While the Shiba Clan was reunited in the Soul Society, in the barracks of the Court Guard Second Division in World of the Living Society.
It has been some time since Rukia came here to train. Although Rukia believes that she is far from being able to stand on her own and graduate, she was forced to stop her training because the Thirteenth Division was so short of people.
"In short, thank you Captain Sōgo for your guidance over the years."
In the captain's room of the Second Division, Sōgo lay on the sofa, his hands constantly tapping the controller, his eyes never leaving the huge game screen, while Rukia stood humbly beside Sōgo, bowing respectfully as she spoke.
"It's alright, it's alright."
"It's just a small thing, nothing at all."
How much you learn depends entirely on your own destiny.
Sōgo's fingers were still tapping the buttons on the controller, completely engrossed in the game.
" Rukia, instead of thanking him, you should thank us instead."
"It's us who train with you every day, not Sōgo."
Lilynette crossed her arms over her chest. She heard Rukia repeatedly thanking Sōgo, and she pouted, feeling somewhat annoyed.
"Of course, I also thank Lilynette, Tier Harribel, Hōshō Ryo, and..."
Rukia paused here. She had originally wanted to mention Kuruyashiki's nickname, but fearing it would cause trouble for her master, Rukia forcibly held back at the last moment.
"Oh, and what else?"
Why did Little Rukia suddenly stop talking at this point?
" Rukia, what kind of unspeakable secrets are you hiding?"
I advise you to confess the truth as soon as possible.
"Confess now, and you can still be treated leniently."
Lilynette's keen sense of smell detected a scent emanating from Rukia that hinted at a secret, fully piquing Lilynette curiosity.
"No, no, it's nothing. I meant... and thank you to everyone, thank you to everyone who has helped me."
Rukia seemed flustered under Lilynette's questioning, but fortunately, she was quick-witted and used her intelligence to easily resolve the crisis.
"Yeah?!"
It smells like a lie.
" Lilynette discovered that Little Rukia had lied to me."
Lilynette was heartbroken, Lilynette decided to take Little Rukia...
Lilynette approached Rukia, sniffed her deeply, and narrowed her eyes slightly. She realized that Rukia had lied to her; what a naughty child.
"Forehead..."
Rukia was stunned by Lilynette's words, then her body trembled slightly. What kind of animal was Lilynette? Her nose was more sensitive than a dog's—no, she could tell if someone was lying by smell! That surpassed even a dog's nose!
"Alright, Lilynette, stop pressing Little Rukia. When Little Rukia wants to tell you, she'll tell you herself. Don't you agree Rukia?"
Tier Harribel hugged Lilynette tightly, telling Lilynette to stop questioning Rukia, and then smiled gently at Rukia, asking softly.
"Forehead..."
Rukia had thought she was finally saved after Tier Harribel spoke, suddenly changed her expression after hearing Tier Harribel's words, and beads of sweat dripped from her forehead.
"How terrifying, Tier Harribel is serious, how terrifying!"
Rukia looked at the incredibly gentle Tier Harribel and her expression turned flustered.
"Stop making a scene, let's leave it at that!"
"Let's celebrate together tonight so we can send Rukia off tomorrow."
Hōshō Ryo looked at the people in front of her and said with a hint of helplessness.
"Great for celebrating!"
"I'm going to drink my fill today!"
Lilynette waved her hand happily; she loved parties and drinking.
"Shut up, Lilynette!"
"We don't prepare sweet wine for children at our party."
Seeing Lilynette's happy expression, Hōshō Ryo curled her lip and said coldly.
"A child? I'm not a child."
Lilynette kept refuting Hōshō Ryo's words.
" Lilynette, cookies."
Sōgo, who was engrossed in his game, picked up a cookie from the table beside him and threw it at Lilynette.
"Ooh! Cookies!"
Lilynette glanced at the cookie that Sōgo had tossed into the air, then swallowed it whole.
"Delicious~"
Lilynette held her face in her hands, looking blissfully happy.
" Lilynette... sir! You wouldn't make that face just because you ate a cookie."
Sōgo put down the controller in his hand, stretched slightly, and began to speak.
"Ugh... Sōgo, you tricked me."
Lilynette felt incredibly sad; she had actually been tricked by the person she trusted most.
"This plate of cookies is all yours."
Seeing Lilynette's teary eyes and the way she looked like she was about to cry, Sōgo sighed helplessly and handed Lilynette the whole plate of handmade cookies on his table.
Cookies~
Lilynette stared at the cookies on the tray, the tears that had been welling in her eyes vanished, leaving only a wide grin and an expression of ecstatic joy.
"Did you give them all to me?"
Lilynette gripped the tray tightly with both hands and asked Sōgo.
"That's right, I've given them all to you."
Sōgo smiled slightly as he looked at Lilynette, who showed no intention of returning the tray.
"Very good."
After receiving Sōgo's approval, Lilynette nodded emphatically, picked up the plate, and began to eat heartily.
But no alcohol.
Sōgo added one condition: Lilynette was absolutely forbidden from drinking alcohol.
Lilynette doesn't have a high alcohol tolerance, but she loves to drink, to the point that she often goes on a drunken rampage. If it's just a few of them at a gathering, it's not so bad, but with Rukia around, it's inevitable that Lilynette will drink too much and Rukia will discover her Little Mimi. If Rukia finds out that Lilynette is Vasto Lorde- level Menos Grande, it might give Rukia a heart attack or something, which wouldn't be good.
"Okay, okay."
Lilynette kept nodding like a cute little quail.
"Good boy."
After receiving Lilynette's response, Sōgo smiled slightly and gently patted Lilynette head.
"Hmm~"
Lilynette let out a soft, soothing sound, like a kitten.
"Tsk~"
As Hōshō Ryo watched the scene unfold before her, she tightened her grip slightly, her veins bulging, and looked at Lilynette, who was acting cute towards Sōgo, with obvious dissatisfaction. Hōshō Ryo hated those characters who pretended to be silly and cute the most.
"Just pretend you didn't see it."
Rukia Kuchiki watched the scene unfold before her and shook her head inwardly. Whether it was Sougo embracing two Sōgo or the secret rivalry between Hōshō Ryo and Lilynette, she, as an outsider, saw it all clearly. But she was clever; she would pretend not to know.
Soon it was time for the evening party.
Since it was a banquet personally convened by Sōgo, all the prominent figures in the Second Division gathered after hearing Sōgo's order.
Sōgo sat in the main seat of the banquet hall without hesitation, his arrogant demeanor and tone suggesting that Sōgo was more like the king of the Second Division Second Division than the Sōgo.
Within the Second Division barracks, Sōgo is the absolute ruler, the one who has the final say and reigns supreme over everything.
Beside Sōgo sat Hōshō Ryo, her smiling face embracing everything beneath her, exuding an air of empressly grace...
"Perhaps Hōshō Ryo is the queen of this Second Division?"
Rukia couldn't help but have this thought in her mind.
To Sōgo's left sat Lilynette and Tier Harribel, the Fourth Seat and Fifth Seat of the Second Division, respectively. No one complained about their seating arrangement; Lilynette and Tier Harribel's strength was enough to suppress any dissent.
Opposite to the two of them, near the right side of Sōgo and Hōshō Ryo, the seat was left empty, as if reserved for someone, but clearly that person had not yet arrived at the banquet.
Beside the empty seat sat a seductive pink-haired woman Rukia had never seen before. For a moment Rukia couldn't tell whether the pink-haired woman was a man or a woman, or perhaps some kind of animal somewhere in between.
"Pop~"
After noticing Rukia observing him, the pink-haired man deliberately turned to look at Rukia and casually blew Rukia a kiss.
"Forehead..."
Rukia felt the pink-haired man's flying kiss and couldn't help but shiver. This being, neither male nor female, flashing back and forth between the two genders, gave her love too suddenly, almost causing her to have a heart attack and leave this beautiful Soul Society forever.
Rukia quickly looked away and glanced at the pink-haired girl next to her. Sitting next to the pink-haired girl was a man with dark green hair who seemed a bit neurotic. The man kept looking around and seemed to be muttering something, but because they were too far apart, Rukia Kuchiki couldn't hear him very well.
It's worth noting that a girl in a sailor uniform was sitting next to the eccentric man. At that moment, the girl was looking down and constantly putting food from the table into her mouth, seemingly completely absorbed in the food.
Next were the two people sitting at the tables to Rukia's left and right. Rukia had heard of the person sitting to Rukia left; he seemed to be surnamed Ise, a member of the famous, now-declining Shinto family, the Ise Clan Family. However, it seemed that because he was male, he could not be recorded in the Ise Clan Family's genealogy and had now pledged allegiance to the Shihoin Family, completely breaking away from the Ise Clan Family.
As for the person sitting to Rukia's right, to be honest, Rukia had never seen him before. Whether it was his long, jet-black hair like silk or his features that seemed to be meticulously sculpted by an artisan, once you saw him, you would never forget him. However, Rukia was certain that she had never seen him in the Second Division. What was even more suspicious was that this man was actually wearing a snow-white Captain's Haori. However, what was printed on the back of this man's haori was not the division's symbol, but the clan crest of the Shihōin Clan.
Because the man was very close to Rukia, he had already noticed Rukia while she was observing Rukia. However, he didn't say anything. He quietly took care of the woman beside him who looked about 80% like him, constantly feeding her and occasionally showing a happy smile.
"One, two, three... No way? Their Spiritual Pressure is all above mine!"
Rukia Kuchiki looked at the crowd of Second Division high-ranking officers who had been summoned to the meeting, beads of sweat forming on her forehead.
Needless to say, Sōgo and Hōshō Ryo were two formidable opponents Rukia Kuchiki knew all too well the terrifying strength of these two captains and vice-captains of the Second Division; they were undoubtedly top-tier fighters at the division Captain-level.
Lilynette and Tier Harribel both possess power at the Captain-level, a fact personally verified by Hōshō Ryo.
What's terrifying is that the pink-haired girl Rukia doesn't recognize, the green-haired girl who keeps looking around and talking to herself, the beautiful woman next to the green-haired girl, and the two people sitting on either side of Rukia —their Spiritual Pressure feels to Rukia as if they are all above hers.
After years of arduous training, Rukia has reached the Lieutenant-level in every aspect, from Zankensōki- Rukia techniques to Spiritual Pressure. However, even so, Rukia still felt a suffocating pressure sitting in the banquet hall. Although everyone was suppressing their Spiritual Pressure, the clash of auras between these powerful individuals still made Rukia feel a tightness in her chest and discomfort.
At this moment, Rukia had the strange feeling that she was not at the banquet of the Second Division, but at the Captains' Meeting First Division Barracks, and was facing the thirteen division captains alone.
The current gathering of the Second Division's high-ranking officers gave Rukia the feeling that all the captains of the Gotei 13 were gathered together, with a constant stream of Captain-level experts.
"Wait... this Spiritual Pressure... another squad Captain-level?! The Second Division has a total of ten hidden experts... ten?"
Rukia gently touched her chest and looked at the closed doors of the banquet hall. Although the people outside had not yet entered, she could already feel their exaggerated Spiritual Pressure.
Just as Rukia Kuchiki felt a tightness in her chest and beads of sweat dripped from her forehead, the previously closed doors of the banquet hall suddenly opened, and a burly man dressed in Shihakusho, over two meters tall, with his hair casually falling over his shoulders, walked in.
"Master... Master?"
Rukia stared at the man, who was as muscular as a brown bear, and felt a surge of disbelief. She couldn't believe that her master, who had taught her day and night... well, night and night, had actually appeared in this situation.
"Could it be that my master has exposed himself?"
Rukia felt incredulous, but also conflicted. In her mind, she had already imagined a million-word Soul Society version of a martial arts romance novel.
"You're so slow, Kuruyashiki."
Before Rukia speak, Sōgo, who was already somewhat impatient while sitting in his seat, greeted the man who had just entered the banquet hall.
"Isn't this just a part-time job?"
"After all, I still have a very heavy burden of foreign debt on my shoulders."
Kuruyashiki Kenpachi shrugged. It wasn't that he wanted to come so late; it was just that some people insisted he pay off his debts and wouldn't let him come.
"Hurry up! Third Seat Kuruyashiki, you dare to talk back to Lord Sōgo after being late! You know we've all been here for ages, just waiting for you."
With his green hair, Tsunayashiro Tokinada was somewhat displeased with Kuruyashiki Kenpachi Sōgo. In his mind, anyone who defied Sōgo deserved to die, so Tsunayashiro Tokinada stood up without saying a word and reprimanded Kuruyashiki Kenpachi.
" Third Seat Kuruyashiki? Master has Third Seat?"
Rukia Kuchiki was slightly shocked after hearing what Tsunayashiro Tokinada said to Kuruyashiki Kenpachi.
(End of this chapter)