"Um…"
Komamura Sajin didn't know what to say, but since it was Yuta's good intention, he accepted it. "… Thank you, Captain Yuta."
After the meeting, Yuta walked out of the First Division's dormitory.
Soi-Fon followed behind him with her hands clasped behind her back. Wherever Yuta's footsteps fell, hers followed just behind, her smaller prints landing neatly in his larger ones.
Yuta turned his head slightly. "Why are you following me?"
Soi-Fon's eyes gleamed with curiosity. "Just now, everyone else had one… everyone had that… did I have it?"
"Do you…mean the snacks?" Yuta looked faintly amused. He hadn't expected that even the stealth force commander would be interested in his cooking over simple rations.
"I-I'm not asking because your cooking is delicious or anything," Soi-Fon said quickly, crossing her arms with mock defiance.
She wasn't quite sure why she felt so lighthearted now. She had been devastated by Head Captain Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni's death, but Yuta's calm presence had softened that sorrow somehow. It wasn't that she forgot-but she trusted Yuta completely and truly believed he would defeat Yhwach. That belief alone eased her heart.
"Give it to me, give it to me~~" Soi-Fon tugged on the hem of Yuta's haori, her small hands pulling at him playfully. Her expression carried none of the cold intensity that once defined Captain Soi-Fon. Anyone who had known her two years ago would've been stunned by the sight of this gentle, almost shy demeanor.
"Alright, alright," Yuta said with faint amusement. He took out a small packet of cookies from inside his uniform and handed them to her. Seeing the young woman's eyes brighten made him feel oddly content.
"Mua~~" She leaned forward and kissed him on the cheek. "Thanks, Yuta!"
Without another word, Soi-Fon ripped open the packet and began to eat. The honey-sweet taste was exactly how she remembered it. She chewed contentedly-like a small hamster-and peeked up at Yuta between bites. The realization that he had remembered her favorite flavor warmed her heart. To her, two people were now carved deeply within it-Shihōin Yoruichi and Yuta.
Holding Yuta's arm with one hand and munching on her cookie with the other, she tilted her face toward the moonlit sky. "Yuta… do you think we'll win this war in the end?"
"We will," he answered without hesitation.
"Mm. I believe you," Soi-Fon whispered before resting her head lightly against his arm as the night breeze passed between them.
At that moment, the air before them twisted open into a black garganta. Several figures tumbled out from within. One of them spotted Yuta immediately and rushed forward.
"Yuta!"
"Super Acceleration!" She crashed directly into his chest.
Only one person used that move-Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck.
Nel burrowed into Yuta's arms, her small form trembling as she cried incomprehensible words. He exhaled softly and comforted her with calm patience until she finally lifted her face-splotched with tears-and spotted Soi-Fon beside him. Her eyes narrowed as she clung tighter to Yuta, glaring defensively at the "other woman" as though she might steal him away at any moment.
"Yuta-san!" Inoue Orihime's eyes sparkled as she spotted him next.
Yuta inclined his head in brief acknowledgment.
Orihime took one step toward him before noticing that Nel was already pressed against his chest. She hesitated, forced herself to smile politely, and said, "Yuta-san, please take some rest first. I received word from the Fourth Division-they asked me to help heal some of the injured." With that, she turned and hurried off toward the medical unit, her resolve as strong as ever.
Nearby, Kurosaki Ichigo grinned when he caught sight of Sado Yasutora. "Chad!" he called, and the two exchanged nods before heading off in silence-their fists clenched with unspoken understanding.
Meanwhile, Yuta gently lifted Nel into his arms and floated off the ground. Her small bare feet dangled from beneath her tattered dress. "What's wrong?" he asked softly.
He pressed the button on the bracelet fastened around her wrist-a device he had crafted himself so Nel could transform freely when necessary and protect herself if danger arose.
With a burst of smoke, Nel's small frame expanded into the tall and graceful woman known as Nelliel tu Odelschwanck. She wore scant armor-a green halter top covering only her chest and collarbone, with matching cloth wrapping her hips into the form of a mini-skirt. Her toned midsection was exposed, her slender abdomen and navel drawing attention beneath the folds of white fabric. Her bare feet touched lightly against the air as her spiritual pressure surged outward.
Without hesitation, the grown Nelliel wrapped her arms around Yuta's neck and pressed herself close against him, almost hanging from his shoulders. Her cheek brushed his as she spoke in muffled tones and even extended her tongue to teasingly lick his face.
Soi-Fon froze midstep, her eyes widening in shock. "What-what just happened? Wasn't she just…a child?" she stammered as she tried to pull Nelliel back. "H-Hey! Get off him!" she shouted, tugging at the woman's arm to no avail. Nelliel refused to loosen her grip, clinging to Yuta stubbornly as if she were welded in place.
After that commotion finally subsided, Yuta traveled briefly to Hueco Mundo to hunt several Hollows, returning with them sealed into black vials. He handed one to Soi-Fon.
"As long as I have this medicine… I'll be able to regain my Bankai?" she asked, looking down at the swirling dark liquid in her hand with surprise.
Yuta nodded once.
"That's amazing!" Soi-Fon exclaimed, immediately kissing him on the cheek again in excitement.
"When the enemy activates their Bankai," Yuta explained calmly, "absorb the Hollow's power from the Shadow Invasion Potion. That temporary Hollowification will poison their Bankai and restore your own."
…
When the affairs in the Seireitei were finally in order, Yuta prepared to head for the Wandenreich. He had already seen Yhwach and his Sternritter retreat into the Invisible Empire, vanishing through the shadows much like Arrancar during their infiltration of the Human World.
Having deciphered the principles of their technique, Yuta stepped forward and opened his own passage-a door formed entirely of shadow-and stepped through into the silvery halls of the Silbern Castle.
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