Chapter 10: Calm Before The Storm

"For all our potential, we are indolent creatures by nature. If unconditional charity is all we know, then we begin to rely on it- to expect it." - Godbert Manderville

.....

The following day after the celebration night, Shugo officially started his duties as the Eighth Seat of the Thirteenth Division. Being a Seated Officer, he had his own quarters. It was certainly larger than his dorm room in the Academy. He woke up after silencing the "alarm" from his "phone" that he left close to his futon.

He stood up and made his futon, though not folding it since there was no particular need to do so. Donning the remaining articles of his Shihakusho over the already-worn white shitagi, he got ready to leave his quarters. He still had yet to get the spares for his Shihakusho, and that of getting Ukitake's permission to use his boots instead of the normal straw sandals that came as part of his Shihakusho.

Opening the door and leaving through it, he met Captain Ukitake who was surprisingly waiting for him outside of his quarters.

"Good morning, Captain." Shugo lightly bowed.

"Ah, Kurenai-kun! Good morning!" Ukitake greeted back with a smile.

The Captain's complexion had this small trace of paleness, though overall he was very much better than he had been in a long time.

"Come, we should get going!" Ukitake gestured Shugo to follow him.

The two then headed towards Ukitake's office, walking together while he was explaining to Shugo of the duties that's entailing Shugo's current station as part of the division and the Gotei as a whole.

"To put it simply, your job as a seated officer is to do patrols in the Rukongai Districts, and on occasions, in the World of the Living. Part of patrolling is to dispatch any Hollows you might come across, while also performing Konso if you're patrolling in the World of the Living." Ukitake gave a brief summary.

Shugo nodded in understanding, already knowing this beforehand from Unohana and the Academy.

"But what of our area of patrol, Captain? Surely we wouldn't be patrolling the whole star?" He asked.

"Hahaha! No, that would be preposterous. Our jurisdiction is Karakura Town, located in Western Tokyo. A rather small city, really, in comparison to the neighboring capital city. Its population is pretty average for a city that size." Ukitake laughed, explaining the basic information on the town.

"But its importance lies in the fact it's a jureichi." He continued, pointing out with the last remark.

"A jureichi? May I presume that's the term used by Soul Society for a ley line point?" Shugo raised his brow.

He knew the importance of locations that are the focal points of the star's ley lines. In fact, when Fandaniel started his devious plans for the second Final Days, he built towers specifically on the various points in the world that could be considered as the focal points of the ley lines, with the only ones inaccessible for him being the ones in Hingashi and Old Sharlayan. Hence, the particular reason why Hingashi and Old Sharlayan was mostly unaffected.

"Correct. Though in comparison to other known locations, Karakura Town is pretty much the densest of them all. Hence, it's importance to Soul Society and its designation as District 3600 of the Rukongai." Ukitake nodded and elaborated.

Before long, the two arrived at Ukitake's office. Coming inside, Sentaro and Kiyone were already on their tables, dutifully doing and organizing paperwork, while maintaining the day-to-day operations of the division. However, now with the recovery of Ukitake, their duties were lessened, hence the rather smaller amount of paperwork and such for them.

"Ah, Captain! Good morning!" "Good morning, Captain!" The two greeted him with enthusiasm.

"Good morning, Kiyone, Sentaro." Ukitake greeted back with a smile.

Ukitake went inside and sat on his table, beginning to do his duties once more as a Captain. While it would take some time, they'd have to get used to the fact that their Captain is doing his own duties once more, albeit he's still easing back into it for the time being.

Shugo followed inside and sat down in front of Ukitake's table. He was waiting for his assignment.

"Continuing from before, your duties will also have you write up reports. So be prepared for a massive workload on just paperwork." Ukitake said, smiling wryly.

.....

Right now, Shugo was currently on his desk, just across Ukitake's at a distance. Paperwork was a bloody nightmare of a job. How in the seven hells did Tataru and Alphinaud put up with this type of work is beyond him.

"Facing off against Zenos seems almost trivial compared to this…" He had a perplexed look plastered on his face.

Reviewing day-to-day operations, such as the monthly budget, its allocation, personnel deployment, and not to mention, making sure that there's no discrepancy in the numerous reports from the patrols and then handing it off to the captain for final approval before being filed to Central 46… It was certainly torturous.

Thankfully, he had some experience, in part due to having read various reports during his venture into various locations that were written by those that came before him or by the original inhabitants of said locations. Of course, there was no guarantee that they were better, but in comparison to some that he was reviewing, they seemed to be written by competent personnel.

Still, he was not fond of having to bother with these matters. It was simply "not his thing", as some would say. Though, perhaps it was just his nature since his time as Azem. Well, that and the fact he accepted his current position in the Thirteenth very much made it his own decision.

Meanwhile, Ukitake was observing Shugo in amusement, seemingly aware of the frustration that his new subordinate has with doing paperwork. Of course, he was also doing his own paperwork while observing Shugo at the same time. Being aware of Shugo's identity, he's much more amused.

'For all his strength, he equally hates paperwork as I do.' He bemused.

When the sun was near its twilight for the day, the four had finished the mountains of paperwork on their tables. Before they all went back to their quarters, Ukitake tapped Shugo's shoulders.

"Wait for a minute. I still need to explain a bit more of your duties." He spoke.

Shugo only nodded in response since it wasn't a bothering request. Kiyone and Sentaro stayed to accompany the captain and him, perhaps out of habit that they still need to learn to lay off, since their captain isn't that frail anymore.

.....

Sitting down in a circle of sorts, Ukitake was sitting at a distance in front of Shugo, while Kiyone and Sentaro sat on the left and right of the captain respectively. Seeing the awkward silence, Ukitake cleared his throat to start off the topic he wanted to elaborate.

"Ahem. Kurenai-kun, your duties for the first week will be only desk jobs. However, starting next week, you'll be sent to patrol the World of the Living for a period of two weeks every month, usually the second and third week of the month. Of course, it'll be done within our jurisdiction." Ukitake began to explain.

Shugo nodded. It was easy enough to remember. Both Kiyone and Sentaro looked surprised at their captain. Normally, he wouldn't even assign a newbie like him to a patrol duty like that, let alone in the World of the Living. They didn't voice their objections for the moment, however.

"The schedules of the patrol itself would be on intervals between the World of the Living and the Rukongai, though our division rarely patrol in the Rukongai. We don't exactly do patrols there, especially with seated officers like you or these two." He further elaborated, pointing to both Kiyone and Sentaro when making his last remark.

This wasn't to say that the Thirteenth doesn't patrol the Rukongai. It's more like it's usually done by the unseated officers, which means that those like Rukia would more than likely to be given the Rukongai patrol duty before even getting the one for the World of the Living. Both Kiyone and Sentaro nodded, though they can't be really included as an example, being responsible for much of the Captain's duties in the division's day-to-day operations up until yesterday.

"Unless you're a junior officer, which you're technically not, you likely won't be patrolling in the Rukongai." Ukitake ended on that note.

"Captain, a question, if you will." Shugo raised his hand.

"Ask away!" Ukitake nodded with a smile.

"What does qualify someone as a junior officer?" Shugo asked.

"It's simple, Kurenai-kun. While it varies between different divisions, I consider junior officers to be those seated below the 15th Seat." Ukitake answered.

Shugo nodded in understanding.

"Also, before I forget- "Ukitake smacked his forehead a bit, before continuing with, "- seated officers are leaders of a sub-unit within a division. So, you'll be leading the Eighth Team. Be sure to meet with your future subordinates, even if you're holding that position for a short period of time, okay?"

"I shall." Shugo nodded.

"Good. Now, seeing that it's already late, I'm sure we're all hungry by now. So…" Ukitake grinned when making the last remark.

"I'll go make some dinner for us, Captain!" Kiyone stood up, before being one-upped by Sentaro, who said: "Nuh uh! I'm gonna be the one to make dinner for us!"

The two were at it again. Ukitake only chuckled at the sight, while Shugo shrugged. This sight will indeed become more commonplace in his future. He was very much resigned to that fate.

.....

Meanwhile, somewhere in an undisclosed location…

Two people were seemingly observing something. Whatever it was, it was forming from a blob into… Something. They're all seemingly shrouded by the night sky, yet to be shone by the moonlight. The silence in the room was shattered by the entry of another person into the place.

"In any case, did you get something?" A shrouded voice asked, observing from a distance after entering the place.

"Oh, nothin' at all." Another voice answered, with an accent in their voice.

The person who was observing the data gathered by the equipment, was silent for a few moments, since the other one had replied for them, before they gave their own answer.

"Unfortunately..." The third voice, sounding a tad solemn started.

The person who entered the room began striding down the small stairs from the door to the floor the two were at, while the third voice continued his report.

"...we were able to equip Hollows with target Hollowfication, but...it's too virulent, and it won't work on either normal souls or the souls of division members." The third voice reported.

The shrouded voice pondered for a moment before replying with: "...I see."

Seemingly shrugging the flaw in the work, the shrouded voice reassured them, "Let's be patient. Gin. Kaname."

There was a glint of reflection, coming from the source of the voice that spoke earlier, seemingly reflecting whatever light the place had into the voice's somewhat visible glasses. before the moonlight finally shone on the trio. The first one was revealed to be Aizen Sosuke, while the second one being Ichimaru Gin and the third Kaname Tosen. Aizen looked at his blind subordinate with a smirk (not like Tosen knows Aizen's smirking, he's blind as you'd recall).

"Everything will go according to our plans." Aizen stated with no hesitation.

The blob continued to form into what seemed to be a creature. There were traces of Shihakushos on the ground nearby. There was no visible identification however, as to whom they belong to or which division they came from.

"Seems like this test has produced quite the specimen." Aizen remarked.

"Oh? We're alr'dy there? So, when should we be start'n tha test, Cap'n?" Gin asked.

The first person turned towards the second, and seemingly smiled, if it was visible. "Soon. We shall conduct a tad more tests before we deploy this one for the true test in the World of the Living, perhaps by next week or the week after." Aizen replied with clear confidence in his voice after pondering for a moment.

"Huh, so it'll be that soon?" The second voice sounded a bit surprised.

"Indeed. This one is already a good result, considering the previous ones that have failed. The batch used to make this one was certainly of quality." The first nodded.

Meanwhile, the creature was still forming itself. It was slowly forming into a humanoid body, with its arms being more of a blade being its forearms rather than actual arms. A visible patch of red was forming in the center of the upper torso.

"Aizen-sama, have you decided where to send this one?" The third one that was silent all this time finally spoke up.

"Perhaps we should deploy this one into Naruki City. It should have decent preys there, being the territory of the Tenth." Aizen answered with a smile.

The humanoid being finally finished forming itself, its head has two forward-pointing horns protruding from the sides of the head. The moonlight shone on its face, showing its menacing white mask, with very narrow eye slits and visible rows of teeth. Its hair, in the meantime, was white in color and long enough to reach the middle of its back. Most of its body was black, while only its mask was white.

"Seems like this feela's already complete. Got a name for it, Cap'n?" Gin asked, his face ever so like a sly conniving kitsune, not betraying any discernible signs of his true expression.

"White, for its dark outer and inner white. Ironic, is it not?" Aizen chuckled in amusement.

Considering the fact that it was made from the souls of several Shinigami, the outer appearance being as such wasn't much of a surprise for the man. Though it was certainly interesting enough to be noted for future reference. Compared to his earlier experiments, this one was more coherent, and closer to what he wishes to create.

The night was ominous, for even though on one side there were those who were having a rather joyful and pleasant night, the other one was filled with dread and rather disturbing one, since the latter would move the gears of fate further down the designated path. It was marked with the creature, now visibly noticeable to be a distinct Hollow of sorts, roared through the night, though it wasn't heard because of the surrounding barrier that kept everything inside it masked from the outside and muffled.

But then, Gin asked the million kan question.

"Whatcha gonna do 'bout that Kurenai kid? He ain't a pushover, ya know?" he asked.

"Ah. Indeed, he's perhaps the only one that could pose a threat to me." Aizen answered without having to think.

That certainly shocked Gin, even if he didn't show it on his face. "Care ta elaborate, Cap'n?"

"For one, we have no definitive information on his true abilities. He's certainly careful enough to not show all of the cards on his hand. And my earlier judgement was based on what he did to Ukitake, in which he used a form of Kaido that surpassed even the likes of Unohana to heal the sickly captain of the Thirteenth. Also, said Kaido was powered by the massive reiatsu spike that came from the Thirteenth." Aizen gave his deduction.

"And two, even if the Gotei has any information on him, it would certainly not be put in the Twelfth's database, because I would've been aware of such information. Most likely, it would be held dearly by the Captain-Commander himself. Even I wouldn't want to risk such a confrontation in order to obtain information about that young man. The only other alternatives that most likely know of such information as well would be captains Unohana, Kyoraku and Ukitake. But those three are also equally troublesome to deal with. Hence, we simply have to play it by the ear and let them unravel it themselves." He further elaborated, concluding with that remark.

The other two remained silent. Tosen certainly wasn't saying anything, contemplating on the new information from Aizen.

Gin kept his sly fox-face, while silently commending the young man, for not many can keep secrets from Aizen. This wasn't mentioning the fact that even Aizen considered the young man as a proper threat. Perhaps he would be useful when the time comes when he enacts his plan.

'Dontcha worry, Rangiku. I'll get it back for you.' He reminded himself.

.....

Shiba Isshin was having a headache. Just a few weeks ago, he lost a few members from his division. Not to say they were killed during a mission, rather that they simply went…missing. It was as if they went off the grid. For a while now, he's been getting a swirling feeling in his gut when he saw the reports tallying the missing members.

"Fuuuck… This suck…" He groaned.

He's also been hearing from some of the other division captains during the Captains Meeting. Granted, those that went missing were unseated officers that wouldn't really affect much of the division's overall strength, even if they're gone or whatnot. However, it's still noticeable when they're disappearing in a certain timeframe.

Frankly speaking, it's a goddamn pain in the ass. Or at least that's what his mind is screaming of. His guts, however, says that there's something else here. Something that he just doesn't see yet.

'No way this is a coincidence.' He pinched the temple between his brows.

He looked to the outside from his office, only to see that the skies had already turned dark. He had been there for quite some time at that point.

'Ah, fuck it. I'll deal with this bullshit tomorrow.' He shrugged as he puts down the reports onto the table and put them into his desk's drawer.

Matsumoto who had been waiting for him immediately stood up from her seat.

"Going back, Captain?" The blond-haired lieutenant asked.

"Yeaah… Mooting over this damn problem won't do jack, even if I spent the night here." He replied with distress.

"At least you're not lazing away from your work this time." She snorted and shook her head.

"Aww, don't be like that, Rangiku-chaaan! Lemme play with your boobies!" He remarked while making the "cupping" and "groping" gestures with his hands and a doofus face.

That earned him a punch from Rangiku, which sent him flying through the office and through the door. She was visibly very irritated by him.

"Ow, ow, ow… You don't have to be so hard with the punch, Rangiku-chaan~" He fake cried at her, with fake tears coming from his eyes while rubbing the swollen cheek he had on his face.

"Shut it, ya idiot of a captain! You've been fucking around too much! Get your shit together and do your fucking job!" She harshly chastised him.

The two then left the office, with Rangiku in the lead being the fuming one, while Isshin a few steps behind her. Despite the rather comical interaction between the two, Isshin himself felt something was going to happen soon. He just hopes that he'll be ready for it.

.....

For the remainder of the week, Shugo was helping with the various tasks that the duo Third Seats and Ukitake had on the daily operations of the division. Kiyone and Sentaro would often still do the desk jobs, though they were getting less and lesser in the aforementioned duties, due to Ukitake slowly taking over more and more of the tasks, with Shugo's help in the meantime.

He also finally got the chance to ask for permission from Ukitake regarding his footwear, in which Ukitake gave his consent. It certainly gave him a relief, being able to wear proper footwear for one. Though, his choice of footwear, being his Geta boots, certainly raised some eyebrows from some of the members in the division whenever they (or him) pass by.

Oddly enough, he would be asked to accompany the captain to a captain's meeting on Friday of the week. This was odd mostly because of his current station being only the Eighth Seat and not even a Lieutenant yet, or at least that's what the other captains consider when they saw him behind Ukitake during the meeting.

Of course, some of them were shocked to see the white-haired captain attending the meeting. This was due to the fact that it was usually attended by the duo Third Seats in his stead, or that the meeting's contents and results would be sent to the captain via Hell Butterflies. Well, only Unohana and Isane that were not making a fuss seeing him there, aside from Yamamoto and Sasakibe.

They were promptly silenced by Yamamoto with a hard tap onto the floor with his "walking staff".

THUMP!

Seeing that his subordinate captains were finally silent, he gazed towards the oddball in the room, Eighth Seat Kurenai, for a moment, before he looked back towards the rest in the Meeting Hall.

"Let us start the session for the current Captains Meeting!" Yamamoto announced, resounding throughout the hall.

"The main issue for the meeting is the disappearances of several members from some divisions." Yamamoto laid down the meeting's topic, before turning towards Isshin.

"Captain Shiba, you have the floor." He declared.

Isshin nodded and stepped up.

"Yeah, well… As you all know, there's been reports of disappearances of several Shinigamis during patrol missions, be it in the Rukongai or the World of the Living." Isshin began his report.

"This was confirmed by those that were apart of the group of the missing Shinigamis that returned, after failing to find their fellow member. According to the details of the latest reports, there's at least twelve that went missing, and that came from the Tenth alone. All efforts in finding them have come up empty." He detailed from the reports he read, surprising Rangiku, who was behind him, somewhat for doing his job properly for once.

Shugo opened his left eye. He had closed his eyes most of the time since the start of the meeting, however, the part where he heard of the missing Shinigamis triggered his Echo recall ability. As he held in the usual stabbing pain into his brain and closed his eyes once more, he did not pay attention to Aizen who was silently observing him.

'Kurenai Shugo… You would've been a fine specimen… But alas, it would've attracted too much attention should anything happen to you…' Aizen lightly lamented in his mind, while keeping his usual face.

Aizen knew of Shugo's strength. He felt it, even for a few moments, when Shugo released it in the early part of the week when he was healing Ukitake with Benediction. It was nothing short of breathtaking, for someone like Aizen. Such amount of raw power wasn't felt by him for a long time, and the last one to at least impress him was Yamamoto himself. And even then, Aizen felt that Yamamoto was still within the realms of what a Shinigami can be/attain.

With Shugo however…

'He lies beyond that. He's perhaps the closest being that can be called a transcendent, or even a god.' Aizen thought, frowning mentally at the young man.

Shugo might be a Shinigami, but he was already beyond that even before he became a Shinigami. Aizen was certain of this, given the fact that he could sense the power radiating from the man when Shugo first arrived at Soul Society two years ago despite being heavily injured.

Aizen snapped back into reality when he saw Shugo opening his eye once more. This was all during the captain's meeting, in case you're wondering.

Shugo mentally glanced towards Aizen. He recalled the positions of the captains and their lieutenants in the hall when he first arrived there, accompanying Ukitake. Having finished seeing the memories glanced from the report, he was certainly not pleased with the fates of the missing shinigamis. Even with the gleaned knowledge of their passing in Aizen's heinous experiment, Shugo simply had no proof. Knowing how crafty the deceptively kind captain was, he'll certainly end up in a complicated situation if he tries to actively do something.

'At the very least, I must warn Captain Ukitake to remain vigilant.' He grits his teeth mentally.

Yet again, he had to keep quiet about this…insanity. Even if Yamamoto, Unohana, and Ukitake believed his words, he simply had no physical evidence to solidify his "accusations". If one were to ask his opinion, calling it excruciating would be quite an understatement.

After Isshin finished with the report on his end, other divisions soon added more to the matter. Kyoraku and Komamura stepped up to give their reports respectively, mentioning that they too lost several members from their division over the span of the past few weeks. When Kyoraku was making his report, Nanao, his lieutenant, was still glancing at Shugo. She noticed that he wasn't fully there, but when he opened his eyes and looked at her, she turned away with a blush on her face.

It was still a mystery on how Kyoraku managed to glance over at Nanao and mentally smirked, even when giving his report.

.....

Before long, the main topic of the meeting was nearing its end. After Komamura and Kyoraku finished their reports, Byakuya and Ukitake followed suit. Currently, Byakuya had just finished the last parts of his report from his division regarding the matter of missing members.

"…And that concludes the report from my division." Byakuya stated before stepping back in line.

So far, there's been a confirmed case of missing members up to 51 personnel, all stemming from the first four divisions that have stated their reports, which includes the Sixth, Seventh, Eighth and Tenth divisions. Now, it's time for the Thirteenth to state their report, with Ukitake stepping forward.

"As most of you know, I've been away from my division's daily operations until earlier this week. Thanks to my illness subsiding, I have slowly reassumed my duties as a captain. Hence, I wasn't fully aware of the recent incidents that's the main topic of this meeting up to that point." Ukitake began with prefacing his report.

"However, after spending several days reading and confirming the veracity of the reports from my division's men, it seems that these recent occurrences costed my division a good 11 men." He continued, his face looking rather grim in the prospect of the topic.

"The only saving grace is that these happened in the weeks before this. As of this week, we've yet to have any missing members." His face relaxed as he relayed the remark.

Perhaps that was the only silver lining. The past four days since Shugo's appointment, there had yet to be any reports of missing members from the Thirteenth during daily patrols. The first day of the week saw his appointment into his new position, and the subsequent party that ensued at the same night might've forced most of the members to return immediately from their duties. The following three days, however, saw him being introduced to his duties as the Eighth Seat, and eventually meeting the unit that will serve under him. This would've lessened the losses since he (or the captain accompanying him) would have to pick who will serve under him as part of his unit.

Kyoraku nodded lightly at Ukitake's remark, having known the unmentioned facts since he and Nanao took part in the celebration party. Yamamoto simply kept his face stoic, though he too knew of this.

"And with that, I conclude my report." Ukitake stated as he stepped back into the line.

Yamamoto nodded. He turned towards the remaining captains that had yet to make any reports during the presentation.

"Anyone else experiencing whose division's suffering from the same incident? Or would have an opinion regarding the matter?" He asked aloud.

"No irregularity in the Fifth." Aizen answered while keeping his trademark smile.

"Nothin' from the Third." Ichimaru replied.

"No such reports from the Ninth, Head Captain." Tosen said with a light bow.

"All's peachy over here, gramps." Zaraki snorted. This earned the ire of Tosen.

"Simmer down, you two." Yamamoto glared at Zaraki and Tosen, before the two relented and he turns towards Mayuri, saying: "Captain Kurotsuchi, please continue."

"Hmph. No missing members, sir. If any of them did go missing, I would've known." Mayuri lightly scoffed when making the remark.

Yamamoto once again feeling a headache with Mayuri's attitude, though he ignored it for the time being, focusing on the matter at hand.

"Very well. For the time being, all patrol duties will be carried on in groups. But they're no longer allowed to split up for the duration of their mission." Yamamoto handed down his decision on the first matter by tapping with his "walking staff" once more.

THUMP!

.....

The remainder of the session involved reports of Hollow activities in the Rukongai and the World of the Living. Oddly enough, the only weird one was in the World of the Living, and that was during Shugo's graduation exam there, when he and the rest of the students from the field mission faced off against massive tides of hollows that appeared without much warning.

The resulting casualties during the field excursion strained the faith in the academy's capability to protect their students. Not to say this hasn't happened before, but for this to occur within a rather short span of time, 'twas certainly testing the patience of Central 46 and the nobility that funded the academy.

Thus, it was promptly decided that the Gotei will dispatch at least a unit to shadow the student groups if they're to conduct a field exercise mission in the World of the Living.

Putting that off, the next matter was of the situation regarding the Hollow World known as Hueco Mundo. Shugo had heard of this from the academy, mostly from the various textbooks that were available there. But even then, it was rather sparse in detail, to put it mildly. Hence, he was a bit more surprised when he heard of the topic being discussed in the current meeting.

"Captain Aizen, has there been any activities of note in Hueco Mundo?" Yamamoto asked.

"Aside from what we know so far, which is to say slim at best, I'm afraid to say there's been nothing of note, Head Captain." Aizen answered after he stepped forward.

"Do we still have no clear picture of the powers there?" Yamamoto inquired further.

"So far, we only know of the four Vasto Lordes, simply based off the various reiatsu readings we've gotten through the numerous recon missions there. Hueco Mundo is simply too vast for us to have a clear idea of anything in there, Head Captain." Aizen shook his head, looking rather rueful on the matter.

It certainly paints a picture of the scale of the worlds in this reality. To be frank, it's very much akin to that of Hydaelyn and its shards, however, he had yet been to a shard that's still whole, mostly due to the fact that the only shards that he had been the First and the Thirteenth, with the Thirteenth due to the fact that there was a small breach made by the Allagans atop the Crystal Tower. And even then, there was no way to go there anymore since it was closed off by the efforts of Doga and Unei, the clones of the namesake members of Allagan Royalty, let alone the fact that the Thirteenth was no longer the Thirteenth, but it's known as the Void at this point.

The First, in the meantime, was still in recovery after his successful efforts to save the First and helped in restoring it with the use of Eden, the first Sin Eater, to jumpstart the various elements of aether that became awfully imbalanced due to the Flood of Light. He still felt a bit annoyed on how he had to do it, having to face off the somewhat-mutated versions of the Primals that he had faced from the Source.

Of course, with Aizen painting the picture on Hueco Mundo, Shugo easily doubts the deceitful captain of his words. While it may be large, there was no doubt that he had discovered at least something of note. And that's without the Echo letting him glance into Aizen's memories of the place. As to why it didn't trigger itself when Aizen was giving his report, Shugo didn't know why.

'It seems that I still need some time to get ahold of the Echo proper…' Shugo sighed inwardly.

After several more questions, none of which triggered his Echo, the meeting eventually came to an end. The lack of further information that could be gleaned by his Echo somewhat irked him to a degree. Though, he simply kept his silence as the captains soon made their way out of the hall.

What he failed to notice, however, was Gurenbana chuckling in his inner world, bemused of his irritation on failing to attain more useful information. She didn't know if she should tell him that she knew the truth of the situation in Hueco Mundo. She had gleaned it from her Echo.

Yes, she has the Echo, for she is the manifestation of his powers and heritage as the Warrior of Light and the former Fourteenth member of the Convocation of Fourteen, Azem. Though, she had yet to tell this information to him just yet.

'I shall leave him fumbling in the dark for a bit more. He's simply too endearing to watch in such a state for the moment.' She smirked.

And she indeed enjoyed it, every single moment of it did not escape her.

.....

Ise Nanao is known for being very serious and a rather pragmatic person. Most of the Lieutenants and those in the Shinigami Women's Association (SWA) knew of her as such. Some rumors would even say that if she was particularly annoyed, she'd remove her glasses in such a terrifying manner that most people who saw it were reduced to gibbering wrecks, purely by witnessing it.

But when facing a certain Eighth Seat, however, she simply became a muddled mess of a blushing lass. This point was already known by Kyoraku, her captain, who often teased her with this ever since he brought her to the party in the Thirteenth's earlier this week. Though, this was certainly news for the other Lieutenants, especially for the members of the SWA.

The only fortunate thing for Nanao was that Kiyone and Rukia were not present. Though, by the looks of things, they're more likely to find out in the next meeting of the SWA, which will be held today as well. However, that's about the only good news on the matter for her, really.

But that realization will come later, because right now, she's standing behind Kyoraku, whose arm wrapped around Ukitake's neck and shoulder. This, in effect, made her stood beside the very man that's making her all fidgety. And this did not escape Shugo's notice when he looked to his right.

"Hm? Ise-san? Are you well?" He asked, confused with her rather erratic behavior.

That question snapped her back to reality, and she became a bumbling mess. Some of the present members of the SWA felt like there was something happening behind them, since they were already ahead of the aforementioned party. They turned around in time to see their Vice President being a mess, or at least those that were close enough to see clearly.

"I-I'm f-fine, r-really, K-Kurenai-san." She answered, a bit fumbled though.

That raised his brow. In the meantime, unfortunately for her, the closest one who was witnessing her current mess of a state was Matsumoto Rangiku. The said Lieutenant of the Tenth was grinning mischievously as she pretended to not pay attention to the developing situation while walking behind her captain. Of course, Kurotsuchi Nemu also noticed, though she kept her silence while walking behind Captain Kurotsuchi Mayuri who was walking behind Isshin and Rangiku.

"You're clearly not, Ise-san. Pray tell of what ails you, mayhap I could assist?" He spoke, his face not betraying the concern behind his words.

Nanao tried to look at him, only to find herself unable to. Her face was getting redder by the minute. Kyoraku whose arm was over his friend's shoulder and was screwing around, secretly smirked at his Lieutenant's (and niece) reiatsu fluctuations. He clearly knew what was happening.

'Why can't I look at him? What's wrong with me?' She was fuming in her head.

Rangiku was fighting hard not to laugh. Never she had seen Nanao this flustered, not to mention to a guy. She was like an Academy student who just had her first crush and was being asked by her said crush! This was too precious!

'Get yourself together, Ise Nanao! He's asking out of worry! Just look at him and give the man an answer! It's that simple!' She shook her head hard and breathed out.

She turned her eyes to look at Shugo, with only his eyes betraying a barely discernible glint of worry in it. It doesn't help either that he was quite tall, being 180 cm in height. Not that it was a problem, since her captain was still taller than he was. The real problem is him, not his height.

"A-ahem. I'm sorry for worrying, Kurenai-san. But I'm fine, really." She said, mustering everything she had to say it with a straight face, albeit still having some blush on her cheeks.

Facing this, Shugo could only sigh. The girl wasn't going to budge, though he could still press on, and more likely than not, she'll eventually relent and tell him. But should he?

"The offer remains, Ise-san. While Captain Unohana and Kotetsu-san is still within reach, I could ask her to check on you." He offered again.

'Oh my! He's pressing on her, hard!' Rangiku kept trying not to laugh, but a slight chuckle escaped from her mouth she's covering with her hand.

"Why the hell are you- ah." Isshin was about to ask when he too saw the romantic comedy happening a little behind him.

He only grinned before he also pretended to not notice.

Seeing as Shugo wouldn't let her off, Nanao finally relented.

"I-I suppose it wouldn't hurt." She accepted, rather reluctantly.

Accepting her answer, he nodded.

"Fully I'm glad, then. Shall we?" He gave her a small smile.

That smile. Small as it was, it almost knocked her off her feet.

Kyoraku actually looked towards the two, after feeling Nanao's reiatsu that spiked in an instant before calming down. He chuckled before turning back.

"Hm? What's the matter, Shunsui?" Ukitake asked.

"Nah, it's nothing. Just seems like spring finally came." Kyoraku replied with a smile, keeping his answer vague.

"?" Ukitake was confused before he turned around and saw the ongoing romcom behind him.

Not that he understood what was happening at the first glance, however. The first time around he was already drunk during the celebration party. This time he wasn't paying attention to the two behind him. It took him awhile before he understood what Shunsui was saying.

Shugo then walked a bit towards Ukitake.

"Captain, Lieutenant Ise wishes to be looked by Captain Unohana. May I ask for time to accompany her?" Shugo asked.

"Go on, Kurenai-kun. It's fine. I'll see you later in the barracks." Ukitake nodded with a sly smile.

Shugo nodded as he gestured Nanao to follow him, oblivious to Ukitake's sly expression. As the two left, Kyoraku was laughing hard after holding back awhile.

"Damn, Jushiro! You smooth criminal of a wingman!" Kyoraku smacked Ukitake's back after wiping a tear from his eye.

"Whatever do you mean, Shunsui?" Ukitake playing dumb, though he knew what Kyoraku meant.

"But still… Are you fine with this?" He then asked Kyoraku, knowing that Nanao was his niece, being the daughter of his late brother.

"It's fine, Jushiro. He seems like a good guy. At least, he doesn't seem to fake it. And it won't do if I keep coddling her now do I?" Kyoraku waved it off.

Meanwhile, Rangiku was already planning on how to break this to the remaining members of the SWA. Her mischievous smile never went away as she was hatching her plan on how to do it.

.....

Unohana and Isane were both on their way out from the First's Barracks to head back to the Fourth's, when Unohana noticed the two incoming reiatsu signatures coming towards them. The first one was immediately recognizable for her, it being Shugo, her "son". The second one however, puzzled her.

"Lieutenant Ise?" She raised her brow as she looked back and saw the aforementioned two people in question coming towards her and Isane.

The silver-haired lieutenant looks baffled at the two people coming their way. It was certainly unexpected. Before long, Shugo managed to catch up with the pair from the Fourth.

"Isane-san. Mother." Shugo greeted the two of them, though his last remark certainly shocked Nanao.

"Kurenai-san?" Nanao looked at Shugo.

Unohana looked at the two. She was silent for a few moments before finally making the connections in her mind. She was certainly known for her keen senses in discerning others. Perhaps it was the only positive trait she had from her days as Kenpachi Yachiru? None knows save for herself. Regardless, back to the point: she noticed Nanao's behavior while near Shugo, and she knew exactly why.

"It's fine, Lieutenant Ise. That's just how he calls me." She gave Nanao a smile, before turning towards Shugo.

"Shugo-kun, do tell why you came to find me and bringing her along with you." She asked him.

"I wish for you to see what ails Ise-san, Mother. Her face is rather red, and her behavior is somewhat erratic. I fear she might be ill." He answered.

"Is that so?" She asked for confirmation, keeping the smile on her face.

"Yes, Mother. Would you be so kind to do so?" He nodded.

Isane and Nanao both felt tense, as if the other two were pressuring the atmosphere around them. Unohana, upon noticing that Shugo was either dense, or simply did not know, sighed.

"Very well. Since my son asked me sincerely, I'll do it." She shook her head and smiled.

Isane and Nanao looked at each other and sighed out of relief. The tension in the air seemed to have been dispelled. Or rather, to the two people in question, there wasn't any noticeable tension on the air in the first place. More likely than not, it was simply their imagination.

"Follow me, Lieutenant Ise. I'll take a look at you in the Relief Station." She gestured at Nanao, who nodded almost immediately and followed along.

The four then resumed their exit from the First's Barracks, with Shugo and Nanao now following Unohana and Isane towards the Fourth's barracks and later into the Coordinated Relief Station that was located there, after several Shunpos later from the exit of the First's Barracks.

.....

Ise Nanao was currently nervous. Very nervous, to be precise. She was sitting in a room with the Captain of the Fourth, Unohana Retsu. No, her position wasn't only being the Captain of the Fourth for this matter. She was also the "mother" of Kurenai Shugo. She could barely make eye-contact with the captain, the smile on the captain's face intimidating her more than anything.

"Now, Ise-san. Could you tell me why you're attracted to my son?" Unohana asked calmly.

"I- uh…" Nanao was stuttering, badly.

She was shaking a bit before Unohana put her hand onto Nanao's shoulder.

"Calm down, Ise-san. I simply wanted to hear your reasoning, that's all. You're in no trouble, I assure you." Unohana reassured her with a gentle smile.

Nanao finally calmed down, her breath was no longer rapid, and she wasn't shaking anymore. Such was Unohana's famous motherly persona. None can withstand it, except for the older generation Shinigamis, such as Yamamoto, Ukitake and Kyoraku. Well, they could because for a completely different reason though.

"I… Well… He's quite the enigma for a lot of people in the Gotei, including me." Nanao stuttered at the start before she straightened herself and answered.

"Oh? Please elaborate." Unohana inquired further.

"Of course." Nanao fixed her glasses, before continuing, "I've had the fortunate chance of meeting him during the celebration in the Thirteenth Division's Barracks earlier this week."

"When I saw him, he was simply sitting and seemed to be preoccupied with his own thoughts."

Unohana chuckled. From the memories inside the crystal, she saw that it was simply his habit to sometime just daydream.

"As I got closer, I saw his unfocused eyes. It was rather… Err…" Nanao stumped at the last part.

Unohana giggled. "It's certainly something else, isn't it?" She asked Nanao.

"Yes, Captain. I simply don't know how to describe the look in his eyes." Nanao answered.

"All that I can say, Ise-san…" Unohana paused for a moment, before continuing, "…is that he lacks the anchor to keep him here."

"Captain?" Nanao was confused.

What did she mean by anchor?

"He joined the Gotei because he felt that it was the way with least friction. I and Isane might've provided him with some form of anchor, yet it's simply not enough." Unohana explained, before elaborating further with, "If you're really attracted to him, then please, be the anchor to his heart, because he doesn't have one for his heart right now."

Nanao processed Unohana's words before her face became reddened. She was basically being asked to...to…marry him?! The insides of her head explode, and smoke came out from her ears upon that realization.

"I know this is rather sudden, but please think about it." Unohana reassures her again.

Nanao only nodded before Unohana proceeded with her examination.

.....

While Nanao was being examined by Unohana, the other two waited at the lobby of the Relief Station. It was rather sparse, with few staffs walking in the halls, occasionally greeting Shugo or Isane (or both).

"Isane-san." He called her.

"Yes? What is it, Shugo-san?" She asked.

"Have you…viewed it?" He asked.

"Viewed?" She was confused.

It took her a little while before she finally clicked and know what he was asking. She looked down at the floor and sighed.

"I… Yes. Me and Captain Unohana both have…seen…it." She answered, albeit her voice cracked at the last remark.

Before he could say anything else, she spontaneously hugged him.

"Isane…-san?" He was surprised.

She simply didn't know how to express it, really. Recalling all of the things she had seen… Aside from some of the happier memoires he had, most of the remaining memories were rather somber, if not outright sad and traumatic. Compared to Captain Unohana, who have lived far longer than her and at least had enough experience to be able to digest such memories, she was still rather inexperienced.

She recalled how she dropped onto the floor and felt copious number of emotions after she finished viewing his memories. It's one thing to hear it from him, it's another to see it directly from his eyes directly. She recalled how Unohana had to support her as she broke down, tears streaking down her cheeks and her voice was cracked. Her gasping for breath didn't help either.

Knowing what she likely felt, Shugo only rubbed her back while smiling softly.

"You're a kind person, Isane-san. People might say that your kindness is a weakness but being able to stay kind in the most desperate or direst circumstances shows how strong one can be." He spoke.

As she drew back, he kept the smile while thanking her.

"Never lose such a heart, Isane-san. That is what makes us different than Hollows: a compassionate heart." He concluded as soon Unohana came out with Nanao.

Nanao had been prescribed with some teas to calm her emotions and helping her to sleep better. With that done, he accompanied Nanao back to the Eighth's Barracks. She initially refused, however, his insistence finally crumbled her, and she reluctantly allowed him to accompany her back.

Soon after he dropped her off at the Eighth's barracks, she went to get some refreshments and put away the teas she got from Captain Unohana. After some time, she departed for the Shinigami's Women Association meeting. It was certainly going to be quite the meeting for her.

Her issue won't be from Lieutenant Kotetsu and Captain Unohana. Rather, it will come from Lieutenant Rangiku and perhaps Lieutenant Kurotsuchi. She calmed herself as she braced for the meeting while Shunpoing to the Association's HQ, which was located within the Kuchiki Manor (yes, it's hidden from the Kuchiki Clan).

.....

[Side Story]

The Shinigami Women's Association Headquarters, located within the Kuchiki Manor's Club Room. Supposedly, it was even hidden from the owner of said mansion, Kuchiki Byakuya, and the rest of the Kuchiki Clan.

Gathered here are some of the Lieutenants from several divisions, and even two Captains. However, the leadership of the Association is under the following:

- Unohana Retsu, Captain of the 4th Division and the Supervising Chairwoman of the Association.

- Kusajishi Yachiru, Lieutenant of the 11th Division and President of the Association.

- Ise Nanao, Lieutenant of the 8th Division and Vice-President of the Association.

- Kurotsuchi Nemu, Lieutenant of the 12th Division and (Temporary)Vice-President of the Association (by force from Yachiru whenever she wants her to do her bidding).

Meanwhile the members of the association include, but not limited to:

- Sui-Feng, Captain of the 2nd Division and the Omnitsukido.

- Kotetsu Kiyone, Co-Third Seat of the 13th Division.

- Kotetsu Isane, Lieutenant of the 4th Division (and older sister of Kiyone).

- Matsumoto Rangiku, Lieutenant of the 10th Division.

- Hinamori Momo, Lieutenant of the 5th Division.

- Kuchiki Rukia, member of the 13th Division.

Kuchiki Rukia, in this case, is a special one. She's dragged into it by Kiyone to help somewhat legitimize their occupation of the hidden compartment within the Kuchiki Manor. Well, that and to help her trauma with the passing of Shiba Kaien sometime prior.

The HQ was initially in a conference room somewhere in the Seireitei. However, it shifted to the Kuchiki Manor for unspoken reasons to those outside of the Association. The goal of the Association is to push for means of various improvements for all Shinigami. Granted, it's quite noble. However, it's only that way when they're not hanging out for their own purposes.

Today, however, was such a case. And it would be quite the unfortunate one for one Ise Nanao.

With the arrival of the last participant to the meeting, being in this case Hinamori, the ladies soon started their meeting for the day.

"O~kay! We're starting today's meeting for the club!" Yachiru said cheerfully, as the ladies sitting around in a rectangle formation of sorts while on a zabuton each, nodded.

Yachiru and Nanao sat at the far end of the formation, signifying their leadership position. Unohana, in the meantime, sat next to Nanao, albeit on an adjacent position instead of in the same line. Nemu sat adjacent to Yachiru's seat, just across from Unohana's. The remaining members don't sit in a particular order, aside from the leadership positions. Each had their own small tea table in front of them, with each having a cup on it.

"So, anything on the reception of the new denreishinkis?" Yachiru asked, clapping her hands while having a beaming smile on her face.

Momo raised her hand.

"Momo-chan!" Yachiru called happily.

"Yes, President!" Momo nodded before she continued with: "Member reports from the Fifth so far have been quite receptive! However, they're still complaining on how it's too bulky!" She reported.

The rest sighed after hearing this. It was a given. Most of their designs are still based somewhat on what the World of the Living had, albeit ahead in aspects of technology. Granted, theirs was still smaller compared to the World of the Living's. However, it's simply still too bulky, being that it's still thick enough to fall from their Shihakusho during patrols or combat (For reference, check the Motorola International 3200).

Granted, this was only a report from one division. However, one could imagine how their respective divisions think of the device, since it's pretty much the same thing they're talking about.

"Any particular ideas on how to solve this?" Sui-Feng asked.

She was very pleased with the performance of the Denreishinki, since it certainly helped to facilitate near-real-time communications between the Omnitsukido and its field members during operations. However, the bulkiness certainly irked her.

Isane looked at Unohana, who nodded. She raised her hand after gulping down her nervousness.

"Isane-chan! Go!" Yachiru cheered.

"Yes!" Isane exclaimed as she began to explain: "We might have a…way."

That raised the brows of the members, aside from Unohana.

"Please, continue." Nanao gestured.

Isane nodded, using all her willpower to keep the nervousness within her at bay, as she said: "This involves the Eighth Seat of the Thirteenth, Kurenai Shugo."

Before she continued however, the rest of the members exploded into a murmur. The most vocal however, was Rukia, since he was her superior, technically.

"What do you mean by that, Isane-san?" She asked, rather pensively.

"Aside from his origins, which is still classified until he himself says otherwise, he has a…phone, if you will, that's not only thin, but it's seemingly more advanced than even what we have, or the World of the Living for the matter as well." Isane explained.

That certainly raised brows, especially from Kurotsuchi Nemu. She was definitely interested now. At the very least, Rukia calmed down somewhat.

"He called it a 'Tomestone', but according to him, it was not a product that wherever he came from could easily make prior to his arrival here. Apparently, it came from an ancient civilization that used to rule the world he came from for quite a while." Isane succinctly explained.

Granted, he never said it directly to both Isane and Unohana. However, the two knew of it from the memories they were shown. They saw how he facepalmed when he first saw the literal widespread usage of the Poetics Tomestone in the First, and his knowledge on how they were treated back in the Source. While not a phone initially (being more like a small terminal of sorts), the people living in the First might've adapted its usage similar to how the people in the World of the Living are trying to, and the Shinigami have been using with their denreishinki for a while now.

"And how could this help us with the denreishinki issue?" Sui-Feng asked.

"As I said, while not it's intended purpose, the Tomestone functions much like a phone, and much more, from the looks of it." Isane explained, scratching the back of her head.

"So? What else can it do?" Momo asked, being silent all this time after giving her report to digest the new information.

"From the looks of it, it can play music, show real-time position on a map, facilitate face-to-face communications, and even take pictures and videos." Isane answered after pondering from what she had seen.

Most of it was simply what she had seen from his memories, and some were even pure conjecture. But anyone with enough education could make such an educated guess.

This sent ripples across the room. Unohana kept her silence, simply observing how the rest would react. She knew how such device could do in helping the Shinigami upholding their duties. Certainly, it's useful to a rather terrifying degree. The leap might be as drastic as the creation of a Zanpakuto, one might even argue.

There was only one flaw, however, with said phone.

Without the proper infrastructure, it would be limited to the extra features that doesn't require communications. Though, this shouldn't be a problem once the S.R.D.I could reverse-engineer the phone and adapt it for use. Hence, this was left unspoken, since without a doubt, Kurotsuchi Nemu would know of this flaw, or at the very least, Captain Kurotsuchi would once he get this info from Nemu.

The topic was quickly tabled, with the resolution being to ask for the Eighth Seat's cooperation in the matter and having the S.R.D.I.'s assistance in developing a better Denreishinki with the aforementioned phone as the base.

As to who will ask the Eighth Seat's assistance however…

"I vote for Nanao-chan!" Rangiku raised her hand in glee.

That caught the rest of the members off-guard. No one really expected her to suddenly suggest someone, let alone it being the Vice-President herself. Meanwhile, the person in question was desperately holding herself back from flustering all over while keeping a straight face.

"Eh? Why do you suggest the Vice President, Rangiku-san?" Momo asked, visibly confused by Rangiku's abrupt suggestion.

Rangiku grinned, her mischievous look visible for all to see. Nanao felt a shiver down her spine.

"Well~… It seems that Nanao-chan has the hots for our lovely Eighth Seat!" The blond Lieutenant of the Tenth blatantly stated her reasoning.

"W-w-wh-wha-what are you saying, Matsumoto-san! I won't accept such groundless assertion!" Nanao desperately trying to deny vehemently, even when she fumbled when she said the first few words.

The poor Vice-President of the Association lost all of her marbles immediately, while the rest were either dropping their jaws, widening their eyes, or just outright said a collective "Eh?!". Well, aside from Captain Unohana anyways, though she was a tad surprised that someone else knew. Poor Isane didn't know however, and she too was shocked.

'Perhaps the poor girl didn't even know she was being eyed on by the others earlier?' Unohana mused while drinking her cup of green tea.

Sipping her tea, Unohana enjoyed the warmth while being amused by the animated discussion on the poor Lieutenant of the Eighth and the visible attraction to her 'son'. She wasn't about to intervene in her "son's" romantic affairs, though it would've been…preferrable if he ends up with Isane. Regardless, all is fair in romance, or so they say in the World of the Living, do they not?

The discussion finally concluded after around two hours of non-stop talking on how and why Nanao was attracted to the young man, with the conclusion being she will be the one to ask for his assistance, though she will be accompanied by Kiyone as a measure.