A being who, upon discovering the truth of the world, pledged to ascend to the heavens himself.
Setting aside matters of right and wrong, and looking purely at his ideal, one could argue that Aizen's vision is not necessarily incorrect.
However, the methods he employs to realize that ideal are brutal and fraught with pain for everyone involved, including himself.
"It is understandable for one to desire to avoid work, but since you sit in the seat of a Captain, you should at least act in a manner befitting that position—..."
I watched Aizen for a moment as he launched into a lengthy speech while the steam from his tea died away into a cold brew, then I finished my own warm matcha.
For the record, Aizen dislikes me.
Should I call it dislike? Perhaps contempt? It isn't overtly visible, but having lived as long as I have, it was easy enough to pick up on. Of course, he probably thinks he's hiding it, but it was clear to my eyes.
Why would Aizen dislike me? If my intuition is correct, he sees me as a hypocrite who knows the Soul Reaper's original sin and yet chooses to remain a bystander.
Or perhaps he sees me as a lazy man who watches on despite possessing the power to punish sin, or a coward who has fled from his duties and responsibilities, or perhaps….
Well, there are plenty of reasons. He's smarter than me, so it's a bit difficult to read his thoughts through intuition alone.
Still, I think I've done my best.
"The tea is quite bitter."
The reason my mouth felt bitter was surely because the tea was bitter.
Thinking this, I wore a wry smile, and Unohana handed me some dango from the side.
"It's because you only drink tea. Here, have some dango."
"Thank you."
As I ate the dango she gave me, Aizen finished his lecture and let out a sigh.
"My, you sure are talkative. Look at this, the tea has gone completely cold. And the dango have all dried up, how are you supposed to eat them like this? These aren't rice cakes; they're stones. Solid stones."
"If the Captain had finished his work and left, the tea wouldn't have gone cold, would it?"
"You really won't lose an argument, will you?"
See? He's subtly throwing hints at me again like that.
One might think he said that just to spite Hirako. That would be the normal interpretation.
But the person in question is Aizen.
It might be paranoia, but that could also be a comment meant for me to hear.
"Don't you think so, Director?"
See what I mean?
"No, why drag the Director into this?"
"You do remember the time when the Director occupied the seat of the 4th Division Captain, do you not? Back then, even though it was an acting position, the Director took the initiative and led the 4th Division. Captain Hirako, why don't you try following the Director's example from those days?"
"Oh boy, don't you know the saying about the wren trying to keep up with the stork and ending up tearing its legs? That man is a complete superhuman. I can't do anything like that."
"Asking you to follow his example does not necessarily mean to do exactly as he did. I only wish for Captain Hirako to do his best... though I suppose if I said that, you would simply tell me that this is your best."
"You saw right through me."
"Ha... at least handle today's quota. It's not that large a volume, is it?"
"Alright, alright. I'll do it after I eat just this one. Happy now?"
At Hirako's annoyed response, Aizen let out a small sigh of concession, bowed once to both me and Unohana, and took his leave.
I really don't want to think this, but why did he bow to us separately? It's like I'm receiving two bows.
When bowing at a shrine, one bows twice—does the bastard want me to become a god or something?
'This really sounds like paranoia now.'
I smiled bitterly to myself and finished the rest of the dango and matcha.
"Shall we go?"
"Indeed. I was just thinking it was about time I returned as well. Fufu, it's quite mysterious that we are in such accord, even on this."
Unohana and I both nodded and rose from our seats.
Hirako stopped chewing on the hardened dango and looked up.
"Oh, you guys leaving already?"
"We have to. We've been here for over an hour already."
"I didn't even get to talk about Sousuke's sword properly..."
"We can talk about that later. We've got all the time in the world, anyway. Regardless, finish up what you're doing and get back to it."
"Yes, sir! Be careful on your way back!"
After parting ways with Hirako, I walked Unohana back to the 4th Division, wandered around for a bit, and eventually stopped.
Yes, I stopped because of that same recurring concern that hits me every time things edge closer to the original plot.
It's a question I face all the time, yet it remains just as difficult to answer.
Do I intervene proactively, or do I remain passive and watch from the sidelines?
Having lived for over a million years and knowing that there is no such thing as the 'Will of the World' forcing my hand, I know that it makes no difference whether I intervene or not, yet knowing that doesn't make the decision any easier.
Especially now, as we enter the timeframe where the events that form the roots of the original story take place.
If I intervene proactively now and reform Aizen Sousuke, the chances of Kurosaki Ichigo, the protagonist of the original story, being born, will drop drastically.
But if I adopt a passive stance, I will be forced to watch as people are sacrificed for things I could have easily prevented.
Should I take a step back and remain passive for the sake of the original story?
Must I watch and let others be sacrificed for a life that hasn't even been conceived yet?
Is there a hierarchy to the value of human lives?
No, there is not.
Must I witness the birth of the protagonist while sacrificing the lives of others?
It is unreasonable.
Standing there in the silence, agonizing over the decision, the conclusion I reached was the same as it always was.
I have this dilemma constantly, yet I always arrive at the same answer.
"Just to check on him... oh, what? It's already night."
I had only closed my eyes for a moment to think, but the sun had already shifted for the moon.
No, that's better. Men like Aizen and Urahara, who have dark secrets in their hearts, usually prefer to move at night.
I closed my eyes and swept across the Soul Society.
I could feel a familiar energy in the 13th Division, one in the Rukon District, and one more drifting through the outskirts far away.
The one in the 13th Division was Mimihagi, the Soul King's right arm, and while the energy moving through the Rukon District was still faint, I could feel it steadily growing in stature.
The one roaming the Rukon District must be Aizen.
"I truly wish we could reach an understanding, though I suspect that won't be easy."
The best case is for everything to end peacefully, but if he insists on proceeding after hearing me out, I will have no choice but to oppose him.
Of course, I wouldn't step in directly if I could help it, but I hope it ends well.
Finished with my thoughts, I walked immediately toward the Rukon District where I sensed the energy.
Upon arrival, what I witnessed was Aizen extracting the Soul King's fingernail from the body of a young, blonde girl.
"Yo, Four-eyes. What are you working so hard on in the middle of the night? Hmm?"
Aizen was not even remotely startled by my voice; he calmly removed the hood of his cloak and looked back at me.
"So it was you. I had anticipated that you would come if I moved openly, but I did not expect you to reveal yourself so quickly."
"Was that your way of signaling me to come? Well, even if you'd hidden yourself, I would have found you anyway, but thanks to you, it was easy."
"As expected. Truly a comment worthy of one who has inherited the Soul King's will. If so, are you here to stop the completion of this? Or are you here to stop me? No, perhaps both are correct."
"I have no particular intention of stopping you. I just came to talk to you a bit today."
I brushed the dust off a nearby rock and sat down, just as I always do.
Aizen, toying with the Hogyoku in his hand, looked at me silently from where he stood and did not approach.
"For what purpose did you come to speak with me? Surely, you didn't come to ask why I am doing this. Are you here to hear my true intent?"
"No, I just felt it was time for us to have a philosophical conversation after all this time."
"A zen dialogue?"
That might be one way to put it.
I replied with a soft smirk, propped my chin on my hand, and posed the topic.
"How should a world exist?"
For the first time, Aizen wore a look of surprise and stopped fidgeting with the Hogyoku.
By now, he must be working his brain to the point of overheating.
Why would I say such a thing? What is my true intent? Among many other things, he is likely contemplating these questions.
I know many things from having lived a long time, but I am not a genius like Jomon, Urahara, or Aizen, so I don't know exactly what he is thinking, but I can imagine the nature of his ponderings.
"Are you surprised? That a bystander, who merely watched the Soul King die, would say such things?"
"Ah, I never imagined I would hear the word 'existence of the world' from your lips."
"I've talked about it often since the old days. You just haven't had the chance to hear it. So, what do you think?"
"It is wrong to be ruled by one who merely exists without consciousness or will. If one is to be the entity that sustains the world—the principle that forms the world—merely existing is not enough."
"I see. So, you mean that the one who sits on the throne must present the path forward to those beneath him and lead them. Is that the gist of it?"
"Furthermore, a king must stand above everyone. He must establish his own will, compel others to follow, and blaze a trail for others to walk. A king is an existence that grants value, and a king who is granted value by others is meaningless. That is what I am saying."
"So you intend to kill the current, will-less Soul King and take his seat?"
That is a complicated matter.
I shook my head with a wry smile.
It seems I won't be making it home tonight after all.