A winding country path stretched ahead, with broad swathes of datura flowers on either side and sparse trees dotting the grass.
The overcast sky gave the scene a bleak yet refreshing poetic quality.
Shiraishi strolled down the middle of the road at an unhurried pace. When he spotted a tea shop on a hill ahead, he thought himself lucky.
Compared with getting soaked to the bone, sitting in a tea shop with a cup of tea and a plate of dumplings to savor at his leisure was undoubtedly more relaxing.
He wasted no time and jogged over.
There were no other customers at the tea shop. Beneath its canopy stood several benches and four tables.
A girl was lying facedown on a table. When she saw a customer approaching, she hurried to her feet.
She was petite, around 1.5 meters tall, and wore brown clothes. Her exposed skin was as white as snow.
She had a small face and short hair with straight bangs across her forehead. Two braids bound with white bandages hung down, each fastened with a gold ring at the end.
Her light gray eyes were clear and bright. Altogether, she gave the impression of a harmless, adorable kitten.
"Welcome, sir. What would you like to order?"
The girl's voice was clean and clear, like a mountain stream in summer.
Shiraishi studied her with interest, a mischievous smile appearing on his face. "I'll have one of your sweet smiles, please."
"Sir, please don't joke. We only have three-color dumplings, tea, dried squid, and tempura."
The girl smiled slightly and maintained a professional demeanor without getting angry.
Shiraishi didn't continue with the cheesy pickup lines. He sat down on a bench and said, "Then I'll have an order of three-color dumplings and a cup of tea."
"Certainly. Please wait a moment." The girl bowed and called toward the back, "One order of three-color dumplings and a cup of tea."
The dumplings and tea wouldn't arrive immediately, so Shiraishi took the opportunity to ask, "Miss, what's your name? Do you like green peppers?"
"My name is Fon. Green peppers are all right. I don't dislike them, but I wouldn't say I like them either."
"So you can eat green peppers? That's great! I feel like our lifestyles are very similar. If we got married, we'd definitely have a happy marriage. Please marry me."
Shiraishi never wasted time. He was a brave man willing to skip the process and head straight for the grave.
Fon nearly lost the smile on her face. She secretly clenched her hands behind her back and told herself to bear with it. "I'm sorry, sir, but I have no intention of getting married."
"That's because you hadn't met an outstanding man like me before."
Shiraishi refused to give up and continued rambling. "You can tell my clothes are different from yours, right? What does that mean?
"It means I'm fashionable, and being fashionable in this world means being powerful."
"Hehe." Fon could only offer a polite smile.
By her standards, Shiraishi's clothes couldn't be called fashionable. Bizarre would have been more accurate. They looked nothing like a kimono and were full of the strange style of the World of the Living.
A gold leather jacket paired with black pants, and instead of straw sandals, he wore black sneakers.
The only things about him that seemed somewhat familiar to her were the Zanpakuto in a gold sheath at his waist and his silver-white hair tied into a ponytail.
"This is Yasuo's Prestige skin. Of course, I don't have that middle-aged face. You can probably tell I look like I'm in my twenties.
"My features aren't enough to charm everyone, but they're well-proportioned enough to put me among the handsome guys."
Shiraishi continued boasting.
He had transmigrated while starting a normal match. After being screwed over by his teammates in the previous game, he had instantly locked in Yasuo to steal the role, then greeted his four teammates.
Then he arrived in Soul Society.
Not only had he come over himself, but he had also brought Yasuo's Prestige skin, skills, and passive, as well as a Zanpakuto that could remain in Shikai permanently.
The downside was the language barrier. Three years!
It had taken him three whole years to learn Japanese. Freed from having to pretend to be mute and aloof, he poured out everything he'd been holding back.
Over time, he went from a young man with unremarkable social skills to someone with social-butterfly syndrome, able to talk anyone's ear off.
He greeted beautiful women in particular with a hundred percent enthusiasm. He had never succeeded, but that didn't dampen his enthusiasm.
As he put it, "My enthusiasm is my business. Whether you accept it or not, what's that got to do with me?
"Anyway, I'm happy, so there's no problem."
"..." Fon had never imagined that anyone in this world could be more annoying than that useless lieutenant.
He had completely overturned her worldview.
Unable to stand listening any longer, she made an excuse about fetching the order and slipped back into the tea shop, finally finding some peace and quiet.
Before long, Fon brought out a plate of three-color dumplings and a steaming cup of tea. She bent down and set them on the bench. "Please enjoy your meal, sir."
Shiraishi picked up a skewer of three-color dumplings and looked at it without taking a bite. He let out a long sigh. "Ah, what a shame. I'm not fortunate enough to enjoy three-color dumplings made by the captain of the Second Division herself."
At those words, the smile gradually vanished from Fon's face, replaced by an icy expression. Her demeanor changed from that of a cute kitten to a haughty wildcat. "How did you discover my identity?"
"Simple. You gave yourself away in too many ways. First, anyone would find it suspicious that a tea shop was open in such a remote place."
"Second, with a face as pretty as yours, would you really be working at a deserted tea shop?"
"Third..."
"Shut up!"
Soi Fon shouted. None of those reasons explained how he had identified her so precisely, without so much as wondering whether she was someone else from the Stealth Force.
There was no need to listen to his made-up nonsense. She pulled off her apron, undid her sash, and said sternly, "The Stealth Force's guiding principle is secrecy. I originally intended to poison you quietly and complete this mission, but since you've seen through me, I'll have to use more violent means."
With that, she took off her tea shop uniform and tossed it onto a nearby table, revealing her real combat uniform.
It was a black, backless outfit that fastened around the neck.
Her fashion level shot up, though the combat uniform did demand a certain figure from a woman.
When the previous commander-in-chief wore it, the sight could be described as magnificent.
On her, there was hardly anything to see from the front. Only from the side could one just make out the shape of a hill.
Shiraishi covered his eyes with his fingers spread apart. Seeing that she wasn't going to take off anything else, he felt quite disappointed.
That's it? I got my hopes up for nothing.
"Criminal Shiraishi, you killed Hasegawa Taizo, the Fifth Seat of the Stealth Force, in West District Three. By order of the Central 46 Chambers, I have come to eliminate you."
Having failed to eliminate him quietly, Soi Fon chose to state his crime to his face, so he would know why he was dying.
"I'm not a criminal. Please call me the Unforgiven."
Shiraishi emphasized the point before defending himself. "You can't blame me for this. Your Fifth Seat not only harassed a respectable woman right in front of me, he even tried to force himself on her.
"As a person with a conscience, how could I sit by and watch such an evil act? I had no choice but to draw my blade and help."
"If you had a complaint, you could have reported it or beaten him. Taking it upon yourself to kill him makes you guilty."
Soi Fon paid no attention to his defense. "The Stealth Force will never let a guilty person go."
"Following corrupt laws and regulations and taking pride in it-is that what you believe in?"
Soi Fon didn't even furrow her brow. "Enough nonsense."
"Steel Tempest!"
Having failed to talk her around, Shiraishi attacked outright.