Help! I am bound to Aizen!

Chapter 164

Chapter 164

“After hearing Kirio Hikifune’s description, Kaelith instantly came up with an answer.

The Quincy.

In the world of Bleach, the three realms maintain a basic cycle. The Soul Society and Hueco Mundo must keep their total number of souls in balance.

If one side suddenly decreases, the other side will press in.

The Living World also needs to maintain a certain number of souls. If too many vanish, the Living World loses its support and becomes vulnerable to invasion from the Soul Society and Hueco Mundo, leading to its collapse.

This is because all three realms were created by the Soul King. Unlike the universe Kaelith knew before transmigrating—where cosmic explosions, planetary births, and species evolution were the norm—this world already had humans and Hollows in its primordial state.

The Soul King divided the three realms, establishing a system of reishi and reiryoku as their fundamental substances. This simple, forceful set of rules effectively kept the three realms stable. But its very simplicity made it extremely susceptible to external interference.

The Quincy were precisely such disruptors of the system.

When a Shinigami kills a Hollow, that Hollow is purified and its soul returns to the Soul Society.

Quincies, however, completely destroy the Hollow’s soul, removing it from the cycle of the three realms.

Kaelith wasn’t sure if Yamamoto would immediately think of the Quincy, so he offered a reminder.

“Sensei, could it be the Quincy?”

Hearing this, Yamamoto looked at him with some surprise. “You even know of the Quincy?”

Kaelith snorted. “I’ve read historical records.”

Kirio Hikifune was also a bit surprised. Information on the Quincy was scarce in the Soul Society. Only those who studied history or possessed family records would think of them right away. She’d assumed her mentor wasn’t the type to study, yet here he was, familiar with this obscure knowledge.

As expected of a true master!

Yamamoto said slowly, “It’s almost certain that this is the work of Quincy. The Soul Society has always kept an eye on Quincy in the Living World to prevent them from having improper thoughts. But we never restricted their development. For nearly eight hundred years, the Quincy have multiplied, their numbers ever growing. With power, there’s always the desire to use it—especially as that power grows stronger. We can’t let this continue…”

He closed his eyes, as if wanting to sigh, but in the end did nothing. A few seconds later, he opened them and tapped his cane against the floor.

“Someone, come.”

A figure instantly appeared in the room, kneeling down on one knee.

“Summon the Seventh Division Captain, Love Aikawa, and the Ninth Division Captain, Kensei Muguruma.”

The Onmitsukid? member bowed slightly and vanished with Shunpo.

Before long, the two captains arrived. Rarely meeting the Head Captain, both were slightly nervous. Seeing Kaelith present, they relaxed a bit.

“Love Aikawa, Kensei Muguruma,” Yamamoto said.

“I order you two to go to the Living World on behalf of the Seireitei and issue a warning to the Quincy. Effective immediately, except for urgent self-defense, they are forbidden from killing Hollows without approval. Should Hollows appear, they must report to the stationed Shinigami. Their newborn population must not exceed the number of those who have died. The Soul Society will assign personnel to supervise these demands.”

He paused for a few seconds, then as if making a decision, opened his eyes a bit wider and looked at them. “If they resist, do not hesitate. Suppress them with overwhelming force!”

The two captains exchanged glances, then nodded firmly. “Understood!”

…

Kaelith and Kirio Hikifune left together.

Once outside the First Division, Hikifune stretched lazily. “Ah, the First Division always feels so oppressive. I’ve followed Genry?sai-sama for so many years, yet I’m still a bit scared every time I see him.”

“Old men are best at putting on stern faces,” Kaelith shrugged.

Hikifune couldn’t help laughing. After a moment, she asked curiously, “Master, I heard you set up a research department in the Second Division?”

Kaelith nodded, explaining the situation at the Technology Bureau. Hearing that he’d even recruited Mayuri Kurotsuchi, Hikifune was surprised.

“That boy Mayuri is indeed skilled in research, but he’s overly obsessed with creating life. Master, be careful not to teach him all the techniques for creating artificial souls at once, or I fear he might do something strange.”

Just imagining the insane experiments Mayuri might conduct made Hikifune break out in a cold sweat.

“Originally, I planned to set up a similar institution in the Twelfth Division before leaving the Soul Society,” Hikifune said. “But since you, Master, have already started one in the Second Division, let’s just do it there! I’ll go back later and compile a list of personnel focused on research and transfer them to the Technology Bureau!”

Hearing this, Kaelith looked at her, a bit surprised.

Even if Hikifune no longer intended to create a research bureau of her own, keeping some researchers around would still be beneficial. Passing them all on to him—did this mean she wasn’t planning to delve deeper into artificial souls herself?

After a brief moment of surprise, he understood.

Facing Hikifune’s smiling expression, Kaelith said softly, “Captain Hikifune, are you leaving?”

“Yes,” Hikifune nodded. “If nothing goes wrong, I’ll leave in the next few years.”

Kaelith nodded. Though he wasn’t entirely sure about the conditions of the Royal Guard, based on Senjumaru Shutara’s casual demeanor, it seemed pretty decent. At least she had the leisure to send down clothes just for fun.

Speaking of clothes, hadn’t Senjumaru promised him an outfit long ago? Where was it?

Kaelith’s favorable impression of the Royal Guard is beginning to lower…

…

Unnoticed, the first snowfall came.

Standing under the Fifth Division’s veranda, Kaelith looked up at the sky. “Time flies. It’s almost been a year since we became Shinigami.”

Aizen sipped tea, steam fogging his glasses and turning the world white. He exhaled and said quietly, “Considering a Shinigami’s lifespan, a single year is hardly worth lamenting.”

Kaelith thought for a moment. “Then let’s put it differently! In a flash, we’ve been first-year Shinigami for almost a year. Doesn’t that make it feel longer?”

Aizen: “…”

As he was left speechless, a voice called out from behind.

“Hey, Kaelith, why are you hanging around the Fifth Division again? I’m warning you, you can come visit, but when it’s mealtime, get out!”

Turning around, Kaelith saw a figure wearing a white haori and long golden hair down to his waist. It was Shinji Hirako. Kaelith showed a look of regret.

Shinji was displeased. “Kid, what’s that face supposed to mean?”

Kaelith sighed, “Such beautiful hair on a man… If that were a lovely girl with that hairstyle, it’d be stunning.”

A vein popped on Shinji’s forehead.

He was about to retort when Kaelith continued, “If it had to be a man, at least a handsome one would be nice. That way, it’d be easy on the eyes. But that gorgeous hair combined with Captain Hirako’s shady face is quite jarring.”

“???”

Shinji Hirako was so mad he laughed. Forgetting any captainly dignity, he rolled up his sleeves and charged at Kaelith.

Aizen held his teacup, watching them circle around him as he sipped slowly.

Another peaceful day.

At first, Shinji’s chase was half-playful. But soon, he realized this brat was too fast!

Kaelith’s Shunpo seemed to incorporate some special technique. Each time he used it, the space around him would distort slightly, increasing his speed. Moreover, this spatial distortion interfered with Shinji’s ability to pinpoint Kaelith’s location via spiritual sensing.

After being shaken off several times, Shinji got interested. He went all out, pushing his Shunpo to the limit.

Then he found, even at full speed, he couldn’t catch Kaelith!

This kid… hasn’t even been a Shinigami for a year, right?

During the last captain promotion exams, Kaelith never showed such footwork.

What kind of growth rate was this?

For a moment, Shinji felt the urge to spar with him and see just how strong he’d become.

Unfortunately, before he could act, his lieutenant ran over, saying there was official business that required his immediate attention.

Hearing that, Shinji reluctantly gave up.

Before leaving, he glared at Kaelith.

“Remember, kid, don’t you dare stay for dinner!”

Then he looked at Aizen.

At first, Shinji found Aizen suspicious, feeling a dangerous aura well concealed. But over time, he realized maybe Aizen wasn’t as scary as he’d thought.

Though Aizen still seemed reserved, always wearing a mask, whenever Kaelith came around, Shinji could sense Aizen momentarily let down his guard and interact genuinely.

This discovery put him somewhat at ease.

A person who has a true friend and is willing to be genuine with them is less dangerous than someone eternally hidden behind a mask.

As a result, Shinji’s attitude toward Aizen had softened a bit. While he wouldn’t say he liked him now, at least he was no longer so hostile.

“Aizen, make sure you send your friend away before mealtime. We can’t let him keep raiding our Fifth Division cafeteria.”

“Understood, Captain. Leave it to me,” Aizen nodded, giving Shinji a reassuring smile.

Seeing this, Shinji relaxed slightly and turned away.

After Shinji left, Aizen looked at Kaelith.

“Come on, let’s go to the cafeteria. They’ve got some nice new dishes today. Have a taste.”

“Great!”

(t/N; ...did Aizen just flat-out ignore his command?... Bhahah)

…

At the Fifth Division cafeteria, several squad members occasionally glanced toward Aizen’s table.

That Third Seat from the Second Division was here mooching off food from them again…

Seeing the towering stack of plates and bowls in front of Kaelith, and how he was still devouring food so casually, they couldn’t help but to swallow.

Watching someone eat heartily could stir one’s own appetite. But seeing someone eat that much left only astonishment and admiration.

In the world of Shinigami, eating a lot wasn’t a bad thing. How much you could eat reflected your potential. Ordinary souls could get full just by drinking water. Only those with training and talent needed food.

And someone who ate as much as Kaelith… who knew how far he could go?

The only ones who wanted to cry were the Fifth Division’s accountants. If Kaelith kept this up, the monthly food budget would definitely go over again…

Before Shinji Hirako came back, Kaelith quickly finished his meal.

Satisfied, he was about to slip away when Aizen also stood up.

“Don’t go back to the Second Division today. Come with me.”

“Alright.”

Without asking why, Kaelith followed him.

Leading Kaelith, Aizen headed toward Rukongai. In a mountain near his laboratory, he stopped.

Under Kaelith’s watchful gaze, Aizen reached out and tore away a patch of concealing Kid?, revealing an entrance.

Inside was a human-shaped wooden board.

Aizen took it out and set it upright nearby.

Seeing the life-sized wooden figure, Kaelith had a vague sense of familiarity.

Before he could recall why, Aizen explained:

“This is an invention I recently developed in collaboration with Urahara Kisuke. Since he contributed more, he got naming rights.”

“It’s called the Tenshintai. It can forcibly draw out a Zanpakut?’s spirit, allowing its wielder to fight against it directly.”

“As long as you defeat the Tenshintai manifestation, you can learn Bankai.”

“I think, for someone like you, this will be very useful. While the Soul Society is still at peace, learn Bankai!”

In fact, Urahara had mostly completed the theory before asking Aizen for help. Aizen’s main contribution was providing data from Muramasa to awaken Zanpakut? spirits and supplying a few souls for experiments.

Hearing this, Kaelith’s expression cleared. No wonder this board looked familiar. It was the tool Ichigo Kurosaki would use to achieve Bankai in the original story.

Kaelith looked at Aizen. “You said earlier this was the project you two were tinkering with?”

Aizen squinted his eyes. “‘Tinkering’? You have no idea the value and difficulty of creating this device, do you?”

Kaelith chuckled. He approached the Tenshintai and poked it curiously.

Aizen cautioned him, “If you choose to learn Bankai this way, be mentally prepared. Forcibly awakening your Zanpakut? spirit spares you the process of exploring your inner world, but greatly increases the spirit’s power. Once you choose this path, you can’t return to the inner exploration method.”

Kaelith snorted. “What’s a mere sword spirit compared to the great Kaelith?”

“I’ll choose this method!”