New Comrade

Irina joined the crew and thanks to her gutsy personality, she was able to get along with Ophis just fine by playing cards with her. She was not even afraid to defeat her in games, which made Ophis pout many times.

Of course, Akeno didn't just blindly accept Irina. That night, when Serafall got home, Akeno properly asked for her permission.

Serafall agreed because Irina could also help with their search. "I'll do what I can, but how can I help?", asked Irina.

"Since you're Michael-chan's 'Ace' you should have some authority in Heaven. Just access the database of the Sacred Gear system and try finding Kisuke's Sacred Gear.", instructed Serafall.

"But before I could do that, I would need Michael-sama's permission. To ask for that, I would also need to tell him of my purpose. I'm telling you this now, Serafall-sama, I may not say everything to Michael-sama, but I'll never lie to him.", replied Irina.

Serafall nodded, understanding her predicament, "I know. Your duty, responsibility, loyalty and morals are all important and I won't ask you to break any of those."

"Then how?"

"Just tell him the truth.", answered Serafall simply.

"That I'm looking for Kisuke? Wouldn't that be bad?", wondered Irina and Akeno had the same concerns.

"You still don't get it? Then let me ask you this, why are you looking for Ki-tan?"

Irina was confused, but she still chose to answer truthfully, "To assure his safety and to reveal the truth behind the crimes on his head."

Serafall smiled and asked, "And why?"

It finally dawned on Irina what Serafall was hinting at, "Because I'm his childhood friend!"

Serafall nodded, "Right. As a virtuous organization, it's only right to become concerned about the safety of your childhood friend. I don't think Michael-chan would stop the genuine kindness of his 'Ace'. Besides, he'll also be interested in the result of your search."

Irina nodded in understanding, "But even then, I'm sure that Heaven already did their investigation. After all, they also knew that Kisuke had a Sacred Gear. And if I were to successfully get information, how will I get it out without being questioned? Remember, I can't lie."

This time, it was Akeno who explained to her, "Everyone only knows that Kisuke-kun has a Sacred Gear in the form of a cane with a hidden blade inside it. However, only a few individuals know that it can transform into a proper sword and that he called it 'Benihime'."

"Akeno-chan is right. I doubt that Heaven has this kind of information. Well, maybe Azazel-chan already passed the information that his Sacred Gear can transform and sends out crimson blasts of energy, but only a few people know that he called it 'Benihime'. So you should search with that as the main point. And regarding your other concern, I'm not asking you to search for his whereabouts through the Sacred Gear system, but whether or not this 'Benihime' has changed its host... Or if it's still in circulation."

"Still in circulation? What do you mean, Serafall-sama?", asked Akeno.

Serafall leaned back and sighed, "It's just a speculation, but... Due to how barren the information regarding them is and considering Ophis-chan's inability to find them even in the Dimensional Gap, they're probably in a secret realm... or..."

"Or?" Irina and Akeno asked simultaneously.

"Or they are somewhere beyond the Dimensional Gap."

But despite hearing Serafall's answer, both of them still failed to understand it and Serafall refused to explain further.

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Irina was already staying in Urahara Shop for a few days and used her free time to search the database of the Sacred Gear system after asking for Michael's permission. Of course, there was no way for her to find any information regarding Kisuke in there because he didn't own any of the Sacred Gears from Heaven. Irina also tried searching for Aika's Sacred Gear, the so-called fake Longinus, but it was already an enigma from the start and what she found out was only the information that it hadn't changed its host for the last 17 years.

A week later, after Irina returned from school, she found Ophis once again playing cards with her little friend. Irina immediately changed her clothes and brought out some snacks, before sitting beside Ophis, intending to join them.

But as she sat down, she got the full view of the other loli and thought, 'Hmm? Where have I seen her before?'

But before she could find any answers, the loli from the other side of the magic projection saw her and muttered, "...Irina... onee-chan?"

"Hmm? What? How did you know my name?" Irina did find her familiar, but she knew that she didn't know some kid with grey hair.

Instead of answering her question, Claire on the other side called out to someone while pointing at her, "Aunty! It's Irina-onee-chan!"

Off to the side of the projection, Irina suddenly heard a very familiar voice, "Hmm? Irina?" A few seconds later, a new but familiar face appeared on the projection, "Hmm? It really is Irina... And you're with Ophis. Did you join Akeno-chan and Serafall-sama?"

Irina froze for a few seconds before shouting, "S-Sakura-kaasan!?"

"Ah... Could it be that you didn't know?", muttered Sakura from the other side.

It was as Sakura said. Akeno and Serafall didn't tell her anything about Kisuke's mother or her whereabouts. All this time, she thought that Sakura disappeared along with Kisuke and the rest. She never expected to meet her today, "W-what's going on!? How are you!? Are you safe!? Is Kisuke with you!?"

"Hold your horses and calm down. First of all, Kisuke isn't with me. Second..." Sakura then pointed towards Ophis, "It's their playtime. Let's not interrupt that. It seems that Akeno-chan and Serafall-sama aren't with you right now, so wait for them to explain the situation to you and ask them to contact me later."

Irina wanted to disagree with her, but she had no choice but to follow her as she also didn't want to interrupt the Dragon God's playtime.

Waving her hand, Sakura bid her farewell, "See you later, Irina-chan~."

Irina nodded at her and Claire returned into the projection, "I'm sorry, Irina-neechan. Phi-chan really wanted to play and we can only do it once in a week."

Irina stood up while consoling Claire, "It's fine. It's fine. I'm happy that I got to talk with Sakura-kaasan for a bit. Well, then. I'm going to leave these snacks here. Enjoy yourself." She then ran towards her room to change into her school uniform again. She intended to go back to school and confront Akeno, who didn't tell her anything.

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That night, in the new tenant's room, Irina was sitting in front of Akeno. After finding Akeno and confronting her about Sakura, Akeno immediately shut her up and told her that she's only allowed to talk about Kisuke's case in the shop.

Irina waited for her to finish her duties in school and went home with her. Now in front of her, Irina asked, "So? Why wasn't I informed about Sakura-kaasan?"

"I forgot."

"Huh?"

"I forgot.", repeated Akeno with a smile.

"What do you mean you forgot!? That's like one of the most important pieces of information!", complained Irina.

"Well, I intended to tell you, but I saw that you were too busy with your Sacred Gear search, so I withhold the information. But after some time, I completely forgot to tell you." Still, with the same smile on her face, Akeno answered.

"You shouldn't!", shouted Irina, but deep inside her she knew the real reason, 'She and Serafall-sama still don't fully trust me.'

Reading what was on her mind, Akeno nodded, "Right. We still don't fully trust you. We had to watch you for a few more days and figure out your real intentions. After all, Kisuke's case is a very sensitive topic. We can't compromise our security just because his self-proclaimed childhood friend wanted to join in."

"It's not self-proclaimed! I'm his real childhood friend!" Irina couldn't help but shout again. A second later, she sighed, "I understand you wanting to be careful. So did I pass your test?"

"Yep~. A few days ago, we figured out that you're indeed trustworthy, ufufu~."

"Then why didn't you tell me about Sakura-kaasan a few days ago!?"

"I said it. I forgot~. Ufufufu~."

Irina then put her hands together and closed her eyes to start praying, "Oh God, please give me the strength not to smite this pervert in front of me."

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Editors:

28th00: Ah, that pain is not the pleasant kind of pain Akeno likes. Prayer, it always hurts a devil, and not in a fun way! Low blow right there, Irina-chan! Phis-chama's playtime takes precedence over almost anything, for anything that keeps her entertained and happy, is something vital to the survival of reality. The fact that she can find joy in ANYTHING besides silence is a big plus also. The Sacred Gear part is pretty funny, then I remember that the madman actually did make his Zanpakuto a Sacred Gear, with the help of Hephaestus, and made it even more insane. That madman is stacking multipliers on top of multipliers! It's a positive feedback loop!

Alexander