Chapter 298: Making plans with allies

Chapter 298: Making plans with allies

(Ryoto's pov)

I went with Shunsui-senpai and Jushiro-senpai to discuss our plans. I had warned them about the traitor before, and it looked like they remembered.

"So, can we assume that Captain Aizen is the traitor that you spoke of?" Shunsui-senpai finally asked.

"Yeah..." I took out a lollipop from one of the extra pockets that I made in my uniform and put it in my mouth. A classic strawberry flavor is always a good choice. "He is hiding somewhere and controlling Central 46. He killed them a while ago. I'll check it after we're done here."

"If you knew about his plan, why didn't you stop it?" Jushiro-senpai asked. He didn't accuse me of doing nothing. It was more of curiosity from his side.

As I started explaining, I started drumming my fingers on the table we were sitting at. for new novels

"Two main reasons. First of all, I couldn't stop him even if I wanted to. He is smart enough to rival Kisuke and I couldn't outsmart him. If I made a move, he would make an adjustment to his plans, and I wouldn't know what he was doing anymore. Second of all, even if I somehow managed to uncover his plans, it wouldn't change anything."

Seeing their confusion, I elaborated.

"Aizen lied about his Zanpakuto power. I won't go into details, but he can control all senses perfectly if you see him release his Shikai even once. It doesn't work on me but only on me. Maybe Masaru. I'm still not sure about it, but since he is bedridden, we won't know in the near future."

"...I see. That's why you lied about the Quincy King coming back. To make Genryusai-sensei to act. You knew that without something like that, Sensei wouldn't make a move." Jushiro-senpai asked, thinking that he figured everything out.

"Oh no. Everything I said about the Quincies was true. That's why I'm irritated. With Aizen on the loose and Quincy in the back, the troubles are all around us."

Hearing my nonchalant response, both of my Senpai felt a drop of sweat on their faces. I, on the other hand, focused on the flavor of my lollipop. It had been a long time since I had a strawberry flavor, after all, so I savored it. However, they quickly realized that my calmness must have a reason. Fine, spoil my fun, then.

"So, what's the plan, Ryoto." Shunsui-senpai finally asked.

I couldn't help but smirk at that question as I had a ready answer and couldn't wait for their reaction.

"The plan's beauty is in its simplicity. Everything will be settled tomorrow at noon at Rukia's execution. I'm the only one immune to Aizen's hypnosis, so I'll be the one fighting."

I was interrupted by Jushiro-senpai.

"Ryoto-kun, is it really wise to fight an opponent like that alone, especially with your injuries? I don't intend to doubt you, but you don't seem to be fully healed just yet despite Captain Unohana treating you until the last moment before the meeting."

"Wise? No, but it's our best bet. If we were to fight in a larger group, it would be chaos. With only me seeing right, Aizen would either turn everyone against each other without them noticing or, a more likely scenario, against me. This way is most likely to succeed. I may not know Aizen's every trick, but he doesn't mine either."

After finishing my sentence, I wanted a bit for my Senpai if he wanted to argue, but I could only see acceptance in both of their eyes. They trusted my decision, and they agreed with it.

"Very well. What do you need us to do?" Shunsui-senpai, uncharacteristically serious, asked.

"Stall Yama-jii when I deal with Aizen."

""...What?""

I was right. Their expressions were priceless.

---

Now that I was done with my Senpai, it was my turn to speak with Soi Fon. As usual, she was busy with the paperwork. I should tell her to relax more.

Joking aside, I was already at the door to my office, although most of my Squad members call it Soi Fon's office at this point. Cheeky bastards. Zero respect for their Captain, I tell you. Maybe I should double their training... Thoughts for later.

As usual, I entered the room without knocking, and as usual, my lieutenant was hidden behind the mountain of documents. I could practically feel the annoyance from the doorway.

"If you bring one more document, I swear I'm going to force all these papers down our Captain's throat!"

"Kinky but sorry. I'm not into this kind of stuff. If you want, though, I may find someone who is. You won't believe how many degenerates there are in the world."

Sitting cross-legged as Unohana was using healing Kaido as, I went over multiple options and plans for my fight. I was interrupted as Rin approached me. Unohana only spared her a glance without stopping my treatment and continuing to focus on me. I, on the other hand, looked up to my lover as she looked down. Seeing her expression, I knew what she wanted to say.

"Rin..." I tried to stop her from arguing, but I failed.

"No, don't Rin me. Ryoto, you are not going alone. Normally, I wouldn't say anything, but you lost your arm. No matter what you say, you can't convince me that you have confidence in winning against an enemy that you have been hesitating to face for so long when you were at your strongest. I'm going with you."

Looking into her eyes, I knew that I wouldn't be able to change her mind, but that didn't mean that I wouldn't try to reason with her.

"You can't help me. I'm the only one who is immune to his illusions. You could have stabbed my back thinking that it was Aizen."

Rin didn't back off, but she didn't say a rebuttal either. She just calmly took out her Zanpakuto without breaking eye contact. She then released its Shikai without saying a word. As she traced her blade with a finger and carefully observed it, she started speaking.

"You know Ryoto. My Zanpakuto Tsunagari has the ability to connect." It came out of nowhere, but I kept listening without interrupting. "It's a pretty abstract concept, and the more something is abstract, the harder it is to control. That's why a physical connection is the easiest for me to perform. I need to cut or stab Tsunagari, put some of my Reiatsu into my target, and then repeat the process on something else to create a link. I usually do that to control the limbs of others or change my surroundings to my liking.

Linking human senses is not impossible but not intuitive. For what reason would I do that unless I wanted to draw joy from my opponent's suffering. I would very much prefer to deal with them quickly and swiftly. It's also challenging. To link the sense of taste, I would need to cut a tongue and touch, the nerve system would be sufficient. These two are the easiest. For the senses of hearing and smell, I would need to target the source of these senses, and they aren't the nose and ears, respectively. They are a bit deeper inside but still doable. Sight, on the other hand, I would need to stab the eye directly, but that would typically blind a person, so it's counterproductive. It would be impossible, but we have the best healers in the whole Soul Society here, and I only need to prick our eyes without damaging them too much for it to work." A new resolution could be seen in her eyes as she finally met my eyes again. "Ryoto, let me see through your eyes, stand next to you, and fight beside you."

(Rin's pov)

I was nervous, but I did not plan to back off. What was the point of getting stronger if I could not use that strength to protect the man I love?

The pregnant silence continued until Ryoto let a small smile creep on his face.

"I know that I told you some time ago that I seem to be attracted to crazy girls, but you are skipping a few steps on the crazy scale and going directly to stage 3."

As usual, I rolled my eyes at his stupid comment, but hearing him joking like that gave me some hope that he'd agree to connect our visions. I'm not sure how it will work since I've never done it, but I'm willing to risk it if it allows me to fight Aizen.

Ryoto didn't answer me immediately, as he asked Unohana about her opinion first.

"What do you think, doc? Is it safe to stab eyes with Zanpakuto?"

At that question, Captain Unohana gave my foolish partner the driest look I've ever seen, and that says something.

"While I would advise against doing something like that, I can see advantages in such action. If Captain Rin doesn't pierce the eye too deep, I should be able to heal well before noon tomorrow." The Captain of Squad 4 answered

"I only need to prick both of our eyes, and it should work." I added some kind of reassurance.

"Then what are you waiting for? Stab me in the eye!"

...

This sounds wrong and out of context, and I'm 90% sure that Ryoto did that on purpose. He then opened his eyes, which were still a bit cracked but looked a bit better than before. This was an invitation and I took it. With an expertise and control of my blade that I couldn't even dream of when I was young, I pricked Ryoto's eye. It was harder than I expected, and I needed to use more strength than I initially anticipated, but even with that, I didn't pierce the eye even a millimeter deeper than I wished to. With that done, I moved my eyes and did the same. Blood was coming to my eye, and I was starting to see red in the corner of my vision for obvious reasons, but soon after, even before Captain Unohana started healing, everything became clearer, and colors became sharper. I could also see much farther away than before. Is this how Ryoto sees the world?

"Rin?"

Ryoto called me and sounded concerned. Why would he be concerned? As far as I know, everything worked as it should.

"In... your eyes turned blue."

...What?

---

END

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