Safeguarding the Kyūtai

Following their respective flights from, and after numerous adventures on their own and together, Kenji Hiroshi and Van Satonaka worked together on a number of occasions to safeguard the legendary Kyūtai from those who would misuse their power. This mission took place over the course of a century and, by the time the First Spiritual War broke out, only Fushichō was not safely hidden away. Prior to The Collapse the elusive Fushichō would eventually be obtained and kept by Kenji's son Kentaro Hiroshi.

Ōin
Kenji stumbled upon the Ōin by pure accident when he discovered the heavily injured Tōshirō Hitsugaya collapsed outside his home in the World of the Living. Rather than leave him for the searching Onmitsukidō, Kenji erased any evidence of the young Captain's presence and treated his injuries, whilst hiding him in his own home in. Upon waking Hitsugaya was shocked when Kenji volunteered to aid him. Kenji would later explain to Hitsugaya the true nature of the Ōin and further speculated that Sōjirō's revival was not a result of the Ōin's power, but something else altogether. The Ōin fell back into the hands of the Soul Society in the wake of this incident, but would turn up years later in the possession of Akira Nakamura during the First Spiritual War.

Semaiumi
Kenji approached the Visored, specifically Lisa Yadōmaru, for help shortly after they successfully guided through the initial phases of his  training. The two travelled to Heisekai where they cast Semaiumi into the spiritual sea, which had the unforeseen effect of creating a ceaseless whirlpool at the location. Kenji would later retrieve this Kyūtai for his own use, before returning it to the sea afterward.

Asataiyō
Kenji and Van successfully located and hid away Asataiyō sometime before the outbreak of the Winter War.

Tōboefū
Kenji, Van and Kusaka successfully located and hid away Tōboefū sometime before the outbreak of the Winter War. Whilst it is unclear which Kyūtai Kusaka later claimed as his own, Tōboefū was one of the Kyūtai unaccounted for following The Collapse; it was further hinted by Kenji that Kusaka had it with him.

Blood War
After intervening in the per the request of Tōshirō Hitsugaya, Kenji utilised two of the Kyūtai -- Asataiyō and Semaiumi -- to restore both Kensei Muguruma and Rōjūrō "Rose" Ōtoribashi to normal after they had been zombified by the Quincy. He confided in Shinji that he and Van had returned to the locations they had originally hidden the two Kyūtai in the event their power was needed. He later used the two again to restore the span of Hitsugaya and 's life to normal as well. These actions revealed to the that Kenji possessed some of the Kyūtai and he was thus labelled a criminal for seeking dangerous artefacts.

Conflict with Oda
For sixteen years only two of the Kyūtai where unaccounted for: Fushichō was unknowingly in the possession of Shinzō and the Ōin was still in the possession of Akira Nakamura, who was thought dead by his friends and close family; the Ōin was thought lost to the sands of where Akira supposedly died. Towards the end of the conflict with Oda Kōhai, however, which saw the return of Averian, Kenji and Kusaka turned to the Kyūtai to bridge the massive power-gap between themselves and the now stronger Averian. Kenji ended up with Sasaeru -- it refused to work with anyone else -- though it is not currently known which Kyūtai Kusaka bonded to himself.

New Kyūtai
After The Collapse alternate versions of Kenji's son Kentaro Hiroshi, known by the self-given title Nanashi, and Kaien Shiba, arrived from their own world. With them they brought Musabori and Tōboefū from their own world, which brought the number of Kyūtai from seven to nine.

Wielders
Following The Collapse it became less about safeguarding the Kyūtai and more about using their power to protect a world brought to its knees. The wielders of the orbs are as follows:


 * Sasaeru -- Kenji Hiroshi.
 * Ōin -- Akira Nakamura.
 * Musabori -- Garian Shinjo and Nanashi.
 * Fushichō -- Kentaro Hiroshi.
 * Asataiyō -- Unknown. Possibly Kusaka Kori.
 * Tōboefū -- Kaien Shiba. Possibly Kusaka Kori.
 * Semaiumi -- Unknown. Possibly Kusaka Kori.

Behind the scenes

 * In the original draft of the story the Kyūtai, sans the original, did not exist. The creation of Garian Shinjo and the subsequent fleshing out of his character led to the creation of his inferior copies. The Ōin would only be added later through brainstorming with APS.