16 Chapter 16: Getting the ball rolling.

Yoruichi Shihōin's POV.

Arriving back at the Second division headquarters, I couldn't help but massage my temples. Reorganizing the Onmitsukidō into the Second division was already a tiresome ongoing task. The clan elders had been making the process more difficult than necessary by trying to preserve the Shihoin clan's 'traditions', even when these 'traditions' make my job extremely inefficient. Now adding to my already heavy plate, some Quincy extremists decided to test the Captain-Commander's patience.

The Quincy are notoriously difficult to track. Unlike Shinigamis and Hollows, Quincy had bodies composed of kishi. Their abilities make it so that, if they choose to, they can easily blend in with ordinary humans. Stopping spiritual beings from detecting them. That, however, doesn't mean we're helpless, though.

"Ōmaeda!"

Feeling his poorly hidden reiatsu outside my room tremble, I waited for him to stop fidgeting and enter. "Captain, what can I-"

"Shut it. Send out a call to all our Seated Officers. We need to arrange for more personnel in the Human World."

"Hai!" Seeing him relax his overly straight back and making for the door, I couldn't help but sigh at his impatience. Assassins need more patience. Even little Suì-Fēng has better composure than him. "Ōmaeda..."

He paused midstep and flinched like a tubby cat caught doing something wrong. "Also, send out a message to Captain Hikifune. We might need her aid to sniff out those extremists."

Ignoring his hasty bows and apologies, I focused on the files of the potential members I'll need to deploy. Sighing again, I realised that the next few months are going to be stressful. Having the Captain-Commander breathe down my neck isn't going to help either...

...

Retsu Unohana's POV. Fourth division headquarters.

Yamada-kun was silently sitting across from me. We had just come back to my office from the First division. Knowing of tea etiquette, he stayed silent until I finished filling both of our light green cups.

Judging from his mannerisms, I could see that he was nervous. He is a timid person at heart, so hopefully, seeing real battle will allow him to step out of his shell.

The silence continued as we savoured the light bitter taste. After releasing a content sigh, he seemed to have gathered his courage. "Captain...Do you really think we will have to fight the Quincy?" Tilting his head down and slightly biting his lower lip, my Vice-Captain lowered his voice and let his timidity seep into his speech. "They're just hunting Hollows. There's no reason to-"

"Yamada-kun. You know exactly why." His head tilted lower, and his shoulders sagged a bit.

Yamada's sympathy for the Quincy doesn't stem from his kindness. He never had the care and kindness required to become an exceptional medic. His sympathy stems solely from his unwillingness to enter combat. A weakness that the enemy will not hesitate to exploit.

It seemed like I am going to have to watch him more closely during the now inevitable genocide.

Some of the younger generations do not know, but Yamamoto has been tolerating these unruly Quincy factions for a long time. The old Yamamoto would have reduced all the Quincy to ash as he had done to the Sternritter. Him allowing these youngsters to go on for so long shows how his edge has softened since he took on the name Genryūsai.

But I certainly don't have the right to comment on his changes.

Seeing Yamada-kun still jumpy, I knew it was time for me to start training a new Vice-Captain. It is unlikely that he will choose to remain an officer after the 'war' ends, assuming he lives until then.

The Captain's Office went back to silence as we continued savouring our drinks.

...

Kirio Hikifune's POV. Twelfth division headquarters.

Smacking my Eighth Seat by the side of his head, I spoke to him before he set the whole division on fire. "Kirito-san, always check the labels of your reagents. We don't want a repeat of the July incident, do we?"

"Sorry, Captain." Seeing him shudder brought a warm smile to my face. Although I want my division members to have all the freedom in the world to develop their brilliant ideas, I also don't want to explain to the Captain-Commander why our repair budget needed to quadruple in the span of a single day.

Nodding back to the greetings from my division members, I made sure to point out any misunderstandings in their work and further reiterated the need for safety. As I was explaining to one of the Fifteenth Seats how to interpret readings from a reishi-heat converter, my lovely Hiyori-chan made herself known by calling out for me all the way down the corridors.

The hyperactive girl had just joined the division as a Twentieth Seat and has quickly become a welcome addition. Her boisterous nature is a breath of fresh air to the sometimes dreary atmosphere the division can have.

She came to a staggering stop near me and seemed to catch her breath. Once she was ready, she started speaking. "Captain! Some guy from the Second division came to our division and said he has a message for you from his Captain."

It was not hard to guess the reason. The Captains Meeting had come to an end not long ago. Patting the excited Hiyori-chan on the head, I turned to see an Onmitsukidō officer flanked by the two of my Fourteenth Seats being escorted down the far end of the hall.

Trusting my subordinates to know the protocol for visiting officers, I pinched Hiyori's adorable freckled checks and quickly left for my office before she could react. My laughter rang out throughout the hallways as some of the other officers took turns calming down the enraged girl.

...

Sōsuke Aizen's POV. Fifth division headquarters.

I was sifting through Shinigami profiles when I felt Gin's well-hidden reiatsu approach the door of my office. Before he could knock, I spoke. "Gin, what's brings you here at this time?"

The young avenger lowered his hand and entered the room. I tacitly ignored him attempting to scope out all the blind spots in the office. Knowing him, he likely heard of the upcoming attack on the Quincy from somewhere.

Smiling lightly at the slight relaxing of his posture, I waited for him to explain himself. "Aizen-sama, word on the street is that the Quincy are stirring up trouble. Surely, we can't pass up this chance to add fuel to the fire..." His smirk accented well to the snake-like persona he was building.

"Gin, the current Quincy pose little threat to the Gotei 13. Cooperating or using them as pawns requires far more effort on my part than it is worth. Not to mention, I will have access to the bodies once the Shinigami conclude their extermination."

Seeing the humour slowly leave his face, I wanted to applaud him for trying to keep in character. "Enough about the Quincy. There are some interesting Shinigami prospects I would like to have a look at." He raised an eyebrow and started glancing at the stack of papers on my desk.

Handing him a copy of Riku's profile, I continued. "This one, in particular, seems to have slipped the notice of the Gotei 13. He also seems to have an interesting relationship with one of my colleagues, Vice-Captain Matsumoto."

Watching Gin try to suppress a twitch in his reiatsu reminded me all over again, why I kept him around.