Yoruichi and Kisuke, The War's End!

The story of how Natsuki and Shihoin Yoruichi met was not particularly convoluted.

It stemmed from a time Natsuki was training alone.

Having participated in the war in the Human World, he had made significant progress. Through life-and-death struggles against the Quincy, whose combat style was vastly different from that of Hollows, he had thoroughly mastered the swordsmanship techniques taught to him by Unohana Retsu.

By relying solely on his swordsmanship, Natsuki could already be considered a powerhouse.

Yet, he felt it was still not enough.

Beyond their Zanpakuto, Shinigamis possessed four fundamental abilities.

These were Swordsmanship, Hakuda, Shunpo, and Ghost Way. His swordsmanship had already reached a refined level, and thanks to the immense talent granted by his Zanpakuto, his proficiency in Ghost Way was also impressive—he had even mastered the highly unique Kaidō.

Hakuda, much like swordsmanship, required time and real combat experience to hone, making it difficult to see gains in the short term. Only Shunpo was different; the next area Natsuki needed to improve was his mastery of this technique.

During the battles in the Human World, countless Shinigamis had fallen because their Shunpo was disrupted by the Quincy, leaving them unable to dodge the Spirit Particle Arrows and resulting in their deaths.

Natsuki had personally experienced the troublesome nature of that Quincy ability several times.

Do not be fooled by the fact that the Shinigamis currently seemed to have the upper hand against the Quincy.

That was merely a facade; the truly powerful Quincy were still lying in wait.

Natsuki had not forgotten about Yhwach and the Wandenreich Sternritter under his command.

Even though, due to the passage of time and the sheer complexity of the Sternritter members' abilities, he could not recall every individual or their specific powers.

He knew, however, that the Quincy were undeniably a formidable threat.

The Zanpakuto, unique to Shinigamis, might not be enough to deal with the Quincy; only by achieving all-around strength could he hope to have a better chance of victory when facing them.

Although the Quincy possessed abilities that could suppress Shunpo.

That was only because the Shinigamis' Shunpo was not fast enough.

As long as one was fast enough, that suppression could still be ignored.

After all, the Quincy's manipulation of spirit particles was not instantaneous; it required time.

If one could move directly in front of a Quincy during that brief window and deliver a fatal blow, the battle could be resolved.

These were all personal insights Natsuki had gained from his combat in the Human World.

While this war could hardly be called a righteous one, it had certainly provided him with a deep understanding of the Quincy.

Thanks to this, upon returning to the Soul Society, Natsuki began training his Shunpo.

While the 11th Division's training grounds were fine for practicing swordsmanship and Hakuda, they were a bit small for Shunpo, so Natsuki specifically sought out an uninhabited area to train. When it came to deserted regions, the best place was naturally the Rukon District.

Near the residential areas of the Rukon District, there were vast stretches of empty wilderness.

While Natsuki was learning Shunpo there, he happened to run into Shihoin Yoruichi, who was returning from a mission. The Shihoin Clan were masters of Shunpo and Hakuda; their successive heads had always strived to innovate these techniques, creating many secret arts unique to the Shihoin family.

Upon discovering Natsuki practicing Shunpo in the Rukon District, Yoruichi immediately became interested. Being a naturally outgoing person, she took the initiative to greet him, and after a few exchanges, the two became acquainted.

After all, both were lieutenant captains of the Gotei 13.

They hadn't had much contact before, but after a brief interaction, they could be considered friends.

Yoruichi learned much about the war in the Human World from Natsuki.

In turn, Natsuki received quite a few pointers from Yoruichi.

Afterward, following her advice, he began practicing Shunpo in the woods.

"Looks like you've practiced enough. How about a spar?"

Yoruichi was very direct as she spoke to Natsuki.

Natsuki nodded.

And so, the two of them began to test their Shunpo against each other right there in the woods.

The final result was a victory for Yoruichi.

Among the many Shinigamis in the original story, Yoruichi was a standout in Shunpo, earning her the title of Flash Goddess. Although Natsuki had some proficiency in it, he was still far behind a master like Yoruichi, who had been training in Shunpo since childhood.

"Do you want to spar in Hakuda?"

Having conceded defeat in the Shunpo match, Natsuki asked Yoruichi.

Having grown familiar with her, besides the occasional Shunpo sparring, he would also practice with her in Hakuda.

After all, the 11th Division was a combat unit, and Natsuki was naturally a formidable fighter to be able to serve as its lieutenant captain.

Yoruichi was never one to pass up a chance to spar with such a strong opponent.

"Forget it."

Yoruichi shook her head, declining Natsuki's suggestion.

"Today, I'm taking you to meet a new friend."

A strange smile appeared on the corner of her mouth as she spoke to Natsuki.

"A new friend?" Natsuki felt a bit curious upon hearing this.

Yoruichi used Shunpo to lead the way, and Natsuki followed closely behind her. Soon, under her guidance, he arrived at a secret base not far from there to meet this new friend.

The man wore a black Shihakusho, his short, light-yellow hair slightly spiked, and his eyes a military green. He had a habit of keeping his head bowed, and an aura of "gloom" clung to him, making him appear somewhat lacking in self-confidence.

As expected!

Upon seeing this figure, such a thought could not help but arise in Natsuki's heart.

Yoruichi and Urahara Kisuke shared a profound bond; the two were childhood friends who had trained and grown up together since they were very young. It could be said that Urahara Kisuke was Yoruichi's best friend. When Yoruichi suggested introducing him to a new friend, this was the first person who came to Natsuki's mind.

"Kisuke, let me introduce you. This is the Lieutenant of the 11th Division, Natsuki. He's a friend I've recently made. Natsuki is quite strong; I've sparred with him quite a bit lately and gained a lot from it."

"I figured since you were training here anyway, I'd introduce you two."

Yoruichi spoke to Urahara Kisuke first.

Then, she turned her head to introduce Urahara Kisuke to Natsuki.

And just like that, Natsuki and Urahara Kisuke were acquainted.

After the introductions, Yoruichi began to show Natsuki around this special training base.

Located beneath Sokyoku Hill, it was a place she and Urahara Kisuke had carved out together during their youth.

It was extremely well-hidden. In the past, they had used this spot to practice hand-to-hand combat and Zanjutsu, while she had chosen the forest for practicing Shunpo.

Natsuki listened quietly to Yoruichi's explanation, while in his mind, he thought of the place where Kurosaki Ichigo would eventually practice his Bankai.

This had to be the place.

Situated beneath Sokyoku Hill, once Kurosaki Ichigo successfully mastered his Bankai here, he could head directly up to the hill to rescue Kuchiki Rukia, saving a significant amount of time.

Getting to know Urahara Kisuke and Yoruichi gave Natsuki a few more friends in Soul Society, adding a touch of fresh enjoyment to his otherwise calm life, though that was about all it amounted to.

As time flowed on.

The war between the Shinigamis and the Quincy quietly drew to a close.

It was not because the Quincy had been completely exterminated or that the Shinigamis had achieved their goal.

Rather, it was due to the intervention of a higher power that brought the war to an abrupt halt.

Within Soul Society, the Central 46 was the highest judicial body. While there were entities with status higher than the Central 46—such as the Five Great Noble Families—who could influence the decisions of the Central 46 if they so chose, they generally refrained from doing so, as it would severely disrupt the order of Soul Society and render the rule of law non-existent.

Even though there were many sordid activities among the nobility, where they ignored the laws of Soul Society and acted lawlessly, those things were always done in the shadows; bringing them into the light was an entirely different matter.

The primary reason for the end of this war stemmed from one source: the Soul King.

Where did the Soul King hide? Where did the royal family reside?

For ordinary Shinigamis, this was a secret.

Even the captains of the Gotei 13 did not necessarily know these secrets.

But the Soul King did indeed exist.

The Five Great Noble Families were subordinates of the Soul King, with the other noble houses ranked beneath them, and the Gotei 13 was governed by the Central 46, which was composed of nobles. Naturally, the Soul King was the supreme existence of Soul Society.

Facing the will of the Soul King, no one could defy it.

When the Soul King proactively conveyed his will to stop the Shinigamis from exterminating the Quincy, the war could only end in this manner.

Although they failed to completely wipe out all the Quincy.

It was a fact that during the years of continuous warfare, the Quincy's vital strength had been essentially annihilated, turning them into a rare species.

Faced with the "mercy" of the Shinigamis.

The remaining Quincy were forced to "sign" a series of treaties. Beyond being required to assist Soul Society in dealing with Hollows when necessary, they were also forced to live under the surveillance of Soul Society.

Such conditions were, naturally, highly unfair.

But the Quincy had no other choice.

The deaths of so many Quincy had already proven that when facing the Shinigamis, they had no power to resist.

To continue their desperate struggle would only lead to death and the total extinction of their race.

And so, the war ended.

Natsuki no longer needed to head to the Human World to fight.

After the war, the 11th Division finally had a chance to rest and recuperate.

Natsuki cherished this time as well.

Aside from training with his new friends, Yoruichi and Urahara Kisuke, he did not shy away from combat; whenever a Hollow appeared in the Rukon District, he was always among the first to rush in and engage it.

Until this day.

While Natsuki was battling a Hollow in the Rukon District.

An outsider arrived at the 11th Division, specifically demanding to challenge Kenpachi Gosu.

This event caused quite a sensation.