"Thank you for your patronage! My, my, it looks like you've grown even stronger, Mr. Asakura!"
He was a man who looked quite unreliable, wearing a green-and-white striped bucket hat and wooden clogs.
However, Yoh Asakura knew very well just how much power and calculation were hidden behind Kisuke Urahara's facade. If possible, he didn't want to have much to do with the man.
But it couldn't be helped; Kisuke Urahara was simply too useful.
Basically anything Yoh wanted, the man could obtain through his connections and various channels. Even if he couldn't find it, he could manufacture it himself given enough funds and time.
Setting that aside, the underground space the man had created was becoming something Yoh almost relied on.
Down there, he could train and experiment without restraint. Lately, he'd even find himself heading there just to vent his frustrations whenever he was in a bad mood.
After all, finding a place where one could cut loose without consequences was quite difficult in a modern city.
Though none of it came for free, of course.
"I don't even use spiritual pressure. How can you tell I've gotten stronger?"
Yoh Asakura looked at Kisuke Urahara skeptically, wondering if the man had installed surveillance cameras in the training room.
"It's the aura, the aura! Every time you come out, Mr. Asakura, you feel different. How terrifying!"
"Cut the crap."
Unable to stomach Urahara's eccentric tone any longer, Yoh turned to leave.
"Oh, by the way, Mr. Asakura."
"Huh? What now? You're not thinking of raising your prices, are you?"
"Perish the thought! This shop has always operated with the utmost integrity. What I wanted to say is that while you were training these past few days, two very lovely girls came looking for you several times. My, Mr. Asakura, you certainly are popular with the ladies!"
"Two girls?" Yoh paused. Not many people knew he frequently trained here, and certainly not two girls.
"One is a girl with short black hair, and the other has long orange-red hair. They were wearing the same school uniform as you. Classmates, perhaps?"
'Tatsuki and Inoue? How did they find this place? And what could they possibly want with me?'
Yoh caught a glimpse of Urahara's smirking face out of the corner of his eye. His brow twitched as a realization dawned on him.
"Hey, Urahara... you didn't say something you shouldn't have, did you?"
Hearing this, Urahara snapped his folding fan open, using it to shield the lower half of his face.
"Not at all! I was simply taking my cat for a stroll when I 'happened' to run into them. I 'happened' to overhear them mention they were looking for Mr. Asakura, so I 'happened' to mention that you were currently undergoing some very important training here."
"While the young lady with the short hair didn't seem to believe me and even demanded proof, this shop operates with integrity. I would never do something as untoward as leaking a customer's private information."
'You just leaked it! Where's the integrity?!'
Yoh took a deep breath and then flashed Urahara a smile that looked more like a predatory snarl.
"Good. Bye."
"We look forward to your next visit!"
Yoh Asakura stomped away in a huff, leaving deep footprints with every step.
He didn't bother questioning Urahara's motives. He knew it was pointless. If the man wanted to explain, he would; if he didn't, no amount of interrogation would yield an answer.
...
After several days away, Yoh returned home, looking forward to a long shower and some takeout as a reward. Instead, he was greeted by a confusing sight at his front door.
A tall, muscular man with bronze skin and short, wavy brown hair sat hunched beside his gate, his body covered in bandages. Next to him was a birdcage containing a parrot.
"Yasutora?"
The man's appearance was unmistakable. Yoh called out his name without a second thought, and the man, who had been resting his head, immediately looked up.
"Yoh."
While he hadn't known him as long as Ichigo Kurosaki or Tatsuki Arisawa, Yoh was on quite good terms with Yasutora Sado.
The three of them used to fight off thugs together quite often, and they had once made a promise to always lend each other their strength.
"Did something happen?"
Sensing that Sado was in a strange state of mind, Yoh asked with concern.
"Ichigo and the transfer student said... you might be able to help him..."
Yoh followed Sado's gaze to the birdcage on the ground. He saw the parrot inside tilt its head and look at him, its face appearing to flush.
"Hello, handsome big brother. My name is Yuichi Shibata, and I'm eight years old."
"..."
While a talking parrot wasn't exactly unheard of, such coherent and emotional speech was rare.
However, Yoh soon sensed the chaotic spiritual fluctuations emanating from the bird. He looked back at Sado, who was staring at him with a glimmer of hope.
Yoh quickly realized which part of the story this was.
"A child's soul forcibly stuffed into a parrot's body? And the Chain of Fate has been completely severed... he must have run into some kind of natural-born monster."
"Can you save him?" Seeing that Yoh had identified the problem at a glance, Sado's voice grew even more hopeful.
"Well... that depends on your definition of 'saving' him."
Based on the fact that Sado mentioned Ichigo and Rukia sent him, Yoh gathered that the Hollow—who was originally a psychopathic serial killer—had already been sent to Hell by Ichigo Kurosaki.
Since Sado's memory hadn't been erased yet and he'd even brought Yuichi Shibata here, Yoh could guess what Rukia Kuchiki was thinking.
'She really is soft-hearted...'
"What do you mean?" Sado asked, confused. Yuichi Shibata blinked his bead-like eyes at him as well.
"First off, Rukia Kuchiki should have told you that this child's soul has completely lost contact with its original body. Furthermore, his soul is inextricably tangled with the parrot's."
"So, returning him to his original body is absolutely impossible. Besides, his body has been without a soul for so long that it's likely already..."
"I see..."
Sado struggled to his feet, leaning against the wall for support. A flash of disappointment crossed his eyes, and the parrot inhabited by Yuichi hung its head, looking despondent.
"Sorry for troubling you."
Seeing Sado, who was clearly badly injured, wobbling as he prepared to leave with the cage, Yoh quickly moved to stop him.
"You can barely stand. Where do you think you're going?"
"To find Ichigo and the transfer student."