"I'll try it once the sun comes up."
Yamamoto had already made up his mind to test the technique personally.
When he raised his head, however, all he saw was a bright full moon hanging high in the night sky.
It was still nighttime.
The sun had yet to rise, which meant there was no Solar Star power available for him to experiment with.
Then another thought occurred to him.
"If the Lunar and Solar Stars illuminate all Three Worlds, were you able to locate Kazuma?"
Batsu'unsai had just said that their respective powers could shine across the Three Worlds.
That was far beyond anything the Seireitei's surveillance systems could accomplish.
In theory, it meant they could observe events throughout the realms in real time.
Though using something as extraordinary as Lunar Star power as little more than an upgraded security camera did feel somewhat wasteful.
"No."
Batsu'unsai gently shook her head.
A trace of helplessness entered her voice.
"I already used the Lunar Star to search throughout the Three Worlds as thoroughly as I could. I couldn't find even the faintest trace of him."
That meant Kazuma was most likely no longer somewhere within the Three Worlds.
The two most likely possibilities were Hell or the Soul King Palace.
Yamamoto fell silent for a moment.
"What do you think about those five old monsters Kazuma mentioned?"
Given Kazuma's strength, there were very few beings in the Three Worlds capable of posing a genuine threat to him.
Had the Soul King personally intervened?
Or did this have something to do with the founders of the Five Great Noble Clans?
Yamamoto's expression became increasingly grave.
The matter was extremely sensitive, especially with the conversation turning toward the ancient noble founders.
Batsu'unsai didn't take any chances.
Her hands moved rapidly through several seals.
A subtle but immensely powerful wave of Lunar Star energy spread outward from her body, surrounding the entire courtyard and sealing it away from outside perception.
No one beyond the barrier would be able to eavesdrop on what they discussed.
"I think the founders of the Five Great Noble Clans are the more likely answer."
Batsu'unsai spoke quietly.
"Kazuma has already fought the Soul King directly."
"And Adnyeus is still in his current mutilated state. Given his condition, I doubt he possesses enough power to forcibly trap Kazuma somewhere against his will."
Her suspicions leaned heavily toward the five noble founders.
Those ancient monsters had remained hidden for ten thousand years, lurking in the darkness like ghosts.
Who knew what kind of schemes they'd been preparing all that time?
One thing was certain.
They hadn't spent ten millennia hiding because they were planning something wholesome.
Kazuma's recent actions had almost certainly disrupted whatever arrangement those old monsters had painstakingly built.
That would give them more than enough motive to target him.
Still, there was one reassuring point.
Even those five apparently couldn't kill Kazuma outright.
Otherwise, why go through all the trouble of dragging him away and imprisoning him somewhere?
They could simply have killed him.
"So your conclusion is that Kazuma should still be alive."
Yamamoto visibly relaxed.
"He's merely trapped somewhere we can't currently locate."
As long as Kazuma was alive, everything else could be dealt with.
That was the important part.
"Exactly."
Batsu'unsai had considerable confidence in her husband.
If those five ancient founders truly possessed overwhelming power capable of crushing everything before them, they'd have stormed the Soul King Palace long ago.
They wouldn't have spent ten thousand years hiding in the shadows.
The two continued chatting for quite some time afterward, though the conversation eventually drifted into far less important matters.
Finally, Batsu'unsai's figure began to fade, her body becoming increasingly transparent as she prepared to leave.
Then Yamamoto suddenly spoke.
"What exactly is going on with Shihōin Chika and the others?"
Batsu'unsai froze.
Her half-transparent figure stopped dissolving so abruptly that it looked as though someone had cast a binding spell on her.
Internally, however, her thoughts exploded.
'Why is he suddenly asking about that?'
Had Yamamoto discovered something?
Wasn't this question completely outside the scope of tonight's conversation?
"Captain-Commander, what exactly do you mean?"
Batsu'unsai forced herself to remain calm.
"I'm not quite sure what you're referring to."
She carefully studied Yamamoto's expression, trying to determine how much he actually knew.
The original captains had remained hidden in the Human World for quite some time without exposing themselves.
How had someone managed to notice them now?
Was it coincidence?
Or had they actually been discovered?
"You're still pretending?"
Yamamoto gave her a flat look.
"The spiritual pressures leaking around Karakura Town are strong enough to terrify experienced officers. Did you really think everyone in Soul Society was an idiot?"
During his recent trip to the Human World, Kuchiki Kōga had noticed several abnormal reiatsu signatures.
As commander of the Special Forces, he naturally reported anything that suspicious to Yamamoto upon returning.
According to Kōga, those newly appeared spiritual pressures were terrifyingly powerful.
The sensation reminded him strongly of facing Batsu'unsai shortly after her return to Soul Society.
More importantly, he'd detected something unmistakable in one of those signatures.
The unique spiritual characteristics of the Shihōin Clan.
The modern Shihōin family hardly overflowed with captain-class fighters.
Aside from Yoruichi and the previous clan head, Shihōin Kiyoyasu, there simply weren't any others at that level.
So when an unknown captain-class Shihōin reiatsu suddenly appeared in the Human World…
There weren't many explanations.
Batsu'unsai stared at Yamamoto for a few seconds.
Then she gave up.
"That's right."
"They're all back."
She admitted it without hesitation.
Now that Yamamoto had already become suspicious, there was no point continuing the charade.
Yamamoto's eyes widened.
"What do you mean, all of them?"
"You're saying it isn't just Chika?"
He'd assumed that perhaps a few of his old comrades had somehow returned from Hell through some extraordinary method.
He'd never imagined that every single one of them had returned.
His voice rose noticeably.
Batsu'unsai, by contrast, remained perfectly calm.
"Yes."
"Not only Chika."
"Everyone who left us back then has returned."
Yamamoto stared at her, utterly stunned.
It took him several moments to recover.
"When?"
He'd clearly decided he wasn't letting this subject go until every detail had been explained.
"About half a year ago."
Batsu'unsai answered casually.
"Kazuma went into Hell by himself, found them, and used some special means to bring them back."
At this point, she saw no reason to hide anything.
The secret was already falling apart.
Besides, once the sun rose and Yamamoto learned how to use the Solar Star's illumination across the Three Worlds, he'd almost certainly discover Chika and the others anyway.
Better to tell him now than let him stumble across an entire collection of resurrected former captains on his own and create an even bigger misunderstanding.