The Iron Sole Alchemist and the Soul Reapers (Chapter 32) Squad Training and Militia Recruitment
by Howlin
(Disclaimer: I don't own any rights to any of the universes, places, or characters, and only claim the protagonist, Sloth, and Loki as my own creation. This is fan fiction, and I don't profit from it. Please don't sue me.)


Yamamoto was waiting for me in the main captains' meeting room. Sloth found a seat nearby and waited while I went in. As the doors closed behind me, I saw that I wasn't alone with Yamamoto. Standing off to the side of the old man was Mayuri Kurotsuchi.

"You," I said. "How the hell are you here? Did you break out of hell?"

"Of course not," said Mayuri. "Interfering with the normal operation of hell is one of the Soul Society's highest crimes. Doing so would risk the sinners escaping and agitating their guardians."

"How are you here?" I asked again.

Ignoring the heat in my voice, Mayuri responded quite casually, "I keep a backup of all my memories in a spare brain in my office in case something like this happens. Nemu was able to transfer those memories into a cloned body. It was really quite fortunate you knocked my zanpakto out of my hands before killing me. Well, fortunate for me. It's no doubt quite unfortunate for my predecessor who now has to face hell without it. Ordinarily a zanpakto dies with its soul reaper, but fortunately I'd made modifications to allow it to be passed on to my clone."

"I guess I'll need to be a lot more thorough killing you this time," I said, reaching for my zanpakto.

Suddenly, I was paralyzed by a massive spiritual pressure. I'd grown so much since Aizen crushed me with his spiritual pressure, but I once again found myself barely able to breathe. The overwhelming pressure was radiating in waves off the old man who hadn't moved a muscle.

"Enough," said Yamamoto with finality. "I will not have two of my captains fighting one another. Is that clear?"

His spiritual pressure withdrew enough to let us speak again, but it remained slightly elevated as an unspoken threat. I got the message and lowered my hands to my sides.

"Yes, Head Captain," Mayuri and I said.

"Captain Greed won the captaincy of the 12th division fairly," said Yamamoto. "The specifics of his restoration aside, Captain Kurotsuchi retains his memories and powers, and as such requiring him to retake the captain's exam which he has already passed would be a waste of time. The defection of Soske Aizen, Gin Ichimaru, and Kaname Tosen has left us three openings.

"Captain Kurotsuchi has expressed interest in resuming his position as Captain of Squad 12, but as you defeated him in a recognized duel, your claim to that position has priority. You may continue as Captain of Squad 12, or you can accept one of the other open captain positions. I will need a decision."

What I wanted was to kill him and make it stick, but Yamamoto had made it very clear that wasn't an option. One way or another, Mayuri was going to become a captain again, and I was out of loopholes that would let me attack him. Now it was up to me to decide where he could do the most good, or the least damage.

"I'm willing to give you Squad 12 back, but I want something from you in return," I said.

"You've already pilfered my data," said Mayuri. "What else could you possibly want?"

"The people you had turned into bombs. I want them transferred alive and without risk of exploding to my new squad," I said. "I made a commitment to them when I had the bombs removed."

"Is that all?" asked Mayuri. "Very well. They were the least valuable members of my squad anyway."

I removed the coat and tossed it to Mayuri, who put it on.

Turning to Yamamoto, I said, "I don't know much about the other three squads. Which would you say needs me the most?"

Yamamoto took a long moment to consider before saying, "All three squads have lost their captains to treason. Their respective lieutenants have been running the squads in their absence. Lieutenant Momo Hinamuri of Squad 5 was badly injured during Aizen's betrayal. Her injuries have left the squad largely without leadership."

"Squad 5 it is," I said. "I'll get Momo back on her feet and see about whipping Aizen's former squad into shape to crush him."

"In the meantime, I'll get to work assessing the damage you've managed to do during your brief time commanding my squad," said Mayuri.

Yamamoto gave me a new captain's coat and directions to the squad 5 barracks. I left first.

"What was that all about?" asked Sloth.

I pointed my thumb at Mayuri who was coming out after me. "He left a clone that Yamamoto put back in charge of Squad 12. I'm running Squad 5 now."

"Is there anything we can do?" asked Sloth.

"No. Not within the Soul Society's laws," I said. "And that speech I gave Koga about incremental change is still ringing in my ears. We lost this round. Come on. It turns out there was one more person we should've healed before we left the Soul Society the first time."


Momo was a waifishly thin young woman who wore her dark hair up in a bun. Aizen had practically gutted her. She'd only recently been moved from an emergency room in the Squad 4 barracks. She looked distraught when I came in wearing my new captain's coat.

"They've already replaced Captain Aizen?" asked Momo.

"My name is Greed," I said. "I'm not sure how up to date you are on recent events, but I've just been made Captain of Squad 5."

"Captain Aizen's coming back," said Momo. "I'm sure of it. None of this is what it looks like."

"It looks like he stabbed you and left you to bleed out," said Sloth.

"Who are you?" asked Momo.

"This is my wife, Sloth," I introduced her. "She has some healing abilities Squad 4 can't match."

"I can't use them just now," said Sloth. "They rely on an artifact I left in the world of the living, but once I get it, you'll be on your feet as good as new."

"Once you're back up, I'm going to need your help," I said. "I jumped a lot of ranks and skipped a lot of training with how I became captain. You know your fellow squad members and the Seireitei better than I do. There are a lot of things I want to do, and without your advice, I could end up wasting valuable time going about it the wrong way."

"Captain, can I investigate why Captain Aizen left? The real reason," asked Momo.

"If Aizen has an excuse for his actions, I want to hear it," I said. "If your other duties have been completed, I authorize you to conduct an investigation, but you need to report everything you find, good or bad, to me. Is that understood?"

"Thank you, Captain," said Momo.

"You might not thank me by the time your investigation's over," I said. "I'll leave a list of leads on your desk when you're feeling better. Everything from the hollowfication incident a hundred years back to Kaien Shiba's recent first hand testimony of working under Aizen in Hueco Mundo."

"Is it a good idea to let her investigate?" asked Sloth when we left Momo's room.

"No one can convince her what Aizen was," I said. "She has to realize it for herself, and investigating his activities will be more effective than trying to talk her out of it. Besides, she could be right, and if she is, I want to see the proof."

"I hope you're right," said Sloth. "Why don't you inspect your troops while I swap places with the other me? She should've finished the occlumency lesson by now."

"Be careful in the dangai," I reminded her.


Squad 5 was typical so far as that term could be applied to divisions in the Thirteen Court Guard Squads. The seated officers had achieved shikai and were competent enough with offensive kido to use thirties level spells reliably in battle. The unseated officers below them barely qualified as having spirit energy at all, relying on basic swordsmanship to deal with their enemies. They were skilled enough to take down a basic hollow one on one, but the first time one pulled out an unexpected trick, they'd be snack food.

Not one of my squad members was trained in healing. They looked down on Squad 4, pawned off their chores on them, and still expected to rely on them as their sole option in the event they got injured. That was changing starting now.

"Okay, soldiers, listen up," I said, drawing their attention as a collective after having observed them silently and chatted with my higher seated officers. "My name is Greed. As I'm sure you've all worked out by now, I've been assigned as your new captain.

"I'm sure under Captain Aizen, you had a comfortable routine, training schedules, patrol assignments, holiday traditions. Well, all that's over now. Squad 5 will be changing radically, and the changes are going to keep coming again and again until I'm satisfied with the shape of this squad. You can expect expanded training times, both individually and as a unit, new regulations, and a reorganization of personnel as I transition this division from medieval to modern standard as quickly as I can.

"At the moment, you are all far less than I know you're capable of being, and I won't stop pushing you until you realize that potential. By the time I'm through, you will be the envy of the Seireitei. Stronger than Squad 11, faster than Squad 2, better equipped than Squad 12. Some of you are going to hate me for how much work I put you through to get you there, but you will get there.

"Now, the first change is going to be simple. Any squad member I learn has been antagonizing the members of other squads gets to duel me personally. You'll eventually be required to cross train in healing kido, but even after we can handle injuries in squad, pissing off the members of the relief squad is stupid, and I won't tolerate stupid in my division. That likewise goes for not pissing off the combat divisions who might need to bail your ass out of trouble at some point.

"I know the other squads aren't enforcing a rule like this. It's called leading by example. Now, if someone from another squad picks a fight, go ahead and finish it, but if any of you pick a fight, I'll be the one to finish it. Is that clear?"

"Yes sir," came the immediate response of my squad. At least there was some level of preexisting military discipline. I wouldn't be starting from scratch.


It was lunch time at the Karakura High School. Renji had stayed in the Soul Society after the bount issue had been resolved, but Rukia had come back with us to help deal with the hollows. Sloth had finished the day's occlumency lesson that morning. I was looking over Tatski and Keigo's alchemy homework.

Both had managed a simple transmutation in their first lesson, and now I had them memorizing compositions of wood, pavement, glass, and the other materials commonly found in the city. They weren't getting a comprehensive alchemy education like Ron, at least not yet. For now, they were getting a crash course in combat alchemy. They were both progressing faster than I expected. In another day or two, I expected. In another day or two, I could hand out red stones and give them some sparring practice.

At that point, Sloth stepped into the room. As she was already in the room, that drew some looks. Ignoring the questions, the second Sloth came up to her other self and said, "I need the ring. Something's come up. I'll take over here."

"You didn't tell me your girlfriend had a twin sister," said Keigo.

"Don't even think about it," I said. "I'm dating both of them."

"What? No fair," whined Keigo.

When Sloth's Soul Gem ring changed hands, the Sloth who'd been here collapsed, but was caught by her other self. Apparently, the Soul Gem synchronized with the reigai still inside Sloth's homunculus body. I came up to Sloth and expelled her reigai with a glove since soul reaper me had my badge.

I didn't have the Mad Eye in, so I couldn't see Sloth's spirit body get out of her homunculus and possess the empty corpse. "Thanks, Greed. Got to go. She'll explain everything," said the Sloth who was putting on her Soul Gem ring as she ran off.

"What was that all about?" asked Uryu.

"Bad news," said the Sloth who stayed behind. "Mayuri turned out to not be as dead as we hoped."

"What?" I asked. "What happened? Was the other me killed? Is that why you ran off so fast with your Soul Gem?"

"You're fine," said Sloth. "You gave Mayuri back Squad 12, and now you're running Squad 5. I'm sure you'll be back home tonight so you can synchronize."

"What do you mean he's not dead?" asked Uryu.

"He cloned himself," said Sloth. "He kept a backup of his memories we didn't know about. I'm sorry, Uryu."

"Who's this Mayuri guy?" asked Tatski.

"A mad scientist," said Orihime.

Tatski looked to us for confirmation and we nodded.

"I'm surprised they let you keep your captain's position after Captain Kurotsuchi turned back up," said Rukia.

"If they hadn't, I'd've been free to try again," I reasoned. "Yamamoto probably didn't give me a choice. This way, he has both ofus filling captain's positions instead of needing to choose one or the other. Did I at least get something out of it?"

"You got all the former bombs transferred to Squad 5 with you so Mayuri can't hurt them again," said Sloth.

"It's something," I said.


Sloth arrived back in the Soul Society while I was running my squad members through a series of assignments to verify their current levels of competence at swordsmanship, hand to hand combat, kido, and flash step. I finished off the timed foot race then joined Sloth in Momo's room.

"What was that?" asked Momo, sitting up and experimentally flexing her fingers. "I feel incredible. All the pain's gone."

"It better be," said Sloth, "with what I had to trade for these powers."

Getting out of bed, Momo checked her range of movement then looked over to Sloth and I. Bowing, she said, "Thank you so much."

"How are you feeling mentally?" I asked. "Sloth's powers are supposed to be able to heal psychological trauma too."

"I don't know," said Momo. "I remember what happened. I was so happy when I found him alive in the Central 46 compound. Then, he stabbed me when I went to him. It... it isn't as painful to think about anymore. I think that's the most I've been able to say about it since it happened."

Sloth let out a breath she was holding. "As much as that little rat hid about the contract, I did get what I wished for. The healing didn't force her to think anything in particular. It just cleared away the haze of pain that was holding her back."

"Who's this rat?" asked Momo.

"His name was Kyubey," said Sloth. "It was a strange looking white creature who grants wishes in exchange for the souls of teenage girls. I wished for unparalleled healing powers. I can cure any illness or injury, physical or mental, even to the point of bringing back the dead."

"There were some pretty severe down sides," I said. "I nearly lost her. Coming to this world in the first place was about undoing some of the damage Kyubey did to her."

"You can cure anything?" asked Momo.

"That was my wish," confirmed Sloth.

"Have you told Captain Ukitake?" asked Momo. "He's had a lung disease since he was a child. Captain Unohana treats him pretty often, and when it isn't bothering him, he's one of the strongest captains, but it always comes back."

"We'll have to pay him a visit," I said.

"You don't have to tag along," said Sloth. "You've got enough on your plate whipping these guys into shape. I'll go talk to Ukitake."

"Okay," I said. "I'll be finishing up the assessments, then setting up a training schedule with Momo. Once that's done, I want to check in with Ran Tao and see if she's considered my offer. Maybe meet me at the gate to West Rukon?"

"I'll be there," said Sloth.


Momo was a big help scheduling squad wide training exercises. We were going to start with the basics and move up from there. Once I was confident of their individual skills, we'd be moving on to group exercises and eventually war games. With luck, the heavy training at the start of my tenure would help integrate the new transfers from Squad 12.

When I arrived at the gate to West Rukon, Sloth had her Soul Gem out and was staring at it contemplatively.

"Complex feelings about your contract?" I asked.

Sloth started, catching her fumbled Soul Gem. "Greed, I didn't see you come up."

"Didn't mean to sneak up on you," I said.

"It's not really fair," said Sloth. "You get a passive sense that tells you how strong people are and where they are, and I'm limited to actively using my 100 meter telepathy as a proximity sensor."

"I'm sure there are all kinds of ways we can upgrade your reigai."

"That's okay," said Sloth. "I was just grousing. I know you'll be jumping at the chance to give me more powers as soon as you know enough to do it safely. Don't take that as a request to prioritize super senses."

I smiled and said, "Okay."

We waved to Jidanbo as we exited the gate together. After walking a bit down the path, Sloth said, "Something strange happened when I went to heal Ukitake."

"Strange?" I asked.

"My Soul Gem flared, but nothing happened. I expected a chronic illness bad enough to take one of the stronger captains out of commission to take a lot of magic to heal, but my Gem didn't deplete at all. It's like he wasn't sick. I mean, he didn't look sick, but I've cured diseases in remission before."

"Maybe Unohana's last treatment cured him once and for all," I suggested.

"I suppose that's possible," said Sloth. "Still, I've got a funny feeling about it."

"Ready to apparate?" I asked.

In response, Sloth took my hand. I turned on the spot and we vanished from the area nearest the Seireitei and appeared just outside Ran Tao's underground home.

"Ran Tao, are you home?" I called out.

"You're back," said Ran Tao with surprise as she opened the hatch.

"You said you weren't allowed in the Seireitei, so I had to come out to you," I said. "Have you thought about my offer?"

"I have," she said. "I've spent the last thousand years waiting and preparing for the bounts' return. Now that they're here, I'd like to get back to scientific research. You've got yourself a deal."

"Excellent," I said. "The first thing I'll need from you is a list of requirements for your facilities. Keep in mind, we'll be expanding our staff of researchers and technicians for some time as we tap into the relatively untouched pool of talent here in the Rukon District."

"How should I get word to you?" asked Ran Tao.

"I'll be sending a messenger in... let's say, a week. Once I have your requirements, I can get to work hiring architects, carpenters, and construction workers. If you don't hear from me after a week, ask Jidanbo to pass along a message to me."

"Your number," said Ran Tao. "You aren't in charge of Squad 12 anymore?"

"Mayuri Kurotsuchi left a backup of his memories and put them in a clone," I said. "The clone is running Squad 12 and I've been put in charge of Squad 5."

"Then it's a good thing I waited before giving you this," said Ran Tao as she handed me a notebook. "It has schematics for all the devices I've made since leaving the Seireitei, as well as the details of the process I've used to extend my lifespan."

"I appreciate you trusting me with this," I said. "Once the new building's up, I'll be making my contribution. Before leaving Squad 12, I got my hands on a full backup copy of their database."

"With that, we could... I don't even know," admitted Ran Tao.

"I look forward to finding out alongside you," I said before taking my leave.

I'd used red stones to assimilate the information in her notebook before I'd taken three steps away from her home. I'd been right in my previous assessment that her technology was going to be a game changer.

"I'm surprised you still have any red stones left after assimilating Mayuri's database," said Sloth.

"I haven't done it yet," I said. "I'm afraid to. I vomited just from assimilating those books. This is going to be so much worse. It's his entire database. Every crime, every experiment, every pointless cruelty, and every person who helped him do it."

Sloth took my hand and said, "I'll be there. If something happens, I can cure you."

"Thanks," I said, squeezing her hand and apparating back to the west gate of the Seireitei.

Neither Sloth, nor I were in physical bodies, so we could use the main Senkaimon instead of the one that had been set up with a spirit particle conversion machine. It was evening when we returned to the world of the living. Apparating back to the mansion, we found our homunculus selves sharing a meal of red stones. We climbed inside our respective bodies and synchronized our memories.


Assimilating Mayuri's database cost me every red stone I had save for the two I'd set aside for Tatski and Keigo. The sheer scale of the atrocities Mayuri had committed left me in a catatonic state. I was aware of far worse things, like the Incubators and their multi-billion year plot of psychologically breaking an untold number of sentient beings to harvest their energy. The difference here was those countless tortured beings, Sloth aside, were statistics. Mayuri's reports had enough detail on each test subject to get a sense of who they were and just how frightened and in pain they were in Mayuri's lab.

The crimson light of Sloth's Soul Gem cut through the haze of empathetic pain and allowed me to focus. There was nothing to be done for these victims now. I could do far more good plundering this information for useful tools and putting them to use than I could sitting around feeling awful about things I couldn't change.

There were technical schematics for every tool the Department of Research and Development had. There was enough information about the substitute soul reaper badges for me to turn individual functions on or off with a touch. I wouldn't need to throw it away when I wanted to access my full power or have some privacy anymore.

The recipe for Mayuri's regeneration potion was in there, along with a number of other potions that could be of use in combat. Among them, an extremely potent sensory enhancement drug that could cause its user to experience seconds as centuries. In diluted form, it would allow me to think and perceive fast enough to finally make full use of my red stone enhanced speed.

When the red light of Sloth's Soul Gem faded, my helplessness, anger, and depression had been replaced with an almost manic energy. I separated my homunculus and soul reaper selves with my badge. Homunculus me started a number of cauldrons bubbling and settled in for an all nighter. Sou reaper me, who still needed food and rest left the other me to his work and led Sloth out of the lab.

"Is he going to be okay?" asked Sloth.

"I just need to get something practical out of that soon," I said. "The sensor networks and communication arrays aren't a one man job to set up and run, but there were enough drugs in there to make a set of really effective combat enhancing potions for the next big fight."

"You've already got a pretty effective cocktail," said Sloth.

"This'll take it to the next level," I assured her.

"You want to be ready when the Ryodoji show up," said Sloth.

"We weren't ready for the bount and we lost people," I said.

Sloth nodded. "I'm not saying it's a bad thing to be prepared. I do think you might be getting some tunnel vision about what form that preparation can take."

"What do you mean?"

"You're making weapons and training an army, but did you think ot look up the details of their failed coup?"

"It was a thousand years ago," I said. "Longer for them if you account for the fact that time runs 2000 times faster in the dangai where they were banished to. Nothing of the people involved in that coup will have survived."

"They're wearing the same armor," said Sloth. "A thousand years ago, they had some sort of trump card they thought would let them succeed in their coup. Don't you think it'd be a god idea to find out what it was?"

"I should've thought of that," I said.

"Don't beat yourself up too bad," said Sloth. "You've had a lot on your plate."


A good night's sleep in my lover's arms helped me clear my head. Sloth had been right about me developing tunnel vision. The Ryodoji were growing ever closer in my foeglass, putting me under pressure, making me feel like there wasn't enough time to accomplish everything I wanted to do in the few days remaining, especially with all the new responsibilities I'd taken on in the Soul Society.

I'd discarded my time turner as an option because it wouldn't be practical to use to accelerate my squad's training. That I could use it to train them and do other things at the same time had somehow slipped my mind. Bringing my time turner to the Soul Society would require using Kiske's senkaimon until I built my own, but I could cast an hour reversal charm myself, so taking the artifact with me wasn't really necessary.

When I was up and dressed, I drew my zanpakto, thrust it into empty air, and turned it like a key. The Soul Society's main senkaimon was designed to respond to that gesture by opening a gate right in front of me. As I stepped inside, I noticed a second senkaimon opening into the room out of the corner of my eye and my future self stepping out of it.

The first thing I did on entering the Soul Society was head out the west gate and talk with Jidanbo, the guardian giant of the west gate. His hair was a precious resource I could use to make wands. Jidanbo wore a long ponytail, and even the clippings from evening it out would be enough to fashion wands for my whole squad. He was happy to provide me with the discarded hair clippings, which he was just going to throw out anyway.

Those in hand, I took a long walk through the Rukon District. I kept an eye out for trees bearing wand quality wood. At each town, I stopped to make wands and chat with the townsfolk. I spread word about the new university being set up and the militia. We'd need people with all kinds of skills to make those projects a success and the Rukon District had all the talent I could possibly want.

I spent a subjective week wandering lazily, stopping to sleep under the trees and multiplying the meager meals of whoever was willing to share into a feast for the whole town. At length, I reached Kusajishi and met up with Koga and Ran Tao.

"I've been recruiting," I said as I approached the pair in the town center. "There are a lot of ex-military interested in the militia and enough gunsmiths, metalurgists, and chemists to supply us with kido guns once they see the schematics and get to work. Like I thought, there are a ton of former academics chomping at the bit to be involved in our new university."

"You're moving faster than I thought," said Ran Tao.

"My goal is to get things to a nice, stable, self-sustaining equilibrium," I said. "Once the militia and the university are up and running, I'm hoping the momentum will keep things rapidly improving for the people here."

"Do you really think it's just a lack of law that's held these people back?" asked Koga. "Policemen and soldiers die every day. They could have organized and established order at any time."

"Until someone with spirit energy came along," I said. "The only people in the world who can starve are also the people with the power to just take what they want. The more law abiding join the soul reapers in the Seireitei. Everyone else stays out here where no one can match them.

"Whats going to make a difference is Ran Tao's weapons and you bounts standing on the side of law and order outside the Seireitei. I think you'll be surprised how quickly people will gravitate back toward civilization if given half a chance."

"And if not, those forces can at least protect the university," noted Ran Tao.

"Can we sit down? Maybe have some tea?" I asked. "The bounts aren't the only dirty little thousand year old secret that's decided now is the time to make trouble. Around the same time as the initial incident that led to the creation of the bounts, a noble house called the Ryodoji attempted a coup and were banished to the dangai precipice world for it. I was hoping you remembered the details."

"We should get that tea," said Ran Tao. "It's a long story."

Once we all had sat down with a steaming cup in front of us, Ran Tao began her tale.

"How much do you know about the quincies?" asked Ran Tao.

"I know the Soul Society carried out a near complete genocide on them," I said. "A more thorough one than they did on the bounts."

"The soul reapers and quincies have been at war with each other far longer than most people realize," said Ran Tao. "A thousand years ago, the quincies amassed an army and invaded the Soul Society itself. They were defeated, but not without heavy losses.

"You've seen your quincy friend fight, but I promise you, his abilities are nothing compared to the ones who attacked the Soul Society back then, especially their leader, Yhwach. Head Captain Yamamoto had to use his bankai to defeat him, something he hasn't needed to do again for the last thousand years. I didn't think Yhwach was even killed in the battle just horribly injured and taken away from the battlefield by what remained of the quincies' retreating forces."

"That attack left scars," I reasoned, "poisoning all attempts at reconciliation in the millenium since. What does this have to do with the Ryodoji?"

"In addition to the main senkaimon, high ranking noble families maintain private senkaimons on their estates," explained Ran Tao. "The Ryodoji allied themselves with the quincies, allowing their army passage not just into the Soul Society, but into the Seireitei itself. They made the entire invasion possible. For their crimes, the Ryodoji were banished to the precipice world and their property seized and redistributed."

"They're going to make a move soon," I said, looking down at the dregs of the bottom of my cup. "At first, I thought they might be targeting me for some reason, but I'm starting to think their intentions might be bigger than that. As I read the tea leaves, things look worse and worse. The signs point to a terrible crisis that can only be averted by the sacrifice of an innocent."

"Your palm readings said I was the only bount who was supposed to live," Koga reminded me.

I nodded. "Prophecies aren't foolproof. AT least, not the ones I know how to make."


I spent an afternoon with Koga, training in the bounts' technique for hiding my spiritual pressure. It wasn't something I was going to master in a day, but I was staring to pick up the basics. After the session I returned to the Seireitei that morning and made preparations for the day's training with the squad.

"Today, we'll be working on swordsmanship," I said when Momo had assembled the troops. "I know you never would've graduated from the academy if you weren't competent with a sword, but based on what I saw yesterday, there's a lot of room for improvement."

There was some grumbling as everyone set their zanpaktos down along a bench and took wooden training swords out of a barrel. The squad lined up and Momo took her place up front. I brought her a box containing the day's training aids I'd prepared.

"Leutenant Hinamori, please pass these out and make sure everyone is wearing them," I said, handing over the box. "These are the first of several new training aids I'll be introducing over the coming weeks. You may recognize them as the same manacles we use to restrain prisoners with spiritual powers. I've replaced the lock with a simple latch and removed the chain connecting the manacles to one another."

I snapped the pair of bracers I took onto my own wrists as I continued. "Spirit energy is a powerful weapon, but it can impede your training when the exercise isn't about learning to use that spirit energy. In swordsmanship, it lets you get away with poorer stances and sloppier techniques because it can make you stronger and faster than your opponent. Wearing these bracers during training means we'll all be on the same level of strength and speed so we can focus on shoring up the weaknesses of our technique."

The grumbling and grousing quieted as the training got underway and it really struck home for many of them just how much they'd been relying on their spirit energy to make up for weak techniques. I needed this just as much, if not more than they did. Most of my swordsmanship training had taken place in my homunculus body, which had the same issue I pointed out to them multiplied a hundred fold. Being afraid to show weakness in front of them would hamper both my growth and their trust, neither of which I could afford.

Seeing just how many of them were better swordsmen than me did embolden a minority to question how I was made captain in the first place. I let the questions linger after our long morning training session stopped for lunch. When we got back to the training grounds, I had everyone take off their bracers and Momo handed out the next training aid.

"Kido training is in many ways, the opposite of swordsmanship," I began. "Stronger, more precisely controlled spirit energy is essential to effective kido use in combat and in improving the breadth and power of your spells. The objects each of you are holding in your hands are called wands. Casting your spells using a wand will be many times easier than casting without comparable tot he difference in difficulty with or without the chant."

Some of my unseated officers who'd never really mastered even the lowest level kido spells stared at their wands in awe after successfully casting spells they'd been struggling with for years. The higher ranked soul reapers attempted and succeeded at casting spells ten levels above their previous limit. Any question about whether I deserved my rank vanished when I switched off the power limiter on my badge, sealed a practice dummy in cloth wrappings, riveted to the ground, and pinned beneath a massive conjured metal cube using the highest level sealing spell the Soul Society had, Bakudo 99, then immediately destroyed the dummy and the seals both using Hado 90 to encase them in a coffin of black and purple energy impaled by similarity composed blades, then compressing the construct.

I was gasping for breath with how much the two spells had taken out of me, but there wasn't a whisper suggesting I was too weak to be in charge after that point. Everyone was pushing themselves, trying to see how much farther they could go. Optimism was suffusing the squad after seeing themselves accomplish things they'd previously accepted as beyond their limits.

Our day of training over, I headed back to the senkaimon feeling accomplished. On the way, I was intercepted by Toshiro Hitsugaya, Captain of Squad 10.

"I've heard about your transfer to Squad 5," he said. "In a way, I'm grateful Kurotsuchi's back. Since you were moved to Squad 5, Momo's improved immensely."

"If we'd realized how injured she was, Sloth would've healed her before we left the Soul Society the first time," I said.

"Aizen's betrayal caused a lot of us more pain than we'd like to admit most days," said Toshiro. "Momo was hit hardest, both physically and emotionally. It's good to see her recovering."

"Are you close?" I asked.

"We grew up together," said Toshiro. "Momo's like a sister to me. I'm going to kill Aizen for hurting her like that."

"I didn't have any siblings," I said. "It wasn't until joining the military back in my world that I really started developing close bonds with other people."

Toshiro nodded. "My spirit energy developed early and frightened away most of my village. Momo was one of the only people who stayed by me."

The temperature dropped a few degrees, and suddenly what had felt like a bit of amiable small talk seemed a lot more menacing. Captain Hitsugaya looked young, but Sloth had long trained me out of assessing how dangerous someone could be based on their apparent age.

"You sought me out when I was alone," I said. "Why?"

"I had to make sure we understood one another," said Toshiro. "The Soul Society's laws say you can do whatever you like with the members of your squad, but if you do anything to hurt Momo, I will kill you , no matter what the Head Captain or Central 46 say."

He couldn't have predicted what I did next, which was the only reason I managed to get inside his guard. He had one hand on the hilt of his zanpakto when I wrapped my arms around him and pulled him into a hug. Toshiro blinked in confusion.

"What are you doing?" he asked, confused and annoyed.

"It's just such a relief to meet another human being," I said, clinging to him. "Byakuya dragging his sister back for execution, everyone turning a blind eye to Mayuri's crimes, Yamamoto fighting to carry out an unjust execution because the people in charge seemingly ordered it. I was starting to worry I'd be dealing with that insane lawefulness for the rest of my life. Then you come along and threaten to kill me to protect Momo. Thank you so much."

"Let go of me," Toshiro said as he struggled out of my grasp then looked at me like I was crazy.

"You don't have anything to worry about," I said. "I won't do anything to harm Momo or any other member of my squad. So that you know we understand one another, if anyone tries to harm Sloth, no one will ever find their body."

That last sentence was delivered with deadly seriousness, after which I vanished into the past with a wordless, wandless hour reversal spell. I'd beaten Mayuri because I'd prepared for Mayuri, setting up counters for his abilities and choosing the most advantageous battleground. And Mayuri was the weakest of the captains. Toshiro's threat wasn't an empty one. Which was why it was so important I not let fear show and that I leave the conversation in a way that left him off balance and not sure what had just happened. I liked him, but that didn't mean I could afford to back down in a dominance display.


Author's comments:
This chapter has the start of my extrapolations of the first quincy war and how it ties in with the filler material from the anime and the movies. The fact that everything seems to have happened a thousand years ago was what made the connection for me.