The semi-finished Hōgyoku held little value for Uehara Shiroha. Beyond its limited practical utility, acquiring such an incomplete artifact would significantly reduce the quality of his task rewards. System rewards scaled with challenge and achievement—settling for a prototype would be tantamount to accepting mediocrity.
Therefore, his objective remained clear: he needed to obtain the Hōgyoku in its complete and perfect state, with all its powers fully actualized and accessible. However, Uehara Shiroha had no desire to expend his own time and energy nurturing the artifact to maturity. Such tedious cultivation work was beneath someone of his caliber.
Instead, he had cleverly positioned himself to benefit from the efforts of others—specifically, the two unwitting "employees" currently battling in Fake Karakura Town: Aizen and Kurosaki Ichigo. Their conflict served his purposes perfectly, pushing the Hōgyoku toward its strongest state of perfect awakening, step by meticulous step.
This is precisely what I anticipated, Shiroha thought with satisfaction as he observed their struggle. The time for harvest was approaching, and he wouldn't even need to dirty his hands with the cultivation process.
The sophisticated monitoring technique Shiroha employed allowed him to observe the battle with extraordinary precision. Unlike conventional surveillance methods, his approach captured not only high-definition visuals and audio but also the subtle nuances of spiritual pressure, emotional states, and even the characteristic signatures of each combatant's Reiatsu. Every detail of the confrontation—every word, every gesture, every fluctuation in spiritual energy—was transmitted with perfect clarity to his ice screen.
This remarkable surveillance technology left Shihouin Yoruichi genuinely amazed, despite her extensive experience with advanced spiritual tools. As the former head of one of Soul Society's great noble families, she had been exposed to countless wonders and privileged technologies throughout her centuries of life. She had witnessed the fabled treasures of the nobility, the secret weapons of the Onmitsukidō, and the experimental devices of the 12th Division.
But the ice screen before her transcended all of these. At first glance, it appeared to be merely an ordinary sheet of crystalline ice—perhaps decorative, but not particularly remarkable. This unassuming appearance belied its true sophistication. Not only could it display images with a clarity that surpassed any monitor in Soul Society, but it could also transmit sound with perfect fidelity, and—most impressively—accurately convey the spiritual characteristics and Reiatsu signatures of everyone within its surveillance range.
Such capabilities matched or even exceeded the legendary automatic recording techniques of the Great Spirit Book Corridor maintained by the Tsunayashiro family. Yoruichi suspected that only the Zero Division in the mysterious Soul King Palace might possess surveillance technology of comparable advancement.
Yet despite the unprecedented nature of this technology, Yoruichi found herself growing accustomed to Uehara Shiroha's seemingly endless array of surprising abilities and tools. Had anyone else demonstrated such remarkable technology, she would have been utterly shocked and full of questions. But with Shiroha, it almost seemed... expected. The extraordinary had become ordinary in his presence.
Through this immersive surveillance method, Yoruichi was able to observe concerning anomalies in Aizen's capabilities. His defensive resilience and recovery speed had clearly transcended the normal parameters of Shinigami physiology. Yet perplexingly, he continued to insist that he had not completed hollowification—a claim that seemed increasingly dubious with each demonstration of his enhanced abilities.
Watching Aizen's clearly augmented form, Shihouin Yoruichi felt her confusion mounting. Her knowledge of the Hōgyoku was admittedly limited. Initially, she had understood it to be a tool for stabilizing hollowification—a medical device of sorts that could preserve lives caught between Shinigami and Hollow states.
Later revelations had painted a darker picture: the Hōgyoku had been identified as the catalyst responsible for the forced hollowification of Hirako Shinji, Muguruma Kensei, and the other original members of The Visored. This suggested its primary function was to break down the natural barriers between Shinigami and Hollow—a key to forcibly merging the two spiritual species.
But now, observing Aizen with the Hōgyoku embedded directly in his chest, Yoruichi found herself questioning her understanding once again. What did it mean for a Shinigami to physically incorporate the Hōgyoku into their body? The implications seemed enormous and deeply troubling.
Moreover, Aizen had demonstrated the ability to withstand Ichigo's Getsuga Tenshō attack with minimal damage and recover almost instantaneously—capabilities that strongly resembled a Hollow's hierro skin and high-speed regeneration. If these abilities didn't constitute hollowification, then what exactly defined the boundary between Shinigami and Hollow?
By this point, Yoruichi had developed the practical habit of turning to Uehara Shiroha whenever she encountered questions beyond her knowledge. She shifted her gaze from the ice screen to Shiroha's composed profile, her golden eyes narrowing with curiosity.
"This Hōgyoku is abnormally powerful," she observed, gesturing toward the screen. "Has Aizen truly not completed his hollowification process yet? Or is this another of his deceptions?"
Hearing Yoruichi's questions regarding the Hōgyoku and Aizen's true state, Uehara Shiroha responded with characteristic calm, his voice measured and unhurried.
"You could say that he has, and equally, you could say that he hasn't," he replied enigmatically. "Aizen typically disdains deceiving people with outright lies—he prefers to mislead them with carefully presented truths, which is a far more sophisticated form of deception."
Shiroha leaned forward slightly, his eyes reflecting the light from the ice screen. "The concept of 'hollowification' is indeed just a superficial label—a convenient simplification that masks a far more complex reality. The current Hōgyoku is no longer the incomplete artifact that Urahara and Aizen separately created. It's a new entity born from their fusion—vastly more perfect and potent than either original."
His fingers traced idle patterns on the arm of his ice throne. "The capabilities of such a treasure extend far beyond merely assisting with hollowification. Besides," he added with a knowing smile, "Aizen holds the Arrancar in contempt and considers The Visored to be failed experiments. He would never pursue simple hollowification for himself."
Shiroha's expression grew more serious. "What Aizen seeks is something far more ambitious—a perfected form of hollowification that transcends mere species hybridization. He wants evolution in its purest sense. By fusing with the new and perfect Hōgyoku, he has gained the theoretical possibility of breaking through the inherent limitations that separate Shinigami from Hollow—and perhaps from all spiritual beings."
His voice dropped to a near whisper, though it lost none of its intensity. "He wants to surpass the very concept of 'Shinigami' entirely... and become a god."
In reality, Uehara Shiroha recognized that the current Aizen had only reached what could be classified as the first stage of "Collapse Aizen" according to the evolutionary framework he had observed in other timelines. This form remained significantly distant from the true transcendent state that Aizen ultimately sought.
Nevertheless, even this initial transformation phase had rendered Aizen formidable beyond conventional measurement. His defensive capabilities now allowed him to withstand direct attacks from captain-level Shinigami with only superficial injuries. His recovery abilities had begun to manifest aspects of complete regeneration, comparable to the high-speed healing exhibited by Vasto Lorde-class Hollows.
Although Aizen maintained the outward appearance of a Shinigami, he had already begun the process of fusing with the Hōgyoku on a fundamental level. In turn, the semi-sentient artifact had begun actively protecting both itself and its host. This symbiotic relationship meant that at this stage of development, it had become virtually impossible to eliminate Aizen through conventional combat techniques.
Standard Bankai releases, no matter how powerful within the normal spectrum of Shinigami abilities, would prove ineffective against him. Only the most exceptional Zanpakutō manifestations—those approaching the devastating power of Yamamoto's Zanka no Tachi—might stand a chance of inflicting meaningful damage.
The second evolutionary stage of Collapse Aizen would prove even more terrifying. Though technically still categorizable as "Shinigami" by the broadest definition, an Aizen at that level would demonstrate Reiatsu reserves, offensive capability, speed, defensive resilience, and regenerative capacity far exceeding his current state. Even Kidō spells above level 90—the most destructive incantations known to Shinigami—would barely affect him.
At that stage, his spiritual pressure would become so immense that it would exceed the perceptual limits of experienced captains like Shiba Isshin and genius innovators like Urahara Kisuke—they would literally be unable to sense the full extent of his power, as it would exist beyond their frame of reference.
The third evolutionary stage would position Aizen at the absolute boundary between Shinigami and Hollow, enabling him to casually destroy conventional limitations that had defined spiritual beings for millennia. At that point, the laws that governed normal Shinigami would become meaningless in his presence.