Bleach [94-98] (Patreon)

Chapter 94: Capture Kisuke Urahara and Kill Him!

In the world of Shinigami, names must be taken very seriously.

As the saying goes, all power is contained within names.

The great monk of the Zero Squad has the ability to sever names, and losing a name means losing power.

Therefore, the names that appear in one's mind are extremely important.

Generally speaking, the "Espada" in "Hueco Mundo" have Spanish names, which is why many people believe that "Hueco Mundo" corresponds to Spain in the real world.

However, Angra Mainyu is clearly not a Spanish name; it's the dark lord from Persian mythology.

Of course, he has a more famous alias: the root of all evil and darkness, or more precisely, 'All the World's Evil'!

This name...

It's quite good.

Hmm, my Zanpakuto's true form is Lonely Hell, and its Hollow value is All the World's Evil—no matter how you look at it, it seems like a major villain.

Oh well, since I'm already Aizen, it's hard not to be a bad guy.

Spirit Split had no effect on my reishi, which means Angra Mainyu's current strength is very weak.

So Yoshio opened a Garganta and first sent Angra Mainyu to the Human World to train him, planning to send him to Hueco Mundo once he grew a bit stronger.

Suddenly, two perspectives appeared in his mind, which was a bit inconvenient at first, but Yoshio quickly adapted.

Because in the end, it's still himself...

After handling Angra's matters, Yoshio released the Gatekeeper's ability and lay down on the bed.

Yoshio didn't know how Seireitei would handle such incidents occurring inside it.

He hadn't paid much attention before, but now he started thinking about it.

Because he needed to consider what benefits this matter could bring him!

He had already separated out a Hollow factor, but it was too weak now and not very useful.

Yoshio needed Angra Mainyu to grow into a Vasto Lorde over the next forty years or so, which was almost impossible.

The way Hollows advance is different from Shinigami; Shinigami can leap multiple levels in a short time. If you're talented enough, becoming a Lieutenant in a few years and a Captain in about a decade isn't impossible.

But Hollows are predatory creatures; their power comes from devouring other souls, whether Shinigami, humans, or Hollows...

They absorb others' souls to accumulate reishi, then change forms.

From ordinary Hollows evolving into giant Menos Grande Gillians.

Then devouring other Menos Grande, increasing their reishi while compressing it, improving its quality, and condensing their forms to grow into Adjuchas.

Typically, a Gillian is formed from the fusion of tens of thousands or even millions of Hollows, and a powerful Vasto Lorde Arrancar is a terrifying monster with billions of souls condensed within!

Generally, devouring so many souls not only brings a massive increase in reishi but also an overwhelming flood of memories.

Therefore, a "Menos Grande" is no longer the original "Menos Grande."

Perhaps one of those thousands of souls was too strong and took dominance, or maybe the mixture of thousands of souls formed a entirely new dominant consciousness.

So, Yoshio needed to be careful in this regard.

He planned to create a memory storage device so that when Angra devoured other souls, he would only absorb the reishi and filter out the memories and emotions.

This wasn't impossible; he just needed to use Telaraña in reverse.

Telaraña's ability is to extract information from things, including people's memories, emotions, and thoughts. So Yoshio could naturally use this property of Telaraña to filter out people's memories, emotions, and thoughts.

This could be considered his first step on the path to becoming a scientist. Once he returned to Hueco Mundo, he would start his own research.

Additionally, he was considering more areas he could exploit.

For example, this 'imaginary body' incident...

Each imaginary body was strengthened based on the Captains' past 'ideas,' among which...

He specifically emphasized that Roka Paramia should extract the 'thought body' of Tōsen Kaname's past resentment toward the Tsunayashiro Clan, meaning the imaginary body Tōsen Kaname was very likely to take action against the Tsunayashiro Clan.

And... probably not just Tōsen Kaname alone...

In the Gotei 13, there are many people dissatisfied with the Tsunayashiro Clan.

He pondered whether he could take this opportunity to steal some good things from the Tsunayashiro Clan.

As the head of the Five Great Noble Families, their household holds many precious items, especially Soul King fragments...

If Angra Mainyu, as a Hollow, could obtain a large number of Soul King fragments, he could definitely level up quickly.

Yoshio was already thinking about what to do next.

As he thought, dawn was approaching.

At that moment, a Jigokuchō flew into Yoshio's room.

Yoshio opened his eyes, put on his Shinigami uniform, then his Lieutenant's badge, and rushed to the First Division.

He arrived at the second assistant's office as per regulations, only to find he was the second earliest to arrive.

The earliest was surprisingly Ōmaeda!

Ōmaeda seemed a bit sleepy; Yoshio arrived just as he was yawning.

"Yoshio, you're here early."

Ōmaeda said listlessly.

"What's wrong? Didn't you sleep?" Yoshio naturally sat down next to Ōmaeda.

Ōmaeda's Souls Ability was so overpowered, so of course, Yoshio was also trying to gain his favor.

But since they worked in different divisions, they rarely met.

In theory, they could only meet at times like this, but Yoshio had found another way: using his identity as a famous writer from his Seireitei days to collaborate with Ōmaeda's family company.

The Ōmaeda family's "Ōmaeda Jewelry" is the largest gem company in Soul Society. Second Division's Lieutenant Ōmaeda Marechiyo is also the general manager of the precious metals department. Although most Gotei 13 members can't afford their products, that doesn't stop them from being very familiar with the business.

The collaboration they reached was Yoshio endorsing their family's jewelry and heavily promoting it in his novels.

Yoshio naturally agreed and earned a considerable income from it.

It was through this connection that Yoshio could interact more with Ōmaeda.

This novel, which he started writing out of boredom, had now become a medium for making friends, and he thought it was pretty good.

Ōmaeda Marechiyo said: "Don't get me started. Last night, Captain Suì-Fēng woke me up directly and took me patrolling Seireitei all night!"

"That must have been tough." Yoshio comforted him and then asked: "So what exactly happened? I just received an emergency message, but I don't know why."

Ōmaeda shook his head and said: "Apparently, Captain Kyōraku was attacked. I don't know anything else."

"Captain Kyōraku was attacked?!" Rangiku walked over at that moment, somewhat surprised, and said: "No way, someone actually dared to attack Captain Kyōraku?"

"If they're attacking Seireitei, who cares if you're a Captain." Yoshio sighed, "Seireitei is in trouble now."

"It's hard to believe no matter how you think about it." Rangiku said in shock, "When was he attacked?"

"Around 10 PM last night, I think." Ōmaeda said.

"10 PM?" Rangiku and Yoshio exchanged glances and couldn't help but say: "Wasn't that right after we finished drinking and went back?"

"Yes." Yoshio nodded and said: "Did you sense any reishi?"

"How could I?" Rangiku couldn't help but say, "If I sensed reishi, I would have gone!"

"Same here, I was pretty drunk, my head was fuzzy." Yoshio said, "But Captain Kyōraku seems fine, which is good."

The room fell into silence, and soon more Captains arrived.

Including Kyōraku Shunsui's Lieutenant, Ise Nanao.

By now, the Lieutenants had also learned about what happened last night. Seeing Nanao, Rangiku asked again: "Nanao, Captain Kyōraku should be okay, right?"

"He's fine." Nanao said calmly, "However, it wasn't just Captain Kyōraku who was attacked yesterday; the nobles were also assaulted by unknown enemies."

"Hmm?" The Lieutenants showed surprised expressions, especially Ōmaeda, who couldn't help but say: "Huh? The nobles were attacked too? How did I not know?"

Whether due to his noble status or his position in the Onmitsukidō, he should have known about this.

But no one noticed anything off, because Ōmaeda was always unreliable, and Captain Suì-Fēng sometimes forgot to tell him things.

"So, does that mean Seireitei is going into wartime readiness?" Yoshio said seriously.

A Captain being attacked, and nobles too—this matter absolutely needed a thorough investigation.

That's why they were summoned for a meeting so early.

After a while, the Captains emerged from the meeting room.

Captain-Commander Yamamoto had issued special wartime orders.

"First, all senior officers, including Lieutenants, may carry their Zanpakuto at all times within the court."

"Second, they are permitted Bankai during wartime."

The Shinigami on site read Captain-Commander Yamamoto's orders to the many Lieutenants, and Yoshio and the others all looked grave.

Indeed, a special wartime order had been issued…

…

"Captain Kyōraku, I didn't expect you'd be assassinated right after we parted last night." As Yoshio left the vice office, he saw Kyōraku Shunsui and other Captains coming out.

He knew this "Kyōraku Shunsui" was definitely "fake," but he still walked over and said.

'Kyōraku Shunsui' wasn't nervous at all and said naturally: "It's fine, I can handle it."

"However..."

Aizen, standing next to 'Kyōraku Shunsui,' said with a grave expression: "The enemy dared to assassinate a Captain directly, and after failing, they could escape quickly, which shows their strength is also very strong."

"Although it's not a big threat to Captains, if they target Shinigami below Captain level, it would probably be hard to deal with."

So alike, so alike!

Yoshio felt his acting skills still needed to learn from Aizen. Is this the style of a veteran actor?

"Captain Aizen is right." Retsu Unohana, who was nearby, heard their conversation and said: "Last night, several nobles with reishi levels reaching seated officer status were killed with a single sword strike. The depth of that sword—probably even well-trained senior officers would have trouble withstanding it."

"Something like that happened..." Yoshio said somewhat surprised, "I heard the nobles were attacked, but I didn't expect one-hit kills. That's too exaggerated, right?"

"That means..." Nanao said nervously, "Even we could be instantly killed by the opponent?"

"Probably... yes." Unohana replied softly.

"Don't worry." 'Kyōraku Shunsui' said, "Nanao, you just stay in the squad office from now on. We'll handle this."

"No way!" Nanao immediately said: "I'm the Lieutenant of the Eighth Division, after all. How could I let you fight outside alone!"

Aizen also nodded and said: "Both Kyōraku and Nanao make sense. We certainly need to be cautious of the enemy, but we can't be overly cautious because of them. Otherwise, if thousands of Gotei 13 members live in fear, wouldn't that make us a laughingstock to the opponent?"

"So, what is the plan discussed by the Captains?" Nanao asked.

The Captains and Lieutenants had gathered early in the morning at the First Division; they couldn't have been talking about irrelevant things. They must have countermeasures in advance.

Unohana slightly raised her head and said in a rather calm tone: "We checked the surveillance in several incident areas, including where Captain Kyōraku was attacked. However, at the time of the incidents, the surveillance in those areas was all destroyed. This proves the opponent knows us very well."

"Moreover, according to Kyōraku, the opponent was wearing a Hollow mask. Based on the Captains' discussions, we preliminarily judge the enemy to be Kisuke Urahara, who betrayed Seireitei decades ago and caused the 'Hollowfication incident.'"

They knew Seireitei's surveillance network like the back of their hand, could infiltrate easily, and possessed Hollow masks—deducing the enemy as Kisuke Urahara seemed only natural.

"So..."

Aizen then said in a somewhat inexplicable tone: "Based on the resolution of Central 46 and the Captains' meeting, it has been decided to launch a punitive expedition against Soul Society's greatest traitor, Kisuke Urahara."

"Before he brings greater crisis, we will kill him! Nip his brewing conspiracy in the bud!"

"However, it's a bit regrettable..." 'Kyōraku Shunsui' said with a face full of regret, "This matter also involves Yoruichi Shihōin."

"Those matters of the great nobles are not for us to consider."

Aizen said softly: "What we must do is arrest and execute Kisuke Urahara..."

Chapter 95: Disguised Tsunayashiro

The Gotei 13 has finally made a move against Kisuke Urahara!

This was also one of the reasons Yoshio and Aizen deployed the imaginary bodies: to stir up trouble in Seireitei and force the hesitant Central 46 to take action.

And now, they were indeed taking action.

"Captain Kurotsuchi is currently confirming Kisuke Urahara's whereabouts, but he's likely hiding in Hueco Mundo, which is very troublesome for us." Aizen continued.

"For us Shinigami, Hueco Mundo is still a mysterious realm we haven't widely explored or understood."

"That world is too dangerous. If Kisuke Urahara is hiding there, it will indeed be troublesome."

"But... there's no choice," 'Kyōraku Shunsui' interjected, "We must take the initiative."

"The Captain-Commander has given us three days to prepare. After three days, more than half of the Captains will head to Hueco Mundo to establish an exploration base and prepare for the Research and Development Institute's subsequent investigations." Retsu Unohana added, "At that time, even you Lieutenants will probably have to go to Hueco Mundo."

"The remaining Captains will go to the Human World to search for traces of Kisuke Urahara."

"So..." Yoshio couldn't help but say, "Wouldn't Seireitei's internal defenses be completely empty?"

"With Captain Yamamoto..." 'Kyōraku Shunsui' said softly, "That's enough."

"Moreover, Captain Suì-Fēng will stay in Seireitei. She's the commander-in-chief of the Onmitsukidō, and Central 46 has other orders for her."

Everyone nodded; it seemed the upcoming operation plan was set.

The three Captains and their Lieutenants then parted ways, heading to their respective squads.

On the way, Yoshio asked again: "Captain Aizen, is our Fifth Division going to the Human World or Hueco Mundo this time?"

"Hmm..." Aizen walked ahead, pushed up his glasses, and said faintly, "The teams going to Hueco Mundo are Fourth and Eight Division."

"So we will go to the Human World along with the Third Division, Sixth Division, and Seventh Division."

"Four teams will search across Japan, responsible for Kyushu, Shikoku, Honshu, Hokkaido, and some surrounding areas. The area we're responsible for is Shikoku."

Shikoku, huh? Seems like there won't be much to do.

Anyway, "Kisuke Urahara" is in Tokyo, which is on Honshu, far from Shikoku. He could totally treat this as a "Human World" vacation trip.

Of course, calling it a holiday was just for fun. This matter was planned by him and Aizen. Aizen could remain steady as a mountain, but he couldn't.

He had to take this opportunity to clash with the Tsunayashiro Clan.

So, with three days of preparation time, Yoshio planned to make arrangements in advance during these three days.

After returning to the Fifth Division, Yoshio explained the purpose of the meeting to the squad members and informed them they were heading to the Human World for investigation.

Then he found an excuse to leave.

He went to the Sixth District, and in a hidden corner where no one was watching, he activated his Souls Ability, "Appearance Mimicry"!

This time, he didn't transform into a strong person but into an old man who looked about fifty or sixty years old.

He had white hair, an aged face, but luxurious clothing, exuding an aura of dignity and nobility.

Since he was targeting the Tsunayashiro Clan, he naturally had to prepare well.

This person was an important figure at the Tsunayashiro Clan headquarters, and he planned to use this identity to first scout the internal situation of the Tsunayashiro Clan.

Stepping out of the alley, Yoshio recalled the Tsunayashiro Clan's style and adopted a somewhat arrogant posture, walking along the street toward the Tsunayashiro Clan residence.

The Tsunayashiro Clan estate was vast, even larger and more luxurious than the Kuchiki Family's. Although they were the leaders of the Five Great Noble Families, this was still the Sixth District, the Sixth Division's territory. His actions were almost ignoring the Kuchiki Family.

There weren't many people inside, mostly guards and servants, but they were all trash.

Yoshio felt he could slaughter the entire Tsunayashiro Clan by himself. These old wastes relied on their noble status to bully others, but on the battlefield, they were dead pigs.

Sigh, most nobles in Seireitei seemed like this, hard to distinguish from pigs.

But the weaker they were, the better. The weaker, the easier his later actions would be.

"Lord Muneyoshi."

Just as he was about to search for the location of the Soul King fragments, a man with deep green hair stood in front of him.

Yoshio glanced and discovered this guy actually had a Souls Ability.

"Root of All Evil: After use, certain evil actions and sins will be linked to you."

"..." Seeing this ability, Yoshio's reaction was just those three dots.

Uh, a bit interesting.

Yoshio knew his identity.

Tsunayashiro Tokinada is a character from the later Bleach novels, a mentally deranged, psychologically troubled psychopath.

He was the Shinigami who killed Tōsen Kaname's best friend, though later he was no longer a Shinigami.

He also slaughtered Ginjō Kūgo's teammates, making Ginjō Kūgo believe it was planned by Jūshirō Ukitake.

He also proposed to Central 46 to execute the daughter of the criminal who secretly held the "Shinken Hakkyōken," Ise Nanao, though this proposal was rejected by Kuchiki Ginrei.

In short, this guy did a lot of bad things, or rather, his existence voluntarily took on some of the sins in the original story that made the Shinigami side less righteous.

After all, how could Gotei 13 kill Ginjō Kūgo's companions! It must have been arranged by the Tsunayashiro Clan!

This is a bit similar to Danzō in Naruto; as more dark secrets surfaced, soon one person emerged to bear all the darkness.

Great, no need to say more.

Perhaps that's why he gained this Souls Ability.

Yoshio had no interest in the Souls Ability at all. Are you kidding? Is he crazy, voluntarily taking on sins?

Well, unless he later gained an ability that allowed him to use sins for combat, then maybe it would be worth considering.

Chapter 96: The Location of the Soul King Fragments

So, Yoshio even directly ignored him. With his current identity, a mere branch family low-ranker wasn't worth his attention.

Tsunayashiro Tokinada saw Yoshio's high-and-mighty attitude, and his face immediately darkened, but he suppressed his anger and said calmly: "Tsunayashiro Muneyoshi, the matter you instructed before has been completed. It's in the third treasury."

Yoshio glanced at him, just nodded, but didn't speak.

As for where the third treasury was, he truly didn't know.

So, just as Tsunayashiro Tokinada was about to leave, Yoshio spoke again: "Let's go take a look together. If it's handled well, I can consider giving you a different position."

Tsunayashiro Tokinada had made mistakes in the past.

Previously, there was a commoner Shinigami with Soul King fragments in her body, and the Tsunayashiro Clan wanted to observe the movements of these Soul King fragments, so they arranged for Tsunayashiro Tokinada to marry her.

However, shortly after the marriage, Tsunayashiro Tokinada couldn't stand his wife and directly killed her.

Although killing people wasn't a big deal for the Five Great Noble Families, and he even shifted the blame to other Shinigami, the Tsunayashiro Clan still punished him.

They made him, as a member of the "Tsunayashiro Clan," lead the "Image Hall." The "Image Hall" is an organization under the "Tsunayashiro Clan" that monitors "Seireitei" and records history. However, the "Tsunayashiro Clan" is only responsible for recording; surveillance is the work of subordinates.

Making Tsunayashiro Tokinada record videos was naturally a demotion.

But Tsunayashiro Tokinada was actually quite satisfied with this, because he thought the Image Hall was a quiet place where he could see many interesting things, much better than constantly dealing with the rigid elders at home.

Yoshio saying this would naturally be an "honor" to other Tsunayashiro clansmen, but to Tsunayashiro Tokinada, it was disgusting. However, he couldn't show that disgust.

Because it was indeed a kind of 'honor.'

Yoshio said it deliberately to annoy him.

Tsunayashiro Tokinada, who was about to leave, couldn't help but stop, then led Yoshio to the so-called third treasury.

The third treasury was located deep within the Tsunayashiro Clan. Although it was just a warehouse, the decorations inside were quite luxurious—truly befitting a noble house.

Yoshio stood with his hands behind his back, looking at the third treasury, nodded, and said: "Hmm, well done."

He stepped forward, and the guards protecting the vault immediately bowed in salute.

"Open the door."

Yoshio said slowly.

"Yes." The guards quickly responded and opened the door. Yoshio walked in and found it filled with gold, silver, jewels, and some strange things he couldn't understand.

However, these weren't what he wanted; he was looking for the Soul King fragments collected by the Tsunayashiro Clan over a million years.

He hadn't seen Soul King fragments, but he himself had split ‘The Animals’ twice.

The Animals and Soul King fragments had similar properties; although they didn't have such strong spiritual power, the fluctuations they emitted were very similar in nature.

Yoshio indeed sensed the presence of Soul King fragments. Those fragments seemed to be placed in a luxurious box.

Yoshio glanced at the box, didn't touch it, just nodded.

Then he turned and left.

Tsunayashiro Tokinada watched the silent departing old man, his gaze growing colder.

But Yoshio didn't care at all; by now, he had left the Tsunayashiro Clan.

As for the real Tsunayashiro Muneyoshi, he just planned to have the imaginary body eliminate him later.

After leaving the Tsunayashiro Clan, Yoshio found a place to change back to his original appearance, then directly appeared beside Aizen.

He activated his 'Captain's Assistant' ability, which allowed him to appear directly next to the Captain.

His body, like Dark Rukia's, suddenly disintegrated during instant movement and then reassembled beside Aizen.

Aizen was currently working in his squad office. When he noticed Yoshio's appearance, he was somewhat surprised.

However, he only paused for a moment before saying: "After this incident, are you interested in becoming a Captain?"

?

Yoshio was stunned for a moment, then shook his head, "Forget it, Captain Aizen, don't make things hard for me. I don't want to be a Captain."

Did Aizen mean that there might be Captain casualties in this incident?

However, Yoshio didn't think so. Although this matter was planned by him and Aizen to persecute Kisuke Urahara.

But Kisuke Urahara wasn't an idiot; he couldn't be unprepared.

Although Kisuke Urahara was in the Human World, Yoshio didn't believe he was truly unaware of Soul Society's situation.

After all, Yoruichi Shihōin was the former commander-in-chief of the Onmitsukidō. What is the Onmitsukidō? For example, it's like the CIA in America, and Yoruichi was the CIA director!

How many secrets does a former CIA director hold? How many secret intelligence channels does she have?

Therefore, changes in Soul Society's internal situation shouldn't escape Kisuke Urahara's notice.

Most importantly, this wasn't something that could happen in a short time. Soul Society had been discussing how to deal with Kisuke Urahara for three years. In three years, even a pig should have reacted.

Let alone Kisuke Urahara.

Even if the appearance of imaginary bodies was unexpected, he should have already prepared how to deal with the Gotei 13.

Kisuke Urahara couldn't let the rift between himself and Seireitei grow larger, so he would never harm any Captain, let alone cause any Captain losses. Otherwise, clearing his name later would be difficult.

This was a long-distance battle of wits between Kisuke Urahara and Aizen. Honestly, it was best for him not to interfere—just slack off and use their battle of wits to achieve his own goals.

"By the way, what instructions does the Onmitsukidō have?" Since he was targeting the Tsunayashiro Clan, Yoshio naturally paid more attention to the two squads remaining in Seireitei.

The First Division's Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto was naturally Seireitei's final barrier. And what was Second Division's Suì-Fēng's task?

"Excellent..."

Aizen gently sipped the black tea on the table and said softly: "As a squad directly under Central 46, the Onmitsukidō's orders are naturally to protect those nobles."

"What a waste." Yoshio couldn't help but scoff, "A squad like the Onmitsukidō, best suited for finding people, is now being used to protect those noble lords."

"Heh..." Aizen chuckled lightly without speaking.

However, this was a good thing.

The stupider those nobles were, the easier it would be for him to act...

Chapter 97: Falling into the Hell of Loneliness

“Relax.”

Aizen said softly, “Next, I’ll have to trouble you with things in Hueco Mundo.”

“Got it.”

Yoshio nodded. “Once I reach the World of the Living, I’ll find an excuse to return to Hueco Mundo.”

“Speaking of which, I’m actually curious to see the current fighting strength of Las Noches—how it stacks up against the Seireitei.”

With that, Yoshio left Aizen’s office.

Back in his own office, he prepared this month’s update.

He hadn’t updated last month, and this month he had a mission, so he had to finish today’s chapter.

His “Thousand-Year Blood War” had reached the end of the City of Seven Seas arc.

In this arc, the main group fought the Onmitsukidō operatives lurking in the City of Seven Waters and rescued a comrade from them.

Of course, that kind of content is hard to pass review, seeing as it involves sensitive institutions like Central 46 and the Onmitsukidō.

But Yoshio was good friends with Shuhei. Shuhei had Yoshio tweak the content a bit so it wouldn’t look too treasonous, and then it passed.

This time, he planned to take another step deeper into worldbuilding.

[“In the depths of the great sea dwell four of the most powerful Quincy. It’s said that three of them once served in the personal guard of Yhwach, the Quincy King, during the great war a thousand years ago.”]

[“These three strongest Quincy split paths to contend for the legacy left by the Quincy King, and because of their overwhelming power, they became known as emperors of the sea.”]

[“These three Quincy, plus the ‘red-haired’ one, are the ‘Four Emperors’ of the sea.”]

After setting up the Four Emperors, Yoshio put down his pen.

Yeah, this is a good place to stop. Ending on the introduction of the Four Emperors should leave some people craving more.

Once he finished writing, it was time to clock out. Yoshio stood up and stretched. He was about to head home for a good rest when he heard an alarm from the Soul Society.

[Vmmm—!]

A massive sound came from the direction of the Sixth District. Yoshio frowned.

Damn it! You couldn’t come earlier—now you pull this when I’m about to get off work!

Yoshio’s face darkened. He wanted to fire a Cero and pierce the bastard sounding the alarm.

Forget it. It’s not their fault.

Yoshio hurried toward the Sixth District. It wasn’t far. When he arrived, he found that the 6th Division’s Shinigami had already cordoned off the scene.

He spotted the 6th Division Lieutenant, Ginjirō Shirogane, guarding the perimeter. He ran over. “Shirogane, what happened?”

“Yoshio, you sure got here fast,” Ginjirō Shirogane said as he saw him approach. “A big shot’s been killed. I’m guessing the nobles are going to put the squeeze on us again.”

“A big shot?” Yoshio asked, surprised. “Don’t tell me it’s one of the top five houses?”

If it were just a regular noble, it wouldn’t warrant an alarm across the entire Seireitei.

Ginjirō Shirogane glanced around, and once he was sure no one was eavesdropping, he lowered his voice. “It’s Tsunayashiro Sōgen of the Tsunayashiro main family. He’s a big name in the Tsunayashiro clan.”

Tsunayashiro Sōgen!

Yoshio was stunned. He’d impersonated Tsunayashiro Sōgen before and had planned to contact Roka Paramia to have her control the captains’ imaginary bodies to take him out.

But before he could act, the man was already dead.

Fast work.

Was it the imaginary bodies who did it?

Very possible, Yoshio thought—especially the imaginary body of Tōsen Kaname, who would be likely to move against the Tsunayashiro.

But soon he sensed something off.

Because at the crime scene, he spotted a familiar face.

“That is…”

Yoshio looked at the man he’d met not long ago inside the cordon and asked curiously.

Following Yoshio’s gaze, Ginjirō Shirogane said, “Him? He’s from a branch of the Tsunayashiro—Tsunayashiro Tokinada. He’s also the one who first discovered Tsunayashiro Sōgen’s body.”

“…” Yoshio sneered inwardly.

No need to guess—Tsunayashiro Tokinada definitely did it.

That guy has a screw loose and a cracked soul. With a psychopath, anything’s possible for his next move.

Forget killing one Tsunayashiro Sōgen—even slaughtering his entire family wouldn’t be out of the question.

Hmm. Maybe the kindest thing Tokinada will ever do is wiping out the Tsunayashiro clan—on par with Uchiha Itachi over on the other set.

Thinking this, Yoshio’s eyes flicked. “I’m pretty proficient with Kaidō. How about I take a look at the body?”

“Well…” Ginjirō Shirogane thought for a moment. “Fourth Division should be arriving soon, but if you want to take a look, go ahead.”

Yoshio was a Lieutenant, which definitely counted as upper echelon in the Seireitei. This kind of small matter wasn’t an issue.

And as Yoshio said, he was skilled in Kaidō—maybe he could find a clue.

Word that Yoshio knew Kaidō had spread after the Gillian incident; he’d used a medical wave to treat Shiba Kaien and Kuchiki Rukia back then.

Unohana Retsu had even wanted to transfer him to the Fourth Division; he, of course, refused.

Give up being the 5th Division Lieutenant to be a 3rd or 4th Seat in the Fourth? That’d be brain damage.

Yoshio walked over and saw Tsunayashiro Sōgen lying in a pool of blood.

Tokinada really went in hard—one lethal strike straight through the heart.

That said, Tokinada did count as an elite in the Tsunayashiro—elite in terms of strength, anyway; he’d once been a Shinigami.

The fact that he would later be able to massacre the entire Tsunayashiro clan also shows that, besides him, most of the Tsunayashiro were bottom feeders.

“Well? Find anything?”

Ginjirō Shirogane asked.

“One thrust through the heart. Tsunayashiro Sōgen didn’t have time to react. That means the assailant was strong and extremely fast.”

“Hey…”

Just as Yoshio finished, Tsunayashiro Tokinada walked over wearing a nasty smile. “You’re the head of the lower noble Kamado family, right? Don’t you know the Tsunayashiro are your parent house? Show some respect to a deceased Tsunayashiro clansman—at least add ‘Lord’ after his name.”

Yoshio glanced at him and said flatly, “The Kamado are indeed vassals to the Tsunayashiro main family. But right now I’m conducting an investigation as the 5th Division Lieutenant. In that capacity, I have reasonable suspicion that you are involved in the murder of the victim, Tsunayashiro Sōgen.”

!

The words clearly stunned Tokinada for a moment. His heart tightened, though outwardly he barked in anger, “Watch your mouth! I’m a Tsunayashiro clansman—why would I kill my own elder?!”

“Oh, there can be plenty of reasons.”

Yoshio didn’t hold back.

Anyone else and he might let it slide. But putting on a high-and-mighty act in front of him really rubbed Yoshio the wrong way.

He drew his Zanpakutō. “You know, for those who’ve fallen into the Hell of Loneliness, even death is a luxury.”

“You… what do you mean?” Tokinada finally sensed something was off. He’d only come to take one last look at that old bastard Sōgen’s corpse, but he hadn’t expected some lowly Lieutenant to defy him.

“Lieutenant Yoshio…” Ginjirō Shirogane frowned, wanting to caution Yoshio. Opposing a noble wouldn’t do Yoshio any good.

“Relax.”

Yoshio said softly, “Tranquil in three voids, Jigoku Zoku…”

He released his Zanpakutō right then and there!

In an instant, a strange power spread.

Centered on Yoshio, the area suddenly dimmed. The ground seemed to sheen with a layer of water that rose higher and higher, as if to flood their feet.

The next moment, spirit particles in the surroundings began to gather.

Yoshio explained, “As everyone knows, when a spirit dies, it disperses into reishi and returns to the world—but in fact, that requires a process.”

“The stronger the spirit, the longer it takes to return.”

There was a deeper point, too: once someone reached the level of Third Class Reiatsu, their reishi could never fully disperse back into the world.

And since such powerful spirits couldn’t be allowed to drift forever, there was only one solution…

Send them to Hell.

For a million years, the Soul Society had repeated this cycle: once your power was too great, even death would not grant peace.

Perhaps, in this world, strength itself is a sin—and the strong must fall into Hell.

Of course, very few in the entire Seireitei knew this.

Perhaps only Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni and Aizen Sōsuke knew; in the original work, even Kyōraku Shunsui only realized it after becoming Head Captain when he saw the phosphorescence spilling from Hell during a ritual.

Let alone everyone else.

Naturally, Tsunayashiro Sōgen didn’t qualify for a trip to Hell—his reiatsu was far from captain-class.

Which is to say, under normal circumstances, his reishi would slowly disperse throughout the Soul Society and return to the world.

However, at this moment, Yoshio invoked the power of the Jigoku Zoku.

The Jigoku Zoku forces everything within its domain into a Hell of Loneliness, where endless solitude drives one mad.

And in Yoshio’s Hell of Loneliness, even the wish to die is extravagant. If you want to break the hell by means other than brute force, there’s only one way:

Attain enlightenment within it—though how to achieve that, even Yoshio, the user, didn’t know.

“Hell of Loneliness… I know your Zanpakutō’s ability. Are you planning to use it on me?” Tokinada’s gaze turned grim. He said coldly, “Defying a superior is a grave crime. You know the consequences.”

Although Yoshio had deployed the domain, he hadn’t targeted Tokinada yet, so Tokinada could still speak normally.

Yoshio sneered. “Who said I was going to use it on you?”

“Since you know my power is Hell, you should also know that Hell is where the dead belong.”

“As long as a person’s reishi hasn’t fully dispersed, I can cast them into my Hell of Loneliness.”

Yoshio narrowed his eyes. “Now, please come out—at least to point out who committed such a heinous crime.”

The Hell of Loneliness could be used on the living—in fact, even on those alive in body—but its primary function was on the dead.

And in the Soul Society, aren’t all ‘living beings’ actually ‘the dead’?

And the Soul Society’s ‘living’ can die again and fall into Hell.

Therefore, Yoshio could cast the ‘dead’ into his Hell of Loneliness.

Of course, the time since death couldn’t be too long.

If too much time passed, the reishi would fully disperse.

If it were a Third Class Reiatsu-level spirit, then it wouldn’t matter how long—so long as they hadn’t been consigned to Hell yet, he could take them into his Hell of Loneliness.

In general, he didn’t even need to kill them himself—any spirit that died by his side would fall into his Hell.

But for someone like Tsunayashiro Sōgen, who neither died by Yoshio’s hand nor at his side, he needed to release his Zanpakutō and actively expand the domain to take him in.

Falling into the Hell of Loneliness… is no small matter.

Within it, one experiences endless solitude, eternal loneliness in a torment where one can neither live nor die.

But since the victim was of the Tsunayashiro, Yoshio didn’t care.

At this moment, Tokinada’s face changed—he saw reishi light emanating from Sōgen’s body, as if he were about to come back to life.

Fear gripped him. He hadn’t expected Yoshio’s ability could “revive” the dead!

A ruthless light flashed in Tokinada’s eyes. In an instant he used shunpo to appear before Yoshio!

“What do you think you’re doing?!”

Ginjirō Shirogane, who’d been on alert since Yoshio drew his blade, was ready to move. Whether to prevent Yoshio from killing Tokinada or to stop a cornered Tokinada if he really was the culprit, he had to act.

And now, Tokinada really was going to silence them!

That was fast!

As Ginjirō Shirogane saw Tokinada suddenly in Yoshio’s face, he was about to draw his sword, but Yoshio was faster!

Just as Tokinada was about to use kidō to obliterate Yoshio, Yoshio’s hand had already pressed against Tokinada’s chest.

“!”

Tokinada froze. The next moment he heard Yoshio speak:

“Hadō # 4. Byakurai.”

Thwip!

A white beam lanced from Tokinada’s chest straight into the sky!

After that, Tokinada lost all response. His pupils dilated; there was no expression of pain on his face—only a kind of blank stupor.

“Attacking me inside the Hell of Loneliness? You’re underestimating me.”

Yoshio said softly, “Go into the Hell of Loneliness and settle your grudge with Tsunayashiro Sōgen.”

Chapter 98: The Alarm Sounds Again

The domain dispersed…

Darkness and the watery sheen vanished.

Everything around seemed unchanged, yet also somehow very different.

Tsunayashiro Tokinada stood before Yoshio. He wasn’t dead—he just stood there, blankly.

His eyes were dull and lifeless, as if his mind were gone.

Though his body was unharmed, his consciousness would be trapped in the Hell of Loneliness, eternally locked in mutual torment with Tsunayashiro Sōgen.

“…”

Looking at the stupefied Tokinada, Ginjirō Shirogane said, “No matter what, he’s still a member of one of the Five Great Noble Houses. Turning him into this—be careful the Tsunayashiro don’t take offense.”

“What’s there to be offended at?” Yoshio chuckled indifferently. “A branch-member, Tsunayashiro Tokinada, murdered a major figure of the main family. If the Tsunayashiro take this scum’s side, I’d say someone among the Five Great Houses is going to rebel.”

A branch member killing someone from the main family—if they still tried to cover that up, where would that leave the main house’s dignity?

This wasn’t a matter of handling it internally; someone who did such a thing deserved the vilest of deaths!

The main family had to make the branch know: if you harbor thoughts of usurpation, then even a commoner—a lowborn—has the right to kill you!

Let alone that Yoshio himself was a noble and a Lieutenant; when Tokinada attacked him, he had every right to strike back.

So Yoshio wasn’t worried.

And if they really wanted revenge…

Who cares?

Give them face and call them great nobles; take that face away and put them in the ground.

Yoshio wasn’t a local Shinigami with built-in fear and reverence for nobles. To him, the so-called great Tsunayashiro were far inferior to the Kuchiki and Shihōin.

At least the Kuchiki and Shihōin still had the martial might to back their status.

A house like the Tsunayashiro, with only status and no power, didn’t deserve his respect.

Yoshio was a man with little regard for law and order; otherwise he wouldn’t have casually joined Aizen’s little circle.

To him, killing Tokinada—or even wiping out the Tsunayashiro—was no big deal.

It would only be troublesome to deal with the aftermath.

“I’ve identified the killer. That’s a major merit for me.”

“You’ve got a point,” Ginjirō Shirogane said. He wasn’t particularly afraid of the Tsunayashiro either—after all, he had the Kuchiki at his back.

The Tsunayashiro might be first among the Five Great Noble Houses, but the Kuchiki weren’t far behind. Besides, Tokinada was only a bottom-rung branch member.

By rights, someone at his level wouldn’t merit the attention of so many Lieutenants—he was only riding the coattails of the main-house bigwig, Tsunayashiro Sōgen.

A short while later, plenty of Lieutenants—and even Captains—arrived.

When they found out Yoshio had already cracked the case, they were surprised.

None of them had expected the murderer of Tsunayashiro Sōgen to be someone from the Tsunayashiro themselves.

So…

An internal feud?

Was Tokinada trying to take advantage of the “Kisuke Urahara” causing chaos to kill a major figure of the main family?

He just hadn’t expected Yoshio to have the power to make the dead speak—now he was done for.

After understanding the full situation, Kuchiki Byakuya said calmly, “Since the matter is resolved, there’s no need to stay.”

“Shirogane, take the two bodies to the Tsunayashiro estate and inform them of what happened.”

Byakuya had some goodwill toward Yoshio. Back in the Fourth Division, Yoshio had seen Byakuya’s favorability to him at 72—though none of it showed on the surface.

This time, by having Yoshio leave, he intended for the Kuchiki to shoulder the fallout.

Even if Yoshio didn’t care, his actions might provoke some displeasure from the Tsunayashiro—people’s hearts are hard to read, after all.

Ginjirō Shirogane nodded. He had people take Tsunayashiro Sōgen’s body and the dazed Tokinada to the Tsunayashiro estate.

“Nicely done.”

Once the crowd dispersed, Rangiku elbowed Yoshio and teased, “How’d you know Tokinada was the one who killed Sōgen?”

Walking out with Rangiku, Yoshio smiled mysteriously. “That’s a secret.”

“Ugh, what a killjoy,” Rangiku pouted. “I rushed over first thing in the morning and didn’t get to see any good drama.”

“My idiot captain is still missing, too! Such a big incident and he doesn’t even show. It’s infuriating!”

“The lack of fighting after the alarm sounded means it wasn’t a big deal for the captains; no need for them to come,” Yoshio said. “Besides, Captain Shiba and the Tsunayashiro don’t get along. No point in him showing up.”

The Shiba and Tsunayashiro were both among the Five Great Houses, but their relationship was poor—and the Shiba had declined badly in recent years. If not for Shiba Isshin holding the fort as captain, they might have been expelled from the Five Great Houses.

Rangiku nodded; Yoshio’s explanation made sense.

The two parted at a fork—Yoshio heading to the 5th Division, Rangiku to the 10th.

But shortly after they separated, both returned to the fork with grave expressions.

Because they had just received Jigokuchō messages!

And this time, the message wasn’t the same level as before.

It was—

All captains and lieutenants in the Seireitei, assemble at the Tsunayashiro estate!

“What happened now?”

Rangiku said, puzzled, “We just came back from there…”

Yoshio frowned and said in a low voice, “Earlier Captain Kuchiki told Lieutenant Shirogane to take one body and one living person over to the Tsunayashiro. Could it be something happened there?”

Shock flashed in Rangiku’s eyes. “Th-that’s impossible!”

The Tsunayashiro estate is in the Sixth District, normally guarded by the 6th Division; and at a time like this, the 2nd Division and Onmitsukidō would be guarding it as well…

Could someone have broken through two divisions’ defense and wiped them out?

Well, actually, that might be possible.

Others didn’t know, but Yoshio did.

He knew that this time the “Ryoka” were actually the captains’ “imaginary bodies.” If those imaginary bodies made use of their “captain” identities properly, wouldn’t it be easy to slaughter at will?!

*Ryoka (旅禍, Traveling Evil(s)) is the term the Gotei 13 use to identify those who are not aligned with Soul Society, either allies, rebels, intruders, deserters, or invaders. It is said that no good can come from Ryoka.