— — — — — —
"The war was over..."
When Gin Ichimaru finally set foot back in Soul Society, the Arrancar delivered their report to him. For a moment, Gin's eyes, which seemed to have been squinted for ten thousand years, almost opened.
Then came a long, silent pause.
He returned to the Third Division and met his lieutenant, Izuru Kira.
Kira had just finished arranging the squad, gathering the bodies of the fallen, and sending the wounded to Fourth Division.
When he saw Gin in crisp white, his expression twisted into something complicated.
"Well now, long time no see, Izuru." Gin's eyes narrowed into their usual foxlike crescent as he smiled.
Kira looked at him, opened his mouth, then finally exhaled and said. "The Head-Captain has officially declared victory. From here on, Soul Society will cooperate with the Espada to purge the old nobles and reshape the order."
"Ryo Yagami and Aizen Sosuke will replace the former Soul King and rule as the new sovereigns."
"You followed Aizen for this, and now you've achieved it. In the future, you might even become founder of a new Great Noble House… or maybe even part of a new Royal Guard."
Hearing the tangled tone in Kira's voice, Gin was silent for a while before letting out a soft sigh.
"Izuru… if I told you that from the very start, my goal was to kill Aizen… would you believe me?"
Kira blinked, startled. "Captain… are you testing my loyalty? Please don't worry. I never cared too much about your and Aizen's past betrayal."
"Honestly, you already know: the one I've always followed isn't Soul Society. It's you."
Gin's mouth twitched slightly. He sighed again. "Izuru."
"Sir!"
Kira straightened sharply.
"The Third Division… I'm leaving it to you."
"Yes, sir!" Kira bowed deeply.
"Kira Izuru wishes you a glorious promotion, Captain!"
"…"
Gin's mouth twitched again. He stepped past without a word.
He needed somewhere to cool his head.
Soul Society… how did it end up like this? And come to think of it… was he even a spy anymore?
That was definitely a question worth thinking about.
---
First Division — The Great Underground Prison: Muken
Wearing a captain's haori with the Fourth Division emblem removed, Unohana Retsu stepped into the abyssal prison and looked at the members of the defeated Royal Guard.
"Quite the sorry sight, Kirinji."
Bound hand and foot, shoulder blades pierced through, Kirinji Tenjiro lifted his head at the sound of her voice.
"Oh. It's you, Unohana."
His heart had been run through, but with his mastery of healing techniques, he had managed to survive—barely.
Compared to him, Ōetsu Nimaiya had it far worse.
Everything in his head related to Zanpakutō was something Ryo and Aizen demanded personally.
So right now, Ōetsu and Ichibe would likely be laid out on those monsters' operating tables.
Thinking of that, Kirinji coughed a few times, cracked open an eye, and grumbled: "I've been in here what, not even three hours? And you're already visiting? Sounds like you're sitting high up in this new Seireitei."
Honestly, their loss had been humiliating.
Aizen and Ryo together were far too strong. They hadn't even gotten a proper fight with either of them before being outplayed and eliminated. It felt like a farce… one written and directed entirely by Ryo and Aizen.
The moment those two decided the game was over, it simply ended.
And the Royal Guard, actors in their little play, were crushed like ants. Meanwhile, the Gotei 13 had barely lost anyone.
Except for those who died a century ago in Aizen's old schemes, the entire Gotei still lived—only some injured by the Quincy surprise attack.
The only ones truly annihilated were the Quincies Yhwach sacrificed… and the Royal Guard.
A sad truth, but truth all the same.
Unohana didn't respond directly. She only said calmly: "In a few days, I'll be heading to the Little Garden."
"Oh? So that 'Little Garden' thing actually exists?" From the next cell over, Shutara Senjumaru lifted her head, surprised.
On the other side, Kirio Hikifune asked curiously, "So… how long are we getting sentenced for?"
"Don't worry. Not long." Unohana smiled gently. "You didn't cause that much damage, after all."
Kirinji's mouth twitched. "Still the same as ever. You haven't changed at all, Unohana Retsu."
Unohana chuckled. "I'm just here to say goodbye."
Kirinji huffed a laugh. "Then I'll wish you good fortune in that Little Garden."
---
Soul King Palace
Suspended high above Seireitei, within the fractured domain where the Soul King once resided—
Ryo stood before a shattered lake, looking down at the Soul King's lifeless body. He closed the man's eyes with a quiet hand.
"So he really chose suicide."
Ryo sighed, then turned to Aizen standing behind him. "Everything from here on is just political reconstruction. I won't interfere."
"With Yhwach acting as a temporary vessel, you'll have more than enough time to perfect the technology for remaking Soul Society."
Aizen—once more wearing a proper shihakushō and glasses, looking harmless as a house cat—tilted his head.
"Is the Little Garden really that dangerous?"
Ryo raised a brow, a bit surprised.
"Am I wrong?" Aizen smiled.
"From the start, you never intended to defeat Yhwach through combat. You were hiding your true fighting style. Because someone in the Little Garden might be watching?"
Ryo's mouth twitched. "You know, I genuinely dislike you."
Aizen ignored the jab, calmly polishing his glasses. "Your community seems to be lacking personnel."
"You forgot the words 'high-level,'" Ryo corrected.
Arcadia was short on talent—but only the kind ranked above five digits.
Those capable of that were captains who had surpassed the limits of a Shinigami.
To be blunt, most of Soul Society didn't interest him at all unless they had extremely unusual abilities.
The only people who met his standards were: Aizen, Yamamoto, Unohana, the Primera Espada, Urahara Kisuke, and Zaraki Kenpachi.
A very short list.
Aizen didn't argue. "According to the information you provided, the lower levels of the Little Garden allow for subordinate communities, correct?"
"Oh?" Ryo's eyes narrowed with interest.
"You should know already," Aizen said, putting his glasses back on and smiling. "Even now, plenty of dissenters remain in Soul Society. The Visoreds. That little captain of the Tenth. Rukia Kuchiki, who lost her mentor because of me. Even some of the Espada oppose me."
"They won't give up trying to overthrow my rule—just as Yamamoto learned Hollowfication to counter me."
"And now that they know about the Little Garden, they'll try to get there. Most likely, they'll come to you for help."
Ryo laughed, amused. "Interesting. So you're offering me a batch of free tool-people?"
"Fine. I'll give you a subordinate-community slot so you can place agents in the Little Garden."
With Aizen, "dissenters" didn't matter at all.
What he wanted was intelligence.
There was no chance a man like him would stay in Soul Society forever as some shut-in 'Soul King.' If anything, he'd probably hole up here until he reached four-digit strength before stepping foot in the Little Garden.
Just like how he once hid in Seireitei until he reached the ceiling of Shinigami power before making his move.
This man was cautious to the extreme.
Which, annoyingly, made him very similar to Ryo.
"As expected, nothing escapes you," Aizen said with a smile.
"Talking to you is exhausting," Ryo sighed.
He stepped to the edge of the palace and looked down over Soul Society, eyes narrowing.
"My first officially observed world, huh?"
He murmured to himself, lips curling. "Little Garden's about to get a lot more interesting."
.
.
.