Folding the letter casually, Kenma put on his clothes and walked out of the courtyard. "Someone."
A pair of ominous, blood-red eyes lit up in the darkness. Uchiha Mikoto's figure emerged silently from the shadows.
Kenma saw it was Mikoto and asked, "You haven't gone home yet? Is Fugaku at home right now?"
"He is at home." Mikoto knelt on one knee, replying respectfully, "I am Lady Yoruichi's attendant. Lady Yoruichi has not slept, so I am currently on duty and dare not abandon my post."
Hearing that Mikoto was taking turns guarding Yoruichi, Kenma nodded and handed her the letter.
"Fugaku must know about what happened with Kōga yesterday. Have him give this letter to Kōga."
"Tell him to be discreet and not leave any trace. I want him to personally watch Kōga finish reading the letter."
Kuchiki Kōga had helped Kenma several times before, compiling entirely new Kidō barriers for him. His talent was astonishing and quite useful.
In light of this, Kenma naturally wanted to save him, but he couldn't let the Shihoin family get implicated.
If Kuchiki Kōga's case was turned into an iron-clad conviction by the Central 46, it could easily drag in the Shihoin family.
Kenma didn't want the family enterprise he had worked so hard to build to end up in a miserable state.
For now, he could only act with caution.
Aside from analyzing the current situation for Kuchiki Kōga and trying to calm his emotions, there wasn't much else Kenma could do.
The remaining tasks—investigating the case and finding the mastermind—could be left to Kuchiki Ginrei. That old man was not to be trifled with.
Mikoto accepted the letter with both hands. "As you command."
Her voice was crisp and decisive. With a shush, Mikoto's figure vanished on the spot.
'Sigh, I hope Kōga will listen to reason.'
Kenma sighed, turned, and went back into the courtyard, entering the house.
Meanwhile, Mikoto returned home to find Fugaku still awake, processing documents he had brought back.
Seeing Mikoto return, Fugaku asked in confusion, "You're back so early today? Your shift isn't over for a little while..."
Noticing his wife's solemn expression, Fugaku immediately understood. "Is something wrong?"
"Lord Kenma has returned. There is a mission."
Mikoto handed the letter to her husband, repeated Kenma's earlier words, and then left the house.
Fugaku opened the letter. After a moment of consideration, he took out special ink, copied the letter exactly as it was, and then burned the original manuscript.
Carrying the letter, Fugaku left the Shihoin estate, moved stealthily to the 6th Division, and entered the prison without any obstruction.
The vast 6th Division prison was currently empty of guards, aside from those at the outermost gate. Among all the cells, only one was currently lit.
A handsome man in a Shinigami uniform was kneeling before a low table. He wore a red fūka-sha scarf over his shoulders and a kenseikan in his red hair on one side, looking utterly noble.
It was none other than the man who married into the Kuchiki family, Kuchiki Kōga.
At this moment, Kuchiki Kōga was using the bright light to read a novel published by the 13th Division Captain, passing the boring night hours, but his face showed a distinct lack of interest.
Suddenly, Kuchiki Kōga put down the novel, his sharp emerald eyes looking outside the cell. "Who's there? Show yourself."
A slender, gaunt woman emerged from the void in the hallway, her face looking rather solemn.
"As expected of the Kuchiki family's son-in-law, truly extraordinary."
"Who are you? An assassin sent to kill me?"
Kuchiki Kōga stood up, his hand habitually reaching for his waist, only to grasp empty air. Only then did he remember that his Zanpakutō had been confiscated by his father, Ginrei.
The gaunt woman shook her head without speaking, tossing the envelope in her hand through the bars, where it landed on the low table.
A hoarse, unpleasant voice sounded. "I am just a messenger. Someone sent you a letter."
As soon as the words fell, the woman vanished from the hallway.
However, in Kuchiki Kōga's perception, the woman's presence still filled the prison; she had not left.
Kuchiki Kōga sneered, opened the letter, and a mess of chaotic characters met his eyes. He immediately recognized whose handwriting it was.
"Your handwriting is still as ugly as ever."
Kuchiki Kōga read on. The praise at the beginning made him smile, but when he reached the middle part analyzing his predicament and the situation, his face instantly turned cold.
By the end, seeing the placating words in the letter—nothing more than bullshit about waiting patiently and trusting the Kuchiki family—a trace of annoyance gradually appeared on Kōga's handsome face.
"Arrogant brat. This time, just like last time, you actually dare to put on such airs in front of me."
"It seems this kid really looks down on me, his senior."
This was his original plan anyway; otherwise, he wouldn't be staying here so obediently.
How could he not understand these simple truths?
He didn't need someone else to tell him!
But in this situation, knowing was one thing, and doing it was another.
As an outsider, advising someone to remain calm was just a casual word, extremely easy to say.
But for the person actually experiencing the false accusation, how could it be so easy to do?
If the person who wrote this letter were in his shoes, they probably wouldn't be able to endure it for a second and would have drawn their sword against the suspect that very day.
It was already extremely rare that he had managed to endure it until now.
After Kuchiki Kōga finished reading the letter, he was startled to find that the woman's presence had already vanished.
When he looked at the letter again, he saw the paper was blank, with not a single word on it.
"Ha, still as timid as a mouse."
Kōga sneered and held the letter over the candlelight until it burned to ashes.
Returning to the Shihoin estate from the 6th Division, Fugaku removed his disguise and went to Kenma's courtyard.
His wife, Mikoto, went to request an audience. A short while later, Kenma walked out, draped in a thin nightgown.
Fugaku said respectfully, "My lord, the letter has been delivered. There was no exposure."
Kenma nodded in satisfaction. Fugaku was undoubtedly unreliable as a leader, but as an executor, he was the most suitable tool.
"What was Kōga's reaction after seeing the letter?"
Fugaku reported everything he had seen to Kenma, down to the last detail.
After listening, Kenma nodded, his expression neutral.
Kuchiki Kōga had a very awkward personality. Based on Kenma's understanding of him, if he spoke like that, there was a high probability he had taken the advice to heart.
It was precisely because he had listened, and felt he had lost face as a senior, that he looked annoyed.
Looking at Fugaku, Kenma thought of Shisui, who was in the 12th Division. He suddenly asked, "Fugaku, you now have the spiritual pressure of a 3rd Seat. Logically, that should be enough. Can you release your Zanpakutō yet?"
Fugaku looked ashamed.
"I apologize, my lord. Your subordinate still cannot hear the voice of his Zanpakutō."
"Not only is there no voice, but the Zanpakutō in my hand feels like a dead object, with no sensation at all."
Kenma frowned. After thinking for a moment, he asked again, "Then how many of our people can currently sense the soul of their Zanpakutō?"
Fugaku's head bowed even lower.
"Replying to my lord, currently there is still not a single one... Your subordinates have failed to live up to your nurturing. Please punish us, my lord."
Hearing this, Kenma's eyes narrowed slightly. He stared blankly at the bowing Fugaku, an inexplicable emotion flashing in his eyes.
Not even one?
How is that possible?
He currently had nearly two hundred people under him with a considerable level of spiritual pressure. With such a large base, it was impossible that not even one could do it.
There must be a problem here!
Kenma had a faint feeling in his heart. With such a massive base... perhaps the source of the problem was not with these subordinates, but with himself.
'Kiritsugu...'
'Is this the influence of your ability?'
His own Zanpakutō flashed through his mind, along with that dark, shadowy figure.
"It's too early to jump to conclusions."
"You two should also rest early."
After dismissing the two of them, Kenma went back to his room.
Yoruichi was lying on the bed, pretending to be asleep. Seeing Kenma return, she asked, "How did it go? What was that guy's reaction?"
"It was alright. At least he's willing to listen to advice."
"That's good. This way, old man Kuchiki can worry a little less."
As Yoruichi spoke, her hand reached out.
"Stop pretending to be so serious. Let's go again."
"Again?"
Feeling Yoruichi's cool palm caressing him there, Kenma looked at her as if he were looking at an insatiable, gold-devouring behemoth.
How many times had it been tonight? Was she really this hungry?
"Fine, let's go."
[Reviews - Power St0nes - Comments are highly appreciated to keep me going.....(+50 chapters) patre0n.c0m/talecrafter]