"Teacher, is there really nothing we can do?"
Rukia's guilt deepened.
If even Kazuma had no solution, then perhaps Zabimaru truly was beyond saving.
Kazuma shook his head.
He hated to admit it, but the problem was beyond him.
At this point, their only hope was to travel to the Soul King Palace and ask Nimaiya Ōetsu to repair Renji's Zanpakutō.
"Rukia, go to the Department of Research and Development and bring Renji's sword back. I want to examine it more carefully."
As he spoke, Kazuma gave her a meaningful look, clearly urging her to leave.
He had another reason for sending her away.
What he was about to discuss wasn't something Rukia should know yet.
Hearing that Kazuma was willing to inspect Zabimaru himself, Rukia's eyes lit up with hope.
Whether or not he could ultimately repair it, at least there was still a chance.
She nodded without hesitation and hurried toward the Department of Research and Development.
"You intend to…"
Yamamoto had stayed silent until now, but the moment he heard Kazuma's request, he understood what the man was planning.
He slowly raised his head and looked toward the distant sky.
There was no need to finish the sentence.
Both of them already knew Kazuma had set his sights on the Soul King Palace.
"That's right. He's the only one capable of repairing a Zanpakutō shattered in Bankai."
"You cannot reach that place without it."
"Who says that's the only way?"
Kazuma and Yamamoto spoke as though trading riddles.
Even if someone else had been present, they'd have had no idea what the two were discussing.
The object Yamamoto referred to was, of course, the Ōken.
And the destination was the legendary Soul King Palace.
Seventy-two impenetrable barriers separated the Soul King Palace from the Seireitei.
No one had ever broken through every layer and reached the palace by personal strength alone.
Normally, the journey required the power of the Ōken.
In truth, the Ōken was no ordinary key. It was formed from the bones of Squad Zero's members.
Because the Soul King had personally recognized them and entrusted them with guarding his palace, they naturally possessed the ability to travel freely between the two realms.
That meant there was technically one other way to enter the Soul King Palace without an Ōken: make contact with a member of Squad Zero and gain passage through their will.
"Don't tell me you plan to force your way inside through sheer strength."
Yamamoto's eyes widened as he stared at Kazuma in astonishment.
He'd clearly misunderstood and assumed the man intended to carve open a path to the Soul King Palace by brute force.
It was hard to say whether Kazuma truly possessed such earth-shaking power, but given his usual behavior, attempting something that insane was hardly impossible.
"Yama-jii, what the hell are you imagining?"
Kazuma stared at him.
"I'm strong, but I'm not that reckless. If I tried smashing my way through to the Soul King Palace, even surviving would leave me a wreck."
Kazuma wasn't the kind of person who enjoyed volunteering for suffering.
Even setting aside the barriers, the monsters in Squad Zero weren't people anyone could casually provoke.
If he arrived half-dead and then had to fight them, he might as well be handing over his head.
He probably wouldn't even get the chance to say goodbye.
"So you truly believe you can create a passage between the Seireitei and the Soul King Palace through your own abilities?"
Yamamoto narrowed his eyes and looked Kazuma up and down, silently reassessing his strength.
The brat would never make such a bold statement unless he was completely confident he could pull it off unharmed.
As for all that nonsense about surviving with half his skin missing, Yamamoto didn't believe a word of it.
He knew exactly what kind of person Kazuma was.
For once, however, Yamamoto had genuinely misjudged him.
If Kazuma possessed that level of overwhelming power, he'd have already dragged Yhwach out from the shadows of Soul Society and beaten him half to death.
A thousand years ago, Yhwach had ambushed him and left him effectively dead for centuries.
Kazuma had never forgotten that debt.
He was the sort of person who always repaid a grudge.
Still, Yamamoto could hardly be blamed for misunderstanding him.
Kazuma was rarely reliable in either word or action, and half of what came out of his mouth sounded made up.
How was anyone supposed to know what he truly intended?
"Could it be that you have some connection with Squad Zero and can enter the palace through one of their wills?"
Yamamoto studied him suspiciously.
"As far as I know, the only member you have any personal history with is Hikifune Kirio. How would you even contact her?"
He wondered whether Kirio had secretly left Kazuma some unknown item or hidden method of reaching her when she was promoted to Squad Zero.
"I never planned to rely on Squad Zero's will, and Hikifune didn't leave me any object or method of contacting her."
Kazuma stayed perfectly calm as he answered.
"Then you still intend to force your way into the Soul King Palace?"
Yamamoto frowned.
"Yes, I'm prepared to break in, but I won't be relying solely on my own strength. You should already know the method I'm talking about, Yama-jii."
"You intend to use the Shiba Clan's power?"
"Exactly. The Shiba Clan possesses the technology needed to reach the Soul King Palace. I thought you'd forgotten that."
"Brat, do you take this old man for senile? How could I forget something that important?"
Yamamoto coughed lightly to cover his embarrassment.
"The affairs of the Gotei 13 are simply so numerous that it slipped my mind for a moment."
"Right. Of course."
Kazuma nodded along without argument.
Yamamoto was the Captain-Commander. He could describe the situation however he pleased.
What was Kazuma supposed to do, call him a forgetful old man to his face?
"Illegally entering the Soul King Palace is a grave offense. Have you truly made up your mind?"
Yamamoto wasn't especially worried Squad Zero would kill Kazuma, nor did he seem concerned about whether Kazuma could persuade Ōetsu to help.
Instead, he chose the much less serious issue of breaking the rules to ease the mood.
After spending so much time around Kazuma, even Yamamoto's personality had gradually changed.
He was no longer as rigid as before, and his way of handling problems had grown considerably more flexible.
At times he was even willing to overlook certain breaches of regulations when circumstances demanded it.
Had Kazuma said something this outrageous in the original course of events, Yamamoto would likely have arrested him on the spot and thrown him into Muken.
Without anyone noticing, Kazuma had slowly begun influencing everyone around him.
Even he remained unaware of the changes.
To him, this was simply how things should have been all along.
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