Inside the extra-dimensional space tied to Koizumi Izakaya, gray-black was the only dominant color.
No one could give Higashino Shuuichi a precise answer right now, but he could still pick out the clues he needed from the traces left behind.
For example, among the Shinigami corpses hanging down from the distant dome, he actually found marks of his own past.
"Shuuichi-sama, what is this?"
Thanks to the Modified Soul research project, Yushima Ōko's understanding of a Shinigami's body—and soul—had improved by leaps and bounds. The moment he looked up, he noticed the tiny missing pieces on those Shinigami corpses.
They were exceedingly small fragments of reishi, hidden inside the vast ocean of spiritual particles that made up a Shinigami's body. If Higashino Shuuichi hadn't used special methods to tease them out, no ordinary person would ever have noticed they were gone.
Based on the many experiments he'd participated in under Kurotsuchi Mayuri, Yushima could say with certainty that this degree of loss would basically have no effect on the vast majority of Shinigami.
What he couldn't understand was why the mastermind would go to the trouble of peeling off such a tiny portion when killing them.
Was it… a trophy?
That wasn't impossible; in plenty of literature from the World of the Living, this kind of thing wasn't rare at all.
What Yushima Ōko hadn't expected was that Shuuichi-sama would just… incriminate himself.
"These are traces I left behind back when I was helping someone study Shinigami powers."
Higashino Shuuichi checked several corpses overhead at random. Without exception, every one of them belonged to a Shinigami he had once handled personally.
With that, some of Koizumi Izakaya's earlier "policies" suddenly made perfect sense to him.
So it really was a screening mechanism—
A filter Yamada Seinosuke had designed specifically to pick out these Shinigami.
As for how exactly Yamada Seinosuke had found out about that old matter, Shuuichi no longer cared.
What he cared about now was just one thing:
What on earth was Yamada Seinosuke thinking?
What Shuuichi had done back then—
You could call it serious or not, depending on how you looked at it.
If someone insisted on dragging it into the light, it probably wouldn't count as a capital crime… but being placed under special surveillance by the Gotei 13 and losing his current freedom?
That would definitely happen.
On issues of principle, Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni would never make too many concessions to the Tsunayashiro family. That was the old man's bottom line, and Higashino Shuuichi was sure of it.
Even so, looking at everything around him now, Shuuichi wasn't too worried that Yamada Seinosuke would suddenly do something stupid and expose it.
Because based on what Yamada had already "achieved" here, if this ever came to light, his own fate would be far worse than Shuuichi's.
He probably wouldn't be executed outright—Yamada Seinosuke had most likely already mastered Bankai in secret—but being thrown into Muken (Infinite Pit)?
That was as good as nailed down.
Shuuichi was certain Yamada understood that much himself.
So what Higashino Shuuichi needed now was a channel—someone who could talk to Yamada Seinosuke for him.
Going himself was out of the question. He was absolutely not going to personally do something that handed others leverage over him—unless he'd made up his mind to get rid of Yamada altogether.
And given Tokinada Tsunayashiro's position, Shuuichi felt that if he really moved, he'd have to be prepared to take down both Tokinada Tsunayashiro and Yamada Seinosuke at the same time.
Which, for the current Higashino Shuuichi, was a bit unrealistic.
A big part of that was Aizen's stance.
Right now, Aizen Sōsuke had no desire to see Soul Society plunged into turmoil again in the short term.
In his ideal blueprint, Soul Society was supposed to undergo a gradual "blood exchange" under his influence, so it could transition to his rule as smoothly as possible.
And after he'd already hit Soul Society hard once seven years ago, there was no way Aizen would allow Shuuichi to make a move on Tokinada Tsunayashiro—a man backed not only by the entire Tsunayashiro clan, but also by who knew how many hidden forces.
That was simply how things were.
Because of Higashino Shuuichi's interference, Soul Society had long since reached a point where tugging one thread pulled the entire web. He could no longer just swing his sword whenever he pleased—
Not unless he had the power to personally resolve all the aftermath.
Which, clearly, he did not.
That was precisely why he'd chosen to reveal this past incident to Yushima Ōko.
Yushima Ōko had personally witnessed everything here, had the ability to infiltrate this space, and had long been "chosen" by Higashino Shuuichi as the future prime culprit behind a coming upheaval in Soul Society.
With those three buffs stacked on him, there was no doubt in Shuuichi's mind that Yushima was the optimal choice to send to meet Yamada Seinosuke.
Two behind-the-scenes operators—
They'd probably have plenty to talk about.
Of course, that was just what Higashino Shuuichi thought.
For Yushima Ōko, the story in his head was completely different.
So Shuuichi-sama had already started researching Modified Souls back then…?
And back then, he'd been this gentle—only taking a tiny piece from each Shinigami, just enough for research and not enough to harm them.
He really…
Yushima thought of himself, thought of Kurotsuchi Mayuri, then looked back at the inferno inside this space.
Truly, without comparison, there is no harm.
"Shuuichi-sama, if you give the word, I can erase this space. For me, it'd just cost a little time."
Yushima felt he had to do something for Shuuichi-sama—like clearing away this potential source of trouble.
As long as there was no physical evidence here, even if things blew up in the future, they'd never be able to pin it on Shuuichi-sama.
As for the current Modified Soul research—
That was all on Yushima Ōko.
What did that have to do with Shuuichi-sama?!
"Erase it… for what?"
After listening to Yushima's proposal, Higashino Shuuichi really wanted to roll his eyes.
Sometimes he wanted to pry open that little head and see what exactly was rattling around in there all day.
Did he really think something like this could be resolved by wiping the crime scene?
"But if these corpses stay here, won't that be very bad for you, Shuuichi-sama?"
…Yeah, Yushima Ōko clearly had no talent for being a strategist.
Then again, among the entire Shinigami ranks, there didn't seem to be many whose intelligence was really up to standard.
Most of them, because of their overwhelming strength, had either actively or passively abandoned the habit of thinking things through.
"Bad in what way?
If I don't admit anything, can a bit of missing reishi in these Shinigami really prove it was me?
The one we should focus on is the person who went out of his way to track down these particular Shinigami."
Leaving the corpses he'd just pulled down from the dome, Higashino Shuuichi walked over to the half-finished fusions of Shinigami and Gillian in front of them.
Looking at these failed experimental subjects—neither fully Shinigami nor fully Hollow, unable to speak or move, yet still giving off faint traces of reiatsu—Higashino Shuuichi suddenly had a strange idea.
"Come to think of it, if I remember correctly, hasn't our Phase Two Modified Soul trial already reached its final prep stage—pretty much ready to begin any time?"
Following his movements, Yushima Ōko walked up beside him, staring at the failed experiments in confusion.
He didn't understand why Shuuichi-sama would suddenly bring that up, but he still answered honestly.
"Yes, Shuuichi-sama.
Based on Captain Kurotsuchi's and my own analysis, plus all previous experimental data, we estimate the next batch of test subjects should only need a few months before they're complete.
After that, we can start arranging a riot in Rukongai as a field test."
Thanks to the valuable data from the last round, and the increased investment this time—plus the upgraded strength of the test bodies—
Both Yushima Ōko and Kurotsuchi Mayuri had slightly raised their expectations.
Which was why this time, their initial plan wasn't to choose the World of the Living, where Shinigami response and support were slower, but to test directly in Rukongai.
Higashino Shuuichi had already heard about their arrangement in passing.
In fact, it was because of this very plan that he'd opened that "exam" earlier—an exam that was really just giving Yushima Ōko a backdoor.
It was just that, due to a series of accidents, that whole operation had ended up fizzling out.
Right now, the replica Tenshintai (Divine Transfer Body) was still lying quietly in Shuuichi's house.
Considering the uncertainty of subjugating one's own Zanpakutō (Soul-Cutting Sword), and Yushima's own Zanpakutō's special nature—its Shikai (Initial Release) was too strong—Higashino Shuuichi had decided that after sorting out that trouble from the West Administration, he would personally oversee Yushima Ōko's attainment of Bankai.
"So strictly speaking, this batch of test subjects hasn't truly been finalized yet, has it?"
Shuuichi threw out another line that seemed to come out of nowhere.
Yushima Ōko answered straightforwardly as always, though he was beginning to vaguely guess the line of thought behind the question.
"Yes.
And due to the nature of Modified Souls, their consciousness and souls are basically shattered and then reshaped from scratch.
Right now, their new souls should still be in the germination stage.
That's also the most tedious and failure-prone step in the process."
Higashino Shuuichi nodded. He actually knew this part already—he'd asked just to get direct confirmation from Yushima.
After all, he had never taken part in the practical work of the Modified Soul project himself.
He only learned about its progress through occasional conversations with Kurotsuchi Mayuri and Yushima Ōko.
There was no way he understood the details better than the man actually running the experiments.
"Go back and tell Mayuri that this project may need to be put on hold."
Higashino Shuuichi never spoke without dropping a bomb.
Yushima Ōko stared at him, eyes wide.
This time, he truly didn't know what to do.
Because Higashino Shuuichi was the original initiator of the entire project—there wasn't even a second.
Yushima could say with absolute certainty: without Higashino Shuuichi, there would never have been a Modified Soul project.
And he and Kurotsuchi Mayuri had poured over twenty years of effort into it.
Now they were finally about to enter the Phase Two review stage; barring accidents, after some fine-tuning, the technique would be ready for real-world deployment.
And yet Shuuichi-sama was calling a halt now.
He couldn't wrap his head around it. Absolutely not.
"Shuuichi-sama, if you're worried that what's here will affect the Modified Soul plan, you can put the whole thing on me. I'll take all the blame!
I'm going to be the sole director of the Modified Soul plan going forward anyway. I don't mind shouldering a few more sins!"
Yushima tried to change Shuuichi's mind.
Seeing his earnest, agitated expression, Higashino Shuuichi chuckled softly.
Of course he knew exactly what Yushima was getting worked up over.
He himself had no talent for research and had never been a scientist, but he understood Yushima's mindset completely.
For Yushima Ōko, the Modified Soul project was like his first "child"—one he'd poured his heart and soul into.
Wanting to see that project reach a perfect conclusion was undoubtedly his greatest wish.
"You've misunderstood, Ōko.
I said pause, not abandon the project.
I'm planning to give it a new engine."
"A… new engine?
Shuuichi-sama, I don't really understand…"
Hearing that Shuuichi wasn't scrapping the project after all did ease his heart a bit, but the confusion remained.
"It's fine if you don't understand. You only need to answer one question."
"What question, Shuuichi-sama?"
"I've told you the story of the Soul King before. You still remember it, right?"
"I do."
"Then answer me, Ōko:
Do you want to personally create… a Soul King candidate?"
In the dim space, aside from the painful groans of the Gillian nearby, the only sounds were Yushima Ōko's quickened breathing—
And the trembling he couldn't control because he was too excited.
"Sh-Shuuichi-sama…"
He swallowed.
"Did you just say… that I can personally create a Soul King candidate?"
"Very shocked? Sounds unbelievable, doesn't it?
But Ōko—believe me.
It's not that hard."
Yushima's reaction was exactly what Higashino Shuuichi had expected.
After all, if you weren't someone who'd lived in the Shinigami world, being subjected to what amounted to centuries of brainwashing, it would be hard to grasp what the words "Soul King" meant to an ordinary Shinigami.
It was like someone in his previous life telling him he could make a stand-in for the Yellow Emperor or the Flame Emperor.
Higashino Shuuichi's reaction then probably wouldn't have been much calmer than Yushima's now—he might have even passed out on the spot.
Especially at this point in time.
Not only were the words "Soul King" incredibly rare, but "Soul King candidate" hadn't yet been made commonplace by the future antics of a certain overpowered shopkeeper.
Of course Yushima believed Higashino Shuuichi.
But a certain figure flashed through his mind.
"What about Captain Kurotsuchi?"
"He won't have any problem with it.
For Mayuri, the most important part of this project is something he's already obtained.
The rest is just him fulfilling the promise he made to me."
If even Yushima could think of Kurotsuchi Mayuri, how could Higashino Shuuichi not?
He knew very well what Mayuri truly wanted from the Modified Soul project.
It wasn't to mass-produce disposable units with hard-capped limits from birth.
It was to play god—create artificial Shinigami with limitless potential.
And now, he'd already obtained that decisive piece of technology.
So the remaining parts of the project had lost their value in his eyes.
"I understand, Shuuichi-sama."
With Shuuichi's clear answer, Yushima Ōko let go of his final worry.
From here on out, there was only one thing left in his heart:
Screw it—let's go all in.
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