Poaching Yoruichi's People

There were many things only Natsuki, a time traveler, knew.

He hadn't told Yoruichi how powerful the enemies she would face in the future were.

For now, Yoruichi wasn't even a captain, let alone the head of the Shihoin family. Even if he told her about those things, she probably wouldn't believe him. She would only believe what Natsuki said after experiencing some of it herself.

As for Natsuki, getting stronger was the most important thing for him right now.

Killing Kiganjo and becoming Kenpachi had certainly propelled him to the top of the Gotei 13 and made him a captain.

But as a Shinigami, Natsuki hadn't actually reached his limits.

He still had plenty of room to improve.

At least, that was what he believed.

The four basic Shinigami abilities—Zanjutsu, Hakuda, Hoho, and Kido—could all be improved.

Besides that, using his Zanpakuto's passive ability to strengthen his spiritual power was another avenue for growth.

Speaking of Zanpakuto, perhaps it was time to start learning Bankai.

The position of Kenpachi was certainly special. There was no requirement that a Kenpachi had to master Bankai; defeating the previous Kenpachi was enough to claim the title. The original Kenpachi, Zaraki Kenpachi, had become Kenpachi without mastering even Shikai, let alone Bankai.

But Natsuki wasn't about to give up on learning Bankai just because of Zaraki Kenpachi's example.

Zaraki Kenpachi was a special case.

Bankai was the most powerful weapon in the arsenal of most captains.

He might not need to use it, but he absolutely had to learn it.

After his sparring session with Yoruichi, Natsuki suddenly turned to Urahara Kisuke, who had been watching from the sidelines. "Kisuke, I heard Yoruichi say you wanted to develop a tool that could help someone learn Bankai quickly. Have you finished making it?"

Yoruichi had introduced Natsuki to Urahara Kisuke.

Perhaps because she wanted Natsuki to know more about Kisuke, Yoruichi had told him quite a bit about him, particularly about his many inventions.

Urahara Kisuke hadn't expected Natsuki to ask him that. He paused, then replied, "I've worked out the general idea, but I'm not sure yet whether I can actually make it."

"Then keep at it."

Natsuki offered Kisuke some encouragement, but didn't insist that he would definitely succeed. He even knew that the device Kisuke would make was called the Tenshintai. Kisuke and Kurosaki Ichigo would use it to learn Bankai in an extremely short time. Although this method of learning Bankai was risky, it offered great rewards, since learning Bankai by the normal method took a long time.

Urahara Kisuke nodded. Although he'd said he wasn't sure he could make it, he already had the idea worked out. He only needed to finish a few final steps before the device would be complete.

Looking at Urahara Kisuke in front of him, Natsuki suddenly had another idea.

"Kisuke, have you ever thought of transferring to another Division?"

Urahara Kisuke looked at Natsuki in confusion. Natsuki explained, "Here's the situation. My 11th Division is short a lieutenant, and there's no one suitable for the position among the Division's current members. I think you'd be a great fit, Kisuke. You're strong and clever. How about joining the 11th Division and helping me out?"

"In the 2nd Division, you're just a Seated Officer at best. But things are different in the 11th. You could become lieutenant as soon as you joined. If you master Bankai in the future, I can recommend you for the captain's assessment. Take one more step, and becoming a captain wouldn't be out of the question."

Before Urahara Kisuke could answer, Yoruichi appeared beside Natsuki in a flash and rested a hand on his shoulder. "Hey, Natsuki, you're going too far. Kisuke belongs to our 2nd Division. Don't even think about poaching him."

Natsuki turned his head and looked down into Yoruichi's golden eyes, smiling. "I've been short-handed lately, so I thought I'd invite Kisuke to the 11th Division to give me a hand."

"You have no idea what a bunch of brawlers the 11th Division is. Most of them can't even read. They're fine when it comes to fighting, but picking someone among them who can help me manage Division affairs is next to impossible."

"I can handle the paperwork myself, but if I waste all my time on meaningless things like that, it'll seriously cut into my training." Natsuki was blunt. He didn't hide the fact that Division business was getting in the way of his training.

He didn't say that he regretted becoming Kenpachi.

After all, he'd already said that killing Kiganjo had been his own choice.

"You really care about getting stronger, don't you?" Yoruichi exclaimed.

She'd said something similar before, and now she was saying it again.

"Maybe it's because I'm a Shinigami who returned to the Soul Society from Hueco Mundo. I've experienced what it's like there, so I take strength seriously too."

Natsuki sighed as well.

"Hueco Mundo? I've heard the environment there is awful."

Yoruichi wasn't unfamiliar with Hollows. They often crossed over into the Soul Society, but she'd never been to Hueco Mundo. What she knew about it came from books and records.

"It's a world where night never ends. The entire place is desert, with barren hills and no sign of life. Even in the outer regions, Hollows appear far more often than in the Soul Society. To be honest, staying in a world like that for too long is oppressive and miserable."

"And fighting Hollows is dangerous in its own right."

"I wasn't with the Expeditionary Force for long, only a few years, but during that time I often saw its members die in battle. If they were lucky, some of their bodies were left behind. If they weren't, not even their bodies remained—only scraps of clothing to show they'd ever existed."

There was no sadness in Natsuki's words, but after considering the world he described, Yoruichi could understand why he was so determined to grow stronger.

Only by becoming stronger could someone survive better in this dangerous world.

As Yoruichi's thoughts turned, a smile reappeared on Natsuki's face.

"So, Yoruichi, are you really not going to consider sending Kisuke over to me?"

"I feel like he doesn't have much room to advance in the 2nd Division!"

Yoruichi didn't even pause to think before rejecting Natsuki outright. "You do sound rather pitiful, having to handle Division business while keeping up with your training, but I'm sorry—I still won't give Kisuke up to you."