The Captain’s quarters, Thirteenth Division.
Jūshirō Ukitake sat up in bed, looking over the file in his hands, brow furrowed.
He was noble himself too, though only from a minor house.
After all his years as captain, he’d arrived at the same conclusion as Eighth Division Captain Shunsui Kyōraku.
If a genuine great noble had actually appeared, it would shake the current balance of power in the Seireitei to its core.
He mulled it over for a moment, then called out toward the door.
“Kaien—” The name broke apart into a cough, and he doubled over slightly, coughing twice more, one hand pressed to his chest.
The door burst open with a clatter, and a young man with spiky hair appeared.
He hurried forward two steps and patted Ukitake on the back.
“You’re still not over your illness.
Whatever it is, there’s no rush, just leave it to me.” Ukitake pushed the hand away gently and said quietly, “It’s fine.
I’m doing alright today.” As he spoke, he held out the file in his hand.
“Kaien, you’re the current head of the Shiba family.
Have you ever heard of the Tokoyo clan?” Kaien Shiba, Lieutenant of the Thirteenth Division, was head of the main Shiba family, one of Soul Society’s great noble houses.
Kaien scratched at his head.
“Captain Ukitake, you know me.
I really don’t have the slightest interest in clan business.
I just want to live happily with my family.
I’ve never once heard of any Tokoyo clan.” “Let’s hope it’s not real, then.” Ukitake said it quietly, then smiled over at Kaien.
“If a great clan really did just show up out of nowhere, that would be a real headache.” “Don’t look at me like that.
My family withdrew from the Noble District a long time ago.
Whatever fighting happened over the land we left behind, that’s got nothing to do with me.” Kaien answered breezily, without a care.
A century ago, Kaien Shiba, head of the great Shiba clan, had suddenly made a decision.
He’d taken his younger brother and sister and left the Noble District behind to live in the Rukongai, declaring outright that the Shiba family was withdrawing from the ranks of nobility.
At first, none of the other nobles had taken it seriously, chalking it up to a young clan head’s passing whim.
But as time went on, it became clear the Shiba family genuinely had no intention of ever coming back to the Noble District.
And so a full-blown feeding frenzy began over the estate, land, and property the Shiba family had left behind.
In the scramble that followed, at least tens of thousands died.
And that was only after the great Kuchiki clan and the Gotei 13 had both stepped in to put a stop to it.
Left unchecked, the death toll might easily have climbed into the hundreds of thousands.
And yet, for all the chaos, not a single noble had dared to actually go after the Shiba family itself.
Because Yoruichi Shihōin, former head of the Shihōin clan, had stayed in close contact with the Shiba family the whole time they’d been living in the Rukongai.
And the former head of the Kuchiki clan, Ginrei Kuchiki, had made things bluntly clear to any upper noble with ideas of their own: the great Shiba clan, even having given up everything within the Noble District, was still nobody’s target to shake down.
Ukitake managed a wry smile.
“I’m just worried something like that might happen again.” Back when it had all gone down, plenty of people in his own family had pushed him hard to join the scramble for whatever the Shiba family left behind.
Kaien let out a helpless sigh.
“I get what you mean.
I’ll go through the books at home once I’m back today, see if I can dig up anything on the Tokoyo clan.
If I find something, you’ll be the first to know.” “Thanks, Kaien.
I appreciate it.” “Alright, alright, just get some rest.” Around that same time, Second Division Captain Soi Fon arrived at the estate of the great Shihōin clan.
She dropped respectfully to one knee and addressed the boy in front of her, a dark-skinned child with purple hair: “Lord Yūshirō, if you would please look through the clan records for anything on the Tokoyo clan.” “Sister Soi Fon, you’re a captain now.
You don’t need to be this formal with me.” Yūshirō Shihōin hurried forward and helped Soi Fon back to her feet.
Soi Fon answered, her expression serious.
“The Fon family has served the Shihōin clan for generations.
This is how it’s done.” “Alright, alright, there’s no arguing with you.” Yūshirō pulled her the rest of the way up regardless, then turned.
“Let me go check the clan archive.” After a couple of steps, he suddenly turned back.
“Sister Soi Fon, want to come in and take a look with me?” Soi Fon answered at once.
“Absolutely not.
That would break protocol.” “Fine, fine.
I’ll let you know if I find anything on the Tokoyo clan.” Yūshirō left the room.
Soi Fon looked over at the massive chair in the middle of the room, and simply knelt there on the floor, motionless.
…
At the same time, the estate of the great Kuchiki clan.
The Kuchiki steward came to the study, found Byakuya, and laid out everything he knew about Moriyasu Tokoyo.
Byakuya answered, perfectly calm.
“Leave it be.” “But the Noble Council wants a definite answer right now.” The steward trailed off there, saying nothing further.
This was the first time the Noble Council had ever run into someone claiming great-clan status, which was exactly why they wanted the Kuchiki clan, as foremost of the nobility, to confirm it.
“Tell them not to touch Moriyasu Tokoyo.” Byakuya said it coldly.
The steward looked puzzled.
“My lord, does that mean there really is a Tokoyo clan?” “That’s still not confirmed.” Byakuya set down his brush and turned to look at the elderly steward beside him.
“I went and searched the clan archive myself a while back.
On a very old piece of parchment, I did find that strange eye crest, sitting right alongside our own.” “But there’s nothing at all confirming whether that crest actually belongs to a clan called Tokoyo.” While Byakuya had been sneaking around spying on…
ah, no, observing Rukia at the academy, he’d naturally taken notice of Moriyasu Tokoyo, who was always right at her side.
The boy’s masterful Reishi control, and his grasp of Zanjutsu, Hakuda, and Kido alike, had left Byakuya genuinely impressed.
In time, his own curiosity had gotten the better of him, and he’d wanted to know whether a noble house bearing that particular emblem actually existed.
Not long ago, he’d found a chart in the family shrine bearing the crests of the other four great clans.
On that piece of parchment, four of the five great clans stood arranged side by side, while the Eternal Eyes emblem sat alone at the edge of the page, its meaning a mystery.
“Tell them to leave Moriyasu Tokoyo alone for now.
Treat him as if he doesn’t exist.” Byakuya picked his brush back up and turned his eyes back down to the desk.
The steward nodded, then added, “Miss Rukia would like to visit the clan archive.” “She’s a member of the Kuchiki family now.
As long as she keeps up with her regular studies, she’s free to go wherever she likes in her own time.” Byakuya answered evenly.