Outside Rice Village, West District Ten.
Tall white poplars lined both sides of the yellow dirt road. A gentle breeze stirred their shadows.
Taro sat sprawled on the ground, vowing never to come play in this dangerous place again.
The last time he and his friends had played hide-and-seek here, they had run into Kenji and his gang of thugs. They had been so scared they wet themselves and had nearly lost their lives.
This time, while playing hide-and-seek with his friends, he had run into a Shinigami several times more vicious than Kenji and his gang.
He looked up. The Shinigami before him was so tall that he seemed to tower over even the white poplars. His prickly pear-like hair seemed to hold up the sky, with little bells hanging from its tips.
His face resembled that of a demon that had crawled out of hell. A prominent scar ran from the left side of his forehead down to the left side of his jaw. He wore an eyepatch over his right eye, and his chin was pointed.
His gaze shifted slightly downward.
The moment their eyes met.
Taro wet himself. He gave up all hope of surviving. This time, he was as good as dead.
"Tch."
Kenpachi Zaraki noticed that the kids had all wet themselves, and his expression grew somewhat impatient.
Yachiru Kusajishi leaped lightly down from his shoulder and said with a broad smile, "Don't be afraid of Ken-chan. He won't hurt you."
"Yachiru, quit wasting your breath."
Kenpachi Zaraki exhaled heavily. He wasn't used to being around these kids. They were too weak, like blades of grass in the wind that could be blown away with a single breath.
"Ken-chan, you should be polite when you ask people things."
Yachiru Kusajishi answered in all seriousness, then continued with a beaming smile, "Hey, hey, I wanted to ask, has anyone seen a man with silver hair in a ponytail and really strange clothes? He looks to be in his early twenties, and there's nothing distinctive about his features."
Shiraishi's features were well-balanced in every respect, making him handsome when taken together. But in Yachiru Kusajishi's eyes, that meant there was nothing distinctive about his looks.
To be considered handsome, he needed an obvious scar like Ken-chan's, or an eyepatch.
Silver hair in a ponytail and strange clothes?
Taro immediately thought of his big brother Shiraishi. He looked at the two people before him, and a sudden burst of courage welled up inside him. He couldn't be a disloyal underling. "I-I saw him. He ran west."
"Really? West." Excitement appeared on Kenpachi Zaraki's face. Lately, everyone he had cut down had been either a giant Hollow or a weakling who thought himself strong but couldn't even keep him entertained.
He hadn't encountered a fighter strong enough to rival a Captain-level opponent in a long time.
How exciting!
"Let's go, Yachiru."
"Okay, Ken-chan, this way." Yachiru Kusajishi jumped onto his shoulder and lay there, pointing south, utterly certain that it was west.
"Oh." Without a trace of doubt, Kenpachi Zaraki ran south.
The two had been so decisive that Taro began to doubt himself. He turned around and asked, "That's south, right?"
"Yeah." "It's south." "They must be those people you hear about who have no sense of direction."
His friends gave him a definite answer.
Reassured, Taro got to his feet and said, "We can't play today. Let's call it a day and go home to change our pants."
Nobody objected. They had all wet themselves.
On the way back to Rice Village, the road was winding and wide. Most of the thatched houses were square and built wherever people pleased, as long as they left a path wide enough to walk through.
The people coming and going along the road all wore straw sandals and clean hemp clothes.
West District Ten couldn't compare with West District One, but it was far more prosperous than Outer Rukongai. Everyone could wear clean clothes and straw sandals.
Aside from its abundant resources, that was also thanks to the elders' governance.
In Outer Rukongai, the strong ruled supreme. Those people were good enough at killing, but governing a territory was beyond them.
They were either exploited by noble retainers or so overbearing that even the retainers were unwilling to travel there to trade or establish businesses.
In contrast, village elders in the districts closer in were usually respected old men. They negotiated with the Shinigami and nobles to secure stable work for their villagers.
Whenever something happened in the village, everyone was willing to consult the elders.
Taro ran along the road, greeting everyone he knew. When he got home, he instinctively hunched his shoulders and tiptoed toward the door, wishing he could turn into an inconspicuous mouse and slip inside.
"Stop right there!"
Taro's mother looked to be in her early forties and was plain in appearance. The moment she saw her son like that, she knew he had gotten into trouble and marched over in a rage.
"M-Mother." Taro swallowed, no less frightened than he had been when facing the Shinigami just now.
"Why are your pants wet?"
"I-It's nothing."
Taro's mother raised an eyebrow, grabbed him by the ear and pulled him toward the house. "Tell me the truth, now."
"Ow, ow, Mother, I'll tell you! I ran into a Shinigami just now."
"What? Are you hurt?" She pulled open Taro's clothes and checked him for injuries.
Once she had confirmed there were none, she breathed a sigh of relief and said, "At least you were smart enough not to offend him."
"Of course! He wanted to find Big Brother, so I lied and said Big Brother went west. But then he ran south. It was hilarious."
Taro proudly told her what he had accomplished.
Taro's mother's face darkened. She grabbed a thin bamboo switch, hauled him over her knee and gave him a sound thrashing. "You stupid boy! How many times have I told you not to provoke Shinigami? Don't provoke Shinigami! You wouldn't listen, and now you even dared to get clever and lie to them.
"If they can't find him and come back to take it out on you, won't you be dead? I'm going to beat you to death today, you little brat!"
"Waaah!" Taro howled as she beat him.
Shiraishi happened to return just then. Seeing the scene, he wasn't sure whether he should go in.
Amid his wailing, Taro caught sight of him. Wiping away his tears, he tried his best to act manly. "Big Brother, make yourself comfortable. Pour your own tea, and don't be shy."
"Mr. Shiraishi, have a seat. Once I'm done beating this brat, I'll serve you some tea."
Taro's mother was all smiles toward Shiraishi, but glared at Taro like a wrathful guardian, as though performing a Sichuan opera face change.
Shiraishi entered the house and asked, "What did Taro do wrong this time?"
"This brat actually dared to trick a Shinigami. If I don't give him a good beating, he'll never learn."
"Boo-hoo, that big Shinigami was looking for Big Brother. That's why I said Big Brother went west."
"A big Shinigami?"
Shiraishi frowned and asked, "What exactly did he look like?"
"He wore an eyepatch over his right eye, and his hair looked like a prickly pear. He had a really cute little pink-haired girl with him, hehe."
Thinking of Yachiru Kusajishi, Taro blushed. It was the first time he had seen a girl his age who was so cute.
"You little brat!" Taro's mother started hitting him with the thin bamboo switch again. His smile vanished, and he began wailing once more.
From the description, Shiraishi immediately thought of Kenpachi Zaraki and Yachiru Kusajishi. He also understood that the most likely reason they had taken an interest in him was his strength.
Unfortunately, he wasn't a battle maniac and had no interest in fights that gave no experience points.
"I've heard a little about how they do things. They definitely won't hurt Taro, so don't worry. Just give him another ten-odd minutes of beating and leave it at that."
"You really are my good big brother!" Taro thanked him, his eyes brimming with tears.