In the frigid snowfield, white flakes drifted down one by one.
Kuchiki Hisana held "Rukia's" corpse in her arms, her whole body trembling.
The man before her—Tokinada Tsunayashiro—was like a demon.
And she seemed utterly powerless.
This was a world that man had created. There was nowhere for her to run.
"What exactly do you want?"
Kuchiki Hisana looked at Tokinada Tsunayashiro and spoke seriously.
"What I want… aren't you already clear on that, Kuchiki-fujin~?"
Tokinada smiled as he slowly approached her, then gently placed a hand on Hisana's frail shoulder.
"I want you to die~"
The instant his words fell, Tokinada's Reiatsu (Spiritual Pressure) spilled out. He didn't need much—just a little should've been enough to kill someone like Kuchiki Hisana, who had no aptitude for Reiatsu at all.
But the scene Tokinada expected never came.
Hisana didn't show the slightest sign of being crushed by the Reiatsu he injected into her.
"A bit strange, isn't it?"
Hisana stared into Tokinada's slightly startled eyes, the corner of her lips lifting into a faint curve.
"You're not Kuchiki Hisana!"
Tokinada immediately sprang backward, widening the distance between them.
The entire time, "Hisana" only watched quietly, without trying to stop him in the least.
To Tokinada, it was an oddly unsettling feeling.
Because logically, Kuchiki Hisana was an ordinary civilian so weak she couldn't even release Reiatsu—how could she possibly stop his movements?
And yet just now, Tokinada had experienced an illusion—an instinctive sense—that "Hisana" could kill him.
"Who the hell are you?!"
Tokinada drew his Zanpakutō from his waist and demanded an answer.
But "Hisana" only smiled, stood up from the ground, and casually tossed the "Rukia" corpse aside.
"If I'm not mistaken, the Zanpakutō in your hand… isn't your original one, is it?
From the way it looks, it resembles your Tsunayashiro clan's ancestral divine weapon—Enrakyōten."
"Knowing the name and appearance of Enrakyōten… so you really aren't Kuchiki Hisana."
Tokinada's mind raced.
Clearly, his plan had developed a fatal leak. Someone outside the plan had broken in and disrupted his deployment—so was this person an enemy, or an ally?
"Of course I'm not Kuchiki Hisana. As for my identity…"
"Hisana" looked straight at Tokinada, confidence overflowing.
"Didn't you just secretly use my Zanpakutō ability?
It's just that the way you used it was—how should I put it—clumsy. And showing off that kind of trick in front of me… it'll never be anything elegant."
That open "confession" instantly allowed Tokinada to lock onto the answer.
"Heh. I see… so you're the current Captain of the Fifth Division of the Gotei 13—Aizen Sōsuke—right?"
Tokinada truly couldn't think of a second person who could completely deceive his eyes under these circumstances.
"Indeed. This Zanpakutō ability of yours is very handy. Use it once, and you'll never want to let go of it~"
"Unfortunately, your strength can't bring out even Kyōka Suigetsu's full potential. I doubt you can even use half of it properly. Otherwise, you wouldn't need such a roundabout method."
"Hisana" didn't deny Tokinada's guess—equivalent to admitting he was Aizen Sōsuke.
"Heh. What would you know? Killing someone like this is what makes it fun. Otherwise, just 'killing' someone—what meaning is there in that?"
Tokinada spoke with contempt.
"Then that's a shame. Kuchiki Hisana… you can't kill her."
Still wearing Hisana's face in Tokinada's vision, Aizen said regretfully.
"Why?
Overturning the current order of Soul Society and taking down the Captain-Commander, Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni—aren't those your goals too?
As long as Kuchiki Hisana dies today—"
"And with that Tsunayashiro main-house member you deliberately brought along, temporarily unconscious… you can fully ignite a direct war between the Kuchiki clan and the Tsunayashiro clan."
"Then, no matter who wins or loses, the entire noble structure of Soul Society will face a total reshuffle."
"And you're confident you'll be able to sit on the seat of the next Tsunayashiro clan head… isn't that right, Tokinada Tsunayashiro?"
Aizen cut Tokinada off mid-sentence and laid out his conclusion.
"HAHAHA! Exactly! Aizen Sōsuke, you really are a clever man~"
Tokinada laughed proudly.
He was extremely satisfied with this plan.
It wasn't that Higashino Shuuichi's original plan wasn't perfect—Tokinada simply didn't want to wait that long anymore. Since Higashino Shuuichi had already prepared himself mentally to help Tokinada eliminate the remaining obstacles within the Tsunayashiro clan, Tokinada no longer needed to keep hiding like he used to.
Just as Tsunayashiro Kamihara valued Higashino Shuuichi as a powerful and flawless chess piece, Tokinada also favored him. Tokinada firmly believed Higashino Shuuichi would become his most important ally on the road to overturning this world.
"But what if I say… I refuse?"
Aizen's smile faded slightly, and he looked at Tokinada with a serious gaze.
Tokinada's smile also withdrew.
"You have no reason to do that!"
Tokinada still clung to his judgment—believing Aizen was only applying pressure at the limit, trying to squeeze more benefits out of him.
"No. I do."
Aizen answered calmly.
"For example, I don't agree with your ideals—and I don't like the future you're envisioning."
As for Tokinada's ideology, Higashino Shuuichi had already discussed it thoroughly with Aizen long ago. It was just that, in the past, Aizen's arrogance meant he never once placed Tokinada Tsunayashiro—the pathetic little clown—into his sights as an opponent, much less bothered to clean him up.
On Tokinada's "use," Aizen and Higashino Shuuichi had the same view: scapegoat.
That is—when the time was right, throw him out to draw fire.
So Aizen had always indulged Tokinada's actions. Even when Tokinada set his sights on Aizen's "back garden," Hueco Mundo, Aizen never made a big deal out of it.
But this time, Aizen felt he needed to make something clear.
Do what you want.
Just don't cross the line.
"So you're going to become my enemy, then?"
Tokinada narrowed his eyes—then shook his head slightly.
"No… that's not it. If you were truly standing on the enemy's side, you would've attacked me just now."
"But you didn't."
"That means our interests are still aligned. It's just that… you're not ready to expose yourself directly yet, right?"
Tokinada was patient—and calculating.
With a single glance, he saw through the surface to the essence.
In the past, Tokinada wasn't unwilling to investigate Aizen Sōsuke. But because Aizen also knew about the Great Spirit Book Corridor and the Eizō Hall, he—like Urahara Kisuke—had found a way to evade the probing of those bug-level tools. As a result, Tokinada, who rarely ever left home, actually didn't know much about Aizen.
But there was one thing he did know:
Higashino Shuuichi had always been Aizen's subordinate.
Tokinada had assumed Higashino Shuuichi's plan had been reported to Aizen in advance—but now it seemed Higashino Shuuichi might be leaning a little closer to Tokinada's side.
"You can analyze the reasons however you like," Aizen said flatly. "But there's one thing I want you to understand."
"What I need… is relative stability in Soul Society right now."
"Actions like yours—actions that can directly trigger a full-scale war among the nobles of Soul Society—I don't like them."
"And I won't allow them to happen."
Aizen's words carried tyrannical force.
Because both of them lived on the dark side of Soul Society, both of them had things that couldn't see the light—Aizen had no need to keep wearing that usual hypocritical mask in front of Tokinada.
"Heh. You say you won't allow it, and I'm supposed to obey?"
Tokinada sneered.
"Aizen Sōsuke, you're just a mere Fifth Division Captain. Don't think that just because your Reiatsu is a bit higher than ordinary Captains, you can order a member of the Five Great Noble Clans around with that kind of arrogance."
Tokinada hated Aizen's tone.
It had always been Tokinada who spoke down to others—since when did someone "qualify" to speak to him like this?
Even if the current Kuchiki clan head, Kuchiki Byakuya, came here, Tokinada believed Byakuya wouldn't use such an attitude.
But Aizen Sōsuke taught Tokinada a truth through action:
In front of Aizen—
If you don't accept it, then swallow it.
Unless you can give Aizen a huge "surprise," the way Higashino Shuuichi did.
Blood arced through the air like a galaxy.
Tokinada Tsunayashiro toppled backward into the very snowfield he had created himself. Around his body, the snow had been dyed into a crimson cloak.
In the center of his torso, one compressed jet-black spear after another of Reiatsu had been driven in—pure Reiatsu refined to the extreme, piercing his body in an instant.
"You dare… actually lay hands on me?!"
Tokinada's fury ignited. His eyes turned scarlet as he vowed to tear Aizen Sōsuke into pieces with his own hands!
"Tobeyo, Minazuki!"
The Zanpakutō in Tokinada's hand instantly transformed into a massive blue-green manta ray. The moment it appeared, it opened its gaping maw toward Tokinada and swallowed him whole in one bite.
This, of course, wasn't Tokinada committing suicide.
Because Minazuki was the Shikai of Unohana Retsu's Zanpakutō. As a living, healing-type Zanpakutō, Minazuki could absorb the Reiatsu of Shinigami swallowed into its body—but that efficiency was far inferior to its ability to heal the Shinigami inside it.
Tokinada's intent was to use this to temporarily break free from Aizen's Reiatsu suppression and restore his body's condition.
The idea was good.
The result was not.
Against an ordinary Shinigami, this might have worked.
But the Shinigami Tokinada was facing was named Aizen Sōsuke—Aizen Sōsuke, who not long ago had been beaten down in a three-on-one by Higashino Shuuichi and two other Shinigami.
Some people had fire in their hearts, but they didn't say it out loud.
They vented it with action.
So Tokinada paid the price—inside Minazuki's belly, before he could even start repairing his wounds, Aizen cut him out from the outside with a single slash—like a brutal "cesarean."
In midair, flesh and blood rained down like droplets.
Tokinada, drenched and wretched within it, was so furious he was on the verge of losing all rationality.
"Aizen Sōsuke… you really deserve to die!"
A terrifying Reiatsu surged once more from around Tokinada—
More accurately, it surged from Enrakyōten in Tokinada's hand.
Just like the Kabuma clan's divine weapon, Seyabasa.
If Kabuma Sayako wanted to use Seyabasa's true power, she would have to sacrifice her lifespan.
The Tsunayashiro clan's ancestral divine weapon was the same.
At that moment, the following Shikai abilities were released simultaneously, without restraint:
Tōsen Kaname's Shikai: Suzumushi.
Kyōraku Shunsui's Shikai: Katen Kyōkotsu.
Ukitake Jūshirō's Shikai: Sōgyo no Kotowari.
Ichimaru Gin's Shikai: Shinso.
As long as they were Shinigami of note in Soul Society, their Zanpakutō abilities seemed to pour out all at once from Tokinada Tsunayashiro.
His body was bleeding, crimson flooding through him, but Tokinada didn't even notice.
Inside his mind, there were only seven words:
"Kill Aizen Sōsuke!"
Even the power used to manufacture the space they were in—the Sumitsukigasa (Ink-Moon Umbrella) derived from Yushima Ōko's Shikai ability—became distorted.
No one knew how many years of lifespan Tokinada burned away in that single outburst. But Shinigami lived long lives—Tokinada didn't care.
Faced with Tokinada in this state, Aizen stopped pressing him.
Because anyone could see Tokinada had gone insane.
And facing Tokinada's crazed, life-burning state, Aizen truly didn't have any particularly "good" solution either.
Just as Higashino Shuuichi had once specifically warned him: the Tsunayashiro clan's divine weapon really could display its true value in the hands of a madman like Tokinada.
Once Tokinada decided to burn his life without restraint, then under "normal" battle conditions across Soul Society… there truly weren't many who could trade blows with Tokinada head-on.
And this was only Enrakyōten's Shikai.
Its Bankai didn't even need imagining—it would obviously be a mirror of its Shikai, except the copying target would shift from copying other Shinigami's Shikai to copying other Shinigami's Bankai.
Even if copying Bankai demanded an even heavier lifespan cost—too terrifying for most people to ever dare—it didn't matter when the owner of Enrakyōten was a complete, thorough madman.
There was a reason the Tsunayashiro clan had always remained seated at the top among the Five Great Noble Clans. Enrakyōten's deterrent power—whether you called it "indispensable" or "immensely meritorious"—was certainly not small.
And so, after Tokinada vented his madness at "Aizen," ripping the "corpse" into countless pieces, he finally turned back—
Only to discover that the body he'd been toying with all along was nothing more than an ordinary servant of the Kuchiki household.
As for Aizen Sōsuke—and Kuchiki Hisana—
They were already gone, who knew where.
On what little snowfield remained, Tokinada even saw writing Aizen had deliberately left behind:
"Kuchiki Hisana—I'm taking her. This incident will continue to develop according to its original script."
Was Aizen… showing off to him?!
Tokinada was furious.
But amid the fury, confusion rose as well.
The original script?
Wasn't the original plan to kill Rukia?
But hadn't Rukia already been rescued by Shihōin Yoruichi?
How could it still proceed according to the original script?
And yet reality was exactly that—
In front of Shihōin Yoruichi, someone appeared… someone she never expected.
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