Don't Join... and I'll Cut You Down!

Soul Society, Shin'ō Academy, Grand Hall.

At this moment, a large number of graduates had gathered here for their graduation ceremony. It was also a crucial turning point in the lives of these trainee Soul Reapers: choosing a division.

Although Soul Reapers were not bound to remain in one division for life as if in a marriage, without sufficient reason, an ordinary Soul Reaper's application to transfer divisions would almost always be rejected.

For some hot-tempered division captains, there was only "widowhood," never "divorce."

Yet just as Shin'ō Academy's old headmaster was still delivering his lengthy speech, reminding the solemn graduates below to choose their divisions carefully, a burly man standing to one side shoved the speaking headmaster aside. He wore a somewhat tattered haori, had a savage face, and clumps of hair standing up like hedgehog spines—he looked every bit like a villain. Tilting his head, he said in dissatisfaction.

"Enough with the endless babbling. My patience is about worn out!"

Then, utterly ignoring the old headmaster's extremely ugly expression, the man looked down at the large group of graduates, who still appeared young and immature. His beast-like gaze swept over them as he spoke.

"What a pain. Anyway, the former Eleventh Division captain, Kenpachi Kiganjo, was cut down by me. I'm the new Eleventh Division captain, Zaraki Kenpachi..."

The scar on Zaraki Kenpachi's face twitched. His seemingly casual yet horrifying declaration made quite a few graduates start trembling instinctively.

To the ordinary graduates of Shin'ō Academy, becoming a seated officer of the Thirteen Divisions was already an extraordinary achievement. Being promoted to Vice-Captain—or even an actual captain—was practically an unimaginable luxury.

Yet this vicious man before them... had actually cut down a captain and risen to become the new captain in such a terrifying manner.

"Gulp~"

Amid the subdued sounds of the graduates swallowing, Zaraki Kenpachi grinned and said, "My Eleventh Division has lost quite a few people. Brats who like fighting and killing, join my division."

However, what should have sounded like an invitation came from Zaraki Kenpachi more like a naked threat, carrying an unspoken implication.

Don't join... and I'll cut you down!

For a moment, the entire hall fell nearly silent. It was as though a cold wind had swept through. The many graduates looked at the immensely burly Zaraki Kenpachi onstage, fear filling their eyes.

The Eleventh Division had such a huge shortage of people—could they all have been slaughtered by the new captain, Zaraki Kenpachi?

Just as the atmosphere turned awkward, a little girl with pink hair suddenly poked her head out from behind Zaraki Kenpachi's back. She then sat on his shoulder, raised her tiny hands to pat the vicious-looking Zaraki Kenpachi, and pouted as she said.

"Ken-chan, you'll scare everyone like that."

To the graduates' surprise, the man who resembled an evil spirit showed no anger whatsoever at the pink-haired girl's impertinence. He merely crossed his arms and said indifferently.

"Cowards who lose their desire for fighting and killing just because of a few words from me aren't worthy of joining my ranks."

"Come on, Ken-chan, that won't do. If this keeps up, there'll be no one left in the Eleventh Division to play with me..."

As she spoke, the pink-haired little girl gave the graduates a sweet smile. The adorable blush on her face seemed even more pronounced as her crisp voice rang out.

"Hey, hey, hey, I'm Kusajishi Yachiru, Vice-Captain of the Eleventh Division. You should all join the Eleventh Division and play with me."

For a moment, many graduates who witnessed this adorable assault from a little girl could not help but have their eyes light up.

For graduates of Shin'ō Academy, the basic information on the Thirteen Divisions was naturally required knowledge.

However, news of Zaraki Kenpachi's recent public challenge against the former Eleventh Division captain, Kenpachi Kiganjo—and his successful killing of Kiganjo to become captain—had not yet reached Shin'ō Academy. Thus, this year's graduates still lacked even a basic understanding of Eleventh Division captain Zaraki Kenpachi and Vice-Captain Kusajishi Yachiru.

And when they realized that a combat division, which had always been full of muscles and burly men, now had such an adorable little girl, many graduates who were not averse to fighting and killing found their hearts stirring instinctively.

That little girl looked like Captain Zaraki Kenpachi's daughter. If they could win the pink-haired girl's favor, wouldn't they be set for life?

Marry the little girl and receive special attention from the division captain—forget becoming a seated officer; they might even have a chance to become the next division captain...

Chiba Makoto, mingling among the graduates, saw the interest shining in many of his classmates' eyes. He shrank his neck and tried to make himself seem as inconspicuous as possible, lest he catch Zaraki Kenpachi and Kusajishi Yachiru's attention.

Play with Kusajishi Yachiru?

He would probably get played to death in no time.

Others might not know, but Chiba Makoto understood Zaraki Kenpachi and Kusajishi Yachiru quite well.

Zaraki Kenpachi: a monstrous beast obsessed with pure combat and slaughter!

Kusajishi Yachiru: the little girl adopted by Zaraki Kenpachi, with a mischievous streak and a fondness for giving people all sorts of nicknames.

However, Kusajishi Yachiru's true identity seemed exceptionally mysterious. She appeared to share some inseverable connection with Zaraki Kenpachi. In fact, in Chiba Makoto's memories of his past life, many speculations pointed toward the possibility that this highly popular little girl was actually Zaraki Kenpachi's Bankai Zanpakuto.

But that had little to do with Chiba Makoto. He had long since decided which division he wanted to join and what his goal would be.

After the willful speeches of Eleventh Division captain Zaraki Kenpachi and Vice-Captain Kusajishi Yachiru, the representatives from the other divisions gradually began giving their own speeches.

Naturally, unlike Zaraki Kenpachi's unreliable recruitment pitch, the other division representatives spoke more about practical matters, such as the specific responsibilities of joining their divisions, benefits, work environment, and room for advancement.

After all, these graduates had a certain degree of freedom when choosing a division.

It was like love. When it came to choosing a division, the Captain-Commander's intention was for it to be mutual: the division provided satisfactory material benefits, while the graduates offered their bodies. Perfectly reasonable.

Of course, unlike Zaraki Kenpachi, who had personally appeared as the Eleventh Division captain, most of the other divisions had sent seated officers, at most Vice-Captains. No other captains had come in person.

But that was only normal. Across the entire Soul Society, captains stood at the peak of Soul Reapers. Ordinary graduates choosing divisions simply could not draw the interest of captains with normal ways of thinking.