After leaving Muken, Sora arrived at the level where the Reigai was being held.
The two seated officers who had interrogated the Reigai had already gone to the 9th Division to report the matter, leaving only a few guards watching over the cell.
The fact that the Reigai's brain was destroyed during interrogation meant it would likely be taken to Kirio Hikifune's laboratory for examination soon. Sora wanted to inspect the Reigai before it was taken away.
No one noticed a shadow flowing along the dark corner of the wall.
Sora quickly arrived at the cell holding the Reigai.
He moved into the Reigai's shadow. The situation was just as he had seen through his shadow's perspective: its eyes were wide open, but the pupils were devoid of consciousness. Brain fluid was even trickling from its nostrils.
However, the moment Sora approached the Reigai, he noticed a reaction from the large conch shell in his hand.
Sora's heart stirred. There was residual Hell reishi on the Reigai's body!
The 'Voice of Hell' in his hand was emitting a faint red glow, absorbing the residual Hell reishi!
Making the 'Voice of Hell' required absorbing Hell reishi, and using it would consume the reishi stored within.
The consumed reishi could be replenished when a 'Gate of Hell' opened in the real world.
"Is this Hell reishi left over from the recent incident, or was it on the Reigai's body all along?" Sora wondered.
One look at the Reigai's condition made it clear that something capable of destroying the brain had been implanted inside it. The Hell reishi was very likely a residue from the activation of that spell.
Sora decided to check the other cell.
The Reigai in the other cell had not yet been interrogated, and its brain was still intact.
These two Reigai were captured together; it was unlikely that only one of them had a self-destruct mechanism in its brain.
After arriving at the next cell, Sora took out the 'Voice of Hell' again.
As it neared the Reigai, the device began to glow faintly, but it did not absorb the Hell reishi.
"As expected, this Reigai also has Hell reishi on it, but it's likely restrained by a spell, preventing the 'Voice of Hell' from absorbing it," Sora thought.
This new discovery was an unexpected boon.
Possessing the 'Voice of Hell' was equivalent to having the ability to directly identify Reigai that had been influenced by Hell.
He didn't even need a detection device, which was cumbersome and not easily portable.
He could use the 'Voice of Hell' as a Hell reishi detector. As long as he didn't activate its receiving function, he wouldn't have to fear the influence of the Will of Hell.
After confirming the Reigai's connection to Hell, Sora left the prison.
The Reigai had a spell in its head that could destroy the brain. To examine it would require a craniotomy. Since he had snuck in, he couldn't possibly perform such a procedure here.
However, such a surgery would surely be handled by Kirio Hikifune herself. He just needed to pretend to be coincidentally visiting the 12th Division to find her, and he would have a chance to participate. After all, he had a reputation for being a skilled healer and researcher. Given his relationship with her, she would most likely invite him to join.
Sora left the prison and headed directly to the 12th Division.
He had been visiting the 12th Division frequently in recent years, so many of the squad members knew him. He entered without being stopped.
Sora casually asked a squad member, "Is Miss Kirio in the barracks today?"
"Professor Katori, you're here," the female Shinigami chuckled. "A lot of people are looking for the captain today. The prison squad just came by as well. They seemed to be in a hurry, so she might not have time."
"Isn't the prison squad one of the most idle? What could they possibly need to trouble Miss Kirio with?" Sora feigned a look of surprise.
"I heard some prisoner had a problem, and they wanted the captain to help take a look," the female Shinigami said, pointing to the hall at the end of the corridor. "They're waiting for her in the hall right now."
"Thanks. I'll go see if there's anything I can do to help Miss Kirio," Sora said gently.
Sora walked through the corridor and into the 12th Division's main hall. As expected, he saw several Shinigami who were not from the 12th.
The ones seeking Kirio Hikifune's help were the lieutenant of the 9th Division, Kensei Muguruma, and the two seated officers responsible for interrogating the Reigai.
"Professor?" Kensei Muguruma was surprised to see Sora.
"I thought of a new dish and came to exchange ideas with Miss Kirio," Sora said with a smile, greeting the 9th Division lieutenant. "Lieutenant Niino, I hope Kensei hasn't been causing you any trouble?"
Over the past few years, he had often used the excuse of discussing cooking to visit Kirio Hikifune to keep tabs on her promotion, so his reason wouldn't arouse suspicion.
"Not at all. Kensei's performance in the 9th Division has been outstanding. Otherwise, he wouldn't have been promoted to a seated officer so quickly," Lieutenant Niino smiled.
As they were talking, Kirio Hikifune and two assistants arrived in the hall.
"Katori-kun, I have some things to attend to today. I'm afraid discussing cooking will have to wait until I'm finished," Kirio Hikifune said. She had already been informed of Sora's visit via her Denreishinki.
"We need to perform a craniotomy to examine the inside of the Reigai's head. We might need your healing Kidō skills later. You should come with me," Kirio Hikifune explained the situation. "Squad 8 captured two Reigai, but there was an accident during the interrogation..."
While waiting in the hall, the prison squad Shinigami had already explained the situation to her.
"Squad 8 actually caught Reigai..." Sora nodded, accepting her invitation. "Reigai aren't easy to catch. I'm very interested as well."
Sora, Kirio Hikifune, and the others followed the prison squad to the underground prison.
"This must be your first time here, Katori-kun. I personally designed the reishi barrier here. Its strength is no less than that of the Seireitei's Shakonmaku," Kirio Hikifune said with some pride. "Even the Captain-Commander would need to exert some effort to break through this barrier. In terms of defense, it is arguably the strongest reishi barrier in the Soul Society!"
The Shakonmaku not only had excellent defense but also the ability to destroy spiritual bodies; they were not the same type of reishi barrier.
Sora smiled and nodded. "Just from the reishi concentration in the barrier, one can tell it is impenetrable and can withstand powerful enemies."
This reishi barrier could even withstand attacks from captain-class Shinigami. Unfortunately, it couldn't stop Sora's infiltration.
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