Chapter 23: The Captain-Commander's Arrival
"It's him—it must be him who did something to it."
Mayuri steadied himself and quickly sheathed Ashisogi Jizō, now back to its rigid state.
He turned his gaze toward Kuroha, who looked completely nonchalant, but Mayuri's eyes gleamed with a greedy green light.
He had suffered a loss because of the unknown.
But as a perverted mad scientist, he loved nothing more than challenging unknown specimens like this.
In a madman's eyes, peeling away layer after layer of mystery is the true pleasure.
"Look at Captain Kurotsuchi—he's probably actually bent. The way he stares at that guy is like how you look at your first-love goddess."
"Get lost—I'd never be that obvious. When I secretly crush on a goddess, it's all tender longing. But yeah… that stare even creeps me out. I'm never going near the Twelfth Division."
"Tch, stop pretending. If you actually got a chance to join the Twelfth, you'd agree faster than anyone."
The nonstop chattering made Mayuri nearly stumble again.
Feeling the stares from all directions, he realized his lifelong fearsome reputation had been ruined by this little brat in front of him.
Nearby, Shunsui Kyōraku looked at the twin fish hairpin at his waist with relief, casting a pitying yet grateful glance at Mayuri.
He had wanted to beat Kuroha up, but he absolutely did not want to sacrifice his future happiness in the process.
When it came to choosing between men and women—women were definitely better.
But facing this utterly chaotic mess, Shunsui still had a massive headache. He couldn't help but admire Shiba Kuroha's god-tier talent for causing trouble.
A single freshman exam had already attracted: a dark-faced big brother-in-law, a jealous childhood friend turned rival, two scheming captains waiting to trip him up, and now one full-blown pervert.
This scene was basically a pack of wolves fighting over prey.
Getting this kid smoothly through the backdoor was starting to look impossible.
"You bastards—as captains, you're supposed to set a proper example for these Shin'ō Academy applicants. All this endless commotion—aren't you ashamed of yourselves?"
A deep, thunderous roar exploded from the entrance.
Seeing the elderly figure approaching, every examinee's pupils contracted. They instinctively held their breath.
Especially when they saw the First Division insignia on his haori.
The title of "strongest Shinigami in history" instantly rose in their minds.
This was a living legend.
Normally he remained seated in the First Division barracks, rarely leaving.
Every time he appeared, something major was happening.
Now he had personally come—for one single examinee.
That alone added a heavy stroke to Kuroha's halo.
But what everyone was even more curious about was: Facing this drunken rampage in the testing hall, what decision would this stubborn, old-fashioned Captain-Commander make?
"Old man Yamamoto—I didn't expect you to come too."
Shunsui rubbed his messy hair helplessly and gave a wry smile.
"Don't just look at the mess in here—the exam actually went pretty smoothly. Just now Captain Kurotsuchi personally vouched with the honor of the Technology Development Bureau that this kid has ten bamboo reiatsu—he's a peerless freak. Combined with his excellent Hakuda, he's definitely a top-notch prospect."
Thinking about how that thousand-year vintage had been hijacked by Kuroha, Shunsui felt pained.
But he had promised Yamamoto he would open the backdoor.
Even though he wanted to beat the "faking drunk" Kuroha senseless, the show had to go on.
"No…" Mayuri choked with anger, but hearing Shunsui's words, he coldly snorted.
"That's right—even if my testing machine is broken, the numbers won't lie. This is the truth a scientist must pursue."
At this point, Mayuri gave Kuroha a deep, meaningful glance.
"Even if it means using any means necessary and paying a heavy price—I must ensure what I obtain is the absolute truth."
His cryptic words carried a strange, eerie undertone.
But very quickly, that mood was shattered again.
"Look—he's definitely bent."
A sudden whisper made Mayuri almost draw his blade again.
But even with his arrogant nature, in front of Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni, he could only snort coldly and step aside.
Deep down, though, his interest in Kuroha as an experimental subject was burning hotter than ever.
But after suffering through those baseless rumors, he temporarily restrained his greedy green gaze and silently began scheming from the sidelines.
Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni glanced at the completely deformed and shattered reiatsu testing machine. His face remained calm, but his heart was far from still.
When Rukia had reported that Kuroha possessed suspected exceptional Hakuda, Yamamoto already suspected he had underestimated this pawn.
When he received Renji's submitted reiatsu report, in order to better control this piece, he had instructed Shunsui to give Kuroha special treatment—open the backdoor.
Yet what Yamamoto never expected was that he had once again misjudged.
Ten bamboo reiatsu—that was a spiritual talent surpassing even the once-in-centuries genius Tōshirō Hitsugaya.
With proper training and time, he could absolutely reach Yamamoto's own level.
Thinking of the "three bamboo" in the report, Yamamoto subconsciously glanced at Renji Abarai.
Combining Renji's earlier reaction and actions, it clearly wasn't falsified.
"Could I have underestimated him again? Does he have some method to control his own reiatsu?"
Yamamoto narrowed his eyes, watching the now-sober Kuroha. The more he thought, the more convinced he became.
And he also realized a deeper issue.
This pawn might not be as easy to control as he had imagined.
But precisely because of that, Yamamoto instead showed a trace of intrigued interest.
At the very least—his first step had been completed without major incident.
Of course—if Shiba Kuroha knew that Yamamoto was a drama queen who had mentally overcomplicated him into some unfathomable mastermind… Kuroha would definitely let out a loud "what the hell?!"
That would just be Yamamoto adding more drama to his own script.
"Ahem… old man Yamamoto, stop staring. Everyone's still waiting for the exam. How do you want to handle this?"
Shunsui felt his spine tingle under Yamamoto's occasional piercing glances.
This was the strongest Shinigami in Seireitei history. If he got displeased, one slash might leave nothing but ashes.
In an instant, every gaze in the room turned toward Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni.
Kuroha helplessly rubbed his nose. After quickly reviewing the drunken memories, though parts were embarrassing, he braced himself and waited for judgment.
Compared to everyone else, Kuroha was late to realize.
But thanks to the system's memory playback, he now had a spectator-like perspective—seeing everything that happened earlier with perfect clarity.
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