Soul Society's Greatest Villain!

On the other side, a highly concealed barrier surrounded the entrance to a noble estate. Inside stood several powerful figures: the Second Division Captain, representing the nobles, and the Onmitsukido commander, Shihoin Seigen (making him a captain is my own addition; the original never specified), along with the Sixth Division Captain, Kuchiki Ginrei.

Also present were the future Head Captain, current Squad 8 Captain Kyoraku Shunsui; the current Head Captain, Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni; and the former Squad 11 Captain, now Fourth Division Captain Retsu Unohana.

This impressive lineup of five stood silently outside the rebels' headquarters, waiting for the right moment.

Just as Ichiro had suspected, the Head Captain had never taken the rebellion seriously. As long as none of the Thirteenth Division's particularly powerful captains led the charge, he could crush it with a flick of his hand!

The main reason they had waited this long was that Central 46 was still arguing among themselves. The Head Captain was content to let them, since it gave him a chance to clean up Seireitei and keep every kind of troublemaker from sticking their head out.

However, he clearly hadn't expected these people to be bold enough to attack Shino Academy...

Just then, a Soul Reaper appeared and began reporting on the situation at the academy. The moment Kyoraku Shunsui heard that a large group of Soul Reapers had stormed the school, the languid look in his eyes sharpened. The wood wrapped around the Head Captain's Zanpakuto burst into flames!

Scorching Reiryoku poured from him without pause!

"Head Captain, things over there should be under control. Our top priority now is to catch more of these rats!" Kuchiki Ginrei frowned and suggested.

The Head Captain fell silent for a moment. The scorching Reishi slowly dissipated. Kuchiki Ginrei was right; the situation had already stabilized. Losing his temper now might undo all their efforts. Still, he kept his anger bottled up inside.

"Carry on. What were they after at the academy?" Seeing that the Head Captain had reined in his anger, Kuchiki Ginrei let out a breath and calmly asked.

To Kuchiki Ginrei's surprise, the Soul Reaper didn't answer right away. Instead, he glanced at him with some apprehension, as if afraid.

Kuchiki Ginrei furrowed his brows. "Just say it! Do you think anyone here hasn't seen worse?"

"..." The Soul Reaper hesitated, then said, "Their target was... Miss Kuchiki Tsukihisa, who attends Shino Academy..."

"Boom!"

A raging spiritual pressure burst from Kuchiki Ginrei. If the barrier hadn't been so powerful, they would have been exposed by now.

The Head Captain furrowed his brows, wanting to reprimand him, but after considering his own outburst just moments ago and the standing of the Five Great Noble Clans, he held his tongue.

"To dare attack the Five Great Noble Clans... and the Kuchiki Clan, no less... Unheard of! The nerve! Looks like some people really can't keep still anymore!" After grinding out the words, Kuchiki Ginrei slowly drew his Zanpakuto and asked, "Is Tsukihisa all right?"

"Rest assured, sir. Miss Tsukihisa is unharmed."

At that, Shihoin Seigen pressed a hand against Kuchiki Ginrei's Zanpakuto, giving him a way to back down. "All right. Since she's safe, let's wait a little longer. A few more minutes won't make a difference."

Then he turned to the Soul Reaper who had delivered the report and ordered, "That's all. You can go. Keep watch on the routes in and out. Don't let anyone escape!"

But the Soul Reaper still didn't leave. He lowered his head and continued, "Commander, the young lady and her close friend, Kisuke Urahara, were badly injured. They're receiving emergency treatment..."

"..."

"..."

"..."

After a long silence, Shihoin Seigen still had his hand on Kuchiki Ginrei's Zanpakuto. The situation had become unbearably awkward...

They all knew they couldn't act yet. Closing the net now would lead to a lot of needless casualties, something none of them wanted. But someone had just dealt a heavy blow to the Five Great Noble Clans' pride. Were they really supposed to put up with it? Could they?

Especially Shihoin Seigen. The person attacked from the Kuchiki Clan was only a collateral branch, and she was unharmed. But Yoruichi was his daughter!

The next head of the Shihoin Clan!

Seeing how awkward everyone looked, Captain Unohana gave a light laugh. This was where her presence came in handy. "Captain Shihoin, please don't worry. As far as I know, your daughter is very close to Tenshin Ichiro, one of our squad's trainees. Ichiro hasn't graduated yet, but his Kaido skills are among the best in all of Soul Society. Most injuries are no challenge for him. With him there, she should be fine."

At that, everyone breathed a sigh of relief, and the awkwardness quietly faded. Just as they had said, things over there were already settled. Getting worked up now wouldn't help. Since they could be sure she was safe, it was best to stick to the plan.

However, on hearing Ichiro's name, the Onmitsukido messenger on the other side broke into a cold sweat. Seeing this, Kyoraku Shunsui began to feel a growing sense of dread...

"Do you... have anything else to report? Say it all at once. We won't interrupt you..."

Everyone turned their gaze toward him. As they saw his panicked expression, an ominous feeling slowly crept into their hearts as well...

"The Tenshin Ichiro Captain Unohana mentioned... also took part in the battle. His injuries are even worse... He's in critical condition... and unconscious..." After speaking, he kept his head bowed, cold sweat running down his face. He was so scared he nearly collapsed!

Because he could sense the usually gentle Fourth Division Captain suddenly giving off an incredibly terrifying killing intent!

"Retsu! Calm down!" the Head Captain hurriedly called out to stop her, but the enraged Captain Unohana wouldn't listen.

The braid resting against her chest came undone, revealing the savage scar beneath it. Along with it came a murderous intent that shook the heavens!

She hadn't earned her title as Soul Society's greatest villain for nothing. She'd carved it out, one blade at a time!

By the time the Head Captain finished speaking, Captain Unohana had already cut her way through nearly half the estate!

Standing outside, Kyoraku Shunsui swallowed. He hadn't seen Retsu Unohana like this in hundreds of years. His voice trembling slightly, he asked, "Teacher... who exactly is this Tenshin Ichiro?"

"Tenshin Ichiro? A genius with tremendous talent! In less than half a year, he mastered all of Retsu's Kaido techniques. Then, on Retsu's strong recommendation, he met the Hot Spring Demon and spent another half year learning every Kaido secret the demon had to offer—except for its secret, forbidden techniques! Retsu considers him the next Fourth Division Captain and is training him for the role. This reaction is hardly surprising..."

The others were stunned by the Head Captain's explanation. What kind of incredible résumé was that?

As they spoke, they saw Unohana, still radiating killing intent, fly rapidly toward Shino Academy on her Zanpakuto, Minazuki.

Seeing this, the Head Captain said, "Looks like there's no need to worry about what's happening over there. Let's go. After killing so many nobles, we still have to answer to Central 46."

Kuchiki Ginrei gave a cold laugh. "Answer to them? Hah! They're the ones who'll have to answer to us. They actually dared attack the next head of one of the Five Great Noble Clans. Whoever's behind this must be quite powerful!"

A cold glint flashed in Shihoin Seigen's eyes. "Tell me what the head of the Kuchiki Clan needs. The Onmitsukido will do everything it can to help. Even a collateral branch is still part of the Five Great Noble Clans. And they even dared attack the main family..."

The two of them left as they spoke. The Head Captain looked at the estate, thick with the stench of blood, and opened his narrowed eyes just a sliver, revealing an icy glint.

"Looks like my own ranks are riddled with vermin. They even attacked Shino Academy... and nearly killed a genius like Ichiro... Shunsui, I'm putting you in charge of this."

Kyoraku Shunsui lowered his straw hat, hiding the cold glint in his eyes, and replied, "Yes, Teacher..."

Explanatory note: I'm treating a school term as six months. The original never specified, so I made that up.

"Unprecedented villain" and "Soul Society's greatest villain" should mean about the same thing, but the latter sounds better.

Kyoraku Shunsui is the Captain of Squad 8, which is an intelligence-gathering unit.

The Onmitsukido is essentially the Shihoin Clan's private force, since its commander has always been Yoruichi, with Soi Fon as the sole exception.

Finally, thanks to Monokuma for the tip.

There'll be another update later, though it'll be quite late.