Chapter 108 – Shinji Hirako

Chapter 108 – Shinji Hirako

"Oh, Vice Captain Aizen, what are you saying? How could I possibly want to provoke a conflict between the 5th Division and the 11th Division?"

Gin Ichimaru sheathed his Zanpakutō and slowly walked towards Aizen.

It must be said, Gin Ichimaru was truly a genius. In just a few short years, he had completed the gestation of his Zanpakutō, reaching the first stage of its release.

In the seated officer challenges, he was undefeated, directly becoming the 5th Seat of the 11th Division.

The Vice Captain was Zaraki, the 3rd Seat was Yachiru Kusajishi, and the 4th Seat was Kiganjo.

In this round of seated officer challenges, Kiganjo had completed his Bankai training and confidently challenged Zaraki, but was severely injured by Zaraki’s single strike, firmly establishing Zaraki’s formidable reputation.

Since all the captains of the Gotei 13 had completed Bankai training, in everyone's view, possessing Bankai meant having captain-class strength.

Well, that view wasn't entirely wrong. If a Zanpakutō's ability was powerful, then achieving Bankai could be considered immense strength.

However, if a Zanpakutō's ability was average, a captain who achieved that level through Bankai alone could only be considered the lowest "captain" rank.

Unfortunately, Kiganjo’s Bankai, called War Dragon, was not particularly powerful. When released, his Zanpakutō became a giant hammer that greatly enhanced his strength and destructive power, but nothing more. Even with Bankai, Kiganjo’s spiritual pressure was still far below Zarak’s.

If it were the old Zaraki, he might have suppressed his spiritual pressure to enjoy a good fight with Kiganjo.

But now, Zaraki wanted to grow stronger to battle Ailin Kenpachi and defeat the woman who had bested him centuries ago. Enhancing his spiritual pressure was the priority - how could he suppress it?

Seeing that even Kiganjo’s Bankai was no match for Zaraki, the members of the 11th Division were tremendously excited.

The 11th Division was the strongest division in the Gotei 13. Look, apart from the 11th Division, which other division had three captain-class warriors?

Due to Zaraki formidable strength, when addressing him, they unconsciously omitted the "Vice" from his title.

After all, in their view, Zaraki possessed true captain-level ability.

Of course, this was also because the true 11th Division Captain, Ailin Kenpachi, had not appeared in the division for many years.

In fact, for the members who had joined the 11th Division in recent years, they had always thought Zaraki was the captain.

***

"So what does the 5th Seat Ichimaru mean by this?"

Walking up to Aizen, Gin narrowed his eyes and curved his lips upward. "Of course, as the 5th Seat of the 11th Division, I want to become the 5th Seat of the 5th Division."

After years of training, Gin felt his strength was sufficient to approach Aizen. If possible, Gin wanted to find someone to do his bidding, just like Captain Ailin, so he could openly indulge with his beloved Rangiku.

But no, that wouldn't work...

After losing so many times, the stakes for Ailin shifted from winning or losing to whether he could find excuses or reasons to avoid an outright loss before the game ended.

Having a guest arrive was a perfectly reasonable excuse today.

As Ailin followed the servant to meet Shinji Hirako, he still could not fathom what matters the two of them might have in common.

In Soul Society, the stronger one's spiritual pressure, the longer their lifespan.

Shinigami, even newly recruited members of the Gotei 13, lived for two hundred years, long enough to be considered "long-lived."

So in general, the pace of life in Seireitei was quite slow, with little change over hundreds or thousands of years being normal.

Apart from the nobles' residences, the Gotei 13 divisions were spread across Seireitei, each responsible for their respective duties. Unless their duties overlapped, the divisions largely operated independently.

The 11th Division focused on combat missions, commonly interacting with the 8th Division's Intelligence Corps, the 2nd Division's Stealth Force, and the 12th Division's surveillance Unit.

When these latter three divisions detected Hollow appearances, they would inform the 11th Division of the locations, and the 11th Division would then dispatch team members to exterminate the Hollows.

Meanwhile, the 5th Division was a relief unit, regularly coordinating with the 13th Division's Reversal Counter-Force.

The role of the 13th Division was to guide newly deceased souls from the Human World to Soul Society and eliminate any Hollows that managed to cross over.

Often, their members would encounter Hollows beyond their capabilities to handle, in which case they would send requests to the 12th Division. The 12th Division would then relay those requests to the 5th Division, which would travel through the Senkaimon to provide support in the Human World.

The 11th Division, as the most powerful combat unit, rarely requested such assistance, with its members preferring to call for backup from within their own division rather than the 5th Division's relief forces.

So for Captain Hirako to suddenly seek him out was quite puzzling. With this thought, Ailin arrived at the Kuchiki Family's main hall and greeted Shinji Hirako.

"Captain Hirako, you're an unexpected visitor," Ailin said. As he had minimal private interaction with Hirako beyond captains' meetings, he went straight to the point. "What brings you to see me today?"

After sitting, Hirako asked directly, "I wonder how much you know about your disciple Gin Ichimaru?

"Gin?" Ailin was momentarily confused as to why Shinji Hirako would ask about Gin, thinking perhaps Gin had offended him in some way. "If it's because Gin has committed some transgression, then on his behalf, please allow me to apologize."

"No, no," Shinji Hirako shook his head, realizing Ailin had misunderstood. "Captain Ailin, Gin Ichimaru hasn't offended me at all. It's just..."

Shinji Hirako frowned slightly, seemingly considering how to explain the situation. "My Vice Captain, Sōsuke Aizen, recommended Gin Ichimaru to me yesterday. He hopes I can speak with you about transferring Gin to the 5th Division.

However, Captain Ailin, I don't fully trust my Vice Captain Aizen. I've always felt there was something off about him, though I could never pinpoint what exactly."

"Oh?" Ailin raised an eyebrow.

He was aware that Shinji Hirako distrusted Aizen.

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