Chapter 297: See What Satoru Is Doing?
"The one and only secret of the galaxy!"
"The strongest being in the heavens!"
"A friend of justice, loyal in character, his heroism untainted!"
Yamamoto Shigekuni was practicing calligraphy in his study when he heard the outrageous singing outside.
"Fool! What are you howling about so early in the morning?!"
Yamamoto yanked the door open and roared outside.
Standing in the courtyard, Satoru laughed heartily.
"Teacher, you came at just the right time!"
"Right now, I am truly invincible in this world!"
"Is there anyone left who can stand against me? No, there's none!"
"?"
Because his troublesome disciple was acting so absurdly insane today, he didn't even feel anger rising within him.
The old man turned his head to look at Sasakibe.
The latter had set up an easel and was painting in the courtyard.
"Chōjirō, did this boy eat something wrong?"
Sasakibe shook his head gently:
"No, Genryūsai-sama, Captain Satoru was like this even before his meal... By the way, he just ate your breakfast."
"?"
Yamamoto's blood pressure spiked.
Watching Satoru singing Cantonese songs while performing Mongolian dance moves in the courtyard, he grabbed his walking stick and approached.
Good kid, you claim to be invincible under heaven? Then let this old man see just how invincible you are!
Half an hour later, Yamamoto raised his hand and wiped sweat from his brow.
Not far in front of him, Satoru's head was buried in the ground as he struggled to pull it out.
Rubbing his slightly sore arm, the old man sneered:
"Weren't you invincible? How come you're down?"
Crash!
Satoru pulled his head out of the ground, bringing up a large amount of soil with it.
He violently shook his head like a high-speed centrifuge, flinging off all the dust and dirt.
Then he snorted with laughter:
"Even when defeated, I remain invincible."
Yamamoto took a deep breath.
Gripping Ryūjin Jakka, he prepared to begin phase two.
But before he could make a move, Satoru had already leaped onto the roof with loud laughter, disappearing into the distance after a few bounds, leaving only a trail of triumphant laughter behind.
Watching Satoru's retreating figure, Yamamoto couldn't help but feel like he'd been through Komamura's worst day.
...
...
Kenpachi Zaraki lay under the shade of a tree, tilting his head to look at the training ground not far away.
He felt he had discovered some secret.
A few days ago, many people had disappeared from Satoru's group.
A day later, these people returned one after another.
But every single one of them looked completely drained.
Ichimaru Gin, Kaname Tōsen, Shiba Isshin...
Every one of them appeared utterly exhausted and in pain all over.
His intuition told Kenpachi Zaraki that these bastards had gone to fight some powerful enemy behind his back!
How could he tolerate this?
He was the vice-captain of the Eleventh Division!
Spotting a familiar figure, Kenpachi Zaraki immediately flipped up and charged over.
"Big brother!!"
Satoru had just returned to the squad when a tall, burly body blocked his path.
Looking at Kenpachi Zaraki standing before him with arms spread wide and a fierce grin, he showed a thoughtful expression.
Then he suddenly understood:
"What? Want a hug?"
Saying this, he laughed heartily, imitating Kenpachi Zaraki's pose as he spread his arms and walked over, giving the latter an enthusiastic embrace.
Creak!
Kenpachi Zaraki's body emitted the sound of overstressed bones grinding, his eyes bulging noticeably.
He quickly broke free.
"Big brother! You went to fight?"
"Fight..."
Satoru frowned, stroking his chin, and looked up thoughtfully for a few seconds.
Then he shook his head: "Couldn't really call it a fight."
A one-sided battle was just him beating people up at best, hardly qualifying as a proper fight.
Kenpachi Zaraki grinned widely: "I don't care what it was, take me with you next time!"
"Fine."
Satoru readily agreed.
For most operations, Aizen was unwilling to bring Kenpachi Zaraki along.
On one hand, he feared Kenpachi Zaraki couldn't keep secrets and might spill everything that should or shouldn't be said.
What he feared more was that Kenpachi Zaraki might not obey orders.
Most members of the Satoru faction followed his commands.
Although the majority of them held little loyalty toward him, they wouldn't interfere with his plans out of respect for Satoru.
Kenpachi Zaraki was different.
When this madman went berserk, only Satoru could control him. Aizen didn't want any surprises at critical moments that would force him to divert attention to handling Kenpachi Zaraki.
Therefore, even when they were severely short-handed during the last team operation against Satoru, he still didn't bring Kenpachi Zaraki along.
Satoru, on the other hand, had no such concerns.
Receiving Satoru's assurance, Kenpachi Zaraki grinned, revealing a childlike smile.
Not far away, a passing Eleventh Division member shivered upon seeing Kenpachi Zaraki's predatory grin and quickly quickened his pace.
...
...
Zero Division, Omotesando.
Monk rubbed his large bald head as he left his Zero Division Palace and arrived here.
Not long ago, the divine soldiers suddenly reported that Soul Society had launched a Heavenly Pillar Palanquin up to them.
There was no one inside, only some unfamiliar items said to be gifts for him.
Monk found this very strange.
He hadn't ordered anything from Soul Society - who could have sent him what?
To ensure it wasn't anything dangerous, he decided to check personally.
Raising his eyebrows, he examined the items handed to him by the divine soldiers.
It was a small paper box with a picture of a strange device featuring a screen.
Beside it was written its name -
LSP·portable
He recognized the second word as Western language meaning "portable."
But the first three letters were completely unfamiliar to him.
Opening the box, he found a letter inside.
Using his large yet nimble fingers, he opened the letter.
"Oh... from that kid Satoru?"
Monk smiled at the thought of Satoru.
The letter's content was simple:
Heard you've lived for millions of years with little joy in life.
Specially gifting one of our company's products for you to try and relieve boredom.
If effective, please look forward to our future new products.
— Satoru, who will challenge you again soon
Coming to challenge again soon?
Monk grinned widely.
Fine, fine.
He'd be waiting anytime.
Putting away the letter, he examined the black rectangular device lying in the box.
Not sure what it does... but since Satoru was so confident it could relieve boredom, he might as well take it back and try it.
Carrying the box, Monk hummed a tune as he returned to his Zero Division Palace.
In the following days, the other Zero Division members began to notice something odd.
As the most "lively" presence in Zero Division, Monk used to enjoy visiting them frequently.
But recently, he hadn't come to see them at all.
Ōetsu grew concerned.
Had the old man completely lost interest in life and started slacking off?
After living so long, it was quite normal to end up like that.
This wasn't good news.
The transition from losing interest in life to completely abandoning thought could happen very quickly.
If they weren't careful, Monk might be done for.
Without another word, Ōetsu headed straight for Monk's Zero Division Palace.
Led by divine soldiers, he arrived at Monk's room.
Even through the door, he could hear Monk's frustrated voice.
"Bastard!!"
"I am the captain of Zero Division, the foremost Shinigami! The most ancient Shinigami!"
"How dare a mere Black Wolf Bird act so arrogantly before me!"
"Today I swear upon my honor as a Shinigami, I will definitely defeat you!"
Ōetsu: "?"
He turned to the divine soldier beside him.
"What's wrong with Monk?"
The divine soldier bowed and replied:
"Report, Lord Ōetsu. Lord Ichibē received a gift from Captain Satoru of Soul Society some time ago."
"He has been like this ever since."
Ōetsu thought for a moment, then pushed the door open and entered.
Shortly after, arguing could be heard from the room.
"You need to find the right position and respond to changes by remaining unchanged!"
"Ah, too clumsy! Let me try!"
"Ridiculous! This is mine, and I won't yield no matter what!"
"Damn it, I need to find that Satoru kid and have him send me one too!"
Ōetsu grumbled as he walked out of the room and ran toward Omotesandō...
...
...
"Heave-ho!"
Shiba Isshin carried a charcoal brazier and placed it under the eaves of the veranda.
Then, he pulled several sake flasks from a cloth bag and broke into a smile.
"Indeed, drinking warm sake in a place like this is the happiest thing in winter."
He sat cross-legged and prepared a small water bowl to heat the sake flasks.
Watching the white porcelain bottles settle into the water bowl, he couldn't help but chuckle.
"Quite leisurely."
A voice suddenly spoke up.
Shiba Isshin was startled at first, then hurriedly stood up.
"Senior Aizen? What brings you here?"
This was a relatively secluded corner of the Eleventh Division, seldom visited on ordinary days.
As a result, it had gradually become Isshin's go-to spot for slacking off.
Aizen didn't answer but instead said:
"Shiba Kaien is doing very well in the Thirteenth Division and has already been promoted to the Fifth Seat."
"It's said that his abilities are already sufficient for a Vice-Captain position, but he believes he lacks seniority and has voluntarily declined."
"Truly a man of both strength and grace."
Hearing Aizen's words, Shiba Isshin smiled.
"Kaien, that man is indeed remarkable."
Aizen studied Shiba Isshin's eyes.
Seeing that the latter didn't seem to be speaking insincerely, he remarked with amusement:
"Currently, the Shiba Clan is lacking in talent and going through a turbulent period."
"If the main family lacks someone capable enough to step up and lead everyone, then according to Soul Society tradition, it's highly likely they will turn their attention to the branch family."
"The next head of the branch family will undoubtedly fall to you."
"The power and glory that could have been yours are now gradually being grasped and secured by Shiba Kaien."
"Keep in mind, although the Shiba Clan has declined compared to before, it remains one of the Five Noble Clans, holding a special status in the Soul Society."
"Isshin, have you never thought about doing something?"
Under Aizen's gaze, Shiba Isshin scratched his head.
He grinned, showing a somewhat foolish smile.
"Senior Aizen, me... I never even wanted to become a Shinigami in the first place."
"For me, as long as I can do things I enjoy every day, eat good food, and drink some sake, I'm perfectly happy."
"It was only because of the instability in the main family that I was forced to put on this uniform and become a Shinigami."
"Although life has become interesting again since joining the Eleventh Division, fundamentally, I haven't changed my original mindset."
"Being a Shinigami or anything like that doesn't suit me, and especially leading the clan—just thinking about it gives me a headache."
"So in my view, Kaien's achievements are really a relief to me... With the main family's member being so capable, this branch family member can finally relax and enjoy life as a pleasure-seeker."
Looking at Shiba Isshin, Aizen felt somewhat helpless.
These people around Satoru... Their virtue is that they all have good character, making it pleasant to interact with them.
Their drawback is that they all have good character, making it quite difficult to teach them to do anything bad.
He narrowed his eyes slightly.
Since Shiba Isshin himself lacked motivation, what harm would there be in giving him a little push?
Making a Vice-Captain disappear was no difficult task for him.
By preparing several powerful modified Hollows in advance, and having them "coincidentally" invade the Soul Society while Shiba Kaien is out on patrol...
After that, there would be no need for personal intervention. Given the Shiba Clan's nature, they would undoubtedly charge into battle without hesitation and sacrifice themselves.
Following that, Shiba Isshin would be forced to step up and become the pillar of the Shiba Clan.
Given the current level of control over him, he could likely be made to leverage his position as clan head to fully support Satoru.
At that point, setting aside the Zero Division for now, nothing in the Soul Society would be able to stand in the way of himself and Satoru.
It was a very tempting plan...
Unfortunately, if a certain someone found out he had done this, they would surely throw a fit.
After sighing inwardly, he reached out and patted Shiba Isshin on the shoulder.
"Follow the path you believe is right."
"I will support you."
With that, he turned and left.
Watching Aizen's retreating figure, Shiba Isshin pressed his lips together.
Then, he bowed deeply.
Sensing Shiba Isshin's gesture behind him, Aizen curled the corners of his mouth.
The most perfect way to control someone's heart was not through Kyōka Suigetsu, nor through schemes and calculations.
It was like this—moving them with genuine emotion.
This was something he had learned from a certain troublemaker.
Although the latter had probably never realized it...
In a rather pleased mood, Aizen went to Satoru's room to see what that guy was up to.
Arriving at the location, he found no one there.
After asking around, he learned that the guy had actually gone to Shin'ō Academy to teach a class.
Gazing at the somewhat gloomy sky outside the window, Aizen suddenly realized that he and Satoru had already been out of school for several decades.
Recalling their student days felt like it was just yesterday.
A few decades wasn't a long time for a Shinigami.
Yet, in such a short period, he and that guy had accomplished so many achievements and groundbreaking feats.
In the past million years, and the million years to come, it was unlikely anyone would ever match what they had done.
He grew a little curious about what the guy was like as a lecturer now.
Compared to when he first became a teacher at Shin'ō Academy, Satoru had now genuinely become a powerhouse standing at the pinnacle of the Soul Society's pyramid.
With such strength, surely he had become a bit more composed in the classroom, right?
Driven by curiosity, Aizen strolled over to Shin'ō Academy.
As soon as he reached the hallway where the calligraphy class was held, he heard a booming, energetic voice from inside:
"Everyone! The Hakuda teacher has suddenly fallen ill, so I'll be taking over the next class for him!"
Aizen: "…?"