At the Ninth Division Squad Barracks, Siwei Yan was just about to lie down comfortably and enjoy a leisurely afternoon.
Suddenly, without warning, a violent shiver ran through him.
"What's going on?" Siwei Yan froze in a ridiculous pose, one foot on the floor and the other poised to climb onto the bed. He turned his slightly stiff neck from side to side, scanning the empty room.
The window was properly shut, and the door was locked.
Within the range of his Reiatsu perception, there was nothing unusual beyond the occasional division member passing through the courtyard.
Yet he still felt an unsettling itch inside, as though a little cat were gently scratching at him.
"That can't be..." He pulled his foot back, sat cross-legged on the edge of the bed, and began counting things off on his fingers.
"Aizen's in the Fifth Division, 'getting along swimmingly' with Captain Hirako. Lady Yoruichi and that crook Urahara are tinkering with their underground palace. Killer is selling well, and my royalties should arrive any day now..."
After running through everything, he really couldn't think of any ticking bomb about to go off.
Am I just too nervous? Have I written myself into paranoia?
Just as he began doubting himself—
"Little Future!"
A bright, cheerful, yet extraordinarily piercing voice echoed throughout the Squad Barracks.
"Come out already! I know you're in your room! If you don't come out, I'm charging in!"
Siwei Yan's face fell instantly.
Shit! I forgot about that!
He smacked his forehead, frantically pulled a sheet of blank paper from beneath the desk, and grabbed the brush beside him. The tip nearly pierced the paper as he began scribbling furiously.
Lieutenant Kyunnan Shiro!
Previously, to get himself out of a tight spot, he had casually promised to provide some kind of "closure" for Hell Girl, that spectacular flop he had long since forgotten.
Then the new book and its publication had kept him busy, and the whole thing had slipped his mind!
Now his creditor had come knocking!
If he didn't produce something to shut him up, knowing Lieutenant Kyunnan Shiro's way of doing things...
He really was capable of providing round-the-clock, up-close "supervision"!
Following him while he ate, waiting outside the bathroom, clinging to his window and watching him sleep!
Other people might care about their image or what others thought. Kyunnan Shiro? That consideration didn't even exist in his head!
He would only think that this kind of "supervision" was effective and fun!
Siwei Yan felt as though his hair was about to stand on end.
His mind raced faster than ever before, and the brush in his hand moved so quickly it left afterimages.
He was only using an ordinary writing brush now, not his Zanpakutō, Tsuzurimono Bansho.
The reason was simple: he had already experimented when he first awakened his Zanpakutō's ability.
If the story he wrote had absolutely nothing to do with Soul Society's people, history, or setting—
For example, the otherworldly stories he had tried early on, such as Battle Spirit Realm and Mysterious Soul Society—
Then even if readers experienced emotional fluctuations, the scattered Reishi would not be drawn in by Tsuzurimono Bansho's ability and could not gather on his handwritten manuscript.
In other words, only "local stories" could collect spiritual power.
That was another important reason he had abandoned those otherworld-style novels.
Not only had they failed to fit the local tastes and attracted no readers, but they also did absolutely nothing to improve his strength. They were a complete waste of time, with nothing to show for the effort.
"Little Future, I'm counting down from three! Three!"
Kyunnan Shiro's "energetic" shout pierced the door again.
"Idiot, stop shouting in the courtyard." Another voice rang out, deeper and tinged with exasperation. It belonged to Captain Kensei Muguruma.
Yan Si screamed inwardly, Captain! My dear brother! My savior! Hurry up and rein in your lieutenant!
"Two!" Kyunnan Shiro completely ignored his captain's warning.
"Enough fooling around," Kensei Muguruma scolded. "If you actually damage the Squad Barracks, the repair costs are coming out of your pay."
"One!" After shouting the final number, Kyunnan Shiro paused, then replied with perfect confidence, "Go ahead and deduct it! You pay whenever we go out anyway!"
"No way!" This time, Kensei Muguruma's objection came swiftly and firmly.
"I just bought the latest spiritual-power-assisted exercise equipment recommended by the Twelfth Division this month. My entire budget's gone. I don't have any money left!"
He delivered this declaration with absolute conviction.
"Then use the division's reserve funds!" Kyunnan Shiro's voice rose sharply. At the same time, a distinct fluctuation of gathering Reiatsu came from outside the door, accompanied by a faint hum in the air. "Kyunnan Shiro, charging up..."
"Idiot! Don't do anything stupid!" Kensei Muguruma sounded a little frantic now.
Bang!
Siwei Yan flung his door open from inside!
He practically shot out, clutching the sheet of paper with its still-wet ink. His chest rose and fell slightly as he forced a radiant smile onto his face.
"Captain! Lieutenant! Good afternoon! What a coincidence—I just finished!" He held up the paper.
In the courtyard, Kyunnan Shiro stood with one hand clenched into a fist, a faint white glow of Reiatsu gathering around it.
He really had been charging up to smash the door!
Seeing Yan Si emerge, he huffed, and the white light around his fist slowly faded.
He strode up to Yan Si and held out a small hand, his tone brooking no argument. "Give it to me!"
Yan Si hurriedly handed over the manuscript.
Kyunnan Shiro took it and glanced down. He had probably read only the first two or three lines before his lips curled into a dissatisfied pout.
"Little Future, how can you be this short!"
The smile on Siwei Yan's face froze instantly. Then his entire face flushed red at a speed visible to the naked eye.
His eyes widened, and his voice rose into a strained pitch.
"What do you mean, Little Future is this short! Little Future isn't... Pah!
"I mean the manuscript! This is a poem summarizing Hell Girl!
"It's a proper finale with profound meaning! It's the essence! The best things come in small packages, understand!"
He explained in a flustered jumble, nearly tripping himself up.
"Really?" Only then did Kyunnan Shiro raise the manuscript before his eyes and begin reading seriously.
On the paper was written:
The Other Shore
Part one: Contract
Within my eyes
A river sleeps
Its hatred flowing without end
Whenever you cast in a straw doll
Upon the river blooms
A flower that will never bear fruit
There were several more passages after that. Though the handwriting was hurried, it carried a sense of loneliness and unwavering resolve.
Kyunnan Shiro read silently, on and on. For a while, the only sound in the courtyard was the rustling of leaves in the wind.
Suddenly, without warning, great drops of tears spilled from his eyes and tumbled down his cheeks.
He raised his head, his eyes and the tip of his nose red, and shouted at Siwei Yan in a tearful voice, "Little Future, you big idiot!"
Then, clutching the manuscript, he turned and ran straight into his room, slamming the door shut with a bang.
Siwei Yan and Kensei Muguruma were left standing in the courtyard, staring at each other.
An expression of utter incomprehension appeared on Kensei Muguruma's face.
He scratched his short silver hair and muttered, "What's there to cry about?"
As far as he could see, the poem was quite... well, quite literary?
But it was just a few sentences strung together. What part of it was supposed to make anyone cry?
He was finding his lieutenant's thought process increasingly impossible to understand.
Siwei Yan looked at Kyunnan Shiro's tightly shut door and quietly breathed a sigh of relief. He had finally managed to bluff his way through.
Turning back, he put on another smile, this one carrying a touch of refined melancholy, and said to Kensei Muguruma:
"Captain, Lieutenant Kyunnan Shiro is a very sensitive person with deep feelings. Aren't you going to go in and comfort him?"
His tone was sincere, his eyes full of "concern."
At those words, Kensei Muguruma immediately straightened his face, resumed his stern, upright captain's demeanor, and cleared his throat.
"Hmph. He's wasted so much time chasing you for this manuscript when he should have been training. Now that the matter is settled, it's time he got back to working out."
He turned toward Yan Si and began lecturing him earnestly.
"Yan Si, writing may be your specialty, and it's one way of contributing to the division, but as a Shinigami—especially a Seat Officer of the Ninth Division—you absolutely cannot neglect your own training! Understood?"
"Yes, yes, yes. You're right, Captain. I'll be sure to pay attention and train harder."
Siwei Yan nodded vigorously, the smile on his face flawless.
Tch. You only put on this act in front of other people, Yan Si grumbled inwardly.
Who was it that let his lieutenant drag him off on an 'outing' and dumped something as important as recruitment on me, a mere Fifth Seat...?
Just as Yan Si's mind busied itself with complaints while he outwardly listened with respect—
"Ha ha ha! If you want to train, you're welcome to come spar with our Eleventh Division anytime!"
A loud, hearty laugh, brimming with vigor, suddenly came from the entrance to the Squad Barracks.
Siwei Yan instinctively turned toward the sound.
Three people had appeared at the courtyard gate without him noticing.
The man at the front was tall and wore a White Captain's Haori with a conspicuous "eleven" on its back. His broad grin radiated warmth. He was Kurayashiki Kenpachi, captain of the Eleventh Division.
Beside him stood his silent, stern lieutenant, Ashido.
And half a step behind Kurayashiki Kenpachi stood a woman in a spotless white Captain's Haori, her long black hair braided, a faint, gentle smile on her face.
The instant Siwei Yan's gaze met those slightly curved eyes, smiling as they looked at him—
Something exploded in his head.
It's over. I'm dead.
I haven't even started spending the booze money I worked so hard to earn!
Before you continue