Chapter 674 Calm as a Mountain, Kato Megumi

Unohana's hand paused slightly as she held her piece. A flicker of surprise and gentle regret crossed her eyes. "I didn't expect you to have a family in the Living World, Saeko. Did he... come to the Soul Society too?"

Saeko had been in the Soul Society for over fifty years now. If her husband had been an ordinary human, he would probably have died of old age by now.

The odds of reuniting in the Soul Society were slim.

Saeko shook her head slightly and said nothing.

Seeing this, Unohana didn't press further.

She knew that if he wasn't in the Soul Society, there were only two possibilities... either his soul had become a Hollow, or he had already been devoured by one.

Unohana looked down at the chessboard, letting out a silent sigh.

She hadn't expected Saeko to be so devoted, still thinking of her husband from the Living World after all these years.

'No wonder she had ignored so many worthy suitors over the years in the Soul Society.'

The pavilion fell silent for a while, broken only by the crisp sound of pieces being placed.

Saeko looked up, changing the subject. "Captain Unohana, have you heard about the two graduates fighting over the Strongest Ice-type Zanpakuto?"

She moved a pawn forward as she spoke.

Unohana nodded, then took Saeko's pawn with her knight.

"I don't understand."

Saeko's gaze sharpened. "Two Zanpakuto capable of rivaling the Captain-Commander's Ryujin Jakka have appeared. Isn't that a good thing? Why keep only one?"

She moved her rook across half the board, precisely capturing Unohana's knight.

In her view, Central 46's actions were utterly senseless.

The Gotei 13 was already short-handed. Now that two wielders of super-powerful Zanpakuto had appeared, shouldn't they be celebrating?

Why destroy one of them?

It was like having two rooks in chess and deciding to get rid of one.

It was insane.

Unohana remained silent, quietly studying the board.

Saeko didn't press the topic further.

But her mind was no longer on the game.

'Hyorinmaru... a Zanpakuto capable of rivaling Ryujin Jakka. To destroy one of them would be such a waste.'

'Was there any way to get the second Hyorinmaru into our own hands?'

…

A few days later, Central 46 officially issued the decree—

Hitsugaya Toshiro and Kusaka Sojiro, the two wielders of Hyorinmaru, would duel at Sokyoku Hill.

The 2nd Division's Onmitsukido would oversee the entire process. The loser's Hyorinmaru would be destroyed on the spot.

Upon learning this, Megumi, the 2nd Division's Lieutenant, volunteered, "Captain, please leave the oversight of this duel to me."

On the day of the duel, the two young students stood beneath the massive execution frame at Sokyoku Hill, their blades drawn.

Toshiro, facing his former friend, couldn't bring himself to swing Hyorinmaru.

He held back time and again, each ice-blue slash barely grazing the edge of Sojiro's clothes.

But Sojiro's attacks were relentless. Hyorinmaru traced arcs of light that differed from Toshiro's deep blue, each strike aimed at a vital point.

"Forgive me, Toshiro! I... I want Hyorinmaru!"

Sojiro shouted.

It was only natural. A Zanpakuto capable of rivaling Ryujin Jakka... how many people in the Soul Society wouldn't want it?

Who would willingly give it up?

Those old fossils in Central 46 must have had something wrong with them. Two super-powerful Zanpakuto appearing at once, and they wanted to keep only one.

Unfortunately, although Sojiro had gone all out from the start, there was a clear gap between him and his friend.

Toshiro's talent was ridiculously high, though he himself never thought so.

Seizing the opening when Sojiro's stamina began to wane, Toshiro knocked his Hyorinmaru away with a single strike.

Toshiro gritted his teeth, Momo's face flashing through his mind... if he fell here, he wouldn't deserve to stand beside her.

With that resolve, the ice-blue dragon roared, blasting Sojiro and his blade to the ground.

After a fierce battle, Sojiro knelt weakly on the cold execution ground, his hands braced on the ground as he gasped for air.

The second Hyorinmaru had been dislodged, lying a few steps away, the frost on its blade slowly fading.

But Sojiro gritted his teeth and tried to struggle back to his feet to continue fighting.

He couldn't lose. He had to use Hyorinmaru to become the strongest Shinigami.

But Megumi, the overseer, spoke up at that moment: "The match is decided."

Hearing this, the Onmitsukido's members behind her stepped forward, knocking Sojiro unconscious and restraining his arms.

One of them turned to Toshiro, who was still frozen in place, and said, "You can report to the Gotei 13 now, Hitsugaya-kun."

Toshiro didn't respond to the congratulations. His gaze was fixed on his unconscious friend. Biting his lip, he asked, "What will you do to him?"

"That depends on Central 46's decision. Alright, your part is done now, Hitsugaya-kun."

With that, she picked up the Hyorinmaru that had belonged to Sojiro and gave a brief order to the Onmitsukido's members: "Let's go."

"Understood!"

Toshiro stood there, watching Megumi and her group escort his unconscious friend away.

They hadn't gone far when three small figures silently appeared in the corridor ahead.

A girl who looked no older than Toshiro, with black hair falling to her waist and golden pupils that radiated an unsettling aura.

It was Nayuta.

"Who goes there?!"

The Onmitsukido's members drew their weapons in unison, shielding the unconscious Sojiro behind them.

In the heart of the Seireitei, for someone to bypass layers of security and appear directly on their escort route... that alone was enough to raise their alertness to the highest level.

But Nayuta didn't spare them a glance. She walked straight up to Megumi. "Got it?"

Megumi nodded and handed over the Hyorinmaru that had belonged to Sojiro.

The Onmitsukido's members stared at Megumi's profile in disbelief, their voices barely containing their shock: "Lieutenant, what are you doing?! Central 46's orders were to take this blade back for destruction!"

At this moment, their expressions were just like Momo's when she saw Aizen's corpse in the future.

What was their Lieutenant doing? Handing this blade over to some strange little girl?

"Silence."

Nayuta raised a finger, a flicker of power passing through her golden pupils.

The Onmitsukido elites had no resistance against this power. Their bodies stiffened simultaneously, their weapons clattering to the ground, their eyes becoming hollow and vacant as if they had been puppets drained of their souls.

Nayuta lowered her finger and turned to Kato Megumi. "I've altered their memories. The blade was destroyed during the battle. That's what they'll report to that council."

Megumi smiled faintly... a rare genuine expression of emotion during her time in the Seireitei. "Sorry for making you come all the way here, Nayuta."

Nayuta waved her hand dismissively.

With her power, she could easily have joined the Gotei 13 or even challenged a Captaincy.

But after discussing it with Megumi and Saeko, they decided to keep her in the Rukongai.

Nayuta's temperament was just too volatile. If she had to bow and scrape to those old fossils in Central 46, she'd have blown the roof off within three days.

"It's nothing. As long as we can get back to the real world soon, and Makoto serves me properly."

Nayuta stretched, then looked at the Hyorinmaru in her hand. "Who's this for?"

Although Hyorinmaru was Sojiro's Zanpakuto, like all Zanpakuto, it could change owners as long as it was acknowledged by its spirit.

For example, Tosen's Suzumushi wasn't his own Zanpakuto either... it was a memento from his deceased friend.

The same went for Hyorinmaru. As long as it could avoid destruction, it could be negotiated with, it could change hands...

Megumi thought for a moment, then said, "I think Yukino would be the most suitable."

Yukino was already a user of the Ice-Ice Fruit, and Hyorinmaru was the Strongest Ice-type Zanpakuto in the Soul Society. Their compatibility was practically made in heaven.

"For real? She's not even one of Makoto's women."

Nayuta raised an eyebrow in surprise.

In her view, such a precious Zanpakuto should naturally be given to a member of Makoto's harem first.

And Yukino... damn, she'd been a hundred-year-old virgin.

Megumi shook her head, countering, "Everyone is working hard right now to get back to the real world. We shouldn't have this kind of discrimination."

Hearing this, Nayuta fell silent for a moment, taking a second look at Megumi.

She seemed to understand why this woman, who had almost no presence in the harem, always held such a steady, unshakable position.