Chapter 77 Epilogue

Although judging from the results, Kurosaki Utsuki did not provide any particular help in this arrest operation led by the public security police.

But an hour after the mission was announced to be over, in a call from Rei Furuya, he still expressed his strong gratitude to her, and said something that made her extremely relieved, "Hiro and I feel at ease when you are around."

"Would you like to meet?" Kurosaki Utsuki said, suppressing a smile, "I'd like to introduce someone to you."

Half an hour later, in a cafe outside Tropical Paradise, near the station, two identical "Kurosaki Utsuki" successfully scared the disguised Furuya Rei.

But he soon showed an expression of sudden enlightenment: "Is this the surprise that Hiro said I would receive?"

Kurosaki Utsuki and Hagiwara Kenji exchanged a glance, each adding a word to complete the sentence.

"Can you tell which of us is the real Ge Xi?"

After pretending to drink coffee while actually observing carefully for ten minutes, Furuya Rei gave up struggling.

"So, who among you is Ge Xi? Who is the other person besides Ge Xi, or does he belong to the human category?" he asked.

Hagiwara Kenji shook his head regretfully: "Maybe not human."

Kurosaki Utsuki laughed happily: "Actually, it's an evil spirit."

Hagiwara Kenji also echoed her sentiments: "How could Utahiki-chan be so mean to reveal my identity so bluntly? What if she scares Kouya-chan?"

Fūya Rei was stunned for a moment.

He wasn't frightened, but he had heard the name "Little Furuya" a long time ago, during his beautiful and bright police academy days, and the person who called him that had already—

"Hagiwara?" He called out the name tentatively, but before getting a response, he had already believed his own judgment.

Hagiwara Kenji smiled.

Of course, Kurosaki Utsuki admitted it: "There are two Hagiwaras here, which one are you calling?"

After listening to the two people opposite briefly explain the reasons for their current "twin" appearance and that they seemed to have found a way to leave their bodies not long ago, Furuya Rei remained silent for a while.

Although he wanted to express his gratitude for the unexpected surprise he received, what was more important was that he was sincerely happy for his friend and his friend's wife.

"How long can you stay here?" asked Furuya Rei.

And he immediately got a somewhat touching answer: "Until Xiao Gexi dies of natural causes."

"Why, are you jealous?" Kurosaki Utsuki raised an eyebrow, holding her cheek with one hand and teasing, "Why do you look like you're about to cry?"

But the man who should have been furious at this moment just looked at her gently, his eyes full of relief: "I'm so happy that you can be reunited so soon."

The overly direct expression of her feelings made Kurosaki Utahi feel uneasy. She lowered her head and tactically took a sip of her drink. She waited until the two people beside her had finished looking at her and laughing before she spoke again, "How's the situation over there?"

She was asking about the winery.

As she spoke, a crimson light emanated from her palms, and combined with a little spiritual power, it created an almost soundproof barrier.

Speaking of work, Furuya Rei's expression grew slightly more serious, and his tone became grave: "Although we have successfully captured Gin, our work is not over yet."

"But Gin's status is not low. His capture will have a significant impact on the organization. Hiro and I may be able to take advantage of this opportunity to move closer to the core of the organization."

Kenji Hagiwara held the hand of the girl next to him.

"This way, little Shiho will surely be able to return to the sunlight soon."

He paused.

"Of course, you and Morobushi too, Kofuku-chan."

·

Around eleven o'clock, Utsuki Kurosaki and Kenji Hagihara arrived at Urahara's store.

Before leaving, Kurosaki Utsuki made a phone call. When he arrived, Urahara Kisuke, wearing a green striped hat, was waiting in the store with a teacup in his hand, lazily waving a small fan.

"Ah~ Miss Utah, it's been a long time."

Kurosaki Utsuki naturally sat down in the empty seat next to him and asked her companions to come sit over. "It's been a while, but Urahara-san is still as radiant as ever. Did anything good happen?"

"It's just a little progress in research, not a big deal." Urahara Kisuke said, suddenly unfolding his fan to cover half of his face, with a businessman's attitude. "But there may be places where you can use Ms. Utahiki's help later."

Rather than needing her help, it would be more accurate to say that he needs the Broken Jade, right?

Kurosaki Utsuki nodded: "No problem, after all, I have always been under the care of Mr. Urahara, you can call me anytime. But work must take priority here, and Mr. Urahara knows it."

"Of course. Ms. Kashi is a respected forensic scientist."

"No, I'm far from that. Mr. Urahara is a respectable scientist."

Kenji Hagiwara rubbed his chin, looked at his wife, and then at the smiling store manager. He always felt that the content of their conversation was just polite business flattery, but it sounded clearly sincere.

He knew that his wife respected the Director of the Technology Development Bureau from the bottom of her heart, and he had heard a lot about him at the Maou Spiritual Academy... but he couldn't quite equate some of his deeds with the less-than-serious store manager in front of him.

In short, although his talent is not in scientific research at all, he will never give up!

A few minutes later, the three people and the cat entered the underground training ground under the store.

After Urahara Kisuke handed the updated version of the "Enhanced Soul Separation Gloves" to Kurosaki Utsuki, the black cat, who was very good at reading the air, immediately called him away, leaving the huge underground space to the two of them.

A persimmon tree planted not far away was lush and leafy. Hagiwara Kenji couldn't help but stare at it for a moment longer. Then he heard the voice of the girl named "Persimmon": "I don't know how Ichimaru cultivated these trees, or whether Mr. Urahara helped, but the persimmons there are quite delicious, sweeter than those sold in supermarkets."

"Eh? Really?"

"Well, when the persimmons are ripe in October, we can come here to pick them and take them back to make our own dried persimmon cakes." Kurosaki Utsuki licked her lips as she spoke, as if recalling the taste in her memory. "There are other options. The dried persimmon cakes made by Ichimaru are delicious. We can wait until he's done and then come back."

"October... I'm already looking forward to it."

After the words were spoken, the two fell into silence.

Because the anticipated moment is about to arrive, I can't help but feel nervous.

It was Kurosaki Utsuki who took action first. She broke away from the artificial body, her soul wearing a Shinigami outfit, with a Zanpakuto inserted at her waist, and she still looked like a seventeen-year-old girl.

"Then let's get started."

As she said this, she put on the prop gloves that had just been delivered to her.

It only took a moment to separate the spirit from the body. Urahara Kisuke's inventions were always trustworthy - except for the expired memory processing spray - Kurosaki Utsuki looked up at the man who had regained his form, and her body was being held in the man's arms.

"Kuroki-chan."

The man in the Shinigami suit spoke slowly. He was also wearing a Shinigami suit with a Zanpakutō on his waist.

Kurosaki Utsuki blinked slightly.

"Yeah." She replied in a low voice.

It was still the Hagiwara Kenji she remembered, the young man of only twenty-two years old when he died as a human.

"I'm back," he said.

So she also curled the corners of her lips.

"Welcome back."

Monday, May 15th

At half past ten in the evening, Kurosaki Utsuki finally returned home. On the way to the bathroom, she dropped her bag and clothes one after another. When she entered the bathroom, she was already in a state where she could take a shower immediately.

Kenji Hagiwara, wearing a prosthetic body, followed her and picked up the clothes, checking whether there was anything in the pockets while picking up the clothes. Then he stood in front of the washing machine next to the bathroom, put the clothes into the laundry bag one by one, and threw them into the washing machine.

"It's so much easier with you here." The person in the bathroom stretched, but instead of rushing to run the water, they chatted with the people outside. "Every weekend, the road just now would be covered with clothes. If you don't want to clean it up, just leave it there. I don't mind at all."

Hagiwara Kenji smiled and shook his head, not responding to her words: "Thank you for your hard work in court."

"Hmm...it was definitely tough. The other side's defense attorney was that lawyer with a zero-loss record, Lawyer Fei. She's truly amazing. Even though I was only appearing in court as a forensic pathologist, after I explained my part to the judge, she still questioned me for a full half-hour, covering every detail."

Completely relaxed after returning home, Kurosaki Utsuki couldn't help but sigh, "If I ever need to find a lawyer in the future, Attorney Hime will definitely be my first choice. Ah, but Yuji-kun's performance was pretty good before, and Attorney Nishikari from his law firm seems pretty reliable too."

She suddenly stopped talking, remembering the time she had seen before entering the house: "Yanji, are you going out?"

It was the duty time for the garrisoned Death Gods—although there were no reports of Hollows appearing, regular patrols and confirming whether there were any that needed soul burial were also part of the garrisoned Death Gods' duties.

"It's almost time," Hagiwara Kenji confirmed, closing the washing machine's lid. "I've already poured in the detergent. Remember to start the wash after you shower. Don't worry about hanging it out to dry; I'll do it when I get back."

"Hey...I'll do the laundry myself."

The person on the other end didn't insist, simply repeating her earlier words: "If you don't want to do it, just throw it in the washing machine. There's no need to force yourself. — Then I'll go to work. I hope it's a peaceful night, but it would be nice if we could catch a few bad guys and help Xiaogu and the others with their sales."

Kurosaki Utsuki just responded when she suddenly remembered something: "Kenji, next time don't squat outside the window all night for fear of waking me up."

"But Kaku-chan is having a hard time."

"That's not what I meant—although I forgot to unlock the window, you, as a spirit, can pass through walls."

Finally, Kenji Hagiwara separated from the body and jumped into the night from the windowsill with a slightly embarrassed smile, while Utsuki Kurosaki turned on the shower and gently closed her eyes in the warm water.

She has already truly felt the happiness she wanted as a human being.

"From now on, too—"

She will continue to live a happy and fulfilling life.