Orihime Inoue had not expected Rukia Kuchiki to refuse so firmly, and for a moment, she was at a loss.
Whoa... Ririn could tell Rukia Kuchiki was definitely angry.
Rukia Kuchiki was not usually like this. Could it be because Muten Natsu and Orihime Inoue had almost...
Muten Natsu spoke up. "Rukia..."
"Don't even think about it." Rukia Kuchiki's violet eyes fixed on Muten Natsu. "That plan you mentioned. Is it really your plan?"
"Huh?" Orihime Inoue realized then that Rukia Kuchiki's "no" had not meant she could not go to Hueco Mundo with Muten Natsu. It meant Muten Natsu's plan itself was unacceptable. "What's wrong with Muten's plan?"
"You say we're going to Hueco Mundo together, but if we run into a powerful enemy, you'll definitely hand the two of us over to Captain Unohana and go fight on your own." Rukia Kuchiki turned to explain to Orihime Inoue. "His Hell Flames, combined with Soul Essence Stealing, let him keep fighting indefinitely. If he stops caring about the consequences, he's confident he can fight anyone to the death!"
That was the true foundation of Muten Natsu's plan.
If Muten Natsu had still had some reservations when he left Soul Society back then, then once he entered Hueco Mundo, all restraints would be gone.
By repeating the cycle of killing and Soul Essence Stealing, Muten Natsu's strength would rise to a terrifying degree in a very short time.
If something beyond their control truly happened, then based on Rukia Kuchiki's understanding of Muten Natsu, he would absolutely choose to fight Sōsuke Aizen to the death.
The moment Muten Natsu decided on the captains, Rukia Kuchiki had guessed what he was thinking.
Retsu Unohana would protect Orihime Inoue and Rukia Kuchiki. No matter how badly they were injured, she could keep them alive.
Mayuri Kurotsuchi could study Wonderweiss from before, allowing the power of the Hell Flames to function naturally.
Kenpachi Zaraki could clear a path and help everyone break through.
Orihime Inoue immediately understood what Rukia Kuchiki meant. She looked at Muten Natsu with a complicated gaze that was quite similar to Rukia Kuchiki's, yet still a little different. "Muten..."
"It won't come to that. I..." Muten Natsu was about to argue when Rangiku Matsumoto suddenly appeared at the window.
"A communication from Soul Society." Rangiku Matsumoto keenly sensed the strange atmosphere in the room, but now was not the time to focus on it. "All of you should come."
...
In one of the rooms in the backyard of Urahara Shop, an extremely bizarre device now stood.
At first glance, the first thing that caught the eye was a massive screen flickering with static, large enough to cover an entire wall.
But compared to its size, the twisted frame around the screen was even more startling. The brown border had a texture like flesh, or more directly, like intestines. Strange tentacles extended from either side and clung to the walls, while other vents continuously sprayed out bursts of white mist.
Three distorted faces grew from the upper frame, like infants and insects at once. Their mouths wriggled, producing muffled, indistinct sounds.
Four beast-like legs grew from the lower frame, supporting the huge screen.
Behind the screen, intestine-like tubes of various thicknesses stretched out, tangled together in a chaotic mess and twitching from time to time.
"Wow..." Orihime Inoue stared at it for a long while. "It's so cool..."
Every gaze in the room immediately focused on her because of that comment, and Orihime Inoue ducked behind Muten Natsu.
"I didn't expect them to mail over such a big thing." Kisuke Urahara adjusted it a few times. "Captain Kurotsuchi's style is as distinctive as ever."
Orihime Inoue lowered her voice and asked, "Muten, what is this?"
"A communicator..." Muten Natsu explained. "For video calls."
"I am Tōshirō Hitsugaya, Captain of the 10th Division." Seeing that everyone had arrived, Tōshirō Hitsugaya stepped in front of the screen and did his best to ignore the throbbing veins on the frame.
"Understood!" A somewhat tired voice came from the screen. "I'll connect you now."
Static flashed across the massive screen, and the image gradually became clear.
An old man with a bald head and white beard appeared on the screen. It was none other than the Captain-Commander of the Gotei 13, Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto.
"This urgent communication concerns a matter of great importance..." Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto's voice carried the electric crackle of the communication device. "I have uncovered Sōsuke Aizen's true objective!"
Tōshirō Hitsugaya's eyes widened. "Aizen's... true objective?"
"Correct!" Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto leaned on his cane. "Ukitake conducted a lengthy search in the Daireishokairō. With Amakado's assistance, he uncovered several clues. After analyzing the contents of the previous battle, we finally connected them all."
"The Espada are elites with exceptional killing ability. Sōsuke Aizen selected the Espada in order to destroy souls on a massive scale, create spatial turbulence, pry open the Gates of Hell, absorb power from Hell, and transcend the Three Worlds!" Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto stated plainly. "However, the power of Hell is difficult to control. He needs a specific location to suppress the spatial disturbance."
Tōshirō Hitsugaya murmured, "A specific location?"
"Jūreichi," Kisuke Urahara said. "Or to put it more directly... Karakura Town."
"When the plan begins, Sōsuke Aizen will send the Espada to destroy souls at that specific location. If we do not stop them, large numbers of human souls will be annihilated. But if we send people to intervene..." Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto paused. "Then the same situation as before will occur. Battles between powerful Reiatsu will cause spatial turbulence. At that point, whether an Arrancar dies or a Shinigami dies, it will serve to pry open the Gates of Hell."
"And Aizen will stand at the center of that turbulence, Karakura Town. Using the Jūreichi to suppress the Gates of Hell, he'll use the Hōgyoku to absorb power from Hell and become an existence beyond both Shinigami and Arrancar," Kisuke Urahara added. "The key to this plan is that once it begins, we can only move exactly as Aizen expects."
They would be completely passive.
Ichigo Kurosaki felt a chill run through him. "Then what do we do?"
"We stop Aizen's plan before it can begin." Muten Natsu's dark eyes were deep and unreadable. "Before the Espada reach the World of the Living, we go to Hueco Mundo and kill them first. Or more directly, we kill Aizen."
"Precisely!" Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto brought his cane down hard. "Once Kisuke Urahara stabilizes the Garganta and brings it into a complete state that allows Captain-class Shinigami to enter Hueco Mundo, we will immediately invade Hueco Mundo and eliminate Sōsuke Aizen and the Espada!"
Rukia Kuchiki and Orihime Inoue exchanged a glance, then both looked at Muten Natsu.