CH 135: IT’S TIME FOR THE DUEL
"He is late!"
"Blablabla...Can you shut up already and take the stick out of your ass? Why are you always so uptight?"
"I believe you went too far, Zaraki."
"Oh shut, you too, masked face. Talk when you have the guts to show what you look like."
"*Tsk* *Tsk* How entertaining, I did well in listening to Nanao and coming soon."
"*Cough* Please don't joke around. *Cough* *Cough* They look like they are about to come to blows."
"What a waste of time. Is this why I was forced to stop my experiment?"
“*Sigh* How dull…This is why men like you are no good.”
In a large conference room, the thirteen captains of Gotei 13 stood separated in two rows as they spoke to each other.
It was extremely rare for all the captains to reunite at the same place and time. Because of this, many Shinigamis had disillusions about what the rare conference that gathered all captains looked like and how it went on.
They would imagine a solemn moment full of grace and nobility as they discussed the future of the world as a whole.
Unfortunately, this was after forgetting how different and headstrong each captain was and how most of them couldn’t breathe in the same room without trying to fight each other.
Thankfully-
"Silence!"
A simple word. A strong voice full of strength and authority. The moment that order was uttered, like a lie, all voices vanished and tranquility once again filled the room.
The voice belonged to an old man with a long white beard. He was sitting on what could be described as a throne.
Genryusai Shigekuni Yamamoto. Creator of Gotei 13 as well as the oldest and strongest shinigami in the Seireitei.
In all history, there was no shinigami, not even Zaraki Kenpachi, who did not respect the power of the leader of the Gotei 13.
Once silence befell the room, Yamamoto nodded in approval.
He wasn't really bothered by the noise. After all, this rowdiness was nothing compared to the past when he first brought the others and created the order known as the 13 Blades, which later became Gotei 13.
Back then, it wasn't just disputes but outright killing intent. Simply shouting at them to shut up would have been pointless and he literally had to take out his sword and beat them into submission every time they went on a rampage.
‘Those were the good old times.’
Sadly, nothing was eternal in this world. His friends died one after another and nowadays, only a few like Tenjro and Unohana are still alive.
The Gotei 13 managed to obtain peace as they wished and there had been no great war since the war that happened one thousand years ago against Ywach and his Quincy.
Yamamoto did not see the skirmish that happened 100 years ago against Quincy as a war. After all, without Yhwach, the Quincy of that time were simply too weak and this fight had been nothing more than a pure massacre[1].
“Unohana, you are the one who put forth the proposal of promoting Satoru Gojo to Captain. What do you have to say?”
Unohana showed her usual smile when she was questioned by Yamamoto.
“He will be here shortly.”
As if to affirm her words.
“Hello~Hello~! The handsome and super talented Satoru Gojo is present.”
The large door opened as a silver-haired man, whose eyes were wrapped by bandages, entered the premise with great pomp and fanfare.
Even so, no one seemed to bother with those words that lacked any sense of decorum. After all...
“Ohoh?”
Yamamoto raised the corner of his eyes as he stared at Gojo.
‘I did not feel him?’
The same reaction could be seen on the face of all those present. After all, as captains, their senses were already at a level beyond what normal shinigami could imagine. Even if Gojo had used Kido to hide his presence, it shouldn’t have been so throughout.
But at that moment, it was like his very existence had only appeared after he opened the gate.
‘I see. So this is how he did it.’
Of course, as an experienced fighter, Yamato did not stay surprised for long as he understood what Gojo did. By using the dense Reishi in the Seireitei, he cloaked himself in it and managed to become ‘invisible’ to their senses.
It was something impossible for a normal Shinigami to do. After all, they were unable to use Reishi like Quincy, even more so in a place like Soul Society and Hueco Mundo. This reminded him of someone else. Someone he did not wish to remember.[2]
Still, Yamamoto couldn’t help but let out a sigh of despondence.
‘To think I am getting this old. My senses have dulled.’
“You were late, Satoru Gojo.”
“Sorry, sorry. This was not my intention. I was so nervous that I had the jitteries. My legs were shaking while I walked to this place.”
‘Bullshit’
That was what all the people present in this room thought at the same time. But none of them spoke. After all, Yamamoto was still not finished talking to him.
“You are…quite sassy.”
“I have been told that my personality was lovely.”
This was perhaps the first true discussion between Yamamoto and Gojo in the ten years since Gojo joined.
If he had to be honest. Yamamoto did not like Gojo’s personality. He did not like how frivolous the man was. But, he was used to it. After all, all captains had quirky personalities.
Thinking so, he finally turned his attention toward the only vice-captain present in the room.
Another silver-haired man with a smile reminiscent of a snake—Gin Ichimaru.
The man had been awfully silent since he entered but Yamamoto saw no fear or unease on the face of that man. All he could perceive was a profound indifference to what was happening.
“Enough chit-chat. You know the rules.”
As he said so, he indicated to Gin to come and stand in front of him next to Gojo.
“Ten years ago, Gin Ichimaru alongside Byakuya Kuchiki showed us the first way and were accepted as possible captains. Byakuya Kuchiki is now the captain of the 6th division, whereas Gin should have become the captain of the 3th division. But—”
He threw a glance at Gojo, who spoke with V and a cheeky smile.
“-Satoru Gojo went through the second way.”
Even now, Yamamoto had to admit that he was in awe of what Gojo did. It was extraordinary since very very few captains managed to obtain the title with this method.
The six ones who endorsed him were;
Retsu Unohana, captain of the 4th division.
Byakuya Kuchiki, captain of the 6th division.
Shunsui Kyoraku, captain of the 8th division.
Isshin Shiba, captain of the 10th division.
Mayuri Kurotsuchi, captain of the 12th.
and finally, Jushiro Ukitake, captain of the 13th division.
As for the three out of the remaining seven that accepted him, they were;
Soi Fon, captain of the 2nd division.
Chikane Iba[3], captain of the 3rd division.
Zaraki Kenpachi, Captain of the 11th division.
“Be it Satoru Gojo or Gin Ichimaru, they demonstrated the power necessary to become captain. Unfortunately, there is only one place available. As such–”
“–Sorry to interrupt Ji-chan. I do not wish to become captain of the 3rd division any longer.”
A grave silence befell the room at the sudden declaration of Gojo. Nearly everyone was shocked and had difficulty catching up with what was happening.
Even Gin, who always showed an easy-going smile, was left speechless.
Yamamoto, who was previously looking like a simple decrepit old man began to emit a pressure so high the ground seemed to shake.
“Satoru Gojo…”
He pronounced those words with gravity and steel in his voice.
“...Are you taking Gotei 13 for fools?”
His grip on his walking cane tightened and his killing intent was so obvious that all those present felt as if a knife was upon their throat. It was evident that if Gojo didn’t give a satisfactory answer, he would be severely punished.
But Gojo showed no fluster at this sight and instead, gave a grin filled with confidence.
“Now now, no need to go all murder hobo on me. I said that I did not wish to become the Captain of the 3rd division.”
There were three ways to become captain.
“What I want is...”
The first one was the Captain Proficiency Test. A test that required the ability to perform Bankai. Nearly all Shinigami became captains using this method. At least three existing captains, including the Captain-Commander, have to witness the test.
The second one was through personal Recommendation. The one chosen needed to have personal recommendations from at least six captains and approval from at least three of the remaining seven. This was something close to impossible since it was very rare for captains to be all in accord.
As for the third one–
“To become the Captain of the 5th Division. Which is why…”
It was a trial by combat, where the candidate had to defeat a captain in one-on-one combat with at least 200 witnesses from that captain's division.
“...Captain Sosuke Aizen—I challenge you for your title.”
(AN: Hehehe. How many of you saw this coming? Gojo isn’t the kind to always wait passively.)
[1]: I think I already repeated it, but the wars against Quincy happened three times in Bleach. The first was 1K years before Canon. With Yhwach as the helm.
The second was the massacre that happened 150 years before Canon. The final one is the Blood war that happened 2 years after the start of Canon. Of course, my fic is currently 45 years before Canon.
[2]: I am honestly still hesitating about adding SFWY in my novel. After all, the 8th Kenpachi, Soya Azashiro, is broken. Furthermore, SFWY isn’t canon. It’s a fanfic. But, at the same time, his Bankai is very similar to Gojo and since it was added in the game of Bleach, this means that it’s at least recognized by Kubo(Man, I wish I could reach the level where my fanfic is added in the lore of the game. Though hope is slim).
I even remember Kubo praising the author of SFWY because of how well he understood the plot and how he had guessed some points about Zaraki and his zanpakuto long before the Blood War was published.
Anyway, I left this one as a kinda foreshadowing. If I ever decide to develop this point. At least it won’t be out of nowhere.
[3]: Just to say that she isn’t an OC I created. She was the vice-captain of the 3rd division before Gin became Captain and in the absence of a captain, the one who took the helm as interim if the vice-captain. Her captain was Rojuro Otoribashi( A Visored) and she briefly served as Gin vice-captain before being replaced by Izuru Kira.