Chapter 43

In the current Fifth Division, Third Seat Hirako was strong enough, but he was always lazy and unreliable in his work. Fourth Seat Aizen, on the other hand, was dependable and meticulous in his planning, but he was seriously lacking in the most crucial respect: strength.

Being captain...

Wasn't easy!

Volume one: 028, Oh my god, that's the Fifth Division's

That same night.

The clear light of the waxing crescent moon fell upon the Seireitei, though it had no need of it.

Inside the brightly lit Fifth Division Barracks—

"Thanks for your hard work."

The gentle, kindhearted man adjusted the glasses on his nose.

"I never expected we'd be busy this late. If there's a chance next time, let me treat you to a meal... along with your teammates from the barracks."

"Oh, I couldn't possibly!"

The female Soul Reaper holding a stack of documents blushed and spoke in a fluster.

In the Fifth Division, the woman most of the men wanted to marry was naturally Lieutenant Ika. As for the female Soul Reapers, aside from a few with unusual tastes, nine out of ten would choose the man before them, Sōsuke Aizen.

"No need to refuse. It's the least I can do."

Aizen's smile always had a devastating power that made it impossible to refuse him.

"Th-then I'll gladly accept!"

"Good. You may go."

The heavy door closed gently, leaving Aizen alone in the spacious office.

"..."

"That was easier than I expected."

The documents Aizen was organizing were an application to the Gotei 13, requesting the position of headmaster of Shin'ō Academy.

The entire process had gone exceptionally smoothly.

The current headmaster was advanced in age and struggled to attend to both his Gotei 13 duties and his work at Shin'ō Academy. Aizen's strength and work ethic were plain for all to see in the Fifth Division itself, and even the other divisions had heard of him.

For such an outstanding young man to wish to teach at Shin'ō Academy was undoubtedly a very good thing as far as Shigekuni Yamamoto was concerned.

After further confirming that Aizen had no noble blood, Shigekuni Yamamoto came to appreciate him even more.

Of course.

This seemingly important matter was something Aizen had done on a whim... because he had plenty of time on his hands.

Aizen was too strong, and he was growing stronger every moment.

By now, his hidden strength was on par with or even surpassed that of many Captain-level fighters. Even against their beloved Fifth Division Captain, Seigen Kyōshiba, whose specialty was a fierce frontal assault, Aizen was one hundred percent certain of victory.

However.

The current Aizen had yet to develop the sense of isolation that came from being too powerful.

That was because Shinji Hirako, the current Third Seat of the Fifth Division, ranked above him. As Aizen saw it, Hirako was just like him, possessing strength greater than their captain's without showing the slightest inclination to reveal it. And several more people like Shinji Hirako were hidden within the Gotei 13—the captains out in the open were just figures on paper...

At any rate, that was what Aizen thought.

At the same time.

With enough opponents to occupy him, Aizen's days were far from boring. Besides, he was good at finding ways to entertain himself. Whether conducting experiments in Rukongai or becoming headmaster of Shin'ō Academy, he was merely indulging passing interests. At this point, Sōsuke Aizen still felt a strong sense of belonging in the Seireitei.

He wasn't the major villain Haruto thought he was.

"Beep!"

Just then, a dim red light suddenly flashed from the button fastened to the cuff of Aizen's Shihakushō.

"Hm?"

Aizen looked down and twisted the button off.

"It died..."

"I deliberately put it in such a remote part of Rukongai, too. It seems that even if they can recover a measure of intelligence, Hollows are still Hollows. Filling in their missing parts with other media is bound to cause problems sooner or later."

There was no regret in Aizen's voice.

"Snap."

The delicate button crumbled to powder between his fingertips.

"..."

Aizen paused for a moment.

"That's a little unexpected. It actually died at Captain Kyōshiba's hands."

The button, which had a strange connection to the Hollow, could detect and record the Reiatsu that killed it.

"But..."

Aizen frowned slightly.

"Did the Seireitei find some trace of the modified Giant Hollow?"

"No. Even if they had discovered a problem, they would have sent the 11th Division... Rotten to the core as they are, they at least have the advantage in numbers. They couldn't be better suited for probing an unknown opponent."

"Besides..."

"There's no precedent for sending a Captain-level fighter directly for something like this."

Just as Aizen lowered his head in thought—

"Bang!"

The closed door was flung open with force.

"This is bad, Sōsuke!"

The blond Soul Reaper rushed into Aizen's room, panic written all over his face.

"..."

"Third Seat Hirako, could you knock before coming in?"

Looking at the door lock that needed replacing yet again, Aizen adjusted his glasses, somewhat at a loss for words.

"Huh?"

While playing dumb, Shinji Hirako discreetly swept his gaze around Aizen's little room.

"We can talk about that later..."

"I'll pay for the lock!"

Pressed by the white glare reflected off Aizen's lenses, Shinji Hirako hurriedly added that.

"Something big's happened in the division!"

"...I'm listening."

Even Aizen couldn't understand why Shinji Hirako always acted so exaggeratedly in front of him. If there were some reason to sound him out, that would be one thing, but given Shinji Hirako's lazy nature, Aizen couldn't see any need for it. Besides, acting that could be seen through at a glance would only make things awkward.

"Our captain and lieutenant took leave to visit their families in Rukongai!"

"Oh?"

The unexpected news happened to answer the question that had been troubling Aizen:

Aizen knew the captain and lieutenant's backgrounds very well. If they had sensed a Hollow on their way home, Seigen Kyōshiba, as captain, naturally couldn't have stood by and done nothing... The test subject had simply been unlucky.

"And?"

Aizen asked, his expression unchanged.

It was only a test subject that had happened to come into being. At most, it was a bit of a shame.

"Before the captain left, he asked Old Man Yamamoto to let me take over his duties temporarily!"

"For long?"

"Two whole months!"

"...Congratulations?"

Aizen appeared to think seriously for quite a while before finally producing the somewhat mocking word.

"Congratulations, my ass!"

Shinji Hirako strode up to Aizen and knocked on his desk, taking care to control his strength. Considering that Aizen spent all his salary on this little room, and that Shinji Hirako was hardly any wealthier, he didn't dare hit it too hard because he might have to pay for damages.

After all.

Aizen was the kind of man who organized and filed every single shopping list without missing one... He might even keep a bunch of copies stored separately.

"That's recognition from the Captain-Commander."

Aizen spoke with apparent sincerity.

"If you didn't have the talent to become a captain, even if Captain Kyōshiba had proposed it himself, Captain-Commander Yamamoto could never have agreed to such a request."

"More likely, he would have temporarily transferred a lieutenant from another division. It might even have been Chōjirō Sasakibe."

"..."

Aizen had clearly seen Shinji Hirako's conflicting feelings, which was why he had said all that.

"I've told you before, I'm not interested in being a captain... Aren't you the same, Sōsuke?"

Shinji Hirako turned the question back on him.

Unfortunately, he was no match for Aizen with words, and the time he managed to leave Aizen speechless was less than a tenth of his own.

Aizen answered with a smile:

"If I had your strength, Third Seat Hirako, and Captain-Commander Yamamoto's recognition, I naturally wouldn't hesitate to take the captain's position."

"That's what I was waiting to hear!"

The moment Aizen finished speaking, the despair vanished from Shinji Hirako's face. With a smack, he slapped two thin sheets of paper onto Aizen's desk.

"?"

Aizen picked up the two documents in confusion. Their writing was crooked, and the order in which they were written was extremely counterintuitive.

"This is the first letter of appointment issued by Captain Hirako!"

Shinji Hirako put his hands on his hips and spoke with a triumphant expression.

"Until Captain Kyōshiba's leave ends..."

"You're the Fifth Division's lieutenant!"

As if afraid Aizen might object, Hirako used Shunpo to get outside the room the instant he finished speaking.

Only his cheeky-looking head remained in view as he looked at Aizen.

"Lieutenant Aizen!"

"I'll leave everything in the Fifth Division entirely to you~"

"Whoosh!"

After a second use of Shunpo, Shinji Hirako was no longer even in the Fifth Division Barracks.

"..."

"Well, this is..."

Caught between laughter and tears, Aizen put down the documents in his hands and gently picked up the approved headmaster application from the corner of his desk.

"Puff!"

A blue flame ignited in his palm, and the paper burned to nothing in an instant, leaving not even a speck of ash.

"It looks like becoming headmaster will have to wait until I find another opportunity."