Choices  

Those who didn't fit in were often ostracized.

Momo Hinamori had it relatively easy. Being a girl, with her cute appearance and cheerful personality, she hadn't experienced much bullying. However, her cuteness had attracted unwanted attention from many male classmates. Her kind nature made it difficult for her to reject their advances, causing her a great deal of distress.

After confiding in Renji Abarai, he had "resolved" the issue by beating up all the boys who had been pestering Momo, saving her from further harassment.

Izuru Kira, on the other hand, had a much harder time.

While Kira's overall strength wasn't bad, his Kidō wasn't as potent as Momo's, and his swordsmanship wasn't as impressive as Renji's. He gave off an air of mediocrity, and his perpetually gloomy expression made him appear unapproachable. As a result, most of the academy cliques instinctively excluded him.

Only Renji, the boisterous boy from Rukongai, oblivious to social cues and unconcerned with Kira's somber demeanor, had befriended him, bringing a ray of sunshine into his otherwise bleak academy life.

After several conversations, Rukia, Renji, Momo, and Kira had developed a good rapport with each other.

"By the way, do any of you have a division in mind that you'd like to join?" Momo suddenly asked.

Due to the increased difficulty of the exam, only twenty students had graduated this year. This meant that instead of the divisions choosing the Shinigami, the Shinigami might have the luxury of choosing their divisions.

This was especially true for the three who had performed exceptionally well during the exam.

"Haha, I decided long ago. I'm going to join the 11th Division," Renji declared, pointing his thumb at himself.

"Captain Ailin once told me that there's someone in the 11th Division whose fighting style is very similar to mine. If I can learn from that person, my strength will improve tremendously."

Rukia looked at Renji. He still remembered.

When Ailin had taken Rukia as his disciple, he had told Renji that if he passed the graduation exam, he could consider joining the 11th Division. He promised to arrange a suitable teacher for him.

After six years of training at the academy, Renji had come to realize that without proper guidance, he might never be able to catch up to Rukia.

He decided to take Ailin's advice and join the 11th Division.

The person Ailin had recommended must be incredibly strong, right?

"Wow, I'm sure Captain Ailin's recommendation is spot on. Congratulations, Renji," Momo said enviously.

Both she and Renji were from Rukongai. But Renji, with Ailin's recommendation, would undoubtedly progress quickly. Perhaps in a few years, he would surpass both her and Kira.

"What about you, Kira?" Renji asked.

"Me?" Kira raised his head slightly, glanced at Momo, then lowered his gaze. "I'm thinking of joining the 4th Division. I believe healing Kidō is a truly noble pursuit. I prefer healing Kidō over destructive Kidō…"

"Oh, Kira, I thought you'd choose the 5th Division," Momo said, surprised.

But knowing Kira, his choice made sense.

"What about you, Momo?" Kira asked.

"Me?" Momo tapped her chin thoughtfully. "I haven't decided yet. I was quite impressed with the 5th Division during the exam. And Captain Aizen has taught us several times at the academy…

Without Captain Aizen, we might not have gained such valuable insights. He taught us things that our instructors wouldn't. I'll look around a bit more. If there's a division that I really like, I'll prioritize that. Otherwise, I'll join the 5th Division."

"Ah, what a pity. We're all choosing different divisions." Renji shook his head, disappointed.

However, none of them were surprised.

Compared to those who had failed the exam and been sent to the Hollow extermination forces, they were at least staying in the Soul Society. If they wanted to meet up, they could always make time for each other.

It was the best possible outcome.

"What about you, Rukia? Which division are you choosing?" Renji asked.

"Me?" Rukia hesitated.

Under her current circumstances, joining the 11th Division was the best option. As a combat division, it offered ample opportunities for Rukia to gather information, both through sparring with her comrades and by battling Hollows during missions.

However, before bringing her to the academy, Byakuya had told her something that troubled her.

"Rukia, when you choose your division, I want you to choose the 13th Division. And for now, don't accept any position higher than an ordinary Shinigami."

With her ability to activate Shikai, Rukia was undoubtedly qualified to be a seated officer in any division. Some divisions might even offer her a position within the top ten seats to secure her membership.

Rukia was torn. Should she join the 11th Division with Renji, or should she obey Byakuya and join the 13th Division as an ordinary Shinigami?

But why would Byakuya want her to do that?

Didn't he know that as Ailin's disciple, if she wasn't even a seated officer, it would damage her teacher's reputation?

She couldn't understand.

…

Like Toshiro Hitsugaya before her, Rukia, as Ailin's disciple, attracted a lot of attention during the division selection.

After all, besides Byakuya, Gin, and Soi Fon, who had already matured into powerful captains, even Hitsugaya, who had only graduated a few years ago, had exceeded everyone's expectations.

The emergence of Hyōrinmaru, the strongest ice-type Zanpakutō, had made many optimistic about Hitsugaya's future.

While Hyōrinmaru was countered by Ryūjin Jakka, they were both on the same level.

In time, Hitsugaya might even reach Captain-Commander Yamamoto's current level.

Even if Rukia wasn't as talented as Hitsugaya, she couldn't be much worse than the previous three, right?

As a result, on the day of the division selection, several captains made a rare appearance at the Shin'ō Academy.

Besides Byakuya, Shunsui, and Ukitake, Soi Fon of the 2nd Division, Gin of the 3rd Division, and Isshin of the 10th Division were also present.

Soi Fon was there because the 2nd Division's overall strength had declined significantly in recent years. She was the only captain-level Shinigami in the entire division.

She remembered when Yoruichi Shihōin had been the captain of the 2nd Division. Besides Ailin, who had since left the division, there was also Kisuke Urahara, a third seat with captain-level strength.

Now, Soi Fon was the only one who could carry the weight of the division. She had to personally handle many missions, which had hampered her training.

Through certain channels, Soi Fon had learned that Ailin had a female disciple who would be joining the Gotei 13 this year. She had come to try her luck, hoping to recruit her into the 2nd Division.

As one of Ailin's former students, Soi Fon had no doubts about his teaching abilities. She even believed that under Ailin's guidance, a piece of driftwood could be transformed into a magnificent sculpture.

With the title of "Ailin's disciple," Soi Fon was confident that Rukia would eventually reach captain level.

Isshin Shiba was there because he had already tasted the benefits of having a talented disciple.

Toshiro Hitsugaya alone had made his job much easier. If he could also recruit Ailin's other disciple into the 10th Division, Isshin believed that within a few decades, his division would become one of the top three in the Gotei 13.

Gin Ichimaru appeared to be determined to secure his "junior sister," but his narrowed eyes were constantly focused on the orange-haired figure standing among the graduates.

Shunsui Kyōraku was perhaps the most troubled captain among those present.

The more he investigated the mastermind lurking in the shadows of the Soul Society, the more he felt a sense of dread.

For over a hundred years, Shunsui had failed to uncover even a shred of evidence about the mastermind's identity.

There were only two possible explanations.

First, Captain Ailin had deceived him, and there was no mastermind at all.

Second, the mastermind was far more terrifying than he had imagined. Perhaps his own intelligence network had been infiltrated, which was why he had found nothing.

Over the years, the pressure had been mounting on Shunsui.

Sōsuke Aizen of the 5th Division, Ailin of the 11th Division… which one of them was the mastermind?

Shunsui's investigation of Aizen had yielded no results. According to his findings, Aizen was born in Rukongai and had been an unremarkable student at the Shin'ō Academy.

After graduating, Aizen had been recruited by Shinji Hirako, who had taken a strong liking to him. Wherever Hirako went, Aizen followed.