If someone could have told Shiba KūKaku in advance that what she said that day would end up impacting Soul Society like this, then Shiba KūKaku swore she would never have spoken honestly to that former friend of hers.
When Shiba KūKaku heard that the Reigai— the one that had only just recently broken free from the 12th Division's supervision for "the well-known reasons" and caused a huge commotion— the Reigai that carried a portion of Sakahone Saizō's power as a first-generation captain, had been snatched away again…
And this time, the person who stole it was even more decisive than last time—stealing a Senkaimon on the way, then escaping to the Human World openly, right in front of a whole crowd of 12th Division Shinigami…
Although the investigation still hadn't produced a final conclusion, and Soul Society hadn't officially determined who exactly abducted that Reigai, Shiba KūKaku knew perfectly well—
It had to be that friend who had visited her not long ago: Yoruichi Shihōin.
Shiba KūKaku no longer had the mental space to think about why Yoruichi Shihōin would do such a thing. Right now, there were only two words in her heart:
Regret.
What on earth had turned Yoruichi Shihōin into someone like this?
Shiba KūKaku clearly remembered she had deliberately told Yoruichi Shihōin that Soul Society now placed immense importance on that unbreakable Reigai—that the 12th Division's captain, Mayuri Kurotsuchi, was already preparing to restart research on it.
Could it be… she was truly helping evil?
Instinctively, Shiba KūKaku wanted to take out a Jigokuchō (Hell Butterfly) and contact Higashino Shuuichi to see what he thought, but then she suddenly remembered: Higashino Shuuichi, because of that earlier misunderstanding, had vanished to who-knew-where.
In that situation, with Higashino Shuuichi's current strength… would he still allow a Jigokuchō to trace his location?
Shiba KūKaku tried having her Jigokuchō search for him, and sure enough, it failed to find Higashino Shuuichi.
That seemingly unbeatable pathfinding ability of the Jigokuchō, when faced with a target possessing overwhelming reiatsu, ultimately still couldn't truly ignore every adverse condition.
So… what was she supposed to do now?
Shiba KūKaku, for once, felt a thread of genuine confusion and inner conflict.
As a member of the Five Great Noble Houses, in this kind of situation, Shiba KūKaku had an obligation to tell Soul Society her suspicions—along with the fact that she had met Yoruichi Shihōin.
But from the standpoint of a friend… Shiba KūKaku also faintly hoped Yoruichi Shihōin had her own reasons. If Shiba KūKaku reported it, things could plunge straight into the worst possible outcome.
However, the one with the real headache right now wasn't Shiba KūKaku.
It was Mayuri Kurotsuchi, captain of the 12th Division.
Summoned alone to the 1st Division captain's lounge, he was now facing the visibly displeased Commander-General Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni.
"Although the 12th Division is a research division and naturally doesn't place as much importance on the captain's and members' combat power… your 12th Division has been running into problems again and again lately, and it's truly hard to feel at ease."
Truthfully, Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni wanted to scold Mayuri Kurotsuchi properly, but Yamamoto also knew very well—these matters couldn't really be pinned on Mayuri.
Because guarding and overseeing secured items was never supposed to be the 12th Division's duty in the first place. As a research division, the fact that Mayuri could fulfill his research work well was already enough to prove how outstanding he was. He had even accomplished something none of the previous 12th Division captains had done: setting his laboratory underground, then layering it with highly intelligent defensive mechanisms.
Could anyone say Mayuri hadn't tried?
If anyone had to be blamed, then the first incident was most likely caused by someone with the highest-level authority—someone who could simply ignore every security measure Mayuri had put in place. And the second incident… Yamamoto could only blame the culprit's strength for being too great, again bypassing all of Mayuri's protections as if they weren't there.
Which made it look like the entire 12th Division was utterly incompetent.
"It is indeed my fault. After I return, I will work even harder to strengthen the defensive fortifications of my underground laboratory!"
Normally, if the Commander-General said something like that, a Shinigami would defend themselves at least a little. But Mayuri calmly accepted everything, with no intention of "playing along" with Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni at all.
The main reason was that, under Higashino Shuuichi's suggestion, Mayuri had once gone out of his way to study Soul Society's laws—especially the regulations related to the Gotei 13. They stated that as long as a Shinigami did not commit a fundamental violation, they would remain a Shinigami forever.
When that same condition was applied to seated officers and, above them, vice-captains and captains, there was even an additional clause: unless they advanced further, or their strength declined so severely that they could no longer meet the required standard, their positions were also lifelong.
There was only one exception:
A position challenge.
In other words, demotion was allowed, resignation was not, and dismissal was outright impossible.
So Mayuri was certain that in this matter, as long as Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni wasn't out of his mind, Mayuri would not bear any real consequences.
Unfortunately, Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni wasn't out of his mind at all—he was, in fact, unusually lively. His thinking was so wild it almost made Mayuri suspect the Yamamoto before him had been possessed.
"Fortifications certainly must be strengthened. But this incident occurred within your 12th Division, and it happened repeatedly. Therefore, the special team I intend to establish to pursue and investigate this matter in the Human World— you will serve as its leader. Any objections?"
Those were Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni's exact words.
To be honest, hearing that, Mayuri felt more as if he were dealing with some slippery, hard-to-grab bastard.
So… was this yet another Shinigami whose style had gotten dragged off course by that guy?
And it was the Commander-General himself, no less?
Mayuri felt that some people were clearly no longer even in Soul Society, yet their "spirit" was everywhere.
That alone was proof of how much impact they'd had on Soul Society over the years.
One could say that, thanks to the image of Higashino Shuuichi as the "public enemy of all Shinigami" and the tireless "promotion" behind it, every word and every action of Higashino Shuuichi's past had been specially recorded by certain busybodies for the sake of study.
Some people even compiled parts of Higashino Shuuichi's experiences into a serialized novel in the Seireitei Tsuushin. The novel was titled:
The Mastermind Behind Soul Society: Higashino Shuu'i.
To avoid getting censored, the author had deliberately used a homophone—though anyone with eyes could tell who the book was really about.
In Mayuri's view, many plot points were obviously "artistically processed." For example: Higashino Shuuichi being a gentle Shinigami by day, then turning into a bloodsucking demon at night who slaughtered Rukongai civilians, and so on.
But the majority of Seireitei's Shinigami—and even the commoners in Rukongai—loved reading that kind of thing.
Mayuri had even heard that Higashino Shuuichi himself had participated in part of the literary creation for that work.
At the time, Mayuri had been puzzled: faced with a work that smeared his name like this, Higashino Shuuichi's first thought wasn't to suppress it—he actually joined in writing it.
Now Mayuri could more or less understand.
Wasn't Higashino Shuuichi also spreading his own ideas through that format?
And here it was— even the Commander-General had been influenced by the "ways of handling events" depicted in that novel.
Higashino Shuuichi's mind… truly ran deep beyond measure.
Perhaps Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni never imagined that Mayuri would think so far. After all, Yamamoto's real reason was simple: the other captains couldn't spare the time to go chasing someone in the Human World; the 13th Division captain, Ukitake Jūshirō, who was responsible for the Human World, was in poor health and not suited for a directionless hunt like this. So Yamamoto had just worked hard to find a "proper reason" to make Mayuri put down his beloved research and take this rotten, thankless assignment.
And far away in the Human World, Higashino Shuuichi probably never imagined either that back then he had simply wanted to play a "reverse Empty City Stratagem." That was why he had sought out Ginjirō, the one who serialized the novel, and personally wrote some of his own experiences with slightly embellished wording—because in Higashino Shuuichi's view, as long as he was never truly nailed down with hard proof, then nobody would ever believe he had actually done those things.
Because the absurd impression from the novel had already taken root in people's minds.
Two beautiful misunderstandings, together, produced Mayuri's suddenly humble attitude.
"No objections, Commander-General!"
After all, even the usually rigid and dull Commander-General had already started using "methods" on him—if Mayuri still didn't know when to cooperate, he really might be finished.
Then, when Mayuri finally ended the lecture in the 1st Division and returned to the 12th Division barracks, he received an official appointment document from Central 46 the next day. After that, he attempted to summon his vice-captain, Yushima Ōko.
"Captain, Vice-Captain said he had something to do today, so he left first. And he also asked me to pass a message to you."
A lower-seated officer of the 12th Division came running over when he saw Mayuri calling Yushima Ōko's name again and again, and quickly explained.
"What message?"
"'You know.' Vice-Captain told me to convey just those four words to you."
When the officer said it, his voice trembled and his nerves were in knots.
Because "You know" didn't sound like something a vice-captain would say to a captain at all—if anything, it felt like it should be the other way around.
He'd already braced himself to get chewed out, yet somehow… through his captain's mask, he felt as if he heard a faint, muted laugh?
"As expected."
Mayuri calmly spoke those four words.
"Huh?"
The lower-seated officer beside him widened his eyes, not daring to breathe too loudly.
Captain knows?
And he said "as expected"?
Could it be… were the captain and vice-captain playing some kind of special—
Am I about to hear something I shouldn't?
Should I… quietly leave right now?
The officer only wanted to escape this place as fast as possible. He felt like the next second, his captain would stare at him with a terrifying gaze.
So when Mayuri suddenly turned to look at him—before Mayuri even spoke—the officer's legs went weak.
"I didn't hear anything—"
"I believe your name is Akon, yes? While Ōko is away, you'll act as my assistant~"
"Mm? Ah?"
"Mm?"
Akon and Mayuri spoke almost back-to-back.
Akon nearly doubted his own ears.
What was "a pie falling from the sky"?
This was it—only it was a massive pie, the kind that nearly killed him when it landed!
He didn't even dare ask Mayuri why he'd been chosen, terrified that a single extra word would make the captain's brain "wake up" and stop being confused.
On the other side, far away in the Human World, Higashino Shuuichi stared with some surprise at the suddenly appearing Yushima Ōko.
"Didn't I tell you to stay in Soul Society?
Ōko… are you disobeying my orders now?"
"My lord, I'm not satisfied. If we're talking purely about the applicable range and breadth of application of abilities, I'm absolutely better than Shūsuke. Even if I don't compare myself to Shūsuke—Matsumoto Rangiku, and that Nagasawa Satomi who used to be human—there's no way I'm worse than them, right?
No matter what considerations you have, my lord, I should be your optimal choice!"
Yushima Ōko said, clearly unhappy.
He was extremely dissatisfied with Higashino Shuuichi's intention to keep him in Soul Society.
Because the next period of time, in Higashino-sama's planning, would be a great war—Yushima Ōko would not allow himself to miss it. Otherwise, he felt he would never be able to snatch the title of Higashino-sama's senior disciple from Shūsuke.
For that, even if it meant slightly violating Higashino-sama's arrangements, he would do it.
But what Yushima Ōko didn't know was that what truly surprised Higashino Shuuichi wasn't that Ōko had defied orders and followed him here—
It was that Higashino Shuuichi had already gone out of his way beforehand to find Mayuri and ask him to keep an eye on Yushima Ōko, to stop Ōko from running around.
And Mayuri had indeed agreed.
Yet now Yushima Ōko had appeared in front of him so quickly—meaning Mayuri had imposed absolutely no restrictions on him.
Given Mayuri's personality, he wouldn't do that, and there was no reason for him to deliberately oppose Higashino Shuuichi in this situation.
In this timeline, because of Higashino Shuuichi's "insertion," Mayuri had also never formed any extraordinary trust with Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni—let alone developed any sense of belonging to Soul Society.
So Higashino Shuuichi could only think of one reasonable explanation:
Mayuri was using this method to tell him that Soul Society had run into an unexpected situation.
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