"Compared to Aizen? Do you mean a threat to the world, to Soul Society, or specifically to the Central 46?" Natsuro asked, now looking at Kisuke Urahara with a little more seriousness.
Kisuke met his gaze, their eyes locking.
Natsuro didn't deny what Kisuke had just said, but instead threw back that question, and Kisuke immediately understood his meaning.
That was: Natsuro's existence posed no threat to the balance of the Three Realms. He had no intention of disrupting it. In this sense, he was different from Aizen.
But as far as Central 46 was concerned, he might indeed be no less dangerous than Aizen. If they provoked him, they could very well be met with his thunderous retaliation.
Still, what did that matter to Kisuke? All he cared about was the stability of the Three Realms, and a handful of people in Soul Society. Central 46? The nobility?
Kisuke had no affection for them.
Now, having more or less understood his perspective, Kisuke allowed himself a small sigh of relief.
Even so, he still worried that Central 46 might one day force Natsuro into direct opposition with Soul Society. After all, if they gave the order, the Gotei 13 would have no choice but to obey.
"I hope I'm just overthinking this," Kisuke murmured.
At that moment, Ururu finally returned with cups, pouring drinks for both Natsuro and Kisuke.
Natsuro wasn't particularly fond of alcohol, he preferred tea, but since he was the one who had brought it he couldn't very well refuse.
Casually, he asked, "Since we've mentioned Aizen… do you know what his goal really is?"
"Aizen's exact purpose isn't something we can confirm," Kisuke said as he tasted the sake Natsuro had brought.
Natsuro raised a brow. "You've been dealing with Aizen's schemes for nearly a hundred years now. Haven't you investigated or at least considered what he's after?"
"But I do have a few guesses," Kisuke added.
"Can you share them?" Natsuro asked. He honestly didn't remember exactly what Aizen's goal had been. Was it only to use the Hōgyoku to surpass the limits of a Shinigami? He doubted it was that simple.
What he didn't know was that even in the original story, Aizen's true motives were never made entirely clear. He had his own vision, but before he could enact it, Ichigo cut his path short.
"Of course," Kisuke nodded. First, he wanted to gauge Natsuro's attitude. If, in the end, Aizen's ambitions aligned with Natsuro's desires and Natsuro chose to aid him, that would be disastrous.
But Kisuke needn't have worried so much. Natsuro had already promised the Visored that he would help them once. Even if Aizen's plans did match his ideals, he wouldn't side with him directly, at most, he would simply stand aside and watch.
"First of all, Aizen's experiments sought to break the boundary between Shinigami and Hollow, hence the creation of the Visored. And as you should have noticed, after Hollowfication, their strength undergoes a qualitative leap."
Natsuro nodded. It was precisely the Visored's Hollowfication that had inspired him to discover his own path forward.
"So one of Aizen's goals is to shatter his own limits, to reach a higher level. In that sense… his aim isn't all that different from yours," Kisuke said, giving Natsuro a complicated look before continuing.
"The difference is that Aizen doesn't hesitate to harm his comrades, to commit atrocities for the sake of his breakthrough. You, on the other hand, haven't chosen that path."
"It's not that I 'chose not to', that option simply doesn't exist for me. I'm not like you researchers. And I would never harm unrelated people just to advance myself," Natsuro corrected.
What he didn't add was this: if those people were connected to him, and enemies at that, he wouldn't mind using them to fuel his growth.
As for the Hollows he had slain in Hueco Mundo? They were another species entirely. Only Arrancar, in his view, shared some essence with Shinigami.
"And that's the key difference between you two," Kisuke nodded.
"That's all?" Natsuro frowned. If it was only this, it wasn't much different from what he already knew.
"That's what we can confirm. What follows is my speculation," Kisuke said, his tone growing heavier.
"What Aizen might do after his breakthrough, right?" Natsuro guessed.
"Yes. With Aizen's personality, he would never tolerate so many shackles above his head, the Central 46, the nobility, and…" Kisuke trailed off, simply pointing to the sky.
Natsuro nodded. He knew Kisuke meant, the Soul King.
But after hearing Kisuke's speculation, Natsuro frowned again. "If that's really the case, then… while the process may not be pleasant, the result doesn't sound so bad."
At that, Kisuke gave a bitter smile, glancing at the sky outside. As expected, Natsuro didn't much care for Soul Society's organizational structure.
And really, who could blame him? Any proud man would chafe under the authority of such a flock of incompetents.
Natsuro looked at Kisuke, then suddenly gave a crooked smile as he refilled Kisuke's cup.
"Tell me, Kisuke, do you really like Soul Society's system? Remember, you were once condemned by Central 46 yourself. Even the victims of Aizen's experiment, captains and lieutenants, were sentenced to death along with you."
Natsuro wasn't wrong. The Visored were in truth Aizen's victims, but under his fabricated accusations, they were branded as the results of Kisuke's experiments.
And despite most of them being captain-level, the judgment handed down was death.
What were the other captains thinking at the time? Natsuro wondered. How many of the current captains truly obey Central 46 without question?
Kisuke gave a bitter smile. He couldn't deny it. Forced into exile in the Living World, dragging Yoruichi into it as well, how could he claim satisfaction with Central 46? That would be a joke.
But Kisuke also knew that the world's foundations couldn't be changed. And so he had stopped trying.
"Natsuro, do you know how Soul Society, Hueco Mundo, and the World of the Living were created?" Kisuke suddenly asked.
Natsuro blinked. Why bring that up now? Weren't the Three Realms always there from the beginning?
He felt a flicker of doubt, then his eyes narrowed as realization struck. Could it be… the Soul King?
"Then listen to a story. Afterward, you'll understand why Aizen must be stopped," Kisuke said, reading Natsuro's reaction.
It was only natural. Natsuro's time in Soul Society had been too short. He had never uncovered the histories that were deliberately hidden.
Kisuke gathered his thoughts and began to recount the tale.
Long ago, there was no division between the Living World, Soul Society, or Hueco Mundo. It was a single realm, without life or death, without progress or decline. Even becoming a Hollow was simply part of the reishi cycle.
But Hollows gradually began to devour humans. The cycle was broken. Left unchecked, all souls would eventually merge into a single vast Hollow, and the world would sink into complete stillness.
At that moment, the Soul King was born. Using the power of Quincy extermination, he destroyed the Hollows and restarted the cycle.
Yet the founders of the Five Noble Clans did not approve of this world. They wanted the realms separated. To accomplish this, they required the Soul King's power.
The Soul King foresaw a certain future and chose to sacrifice himself, sealed within a crystal.
The five founders used his omnipotent power as a wedge, splitting the chaotic world apart.
The world of reishi, the world of matter, and the desert wasteland where Hollows gathered, Hueco Mundo. These became the Three Realms we know today.
"So that means… if something happens to the Soul King, the Three Realms might collapse, reverting back to that original state?"
Hearing Kisuke's account, Natsuro was shaken. That the Five Noble Clans and the Soul King had the power to create such a structure, it was beyond what he had imagined.
But he also caught the problem in Kisuke's words. The Soul King now was just a wedge. And if that wedge failed, the current state of the Three Realms would collapse.
"Exactly," Kisuke nodded, confirming Natsuro's deduction.
When Kisuke first uncovered this hidden history, he had been utterly shocked.
What he hadn't told him was the fate of the Soul King.
One of the ancestors of the Tsunayashiro Clan suspected even the silent, unresisting Soul King, fearing that with his power alone he might break free of the seal and annihilate them all.
So they didn't allow the Soul King to live, nor did they kill him.
Instead, they cast him into a paradoxical spiral of being "alive yet dead."
They cut off the Soul King's arms, which governed "advance" and "stillness," tore out his heart, severed his legs, sliced open his viscera and removed his organs, stripping away his powers before casting them down into the lower worlds.
Piece by piece, they whittled away his strength, just to forge a "King" that they could control.
The act was monstrous. No matter how clever the denizens of Soul Society might be, they could never have imagined that the revered Soul King had in truth been reduced to nothing more than a mutilated husk.
It was no wonder that when Kisuke drew closer and closer to the truth, he had felt shaken to his core, almost sickened.
The entire world was built upon a foundation of sin. And even if he had discovered it, what could he do?
He too had been born into this sinful world. There was no way to change it.
Remove the Soul King altogether? But Kisuke had no complaints about how the Three Realms functioned…
He only thought the Soul King did not deserve such treatment. Yet… it was already far too late.
So, he chose to look away.
Aizen, however, may also have known this history, only he chose a very different response.
"To be honest, I don't think Aizen would ever want to return the Three Realms to their original state," Natsuro said with a frown. With Aizen's personality, there was no way he would enjoy a completely stagnant world.
"Who can say?" Kisuke shook his head. "But we can't afford to gamble on what he might or might not want, can we?"
"That's true," Natsuro nodded. This concerned the stability of all three realms. If it came down to it, he too would move to stop Aizen.
Of course, he would only prevent Aizen from destroying the Soul King as the wedge. As for toppling Central 46 or the nobility? If he didn't lend them a hand, that was already generous enough.
"Enough talk. Come, let's keep drinking." Kisuke, his mood somewhat darkened after the tale, clinked glasses with Natsuro.
Some time later, Kisuke glanced at him again, only to find Natsuro still hadn't left.
"The sake's all gone," Kisuke reminded him.
"I know. Don't mind me. Do your business. I'll leave when you close up shop." Natsuro gave him a sidelong glance as he said this.
Kisuke felt a headache coming on. Why was he insisting on lingering here?
He'd spent the time turning over Natsuro's motives in his mind.
Going to Hueco Mundo, surely that had been to study Hollowfication. So his aim must be the Hōgyoku, right?
But how had he known Kisuke possessed it? From the way Kisuke treated the Visored? That was plausible.
Still, with his strength, he could simply take it by force if he wanted. Kisuke knew that, with the fighting power they had now, it would be nearly impossible to stop him.
Yet Natsuro hadn't made such a move. Kisuke couldn't figure it out.
If not for the Hōgyoku, then what?
It gave him a headache. And with Natsuro's strength, Kisuke couldn't afford to simply ignore his motives.
"Where are Tessai and Yoruichi?" Natsuro asked. He had assumed the two were only out briefly, but they still hadn't returned.
"They went back to Soul Society to restock. Most of the goods we sell here are for Shinigami on assignment, so naturally the supplies come from there," Kisuke answered.
"Oh." Natsuro nodded, then picked a comfortable spot, crossed his legs, placed Meikyō Shisui across his lap, and for the first time in a while entered blade meditation.
Seeing this, Kisuke only shook his head. He still didn't know what his real purpose was, but… so be it.
He couldn't stop him anyway. So he would just let things lie.
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Currently on Chapter 504 - The Quincy Invade Hueco Mundo