Quincy in the Living World

Aside from Yumichika and Isshin Shiba, who came to see Aoto for official business, the majority of those who visited afterward were simply looking to curry favor with him before he officially took office as captain.

Though it was a bit late, it was still better than not coming at all.

A significant portion of these people were lower-ranking nobles who had previously been under the protection of Captain Ukitake.

Although Aoto was not a noble himself, they were very anxious to ensure that their respective family interests would not suffer too much loss once Captain Hyakume took office.

Of course, if Aoto wished to become a noble, many of them were willing to offer their daughters in marriage.

More than one was acceptable, too. Though, the reputation might not be the best.

But since Aoto hadn't even agreed to the Shiba House, how could he possibly agree to them?

Aoto simply told them that as long as they hadn't done anything wrong, they wouldn't be significantly affected.

After all, his position was passed down through Captain Ukitake's voluntary abdication, which carried a certain weight of legacy.

However, the 13th Division had been expanding, and there had been some changes to their operations in the World of the Living; Aoto could not guarantee that their interests would remain untouched.

But this promise was enough for them; they all pledged that they would cooperate with Captain Hyakume even more than they had when Captain Ukitake was in charge—no, that wasn't right—they would cooperate even better than before.

Aoto nodded in thanks and personally saw each of them to the door.

Of course, such verbal assurances were only worth listening to. The key was to see how they acted afterward.

Otherwise, with the changing of the guard, no one would be able to hold Aoto accountable for any changes he might make.

However, after sending them off, Aoto headed out as well.

He went to Captain Ukitake's residence again.

Wait, no—it was Blue Oni who had come last time; this was Aoto's first time visiting.

"I'm surprised you have the time to come here! I heard your doorstep was about to be trampled flat by all those visitors!"

Perhaps because he had decided to set down the heavy burden of being a captain, Captain Ukitake looked much better than he had before.

"That's exactly why I came to the captain's house to hide!" Aoto laughed. "I'm also here to learn about the various internal affairs of the 13th Division from you. Things have changed quite a bit since I was last in the 13th Division!"

Fifty years ago, before he went to the 11th Division, Aoto had reached the rank of 8th Seat in the 13th Division.

Although the credit for saving a large number of our Shinigami with his Bankai, Garaku Kairo, had been suppressed, his later assignment as 4th Seat of the 11th Division was certainly related to it.

In fifty years, even the Seireitei would undergo many changes.

"Actually, there haven't been that many changes," to Jushiro Ukitake, fifty years had passed in the blink of an eye. "It's just that the changes I made specifically to clear the way for Kaien are now benefiting you."

Well, that is certainly appreciated!

With no outsiders present, Aoto didn't need to put on a special expression when mentioning Kaien.

However, as Aoto listened to Captain Ukitake talk about the changes over the last fifty years, he still had to take out a notebook to record them.

And he called this "not that many"?

This was far more complicated than the affairs of the 11th Division!

World of the Living.

In just a few short days, Shiba Kaien had found translation work.

Because it involved important foreign trade orders, Kaien received a generous reward after successfully completing the job.

It was so much that Kaien couldn't help but sigh that he truly didn't understand the World of the Living as well as Aoto did.

However, after taking on a few more jobs, Kaien realized what Aoto meant by "scammers."

They were scammers in the literal sense of the word.

There were even people who wanted to team up with him to commit fraud.

They were all wretches who deserved to fall into Hell...

At the same time, Kaien also spotted a Hollow in the World of the Living.

But because there weren't many division members nearby, no Shinigami arrived immediately.

Just as Kaien couldn't resist stepping in, a spirit light arrow suddenly fired from somewhere far away, pinning the Hollow to the ground.

This is... a Quincy?

Kaien had, of course, participated in the war against the Quincy in the World of the Living a century ago, so he naturally recognized this method of attack.

Although he had been a 3rd Seat rather than a lieutenant at the time, he had still been one of the commanders.

In that war, where both sides believed themselves to be righteous, the Shinigami had emerged victorious, but the situation had been incredibly tragic.

Many of Kaien's colleagues were killed by the Quincy, and of course, many Quincy had died by his hand.

Kaien instinctively reached out to summon Nejibana, but suddenly remembered that he was no longer just a Shinigami.

Moreover, the war with the Quincy had ended a hundred years ago; all the hardliners had been purged, leaving only a small number who had agreed to the Shinigami's terms, effectively achieving the goal of "extinguishing the Quincy."

Looking at this attack, it was clear that if that Quincy had wanted to, they could have easily killed the Hollow with a single arrow.

But they chose to pin the Hollow to the ground to keep it from hurting anyone, so that when the Shinigami arrived, they could easily "purify" it with their Zanpakuto!

The reason the Quincy were wiped out by the Shinigami was that they completely annihilated Hollows, causing a decrease in the souls that should have entered the reishi cycle.

The Quincy who still exist today seem to have truly changed their philosophy; even when they defeat a Hollow, they leave the final blow to the Shinigami.

Although Kaien still harbored hatred for the Quincy in his heart, he found himself unable to feel hostility toward a Quincy like this.

However, just as Kaien was pondering for a moment and about to leave, a middle-aged man dressed in distinct Quincy attire appeared before him.

Ishida Sogen had rushed over after sensing the power of a Shinigami.

Yet, upon his arrival, he only saw a young man in a suit who possessed not a shred of spiritual power, nor did his spiritual pathways show the red hue belonging to a Shinigami.

Did he find the wrong person?

Ishida Sogen was puzzled.

As for Kaien, he didn't even glance at the strangely dressed Ishida Sogen; instead, he checked his watch and sprinted off in a certain direction while shouting.

He didn't do this because he hated the Quincy, but because he knew that the Seireitei was surely keeping such a Quincy under constant surveillance.

Perhaps even now, someone from the Twelfth Division was watching every move that Quincy made.

Although the features of Kaien's current Gigai had been slightly adjusted by Aoto so that he didn't look exactly like himself, he couldn't risk the chance that someone in the Twelfth Division might recognize him based on the smallest of clues.

Especially since the captain of the Twelfth Division was that freak, Kurotsuchi Mayuri.

Kaien didn't like Kurotsuchi Mayuri at all. Urahara Kisuke, who came before him, was already strange enough, but his successor, Kurotsuchi Mayuri, was even stranger.

Yet, even so, Kaien had to admit that Kurotsuchi Mayuri was the Shinigami who most thoroughly carried out the responsibilities of the Gotei 13.

Even if his methods were completely at odds with Kaien's own!