Bleach: Watch Closely, This Is How You Use a Zanpakutō-Chapter 199: Solitude

"Why are you acting like we're parting forever? I've been to Soul Society before—it's just that this time, I'll be staying a little longer."

Masatsuki Aozaki slowly leaned in toward Harribel, placing a gentle hand on top of her head and softly ruffling her hair with a touch of affection.

"If you miss me, you can use Kidō or a Jigokuchō to send me a message. No matter when or where, if you call for me, I'll be there."

Harribel lowered her head, burying her face in the high collar of her clothing. She stood there, motionless, like a statue.

"I am not a child. Compared to me, Loly and Menoly need more comfort."

"I've never seen any of you as children. Even Loly and Menoly—sure, they look small and cute, but in terms of age, they're actually several times older than I am."

Masatsuki Aozaki gazed into Harribel's flickering emerald eyes, watching as she avoided his gaze. He shrugged helplessly.

"If anything, it should be them comforting me, considering they're the older ones."

"Do you want me to wake them? They should have recovered by now," Harribel said softly. "As Adjuchas-class Arrancar, they shouldn't be this fragile."

Masatsuki Aozaki sighed.

"Sometimes, I really want to crack open your head and see what's going on inside." ƒreeωebnovel.ƈom

To most, this woman was a sharp, intelligent, and commanding leader—a cool-headed queen who had earned the respect of countless Arrancar. If she weren't, she wouldn't have been able to maintain her position as their central pillar of strength.

Yet at certain moments like this, she revealed a surprisingly innocent, almost naive side.

Was she starved for affection? Or did emotions really lower one's intelligence?

The contrast was almost too much. It was... endearing. Enough to make someone dizzy.

Wait—could this be some kind of adorable assassination attempt? Was she trying to charm him to death so she could conveniently take possession of the Hōgyoku?

"So, do you want to see for yourself? If I can activate my Resurrección in time, maybe i won't die."

Harribel furrowed her brows slightly and responded in a quiet voice.

Forget it. Maybe she really is just a hopelessly straightforward woman.

Masatsuki Aozaki quickly waved his hands in refusal, looking slightly panicked.

"No, no, don't say things like that so casually! Besides, you've always hated meaningless sacrifices—how can you talk about dying so easily?"

"My life already belongs to you, Masatsuki-sama. I owe you for saving me, and I can never repay that debt. As long as it's for you, even if I have to give my life, it wouldn't be a meaningless sacrifice."

Harribel's voice was unwavering, her gaze resolute.

"Alright, alright, I get it. But you still need to treasure your own life," Masatsuki Aozaki said softly, his voice calm and gentle.

Harribel listened in silence, a complex emotion stirring within her.

"But since you say your life belongs to me, then I'm ordering you to cherish it. From now on, you no longer have the right to throw it away."

Masatsuki's gaze was sharp and unwavering as he stared straight at her.

Harribel felt a sudden heat rise from her chest, like swallowing a strong drink in the dead of winter, burning her throat and warming her from the inside out. The sensation spread through her body, clouding her thoughts, making her forget everything except the overwhelming need to speak what was in her heart.

"I understand. My life belongs only to you, Masatsuki-sama. It is no longer mine to do with as I please. No matter where I am, I will live, and I will follow you—until eternity... eternity..."

The moment the words left her lips, regret hit her like a crashing wave.

Why had she blurted that out?

Masatsuki-sama was a Shinigami, one meant to stand above all. And she... she was just an Arrancar, a Hollow who had clawed her way up from the depths like a beast.

To say she would follow him for eternity...

How laughable.

"Then it's settled," Masatsuki Aozaki said, his voice quickening as he grasped her shoulders. "By my side—until eternity!"

Harribel glanced at him, then lowered her head.

"...I won't go back on my word."

"Well, of course not. Even your enemies recognize you as a noble knight," Masatsuki Aozaki said. "Every word you've spoken, every promise you've made—I've taken them all to heart. So even if you wanted to take it back now, I wouldn't allow it."

Harribel let out a quiet sigh.

"Sometimes, I don't understand you at all. Your thoughts... how should I put it? They're difficult to grasp."

"If I'm not by your side, where else would I go?" She paused, then asked, "By the way, why did you make me your companion? You're already so strong—why keep someone as useless as me around?"

"Because I need you!"

"Why? I really want to know."

Masatsuki Aozaki shrugged. "Because... I'm lonely."

"Lonely? Someone as strong as you feels lonely?" Harribel found it difficult to believe.

In Hueco Mundo, the powerful were never short on followers. She wasn't sure how things worked in Soul Society, but strong individuals were respected no matter where they were, weren't they?

"I'm not joking," Masatsuki Aozaki said. "And I don't care if you find it laughable. When I first came to this world, I often felt alone. I don't know if you can understand, but I always felt like I didn't belong. Sometimes, I was even afraid of this world."

He exhaled lightly.

"But it's different now. More and more people like you have gathered around me, and little by little, I don't feel as scared anymore. The world doesn't seem as terrifying as it used to be..."

"Afraid?" Harribel murmured. She thought back over her near-thousand-year existence and gave a small nod. "I suppose I understand. Sometimes, fear comes from being too high up..."

"What?" Masatsuki Aozaki asked.

Harribel scratched her head lightly.

"When I first became a Vasto Lorde—before I met Sung-Sun and the others—every Adjuchas, every intelligent Menos that saw me reacted with fear. Back then, I often felt like I was something... separate from them."

"But later, I realized it wasn't because our lives themselves were different—it was because of our positions."

She lifted her gaze slightly.

"You might be the same. Your talent is extraordinary. Compared to others, the place you stand is simply too high. You've long since stepped into a world different from theirs."

Masatsuki Aozaki blinked, then chuckled.

"It's not that our lives are different, but our positions—huh? That's a profound way of looking at it! You see things much more clearly than I do."

He tilted his head back, staring up at the sky. A familiar face flickered in his mind, and he murmured,

"This sounds familiar... Didn't I say something like this about someone before?"

Then, with an exaggerated nod, he said seriously, "Congratulations, my queen... You're a philosopher now."

"You're doing it again," Harribel said in a calm tone.

Beneath her mask, her skin had turned slightly red—though no one noticed.

...

(40 Chapters Ahead)

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