A Chance Encounter

The moment the three of them stepped out of Shin'ō, Yoruichi burst out laughing. "Muhahahahaha... Little brother, you really are something! 'My class has no need for trash!' That was so domineering!"

"Is it that funny?" Ye Yang asked, looking at the still-laughing Yoruichi. Then he turned to Soi Fon. "Shaoling, is it really that funny?"

"N-no..." Soi Fon blushed and said in a tiny voice, "I just thought Brother Ye Yang looked really cool back there."

Hearing that, Ye Yang narcissistically stroked his face and said to himself, "There's nothing I can do about being handsome."

Yoruichi said, "Tch..."

"Don't forget the bet you just lost to me," Ye Yang said with a smile.

Yoruichi looked utterly unconcerned. "Is that all?"

Ye Yang pulled a black box from his robes and spoke into it. "Kisuke Urahara, you have ten breaths to get to the entrance of Shin'ō, or we're going drinking without you."

Veins bulged on Yoruichi's forehead. "You win!"

Sure enough, as soon as Kisuke Urahara heard they were drinking, he arrived in just a few breaths. He put a hand on Ye Yang's shoulder the moment he appeared. "Yo! Ye Yang, what's gotten into you today? You're actually the one suggesting we go drinking?"

"Well, you have my big sister to thank for that. She's treating us today," Ye Yang said calmly.

"Oh?" Urahara looked at Yoruichi. "Yo, Yoruichi..." Just as he was about to pat her on the shoulder, a blade appeared in front of him, forcing the rest of his words back down his throat.

Soi Fon's cold voice rang out. "Please do not behave so frivolously toward Lady Yoruichi."

His hand hung in the air, unable to lower or raise it. Fortunately, Urahara was thick-skinned enough to say, "How could I turn down a treat from Yoruichi? Let's get going."

Ye Yang couldn't help laughing at Urahara's predicament, and the four of them made their way to a restaurant in District 1 of Rukongai.

As luck would have it, the four of them had just reached the entrance when they spotted two figures in the distance. One had white hair and wore a white Captain's Haori with a large "Thirteen" on it. The other wore a pink robe and a distinctive straw hat. There was no one else in all of Seireien who dressed like that.

The two called out to Ye Yang and the others from a distance. "Yo! Captain Yoruichi, Ye Yang, Urahara, long time no see!"

As they approached, Ye Yang said, "Captain Ukitake, Captain Shunsui, what brings you out today?"

Shunsui Kyōraku grinned. "Oh, staying in the division all the time will make you sick. You have to come out and relax once in a while, so Ukitake and I came out."

Ukitake looked helpless. Apparently, he hadn't been able to fend off his friend's invitation and had been dragged along. Also... was Shunsui sure this was only once in a while?

Shunsui, however, went over to Soi Fon. "Pretty young lady, you look awfully familiar. Haven't we met somewhere before?"

A giant sweat drop appeared on Ye Yang's head. It seemed Shunsui was up to his old tricks again... Although Soi Fon had only joined the Second Division two days ago, she knew something about the captains and lieutenants of the Thirteenth Division. The man before her was Shunsui Kyōraku, captain of the Eighth Division. Ye Yang had also told her that while Shunsui Kyōraku appeared frivolous, he was actually meticulous, and his strength was unfathomable. Faced with him, Soi Fon was a little slow to react, but she quickly composed herself.

"Sir, we haven't met before, have we?"

Shunsui's face fell. He looked at Ye Yang and the others as though he had suffered a terrible blow. "S-sir? Am I really that old?"

Ye Yang comforted Shunsui while giving Soi Fon a look. Nicely done!

"Captain Shunsui, eat with us. My treat," Ye Yang said.

"What? Really?" Shunsui sprang back to life as if he'd been given a stimulant and grabbed Ye Yang. "Really? Ye Yang, you're so good to me..."

Yoruichi was clearly not so happy. Of course he could sound generous; he wasn't the one paying!

The group went inside together, and Ye Yang called out, "Boss, bring us your best food and wine!"

"Coming right up. Please wait a moment."

They sat down, and Ye Yang told Soi Fon to take a seat too, but she refused no matter what. She said she was responsible for their safety, and besides, she didn't like drinking.

As they waited for the food and wine, Ye Yang suddenly spotted a beautiful sweep of long golden hair. It belonged to a young girl wearing a Shin'ō uniform, drinking alone for some reason.

Ye Yang tried calling out to her. "Matsumoto?"

The girl turned around and, seeing both Ye Yang and Yoruichi, said in surprise, "Captain Yoruichi? Teacher Ye Yang? What are you doing here?"

Ye Yang walked over to her. "What do you mean? Why can't we be here? What about you? Why is a student drinking alone here? It's dangerous for a girl to be out by herself."

"Teacher Ye Yang, I..."

Seeing her hesitate, Ye Yang didn't press her. Instead, he said, "Since you're here, come eat with us."

"But..."

"It's all right. Come join us."

"Then, sorry to intrude."

Ye Yang led Rangiku to the table, and Shunsui immediately perked up at the sight of her. "Ye Yang, that's not fair. How could you not introduce such a pretty young lady to us?"

"She's a student in my class at Shin'ō. Her name is Rangiku Matsumoto," Ye Yang said.

Rangiku bowed. "Captain Shihoin, Captain Ukitake, Lady Soi Fon." Her gaze lingered on Urahara's face for a moment; she had never met him before.

"I'm the Third Seat of the Second Division and a friend of Ye Yang and Yoruichi. My name is Kisuke Urahara. Pleased to meet you," Urahara introduced himself.

"Ah, hello. Pleased to meet you!" Rangiku looked at Shunsui next, but she was clearly at a loss. She had only just come from Rukongai and wasn't familiar with Seireien. She had only met Yoruichi and Soi Fon that day, while Ukitake's Captain's Haori had a large "Thirteen" on it, making him easy to identify. But Shunsui's Captain's Haori was completely covered by his pink robe, so she couldn't tell who he was at all.

So she said, "And this gentleman is...?"

The moment she said that, Shunsui burst into tears. He was indeed getting on in years, but did they have to deal him such a blow? First Soi Fon had said it, and now even Rangiku was calling him a gentleman. He couldn't take it. Why didn't Ukitake, who was from the same era, get treated like this?

Seeing the stiff smile frozen on Shunsui's face, everyone present burst out laughing. Ye Yang said, "Him? He's Shunsui Kyōraku, captain of the Eighth Division. You can call him Uncle Shunsui."

The innocent Rangiku fell for Ye Yang's trick and said, "Uncle Shunsui."

"I..." Shunsui's inner voice cried, Am I really that old?!!!

Once the commotion was over, everyone began eating and drinking. Although it was Rangiku's first time drinking with them, she showed no restraint. Her cheerful, outgoing personality was much like Yoruichi's, and once the drinking started, no one cared who was a captain; they all played around together.

Perhaps because of their similar personalities, Rangiku and Yoruichi were soon chatting away enthusiastically. Ye Yang also tried several times to persuade Soi Fon to drink, but she refused, so he had no choice but to let her be.

After several rounds of drinks, most of the food was gone too. Shunsui was already dead drunk, and Yoruichi wasn't much better, but what surprised Ye Yang most was that Rangiku was also drunk, slumped over the table and unable to get up.

Ye Yang pressed a hand to his forehead. "Captain Ukitake, I'll leave Captain Kyōraku to you." Then he shouted out of habit, "Kisuke, drag my big sister home!"

But Soi Fon said, "No. How can we let a man who's been drinking take Lady Yoruichi home? I'll do it."

It seemed Soi Fon still held a grudge against Urahara. "All right, then. Shaoling, thanks for the effort."

"It's no trouble to serve Lady Yoruichi!" With that, she left with Yoruichi.

Then Ye Yang said to Urahara, "Kisuke, you go back first. I'll take her home."

"Okay."

Looking at Rangiku slumped over the table, Ye Yang sighed. He lifted her onto his back and shook her awake. "Matsumoto? Where's your home?"

Rangiku mumbled groggily, "I don't have a home..." Then she drifted off again.

That put Ye Yang in a difficult spot. Should he take her to his own home? It would be troublesome if anyone saw them. After thinking it over, he remembered Shin'ō. It had private dorm rooms, but they cost money, and people generally didn't stay in them, so over time he had forgotten about them.

Having made up his mind, Ye Yang carried Rangiku to the Shin'ō dormitory and paid six years' accommodation fees for a single room on her behalf. The money might not have been much to Ye Yang, but it was a great deal to a girl from Rukongai.

After putting Rangiku on the bed and tucking her in, Ye Yang prepared to leave, but a hand tightly seized his arm. "Don't go, Gin! Please don't keep showing me your back..."

Ye Yang froze. When he turned around, Rangiku, still out of her senses, had begun to cry. "Don't go... Gin... wait for me. I want to go with you..."

Ye Yang sighed, turned back and sat beside her to comfort her. "Go to sleep. I won't leave."

Rangiku gradually quieted down, as though she felt much more at ease, but her hand still held tightly to Ye Yang. He only pulled free once she was fast asleep, but doing so woke her up. After her short nap, she had mostly sobered up. She looked at Ye Yang. "Teacher Ye Yang? Why are you here? And where is this?"

Veins bulged on Ye Yang's forehead. "You've got the nerve to ask? You got drunk, so I carried you back! This is the Shin'ō dormitory."

"Huh? Why did you bring me to the Shin'ō dormitory?" Rangiku asked, puzzled.

"You... I asked you, and you said you didn't have a home, so I had to bring you here." Ye Yang really didn't know what to do with someone so simple-minded.

"But it's expensive here..."

"I've already paid all the fees. Go to sleep. If there's anything else, we can talk about it tomorrow." With that, Ye Yang vanished using Shunpo...