Beginning of Spring in the West District Ten.
The sun sank completely below the horizon, night fell, and countless stars surrounded the crescent moon.
The forest in front of the cliff was silent, except for the resounding sound of a knife cutting into a chopping board.
Shiraishi held a cleaver and cut meat, but his knife skills were not very good. He couldn't control the force well, and while cutting the meat, he would also hit the cutting board underneath.
However, he didn't care about any of that and quickly threw the cut meat into the large iron pot hanging next to him, which was half full of water.
Below were burning tree branches.
The water hasn't boiled yet.
After cutting ten kilograms of meat, he grabbed a handful of black pepper and two handfuls of salt from the earthenware pot, added a clove of garlic and a few bay leaves, and then covered the pot with the lid.
The above steps were learned from watching Nemu Kurotsuchi cook; they're not too difficult, and the result shouldn't be much different.
Shiraishi was very confident in his cooking skills. He wiped the sweat from his brow with the back of his hand and called out, " Kūkaku, is the sake chilled with Kidō yet?"
"Here you are." Kūkaku Shiba came out carrying a wooden bucket, the ice cubes and the wine bottle clinking together with a crisp sound.
She changed her clothes; she wore a white sleeveless kimono top with blue stripes, the sides of which were visible, and a long red skirt, with wooden clogs on her feet.
Her long black hair was tied into a braid.
He looked dashing and heroic, like a sharpened blade.
Shiraishi stepped forward, eagerly reaching into the bucket and retrieving a bottle of chilled liquor from the icy water. "It's been so long since I've had a drink."
"Why aren't you drinking?" Kūkaku Shiba asked, puzzled.
Shiraishi sighed, pulled the cork from the bottle, and said, "I didn't want to ruin my image in Nemu's heart before."
Nemu Kurotsuchi is innocent and naive, and holds him in high esteem.
This made him embarrassed to reveal his flaws, such as his love of drinking and flirting, for fear of shattering his shining image in Nemu Kurotsuchi's heart.
Similar concerns do not exist with Kūkaku Shiba.
She's like Shiraishi's best buddy; they can make dirty jokes, drink, and say whatever they want without any problem.
Nemu Kurotsuchi is more like a cute little sister next door, somewhat reserved.
But that reservedness wouldn't annoy him. Anyone would be overjoyed to be admired by a well-behaved and beautiful girl, right?
"Tsk tsk, you say you like me, but you're also flirting with younger girls. What a bastard who falls for every girl he sees."
Kūkaku Shiba's expression subtly revealed a hint of disdain, but his body language betrayed him as he chose to sit on the stone bench near him, with a wooden barrel of fine wine placed beside him.
Shiraishi said confidently, "I just want to carefully nurture every delicate flower in the world so that they can grow strong and healthy. Is that wrong?"
"That's right," Kūkaku Shiba chimed in, picking up the sake bottle and laughing, "Come on, let's drink to your shamelessness!"
"Cheers." Shiraishi clinked glasses, tilted his head back to drink, and the cool liquor went down his throat, dispelling some of the summer heat.
He thought to himself, "If there were cicadas chirping nearby, that would be even better. Summer with cicadas, moonlight with a beautiful woman—that would create the perfect atmosphere for drinking."
Unfortunately, even mosquitoes can starve to death in the wilderness of Soul Society, let alone cicadas.
He gulped down the bottle in one go, then smashed it against the rocky ground with glee.
Kūkaku Shiba reminded him, "Don't drink too much; the meat is still cooking in the pot."
Shiraishi said nonchalantly, "We can buy more later if we need more."
She rolled her eyes at him, annoyed, and said, "Don't forget we're wanted criminals of the Seireitei. If the Projection Hall catches us, they'll immediately send a captain to arrest us."
"Don't worry, I know what I'm doing," Shiraishi, still unconcerned.
Sōya Azashiro's Bankai ability is Fusion, and now the entire Seireitei is under his surveillance and control.
He and Sōya Azashiro allies, so how could his image possibly appear in the Projection Hall?
For the next period of time, he will be able to be more free and will not need to hide like before.
"Do I have to Riot Games you to make you obey?"
Kūkaku Shiba, unaware of these things, clenched her Riot Games in a threatening gesture.
Shiraishi chuckled and said, "You're being so cautious, are you scared?"
"Um."
Kūkaku Shiba didn't pretend to be fearless, and said softly, "I'm really afraid to go back to that hellish place Shin'ō Underground Great: The Jail."
To be honest, when I was locked up, I thought I would never see the sky outside again.
Staying in that dark and terrifying place, I lost my freedom of movement; I couldn't see, and I couldn't close my mouth.
Compared to those, boiling Reiatsu is nothing.
"... Sorry." Shiraishi scratched his head.
Kūkaku Shiba smiled and nudged his arm with her elbow. "You don't need to apologize. If it weren't for your heroic rescue, I wouldn't be sitting here watching the night and feeling the breeze. I'll never forget this kindness."
Shiraishi jokingly said, "Then repay me with your body."
"That depends on your skills."
Kūkaku Shiba smiled, raised the sake bottle, and said, "If that day ever comes, I could make you work for three days and three nights without any problem."
Shiraishi remarked, "I might have a problem."
She glanced at him sideways, a hint of defiance in her expression, and said, "Is that not allowed?"
"Just kidding, I'm super strong, I could last ten days and ten nights without breaking a sweat."
Shiraishi straightened his chest; how could a man say no?
"That's something to look forward to," Kūkaku Shiba said with a smile, tilting back his snow-white neck and taking a big gulp of sake.
Not to be outdone, Shiraishi drank a bottle.
The flames crackled as they burned the branches, time passed slowly amidst the idle chatter, and the water in the pot gradually boiled.
Hearing the water boil, Shiraishi swayed as he stood up, picked up the pot lid, and looked at the pieces of meat floating on the surface. What should he do next?
He tried hard to recall Nemu Kurotsuchi's next move, but couldn't remember it at all, so he simply threw the pot lid off and said, "You try it."
"This meat doesn't look cooked."
Kūkaku Shiba wasn't so drunk that she couldn't tell if the meat was cooked or not; looking at its color, she didn't have the courage to take a bite.
"Impossible, it's been cooked for so long," Shiraishi, picking up a piece of meat with his chopsticks and taking a bite. The meat was incredibly fresh and tender.
"Pah, it's not even cooked yet. That's strange, I followed Nemu's method exactly, and the time was about right."
Kūkaku Shiba face flushed, said, "I told you before to buy snacks from the shop, but you wouldn't listen and insisted on making them yourself."
Wasting food is a shameful thing.
Shiraishi retorted, "We can't just leave the ingredients at home to rot." "Let's keep cooking. Ah, too bad Nemu isn't here... wait, am I drunk?"
He rubbed his eyes, looked at the figure in the moonlight, and turned to ask, "Did you see Nemu standing in front?"
Kūkaku Shiba nodded and said, "I saw it too."