"My, my. What a terrifying little brat. He isn't even officially a Soul Reaper yet, but he's already mastered Shikai and effortlessly slaughtered two of our test subjects. No wonder Captain Aizen has his eye on him."
After Kai and the others left through the Senkaimon, Gin Ichimaru stood there with his arms crossed, a permanent smile etched on his face.
They had witnessed the entire scene—Kai releasing his Shikai and killing the Adjuchas.
"Gin, that wasn't just Shikai," Aizen said with a gentle smile, adjusting his plain glasses as he corrected his subordinate.
"Bankai... is it?"
Gin's pupils shrank, a flicker of genuine shock passing through his eyes.
He, Gin Ichimaru, was already considered a genius seen only once in a century in Soul Society.
But now...
It seemed this young master of the Noble House was more like a monster.
At the age of a sixth-year student, to have already begun touching upon, or even mastering, Bankai?
It was no wonder Aizen had been watching him for so long.
...
Evening.
Upon returning to the Seireitei, Vice-Captains Shūhei Hisagi and Rangiku Matsumoto immediately reported to their respective Captains.
The incident involving an Adjuchas-class Menos attack during the Soul Burial practice had already attracted the high-level attention of the Gotei 13 Captains.
Therefore, Kai, Rukia, Renji, and the others were ordered to wait outside the Captains' Meeting Hall.
"Just as I expected. Aizen didn't notice the Hōgyoku."
Leaning against the railing outside the hall, Kai's fingers brushed lightly over his chest.
Because he knew the plot, Kai was well aware that Aizen was the mastermind behind this attack and had been observing from the shadows the entire time.
That was why Kai chose not to hide his Shikai. He used the revelation of his Shikai power as a smokescreen to mask the anomaly of his fusion with the Hōgyoku.
"First Fusion Stage... this feeling..."
Kai fell into thought. He didn't need an instruction manual to know that his body was completely different now.
With his current defense...
Kai estimated that even if he took that Cero from earlier head-on again, it would, at most, break his skin.
This was the enhancement brought by fusing with the Hōgyoku.
And this evolution... had no limit.
...
Meanwhile, inside the Captains' Meeting Hall.
"Is everyone here, Captain Aizen?"
Inside the room, eleven figures wearing white captain's haori turned simultaneously toward the entrance.
These were the Captains of the Gotei 13!
Standing in the center was an old man with a cross-shaped scar on his forehead and a long, silver-white beard tied with a purple ribbon. His eyes were narrowed, yet they radiated a terrifying, suppressive pressure that made one's scalp tingle.
Though he stood less than 1.7 meters tall, his aura was overwhelmingly heavy.
This was the universally acknowledged strongest shinigami in Soul Society.
Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto!
Captain of the First Division!
And the Captain-Commander who led the other twelve divisions!
His strength was terrifying to the point of absurdity. All four basic Shinigami arts—Zanjutsu, Hakuda, Hohō, and Kidō—were honed to perfection. His spiritual pressure was at the absolute limit a Shinigami could achieve.
His Zanpakutō, Ryūjin Jakka (Flowing Blade-like Flame), possessed the highest offensive power in all of Soul Society. It was the oldest and strongest fire-type Zanpakutō.
Just its Shikai temperature rivaled the surface of the sun. Its Bankai burned as hot as the sun's core.
It was a sword capable of destroying the world.
"Captain-Commander," Aizen said, pushing up his glasses as he took his place in the line.
"Then, let this Captains' Meeting officially begin."
Captain-Commander Yamamoto tapped his cane on the floor. The heavy thud made everyone's heart sink.
"Is the Thirteenth Division Captain absent again?"
Mayuri Kurotsuchi, the eccentric, bizarrely dressed mad scientist, sneered sarcastically.
"Jūshirō Ukitake has taken sick leave."
Yamamoto glanced at him, expressionlessly stating the reason for Ukitake's absence.
"Tch. Always sick," Mayuri cackled maliciously. "Maybe one day he'll end up as one of my test subjects."
"Now, now." Shunsui Kyōraku frowned, scratching his head under his straw hat. "You all know Ukitake's condition. His health has never been good, and he's been coughing up blood a lot recently. He's very weak right now."
"So it's necessary for him to get more rest."
Shunsui couldn't help but defend his best friend and fellow disciple.
In recent years, Ukitake's health had indeed been deteriorating. He coughed blood at the drop of a hat. Even his division duties were largely handled by his Vice-Captain, Kaien Shiba.
Only matters that Kaien couldn't decide or handle were brought to Ukitake.
Thinking of this, Shunsui sighed, his eyes filled with worry for his friend.
Mayuri, possessing a natural toxicity skill, curled his lip. "Then he should just retire and go to a nursing home. He'd have plenty of time to rest then."
"Captain Kurotsuchi, that's going a bit too far," Shunsui said, his frown deepening.
"Silence!"
Yamamoto tapped the floor again, looking at the relentless Mayuri. "Captain Mayuri Kurotsuchi of the Twelfth Division. Are you questioning my judgment?"
"Tch."
Mayuri looked away, ceasing his complaints.
"Regarding the content of this meeting, I assume you all have your guesses."
"Today, during the Soul Burial practice for the sixth-year students of the Shin'ō Academy, they were attacked by multiple Menos Grande, and even Adjuchas-class Menos. Casualties were heavy."
"We must now determine how these Menos appeared in a 'cleansed' area."
Yamamoto opened his eyes slightly, his gaze lowered.
"How terrifying. For Menos to appear in an area cleared and strictly monitored by Soul Reapers... and to attack students... it certainly looks suspicious, doesn't it?"
Gin Ichimaru leaned against a pillar, smiling as he insinuated, "Someone must have intentionally hidden them there."
"Captain Ichimaru... are you suggesting that 'someone' deliberately placed Menos in the practice zone?"
Isshin Shiba frowned deeply.
"Oh? I never said that. That's just your own speculation, Captain Shiba."
Gin waved his hand with a grin, then deliberately added, "Speaking of which, it seems the young master of the Noble House was also present during this practice."
"You mean... Kai?"
Isshin's expression shifted as he glanced at the stoic man standing silently nearby.
The Captain of the Sixth Division, Byakuya Kuchiki!
Kai's older brother!
Gin feigned surprise. "My, my. So even Captain Shiba has heard of him?"
Then, he added with a fox-like smile, dragging out his tone teasingly:
"Our young master from the Noble House... isn't quite as simple as he appears, you know..."