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"What did you say!?"
A deafening roar erupted from the second floor of the Everything Store.
Ishikawa lay sprawled on the sofa in the Everything Store's reception room, dangling his legs and picking at his ear: "Don't be so surprised. It's just that your grandson came to Soul Society. Is there really a need to be so excited?"
"...Where do you see that I'm excited?"
Ishida Soken's old face was flushed red with excitement, but this excitement wasn't due to joy, but rather...
Uryū, he's only 15 years old!!
"How could my grandson die? How did Ryūken take care of him? How could Uryū come to Soul Society?"
The more Ishida Soken spoke, the more agitated he became, asking anxiously: "Ishikawa-sama, where is Uryū now...?"
Ishikawa sat up from the sofa and looked at Ishida Soken with narrowed eyes. Did this old man really wish his grandson dead?
He had only said that his grandson had arrived in Rukongai.
Why did he automatically assume his grandson had died?
Hmm...
Right.
Ishikawa's mouth twitched. Living people generally couldn't come to Soul Society.
"Sorry, I didn't make it clear."
With that thought, Ishikawa decisively corrected the grammatical error in his statement: "Your grandson came to Soul Society with his companions. He didn't..."
"Huh? Did something happen at his school in the Human World? Food poisoning? Terrorist attack? Did Hollows attack the school?"
Before Ishikawa could finish, Ishida Soken interrupted him, asking urgently: "No, that's not important. What's important is where Uryū and the others are now. I'll go pick Uryū up and bring him to District 38. I've saved up some money these past two years, and I'll buy him a property here so it'll be easier for him to move around in the future."
"..."
"Uryū likes tailoring. Coincidentally, we don't have a clothing store in District 38, so I'll let him open a tailor shop there, and also..."
"Stop!!"
Ishikawa quickly waved his hand, interrupting Ishida Soken from continuing to plan his grandson's future.
He felt that if he let him continue planning, he might even start counting the young girls of the same age as his grandson in District 38, trying to find him a wife...
"Your grandson isn't dead."
"Hmm?"
"Your grandson came to Soul Society as a human through a Senkaimon equipped with a Reishi converter. He hasn't died."
Upon hearing this, Ishida Soken was stunned.
His grandson wasn't dead, and he had come to Soul Society as a human?
After a long pause, he murmured in confusion: "What is Uryū doing in Soul Society?"
"He's certainly not here to see you."
Ishikawa shook his head: "People attacked by Hollows generally don't leave their souls behind. He probably never even considered that you would be in Soul Society. Regarding this, you should thank Kurotsuchi Mayuri. If he hadn't hidden you for the purpose of dissecting you, you would have been devoured by a Hollow back then, although..."
"Without him, you wouldn't have died either."
It was strange to say, but ever since his conflict with Ishikawa last time, Kurotsuchi Mayuri had stopped paying attention to Ishida Soken, as if, just as he had said, he had grown tired of researching Quincy as experimental material.
Or rather...
He had already mastered detailed data related to Quincy. As long as future Quincy didn't exceed this data range, he would be able to find a way to counter them, and naturally, he would have little interest in researching Quincy.
Perhaps only when a Quincy used an ability he didn't understand and caused him great trouble would Kurotsuchi Mayuri regain interest in researching Quincy.
Shaking his head, Ishikawa didn't dwell on Kurotsuchi Mayuri's matters, changing the subject: "Don't be too happy too soon. Although he's not dead now, it doesn't mean he won't die in the future."
"Just for the fact that a human from the Human World broke into Soul Society, the Shinigami of Seireitei won't let him leave easily, and..."
Ishikawa met Ishida Soken's gaze and chuckled: "I don't believe your grandson went to such great lengths to come to Soul Society just to stroll around Rukongai. However, yesterday I found that after they arrived in West 1 District, they immediately changed course and teleported back from East 1 District. I don't know why your grandson came to Soul Society."
Ishida Ryūken's face showed a thoughtful expression upon hearing this.
He had no dissatisfaction whatsoever with Ishikawa's decisive avoidance after discovering his grandson.
Because Ishikawa had no obligation to help his grandson, even out of consideration, it had to be combined with the actual situation.
Judging from Ishikawa's words yesterday, he was already in a difficult situation himself.
Although the matter of forcing his way into the Central 46 had come to an end, the impact of this incident would not disappear so easily.
Central 46 is the highest judicial body in Soul Society and a symbol of Soul Society's power.
Regardless of the reason, it could not change the fact that Ishikawa had offended the Central 46. In fact, the sages and judges of the Central 46 who were saved by Ishikawa would even believe that Ishikawa's act of forcing his way into the Central 46 had shaken their ruling position.
Some rules absolutely cannot be broken, because once they are, people will want to try a second time.
To prevent this possibility, the first person to break the rules must disappear.
No matter what the first person to break the rules intended!
The Central 46 didn't deal with Ishikawa simply because they lacked a reason. As long as Ishikawa was caught off guard, they could use that as an excuse to deal with him.
If Ishikawa were to interact with Uryū and the others who trespassed into Soul Society, even a few simple words would bring him endless trouble.
So Ishida Soken understood why he had to avoid contact with his grandson.
Besides...
Ishikawa didn't owe him anything. On the contrary, he had saved his life and taken good care of him; yet he couldn't help him much, only being able to assist him with some simple tasks within his capabilities.
Although he was very worried about Uryū, he didn't want Ishikawa to take risks because of it.
Ishikawa carefully observed Ishida Soken's reaction and nodded inwardly.
Although he had kept Ishida Soken, it didn't mean he had to risk his own safety to save Ishida Soken's family. If Ishida Soken became dissatisfied with him because of this, then he didn't need to stay with him anymore.
The reason Ishikawa didn't interact with Ichigo and the others was partly what Ishida Soken thought, but more so because...
The arrival of Ichigo and the others would inevitably cause Aizen, who orchestrated this, to shift all his attention from himself to Ichigo and the others. Rashly interacting with them now would only cause Aizen to target him again.
Once Aizen's focus shifted to Ichigo, Ishikawa would gain some assurance in terms of both safety and action.
So there was no need to contact them now.
More strictly speaking...
Whether now or in the future, Ishikawa had no need for extensive contact with them.
Because interacting with them would only bring disadvantages to Ishikawa, with no benefits!
Ishikawa was completely uninterested in befriending them or building connections with them.
Of course, Yoruichi and Orihime were exceptions!
Because they could truly bring him benefits...
"Don't worry, when I just came up, I used 'Grab-Toe Chase-Sparrow' to investigate, and your grandson and the others are safe and sound now." Ishikawa looked at the uneasy Ishida Soken and comforted him: "Now the few of them have left West 1 District and are heading towards the Shiba residence. They've probably arrived by now."
"If you want to see him, go ahead."
Upon hearing this, Ishida Soken's face immediately showed hesitation.
As mentioned before, rashly contacting Uryū and the others, who had become Ryoka, could very likely bring trouble to Ishikawa.
After all...
The dispute between Ishikawa and Kurotsuchi Mayuri made it known throughout Soul Society that he was Ishikawa's employee.
His contact with the Ryoka would only make people suspect that he was sent by Ishikawa, and even if he announced his departure from the Everything Store now, it wouldn't change this, thus making Ishikawa's situation even more difficult.
"It's alright."
Ishikawa shook his head: "If you had contacted your grandson yesterday, it might indeed have caused me trouble, since West 1 District is right under the Shinigami's noses, and their ruckus drew all of Seireitei's attention. That's why I didn't tell you about this yesterday."
"But it's completely different once they reach the Shiba residence, because even Seireitei can't observe the Shiba's movements, so meeting your grandson there won't expose you to Seireitei's view."
Upon hearing this, Ishida Soken fell silent.
After a while, he still shook his head: "Let's not. I'm already a dead man. There's no need to add more burden to Uryū. Although I don't know why he came to Soul Society, if I were to see him, it would only make him experience the pain of separation again, and the wounds that time had healed would resurface."
Moreover, although the Shiba residence was hidden and not monitored, it didn't mean that the path to the Shiba residence could also go unmonitored.
Besides, Seireitei had always been monitoring his movements.
It wasn't difficult to shake off their surveillance, but ensuring that he wasn't caught by their surveillance along the entire journey was difficult. A single mistake could expose his trip to the Shiba residence to contact the Ryoka.
"As you wish."
Ishikawa shook his head upon seeing this, then rummaged in his pocket and tossed something to Ishida Soken.
Ishida Soken instinctively caught it, discovering it was a Denreishinki.
"This is a Denreishinki I specifically use to contact Sister Kukaku. I bought it from... a crazy scientist, so you don't have to worry about it being bugged. If you can't meet him, just use it to chat."
Sister Kukaku disliked being disturbed, so she had never owned a Denreishinki. Ishikawa had sent her a few, but they were all rejected.
Until...
After the incident where he suspected Ganju took his Spirit Entry Permit to sneak into Seireitei, but he couldn't confirm it with Sister Kukaku immediately, to avoid such incidents from happening again, Sister Kukaku proactively asked Ishikawa to send her a Denreishinki.
But she also warned Ishikawa... not to call her unnecessarily. If he wanted to greet her or something, he should do it in person, not over the phone.
Ishikawa naturally agreed to this, so even though he had owned this Denreishinki for a few years, Ishikawa had never used it once.
Upon hearing this, Ishida Soken's eyes lit up. He quickly put away the Denreishinki and said gratefully: "Thank you, Ishikawa."
"What's there to thank?" Ishikawa shook his head and got up to leave, but stopped after two steps: "Oh, right, when you make a call, remember to do it inside the Everything Store. There's a barrier protecting it. If you go outside to call, it'll make it difficult for the Supervisory Team members drinking across the street."
"I understand."
Ishikawa nodded, then hesitated before asking: "It's a rare opportunity, are you really not going to see him? Your grandson might not come to Soul Society again in the future. As for the surveillance, you don't have to worry too much; I should be able to help you block it."
Ishida Soken shook his head.
Ishikawa saw this and didn't try to persuade him further. To be honest, he also preferred that Ishida Soken not contact Ishida Uryū.
But it was a rare chance for a grandfather to meet his grandson after several years. If he wanted to see him, Ishikawa wouldn't mind trying to help him conceal his whereabouts within his capabilities; after all, Ishida Soken had worked at the Everything Store for so many years.
...Meanwhile, similar conversations were also taking place at the Shiba residence.
Inside the Shiba residence, Ichigo and the others, led by Kin'en and Gin'en, were descending the stairs.
Kin'en, leading the way, respectfully addressed Yoruichi, who was in her black cat form: "I'm truly sorry, I never expected Lady Yoruichi to be with these young ones. I apologize profusely."
"It's alright. I also have some fault for not giving advance notice."
"You truly are broad-minded."
Ichigo didn't pay attention to the pleasantries between Yoruichi, Kin'en, and Gin'en. Instead, he looked at Ishida Uryū, who was clearly distracted beside him. After a moment of hesitation, he whispered: "It's a rare opportunity, are you really not going to see your master?"
"No."
Ishida Uryū's answer was unwavering, causing Ichigo to pause. He carefully observed Ishida Uryū's expression and asked in confusion: "Didn't you say your master was the person you cared about most? Since you know he's in Soul Society and where he lives, why aren't you going?"
"He's not going precisely because he cares."
It wasn't Ishida Uryū who answered Ichigo, but Yoruichi, who was walking ahead: "Don't forget, we are now Ryoka who have invaded Soul Society. Anyone who privately contacts us could very likely be targeted by the Shinigami, and his master was already a target of the Shinigami's capture."
"Given his current identity, going to see his master, who was once pursued by the Shinigami, would only bring greater trouble to his master."
"We can return to the Human World after we're done and have offended the Shinigami, but his master can no longer return to the Human World. If the Shinigami take out their anger on him, it would only disrupt his master's peaceful life in Soul Society."
Ichigo was stunned upon hearing this, his face full of contemplation.
Clap!
After a long pause, he suddenly clapped his hands: "So that's how it is."
"Hmph~"
Ishida Uryū snorted, but didn't retort.
Just then, Kin'en and Gin'en, who were leading the way, stopped in front of a door. But before he could announce their presence, he heard Kukaku's voice from inside: "Just let them in."
Kin'en was startled, but then quickly reacted and pulled open the door in front of him.
Everyone instinctively looked into the room, only to see a smoking pipe on the tea table at the head of the spacious reception room. Behind the tea table sat a well-built, one-armed woman, holding a phone-like device in her only left hand.
This scene made everyone pause.
"Ku... Kukaku is a woman!?" Ichigo exclaimed.
Kūkaku ignored him and scanned the group, her gaze falling on Ishida Uryū: "Judging by your clothes, you must be Ishida Soken's grandson, right?"
"Huh?"
"Huh my ass."
Kūkaku directly threw the Denreishinki in her hand to Ishida Uryū. Ishida Uryū instinctively caught it, and then Kūkaku's voice came to his ear.
"Your grandpa wants to talk to you."
...Meanwhile, in the East 1 District · Kokuryōmon Gate.
Ishikawa stood outside the Kokuryōmon Gate, waiting for it to open.
Since it was confirmed that neither the Everything Store nor Sister Kukaku were implicated by him, it was time for him to take action.
Through the Kokuryōmon Gate, Ishikawa gazed at the towering buildings in the center of Seireitei, and a circle of azure light gradually appeared around his pupils.
Ishikawa had been thinking about Kaname Tōsen's death all night yesterday.
Did he die or not?
If he didn't die, where would he be now?
After much thought, Ishikawa realized that if Kaname Tōsen hadn't died, the most likely place for him to appear was...
Repentance Palace · Deep Cell Four!
Which is...
Where Rukia is imprisoned!
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