What the hell?
He had seen the footage of Hela fighting Baraggan and understood the sequence of events, but what puzzled him was the relationship between entities split by the Mind-Rending Blade. In theory, once the Mind-Rending Blade divides them, the two sides become independent individuals. But now, whether it was Nezuko's instinct to devour Ichigo Kurosaki or Baraggan's fight with Hela, both suggested that opposite counterparts provoked a strange reaction.
Of course, this reaction wasn't dominant and required some stimulus to activate. For instance, Nezuko only reacted to Ichigo after seeing Auswählen. As for Baraggan, the Seeds of Light released an attraction strong enough to draw even the mighty Espada to the Living World—there he encountered Hela.
Yoshio also had surveillance in Karakura and had the terminal wired to his brain. He didn't watch constantly—no time—but he could pull the logs. He saw that once Baraggan appeared in Karakura, he charged straight toward the Brainleaf Co.. Clearly, as a powerful Vasto Lorde, Baraggan felt the Seeds' pull more strongly and instinctively chose the right direction.
Hela had to intercept. Their battle ended quickly because Baraggan was alone while Hela had Azashiro's help. Azashiro's reishi was fused into Karakura; he could attack from any location. Baraggan soon lost and fled back to Las Noches.
After reviewing it, Yoshio asked, "Why did Baraggan go to Karakura?"
He knew it was the Seeds, but that wasn't knowledge he should have. Seeing Roka's expression, Yoshio found it troublesome and said, "Forget it—let's convene the Espada."
This was his thought—and Aizen's too.
…
With the Espada gathered, Aizen arrived as well. Yoshio sat at his right. Aizen was clearly interested; the anomalies in the Living World naturally piqued him. Now that even someone like Baraggan had gone to Karakura, he was even more curious. As king of Hueco Mundo, he could investigate easily—just ask the Hollows why they were going.
Baraggan was in bad shape: about a third of his body had been corroded, a hole pierced his chest, and burn marks scorched him. But after returning to Las Noches, emergency treatment had stabilized him; given time, he'd recover. Still, even injured, if Aizen called a meeting, he had to attend.
The Espada sat; some smirked at Baraggan, some were impassive, some curious, some bored, some excited. Ten people, ten mindsets—Aizen alone suppressed them all and said lightly, "Explain why you went to Karakura without orders."
Baraggan's face was gloomy. Being watched and interrogated like a criminal felt terrible, especially for one who called himself king of Hueco Mundo. But he couldn't beat Aizen—no way. So, at the edge of humiliation, he could only snort his maximum displeasure, then said, "I don't know. A whim to visit the Living World. Once there, I found a human woman."
That matched Yoshio's hypothesis. Entities divided by the Mind-Rending Blade were unrelated under normal conditions, but in special states—or when sharing a space—they might exhibit a special effect, a drive to aggregate. No, not fully proven. In the two observed cases, Nezuko and Ichigo reacted because Quincy blood was stirring; Baraggan and Hela were simpler—Baraggan is a Hollow; of course he wants to devour souls. Though both cases looked like an urge to aggregate, a scientist should be cautious. Sample size too small; more trials needed.
Yoshio fell into thought. Aizen, amused, said, "At your level, you lost to a human?"
That was everyone's question. Baraggan was Arrancar—even if not literally the strongest, he was certainly top four. Forget humans—even among shinigami, few could beat him.
"…Hmph." Baraggan didn't want to say it; he hadn't figured it out himself. The woman had a power similar to his. She was strong but not enough to seriously injure him. Yet during the fight, his body suddenly began collapsing from the inside—as if a blade stabbed outward from within. That instant's opening let the woman release a potent curse. Beset from inside and out, he could only retreat. Was it her ability?
Seeing he wouldn't explain, Aizen didn't press—he knew the details already. He had surveillance in Karakura, too. It went like Baraggan said: he appeared in Karakura, then shortly after, a blonde woman appeared. Though human, she possessed extraordinary power.
"Yoshio-kun, don't send Arrancar to Karakura for a while," Aizen said.
"Got it," Yoshio replied. "But the issue remains—something in Karakura is attracting Hollows."
Aizen nodded slightly. "I'll leave this to you, Yoshio."
"Alright," Yoshio agreed, though internally reluctant. The matter was closely tied to him. Aizen knew his abilities—no way he'd find nothing—so Yoshio had to deliver results. How much to reveal… sigh, troublesome. Aizen might say he's delegating, but he'd definitely act too. Fine—divulge a bit more; on the surface, no one knew the Brainleaf Co.'s true aim.
Even Hela's group didn't know Yoshio's real objective; Aizen wouldn't dig it out.
The meeting ended quickly. Yoshio didn't return to Soul Society; he stayed in Hueco Mundo to investigate the Living World's situation.
…
In the Seireitei, while everyone fretted over the Living World's changes, one person teetered on the brink of collapse. Kira clutched his head, eyes filled with fear and despair. He felt like he was going insane.
During the meeting earlier, he'd seen the world around him turn demonic. The deepest darkness of Soul Society seemed laid bare before him. When he looked at the Commander-Captain, Yamamoto burned with roaring flames that seemed ready to evaporate Soul Society, and his enemies were those who opposed the nobles—he even saw slaughter of Rukongai residents on a massive scale.
Looking at Soi Fon, he saw the Onmitsukidō's dirty deeds for Central 46. Especially… when he looked at Mayuri… he saw countless vengeful spirits—shinigami, Hollows, Quincy—tormented by Mayuri, suffering beyond belief.
Only he could see these scenes; they were tearing him apart. He staggered as he walked.
"Kira… are you okay?" Leaving the Lieutenant's quarters together, the other lieutenants looked at Kira with concern.
"I'm… fine." Kira glanced covertly at Hinamori. She looked worried but didn't speak. From her eyes he could tell she was carrying something. He knew that look well; he saw it in his own eyes often.
Hinamori… what's going on with you? And me?
"Let's go, Kira." As he spaced out, he heard Gin's voice and hurried over. To his relief, when he looked at Ichimaru Gin, those bloody, murderous visions didn't appear.
"You seem off lately?" Gin spoke with his usual slit-eyed smile and discomfiting tone.
"Ah…" Kira didn't want to admit it but nodded, dejected. "Yes, maybe poor sleep. I already went to Fourth Division."
"That won't do. Health matters most. I'll give you a few days off to rest," Gin said, smiling.
"Th-That's not necessary," Kira said quickly. "It's not a big problem."
"Body and mind are big problems. That's that—go rest now."
"…Alright. Thank you, Captain." He could only accept. And… he did need rest. Maybe two or three days would help him recover. He didn't want to remain in such a world.
Recently, he often felt kindly old men suddenly turning into man-eating demons; shinigami who maintained balance became butchers; patrols looked like they were heading to massacre Rukongai. Several times, he could hardly tell illusion from reality. And it seemed only he saw Hinamori's anomaly. He told Renji, Hitsugaya, and Yoshio, but none thought Hinamori had a problem. Even when they went with him to see her, only he noticed anything.
They weren't wrong. Hinamori wasn't wrong. Was he? The crossed wires of illusion and reality exhausted him.
He planned to go home and sleep, but on the way he suddenly saw Hinamori hurrying past, heading somewhere, face anxious. Where was she going? That wasn't the direction of Fifth Division…
Kira was puzzled, then gave a wry smile. Maybe another hallucination. He tried to dismiss it, but the farther he walked, the more anxious he felt.
One last time… one last time.
He took a deep breath. Fine—this will be the last time. He gave up going home and secretly tailed Hinamori. She headed to a remote corner of the Seireitei and entered what looked like an abandoned building. Kira had lived in the Seireitei for thirty years and had never heard of such a place. The Seireitei was big; most shinigami stayed to their own districts. It was hard to see everything.
After Hinamori went in, Kira hesitated. He knew this wasn't right—he was basically stalking her. If she found out, she'd think he was a creep. But the emotions inside him were overflowing; he desperately wanted to know what she was doing. He crept to the door and peeped through the crack.
What he saw shocked him. Captain Aizen?!
Through the crack, he saw Hinamori standing beside Aizen, the two of them before a device, seemingly recording data. His pupils dilated. He'd never expected this to involve Aizen. Was he overthinking it? If Captain Aizen was there, Hinamori probably wasn't doing anything improper.
He relaxed—then the dialogue inside hit his ears, and his eyes went wider.
"Captain Aizen, do we really have to use shinigami for the experiment?" Hinamori asked hesitantly.
Aizen replied, "For now it's the only way. Ordinary souls can't withstand this power. Even souls with spiritual aptitude—their soul strength is still far too little."
"Don't worry, Hinamori. Everything we do is justice. From the beginning, the ones at fault were the shinigami."
"…Mm." Hinamori finally nodded.
Kira wondered if he'd misheard. What were Hinamori and Aizen doing? Using shinigami for experiments? What experiments? Ordinary souls' spiritual strength insufficient? This sounded exactly like some evil experiment. Especially since not long ago, when he looked at Mayuri, he saw those tragic test subjects—so at the word "experiment," his mind leapt to those images.
His breathing grew heavier—and that gave him away. "Who's there?!"
Aizen turned instantly, having sensed Kira outside. Kira snapped back—bad!—and tried to leave. But how could he outrun Aizen? He was a captain. Just as Kira moved to shunpo, a hand clamped his shoulder, pinning him.
"Kira…?" Hinamori came out then, staring in disbelief at Kira under Aizen's hand. "Why are you… here?"
"Kira…" Aizen's expression was complicated. "What are you doing?"
"I…" Kira didn't know what to say. His legs weakened and he almost collapsed. "I… I'm sorry. My mental state… may be unwell."
"I've heard," Aizen said. "You went to Fourth Division recently. But what does that have to do with following Hinamori?"
Aizen pushed up his glasses. "Kira, I used to be your captain. If you're facing something hard to explain, you can confide in me. I don't know what you heard, or how you see me and Hinamori, but… I can assure you: we are still who we were."
Moved by his words, Kira opened his mouth, sighed, and finally told everything he'd been experiencing. He spoke the things he hadn't even told the Fourth's medics. From when he first felt Hinamori was off, to seeking help from Yoshio, Renji, and Hitsugaya, to the visions he saw of Yamamoto and the other captains…
Kira was used to bottling everything up, bearing it alone. If Aizen hadn't caught him, he wouldn't have spoken. But Aizen's initiative gave him an outlet—a reason, an excuse—to finally voice his secret. He had never felt such relief. Even with Hinamori right there, even if she'd hate him for it, getting these words out of his chest brought a sense of release.