Not long after Shiba Kaien's visit, Matsumoto Rangiku also came.
"What kind of stunt are you pulling?" she asked the moment she saw Nobu.
"What stunt could I possibly be pulling?" Nobu's expression was pure innocence. "Wasn't this notice issued by the Head Captain?"
Rangiku said, "Weren't we supposed to just have a private spar between our two divisions? How did it suddenly turn into the entire Gotei 13?"
Previously, Nobu had come to her asking for a friendly match with Tenth Division, and she had agreed. But before the appointed time came, First Division had abruptly issued a notice like this. No wonder she was baffled.
"Didn't our Fourth Division already spar with Eleventh and Thirteenth? The Head Captain found out about it. He thought it was indeed good for the divisions to interact more, so he made it into a much bigger exchange event," Nobu explained.
Rangiku's face showed helplessness. "Well, if the Head Captain calls it a good thing, so be it. But… why make Seireitei's cleaning duty the punishment for the losers?"
"Does Miss Rangiku find that improper?" Nobu countered.
Rangiku hesitated, about to speak, then stopped.
She let out a soft sigh and looked at him. "You… do you truly not understand, or are you just pretending not to?"
Nobu answered slowly, "Since the notice came from First Division, from the Head Captain himself, why trouble yourself asking me about it, Miss Rangiku?"
Rangiku blinked.
True — the notice came from the Head Captain. Even if Nobu had pushed for it behind the scenes, without the Head Captain's approval, how could a mere Third Seat have such reach?
To summon the entire Gotei 13 for a match, and to use Seireitei's cleaning duty as a forfeit — that was something only the Head Captain could do.
If Nobu had launched it alone, Central 46 would've called him to account long ago.
She had come today because she was worried, to get answers from him.
Soul Society might be vast, but its true center was only Seireitei — and the only residents there besides Shinigami were nobles.
Central 46's members were all drawn from the ranks of middle-class nobles and above.
One could say that those who truly ruled Soul Society were the nobles — the Gotei 13 was merely a band of "enforcers" under their name.
Of course, some "enforcers" had strength so great that their prestige and influence outstripped many nobles. And relations between the Head Captain and the nobility had always been smooth.
Which only made Rangiku all the more puzzled.
She looked at Nobu, hesitated, then asked carefully, "What did the Head Captain say to you?"
Nobu smiled. "Quite a bit, about the details of this exchange event."
Rangiku pursed her lips, deciding it was probably better she didn't know.
In the end she said, "Forget it. Maybe I'm overthinking… Besides, in this match, your Fourth Division's chances aren't high."
"What if we win?" Nobu suddenly asked.
Rangiku pressed her lips together. "If you win, wouldn't that be a good thing? Fourth Division could rest for a year."
"If someone wins, someone has to lose," Nobu said quietly.
Rangiku couldn't hold back anymore. "You're doing this on purpose, aren't you!"
The Gotei 13's divisions, setting captains aside, had an overall combat strength ranking everyone knew — Fourth Division was unquestionably at the bottom, Eleventh was the strongest.
The rest were more or less on par.
If a division that "shouldn't" lose did lose… who knew what trouble might follow?
That was what Rangiku feared.
And when that time came, what treatment would Nobu face as the man behind it?
She studied the half-smiling expression on the boyish face before her and felt again that his thoughts were deep, unreadable.
From the first time she'd seen him in Rukongai, she'd never been able to see through him.
Like Kaien before her, she got no real answer from Nobu — only more doubt.
Kotetsu Isane, however, sought Nobu out herself for the first time in a while.
"I've drawn up a few lineup options for the exchange," she said, handing him a file.
After a brief look, Nobu said thoughtfully, "Isane-nee, you don't have to compete."
Isane sighed. "It is troublesome. Between you and me, only one of us can enter…"
That was a rule from First Division.
Each division could send three people below captain rank, but the three had to fit specific categories — not simply the three strongest under the captain.
They were divided into upper, middle, and lower tiers:
Upper: Vice-captain through Fifth Seat.
Middle: All seats below Fifth.
Lower: Unseated members.
The only allowed combinations were: upper–middle–lower, upper–lower–lower, middle–middle–middle, middle–middle–lower, middle–lower–lower, lower–lower–lower.
Vice-captains and upper-seated officers counted as one category — only one could compete. And if someone from that category fought, a lower-tier unseated member had to compete too.
Similarly, the exchange was divided into three matches: upper, middle, and lower.
Vice-captains and up-to-Fifth-Seats could only fight in the upper match.
Middle-tier seated officers could fight in the middle or upper.
Unseated members had no restrictions.
In short, everyone could only choose an opponent equal to or stronger than themselves.
These rules were set by First Division — after Nobu had proposed arena matches.
Nobu could see they were meant to limit Fourth Division.
"Isane-nee, leave the fighting to me. You're not too fond of this sort of stage anyway, are you?" he said with a smile.
Isane was silent, then took the file back from his hand.
"You already have a plan for the lineup, don't you?" she asked.
"Pretty much," Nobu said.
Isane sighed. "Nobu, I can only trust you. This isn't like those private spars with Eleventh or Thirteenth — if we lose badly, we'll be a laughingstock."
Nobu smiled with easy confidence. "Relax, Isane-nee. Have I ever let you down?"
She had no answer. Her feelings were like those of the other divisions — maybe worse.
"Isane-nee," Nobu said suddenly.
She looked up into his smiling eyes and, for some reason, felt a jolt of unease.
"If I lead Fourth Division to victory, do you have any kind of reward for me?"
"…What kind of reward do you want?" Isane looked away.
"If I win, would you grant me one wish?"
"What wish?"
Her unease deepened.
"I'll tell you after I win."
It sounded far too unreasonable. Isane's thoughts were in turmoil; she felt she should refuse.
But Nobu was throwing himself into all this for Fourth Division's sake…
And after what he'd drunkenly said that day, he truly hadn't done anything out of line since.
Almost without thinking, she nodded.
...
A month passed in a blink.
Fourth Division's open-air training ground had been remodeled — thick white stone pillars added around the edges, made of killing-stone, brought in specially for this event.
Naturally, the funding came from First Division.
The day was bright and clear in Seireitei.
Fourth Division's members were ready. At the barracks gate, Head Captain Yamamoto Genryūsai arrived with the twelve current captains of the Gotei 13 (Third Division had no captain at present).
Every Fourth Division member present saluted.
Behind the captains came several dozen others — some there to compete, others simply to watch.
Nobu spotted familiar faces: Hisagi Shūhei, Kanisawa, and Hitsugaya Tōshirō.
All three were now ordinary members of Ninth, Eighth, and Tenth Divisions respectively. None had advanced as quickly as Nobu — after all, it hadn't even been a year since graduation.
They noticed him too. Since leaving the Academy, chances to meet had been rare — once a month at most.
After Unohana spoke briefly with the Head Captain, the group moved to the open-air arena.
Seating had been arranged around it, the captains in the center.
Nobu glanced over the captains — there were still many he'd never interacted with.
Like Soi Fon of Second, Kuchiki Byakuya of Sixth, Komamura Sajin of Seventh, and Zaraki Kenpachi of Eleventh.
Of them, Zaraki's scowl was the foulest.
Nobu could guess why — the man lived for battle, and here was a grand spectacle where captains weren't allowed to fight, only to watch.
Kenpachi's massive, beastlike frame stood out even among the captains.
But one man stood out even more — Komamura Sajin, masked in iron so that no one could see his face, towering nearly three meters like a giant.
Few in the Gotei 13 knew what the Seventh Division captain truly looked like; it had been a mystery since his days at the Academy, when he'd already hidden his head.
As the host division, Fourth Division was in charge of the event's procedures.
Once everyone was seated, Kotetsu Isane took the stage to read the details.
The Soul Society Gotei 13 Shinigami Exchange Tournament was meant to strengthen ties between divisions, increase understanding, promote cooperation, and encourage mutual improvement through combat.
Victors would be rewarded, the last-place team punished.
No combat methods were restricted — sword, fist, step, and kidō were all allowed. Injuries were inevitable, but killing intent was forbidden.
Finally, she announced the rules.
There would be upper, middle, and lower matches.
Each match would be a "battle for the arena" — one defender held the stage, the others challenged. Whoever remained on the platform at the end was first place; the process repeated to decide the rest.
The overall standings would be determined by combining the results of all three matches.
Frankly, this format was nothing like Nobu's original idea.
He had intended to use arena bouts to cover Fourth Division's weakness in combat strength.
First Division's rules had crushed that plan.
He could only accept it and find another path.
But his main aim hadn't changed much.
Fourth Division didn't have to win — they just had to make sure the right people lost.
When Isane finished, she hung two enormous curtains beside the field, showing the names of each division's fighters.
...
"So many Third Seats," Kyōraku Shunsui chuckled.
In the upper match — the one most worth watching — not everyone was a vice-captain. In fact, fewer than half were.
First, Third, Fourth, Sixth, Eighth, Eleventh, and Thirteenth Divisions were all fielding Third Seats.
The reasons varied: First Division's Sasakibe Chōjirō was captain-class and wouldn't lower himself to compete; Third had no vice-captain and sent Third Seat Togakushi Rikū; Fourth sent Third Seat Tachikawa Nobu; Sixth had no vice-captain; Eighth's vice-captain Ise Nanao wasn't a combat type; Eleventh's Madarame Ikkaku was known to have vice-captain-level strength; Thirteenth's Kaien, for some reason, stayed out, sending Third Seat Kotsubaki Sentarō instead.
That made seven Third Seats; the rest were vice-captains.
"Those divisions sending Third Seats must feel confident," Aizen Sōsuke said with a gentle smile.
"Not necessarily," Kyōraku replied. "My Nanao-chan isn't suited for battle — if I sent her, that'd be the real problem. Besides, I can't bear to see her get hurt."
Even as he spoke, a chill ran down his spine.
Behind him, Nanao sat stiffly, fighting the urge to thump him, her face a mix of pale and livid. Having such a captain was mortifying.
Aizen only smiled, then glanced at Kaien. "Why aren't you competing, Vice-Captain Shiba?"
Kaien grinned. "I hear one vice-captain here has already learned bankai. If I go up there, I'll just lose — no point embarrassing myself."
"Sounds like Fifth Division's set on winning," Soi Fon observed suddenly.
Aizen adjusted his glasses, voice mild. "We just happen to have a budget shortfall. If we can plug it with this, why not?"
While the captains traded words, Third Division's Togakushi Rikū sat behind them, face heavy with gloom.
He felt his division was the most at risk after Fourth — maybe even worse off.
In the midst of his sighing, he felt a gaze. Looking up, he found Tachikawa Nobu watching him, a faint, unreadable smile at his lips.
---
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