"Did you see that?"
Ishiiwa Kyūsuke's face was cold.
After realizing the intruder was just an ordinary Shinigami, his panicked heart instantly calmed down.
Maybe it was only because I just gained captain-class power, and I haven't gotten used to it yet, that I didn't sense him…
Ishiiwa Kyūsuke comforted himself with that thought.
On the other side, Higashino Shuuichi simply spread his hands, looking rather helpless.
"Crystal clear\~"
"Then you can follow in their footsteps! Shaen Ryūga (Carriage Flame Dragon Fang)!"
Without giving Higashino Shuuichi a chance to explain, Ishiiwa Kyūsuke directly launched his attack.
Flames erupted from the ground, waves of heat surging forth. Watching that figure swallowed by fire, Ishiiwa Kyūsuke sneered,
"Another fool!"
Facing an enemy yet daring to act so nonchalant—he deserved to be the second sacrifice after Kyūsuke gained captain-level power.
But the next second, Ishiiwa Kyūsuke's expression froze.
"You know, under normal circumstances, I wouldn't even give you the chance to speak. But this time I'm curious—what happens when a Shinigami with a zanpakutō picks up a Bakkōtō?"
As the fire burned away, Higashino Shuuichi stood calmly in place, encased in a circular transparent shield.
"Impossible! That's not the No. 39 Bakudō Enkosen? How could it block my Shaen Ryūga!" Ishiiwa Kyūsuke instinctively stepped back, shouting in anger, "In that case—Bankai! Raika: Gōen Kaku (Thunderfire: Shell of Infernal Flames)!"
The Bakkōtō Raika released bankai again. Yet compared to Sengoku Ryū's earlier bankai, this time with Ishiiwa Kyūsuke, whether in aura or in reiryoku, it wasn't on the same level at all.
From Higashino Shuuichi's perspective, Sengoku Ryū's bankai had about the strength of five "cars" (the common measurement unit of captain-class power), while Ishiiwa Kyūsuke's bankai barely reached half a car.
So Higashino Shuuichi didn't even bother to release his zanpakutō's shikai. He simply stepped forward, his body instantly appearing before Ishiiwa Kyūsuke, then gently placed his left hand on the man's forehead.
"A child who hasn't learned to walk—if he tries to run, he'll only fall!"
Boom!
In the next moment, Ishiiwa Kyūsuke was slammed into the ground, his head buried deep in the sand.
Even the flames of Raika, which had just begun to ignite, extinguished in an instant.
"No… impossible… I'm already a captain… how could you…"
Yet even so, Ishiiwa Kyūsuke's unwilling voice still came muffled from beneath the sand.
"Captain? Ridiculous. If the Bakkōtōs really could grant someone like you true captain-level strength, then Seireitei wouldn't have just five great noble houses—the Kasumioji clan would have become the sixth long ago!"
Higashino Shuuichi's cold voice cut him down with truth.
Seeing Ishiiwa Kyūsuke still struggling to rise, Shuuichi finally allowed a shred of mercy. With a single stroke, he ended Kyūsuke's pitiful life.
Then he turned his eyes to Raika, once more bereft of its master. From it, he seemed to feel a flicker of anger.
Reasonable enough—two masters devoured in succession, both by the same man. Anyone would jot Higashino Shuuichi's name down in their little black book for vengeance.
"Sigh! I came here planning to trail them, but it turned into cleaning up corpses. Now how do I explain this?"
Higashino Shuuichi sighed again, troubled.
If only those others had performed better, he could have secretly given them a hand, tripping Ishiiwa Kyūsuke in small ways.
Who would've thought they'd be such useless trash, swept aside with ease.
And Shuuichi couldn't openly intervene either. Without Aizen's Kyōka Suigetsu, he had no way to explain why he was here. If caught, it might even backfire.
As for Ishiiwa Kyūsuke, letting him live was out of the question. His open break with the Kasumioji clan proved he was either insane or fully intent on defecting to the Gotei 13 and exposing everything. Either way, Shuuichi couldn't allow it.
Still, the outcome was beyond even his expectations.
Now, either he stayed here to await the next batch of seekers—or… he could report to his boss and let Aizen "clean up."
After all, why not rely on an available mastermind? Only a fool wouldn't.
"How amusing. A fine performance of betrayal."
On the other end, Aizen found the story entertaining.
"So, Aizen-sama, do I need to remain here any longer?"
Shuuichi chose to stop thinking.
Since Aizen didn't particularly care about Raika's abilities, and since Ishiiwa Kyūsuke's zanpakutō had degraded into an asauchi upon contact with the unclaimed Bakkōtō, proving the two couldn't coexist, Shuuichi knew he wouldn't need to target Raika anytime soon. He stopped worrying about what came next.
"Raika can't be destroyed. As long as I keep watch on the Kasumioji clan, that's enough. When someone someday solves the problem of Bakkōtō coexisting with zanpakutō, then I'll reclaim it."
That was Shuuichi's current mindset.
Once, he feared if the Kasumioji retrieved Raika, he'd never get it back.
Now, having seen Kyūsuke's true level, he realized: only rare Shinigami like Sengoku Ryū—or one day Shūsuke Amagai—could truly master Raika. Its next wielder might not even be his match. So where the blade ended up didn't really matter.
Aizen, meanwhile, considered his next move. Kyūsuke's blunder was beyond both Shuuichi's and his plans.
"You said they went straight for the zanpakutō, without hesitation or delay?"
After a pause, Aizen questioned Shuuichi.
"Yes, Aizen-sama."
That was all that needed saying. Aizen understood the implication.
Elsewhere, sitting in his quarters in Soul Society, a smile played on Aizen's lips.
"Then bring the zanpakutō into Seireitei. Stay by its side. I expect many interesting visitors will come."
Since Shuuichi hadn't revealed that one of the Shinigami had accidentally spoken of the Kasumioji, Aizen still didn't know that house was involved. But that didn't stop him from realizing how great the power behind this blade must be.
For Shuuichi, however, the assignment was exhausting.
Wasn't Aizen supposed to personally handle such things?
In his memories, even trivial acts—like harvesting souls in Rukongai—Aizen had rolled up his sleeves to do himself. So why was it always his job now?
"It must be because I do my work too perfectly."
After accepting the task, Higashino Shuuichi resolved silently: in the future, he'd slack off whenever possible. Loyal lapdogs never end well!
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