researched…"
Within the Fifth Division captain's quarters, Aizen Sōsuke, newly appointed captain, gazed calmly at the intelligence report in his hand.
The paper detailed the recent opening of a sundry shop in Seireitei, one operated under the name of Gosuke Shigure, a man who had already withdrawn from the Gotei Thirteen.
What drew Aizen's attention was not the shop itself but its contents.
Several of the items being sold possessed a level of refinement that exceeded the standard output of the Shinigami Research and Development Institute.
Their internal structures, the way reishi flowed through them, the efficiency of their activation
They were unmistakably the work of a true genius.
And Gosuke Shigure was not such a man.
Aizen knew this well.
Shigure was powerful.
A monster on the battlefield.
A man who once bore the name Kenpachi.
But he was not a researcher.
The Tsunayashiro clan, though still retaining the prestige of a Great Noble House, had long since declined in practical capability. Political influence aside, they no longer produced innovators capable of crafting such tools.
Thus, Aizen reached the only conclusion that made sense.
The source was Urahara Kisuke.
"Still connected after all…"
Aizen murmured softly.
Urahara Kisuke.
Shihōin Yoruichi.
Both had once been disciples of Gosuke Shigure.
Given that history, it was hardly strange that contact remained between them.
In fact
It would have been stranger if it did not.
"Does that mean…"
"…you're willing to do business with me as well?"
Aizen's lips curved into a faint smile.
His mind drifted back to the past to a single night long ago, when he and Gosuke Shigure had shared sake atop the Seireitei rooftops.
That had been the only time Aizen had ever been truly alone with him.
And in that brief moment, Aizen had sensed it
A depth he could not fully perceive.
A man shrouded in fog.
If memory served, the spiritual subspace hidden beneath Seireitei the one later used by the Quincy had first been noticed by Gosuke Shigure, before Urahara Kisuke confirmed its nature.
Which meant
Shigure knew far more than he appeared to.
Now, aided by the Tsunayashiro family, he had opened a shop that circulated creations even the Seireitei's finest researchers could not reproduce.
Aizen needed no further confirmation.
These goods came from Urahara Kisuke.
And if Shigure still dealt with Urahara
Then Shigure likely knew everything.
Including him.
Yet Aizen felt no unease.
Urahara Kisuke.
Tessai Tsukabishi.
They had seen his true face before.
So what if Ichimaru Gin had stood behind him that day?
Without evidence, accusations were meaningless.
As long as Kyōka Suigetsu existed
Aizen Sōsuke was innocent.
Perfectly so.
With that thought, Aizen released any lingering vigilance toward Gosuke Shigure.
As long as Shigure did not move first
Neither would he.
After all, the Hollowfication experiment that had consumed those captains and vice-captains had already served its purpose.
Using ordinary Shinigami was inefficient.
Using captains risked destabilizing the Gotei Thirteen prematurely.
It was time to change direction.
"If Shinigami can be hollowfied…"
"…then can Hollows be elevated to Shinigami?"
His gaze turned inward.
Hueco Mundo.
Countless Hollows.
Endless experimental material.
Aizen picked up his brush and began writing calmly, diagrams forming beneath his hand.
A new phase had begun.
Far away
Beyond the Eastern Soul Society.
Beyond Seireitei.
Beyond even Hueco Mundo.
In the western lands of the World of the Living, beneath ancient stone and frozen silence
A throne lay hidden.
This was once land ruled by Quincy.
The birthplace of their emperor.
Nine hundred years ago, Yhwach had risen here, uniting the Quincy and leading them eastward.
Their campaign had swallowed nations, shaken the balance of souls, and ultimately forced them to set their eyes upon Soul Society itself.
The lack of reishi in the World of the Living had driven them onward.
Toward the Inner World.
Toward Seireitei.
And though they were defeated
They were never erased.
Deep within a hidden fortress, a figure sat unmoving upon a throne.
His eyes were closed.
No breath passed his lips.
No heartbeat could be heard.
For nine hundred years, he had remained so.
Like a corpse.
At the foot of the throne stood a man with silver hair and unshakable composure
Jugram Haschwalth.
He had not left this place since the previous day.
Because today
Was the exact moment.
The final year of the cycle.
Thump.
A faint sound echoed from the emperor's chest.
Once.
Twice.
Haschwalth's eyes widened.
"Your Majesty…"
"…your heartbeat has returned."
For nine centuries, the Quincy Emperor had slumbered.
Blind.
Mute.
Still.
Yet every Quincy believed.
And now
Their faith was rewarded.
The return of the heartbeat meant one thing.
Yhwach was awakening.
And when he fully returned
The blood debt between Quincy and Shinigami would finally be repaid.
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