"Taichi?! Your name is Fūjin Taichi, right?"
Shiba Kaien suddenly turned around and called out.
"Yes? Captain Kaien, do you have an order?"
Fūjin Taichi stopped, turned back, and asked.
"Those two at your waist… they're real Zanpakutō, aren't they? What are their names?"
Shiba Kaien stared intently at the two swords at Taichi's waist, his brows slightly furrowed.
"Kyūjūkyū (Ninety-Nine)."
"Kyūjūkyū? That's a pretty strange name…"
Kaien muttered to himself, then asked again,
"Taichi, why is one of your Zanpakutō long and the other short? Don't tell me… your soul is incomplete?"
"!!!"
Taichi's heart tightened, but his expression didn't change at all. He smiled calmly and replied,
"Everyone's soul has multiple facets, so the Zanpakutō they manifest naturally take on different forms. Don't you think so, Captain Kaien?"
"That makes sense!"
Kaien scratched his head, then frowned again in puzzlement.
"But a Shinigami like you—someone who managed to forge a Zanpakutō before graduation—how come you don't even hold a seated position?"
"..."
Taichi shrugged without answering, though inwardly he thought,
That's something you should ask Central 46…
Kaien instantly understood as well.
Taichi came from Rukongai. Becoming a Shinigami at all was already considered a "favor" from Seireitei. No achievements, no backing—and he wanted a seated position?
Changing the subject, Kaien asked,
"By the way, Taichi, have you tried releasing it? Shikai?"
"Of course I've tried! But I fail every time. Guess my strength just isn't enough yet."
Taichi spread his hands helplessly.
"That's nothing unusual. All Shinigami go through the same process. First, you hear your Zanpakutō's name. Then you refine and solidify it.
After that comes learning to release its power—what we call Shikai. And finally, through constant training on that foundation, you reach Bankai!"
Just as Kaien finished speaking, he noticed someone peeking nervously from outside the doorway.
"Huh? Rukia, why did you come back?" he asked curiously.
"Ah—Captain Kaien, um… we…"
Kuchiki Rukia stammered, glancing up at the sky, then the ground, then at Taichi.
"Ohhh~ Rukia, you're staring at Taichi so nervously… Don't tell me he owes you a ton of money?"
Kaien said while stroking his chin and studying her.
"Of course not! We're just classmates!"
Rukia blurted out, clearly already very familiar with Kaien.
"Is that so?"
Kaien looked suspiciously at Taichi, then back at Rukia.
"I feel like there's something going on between you two—"
"Kaien, don't go guessing at a young girl's feelings."
A gentle voice interrupted him. A female Shinigami with a black ponytail walked over and lightly tapped Kaien on the head.
"H-hey, Miyako! Don't do that in front of my subordinates!"
Kaien complained, though his cheeks were already flushed bright red. He twisted the hem of his clothes with both hands, looking flustered and embarrassed.
"Alright, alright, I'll be careful next time. But Uncle Isshin is coming over today—let's head home quickly."
After saying that, Shiba Miyako dragged Kaien away from the 13th Division barracks.
"Taichi."
Seeing him silent, Rukia thought Kaien's behavior had startled him and quickly explained,
"Captain Kaien is just like that—always messing around. You'll get used to it in a few days."
"No, I actually like Captain Kaien's personality."
Taichi smiled, then asked,
"Rukia, why aren't you going home?"
"Home…"
A trace of loneliness flashed through Rukia's eyes.
Is that place really my home…?
When she thought of the Kuchiki manor—its rigid rules, its cold atmosphere, and her brother Kuchiki Byakuya's distant, indifferent attitude—unease and fear filled her heart.
"Rukia?"
Taichi stepped in front of her and waved a hand before her eyes.
"Ah—Taichi, walk with me for a bit."
Rukia came back to her senses and spoke softly.
"Where to?"
"Anywhere is fine."
"..."
Taichi said nothing. Not knowing what she was going through, he could only accompany her as they left the barracks and slowly walked along Senri Lake.
By then, the sun had already set. The last traces of twilight faded into the dim glow of street lamps. Occasionally, a few dogs barked in the distance from Rukongai, making the night feel even quieter and more peaceful.
"Thank you, Taichi…"
After a long silence, Rukia suddenly spoke.
"Huh?"
"Thank you… Ever since I was adopted into the Kuchiki family, Renji, Kira, and Hinamori all seemed to drift away from me…
You're the only one who stayed by my side."
Kuchiki Rukia sat down on a smooth green stone by the shore of Senri Lake, her eyes fixed blankly on the moonlit water, her thoughts unknowable even to herself.
At the beginning of that year, Kuchiki Byakuya, the current head of the Kuchiki clan—the foremost of the Four Great Noble Houses of Soul Society—had suddenly appeared at the Shin'ō Academy and sought Rukia out.
He then conveyed his intention to her:
to adopt her in the name of the Kuchiki family, allowing her to enter the ranks of the nobility and enjoy the supreme privileges reserved for great noble houses.
After learning of this, Abarai Renji, acting out of what he believed was "for her own good," firmly urged Rukia to join the Kuchiki family, happily calling it a "once-in-a-century opportunity."
From that day on, Rukia bore the surname Kuchiki, becoming a high noble…
and from that same day, Renji grew increasingly silent—and increasingly distant from her.
"Rukia…"
Fūjin Taichi vaguely understood what had happened. He had once tried to pull Renji out of his dead-end thinking, telling him not to take the divide between "nobles and commoners" so seriously—
But clearly, Taichi didn't possess Naruto-level Talk-no-Jutsu, so all he could do was watch helplessly as an enormous rift formed between close friends.
"Taichi… if I hadn't joined the Kuchiki family back then, do you think we'd still be as happy as before?"
Rukia asked in a low voice, staring at the rippling blue waters of the lake.
"What—are you unhappy now?"
"…Yeah."
Rukia nodded lightly, thinking to herself:
Lock a little rabbit onto a cold iron rack—how could it possibly be happy?
"Rukia, even if you hadn't joined the Kuchiki family, there's no guarantee you'd be happy."
Taichi bent down, picked up a small stone, and tossed it into the lake.
Plap.
Ripples spread outward, layer upon layer across the water's surface.
"Why?"
"Because Soul Society is like a pool of stagnant water," Taichi said seriously,
"and Shinigami like us are like stones. No matter where we're thrown, we're bound to make waves."
"Is that so…"
Rukia wasn't entirely convinced, yet she felt that Taichi's words weren't without merit.
"It absolutely is! Rukia—just open your eyes and watch. You and I, and Renji, Hinamori, and Kira…
One day, we'll become a tidal wave that sweeps across the entire Soul Society!"
"Hah… it's cold…"
Rukia suddenly felt a chill creep over her and hugged her arms around herself.
"Then let's head back, Rukia."
Taichi was wearing nothing but his Shihakushō; clearly, he couldn't very well play the gentleman and offer her a coat.
Soon, night fully descended. A bright moon rose into the sky, pouring its pale light over Senri Lake, turning the surface into countless flecks of shimmering silver.
"Alright… let's go back."
Rukia nodded softly, and with Taichi accompanying her, returned to the Kuchiki manor in the central district of Seireitei.
"Whoosh—"
A cool night breeze swept through the courtyard. The cherry blossoms filling the Kuchiki grounds fluttered all at once, transforming under the moonlight into a pink rain of petals that drifted gently around the two of them.
In an instant, a soothing floral fragrance filled the air…