"Ding, Taoyuan Road Station. Passengers disembarking, please gather your belongings and exit through the rear door."
Dragging his tired body off the bus, Higashi Shuuichi made his way to the small apartment he'd rented downtown.
He opened the door—Matsumoto Rangiku, in a sultry apron and maid cap, greeted him.
"Welcome home~ Shuuichi-sama!"
She bent low to offer his slippers, and the curves beneath the loose apron rippled into view.
But before any naughty daydreams could take root, another figure stepped out from the bedroom—Dressed in a white bridal kimono, hair pinned up—Dōma Sayako.
"You've worked hard, Shuuichi-kun~"
"Sayako?"
Shuuichi froze. He'd never seen her so healthy before. Even though he'd always known she was a beauty underneath that frail shell, seeing her like this stunned him.
"Aren't you supposed to be in the Dōma Clan's underground chamber?"
The words slipped out automatically—and then he froze again.
Why did he say that?
Where even was that?
Didn't he live alone?
Why was Matsumoto Rangiku in his house?
Why did Sayako feel so familiar?
And Bleach... yes... he'd been pulled into Bleach's world.
He'd sided with Aizen.
Schemed the Kasadōri Rebellion.
Descended into Hell...
"Huff..."
Shuuichi gasped, eyes shooting open. A dim ceiling greeted him.
He remembered now—Aizen stabbed him. He Hollowfied.
"Awake, huh?"
A voice he knew. Shihōin Yoruichi.
Turning his head, he saw her perched atop a cabinet.
"I'm still alive?"
He raised a hand to his face—a Hollow mask.
Something wasn't right.
The normal Hollowfication process required Kisuke to force a Hollow out of his soul using the Hōgyoku—he should've fought it, wrestled for dominance like achieving Bankai.
But he'd just... dreamed?
Worse, his Hollow should've been berserk—unstable and untamed. It would take weeks or months of training to control.
Yet he felt no rage. No madness. Only calm.
Only the complete Hōgyoku could create a "perfect" Hollowfication.
This wasn't that.
He'd been Hollowfied using an incomplete Hōgyoku. That should've left his transformation wildly unstable—and certainly incapable of reaching the Arrancar-level Resurrección.
If Shuuichi wanted to reach the level of Tōsen's Vizard Resurrección, he'd have to deal with Aizen again, and complete his Hollowfication using the real Hōgyoku.
But even this unstable Hollowfication was enough for now.
It shattered his Reiatsu limits.
With this, Shuuichi could consume other Hollows like a true Vasto Lorde—and grow ever stronger.
"You're lucky, Shuuichi," Yoruichi said, voice relaxed. "Touch your chest."
He did.
A sword hilt was embedded there.
"Dōma clan's sacred blade—Yomibasa?"
How was it still with him? Shouldn't Sayako have reclaimed it?
But clearly, Sayako had used Yomibasa's Hell-forged power to keep his Hollow in check—with Kisuke's Hōgyoku layered on top. A perfect balance holding him steady.
But that meant...
He couldn't use Yomibasa anymore.
It was now acting as a seal. Drawing on it again would plunge him back into Hollow madness—unless he conquered the Hollow inside.
"Sayako said she trusts you," Yoruichi smiled. "Even if you became a Hollow... you'd never harm innocents."
And then she added, almost teasingly:
"Also... just how many girls have you wrapped around your finger?"
"Soi Fon's been pleading your case. Matsumoto too. Your whole old 4th Division even filed a joint petition to spare you."
"Petition? I've turned into a Hollow, Yoruichi-taichō..."
He thought back to Sayako, the dreamlike image.
To Rangiku, to Soi Fon.
To the 4th Division's medics.
"They're petitioning against the Central 46's ruling," she said, suddenly solemn. "They've labeled you... and the others... as traitors to be executed."
"Others?"
He played dumb. He wasn't supposed to know.
Yoruichi narrowed her gaze, then gestured.
"Them: Ōtoribashi Rōjirō, Hirako Shinji, Aikawa Love, Yadōmaru Lisa, Muguruma Kensei, Kuna Mashiro, Sarugaki Hiyori... and Ushōda Hachigen."
"That many..."
Shuuichi frowned.
"Do you know who did it?"
Yoruichi leapt down from the cabinet and, cat-like, pressed herself against him—breath hot, hand teasing his chest.
"Ichimaru Gin and Tōsen Kaname?"
Shuuichi didn't flinch.
Yoruichi smiled at his still heartbeat, stepping back.
"No. Fifth Division Vice-Captain: Aizen Sōsuke."
"Aizen?! That's ridiculous!" Shuuichi exclaimed. "He's gentle! Kind! Teaches calligraphy! I've met him at Kensei's mixers—he's always warm and—"
"I know it's hard to believe," Yoruichi cut him off. "I didn't want to believe it either—until now."
If only Shuuichi had awoken sooner.
Kisuke and Hōrinmaru had already been dragged to the Central 46. More testimonies would've helped.
But maybe, Aizen's name alone was enough.
Yoruichi hoped.
But reality... was cruel.
By sunset, news arrived.
Kisuke had been stripped of his rank as 12th Division Captain and SRDI Director, and thrown into the Maggot's Nest, his fate hanging on whether he'd give up the Hollowfied Shinigami.
Hōrinmaru, punished even worse—his Kidō stripped, the forbidden Time Suspension spell forcibly erased from his soul.
Both were to be detained under the 6th Division, awaiting judgment.
"Impossible!!" Yoruichi shouted.
She'd been barred from testifying.
Despite evidence, testimonies, spiritual residue—none of it mattered.
Shuuichi matched her disbelief, but inside, his thoughts swirled elsewhere.
"Shūsuke... what happened exactly?"
The one who had tipped them off was Kisaragi Shūsuke, fresh from the Shinō Academy—and now, shockingly, a user of Bankai.
Not long ago, he'd barely scraped at it. It should've taken decades.
But in two days?
Only one answer: Kisuke's "Shin'Gami Crucible."
A tool that forcefully manifests one's Zanpakutō, bypassing the most difficult stage of achieving Bankai.
Why would Kisuke lend such a powerful device so freely?
Not kindness.
Kisuke had seen the signs—anticipated his own downfall—and boosted their side's strength in advance.
Kisaragi was loyal, capable, and believed in Shuuichi. The perfect investment.
And yet...
Should I be angry Kisuke dragged him in? Or grateful?
In the original timeline, only Ichigo had received that kind of shortcut.
"Shuuichi-sama, I heard it was because the Shinō Academy instructors and students vouched for Aizen's presence during the Hollowfication incidents."
"And Kisuke had a black mark: the falsified report about the Kasadōri incident five years ago. He supposedly knew the truth—and covered it up."
"That's nonsense!" Shuuichi scoffed.
Yoruichi, awkwardly: "...Well, not entirely false."
"Huh?"
"It's a long story..."
And so she told him.
How Kisuke and Kirio Hikifune had worked together on artificial souls. How it birthed the Hōgyoku. How they discovered its potential for Hollowfication—and how Kisuke sealed it away when it proved too dangerous.
Shūsuke stepped between them, tense.
"You're lying! First the Kasadōri family, now you want to manipulate Shuuichi-sama?!"
A sharp tension filled the room.
But Shuuichi laid a calming hand on Shūsuke's shoulder.
"I trust Yoruichi-taichō. And Kisuke."
Shūsuke, reluctantly, stood down—but his wary gaze never left Yoruichi.
She didn't care. As long as Shuuichi trusted her, that was enough.
"Kisuke always said the Hōgyoku was too dangerous. That's why he sealed it... but now, it's been forced into use."
"If Hikifune-taichō testifies on Kisuke's behalf—says he sealed the Hōgyoku and never misused it—would that help?"
Shuuichi asked, innocently.
Yoruichi shook her head.
"She's in the Royal Guard now. Untouchable. We can't even contact her."
It was all falling into place.
Aizen had planned this years ago—perhaps even intercepted Kisuke's second report.
He waited until Hikifune ascended to the Royal Realm, removing the most credible witness.
"If we lose this round," Kisuke had said, "it won't be undeserved."
"But next time..."
Yoruichi's mind sharpened.
She looked across the room at Shuuichi, whose head was lowered, thinking, plotting...
"Shuuichi... can I ask you for a favor?"