Rain pattered quietly outside the window.
This was the first rain of spring in Soul Society. Higashi Shuuichi sat alone in the living room of his ho in West Rukongai, District 2, saying nothing.
He'd already inford Unohana.
Thanks to how increasingly resilient (read: abuse-tolerant) he had beco, Unohana had discovered new forms of enjoynt in sparring with him. Each ti she ca up with new ways to try and kill him. It was practically her hobby now.
So she had loosened her grip on him in many ways—except for forbidding him to start a household or beco a captain. But taking so extra personal ti off? That was no longer difficult to negotiate.
Only, when he took leave yesterday, her parting words—"I'll be waiting for you to return"—felt suspiciously like a death flag.
He'd also inford Aizen.
But Aizen's reaction had been... frankly, hard to stomach.
"You're going to Hell?"
"Yes, Lord Aizen. I want to temper myself there."
"You're still too impatient—toward the nobility, and toward yourself."
"Perhaps it's just who I am, Lord Aizen."
"Mm. Then go. Gin just submitted his application to join my squad—I was thinking of calling you over, too."
"Better not, Lord Aizen. For now, I think it's wise to maintain so distance between myself and Gin in your presence."
"As you wish."
"Ah—also, Lord Aizen... those confined in Hell are beings with overwhelming spiritual pressure..."
"Yes, I know."
"With my current strength, surviving in there may be difficult..."
"Shuuichi, you know this—I've always had high hopes for you."
"..."
And with that, his little plan to squeeze so Hōgyoku-enhanced benefits out of Aizen ended in crushing failure.
He'd thought that after all his years of hard work, Aizen might finally use the Hōgyoku to strengthen him. A simple Hollowfication, perhaps? They already had enough test data from the Kasumiji experints.
But no—Aizen wouldn't budge. He wanted to see Shuuichi perform.
Aside from that, Shuuichi had brushed off others—Rangiku, Soifon, Shūsuke, Gin, Kensei, Yoruichi, Gininjirō, Yōko Satō, and the rest of his friendly connections—with the sa half-assed excuse:
"Soul Society is so big... I just want to see it alone for once."
Because the truth was, Hell remained an unknown.
Even with the Kōma family's artifact and the regenerative fallback of the Soul King's nail fragnt, Shuuichi couldn't guarantee how long he would last in that abyss—or whether he'd even return at all.
For him, the danger was never about entering Hell. Even if the Kōma clan were in their pri like the Kanmiya clan once had been, he was confident he could've earned passage.
He knew how to serve a master, how to play the role.
No—the real danger was in leaving Hell, intact and with his goals fulfilled.
According to Kōma Sayako—the girl from the Kōma clan's underground sanctum—Makizō Kujin had only made it into Hell because of a trace fragnt of the Soul King within him.
But even so, Makizō barely lasted half a day before escaping in disgrace. The only reason he'd been able to tap into Hell's power afterward was because a Hollow inside had marked him.
But by the Kōma Clan's original plan, the correct thod of "filtering" Hell's sins through a Shinigami's body was much cleaner:
The sinner should be defeated inside Hell, and a divine sigil inscribed upon them using the Kōma artifact—the Zanpakutō "Yomi Basa"—as a seal of oath.
Only then would the Hell energy not turn as violent and uncontrollable as it did with Makizō.
When Shuuichi first heard this, he imdiately realized he'd been played. Whether he'd asked for it or not, he was always going to receive Yomi Basa.
The only real question was whether he'd return it to Sayako afterward—like Makizō did.
But Sayako's body had already been tainted beyond recovery by prolonged exposure to Hell's energy. She was as good as dead.
If he chose not to return it later, it wouldn't really matter.
Still, Shuuichi wasn't shaless enough to go back on his word now. His objective had already been achieved. Whatever ca after was just icing on the cake.
He exhaled slowly.
On the table before him lay Yomi Basa, shaped like a ritual carving knife rather than a sword.
No doubt—it was a unique Zanpakutō. In fact, Shuuichi felt the term "Zanpakutō" didn't even do it justice.
Considering the other two revealed noble artifacts—Ise Clan's Hachigami Blade and Kanmiya Clan's Kyūten Kyōkoku—both heirloom blades passed down through generations, each with incredible abilities and no fixed owner, it stood to reason the other great noble families might possess similar weapons.
But that was a question for later.
Right now, his focus was on this one: Yomi Basa.
Bonding with it was straightforward. Likely thanks to Sayako's prior preparation.
"Cross the Mortal Shore—Yomi Basa!"
The mont he invoked the na, silver petals blossod from the blade in his left hand, twirling in the air before forming the outline of a gate.
Only the hilt remained in his grip—now functioning as the door handle.
All he had to do was push.
If this were a normal Shikai, the gate would open on its own, and those who had made pacts with Yomi Basa would erge to fight on behalf of its wielder.
And these spirits didn't even need to still exist—as long as they had left a mark in the past, that was enough.
To Shuuichi, the best term to describe them was—
Heroic Spirits.
Unfortunately, such power ca with a cost.
Whether communicating with these spirits, summoning them, or sustaining them in battle—it all drained the user's lifespan.
Just like the Kanmiya clan's Kyūten Kyōkoku.
Thankfully, this was a one-way trip.
Summoning Heroic Spirits from the other side cost life.
But traveling into Hell?
That cost nothing at all.
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