Our Promise

The next day, Soul Society, Seireitei, Fourth Division Barracks.

In the silent room, Shadow, lying on the bed, suddenly opened his eyes and sat up. His forehead was drenched in sweat, and his ink-black eyes held a trace of confusion.

He touched his chest and gradually steadied his ragged breathing. Shadow gave a bitter smile.

"I thought I had already come to terms with it, but in the end... I still can't let go!"

After a moment of silence, Shadow let out a heavy sigh. His constantly shifting expression gradually calmed as he leaned against the wall beside the bed, gazing through the window at the bright sunlight outside, seemingly lost in thought.

He did not know how long had passed before a cry of surprise abruptly snapped him out of his thoughts. When he came back to himself, he caught sight of a girl hurrying out of the room from the corner of his eye. Looking out the window again, he realized that dusk had already fallen.

Outside the Fourth Division Barracks, Yoruichi Shihōin and Kukaku Shiba walked through the gates.

"Kukaku, you didn't have to come with me!"

Seeing her friend yawning nonstop from exhaustion, Yoruichi Shihōin could not help but say so.

"Well!" Kukaku Shiba yawned and slowly said, "I just wanted to see how long a certain idiot could keep forcing herself to endure it. Not eating, not sleeping..."

Yoruichi Shihōin paused, then turned her head aside. "I just don't have an appetite, and I can't sleep."

"Tch!" Kukaku Shiba curled her lip. "Give me a break. Do you think I don't know you? But seriously, Yoruichi, that person Shadow mentioned, you..."

"..."

Yoruichi Shihōin smiled without saying anything. Seeing that, Kukaku Shiba sighed, took a drag from her pipe, and said no more.

"Ah! Yoruichi and Kukaku, you're here!"

Retsu Unohana, who was walking briskly with several squad members, saw Yoruichi Shihōin and Kukaku Shiba approaching. She smiled gently. "What a coincidence. We just received word that Shadow has woken up!"

"He's awake already!"

Yoruichi Shihōin's body trembled, and then she vanished.

She had actually used Shunpo. Kukaku Shiba twitched her lips and helplessly followed after her with Retsu Unohana.

Bang!

The violent sound of the door being pushed open startled Shadow awake once more. The first thing he saw was Yoruichi Shihōin.

Seeing the delight flash through her still-bright golden eyes, along with the exhaustion that could not be erased from their depths, Shadow's lips curved slightly.

"Lady Yoruichi..."

"So you've finally decided to wake up?"

"Lady Yoruichi?" Shadow froze. What did she mean by that?

After a brief silence, Yoruichi Shihōin spoke in a slightly hoarse voice. "Don't call me that anymore. Let Captain Unohana examine you again."

"Alright."

Retsu Unohana, who had arrived afterward, was also slightly taken aback. However, she knew this was not something she could interfere with. After responding, she carefully examined Shadow's body.

"Lady Yoruichi!"

Though Retsu Unohana was examining him, Shadow's thoughts were nowhere near his condition. He stared at Yoruichi Shihōin in bewilderment.

"I said, stop calling me that. Did you hear me?"

"..."

The room fell silent, filled with a stifling atmosphere. Only after Retsu Unohana had finished her examination and confirmed that there was nothing wrong did she leave with Kukaku Shiba, gently closing the door behind them.

At this moment, everyone understood that this was time belonging to Shadow and Yoruichi Shihōin. No one else could intrude or disturb them. Some matters had to be resolved by the two of them alone.

"She... is important to you, isn't she?"

After a long while, Yoruichi Shihōin lowered her head slightly. In the dim room, her face could not be seen clearly. "That... Lady Anko."

Shadow's eyes widened abruptly, and his face turned deathly pale. His mouth opened and closed as if he wanted to say something, but his throat seemed glued shut, unable to produce a single word.

Yoruichi Shihōin smiled. There was relief in her smile, as well as melancholy and loneliness. Her ever-lively golden eyes now revealed a trace of sorrow.

To Shadow, it was like a heavy blow striking his chest. His heart churned, and he could barely breathe. That sorrow made his heart ache, and that unprecedented feeling nearly suffocated him.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry..."

Other than that, Shadow had no idea what else he could say.

"Honestly..." Yoruichi Shihōin sniffed delicately, folded her arms across her chest, and walked to the window. Looking at the sky outside, she said, "Why are you apologizing again? You haven't done anything wrong. Actually, I should be the one apologizing to you..."

"Yoruichi..."

"Listen to me!"

Yoruichi Shihōin interrupted Shadow before he could speak. Her voice was so calm that no emotion could be heard in it. "Ever since you unconsciously called out that name, I've been lost all day. I truly didn't know what I was supposed to do."

"Well, honestly, I've gotten used to it. Used to your protection, your care. All these years, whether I was happy or unhappy, no matter when it was, you were always by my side."

"Do you remember when we first met?" Yoruichi Shihōin suddenly laughed. "You idiot! You were obviously so strong, yet you insisted on pretending to be useless and got beaten so badly you nearly died!"

Shadow lowered his head, seeming to recall that time as well.

"I've always been glad about the choice I made back then. Always. I thought you would stay by my side forever too. But now, I truly don't know what to do. You said back then that I gave you a reason to live, but honestly, that wasn't all, was it?"

Silence. Once again, silence. After a long time, Shadow finally nodded and murmured, "Yeah."

"It had something to do with her, didn't it?"

"Yeah."

"Hey." Yoruichi Shihōin suddenly turned around and gazed into Shadow's eyes. Her golden eyes seemed capable of seeing through everything. "Do you remember what you promised me?"

"I remember." Shadow spoke solemnly. "How could I ever forget?"

"Is that so?" After a long pause, Yoruichi Shihōin spoke again, her voice carrying an almost imperceptible tremble. "Can I... still call you Shadow?"

"Of course." Shadow nodded solemnly. "I always will be."

Yoruichi Shihōin pursed her lips and smiled, turning her gaze back out the window. "You know, I thought about a lot of things. I even thought that you might leave just like that. I... was a little scared."

"Lady Yoruichi!"

Helplessness. Yes, helplessness. The helplessness Yoruichi Shihōin revealed made Shadow feel as though his heart were being cut apart. Memories of all the years they had spent together surfaced before his eyes—both the happy times and the painful ones. At that moment, Shadow suddenly understood many things.

"Lady Yoruichi, don't say such foolish things anymore. Even if you told me not to call you that, no matter what, you will always be my Lady Yoruichi! A shadow will never betray its master!"

"So Shadow will not leave your side. Never. I said I would stay with you. I have already suffered once—how could I possibly make the same mistake again, Lady Yoruichi..."

"Ah! I heard that. You said it yourself!"

Yoruichi Shihōin walked to the bedside, the corners of her lips lifting. Beneath her fluttering lashes, her golden eyes held an indescribable tenderness.

"You can't go back on your word now!!!"

"Yeah!"

Shadow nodded hard. It felt as though something had filled his heart, warm and overflowing.

"Alright!"

Yoruichi Shihōin laughed, her eyes curving into crescents as she held out her little finger.

"Let's make a pinky promise. Once we seal it, it'll be a real promise! You have to stay by my side forever!"

Shadow froze for a moment, then held out his finger as well. He hooked it around Yoruichi Shihōin's, and their thumbs pressed together. Like their entwined fates, their hearts were tightly bound together, never to be separated again.

Watching Yoruichi Shihōin laugh heartily as she returned to her usual self, Shadow's lips curved into a deep smile.

Lady Yoruichi, thank you. I think I understand a little now. Lady Anko is important to me, but Lady Yoruichi is just as important.

Both of you are more important to me than my own life.