Everyone's Shock

Outside the door, the afternoon sunlight carried a touch of laziness as it spilled across the empty, solemn plaza.

Yet that languor was utterly shattered by the figures quietly waiting at the corner of the corridor.

When they saw several captains emerge one after another, Momo Hinamori, Renji, and the others felt their hearts leap into their throats.

They held their breath, their gazes swiftly searching among those imposing figures.

Then they saw him.

Behind the captains, whose steps were either hurried or contemplative, a tall, straight figure calmly crossed the threshold at an unhurried pace.

The sunlight fell upon him, and the first thing that caught their eyes was the pure white haori.

Beneath the haori were the familiar black Soul Reaper Robes, and beneath that was a face they knew just as well—though at this moment, it somehow seemed unfamiliar in its calmness.

Read novels every day to cure your book slump—super useful.

Liu Chuan.

A white... haori?

How could Liu Chuan possibly be wearing a captain's haori?!

The first to recover even a little of his voice from the enormous shock was Renji Abarai.

Pointing at Liu Chuan, he finally blurted out what he believed was a reasonable explanation:

"Liu Chuan, you bastard! So you're getting promoted! I knew something was off when I met you yesterday! Is this... is this the Chief Kido Master's uniform? This guy's actually going to become the Chief Kido Master without saying a word?!"

His voice sounded especially jarring at the edge of the empty plaza. Even several captains in the distance who had yet to leave completely and were speaking in low voices—such as Shunsui Kyoraku and Jushiro Ukitake—couldn't help glancing over. They then revealed subtle smiles, shook their heads, and left without stopping.

"Renji! That's not it!" Shuhei Hisagi was also greatly startled by the white haori, but his instincts as a lieutenant allowed him to calm down more quickly and refute Renji's absurd guess.

"Use some common sense! The Chief Kido Master may lead the Kido Corps, but their official uniform is different from a captain's haori, let alone this style and color! This... this looks more like..."

He paused, his voice full of uncertainty and even deeper alarm. "Could it be... Liu Chuan has taken over as the captain of some vacant division? But..."

He swiftly ran through the names of the thirteen captains and the recent rumors in his mind, growing even more confused.

"I haven't heard of any captain stepping down or any division becoming vacant... Besides, even if he were a newly appointed captain, the haori should be bestowed through an official ceremony and announcement. How could it happen so suddenly, right after the captains' meeting..."

His analysis was perfectly reasonable, but it only made the scene before them seem even stranger and more unbelievable.

Not the Chief Kido Master, and not an ordinary captain either. Then what exactly did that white haori represent?

At that moment, a cool voice with a faint tremble softly rang out, interrupting Shuhei Hisagi's musings. It was like a bucket of ice water poured over everyone, who had barely recovered from Renji's ridiculous guess only to become even more bewildered.

The one who spoke was Rukia Kuchiki.

At some point, she had stepped half a pace forward. Her eyes were fixed on the emblem at the back of Liu Chuan's haori, an emblem that was neither the insignia of any known Seireitei division nor a family crest.

Rukia Kuchiki's pupils shrank to pinpoints, and her breath caught in an instant. She wouldn't remember it wrong. She absolutely wouldn't.

In the ancient archives of the Kuchiki Household, she had seen a rubbing or description of that emblem.

It was a mark intimately tied to the Soul King Palace and the legends that stood above the Gotei 13.

"Zero... Zero Division..."

Rukia Kuchiki's voice was very soft, filled with disbelief as she forced those few words, heavy as a thousand pounds, from her throat.

"That emblem... is Zero Division's insignia."

Zero Division.

Those three words struck everyone's hearts like a final judge's hammer.

Izuru Kira staggered and nearly lost his footing.

Zero Division.

The Soul King Palace.

A place known only among the highest ranks, one that was like a myth or legend to the overwhelming majority of Soul Reapers.

The supreme domain above the Gotei 13, which guarded the foundations of the world and whose members had all earned the merit of an "irreplaceable creation."

Liu Chuan... their fellow classmate, Liu Chuan, who had chosen the Kido Corps and seemed to spend his days in leisure, had actually become a member of Zero Division?!

Liu Chuan stopped walking. Naturally, he had also seen the few people waiting by the corridor.

"Hey! Liu Chuan! What the hell is going on?! Zero Division?! When did you become part of Zero Division?! This is such a huge matter, and you didn't tell me a single damn word?! Do you even still consider me your friend?!"

His questioning was direct and crude, completely unrestrained in emotion. Yet strangely, it held little reverence or distance toward Zero Division's status. Instead, it was mostly anger and shock that his friend had hidden something so important from him.

That familiar, unapologetically blunt attitude was like a key, prying the frozen atmosphere open slightly.

Liu Chuan looked at those familiar faces before him, then at Renji's undisguised attempt to hold him accountable.

He let out a quiet sigh inwardly. He knew he had to give them an explanation, though it was destined not to fully satisfy their curiosity.

He raised a hand and lightly brushed the unusual fabric of his white haori, his movements calm, as though he were merely straightening an ordinary garment.

"It's a long story, and it involves certain... reasons that aren't convenient to explain in detail."

Liu Chuan spoke in the same steady, clear tone everyone knew, without the slightest arrogance or aloofness despite his sudden change in status.

"What I can tell you is that, for certain special reasons—which I ask you to forgive me for not explaining—the Soul King Palace took notice of me and offered me this opportunity to join Zero Division. It wasn't that I intended to hide it. Before today's meeting, the matter itself hadn't been completely finalized, and it also needed to remain confidential."

His explanation avoided the key details, attributing everything to the "will of the Soul King Palace" and the need for secrecy. It was reasonable, and it blocked any further questions.

After all, Zero Division and the Soul King Palace involved far too many secrets that couldn't be shared with outsiders.

He paused, then turned his gaze toward Momo Hinamori. "As for Twin Hyorinmaru, the Head Captain has formally ordered during the meeting that I take full responsibility for handling it."

"Hitsugaya is your childhood friend. Whether for public or personal reasons, I'll do everything I can to ensure his safety. You can rest assured of that."

"Liu Chuan..." Momo Hinamori nodded forcefully, her voice thick with tears.

"Thank you, Liu Chuan! I... I believe you! Please... please take care of Little White!"

Her trust in Liu Chuan's abilities, combined with the inexplicable confidence brought by his identity as a member of Zero Division, finally eased the heart that had been hanging in suspense.

Add Bookmark

Return to Contents

Report Chapter Error

Share with Friends: