"Did anything unexpected happen with the Inspection Team?"
"No, they have all entered the Shin'ō Spiritual Arts Academy branch campus to study now. I haven't left during this time either; I just stayed there watching to prevent them from pulling any little tricks."
"Mn, necessary vigilance is still required, but don't place this attitude out in the open, and don't reveal it to others. Otherwise, this kind of guardedness can easily turn into intense resistance and conflict."
After all, the two sides were tit-for-tat not long ago, killing until rivers of blood flowed in the Rukongai. Just the number of noble faction personnel killed by his own hands was eight hundred if not a thousand, and Suzuki Makoto had never hesitated to speculate about the nobles with the greatest malice.
"Rest assured, I have been maintaining my spirit form the whole time. No one knows I am here. Those teachers are actually quite responsible; I haven't found any problems."
"It is good that there are no problems. As long as this academy can continue to operate for a hundred years, then the entire Soul Society will be able to completely change its face."
Suzuki Makoto had high expectations for this branch campus. Compulsory education appeared both difficult and simple in the Soul Society. The difficulty lay in the requirement of spiritual power, which naturally filtered out too many things; the simplicity lay in the fact that a systematic education system had long existed here.
"How about your side? In that Seireitei, you didn't encounter any issues, right?"
"Nothing much, just cutting people every day, occasionally cutting Hollows."
"Sigh, sounds like you're living quite comfortably."
"Indeed, days like this are quite fulfilling."
The female voice on the other side paused for a moment.
"Then when will you come over to see... the Yellow Turbans?"
"It will still take some time. It has been less than two months. The Onmitsukido and the Inner Court Squad, those messy fellows, are still wandering around where I live. Once most of these people have withdrawn, I will find an opportunity to go to the Rukongai."
The man completely failed to hear the overtones in Black Jeanne's words.
"Tch! You have so many excuses—then can I come in?"
"You also want to come and live in the Seireitei for a while?"
"I just want to see places I haven't been to. What, is that not allowed?"
"It is allowed, but I need to prepare a bit and find someone to help."
Suzuki Makoto didn't feel this request was excessive. Since the young girl was summoned by him in the form of a Zanpakuto, she had always been earnestly obeying his orders, conscientiously working for the Yellow Turbans... er, killing people. So such a small request was naturally not a problem.
"You have to be quick, okay? You aren't allowed to brush me off!"
"Of course, have I ever brushed you off?"
Jeanne cut off the communication with satisfaction.
Meanwhile, in the Seireitei, Suzuki Makoto picked up his sword case, preparing to go find Aizen. After all, to let Jeanne enter the Seireitei to play, going through the channel of Kyōka Suigetsu was the simplest way.
Dong dong dong.
"Inner Court Squad notification—His Excellency the Captain-Commander orders Lieutenant Suzuki Makoto of the 4th Division to immediately proceed to the 1st Division barracks."
Subsequently, the presence outside the door departed at high speed.
1st Division barracks? Was there a Captain's meeting that required the Lieutenant to attend as well?
Suzuki Makoto didn't think too much about it; carrying his sword case on his back, he left his home.
And when he arrived at the 1st Division barracks and saw those fellows whose style of dress was entirely out of place with the entire Seireitei, he realized this matter was only related to him.
"Suzuki-kun, this is Miss Jeanne d'Arc from the Western Branch Sabres. She and her teammates were invited by the Eastern Branch—ah, that is, the Seireitei—to come and screen that Miss Jeanne d'Arc in the Rukongai."
Shunsui Kyoraku introduced the Jeanne who looked completely different in style from the two Jeannes Suzuki Makoto had seen before.
"Hello, Miss d'Arc."
"Just call me Jeanne, Mr. Suzuki. Or if you prefer, Joan works too."
The blonde girl was equally cheerful and lively. Although her appearance was different, she gave Suzuki Makoto the same feeling as the Holy Maiden he had met before—bright and just.
"Then please, you may also directly address me as Suzuki or Makoto."
"Okay, Mr. Makoto. I heard from Mr. Kyoraku that you also have a companion here in the Eastern Branch who calls herself Jeanne d'Arc, or rather, Joan, is that correct?"
"She doesn't call herself that; she is Jeanne d'Arc, or rather, Joan."
Suzuki Makoto corrected her. Although the two worlds had almost nothing in common, a name was a name.
The girl nodded, revealing a hesitant look.
"But I also heard that this Miss Jeanne wears a suit of black armor and uses black flames as a method of attack, and even... even seems to enjoy the process quite a bit during the slaughter?"
Suzuki Makoto was a bit embarrassed. The questions the other party asked were already very restrained; they were just short of directly saying she was a female maniac who liked killing and arson.
"Er, that is indeed the case."
"In that case, Mr. Makoto, I now suspect somewhat that this companion of yours might be a 'Disguised Dragon'."
"Disguised Dragon? What is that?"
The girl's expression was very serious. She first glanced at Shunsui Kyoraku and the Captain-Commander, and seeing that neither had any intention of speaking up to stop her, she began to explain the concept of Dragons to Suzuki Makoto.
"'Dragon' is our Western Branch's collective term for things that disturb the Soul Society and the World of the Living. It may not necessarily be the Western dragon or Eastern dragon that you understand, Mr. Makoto. To be more precise, Dragons to the Western Branch are like Hollows to the Eastern Branch; it is a collective term for these dangerous creatures."
"Compared to the Eastern Branch which kills invading Hollows to the last one, our Western Branch's more conventional practice is to only eliminate highly dangerous Dragons, while using ordinary Dragons with special abilities as tools for our daily lives. For example, our most common Dragon Bus is a dragon with a very large belly, the inside of which is no different from a carriage."
Suzuki Makoto listened with rapt attention. These were truly things he had never understood before. Although he had heard about the Dragon Witch, he was just a corporate slave with no spare time to understand these settings back then.
Moreover, it sounded really interesting. It seemed the poet-painter was also a romantic fellow.
"However, there are also particularly dangerous existences among Dragons. And the Disguised Dragon should be a dangerous creature second only to the most dangerous Fairy Tale Dragons, causing the greatest harm and existing in the widest range—it usually invades the body of a dead creature, obtaining all of that creature's memories and emotions from when it was alive, and then continues to lurk until the moment it completely reveals its true face, at which point it will begin to unhesitatingly devour all surrounding souls!"
____
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