[Riku-sama] [Group Owner]: Don’t be mad, baby.
Come on, give me a smile?
[Deathwish Count]: Baby?
[I’m Not a Hair-Gel Guy]: So the two of you are together now.
Congratulations.
[Deathwish Count]: Well, that’s certainly good news.
[Doujin Artist]: Maybe not for SOMEONE.
He’s probably secretly disappointed that his girlfriend is a washboard.
[Riku-sama] [Group Owner]: Who the hell has the guts to insult my Eriri?!
Point him out and I’ll rip his balls off!
[Doujin Artist]: Start a livestream, then.
I’d love to watch you rip off your own.
[Riku-sama] [Group Owner]: Your Honor, I’m innocent!
I never said anything like that!
This is all Deadpool’s fault.
@Merc with a Mouth, that bastard is rotten to the core!
[Deathwish Count]: …
[Riku-sama] [Group Owner]: See?
He didn’t deny it.
The bastard admitted everything through silence!
[Doujin Artist]: So we’re doing forced confessions now?
[Riku-sama] [Group Owner]: Actually, if you think about it, being small has its advantages too.
There’s no point obsessing over something like that and making yourself miserable.
[Doujin Artist]: Oh?
Then go ahead and tell me what those advantages are!
[Riku-sama] [Group Owner]: Uh…
saves fabric?
[Doujin Artist]: UCHIHA RIKU, YOU REALLY SHOULD JUST DIE!
Preferably right now.
Rip your own balls off and bleed out in agony!
[Riku-sama] [Group Owner]: I think I’ll pass on that.
[Doujin Artist]: Afraid it’ll hurt?
[Riku-sama] [Group Owner]: Nah.
I’m thinking about your future happiness.
If I actually tore them off, wouldn’t that leave you a widow before you even got started?
“Guh—!”
Eriri’s entire face turned crimson, thin wisps of imaginary steam practically rising from her head.
[Doujin Artist]: Y-You pervert!
What the hell are you even talking about?!
I don’t understand any of this!
I’m going to sleep.
Goodbye!
[Deathwish Count]: Oh?
She got embarrassed.
[I’m Not a Hair-Gel Guy]: As expected, Riku-kun seems remarkably skilled at dealing with women.
A faintly amused smile appeared on Aizen Sōsuke’s face.
On the monitor before him was the image of a beautiful orange-haired girl in a blue-and-white school uniform.
She had a lively, optimistic air about her, with youthful features and a noticeably curvy figure.
“Well, well.
That Quincy descendant again?”
Ichimaru Gin’s teasing voice came from nearby.
His eyes remained narrowed in their usual smile.
“How surprising, Captain Aizen.
I didn’t know human girls like this interested you.”
“No.” Aizen’s smile did not change.
“I’m merely considering another possibility.”
Gin had no idea what that “other possibility” might be, but he knew better than to ask.
“Gin,” Aizen said suddenly, lifting his teacup and taking a quiet sip, “if a Shinigami were missing a piece of their soul, do you believe it could be restored?”
‘What?!’
Gin’s body went rigid.
For the briefest instant, his eyes opened fully, revealing their pale blue color.
‘Does he already know about Rangiku?’
That should have been impossible.
Gin had been careful.
He had never given Aizen any reason to suspect what truly motivated him.
Panic churned beneath the surface, but none of it reached his face.
“That’s unfortunate, Captain Aizen.
Things like that are hardly my specialty.”
“Is that so?”
Aizen offered no further comment.
He rose from his seat, his white captain’s haori shifting lightly around him.
“Inform Kaname.
Tonight, we’ll be paying the Tsunayashiro Clan a visit.”
His attention then returned to the group chat.
[Riku-sama] [Group Owner]: Skilled at what?!
My girlfriend is telling me to cut my balls off.
Where’s the justice in that?
[Deathwish Count]: Perhaps you should consider whose fault that is.
[Riku-sama] [Group Owner]: And can you stop sending me pictures of pole dancers?!
You’re actively trying to tempt me into making mistakes!
@Merc with a Mouth
[Deathwish Count]: Deadpool still hasn’t logged off?
[Riku-sama] [Group Owner]: Go apologize to my Eriri.
If she forgives you, I’ll unmute you.
@Merc with a Mouth
[I’m Not a Hair-Gel Guy]: Hm.
A clever way to redirect the disaster elsewhere, Riku-kun.
If Eriri truly went to sleep and Deadpool wakes her up with private messages, what do you suppose she’ll do to you afterward?
[Riku-sama] [Group Owner]: ???
Redirect what disaster?
I have absolutely no idea what you’re talking about!
Damn, I’m suddenly exhausted.
Can barely keep my eyes open.
Good night!
[Deathwish Count]: Throwing even your own girlfriend under the carriage.
What a terrible boyfriend.
[I’m Not a Hair-Gel Guy]: But that is precisely what makes Riku-kun entertaining, isn’t it?
[Deathwish Count]: True.
[Doujin Artist]: @Riku-sama YOU BASTARD!
GET BACK HERE!
Riku, naturally, did not answer.
He really had gone offline.
He just had not gone to sleep.
Instead, he was currently giving his eldest nephew a tour of an experimental facility in the Land of Rivers.
The interior looked almost futuristic.
Researchers in white coats moved constantly through the brightly lit halls, passing between laboratories separated by glass partitions and reinforced walls.
Uchiha Itachi slowly looked around, unable to hide his astonishment.
“You built all of this in only a year?”
“You’ve got that wrong.”
Riku shook his head, pride evident in his expression.
The people of the Land of Rivers did.
I provided resources and opportunities, but they’re the ones who created everything you see here.”
“I see…”
Itachi considered those words for a moment.
“So Konoha wasn’t created by the Hokage either.
It was created by everyone who lives there.”
“Hahaha!
Exactly.”
Riku rubbed his nephew’s head approvingly.
“No wonder that old bastard Hiruzen said you think like a Hokage.
That little brain of yours really does work fast.”
“…”
Uchiha Itachi could not decide whether his uncle had just praised him or insulted him.
“Come on.
Your uncle will show you our latest technology.”
‘Latest technology?’
Itachi glanced toward a powered katana capable of cutting through reinforced walls, autonomous machines that could harvest and collect crops without human operators, and small drones buzzing through the air overhead.
‘None of THAT counts as their latest technology?’
Riku took his hand and led him deeper into the facility.
At the far end of the research wing, an automatic door slid open.
“Lord Consul.”
Pakura stood beyond it, dressed in black powered armor with her long hair falling freely down her back.
She bowed respectfully when Riku approached.
“Good.
You finally stopped dropping to your knees every time you see me.”
Riku smiled and gave her shoulder an approving pat.
“If you’d kept that up, I really would’ve transferred you to the Land of Rivers Academy for remedial education.”
“I’m sorry.”
Pakura lowered her head, visibly ashamed.
“It’s fine.
Get back to work.” Riku waved casually.
“I’m just showing this kid around.”
“Yes.”
Pakura stepped aside to let them pass, though her gaze kept drifting toward the shoulder Riku had touched.
A faint blush gradually colored her cheeks.
Itachi noticed.
“That woman…
she’s the Scorch Release user from Sunagakure, isn’t she?”
“Mm-hm.
I happened to be passing near Kirigakure a little over a year ago and saved her.”
“She likes you.”
“Don’t make things up.
What does a little kid like you know about romance?”
The two continued down the corridor until they reached an enormous chamber at the deepest point of the complex.
There, Uchiha Itachi finally saw what Riku had meant by their “latest technology.”
A cylindrical containment tank stood at the center of the room.
Inside was a middle-aged man with long hair and an Amegakure forehead protector.
What immediately drew Itachi’s attention, however, was the strange milky-white substance covering both sides of the man’s face and spreading down toward his neck.
It looked almost fluid, clinging to his skin in slow-moving layers that made the entire sight deeply unsettling.
Itachi stared at the tank.
“What is that?”
Riku’s lips curved into a smile.
“Hollowfication.”
The lenses of his glasses caught the laboratory lights, reflecting a cold silver gleam.
“Shinobi Hollowfication.”