Gaoyu Wants to Write a Novel

Well, after all that effort raising an army, wasn't it nice to show off in front of Nanao Ise?

Nanao Ise's favorability toward me had been only seventeen, but after what I'd just said, it had risen to forty-eight!

That was the power of culture.

Gaoyu cheerfully headed back to the division.

"Vice-Captain!"

"Did something good happen, Vice-Captain Gaoyu? You look so happy!"

Everyone in the division greeted Gaoyu. He chuckled without saying much, then returned to his office.

Looking at the files on his desk, Gaoyu clicked his tongue.

He set the files aside and pulled a book out of his drawer.

The Rejection of Pisces

This was an action-adventure novel serialized by Jūshirō Ukitake, Captain of the Thirteenth Division, in the magazine Seireitei News, published by the Ninth Division.

The novel was about a protagonist named "Pisces" who protected villagers and fought evil forces. Each installment was a standalone story, with the hero punishing evildoers and encouraging people to do good. It was quite popular in Seireitei.

There wasn't much entertainment in Seireitei, after all. Reading novels was already one of the most enjoyable ways to pass the time at work.

Besides, if I read a little more, I could find something to talk about the next time I saw Ukitake and boost his favorability. What was there to lose?

After finishing the last passage, Gaoyu put down the magazine and fell into thought.

A novel like this can become a hit?

If I wrote some of the masterpieces I read in my past life, wouldn't I completely crush the competition?

At the thought, Gaoyu grew excited.

I really am a genius!

I could write a novel. Vice-Captains already had to publish short pieces in Seireitei News from time to time. That could raise my division's profile and make a fortune, too.

So I could follow Jūshirō Ukitake's example and write a novel.

What should I write?

Since this was the Soul Society, I naturally had to write something that suited its character.

The Soul Society's character...

Thinking of the Soul Society's character, Gaoyu somehow thought of the delinquent gangs from Young and Dangerous.

Well, the people in Seireitei really did act like a bunch of gangsters. Each division was like a gang's turf, the Vice-Captain was the enforcer, and the Captain-Commander was the boss.

"Boss, are you backing me to become the Captain-Commander?"

"With that many people backing you, you don't need me."

"I'm definitely running for it. We'll see who's got what it takes."

They were actually a proper military force, but Gaoyu couldn't help laughing at the scene he'd just imagined.

He immediately took out a sheet of paper and started writing.

"Aizen, give it up. Captain-Commander Yamamoto has promised you the position next time around."

In the Muken prison, several of Seireitei's most powerful Captains were being held. At that moment, Shunsui Kyoraku, Captain of the Eighth Division, tried to persuade him.

"I might as well promise you the Spirit King's throne next time! Who knows who'll be strong enough by then? Maybe I'll be dead!" Aizen kicked the bars of Muken's prison and snapped, "If you're all dead by then, who am I supposed to talk to? What's the point of talking?"

"If you keep this up, there's bound to be a fight. We can't help you! We'll all be out of business," Gin Ichimaru urged him as well.

"We can't help you either!" Tōsen couldn't help shouting.

"Don't help! Don't you dare help! No need to trouble you old fogies! I'll do it myself!"

"The New Gotei 13!"

Pfft. Gaoyu burst out laughing again as he wrote.

"What are you laughing at?"

Suddenly, a voice made Gaoyu's smile freeze. He hurriedly put the sheet of paper away.

He turned around and said with a stiff smile, "Captain Aizen, what brings you here?"

"Why didn't you say anything when you came in?"

"I did." Aizen had appeared behind Gaoyu at some point. He pushed up his glasses and said, "You just didn't hear me."

"Uh..." Gaoyu hurried to his feet. "Please, Captain Aizen, have a seat. I'll get you some tea."

"No need for tea. Were you writing a novel just now?"

"...Uh..." Gaoyu's smile grew even stiffer. He nodded. "Yes, you caught me. But don't worry! It's only a novel. It absolutely doesn't reflect what I really think!"

"You know how it is, Captain. Novels always have to be a little exaggerated."

"Don't write anything that could undermine unity," Aizen said with a smile. "We are Soul Reapers who protect Seireitei and maintain the balance of the Three Realms. We should spread the light of our justice to ordinary Soul Reapers and souls."

"I understand." Gaoyu nodded, then smiled. "I was only joking just now. Why would I write a novel like that?"

There's no way I'm giving up. I can just write it somewhere outside Seireitei, can't I? I'll take it to Hueco Mundo! No one can stop me from trash-talking Seireitei in Hueco Mundo, right?

Oh, Aizen might. In that case, I'll just replace Aizen with someone else!

Gaoyu's eyes rolled, and he said, "To be honest, I already know what I want to write. Of course it'll promote our Fifth Division!"

"What do you have in mind?"

"How about In the Name of the Soul Reaper?" Gaoyu said. "The story would be about rampant corruption in the Central 46. The Spirit King sends you, Captain Aizen, in as the head of the Central 46 to investigate, setting off a series of political struggles."

Aizen gave Gaoyu a meaningful look, then shook his head. "When you write a novel, it should be close to real life. Your story is too far removed from the lives of ordinary Soul Reapers."

"How is it far removed? It's called In the Name of the Soul Reaper. How could it possibly be far from Soul Reapers?" Gaoyu asked, puzzled.

"Anyway, you should change it."

"Fine, fine. You people are impossible. Then I'll just write an action-fantasy novel." Gaoyu came up with another idea.

"A thousand years ago, the Quincy lost a war against the Soul Reapers, and their king was captured."

"As he was about to be executed, the Quincy King shouted, 'You want my power? My wealth? My authority? Take it all!'"

"I've left everything I own deep in the Soul Society. Go find it!"

"And so the Great Quincy Era began!"

How's that?

Gaoyu raised an eyebrow at Aizen. "This premise should work, right?"

Aizen said with interest, "And then?"

"Hmm, let me think." Gaoyu thought it over, then said, "We Soul Reapers are obviously the good guys, so we'll be the 'World Government.' The Hollows are our enemies, but we're on the same side when it comes to fighting the Quincy."

"So the Hollows will be the 'Seven Warlords of the Sea,' a force that temporarily teams up with the Gotei 13 to fight the Quincy."

"The main villains in the story will naturally be the Quincy. That fits Seireitei's values, so there shouldn't be a problem, right?"

Aizen patted Gaoyu on the shoulder. "Not bad. You have quite an imagination. You should try writing it."

"What are you going to call the novel?"

"Let's call it... Thousand-Year Blood War. How does that sound?"