Bleach—I Can't Get an Amen
Episode 15 - Soya
Your watch stopped on that day, a hundred and twenty years ago.
It remained frozen, fixed upon the sight of my retreating back as I left.
Building a rusted prison in the name of eternity,
You deceived yourself with the word 'preservation'
While merely winding the mainspring of a time that refused to flow.
You were invincible within that rewound minute,
Yet you failed to see the single second of truth hidden within the mist.
The ceiling remained collapsed.
Kisuke and Soya continued to stare each other down.
Yoruichi glanced toward Azuma, her expression softening with a brief moment of relief before she turned her gaze back to the enemy in front of them.
Soya slowly picked up the fallen pocket watch and brushed off the dust.
His hands trembled ever so slightly as he cleaned it.
However, his expression held a smile—not of anger, but of a child anticipating something wonderful.
Soya lowered his head, took a few deep breaths, and then looked at Kisuke once more.
"Captain... the Research and Development Institute was so dreadfully boring after you left. That bastard Mayuri was only obsessed with destruction and modification. But that isn't what development is about. It requires the ultimate aesthetic of eternity. Even that brat Hiyori didn't understand. You are the only one who truly understands the ultimate aesthetic of eternity, Captain Kisuke..."
Kisuke stood there, watching Soya from beneath the brim of his hat.
"Science dies the moment it stops, Soya-san."
"Exactly. That is why I only wished to continue the experiment. That was my only intention..."
"But what you're trying to do isn't preservation; you're trying to lock things inside your own cage. If your goal was to create dolls that never die, you should have opened a toy shop instead."
Soya looked shocked, yet his expression also suggested he had expected such an answer.
It seemed he had been clinging to a final shred of hope.
"Then I suppose it can't be helped... but I believe that once I show you, you will understand, Kisuke-san."
Soya snapped his fingers, and mechanical lifeforms began to pour out from every corner of the factory once again.
Azuma wondered what to do, his mind racing as he calculated how to move Ren and Sora.
"I suppose... we have to go?"
Kisuke gave Yoruichi a small nod.
"It would be better for Soya-san if he died by our hands."
Yoruichi nodded in agreement and cast a quiet look at the three figures standing behind her.
The three of them nodded back and quickly lunged forward.
A red-haired boy swung a massive iron mace, crushing the heads of the machines.
A black-haired girl, her face expressionless, fired a large cannon to halt the mechanical advance from a distance.
Azuma watched them for a moment before snapping back to reality. Holding Ren and Sora, he began to scan the area for a safe place to go.
"Come this way, Master Azuma."
Azuma turned to see a bald man wearing sunglasses beckoning him.
Azuma hurried toward him, still carrying Ren and Sora.
"My name is Tessai Tsukabishi."
"Ah... I'm Azuma Shohei. Ren and Sora are in danger. They need treatment immediately..."
"Do not worry. I shall take them."
"Oh, right..."
Azuma nodded and handed Ren and Sora over to Tessai.
"Now, please attend to what remains to be done. I shall do my part as well. If you rescue any other Soul Reapers, please bring them here. I will recover them."
At Tessai's words, Azuma nodded again, turned around, and began running toward the glass tubes holding the other Soul Reapers.
The thought that he had to save the others filled his mind.
"Azuma."
"Captain...!"
Yoruichi appeared beside the running Azuma.
"Are you planning to save those Soul Reapers?"
"Yes. It seems they can be saved if the glass tubes are destroyed. That's how I saved Ren and Sora earlier. There seem to be about fifty Soul Reapers and a hundred souls."
"Is that so? That shouldn't be too difficult. Show me how fast the Stealth Force can be, Azuma."
"...Yes, ma'am."
Yoruichi spoke with a slight smile, and Azuma replied with one of his own.
Azuma and Yoruichi began shattering the glass tubes side by side using their Zanpakuto.
Every time a tube broke, the souls ascended back to the heavens, and the Soul Reapers were rescued in the same manner as Ren and Sora.
Watching Yoruichi's speed from right beside her, Azuma couldn't help but feel envious of her movements, which were distinctly faster than his own.
Meanwhile, Kisuke drew his Zanpakuto and stepped down to where Soya stood.
Soya gripped the second hand of his pocket watch with his finger and slowly turned it backward, showing the action to Kisuke.
"This is the end, Soya-san. If you die like this, at least the Gotei 13 will never know of your atrocities."
"Captain... didn't you once tell me that my tenacity was remarkable? Wasn't that why you promoted me to the 4th seat?"
"I had hoped that tenacity would be a helpful kind. And until I left, it certainly was... If you had kept your heart in the right place, you would have become the Lieutenant of the 12th Division..."
"I have no desire to be the Lieutenant for a man like Mayuri! To me, someone with such trashy ideals is..."
Kisuke looked up toward where Azuma and Yoruichi were.
Most of the glass tubes had been shattered.
He wondered why Soya was simply standing still despite this.
He tapped the ring on his left hand as he pondered.
Then, he turned his gaze back to Soya.
"...Regardless, this is wrong."
Kisuke raised his sword.
"Awaken, Beni—"
"Captain, did you truly think my ability was limited to simply slowing someone down?"
"...Excuse me?"
"If we were outside, I might have died instantly, but this space is a fortress built solely for me."
The floor of the factory began to rotate like a giant clock face.
Kisuke's Zanpakuto suddenly moved in reverse, its position shifting to a point in the air he had passed while descending.
"To think you could achieve this level of power within a space you created... and with a Shikai, no less..."
Kisuke clicked his tongue and immediately dashed to catch his falling Zanpakuto.
"How is it? Was this an ability even the Captain didn't know? This power allows me to move your weapons to the position they were in one minute ago. It is only possible within my space. Even you must be quite flustered within my domain, Captain."
Kisuke still wore a thoughtful expression.
Why was he so calm even in this situation?
Was he not panicked by the loss of the glass tubes?
Kisuke looked up again to check how many tubes were left.
It seemed he no longer needed to worry about that side of the room.
"...Well, yes. I didn't know. Not in detail... that is."
"...Not in detail?"
"Of course. Despite how I look, I was a Captain who loved his subordinates quite a bit, you know?"
It happened at that exact moment.
Thuck!
A Zanpakuto pierced through Soya's stomach from behind.
"Nice timing, Azuma-san."
Azuma stood behind Soya, gasping for breath while gripping the Zanpakuto that had impaled the man.
A misty rain was beginning to rise around him.
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