Restricted Death

Chapter 179 Bad News

"Vice Captain Matsumoto."

Matsumoto Rangiku, who arrived at the team barracks in the morning, yawned and casually replied, "Good morning," upon hearing the greeting.

"It's getting late, Vice Captain Matsumoto," the man said.

Matsumoto Rangiku squinted and looked over. "Ah, it's Hoshino."

As the fourth seat of the 10th Division, Hoshino Toru has always been a dedicated and hardworking person.

He was originally the third seat, but when Hitsugaya took the third seat, he felt inferior to him and voluntarily lowered his seat, even though Shiba Isshin at the time would have allowed him to share the third seat with Hitsugaya.

At the same time, he was also the fourth seat whom Matsumoto Rangiku considered to be very obedient to the captain.

"Is Lieutenant Matsumoto still hungover from last night?"

"No way!" Matsumoto Rangiku refused to admit it.

Hoshino Toru stepped forward and handed over a document: "These are the things that need to be dealt with today."

Matsumoto Rangiku, whose mind was still a bit fuzzy, was even more overwhelmed by what she saw and immediately said, "Just hand it over to the captain."

Hoshino Toru sighed, "Vice-Captain Matsumoto, this is your job. We can't bother the captain with everything."

Matsumoto Rangiku, however, said, "Who else would we entrust the team's affairs to but him, since he's the captain?"

Hoshino Toru followed her into the vice-captain's office.

"The captain has been quite busy these days."

"He's busy?" Matsumoto Rangiku scoffed. "Isn't it to be expected that he's busy? Besides, this kid should be full of energy right now. Wouldn't it be better for him to share some of the burden with old-timers like me?"

As she spoke, she bent down and lay down in front of the desk.

"Alright, I'm going to take a nap. Close the door when you leave."

"Yes."

Hoshino Toru looked at Matsumoto Rangiku, who was lying face down on the table with her eyes closed, sighed inwardly, and finally took the documents in her hand out.

He walked into the captain's office and bumped into a figure coming out of it.

"Oh, it's Hinamori." He greeted her with a friendly smile.

"Hoshino-senpai!" Hinamori returned the greeting respectfully, her steps hurried. "The captain is inside!"

Seeing her rosy complexion and energetic demeanor, Hoshino Toru had a strange expression, and then warned himself not to speculate too much about the captain's private affairs.

He knocked on the door and went inside.

"team leader."

"It's Hoshino."

Hoshino Toru handed the document to Shin, who, after reading it, asked, "Where's Matsumoto?"

"Vice Captain Matsumoto, she..."

"She's not here yet? What time is it? What's this woman up to!" Xin couldn't help but mutter under his breath.

"No, Vice-Captain Matsumoto has arrived, but she seems to be in low spirits lately, so I didn't bother her." Hoshino Toru even gave Matsumoto Rangiku an excuse.

Xin bluntly stated, "She's not feeling well? She must have been drinking a lot last night."

Hoshino Toru: "..."

After carefully reviewing the document, Xin made his comments on it.

"I really need to find a chance to teach this woman a lesson!"

Hoshino Toru pretended not to hear and changed the subject: "Is the captain going out on patrol this afternoon?"

Xin glanced at the schedule and nodded, saying, "That is the arrangement."

Hoshino Toru asked, puzzled, "Why is the captain suddenly so concerned about the edge of Rukongai?"

The letter said, "It was Captain Aizen of the Fifth Division who asked me to do this, saying that there might be traces of Hollows in Rukongai."

Shin really took this matter to heart, personally leading patrols of the streets for several days in a row, which was also out of his instinctive vigilance towards Aizen.

He wanted to know whether Aizen's request was just a normal work-related matter, or whether the other party had ulterior motives.

However, after nearly a week, nothing unusual happened, and Xin's doubts gradually dissipated. He realized that he had been overreacting.

“You don’t need to go to so much trouble. You can leave it to the people below,” Hoshino Toru said. “I happen to be free this afternoon, so I can lead the team out in your place, Captain.”

Xin nodded: "Okay, I'll leave it to you."

After saying that, he suddenly picked out a stack of documents from the side and said, "Give these to Matsumoto."

Hoshino Toru took the document, glanced through it briefly, and then looked at the letter.

"team leader?"

"Give it to her and let her handle it. Just say it's my order."

"……Yes."

Hoshino Toru followed instructions and went to the vice-captain's office. Awakened by the knocking, Matsumoto Rangiku looked up with slight annoyance, but then stared in surprise when she saw the documents Hoshino Toru handed her.

"Vice Captain Matsumoto?"

“…Ouch.”

Matsumoto Rangiku suddenly clutched her forehead and cried out in pain.

"Vice Captain Matsumoto, you..."

"I'm fine," Matsumoto Rangiku said, rubbing her forehead. "I just have a bit of a headache, probably from drinking too much last night."

Hoshino Toru was speechless for a moment, thinking that when he asked her earlier if she was hungover, she had denied it.

He also knew that Matsumoto Rangiku was putting on an act.

Matsumoto Rangiku said, "Hoshino, don't worry about me. Go and do your work. I'll rest for a bit. Leave all the work to me. I'll try my best to finish it later."

Hoshino Toru pouted helplessly, but finally said, "How about I help you take care of some things..."

Snapped!
Matsumoto Rangiku stood up abruptly, handed the stack of documents to him, and bowed slightly in greeting.

"You've been a great help, Fourth Seat Hoshino, you're such a kind person! No wonder all the team members respect you so much! I respect and love you just as much as they do."

Hoshino Toru was both amused and exasperated: "Alright, you can rest now."

#
In the afternoon, Matsumoto Rangiku quietly walked out of her office, looked around, straightened her clothes, and prepared to leave.

"Where to go?"

Her expression changed drastically at the sudden sound of a voice.

She turned her head quickly, saw it was a letter, and then quickly resumed her casual demeanor.

"Go find Hitsugaya, it's about team affairs."

"Today Hitsugaya is patrolling the streets of Seireitei. If you need anything, you can come directly to me."

"Oh, I see. I forgot. It's nothing serious, never mind." Matsumoto Rangiku said calmly, turning back to her office as if it didn't bother her at all.

As soon as he closed the door, he couldn't help but mutter under his breath, "That kid is definitely watching me!"

After seeing Matsumoto Rangiku's office door close, Shin returned to his own office. He had indeed been secretly monitoring Matsumoto Rangiku's spiritual pressure.

In the captain's office, Hinamori was reclining in his chair. Upon receiving the letter, he chuckled and asked, "Is Lieutenant Matsumoto trying to sneak out again?"

Having been in the 10th Division for some time now, Hinamori has gradually come to understand her lieutenant's personality better.

The things Hitsugaya said to her earlier about Matsumoto Rangiku weren't just casual remarks.

"That lazy woman," Xin Nian muttered, then instructed Hinamori, "Don't be like her in the future."

Hinamori assured her, "Yes, yes, of course I won't be like her."

After thinking for a moment, Xin said, "Hoshino, the fourth seat in the team, is a very good person. You can learn a lot from him."

Hinamori nodded in agreement, saying, "I've heard many people say that Hoshino is a very reliable senior. Everyone from my cohort respects him. If it weren't for Toshiro, he would still be the third seat now."

Shin couldn't help but laugh and said, "What, is Hitsugaya's reputation that bad?"

"So-so," Hinamori said. Hitsugaya's personality wasn't very sociable, and coupled with his extraordinary talent, he was often the subject of gossip.

Regardless of the fact that the other newcomers who were in the same cohort as her knew about Hinamori and Hitsugaya's relationship, they wouldn't say anything in front of Hinamori.

Shin sat back in his chair, and Hinamori kindly began to massage his shoulders.

After a moment's thought, Shin suddenly said to Hinamori, "Go find Matsumoto and have her bring over the documents I gave her today."

"okay."

On the other side, after learning the purpose of the visit from Hinamori, Matsumoto Rangiku said to her, "I understand. You can go back now. I'll deliver it to the captain later."

After Hinamori left, she rushed into another office in a great hurry.

I found Hoshino Toru's seat and quickly located the files on his desk. After flipping through them, I found that he had already processed more than half of them.

"As expected of Hoshino's fourth seat, thanks to you."

Matsumoto Rangiku thought that it was about time to hand over these items, and as she walked out of the office, she saw a figure rushing anxiously towards the captain's office.

What happened?
She was puzzled, so she followed.

boom!
The person didn't knock; they simply pushed the door open.

"team leader!"

Inside the office, Shin, who had quickly distanced himself from Hinamori, frowned and looked displeased, asking, "What's going on?"

The man looked anxious and flustered.

"Hoshino, the fourth seat... something happened to him!"

shhh-

The documents in Matsumoto Rangiku's hands were scattered all over the floor.

(End of this chapter)