Rangiku Matsumoto reached out toward Orihime Inoue's collar.
"What are you doing… Aaaaaaah!!!" Realizing Rangiku Matsumoto's intent, Orihime Inoue's face flushed bright red as she cried out, "I—I can't…"
While fixing her collar, Orihime Inoue glanced at the deep, snow-white cleavage of the wealthy and generous Rangiku Matsumoto. "I feel kind of embarrassed…"
She rarely even wore V-neck tops, let alone something as revealing as Rangiku Matsumoto's.
"Really? You've grown such a nice figure, you should show it off more…" Rangiku Matsumoto sighed. "Look at poor Nanao—she didn't develop at all."
"Who are you calling poor?!!!" Nanao Ise, Captain of the 8th Division, protested as she passed by the window, glaring angrily at Rangiku Matsumoto from behind her glasses.
"Oh my, Nanao!" Rangiku Matsumoto stuck out her pink tongue without the slightest hint of guilt. "I didn't notice you because you're so flat."
"T-that has nothing to do with anything!" Nanao's face turned red as she quickly moved the book from under her arm to her chest, blocking Orihime Inoue's line of sight.
Rangiku Matsumoto noticed the small gesture. "…Aren't you pretty concerned about it yourself?"
"I have no idea what you're talking about…" Nanao Ise clearly avoided the topic, glancing around. "Is my Captain here?"
"Nope," Rangiku Matsumoto replied. "Haven't seen him at all. He's probably off drinking somewhere."
"Honestly, completely ignoring his duties and just taking it easy…" Nanao Ise puffed her cheeks slightly as she muttered and walked off.
"Nanao really has it rough…" Rangiku Matsumoto shook her head, watching her leave, then called out loudly toward the office, "I'm so glad I work under someone so capable!"
Tōshirō Hitsugaya: "…"
"Our Captain… Whoa!" Orihime Inoue jumped when someone suddenly appeared in the VIP room.
8th Division Captain Shunsui Kyōraku smiled brightly. "Ah, sorry to intrude."
"This isn't about whether you're intruding or not." Rangiku crossed her arms. "I just told her you weren't here… If Nanao scolds me later, it'll be all your fault, Captain!"
"Huh?" Orihime Inoue blinked. "So that Shinigami lady was looking for you?"
"That would be me." Shunsui Kyōraku tilted his head. "You're Muten Unohana's good friend, right?"
"If he hears that, he'll get mad again," Rangiku Matsumoto said, looking exasperated.
"You mean Muten?" Orihime Inoue asked curiously. "Come to think of it, Rukia called him that too. Is there a reason?"
Shunsui Kyōraku's eyes sparkled with amusement. "Well, do you know what kind of flower 'Unohana' is?"
Orihime Inoue thought for a moment. "I think it's called the Deutzia flower?"
"It's rare to see someone remember such an obscure name," Shunsui Kyōraku explained. "The Deutzia flower is also known as the crystal flower. It blooms in April, which is the 'U' month in the traditional calendar, so it's also called the 'U month flower.' Later, the name was shortened to 'U-hana,' and it's a flower that symbolizes the arrival of early summer."
Orihime Inoue blinked. "So that's how it is."
"So Unohana is summer, and summer is Unohana. 'Muten Natsu' means 'no summer,' so naturally it also implies 'No Unohana,'" Shunsui Kyōraku said with a pleased grin. "A metaphor at this level wouldn't escape me. And the rhizome of Natsu no Naki (Corydalis decumbens) can be used as medicine—also known as 'One Grain of Golden Elixir'—which easily brings to mind someone skilled in Kaidō…"
He noticed the strange looks on Rangiku Matsumoto and Orihime Inoue's faces, so he followed their gaze toward the window behind him.
Muten Natsu stood there, his expression clearly displeased.
"Ah… Muten…" Shunsui Kyōraku lifted the paper bag in his hand. "I just stopped by Kuriya. Come have a taste with me."
"…" Muten Natsu ignored him, gave Orihime Inoue a small nod, and turned to leave.
"Whoa, that was intimidating." Shunsui Kyōraku patted his chest. "Good thing I haven't done anything guilty."
"Why don't you think that over again?" Rukia Kuchiki walked in. "If it weren't for you, would so many people be calling him Muten Unohana now?"
"That's not my fault, is it?"
"If not yours, then whose?" Rangiku Matsumoto clicked her tongue. "If you two end up fighting later, don't do it here. Otherwise my Captain will have to clean up afterward."
Tōshirō Hitsugaya: "…" Isn't that the Lieutenant's job? At the very least, shouldn't both of you be responsible for cleaning it up?
Shunsui Kyōraku looked wronged. "How heartless. I even brought something to share with you."
Orihime Inoue studied the writing on the paper bag. "Dori… Monaka?"
[Monaka] is a round Japanese sweet made of crisp, baked glutinous rice wafers filled with red bean paste. The wafers are light brown, crunchy, and carry a subtle fragrance of rice.
The name "Monaka" means "perfect circle," derived from the verse: "The moon's reflection on the water; the Mid-Autumn moon is perfectly round."
Originally, only sweets with a red bean filling enclosed in a rice wafer were called monaka, but nowadays, those filled with other ingredients or even made in different shapes are also called monaka.
"Dori Monaka is really delicious!" Rangiku Matsumoto stood up with the bag in hand. "I'll go get some tea. Let's all have some together!"
She raised her voice toward the office. "Captain, are you coming?"
Tōshirō Hitsugaya replied almost instantly, "No!"
When Rangiku Matsumoto returned to the VIP room with hot tea, she saw a thick stack of documents slam straight into Shunsui Kyōraku's face.
Nanao Ise, who had thrown them, glared furiously at Rangiku Matsumoto. "Didn't you say he wasn't here?"
"I wasn't lying," Rangiku Matsumoto protested. "He came after you."
"Yeah, yeah!" Shunsui Kyōraku nodded repeatedly. "I was—"
Thud!
Another stack of documents smacked into his face.
"Captain, be quiet!"
Muten Natsu appeared by the window again, openly enjoying the scene.
"Muten…" Shunsui Kyōraku's face was red from the hits. "You actually betrayed me!"
It didn't take much to guess that Nanao Ise had been brought back by Muten Natsu, who had just left moments ago.
"You're the one who betrayed your duties as Captain first!" Nanao Ise grabbed another stack of documents, rolled them up, and poked his face with it. "Do you have any idea how many documents are still waiting to be processed?"
"Uh… we have the Dragon of Documents!" Shunsui Kyōraku placed all his hopes on Muten Natsu, his eyes lighting up. "Muten, you can definitely finish these in no time, right?"
"Sorry, I can't." Muten Natsu refused without hesitation. "I don't understand metaphors at all. I have no idea how to deal with these documents."
..
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