XX-level Hokage

He was probably using this method to adjust his mindset. "Then I'm going out."

With that, Hitsugaya Toshiro opened the door and stepped outside.

As a result of being too anxious, he didn't notice anyone coming in and bumped into them.

Then, due to the size difference, he was knocked backward and almost fell to the ground. However, the person he bumped into wasn't much better off.

Speaking of size, Toshiro Hitsugaya is only a little small at best; he will eventually grow up in a few hundred or a thousand years.

The person he bumped into was thin, extremely thin, so thin that he looked as if he could bend with the slightest touch, like a sheet of paper. "Oh dear... isn't this Captain Hitsugaya? What's he rushing off to?"

The person who was bumped took a step back, patted the spot on his body where he had been hit, and said in a tone that was half teasing and half curious, "Silver?!"

Matsumoto Rangiku's eyes widened slightly, and she called out his name with some disbelief.

"Captain Ichimaru?" Upon hearing Matsumoto Rangiku's address, Hitsugaya Toshiro and the others instinctively called out, only to look back at the doorway to confirm the visitor's identity. Unlike Matsumoto Rangiku's confusion mixed with a touch of intimacy, Hitsugaya Toshiro instinctively frowned slightly upon seeing Ichimaru Gin.

"What brings you here when you have nothing better to do?" "Well~"

Gin Ichimaru shrugged indifferently and stepped into the captain's office of the 10th Division as if he were the master of the house.

"Because I really can't find anything out on my end, I just came to you to see if there's any progress. Any progress? Share some with me!"

The person who seemed confused by Gin Ichimaru's overly relaxed voice was not Toshiro Hitsugaya, but rather Rangiku Matsumoto.

The reason is simple: among the intelligence received by Matsumoto Rangiku was information about the disappearance of Kira Izuru, the vice-captain of the Third Division. Could it be that... Ichimaru Gin is unaware of this news yet?

Seemingly noticing Matsumoto Rangiku's gaze, Ichimaru Gin looked over at her.

However, when he looked at Matsumoto Rangiku, the smile on his face disappeared, even though he could smile at anyone.

Chapter 126: Unexpected (Part 1)

"...It's the same here."

Hitsugaya Toshiro glanced at Matsumoto Rangiku, then looked at Ichimaru Gin.

Although he personally doesn't like... well, he particularly dislikes Gin Ichimaru because of his personality. But if...

"I have other things to do right now. If there's anything you want to know, just ask Matsumoto. She can tell you anything she knows. I..."

The captain has given permission.

Toshiro Hitsugaya didn't have the time or inclination to entertain Gin Ichimaru, and made a simple and direct decision. "Captain Hitsugaya is really busy."

Gin Ichimaru then turned his gaze back to Toshiro Hitsugaya and said with some emotion.

"So, why don't you just stay in your squad? Running around like this will only cause trouble for everyone, don't you understand?" "Captain!!!!!"

Unlike Gin Ichimaru's somewhat lazy, somewhat helpless, and even everyday voice, Rangiku Matsumoto's call arose almost simultaneously.

She loudly reminded Toshiro Hitsugaya.

It was precisely because of this that Toshiro Hitsugaya was able to draw his Zanpakuto and shield himself at the critical moment.

It was precisely because of this that he was able to narrowly escape the sudden, chilling glint that shot from beneath the wide sleeves of the black Shihaka robe.

Gradually, one must use their strength to block it, rather than being pierced through the body in an instant.

Even so, Toshiro Hitsugaya's body was still sent flying by the terrifying force, crashing through the walls of many buildings in front of the captain's duty room before finally coming to a stop in an open space.

At that moment, a passageway, which he had smashed through, had appeared directly in front of Toshiro Hitsugaya, leading to the captain's duty room. "Gin Ichimaru! What do you mean by this?!"

Hitsugaya Toshiro gripped the Hyōrinmaru tightly, his hand trembling as if about to tear, and roared angrily at Ichimaru Gin on the other side of the passage.

But as expected, compared to Hitsugaya Toshiro, who was still questioning Ichimaru Gin about his intentions, Matsumoto Rangiku, who was in the same room as Ichimaru Gin, was rather decisive. She drew her Zanpakuto and held it to Ichimaru Gin's neck as he put his Shinso back.

His face was stern, his eyes sharp yet containing a hint of pain.

"I don't know about anything else... but you were the one who filmed the village chief and the others, weren't you, Gin!!"

Matsumoto Rangiku received a lot of information, but only had time to tell Hitsugaya Toshiro and Mori Momo that they were missing. Among the information she had was also the situation with the Seventh Division.

To be able to silently take down both the captain and vice-captain in the captain's duty room, which is practically the heart of a squad's territory, is a feat that anyone who knows the difficulty of such an operation would find chilling.

Because that would mean the enemy had the capability to infiltrate most of the Gotei 13 and take down or even kill most of the Shinigami. But now, Matsumoto Rangiku has found the perfect explanation for it.

"...Even if the village chief doesn't like you much, he won't be so ruthless as to drive you away if you make a special trip to visit him. Similarly, they won't be too wary of you."

There's no need to say anything more.

The smile on Gin Ichimaru's face had also completely vanished.

With a knife to his neck, he slightly turned his head to look at Matsumoto Rangiku. His eyes, which had always been closed, opened a crack, and his light blue, jewel-like pupils quietly gazed at Matsumoto Rangiku.

"The strength to knock down a captain would require at least captain-level power. In a situation where someone is caught off guard, it's not impossible to take down two people in an instant."

If Matsumoto Rangiku hadn't sensed something was wrong beforehand and alerted Hitsugaya Toshiro at that perilous moment, it would have been Hitsugaya Toshiro who followed in the footsteps of Matsushima Sajin.

After all, compared to Sajin Hitsugaya, Toshiro Hitsugaya wouldn't have much affection for Gin Ichimaru. Since the same thing had happened right before his eyes, it was only natural to draw the same conclusion. "Gin, what exactly do you want to do?!"

Matsumoto Rangiku clenched her teeth, her eyes trembling slightly with grief.

But one thing remained constant: her grip on the Zanpakuto didn't loosen; the Zanpakuto remained firmly against Gin Ichimaru's neck. For Matsumoto Rangiku, before considering her personal feelings, she was first and foremost a Shinigami (death god).

"Really, Rangiku, I knew it. Just like she said, letting you stay here was a mistake." As if giving up, Gin Ichimaru's shoulders slumped, and he said with deep regret.

"Gin, what are you saying?! Throw your Zanpakuto aside! There's still room for negotiation!"

"Rangiku...no, Matsumoto Rangiku, aren't you mistaken about something?" "!!

What I mean is—

Gin Ichimaru closed his slightly open eyes again.

Even Matsumoto Rangiku could no longer see his eyes.

"It's not that your presence here is a mistake, but rather that the very moment I saved you was the beginning of all the mistakes!" Even though he had mentally prepared himself for the moment he drew his sword... no, for the moment he reminded Hitsugaya Toshiro, he was still shocked when he heard Ichimaru Gin say those words.

The moment she spoke, Matsumoto Rangiku's heart skipped a beat.

It's widely believed that Matsumoto Rangiku and Ichimaru Gin have some connection from the past. After all, neither of them seems completely unaware of the other.

But what kind of past these two people had, no one else knew except themselves. Not even Matsumoto Rangiku.

She was born in an extremely poor area of ​​Rukongai. When she was a child, she was on the verge of starvation. Gin Ichimaru gave her persimmons to eat and made the day they met her her birthday.

In the days that followed, they worked together and even made a pact to live together in a suitable place.

But then one day, Gin Ichimaru suddenly disappeared, leaving her all alone. It wasn't until much later that she learned Gin Ichimaru had gone to the Soul Society and become a Shinigami (death god).

Matsumoto Rangiku's ability to become a Shinigami (Grim Reaper) might not be entirely without the intention of following in Ichimaru Gin's footsteps to this place.

As for Matsumoto Rangiku, she had always wanted to know why Ichimaru Gin left without saying goodbye, but in all these decades, she had never asked him the question.

Perhaps what she feared most was hearing the words she least wanted to hear from Gin Ichimaru's mouth.

However, at that moment, even though she hadn't asked the question, Gin Ichimaru still answered.

He uttered words that didn't just negate the present, but also negated everything from the very beginning. And that's when things changed.

Matsumoto Rangiku suddenly realized that there was a flower right in front of her.

When she realized that her mind was in turmoil, even with the knife pressed against Gin Ichimaru's neck, a gap had appeared, and she knew something was wrong.

Gin Ichimaru moved closer to Rangiku Matsumoto. "Rangiku, I'm sorry."

A barely perceptible sound reached Rangiku's ears.

Then, as Gin Ichimaru gently moved his face away, blood gushed from his chest as he fell backward. Before that, he had reached out to grab Gin Ichimaru, but Gin Ichimaru casually brushed his hand away.

Gin Ichimaru didn't turn back to look at the beautiful figure lying on the ground again. Instead, a smile that resembled both a snake and a fox reappeared on his face.

Before losing consciousness, the only sound Matsumoto Rangiku heard was Ichimaru Gin's farewell. "Farewell, Rangiku."

The Zanpakuto, which was slightly shorter than the Wakizashi, was not tossed aside as Matsumoto Rangiku had said: Ichimaru Gin casually shook off the blood on it.

Smiling, she looked at Hitsugaya Toshiro, who was trembling slightly with shock on his face, and pointed her short sword at him from the other side of the passage.

The meaning is self-evident. Matsumoto!!!

Just as Matsumoto Rangiku had reminded Hitsugaya Toshiro, Hitsugaya Toshiro roared out. The only difference was that Matsumoto Rangiku had shouted out before that, thus reminding Hitsugaya Toshiro.

Hitsugaya Toshiro, however, only belatedly realized this was reality and, unable to accept it, shouted, "Ichimaru Gin!!!! I'll kill you!!!!! Seated atop the Frosty Heaven—Hyōrinmaru!!!"

Chapter 127: Unexpected (Part 2)

The Gotei 13 is a large organization, with each squad acting as a separate, autonomous department. Therefore, it's perfectly normal for them to get along well due to shared personalities or interests. Similarly, it's also perfectly normal for them to dislike each other or even engage in sarcastic remarks.

But ultimately, that's all it is; it won't go any deeper, and there's no such thing as malicious slander behind someone's back—at least not among the dozen or twenty people at the captain level.

But now, an undisguised killing intent was emanating from Toshiro Hitsugaya.

The terrifying killing intent mixed with the white, mist-like chill emanating from him, instantly transporting people to the Ice Age.

It swept in from all directions, freezing people completely from the outside in; it was impossible to tell whether it was killing intent or just coldness. "Ichimaru Gin!! I'm going to kill you!!!"

In those eyes, a mixture of shock and crocodile dread, a layer of crimson seemed to have settled, as if some terrifying monster were peering through the windows of Hitsugaya Toshiro's soul at the person he hated.

Together with Toshiro Hitsugaya, we will utterly bury his enemies. "Seated atop the frosty sky!!"

With a sudden, forceful stomp of his toes against the ground, Toshiro Hitsugaya vanished instantly.

Only by looking up at the sky can you see him leaping high into the air, raising his Zanpakuto.

"Hyōrinmaru!!! Crash!!!"

The chain extends from the end of Hyōrinmaru's hilt, spiraling as if it were alive. At the end of the chain, an ice crescent moon swings, and frigid, icy water surges wildly from Hyōrinmaru, spiraling down from the frost-covered sky like the chain itself.

At the tip of the icy blue, bone-chilling water, a crimson light, reminiscent of Toshiro Hitsugaya's eyes at that moment, appeared, and the water transformed, becoming a roaring, blood-red ice dragon with twin crimson eyes.

The roof of the captain's duty room was instantly destroyed and blown off, completely exposing Gin Ichimaru, who was looking up at Toshiro Hitsugaya. The ice dragon opened its mouth as if it wanted to swallow Gin Ichimaru whole.

Gin Ichimaru instinctively held his Zanpakuto in front of him, seemingly trying to block the ice dragon's furious attack with his Zanpakuto.

But what use was his overly thin and short Zanpakuto? In less than a second, he was swallowed up by the ice dragon amidst its roar, and together with the ice dragon, he broke through one of the four remaining walls and was blasted into the wall further back.

The ice dragon's form changed instantly upon impact with the wall; it no longer retained its ice dragon shape but transformed into a giant ice cross.

One can imagine that Gin Ichimaru was sealed at the very center of this Ice Cross, which had become his coffin. "Matsumoto!!!"

Without even glancing at the Ice Cross, Hitsugaya Toshiro descended from the sky with tense speed, landing in the captain's duty room, which was now a complete mess in an instant.

At this moment, half of the captain's duty room was covered by icy blue ice, and a clear ice trail extended all the way to the location of the huge ice cross.

But the other half remains unchanged.

Originally, Toshiro Hitsugaya was unable to fully control his power due to his age and excessive strength.