"You little brat!"
Yamamoto couldn't help but laugh as he scolded Kazuma.
One moment the man had been arrogantly demanding justice for his student; the next he was bowing and scraping with shameless respect.
The sheer speed of the switch was almost impressive!
"Please don't say that, Yama-jii!"
Kazuma remained completely unfazed by the rebuke, his face still wearing its most ingratiating smile.
"Back in the day, you personally taught me Zanjutsu and Hakuda. In a sense, that makes you half my teacher. It's only natural for you to discipline Rukia as well, so how could I possibly object?"
"Did you accomplish what you went there to do?"
Yamamoto's amusement faded as he regarded Kazuma seriously.
"Of course!"
Kazuma immediately straightened his back and puffed out his chest.
"If I personally handled the matter and still failed, there probably wouldn't be anyone else in the entire Seireitei capable of succeeding."
He'd already boasted that he'd persuade Squad Zero to repair Renji's Zanpakutō. Had he returned empty-handed, he'd never have been able to show his face again.
"Sensei, can Renji's sword really be restored?"
To Rukia, those words were the most beautiful thing she'd heard in her entire life.
"Obviously. Have you forgotten who your teacher is?"
Kazuma looked so pleased with himself that his grin nearly climbed off his face.
"This little problem was nothing."
He then waved toward the entrance.
"Rukia, go find Renji. The sword's owner has to be present before it can be reforged."
On the surface, he was simply sending her to the Sixth Division to fetch Renji.
In truth, Kazuma had something private to discuss with Yamamoto.
"Right! I'll go immediately."
Rukia suspected nothing and turned to hurry toward the Sixth Division.
"Wait."
Kazuma stopped her.
Going outside in her current condition would be far too embarrassing.
A person still had an image to maintain.
"Hoshi no Kago."
Gentle star power flowed into Rukia's body.
In the blink of an eye, the bruises and swelling vanished from her face.
Her wild, frizzy hair returned to its familiar onion-shaped style, while her torn and filthy shihakushō became clean and intact once more.
"Go on."
Only then did Kazuma let her leave.
...
"Hmph. Speak, brat."
Yamamoto's gaze seemed to pierce straight through him.
"You went to all that trouble to send Rukia away. What exactly do you wish to tell me? Do not imagine that this old man cannot see through your little schemes."
Any ordinary First Division officer could have been sent to notify Renji.
Kazuma had deliberately chosen Rukia because whatever he wished to discuss was important — and clearly something she wasn't allowed to hear.
"I met the Soul King."
Kazuma drew a deep breath.
He raised one hand and quietly chanted, causing pale blue light to bloom from his palm.
It spread around them and formed a transparent barrier that sealed the two of them off from outside ears.
Only then did he lower his voice.
Yamamoto's nearly closed eyes snapped fully open, a sharp gleam flashing within them.
A trace of genuine astonishment appeared on his deeply lined face.
The Soul King was the most mysterious and powerful being in all Three Worlds.
Meeting him personally was no small matter.
"The Soul King awakened from his slumber," Kazuma continued. "I even fought him."
Naturally, Kazuma was shamelessly claiming the achievement for himself.
Hokushin had been the one who truly wounded Adnyeus, but since the emperor manifested within Kazuma's inner world, one could technically argue that Kazuma had taken part.
With enough confidence and a thick enough face, the statement wasn't entirely false.
"I knew those two disturbances across the Three Worlds were caused by you."
Yamamoto had felt both tremors from Soul Society and immediately suspected Kazuma, though he hadn't known what the brat was doing.
"I never imagined you'd actually fought the Soul King."
"Hahaha… not entirely."
Kazuma scratched his head.
"The first tremor was probably from my battle with the monk. The second came from my clash with the Soul King."
Only now did Kazuma fully understand how much chaos he'd caused in the Soul King Palace.
His power had shaken all Three Worlds twice.
"There's more."
His expression gradually became solemn.
"The Soul King seems to be losing control over the Three Worlds."
Kazuma took another breath and began recounting everything he'd learned during his conversation with Adnyeus.
He held nothing back — except for anything involving Yhwach.
For the time being, he didn't want the Captain-Commander learning about that threat too early.
One shocking secret after another emerged.
The mysterious founders of the five great noble clans.
The Ise Clan, whose status as one of those five families had been deliberately obscured.
Shinken Hakkyōken.
The unknown deity that might be hiding somewhere in the shadows.
Each revelation struck Yamamoto like a heavy hammer, making his already grave expression grow steadily more troubled.
The room fell into a deathly silence, broken only by Kazuma's low voice.
Yamamoto stood without moving, his brows tightly drawn together and profound concern filling his eyes.
Faced with a situation this complex and far beyond common understanding, even the Captain-Commander — renowned for his strength and decisiveness — could see no clear solution.
"Haah…"
When Kazuma finally finished, Yamamoto slowly raised his head and released a long sigh.
It carried immeasurable exhaustion and helplessness, as though the burden on his shoulders had suddenly grown several times heavier.
He might stand at the summit of all Shinigami, but matters involving beings beyond the level of Shinigami still left him powerless.
Worse still, the events Kazuma described were unlikely to be isolated.
They might all be connected, perhaps even leading back to another god who stood on the same level as the Soul King.
Such a situation had already exceeded anything Yamamoto could control or resolve.
"Brat… it seems I truly have grown old."
Yamamoto placed a heavy hand on Kazuma's shoulder.
"There is nothing I can do about what you have told me. From this point onward, you will have to rely on yourself."
For perhaps the first time, the man who always faced every crisis with unshakable resolve looked utterly weary.
The sight carried a sorrow that was difficult to put into words.
"Yama-jii…"
Kazuma looked at the Captain-Commander with a complicated expression, unable to find anything to say.
It was true.
Yama-jii had grown old.
He was no longer the proud and vigorous Yamamoto Shigekuni of his youth, the fearless monster who could face Yhwach and the Sternritter without the slightest change in expression.
The years had finally caught up with him.