A story that began with sushi

On one side was his life, and on the other was eating sushi. Which would Dōsan choose?

No, that wasn't right. One side would kill him, and so would the other.

But it would surely be better to die on a full stomach.

Soi Fon caught the resentful look in Dōsan's eyes.

He's actually grown this weak. He still isn't full after more than six hundred pieces of sushi. The wretched Five Great Noble Clans, the wretched Shiba Clan.

This was when she needed to show the breadth of character expected of a captain.

Soi Fon shifted, no longer sitting as stiffly upright as before, and immediately caught Dōsan's attention.

Dōsan looked at the young captain hopefully, hoping her conscience had finally stirred.

But in the end, only three words drifted from her mouth.

"Eat some more."

Are you a devil or what?!

"Big Sister, it's already evening, and Dōsan-chan still hasn't come back." Ganju lay sprawled on the floor like a salted fish with no dreams.

"Mm."

"Big Brother Kaien once said we should trust our friends. Do you think he'll come back?" A little light appeared in the salted fish's eyes.

"Mm."

"Big Sister, you..."

"Shut up." Kūkaku lay there, her eyes utterly devoid of life.

Ganju's little boar, Bony, was suffering a fate no better than death too. He lay on his back beside Ganju, letting out a "burp" from time to time.

"Kūkaku-sama, Ganju-sama, dinner is ready." Koganehiko stood respectfully beside them.

"All right, feed it to Bony!"

"We'll accompany Dōsan-chan."

For once, the siblings were perfectly in sync. Poor little Bony was so frightened at the mention of more food that his short legs flailed back and forth, as though he wished he could run straight into the pot.

"One thousand seven hundred and fifty-nine."

"One thousand seven hundred and sixty."

"Mr. Dōsan Hanyū is just five pieces of sushi away from completing an unprecedented sushi challenge!" The elderly shopkeeper stood on a platform newly erected in front of the shop, her right hand open and pointing toward Dōsan Hanyū inside as she gave an animated commentary.

A crowd of elderly men and women with nothing better to do had gathered outside the shop.

Sushi challenge, my ass.

Dōsan leaned back in his seat, breathing lightly. No matter how stuffed he was, he didn't dare show it. Who knew if she might say, "I ordered you some food, and you're actually complaining that you're full," before killing him?

The five pieces of sushi before him were like five great mountains he had to cross.

For a journey of a hundred miles, ninety was only halfway. Though Dōsan had shown considerable resolve, regrettably, when it came to the last five pieces of sushi, his esophagus really wasn't long enough.

The good news was that, as luck would have it, these were the five pieces of "honey seaweed" she had ordered first.

Dōsan believed the young captain before him liked honey because, as a master chef, he could keenly sense the sweetness about her when he was close to her.

It was the scent of honey. His chef's intuition told him she must have consumed an enormous amount of it in the past two days.

Dōsan looked up at the young captain again. He had been eating all afternoon, and she had sat there watching him eat all afternoon.

"Captain, I think this should be the kind you like."

Dōsan cautiously pushed the plate toward her. No matter how he looked at it, this meal shouldn't have been his last lunch before setting off on his final journey—no, dinner.

Soi Fon didn't wonder how Dōsan knew she liked this flavor.

She had watched Dōsan eat all afternoon and was a little hungry herself. Without standing on ceremony, she accepted the plate, picked up a piece of sushi with her chopsticks, and parted her red lips, biting off half in one small bite.

What a good person he was!

Dōsan Hanyū endured inhumane training every day and had an appetite big enough for a thousand pieces of sushi.

Despite his enormous appetite, the wretched Shiba Clan only gave him vegetable soup.

Most importantly, even though he might never have eaten such a delicious meal in his life, he had saved the last of it for her.

What kind of spirit was that?

Soi Fon gritted her teeth. If she had enough money left, she would definitely have ordered Dōsan Hanyū a third serving of sushi.

Dōsan looked at the sushi before him and let out a long breath.

To tell the truth, he didn't normally enjoy eating this sort of thing either. It wasn't because it tasted bad.

For one thing, he wasn't particularly accustomed to the flavor. For another, he couldn't see any technical skill in making sushi.

For anyone who knew even a little about the principles of food, didn't you just need hands to make sushi?

Dōsan preferred to call a dish with no difficulty to it a snack.

And now, needless to say, he would hate sushi for the rest of his life.

"Ah..."

"What a shame! Such a shame!"

Dōsan was fine with watching Soi Fon eat the remaining sushi bite by bite, but the onlookers outside were unhappy.

Why did this kid have no ambition? Just five more pieces of sushi and he would have had a double grand slam!

After finishing the sushi, Soi Fon wiped her mouth. Her eyes were calm, but inwardly she was thinking.

If I say now that the Second Division is willing to take him in, I'd simply be using my favor to demand repayment. That would be far too cruel to Dōsan.

Dōsan, sitting across from Soi Fon, was also ill at ease. He was no longer thinking that she wanted to kill him.

But his brainpower was truly limited.

A Soul Reaper captain had spent the afternoon stuffing him with over a thousand pieces of sushi.

He racked his brains, but couldn't think what the reason could possibly be.

"Captain, may I ask what you wanted with me?"

Soi Fon had finished the sushi, and the two had been looking at each other for over a minute. Soi Fon's stare was making Dōsan so uncomfortable that he couldn't help asking.

Soi Fon sighed inwardly. What a kind young man. Was he that eager to repay her for the meal?

Forget it.

What kind of person was she, Soi Fon? How could she do such a thing?

She suddenly rose, flicked her haori, and tossed down a stack of money.

She's leaving just like that?

Dōsan was still somewhat at a loss, but when he turned to look, the young captain had already disappeared.

What impressive Shunpo.

Dōsan practically drooled with envy. It wasn't merely fast; its speed was like art.

"One o'clock tomorrow afternoon, same place."

Soi Fon's words snapped Dōsan back to his senses. Her voice was like a nightmare, making his body feel as heavy as a thousand pounds.

"Koganehiko, Shiroganehiko..." Kūkaku lay limply on her mat, still clutching her pipe between her pale lips, though it had little flavor.

"Lady Kūkaku." The brothers Koganehiko and Shiroganehiko knelt beside Kūkaku and held her hand.

"If I die, bury me with Ganju, and stick this pair of chopsticks and this pipe into the mound of my grave."

Beside her, Ganju, who was leaning against the wall in the corner, let out a "heh" and moved his head slightly to prove he was still alive. "Dōsan-chan ran away because you drove him off. Koganehiko, Shiroganehiko, bury me farther away from Big Sister. After Dōsan dies, he might come back to see me."

However little strength she had left, Kūkaku still raised her head and glared at Ganju.

Goodbye, world I loved.

Goodbye, delicious food I loved.

"Kūkaku-sama, it's little brother Dōsan! Little brother Dōsan is back!"