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"Haa-choo—"
Ishikawa yawned, his eyes blurry with sleep, as he walked down from the second floor.
"Ishikawa-sama."
Do these guys never sleep at night?
Looking at the customers crowded in the pub, then at the sun that had just risen outside, Ishikawa felt an extreme sense of strangeness.
He didn't know when it started, but no matter how early he woke up, the pub downstairs would always be filled with customers.
Hmm…
It wasn't that he didn't know. Ever since Nishijin Ori and his group completely dominated Rukongai, with the massive number of villains, the pub would instantly be full as soon as it opened.
These people weren't so much coming to drink as they were finding a place for villains to gather, communicate, and brag to each other—and it was villains from all over Rukongai!
"Morning."
Sitting at the bar, Ishikawa scanned the pub and asked Uzuki, who was also yawning behind the bar, "Has Ganju not arrived yet?"
"He can't get up this early."
Uzuki replied casually, then brought out three bowls of noodles from behind the bar: "One for you, one for Unagiya Oshiki, and one for old man Ishida. You can take them to them after you finish yours."
"…"
Ishikawa looked at the noodle soup in front of him and said with a hint of admiration, "This is the first time I've realized that not everything can be mastered through proficiency… Also, Sister Uzuki, have you ever considered making something other than noodle soup—um, noodles—for breakfast?"
"Stop talking nonsense. It's good enough that you have something to eat. If you want something else, make it yourself."
Ishikawa sighed, giving up on the idea of arguing further with Uzuki, and picked up the noodle soup to drink.
It was a good thing the pub had its own side dishes; otherwise, with Uzuki's cooking skills, this pub probably would have gone out of business long ago…
Gulp, gulp—
With a series of swallowing sounds, Ishikawa devoured a bowl of noodles, soup and all, plus some unidentified additives, in just thirty seconds.
Just as he picked up the other two bowls, intending to deliver them to the two people living on the second floor, the pub door suddenly opened.
Turning his head, he saw Ishida Soken, dressed as a Quincy, walk in and head straight to Ishikawa, saying, "Ishikawa-sama, a customer specifically asked to see you."
"Specifically asked to see me?"
Ishikawa didn't pay much attention, as countless customers specifically asked to see him. He never avoided these requests as long as he was in the shop.
"She's a bit different from other customers."
As if seeing through Ishikawa's thoughts, Ishida Soken shook his head: "You'll know when you see her. She doesn't feel like an ordinary customer to me."
Ishikawa handed one bowl of noodles to Ishida Soken, then picked up the other and walked out of the pub.
"Uh…"
Ishida Soken looked at the noodle soup in his hand, then at Uzuki behind the bar, opened his mouth, and finally sighed heavily, carrying the noodles and following behind Ishikawa.
"How's your strength recovery going?" Ishikawa asked.
"I've managed to adapt."
Ishida Soken said, "But because I'm not yet familiar with the Spirit Body, I still can't unleash much power; however, having left the decaying human body, if I fully adapt, I can probably exert more power than I did in my later years of life."
"No need to rush."
Ishikawa nodded: "Unless I'm not around and someone attacks the Everything Store, you absolutely don't need to fight anyone."
Ishida Soken hummed in agreement.
When he first joined the Everything Store, he actually thought Ishikawa had saved him to exploit his power; but after spending some time together, he found that Ishikawa had no intention of using his Quincy power, only letting him do odd jobs in the Everything Store like an ordinary person.
And his initial repulsion towards Ishikawa taking in a group of villains gradually disappeared with the passage of time.
Firstly, because he found that Ishikawa never intended to take those villains as subordinates; instead, those villains unilaterally regarded Ishikawa as their king.
Secondly, because…
After those villains followed Ishikawa, they actually became restrained. No matter how much they fought in the lower-numbered districts, those villains would not cause trouble outside the lower-numbered districts, thereby strengthening the stability of Rukongai and indirectly protecting countless Rukongai residents!
In a way, Ishikawa had already become a symbol of order in Rukongai.
Creak—
Pushing open the door of the Everything Store, Ishikawa's brow furrowed slightly when he saw the figure in the reception hall.
No wonder…
Ishida Soken said this customer was not ordinary.
This was a little girl who looked about ten years old, but her delicate little face showed no trace of childishness. Instead, it gave off a very composed feeling; her dark inner lining, covered by a high-collared, noble robe, made her look extremely dignified!
Ishikawa was not unfamiliar with this young girl.
Although, he had only seen her in her current appearance once.
Amakado Nayura!
Chief Librarian of the Great Spirit Book Gallery and the next Sage of the Central 46.
Ishikawa handed the bowl of noodle soup he was holding to Ishida Soken and said, "Old Man Ishida, you and Unagiya Oshiki should go eat at the pub downstairs first."
Upon hearing this, neither Unagiya Oshiki in the reception hall nor Ishida Soken asked any questions. Instead, they left the Everything Store together and headed towards the pub.
Inside the Everything Store.
"Mr. Ishikawa…"
Nayura looked at Ishikawa, a hint of hesitation flashing across her face, as if she was considering whether to continue speaking.
"Please sit first."
Ishikawa pointed to the nearby sofa. After she sat down, he sat opposite Nayura, a gentle smile on his face, and said, "Whatever your request is, you can just state it. Whether to accept it or not is for me to consider; you don't need to be conflicted about it at all."
"If I say…"
Nayura paused, her small face showing an extremely grave expression: "I want to ask you to help me infiltrate the Central 46 for an investigation. Can you accept this request, Mr. Ishikawa?"
After speaking, her face couldn't help but show apprehension.
Anyone in Soul Society would know the immense power of the Central 46.
Any decision made by the Central 46 could not be challenged, not even by Commander Yamamoto.
Infiltrating the Central 46 for investigation could be said to be one of the most serious crimes in Soul Society. If she had other options, she wouldn't want to involve Ishikawa, who wasn't even a Shinigami.
Just as Kūkaku had once told Ishikawa, she had always shown contempt for 'noble-first ideology' and was committed to eliminating the gap in awareness between nobles and commoners, thereby creating a fair and good judicial system for all—nobles, commoners, and residents of Rukongai.
But such a thing was almost impossible in Soul Society, where class divisions were extremely clear. She often disguised herself and used false names to mingle with commoners in Seireitei and Rukongai, only to find that… even apart from nobles, there were still class distinctions among the commoners themselves.
This made her feel despair about her goal for a time, until she met Ishikawa.
Whether it was treating the commoners of Rukongai, the villains in the lower-numbered districts, homeless orphans, the commoners of Seireitei, or even the high-and-mighty nobles of Seireitei… Ishikawa treated everyone equally. From beginning to end, he never changed his attitude because he entered Seireitei, still treating every customer from Rukongai with respect and friendliness.
If there was any unfairness in his treatment of people, it was probably only regarding gender…
Therefore, she had always held a great fondness for Ishikawa.
Otherwise, when Ishikawa's secret trip to Hueco Mundo was exposed, she wouldn't have deceived her father to cover for him.
"Infiltrate the Central 46 for investigation?"
Ishikawa looked deeply at Nayura. Although he had secretly investigated Nayura after she covered for him last time and knew that she possessed a shrewdness and composure far beyond her appearance, her shrewdness was far greater than he had anticipated.
He wasn't surprised by Nayura's request.
Because, from the moment he saw Nayura enter, Ishikawa had vaguely realized what she wanted to entrust him with.
Infiltrating the Central 46 for investigation?
This was undoubtedly…
An impossible request.
As the actual wielders of power in Seireitei, the Central 46 possessed authority such that as long as the Soul King did not personally descend, they were the sole voice in Soul Society!!
Not even Commander Yamamoto was an exception.
But rather than saying he dared not disobey, it was more that he was unwilling to disobey.
Because he knew deeply that establishing a system was a long process, while destroying a system only took an instant. Commander Yamamoto's persistence, though somewhat stubborn, undeniably brought peace to Soul Society after the system was established, even if this peace contained many sacrifices.
Back to the point.
If he accepted this request, it would be fine if it wasn't exposed, but once it was exposed…
Ishikawa would immediately become an adversary to Seireitei, becoming a target for the entire Seireitei to hunt down!
Even setting aside the special status of Central 46 itself… secretly investigating Central 46 now could be considered an act of seeking death.
Because the fact that all of Central 46 has died absolutely cannot be revealed at this time.
To hide this, the person who massacred Central 46 would kill Ishikawa at all costs and by any means.
And Ishikawa's plan had always been to temporarily stay out of it, pretending not to know anything, to avoid provoking that person's murderous intent and thus putting himself in a disadvantageous situation.
At the same time, he wanted to avoid being caught and dealt with openly by the other party in the name of Central 46.
It could be said…
No matter from what angle, he could not accept this commission.
It was all harm and no benefit!
But when the refusal came to his lips, it turned into:
"Could you tell me in detail why you, as the chief Librarian of the Great Spirit Book Gallery, the daughter of the current Sage, and the candidate for the next Sage, need to secretly investigate Central 46?"
"Mr. Ishikawa, you don't seem very surprised by my request."
Nayura looked deeply at Ishikawa, but did not wait for his answer, and instead said directly: "For more than a month now, the Sages and Judges of Central 46 have, without exception, all been residing in the Pure Cleanse Tower Forest Residence… The so-called 'Pure Cleanse Tower Forest Residence' is a building connected to the Central Underground Council Chambers."
"Only the Sages and Judges of Central 46 are allowed to reside there; even family members are absolutely forbidden to enter."
"Although there have been records of all Sages and Judges residing in the tower for long periods to work, the duration rarely exceeds a month, and it has never been like now, where they have completely cut off contact with the outside world and do not interact with any relatives."
Nayura paused, her pretty face turning somewhat cold: "In this past month, I applied to enter Central 46 three times and was rejected, and even… I was not allowed to go to the Great Spirit Book Gallery located below the Central Underground Council Chambers."
"As the chief Librarian of the Great Spirit Book Gallery, I have the authority to freely enter and exit the Great Spirit Book Gallery, but the Sages of Central 46 have repeatedly denied me entry; moreover, when I applied for an audience multiple times, the people who responded were Sages I was unfamiliar with, and my father never appeared before me from beginning to end."
"So I suspect that something might have gone wrong with Central 46." As she spoke, a trace of pain flashed across Nayura's tender young face: "They don't let me meet, contact, or talk to my father, which certainly prevents me from seeing or hearing flaws in his words and actions, but…"
"My father would absolutely not refuse to see me even once after my repeated requests for an audience, especially when he missed my birthday."
Nayura took a deep breath, looked at Ishikawa, who had been listening intently, and said in a low voice: "I haven't told anyone about this matter. My three applications were all under the pretext of 'requesting entry to the Great Spirit Book Gallery.' After realizing something was amiss, to avoid suspicion, I also stopped requesting further audiences."
"I haven't told anyone about my suspicions."
"Because although I am the next Sage, the next is just the next. Before I take office, I have no power and cannot mobilize the Gotei 13; even if I voice my suspicion that something has gone wrong with Central 46, no one will believe me, and it will instead alarm the person behind it."
"No one in the entire Seireitei would choose to believe me and be able to help me, and the only person I can think of is…"
"What if your suspicion is wrong?"
Ishikawa, who had been listening, suddenly interrupted, and he said softly: "Even if we take a step back, and your suspicion is confirmed, do you think you and I can contend with 'them,' the person who can silently control Central 46?"
"I understand your anxiety, but whether your suspicion is right or wrong, it represents an enormous risk."
"If it's wrong, with your father there, you might be able to escape, but the mere charge of secretly infiltrating Central 46 is enough to put me to death. Even if you can help me escape death, I will inevitably be imprisoned forever."
"If it's right, the person who can silently control the entire Central 46 without leaving any trace and deceive numerous captains must be extremely powerful; given your identity, your sudden disappearance would bring about unknown changes, so 'they' might try to control you rather than kill you, but my fate would still be certain death!"
"Finally, as you said, only you know about this matter. If you are controlled afterward, no matter how I explain, no one will believe me. You should understand this, right?"
Upon hearing this, Nayura's expression immediately became somewhat dim.
After a long silence, she slowly stood up and said with a wry smile: "I apologize, I was not thorough enough in my consideration." With that, she took a step and was about to leave.
"Don't be in a hurry, I was just stating the possible consequences, I didn't say I was refusing this commission."
Ishikawa smiled slightly at Nayura: "If it were from the perspective of the Everything Store owner, I would never accept such a risky commission, but if…"
"If it's as a friend, as the 'Nayura' I once took care of, occasionally acting impulsively seems like a good experience."
"Because…"
"In my opinion, friends are those who, no matter how dangerous the situation, will impulsively rush forward to help when they see a friend being taken advantage of!"
Nayura stared blankly at Ishikawa, who had a warm smile on his face, and it took her a while to react: "Are you crazy?"
"Crying together, laughing together, going crazy together—isn't that what friends are?"
Ishikawa smiled slightly: "However, there's one more condition for me to accept the commission, and that is… Nayura, no matter what the outcome of this investigation is, you must not tell anyone else what you find; and you must ensure my life, whether it's imprisonment or sealing, anything else is fine."
From his initial arrival in Soul Society until now, Ishikawa had changed a lot.
But one thing had not changed: his contradictions.
Just as he had once said.
Ishikawa rarely actively sought trouble; more often, he was in a contradictory passive state.
On one hand, to change, he suppressed his original personality to avoid trouble; on the other hand, he instinctively wanted to cast off all restraints and act purely on instinct and desire.
But when trouble actively sought him out, trouble was like a key that could unlock the lock called 'restraint'; it made Ishikawa not think about avoiding it, but rather convince himself to face it with various reasons.
The reasons were numerous…
And the reason for choosing to help Nayura was the 38 points of favorability.
Although he kept saying "friend," Ishikawa actually still had no understanding of what a friend was, nor did he even know what friendship meant. All along, he had used the other party's favorability towards him as a standard; the higher the other party's favorability towards him, the more he would give for the other party, thereby giving true feelings in a reciprocal manner.
Just like his clumsy decision at the very beginning, exchanging true feelings for true feelings.
Of course…
There were many other factors why he decided to take on this commission.
For example, Nayura's status and position; if he could gain her friendship, taking some risks would be entirely worthwhile.
Moreover, although he had spoken of danger earlier…
As long as Nayura could save his life, even if he were imprisoned, it wouldn't matter, as the time wouldn't be too long anyway.
Because he knew better than anyone that Nayura's suspicion was correct!
As long as he didn't die on the spot, when the truth came out, his gains would far outweigh this short period of imprisonment.
Most importantly…
Ishikawa had always had an idea he wanted to implement, but he didn't have a safe retreat that could guarantee his safety, so he had to abandon his plan to avoid being caught.
Nayura's commission, though dangerous, was a difficult retreat for Ishikawa!
Besides, always being passive, Ishikawa also wanted to try taking the initiative once.
Even he hadn't thought of it, so the other party would certainly not expect him to jump out at this time.
It should be able to surprise him, right?
Thinking of this, a joyful smile involuntarily appeared on Ishikawa's face.
[Nayura's favorability…]
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