Under the century-old cherry blossom tree deep within the Kuchiki Manor, a simple wedding ceremony, quite unfitting for their noble status, had just concluded.
The golden sunset filtered through the layered cherry petals, casting swaying spots of light across the courtyard's plain white silk-covered path. A crisp scent of cherry blossoms lingered in the air, yet it could not dispel the loneliness born from the sparse number of guests.
Kuchiki Byakuya, the young noble known throughout the Seireitei for his "ice-cold face," was currently dressed in a montsuki haori hakama. The pure black base made his countenance appear even more noble and aloof.
Beside him, his bride, Kuchiki Hisana, wore a plain white, patternless uchikake. Her dark hair was held up by a simple jade hairpin. She stood with her head slightly bowed, her posture gentle and serene, like a white plum blossom blooming by a cold pond.
Across Byakuya's frozen countenance, an almost imperceptible ripple of emotion flickered, a rare sight indeed.
He took a shallow breath. The aloofness belonging to the Head of the Kuchiki Clan seemed to quietly melt, opening a tiny, subtle crack before the newcomer.
He took Hisana's hand beside him. In perfect unison, the two bowed deeply toward Hiroki. Their posture was that of standard nobility, yet it contained a gravity that far exceeded ordinary noble pleasantries.
"Thank you for attending my wedding, Captain Hiroki."
Byakuya's voice remained as cold as a winter spring, but upon careful listening, a significant weight of gratitude was clearly suppressed beneath that rigid tone.
This gratitude was no mere superficial courtesy; it stemmed from a deeper realization—Hiroki's presence was itself a powerful endorsement, the most direct recognition and protection of the new Kuchiki Clan head's choice and this poorly-regarded marriage.
Following her husband's lead, Hisana also bowed deeply. Her posture was gentle and humble, and her silent gratitude flowed slowly through her lowered eyelashes.
Captain Hiroki stood still, a knowing and slightly playful smile playing on his lips.
His gaze swept across the empty courtyard before finally settling back on the newlyweds. He spoke slowly, with the kindness of an elder: "After all, you are technically my subordinate. It's only right that I attend."
However, Byakuya clearly could not respond to such weight with mere pleasantries.
He straightened his back and looked directly at Hiroki. The deep-seated worry finally surfaced in his usually calm eyes.
"I still must thank you. After all," his voice lowered, carrying a tension he couldn't hide, "if even you hadn't come, I don't know if this wedding could have proceeded smoothly."
Sensing the slight chill in her husband's fingertips, Hisana quietly covered his hand with hers, offering silent comfort and support.
Hearing this, Hiroki's thick eyebrows twitched. He gave a cold snort—not loud, but possessing the strength to cut through illusions: "Don't mind those people."
His gaze pierced through Byakuya's surface calm, striking directly at his heart. "They are nothing but snobs who only know how to fawn over the powerful and weigh pros and cons."
He leaned forward slightly, his tone suddenly intensifying with a sense of affirmation, as if to pour strength into Byakuya's heart. "What matters most is yourself. Kuchiki Byakuya, you have chosen your path, so you must have the resolve and strength to bear everything. The opinions of others are but wind passing through your ears."
Byakuya shuddered.
Hiroki's brief words were like a heavy hammer striking the mental defenses he had long used to isolate himself from the outside world, carrying a trust that struck his very soul.
He felt a long-lost sense of validation from deep within, which dispelled the layers of invisible pressure.
He lowered his eyelids. When he raised them again a moment later, his ice-blue eyes held an unprecedented, almost pious respect.
"Yes, you are right, Captain Hiroki."
Hiroki couldn't help but feel a surge of satisfaction, even finding it somewhat amusing.
It seemed his attendance today had achieved results far beyond expectations.
That proud kid, who usually looked at everyone as if they owed him money, had actually softened his innate reserve into such solemn, respectful language just because he attended his wedding.
This feeling... was actually quite nice.
A smile of accomplishment crept onto Captain Hiroki's face.
The warm light of the setting sun flowed between the three of them, and the atmosphere took on a rare, harmonious silence.
Just then, Hiroki seemed to remember something. His gaze refocused on Byakuya, his tone returning to its usual steady decisiveness: "Oh, right."
He paused, as if weighing his words, before dropping a decision that could change Byakuya's future: "Since you are now married, the Sixth Division can be returned to you."
"Ah, this?" Caught off guard, Byakuya's maintained composure shattered instantly. For the first time, a visible crack appeared in his frozen mask, and he even lost his poise, stepping half a pace forward. "Captain Hiroki? But my strength..."
His Bankai... was a power he had yet to fully master. He subconsciously clenched his fists, his body tensing slightly, like a student whose shortcomings had been exposed before a teacher.
Seeing his rare state of panic, Hiroki's eyes showed an even more certain expression.
He raised his hand and made a downward gesture, signaling Byakuya to stay calm.
"Strength is not an issue. I believe you will master 'Bankai' soon enough."
"Therefore," he continued, "there's no harm in you familiarizing yourself with the duties of a Captain in advance. After your leave ends, you will be the Acting Captain of the Sixth Division."
"This..." Byakuya's throat felt as if it were blocked.
The massive shock left him momentarily speechless.
Acting Captain? This meant he was about to return to the position that once carried his grandfather's glory.
Joy? Trepidation? Pressure? Complex emotions surged in the depths of his ice-blue eyes, eventually weaving into a profound sense of bewilderment.
He subconsciously looked at Hisana beside him. She, too, had widened her eyes slightly at this sudden appointment, but she quickly responded with a gentle look of trust and encouragement, lightly squeezing his palm.
Hiroki took a step forward. An invisible aura quietly spread, carrying a mountain-like pressure that forced Byakuya to focus all his mind on listening.
"Byakuya," Hiroki's voice was low and powerful, each word etched like a brand, "you must remember—" He paused deliberately, his gaze like a torch piercing into the depths of Byakuya's soul, "This is the responsibility of your Kuchiki Clan!"
This was not just a position; it was the scales that guarded the order of the Seireitei, maintained the glory of the Four Great Noble Clans, and even the balance of the entire Soul Society.
Like a basin of ice water poured over his head, all the confusion and trepidation in Byakuya's eyes were instantly frozen and crushed.
His tall frame suddenly tensed, like a sword awaiting inspection.
All hesitation and stray thoughts completely vanished before the words "responsibility of the Kuchiki Clan."
He took a deep breath and straightened his spine. In the most standard posture of the Head of the Kuchiki Clan, he bowed deeply to Captain Hiroki once more. His voice returned to its usual coldness, but it contained a rock-solid determination: "Yes, Captain Hiroki!" This promise was heavier than a thousand catties.
Hiroki nodded slightly and added as if in passing, "Also, I will leave Shisui with you for a while to help you transition into the division's duties. As for Kurahashi Maki, I will be taking her with me; she has other uses."
Byakuya had no objections to this arrangement. He knew Vice-CaptainShisui was steady and reliable, making him an excellent assistant.
As for Kurahashi Maki, he had nothing more to say; after all, she was Captain Hiroki's prisoner.
"Yes."
Everything that needed to be said had been said. The afterglow of the sunset had almost vanished, and the courtyard began to be shrouded in the bluish-gray of twilight. Captain Hiroki waved his hand casually, his tone returning to its initial ease: "Alright, that's all."
"You may withdraw."
"Yes, my lord." Byakuya bowed again. As the conversation ended, his form of address naturally shifted from "Captain Hiroki" back to the more formal and distant "my lord."
Perhaps the information from the conversation was too much to process, or perhaps it was the mental daze of the wedding combined with the heavy responsibility, but after bowing, Byakuya habitually—and even with a hint of relief—took Hisana's hand and turned to walk out of the courtyard. His steps were hurried, as if eager to leave an important yet heavy occasion.
Hisana was led a few steps by her husband's sudden movement, a look of confusion appearing on her face.
Hiroki had only taken a couple of steps when he heard hurried footsteps behind him and turned back in surprise.
He saw the newlyweds walking quickly toward the gate leading out of the Kuchiki Manor without looking back. Their silhouettes looked exceptionally... out of place in the empty courtyard.
"Hahaha! Kid Byakuya!" He laughed so hard he even wiped non-existent tears from the corner of his eye with the back of his hand. Pointing at the familiar bluestone path of the Kuchiki Manor beneath their feet, his tone was full of irrepressible mockery: "This is your house! Where are you going...?"
That laughter was like a thunderclap, striking the back of Byakuya's head.
His body froze instantly, as if pinned in place by the most powerful Bakudo. His footsteps came to an abrupt halt.
All expressions—whether the tenderness of the wedding, the complexity of accepting the appointment, or the resolve in the face of responsibility—vanished from his face like a receding tide.
He turned around slowly and extremely stiffly, revealing a face colder, stiffer, and more lifeless than the deepest midwinter ice of the Seireitei.
Instantly, that "ice-cold face" feared by all division members was back online. He stared straight ahead with empty eyes, as if all that embarrassment had never happened, or perhaps, it had been completely frozen, crushed, and deleted from his memory by his powerful willpower.
Beside him, Hisana could finally hold it in no longer.
First, her eyes widened in shock as she looked at her instantly petrified husband, then she looked at the laughing Captain Hiroki, and finally remembered the hilarious scene that had just occurred.
She quickly raised her wide sleeves to cover her mouth tightly, but her violently shaking shoulders and eyes curved like crescent moons completely betrayed her amusement.
Muffled laughter, tinkling like silver bells, eventually leaked through her fingers, echoing in the quiet twilight courtyard.
Seeing the extreme contrast between the completely petrified groom and the giggling bride, Captain Hiroki shook his head, an irrepressible smile on his face.
He took one last look at Byakuya, who had returned to being a perennial iceberg, and Hisana, who was still trying hard to stifle her laughter. He waved his hand, his tone full of relaxed and playful farewell: "Alright, alright!...Hahaha, I should go. Goodbye!"