The idea of making Ao into Yoruichi's master sounded pretty good at first. After all, Kōe had been bossed around by Yoruichi since childhood; having the chance to get back at her would be incredibly satisfying.
But Kōe only entertained the fantasy for a brief moment. He wasn't sure if some mystical force called "bonds" actually existed in this world. If it didn't, fine, but if it did, prolonged contact would easily expose his true identity.
Ultimately, the development of Shunkō would still be led by Yoruichi. She would first perfect her own concepts and ensure they were viable. Kōe would act as her assistant—not to design some bizarre Kidō, of course, but to serve as her sparring partner once the initial version of Shunkō was complete, helping her iron out its flaws.
With their goals set, the two parted ways to work independently. Though, in this matter, the heavy lifting was mostly left to Yoruichi.
Because of this, Kōe hadn't seen Yoruichi for several days since their last soak in the hot spring. Developing Shunkō was by no means an easy task; he figured he wouldn't be seeing her for quite a long time.
Urahara had also gone missing. His friends had suddenly vanished without a trace, but Kōe didn't feel bored. He had his own private matters to attend to.
In Soul Society, the hunt for the Quincies would continue for a long time. Old Man Yama wasn't joking when he said he wanted to pull them up by the roots. For the Shinigami, purging Soul Society was merely a matter of time.
The headache currently plaguing the Seireitei was how to deal with the Quincy factions in the World of the Living. After all, the safety of the mortals living there was an unavoidable issue.
Quincies, Shinigami, and Hollows—the fragile World of the Living simply couldn't withstand the combined chaos of these three factions. The extermination operation wasn't born out of petty rivalry between Shinigami and Quincies; shattering the World of the Living just to get to the Quincies would be putting the cart before the horse.
Fortunately, Kōe's execution of the Star Cross Fortress's capture had been flawless, leaving the Senkaimon inside completely undamaged. The Kidō Corps had now shifted its spatial coordinates to a Senkaimon within the Seireitei. Quincies who previously used their own gates to travel directly to the Star Cross Fortress would now walk right into a trap in the Seireitei.
It was a solid plan, but over the past three months, very few Quincies had arrived in the Seireitei through the Senkaimon, and those few had all simply died of natural causes.
It wasn't hard to guess that the Quincies had their own specific method of transfer. Perhaps it occurred at a certain time, or maybe the Star Cross Fortress used to send people to guide them. The Shinigami's goal was to figure out exactly how this method worked. Naturally, this was also the purpose of Kōe's current trip—or rather, one of his purposes.
As the highest military power in the Seireitei, the Gotei 13 did more than just guard the Seireitei; each squad had its own specific duties. For example, Squad 4 was the medical division. However, Kōe wasn't heading to Squad 4 today. He was visiting the squad in charge of imprisonment and interrogation—Squad 9. This was his destination.
Just as Kōe caught sight of the large character for "Nine" on the squad barracks' gates, a slender girl with short green hair came out to greet him, pouting with a look of displeasure.
"Little Cho-Cho, what took you so long!"
"Kuna, could you not call me Little Cho-Cho? It sounds... pretty weird," Kōe protested, rubbing his arms. The nickname always reminded him of Kocho from the Huaixiang Pavilion, which made him feel incredibly awkward.
"You don't like it?" The girl named Kuna rested her chin in her hand and thought for a moment before continuing, "Then how about Little Zuka-Zuka, Little Hiro-Hiro, or maybe Little Kō-Kō? Those sound pretty good too!"
The girl standing before him was Kuna Mashiro. It was hard to believe that someone so childish was the lieutenant of Squad 9. Because of this, Kōe had always suspected that beneath her innocent exterior lay a deeply manipulative heart—he just didn't have the evidence to prove it.
Giving people nicknames was one of Kuna Mashiro's favorite hobbies. Whether the other person accepted it or not, she would stubbornly insist on using it. The fact that she was giving him options right now was already a rare mercy.
"Any of those is fine, as long as it's not Little Cho-Cho!"
"Then Little Cho-Cho it is! What do you think, Little Cho-Cho?"
See? How could anyone who had lived for over a hundred years truly be innocent! Kōe gave up resisting. The more he fought it, the harder it would be to shake the nickname. Perhaps one day, when she could no longer find any amusement in teasing him, she would change it on her own.
"I think it's fine. Let's just go with that." Kōe sighed, pointing at the building behind her. "Can you take me inside now, Kuna?"
"Sure, sure!" Kuna stepped aside, her eyes curving into happy crescents as she smiled. "But don't be late next time! I'm a very busy person, you know!"
Watching Kuna Mashiro skip away, Kōe shook his head and quickly followed her. Busy? She didn't look the least bit busy.
...
Although Squad 9 was in charge of imprisonment and interrogation, the squad's barracks lacked any gloomy or terrifying atmosphere. The above-ground facilities were naturally pristine, but even the underground prison was exceptionally clean. According to Kuna Mashiro, Muguruma Kensei demanded that the place be cleaned at least ten times a day, though it was hard to say whose idea that truly was.
"Are you afraid of the dark, Little Cho-Cho?"
"No, why do you ask?"
"Eh?" Walking ahead with her hands behind her back, Kuna Mashiro didn't seem to believe him. She turned her head slightly and continued, "Then why did you make us set up the interrogation room like that?"
"Normally, we keep the interrogation room a bit dim. Not to scare people, mind you, but just so the squad members don't have to see those prisoners' expressions too clearly. Staying in a place like this for too long is really depressing!"
"Yeah, that's true."
Once Kuna Mashiro opened the floodgates, there was no stopping her. In fact, from the moment Kōe had met her at the gate, she had barely stopped talking.
Still, her chatter wasn't annoying. When Kuna got talkative, she was like a little sparrow—actually quite cute.
"Every time a shift ends, I always make sure they eat plenty of sweets. But lately, everyone's workload has been so heavy that we're burning through desserts way too fast! The squad's budget can barely handle it! And that guy Kensei actually had the nerve to say sweets are unnecessary. He's just a muscle-brained meathead who only knows how to train. Hmph!"
"Yeah, that's true."
Kōe continued to give his perfunctory replies, but this time, Kuna Mashiro stopped in her tracks and suddenly turned around to stare at him. Kōe's heart skipped a beat. *Did my universal response just fail?*
"So the reason you made such a weird request was actually to trick me out of my sweets, wasn't it!"
"Uh, well, about that..." Just as Kōe was about to explain, Kuna Mashiro leaned her small face right up to his and said with absolute seriousness, "Or is it just like everyone says—you're actually a pervert!"
"I am not a pervert!" Kōe instinctively shouted in his defense, but then he realized something was wrong and quickly changed his question. "Wait, who's been calling me a pervert?!"
"So you aren't? Well, even if you are, it doesn't matter. Lisa is a pervert too, so I'm already used to it." Kuna Mashiro didn't seem to have any intention of answering his question. She spun around on her tiptoes and started walking forward again, kicking her legs as she went.
"Come on, tell me, Kuna. Who was it?"
"..."
"Let's make a deal. For the next month, I'll cover all your sweets!"
Kuna Mashiro whistled innocently and slowly held up two fingers. Seeing this, Kōe gritted his teeth and forced the word out, "Deal!"
"Thanks for taking care of me for the next two years!"
*Two years? Wasn't it two months? I got played again!*
Kuna Mashiro's laughter echoed through the quiet dungeon, so loud that even the Squad 9 members stationed near the exit could faintly hear it. They knew their lieutenant was in a great mood. Then again, that was perfectly normal—she was in a good mood every day. Today was just exceptionally good, that was all.
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