'Nara Dan, that guy...'
'He's making way too much of a scene...'
Gin Ichimaru frowned to himself behind Aizen.
It wasn't that he was afraid the investigation would lead back to him. It was just that, in theory, there was no benefit to exposing himself right under Aizen's nose.
Of course, he was also surprised by how quickly Nara Dan had grown.
Dan hadn't bothered to hide his appearance during the battle.
'Is he confident enough to face Aizen head-on now...?'
'He's still too young.'
Gin didn't think Dan could beat Aizen as he was now, either.
'Then again, the chance to kill Aizen...'
Gin mused. Suddenly, it occurred to him that if he worked with Dan, they might actually have a chance to kill Aizen.
'But Aizen clearly won't just sit back and do nothing...'
Up ahead, Aizen had already thought of something else.
'He left in such a hurry...'
'As if he knew I was in Hueco Mundo...'
'And how did Nara Dan get into Hueco Mundo in the first place...?'
As a student, Dan's options were naturally limited. Even ordinary Soul Reapers needed to go through complicated procedures and use the Technology Development Bureau's special technology to reach Hueco Mundo.
So where had Dan, a mere student, gotten the resources and means to enter Hueco Mundo?
Aizen immediately thought of two possibilities.
'Kisuke Urahara.'
'And...'
'A mole?'
By then, the subject of their conversation, Nara Dan, had quietly reappeared in his Dormitory.
Over the past two years, Dan had continued developing the Flying Thunder God Technique, adapting it to the unstable space of the Soul Reaper world.
Now, Dan's smuggling technique produced almost no spatial fluctuations, making it difficult for the Technology Development Bureau's people to detect.
"Phew."
Dan let out a long breath, feeling the abundant