"Yecheng, this is our 13th Division's Vice-Captain, Shiba Kaien.
Kaien is a righteous and honorable man, respected and admired by many squad members. If you ever have any questions, you can ask him."
Because of his chronic illness, Ukitake was usually a shut-in. If it weren't for this sudden incident, he normally wouldn't even step outside his quarters.
Ordinarily, a captain wouldn't talk so much to a mere newcomer. But Ukitake, being the kind-hearted person he was, treated Yecheng with special care—especially since Yecheng was one of the victims involved in the incident.
Now that Kaien had arrived to take over, Ukitake eagerly returned to rest in his squad barracks.
"Don't worry if the captain seems distant. Due to his condition, he rarely handles the duties of a captain. Most of the work has always fallen to us, his subordinates.
My name is Shiba Kaien. I was recently promoted to vice-captain of the 13th Division. I used to be the third seat. Please take care of me."
"Not at all, Vice-Captain Shiba. I should be the one asking for your guidance. I'm Nan Yecheng, just joined the squad today."
This was Yecheng's first meeting with Shiba Kaien. And for the unfortunate Kaien, it was also Yecheng's first real understanding of him.
———Time flew by. Two years after Yecheng joined the 13th Division, Captain Jūshirō Ukitake was once again forced to leave his peaceful retirement and attend a sudden emergency captains' meeting at Squad 1.
"Yecheng, what do you think prompted the Head Captain to call this urgent meeting?"
The one standing beside Yecheng and asking the question was Vice-Captain Shiba Kaien. Over the two years, he and Yecheng had developed a strong friendship.
Kaien was originally from one of the Five Noble Houses of the Soul Society, the Shiba Clan—though the clan had fallen from grace.
In the original storyline, not much was said about Kaien. But after two years of interaction, Yecheng came to understand why the octopus-head Rukia admired him so much.
Despite his noble origin, Kaien treated everyone in the squad equally—whether they were born into nobility or came from Rukongai. His fair attitude earned him the respect of all.
Kaien was also a prodigy. He completed the six-year curriculum at the Shin'ō Spiritual Arts Academy in just one year.
He joined the 13th Division directly as third seat, and within five years, he was promoted to vice-captain.
No matter how you looked at it—talent, connections, or character—it was almost certain that Kaien would succeed Ukitake as captain one day.
Over the years, Kaien's keen observation skills allowed him to notice something unique about Yecheng.
Initially, Kaien intended to give Yecheng extra training as a new recruit, but during sparring sessions, he discovered the true extent of Yecheng's hidden strength.
After learning about Yecheng's cautious behavior, Kaien didn't mock him like Ikkaku or Yumichika might have. Instead, he smiled and expressed understanding.
The Soul Society appeared peaceful on the surface, but Kaien, as someone from a former noble clan, knew well that it was full of hidden undercurrents.
He believed that being cautious wasn't a bad thing. After all, his late wife, Miyako Shiba, had been killed by a Hollow due to a moment of carelessness.(Author's Note: Some people were confused—yes, I've seen the original story. I wrote her early death so she could return later.)
All these years, Kaien suspected something was off about his wife's death. She had been a third seat and had even achieved Shikai. How could she be killed by a low-level Hollow in Rukongai? It didn't add up.
"I heard a rumor that many souls in Rukongai are suddenly undergoing Hollowfication. Squad 9's Captain Muguruma Kensei and Vice-Captain Kuna Mashiro went to investigate, but something seems to have gone wrong."
"Both the captain and vice-captain of Squad 9 are among the top fighters in the Soul Society. If something happened to them, of course the Head Captain would call for a meeting. I imagine more captains will be dispatched this time."
Kaien wasn't surprised that Yecheng had gotten such insider info. Coming from Rukongai, Yecheng had strong connections in that chaotic region.
And among the Gotei 13, Yecheng had surprisingly good relationships. Kaien got along well only within his own squad, but Yecheng was well-liked across all divisions.
It wasn't hard to understand. As a transmigrator, even though Yecheng hadn't discovered any cheats yet, he already knew the plot. Understanding people's personalities and playing to their preferences made it easy for him to form bonds.
"Hollowfication in Rukongai? Could this be related to what I asked you to investigate for me?"
Hearing about mass Hollowfication, Kaien's expression turned serious. Isolated cases weren't uncommon in Rukongai.
But those Hollows were usually low-level and only posed a threat to academy graduates. They shouldn't have been able to kill a third seat like his wife.
And now, even Squad 9's captain and vice-captain were missing? Clearly, something abnormal was going on.
"Probably not… The timing between the two events is a bit far apart."
Yecheng couldn't help but admire Kaien's sharp instincts. He wanted to say, "You're absolutely right. All of this is the work of a certain slick-haired mastermind."
Whether it was the disappearance of Squad 9's leaders or Kaien's wife's death, they were all experiments by Aizen Sōsuke, the true villain.
But Yecheng couldn't reveal that. He couldn't explain how he knew. If he spoke out, he might be arrested by the Stealth Force and put under investigation.
Besides, Kaien, while strong, would only be walking into death if he went to Rukongai now.
Even without attending the meeting, Yecheng already knew the Head Captain would dispatch a special investigation team: Captain Rōjūrō Ōtoribashi of Squad 3, Captain Shinji Hirako of Squad 5, Captain Love Aikawa of Squad 7, Vice-Captain Lisa Yadōmaru of Squad 8, Captain Hiyori Sarugaki of Squad 12, and Vice-Chief of the Kidō Corps, Hachigen Ushōda.
And without a doubt, even this team of captain-level powerhouses would fall one by one to Aizen's Zanpakutō, Kyōka Suigetsu, and end up as test subjects for his Hollowfication experiments.
If so many captains and vice-captains couldn't survive, Yecheng knew adding Kaien wouldn't change the outcome. So of course, he tried to dissuade him from going to Rukongai and throwing his life away.