Chōjirō Sasakibe looked at Unohana's gentle expression.
Now that we're all on the same side, she probably won't chop me to death, right? Chōjirō Sasakibe thought, trembling.
Then, the next second, he saw Unohana reveal a smile as demonic as the devil's.
No, demons were nothing compared to this woman!
"Big Brother Yamabuki!!! Save me!!!"
The next day at work.
Chōjirō Sasakibe shakily arrived before Yamamoto and began handling the day's work.
"Why do you look like you haven't slept?" Yamamoto asked casually.
The moment Chōjirō Sasakibe recalled repeatedly bouncing between "dying" and "coming back to life" last night, goosebumps rose all over his body. He never wanted to experience that again for the rest of his life.
It was fucking torture!
Every time, Unohana hacked him half to death, then tossed him into that strange hot spring. Before long, he was fully restored, only to be hacked half to death by Unohana again and thrown back into the hot spring. The cycle repeated endlessly.
Chōjirō Sasakibe scratched his head, only to discover that he was losing hair!
"...I'm still so young. I'm not going to go bald, am I?" Chōjirō Sasakibe trembled even harder.
Still, that life-risking training was effective. Chōjirō Sasakibe's Reiatsu was rising at a visible rate.
Meanwhile, Unohana and Yamabuki Chidori arrived at the 11th Division Barracks.
The 11th Division members had already formed two lines to welcome them.
"Captain!"
"Chief Strategist!!!"
Within the Gotei 13, the strong had always been more popular. Unohana looked perpetually cheerful, but everyone knew that this madwoman had nearly slaughtered her way through the Seireitei alone. All of them feared her.
"Yamabuki, what exactly is my job as Captain?" Unohana asked curiously.
"Just lead them out to kill people. As for who to kill, I'll tell you when the time comes," Yamabuki Chidori said.
And so, the Captain of the 11th Division officially took office.
Before Yamabuki Chidori had even warmed his seat, he spotted a figure furtively peering inside from the doorway. It was Chōjirō Sasakibe.
"Big Brother Yamabuki, the Captain Commander asked you to prepare uniforms for the new members and submit a document later," Chōjirō Sasakibe said.
"No problem."
The main reason Unohana had been able to run wild through the Seireitei before was that all the Captains had gone out recruiting. If the Captain Commander had been present, Yamabuki would never have needed to step in.
Yamabuki Chidori counted the new members, then wrote up a document and sent it to the First Division.
On their way back, Chōjirō Sasakibe was extremely pleased.
He was now the Lieutenant of the First Division, with quite a few members under his command.
"This time, our Gotei 13 has really grown stronger!" Chōjirō Sasakibe said.
Before Yamabuki Chidori could reply, an extremely discordant voice came from beside them.
"What kind of bullshit Gotei 13 is this? Does the Seireitei need hillbillies like you to protect it? You've made such a mess of the place. I've had enough!"
Yamabuki Chidori and Chōjirō Sasakibe turned around at the same time and saw that the speaker was a young man dressed in noble attire. Judging by his clothes, his status was not low.
A Zanpakuto hung from his waist, a flask of wine was in his right hand, and a Gentian Flower was tucked into his chest. He was drunk in broad daylight, loudly spouting nonsense the moment he heard Chōjirō Sasakibe mention the Gotei 13.
Indeed, the establishment of the Gotei 13 had taken many resources and a great deal of power from the nobles, leaving quite a few of them dissatisfied.
"What do you mean by that?" Chōjirō Sasakibe roared.
Yamabuki Chidori did not want to argue with a drunk and tugged on his sleeve. "Forget it, forget it. Let's go."
Seeing the two kids leave, the drunken noble gave a disdainful smile.
After spending so long in the Seireitei, Yamabuki Chidori had learned a fair bit about the nobles. From the drunk's clothing, he could tell that he belonged to the High-Ranking Noble Hane Hane Family.
He had heard that this had once been a great family, but its numbers had declined over time. By now, only a brother and sister remained. The arrogant man from earlier was likely the current head of the Hane Hane Family, Hane Hane Chiaki.
No wonder. With an IQ that low, it was only natural for the family line to dwindle. If he ran into someone hot-tempered, they might just draw their sword and chop him down.
Chōjirō Sasakibe looked dejected.
"Big Brother Yamabuki, are nobles and commoners really that different? Before I became Lieutenant, plenty of noble-born members looked down on me too. Those nobles are awful! Can't you think of something?" Chōjirō Sasakibe asked quietly.
Yamabuki Chidori showed a helpless expression. "Even I can't control people's hearts. People always show off their strengths to display their superiority. Even without differences in birth, they would find other excuses to belittle others. As for nobles and commoners... Hmph. Are kings and generals born to their stations?"
Shijima Chiru
The night had grown deep.
Hane Hane Chiaki staggered home drunkenly.
Though the Hane Hane Family was a High-Ranking Noble house, its dwindling bloodline had caused its fortunes to decline. By their generation, the family's foundation was far weaker than before.
Hane Hane Chiaki had also developed a gambling habit, making the already struggling family even worse off.
However, the family's life had suddenly become more prosperous these past few days.
He reached out and patted his pocket, which was stuffed with gold.
This was not because Hane Hane Chiaki had stumbled upon money by sheer luck. It was because he had "sold" his sister through a political marriage.
The other party was a Middle-Ranking Noble. Though their status was far below his family's, they had become immensely wealthy through skillful management.
A noble's rank did not represent the amount of wealth they possessed.
For example, the Ōmaeda Family was merely a Low-Ranking Noble house, yet it was very wealthy because it had gone into the jewelry business.
Meanwhile, nobles like Hane Hane Chiaki, who did not understand how to manage their affairs, could sometimes live in utter poverty.
When he had first made this decision, Hane Hane Chiaki had hesitated. But the moment he saw the gleaming gold the other party had brought, he immediately caved. In half a month, his sister would marry someone she did not know at all. As for whether she would be happy in the future?
Heh. What did that have to do with him?
This money would be enough for him to squander for quite some time.
Besides, he was the head of this family. She had to listen to him.
Hane Hane Chiaki swayed through the courtyard, looked at the moonlight overhead, and chuckled foolishly.
"Big Brother, why did you drink so much again?" A little girl stepped out from the room. She looked around eleven or twelve years old, obedient and adorable, dressed in a splendid junihitoe like a well-behaved little princess.
"Chiyo? Come here and let Big Brother have a look. Sigh, if it weren't absolutely necessary, Big Brother truly wouldn't be willing to part with you! But for our family's revival, you'll just have to suffer a little," Hane Hane Chiaki said with a sigh, then took another gulp of wine.
"Don't worry, Big Brother. I'll be good and listen to you. Hm? Big Brother, why do you have a Gentian Flower on you?" Hane Hane Chiyo asked curiously.
Hane Hane Chiaki did not know when the Gentian Flower had appeared on him. He casually plucked it off and tossed it aside. "Don't mind it. Go back to sleep."
"But Big Brother, I want to look at the moon a little longer..."
"Go back to sleep!" Hane Hane Chiaki's voice suddenly rose. He would not allow the only person he could control to defy him.
Afraid of making her brother angry, the little girl could only obediently return to her room to sleep.
After Chiyo returned to her room, Hane Hane Chiaki leisurely gazed at the moonlight. He could use this money to find a woman to marry and have several more daughters. Those daughters could be sold for a good price too, right?
Thinking of this, Hane Hane Chiaki smiled happily.
I'm such a genius. I'll revive the family this way!
"Why do I always run into people like you?"
Just as Hane Hane Chiaki was indulging in his fantasies, a lazy voice came from the rooftop. He hurriedly looked up and saw a despondent-looking young man sitting atop the roof, sighing as he looked down at him.
"Who are you? Don't you know this is my house? Get the hell out of here right now!!!" Hane Hane Chiaki cursed.
The young man shook his head with a bitter smile, then suddenly raised his hand. A flash of cold light instantly pierced through Hane Hane Chiaki's calf.
"AAAAAHHHHH!!!"
His miserable scream rang through the night sky.
"Chiyo! Chiyo! Hurry and save me! Chi—"
Another flash of cold light pierced through Hane Hane Chiaki's neck, destroying his vocal cords.
Hane Hane Chiaki opened his mouth in despair, but not a sound came out.
"I like things simple. Someone gives me money, and I help them kill someone. Simple. I like it." A Steel Spike, around twenty centimeters long, appeared in the young man's hand as he aimed it at Hane Hane Chiaki's forehead.
"After you go to Hell, remember my name..."
Cold light flashed, and the Steel Spike instantly pierced Hane Hane Chiaki's forehead.
"My name is Shijima Chiru... Ah, forget it. You probably can't hear me like this anyway!" Shijima Chiru took out a Gentian Flower and gave it a light flick. The flower landed on Hane Hane Chiaki's face.
At that moment, a door opened, and Chiyo stepped out of her room. She had heard her brother calling for her. When she looked into the courtyard and saw his tragic state, she let out a startled cry.
"Eek!!!"
Shijima Chiru smiled at the girl and used Flash Step to appear behind her.
Chiyo sensed someone behind her and tried to turn around, but something icy pressed against her cheek.
"Don't turn around. Although my employer wants your life too, not yet. Stand here obediently, and after counting to one thousand, go call for help. If you dare turn around or fail to do as I say, Big Brother will have no choice but to kill you right now!" Obana Danjirou rubbed Chiyo's head, then took out another Gentian Flower and tucked it into the girl's hair, admiring his handiwork with satisfaction.
"I hate trouble most of all! I don't want any trouble at all. All right, you can start counting now," Shijima Chiru said with a smile.
Though it was already spring, Chiyo felt ice-cold all over and trembled without stopping.
"One, two, three..."
"Good girl, you have to count to one thousand before calling for help. I'll be watching nearby," Shijima Chiru said before using Flash Step to leave.
Chiyo counted all the way from one to one thousand before she finally dared to scream for help.
The Gotei 13 had arranged night patrols. Hearing a girl's scream, the patrolling members immediately rushed in and discovered that the body on the ground had already gone cold.
"He's dead. Hurry and call for help. Someone actually committed murder right under our noses. They clearly have no regard for our Gotei 13."
Soon, alarm gongs rang out, waking the entire Seireitei.
The patrolling members drew their Zanpakuto and guarded the surroundings, afraid that the killer had not gone far and might launch a surprise attack.
Yamabuki Chidori's residence.
The young man and woman were engaged in an extremely fierce clash.
The kind where flesh flew and sparks scattered.
The underground training room was filled with sword light. Their swordsmanship was evenly matched, but in his normal state, Yamabuki Chidori's Reiatsu was still far inferior to Unohana's. Therefore, he wanted to use their clashes to raise his own Reiatsu.
Sure enough, this method was highly effective.
Every time Unohana cut Yamabuki Chidori severely and he recovered, his Reiatsu increased somewhat.
At this rate, in at most a year or so, Yamabuki Chidori's Reiatsu would be able to catch up to Unohana's current level even without relying on Perfect Sanctification.
Just as the two were fighting intensely, Yamabuki Chidori suddenly leaped out of the battle. "Wait, someone's here upstairs!"
PS: There was a small mistake. The person Unohana cut down outside the Seireitei earlier should have been Shijima Chiru, the first Captain of the Fourth Division. I got the name wrong. Sorry, it has been corrected.
Detective Yamabuki Chidori
Although the training ground was a hundred meters underground, Yamabuki Chidori's perception of Reiatsu was extremely sharp, and he immediately sensed someone arriving at his door. He could only go receive the guest first.
He had just entered the room when he heard a knock at the door. Opening it, he found two members of the 11th Division.
"What happened? Why are you looking for me in the middle of the night?" Yamabuki Chidori frowned. Anyone coming to see him at this hour was definitely bringing bad news.
The two members had just opened their mouths when they noticed something was off.
Why was the Chief Strategist covered in sweat? And why was he breathing so heavily? How had he exhausted himself like this in the middle of the night?
Wait, they had heard that the Chief Strategist lived with Captain Unohana. Could it be...
At once, the two members looked at Yamabuki Chidori with extremely suggestive expressions.
Yamabuki Chidori had not caught on yet. "Why are you stammering? Hurry up and tell me. Did something happen?"
Before you continue