Download App
58.32% Playing with other Supernaturals / Chapter 776: ‘Human’

Chapter 776: ‘Human’

The moment they arrived within the tower, Kisuke immediately scanned the whole floor and saw everyone who felt their presence make their way towards them. But instead of them, he quickly went to find someone he wanted to check on, 'She's in the private training room, swinging her sword. How diligent... Or should I say she's just trying to take her mind off it?'

"Tell the others that I'm going to where Aika is.", he said to Kuroka and Koneko before walking off in the direction of the dome beside the tower.

As he entered the dome, he saw all sorts of people using the facilities inside and some of them were even acquaintances. However, it wasn't just people who were training who were in there but also some people who were pretending to train but their eyes kept darting all around the place. And when he entered the vicinity, Kisuke immediately felt several prying eyes landing on him, 'Hmm... I wonder who's informants these people are. There are too many of them for just a simple observation and it seems that most of them are working as one single group.'

This instance just gave Kisuke an idea of how volatile the situation was and is a telltale sign that something big was about to go down, 'I have some 'insurances' but I'm still worried. What if a God found a loophole and was able to freely use his or her Divine Power for his own goals? Serafall would be able to hold her ground if there was a God or two, but the consequences later down the line wouldn't be a joke. It could immediately cascade down to the 'Apocalypse', but none of us are ready for that yet. Not even the Dungeon.'

And while thinking about all of this stuff that he definitely didn't want to get involved in, Kisuke reached the private training room where Aika was staying. Using his authority, he opened the door without saying anything.

"Welcome back~ Took you a little while longer than expected, huh?" greeted Aika, but she didn't stop swinging her Nodachi.

While walking towards the corner of the training room where there's a table and a few seats, Kisuke replied while chuckling, "Well, as they say, plans are meant to be broken. And they had a once in a lifetime opportunity so it was stupid to stop that just for the sake of following some schedule that could easily be adjusted."

"I see... That's really good."

After placing some tea and snacks on the table, Kisuke turned to her and said, "The face you're making is very far from your sentiment."

Aika immediately stopped swinging her sword and touched her face. She found out that she's slightly pouting. Afraid that she would be misunderstood, Aika hurriedly followed up, "Don't get it wrong! I'm really glad for them. It's just that..." She then stood there with heavy shoulders and looked down, "I envy them... I feel jealous."

"While everyone was figuratively leaping through their Dragon Gates, here am I tripping and stumbling backward. The moment I looked up, it's as if I couldn't see their backs anymore... I can feel the distance... I found my limits."

Kisuke was about to pour tea in Aika's cup, but decided against it as it seems that she won't be in a mood for some anytime soon. Instead, he slowly walked towards her before sitting on the floor beside her, "How awfully honest of you."

Aika sheathed her sword and smiled wryly before sitting down beside him, hugging her own knees, "You're the one who taught me how to be honest, and is there a point in hiding this from you? You could probably already tell."

Kisuke shook his head, "You're wrong. I could have my guesses, but I could never truly know what you're thinking and feeling without you telling me about it. As convenient as mind reading is, I have no way of doing such a thing."

"But your guesses are never far off the mark."

"That might be true, however, I could let such remarks get into my head. The moment it did will be the moment my all-important head would become useless." Kisuke sighed as he recalled the days he started checking his own pride. He was aware of what he can do and also aware that it's not normal. Early on he had become aware of this, it was also the day that he started checking his own mindset and evaluating it the very next day.

This preemptive measure helped him not destroy himself and those around him, but this is what caused Aizen to call him a coward.

"Enough about myself. I'm sure you've also been keeping a lot of things to yourself, especially after the day you met your parents again."

"Can I be more honest?"

Kisuke took a quick peek at her and saw that she was burying her head within her knees, "Looks like there's a lot. Sure. Please go all the way."

Aika didn't immediately speak up, but Kisuke didn't force her and waited for her to begin.

A few minutes later, Aika's first words surprised him, "I... actually already know the name of my Bankai..."

If she could already call the name of her Bankai then the fact that she still failed her 'trial' comes down to two possible scenarios, "Then..."

"I could probably release it if I wanted to...", clarified Aika, "...But I didn't... I can't do it..." she buried her head further within her knees.

Kisuke was legitimately surprised at what she'd just said and started thinking of the reasons she couldn't release her Bankai. But after a while, among the options within his head, he found the most likely reason, "You're afraid, huh...", muttered Kisuke.

Aika didn't affirm it, however, she also didn't do nor say anything to deny it, so Kisuke could safely assume that his guess was correct, 'Just by attempting to subdue her own Zanpakuto and learning its true name, she should have also realized its true nature and what it'd bring her. I wasn't able to witness her attempt, but considering how her Zanpakuto was different in nature compared to mine and Yoruichi's, I can understand if there's something else that made her feel this way. It should also be about the emotions she has been bottling up until now tipping the balance.'

"I could say that everything's going to be fine and I'll always be here with you, but that's just another way of saying that what you do doesn't matter with me here and that'd only cause you to keep it to yourself even more. All this time, I've been irresponsible. I owe you and everyone else an apology. Please forgive me."

At this point, Kisuke started having serious doubts about how he does things and started questioning what he had been doing ever since he came to a new world.

Aika, who Kisuke thought wouldn't have much problems due to her adventurous and borderline crazy personality, would unironically become the catalyst that would cause him to become more 'human'. Whether this is a good thing or not, only the future holds the answer.

Unbeknownst to him, however, Benihime 'breathed' for the first time in a while and this partner of his hid the fact that she had woken up, 'Now then... I wonder when I should start? I must wait for the chance where I can corner him as much as possible.'


CREATORS' THOUGHTS
Goyya Goyya

Editors

28th00: I forgot that she’s a hardcore psycho yandere Zanpakuto.

Chapter 777: Change of Plans

Aika looked up in a panic, eyes full of fear, and saw Kisuke's serene expression, "Don't apologize!", she hurriedly said as she grabbed his arms, "Please don't apologize! You've done nothing wrong!"

Kisuke grabbed Aika's hands and held them tightly before shaking his head, "No. I've realized that this isn't right. I still don't know what could have been the correct way, but I at least have to acknowledge that this one is wrong. First and foremost, I thought that you'd be able to follow the pace I've set and everything was going well. However, everything going well doesn't mean that you're okay with it. So instead of being able to follow, it's more accurate to say that you're all getting dragged along by me."

"Second..." There was a pause as Kisuke stared at Aika's frustrated face that wanted to say something but couldn't, "I treated you as something you're not in the first place."

"W-what are you saying?", asked Aika in utter confusion. But most of all, she's perplexed as to why Kisuke was acting strange. However, she's sure that she won't like where this is going.

Kisuke didn't reply immediately and started thinking back once again. Ever since being aware of himself, he never actually deeply interacted with any 'normal' people. Even in Sado Yasutora and Inoue Orihime's cases, all he ever did is give them a bit of advice and a bit of time to train their powers to usable levels before passing them on to other people to deal with. This is the first time Kisuke extensively took care of someone who lived without dealing with anything supernatural and someone who's going through puberty where there are a lot of uncertainties.

Kisuke had it wrong from the start. It's not a question of whether he should have really taken her to this part of the world or not, it is how he didn't realize his own logic and common sense didn't apply to her even if she had something special that set her apart from others. Whether that came from his own ignorance or the absence of his willingness to figure out those that don't affect him directly, he himself doesn't know, 'It doesn't matter how long you've lived. Things that you don't know will remain unknown even if you've already experienced every other thing...huh. To think I fell for something as obvious as that. I thought that I could separate my emotions from logic, but it turned out that I've been dictated by my emotions and biases from the very start... How foolish and naive of me.'

This self-admission removed an invisible thorn in his heart that Kisuke didn't even know existed. But along with it was the rise of numerous uncertainties and doubts, questions of where else he could have gone wrong.

Sighing, Kisuke finally looked back to Aika, who was on the verge of panicking and eyes full of uncertainty and fear before smiling and saying, "Listen Aika."

But instead of being comforted, Aika became nervous as she waited for his next words, "Before everything else, I'd like you to know that I don't regret bringing you with me. In fact, I should be thankful that you've put up with me and my selfishness."

Kisuke slipped his arm from Aika's grip and placed his hand on her head, patting her hair gently, "I'm sorry for scaring you, but did you think I would say the opposite?"

Aika hesitated for a moment before looking down and nodding her head.

"Is it because you thought that nothing you did mattered if I were to say that?"

Aika didn't say anything nor do anything to answer. But unlike previously, Kisuke wasn't sure if this was affirmation. But whether it's a silent affirmation or she didn't know for sure in the first place, it didn't really matter as what he wanted to say won't change.

"If you have such thoughts, cease them. Even if I regretted it, it doesn't change the fact that your efforts and what you gained from them, albeit forced on you, was yours and yours alone. Nothing can change that, even you. Know that no matter how much you fear your own worthlessness, the meaning of your actions will never disappear."

What Kisuke said was very vague at best, almost nonsensical, but somehow, it resonated with the girl struggling with her own self-worth, giving her a bit of inner peace.

But Kisuke knew that it wasn't enough to lay rest to most of Aika's worries and struggles. Even then, he already had nothing to say, at least nothing that comes to mind right now. He may have all sorts of life experiences, but not much for this, he thought as he resisted the urge to scratch his head.

Instead, Kisuke fixed his sitting position and patted his thighs while looking at Aika.

Kisuke didn't need to say anything and Aika understood what he wanted to say. Slowly laying down, Aika used Kisuke's thighs as a headrest. Normally, she would be instantly ecstatic at the current situation, however, the current atmosphere was so weirdly awkward that she couldn't really enjoy it.

Even with Kisuke's hand gently stroking her head, Aika couldn't seem to find peace. It's as if this tranquility made her fearful, 'I see... The training, for better or worse, became my form of escape... I've been running away from reality all this time.'

Aika finally understood that the awkward atmosphere was stemming from her, yet she seemed to fail to fully understand where her struggles were coming from.

Just from the face she was making, Kisuke figured out what she had been going through. After all, it was a nostalgic and familiar feeling as both Kisuke and Yoruichi went through something similar with their differing situations, 'Struggling inside yet being lost at what's eating you. Before she can resolve it, she first has to find out what she wants and doesn't want to happen.'

Of course, he didn't say anything regarding that as he's confident that Aika would also soon realize this. However that didn't mean he couldn't assist her, so after a few minutes of internally deliberating what he could do, he decided to change his plans for her.

"Say, Aika... Want to go back with me?"

"...What?"

"Hmmm... Forget it. I'll be taking you back with me whether you like it or not."

"...You're strangely forceful with that demand. Not that I mind though. You and Yoruichi are taking just me? What about the rest?"

Kisuke smiled at her and said, "You got it wrong. Since I'll be taking you, I can't take Yoruichi with me, so it'll just be the two of us."

Aika hurriedly stood up in a daze and asked, "Just you and me!? Why!? Wouldn't I just get in your way? Don't you and Yoruichi have a lot to do when you return?"

Aika thought Kisuke had something else in mind and taking just her back would just be a minor inconvenience for him, but to her surprise once again, Kisuke nodded strongly, "That's right. I wanted to ask Yoruichi to deal with something while I did another thing, but taking you with me means that I can't do what I initially wanted anymore."

Kisuke then crossed his arms before continuing, "Frankly speaking, the difficulty of taking on the whole of Olympus and some of the other hidden forces would shoot through the roof with just me moving around."

"Then why!? I don't have enough ability to assist you and the most I can do is fight some small fries, so why?"

Kisuke thought that Aika was severely underestimating herself. If she can go all out, she could actually face off against a weaker God. But that wasn't the point right now, so Kisuke wouldn't mention it. Within those few minutes of thinking, Kisuke was able to set her priorities straight.

"It's because more than dealing with Olympus, I want to help and take care of you. Who cares about those pain in the ass Gods when you're having a hard time like this going through belated puberty!?"


CREATORS' THOUGHTS
Goyya Goyya

Editors:

28th00: Ah, belated magical dragon puberty, the super puberty of super puberties! 

peter onwuasoanya

Load failed, please RETRY

Weekly Power Status

Batch unlock chapters

Table of Contents

Display Options

Background

Font

Size

Chapter comments

Write a review Reading Status: C776
Fail to post. Please try again
  • Writing Quality
  • Stability of Updates
  • Story Development
  • Character Design
  • World Background

The total score 0.0

Review posted successfully! Read more reviews
Vote with Power Stone
Rank 200+ Power Ranking
Stone 99 Power Stone
Report inappropriate content
error Tip

Report abuse

Paragraph comments

Login

tip Paragraph comment

Paragraph comment feature is now on the Web! Move mouse over any paragraph and click the icon to add your comment.

Also, you can always turn it off/on in Settings.

GOT IT