Becoming a Corps Commander

Fifth Division of Soul Society, a silver-haired boy was toying with a short sword when the door creaked open, and a tall man entered. His brown hair was partially obscured by bangs, and a pair of black-rimmed glasses concealed the sharpness in his eyes. His gentle face was flawless, and he wore a Captain's Haori with a large "five" on it, clearly identifying him as the new Fifth Division Captain Sōsuke Aizen!

The silver-haired boy looked at Aizen with his usual smile and said, "Ara... Captain Aizen is back! Congratulations! Now I can call you Captain Aizen openly from now on."

Aizen then revealed a warm smile, like a gentle spring breeze, but how many people knew the face behind that gentle smile? "Gin, have you heard anything from them?"

"No, we can't find any trace of them in Soul Society. They must have escaped to the World of the Living, just like the rumors say," Gin said listlessly, as if he wasn't interested in the matter.

"Is that so? Let's put this matter aside for now. Do you want it?" Aizen asked.

"Him?" Gin continued toying with his short sword. "He seems to be training. He said he wants to become the Captain of the Ninth Division and serve Captain Aizen. By the way, Captain Aizen, I heard that Teacher Ye Yang went to Hueco Mundo. What should we do? Should we join forces with Hueco Mundo beforehand?"

Aizen remained confident. "No, now is not the time. Don't concern yourself with this."

"Hi! Captain Aizen..."

Hueco Mundo

After several tens of minutes, the wounded received emergency treatment, and the pursuers gradually returned to their units. The only unfortunate aspect was that eight of those left behind had perished. However, they had disobeyed Ye Yang's orders, and no one blamed Ye Yang; instead, they admired him even more. Those who obeyed orders were unharmed, while those who disobeyed suffered more than half their casualties—wasn't that enough to illustrate the point?

After this battle, Ye Yang's image was greatly enhanced. His decision-making ability and strength were beyond doubt. Even the Expeditionary Force was originally here looked at him with new respect. Killing Adjuchas- class Menos Grande in one move was something they never dared to dream of. Although there was a bit of luck involved, Ye Yang's powerful strength had been imprinted in their minds.

After all the team members returned, Shusuke Amagai offered to take them to the headquarters of the Expeditionary Force, so the group set off. On the way, Ye Yang and Shusuke Amagai chatted.

"Shihoin- kun, judging from your name, you seem to be from the Shihoin Clan, one of the four Four Great Noble Clans. Why are you joining the Expeditionary Force?" Shusuke Amagai asked, puzzled. Those who came here were either exiled or had offended nobles and were somehow managed to get into the Expeditionary Force. Could it be that even one of the Four Great Noble Clans would do such a thing?

Ye Yang said, "Just call me Ye Yang. The name Shihoin- kun sounds awkward. I am indeed a member of the Shihoin Clan. I'm here... mostly for training." Ye Yang said this half-jokingly.

This time Shusuke Amagai was even more confused. Training? It seems the nobles' thinking is indeed different from ours... By the way, Shifeng... oh no, Ye Yang- kun, you must be a captain in Soul Society, right? You actually managed to instantly kill Adjuchas- level Menos Grande, that's really impressive."

"No, I was the vice-captain of the Second Division before. Um... actually, there was a bit of luck involved in killing that Adjuchas," Ye Yang said.

"Oh?"

Ye Yang took out his Zanpakuto and pointed at it, saying, "The ability of my Zanpakuto is that it becomes exceptionally sharp! It can cut through anything; it wouldn't be an exaggeration to say that nothing can be cut through it. That's why it's known as the bane of direct-attack types. When that Adjuchas charged at me just now, its death was sealed."

Ye Yang didn't reveal that his Zanpakuto, since having an extra trump card in Hueco Mundo meant having an extra life.

"Oh, Ye Yang- kun, our Expeditionary Force's camp is just ahead," Shusuke Amagai said, pointing ahead.

From a distance, they could only see a few white dots, with no sign of people. But as they got closer, they realized they were all white tents. Shusuke Amagai explained, "Here, we absolutely cannot set up camp in one place. We have to carry the tents, and to avoid being discovered, we chose white, the same color as the desert. Plus, there's a barrier in place, so you can't see anything from a distance."

Ye Yang nodded. In Hueco Mundo, one must proceed with extreme caution, or there is absolutely no way to survive. Ye Yang had indeed discovered the existence of the barrier. Although he could break it, he decided to avoid trouble and wait for Shusuke Amagai's actions.

He Zanpakuto and slowly inserted the tip into the barrier. A large door appeared within the barrier, and he explained, "The key to this barrier is our Zanpakuto. Any Zanpakuto that touches the barrier will automatically open it, so only Shinigami can enter. If it's a Hollow, an alarm will sound immediately, allowing those inside to prepare for evacuation."

Ye Yang raised an eyebrow. "The design is pretty good. No wonder they've been in Hueco Mundo for so many years; they've used some practical tips appropriately."

It was obvious that the team members were all familiar with Shusuke Amagai, and they all greeted him when he returned. Since Ye Yang a new face, he was constantly being stared at.

Upon reaching the innermost tent, the two walked in side by side. Inside, seated at the head of the table was an elderly man with white hair; his weathered face revealed the years he had spent in Hueco Mundo. Shusuke Amagai immediately said, "Commander-General Ikeda, I'm back."

The old man nodded and asked, "Why are you back so late?" Shusuke Amagai pulled Ye Yang aside and said, "Commander-in-Chief, my troops were ambushed by Menos Grande on the road. We were only able to escape danger thanks to the help of this Shihoin- kun."

"Oh?" Ikeda Kawai looked at Ye Yang. "Shihoin? Are you from the Shihoin Clan?"

Ye Yang nodded. "Yes, Commander-General Ikeda, I am Ye Yang Shihoin, the person in charge of this newly recruited expedition team. This is Captain-Commander Yamamoto's letter of appointment. Please take a look." He then handed over Yamamoto's letter.

After reading it, Ikeda Kawai said, "It seems our Expeditionary Force has gained another expert, the former vice-captain of the Second Division. Very good. According to the Commander- Captain-Commander's orders, I hereby appoint you as the commander of the Second Corps of the Expeditionary Force. This man next to you, Shusuke Amagai, will be your deputy. You two must cooperate well."

"Huh? Commander? The Captain-Commander didn't tell me when he came, and I just arrived, I'm afraid I'm not qualified to command respect," Ye Yang quickly waved his hand, this job was not easy.

Where Ye Yang couldn't see, when Shusuke Amagai heard about Captain-Commander Yamamoto, a hint of hostility flashed in his eyes, but he quickly concealed it well, and no one noticed.

Ikeda Kawai laughed and said, "It's alright. The Captain-Commander said in his letter that since he believes in your abilities, I believe in you too."

Damn it! You tricked that Old Man Yama again! I'm going to pluck a few of your whiskers when I get back! Although I was furious, I couldn't say it out loud, so I could only agree, "Okay, I'll try my best."

"Okay, you can go now."

Yes! Yes!

The two stepped out of the tent, Shusuke Amagai spoke up, "I didn't expect you to be so capable, becoming the commander of the Second Corps so soon after arriving. From now on, we'll be comrades, please take care of me."

"Please give me your guidance. By the way, Amagai, could you tell me about the current situation of the Expeditionary Force?" Ye Yang asked. Ye Yang was unaware of the situation here, so of course he had to ask.

Shusuke Amagai scratched the back of his head. "I almost forgot if you hadn't mentioned it. Sorry, Ye Yang- kun, we don't have the strict rules of the Thirteenth Division here. We only have five teams now, and each team has no more than a hundred people. The first, second, and third teams have a few more, about seventy to eighty people, and these are combat teams. The Fourth Corps is a medical team, with fewer than fifty people. The Fifth Team is responsible for intelligence gathering, and it has about sixty people."

Ye Yang said, "So, the entire Expeditionary Force only has a little over three hundred people?"

"That's how it is. Our Expeditionary Force is not like Seireien; our mortality rate has always been very high. So, every time new members arrive, there are bound to be some losses. To put it bluntly, it's good if half of the new members survive. But don't underestimate these few hundred people. They are all members who have survived countless battles; each one is an elite. You saw the fighting just now, didn't you?"

Ye Yang nodded in agreement. Indeed, it was evident from the battle just now that the veteran members possessed formidable combat abilities. It could be said that among the Thirteenth Division, only the 11th Division had comparable combat prowess to these veteran members. These were individuals who had teetered on the brink of death countless times, so their strength was naturally formidable.

The group Ye Yang brought was broken up and assigned to various teams, with experienced veterans leading them, which reduced the mortality rate.

"Commander Ye Yang, should we gather the men from the Second Corps so they can get to know you?" Shusuke Amagai asked.

After thinking for a moment, he replied, "That's fine."

Soon, everyone in the Second Corps gathered together. Most of them were veteran members who had been through many battles, while Ye Yang brought about a dozen new members this time.

Ye Yang slowly walked forward. Everyone looked at the newcomer with suspicion, wondering what he was going to do, because they had not received any news that a new regimental commander was to take office.

First, Shusuke Amagai spoke, "Brothers of the Second Corps, as you may already know, we've welcomed a new batch of blood to our team today. They've just joined our Expeditionary Force, and I hope you can do your best to help them get used to life in Hueco Mundo as soon as possible. And standing next to me is our Second Corps's new commander! Now, let's have the new commander say a few words."

Ye Yang stood in front of them and said, "Everyone, please be quiet. You may not know me yet, so let me introduce myself. My name is Ye Yang Shihoin, and I am the captain of the new team members. I am also the leader of your Second Team."

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