XX-level Hokage

"If I had to say something... it's just that I knocked a little too loudly, but it wasn't because I wanted to knock. It was Yoruichi-sensei who told me to! If we're going to find the culprit, we should be looking for Yoruichi-sensei!"

"So, Yoruichi-san, you're saying that they're the ones who can help us?"

Ichigo and Uryu huddled together whispering, while Orihime seemed very interested in what they were saying, wanting to listen but too shy to do so.

In the end, even the taciturn Chad was forced to speak up and get down to business.

After all, they weren't really here for tourism in the Soul World; they had important business to attend to, and it was the kind of important business that required them to act quickly. "Don't rush, the main character hasn't arrived yet."

The black cat, lying on the table, licked its paws and casually remarked, "The main character?"

"That's my older brother. He's the one who makes the decisions in our family."

Kukaku Shiba has a boss-like demeanor that naturally makes people overlook the possibility that she might have older brothers or sisters.

Rather, just looking at Shiba Kukaku's appearance, it's hard to imagine her as a soft-spoken, gentle girl. "He went out for a walk because he had nothing to do. I've already sent someone to look for him. He should be back soon." "Hahaha, I heard Yoruichi brought guests, is that right? What a rare guest!"

Speak of the devil, and he shall appear. His laughter precedes his arrival.

Just from that cheerful and lively voice, you can tell that it's a completely different personality from Shiba Kukaku and Shiba Ganju. For a family of three to produce three completely different personalities is quite astonishing on a global scale.

Stepping lightly into the reception room was a young man with black hair, slightly long at the ends, and deep smoky blue eyes. He had a swirling wave tattoo on his left wrist and wore a dark casual kimono that resembled pajamas.

Before Ichigo Kurosaki could even react when he stepped into the room, Uryu Ishida, Orihime Inoue, and Chad were all shocked.

"He looks just like Kurosaki-kun..."

Indeed, the man who arrived late looked remarkably similar to Ichigo Kurosaki at first glance, one could even say he was Ichigo Kurosaki with black hair.

Kurosaki Ichigo didn't have a habit of looking in the mirror every day and marveling at his own handsomeness, so he was a bit slow to realize this. And because of this, he finally understood why Shiba Kukaku and Shiba Ganju were looking at him strangely. Not only the four of them, but even Shiba Kaien, who had just entered the room, was startled by Kurosaki Ichigo.

He first glanced at me, then frowned slightly. As if he had thought of something, his brows relaxed slightly, and he suddenly moved closer to Kurosaki Ichigo, just like Shiba Ganju had done earlier, to examine him closely.

The question he asked, while not as impolite as Shiba Iwagi's, was still quite strange.

"What's your name?" "Ichigo Kurosaki."

"What is your father's name?"

Ichigo was still confused, not understanding what was going on. Then Shiba Kaien came up and started asking about his family.

Asking his name is normal, but asking what his father's name is is quite strange.

However, Shiba Kaien's gaze was quite serious, without the slightest hint of joking. Ichigo lowered his eyes slightly, pondered for a moment, and then said somewhat reluctantly.

"Kurosaki Isshin".

Kurosaki Isshin.

Shiba Kaien chewed on the name in his mouth.

Just as Ichigo was about to ask what was strange, Shiba Kaien suddenly burst out laughing, "Haha, don't recognize me." Ichigo nearly fell over.

Seeing how serious Shiba Kaien was, he almost thought there was something more to it. But the atmosphere was so tense, and in the end, it was just like that? "We look so alike, it's really fate, hahaha!"

Shiba Kaien seemed to be a very outgoing person. Without any hesitation, he put his arm around Ichigo's shoulder, patted Ichigo's shoulder slightly, and laughed as he spoke.

The slap on Ichigo's mouth was a little painful, and it was difficult to get it to work.

"I heard you need our help, right? Just say the word, we'll definitely help if we can, haha." Even though Ichigo and the others didn't know why they had come to him, Shiba Kaien agreed without any suspicion.

Kukaku and Ganju exchanged a glance, but ultimately said nothing. It was only at this moment that Ichigo finally revealed their purpose.

Because Rukia Kuchiki's act of transferring her Shinigami powers to a human without authorization was illegal in Soul Society, she was forcibly taken back to Soul Society. Ichigo Kurosaki, who tried to stop Rukia from being taken back to Soul Society, was also defeated, and because his bondage and Soul Sleep connection were broken, he completely lost his powers.

Rukia Kuchiki gave him the power of the Shinigami.

In fact, if Kisuke Urahara hadn't arrived in time, Ichigo Kurosaki would probably have died.

After that, under Kisuke Urahara's training, Ichigo Kurosaki awakened his Shinigami powers, and then, with the help of his friend Mashiro, his abilities were enhanced.

After the special training, Kisuke Urahara explained Rukia Kuchiki's current dangerous situation to Ichigo, and Ichigo made up his mind to rescue Rukia, even if he had to face the entire Tokami World as his opponent.

And it was also to help Ichigo, and also to bring Rukia back.

Orihime, who is close to Rukia, also made up her mind. And Chad, in order to help Ichigo, felt obligated to do so.

Uryu Ishida said he wanted revenge for being so easily defeated by an arrow, and that he had trained hard and was just waiting to get his revenge before coming along. In any case, with Kisuke Urahara's help, they opened the gate to Soul Society and, under Yoruichi's leadership, successfully...

They arrived at Rukongai in the Tokumachi world.

Although the city of Seireitei, where the Shinigami were seen, had no walls and seemed like it was easy to sneak in, Yoruichi stopped them before that could happen.

Yoruichi, claiming she had a plan, brought Ichigo and the others to this place—the Shiba residence.

"Yes, I understand the situation."

After listening to Ichigo's complete account of the situation, Shiba Kaien's expression changed slightly.

He barely glanced at Yoruichi, who was rolling around on the table. (Mashiro)

He seemed to have heard an extraordinary name.

Then, even more enthusiastically than Ichigo, he said, "In that case, let's get started right away!!"

"...Seriously? Is it really okay to agree to this so easily?" Even though it was a good thing for Shiba Kaien to agree to their request, the fact that he agreed so readily still made them feel a little uneasy.

Chapter 59: The Prison

Each of the 13 divisions of the Gotei 13 has a relatively small internal prison at its headquarters, which is generally used to house members of the division who have committed offenses.

Although it's called a prison, it's not actually that serious; it's not wrong to think of it as a place for solitary confinement.

After all, each of the 13 divisions of the Gotei 13 is highly autonomous. Unless they violate the rules of the Seireitei, violations of the division rules are usually resolved on their own and are not taken too seriously.

Of course, it was given the name of a prison, and could be used as a jail when necessary to temporarily house serious offenders awaiting transfer in the future.

The cage wasn't large, but it was very clean, almost excessively so, to the point that there was practically nothing there. Three sides were walls, and on the wall opposite the one lined with iron bars, there were small windows that allowed light to stream in.

However, even now, looking out from this small window, there is no light, because it is already night. The Third Division, the supervisor in the barracks.

Rukia has been imprisoned in this place for many days since she was brought back from the real world. She has been locked up here and has not received any news from the outside world. She can only wait, one prison after another.

Sometimes, she even has the absurd thought that she might have been forgotten.

But she soon realized that was still impossible, and it was often at this moment that Ichigo's face would come to mind.

That boy, who was only 15 years old at the time... was killed because of her. "Rukia".

Suddenly, a sound rang out in the silent prison.

Rukia suddenly looked up and stared straight ahead.

On the other side of the iron fence were Byakuya Kuchiki and Renji Abarai.

"Big brother, Renji!" Ruchiya immediately called out to the two men. She got up from the bed, took two steps to the iron bars, grabbed the bars, and asked the two men outside.

"What's the situation outside now?!" "The situation outside is terrible."

Kuchiki Byakuya frowned slightly, and his usually aloof face showed a hint of impatience and annoyance.

As I said a few days ago, the situation outside is terrible.

But Rukia had no idea just how bad things were, because she was isolated here, and no news was getting in.

"Rukia, you really don't know what you've done. Although Captain Ukitake and the other captains did their best to buy you time and exonerate you, the Central 46's attitude is unusually firm," Renji Abarai said with a somewhat grim expression.

The goggles on his forehead were gone, replaced by a headscarf.

Originally, he bought those goggles at a high price to show off in front of Rukia, but now that things have turned out this way, he's no longer in the mood for them and even finds them an eyesore, so he casually replaced them with something else.

"From this perspective, it would be no exaggeration to say that the Gotei 13 and the Central 46 are now at war."

Regarding the question of how to deal with Rukia, it is possible that the events of decades ago have made the Central 46 overly sensitive, leading to their unusually firm stance on executing Rukia.

The official arrest warrant has been issued.

Generally speaking, by this stage, the Gotei 13 is already beyond saving.

Especially with Captain-General Yamamoto Genryu Shigekuni present, he would absolutely not allow the authority of the Central 46 to be challenged. If they couldn't take it down, he would personally step in to do so.

However, this time, quite coincidentally, after giving the order to deploy to Ichimaru Gin, Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni immediately went into seclusion for training and has not woken up yet.

In other words, there is no one in the Gotei 13 who can suppress the combination of the 2nd, 5th, and 13th divisions.

While they did not directly disobey the orders of the Central 46th Bureau, their repeated excuses of "the situation is still under investigation, please wait a while before we get further investigation results" clearly revealed their true intentions.

From the 13th Guards of the Imperial Household Agency to the nobles, all sorts of connections were mobilized.

The Central 46th Chamber is putting pressure on the Gotei 13, while several people here are also putting pressure on the Central 46th Chamber through other means.

Even the most detached person could sense the perilous atmosphere within the Seireitei, a heavy atmosphere that made one afraid to even breathe.

Because of Rukia alone, the social atmosphere of the entire Seireitei has deteriorated drastically. "How...how could it have become like this!"

Rukia was naturally unaware of these things, but the description of Renji Abarai starting a war was terrifying enough.

The moment Rukia heard that word, her scalp tingled and her hair stood on end. "But...it really was my fault."

Rukia lowered her eyes. She said dejectedly in a low voice, "It was my presumption that..."

Rukia, you have no right to judge whether you have made a mistake.

However, Rukia was interrupted by Byakuya Kuchiki before she could finish speaking.

She abruptly raised her head, meeting Kuchiki Byakuya's gaze with disbelief in her eyes. Kuchiki Byakuya did not avoid her gaze, but spoke with his usual cool indifference.

"The Central 46 is qualified to judge whether you are guilty or not, but the Central 46 has not yet given its final judgment. Therefore, you are not qualified to judge whether it is right or wrong."

Rukia could hardly believe that these were words from Kuchiki Jiya.

But in reality, this was just Rukia Kuchiki making a hasty judgment because she didn't quite understand Byakuya Kuchiki. As his adopted sister, she actually held a stereotype about Byakuya Kuchiki.

As everyone knows, Byakuya Kuchiki, the head of the Kuchiki family, is a role model for all Shinigami and nobles. It is precisely for this reason that Byakuya Kuchiki strives to become a Shinigami among the nobles.

He was the most upright and the least likely to bend the law for personal gain. In fact, Byakuya Kuchiki did just that.

However, because she was so far removed from those events in the past, and because she had only heard about them, Rukia was unaware of one thing.

Absolute correctness has never existed from the beginning. Fairness resides in the hearts of the people.

What exactly are the principles and ethics that Kuchiki Byakuya upholds?

The answer is just four words: procedural justice. In other words, visible justice.

Even a rigid and rule-abiding old-fashioned character like Kuchiki Ginryu has his own flexible side.

This is something that Byakuya Kuchiki never grasped before. He adhered to all kinds of rules, set an example, and became the most perfect Shinigami.