Brother Hua and Brother Qian

Hanatarou's eyes were filled with fear. He always felt like he had overheard something he shouldn't have.

Although he hadn't understood much, the "Kenpachi" they kept mentioning seemed to be the captain of the 11th Division, fitting perfectly in terms of origin and strength.

Was this something he was truly meant to hear?

Boss Duan Mu...

What exactly did he do?!

"Sorry, you can head back for today."

Duan Mu pondered for a moment before saying, "Hmm... tomorrow, you can check if the bell outside the Yorozuya upstairs is hanging outside. If it is, then we'll continue our exchange tomorrow. If it's not, then come back in a few days."

Upon hearing this, Hanatarou's raised heart finally settled. It seemed he wouldn't be silenced.

"That..."

But then, as if remembering something, he hesitated before pointing towards the counter, "When you were talking earlier, the bell over there was ringing."

"Huh? The bell was ringing?"

Uzuki, behind the counter, was startled. She had been concentrating on eavesdropping on Duan Mu and Habutae's conversation and hadn't really noticed if the bell was ringing.

"Ah, that's right." Diao Ao, standing nearby, also seemed to recall something and chimed in, "That bell did ring just now, and it rang for quite a while."

"I'll go up right away."

Hearing this, Uzuki quickly got up, but before she could leave the counter, Duan Mu said, "I'll go. I won't be taking any requests for the next few days. I'll put up a notice upstairs to avoid implicating any customers who come for requests."

"Also..."

Duan Mu turned to look at Uzuki and Nishijin-ori. "Your commission fee is five million Ring. However, before we sign the commission form, I need to remind you that due to the high difficulty of the request, I may unilaterally terminate the commission if it's found to be impossible to complete. Are you able to accept this?"

"No problem!!"

Habutae agreed with extreme alacrity. Duan Mu's willingness to take them in after hearing their story already moved her greatly.

The enemy was so terrifying; if they reached a critical juncture, it was normal for Duan Mu to unilaterally abandon the request. Moreover, she now regretted involving the kind Boss Duan Mu, as this matter had nothing to do with him from beginning to end.

A mere few million Ring was not worth the risk for him to go this far for them.

However...

She didn't know that Duan Mu wasn't just looking at the money. While he was far from wealthy, Duan Mu's current savings were enough for him to spend lavishly for several years. Compared to money, Duan Mu valued the experience points Habutae provided more.

Furthermore, Habutae was the only woman, besides Uzuki, whose favorability had reached the maximum level of friendship.

Maximum friendship wasn't just a saying; it meant that if Duan Mu were in danger and she received the news, she would help him without hesitation, even if it meant certain death. Just this alone was enough for Duan Mu to take this risk.

"By the way, are you sure no one followed you when you escaped?"

Although if someone had followed them, they should have appeared by now, Duan Mu confirmed with Habutae for the sake of caution.

"No."

Nishijin-ori's tone was extremely certain. Habutae, standing beside him, added with a look of indignation, "When we were escaping, that guy's face was full of disdain. He didn't pursue us, as if in his eyes, we weren't even qualified for him to chase."

"That's good."

Since no one had followed them, this place should be safe for now. With this thought, Duan Mu said to Uzuki behind the counter, "Uzuki, give them a commission form." After saying this, Duan Mu left the tavern with Hanatarou.

"Um... Mr. Duan Mu..."

As soon as they left the tavern, Hanatarou asked timidly, "Can the guidance for today continue?"

Duan Mu looked at Hanatarou with some surprise. Hanatarou had been listening to the conversation in the tavern. Duan Mu had thought he would flee immediately, but he didn't expect him to still be interested in learning Kido from him.

"If you want to, of course, you can."

Duan Mu said as he walked upstairs, "Besides, you're a customer. You don't need to be so timid. The time for our exchange is up to you... Hmm?" As he spoke, Duan Mu had already led Hanatarou into the Yorozuya. The moment he stepped inside, his expression sank.

Spiritual Pressure!

And it was extremely well-hidden, or rather, the control over Spiritual Pressure was extremely strong.

It was so strong that Duan Mu, standing outside the door, hadn't detected any trace of it. Although he hadn't learned any specialized methods for detecting Spiritual Pressure, normally, at such close proximity, he should have already felt the fluctuations of Spiritual Pressure, but... the person inside had not revealed any aura.

Being able to achieve this wasn't just about having strong Spiritual Pressure; it also required extremely precise control.

Had the person Habutae mentioned caught up?

A hint of seriousness flashed in Duan Mu's eyes. He diverted some of his attention and opened the system interface in his mind. He had originally planned to carefully consider how to use these experience points after finishing his current tasks, but now it seemed there was no time to ponder.

Signaling Hanatarou to wait at the door, Duan Mu passed through the narrow entryway. The first thing he saw was an empty reception room. However, his gaze immediately shifted to the examination room on the left side of the reception room. The door to the examination room was wide open, and a tall figure stood inside.

"Hmm?"

The moment he saw the figure, Duan Mu froze.

Shinigami uniform.

Although it was only a back view, and he couldn't see the person's appearance in the room, the Shinigami uniform, rarely seen in Rukongai, was extremely conspicuous.

The person seemed to have sensed something and suddenly turned around. This was a young girl who could be perfectly described as "heroic."

With a height of nearly 1.9 meters, she was incredibly slender, with short, light purple hair styled into several thin braids. Coupled with her somewhat androgynous appearance, she gave off a refreshing vibe.

Duan Mu's eyes did indeed light up, but not because of her appearance, but because he recognized her identity!!

When she saw Duan Mu, the spirited young girl's face flushed, and she said somewhat flusteredly, "Ah~~ I'm sorry, I was ringing the bell just now, but no one paid any attention to me, so I thought I'd come in and take a look... I didn't mean to peek at what you were writing... I-I'm sorr..."

"It's fine! It's fine!!"

Duan Mu's face, which had been incredibly grim just a moment ago, transformed like a Sichuan opera mask. Instantly, his expression changed to his signature gentle smile. "It's I who should be apologizing. I was delayed by something just now, keeping you, my customer, waiting."

"Huh??"

Hanatarou, not knowing what had happened, cautiously peeked his head out from the entrance. Upon seeing the spirited young girl in the treatment room, he was stunned and instinctively asked, "Vice-Captain Isane, what are you doing here?"

That's right, the visitor was none other than Kotetsu Isane, who had recently been appointed as the Vice-Captain of the Fourth Division.

Duan Mu glanced at the bewildered Hanatarou behind him and thought, Brother Hana! From now on, you're my Brother Hana!!

He hadn't had any members of the Fourth Division visit during this period, and he had thought Hanatarou hadn't helped him promote his services. Otherwise, if a seated officer had come to learn, surely some members of the Fourth Division would have come as well, right?

Now it seemed he had misunderstood!

Brother Hana hadn't failed to promote him; instead, he had been saving a big gift for him. Not only was a heavyweight figure coming, but it wasn't a useless male like Brother Hana. It was a female Soul Reaper who possessed both strength and status, someone who could provide him with a large amount of experience points!

However, Duan Mu didn't know...

The reason Kotetsu Isane came here wasn't solely due to the Brother Hana he mentioned. There was also a Brother Qian... no, a former brother, working hard behind the scenes!