Time passed.
In the blink of an eye, another half month went by.
One day, Watanabe Yuji sought out Natsuki.
"You've completely adapted to the pace of the 11th Division and fit right in. I don't need to worry about you anymore."
"Are you leaving?" Natsuki seemed to know why Watanabe Yuji had come and asked him.
"Yes." Watanabe Yuji nodded. "I came back to find out how the Gotei 13 was doing, and I'm glad to see that so many people I know are still alive. Now, it's time for me to return to the Expeditionary Force."
"Ashido is strong, but he's only just gone to Hueco Mundo and doesn't know the situation there. How could I, the captain of the Expeditionary Force, stand by and do nothing at a time like this?"
Natsuki fell silent, listening quietly as Watanabe Yuji spoke.
He'd known all along that Watanabe Yuji would return to the Expeditionary Force.
On this trip back, Watanabe Yuji had brought back several Soul Reapers whose terms of atonement had ended. He'd also secured a proper place for Natsuki, a Soul Reaper who had come up through no formal channels. Now that he'd accomplished both things, it was time for Watanabe Yuji to return.
"Let me come back with you."
After thinking it over for a while, Natsuki said to Watanabe Yuji.
Watanabe Yuji paused, then looked at Natsuki and smiled. "I appreciate the offer. I know you're worried about me. Hueco Mundo is in a complicated state right now, but don't worry. I spent decades in Hueco Mundo, and I wasn't just drifting through. If I run into an opponent I can't beat, can't I just run away?"
"I'm not confident in my other abilities, but I'm quite confident in my Shunpo."
Of the four disciplines—Zanjutsu, Hakuda, Shunpo, and Kido—Watanabe Yuji was strongest in Shunpo. Of course, he was no slouch in the others, either. He was an extremely rare, well-rounded Soul Reaper, proficient in all four disciplines; otherwise, he couldn't have taught Natsuki.
Natsuki had learned a great deal from Watanabe Yuji, so of course he knew all this.
Watanabe Yuji continued, "You should stay in the Soul Society. You'll grow more in the Gotei 13 than you would in the Expeditionary Force. You're the most talented Soul Reaper I've ever met. You went from knowing nothing to becoming someone who can be called strong."
Natsuki still didn't say anything.
Watanabe Yuji added, "I want to see you become a captain—and become Kenpachi!"
"Until that day comes, I'm not going to die!"
He was simply expressing his hopes and trying to reassure Natsuki. After all, Kuruyashiki Kenpachi was the strongest Kenpachi of all. Even if Natsuki had exceptional talent and might one day learn Bankai and become a captain, becoming Kenpachi was still a far-fetched dream.
Natsuki understood what Watanabe Yuji meant, but he didn't point it out. Instead, he felt a surge of confidence and said, "Then you'd better wait for that day."
In the end, Watanabe Yuji left.
Just as he'd slipped back into the Soul Society, his departure caused little commotion.
Hueco Mundo was in a special situation. Before Natsuki came to the Soul Society, Menos Grandes had been appearing frequently in Hueco Mundo's outer reaches. That was what had led Ashido to take a new Expeditionary Force there to provide support. Under the circumstances, how could Watanabe Yuji, the former captain of the Expeditionary Force, choose to run away and stay comfortably in the Soul Society?
He was a man who yearned for battle and enjoyed it.
Of course, he also knew the fate that battle could bring.
That was why he'd never married and lived alone.
He wanted to be free of attachments, so that even if he died, he wouldn't have too many regrets.
At least, that had been true in the past. Now, perhaps because he'd found Natsuki in Hueco Mundo, he'd devoted himself to teaching him and come to regard him as his student. That was why, before leaving, he'd made a point of seeking Natsuki out to say goodbye.
Natsuki wasn't a child. Before being transported to this world, he'd been an adult. Perhaps even the combined length of his two lifetimes didn't match the time any ordinary Soul Reaper had lived, but he still understood some of what Watanabe Yuji had meant.
He didn't say much.
He calmly accepted the fact that Watanabe Yuji was leaving the Soul Society and returning to the Expeditionary Force.
Afterward, Natsuki continued working to adapt to life in the Seireitei.
Life in the 11th Division was monotonous.
Apart from fighting, sparring with his comrades, and honing their skills, they spent most of their time at drinking parties.
At first, Natsuki had thought Watanabe Yuji was an exception. But as he spent more time with the others, he realized that every member here was just like Watanabe Yuji: they yearned for battle and feared no death. To avoid dying with regrets, most chose to live alone. In that kind of life, "drink today, for tomorrow we may die" became their favorite way to spend their time. Some of them didn't actually like drinking; years of living in that environment had simply made alcohol the only way to enjoy a brief moment of pleasure and forget their loneliness.
Even so, Natsuki still didn't like drinking.
At every drinking party, he stayed in a corner with a tiny cup, taking only a few sips.
Of course, plenty of 11th Division members had mocked him for it, but Natsuki didn't mind.
One day.
A massive Garganta split open in the outskirts of Rukongai.
As soon as the Garganta appeared,
the Seireitei Research Institute, under the 12th Division, detected it and issued a warning.
The warning was relayed several times, eventually making its way from the 1st Division to the 11th Division.
"Everyone, a group of Hollows has appeared in Rukongai. It's time for us to move out."
In the 11th Division Barracks, Kuruyashiki Kenpachi shouted to the many members gathered before him.
The members' fighting spirit erupted at once.
"Hundred Victories!"
"Hundred Victories!"
Before every battle against invading Menos Grandes, the 11th Division held a corresponding departure ceremony. After all, even with Kuruyashiki Kenpachi leading them in person, no one could say how the battle would go. Some comrades might well fall. Under Kuruyashiki Kenpachi's influence, every member treated each fight as if it might be their last, while hoping for another victory.
Natsuki blended into the crowd.
It was worth mentioning that he had now become a Seated Officer.
He hadn't been in the 11th Division for long, but he was strong.
Back in Hueco Mundo, he'd been able to kill Gillian with ease using an Asauchi.
The 11th Division was a place where strength ruled. When Natsuki sparred with the members in his free time and defeated one of the Seated Officers, he somehow ended up as the new Seated Officer.
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