— — — — — —
What exactly had Aizen told Yamamoto Genryūsai that convinced the old man to give up on Zero Division… even give up on supporting the Soul King? Ryo wondered instinctively, but a moment later he couldn't help laughing.
What did he reveal?
He revealed Ryo's existence, of course. Or rather, he revealed the existence of Little Garden.
When do people locked in internal strife finally shake hands? Easy — when an external enemy appears.
If that was the case, Yamamoto sending Unohana here to subtly say he could abandon the Soul King, even tacitly allow Aizen to take the throne, suddenly made perfect sense.
It wasn't that he wanted to stop guarding the Soul King. It was that continuing to guard him might end up putting him at odds with the survival of Soul Society.
Yes, the Soul King was the stabilizer of the realms, and under normal logic Yamamoto would never abandon him.
But what if Aizen had already found a way to replace the Soul King?
The heart of their conflict was simple: Aizen wanted to kill the Soul King and take his place, and doing so would collapse the realms.
If that core contradiction disappeared, the possibility of cooperation suddenly had a foundation.
And honestly, that sounded very close to reality. Those two guys had probably already reached some quiet understanding long before this.
Otherwise there was no way this situation would escalate into Unohana personally appearing at Las Noches.
Of course, Urahara probably had a hand in this too. If the two sides wanted to communicate, there was no hiding it from someone like him.
And in the eyes of Aizen and Yamamoto…
Yhwach, Zero Division, and even the Visoreds were all likely being treated as sacrifices.
To be willingly sacrificed by the two most dangerous minds and blades in the Soul Society — all for the sake of shaking hands and facing the incoming monsters of Little Garden.
There was also another possibility: Aizen and the Gotei 13 joining forces to kill Ryo outright, eliminating the threat Little Garden posed at the root.
But Ryo found that possibility tiny. Aizen would have to be an idiot to pick a fight when he was still far weaker than Ryo.
Besides, Little Garden's allure was far greater than the Soul King.
The Soul King was a broken relic in a pot. Little Garden was the future.
Aizen didn't betray Soul Society just to become a big fish in a small pond. Still, the pressure Ryo had put on them must have been real.
They actually joined hands behind his back… the corner of Ryo's lips lifted, his mood bright.
He glanced down at Unohana, then turned to Aizen.
"So? What's your opinion?"
Aizen sat on his throne with his chin propped on one hand, smiling. "You already know the answer, don't you?"
"What do you mean I already know the answer?" Ryo stared at him, speechless. "With how punchable you are, you should consider studying prophecy. You'd be good at it."
He sounded completely sincere.
"A very amusing suggestion." Aizen chuckled lightly, showing no particular reaction.
Ryo couldn't be bothered to lecture him and lowered his gaze to Unohana. "Since we're cooperating, show some sincerity."
Unohana straightened a little. Things were mostly settled already.
But she had no idea how outrageous Ryo's "demand" would be.
She chose her wording carefully before asking, "What do you want?"
Ryo's eyes narrowed. He stared right through her.
"All the knowledge… of the Soul Society."
"…"
Unohana instinctively tried to parse his motive, but only for a moment before giving up.
There was no point. This man was far stronger than he had been twenty days ago… overwhelmingly so. She lifted her eyes toward the throne, toward Ryo Yagami— only to realize she couldn't sense anything there at all.
With that quiet understanding, she nodded. "Very well."
"Captain!" Isane's eyes went wide.
All of Soul Society's knowledge? She was agreeing to something that ridiculous?
What if the other side decided "knowledge" included the captains' weaknesses? Were they supposed to hand that over too?
Wasn't this just surrender?
Captain… you didn't just sell out Soul Society, right?
Or— wait, no way— were the rumors true and the Captain actually wanted to go to Hueco Mundo and be that Black Emperor Ryo's queen?
She wouldn't stoop that low, right? And that guy had literally confessed while cutting her down back then!
Isane's thoughts spiraled into chaos.
And then, from the throne, Ryo smiled. "Good."
He stood and walked straight out of the hall. Orihime and Nemu fell in step behind him.
They… simply left.
Isane froze.
Then she heard the deep, smooth voice of the greatest traitor of the Soul Society, Aizen Sōsuke, echo from the other throne: "Just as planned. Everything is in place. A new order is about to begin."
The moment he finished speaking, Reiatsu erupted from the Espada one after another, wild and violent.
"Follow us." Aizen extended a hand toward those below, smiling.
Explosive reiatsu roared through the hall.
"Before us… there is no enemy."
And in that storm of power, frail little Isane's eyes filled with tears.
Was this really necessary? And— wait— did she just join a cult?
Isane felt herself mentally collapsing.
---
In the corridors of Las Noches—
Orihime followed close behind Ryo, muttering, "Soul Society working with Aizen… but they've always said Aizen was the worst criminal ever."
Nemu didn't answer, simply trailing Ryo without a hint of expression.
In consideration for his emotionally delicate rookie healer, Ryo let out a soft laugh.
"Have you taken any political classes?"
"No!" Orihime straightened up like a student answering a teacher.
Ryo went quiet. He honestly didn't know how to respond.
Why did she sound proud of not taking one?
He shot her a weird look.
She just stuck her tongue out cutely.
"Fine, I'll explain simply."
"The Soul Society wants stability. Ideally forever."
"Aizen wants to replace the Soul King, reform the system, eliminate the nobles, make everyone equal under a king— himself."
"That's their core conflict."
"Oh. Oh. I know this one! The Soul King is the lynchpin of the three realms, so if he dies everything collapses. That's why they hate Aizen so much!"
Orihime nodded fast, blinking her big eyes like an eager student staring up at her knowledgeable mentor.
Ryo chuckled and continued. "Yhwach's goal is to kill the Soul King, return the realms to chaos, and create a world without fear."
"…Huh?" Orihime blinked.
What?
Destroy the world? Make a world without fear? What was even the point of that? There would be no world?
She looked lost.
Ryo smiled and narrowed his eyes.
Compared to Yhwach's total annihilation, Aizen suddenly didn't seem so unacceptable.
And compared to the unknown gods and demons of Little Garden, working with Ryo— someone powerful but at least negotiable— also didn't seem so unacceptable.
That was likely Yamamoto's mindset once he learned the truth.
Orihime nodded vaguely, clearly not fully understanding. Her expression made Ryo discard any other notions and focus on raising her as a healer.
With a personality this adorably clueless, healing was all she was cut out for.
---
In the hidden side of Seireitei—
Within Wandenreich—
A figure seated on a throne opened his eyes.
A faint whisper followed, laced with frustration. "The future… has changed."
.
.
.