"...Red bean paste?"
I died and woke up in darkness, standing before a gate that resembled an old-fashioned checkpoint.
Rows of people wearing kimonos, perhaps kosode, stretched in front of and behind me. This group, dressed in anachronistic clothing, marched steadily toward the gate. I found myself among them.
A wave of déjà vu washed over me as I gazed at the gate. There stood a samurai in black hakama, but wait, that's a Grim Reaper. Is this the world of Bleach? That's incredible!
I grasped the situation instantly and waited for my turn with a smile, alone among the downcast dead in line. I wished they'd let me through quickly. I wanted to become a Soul Reaper, to wield Kido spells, to dramatically declare, "What... did you say...?!"
And so I was admitted to Soul Society without any particular purpose, but I soon realized I had an important mission.
"I'm... a beautiful girl..."
After being sent to the West 1st District of Rukongai and spending time there, men approached me wherever I went. I fled as fast as possible from the danger threatening my virtue, and when I checked my reflection in well water, those words escaped my lips.
No, I wasn't just cute. While all the girls in Soul Society were beautiful, this face was surely among the finest. So delicate and pretty that I could say with confidence, I was an incredibly beautiful girl who stirred protective instincts in others.
I see. Gender-swap reincarnation, here it is.
"But with this face and this voice..."
With an appearance like this, there was no way I could be a background character. I searched through the character voices from the anime that I remembered, and there she was.
"The trauma girl, Hinamori Momo."
No explanation is necessary for Bleach readers, but Hinamori Momo's role as vice-captain of the 5th Division in the original work can be summed up in one sentence:
She's the poster child for suffering.
In the original work, she somehow survived until the end, but she was also a character who embodied the author's darker themes, being struck down repeatedly throughout the story. Unfortunately, I'm not a masochist, and I simply don't enjoy being hurt. Even if I tried to change the original storyline, the fact that "Hinamori-chan doesn't suffer" would already be an insult to Bleach's narrative structure.
In other words, I'll just have to let Aizen-sama cut me down obediently. Damn it.
But wait. Even if this is a second life through reincarnation, this is still the world of Bleach. If being slashed and enduring painful death is unavoidable out of respect for the original work, I'd like some compensation. For example:
"...Why not use this misfortune to my advantage and do my best to make Shiro-chan suffer emotionally while enjoying his reactions?"
It's terrible, even if I say so myself, but it might be interesting.
As a reader, I always felt that Hinamori-chan was one of my favorite female characters, but Shiro-chan, who shared a close relationship with her, was a different story entirely.
Yes, I'm a huge Shiro-chan fan.
Shiro-chan, Hitsugaya Toshiro, captain of the 10th Division, is one of the most handsome and prodigious characters in the series. He wields the Zanpakuto Hyorinmaru, said to be the strongest ice-type sword, and for the sake of his childhood friend, he challenges powerful enemies time and again. It's no exaggeration to say that his small but determined figure makes him another protagonist of the Bleach world. He's a truly charming character.
...But just admiring your favorite character?
No, no. Admiration is the emotion furthest from understanding. Just like how certain characters shine brighter when they're unhappy than when they're happy, there are rare people in this world whose fans want to cherish that radiance more than anything else.
Besides, don't they say, "You want to tease the person you like"?
...Well, sorry Shiro-chan. It's embarrassing to admit, but I'm a bit of a fan of that pattern. When I read the original story and saw you repeatedly calling out your childhood friend's name, or watched you struggle as Aizen toyed with you, or witnessed your powerlessness as she was stabbed again and again, I couldn't help but feel... delighted.
He's devoted to his older childhood friend and works hard, sometimes taking action, but he's basically a proud character who's always declaring "What... did you say...?!" and getting into fierce battles. A cocky, handsome, prodigious young man... don't you want to cloud his heart?
I'm so sorry.
For some reason, someone like me ended up reincarnated as his beloved childhood friend, Hinamori Momo-chan. Anyone could see that fate was telling me to play the Hinamori role and mess with Shiro-chan, no, to bring out his charm.
In the first place, this character, Hinamori Momo, has an important role, apart from satisfying readers who enjoy seeing characters suffer, as a catalyst to move Hitsugaya Toshiro, an important character, through the story. This isn't a joke, but a fairly well-known interpretation based on how the character was conceived.
Therefore, when I declared "I will become Hinamori myself," I could say it was the right thing to do in terms of respecting the original work, for me to sacrifice myself for the various trials that would help Shiro-chan grow.
...Okay then.
Driven by this sense of mission, I came up with a plan to bring out Shiro-chan's heroic nature. A breakthrough from the original that would retain Momo Hinamori's personality and feelings while still fulfilling my desires:
To serve Aizen Sosuke until the very end.
Apart from the suffering, Hinamori's charms are her beauty and her obsessive devotion. Her fanaticism, which emphasizes Aizen-sama's charisma, is one of the defining symbols of Bleach, a manga heavily focused on depicting various forms of "love." In fact, as someone reincarnated into this role, I should make moves even more striking than in the original.
Initially, Hinamori was certainly a brave girl, just as Aizen preferred, but early in the story, that brightness was clouded by her admiration for Captain Aizen. In the end, she was deemed worthless in both ability and spirit, and was abandoned by her beloved superior... Well, that was also because she had been manipulated into that state by the twisted Aizen.
What if Momo Hinamori had been mentally and spiritually strong enough to resist Aizen Sosuke's manipulation? Or what if Aizen hadn't shown her the "mercy" of striking her down, but instead had dragged her down the path of evil? I think it's a very interesting premise.
I decided to explore this angle and use it to torment my beloved Shiro-chan.
...Am I the worst?
So, dear readers, please try to imagine: What if your beloved childhood friend, whom you swore to protect, was deceived by a villain and betrayed Soul Society? What if the person you thought you had to protect turned out to be much stronger than you? And in the end, when you were cast aside like a broken doll, picture Shiro-chan's face as he holds her in his arms while she dies, whispering, "I'm sorry... I love you..."
Evil grin
So, in order to burn the sight and screams of Shiro-chan into my eyes and ears, I decided to hone my strength to live a little longer.
I can't be defeated until I'm strong enough not to be killed instantly by Aizen-sama. After all, if I die instantly, I'll miss Shiro-chan's precious "Hinamoriiiiiii!" scream. That would be problematic.
Above all, it would be rude to him who would be crying out in anguish. (I'm sorry.)
However, even though Aizen's power is described as "spiritual pressure twice that of a Gotei 13 captain", a famous indicator of his strength before his transformation, it's difficult to know what that actually feels like.
For now, I'll train my spiritual power to its fullest in order to survive in the world of Bleach, where spiritual pressure is paramount. When I tire of physical training, I'll focus on developing my Kido abilities, which I showed talent for in the original work, to avoid Aizen-sama's deadly blade and observe Shiro-chan for even one more second before dying or fainting after being slashed.
Well, there are about 150 years left until the start of the original story. By that time, I'll be able to perform the challenging Hinamori role effortlessly. If I'm going to do it, I'll show it thoroughly, regardless of my current age or gender. This is where the skills of a former tabletop RPG club member will shine.
"Alright. I'm not just me anymore... I'm Momo Hinamori! A life where I just want to make Shiro-chan scream 'Hinamoriiiiiii!' is about to begin!"
I don't think I'll survive until the final battle scene, but I'll do my best to hear the most spectacular "Hinamoriiiiiii!" So please time your slash perfectly with me, Captain Aizen!
Still, I need to become strong enough that I won't be killed instantly by Aizen-sama's attacks.
...Isn't that quite the high bar to clear?