Chapter 193: Urahara Kisuke's Bet
Kukaku Shiba was the most famous fireworks master in Rukongai, a professional artisan hired to command pyrotechnics for festivals, ceremonies, and private business events across the districts.
She was stunning, bold, and shamelessly carefree, dressing in a way that was equal parts revealing and fearless. To countless wandering spirits, she was the kind of dream that kept them awake at night and ruined them the next morning.
Yet behind that casual swagger was a woman with real weight.
Kukaku was powerful, with techniques that felt more like demon arts than Shinigami skills, and she was the heir of a bloodline that once stood among the top five noble families.
The Shiba family was not just noble in name. They possessed technology tied to access itself, the means to approach the Soul King's Palace. They also held core secrets of Blade Zen, and their connection to their Zanpakuto was said to run deeper than what most Shinigami could ever reach.
If that connection was taken to its extreme, it could open a path to an ultimate secret technique, a forbidden summit that even ordinary Shinigami could not touch.
The legendary Final Getsuga Tenshou.
But once people learned the truth about Zanpakuto, that they were forged from the souls of Shinigami themselves, anything that spoke of "ultimate techniques" began to smell like a sin wearing perfume.
To sacrifice one's own Shinigami energy and Zanpakuto, to burn everything for a power beyond the normal limits, then to pair that with the status and secrets of a great noble line, it was hard not to find it suspicious.
Fortunately for the rest of Soul Society, the last Shiba survivors had long since broken away.
Kaien Shiba's death had carved hatred into them, and they denied the authority of the Shinigami nobility with open contempt. They hid in Rukongai, severed ties with Seireitei, and used the art of pyrotechnics as both a livelihood and a declaration.
You could call it rebellion.
You could also call it an official rupture.
That was why the five great noble families became four.
Of course, even before that, the Shiba family had never truly fit. Burdened by guilt over the sealing of the Soul King, they were already at odds with the other families. The break merely made the rot visible.
Yet family stance and personal emotion were not always the same thing.
Take the Shihouin family.
They had produced a rebellious head, someone who, theoretically, would still be the head if she returned.
Yoruichi Shihouin.
Unlike the elders and their polished, cautious nobility, Yoruichi carried a kind of freedom that made "proper" nobles itch. She was close to Kukaku, and she was also Kisuke Urahara's childhood friend.
During the Hollowfication incident, when she could have remained untouched by the scandal, she chose instead to flee Soul Society with Kisuke, Tessai Tsukabishi, and the others.
In that sense, she was a rebel noble.
The Forty Six Chambers declared her expelled.
In practice, it was simply Yoruichi's own decision to walk away.
From any angle, she could still enter and leave Soul Society whenever she pleased, and no one would dare interfere.
The only one who felt awkward about it was Yoruichi herself.
…
In the present world, beneath Urahara's shop, a black kitten crawled out of a hidden cavity, yawned lazily, and padded into a cramped room next door.
It meowed.
Kisuke Urahara sat there with his chin in his hand, watching the television with an intensity that clashed with his usual lazy charm.
"Oh, Yoruichi san," he said warmly. "Thank you for your hard work. Did you clear things up with the Shiba family."
"Half and half."
The kitten stretched.
In the next moment, it shifted, fur becoming skin, small form unfolding into a tall, radiant figure. Yoruichi stepped forward without shame, as casual as breathing, and reached for the clothes prepared for her.
"The Shiba family takes the Soul King matter seriously," she said while changing. "If they receive the Soul King's approval, they will stand on his side. But they probably will not report Ichigo's strength to the Zero Division until they confirm it themselves."
Her eyes narrowed slightly.
"That kid still hasn't shown enough power yet."
"That's only natural," Kisuke said, tone gentle. "The Shiba family's long cherished wish can't be gambled on a single moment. They'll move one step at a time."
Yoruichi tied her clothing and rolled her shoulders.
"It was just an errand. So how's Sosuke doing."
"It's still running smoothly," Kisuke replied. "Just like he said, Ichigo really does possess considerable power."
His voice slowed, the warmth thinning.
"I'm afraid even a regular captain at full strength might not handle that kind of attack. But I'm still concerned about Sosuke's compass, and the effect of traversing worlds, Yoruichi. Our current advantage is based on control. We have the overall situation in our hands."
He tapped the screen lightly, as if reminding himself it was real.
"But Sosuke is different."
Yoruichi's eyes stayed calm.
"We all know being with him is like asking a tiger for its skin. Changed or not, he said it himself, he has always been Sosuke Aizen. That's why we need people who can keep him in check."
She glanced at Kisuke sideways.
"By the way, he knows what we're doing here, right."
"Of course he knows," Kisuke said, without hesitation. "He knows I'm betting on both sides."
On the television, the image of Soul Society flickered, showing Ichigo and Sosuke walking toward the Shiba dojo.
Kisuke's usual lazy elegance, wooden clogs, striped hat, easy smile, was still there. Yet his eyes were sharp with thought.
"How could someone like him believe I was simply bewitched by chakra," Kisuke murmured. "From the beginning, he wanted me to appear like a good person to Ichigo, a harmless researcher. That young man is extremely important to Sosuke."
Yoruichi sat beside him, cross legged, watching with the same focus.
There was no need for them to hide anything from each other.
They never had.
From childhood to adulthood, their lives had been transparent in a way that made most relationships look dishonest by comparison. Kisuke could not hide his thoughts from Yoruichi, and Yoruichi could not hide hers from Kisuke.
They were two sides of the same coin.
And gambling everything on a single possibility was foolish.
That was why they had prepared backups.
The Visoreds were revealed to intimidate Sosuke, to widen Kisuke's room to research, to buy space. Only after confirming chakra's nature would deeper cooperation even be considered.
In essence, it was all a stage play performed by Kisuke and Yoruichi.
The one thing that was not an act was that they would never betray each other.
Even if the odds were a hair thin, that would never change.
Sosuke likely saw it too.
But cooperation was always like that, wasn't it.
You offer something. I offer something. We verify, then we expand.
Ichigo was the only one who did not see the full board.
From his perspective, it was absurd.
This villain had wronged everyone, and now he offered an energy system never seen before, then spoke of cooperation like it was a friendly invitation. Why should anyone believe him.
What happened next depended on Kisuke and Yoruichi's performance.
Showing the Visoreds and Isshin had been proof that this option existed.
Sending Yoruichi to make contact was a test of controllability.
And now, Ichigo's performance had demonstrated something undeniable.
Chakra had potential.
Some of the result came from Ichigo's own transformation, from excess spiritual power, from circumstances no one fully understood.
But Kisuke could see more.
He studied the chakra characteristics revealed by the compass Sosuke provided. He ran remote tests with artificial bodies. The data he gathered was astonishing.
"Yoruichi," Kisuke said quietly, "based on what we have so far, Sosuke probably hasn't been deceiving us. Chakra, with proper arrangement, combination, and spatial anchoring, suggests the plan to replace the Soul King is feasible."
Yoruichi's gaze did not waver.
"We all know there are many wedges used to replace the Soul King. I'm asking about Hell. How far can chakra go."
"Right now, the Truth Seeking Balls show they can annihilate spiritual particles instantly, and transform them," Kisuke said. "But their effect on the phosphorus energy of Hell is still unknown."
He exhaled softly.
"Still, we can be optimistic. And I don't mean to pry, but Sosuke's actions lately suggest he doesn't intend to remain in Soul Society much longer."
Yoruichi blinked.
"Oh? Why."
"Because he's in a hurry."
Kisuke watched the screen as Ganju and Ichigo began to argue, then fight. Sosuke stood aside, smiling as he spoke with a wary Kukaku.
Kisuke's brows drew together.
He did not understand.
He never understood what Sosuke was thinking.
If Sosuke had been a terrorist aiming to use the Hogyoku to blow up the world and build a new one, Kisuke could at least follow the logic. If Sosuke was chasing a companion who could understand him, that was twisted, but still recognizable.
But after his return, Sosuke's behavior carried something else.
A sense of transcendence.
Not superiority. Not disdain. Something colder and more distant, like a man who already knew the ending and was simply guiding the actors through their marks.
He acted as if he understood everything.
He apologized openly to Ichigo and Isshin. He revealed data and energy without flinching. He did not hide his injuries. He did not pretend to be invincible.
He killed his own alter ego and declared he had changed, like a man burning a bridge in public.
Every instinct Kisuke had screamed danger. Sosuke Aizen was the kind of person who ruined those who trusted him, whether by death or by madness. Measures should have been taken.
Yet Sosuke walked through it like he enjoyed the alarm bells.
He even handed Ichigo's special status and future information to Kisuke, openly.
Then he revealed a chakra technique called Kotoamatsukami, and even emphasized there should be a divine version to develop further.
It was baffling.
Sosuke claimed three selves had merged into one. At first, Kisuke treated it like a joke. Memories and feelings built a person. Even if someone had multiple "selves," the dominant one would still be Sosuke.
Then Sosuke did something Kisuke believed Sosuke could never do.
Yoruichi leaned back against Kisuke, stretching.
"I've already spoken to Kukaku. There shouldn't be any problems. The real issue is what Sosuke is going to do next."
She watched Sosuke on the screen, that gentle smile that could make anyone want to trust him, and her brows tightened.
Sosuke's charm was absolute.
And yet, he was also someone who never truly belonged to anyone.
In the past, when he spoke about seeking someone who understood him, his actions had felt like madness. He gave things condescendingly, talked to himself, and expected others to grow into his ideal image. That was not companionship. That was training a servant.
But Sosuke today did not show that same madness.
Instead, he acted like a father guiding Ichigo, step by step.
In the underground training ground, his instruction had been so detailed, so relentless, it even unsettled Kisuke.
Ichigo's comprehension was not at Kisuke's level, and certainly not at Sosuke's. He asked strange questions, made clumsy mistakes, struggled through concepts.
Sosuke did not maintain any soft facade.
He smiled, sometimes with an irritated edge, and he pressured Ichigo's mind until his power rose. When a performance was needed, he did not hesitate to beat Ichigo into shape. If Ichigo failed, Sosuke shoved him into genjutsu that felt like starvation, despair, and collapse.
His mouth never stopped moving, like a trainer raising something dangerous and precious, a man drilling discipline into a boy who had no idea how high the ceiling really was.
And Ichigo never questioned it.
He muttered, studied, absorbed everything with stubborn diligence.
It looked like a scene from an old household.
Strict father. Filial son.
It made Kisuke feel strangely removed, like he was watching a play from the wrong seat.
Does he intend to raise Ichigo as his own son.
Has he truly changed, or is he simply building a larger trap.
Kisuke stared at Sosuke on the screen, who was offering Kukaku a helpless smile, and his confusion deepened.
If a man could pretend for hundreds of years, he could pretend for hundreds more.
But why Ichigo again.
In Kisuke's eyes, Ichigo had potential. Great potential.
But potential and ability were not the same thing.
Why place such expectations on Ichigo, and even on Kisuke himself.
What did Sosuke see in that so called future that made him act like this.
He handed things over like a man entrusting an orphan to a household. He disciplined Ichigo harshly, yet protected him, and he ignored Kisuke's two sided betting as if it were a minor detail.
Why.
Sosuke could not have missed it.
So why did he look so casual.
After all, Sosuke was the one who might truly die.
Death did not weigh good and bad deeds. If it did not trust you, it simply did not trust you.
Kisuke's thoughts churned, but before he could speak, a warm pressure pressed into his back as Yoruichi leaned in close, excitement lighting her voice.
"Hey, Kisuke. Look, look. Kukaku is about to fight that guy."
"A fight?" Kisuke said, eyes narrowing at the screen. "I'm afraid not…"
As Yoruichi tugged him back and forth like an impatient child, Kisuke watched Kukaku's face twist with anger.
And in that moment, a few uncomfortable questions rose in his mind again, sharp as needles.
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