"I didn't expect Captain Gosuke to know someone from the Royal Guard…"
On the day they were to depart for the Spirit King's Palace, Kirio Hikifune could not hide her surprise when she saw Gosuke Shigure arriving together with Shutara Senjumaru.
Gosuke Shigure was hardly unfamiliar to her—she had personally overseen his Captain's Proficiency Assessment years prior. But even with his status as a Gotei 13 captain, it was exceedingly rare for anyone of the current era to have direct contact with the Zero Division.
After all, this age was not like the ancient one.
Long ago, the Royal Guard maintained regular interaction with the Gotei 13, frequently descending from the Reiōkyū. But those times had long since passed. The Royal Guard no longer mingled with the thirteen divisions, and though every captain was permitted knowledge of the division's existence, very few had ever stood face-to-face with its members.
"Of course I have my opportunities," Gosuke Shigure said, his tone deliberately vague.
Then he added, "I'm visiting Ōetsu Nimaiya, the so-called Sword God of the First Squadron of the Royal Guard. I have questions regarding my Zanpakutō that only he can answer."
He glanced toward Hikifune.
"Your situation is different, Captain Hikifune. You're enlisting into the Royal Guard—you'll be staying there. I won't."
"I see…" Hikifune understood immediately.
She then turned to Senjumaru.
"How do we reach the Spirit King's Palace? The captain-class archives describe the Royal Guard and the Reiōkyū, but there is no explanation about the route or method of entry."
Naturally so.
The existence of the Royal Guard was classified.
But the manner of reaching them—how to access the Reiōkyū, the realm above the Soul Society—was an even deeper secret, omitted even from the Captain's Restricted Compendium.
Shutara Senjumaru answered gracefully:
"For that, I have already contacted a certain specialist. He will assist in sending us to the Reiōkyū."
A faint sigh escaped her.
"When I think about it carefully, it was… fortunate. The family that controls the method of reaching the Spirit King's Palace was nearly annihilated several years ago. Had they truly vanished, I would have been forced to signal the other Royal Guard members to retrieve us manually."
Her golden threads swayed as she glanced toward the sky.
"Fortunately, some members of that clan survived. And so did the knowledge required. It saved me considerable trouble."
Hikifune blinked, not fully grasping the meaning.
Gosuke Shigure, however, understood perfectly.
The three concealed their spiritual signatures, accompanied Senjumaru, and departed Seireitei. Their path led through the quiet outskirts of Rukongai—until they reached a large household situated in one of the more remote districts.
Hikifune froze.
"This is… the Shiba family?"
A former Great Noble House, the Shiba clan had once stood equal to the Kuchiki and the Shihōin. Even stripped of their noble status after the tragedy surrounding Kaien Shiba, their name still carried profound weight. Families that old retained deep, ancient knowledge of the Soul Society.
She hadn't expected Senjumaru to bring them here.
Senjumaru called softly,
"Is the Shiba representative present?"
A man with striking, youthful features stepped out, smiling warmly.
"Captain Shutara, you flatter me. I'm no head of the clan—just a member of a branch family."
"Even a branch family head is still a head," Senjumaru replied.
The man laughed quietly, then continued,
"I've completed the preparations, Captain Shutara. The Tenchūren can be relaunched at any time."
"My thanks," Senjumaru said.
But the man shook his head.
"No need for gratitude. For us, being of use is… a blessing. It proves that even if the Shiba were expelled from the noble ranks—even if we're branded troublesome remnants—we still have value. That's enough."
His voice carried a mixture of pride, bitterness, and relief.
Both Gosuke Shigure and Hikifune understood the implications—and neither said a word.
Gosuke Shigure merely studied the man more closely.
Even without being introduced, he recognized him immediately.
A young Shiba Isshin.
Future Captain of Squad 10.
Future father of Kurosaki Ichigo.
When Isshin finished speaking, he gestured for them to follow.
He led the three of them to the Shiba clan's great Launch Cannon, the disguised "fireworks apparatus" that had long been their ancestral specialty. The world believed the Shiba experts in fireworks. In truth, these explosions were a form of controlled spatial distortion—capable of punching through barriers that normally could not be crossed.
Even the Kōryū barriers—Seireitei's Soul-Shielding Membrane—and the seventy-two compressed reishi layers separating the Soul Society from the Spirit King's Palace could be breached by the Shiba method.
Of course, the shell being launched needed to be sturdy.
Fortunately, the Tenchūren, the cylindrical chariot used exclusively by the Royal Guard, was crafted from the Reiōkyū's hyper-dense spiritual materials. Its durability exceeded that of nearly all constructs in the Soul Society.
Senjumaru, when she had returned briefly to Seireitei with the Tenchūren, had already arranged everything—she had entrusted it to Isshin Shiba.
Now, Shigure, Senjumaru, and Hikifune entered the Tenchūren's dim cabin together.
Despite its simple cylindrical exterior, its interior was spacious—thankfully so.
Had it been smaller, traveling with both Shutara Senjumaru and the stunningly beautiful Kirio Hikifune would have been… awkward.
Once all three were inside, Shiba Isshin wasted no time.
He activated the massive cannon.
A thunderous detonation shook the air.
The Tenchūren launched skyward like a shooting star, tearing a path toward the heavens—toward the highest point of the realms, toward the hidden domain of the Spirit King.
And in the next heartbeat, it vanished into the upper sky.
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