Matsumoto Rangiku Is a Great Replenishing Pill

After walking out of Toshiro Hitsugaya's house, Gaoyu Kouun hadn't gone far before he stopped again.

"Alright, stop looking. Come out."

As he spoke, footsteps sounded beside him, and a blonde woman with a large, imposing weapon emerged. She said with some surprise:

"Oh my, I was discovered."

"It's only natural you'd be discovered, right? You didn't even hide your spiritual pressure." Kouya looked at the woman, thinking this must be Matsumoto Rangiku, the future vice-captain of the Tenth Division.

He examined Rangiku's soul ability.

'Great Replenishing Pill: Your soul will become a special supplement. A portion that splits off can promote the evolution of an item, a person's task, or their own soul.'

This ability...

It's a bit strange.

This isn't a selfish ability; it purely benefits others!

Splitting off a part of one's own soul to help someone complete a task, or even successfully evolve.

Could this be because Sosuke Aizen obtained Rangiku's soul to complete the Hogyoku?

If he remembered correctly, Matsumoto Rangiku's soul contained a Soul King Fragment, a fingernail of the Soul King.

Sosuke Aizen took that fragment from her soul and merged it into the Hogyoku.

This led Sosuke Aizen, who was painstakingly trying to complete the Hogyoku, to discover that Soul King Fragments could promote its completion. Thus, the Hogyoku he possessed began to incorporate Soul King Fragments.

Perhaps because of this, Rangiku's soul gained the 'Great Replenishing Pill' characteristic.

'If I eat a piece of my own soul, will it also promote my evolution?'

Kouya wasn't sure, but he knew he definitely needed to befriend Rangiku to obtain this ability.

He certainly wouldn't mind having more abilities; who knows when it might come in handy somewhere?

"Which division are you from?" Rangiku hadn't seen Kouya before, so she asked first.

"Shouldn't I be asking you that?" Kouya replied. "I'm supposed to be on patrol duty in the West Rukongai today. Why are there other Shinigami here?"

"Ohoho." Rangiku chuckled slyly. "That's because I'm not here to patrol. I snuck into Rukongai to play."

"I'm Matsumoto Rangiku of the Tenth Division. I've introduced myself, now it's your turn."

"Gaoyu Kouun of the Fifth Division." Kouya said. "Why are you following Toshiro Hitsugaya?"

"Oh... so his name is Toshiro Hitsugaya." Rangiku realized. "I saw that kid has considerable talent. What's your relationship with him? Have you considered asking him to become a Shinigami?"

"I'm friends with his friends." Kouya walked through Rukongai and said, "A friend of his asked me to come. The first time I saw him, I knew this kid should become a Shinigami."

"So, you don't need to say anything more. I've already convinced him and his grandmother. I'll pick him up tomorrow morning to take him to Shino Academy."

"Isn't that going too far!" Rangiku grumbled. "I found him first. Even if he's going to become a Shinigami, he should become one for our Tenth Division."

"..."

Her words actually made Kouya pause.

That's right. Toshiro Hitsugaya was discovered by him now. Would he still join the Tenth Division?

What if he joined the Fifth Division after graduation?

Although most Shinigami were assigned to various divisions after school, those specifically requested by captains, as well as exceptionally talented individuals, had the right to choose.

A genius like Toshiro Hitsugaya, and without being pre-claimed by the Tenth Division, if Sosuke Aizen noticed him, he would definitely recruit him into the Fifth Division.

If that were the case, would he be changing history on his second day here?

"Hey, what are you spacing out for, kid?"

Seeing Kouya suddenly fall silent mid-conversation, Rangiku said with some dissatisfaction.

"No, I was just thinking about something."

Kouya finished, then answered her previous question.

"It's not that just because I discovered him, he'll go to the Fifth Division. Which division he goes to depends on the academy, the captains, and his own wishes."

"If you want him to go to the Tenth Division, then I suggest you persuade your captain to request him from the academy."

"Eh?" Rangiku blinked in surprise.

"You don't want Toshiro to join the Fifth Division?"

"Well, of course I do, but I respect others' choices more."

Kouya naturally wanted to be on the same team as Toshiro. That way, he could spend more time building their relationship, and once their affection reached eighty or above, he could permanently obtain the 'Prodigy' ability.

"You're quite a decent person."

Rangiku patted Kouya's shoulder. "Very good, I approve of you. Want to grab a drink together when we get back to Seireitei?"

"I have patrol duty for the next few days." Kouya's eyes lit up, then he said with a hint of disappointment.

"When I get back and have time, we can have a couple of drinks."

"Hahaha, I'll be waiting for you."

Ranju smiled and waved her hand, "Then that's settled. I'll head back to Seireitei first. I'll leave the child to you."

"Mm."

Gao Yu also waved his hand, watching Ranju leave.

At this moment, he had already obtained Ranju's temporary ability, which also meant that Ranju's favorability towards him had reached sixty.

This woman is quite easy to get along with. Sixty favorability so easily.

Not bad, not bad. Although I can't use the Great Replenishing Pill ability right now, it might be useful someday.

After Ranju left, Gao Yu officially began his patrol mission.

In Soul Society, Seireitei was naturally the safest location, but Rukongai outside of Seireitei was different.

In Rukongai, due to the lack of protection from the Soul Shield and the deterrence of Soul Reapers, Hollows often came to cause trouble.

Moreover, they might even lure away one or two lower-ranked Soul Reapers. The souls of Soul Reapers were a great supplement for Hollows.

The area Gao Yu was responsible for was Sectors 1 through 5. This area was generally considered relatively safe.

He had originally thought this was just a routine patrol, but as he was returning from Sector 5, he suddenly felt something was amiss.

He was still in 'teaching' mode at this moment. In this mode, he was extremely sensitive to the flow of spiritual particles.

Furthermore, he could exert the utmost of his various abilities. It could be said that the 'Strict Teacher, Talented Student' ability at this stage was definitely not just about letting him teach.

It had essentially made him an excellent 'strict teacher'!