The conversation continued. Azashiro Sōya seemed particularly talkative today, but to Kōe, this was definitely a good thing. At least they wouldn't have to spend the entire night staring at each other in awkward silence.
"Do you know that you're a bit like Kuruyashiki right now?" Azashiro Sōya pointed at Kōe, then shook his head to himself. "No, that's not right. You and he are actually two extremes. He is exactly as he appears, while you seem sunny on the outside but harbor incredibly deep thoughts. Enduring infamy for over a hundred years—he could never do that. You were less than thirty years old at the time? Truly unexpected."
"Could you not make me sound like some kind of freak?" Kōe dragged out his words, though a hint of smugness still colored his tone. "Your methods were just too crude. Thinking you could drag Old Man Yama down through me with just a few rumors was honestly a bit delusional."
"And yet, right now, you act like a child."
"What do you mean?"
"Naive."
"..."
Azashiro Sōya wasn't in a hurry to explain. Instead, he began telling Kōe about his own family history. Strangely enough, even though Azashiro Sōya had experienced it firsthand, he appeared incredibly calm while recounting the past.
"So, do you understand? Methods aren't inherently superior or inferior; as long as the majority of people believe them, they work." Azashiro Sōya tapped his index finger against the empty air a few times, summarizing his point. "And in the Seireitei, if there is only one voice, even if what that voice says is completely false, it will become reality."
The Azashiro clan, with its long and storied history, had crumbled overnight due to the rumors spread by a few families. If not for the frail-looking man sitting before him, that surname might not have even had the chance to become history.
But Yamamoto was different from the Azashiro clan. Setting aside his status as Head Captain, his transcendent strength alone meant he wasn't someone who could be brought down by mere rumors.
Azashiro Sōya seemed to see right through Kōe's thoughts. His lips parted, and a voice like a gentle breeze drifted over. "You might be thinking right now that Head Captain Yamamoto and the Azashiro clan are completely incomparable. The same trick that worked on the Azashiro clan would be useless against Head Captain Yamamoto, right?"
"Is that not the case?" Kōe asked in return.
"It is, but it also isn't." Azashiro shook his head and continued, "If you didn't exist, Head Captain Yamamoto would naturally be flawless. But with you in the picture, the situation changes drastically."
"Me?" Kōe looked bewildered. *'What does this have to do with me? Is he talking about that time I was acting out? But that was all just an act. Does this guy seriously still not know?'*
"Exactly! Before you came along, no matter how strong Head Captain Yamamoto was, he was still just a man. He had no attachments, or rather, his only attachment was the Seireitei! He would be just, he would be selfless, because as an individual, what he possessed had already reached its limit, and it had been that way for a thousand years."
"But with you, it's different." Azashiro Sōya drew a circle on the ground as he spoke. "With you, he gained something he hadn't had in a thousand years—a family! People change when they have a family, and they change when they lose it. But as long as there is change, it causes others to reevaluate them."
"But Old Man Yama... well, he really hasn't changed."
"That's just because you haven't noticed it. But that doesn't actually matter. As long as others think he has changed, that's enough." Azashiro Sōya suddenly stood up, walking toward the lake with his hands behind his back. "Next, we just needed to deepen that suspicion. And since that suspicion was centered on you, all we had to do was ensure you never returned to the Seireitei. Your story would then only be told through the mouths of others—strikingly similar to what happened to our Azashiro clan, isn't it?"
Actually, Azashiro Sōya wasn't entirely correct. If Kōe really hadn't made it back to the Seireitei back then, given Yamamoto's temperament, he definitely wouldn't have pursued the matter too deeply. The whole thing would likely have just faded away. Yamamoto would have been seen as having made a poor judgment call, but that would be the end of it. The Seireitei would never truly want to push Yamamoto into becoming their enemy.
The only difference would probably be that the faction led by Azashiro Sōya could continue to exist and reap massive profits. Yamamoto would suffer a silent loss, and the Quincy might be able to jump around for a few more years. That would be it. Only he, Kōe Shihouin, would end up suffering the exact same fate as the Azashiro clan.
"But unfortunately for you, I happily skipped my way right back to the Seireitei. I really must have disappointed you." Kōe rubbed his nose, smiling with a hint of smugness. "I was the key to the plan, yet you only sent those useless scrubs after me. Your investigation into me was a bit lacking!"
"Kōzō was right. You really do have a stubborn mouth that refuses to admit defeat."
"Because I didn't lose. Why should I admit defeat?"
"True enough. It's a fact that our investigation into you was insufficient. But to deal with someone like Head Captain Yamamoto, you need a spirit of adventure. Even if you know it might be a trap, you have to seize the opportunity and take the gamble."
Azashiro Sōya turned his head and pointed at Kōe. "And as for you, I didn't just take it for granted that sending a few people would be enough. In fact, I personally followed Kuruyashiki to look for you. I just couldn't find you, that's all."
"Does that make a difference?"
"Of course it does. The former would just mean I'm a fool, and I refuse to bear that title." Azashiro Sōya shrugged and continued, "The latter is because I am very good at finding people, and as it happens, you are also very good at that sort of thing. People who are good at finding others are also good at hiding from them. Just like you are now, we are simply confident people, not foolish ones."
Kōe couldn't help but roll his eyes. *'He's dragging me into his own self-praise. What am I supposed to say to that? If I agree, it means what I said earlier was stupid. If I insult him, it's even simpler—it means I'm stupid for trying to capture him right now. This guy is such a shameless scoundrel.'*
"You're amazing, you're the absolute best!" Kōe said in a high-pitched voice, pinching his fingers together in an exaggerated gesture. "If it weren't for me, you were this close to becoming the current Head Captain of the Seireitei! But alas, because of me, your plan was a complete failure!"
"Indeed, the previous plan failed. But all I have to do is make a new one. It's not a problem."
"What? Are you still thinking about counterattacking the Seireitei?" Kōe sneered. "The Azashiro clan strikes back?"
Azashiro Sōya paused for a moment, then chuckled and shook his head. Instead of explaining, he asked, "I'm very curious about how you managed to become friends with a Quincy. Knott Vohtz? I believe that was his name. Back when we were trying to assassinate you, that man adamantly refused to participate directly."
"That... maybe it's because we spent a lot of time together and our personalities clicked?" Kōe thought for a moment before replying. "You know me, I'm not someone with a lot of hidden agendas. I'm actually pretty easy to get along with."
"Is that all?"
"What else could it be?"
"Then it's no wonder you don't understand." After Azashiro Sōya finished speaking, his body dissolved into countless motes of light that flew back into the bird resting nearby. "Let's stop here for tonight. There are still two days left. We can talk about everything else when I see you in person."
"..."
The man and the bird returned to staring at each other in awkward silence. The night was only half over, and there was still a long way to go. However, far away in the Seireitei, there was someone else who, just like them, was unable to sleep peacefully.