Chapter 60: Food for Thought

"I dun wanna go home! Nee-… waid, where'd my glasses go? Hmm~. OhH~! Here they are~! Squeaky clean! Hehe~!" 

"TENCHŌ! Badsu is right! We shud stay a l-liddle longer! Enjoy the food, y'know!"

"I see… you guys must've really enjoyed the food…"

Furoufushi and Batsu'unsai sported silly smiles as they stumbled with wobbly legs. Their formal kimonos were in disarray, indicating the sisters' merrymaking. They'd been forcefully dragged out of Yamamoto's residence by Yachiru. 

A full moon swung high in the night sky, illuminating Seireitei's narrow streets. Cheap food carts wafted savory, oil-rich aromas. Shinigami parties added to the enthralling nightlife. Shouts of booze-binging and self-imposed distractions whisked the weary souls away from the reality of the blood-strewn Seireitei. Arms raised, lifting overflowing cups instead of deadly blades. 

Amongst this public liveliness, Yachiru took it upon herself to guide Furoufushi and Batsu. Just as they had done earlier, Yachiru interlocked her arms with theirs. She tightened the muscles in her core and arms, ensuring her seniors wouldn't wander off like naughty children. 

Not far behind the three was Kenji. His feet snaked in a sporadic pattern, no doubt due to his intoxication. That aside, he maintained a steady heading. Yachiru held some concern, but Kenji's consistent pace had alleviated most of her worries. Crossroads lapsed, detailing their long journey home. 

Many minutes of walking enlarged the sprawling view of the Seireiheki [Pure Soul Wall]. At most, one hundred meters separated the four Rukongai civilians and the Kokuryōmon [Northern Gate]. However, before they could start the second half of their journey, one pink-haired ruffian cried out in starvation. 

"TEEENCHŌ! I'm sooo~ hungry! I want somethingta eat!"

Eyebrow twitching in disbelief, Kenji called out to the three young women. 

"Didn't you guys eat anything at Yamamoto's?"

"Heehee~, Nooope~! Only drinkies! *hic*"

Batsu's loose lips and flushed face told Kenji everything he needed to know. He scanned the street. As if heaven had descended, a Kushiyaki [Beef Skewers] stand was located on the streetside. Veering off course, Kenji delivered the drunken sisters' salvation. He waved his hands in a beckoning gesture, yielding to alcohol's natural instincts.

"Let's get some skewers."

""Ooh~!""

Unable to resist the changing current, Yachiru ended up being pulled by the two. In their drunken stupor, Furoufushi and Batsu managed to reserve a bench. Muscles ached as Yachiru felt the relief of momentary rest.

Parked on the bench, Furoufushi pinched Yachiru in the side. In turn, the youngest's head swiveled. Narrowed blue eyes stared at the smirking pink-haired woman. 

Batsu's ears perked as Furoufushi poked Yachiru for specifics. The one-eyed woman's voice dropped to a raucous whisper. 

'So, how'd it go?'

"How did what go?"

Furoufushi received rapid blinks of confusion. She heaved a dramatic sigh of frustration and pointed her finger toward the wonky, teetering teahouse master who was waiting for food. Hoping to communicate clearly, Furoufushi enunciated her humorless words for Yachiru. 

"DID. HE. ACCEPT. YOu-u *hic*?"

The tangle-haired young woman finally understood. She closed her eyes and announced the news. 

"I've been accepted as a disciple."

""WEEHH~!""

Besieged by idiots, Yachiru was smothered to death. Finishing the group hug, Batsu jolted from the bench and ran up to Kenji. She bounced around the red-haired man, emulating the behavior of rabbits and hares. 

Enthusiasm bled from her voice as Batsu required proof. 

"Is it true Tenchō?! Is it true?!"

"Hmm~? Uh-huh, sure."

"Wow! Wow, wow, wow~!"

Meanwhile, Furoufushi was making plans to take over the Spiritual Arts Academy. Visions of cadets kneeling at her feet plagued her mind. She slung her arm around Yachiru's shoulders. Furoufushi shared her delusions with the youngest, speaking with animation and excitement. 

"Don't worry lil' sis, I'll give you your own throne. I'll let you pick some good subordinates. I got it all covered. Everything's all mapped out."

"I'm not adopted…"

Pink-locks whirled revealing a devastated expression. Mouth gaping open like a fish, Furoufushi attempted to make sense of Yachiru's words. They were locked in a quizzical staring contest. 

"…"

"…"

"You said disciple?"

"Yes."

"Ahh..."

Defeat and despair afflicted Furoufushi's croak. But she rose from the bench, a determined look on her face. She suddenly brought her hands to Yachiru's face and pinched the girl's cheeks. Grit fortified Furoufushi's boozy voice as she declared her conviction. 

"Don't worry Yacchan! Onee-san will take care of everything! I'll pick out some subordinates for you too! Batsu will too. Batsu!"

Furoufushi pivoted to glance at Batsu and Kenji. Yet the Kushiyaki stand was oddly quiet. Her violet eye contracted in suspicion. Batsu returned with Kushiyaki skewers in hand. Kenji was nowhere to be seen. Batsu had a sober appearance. She adjusted her glasses and promptly passed skewers to the two. 

A sharp violet eye noticed fragmented splinters in the wooden skewers. Furoufushi eventually accepted the meal, but her misgivings became evident as she interrogated her calm sister. 

"Where did Tenchō go?"

As she munched on her food, Batsu responded with a stable, obstinate tone.

"He forgot something at Yamamoto Shigekuni's. He said we can walk home since he'll be late."

"We should wait for-"

"It's okay Nee-san…"

*fwuuu*

A tense air blanketed the three young women. Batsu's glasses revealed sharp, steady eyes. Furoufushi squinted and glared, searching for signs of agitation and unease. But none were outwardly shown. Yachiru's head whipped back and forth as she watched them conclude their silent conversation. 

Furoufushi reluctantly nodded her head and stood up. She loosened up with a snide remark. 

"You better be right, lil' sis."

Furoufushi speedily devoured her skewer and glanced at Yachiru. She lent a hand and pulled up her unkempt little sister. 

With a passing comment, Furoufushi steered them toward the Kokuryōmon. 

"We need a bath before we sleep."

"Yeah, I don't want to think about an angry Tenchō." 

Batsu's thought lightened the atmosphere. Furoufushi's and Yachiru's stress settled as Batsu lagged at the rear. However, the two marching ahead couldn't see the complicated expression plastered on Batsu's face. An expression tinged with nervousness and foreboding. For a split second, the bespectacled girl peered behind herself, hoping to see Kenji in the distance. 

Sadly, she was greeted with a vacant street.

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Straw sandals pressed against paved roads. Each step is light and leisurely. With no apparent objective, this fluid gait meanders under the starless sky. 

Kenji yawned as he neared the street's terminus. Faced with a wide forested preserve, his feet harbored at the start of a dirt trail. Peeking through the thick, overgrown tree line was hopeless. His arrival gradually affected the suffocating screen of nature. 

Wily shadows slunk between the trunks. Coos of owls and chirping insects hushed. 

Kenji's temperament stood unabated. Confronted with the deafening dark of the woods, his face stayed composed. He dropped his foot onto the narrow dirt trail. With one step, the broad shadows of the woods split asunder, unveiling the man's clear passageway. 

A dim glow emanated from Kenji's body. Forks in the path illuminated upon his presence. Yet, his hike continued honest and true, delving straight into the dark. For meters on end, Kenji trekked through the heavy thickets. A moonlit flowerbed came into view, but he stopped far before the clearing's border. Kenji lowered his gaze.

The stiff soil trail unexpectedly plummeted into a hollow opening. An earthen stairway descended underground. As opposed to the forest, the tunnel's gloom refused to bow to Kenji's existence. 

Dense shadows swallowed Kenji's foot as he sank into the earth. Short of hesitation, he plunged his body into the pool of black. Past the mouth, the opening's unlit tunnel held a boundless quality. All light was abandoned for this sinister abyss. Step after step, Kenji continued down as the stale humid air ripened. After minutes of sloped descent, the burrow's end appeared where a muted radiance pulsated. 

Upon his entry, Kenji's serene speech resonated. 

"To target her so openly, so much insolence. Have the captains fallen this far? Life is fickle, didn't you know?"

A lush sinkhole stretched outside the tunnel's doorway. Its height neared 60 meters [~200 ft / ~65 yds.] at the opening. Crags of a stony ceiling converged toward the center where a lustrous shaft of moonlight shone. Despite the illumination and wild growth, the thriving refuge preserved a malevolent impression. 

Trees twisted out of the ground reaching for the faintest taste of light. Strands of grass swayed, yet any evidence of a breeze was absent. Sculpted on the stone wall were thousands of humanoid faces. The life-like carvings held expressions contorted in misery and terror. 

The sinkhole aroused the echo of a mausoleum. But this corrupted mausoleum did not mirror a final resting place. 

"A shame I failed to retain my youth as you did, Tengoku-sama. In my younger years I held a certain charm, did I not?"

Basking in the moonlight's glow, a decrepit, hunched figure observed its guest. Pupils of desecrated light were imprisoned within the fiend's skull. A deformed, foul grin exposed its stinking gullet. Its shrunken skeletal frame was layered in the hallowed Shinigami robes. A captain's haori cloaked its ugly, inhuman nature. 

A mockery of duty or a manifestation of blasphemy, each suited the man's silhouette. 

Sakahone Saizou bowed his head and gracefully received his idol of obsession. 

"I apologize Tengoku-sama. I had no intention of harming your pets' lives-"

*SHUUU~*

As if the moon had collapsed onto Sakahone, his limbs violently rattled, trembling under the colossal weight. A tremor crawled through his withered body as he willingly fell to the floor and prostrated.

Soothing and sweet, a ghostly whisper slithered over the grass coiling around Sakahone's frail form. 

'Awfully presumptive. Do you think so low of me, boy?'

"NEVER! I WOULD NEVER TENGOKU-SAMA!"

'And yet you speak lowly of my people. The ones I chose… I suppose I should educate the ignorant…'

Sakahone's instincts flared. He raised his gaze where Kenji quietly loomed over him. Eclipsed in the man's morphing shadow, Sakahone's ragged skin experienced the caress of death. In a mere instant, Sakahone unsheathed his Zanpakutō and raised his blade…

*BOOM* *KOOM~* *Rumble*

Sakahone shot through the air having received Kenji's unseen blow. His ultimate impact left him embedded in the sinkhole's walls. Body encased in the earth, Sakahone spewed blood from his mouth. His raspy voice attempted to make amends.

"Blehaaa~! *cough* *Cough* I- I meant no offense *gasp* Ten- *cough* T-Tengoku-sama!"

'Don't worry I've forgiven you…'

"OOH~! Thank you for your benevolence! I will serve-"

'Still… I'd like to see if you're a good playmate for little Batsu.'

A foreboding chill rippled through Sakahone's wrinkled skin. What little hair he had left stood on end. Stagnant, festering blood raced through his decaying heart. Sakahone focused his blurry vision.

Held in the moon's tender embrace, the Revenant stirred. His floodlit form carried a striking virtue. The Sinkhole was submerged in a blinding pale purity. Shadows fled in fear. Carvings on the walls lit up with liberation and relief. Plant life drew to the blessed dawn. A transient glint flashed off the rising crescent blade, Muhō. 

Swathed in silk, a saintly voice rang out.

'Show me how you live, Sakahone Saizō…'