The Punishment Force squad leader hesitated upon hearing Asano Kiyoshi's words and said to him:
"According to regulations, you are not—"
But before he could finish, Old Man Yama cut him off.
"He isn't asking for your permission. Wait here. With this old man present, nothing will get out of hand."
Seeing Old Man Yama's uncompromising attitude, the Punishment Force captain lowered his head and replied quietly:
"Yes!"
The group returned to the Kuchiki Clan's courtyard. Old Man Yama set up a Kido barrier. He knew that nothing Asano Kiyoshi said next could be heard by anyone else. Byakuya surely understood this as well, yet he had chosen to stay, which meant he had tacitly taken Asano Kiyoshi's side.
The moment Old Man Yama finished setting up the barrier, Asano Kiyoshi immediately said:
"Old Man Yama, my biggest weak point in this matter may be the surveillance footage from when I treated Kojiro's mother two days ago. If possible, please have the Twelfth Division and Fourth Division examine the degree of decomposition of the corpse and see whether they can determine the time of death."
"Second, according to that Punishment Force member just now, my spiritual pressure remained at the scene. Please ask the Twelfth Division whether they possess equipment capable of imitating spiritual pressure. Also, those people said there were traces at the scene—but what exactly those traces were, I cannot say for now. Still, they are most likely related to me. If possible, you may investigate from that angle as well."
"Next is some information on the Tsunayashiro Family that I gathered from the Great Spirit Book Gallery. You can use it as leverage to pressure them and force them to withdraw their persecution of me."
"First, the Zanpakuto theft case of 2044. According to the records in