An Unexpected Wake-Up Call

At that moment, Yoruichi relaxed in her cat form beneath the moonlight, her tongue lapping smoothly at a bowl full of fresh cream.

Her old friend Kūkaku Shiba held a cup in her tattooed hand, savoring her sake.

"Yoruichi, you actually dared to play hide-and-seek with Byakuya Kuchiki. You've got some nerve."

Kūkaku had met Byakuya Kuchiki in the Seireitei.

From their very first meeting, Byakuya's Reiatsu and cold attitude had frightened her.

Although Kūkaku was bold, she wouldn't dare provoke Byakuya.

"Playing hide-and-seek with him was pretty exciting," the black cat replied.

She spoke in a masculine voice, a feature unique to her cat form. "Is that kid still training under his father's guidance?"

Although they were close in age, Yoruichi treated Byakuya as though he were much younger than her.

"I think so," Kūkaku confirmed. She set down her sake cup, picked up her pipe, and took a satisfied puff.

"Before long, he'll become the twenty-eighth head of the Kuchiki Clan and captain of Squad Six."

"He's still not as fast as me." Yoruichi laughed, cleaning her whiskers with a paw. "Meow... I'm getting a little sleepy."

"I should get to bed too. You can stay here for the night."

Yoruichi was especially fond of Kūkaku, mainly because of her straightforward, down-to-earth personality.

Unlike those pretentious nobles, Kūkaku followed her heart and didn't care what others thought of her.

They shared an indomitable spirit and the same philosophy, living by their own unique creeds—never shying away from bold decisions, even when those choices would change their lives forever.

Yoruichi curled up on the wooden floor, but the sound of a butterfly flapping its wings broke her peace.

A Hell Butterfly fluttered around her, a spirit butterfly traditionally used by Soul Reapers as a messenger.

"I'm waiting for you at the shop."

The emotionless message echoed in her mind, and her eyes widened in alarm.

"Kisuke?"

She hurried to the World of the Living.

Yoruichi entered Kisuke's living room and found him sitting in silent thought, his hands restlessly fiddling with the brim of his hat.

They hadn't seen each other in nearly ten years, a span that was no more than a few months to long-lived Soul Reapers.

"Kisuke?"

"Yoruichi, you're back," Kisuke greeted her.

His usual cheerful tone had given way to an unusually serious one. "Should we catch up first, or have some milk?"

"I'm not hungry. Tell me, how did you send a message with a Hell Butterfly?"

"They only restricted my access to the Senkaimon. It was easy to give the Hell Butterfly a Reiatsu signature different from mine."

"Are you still hung up on that? Do you want to enter Soul Society that badly?"

"Obsession is the strongest driving force." Kisuke waved his paper fan thoughtfully. "Anyway, there's a reason I called you here."

Yoruichi raised a paw, baring her sharp claws. "I can slash nine thousand times in one second. Want to try me?"

Kisuke raised both hands in surrender. "We have a problem, a big one."

"A problem you can't solve yourself?"

She had seen Kisuke come up with brilliant solutions no one else could have imagined. His intelligence and adaptability were frightening, even to her.

Kisuke nodded firmly. "I met a man today."

"You said a man?" Yoruichi laughed, a hint of mockery in the air. "Who knew our Kisuke Urahara liked men?"

Kisuke gently tapped her head with his fan. "Can we be serious? How many people know Aizen's true nature?"

"Hm? Only we and the Visored know. The person you met today—"

"Yes, he knows about Aizen's hypnotic ability and his betrayal. And there's something even stranger, Yoruichi. He's a member of a Quincy family."

"A Quincy? I haven't heard that name in a century." Yoruichi narrowed her golden eyes. "Who leaked all that to him?"

"So it wasn't you. It must have been someone in the Visored. Either they were forced to talk, or—"

"—This is another one of Aizen's schemes to shake us. That bastard is as cunning as a fox."

Kisuke couldn't help chuckling. "Oh, if Aizen is pulling the strings behind the scenes, that would be interesting."

His instincts told him otherwise, but he never dared trust his own judgment when it came to Aizen.

The traitorous Soul Reaper had already shown that he could manipulate Central 46's rulings.

How hard would it be for him to send someone to them pretending to oppose Aizen?

Yoruichi snorted. "Interesting for you, troublesome for everyone else."

"Don't worry. Tomorrow we'll have a proper talk with our Quincy 'friend' and get to the bottom of this."

Cangya lay in bed all night, thinking through the various things that might happen today.

It was an extremely important day, and he couldn't afford the slightest mistake.

When the clock struck eight, the door creaked open—Lisa had come to wake him.

Instead of carrying out her task, she looked at him coldly.

His acting had even fooled Tier Harribel's Hollow senses, so it easily made a fool of Lisa, a former Soul Reaper.

What's got her annoyed?

Splash!

He hadn't expected her to throw a bucket of cold water at him.

He rose from the soaking wet bed, stretched lazily, and yawned.

He remained unfazed, as if Lisa hadn't just given him a bath without his consent.

"I didn't expect you to save me time by giving me a 'bath' in bed... How thoughtful of you, Lisa." He praised her with a gentle smile. "You missed a few spots, though, and forgot the soap."

Lisa's hand twitched as she resisted the urge to strangle him.

She grabbed a pillow and held it up in front of him like a war hammer. "What did you say to Lady Izumi? Why does she want me to go on a date with you?!"

Lisa was angry and flustered, a positive sign, since she always acted calm and composed in front of others.

The true personality she hid beneath her cold exterior was showing itself more and more.

He let out a long sigh. "Sorry, but I have to cancel that date."

Lisa froze, her mouth falling open in a surprised "O." Her shocked expression really was worth seeing.

He smiled. "Let me guess why you're shocked. That temper of yours was just an act. You were actually looking forward to going on a date with me."

Lisa had been caught red-handed.

Her plan had been to throw a fit, then reluctantly agree to the date—it would have been her first date with a man.

Ever since coming to the World of the Living, she had been caught in a cycle of eating, reading, training, and sleeping.

The chance to do something new had excited her a little—that was the very feeling that had led her to accept this "spy" job.

She narrowed her eyes. "It's a rare chance to unwind outside of work. That's right, I was looking forward to it."

Her candor surprised him a little. "Since you want to go so badly, I'll go on a date with you when I have time."

"Then what exactly are you busy with?"

She asked the question out of curiosity.

As far as she knew, he had recently come to this town to look for Quincy.

Other than Izumi and Lisa, he shouldn't have known anyone else, unless...

He's having a fling.