Soul society i

Chapter #5 (p88-127) — Soul Society, Technological Development Bureau, under 12th

Squad jurisdiction

Hiyosu is yelling at Tsubokura Lin to stop eating sweets. This is the heart of Soul

Society. Seireitei, surrounded by the Rukongai, is the place where soul reaper live and

work. And the Technological Development Bureau lies inside Seireitei. It’s a place most

soul reaper prefer to avoid, but it’s also one of Seireitei’s most important institutes.

The Spiritual Wave Measurement Lab is vital to the soul reaper working in Soul Society

and the World of the Living. It monitors the appearance of hollows in both worlds and

observes the Dangai. Normally a few members such as Lin work in the lab, but the

entire staff is present today. They’re monitoring Karakura Town, because a few hours

ago, over a hundred Garganta and arrancars were measured in that area. But the

arrancars had disappeared before they could even declare a state of emergency. They

didn’t know what the arrancars were after, and Karakura Town was an important area

to Soul Society. That’s why the 13 Court Guard Squads was on strict alert, ready to

strike, and why the Institute was monitoring Karakura Town.

Niko murmurs it’s weird that the arrancars all had a very similar spiritual-matter

quality and that they opened separate Descorrer instead of one big one. Hiyosu agrees

and asks for Akon’s opinion. He says they need more data first. Meanwhile Kon is

being experimented on. He yells that they should at least pay him or something. Rukia 1

won’t let it slide if anything happens to him, you know! But he won’t mind if Nemu or

another female researcher experiments on him… The Institute’s President isn’t

present. He’s on trial. Central 46’s court is the highest juridical organ in Soul Society,

second in power only to the Soul King Office. Mayuri was summoned to court as the

accused of a certain incident. But none of the researchers were worried about the

outcome. Not because they didn’t care. They respected their president. No, because

they knew that Central 46 couldn’t judge Mayuri currently.

— Central 46

The judges and sages of Central 46 are angry with Mayuri KUROSTUCHI ("Are you even

listening!?"), but the man in question wasn’t concerned in the slightest. He merely

found the trial a waste of time and he didn’t hesitate to tell them that.

— Technological Development Bureau

Hiyosu asks Akon what Mayuri is on trial for. He answers it’s about Mayuri making

several 12th Squad soldiers blow themselves up, during the time when Kurosaki first

appeared in Soul Society. The 12th Squad also had members who weren’t Institute

researchers. Mayuri had deemed this to be a good way to make use of those soldiers.

This incident had happened quite a while ago, but Central 46 didn’t have time and

capacity until now. First, the previous members had all been murdered by AIZEN, then

the arrancar ordeal happened and then, after AIZEN had been sentenced to the

Muken, they had spent more than a year arguing about the fate of the Visoreds. The

new Central 46 can’t condemn Mayuri for experimenting on quincies because that had

been authorised by the old Central 46. Akon surmises that the new Central 46’s true

motive is to try and strike their president down with this self-destruct incident. The

other researchers agree. They’re not impressed. Most of them were originally

residents of the Nest of Maggots.

Lin admits that from a normal person’s perspective, Mayuri may belong in prison.

Akon says that Central 46 isn’t thinking in ethical terms, not truly. It’s the same as

when they stopped the project of developing mod souls, Project Spearhead: They’re

simply scared of weapons falling into enemy hands. If they did care, they would never

have ordered things like the execution of hollowfied captains without even checking

the facts properly. Lin rebuts that that was done by the previous Central 46. Akon says

nothing has changed. If it had, then Central 46 would call URAHARA back. But they’re

too scared that URAHARA holds a grudge for being falsely accused. Hiyosu adds that

the current Central 46 is bringing Mayuri to court in order to dangle the promise of a

reduction of penalty in front of him to make him their tool. Moreover, Central 46 benefits a lot from the Technological Development Bureau. They wouldn’t send its

president to prison quickly.

Akon jokes that even if Mayuri was sent to Muken, he’d be happy with the

opportunity to dissect his fellow prisoners. The others agree. Lin asks if they are other

prisoners besides AIZEN in Muken. Akon says there should be a few. Muken was the

lowest underground prison, level #8. It held the worst criminals who, due to

circumstances, could not undergo execution by the Soukyoku. Another prisoner was

AZASHIRO, a man sentenced to over 10,000 years in prison. But Akon’s explanation is

interrupted by the loud sound of candy being crunched in someone’s mouth. Akon

scolds Lin, but it’s not him. No, it’s the 11th Squad’s Vice-Captain, Yachiru KUSAJISHIA.

Akon asks why she’s here. She says she’s here to help Lin eat candy, but Lin refuses to

give her any. Suddenly one of their measuring instruments rings. It signals the arrival

of an intruder. It’s the arrancars that entered Karakura Town earlier. They’ve appeared

in various locations, spread out over Soul Society. The researchers quickly send out a

warning to all areas. And Yachiru leaps out the window with a smile on her face. —

"I’m gonna wake up Ken-chan!"

— Rukongai, Western Area, White Road Gate

There are four gates in the wall that separates Seireitei and Rukongai. The giant

Jidanbô, the guard of White Road Gate, is on alert for the intruder. One of the Picarro

appears before him and she tells him she wants to go into Seireitei. Jidanbô, who

didn’t sense any hostility from her and didn’t know arrancars look similar to humans,

assumes she’s a Rukongai child and gently turns her down. 12 of 37 Oh, he’s a guard?

So, if she kills him, she can pass? How about they play a game? Jidanbô doesn’t take

her serious until he notices the sword hanging from her waist. …Could she be an

intruder? Suddenly the girl closes her eyes, tilts her head and, as if she’s talking to

someone, says, "No way. SHIBATA-kun? Really?" The girl tells Jidanbô she doesn’t have

time to play with him anymore and leaves. Jidanbô is happy he didn’t have to raise his

axe against a little girl and continues guarding his gate. A few minutes later, he’ll hear

a thunderous sound which will shake the air surrounding Seireitei.

— Rukongai, somewhere in the Western Area

— "Hey, could you be SHIBATA-kun?" Yûichi SHIBATA turns to the owner of the voice

and stiffens. The boy in front of him is smiling innocently but has the faint air of a

hollow. SHIBATA affirms that he is indeed SHIBATA. The boy smiles and calls the other

Picarro ("Come over here, everyone. SHIBATA, who once turned into a parrot, is

here!"). Several Picarro appear and surround SHIBATA. Amongst them are those wholook like little animals with white skulls. SHIBATA is immediately reminded of the

hollow who killed his mother, Shrieker. The Picarro start chatting amongst themselves,

"SHIBATA? The boy we found when one of us slipped into the World of the Living? We

talked about saving him and killing Shrieker for him once he became a hollow. But a

soul reaper saved him, so SHIBATA never became a hollow… No fair… He could’ve

become our new friend." Yûichi, not knowing what to do, tries to talk to them. The

Picarro turn to him and tell him he was quite famous for playing chase with Shrieker.

How about you become a hollow and play with us?

Yûichi is scared and thinks of Chan, the man who he had relied on before. But it’s not

Chan who saves him. A large shadow suddenly appears like a gust of wind, grabs him

by the neck and tosses him to the roof of a nearby house. The man who tossed him

has a bald head and a stern look on his face. A soul reaper. MADARAME Ikkaku, 3rd

Seat of the 11th Squad. MADARAME had been on patrol in West Rukongai just as the

alarm rang. All seated officers had been ordered to repel the intruder and/or to

investigate their motives. He thought this meant it was his lucky day, but after seeing a

bunch of children before him, MADARAME felt he was unlucky instead. Seeing as the

arrancars weren’t attacking anyone nor radiated any hostility, MADARAME tells them

to just scram off back to Hueco Mundo. — "No, no, you can’t just let them leave like

that, you know? The mission also includes finding out the enemy’s motives."

Yumichika AYASEGAWA, 5th Seat of the 11th Squad, appears behind MADARAME.

The Picarro ask them if they’re soul reaper. If so, can they take them inside Seireitei?

MADARAME angers at the ridiculous request. AYASEGAWA explains arrancars aren’t

allowed inside. The Picarro say that’s unfair. After all, "that lady" is an arrancar, yet

she’s inside. Their words surprise AYASEGAWA and MADARAME. Seireitei is protected

by its Sekkiseki wall, which doesn’t allow any spiritual-matter to pass through, and the

Soul Warding Membrane. Yes, gates could be breached, or the dome could be pierced

with great force, but for an arrancar to sneak in, unnoticed, was unheard of. — "After

all, her "threads" continue inside the walls." MADARAME asks them what they mean,

but then suddenly there’s a thunderous noise and black smoke rises from Seiretei’s

centre. Where the Technological Development Bureau is located. Maybe there’s really

someone inside already? MADARAME turns back to the Picarro to ask them who "that

lady" is, but they’re already gone. Yûchi says they ran away and MADARAME tells

himself, "I really am unlucky today…"

— 3 minutes earlier, Technological Development Bureau

None of the researchers had noticed "that". If Mayuri had been present, he may have,

but he was currently on trial. A thin thread of negación, so thin it was invisible to the human eye. It crept further and further into the Institute. The researchers are chatting

amongst themselves while analysing the data about the intruder that’s being sent in. It

seems KURUMADANI had also reported about the masked woman earlier, but they

hadn’t analysed his report yet. Akon suddenly felt a chill. Not only him. The others did

too. They could sense a sinister spiritual-pressure boil up from inside the observatory

room — the room which they were currently in. Everyone stopped what they were

doing. And yet they heard someone typing on a keyboard from the corner of the

room. From the president’s desk. When they turned to the sound, they saw a man

sitting behind the desk, with a faint smile on his face. — "I see… The man who killed

me is the president of this place?" While looking at the data on the screen, the

arrancar with a glasses-shaped mask, calmly uttered those words. One of the

researcher whispers, "Isn’t that the specimen that’s being preserved in fluid..?" The

word 'specimen' angers the arrancar. His corpse has been degraded to specimen!?

How insulting. — "Even so, I think I’ll take a look at this 'specimen'. You don’t get the

chance to observe your own corpse every day, you know. I don’t clearly remember the

moment I died, though." The researchers remember the name on the specimen’s tag:

Szayelaporro GRANZ. One of the Espada. Akon and the arrancar, who looks identical to

the specimen, exchange some words until the arrancar draws his sword. — "Enough

chatter. If you want to know more, figure it out yourself. If you can survive long

enough, that is." A few seconds later. Even though the following explosion in the

Institute acted as a signal to everyone that an intruder had infiltrated Seireitei, only

one person had actually noticed the negación thread. This person was locked deep

underground. In a place for the worst criminals.

— In the dark

The criminal remained silent, only opening his eyes. As if on cue, a woman’s laughter

rang in his ears. — "Kyahahaha! It’s been a while! When did you last open your eyes?

250 years ago? Or 500? Or maybe 20,000? Or was it 3 seconds ago? Kyahahaha!" The

criminal slowly opens his mouth and says, "When Sôsuke AIZEN was locked up here."

A small light, as if triggered by his voice, burns in the darkness. Left, right, up, down —

darkness everywhere. The criminal sees a woman in a white kimono with a leather obi

(kimono sash) covering her eyes. She remembers. It’s true, the criminal last opened his

eyes when AIZEN had been sent to this place. She retells the events that lead to

AIZEN’s downfall — receiving the orange-haired soul reaper Representative’s massive

attack, being sealed by Kisuke URAHARA, being sentenced for 20.000 years. She knew

it all. So why did the criminal open his eyes this time? — "A thin thread… entered me.

A thread of spiritual-matter…? No, of negación." He offered no further explanationThe criminal was a man of few words. — "…I’ll take a moment to consider whether I should leave this place, the Muken."

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