Bleach: The Forgotten Captain - The Memoirs of Akari Miyazaki

Chapter 7: How Everything Falls Apart

She slowly stepped aside and let Gin enter. Silence fell over the room. I felt Kisuke tense at my side, but he remained silent.

"So, long-time captains," Gin murmured with a wide grin, "and I'm still just an officer."

I laughed. While we had climbed the career ladder steeply, Gin was still where he had been years ago. Although it was a bit strange, I offered him the last piece of cake. It took a few minutes for the mood to become almost as lively as before. Gin had that piece of cake and left right afterwards, thanking us with a strange look on his face.

A cool breeze blew in through the window, and I fondly remembered that evening. It was the calm before the storm.

A day later, we received news that people were disappearing in the Soul Society. Or at least, something like that. It was said that they couldn't take a solid form anymore. What exactly it was, no one could explain, so the Ninth Division was tasked with investigating it.

Kisuke volunteered to create Gigai for the souls, artificial bodies in which the souls could assume a form. But there was something unsettling in the air. A sense of unease crept into me, settled in my chest, and clung to me like glue. Whatever I did, I couldn't shake it off.

One evening, it became so uncomfortable that I visited Kisuke in his research lab to distract myself. There, I discovered something that sent shivers down my spine. It was a kind of crystal emitting an eerie energy. He called it the Hogyoku.

I didn't really understand what it was for, but I understood one thing: it held incredible power.

"Kisuke," I began, but he was so absorbed in his work on the Gigai that he didn't react.

"Where is Hiyori?" I asked about his vice-captain, and it took him almost two minutes to respond.

"I sent her to assist Kensei."

Kensei Muguruma, the captain of the Ninth Division, had been assigned to this strange case with his division. The uneasy feeling in my stomach intensified.

"How long have they been gone?" I asked, and Kisuke stretched, then glanced at the clock.

"Oh, it's been a few hours," he mumbled, as if he had just realized. He sounded somewhat worried. I made him some tea and forced him to take a short break. He often got so wrapped up in his work that he neglected himself.

We were just nibbling on some cookies when we received an announcement that was magically broadcast throughout Seireitei.

"To all captains: an emergency assembly is called. I repeat, EMERGENCY ASSEMBLY, in the First Division, IMMEDIATELY."

Kisuke and I exchanged a quick glance.

"Hiyori..." I murmured, and we hurried to the First Division.

The Captain-Commander and some other Captains who looked half-awake were already there. It didn't take long for everyone to arrive, and Yamamoto-Genryusai could begin.

"The Reiatsu of Captain Muguruma and that of his vice-captain Kuna have disappeared. The reason is currently unknown," the Captain-Commander explained with a stern look.

"Let me go, please!" Kisuke cried out, and all eyes turned to him. I heard the panic in his voice, and it took my breath away.

The Captain-Commander shook his head. "I've already made my decision, Captain Urahara. We need you here for the Gigais."

He then listed the people who would be dispatched as a rescue team.

"Hirako, Aikawa, Otoribashi..." The door was opened once again, and the captain and vice-captain of the secret Kido-Corps entered.