"Just as you predicted, Aizen—members of the Four Great Noble Houses have their eyes on us."
On their way back, Lan Yan shared the black-robed leader's subtle slip before his death, confirming the involvement of the aristocracy.
Aizen, however, didn't even blink.
It was as if he'd foreseen this from the start.
"So then," he replied with a soft smile, "what do you think the Head Captain and Ukitake really came to us for?"
"They never told us," Lan Yan said, narrowing his eyes. "But it definitely wasn't because we were attacked."
Genryūsai Yamamoto, the so-called "Thousand-Year Strongest Shinigami," had never made personal appearances for matters as trivial as a couple of new students being assaulted—no matter how talented.
Their arrival…
It wasn't a reaction.
It was premeditated.
"Looks like after tonight," Aizen mused, "we'll have another person keeping a close eye on us—aside from the Four Great Houses."
Lan Yan's tone was certain:
"Yamamoto Genryūsai."
"At first, he wanted to take us in. Like he did with Kyōraku and Ukitake centuries ago."
"But something changed."
"I stopped by the Shinō Academy archives today. There were records of Yamamoto's actions since the founding of the Academy 2,000 years ago."
"What he is now… is a Shinigami bound by the very rules he once forged."
"Just like his Zanpakutō—sealed in a scabbard, forced into being nothing but a cane, unless someone dares to challenge the system."
Aizen remained composed throughout, unshaken even by the thought of having the Head Captain as an enemy.
Not worried.
Not even annoyed.
"Yamamoto fears we'll become threats to his order," Aizen continued.
"So he backed off from mentoring us."
"Instead, he'll let us grow… under surveillance."
"Call it what it is—monitoring."
"And that," Aizen said with a cold edge, "isn't the mindset of the world's strongest Shinigami."
"The strong should create rules—but they should also transcend them."
Lan Yan gave a slight chuckle.
"It doesn't matter."
"Whether Yamamoto watches us or not, it won't stop us from reaching the top."
"This isn't about willpower."
"No matter what he decides, reality will not bend to his will."
"Because reality… is immune to belief."
No matter how revered he was, Yamamoto couldn't stop what was already in motion.
Why seek a master when every ability Lan Yan used would train itself?
He hadn't even learned Kidō manually.
He'd just flipped through a book, and—bam—his "Kidō" ability started auto-leveling itself.
The moment he first swung a blade, Swordsmanship had awakened.
Even now, he had an army of abilities that trained themselves.
What use was a master when your powers were smarter than your teachers?
As for Yamamoto?
Let him watch.
Let him try.
His Zanpakutō, Kidō, and Swordsmanship—they were all prideful, protective, and wildly broken.
If Yamamoto tried anything, they'd all rage-quit their training caps and go full Shounen Protagonist Mode.
And as if that weren't enough—he had Aizen at his side.
Aizen gave a slight nod, agreeing calmly.
They didn't need Shinō Academy.
They'd just enrolled to speed up the clock.
"Actually, being under surveillance might even be an advantage," Lan Yan said suddenly.
"If the Head Captain is watching our every move… he'll make a great scapegoat for anything we decide to do."
Aizen glanced at his sheathed Zanpakutō, Kyōka Suigetsu, and smirked.
"Indeed."
After all—who would question the Head Captain's testimony?
Meanwhile, at the Kōnmyōdai Estate…
"USELESS."
"Two whole hunter squads, and this is what I get?"
The black-robed assassin was hurled across the room like trash, crashing into a stone pillar at the gate.
Bloodied and broken, he still scrambled back, kneeling before Kōnmyōdai Shitan's throne.
"Lord Shitan, I beg your forgiveness!"
"Both Lan brothers possess power far beyond anything I anticipated. Their spiritual pressure is already at captain level. They've both awakened Shikai, and their combat instincts are… monstrous."
"I even prepared specific tactics to take them alive. But against someone like them, even a lieutenant couldn't survive."
Shitan's eyes narrowed.
He didn't care.
"Hadō #54: Haien."
A purple fireball smashed into the groveling man's face.
No scream.
Just silence.
His head turned to ash in seconds.
"Shall I go?" came a voice from the shadows.
A man stepped into the light—elegantly dressed in white, adorned with gold embroidery, a noble's crest stitched to his sleeves.
It was none other than Yamada Kiyonosuke, head of Shin'ō Reijutsuin's Medical Division.
"I've located remnants of the original covert assassination unit," Yamada said calmly.
"Let me send them. If nothing else, we'll find out if their blades have dulled."
Shitan was tempted.
Oh, he was tempted.
But then he thought of something—no, someone.
Yamamoto Genryūsai.
And Ukitake.
They were already investigating.
He couldn't afford exposure again.
He didn't want another century of house arrest.
"…No."
"Let it go, for now."
Next time:
Lan Yan and Aizen continue their rapid ascent.
Meanwhile, whispers grow louder in the shadows of Soul Society.
And someone… someone from the past…
…starts to move.
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