The Quincy Inheritor

Human World, Tokyo

Twelve years had passed since the end of that world war that had driven people mad.

Tokyo had once again developed into a bustling city, with cars racing beneath its high-rises.

As a Soul Reaper, Gaoyu appeared in the sky above Tokyo.

He looked down at the city, then vanished in a flash.

As Soul Reapers from the world of spirits, they were forbidden from interfering with the Material World. As far as he remembered, Soul Society had been deeply displeased by the outbreak of the last world war in the Human World.

First, countless lives had been lost in the Human World. During that period, the Soul Reapers had been forced to work around the clock to guide all those souls to Soul Society.

Then there were the many fallen, deranged war criminals among the dead. Not long after dying, their twisted hearts turned them into Hollows, causing the Soul Reapers considerable casualties.

But whatever the case, at least there weren't any Hollows in Tokyo right now.

The task assigned to him by the Tsunayashiro Family was to investigate the whereabouts of the "supernatural ability users" in Tokyo. Once he had found them, he wasn't to act rashly; he was to record their names and locations, then report back to the Tsunayashiro Family.

This was a top-secret mission, one that couldn't be recorded in any of Soul Society's files. In other words, even Aizen didn't know what he was doing in the Human World.

Of course, that only meant he didn't know officially. Who knew whether he actually knew or not?

That weirdo had surveillance in the Human World, too. For all he knew, Aizen was watching his every move right now.

Gaoyu figured he needed to find a way to disguise himself. Nelliel's ability to change size would count as a disguise, wouldn't it? Unfortunately, he didn't have a chance to raise her affection anymore.

He appeared atop a building, then activated his Spiritual Network and sensed the Spiritual Power of the people in the area.

Let me think...

He felt that searching the city one place at a time was far too slow.

Thinking it over, the Fullbringers he knew of probably hadn't even been born yet.

He remembered that Kugo Ginjo was only twenty-eight during the Fullbring arc, while this was about forty-four years before the story began—roughly forty-six years before the Fullbring arc.

So Kugo Ginjo hadn't been born yet!

As for Fullbringers older than Kugo Ginjo...

One was Kiriko Tsukishima, though she probably wasn't even fifty yet.

Another was... Aura Kuchiki's father?

Aura Kuchiki was a Fullbringer who appeared later in the novels. She had the "Soul King's Lock" inside her, and her father was a Fullbringer as well.

Her father was named Tenji Agata. Gaoyu figured he might already have been born by now.

Wait, why am I fixating on the individuals?

Why not search their families directly?

There couldn't be that many people in the country with the surname Tsukishima or Tazawa. Couldn't he just narrow things down by their surnames and find the people they'd become in the future?

Of course, Gaoyu wasn't going to report any of this. He was only thinking about how he could make use of the information later.

He could wait near the places where future Fullbringers would be born, then start raising their affection from childhood.

Perfect. That was the plan.

As for the Tsunayashiro Family's mission?

Who cared?

Gaoyu hadn't come to the Human World to work for the Tsunayashiro Family. He was only here to raise the affection of certain people in the Human World.

For example...

The Ishida Family, a family of Quincies?

Right, the Ishida Family seemed to be in Karakura Town, Tokyo, and Kisuke Urahara was there too. He might as well go take a look.

Naturally, he knew his way around Tokyo, and as a Soul Reaper, he could move far faster than an ordinary person. He reached Karakura Town in no time.

The Ishida Family was something of a prominent family in Karakura Town—or, more accurately, a wealthy one—so it wasn't hard to find.

The Ishida estate was spacious. Besides the house, there were several training grounds. Gaoyu didn't barge in, since relations between Quincies and Soul Reapers were terrible.

He needed to see what their Soul Abilities were first. If they weren't worth his while, he couldn't be bothered to raise their affection.

The Ishida Family was a traditional Quincy family, one that was hostile toward Soul Reapers. If he went over, wouldn't he just be putting on a smile and getting a cold shoulder?

Keeping his Spiritual Pressure hidden, he spotted a young man training in a distant practice ground.

His Soul Ability was called Quincy Inheritor.

Quincy Inheritor: Once activated, allows the user to train in the Quincy power system.

!

Gaoyu was immediately thrilled. This was an incredibly powerful ability!

If he could get his hands on it, he could become a Quincy while also remaining a Soul Reaper!

What was the strongest cultivation system in the Bleach world?

Soul Reapers? Hollows? Quincies? Fullbringers?

It was being a hybrid!

He wanted all four!

Soken Ishida was Uryu Ishida's grandfather, and the one who had taught him the power of the Quincies. Perhaps that was why Soken had left such a strong impression as a teacher, giving him a Soul Ability that let him pass on Quincy training.

Gaoyu's gaze sharpened. He had made up his mind: he was going to befriend Soken Ishida.

But how?

He was a Soul Reaper, after all, and the Quincies had a deep-seated grudge against Soul Reapers.

Damn it, he should've brought a gigai.

Wait, couldn't he ask Kisuke Urahara for one?

Without another thought, Gaoyu left the Ishida estate and went looking for Kisuke Urahara.

Come to think of it, he wasn't sure whether the Visored Legion had awakened yet at this point.

Though Kisuke Urahara had brought the Visored Legion to the Human World, Gaoyu didn't remember when they had been successfully treated.

If the Visored Legion were already there, he could check out their Soul Abilities too.

As he thought it over, Gaoyu wandered around Karakura Town.

He didn't find Urahara Shoten. Maybe Kisuke Urahara hadn't opened the shop yet.

But that was all right. Karakura Town wasn't that big. If he searched carefully...

He was bound to find some clues.

The main thing was that Gaoyu could directly see other people's Soul Abilities. No matter how well they hid, the moment he saw that they had a Soul Ability, he'd know they weren't ordinary people.

Of course...

If he really couldn't find anything, Gaoyu would have no choice but to visit Soken Ishida in his Soul Reaper form and try his luck.

Just as expected, about two days later, Gaoyu spotted Kisuke Urahara while out wandering.