Exhaustion

By the time Seiya woke up, it was already the afternoon of the next day.

It had been a long time since he had slept so deeply.

As he processed the moment, he received two pieces of good news.

First—

His body was indeed recovering with time.

Knowing that this internal strain would heal naturally with rest allowed Seiya to breathe a sigh of relief.

Second—

Gin turned out to be unexpectedly capable.

While Seiya was napping, Gin efficiently handled all Fifth Division affairs with ease.

Because of this, Seiya had been able to rest undisturbed.

Still feeling a little groggy, he sat up and glanced at the note on the desk, along with a stack of documents that were beyond a lieutenant's authority to process.

Everything was neatly sorted.

Aizen had certainly trained Gin well.

"Ah… to steal half a day of leisure."

Seiya stretched slightly, adjusting his posture as he prepared to review his recent gains.

It had been a while since he had done this.

But that was understandable.

Between scheming, fighting, and survival, there had been no time to indulge in unnecessary reflection.

It was only now—

With the injured recovering, the defeated escaping, and the victors settling into their new roles—

That Seiya finally had a moment of peace.

The end of the Hollowfication incident marked a decisive turning point in the plot.

And now, there were less than a hundred years left until he had to fight Yhwach.

Only ninety years.

How the hell could he sleep at night knowing that?

Seiya let out a bitter chuckle.

Sure, he was free for now—

But not really.

"Might as well go over what I gained from all this."

First and foremost—his official position.

Seiya was now Captain of the Fifth Division.

And thanks to the Hōgyoku, he had learned the full name of his Zanpakutō—

He had found the source of his power.

That was a huge step forward.

Unlike many others, he wasn't some hybrid with foreign forces inside him—

He was simply a Shinigami.

No bizarre transformations.

No inexplicable power surges.

His strength would grow naturally—

Through constant training and refining his spiritual pressure.

But then…

Seiya sighed.

One good thing, one bad thing.

The bad news—

His battle with Aizen had done nothing to raise his attributes.

From this, he could only conclude two things:

Aizen never had the intent to kill him. Fighting familiar opponents didn't yield significant gains.

The good news?

His fight with Sui-Feng had actually earned him some improvements.

[You fought Sui-Feng, identified a one-in-a-million opening in her attack, and effortlessly defeated her.]

[Swordsmanship +1 | Hakuda +1 | Shunpo +1 | Kido +1]

[Zan: 69] [Hakuda: 78] [Shunpo: 64] [Kido: 74]

Seiya was speechless.

"So after all that effort, I got a measly +1 in everything?"

"Damn, Sui-Feng, you're really weak."

Of course, he only complained internally.

The higher his stats got, the harder they were to improve.

Even when he had escaped a four-on-one ambush, he had only gained +11 total.

He found himself reminiscing about his rookie days.

Back then, he was constantly getting stronger—

Taking massive leaps in progress, day after day.

Now?

Everything required grueling effort.

It really was a slow grind.

Maybe the best method was the same one he used while training under Yamamoto—

Refining all four major combat disciplines at once.

When he had first mastered Shunko, he had gained +20 points in an instant.

That kind of growth was what he needed now.

Seiya was still deep in thought when he heard a knock at the door.

He exhaled lightly, refocused, and spoke.

"Come in."

Gin peeked his head in.

"Finally awake?"

"Oh, thanks for covering for me last night."

"Heh… just try to be more careful next time."

"With you around, there's no problem! Actually, I was just about to ask you for a favor."

Formal gratitude aside—work was work.

Seiya casually grabbed the Captain's official seal and tossed it onto the desk.

"Take care of these too. My seal is right here—just stamp away."

"…Hah?"

Gin gave him a bewildered look.

Seiya remained completely unfazed.

"What? It's a Fifth Division tradition. If you're gonna be working here, you'd better get used to it."

"What kind of tradition is that...?"

Seiya didn't care.

Not convinced?

Then go ask Shinji, who had already run off to the Human World.

Or Aizen, his new boss.

Seiya grinned mischievously and bolted out the door.

Gin, meanwhile, stared at the towering stack of paperwork before him.

"…Is there really a future in following this guy?"

Meanwhile…

Seiya wasn't just goofing off.

He had a clear objective.

After a quick journey, he arrived at the entrance of the Fourth Division barracks.

Straightening his uniform, he cleared his throat and politely addressed the guard at the gate.

"Excuse me, I'd like to see Captain Unohana. Could you pass along the message?"

The guard broke into a nervous sweat.

Due to the recent Hollowfication crisis, most still weren't familiar with the new captains.

But one thing was certain—

This was the Captain of the Fifth Division!

Was something big about to happen?!

"P-Please wait here!"

The guard practically sprinted back into the barracks.

Seiya sighed.

"Why does the Captain's rank intimidate people so much?"

He had never been sensitive to such things.

Even back when he trained under Shinji, he hadn't cared about ranks or formalities.

But now…

It seemed that to regular soldiers, captains were awe-inspiring figures.

Before he could ponder it further, the guard returned—face still pale with anxiety.

"Captain Unohana is currently out on duty…"

Seiya feigned disappointment.

"Ah, what a shame…"

Not really.

That was exactly what he wanted to hear.

"Then, is your lieutenant present?"

It was standard procedure—if the captain was unavailable, the lieutenant handled visitors.

The guard nodded quickly.

"Yes! Lieutenant Isane is inside!"

After the recent personnel reshuffle, Isane had been promoted to Fourth Division's Lieutenant.

"Great. Could you lead me to her?"

"Right this way!"

As they walked through the halls, Seiya glanced around.

Everything felt… new.

Of course—

The last time he was here, Kiganjō had nearly beaten him to death.

Hardly the best time to admire the scenery.

"This is Lieutenant Isane's office, Captain."

The guard stood stiffly at attention.

Seiya chuckled.

"Thanks. Also, just call me Seiya. We're all part of the Gotei 13—no need to be so formal."

"Ah—y-yes, Captain Seiya!"

The unwavering politeness made Seiya sigh internally.

"Guess blending in won't be so easy after all…"

As the guard hurried off, Seiya reached out to knock—

But before he could—

The sliding door cracked open.

Half of Isane's face peeked out, staring at him awkwardly.

"…"

"…"

Awkward silence.

Someone had to speak first.

Seiya forced a stiff smile, raising his hand slightly.

"Uh… long time no see?"

Isane hesitated for a moment before slowly opening the door wider.

Seiya stepped inside and took a seat across from her.

The atmosphere remained strangely tense.

Neither of them spoke at first.

In the end, it was Seiya who broke the silence.

"How have you been?"

"I... I've been okay."

"I see. The Fourth Division barracks look much nicer now. It seems like they've been renovated?"

"Yes. Captain Unohana paid for it out of her own pocket."

"I see… she really is a generous captain."

Isane fidgeted, gripping the fabric of her uniform.

Then, after a pause, she looked up at him.

"Seiya… congratulations on becoming the captain of the Fifth Division."

"Hah… thanks."

For the first time since entering, Seiya smiled faintly.

"Though, if I could choose, I would've preferred to hear that at the actual ceremony."

Isane flinched.

Her eyes dropped, and her thick eyebrows furrowed deeply.

Her voice wavered.

"I... I just felt that…"

Her hands clenched into fists on her lap, shoulders trembling slightly.

"Someone as… ordinary as me… with no special qualities..."

"Someone who's not even… pretty…"

"Shouldn't be standing… beside you."

That was why she hadn't attended his captaincy ceremony.

Even the gift she had prepared—she had asked Kiyone to deliver it instead.

Hearing this, Seiya let out a quiet sigh.

Again.

This again.

Isane's self-loathing was practically her signature trait.

Because she was overly conscious of how others saw her, she became hyper-aware of any perceived flaws.

A delicate, insecure soul.

But Seiya understood her.

Because, in a way, he also carried his own burden of inadequacy.

Sitting up straighter, he spoke with genuine sincerity.

"But I never thought of you that way."

"I know! But… but I..."

Isane's voice wavered.

She hesitated for a long moment before her eyes reddened slightly.

"I still can't… accept myself."

Words alone weren't enough.

Seiya realized this.

So—

He decided to show her instead.

He stood up from his chair and slowly walked toward her.

Isane's expression shifted to panic, and she instinctively backed away slightly.

"S-Seiya?"

"It's okay. I won't do anything inappropriate."

So—

"Can you stand up?"

His tone was gentle yet firm.

For a moment, she hesitated.

Then, seeing the sincerity in his gaze, she slowly got to her feet.

Following Seiya's quiet instructions, she stood up straight and squared her shoulders.

"Just like that."

Then—

Seiya stepped forward and wrapped his arms around her.

A firm yet comforting embrace.

Resting his head on her shoulder, he closed his eyes.

His expression softened as he murmured—

"I'm… really tired."

Scheming, fighting, navigating the political web of the Gotei 13.

Even though he had allied himself with Aizen, his ultimate goal had never changed—

To protect as much of the Gotei 13's strength as possible.

Balancing self-preservation with ensuring others' survival was an exhausting task.

Sure, from the outside, it looked like he had everything under control.

That he had played his hand perfectly.

But inside—

He was tired.

And there was no one he could really talk to about it.

Even with Aizen, there were things he couldn't say.

Isane, however—

She was different.

"Just… three—no, five minutes."

"Let me stay like this for a bit."

"Can I?"

His voice was almost a whisper.

Like a plea.

A request not for help—

But for comfort.

Isane's lips pressed tightly together.

For the first time, she saw a different side of him.

Behind the sharp wit and unwavering composure—

Was someone wounded.

Someone exhausted.

A lump formed in her throat.

She felt… regretful.

Guilty, even.

Had she made things harder for him by keeping her distance?

Right now—

All he was asking for was a simple embrace.

A warmth to ease his burdens.

"I'm sorry, Seiya..."

If it was something only she could provide—

Then—

Isane gently placed a hand on his back, softly patting in a slow, soothing rhythm.

Her gaze softened as she whispered—

"Stay as long as you need."

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Powerstones?

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