Sora surveyed the scene.
The original sacrificial stage had been reduced to ruins. None of the souls, the Head Priest, or the other priests had survived the battle between Yamamoto and Takezuna Jigyō.
Lying on the ground was Takezuna, his body roasted until his skin split open, charred as black as charcoal.
Yamamoto retracted the power of Ryūjin Jakka, allowing the others to approach.
When they got closer, they found that Jigyō still had a breath left in him.
Sora glanced at Jigyō's panel:
[Takezuna Jigyō]
[Affinity Level: Friendly]
[Status: Near Death]
Sora noticed that the 'Advent of the Will of Hell' status from before had disappeared, and even his affinity level had returned to friendly.
"Cough, cough—Yamamoto..." Jigyō coughed a few times and opened his eyes.
His eyes had regained their spirit; they were no longer black and empty.
"Have you come to your senses?" Yamamoto said calmly.
"Yes... but even though my body was controlled... I still have the memories of what just happened... You're the same as always... despairingly strong... cough, cough..." Jigyō's voice was as faint as a thread.
Seeing his condition, Sora immediately knelt down and used Healing Kidō to treat him.
Jigyō's state was beyond what Healing Kidō could fully heal, but the treatment would allow him to speak a few more words.
"It's you, Katori... a few years have passed, and you've already become a warrior of captain-level strength..."
Jigyō looked at Katori Sora and continued:
"You must have many questions..."
"I was poisoned and assassinated by Asada Tetsuya. After I died, I arrived in Hell..."
Sora reminded him, "Actually, the one who assassinated you, Captain, was Asada Tetsuya's Reigai, not Asada Tetsuya himself."
"I see... that would make sense..." Jigyō seemed relieved. He had treated Asada Tetsuya well and had truly hoped he wasn't an ungrateful wretch. "I don't have much time, so I'll be brief..."
"When I was in Hell, I was actually relatively free. While moving around, I met some old friends..."
"I learned some information from them..."
"Hell has a consciousness of its own!"
"The one who was controlling my body and fighting Yamamoto just now was the 'Will of Hell'..."
"We don't know much about it; we've never even seen its physical form..."
"But occasionally, our bodies are controlled by its will to do certain things..."
"Those of us spiritual bodies who have fallen into Hell cannot resist its control..."
"Just like what happened to me today..."
"Yamamoto... you still remember that guy Sakahone Saizō, right..."
"He was also once controlled by the 'Will of Hell'..."
"Taking advantage of the 'Gate of Hell' opening in the World of the Living, he tampered with some wicked souls who were supposed to be dragged into Hell... preventing them from entering..."
"Combined with what happened today... I finally understand its purpose for doing so..."
The information Jigyō revealed was astounding, leaving everyone in shock.
"Hell has a consciousness?!" Shunsui exclaimed.
The Soul Society's knowledge of Hell was limited.
Even as a captain with access to the Great Spirit Book Gallery, Shunsui's understanding of Hell was minimal.
Today was the first time he had ever heard that Hell was conscious.
"In that case... it was the 'Will of Hell' that allowed wicked souls to enter the Soul Society, and then used these priests to open the 'Gate of Hell' here with those souls," Sora deduced.
Jigyō continued, "That is my speculation as well..."
"As for the purpose of the 'Will of Hell' doing this..."
"I have a theory—the 'Will of Hell' is attempting to break the balance between Hell and the Three Realms! Cough, cough..."
"The 'Will of Hell' wants to break the balance?!" Sora frowned. "Could it be by opening the 'Gate of Hell' in the Soul Society to plunder its reishi..."
Sora asked, "Captain Jigyō, we have one more question. Is there a connection between the Reigai active in the Soul Society and the 'Will of Hell'?"
Jigyō went on, "I'm not sure about the specifics, but when we were controlled by the 'Will of Hell', many of the beings we came into contact with were Reigai. I suspect some may have been influenced by it..."
"These are just my speculations... I don't know much... the truth is for you to uncover..."
"Cough, cough—" Jigyō's voice grew weaker. "What you need to be aware of is—there are also Reigai active in the World of the Living..."
"I must go now... in my current state... dying in the Soul Society... will only return me to Hell..."
"For those of us who have fallen into Hell... it is not easy to escape..."
"Captain Jigyō!" Ukitake cried out.
Jigyō's body dissolved into reishi, dissipating into the air.
Everyone could sense that these reishi particles were directly leaving the Soul Society and flowing into the Dangai.
"Will Captain Jigyō return to Hell..." Sora's face darkened. "Hell's binding on spiritual bodies is immense!"
Yamamoto's brow was tightly furrowed. Having just personally sent a former comrade to Hell had put him in a terrible mood.
Shunsui placed his hands in his sleeves and said slowly, "A Shinigami's body is composed of reishi. After a Shinigami dies, their body will eventually return to reishi and return to the earth."
"But for captain-class Shinigami, their spiritual pressure is too dense. After death, their reishi cannot return to the earth. Instead, it requires the 'Konsō Reisai' ceremony."
"The above is what is taught at the academy."
"But there is another theory. The 'Konsō Reisai' doesn't return the reishi of a captain-class Shinigami to the soil of the Soul Society, but instead sends them to Hell."
"Seeing Captain Jigyō's state today serves as verification of that rumor."
Ukitake said, "Captain Jigyō was listed as missing; we never found his body. It seems those culprits not only murdered him but also used the 'Konsō Reisai' to send him to Hell."
Sora stroked his chin. "By murdering solitary captain-class individuals, they cause them to fall into Hell, thereby strengthening it..."
From these events, they deduced that the 'Will of Hell' and the Reigai were connected.
Sora couldn't find much information about the 'Will of Hell' from his past life's memories. He had no impression of the things Jigyō spoke of and wondered if this was an effect of his reincarnation.
"This 'study tour' is now over," Yamamoto spoke up.
"Kyōraku Shunsui, Ukitake Jūshirō! You two will return and lead a search of the Rukongai. You must find the Reigai hiding there!"
"Yes, sir!"
...
Katori Dojo—
In the courtyard, Kana was instructing Lisa, Isane, and Sōya.
She had the demeanor of a senior disciple. Whenever she was free, she would return to the dojo to guide her juniors.
"Don't use all your strength. Always leave some room to change your move."
Kana raised her sword to block a downward slash from Isane, then her left hand smoothly grabbed Isane's wrist and pulled backward, causing her to lose her balance.
Kana released her, catching her just as she was about to fall.
"Oh my, Isane, you've grown so fast. I was trying to get you in a headlock..." Kana tilted her head, seeing that her arm only reached Isane's chest.
Since last year, Isane's height had shot up, and she was already over 170 centimeters tall.
"I-I'm sorry!" Isane's face turned red, embarrassed that her height was causing trouble.
"Why are you apologizing..." Kana patted Isane's shoulder. "Growing taller is a good thing!"
"It's a bit too tall..." Isane lacked confidence. Her height was rare among female Shinigami, which made her feel uneasy.
Just then, a gentle voice sounded in the courtyard:
"Isane, tall girls are also very charming, you know."
"Professor's back?!" x4
Kana's face was full of pleasant surprise. She dropped her wooden sword and ran over.
"Yes, something came up, so I'm back early." Sora opened his arms to catch the leaping Kana.
After the unexpected encounter, Yamamoto had ended the 'study tour'.
Shunsui and Ukitake had much to do, so Sora brought Komamura back to the Katori Dojo.
"Yay! I haven't seen you in over a month, I missed you so much!" Kana paused, noticing the tall figure behind her professor.
"Is this a big dog you picked up, Professor?" she asked.
"I am a werewolf, not a dog," Komamura said seriously.
"This is my new disciple, Sajin Komamura of the Warewolf Clan. He will be attending the academy with you all when school starts," Sora explained.
"The Warewolf Clan... this is my first time seeing one!" Kana realized.
The Warewolf Clan rarely ventured outside of Inuyama, so this was also her first time seeing one.
Lisa, Isane, and Sōya were also very curious and gathered around him.
"So you're our junior..."
"So cool... your arms are all furry too..." Sōya touched Komamura's arm in amazement.
Komamura was not expecting to suddenly become the center of attention and became a little nervous.
"The atmosphere at the Katori Dojo is very good, you don't need to be anxious," Sora said, patting his shoulder.
"That's right! When you go to the academy, if anyone bullies you, just come find me!" Sōya said confidently.
"Go and prepare a room for Sajin. I have to go out again later to sort out his academy enrollment," Sora said.
"Let's go, let's go, we'll help you get your room ready!"
Sora walked under the eaves. Batsu'unsai, having noticed the commotion, came out from inside.
"I didn't expect you to take in a werewolf disciple," she said with a smile. "Weren't you supposed to come back a few days before school starts? Why are you two weeks early?"
"We ran into an unexpected situation. We encountered the missing Takezuna Jigyō..."
Sora explained what they had encountered during their trip.
After listening, Batsu'unsai was shocked. "You encountered so much... and you even saw the 'Gate of Hell' in the Soul Society!"
"Hell..." Her eyes seemed to glaze over. "That does remind me of something..."
"The first captain of the 6th Division, Saitō Furōfushi, had a 'Tenzen Heisō' that could communicate with Hell."
"A 'Tenzen Heisō' that can communicate with Hell?" Sora was energized. "Do you know the whereabouts of this item?"
Batsu'unsai shook her head. "I used to be on good terms with her. Once, during a swordsmanship match, one of the items she wagered was that 'Tenzen Heisō'."
"Unfortunately..." she said with regret, "I won that match, but I didn't choose that item."
She felt a little regretful, but at the time she wasn't interested.
She added, "However... if you're interested, you could find a chance to ask her."
"Ask her?" Sora was surprised. "Is Saitō Furōfushi still alive?"
Batsu'unsai nodded. "She's in the Muken right now."
"She's imprisoned in the Muken..." Sora was very surprised.
She thought for a moment and continued, "And within the Gotei 13, there should still be members of her clan serving as Shinigami. Her family is a vassal family of the Kuchiki Clan."
"You could try asking the Saitō family first. Perhaps she left her belongings with them. After all, when a Shinigami is imprisoned in the Muken, they can't bring anything with them."
"The Saitō family..." Sora thought for a moment and recalled a seated officer from the 3rd Division with the surname Saitō whom he had met during the mission to Hueco Mundo a few years ago.
"By the way, why was she imprisoned?" Sora asked curiously.
"Saitō Furōfushi had a fiery temper. Back then, she had a conflict with the Tsunayashiro family and killed their clan head on the spot. She was imprisoned for that, and it's been... three or four hundred years!"
"It seems she had a very direct personality..." Sora felt a sense of admiration.
If it were him, he would have chosen to wait for an opportunity to eradicate the problem at its roots.
"Indeed. Her swordsmanship was inferior to mine, but she refused to admit it, so she often lost to me," Batsu'unsai said with a smile. After she started winning more often, their wagers were changed to things like a meal or a bottle of wine.
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