Chapter 294

"Didn't Miss Kirio go to meet them? They should have come down by now, right?"

"Ouch~"

Kirio Hikifune waved his hand and said.

The rice scoop above his head was still wobbling.

"There's still some time, and it didn't say we had to leave in the morning."

"And..."

"Their main reason for coming down was actually because of the unrest last night."

The "they" that Kirio Hikifune was referring to were, of course, the Zero Division.

As for how many people the Zero Division will send to the Seireitei; if we also take into account Kirio Hikifune's promotion, then at least two members of the Zero Division will visit the Seireitei this time.

"..."

Kirio Hikifune's words silenced the atmosphere once again.

Although everyone acted as if it didn't matter, only they themselves knew how staggering the losses were last night.

"How?"

"The meeting was changed to be held in front of the First Division headquarters?"

The addition of a new female voice.

The quiet atmosphere was broken again.

Walking from one side of the main road were Yoruichi Shihōin, the Second Division Captain, and her vice-captain.

In fact.

Only a few eyes were fixed on Yoruichi; the vast majority of the captains and vice-captains were looking at the person behind them with various expressions: the Assassin who had personally killed Kōga Kuchiki and released Muramasa's Bankai, and also eliminated Kagerōza Inaba Project Spearhead—

Haruto Shihoin.

The last decade...

No, even if we consider a century as a unit of measurement, Haruto Shihoin is the Gotei 13 member who has killed the most Captain-level members.

His fame has now reached the point where it can stop children from crying at night... and make even the most arrogant nobles fall silent at the mere mention of his name.

Why is everyone looking at me like that?

Haruto seemed oblivious to the stares he was receiving and greeted them with a smile.

"Isn't everyone interested in last night's hero?"

When it comes to livening up the atmosphere, Shunsui Kyōraku is definitely the one to do it.

"A hero indeed..."

"Is the Captain Kyōraku making fun of me?"

Haruto's smile carried a hint of bitterness.

"From the perspective of the Gotei 13, that's certainly true."

Shunsui Kyōraku added.

"... Too."

"Alright!"

Yoruichi clapped her hands forcefully.

"Everyone, stop lingering at the entrance and chatting. The Captain-Commander and the captains who arrived earlier are already inside waiting!"

First Division, Council Room.

There's a lot to do today.

Chōjirō Sasakibe, who usually stands behind Shigekuni Yamamoto, spoke on behalf of the Captain-Commander today, which is quite unusual.

"The details of the losses suffered by Seireitei last night have been distributed to all relevant divisions; specific instructions will not be elaborated upon in today's meeting."

"..."

The fact that such a major event Kōga Kuchiki Rebellion was not even mentioned clearly shows that the authorities were trying to save face for the powerful nobles.

"The reason we have gathered you, captains and deputy captains, is to discuss a series of upcoming appointments—all of which are decisions made after careful consideration by the Captain-Commander and the Central 46 Chambers."

"One."

"Former Sixth Seat of the Third Division, Rōjūrō Ōtoribashi, is hereby appointed as the Third Division Captain."

As Haruto followed the group of captains in, he saw Rōjūrō Ōtoribashi: looking quite spirited and like a captain, probably because he had been given a beating by Chikane Iba that morning— the Third Division, as a support team, didn't have many Soul Reaper left in Soul Society to begin with, and half of them were sent to the World of the Living to fill vacant positions in the 11th Division.

In fact.

If Rose (Ōtoribashi's nickname) hadn't been absent from the Third Division, he probably would have already fallen victim to Amagai's treachery. It's obviously impossible to expect him to rebuild the Third Division now... By the time Chikane Iba truly trains this slacker into a qualified captain, he'll probably be retired and ready to retire.

"Two."

"As requested by the Noble Assembly, former Fourth Division Vice- Kiyōnosuke Yamada is hereby appointed as the General Manager of the Shin'ō Medical Institute."

"The position of vice-captain will be filled by Retsu Unohana Isane Kotetsu, the former Third Seat of the Fourth Division Captain of the Fourth Division."

Haruto already knew this news before he came in.

The Golden Seal Noble Assembly was largely wiped out by Kōga, with its original membership less than a quarter. The Noble Assembly must immediately select replacements.

But.

Considering that the nobles also suffered heavy losses in last night's riots, and that the Fourth Division, in principle, does not accept treatment from Soul Reaper who are not members of the Gotei 13.

The Noble Assembly could only forcibly recruit people through transfer orders— the Shin'ō Medical Institute, as the highest medical institution directly under the Noble Assembly, was actually no less prestigious than the Fourth Division Captain. This transfer was definitely a promotion for Kiyōnosuke Yamada... Whether he was willing or not was another matter.

It's only been six years since Ine graduated from the Shin'ō Academy, Isane's already become a vice-captain—definitely something to celebrate. However, considering the Hell workload the Fourth Division will face soon, it seems this vice-captain position isn't so easy after all.

It's said that even Isane's mother was giving her advice behind the scenes.

"Three."

"Sixth Division Captain Ginrei Kuchiki has resigned to take responsibility."

"The position of captain of the Sixth Division be taken over by the former vice-captain Kuchiki Sōjun, while the former Seated Officer, Byakuya Kuchiki, will serve as vice-captain."

"..."

This is basically the most explosive news of the day.

Kōga Kuchiki's defection not only deprived the Kuchiki Clan of its strongest fighting force on the surface, but also caused its noble prestige to plummet.

Stepping down as captain of the Sixth Division is just the beginning; next, Old Master Ginrei will definitely resign from his position as head of the family as well.

As for compensation...

The Kuchiki Clan will likely face a difficult period of time in the future.

If it weren't for even more explosive news from the Tsunayashiro Clan, the nobles who were kicking him while he was down would have been even more eager to take advantage of his misfortune.

There will only be more—the one who succeeds to the position of head of the Tsunayashiro Clan is the only member of the Tsunayashiro Clan family who survived last night's riot:

Tsunayashiro Tokinada.

Everyone in the aristocratic circle knew what he had done before; many people already thought he was lucky to have survived the collapse of the Golden Seal Noble Assembly —although the Kuchiki Clan declined after that, it was still not as tragic as the Tsunayashiro Clan's situation.

By the way...

Because the Kuchiki Clan and Tsunayashiro Clan, who were originally the dominant noble families, declined too rapidly.

The current leader of the Four Great Noble Clans has become the Shihoin Clan, who were previously quite indifferent but have recently risen to prominence.

Actually.

After what happened last night, many conspiracy theories have become popular among the nobles, but no one dares to bring such things out into the open.

At the same time.

"Four."

"Isshin Shiba, formerly the Third Seat of the Tenth Division, is hereby appointed as the captain of the Tenth Division."

The Shiba Clan, which the nobles had previously considered weak, suddenly rose to prominence again: the main Kaien Shiba and the branch branch's Isshin Shiba already had two Captain-level, and both held positions in the Gotei 13...

Many nobles have begun to gravitate towards the Shiba Clan, believing it to be a sign of the Shiba Clan's return to the center of noble power.

"Five."

"Due to the promotion of the former Twelfth Division Captain Kirio Hikifune, the former Second Division Third Seat Kisuke Urahara as the Twelfth Division Captain."

"All the newly appointed captains have passed the test in the presence of Captain-Commander Yamamoto, Captain Unohana, and Captain Kyōraku."

The procedure meets the appointment criteria.

The appointment of Rōjūrō Ōtoribashi was proposed by Captain-Commander Yamamoto after consulting with Chikane Iba.

Kuchiki Sōjun's appointment was a natural handover unique to the Noble Team, and the person who made the nomination was also Captain-Commander Yamamoto.

Only Isshin Shiba and Kisuke Urahara.

The one who brought it up was Yoruichi Shihōin, who was currently all "hmm" and looking very satisfied.

In her view, this kind of thing falls under the category of "the capable should do more."

But in the eyes of other nobles...

The Shihoin Clan is now developing into a powerful and all-powerful force.