Chapter 111: Open Up, Inspection Time
Hearing that Matsushita Yusuke completely understood their reasoning, Sasakibe Chojiro's expression became considerably brighter.
This young man was incomparably more professional than Kijishi.
Handing Squad 11 to someone like this: Sasakibe could breathe at least a little easier.
"You understand. That's genuinely a relief."
Of course.
"Mere verbal praise, however, is not the Gotei 13's way of doing things."
Saying this, Sasakibe produced a map and slid it across the table. He pointed to sections of it as he spoke.
"The Commander-General has indicated he is willing to personally fund the rebuilding of your squad quarters. While we're at it, relocating the base entirely would make for a fresh start. The areas currently available for purchase are all marked. Please take it back and look through it at your leisure."
Oh. There's a Commander-General bonus on top?
The base problem resolved in one conversation. Excellent.
Matsushita Yusuke accepted this with genuine satisfaction and made a mental note to review the map properly when he had a rest.
Meanwhile, after confirming Yusuke's intentions, Sasakibe produced a series of documents.
"These are all items requiring signature. The content can be roughly summarized as: 'Captain's Code of Conduct,' 'Gotei 13 Required Awareness Items,' 'Emergency Response Preparedness Protocol,' and..."
Yusuke's head started to ache in a deeply specific way.
Back when I started my old job I didn't have to sign anything close to this many documents. Is being a captain harder on you than being a pack animal?
All he could say was that after a thousand years of development, other things may or may not have improved, but the trivial paperwork had clearly only multiplied.
Bureaucracy will be the death of everyone.
He skimmed through everything. No particular objections to the content.
After all, it was all responsibilities and obligations.
And according to Sasakibe's candid aside: none of it actually carried any legal binding force.
When all was said and done, it came down to personal conscience.
"To be direct with you: your predecessor performed very poorly. But even so, we never removed him from office. At most we issued some warnings."
That was quite the understatement.
From Yusuke's perspective, Kijishi had been doing essentially whatever he pleased.
Which meant the captain's authority level was genuinely high. Once you took the post, unless you committed some fundamental violation of principle, everything before that threshold would effectively be tolerated.
That was, in its way, fairly nice.
But there were also parts that needed to be measured carefully.
Interpersonal relationships being chief among them.
The goodwill between captains was important. If Kijishi had been willing to invest a little effort into building some rapport, maintaining some basic standing, things would not have ended as poorly as they did.
Getting along with others: also a significant indicator.
Matsushita Yusuke processed all of this while nodding steadily through every point Sasakibe made.
"In short, for the current Matsushita-kun: there is a great deal to pay attention to. So going forward, there is no need to be impatient. Improve gradually. Make adjustments one at a time."
Sasakibe offered this advice gently, then added:
"Also because of your predecessor, Squad 11's reputation is currently quite poor. Turning that impression around will not be easy. But regardless: work hard, young man."
Yusuke already knew all of this. He smiled helplessly and nodded.
"Thank you for the guidance. I'll do everything I can."
"Ha ha. Having that determination is already very good. Oh, right. Matsushita-kun: there are some things I assume you can figure out without me spelling them out?"
"Uh... such as?"
"The matter of changing your name, of course."
Oh.
Right. That.
Every Kenpachi keeps the family name but changes the given name to Kenpachi. That had apparently been the established custom all along, and by convention, Matsushita Yusuke couldn't be exempt.
But.
"Seeing your expression, it's not something you're particularly willing to accept?"
Sasakibe smiled.
"It's perfectly fine not to change it. Keeping the Kenpachi title while retaining your original name is also a valid approach."
Wait, this tradition is actually that easy to step around?
"It's not such a serious matter in practice. People followed it often enough that it became something like a tradition over time. But the reality is..."
Sasakibe quite elegantly adjusted the cravat at his collar and said, in an entirely relaxed tone:
"What becomes customary is not immutable. After all, the reason these customs formed in the first place was because of people's momentary impulses long ago."
Change brings renewal.
"Blindly following old rules and old orders only makes flowing water stagnate and rot."
That was unexpectedly remarkable, coming out of nowhere.
But also entirely fitting.
After all, Sasakibe was a figure who had existed for more than a thousand years. Having seen and heard as much as he had, some things naturally lost their mystique. If anything, you could turn it around and say: having lived more than a thousand years without developing some perspective would be the stranger outcome.
And thinking of that, Matsushita Yusuke naturally thought of the first Kenpachi.
Unohana Yachiru. So she also hadn't changed her name. Same principle exactly.
Thoughts settled, Matsushita Yusuke exhaled quietly and nodded with a serious expression.
"Thank you for the guidance. I'll take it into consideration."
"Good. Please do."
The conversation seemed to have reached a natural pause.
But before Sasakibe actually left, having already gathered his things and risen to his feet, he seemed to remember something and spoke again.
"Matsushita-kun. Technically, this next part is not something that falls to me to convey. But the opportunity is here, and I think it is better to give you fair warning."
Yusuke looked over with mild confusion, then carefully nodded.
"Please. Go ahead?"
What was this about?
Sasakibe leaned forward slightly and lowered his voice.
"About two to three days from now, in the evening: someone should come to find you. Before then, please make sure to hone your abilities and demonstrate strength that at minimum exceeds what you showed in the Kijishi fight."
A short pause. Then Sasakibe, in a quiet and measured tone:
"This is something every Kenpachi experiences when they receive the inheritance. Incidentally, Kijishi was beaten half to death during his. So you will need to work hard."
Matsushita Yusuke put it together immediately.
A female ghost coming to collect on a debt?
Ah. No.
Unohana Retsu was coming to inspect the goods.