The Reason

After lying unconscious all day in the Fourth Division Captain's bed, Liu Hao finally woke as evening approached.

The last rays of the setting sun slanted through the window lattice, bathing his face in warm golden light with the gentleness unique to dusk. Liu Hao narrowed his eyes, adjusting to the light as his consciousness slowly rose to the surface like a swimmer from the depths of the sea.

"Where... am I?" He raised an arm to shield his eyes, his voice hoarse with thirst.

"Fifth Seat Liu Hao, you're awake!" A familiar female voice sounded beside the bed, tinged with concern.

Liu Hao lowered his arm and turned to look. Lieutenant Isane Kotetsu stood beside the bed with a gentle smile. She held a cup of warm water, and when she saw that Liu Hao was awake, she offered it to him.

"Thank you." Liu Hao took the cup and sipped. The cool liquid moistened his parched throat, and his mind grew clearer. "Lieutenant Isane, am I... I remember I was training before, wasn't I?"

Isane Kotetsu smiled and explained, "This is the captain's private room. You collapsed from overtraining yesterday, and the captain had me bring you here to rest. You've been asleep for a whole day."

"A whole... day?" Liu Hao stared blankly for a moment, then realized where he was. Lying in Captain Unohana's private room was hardly a privilege an ordinary member could expect.

He immediately threw back the covers and got out of bed, staggering slightly from weakness. "I'm sorry for taking up your room, Captain. I'm fine now, so I'll..."

"There's no need to hurry." A gentle voice came from the doorway.

Captain Unohana pushed the door open and entered, carrying a small tray with a simple meal on it. She wore her usual Captain's Haori, her long hair loosely tied behind her head, and her customary gentle smile. She looked no different from usual.

But Liu Hao keenly noticed a trace of scrutiny hidden deep within that smile.

"Captain." Liu Hao immediately straightened and bowed respectfully. "Thank you for letting me rest here."

"There's no need to thank me." Unohana placed the tray on the table and looked Liu Hao over carefully. "How do you feel? Your Reiatsu has mostly recovered, hasn't it?"

Liu Hao felt the flow of Reiatsu within him. Although he was still a little weak, it had essentially stabilized. "Yes, I'm much better now."

"That's good." Unohana nodded, a rare hint of emotion in her voice. "Yesterday, although your Zanpakuto wasn't able to fully satisfy me, she did relieve the loneliness I've felt for so many years."

She paused, her gaze growing deep. "What a... terrifyingly powerful sword."

Liu Hao's heart stirred. Only then did he vaguely recall that, before he lost consciousness, he seemed to have heard Imperial Princess and Unohana speaking, and then the two of them seemed about to... fight?

But he could no longer remember the details. The unconsciousness brought on by overexertion had left that memory in fragments.

Unohana paid no mind to Liu Hao's silence. She walked to the window, turned her back to the room, and calmly posed a question. "Fifth Seat Liu Hao, I'd like to know: have you truly seen many possible futures of Soul Society?"

The question exploded in Liu Hao's mind like a thunderclap.

His pupils contracted sharply, his breathing stopped for an instant, and he froze on the spot. Countless thoughts flashed through his mind. How did she know? Who told her? Did something happen during the fight? What did Imperial Princess say?

Unohana turned around and, seeing the sudden change in Liu Hao's expression, shook her head gently. "Don't be nervous. Your Zanpakuto let it slip."

Liu Hao: "..."

He grumbled inwardly, Imperial Princess, Imperial Princess, aren't you usually so aloof? How did you become such a blabbermouth at a crucial moment? How can you just go around telling people a secret like that? Aren't you afraid that perverted scientist from the Twelfth Division will drag me off and slice me up for research?

Outwardly, however, Liu Hao could only take a deep breath and force himself to calm down. He knew that since Unohana already knew part of the truth, denying or concealing it would only make matters worse.

"I suppose so." Liu Hao ultimately chose to admit it, though he worded his answer very carefully. "I saw some... fragments. For example, in the future, you fought Captain Zaraki in Muken, passed on the title of Kenpachi, and ultimately... died at his hands."

He spoke softly, but every word was perfectly clear.

Unohana listened quietly, her expression unchanged. Only when Liu Hao had finished did she slowly speak, a hint of curiosity in her voice. "So you don't want me to pass on the title of Kenpachi because you're afraid I'll die at his hands?"

"Yes." Liu Hao looked Unohana straight in the eye, his gaze earnest. "I don't want you to die. Why do you have to die when losing to him would be enough? Besides, the title of 'Kenpachi' never truly meant the strongest Soul Reaper in Soul Society."

"The truly strongest..." Unohana repeated the words, a complicated smile curving her lips. "If that is my ultimate fate, I will accept it willingly. Besides, that is what I have wanted to accomplish all along. Fifth Seat Liu Hao, you should help me fulfill that wish."

"You only want him to unseal his own strength." Liu Hao's voice grew low. "Why... must you die at his hands?"

A brief silence fell over the room.

Unohana looked at Liu Hao, an emotion he couldn't understand flickering in her ever-gentle eyes. After a long while, she shook her head gently, bringing the subject to a close. "All right, let's not discuss my future fate."

She changed the subject and posed another question. "What I want to ask is, why do you always go out of your way to avoid Captain Aizen?"

This question was even more deadly than the last.

Liu Hao's heart sank. He had long expected that his unusual avoidance of Aizen would sooner or later attract the attention of someone observant. But he hadn't expected Unohana to be the first to ask him about it to his face.

As I thought... once you've done some things, there's just no keeping them hidden.

Liu Hao frowned deeply. Instead of answering immediately, he raised his head and scanned the room. When he saw his Imperial Sword resting on the sword stand in the corner, he took a deep breath and called softly:

"Imperial Princess."

As soon as he spoke, the blade of the Imperial Sword trembled slightly.

A ring of transparent spatial ripples spread out from the blade. The ripples expanded swiftly, washing like waves into every corner of the room until they completely enveloped it.

The color of the space changed subtly. The light grew softer and sounds became distant, as though the room had been "stripped" from the real world to form a separate space.

Then Imperial Princess's voice came from the blade, cool and majestic:

"All right. I've used spatial power to block all attempts to probe this place. Nothing said here can be overheard by any means."

A flicker of surprise crossed Unohana's eyes. She hadn't expected Liu Hao to be this cautious—to put up a barrier against outside observation even in her own office.

Does he need... to be this cautious?

The question in her mind grew more pressing.

After confirming that the barrier had taken effect, Liu Hao turned to Unohana and began to explain. "Captain, you saw my fight with Imperial Princess yesterday, so you should already know that the Imperial Sword can control the Five Phases."

"Yes." Unohana nodded. "I also fought your Zanpakuto and experienced that power firsthand."

"But the power of the Five Phases is only the Imperial Sword's basic ability." Liu Hao paused, his tone growing more serious. "The Imperial Sword's true strength lies in its ability to control time and space."

He gestured at the transparent barrier around them. "During yesterday's fight, the weapons that appeared from spatial ripples were summoned through its spatial ability. As for its power over time..."

Liu Hao took a deep breath and revealed his greatest secret. "The moment I first completed my Shikai, I saw the long course of Soul Society's history through the Imperial Sword, as well as... some of its future fates."

Unohana's pupils contracted slightly.

"That's why I know so many things." Liu Hao's voice grew low. "So I want to change some things... including your fate."

He looked at Unohana, complicated emotions in his eyes. "Because to me, you're someone special."

His words were direct and sincere.

Unohana fell silent. She looked at Liu Hao, this young Soul Reaper, this Fifth Seat who was always quiet and kept himself hidden in the shadows of the Fourth Division. Now a flame bordering on obsession flickered in his eyes.

After a long while, she slowly spoke. "Change my fate? Since you say you've seen those futures, you should know... my fate is the path I chose for myself."

"Yes, I know." Liu Hao nodded. "But precisely because I know, I want to change it all the more. I want to break your obsession with 'passing on the title of Kenpachi.'"

His tone grew heated. "The title of 'Kenpachi' shouldn't be defined that way at all, in my view. It doesn't mean the strongest Soul Reaper in Soul Society... Aside from Captain Zaraki and you, how many Kenpachi throughout history have truly lived up to the name?"

Liu Hao stepped forward, a note of earnestness in his voice. "If it doesn't mean 'the strongest,' why make sure there can only be one Kenpachi in an era? I understand what you're thinking... the strong wield their swords either for themselves or for others. But defeat is defeat. Once you relinquish the title, it can naturally be passed on. Only those unwilling to accept defeat have a reason to fight to the death."

His words went straight to the deepest obsession in Unohana's heart.

Unohana listened quietly, her expression gradually changing from its initial gentleness to something more complicated. When Liu Hao finished, she suddenly smiled.

Her smile bore the weight of a thousand years, as well as a certain sense of release.

"All right, let's not discuss Kenpachi anymore." Unohana waved a hand gently, ending the subject. "You mentioned just now that you wanted to change some things... so why do you want to change the fates of Kaien Shiba and Rukia Kuchiki?"

Her gaze sharpened. "As far as I know, you also helped arrange Rukia Kuchiki's adoption into the Kuchiki Clan. Just what... did you see?"

The question made Liu Hao's heart tighten once more.

He was silent for a moment before finally raising his head to look at the setting sun outside the window. Warm golden light fell across his face, but it could not dispel the deep sorrow in his eyes.

"Rukia..." Liu Hao spoke softly, as though talking to himself. "She really has... had a difficult fate."