Gin turned around the moment he saw them, but that was still a moment too late. The fact that Toshiro had asked about using the division's back garden for some private KidÅ practice and had taken his lunch with him should have clued him in. The Women's Shinigami Association was meeting in his home. Joining had been one of Miyako's many strategies to get Rangiku back to her active self, and Gin completely supported that, but no one had said anything about Rangiku hosting.
Rangiku shouted his name before he could vanish, and he was forced to come inside and say hello. He wasn't sure there was a more intimidating group of shinigami in all of Soul Society.
He smiled broadly and stepped up onto the porch. "Hello, ladies. I hope you're finding everything to your liking?"
"Never mind that," Rangiku said. "Tell us everything you know about Captain Kuchiki adopting a student."
Gin's smile faded, looking over all the curious faces. Even the baby stopped chewing on a block to look up at his father questioningly. "But I don't know-"
He was interrupted by various doubtful and disbelieving exclamations. Yachiru told him, "We all know you snoop, Fox-face. It's time you shared your treasure. Otherwise we're going to have to punish you for all that nosing around where you don't belong."
Gin sighed and sat down beside Rangiku. "Can I have a cookie first?"
Rangiku pulled over a half-empty tray of chocolate chip cookies he'd brought her back from the World of the Living. She'd told him she'd been craving more chocolate since he'd brought her the gift from Urahara. Craving indeed! She'd just wanted something exciting to serve at the meeting.
"I honestly don't know all the details," Gin began, after finishing two cookies with all those women staring at him like rabid wolves. "Kuchiki doesn't share, and he's gotten even more tight-lipped since Hisana's death. What I do know is that since then he's had his men scouring Rukongai looking for a young woman with a strong resemblance to his late wife. I bought one of his men some sake and tried to get some more details, but he really didn't seem to know who he was looking for or why. All he had was a picture of Hisana and a very narrow age-range. It's always disappointing when you go to a real effort and it doesn't pay. Happens too often with Kuchiki. He's terribly careful never to talk in front of servants or even low-ranking retainers. Most nobles seem to forget they're even there."
"And the girl, Rukia, does she really look like Hisana?" Rangiku asked.
Gin smiled there. He had seen the student Kuchiki had decided to bring into his family. "She looks exactly like her, only even shorter and with darker hair."
Rangiku shivered. "It's not right, bringing another girl just like Hisana into his house. What could he want with her? He's not using her as some sort of replacement, is he?"
"Rangiku!" Nanao said. "Please at least try to remember Captain Kuchiki is our superior and head of one of the Four Great Houses. You need to show some respect when you talk about him. It's not appropriate to suggest anything like that without good reason."
"Everyone's thinking it," Rangiku answered, looking around the table.
"It seems to me that replacing Hisana-sama with a lookalike would be a fine solution to the depression Captain Kuchiki has been suffering since her death," Nemu offered. "It is better than mourning her indefinitely, isn't it?"
Gin smiled at the idea of letting the rumor spread. If these women went home today suspecting it, by this time tomorrow the entirety of Seireitei would believe it was fact. But, as much fun as that would be, Rangiku would be furious at him for not letting her know better if he already did. "According to Ren-chan and Kumi-chan, two of Kuchiki's maids, there is nothing of that nature going on. The captain does not spend any unnecessary time with his adopted sister, and even when they are together he rarely speaks to or even looks at her. Ren-chan thinks he finds it too painful and Kumi-chan says she overheard two of the top family members refer to Rukia as a relative of Hisana's.
"I would guess is that Rukia is a close relative of Hisana's that she had somehow lost, and Hisana asked Kuchiki to find her before she died. Why he's keeping it secret is beyond me, but knowing Kuchiki he probably doesn't think it's anyone else's business. Rukia will be joining the Thirteenth next week so Miyako can ask Rukia herself then-and lovely as it has been talking to you all I really do have to get back to work." With that Gin hopped to his feet and vanished, using shunpo to vanish before his wife came up with another topic to quiz him on.
"How does he know she's joining the Thirteenth?" Miyako wanted to know. "Kaien hasn't said anything to me."
"He probably got it from some clerk in charge of issuing uniforms or something," Rangiku said. "He's always making friends with people everyone else thinks are insignificant. It's like he has his very own network of spies across Seireitei, and most of them don't even know they're spying for him."
"How can they not know they're spying for him?" Nanao asked, suspiciously.
"A lot of them have been his friends practically forever, since back when he could play 'I'm a nobody from Rukongai; I'm just like you' with all the lowest ranking people in Seireitei. Like him some of them have moved up, but most have stayed at the bottom, and they trust him and like that he's still interested in them now that he's a big important captain. They like telling him things they think will impress him," Rangiku explained as she moved the cookies out of Kinta's reach.
The boy gave her a look and tried to climb onto the table, but she picked him up and set him in her lap before she continued to speak. "You wouldn't believe some of the things I've heard people tell him at Division Four! But, when I ask, Gin always acts like I'm being silly and he was just talking to an old friend, not quizzing an informant about all the General's ailments or some other private medical issue."
"That's a little disturbing," Nanao said. "I've heard of befriending someone for information before, but that's taking it to a whole new level."
"Do you know who tells him things in the Fourth Division?" Isana asked.
Rangiku shook her head. "There's no point in trying to stop them. He can always find someone else who likes to talk. I was just relieved when I realized he wasn't actually spying on everyone we know."
"I suppose that's something," Miyako said. "I've heard rumors Captain Kurotsuchi has cameras all over Seireitei."
"What do you mean 'all over'?" Nanao asked.
"Gin spent hours searching this house when we moved in," Rangiku offered. "And he wouldn't let me change until he was done."
All eyes went to Nemu. The lieutenant blinked back at them, slightly surprised and confused by their reactions. This was the first Women's Association meeting she'd ever attended. Rangiku had insisted she come to work on her socialization skills, and considering how much difficulty she was having comprehending their various reactions to things, she was beginning to suspect Rangiku had a point and she had a serious lack of skill when it came to understanding other people. "Is there a problem?" she asked, finally, when it became clear that they were expecting some sort of response from her.
"There are cameras in our homes?" Miyako asked.
"All streets and outside views are covered throughout Seireitei," Nemu said, "And of course there is also surveillance within all Gotei buildings."
"But even in our residences?" Miyako demanded.
Nemu nodded. "Of course."
Nanao lowered her glasses slowly. "Nemu, are you saying that we are being watched by Division Twelve at all times?"
"Are there cameras in the baths?" Isana said, softly, her eyes growing to the size of saucers.
"But Gin was joking," Rangiku protested, realizing suddenly that that had only been her assumption. He'd sounded nothing but serious, his version of serious anyway.
"I thought Fox-face was nosey," Yachiru said. "Clownie's way worse!"
Nemu looked from one furious face to another. She really didn't understand why they were so upset. In fact, she was surprised they didn't already know about the system. Everyone but Miyako was a lieutenant. They all had adequate clearance. It had been rated 'need to know' but they clearly seemed to need to know. It seemed to her that someone must have been quite negligent in issuing reports on the system. "The camera network exists only for the security of Seireitei," she told them. "I can send you all full reports after I return to the Division. There's no reason for you to be concerned."
"The hell there's not," Nanao said. An aura was beginning to grow around the lieutenant. She was beginning to radiate the sort of rage that might have frightened the others if they weren't equally upset.
Miyako protested, "But I've never seen a camera! I thought people were just being paranoid."
"So did I," Rangiku agreed. "Why would there be cameras in our home?"
Nemu frowned. She didn't like how upset everyone seemed to be getting. "There are cameras everywhere. The system would not be nearly so useful if there were blind spots within the Gotei. We are already restricted from placing cameras within private property."
"Are you insane?" Nanao demanded.
"Can you hear us too?" Miyako asked. She was gradually turning an unhealthy shade of gray.
"The sound is usually recorded, but it is turned off during monitoring. While people can keep track of multiple scenes at once the Captain found that listening to multiple conversations simultaneously tended to be distracting."
"Monitoring?" Miyako repeated, she didn't seem able to get past that one word.
Rangiku looked over at her friend. "Don't faint, Miya-chan," she said. She'd never seen Miyako reach that particular shade.
"Easy for you to say," Miyako answered. "Your husband made sure there wasn't a camera in your bedroom."
Rangiku smiled darkly. "Kind of a pity. It would be nice to know I was making all those spies at Division Twelve jealous."
"Rangiku!" Miyako snapped.
"I know," Rangiku agreed. "It's horrible, and something needs to be done about it."
"We should all file complaints," Miyako said.
"We should burn Division Twelve to the ground," Nanao suggested instead.
"I think I prefer Nanao suggestion," Isana said, softly.
"Yay! Let's go for it!" Yachiru cheered. "I can get Ken-chan to help. He hates Clownie. He could pound him while we get the torches."