It happened one lazy night in Hueco Mundo.
The pale desert stretched on forever, endless white sand under a dead sky. I was sitting on a giant bone, watching Spike o Sensei stand motionless like the loyal cactus he was, while the 4 idiots wrestled each other nearby over who could hold a boulder the longest.
Baraggan was, as usual, pretending not to sleep on his throne.
And then… Aizen showed up.
Now, normally, when Aizen appeared, it was with his smug woof and that stupidly perfect Kosode scarf he stole last week. But today — today was different.
Perched on his head was… a tiny thing.
A tiny, scruffy, grayish-black puppy-like creature with too-big ears, a stubby tail, and eyes that looked like it had no idea what was going on. The thing couldn't have been more than 34 centimeters tall.
Aizen stood there proudly, the little thing sitting square on top of his head like it owned him.
"Woof." Aizen said.
"Yip." the tiny thing replied.
The room went silent.
Even Grimmjow stopped throwing rocks at Di Roy.
Shawlong squinted like he wasn't sure if he was hallucinating.
I tilted my head.
"GRUUH?"
[Translation: …what the hell is that?]
Baraggan cracked one eye open.
"He says… what the hell is that."
Aizen gave another proud woof, his Kosode fluttering dramatically, as if announcing some grand event.
The tiny thing yipped in response, hopping slightly on Aizen's head.
Baraggan grunted. "That's Kukkapūro."
We all blinked.
"Kukka-what?" Yylfordt muttered.
"Kukkapūro," Baraggan repeated lazily. "Some lost Adjuchas' pet, probably wandered off and found the only idiot in Hueco Mundo who can't talk."
Aizen looked deeply pleased with himself.
Grimmjow laughed. "So now you got yourself a puppy, huh, Woof Lord?"
Aizen ignored him. Kukkapūro let out a tiny, high-pitched yip that sounded like a tiny rock falling into a bottomless pit.
I got up, stomped over, and leaned down to inspect the weird little thing.
It blinked its too-big eyes at me.
I let out a guttural roar.
"GRAUUUGH."
[Translation: You got a name?]
The puppy just tilted its head.
Baraggan sighed. "It's called Kukkapūro, dumbass."
I grunted, scratching my chin.
"GRUH."
[Translation: Fine. It's Bone Circle property now.]
Baraggan translated with a bored tone.
Aizen woofed in approval.
Kukkapūro yipped back.
And just like that, Kukkapūro became an honorary member of Bone Circle.
The 4 idiots gathered around, poking at it, while Aizen strutted around the castle with the little thing perched on his head like a crown.
Spike o Sensei stood unmoving.
The night dragged on as usual in Hueco Mundo.
But now we had a new, tiny idiot in the family.
And no one… no one understood a word Aizen or his new friend said.
Perfect.