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That night, at the Ninth Division office building.
"Why is Ishikawa-sama here?"
"I don't know. I came back from lunch today and saw the Captain's Office window open. I thought someone forgot to close it, so I came to take a look... And I just happened to see him handling Squad duties inside, and he was incredibly fast."
"More than just fast! Earlier, someone came to ask if their application had been processed, so I went in. After I asked, he immediately told me where to find the document I needed. All the Squad duties handled by... uh, this esteemed person, I've looked at them carefully. From every angle, they've been handled perfectly."
"Uh, then didn't you ask him why he was here?"
"He was so busy he didn't even have time to lift his head. How could I possibly ask?"
"Hm, we were the same just now. We went in, got the documents, and came right out."
"All the work that piled up these past few days was finished in one afternoon. The residents in the jurisdiction are all extremely satisfied with all the processing and changes."
"By the way, who exactly is this Ishikawa-sama?"
"You don't know? Ishikawa opened an Everything Store in the Commercial Street, handling all sorts of resident requests. At the same time, he also treats people at the Comprehensive Relief Station. It's said that his attainments in Kaido are even on par with the Fourth Division's Vice-Captain."
"His strength is also extremely formidable. My younger brother is from the Seventh Division, and according to him, he personally saw Ishikawa-sama defeat Captain Komamura Sajin, and it felt like he was doing it with ease."
"Then why is he in our Ninth Division? And handling Squad duties in the Captain's Office?"
"..."
Outside the Captain's Office, the people gathered there fell into silence simultaneously.
Handling Squad duties inside the Captain's Office...
Although there was a vague guess, this guess was somewhat unbelievable even to those familiar with Ishikawa.
Because...
Ishikawa isn't a Shinigami at all.
And normally, a new Captain's inauguration couldn't possibly be so quiet, could it?
Most importantly...
What kind of workaholic would, upon taking office, run straight here to work without even notifying the Squad Members?
"Brothers outside, does anyone have time to come in and help me with something?" Just then, Ishikawa's voice came from the Captain's Office.
Hearing this, the Squad Members who had been peeking at Ishikawa working outside the door exchanged glances, then all stepped into the Captain's Office with somewhat nervous expressions.
"The stack on the left is about the Editorial Department's affairs and personnel changes, as well as some disciplinary issues that I've modified and written. If anyone has time, please help me deliver this stack of documents to the Editorial Department." Ishikawa smiled slightly at them, then pointed to his right:
"The two stacks over there are documents related to urban construction. I've put all the documents related to urban construction, such as architectural design, shop openings, district planning, landscape gardening, street repairs, residential housing, and greening, over there."
"Besides the original applications, there are also some new regulations I've issued. From now on, urban construction applications that don't meet the regulations will be rejected. There are also some plans that I think are feasible but need modification, and I've attached revision suggestions to them. By... um..."
Ishikawa looked up, scanning the crowd, then said, "Left Wing Aya, Sixth Seat, I'll entrust the urban construction affairs to you. You'll supervise their construction and renovation according to the suggestions I've given, to prevent them from building indiscriminately and affecting the overall appearance of the district."
"Ah? Eh? Huh?"
At the back of the crowd, a short girl with some freckles on her cheeks and twin pigtails stared blankly at Ishikawa, raising her hand to point at herself.
Ishikawa met her gaze and nodded, a warm smile on his face:
"My apologies, the workload is a bit heavy, but as far as I know, Left Wing Aya, Sixth Seat, your previous work was related to architecture, so I can only entrust this task to you. If there's anything you don't understand, you can come to me anytime. I'll arrange for others to assist you with your work later."
"Yes... yes, Cap... Boss... Sir?"
"Haha, just call me Ishikawa."
Ishikawa's face held a gentle, shallow smile, combined with a soft voice he had practiced for over a decade, and finally, complemented by a gaze as deep as an ocean... Left Wing Aya's pretty face flushed red as he looked at her:
"I... I will definitely complete the mission!!"
[Left Wing Aya's favorability +5, gained 200 experience points, current favorability: 5]
"Don't be so serious, don't overwork yourself."
Ishikawa joked, looking at Left Wing Aya's increasingly red face. He didn't continue to tease her, but instead turned to the others: "These on the table are for internal Squad affairs. Later, one of you go post this list and have the people on it come see me tomorrow."
"Besides these, there are also changes and additions to the internal Squad rules, as well as some deletions. The new rulebook has been compiled. Later, have the Squad Members from the Editorial Department print it out and distribute it to every Squad Member."
"Yes."
"Ah, excuse me."
Ishikawa stood up and stretched, his bones cracking with crisp sounds. He said, "Let me introduce myself. My name is Ishikawa, and I opened a shop called Everything Store in West Rukongai, 38th District. I also have a shop in the Seireitei's Commercial Street. If you need anything, you can come to the shop to find me anytime."
"However, I temporarily won't be able to accept requests during this period. I will be staying in the Ninth Division for this time, temporarily acting as the Squad 9 Captain. So, if anyone needs anything or encounters any difficulties in their training, you can come to me anytime, and we can discuss and solve them together."
"..."
Silence.
As Ishikawa's words fell, the entire Captain's Office immediately fell into silence.
After a long while.
"What are you all gathered here for?"
A voice came from outside the office. Turning to look, they saw Hisagi Shuuhei standing outside the Captain's Office.
Meeting everyone's gaze, Hisagi Shuuhei came before Ishikawa and saluted, saying, "Captain Ishikawa."
Hearing Hisagi Shuuhei's words, everyone in the Captain's Office exchanged glances, then said in unison:
"Captain Ishikawa!"
Ishikawa nodded and didn't continue to argue. No matter what he said, in an organization as strictly hierarchical as the Gotei 13, these Squad Members would never treat him as an ordinary small shop owner.
A temporary Captain is still a Captain!
Ishikawa picked up the dori monaka that Hisagi Shuuhei had brought earlier from the table, and while eating, he asked, "By the way, where do I rest tonight?"
"A room has already been prepared for you."
Hisagi Shuuhei said, "I heard that after you became the Captain of the Ninth Division, Vice-Captain Ōmaeda sent a complete set of furniture as a congratulatory gift. I have already had it arranged in your room."
"Ōmaeda, huh?"
"But before you rest, please come with me to the dining hall for a meal. You've been working ever since you arrived here. Please have dinner before returning to your room to rest."
"Hm."
Ishikawa nodded and did not refuse.
After giving instructions to the Squad Members, Ishikawa, led by Hisagi Shuuhei, walked towards the dining hall.
"Captain Ishikawa, you are indeed as capable as the rumors say," Hisagi Shuuhei said, praising him sincerely as they walked.
Although they had only been in contact for a little over half a day, Captain Ishikawa had used that half-day to prove that he was fully capable of serving as Captain.
In terms of strength.
Although the Squad Members weren't too clear, as a Vice-Captain, he had heard the full account of Captain Ishikawa's forced entry into the Central 46 from Vice-Captain Iba Tetsuzaemon of the Seventh Division, and his strength had been proven in that battle.
And in just half a day of contact, Captain Ishikawa's serious attitude towards work made Hisagi Shuuhei feel sincere admiration.
Hisagi Shuuhei had secretly reviewed all the documents Captain Ishikawa had handled and found that Captain Ishikawa could simply be described as 'omnipotent'. No matter what the matter, it was perfectly resolved in his hands.
The new regulations were the same. Although some new rules were added, Captain Ishikawa, considering the Squad's budget, raised the Squad Members' salaries with the most comprehensive system, without creating any extra burden on the Squad.
This is something many Squads, especially the Eleventh Division, cannot achieve.
Let alone the Squad's budget, even the salaries of the Captain and Vice-Captain are basically used to compensate for damages caused.
However, Captain Ishikawa truly combined the situation of the Ninth Division and made targeted adjustments. No matter how carefully he reviewed, he could not find any loopholes in them.
"It's just that I've learned a lot of things."
Ishikawa said, then asked, "What about the Ryoka? Have you found any trace of them?"
Hisagi Shuuhei shook his head: "No signs of Ryoka have been found yet. The other Squads are stationed in their respective jurisdictions, and only the Eleventh Division is spread throughout the Seireitei searching for the Ryoka's whereabouts, but still no signs of Ryoka have been found."
"Judging by their stance, they will probably continue searching all night."
Ishikawa nodded. With Zaraki's crazy personality, if he couldn't find the Ryoka... he probably wouldn't go to sleep.
However...
Even setting aside his and Yachiru's terrible sense of direction, he couldn't possibly find the Ryoka in Seireitei, because they simply didn't exist.
After dinner, Ishikawa followed Hisagi Shuuhei back to his room.
It was a very spacious independent residence. From the traces of the residence, it had clearly undergone a thorough cleaning, and the room was filled with new furniture.
The spacious room, combined with the brand new furniture sent by Ōmaeda, made the interior of the building look golden and resplendent.
"...Can't this guy's aesthetic sense change a bit?"
Ishikawa's mouth twitched slightly. He actually had no demands for his living environment, after all, he had always lived in a bedroom full of iron bars, like a prison cell... But this kind of resplendent, dazzling room, even with the lights on, still made Ishikawa feel a bit uncomfortable.
Anyone who could sleep in such a room was, in a way, very strong.
Shaking his head, not dwelling on the room, Ishikawa stood by the window, gazing at the Repentance Palace, which was not far from here.
After some hesitation, he finally gave up the idea of secretly going to the Repentance Palace.
When the Captains' meeting ended, Captain-Commander Yamamoto had said...
During this period, he was not allowed to leave the Ninth Division's jurisdiction. In a way, this was a form of house arrest.
Gazing at the Repentance Palace, Ishikawa frowned slightly.
The Hōgyoku was implanted into Kuchiki Rukia's soul. This implantation wasn't like hiding something in the human body that could be taken out by cutting open the body.
Instead, it transformed into an energy like spiritual power, integrating with the recipient's spiritual body. Even if her body were completely dissected, it couldn't be removed.
Therefore, there were only two ways to remove it.
The first method was the Sōkyoku execution that Kuchiki Rukia was about to face. With Sōkyoku's super-high destructive power, the 'outer shell' of the soul would instantly evaporate, thereby releasing the 'internal' foreign object.
The second method was to intervene in the composition of the soul in some way and forcibly separate it.
If he recalled from his memories, Aizen was most likely in the Great Spirit Book Gallery at this time, studying the techniques Urahara Kisuke had left behind, hoping to find research related to 'implanting foreign objects into the soul' from them.
But the series of unexpected events could very likely cause Aizen to act earlier.
He might even have already used the 'dead' Tosen to obtain the Hōgyoku, which was Ishikawa's initial reason for wanting to go to the Repentance Palace.
But if that were the case, why hadn't he left?
It couldn't just be to put on hair gel in front of everyone and say, 'The vacant period of this Heavenly Throne is also coming to an end,' could it?
From this perspective, it was also possible that he had not yet found the relevant technology for 'soul foreign object extraction'.
Shaking his head, Ishikawa withdrew his gaze and no longer looked at Sōkyoku Hill.
Given his current situation, even if he wanted to investigate, it would be impossible. Only when the Seireitei truly fell into chaos would he have a chance to find another way.
To be honest...
If possible, he really didn't want Aizen to obtain the Hōgyoku.
Who knew if that dangerous guy, after getting the Hōgyoku, would just cut him down with a single slash? At that point, he would have no room to resist.
Although...
Ishikawa reached out and touched his Soul Binding area.
It's the same now!
Not dwelling on it further, Ishikawa simply took off his clothes and lay on the bed.
I've already been forced into being a Captain with a 'sword' to my throat, what else can I do but lie flat?
After a busy day, Ishikawa fell asleep not long after.
However...
He didn't sleep for very long.
Because, just as a sliver of sunlight appeared on the horizon, before the night was completely dispelled, A sound of tearing through the air came from the distant sky.
On the streets, the Eleventh Division Squad Members who had searched all night all looked exhausted.
"We've been searching until dawn, where are those Ryoka anyway?"
Zaraki grumbled impatiently, then frowned: "What's that sound?"
As he spoke, he looked in the direction of the tearing sound.
He saw a white dot in the distant sky rapidly expanding, and in the blink of an eye, it had already reached above Seireitei.
Then, it heavily crashed onto the Soul Concealing Membrane!
Boom—
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