Help! I am bound to Aizen!

Chapter 269

2-in-1 chapter

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Inside the Eighth Division barracks:

Lisa Yadōmaru was carrying a stack of documents as she made her way to the captain’s office.

To be honest, she didn’t really expect to find anyone here.

No one knew better than she did how unreliable her captain could be.

Getting him to sit down quietly and handle paperwork? That would happen when chickens finished pecking all their feed, and Komamura finished licking up all his noodles…

Somehow, a rather mischievous story that Kaelith once told floated through her mind.

Shff!

She slid open the study door.

The scene inside made Lisa pause in surprise.

Her captain was actually sitting at his desk, diligently handling official matters!

Lisa’s expression changed. She reached for the hilt of her sword at her waist.

“Who are you? Where did you hide my captain?!”

“…?”

Kyōraku looked baffled. The next moment, he lowered his voice and waved her over.

“Come on, Little Lisa, come over here.”

Lisa narrowed her eyes and took half a step back.

“Captain, if you dare get any funny ideas, the Women’s Shinigami Association won’t go easy on you.”

“Relax, I’ve got big news for you. If you don’t listen, you’ll regret it for a whole year!”

Once he managed to coax his lieutenant closer, Kyōraku cupped a hand around his mouth:

“Lisa, I’m telling you this in strict confidence—you absolutely mustn’t tell anyone else.”

“I heard… Old Man Yamamoto sparred with Kaelith, but he was too slow because of his age. Kaelith seized the opportunity and broke his arm!”

“Yamamoto’s bound to find some excuse to take out his anger on me these days. If you see him, just say I’ve been busy handling official duties here in the division and haven’t gone anywhere.”

Lisa looked astonished.

Kaelith…broke the Captain-Commander’s arm?

Her own captain was Yamamoto’s disciple, and he wouldn’t randomly make up something like this. She’d also heard countless rumors claiming Kaelith was cunning, always harboring thoughts of toppling his superiors and snatching the Captain-Commander’s position. She’d always thought it was just gossip.

After all, how powerful was the Captain-Commander? According to her captain, even if the entire Thirteen Court Guard Squads teamed up, they still wouldn’t stand a chance against him.

And yet, this mighty and ferocious Yamamoto had his arm broken by Kaelith? Even if Yamamoto had underestimated him, that was more than enough proof of how terrifying Kaelith’s strength must be.

She pushed her glasses up, hiding her eyes behind the glare on the lenses.

“All right, Captain, I understand. Since you need to work on these documents, I’ll leave them here for you.”

“I’ve got other tasks to attend to, so I’ll be going now.”

With that, she placed the documents on the desk and quickly left.

Kyōraku stared at the stack on his desk and grimaced. He picked up a brush, propped up his cheek, and thought for a moment. Before long, a strong urge to share the news overcame him again.

He tapped a finger on the desk, tracing a pattern of spiritual pressure in the air. A thread of that spiritual pressure shot out of the room.

A few seconds later, he grinned.

“Kirio Hikifune, I’ve got some news for you—don’t tell anyone else…”

…

“Guys, who can relate?!”

“I literally just went home, had a nice massage from Soifon, didn’t go anywhere or say anything, and yet the rumor is that I was out bragging to everyone!”

“There must be some treacherous scoundrel stirring things up! Just wait—sooner or later, I, Kaelith, will clean out all those rebels and restore order to the Seireitei!”

In Las Noches, on a throne of white bone, Kaelith sat with one leg crossed over the other, grumbling nonstop.

Below the throne, three people stood.

The first was Tier Harribel, who was utterly devoted to him, the sort who would never betray him under any circumstances. She listened quietly, though she couldn’t understand much of what he was ranting about. When he finished, she spoke solemnly:

“Kaelith, whoever dares oppose you, I will become your sword.”

Kaelith was delighted. “Excellent! Everyone knows I treasure my sword like family. Becoming my sword promises a wonderful future.”

The other two were Coyote Starrk and Lilynette. Starrk sat in a corner leaning against the wall, half-asleep. To him, the matters Kaelith spoke of were from a whole different world.

In fact, they kind of were.

Either way, he didn’t see what it had to do with him. He liked his life as it was—he was surrounded by people who didn’t die just from being in his spiritual presence, and over time, he’d gotten familiar with them. He wasn’t great at conversation, but even exchanging a greeting once in a while made him feel content.

Lilynette, on the other hand, was bright and full of energy. She perched on the arm of Kaelith’s throne, both feet kicking back and forth, her eyes shining.

“Kaelith, Kaelith, next time take me with you! I want to see that place you mentioned… the Soul Society!”

“Sure thing! Just leave it to me!” Kaelith laughed heartily and patted his chest in promise.

Starrk said nothing, but his face looked wary. Bringing a Hollow from Hueco Mundo to the Soul Society?

One of them dared to propose it, and the other dared to agree… He could only hope they were joking.

“Hey, Starrk!”

Starrk yawned and was just about to doze off when Kaelith’s sudden call gave him a jolt.

That man had appeared at his side like a ghost. Although Starrk hadn’t been actively on guard, the fact that Kaelith could approach so silently showed how much stronger he’d gotten.

“Ka—Kaelith?” Starrk edged a little farther away from him.

“Look at you, Starrk,” Kaelith said. “You’re the only Hollow in Las Noches who achieved complete Arrancar evolution on your own—theoretically our top fighter—yet you spend every day in a daze!”

“How are you supposed to carry the banner of positivity like this? How can you set an example for the other Hollows? People who see that might assume all Hollows are a bunch of degenerates!”

“…?”

Starrk couldn’t help twitching at the corner of his eye. Isn’t it possible that Hollows are basically the embodiment of negative emotions? It’s not exactly shocking for Hollows to be dissolute. Still, he felt too lazy to argue.

“Perfect timing. I want to practice fighting enemies with longer reach. You can be my sparring partner,” Kaelith declared with enthusiasm. “You and I will fight for twenty-five hours each day, pushing each other to improve, inspiring each other!”

“If this goes on long enough, not only will our powers grow, our feelings will grow too. Then, in a few years, people in Hueco Mundo will be telling stories about our grand partnership!”

Laughing, Kaelith reached out to grab Starrk’s hand.

…??!!

Starrk’s pupils shrank. Twenty-five hours a day? That means if I fought him nonstop without sleeping, I’d still be in debt an hour! He could already guess what Kaelith might say next: something like “You’re short an hour, let Lilynette cover that time…”

“Heh, worried about that extra hour?” Kaelith exclaimed, enjoying Starrk’s horror. “Don’t worry, I’m nothing like that villain Baraggan. If you’re short an hour, let Lilynette make it up!”

Starrk stared at the ceiling with a defeated look. He suddenly recalled one of Kaelith’s catchphrases: “Guys, who can relate?” Indeed…

Right then, salvation arrived.

“Kaelith, come here for a moment—I need your help.”

Aizen entered the hall. Noticing Starrk’s desperate face while Kaelith had him cornered, Aizen looked amused for a second, then assumed his usual calm expression.

Starrk felt like crying inside. If they kept this up, he was going to die from stress long before he died from loneliness.

Kaelith let go of Starrk, following Aizen down the long corridors to a secret laboratory. In the center of the room stood a large glass cylinder containing the carefully crafted Hōgyoku, which Aizen must have brought here from the Soul Society at some point.

As soon as they entered, Aizen seemed to remember something and glanced at Kaelith.

“I heard you tore off Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto’s arm—that he’s so seriously injured he can’t even go to the Fourth Division and is recovering in secret at the First Division.”

“Eh?”

Kaelith’s eyes went wide. A new version of the rumor already? He couldn’t believe it.

“Where’d that come from?”

“From Captain Shinji Hirako.”

“All right, next time I go back, I’m arresting him for Hollowfication experiments.” Kaelith grinned with a lethal spark in his eyes.

After hearing Kaelith’s original story, Aizen nodded pensively. Truthfully, he hadn’t believed Hirako’s version. The question was just an easy way to make Kaelith explain everything in detail.

From Kaelith’s account, Yamamoto’s strength was clearly far beyond what Aizen had imagined. Even though Aizen was already very powerful—and Kaelith was even stronger in a direct fight—together they might still be no match for someone like Yamamoto.

If Aizen wanted to reach the Royal Palace in the future, he’d have to face Yamamoto. That meant there were two paths:

1. Keep strengthening himself until he could defeat Yamamoto head-on.

2. Arrange a strategy in advance to take Yamamoto down by other means.

A thought about allying with the Wandenreich flickered in Aizen’s mind—having the Quincies intervene at the critical moment would certainly rattle Yamamoto. But almost immediately, he dismissed that idea.

If the Wandenreich emerged, the Soul Society would face a cataclysmic disaster, with countless casualties—even among the Captains.

He could guess what certain individuals, who valued their relationships more than their own lives, would do.

Besides, he was Sōsuke Aizen, destined to stand above the heavens. Resorting to the Quincie’s help would be beneath him.

So how should he proceed? Perhaps cultivating a Hollow with special powers that could neutralize Yamamoto’s Ryūjin Jakka?

The more Aizen pondered, the more plausible it seemed. Yes, he would add that to his research list.

Thinking about the Royal Palace again, Aizen found himself reflecting on the Zero Division. He had too little information on them. Kirio Hikifune served as one point of reference, but that alone wasn’t enough.

Among Captains, the gap in strength could be enormous, and the same might be true within the Zero Division. Plus, as the Soul King’s personal guard, they might possess some unique method of boosting their strength further.

Achieving his and Kaelith’s goals would be a long journey indeed.

While Kaelith was still figuring out how to take revenge on Shinji Hirako, Aizen was already mapping out a grand plan. The difference in their perspectives would likely never be bridged.

…

Today, Aizen was conducting Arrancar experiments. Last time, using Guiyanjō for Hollowfication experiments had yielded a wealth of valuable data. Using that data, Aizen further refined the Hōgyoku. With no suitable Shinigami subjects on hand, he turned to experiments on Hollows becoming Arrancar.

Compared to Shinigami, Hollow test subjects were in abundant supply. Under Aizen’s supervision, a lineup of powerful Adjuchas filed into the testing chamber. One moth-like Hollow stood waiting outside, feeling nervous.

Ahead of her, a humanoid Hollow entered the lab. Moments later, harrowing screams rang out, accompanied by waves of spiritual pressure.

The moth Hollow trembled. What on earth was happening inside? Aizen had told them this process would make them stronger. She had been excited before, but now she could only wonder if this experiment was…legitimate.

At that moment, the doors opened.

“Next,” Aizen said, standing in the doorway as he adjusted his glasses.

The moth Hollow peered inside, just in time to see Kaelith hefting the limp form of the previous test subject—a humanoid Hollow—and casually toss it aside to a corner. A pile of Hollow corpses lay there already.

She let out a small cry of despair. Her first instinct was to turn and flee, but if she gave up now, she might never have another chance. Adjuchas spent their entire existence fighting against regression.

If they couldn’t get stronger, one day they would inevitably revert to a Gillian, losing all memories and rational thought with no hope of returning to an Adjuchas form. Even dying or being devoured by other Hollows might be preferable to that fate.

Taking a deep breath, she steeled herself and entered.

Kaelith sat backward on a chair, one arm draped over the backrest, waving in greeting. Under normal circumstances, she would have been thrilled that the new King of Las Noches personally acknowledged her. Right now, she just wanted to give this experiment her all.

Aizen looked at a clipboard.

“Cirucci Sanderwicci.”

“Y-Yes!” the moth Hollow answered quickly.

He nodded, then produced the gleaming Hōgyoku and stepped toward her. As soon as it touched her forehead, she felt as if invisible hands had wrapped around her body—those hands crushed and reshaped her, twisting her into every possible form. The pain was like nothing she’d experienced before, and she let out a chilling scream. It continued for minutes until her throat was raw and no sound emerged at all.

Then, gradually, she sensed a surge of immense power flowing through her. Aizen stood nearby, calm and unruffled, a flicker of satisfaction in his eyes.

Crack—

The moth Hollow’s mask shattered.

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