Bleach: Stirring Up a Storm

On the long, winding spiral staircase, Aizen walked down at a leisurely pace. Looking at his calm expression, it seemed he wasn’t affected by what had just happened at all.

”I thought you were intentionally provoking Tōsen. Wouldn’t helping neither of them—no, helping both of them a little—be a better choice?”

”The one disregarding the bigger picture is Tōsen. Giving each of them a warning isn’t a bad idea.” Aizen stepped off the final stair and turned to see Ichimaru Gin leaning against the wall. ”I thought you would have gone to rest early.”

”I just figured Tōsen would have a lot to complain about, and it would definitely be a hassle. I didn’t want to get involved.” Ichimaru Gin rested his head on his hands, acting as if the wall behind him was a comfortable bed. ”Besides, didn’t you think I still had something to say?”

”Oh?”

”I need to correct something from the report just now. Out of the five Arrancars previously presumed dead, four of them don’t seem to be dead yet. They were likely captured alive by that guy, Kōe.”

Aizen merely smiled and nodded, as if that slight error wouldn’t affect anything. Seeing this, Ichimaru Gin asked curiously, ”You don’t seem surprised at all?”

”A few low-level Arrancars—I wouldn’t care about them, and naturally, they wouldn’t satisfy Kōe’s appetite either. Making a move just to kill them would be far too unworthy of his time.”

”No wonder you suddenly said something like that.” Ichimaru Gin muttered to himself before spreading his hands. ”Looks like I made an unnecessary move.”

”Of course not. If you hadn’t gone to confirm it, I would have verified it myself. You did well, Gin.”

Aizen patted Ichimaru Gin on the shoulder and walked toward the window.

*Was that comfort? Or encouragement?* Ichimaru Gin didn’t feel he needed such things right now. He could only conclude that the life or death of those four Arrancars was indeed very important. *But why?*

”Does it really matter whether they live or die?”

”It’s a signal. A signal that should have appeared. Whether it’s important or not is a matter of perspective.”

Ichimaru Gin also started walking, coming up behind Aizen. Seeing his own reflection shake its head in the window, he spoke as if surrendering, ”I can’t figure out what that means. Spare me the riddles.”

”Hahaha, that is because you are too easily captivated by Kōe’s actions, thereby overlooking the most peculiar question of all.”

”What question?”

Aizen looked up at the crescent moon outside the window and casually pointed out, ”At that specific time, why would Kōe appear in the World of the Living?”

”That doesn’t seem like a question. We all expected it; Shihouin was very likely to...” Ichimaru Gin suddenly fell silent mid-sentence. Right. They had indeed expected Kōe to come to the World of the Living, but they hadn’t considered *why* he might *not* come.

”He is a man who acts only after careful planning. He wouldn’t act blindly while lacking intelligence.”

”Looking at the current situation, what is the most critical piece of intelligence for Seireitei and Kōe?”

Aizen seemed to be talking to himself. Ichimaru Gin lowered his head in thought and picked up the thread, ”That would definitely be our ultimate objective. Only by understanding the decisive points for both sides can one better arrange their strategy. His appearance there means he already knows we intend to use Karakura Town to forge the Ōken. But...”

”To avoid being misled, the Central 46’s underground Seijōtōkyorin, as well as the documents in the Great Spirit Book Gallery, must be thoroughly investigated. Yet those two places do not allow many people to enter. Time-wise, unless more than five captains investigated day and night without rest, Seireitei shouldn’t know about the Ōken yet.”

”They barely managed to handle six Arrancars. The number of personnel sent to the World of the Living was insufficient, and their ranks weren’t very high either. Seireitei indeed still doesn’t know about the Ōken.” Ichimaru Gin continued, ”In other words, Shihouin knows about the Ōken, but Seireitei does not.”

”And therefore?” Aizen smiled, glancing at Ichimaru Gin’s reflection in the window.

”He deliberately concealed this intelligence from Seireitei and brought a bunch of brats to the World of the Living himself. I’m afraid he’s planning to do something that can’t see the light of day.” Ichimaru Gin smiled bitterly and shook his head. ”Leaving those four Arrancars alive is the signal of what he intends to do. Unfortunately, I still can’t figure out what exactly Shihouin wants.”

”Do you still remember what I told you the second year after Kōe returned, Gin?”

”How could I possibly remember something from so long ago?”

”Although we walk on different paths,” Aizen shifted his gaze, looking at his own reflection, ”we are, in the end, the same.”

So it was that sentence. Ichimaru Gin patted his head, looking as if he had suddenly realized something. If he remembered correctly... *But I don’t feel that way. In my mind, Shihouin has always been a bit...* Ordinary? Not quite right. Neurotic? That didn’t fit either. *Strange?*

”Everyone in Seireitei thinks he’s strange. But by the same token, why do all these people, including you, find him strange?”

This time, without waiting for Ichimaru Gin’s reply, Aizen answered his own question: ”Because his moods are unpredictable, and his preferences are hard to pin down. To sum it up in one point: no one knows what he is actually thinking, or what he wants.”

”But I remember you saying back then...” Ichimaru Gin rubbed his head. ”He researched Quincies when he was younger, but was stopped.”

”You are mistaken, Gin. Breaking the limits of a Shinigami is merely a prerequisite. What we have always sought is the scenery beyond those limits, and a newly transformed world in our hands.”

”I still don’t understand what that has to do with what he’s planning to do,” Ichimaru Gin said with a distressed look.

”He is merely walking on a different path, that is all.” Aizen placed his hands behind his back and suddenly sighed softly. ”If you look at it in conjunction with Kōe’s behavioral habits, you won’t feel there’s much of a difference.”

”Oh?”

”He is very adept at utilizing all available conditions to create advantages for himself. Too adept, in fact. That is his strength.” Aizen paused for a moment before continuing, ”But sometimes, a strength is also a weakness. Being too adept at utilizing existing conditions makes him overlook the fact that conditions can also be created by oneself.”

Utilizing all conditions? A newly transformed world? Ichimaru Gin felt as if he had grasped something. Following Aizen’s words, he continued to think, and the thick fog shrouding Kōe seemed to dissipate bit by bit.

He slightly opened his mouth, an expression of disbelief on his face. ”He didn’t kill those Arrancars... could it be he’s reluctant to part with them?”

That seemed to be the only possible explanation, but the implications behind that answer were simply too outrageous.

”Since they are his own people, if he doesn’t have to kill them, why would he?”

Aizen’s words had already confirmed his guess, but even so, Ichimaru Gin still found it hard to believe. ”Is such a thing even possible?”

”It is very difficult, and even if achieved, the gains would be pitifully small. But there is no need to doubt whether he has the certainty to pull it off. Being able to accomplish things beyond ordinary imagination—that is exactly who Shihouin Kōe is.”

After Aizen finished speaking, he suddenly tilted his head and changed the subject, ”Moreover, when dealing with someone like that, he who talks too much is bound to err. Do you understand, Gin?”

It was so sudden, and somewhat baffling. Ichimaru Gin didn’t feel like Aizen was just giving him advice, but rather correcting a mistake! *But exactly where had I talked too much and erred?*

The words he had spoken to Kōe previously in the World of the Living flashed frantically through Ichimaru Gin’s mind. *Was it about the Espada?* That was Aizen’s arrangement. None of those sentences seemed to have any issues; he had merely laid out the current developments unfolding in front of the other party.

*If there was a problem, it could only be...*

”That threat was just something I said casually.” Ichimaru Gin spread his hands, smiling bitterly with an innocent look. ”You know as well as I do, that guy is very good at pissing people off.”

”Unintentional?”

Aizen turned his head again, facing the window. ”Sometimes, unintentional words can perfectly play into someone else’s intentional actions. Do you understand, Gin?”

”Could it be...? That’s just too unlucky.”

”Yes, Kōe has likely figured something out.” Aizen nodded, the corners of his mouth curling up once more. ”But sometimes, an unintentional mistake might also bring an unexpected pleasant surprise.”