"Hm?"
That morning, Aoto had been wandering around the World of the Living with Kaien when his expression suddenly turned awful.
"What's wrong?"
Kaien rarely saw Aoto make that face, and was curious what he'd spotted this time.
"That Blue Oni bastard brought out the Great Oni Head!" Aoto covered his forehead, utterly exasperated with Blue Oni's antics. "He really took the act too far!"
"The Great Oni Head?" Kaien's expression changed. "Isn't that your..."
Aoto nodded. "It's my Bankai!"
What was Garaku Kairo?
The answer was the name of a Zanpakuto.
It belonged to the seventh Kenpachi, Kuruyashiki Kenpachi, from two hundred years ago.
In all the countless years since Seireitei was established, if there was a Soul Reaper who could match Captain-Commander Yamamoto in a head-on fight, it was Kuruyashiki Kenpachi!
When released with Shikai, his Zanpakuto could produce around thirty white spheres the size of brown bears. Each sphere had nothing but a gaping maw filled with giant teeth, and could defend or bite on its master's command.
When the Zanpakuto was released with Bankai, it devoured, tore apart, and crushed everything within a radius of several ri, except its master.
Living or nonliving, enemy or ally—it made no distinction.
"Therefore, the Central 46 strictly forbade Kuruyashiki Kenpachi from using Bankai in Seireitei for any reason!"
"Two hundred years ago, Kuruyashiki Kenpachi lost in the battle to become the eighth Kenpachi. Hyakume-ki Seikyo had just graduated from Shino Academy and joined the 11th Division. He hadn't yet acquired a Shikai of his own. Garaku Kairo, which hadn't disappeared with Kuruyashiki Kenpachi, entered his body and became his Zanpakuto."
"Hyakume-ki Seikyo had always concealed the true name of his Zanpakuto. Then, a hundred years ago, while fighting in the World of the Living, he suddenly unleashed Bankai!"
Soi Fon recalled the Stealth Force records, staring fixedly at the enormous sphere in the distance.
It wasn't the same kind of sphere described in the records, one large enough to cover all of Seireitei, but it certainly wasn't the same as the misleading Shikai Aoto had concocted, either.
If something with Second-Class Spiritual Pressure erupted in Seireitei, every Soul Reaper would disappear—except for the few captains whose spiritual pressure was equal to or greater than its own, and fast Flash Step users like her.
Hearing Soi Fon reveal this secret, the vice-captains were stunned, and even most of the captains' expressions changed.
In Soul Society today, there was practically nothing that could kill a captain.
Yet almost none of them had known there was such a time bomb right beside them...
"That bastard Hyakume was hiding power like this? I want to fight him right now!"
Naturally, the one who said that was Zaraki Kenpachi!
The other captains instinctively edged away from him.
But just as they were thinking that, the enormous sphere suddenly vanished... Judging by its spiritual pressure, it had returned to the Zanpakuto.
Meanwhile, at Aoto's home, Blue Oni "woke up" and watched the Great Oni Head return to the blade after glaring at him. He felt he'd really gone too far this time!
He could still hear Aoto cursing him in his head.
But Blue Oni felt wronged... You were the one who told me to let the Great Oni Head out for some air. Why are you the one cursing me now?
And he might even get chewed out by the Great Oni Head later. What had he done to deserve this?
Even so, Blue Oni had to keep up the act.
Pretending he'd just woken up, Blue Oni waited until he'd recalled the Great Oni Head before tapping Toshiro, who was trembling all over, and finally letting him relax.
"Sorry, Shiro." Blue Oni knocked on his forehead. "Looks like drinking really does cause trouble! Go open the door for me. The captains are here."
Toshiro looked at his master, unsure what to say. He followed his orders and went to open the door.
As soon as he did, the three captains appeared.
Ukitake Jushiro, Kyoraku Shunsui, and Unohana Retsu...
They were all veteran captains who had served for over a thousand years.
Though the three captains were relieved that Garaku Kairo had been recalled, each reacted differently.
Unohana Retsu's reaction was the most ordinary. She was simply curious whether Aoto could really lose control like this.
She didn't believe Aoto would release Garaku Kairo on a whim.
If he couldn't maintain the Central 46's trust, Hyakume-ki Seikyo might have been locked away long ago, with his Zanpakuto sealed.
Kyoraku Shunsui felt a little nostalgic. He'd been there when Kuruyashiki Kenpachi was defeated.
Now he found himself missing that old friend.
Ukitake Jushiro, meanwhile, felt a little sad... He thought that because Kaien hadn't been rescued, Aoto had unwittingly lost control, causing his Zanpakuto to run wild!
But when they saw Toshiro answer the door and smelled the strong scent of alcohol as soon as they entered, all three understood.
Drinking really did cause trouble!
Toshiro didn't know what the great sphere meant. As he led the captains inside, he simply told them everything he'd seen since arriving that morning.
That was enough for the three captains to understand.
After Aoto had drunk himself unconscious, his Zanpakuto had come out on its own to protect him!
Though terrifying, it fit the relationship between a Soul Reaper and their Zanpakuto quite well.
But if that was the case, perhaps Garaku Kairo wasn't as mindless as the records suggested.
When Toshiro mentioned that there was an eye on the giant fleshy sphere, Kyoraku Shunsui realized Aoto's Garaku Kairo was vastly different from Kuruyashiki Kenpachi's.
Unlike Kuruyashiki, Aoto had tamed Garaku Kairo!
He figured he could put in a good word for Aoto when they returned to the First Division.
Ukitake Jushiro, meanwhile, had another idea. He decided he would discuss it with Kyoraku and Captain Unohana later.
When they found Aoto, they saw that he'd already cleaned up the ceiling completely.
The lingering smell of alcohol was the one giveaway.
"Welcome, Captains! Your presence truly honors my humble home!" After showing off his literary flair, Blue Oni clasped his hands and greeted them.
Seeing him put on that foolish act, Unohana Retsu couldn't help laughing.
"Come with us," Kyoraku Shunsui said. "The Captain-Commander is eager to see you."
Blue Oni's expression was unnatural as he complained inwardly about Aoto making him put on this act... If the Captain-Commander saw through him, wouldn't centuries of scheming go to waste?
Still, Blue Oni nodded. He told Toshiro not to forget to lock the door when he left, then followed the three captains to the First Division.
Toshiro watched his master walk away, wondering whether what awaited him would bring good fortune or disaster.