"Madam, you've misunderstood."
"Although Kisaragi-kun is injured, he's not in life-threatening danger."
"…"
"That's a relief..."
Hearing that her husband wasn't in mortal danger, the woman immediately let out a sigh of relief.
"Then, Captain, may I ask why you're here?"
"This time, Kisaragi-kun's injury is related to a certain noble family within the inner district."
"I'm concerned that those nobles might secretly target you. So, I came to ask if you'd be willing to temporarily take refuge in our division."
"Of course, if you're unwilling, I'll stay here to protect you and ensure no harm comes to you."
Upon hearing Kyoya's words, the woman didn't hesitate for even a second: "Sir, we're willing to seek refuge in the division. Please give me a moment to prepare. We'll leave right away."
"Mm, take your time."
"As long as I'm here, unless it's Captain-Commander Yamamoto himself who comes, no one can lay a finger on you!"
Kyoya understood that his youthful appearance might naturally inspire less trust in those who didn't know him.
However, the Captain's Haori was enough to ensure no one dared underestimate him.
This was the reputation the Gotei 13 had forged over a thousand years of battle.
After bowing to Kyoya, the woman turned and hurried back into the house to pack.
Just from the sounds, it was clear how frantic she was.
Kyoya closed his eyes and leaned against the gatepost of the small courtyard, spreading his Observation Haki to ensure no one could threaten Kisaragi's family within its range.
'Those guys... they really came...'
Within minutes, Kyoya's Observation Haki detected seven individuals with unusual Reiatsu rapidly approaching.
Though not as strong as Kisaragi, their frenzied Reiatsu was unmistakably of the same origin.
Kyoya's killing intent surged, and he nearly activated [Conqueror's Observation Killing] to eliminate them all from a distance.
But then, Kyoya thought of how he had been racking his brains to get evidence that the Kasumioji Clan had manufactured the Bakkoto.
'Weren't these guys the perfect evidence?'
'Since the evidence was delivered right to my doorstep… why not take it?'
Therefore, Kyoya didn't strike from afar. Instead, he waited for them to arrive.
"Sir, we're ready."
At that moment, Kisaragi's wife emerged, carrying a bundle and holding her child's hand.
"Madam, I'm afraid you'll have to wait a little longer."
"I've sensed unfamiliar Reiatsu rapidly approaching. Likely, they're the nobles' lackeys."
"After I capture them, we'll leave together."
"Ah... alright."
Hearing this, Tsukishiro's wife instinctively hugged her child tighter and moved slightly closer to Kyoya.
Seeing this, Kyoya nodded slightly in approval.
It had to be said that despite the hatred in Amagai's heart, he hadn't strayed from the right path.
His vengeance was directed solely at Yamamoto, and aside from the Kasumioji Clan, he hadn't dragged anyone else into it.
From this alone, it was clear he had received proper and righteous upbringing as a child, shaping his values correctly.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh...
Kyoya didn't have to wait long.
Several figures flickered into view, surrounding the small courtyard.
"Oh?"
Seeing the attire of these men, Kyoya raised an eyebrow.
'These guys really had everything planned out meticulously.'
They were all uniformly dressed in black clothing, and at a glance, it was almost impossible for an ordinary person to distinguish these black garments from Shinigami's Shihakusho.
Clearly, even if the Kasumioji Clan intended to eliminate threats or clean up loose ends, they had considered pinning the blame on the Gotei 13's Shinigami.
"Damn it, it's a trap! Run!"
The moment these assassins saw the Captain's Haori on Kyoya, they immediately realized their clan's plan had been exposed.
Under normal circumstances, even if there were Shinigami protecting Kisaragi's family, they could still kill them all.
But when the one guarding Kisaragi's family was a someone wearing the Captain's Haori, their only option was to flee!
They were death warrirors, their lives meant nothing.
But the Bakkoto in their hands were treasures of the Kasumioji Clan. Losing even one would mean their entire families' lives wouldn't be enough to repay the debt.
After all, these were sealed weapons, and the Kasumioji Clan hadn't produced a genius like the ancestor who originally created the Bakkoto in all these years.
Thus, the Kasumioji Clan could only cultivate a few Kyokujoto based on fragmented records.
These were the seeds of the Kasumioji Clan's resurgence to greatness!
The Bakkoto they carried hadn't yet been nurtured to their final stage. Against seated officers, they could still rely on numbers to overwhelm them. But against a Captain-level powerhouse?
The many guards of the Kasumioji Clan had already proven with their lives yesterday just how vast the gap between Captain-level and non-Captain-level truly was.
That is to say, if not for the fact that the Kasumioji Clan still possessed a few of the powerful Bakkoto passed down through generations, and after paying a heavy price, they had managed to use the strongest Bakkoto to subdue the assailant-
Otherwise, the Kasumioji Clan might have been wiped out entirely.
And now, here they were, facing a real Captain…
At this moment, there was only one thought in the minds of these assassins:
Escape!
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh...
"You think you can escape?"
Seeing these assassins trying to flee, Kyoya let out a cold snort.
Hummm!
A flash of red light flickered in his eyes as a terrifying pressure erupted from Kyoya's body. Under his control, it swept precisely over the seven assassins.
Thud…
Thud, thud…
The young boy could only watch in awe as Kyoya knocked out all the enemies with just a cold snort.
'One day, I'll become someone like him!'
Unbeknownst to Kyoya, he had planted a seed of desire for strength in the heart of Kisaragi's child.
Kyoya's Conqueror's Haki had already reached a level where it could inflict tangible damage on the physical world.
Before Kyoya, as long as he willed it, even seated officers wouldn't be able to withstand his overwhelming presence and would be knocked unconscious by his Conqueror's Haki.
And if Kyoya wrapped his Conqueror's Haki around his attacks, even among Captains, only a handful could withstand it.
After rendering these assassins unconscious, Kyoya raised the index finger of his left hand and began chanting the incantation for a Kido spell:
"Silken net of black and white! Twenty-two bridges, sixty-six crowning sash…"
"Footprints, distant thunder, pointed peaks, revolving grounds, nightly prostrations, sea of clouds, the pale ranks of troops…"
"Complete the grand circle and surpass the heavens."
"Bakudo #77, Tenteikura!"
Humm!
The Reiatsu at Kyoya's fingertip transformed into black patterns, spreading out before him before finally converging into a glowing white frame.
Bakudo #77, Tenteikura, allowed the user to weave their Reiatsu into a network, linking with those whose Reiatsu it captured to communicate,
When used in tandem with Bakudo #58, Kakushitsuijaku, it could track, locate, and facilitate real-time communication.
For Kyoya, the perception ability of Kakushitsuijaku is far inferior to his Observation Haki.
Following the Reiatsu sensed through his Observation Haki, Kyoya quickly linked his Reiatsu Network with Gin's.
"Gin, bring a team to my location."
"Understood!"
In the 11th Division, Gin, upon hearing Kyoya's voice and sensing his location through their linked Reiatsu, didn't hesitate. He immediately led several Shinigami, using Shunpo to swiftly make his way toward Kyoya.
Dispersing the Kido in his hand, Kyoya turned to Kisaragi's wife and child, "Madam, I've already notified my subordinates. They should arrive in about three minutes."
"Rest assured, now that I've caught their trail, I'll uproot the noble family behind this entirely. You won't face even the slightest threat."
"Thank you, sir."
"No, the fact that you've been dragged into this at all is already a failure on the part of the Gotei 13."
"If we can't even provide you with protection, then the name 'Gotei' is nothing more than an empty slogan." (T/N: Gotei means Imperial Court Guard.)
Kyoya shook his head.
The sins committed by the nobles, forcing ordinary people to bear the consequences… this was something utterly incomprehensible.
Before this, he hadn't witnessed or encountered the nobles' oppression because his own strength made them wary. At the same time, the 11th Division, as a combat division, was filled with battle-hungry warriors whom the nobles dismissed as 'savages'.
Thus, the nobles didn't dare test whether the Shinigami of the 11th Division would retaliate against them.
But in other divisions, Shinigami were often persecuted by the nobles.
Tosen, who is born blind, was the natural counter to Aizen's Kyoka Suigetsu.
Yet, Tosen was also one of Aizen's most loyal subordinates.
Why?
Because his dearest friend, Kakyo, was killed by a noble, and the noble who killed her faced no punishment.
Kakyo's dream was to uphold justice.
But in the end, the 'justice' she upheld betrayed her.
Thus, Tosen's own sense of 'justice' clashed with her fate, leading him to abandon his own 'justice' and place his hopes for vengeance in Aizen.
"Sir, was my father as cool as you?"
Hearing Kyoya's words, the child in the woman's arms widened his eyes and asked.
"Of course, your father was a very cool Shinigami too."
Kyoya chuckled and ruffled the little one's head.
It can't be helped… if he didn't take the chance to pat the kid's head now, what would happen in a few years when the boy grew taller than him and he couldn't do it anymore?
In less than two hundred years, little 'Shu' would grow into a scruffy middle-aged man. Who knew how many years it would take for him to grow up?
Meanwhile, Kyoya himself would need at least twenty more years to reach a youthful appearance.
That was just frustrating.
"What about me?"
"Can I become a cool Shinigami in the future?"
Shu blinked and asked Kyoya again.
"Haha, your name's Shu, right?"
Kyoya chuckled and said, "Shu, becoming a cool Shinigami requires going through some very harsh training, you know?"
"Otherwise, if you can't defeat your enemies and protect everyone, you won't be cool at all..."