At this moment, every expression behind the screens turned green.
Shigure made no effort to hide the contempt in his gaze, yet they couldn't speak up to rebuke him.
They were Central 46, once... the highest judicial authority in all of Soul Society.
But—
Everything had changed.
Under Yamamoto and Shigure's forceful methods last time, they had no choice but to accept reform.
Once wartime began, they had to surrender all their authority to the Gotei 13 without any objection.
So halfway through Shigure's words, they understood.
At this moment, everyone held their breath, staring downward with unspeakable bitterness.
Originally, they'd worried what trouble Shigure would cause by coming now.
Turns out he really did cause trouble.
"Ugh, cough cough cough..."
"Cough cough cough cough... cough mm cough cough..."
The hall suddenly filled with the elders' coughing sounds, one after another.
Their faces flushed red as they dry-coughed, constantly pounding their chests.
Shigure smiled faintly, still looking upward. However, without waiting for them to quiet down, he continued. "Heh, your vital signs are all still intact. This little matter won't threaten your lives, right?"
"Then I'll be direct. I came here today to obtain access to the Great Spirit Book Corridors from you."
"With the Captain-Commander missing, you're the only ones who can command the corridor guardians."
"This is the decision made after the captains' meeting. For you... that's not unreasonable, right?"
"..."
Hearing this, the 46 members' thoughts varied wildly.
But their expressions remained uniformly frustrated.
Because they knew... they had absolutely no power to refuse!
When Shigure mentioned it just now, he didn't use words like "request" or "ask," but directly used "obtain."
Moreover, he'd started by reminding them of last time's reform...
All of this undoubtedly revealed Shigure's intent.
He wasn't here to ask opinions at all—he was here to command the 46 using wartime authority!
This was a demand that couldn't possibly be refused!
Thinking of this, sighs began echoing from behind the screens.
"Alas..."
As those wielding Soul Society's supreme power, when had they ever suffered such frustration?
Even on the day of reform, it hadn't felt like this.
After a moment, the judge in the highest seat finally spoke, his voice trembling. "Fine... very well..."
"Captain Segawa, we'll issue you... the pass to the Great Spirit Book Corridors... right away..."
Before his words finished, his tone already filled with defeat.
Because he already knew—from this first concession of power, the reform... had officially taken effect.
Soul Society's history book had been forcibly turned.
...
At this time, in the rear courtyard of the 4th Division barracks.
The captains mostly had nothing to discuss. Only Kyōraku frequently spoke, chatting with Ukitake beside him about various things to pass the time.
Just then, spiritual pressure began descending.
The captains' expressions shifted slightly. They could naturally sense this was Shigure's spiritual pressure.
"Mm... that fast...?" Ukitake muttered questioningly.
Kyōraku beside him immediately laughed. "Looks like dealing with the 46... Segawa really has a knack for it."
As his words fell, Shigure's figure appeared in the center of the courtyard.
"Segawa!" "Shigure!" "Captain Segawa!"
Everyone called out immediately. Shigure looked over with a light laugh. "I've already learned the Captain-Commander's location. Everyone, please follow me. This strategy meeting should end here."
"Now... is the moment to counterattack Muramasa and the Zanpakutō."
Shigure smiled, light flashing in his eyes.
...
At this time, in a hidden canyon outside the Seireitei.
Mountains surrounded this place, dense forests standing everywhere.
And within it, in the deepest cave, several figures currently stood around a massive barrier.
This barrier resembled a transparent blue pyramid, occupying most of the cave's interior space.
Inside the barrier was only one person.
He sat cross-legged, eyes tightly closed, holding an unsheathed blade in his hands.
His entire presence was sealed within his body.
Only the faint spiritual pressure around him connecting to the barrier still showed his life signs.
It was none other than the missing Gotei 13 Captain-Commander... Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto!
The people surrounding the barrier were naturally the rebellious materialized Zanpakutō led by Muramasa.
At this moment, Muramasa stood alone at the barrier's front, hands in his pockets, gaze indifferently watching ahead.
His eyes held no emotion whatsoever.
A mature, seductive female voice suddenly spoke, laughing softly. "So, Muramasa... how long will this situation continue? This Captain-Commander's barrier isn't something we can break with our power, you know?"
Hearing this, Muramasa's expression still didn't change at all.
His eyes remained fixed on Yamamoto inside the barrier, yet he spoke flatly to the woman. "The strongest in a millennium isn't just an empty title. This barrier isn't something our form of power can resolve."
"However, our enemies... will help us resolve it."
"So what we need next... is simply patience."
Speaking, Muramasa suddenly turned slowly, looking at the purple-haired woman wearing an eyepatch opposite him.
The corner of his mouth suddenly revealed a sinister smile. "Once that Soul Reaper arrives here, he'll surely... want to rescue this Captain-Commander and break the 'seal.'"
"At that time, there'll be no need for the Gotei captains' combined strength... he alone will be enough to shatter this barrier!"
"..."
Hearing this, the woman's gaze jumped, then she revealed a shallow smile, noncommittally. "Oh... is that so?"
Her tone clearly carried some doubt.
But Muramasa's expression didn't change. The smile on his face grew even more confident. His purple eyes flickered slightly as he laughed softly. "This may indeed be hard for you to believe... but wait and see."
"Segawa Shigure will absolutely bring my plan... a perfect ending."
Saying this, Muramasa suddenly raised his hand, covering his face, tilting his head back, releasing uncontrollable laughter.
"Hehehe hahahaha..."
But just then, a sudden change occurred!
Waves of extremely massive spiritual pressure suddenly began appearing one after another directly above this canyon!
That was... the spiritual pressure of the Gotei 13 captains!
Realizing this, the smile on Muramasa's face instantly froze, and his unrestrained laughter stopped abruptly.
~~~~❃❃~~~~~~~~❃❃~~~~
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