"Sorry, sorry, Mr. Makoto, for causing you so much trouble."
Jeanne d'Arc clasped her hands together and bowed to Suzuki Makoto in apology.
"I'm actually fine; it's mainly your Vice-Captain. I feel like he's a little dead inside."
Suzuki Makoto honestly didn't feel much about it. Others thought contacting the Yellow Turbans was a hassle for him, but in reality, it was just a matter of saying a few words through his Zanpakuto. The main issue was that the people from the Western Branch all wore expressions as if the world was collapsing, which made him feel slightly embarrassed.
After all, looking at the whole incident: a young girl came to find Suzuki Makoto, then grabbed her luggage saying she was going on a trip, and afterwards could be contacted but not seen in person. At first glance, it really did look like Suzuki Makoto had used sweet words to trick Jeanne d'Arc into going to the Rukongai, and then kidnapped and hid her away...
"Anyway, everything should be fine now. I've already written a request for them to help take back, and I will continue to stay in the Rukongai for a while."
"I am very grateful for everything you've done for the Yellow Turbans, Miss Jeanne d'Arc. However, aside from that, could I trouble you to help me look after Jeanne? That child is a bit resistant to learning. She also seems to resist what I say; it feels like her rebellious phase has arrived a bit."
The man spoke with a tone that was half helpless and half pleading.
"Eh? Jeanne? She is studying seriously, though. Moreover, she has been with me most of the time recently, especially in terms of personnel management; she is improving very quickly, you know."
Jeanne d'Arc explained with some confusion.
"Is that so...? Then perhaps my information is lagging a bit. In any case, if you have any needs, you can contact me through Jeanne, and I will definitely do my utmost to help you solve them."
"Okay, thank you, Mr. Makoto."
The matters regarding the Western Branch had finally come to a close, and Nanao Ise breathed a sigh of relief. After all, when that Vice-Captain came to find her earlier, he had all but explicitly stated that Suzuki Makoto had abducted Jeanne d'Arc, making the 8th Division quite tense as well.
"Miss Ise."
"Vice-Captain Suzuki, is there something you need?"
"I would like to arrange a meeting with Captain Shunsui Kyoraku. I wonder if Lord Kyoraku has time?"
"Eh? Then I need to go back and ask first. May I ask if this is a formal meeting or something else?"
"Not that formal. I just want to express my thanks for the care Captain Kyoraku showed toward the Yellow Turbans and myself personally back when I was still with the Yellow Turbans."
Now that his situation within the Seireitei had completely stabilized, the biggest conflict going forward would likely be between the nobles and the Captain-Commander, rather than between himself and the Yellow Turbans. Therefore, Suzuki Makoto wanted to see if he could obtain some intelligence from Shunsui Kyoraku—at the very least, he wanted to know who the mastermind targeting the Yellow Turbans back then was.
Nanao Ise returned to the 8th Division barracks and conveyed Suzuki Makoto's request to Shunsui Kyoraku.
"Suzuki-kun wants to see me?"
"Yes, he said he wants to thank you. However, if you don't have time, it's fine to go whenever you are free."
"Then I'll trouble you with these documents, Nanao."
"Captain! You can't use this kind of excuse—"
Her words came to an abrupt halt because the grinning middle-aged man had already disappeared using Shunpo.
"Ahhh! It's like this again!"
The bespectacled girl shouted in frustration.
"If Sister Lisa were here, the Captain definitely wouldn't dare to do this!"
Meanwhile, Suzuki Makoto, having just left the 1st Division barracks, saw Shunsui Kyoraku already waiting at the entrance of his home.
"Captain Kyoraku?"
"Ah, Suzuki-kun. I heard you've been training over at the Captain-Commander's place recently. How are the results?"
"I destroyed over a hundred Asauchi today."
"My, my, you're really working hard. It's rare for me to see the Captain-Commander looking so energetic too."
Of course, it was impossible for Shunsui Kyoraku not to know Suzuki Makoto's schedule. It was just that, in order to skip work, he slipped away the moment he heard Nanao Ise's words.
"Why didn't you notify me that you were coming? I'm not prepared at all."
"I'm already prepared. But Suzuki-kun doesn't seem to drink alcohol, right?"
The middle-aged man took out the Hakutsuru Ginjo and red bean dango he had specially bought from behind his back. Although eating sweets while drinking sake was a bit weird, Shunsui Kyoraku surprisingly had a taste for it.
"If it's with Captain Kyoraku, drinking a little doesn't matter."
Suzuki Makoto simply had no interest in alcohol, but he could drink it if he had to.
The two sat facing each other. Shunsui Kyoraku poured two cups of sake, lifting one and holding it in his hand.
"Suzuki-kun seeking me out this time... surely it isn't just as simple as giving thanks, right?"
"Of course, I must thank you first, Captain Kyoraku. After all, regarding the founding of the Yellow Turbans, as long as there had been some slight alterations in the report, I would have changed from a leader taking a group of ordinary people to seek survival into an ambitious schemer wanting to overthrow the rule of the Seireitei. In that case, the Captain-Commander wouldn't have been able to turn a blind eye to me and the Yellow Turbans."
Suzuki Makoto raised his cup to propose a toast, then drained it in one gulp.
This gratitude was sincere. As a Captain from a high-ranking noble family, for him to be able to report the actual situation completely and objectively when facing the Yellow Turbans, leading Shigekuni Yamamoto to make a decision sympathetic to them—this was indeed a favor the Yellow Turbans had to acknowledge.
"It was merely what an intelligence gatherer should do. If I dared to mix personal bias into the intelligence submitted, Old Man Yama would probably be the first to break my legs."
Shunsui Kyoraku also drained his sake in one gulp. He didn't feel much about this matter; he didn't get along with the nobles anyway, otherwise he wouldn't have reported Tokinada Tsunayashiro back then. And as for the Yellow Turbans, he personally sympathized with them quite a bit. When Kenpachi Zaraki joined the Seireitei, the 8th Division had also gone to the Zaraki District to investigate, so he naturally knew exactly what that place looked like.
That Suzuki Makoto could sweep away all the monsters and demons there, allowing those poor people to live a peaceful and orderly life even in a place beyond the Seireitei's jurisdiction—he also appreciated this man very much.
"Aside from that? I assume Suzuki-kun has other things he wants to say, right?"
Taking advantage of the moment Suzuki Makoto was pouring sake, the man actively brought the point into the open.
"Yes. I want to learn from Captain Kyoraku's mouth: among the nobles, who exactly is plotting to deal with me and Jeanne? Is it all the nobles, or is there some specific fellow?"
Suzuki Makoto didn't intend to beat around the bush either. He could actually investigate this matter through Aizen, but Aizen had been busy with affairs in Hueco Mundo recently. Since Makoto was staying in the Seireitei every day now, Aizen had to expand the scope of rule in Hueco Mundo alone, so it wasn't very good to trouble him with such a small matter.
Shunsui Kyoraku held his sake cup, falling into silence.
"That Captain Kyoraku is able to ask this question shows that you already had a guess about my actions before coming here—I just want a surname, or a name, that's all. Please rest assured, I am not the type of person addicted to killing."
____
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