"This… This is a Gotei 13 captain?"
Ganju Shiba turned around after hearing Jūshirō Ukitake's voice and saw the captain's haori. He instantly leaped to his feet, shielding Orihime Inoue behind him.
"Orihime, I'll hold him off! Run!"
While he didn't fully understand the situation, he still remembered what had happened before he lost consciousness.
His strength was insignificant compared to a captain-level Shinigami. All he could do was buy Orihime some time to escape.
No, he probably couldn't even buy her time. He might be instantly defeated, just like before. Therefore, he decided to unleash his ultimate move!
"Captain, my brother is Kaien Shiba, lieutenant of the Thirteenth Division. Could you give him some face and wait ten minutes before you defeat me?"
That's right. Ganju Shiba's ultimate move was to call for backup!
Of course, he knew his brother, Kaien Shiba, was only a lieutenant. His "face" wasn't enough to make a captain spare them.
Therefore, he only asked the captain to give Orihime ten minutes to escape. Anything more would be asking too much.
"Hahaha…"
Hearing Ganju's words, Ukitake laughed and scratched his head.
"As I thought. You truly are Kaien's younger brother."
"Huh? Captain, you know my brother?"
"Yes. We're quite familiar."
Ukitake turned sideways, revealing the number on his haori.
Thirteen!
Orihime's eyes widened in realization. So, this captain was Ganju's brother's captain. No wonder he had rescued them from that other captain.
Had Ganju's brother asked him to do so?
"Well, we've wasted enough time. Come with me. I need your help with something."
"Okay."
…
"Teacher, is this what you wanted me to see?"
Within the Thirteenth Division barracks, Rukia Kuchiki looked at the verdict in her hand and murmured.
Shino Madarame was the Twentieth Seat of the Thirteenth Division. Jūshirō Ukitake had been following the situation closely. Therefore, the Thirteenth Division was among the first to learn of the Central 46's judgment regarding Shino Madarame.
Rukia hadn't paid much attention to the matter before. It was just a handful of Ryoka. Could they possibly cause that much trouble in the Seireitei?
After Ailin had instructed her to pay attention to Shino's case, she had entered the Thirteenth Division's archives and retrieved Shino's file. It contained several verdicts.
Judging by the dates on the verdicts, not only did the punishments become harsher each time, but the intervals between them also shortened.
A week ago, there had been a new verdict almost every day.
Now, there were several new verdicts each day.
Just a few hours ago, the final verdict had been issued.
Death sentence!
Furthermore, it was an execution that would be carried out by Sōkyoku, the execution blade!
Even though Rukia was a commoner born in Rukongai, she understood the concept of "credibility."
A world had its own rules.
Only by adhering to those rules could the world function properly.
The Central 46's actions regarding Shino Madarame's case gave the impression that they were above the law.
They could change their minds whenever they wanted.
Rukia could sense that with each new verdict, the Shinigami's respect for the Central 46 was waning.
It was being replaced by an oppressive silence. No one wanted to be ruled by those who didn't keep their word.
The reason the Shinigami hadn't rebelled was twofold. First, the Gotei 13 and the Central 46 were interdependent but also independent of each other.
Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto, the founder of the Gotei 13, had broken the nobles' absolute rule over a thousand years ago using his unmatched strength. He had established the Gotei 13, the Seireitei's strongest military force.
Of course, Yamamoto knew his limitations when it came to governance. Therefore, he had created the Gotei 13 as the "enforcers" and allowed the nobles to form the Central 46 as the "judges."
This system greatly limited the nobles' power, and the entire Seireitei was protected by the Gotei 13.
A thousand years ago, the Seireitei had been the exclusive domain of the nobles.
However, under the Gotei 13's rule, the number of commoner Shinigami had surpassed the number of nobles several times over.
Despite this shift in power, the nobles still retained certain privileges.
For instance, a friend of Kaname Tōsen, the captain of the Ninth Division, had married a noble but had then been killed by him.
However, the noble who killed his wife had received no punishment.
Previously, the nobles had been meticulous in covering up their crimes. Those who knew the truth kept their mouths shut.
Some Shinigami adopted a "it's not my problem" attitude, choosing to ignore the nobles' wickedness.
As long as they didn't provoke the nobles, they could live their lives peacefully. However, when the nobles flaunted their power, everything changed.
Shino Madarame was the first victim they paraded before the Seireitei.
The Central 46's repeated changes to her verdict showed the Shinigami that the nobles were trampling on the "rules."
Now, perhaps all it would take was a single charismatic leader to ignite a rebellion. The commoner Shinigami would overthrow the nobles and establish a new order.
Was this Ailin's intention?
…
"As expected of Aizen. His manipulation of the human heart is truly remarkable."
Sitting atop the Palace of Penitence, Ailin sensed the unrest within the Seireitei and couldn't help but admire Sōsuke Aizen's skill. If he hadn't released Aizen, Ailin would have simply replicated Aizen's actions from his memories, killing all the nobles in the Central 46.
However, the Central 46 was a council comprised of forty-six noble families. Even if he killed the current members, as long as the nobles still existed, they could easily reform the council.
Furthermore, because of the unique nature of "names" in the Soul Society, even if someone wasn't a noble by blood, they could inherit a noble's "name" and become their heir.
Tokinada Tsunayashiro was a prime example.
He wasn't a true Tsunayashiro. He was merely an adopted son. However, after inheriting the name "Tsunayashiro," he had become a member of the Tsunayashiro Clan.
After orchestrating the clan's demise, he had inherited the title of "Grand Noble" and obtained the Tsunayashiro Clan's heirloom, the "Enrakyōten."
To truly eliminate a noble family, Sōsuke Aizen's actions had provided Ailin with a near-perfect solution.
Aizen was using the Central 46 to tarnish the noble families' "names," making them unworthy of the title "noble."
Or, more accurately, he was making the people of the Soul Society lose respect for the title "noble."
By targeting the nobles both in name and in deed, he could strip them of their power and bring them down from their lofty perch.
"The stage is set, the actors are in place. Soul King, how much of my plan have you seen? Will you still choose death?"
Ailin looked up with a terrifying power that pierced through the seventy-two barriers above the Seireitei, reaching the fragmented figure sealed within a pale yellow crystal.
Sadly, Ailin didn't sense anything from the Soul King's remains. It was as if his body had become an empty shell.
However, Ailin knew he was still there.
It was because the Soul King desired death that he used his will to stir up the Soul Society, creating countless "stories" within a mere thousand years.
The "Soul King" had been born from the world's will. His purpose was to replace the departed "god" and perfect the Soul Society.
Whether it was vanquishing the ancient Hollow that had nearly devoured all the souls in the world, dividing the world into life and death, creating the Human World, Hueco Mundo, and the Soul Society to stabilize the world, or even being ambushed by the five great noble clans, having his power stolen, and becoming a "linchpin" to maintain the world's balance, it was all part of his plan.
However, as time passed, the future the Soul King saw filled him with despair.
He had failed!
This world was destined to repeat the mistakes of a million years ago.
Of course, it wasn't the kind of despair where a single Hollow devoured all the souls in the world, causing it to stagnate.
It was a world that, under the current noble system, would remain unchanged for millions, even tens of millions of years, even after the three realms had been consumed by Hell.
People typically judged life and death in two ways.
If something moved, it was alive.
If something didn't move, it was dead.
Perhaps, to most people, the world was new every day. They could laugh and cry. Therefore, they were alive.
But to the Soul King, an unchanging world was a lifeless world. It was a "dead" world.
Therefore, his creation was a failure.
Since he couldn't perfect the world, he would let the next "god" recreate it!
…
Clang!
Clang!
Within a vast, desolate desert, hundreds of Zanpakutō were embedded in the ground. Two figures clashed between them.
The blonde teenager was forced to retreat under the black-haired man's relentless assault. His weapons shattered after a few clashes, forcing him to retreat and draw a new Zanpakutō from the ground.
His fighting style resembled Ailin's Unlimited Blade Works.
Outside their battle zone, a woman with long, purple hair, wearing a yellow vest, sat with her legs crossed on a boulder, observing the fight.
These three were Yoruichi Shihōin, Ichigo Kurosaki, and Ichigo's Zanpakutō, Quincy Zangetsu.
After defeating Ikkaku Madarame, Ichigo had been seriously injured. Thankfully, Yoruichi had been following him discreetly and had rescued him, bringing him to their former underground base.
Fortunately, while they hadn't visited the base in over a hundred years, it seemed neither Ailin nor Soi Fon had revealed its location.
While Ichigo recovered in the hot spring, Yoruichi explained the strength of the Gotei 13 captains.
Each captain possessed unimaginable power.
While Ikkaku Madarame, whom Ichigo had defeated, had mastered Bankai and his spiritual pressure had reached captain level, each of the Gotei 13 captains could effortlessly defeat him.
That was the strength of a captain.
Hearing that there were at least thirteen Shinigami in the Seireitei who were far stronger than Ikkaku Madarame, Ichigo fell silent. Even though he was arrogant, he didn't believe he could defeat thirteen enemies who were far stronger than Ikkaku.
Perhaps, facing the captains, he would be like Ikkaku Madarame facing him.
He could fight, but he couldn't win!
However, if he wanted to rescue Shino Madarame, a clash with the captains was inevitable.
Before Yoruichi could finish speaking, Ichigo requested to learn Bankai.
He had learned about Bankai from Ikkaku Madarame. It was the ultimate release of a Shinigami's Zanpakutō.
Only those who had mastered Bankai were qualified to become captains.
For most captains, mastering Bankai took at least ten years.
Thankfully, this base still contained some of Kisuke Urahara's inventions, including the "Tenshintai."
A black Hell Butterfly fluttered into Yoruichi's hand. After reading its contents, her brows furrowed slightly.