No Cheat in Bleach ? Watch me help Aizen then.-Chapter 126: When the Pawn Realizes It’s a Pawn

The abrupt ceasefire between Higashi Shuuichi and Kyōraku Shunsui flipped the entire battlefield on its head. Where moments ago tension crackled, now only one clown remained: Dolodoni, flailing solo.

Sensing the pressure that had been pinning him down evaporate, Dolodoni didn't hesitate—he blasted off with a Sonído, fleeing the scene at full speed.

Gin made a half-hearted move to chase him.

A single slash from Shuuichi stopped him cold.

"What's the meaning of this?" Kyōraku spoke before Gin could, sharp eyes fixed on Shuuichi.

"That bastard—and Tōsen—forced my Hollowfication. What do you think I want to do?" Shuuichi's blade was levelled straight at Gin, his tone colder than steel.

"Shuuichi, don't jump to conclusions. Just because you saw something doesn't mean it's the truth. Kinda like how it was with Kisuke."

Kyōraku stepped beside Gin, his voice laced with subtle weight.

There were things he couldn't say outright—like how the Konmyōdai Clan's sacred artifact, the Mirror Valley of the Nine Heavens, was said to be capable of exactly such illusions.

"Jump to conclusions? I saw it with my own eyes."

"That doesn't always mean it's real, Shuuichi-dono," Gin echoed smoothly.

Shuuichi didn't respond. Just let the tip of his Zanpakutō rest on Gin's chest.

The silence was razor-thin.

Until another voice broke through:

"Hey, are you done chit-chatting or what? I thought we came here to bring Shuuichi back. If you're not gonna fight, get outta the damn way!"

Zaraki Kenpachi stomped between Kyōraku and Gin, looking like a man deprived of his favorite toy.

"Target's changed, Zaraki. I need to speak with Shuuichi alone—"

"Don't give a shit!" Zaraki didn't let him finish. He charged. "SHUUICHI, COME GET CUT!"

Still pissed his earlier fight was cut short, Kenpachi wasn't about to listen to Kyōraku's diplomatic garbage. Blade raised, bloodlust howling.

But this time, no interference. No Gin. No Unohana. Just one-on-one.

And this time... Zaraki was the one bleeding.

In under ten minutes, he was down—heavily wounded and laughing in a pool of his own blood.

Shuuichi looked down at him, frustrated he couldn't go for the kill. But Unohana wouldn't allow it. Nor would Kyōraku.

Which meant next time... Zaraki would be even stronger. Even more of a pain.

"Talk?"

Kyōraku didn't even spare Kenpachi another glance, his eyes now solely on Shuuichi.

"...Fine."

Shuuichi sheathed his blade. Truthfully, he was curious. Kyōraku had dragged two Captains all the way to Hueco Mundo, nearly killed him... and now just wanted a chat?

The first thing out of Kyōraku's mouth floored him.

"Wait—what? You want me to help oversee the recon team you're sending to the World of the Living?!"

Even Shuuichi, with everything he'd seen, wasn't ready for that.

"You, and your people," Kyōraku clarified. "Ideally, I was hoping we'd run into Kisuke's lot here. That's why I brought Kenpachi and Gin. In case too many Hollowfied Captains snapped."

He sighed.

"But it's just you, so I changed plans."

"So... no matter what state I'm in, or whether the other Hollowfied Captains have control or not, you were always going to ask for Urahara Kisuke's help?"

"Correct."

Shuuichi clicked his tongue. So this was just bad luck?

Still... his gaze flicked to Unohana, who was healing Kenpachi.

Without Kyōraku's interruption earlier, he might've had to reveal his Double Bankai just to survive her.

The price for that would've been... steep.

"I've received word that a batch of Asauchi were stolen recently," Kyōraku continued. "All signs point to them being smuggled to the World of the Living. So we're forming a recon team, under Ukitake's command."

"And the real reason?"

Shuuichi didn't buy it. Asauchi theft was serious, sure—but enough to make Kyōraku grovel to exiles?

Kyōraku tilted his straw hat. "Well, let's just say the vice-captain of this recon team has a rather prestigious background."

"Who?"

"A genius on par with Gin. Graduated the Shin'ō Academy in one year, rose to third seat of Squad 13 in less than three. The next heir to one of the Five Great Noble Houses..."

Kyōraku smiled.

"Shiba Kaien."

The name hit Shuuichi like a sledgehammer.

"...The Shiba Clan?"

Kyōraku nodded. That day, he'd said the same to Ukitake:

"If I'm not mistaken, the Shiba clan head doesn't have long. And Kaien is the chosen successor."

Ukitake had been somber that day.

"You know how dangerous this mission is, Shunsui. Ever since the Kasumiōji Incident seven years ago, the noble houses have been restless. And now I hear the Konmyōdai Clan approached Kurotsuchi Mayuri... and acquired forbidden tech."

Kyōraku had agreed.

"But Kaien insisted. He volunteered."

Ukitake had looked out the window then, at the boy in question—cheerfully training squad members, laughing alongside commoners, not acting the least like the heir of a great clan.

Only someone like him, Ukitake thought, would still climb forward, even knowing it's a mountain of blades.

"But the World of the Living isn't the Seireitei," Kyōraku had warned. "There's no backup. No failsafes. And after that disaster two years ago, we're stretched thin."

"If we send a Captain along, it becomes too obvious."

Kyōraku had seen what Ukitake refused to: if anything happened to Kaien, the consequences would be explosive. And without the Great Spirit Book Corridor—the only device capable of tracing responsibility—whoever killed Kaien might get away with it.

If Kaien was still in Soul Society, no one would dare touch him.

But out there...

If he died, there'd be no justice.

And he wasn't like Gin.

Gin reached Captain-level Reiatsu in under three years. Mastered Bankai in five.

Kaien was three years in and still only mid-tier Vice-Captain level.

Impressive, sure—but not enough.

The enemies won't care how long you've been growing.

Back in the present, Ukitake sat silent.

He realized now that agreeing to Kaien's request may have been reckless. But he couldn't go back on his word. Not without a valid excuse.

"Honestly," Ukitake had said at the time, "when you line up the exiled Captains in the World of the Living, their power on paper isn't that far below Seireitei's."

"You mean Kisuke and his group?"

Kyōraku had raised an eyebrow.

"You thought that whole incident smelled off too, didn't you?"

Ukitake nodded.

"They're Hollowfied, sure—but they were Captains once."

Kyōraku had memories—dark ones—of slaughtering the Makyou Group with his own hands. Some of them had served under him.

"Kisuke claimed Hollowfication can be controlled."

"That's just his word," Kyōraku had said, shaking his head. "We know what happens. They get devoured. Every time."

But Ukitake had stared at him, calm and certain.

"Then test it. See for yourself."

It wasn't like him.

Kyōraku had always seen Ukitake as a resigned man. A prisoner of his childhood pain, both inside and out.

But then he'd remembered two years ago—the day the Head-Captain ordered him to arrest a certain Hollowfied Shinigami.

A man who, instead of going mad, held onto his sanity.

"I told him, give up. You can't fight four Captains alone."

But the man had said:

"Captain Ukitake... there are things you don't understand until you try. I did. And I regret nothing."

That man—Higashi Shuuichi—stood his ground. Activated Hyakki Yagyō. Fought four Captains and walked away alive.

That's why Kyōraku had chosen today.

That's why he'd tested Shuuichi with his own Shikai.

He needed to know: Can this man still be trusted?

Now, in Hueco Mundo, Kyōraku faced Shuuichi again.

"Kaien must not be harmed. Especially not while on a Soul Society recon mission."

His tone left no room for argument.

Shuuichi tapped his Zanpakutō hilt, eyes never leaving Kyōraku's.

He didn't trust him.

Kyōraku was too smooth. Too slippery. He always held back half his words.

Protect Kaien? Sure. That made sense.

Kyōraku did sympathize with the Shiba clan. Always had.

But that alone wasn't enough to justify risking his Shikai.

Kyōraku's Shikai was a death game. A battleground of rules. If Shuuichi couldn't break the rule, he'd die—plain and simple.

So if Kyōraku hadn't planned to ask for help afterward...

If this wasn't part of a larger request...

Then maybe Shuuichi could've believed it was just a test.

But now?

No way.

Kyōraku knew how much people hate being brutalized before being asked for a favor.

But he'd done it anyway.

That meant something.

So what was he really testing? frёeweɓηovel.coɱ

Suddenly, the answer clicked.

A loyalty test.

Kyōraku had wanted to see: when pushed to the edge, would Shuuichi rebel?

Would he strike back against a man who represented the Gotei 13?

No—not "represent."

Kyōraku was the Gotei 13.

He wanted to know: was Shuuichi still loyal?

Shuuichi's mind cleared.

It all made sense now.

The illogical choices, the strange tone shifts... this was all a calculated move. A chessboard maneuver.

And Shuuichi?

He was the pawn.

But now the pawn saw the board.

And a pawn that sees the board... might not stay a pawn for long.

"I'll inform Kisuke," he said at last.

His voice was calm.

But inside, a fire burned.

If this is a game, Kyōraku... then I'll make sure I don't play the part you wrote for me.