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Far beyond the reaches of the seireitei, a large man was traveling with a small child. The child practically clung to the large man, as they were fleeing the small village they had briefly stayed in. "Daddy, why do we have to go so soon?" The small boy asked. They'd rarely stayed in one place for more than a week. They'd just been wandering, hoping to find a place in the world. "Well, Dai-chan, some people were...not happy to have us there." He said, rubbing a spot on his chest. In truth, they had called him a monster and a demon when they saw his appearance, even resorting to assault to get him to leave. He had always kept his son hidden from others, as he didn't want him to face the same attacks he'd received. Daiko nodded at his fathers reasoning. His father was his whole world, really the only person he knew.

As the pair traveled, they encountered hollows, looking for a meal. Sajin used his size to his advantage, and tore them apart with his bare hands. He always told his son to close his eyes before he did it, until he said otherwise. Seeing the brutality wasn't something Daiko needed to see, or even experience. During one such encounter, Sajin had encountered someone, a soul reaper. Neither of them knew much about them, but Sajin was more than ready to fight them. "Most impressive, young man. Not many can fight hollows with no formal training. More impressive still, I could only sense the hollow. You must be quite adept at hiding your spiritual pressure." The old man praised. Daiko wasn't sure what any of that meant, but he interjected. "My daddy is the strongest person in the whole wide world!" He said, puffing his own chest with pride. The old man chuckled "Is he now? Well, a fine man like that should become a soul reaper with no trouble at all." The old man said, smirking.

Sajin was in awe, mostly at the praise he received. He hadn't gotten such praise in so long. "While I thank you for the praise, I doubt you'll want to have me." He said, a sense of shame in his voice. "Nonsense! A strong man like you can only be an asset." The old man said, tapping his cane on the ground. Daiko noticed the tap made quite an indent in the ground. Sajin sighed, before he took off his face coverings, revealing his wolf head. "As you can tell, I'm clearly not soul reaper material." He said, looking down at his son, and patting his head. "All I see before me is a strong warrior, fighting to give his child a better life. If that isn't soul reaper material, then I do not know what is." He said, turning his gaze to the young boy. "What say you, small child?" Daiko was a bit perplexed by the old man's way of speaking, but he replied as he had before. "My daddy is the bestest ever! He could definitely be a soul guy!" Yamamoto got a good laugh, hearing the child speak so frankly "Well young man, it seems even your child believes strongly in you. So, i'd like to formally offer to have you enrolled in the Shinso academy to become a soul reaper."

Sajin couldn't believe what he was hearing. Someone knew what he looked like, and treated him like an actual person, not a monster. He almost wanted to cry tears of joy. "Very well. But I'll need someone to watch my son while I do so." He said, standing firmly. The old man nodded. "Of course. I assume you do not wish for your forms to be discovered, so, my trusted lieutenant shall watch him. Now, what are your names?" He asked. "I am Sajin Komamura, and this is my son, Daiko." Sajin replied, before bowing to the old man. Daiko wasn't sure why his dad was bowing, but he bowed too.

The old man nodded, before introducing himself. "A pleasure to make your acquaintance. I am head captain of squad 1, Genryusai Yamamoto." He said with great authority in his voice. So much, that Sajin felt he had disrespected the head captain "Thank you, Yamamoto-Dono!" He said, feeling a sense of optimism he had long since lost.

The pair had gone with Yamamoto to the seireitei, Sajin feeling extremely uncomfortable around crowds of people. Especially when they pointed at him and began to talk. Daiko was also incredibly nervous, clinging to his dads leg. He hadn't seen this amount of people. It was like going to your first day of school. Yamamoto brought Sajin to a small room with a single cot. "Unfortunately, we cannot provide a two bedroom accommodation, but I'll personally make sure you receive a second cot by tomorrow." He said, before giving them locations for the academy's cafeteria, which Sajin could eat at for free. Where the training areas were. And even the designated bathing area, as well as times when no one was likely to be there. The pair nodded along, before settling into their small accommodations. Which was FAR nicer than anything they'd received before. Usually, they snuck into barns if it was cold.

Sajin thanked Yamamoto for his incredible generosity, promising him that he wouldn't let him down. At least, he hoped not. After all was said and done, Sajin and Daiko went to a nice secluded spot, to watch the sunset alone, or so they thought, anyway. As the two sat, a voice called out. "Is someone there? I can sense your faint spiritual pressure." The man said as he walked near them. He was dressed similarly to Yamamoto. Sajin looked at him, not sure if he should respond. "I can tell you aren't a threat. You just happened to come to my friend's grave. So, please." He said, waiting for Sajin to respond.

Sajin wasn't sure what to say, so Daiko spoke first. "Who are you?" He asked. "Ah, a child. That may be why I barely sensed you. My name is Kaname Tousen, a Soul Reaper in training." He said, unsure of how much the child knew. "So, you're gonna be one of those soul people guys? My daddy's gonna be the bestest one ever!" He said, still feeling that sense of pride. Kaname had to think for a moment "I see. So, is he the other pressure I'm sensing? It felt like there were two." He said, as Sajin sighed. "Yes, I'm here too...though, given your eyes, I'm assuming you're blind." Sajin said, still not sure what to make of him. "Ah, yes, I am. It's rather kind of them to allow a blind man to become a soul reaper" he said, giving a bow in the wrong direction. He had trouble sensing them specifically, which made Daiko giggle.

Sajin nodded, as he felt a sort of kinship. Neither man would be accepted by the world at large. "Yamamoto-dono seems like a kind and generous man." Komamura said, which Tousen nodded to "Indeed. Very rarely do people outside the captains and lieutenants even get to meet him. You're quite the lucky man. I look forward to the day you do become a soul reaper" he said with a faint smile, before leaving the two. Sajin couldn't help but feel a little motivated. "He seemed nice." Daiko said. "I suppose he did, Dai-chan, i suppose he did." Sajin reassured his son, before they returned to their room.

Early the next morning, Sajin was awoken by someone at his door. He covered himself and Daiko, unsure who it was. When he answered, it was a rather average looking older gentleman, with a dignified air to him. "Can I help you?" Sajin asked, not sure who this was. The man gave a polite bow "Yes, my name is Chojiro Sasakibe. I've been instructed to watch your child, while you're at the academy. On order of head captain Yamamoto, of course." He said, as daiko woke up "Who's this guy, daddy?" The young pup asked as he rubbed his eyes. He hadn't even realized his face was covered. Chojiro smiled, finding it cute how the boy addressed his father. Chojiro introduced himself to Daiko "While your father is away, I shall be your caretaker, I'll definitely help you become a fine young man." The lieutenant said with a kind smile. Daiko smiled back "I wanna be like my daddy!" He said, that sense of pride on full display. Chojiro couldn't help but agree "Perhaps when you're older, you can recieve the same training as him. As for you, Sajin, classes begin soon, you'd best get a move on." He said, handing him very detailed instructions on where to go.

Once the large man left, Chojiro took Daiko to the barracks in squad one. It was easier to work and watch the boy, who kept hiding whenever a person got close. He was naturally scared of people. His dad had always taught him to hide if he felt he was in danger. Chojiro did his best to calm him, but he wasn't having it. "It's alright, Dai-kun, these fine men aren't going to harm you." He said, trying to reassure him, as he was hiding in Chojiro's closet, until he felt no one was around. He didn't exactly know this man, so he was wary. His dad trusted him enough to leave him in his care, so he at least listened to him. "How about I male some tea." Chojiro suggested. Daiko didn't know what that was, but nodded. It would at least be a good distraction.

As Chojiro brewed the tea, Daiko watched, fascinated by something so foreign to him. The smell was, odd. It didn't smell good, but Chojiro seemed to be enjoying it. "Where did you learn this?" He asked. Chojiro smiled, glad the boy was opening up. "Well, when I was in the human world, I happened upon an Englishman. He was so fascinating, I took the time to learn about his culture. I was so enraptured, I felt a kinship with it." Daiko nodded along, as he watched the odd metal thing get put on a metal fire. The young boy had no clue what it was, but he knew the fire was hot. Once the metal thing got hot enough, it started whistling, a sound that aggravated the pup's ears. Chojiro saw his discomfort and pulled the kettle off, and poured two cups of tea, and handed one to Daiko. "Be careful, it's hot." He warned. Daiko nodded, and turned away to take a sip. Naturally, he burned his tongue, not knowing how to cool it. "Ahh! Too hot!" He said and set the cup down.

Chojiro gave a slightly amused smirk. "I'm sorry, young one. I should've shown you how to cool it down." He said, before gently blowing it, before taking a sip. Daiko watched intently, before doing the same to the cup he'd set down. Naturally, he blew a bit too hard, spilling some on the table he'd set it on. Once the cup felt less hot, Daiko took another drink. If he hadn't been covered, Chojiro would see the boys grimacing face "Blech! This tastes terrible!" He said, setting it back down. Chojiro got a chuckle "you aren't the first to tell me that. It certainly is something you grow accustomed to. Children rarely enjoy it." The older man said, with an affirming smile. The rest of the time he spent with Chojiro, was spent being regaled with past fights Chojiro and Yamamoto had gone through together. Though he left out all the gorey details.

Daiko listened very closely, learning more about what his dad was out learning to do. The idea of his dad being the gallant hero in a story like the ones Chojiro told, made the boy smile. He wanted everyone to love his dad as much as he did. He always saw that look of hurt his dad had whenever they left after people found them. Seeing his dad hurt and sad, made him feel hurt and sad. He decided he wanted to become a soul guy too. He was going to support his dad, no matter how bad it got! It had already gotten late by the time Sajin came to the squad one barracks , to pick his son up. The boy was sleeping on the floor, while Chojiro was doing some calligraphy. "Excuse me, Lieutenant Sasakibe, I'm here to pick up my son." The man said, as he literally picked him up. Chojiro nodded "of course. How was your first day?" The lieutenant asked. "It was...a bit. Unnerving. So many people, watching my every move, like they're waiting for me to attack them." Chojiro listened closely "I see, hopefully, that feeling will go away with time. Also, I'm rather impressed by how calm your son is. I was expecting to never have a moment's rest with a child." Sajin smiled "Thank you, lieutenant. I'd like to think I did a good job with what little we had." Sajin said, smiling as he held his son close. He had been so nervous to become a father, more so when he discovered he'd do it all alone. Hearing his son receiving praised, made all his anxiety melt away. That fear he'd carried, about making the wrong decision to leave, was relieved by Chojiro's words. He'd do anything to keep Daiko safe.

As he carried his son back to their room, three men walked up to him. Two grown, and one who looked like a young boy. He very quickly recognized one of them as Tousen, the blind soul reaper in training he had met the day before. "Well, this guy certainly is big." The boy said, having an unsettling smile on his face. Tousen hushed him "Forgive this young man's rudeness. He only recently joined." Tousen apologized. "It's fine. Who are these men?" Sajin asked as the man in glasses gave a smile "My apologies, my name is Sosuke Aizen, the lieutenant of squad 5." He said, rather calmly. The boy just waved "I'm Gin, a pleasure to meet you, big guy" he said, having an oddly jovial feel. "Gin here has recently joined squad 5. He's very skilled, despite his demeanor" Aizen stated, as he readjusted his glasses. Sajin was having a hard time getting a read on Aizen, but he seemed nice enough. "Thank you, for taking the time. Hopefully I can become a soul reaper as well." Sajin said, stoically. He wasn't all that sure how much to trust them, though he felt inclined to trust Tousen. "If you'll excuse me, I need to get my son to bed." Sajin went to head forward, Aizen stepping out of his way "of course. I'm sure any squad will be pleased to have you." He said with a kind smirk on his face. Under his coverings, Sajin couldn't help but smile. "Thank you, Lieutenant Aizen." He walked off, a bit slowly in case they had anything more to say. Aizen kept his thoughts to himself.

When Sajin arrived back to his room, he did have a second cot, a smaller one. He smiled as he put his son to bed, hopeful he had made the right choice. He wanted the best for his son, even if he was put in danger to do it. He also owed captain Yamamoto a huge debt, one he could never repay. He would serve this man with his life. Not that he had any plans to throw his life away. His son needed him. He would need to be their for Daiko, until he was sure he was ready. As he was about to drift to sleep, he felt something crawl on him. He opened his eyes and smiled, his son was resting on his chest. He put his arms around him, and snuggled him as he fell asleep.