Fifth Division barracks.
Momo discovered a letter left for her by Aizen. The letter expressed Aizen's care and trust in her, as well as his suspicion of Toshiro.
Toshiro most likely colluded with Shin when he went to the Human World, intending to use the power of Sokyoku to destroy Soul Society during Rukia's execution.
Momo was in extreme shock, she simply couldn't believe it could be true.
On one side was her most respected captain, and on the other was her childhood friend.
Could it be that the intruders were able to repeatedly evade pursuit and obtain information on various captains because they had an inside man?
Momo didn't know how she ended up at the Tenth Division.
"Hinamori, what's wrong?" Toshiro looked at the clearly distraught girl in front of him.
"Captain Aizen... left me a letter, and it says you colluded with Shin, intending to destroy Soul Society." Momo looked at Toshiro with tears in her eyes.
She drew her Zanpakuto. "What should I do, Shiro-chan?"
Toshiro was bewildered. He had only met Shin once, how could he have colluded with him?
Rangiku, who was nearby, was also confused. "Lieutenant Hinamori, there must be something wrong with this. Captain would never destroy Soul Society, please calm down first."
"But... but, the letter clearly states..."
Seeing Momo about to lose control, Rangiku shunpoed behind her and knocked her out.
"Matsumoto!"
"Captain, Hinamori is very likely to lose control right now, it's best to let her calm down first."
"And this letter also needs to be investigated."
Looking at the surrounding squad members who had gathered, Rangiku had a bad feeling.
Sure enough, not long after, the news that Toshiro was an accomplice of the intruders spread like wildfire.
Some Shinigami expressed disbelief. While others thought there was a high possibility it was true.
All the intruders had now disappeared, hiding within Seireitei. If there was an inside man, then it made sense. Even if it wasn't Toshiro, it must be someone else.
Thirteenth Division barracks.
Shunsui's expression was grave upon hearing the news that had just arrived.
Jushiro, looking sickly, lay in bed.
The situation was becoming increasingly chaotic. The Second Division Captain went missing last night, and today there was news that the Tenth Division Captain might be an intruder's insider.
Could it be that these intruders' true intention was not to save Rukia, but to destroy Soul Society?
Various conjectures surfaced in their minds, but none of them suspected Aizen.
Meanwhile, after noticing the abnormality of Aizen's corpse, Unohana secretly began an investigation. She searched every possible hiding place in Seireitei, except for two major forbidden zones—the Underground Assembly Hall and the Immaculate Tower Grove.
The Assembly Hall was the office area of the Central 46, and the Immaculate Tower Grove was the residential area.
However, she only found one intruder and her own squad member, Yamada, in the underground waterways.
After hearing the intel from Aizen's letter that Toshiro was an accomplice, she became even more convinced that Aizen was likely not dead. She speculated that Aizen used a corpse puppet to deceive others, thereby hiding in the shadows with sinister intentions.
Therefore, she decided to investigate these two places.
—
Ichigo, guided by Yamada, arrived beneath Sokyoku Hill.
There, he encountered his "old acquaintance" Renji.
Subsequently, a fierce battle erupted between the two.
Renji and Rukia were childhood friends, and he secretly didn't want her to be executed, so his purpose in coming was merely to see Ichigo's determination to save her.
Ichigo, with Sokyoku Hill so close, had no mind to waste time with Renji. He held nothing back, directly using "Getsuga Tensho" to defeat Renji.
Even though Renji did not have the Spiritual Limiter this time, making his strength five times greater than their last encounter, he still lost.
Ichigo then entered the outer area of the Sokyoku Hill with Yamada.
—
Soi Fon woke up early in the morning.
Yoruichi described in detail the "Hollowfication Incident" from back then and Aizen's current faked death.
All of this was the result of Aizen's manipulation from behind the scenes.
Although it was hard to believe, Soi Fon still trusted Yoruichi.
Facing Shin, Soi Fon's heart was very complicated. She had thought they were on opposing sides, but unexpectedly, they were now on the same side.
Shin said with a smile, "Soi Fon-chan, how are your injuries?"
Soi Fon said fiercely, "Call me Soi Fon!"
She paused, then added, "My injuries are mostly healed."
Indeed, tsundere girls are interesting. Despite looking fierce, she still obediently answered.
—
Night fell.
Shin arrived at the Third Division.
In the captain's office, Gin was alone.
"Captain Ichimaru, you've been hiding quite well." Shin slowly emerged from the darkness.
"What are you talking about, Nohara-san? I don't understand." Gin wasn't surprised that Shin could appear in the captain's office without a sound.
Shin looked at Gin with a smile. "Captain Ichimaru, you deliberately didn't block my last attack, right?"
"Moreover, your Bankai is definitely not that simple. There's no difference before and after Bankai, it just increased speed and lethality, it's too suspicious."
"That's just because Nohara-san is too strong. My Bankai really has nothing special about it."
Shin ignored his rhetoric.
"Let me guess, you're hiding your strength to show it to someone, aren't you?"
"Sosuke Aizen." Shin slowly uttered the name.
"What does Nohara-san want from me? You're not here to kill me, are you?" Gin still wore a smiling face.
Seeing Gin unmoved, Shin decided to drop a bombshell.
"Matsumoto... Rangiku."
However, Gin's expression remained unchanged after hearing that name.
Shin couldn't help but marvel at how well Gin could act.
"I've investigated you two, and I can tell that her soul is incomplete."
Upon hearing this, Gin suddenly opened his eyes, his light blue pupils reflecting a dangerous glint.
Shin continued, "Aizen used a large number of souls with Shinigami powers for research back then, and Rangiku was one of them, wasn't she?"
Gin couldn't understand why Shin knew all this. Did he uncover the hidden truth based on just a guess?
"If you want to retrieve Matsumoto Rangiku's soul, I can help you."
Gin remained silent, contemplating. He didn't care about anything else, he only cared about Rangiku.
He finally spoke, "What do you want me to do?"
Shin said, "You just need to monitor Aizen and provide information when necessary."
"No problem."
Although Shin knew most of the plot, under the flapping of his butterfly wings, there were bound to be many changes, just like this time.
Turning Gin into an undercover agent might be a good choice.
(End of Chapter)
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