Chapter 243: Great Chaos
…
It was probably a good thing the old man was not here.
Shunsui listened to the Zero Division member's casually dropped secret and, strangely, did not feel shaken. If anything, it only confirmed a suspicion that had been fermenting in his mind for a long time.
The Zero Division was an aggregate. Five captains. Five pillars. Officially equal.
Which meant disorder was inevitable.
They were not machines. They were people, carrying thoughts, pride, grudges, and worldviews sharp enough to cut. And because they stood at the very top, where no one could easily restrain them, true hostility could sprout unchecked. A team held together by barely more than duty could still fracture, and once it did, the clash would be uglier than anything below.
That part made sense.
What did not make sense was the one person who always coordinated them.
Shunsui, as the son of a noble house and a man personally trained under Captain Commander Yamamoto, knew a little more than most about the Royal Guard's secrets. Even if the five were called equals, there was still a true leader. A monk who looked carefree on the surface, yet was colder than winter steel when it mattered.
Ichibe Hyōsube.
His history was older than the Shinigami themselves. There were even whispers that the names of all things in this world were given by his hand.
A figure like that should not be involved in something as petty as internal conflict.
No, if he were present, internal conflict should not exist at all.
"…You thought of it too, Captain Shunsui Kyōraku?" Urahara's voice lowered, careful.
Shunsui shrugged, the helplessness on his face too practiced to be entirely fake.
"Seems we have a big problem."
His gaze drifted to Tenjirō, who was sprawled on the ground like a man who had decided the sky was more interesting than duty.
"The Zero Division cannot carry out its mission, and things below are already a mess. I do not know what the real situation is, but since a Zero Division captain is lying here without urgency, I suppose we have no reason to rush either."
"Yes," Urahara added smoothly, matching Shunsui's tone as if they were singing in harmony. "Even the Royal Guard has become like this. It seems we should simply wait for the final resolution."
"I did not expect it to be like this when we came up," Shunsui said, nodding along.
"Yes, yes…" Urahara agreed.
Tenjirō's eyelid twitched.
He had been lounging, but seeing these juniors casually loafing along with him, and seeing that kid standing there like a lost tourist, finally pushed him over the edge.
He rolled his eyes, then exploded off the ground in a sharp, clean carp jump.
"…Huh? What are those looks?" Tenjirō snapped. "Are you looking down on me, Kirinji Tenjirō? Huh?"
He smoothed his pompadour with the air of a street thug fixing his crown, then stared at the two captains with open contempt.
"You cannot handle your own affairs down there, so you come up here to ask us for help, and you wear that kind of attitude. Do you think that is appropriate, huh?"
Shunsui raised both hands in surrender, smile lazy.
"Not at all. We respect Captain Kirinji very much. It is just that even the Zero Division…"
"The monk in charge went into the Soul King Palace and has not come out," Tenjirō cut in, spitting to the side. "Then he told us to vote freely. That is why it turned into this."
He jabbed a finger in their direction.
"Next time you want answers, do not play games. Stop provoking people and just ask honestly. Understood?"
Before anyone could respond, Tenjirō blurred.
In the next instant, his hand landed on Mayuri's shoulder from behind.
Mayuri Kurotsuchi froze.
In his gloved hand was a small test tube, filled with a red and white liquid he had siphoned from the palace ruins. Hot spring water, still carrying faint warmth and something far more valuable than heat.
Tenjirō's temple bulged. A vein pulsed.
He leaned in, voice vibrating with fury.
"I say, are you pretending I do not exist? Huh? You are trying to steal my secret hot spring right in front of me?"
Mayuri's head turned slowly.
One hundred and eighty degrees.
The movement alone was unsettling enough to make even veteran Shinigami want to step back.
His painted face held a blooming smile.
"…This is truly a misunderstanding," Mayuri said softly. "I am only here to investigate the environment and confirm whether there are any problems."
He lifted the test tube slightly, as if presenting evidence in court.
"The battle between the Zero Division, and the consequences of that battle, are extremely valuable for someone like me to collect and analyze. Besides, there is no reason to claim I cannot research what Urahara Kisuke can. I am not his subordinate or his shadow. I can do what he does, and I can do it far better."
Tenjirō's hand tightened on his shoulder.
"What does that have to do with me?" Tenjirō snapped. "If I say no, then it is no."
Mayuri's smile did not change.
And his hand did not move.
Right in front of Tenjirō, he calmly slid the test tube into his embrace, the gesture so slow and deliberate it felt like a slap. His expression was humble, almost mocking, as if he were politely agreeing while doing the exact opposite.
The vein on Tenjirō's forehead throbbed harder.
Just as Tenjirō grabbed Mayuri's robe, ready to teach the clown a lesson that would redefine the word painful, a cheerful voice rang out from above.
"Yo, Tenjirō san. Feeling rested?"
Tenjirō's face snapped up.
"You bastard…"
Boom.
A massive long blade slammed down from the sky like a judgment.
Tenjirō vanished at the last instant.
The blade did not stop.
It pierced through the spot where Tenjirō had been standing, its momentum undiminished, and in the same motion, it cut Mayuri Kurotsuchi cleanly in half.
For a heartbeat, the world went silent.
Then the figure standing on the descending blade looked down at them.
Black clothes. Sunglasses. A mocking smile that belonged on a man who had never once feared consequences.
"Did you pee?" he asked, amused. "Did you pray to the gods? Or did you give up? Which one?"
Tenjirō's spiritual pressure surged, sharp enough to sting the skin.
His eyes burned.
"…I will kill you!"
.....
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