If I had to describe myself as a color, I would be gray—neither black nor white.
Ambiguous and indecisive.
Ever since I found myself in the world of Bleach, I had always carried a certain contradiction within me.
I wanted events to unfold as they had in the original story, yet I myself refused to act according to it.
It was not as though I intended to make every last event follow the original story exactly.
If that were what I wanted, I would never have graduated from Shin'o Academy at this point in time or joined the Thirteenth Division in the first place.
I merely thought it would be easier to deal with events I knew about than ones I did not.
And somewhere along the way, my desire to prevent the events I disliked from ever happening had grown considerably stronger.
However, Ichigo meeting Rukia and becoming a Soul Reaper was something that absolutely had to happen, both for me and for this world.
And the device known as Kaien's death might be essential to that—or it might not.
Someone like Aizen might be able to produce the result he wanted without exploiting Rukia's trauma or guilt.
I could make that optimistic prediction, but at the same time, there was also the possibility that the butterfly effect of my actions would prevent someone named Ichigo Kurosaki from ever being born.
I wanted a clear conclusion, yet none of the conclusions I reached were certain.
To begin with, I lacked Aizen's ability to meticulously orchestrate every detail. Even if I were capable of it, I was not diligent enough to actually carry such a plan out.
At the same time, I was not the sort of person who could trust in some corrective force of the world and live comfortably without worrying about anything.
So the reason I was standing outside the lieutenant's office at this very moment had nothing to do with some grand cause or ambition.
Faced with a fifty-fifty chance of success or failure, I was merely acting as I pleased out of sheer desperation.
"Captain Ukitake, I have a request."
"Let's hear it, Sixth Seat Ryunosuke."
"Please assign me to Third Seat Miyako Shiba's investigation unit."
A report concerning a Hollow had come in only a few hours ago.
It contained information about a resident-type Hollow that had nested in a mountain on the outskirts of Rukongai and was hunting there for food.
I was certain this resident-type Hollow was Metastacia—the creature that would kill not only Kaien, but also his wife and countless other members of the division.
The original story had never revealed exactly when Metastacia appeared, but Rukia had recently developed two techniques with Kaien, so I had already suspected the time was near.
It had been only a few days since I agonized over the matter and received Rukia's advice.
Then today, a report about a Hollow had come in. An investigation unit had been assembled, and its departure had been scheduled for seven tomorrow morning.
"But they've already left..."
...What?
"What do you mean? They weren't supposed to leave until tomorrow morning!"
Since Aizen was involved, I had no way of knowing what sort of interference might occur if I joined the investigation unit too early.
Thinking Aizen was paying attention to me might have been excessive paranoia, but it was still best to be as careful as possible.
That was why my plan had been to remain quiet while the investigation unit was assembled, then secretly visit Ukitake late at night, as I was doing now, and make a separate request.
Or so I had thought.
"Their orders were changed to immediate deployment. It was an emergency order from the central authorities. Their departure was moved forward by a full ten hours. I don't know what could be so urgent when it's only a resident-type Hollow, but..."
"What...?"
"Because of that, they departed two hours ago. If everything went as expected, they should reach their destination within the next ten minutes."
Ten minutes...! Then it was not too late yet.
"Where is it? Please tell me their exact destination!"
Jushiro Ukitake's eyes widened briefly in surprise before he calmly asked me a question.
"If you're reacting this strongly, does that mean you believe this mission is extremely dangerous?"
"...Yes."
"And simply trusting them and waiting here would be the wrong move."
"That's right."
"I'll tell you the destination. However..."
Ukitake took the Zanpakuto hanging on the wall and fastened it at his waist before continuing.
"I cannot send a subordinate into danger alone. I will accompany you."
Jushiro Ukitake was a captain who trusted his subordinates' judgment.
Captain Ukitake and I left Seireitei and entered Rukongai in the blink of an eye.
Yet both Ukitake and I could tell that even this speed was not enough.
"Ryunosuke, I understand how you feel, but we'll be too late at this rate."
"Yes. You don't need to accommodate me."
Proving that a captain was a captain, Ukitake began pulling ahead in an instant.
But I could still go faster as well.
Without slowing or breaking my running posture, I drew and released my Zanpakuto.
[Reach Them Again and Again, Byakurai]
With the release command, the Zanpakuto in my hand transformed into an ink-black spear that looked as though it had been charred.
My Byakurai was a long spear with a one-meter blade and a 1.2-meter shaft. Its blade tapered toward the tip, while its thickest section measured twenty centimeters across.
Its enormous size made it too heavy for an ordinary human to wield properly, but that did not apply to a Soul Reaper.
The power of the Zanpakuto Byakurai was to envelop both itself and its wielder's body in lightning, granting them terrifying destructive power and speed.
Boom!
With a peal of thunder, I began closing the distance between Ukitake and me.
*
Rumble!
At the sudden crash of thunder behind him, Ukitake looked back toward where his subordinate should have been.
Far behind him, he saw Ryunosuke enveloped in painfully blue lightning.
To his astonishment, Ryunosuke was not merely keeping pace with him. He was steadily closing the distance.
Kaien told me he possessed strength that belied his seat. But even with the release of a lightning-type Zanpakuto specialized in speed, he's keeping pace with a captain!
Ukitake suddenly found himself regretting that his worsening illness had prevented him from spending much time with Ryunosuke since the young man had received his commission.
Still... you have an excellent subordinate, Kaien. It seems I can retire with peace of mind.
His subordinates, including Miyako Shiba, might already be in danger.
And yet, when Ukitake looked at the subordinate who had already caught up and begun running beside him, he strangely found himself feeling far less worried.
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