Of course, Rangiku Matsumoto and Aoto did share a common goal.
She had her eye on Shiro, too, and thought he'd make a fine addition to the 10th Division someday.
The 10th Division was the patrol and security force. It was responsible for keeping the peace in Seireitei, handling emergencies, and sending out urgent messages.
That was why Rangiku Matsumoto was so skilled in high-level Bakudō like Tenteikūra and Beak-Clutching Sparrow. She could even combine them to relay important messages quickly.
But when there wasn't much to do, the 10th Division was also the most laid-back squad around.
As a result, graduates with even a little ambition wouldn't choose the 10th Division.
Rangiku Matsumoto cared deeply about the 10th Division, and it pained her to see that!
But there was no point in worrying by herself. Even Isshin Shiba, the current captain of the 10th Division, was so unreliable that she could only pin her hopes on the next generation.
Rangiku Matsumoto thought Shiro would be a good fit.
Once she became captain, she could order him around to her heart's content!
But just as her plan was getting started, a huge obstacle appeared.
This Fourth Seat from the 11th Division... How was she supposed to talk him into leaving?
"Forget it!" Aoto could guess what Rangiku Matsumoto was thinking. "You can't offer Shiro the terms I can!"
"That's not necessarily true!" Rangiku Matsumoto protested.
"I can have him join the 11th Division right away, and he can go on missions often enough to visit his grandma. Can you do that?"
Aoto's words left Rangiku Matsumoto speechless.
She really couldn't.
Having won the argument, Aoto grinned at her and sauntered off toward Seireitei.
Time to head back!
If he made Ikkaku or Yumichika write the report, the Captain-Commander's reprimand would come right back to him!
Watching Aoto swagger away, Rangiku Matsumoto gritted her teeth.
What an infuriating guy!
Seireitei, 11th Division, training ground.
The 11th Division's squad members were sparring there.
A huge slogan on the training-ground wall read, "Shed more blood in training, lose fewer lives in battle." It inspired the squad members to go easy on their comrades... and keep hitting them hard.
The 4th Division's barracks were right next door, after all, and the only two areas were separated by a thick wall. That wall had been smashed during a clash between the Third Seat and Fourth Seat and still hadn't been repaired.
That meant that even when the 11th Division had injured squad members, they could send them straight to the 4th Division without leaving their barracks.
But when the bell rang on the training ground, every squad member sheathed their Zanpakuto, then somehow produced a food tray and charged toward the cafeteria.
Everyone raced to claim the very first spot... Maybe that was how they'd trained their Flash Step.
Yet despite all the chaos, when they reached the cafeteria, they obediently formed a line.
When the cafeteria doors finally opened, Aoto's head appeared at the serving window. "Not bad. No one cut the line this time! All right, chow time!"
"Yeah!"
The squad members cheered.
Dressed like a chef, Aoto watched the cafeteria staff dish out food without so much as a tremble in their hands. Satisfied, he headed off to the Officers' Cafeteria next door.
That was what Aoto's cafeteria duties meant... He was still the head chef.
He'd cooked all this food by himself.
By then, Madarame Ikkaku and Ayasegawa Yumichika had already started eating in the Officers' Cafeteria.
It had opened ten minutes earlier, and officers could take as much as they wanted... There was only so much food to go around anyway, so no one worried that another officer would go hungry or draw a blade over it. They could help themselves.
"You really love being the head chef, don't you?" Madarame Ikkaku said, taking one look at Aoto's outfit and mercilessly mocking him.
He said that all the time, and Aoto had put up with it almost every time.
But today, he didn't have to.
"What, you don't like my cooking anymore?" Aoto raised an eyebrow, then called out over Madarame's shoulder. "Vice-Captain, Madarame says I should stop cooking from now on!"
Kusajishi Yachiru had just trotted in, looking adorable, when she heard Aoto. Without pausing for even a second, she vanished from where she stood and reappeared behind Madarame Ikkaku. She opened her little mouth and bit straight into his bald head.
Madarame Ikkaku immediately gave in!
"I surrender, I surrender, I surrender! Vice-Captain, I surrender!"
Even when facing the captain, Madarame Ikkaku had never surrendered so quickly.
It was safe to say that Vice-Captain Yachiru Kusajishi was Madarame Ikkaku's natural nemesis.
"Hee-hee!" Yachiru Kusajishi let go, then hopped onto Aoto's shoulder. "Nobody can stop Aoto from cooking!"
Feeling not the slightest weight on his shoulder, Aoto gave Yachiru Kusajishi a sincere smile. "Vice-Captain, your special meal is ready. I'll bring it over right away!"
Yachiru Kusajishi was even happier!
Madarame Ikkaku clutched his bleeding head and glared at Aoto. But with the vice-captain still there, he didn't dare say any of the choice words on the tip of his tongue.
Aoto had finally gotten his revenge!
Just as Aoto set down the children's omurice he'd prepared for Yachiru Kusajishi, and she happily ate with rice all over her face, the 11th Division captain, Zaraki Kenpachi, walked in.
It was practically a tradition for him to get lost and show up late.
Though Zaraki Kenpachi sometimes held things up, every officer agreed that when it came to mealtimes, the later the captain arrived, the better.
After all, once he showed up, he'd clear out whatever food was left in the Officers' Cafeteria.
Any officer who arrived late and didn't want to go hungry had to eat with the squad members instead.
But that would be so embarrassing!
Each division had twenty officer ranks, but not every officer could master Shikai.
In the 11th Division, only those up to the 16th Seat had learned Shikai. That was already more than in any division other than the First Division.
Their ranks were fixed, but the last four officers could be replaced if another squad member challenged and defeated them.
Maybe other divisions didn't work that way, but the 11th Division did.
Once they became officers, they could eat quietly in the Officers' Cafeteria instead of fighting over food like everyone outside.
That was why the occupants of the 17th through 20th Seats were always changing.
Still, Aoto hoped to see all twenty officers master Shikai, along with many of the squad members... Then would someone dare challenge one of the top five seats?
Take Zaraki Kenpachi, for example. He'd been a resident of Rukongai, but after cutting down the previous captain, he'd risen straight to captain and inherited the title of Kenpachi.
But the other officer ranks didn't involve fighting to the death.
If anyone dared challenge the captain's position, they'd have to fight to the death.
But surely that wouldn't happen, right?
If there really were that many squad members who could use Shikai, they'd certainly be distributed among the other divisions!
Although none of those divisions had a master chef like Aoto!
After all, Aoto had learned his cooking skills from Kirio Hikifune, the captain of the Twelfth Division back when he served there.
He didn't use Mod Souls to cook, just the most basic Reishi, but the food still helped strengthen those who ate it.
Otherwise, would the squad members love his cooking so much?