Soi Fon was on her way to be reprimanded.
The Gotei 13 was an organization with a strong military character, where rewards and punishments were clear-cut. Failure on a mission could earn a reprimand at best and punishment at worst.
As a division captain, she enjoyed many honors, but the responsibility on her shoulders was even greater.
Not even one failure was acceptable, much less two.
She passed through a spacious corridor and arrived at the doors of the hall where the Captains' Meeting was being held.
The wooden doors stood a full twenty meters high, making her look tiny. The character for "one" was written in black at their center.
Soi Fon reached out and pushed the doors open. They weren't heavy; a little force was enough.
Gurgle.
Boundless seawater poured through the gap between the doors, as if she had found herself in the deep sea. The immense pressure was enough to make the legs of any Shinigami below lieutenant level go weak.
Twelve captains had assembled.
They stood in order, with a bald, long-bearded old man seated at the very center. Both hands rested on his cane, and his eyes were half closed as he spoke in an exceedingly powerful voice. "It seems everyone is here. I will explain why we have gathered. Second Division Captain Soi Fon."
"On April 10, you were ordered by the Central 46 Chambers to arrest the criminal Shiraishi. On the twelfth, you let him escape.
"On the twenty-first, at the Tsunayashiro branch family estate, you allowed Shiraishi to kill Takehiko Tsunayashiro before your eyes. On top of that, you failed to eliminate the Hollow modified by Takehiko Tsunayashiro and let the criminal escape."
"This series of failures is an extremely serious lapse. Do you have anything to say?"
There was no anger in Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto's tone, and his expression was as calm as a plant. The mere opening of his eyes created an overwhelmingly powerful pressure.
Soi Fon pressed her lips together and replied, "I have nothing to say."
"I see." Yamamoto's eyes narrowed once more. "Very well. I have decided to sentence you to ten days of the Punishment of the Solid Rock."
"I have no objection," Soi Fon answered truthfully, without a trace of resentment. A lack of ability called for punishment. Without it, she would not remember the shame of this failure.
"Is that guy really that strong?"
Seeing that the punishment had been settled, Kenpachi Zaraki immediately stepped forward to ask. He had still been lost on the way when a Denreishinki had notified him to return to Seireitei for the Captains' Meeting.
He had been impatient at first, but hearing that it involved Shiraishi had piqued his interest.
Soi Fon didn't answer. She and Kenpachi Zaraki were hardly on good terms: one followed the rules, while the other was carefree and unrestrained.
She had no desire to answer any of his questions.
Yamamoto struck the floor with his cane, producing a thud. "The other matter for this meeting is how to deal with the criminal Shiraishi. Captain Soi Fon, tell us everything you know."
Now that the Captain-Commander had spoken, Soi Fon didn't remain silent. "What we know is that he possesses a Zanpakuto that is often in its Shikai state. His swordsmanship is strange. Even from an unreasonable stance, he can still deliver precise attacks that cannot be dodged.
"He can pass through other people's bodies and swing his sword to produce a strange wind that cannot be dispersed and sweeps people up.
"The moment they rise into the air, Shiraishi approaches at a speed close to teleportation and strikes three times: an upward slash, a horizontal cut, and a vertical chop."
"Most importantly, his Reiatsu is extremely well concealed. Even when my Reiatsu is close to his, I can't sense it unless our blades touch."
"Oh, that sounds fascinating."
Mayuri Kurotsuchi, captain of the Twelfth Division, had spoken. He had a powerful thirst for knowledge when it came to strange phenomena and abilities. "Leave his arrest to the Twelfth Division."
"Kurotsuchi, he's prey I had my eye on first. Stay out of it."
Kenpachi Zaraki glanced sideways with his left eye. "Unless you want to kill me. That would be another matter."
"..." Mayuri Kurotsuchi didn't answer. He hated beasts like this most of all, but he had no intention of backing down. How could he let someone else have such an interesting research specimen?
Yamamoto paid their quarrel no mind, considering whom to send to capture Shiraishi and bring him back to the Great Underground Prison.
A powerful fighter who had reached Captain-level could no longer be killed casually. Doing so would upset the balance of the world. The best way to deal with him was to capture him and confine him in Muken.
If they couldn't capture him, killing him was the only option.
After considering the options, Yamamoto swept his gaze over the captains. "What are your thoughts on Shiraishi?"
"Ahem, Captain-Commander Yamamoto," Isshin Shiba, captain of the Tenth Division, stepped forward and said reluctantly, "I hear Shiraishi isn't a bad person. He killed the Second Division's Fifth Seat because he couldn't stand the man's habit of oppressing the residents of Rukongai."
"I don't recommend taking action against him either."
Jūshirō Ukitake spoke up in counsel. He believed Shiraishi wouldn't deliberately oppose Seireitei, and sending people to arrest him by force would only drive him to the opposing side.
Thud!
Yamamoto struck the floor heavily with his cane, a trace of anger in his voice. "Absurd!"
Scorching Reiatsu seared the captains like fire.
"Whatever Fifth Seat Hasegawa did wrong, we should have been the ones to punish him, not some outsider."
"As captains, do you not even understand that?"
Yamamoto's gaze was like lightning as it swept toward the two men.
They looked helpless.
The Captains' Meeting was supposedly a democratic discussion, but in reality, the Captain-Commander had the final say. Anything to his liking would pass; anything that wasn't would be rejected outright.
There was no point saying more, so the two could only return to their places.
Yamamoto snorted and made the decision outright. "Find Shiraishi's whereabouts as soon as possible. Once there is news, Shunsui Kyōraku, captain of the Eighth Division; Kenpachi Zaraki, captain of the 11th Division; Mayuri Kurotsuchi, captain of the Twelfth Division; and Second Division Captain Soi Fon will form a temporary subjugation team to deal with him.
"Capturing him alive will suffice, but killing him is also acceptable. Failure will not be tolerated!"
"Tch." Kenpachi Zaraki was dissatisfied with the arrangement. He wouldn't let anyone interfere in his fight. If anyone dared help, he would cut that person down first.
Mayuri Kurotsuchi's eyes darted about.
"Eh." Shunsui Kyōraku looked utterly helpless as he pulled down his straw hat. Going on a mission with Soi Fon-chan was fine, but with Zaraki and Kurotsuchi along, things would become extremely troublesome.
And he hated troublesome things.
"The Punishment of the Solid Rock will be carried out after this mission."
Yamamoto made his final pronouncement. "Dismissed."
The captains said nothing, turning as one to leave the hall.
The moment they stepped outside, they scattered using Shunpo and joined their respective lieutenants.
"Captain Soi Fon, the Captain-Commander didn't order any punishment for you, did he?"
Soi Fon landed in a corridor, where a tall, robust man appeared beside her. He wore a purple, high-collared Shinigami uniform with a lieutenant's armband on his shoulder.
"Ōmaeda, go to the Research and Development Institute and have two Gigai made for me, one of me and one of Shiraishi. Don't let anyone know I ordered you to do it."
Soi Fon gave the order with a stern face. She had yet to repay Shiraishi for saving her life, and she absolutely could not let him fall into Seireitei's hands.