly like the old days.
Back when Kuruyashiki was still alive, and after every battle, the division would drink on the field — laughing, fighting, sometimes bleeding — but always together.
It was during one such drinking feast that Azashiro had first challenged Kuruyashiki for the title of Kenpachi.
After he won, that tradition quietly disappeared. The new Kenpachi was too withdrawn, too distant for such celebrations.
And now, after so long, the Eleventh Division once again sat together beneath the open sky, sake bowls raised, laughing amid the dust of battle.
Some of them couldn't hold back the tears that welled in their eyes. They turned away quickly, pretending it was from the alcohol.
Even among the medics of the Fourth Division, there were heavy hearts. The two divisions had always shared a strange bond — healer and patient, opposites yet inseparable. The Eleventh gave the Fourth purpose, and the Fourth gave the Eleventh survival.
One of the healers sighed softly. "Just like before…"
The warmth of nostalgia spread quietly through the air.
"Come now, Gosuke, you drink too." Shunsui said, holding out a bowl with a grin.
Shigure accepted it, his calm face illuminated by the moonlight. "All right." he said, taking a measured sip.
Shunsui chuckled approvingly. "That's more like it."
Then his expression shifted — playful, but carrying something beneath. "By the way, Gosuke… you should be ready in the coming days."
Shigure blinked, the rim of the sake bowl still touching his lips. "...Ready for what?"
There was no answer yet — but his expression had already darkened slightly.
Because the last time Shunsui had said something similar… the Punishment Force had come soon after, escorting him to Central 46, where he'd been "judged" by nobles and thrown into the Palace of Repentance.
And now, that same tone had returned.
*****
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✓ Killed For 100 Years in Hueco Mundo, Aizen Invited Me To Soul Society!
✓ Naruto: Senmei Asahi
✓ Naruto: Uchiha's Intelligence Dealer
✓ Naruto: The Fifth Hokage Is Naruto's Uncle
✓ Naruto: Who Made Him a Ninja?
✓ Bleach: In My Second Reincarnation, I Became The Ninth Kenpachi
✓ To Love-Ru: Spoiler Route [R-18]
✓ Naruto: The Accidental Incubus [R-18]
✓ The Academy's Saint Is Too Popular, But He's Not the Protagonist [R-18]