"Well…"
Kira hesitated, sitting opposite Yoshio, and probed, "I can't put my finger on it—just a feeling Hinamori's off."
Yoshio frowned, poured himself water, slid the kettle to Kira.
After a sip he said, "I've been busy with 10th Division work these years and rarely visit 5th, so I'm not up to date. What's wrong with her?"
He preemptively distanced himself.
Kira looked awkward. "I can't say exactly. She just seems weighed down, no smile. Sometimes when I see her, she feels… much more distant."
"Kira…" Yoshio gave him a strange look. "You've got a crush on Hinamori."
Kira flushed red, waving frantically. "It's not like that!"
"Alright, don't assume the worst of a comrade."
Yoshio said, "You've mostly got a feeling. You and Hinamori aren't classmates anymore. You're the 3rd Division lieutenant; she's 5th Division's. It's normal to drift."
"No, Captain Yoshio," Kira said urgently. "I really think something's wrong. She's sneaky these days."
"That's still just a feeling." Yoshio rolled his eyes, sipped water. "You both are my students. I know you liked her even back in school. Your concern is normal."
"How about this…"
He thought for a bit. "If you're worried, I'll find time to see Hinamori."
"In the meantime, tail her and see what she's doing."
"Don't let her notice, or she'll hate you for it."
"…Alright." Kira stood. "Sorry to trouble you, Captain Yoshio. I'll go."
Yoshio nodded and saw him out.
Then he frowned.
After Aizen pulled Hinamori aboard, he didn't bring her to the Hollow side.
So Aizen had two secret cliques: one with Yoshio, Gin, Tōsen, and Arrancar from Las Noches;
The other with Hinamori and the Quincy Gremmy. Yoshio didn't know if others were involved.
Arguably, this was the world's biggest change.
But it made sense—Yoshio himself was secretly forming Wings of the World; it's no surprise Aizen changed things too.
Yoshio didn't dwell on Kira's worry; Hinamori was still too young. If Kira could spot cracks, she needed more years acting around Aizen.
Fresh meat is fresh meat; can't beat a seasoned actor.
With nothing else, Yoshio went to the Dangai.
In his Hell of Solitude, over three years it had expanded greatly—now over a hundred meters in diameter.
Brainleaf Co. had been formally established, with Azashiro managing it while purifying Evil Node.
Yoshio taught him Purification Kidō; with Azashiro's Kidō mastery, he learned quickly.
Though a Kenpachi, Azashiro only took 11th Division for its no-bankai-disclosure rule.
So unlike Zaraki, he wasn't just a hack-and-slash brute; his Kidō was superb—especially after two hundred years in Muken with nothing but Kidō to hone.
Most Seeds of Light refined as byproducts were transported to the Hell of Solitude; a small portion became a new generation of batteries.
A Seed of Light contained immense energy—equivalent to tens of thousands of tons of TNT.
But it was inert; without special activation, it couldn't be triggered or detonated instantaneously.
Brainleaf Co. used Seeds to produce energy; their main product was batteries.
Yoshio had his reasons; he wasn't wasting Seeds of Light, but decided to permeate the world with their energy this way.
Leaving the Hell, he headed to the Living World.
Tomorrow was special: Nezuko would start elementary school.
As the doting dad, he had to take her.
Of course, he couldn't use his true face.
For convenience, Yoshio had long prepared several gigai.
"I thought you'd come earlier."
When he reached Hela's home, she was on the sofa reading.
"I got held up," Yoshio said. "Not too late though. Where's Nezuko?"
"At the company," Hela said. "She got impatient waiting and ran off."
"Don't let her hang around the company too much; she'll break things."
Nezuko gave Yoshio headaches. She seemed the opposite of Kurosaki Ichigo.
Ichigo grew up play-fighting with Isshin, but as a child he was obedient.
Nezuko, from early on, showed a destructive streak—breaking things; sometimes even breaking little gadgets Yoshio gave her.
She also caught small pets outside—
Like snake-shaped Hollows, bird-shaped Hollows—she'd capture them and stuff them into dolls as toys.
Clearly villain material.
"Forget it, I'll check on the company. Azashiro can't handle her."
Yoshio sighed and turned to leave.
"I'll go with you," Hela said, grabbing a coat as they headed out.
"The purification pace of Evil Node is slow; we still lack manpower," Hela said under the dim streetlights.
"I know. I've got a candidate. Don't rush," Yoshio said. "By the way… is your new identity ready?"
Hela had been a teacher in Karakura, but a problem loomed: while human, she wasn't ordinary—she didn't age.
She'd been in Karakura seven or eight years—she couldn't stay eternally youthful.
So she periodically changed identities.
"All set."
She pulled a driver's license from her pocket, waggling it between her fingers before Yoshio.
"New documents every six years. I'll be a company employee for six, then switch again."
"Be a teacher again," Yoshio said. "Three years junior high, three years high school—wraps things up neatly."
"And you can watch over Nezuko."
"Not just Nezuko, right?" Hela gave him a knowing look.
"You mean Ichigo?" Yoshio smiled. "I keep an eye on him, but it doesn't really matter. Just mind Nezuko."
Talking, they arrived at the company.
Since founding, Brainleaf Co. had grown rapidly, now the country's brightest rising star.
You seldom saw a headquarters tower like this in Karakura.
Mostly single-story houses, maybe two or three floors; the HQ had thirty-three stories, the town's landmark.
Yoshio and Hela went straight to the 33rd floor; floors 30 and up were off-limits and had no direct elevator.
That didn't stop them. Sensing reiatsu, Nezuko was on 33.
"Dad!"
Seeing Yoshio enter, Nezuko—hands on the chair's arms, feet up on the desk—lit up.
But she quickly pouted. "I thought you weren't coming!"
"How could I? Tomorrow you start school. Even if meteors were about to smash Seireitei, I'd still watch you enter the gates." Yoshio hoisted her up.
Nezuko wriggled free. "I don't want to go to school. Human knowledge is boring. I want to learn Kidō! Dad, teach me!"
Headache intensifies—if she learned Kidō, disaster.
"Not yet. Kidō isn't for you right now," Yoshio said. "Human knowledge isn't bad. Do you understand relativity? Quantum mechanics? Forget those—master classical mechanics and I'll teach you Kidō."
"Great! I'll master it immediately!" she said proudly, then, "What's classical mechanics?"
"You'll find out at school," Yoshio sighed, then changed the subject. "Where's Uncle Azashiro?"
"Downstairs. He definitely knows you two came," Nezuko sighed. "As soon as he saw me, he hid the Seeds of Light. I can purify them too."
"I'm grateful if you don't shatter them," Hela smiled. "Tomorrow you go to school, I finally get a break."
"At school, don't show off your powers."
"Sister Hela, you think I'm stupid?" Nezuko scoffed. "I wouldn't show off in front of mortals."
She called Yoshio father, Azashiro uncle, but Hela sister, even though Hela was Yoshio's peer—messy ties.
Yoshio facepalmed. "The more you say that, the less I trust you. I'm tempted to seal your reiatsu."
"What? No way!" Nezuko panicked, then put on a pitiful face. "I promise not to use it, okay?"
Yoshio placed a hand on her head and ultimately didn't seal her.
"Make friends at school. Look at your old man—friends everywhere," Yoshio bragged.
"Got it," she said obediently.
The company had rest areas. After seeing Nezuko, Yoshio went downstairs to Azashiro.
Azashiro wasn't purifying Evil Node; he was reading.
"The first Evil Node is purified to the maximum," Azashiro said. "I tried more, but it won't produce Seeds of Light."
He handed over an object like black onyx.
Yoshio took it: the first Evil Node, "The Evil Person."
As expected, external force alone couldn't purify an Evil Node into a Sacred Node.
Yoshio examined it and put it away. "Thanks for the hard work. Rest. I'll bring the second Evil Node soon."
Baelz's third Evil Node was nearly formed; he could bring two at once.
And it was time to consider who to host this "The Evil Person" with.
The Evil Person was the easiest to match, because it was broad—encompassing all badness, the foundation of the nine that followed.
In other words, any villain could be an The Evil Person—plenty of choices.
The more compatible, the better the purification's result.
These node contained vast evil reiatsu; Baelz could use that to level up.
Used on others, they also brought boosts.
Crucially, once two merged, not only would the person absorb the node's reiatsu, the node would also absorb the person's.
When transformed into a Sacred Node, the more reiatsu it had accumulated, the higher the quality.
The Evil Person…
Preferably a powerful evil person…
And one destroyed by Baelz, the most evil…
Espada?
Many fit, and they're strong.
The Sternritter also worked; even the Gotei 13.
Nobody's really a good person; most could fuse with The Evil Person.
But he had to consider the remaining nine.
The Evil Person fit most, but the rest were targeted.
Starting from there…
The Twin-Headed one represents evil that seeks to end gods—only Azashiro and Yhwach fit.
The Shell That Clings Outside Matter represents deceit by appearances attached to matter—original 9th Espada Aaroniero and Metastacia fit, but they're dead.
Hmm… come to think of it, Grand Fisher, who devoured Kurosaki Masaki's soul, could work—though he's weak.
Weak? Then buff him.
The Concealer represents inert wisdom and the mysterious—hard to find; Bleach has many smart people, but inert wisdom…
Hard indeed…
Lazy-minded Baraggan might count.
The Disturber of Souls corresponds to disrupting uneasy spirits—this one could go to Kurotsuchi Mayuri.
The Burner corresponds to anger and stirring chaos—Yammy can cover that.
The Quarreler stands for meaningless disputes—Yoshio knew a good fit:
Berenice Gabrielli. Many won't recall the name—one of three Sternritter fodder Kenpachi slew at the start.
He's the one Baelz supplanted as Sternritter Q.
His Schrift should've been "The Question," always contradicting whatever you say.
Baelz took his spot, not his life, so he's around.
And he's Baelz's direct subordinate, so Baelz knows him well.
The Raven of Death corresponds to reaping death—that must go to Yhwach.
The Defrauder is obvious—by name, the match was Aizen, but since Yhwach gets the Raven, then Twin-Headed must go to Aizen.
So the Defrauder can't be Aizen. Other than Aizen, Yoshio could only think of Kūgo Ginjō.
Ginjō played Ichigo and the Fullbringers like a fiddle.
The Lascivious… that'd be either PePe or Bambietta—no further comment.
The Evil Person should exclude the above picks.
Hmm…
Maybe use a Tsunayashiro—since they're the source of this world's evil, they'd suit the node.
Yoshio and Azashiro discussed next steps, he then slept there for the night.
…
The next morning, Yoshio woke a still-sleeping Nezuko.
"Let me sleep a little longer."
She rolled over, ignoring him, but Yoshio grabbed her by the ankle and dangled her upside down.
"Wah!" She yelped. "You'll scare me to death!"
"If only you were that timid," Yoshio grumbled at the pajama-clad imp. "Get ready. Time for school."
Nezuko rubbed her eyes and yawned.
"Okay."
She hopped off, left, and returned after a while.
A little cap, white top, gray pleated skirt, white long socks, little shoes. Her hair was black—unlike Ichigo's orange.
"Let's go."
"Only this once—Hela will pick you up," Yoshio said as they left HQ toward the school.
"Got it, got it," Nezuko said impatiently. "And I don't need you to pick me up. I've been everywhere in Karakura. Think I'll get ambushed? Or get lost like other people without a guide?"
"Got it, got it," Yoshio mimicked. "We all know you're awesome. Picking you up is to protect the people around you."
"!" Her pupils shrank. She stomped on his foot and stormed ahead.
"That hurt," he said, hurrying after.
"Idiot dad! Don't bother me!"
She sped up.
"I knew it," Yoshio sighed, sticking close.
Soon they reached the school—busy with the new term.
Nezuko, still fuming, turned a corner and ran into someone.
She only clutched her head, but the little boy opposite fell on his butt.
He blinked, then burst into tears.
Before Yoshio could speak, Nezuko marched over and snapped, "Hey! How can a boy be so useless! I'm a girl and I'm fine!"
The orange-haired boy froze at her words, even forgetting to cry.
"Nezuko!"
Yoshio stepped over and helped the boy up.
"Sorry, I've spoiled her."
"Ichigo…"
A woman with wavy orange hair ran over—Kurosaki Masaki.
Time spares no one; the lively girl of a few years ago was now a young mother.
Yes, the orange-haired boy was Kurosaki Ichigo. What a coincidence.
Masaki saw the tears at Ichigo's eyes. "Sorry, I looked away for a moment. What happened?"
"Ah, I should apologize," Yoshio said. "My Nezuko and your boy bumped at the corner. She shouldn't have been so harsh."
Nezuko turned away, unconvinced. She felt she wasn't wrong—he was a boy and this useless?
Hela had told her that Father was interested in this orange-haired boy. She'd come to school obediently to see what was special.
First meeting, he cried. Useless.
"Ichigo, that's your future classmate," Masaki crouched and patted his head. "Don't cry in front of classmates. You're a boy—you should protect girls."
"I… I wasn't crying." Ichigo wiped his tears, stubbornly marched to Nezuko, and held out his hand. "I'm Kurosaki Ichigo. What's your name?!"
Nezuko looked at him in surprise, snorted, and said:
"Nezuko Kamado."