CH 44: REACTIONS
[Gotei 13, 1st division]
In the office of the captain of the 1st division, who was also the captain commandant of the whole Gotei 13, Yamamoto sat calmly while listening to his vice-captain, Chojiro Sasakibe.
"...That is all for the report."
"Hum."
The report had been about the fight between Satoru Gojo, a new member of the 4th division, and Ikkaku Madarame, the 3rd seat of the 11th division.
Normally, such a fight should have been unworthy of Yamamoto's attention, but he had been very curious about the boy since some time ago.
This fight particularly had been eye-opening.
"So, now he created a barrier?"
Yamamoto murmured to himself.
This wasn't the first report he had received about Gojo and from all of them he had pieced something.
'The boy is creating his own system.'
This wasn't the first time he had observed something like this.
After all, the criteria to enter Division 0 was to make a great contribution to the soul society by creating something never seen.
Still, even in the two thousand years since the creation of the Gotei 13, the number of such geniuses was incredibly limited.
The latest one being, Kisuke Urahara and Mayuri Kurotsuchi, and this was exactly because of this that,
"Continue to monitor him. Do not use the secret force, it was already proven to be useless. Make use of the observer we planted in the 4th division."
"Understood."
A Genius could either be a boon or a disaster.
After all, geniuses liked to play around with the forbidden.
He would not let a fiasco like the one with Kisuke Urahara repeat itself.
If the boy proved to be useful, perhaps in Thirty or fifty years he could rise as a captain.
But if he proved to be dangerous….
His grips on his cane tightened.
Then he would have to move his old bones once again.
"What about Mayuri?"
Chojiro nodded and took another stack of paper.
If Gojo was nothing more than a potential danger, Mayuri on the other hand was a true danger that could explode at any moment.
If Yamamoto did not regularly check on his research progress, he was sure that the man would one day blow up the Seireitei or create some kind of incurable disease.
'Why are all the useful ones also the ones with weird problems?'
Ukitake was one of the most powerful Shinigami he's ever seen, but his sick body stopped him from utilizing his full power.
Shunsui, who held one of the most dangerous Bankais, but was a lazy bastard.
Unohana, who was nearly as powerful as himself, but was a crazy, blood-lusting woman.
Zaraki, who had a talent unmatched in all history, but was an idiot that sealed his own strength.
Even his own vice-captain had developed some weird fetish about the western culture after a mission in the west branch of the soul society. It was to a level where he even hated Japanese food.
Scrunching his brows because of all those unique personalities surrounding him, Yamamato couldn't help but feel tired.
'I wonder if I should retire.'
Thinking about his retirement, he couldn't help but remember a report about another genius. One whose Zanpakuto was basically the complete opposite of his.
"Chojiro."
"Yes?"
"The boy named Toshiro Hitsugaya."
"The one who awakened an ice-type Zanpakuto?"
"Indeed. He should graduate soon. Send him a proposal. If he enters the 1st division, I will immediately give him a seated position with one digit."
Chojiro nodded without asking why. He had an absolute and complete belief in his captain.
Technically speaking, all seated positions aside from the 1st seat could be held by more than one person at the same time and those seats went from 1 to 20.
But it was a sort of unspoken rule that seats from 2 to 9 could only be held by one or two-people at maximum.
Even Shuhei Hisagi, another very talented student, had only been offered a seat in the double digits.
Yamamato could only chuckle while thinking about the possibility of taking Toshiro under his wings.
After all, it seemed that Unohana wished to train the man named Gojo Satoru.
Wouldn't it be interesting if he also trained his own disciple?
This could help him pass time for perhaps one or two hundred years.
----
[8th division, Main office]
Laying down with one hand supporting his head, a middle-aged man wearing a pink haori over a white coat was observing a glasses-wearing, black-haired girl.
He was Shunsui Kyoraku. The heir of the high-ranked noble house, Kyoraku, and the captain of the 8th division.
It could be said that with both those identities, anyone would think of Kyoraku as a serious man with impeccable manners. A little like Soi Fon or Ginrei Kuchiki.
But the truth couldn't be further apart from reality.
Illusions could never withstand the weight of reality.
Shunsui Kyoraku was an unkempt, frivolous, lazy, and flirtatious man.
For more than 60 years ago, the one who had been running the division was the Vice-captain, Nanao Ise and before her, the previous vice-captain, who became a fugitive 60 years ago, Lisa Yadomaru.
Generally, seeing him in such an unbecoming posture, Nanao would scold him one way or another.
But this time though, she seemed to be lost in thoughts and hesitating.
Of course, he knew why. Which is why he couldn't keep the smile from his face,
'My little Nanao is growing up.'
Even though he always teased her, Nanao Ise was like a daughter for him, and in fact, she was his niece.
Sadly, he had never managed to confess this truth to her.
Dismissing the gloomy thoughts, he asked,
"Why don't you just visit him?"
Nanao seemed startled at the sudden words, she then shook her head,
"I have no one to meet, I do not understand what you are talking about."
'How could I believe what you just said when your face is so red?'
It was really a sight to behold.
'She seems really happy to have a way to meet him…but…'
If Nanao was a normal person, then there would be no problem.
As long as Gojo was a good man, he wouldn't have minded and would bless them.
Sadly, the Ise clan suffered from a curse or at least it seemed to be a curse.
All the members of the Ise clan were women and could only give birth to girls.
The worst part was the fact that all men who married an Ise clan woman died not long after.
Shunsui had personally suffered from this tragedy.
After all, his brother, Nanao's father, died because of the curse.
"Perhaps I should meet that man myself, first?"
At least, he needed to assess the resolve of that man.
It promised to be interesting.