Chapter 360

2-in-1 chapter:

---------------------------

“Zehahahahaha!!”

Above Seireitei, Kaelith laughed righteously as he held his sword aloft.

The body of the false Kensei Muguruma collapsed in a spray of blood before him.

Below, countless Shinigami stared with jaws dropped.

*What the hell just happened?!*

Why did Captain Kaelith kill the former Captain Kensei the moment he returned?

Internal conflict?

Revenge?

*Kaelith… did you betray Soul Society again?!*

Wait… again?

Kyōraku Shunsui stared, stunned, chest hair trembling.

Before he could react, Kaelith reached down and grabbed “Kensei” by the throat.

The body struggled slightly, then cracks spread across it—and it disintegrated.

His body turned to ash, leaving behind a glowing red Reigai pill.

Kaelith held the pill between two fingers and projected his voice so all could hear:

“Brothers!!”

“Mayuri Kurotsuchi and Kisuke Urahara have created a batch of fake Shinigami, disguised as familiar faces, hiding among us!”

“Just like the fake Kensei I just cut down!”

“They bet me I couldn’t expose them all. Said their research was flawless, said I’d never uncover every imposter!”

“I broke down in tears right there!”

"They told me, if I could just forward this message to ten groups—pah, just kidding—if everyone joins together to find the fakes, they’ll apologize and admit they underestimated us!”

“Brothers, now’s the time to prove our unity! Don’t let those two bastards look down on us!!”

That fired up the entire Seireitei.

*What?! Two damn scientists dared talk down to Captain Kaelith?!*

Especially the Eleventh Division—howling with rage, nearly launching an outright assault on the Twelfth.

All across Seireitei, Shinigami began scrutinizing their own leadership.

Captains scrambled to hide before their own squads reported them as impostors.

Total chaos soon ensured.

Kyōraku was initially baffled but soon saw the brilliance in Kaelith’s ploy.

He had cleverly turned the revelation into a dramatic public stunt—softening the psychological blow of an impending civil conflict.

Yes, it would cause confusion and maybe casualties, but it was still far better than a full-blown internal collapse and trust breakdown.

He looked at his younger brother in arms with a mix of awe and suspicion.

Could this even be the real Kaelith?

He glanced at Aizen, who was smiling faintly, watching like a proud parent seeing their child grow up.

Yeah… these two had quite the odd bond.

Kyōraku adjusted his hat with a complicated expression.

*Maybe it’s not so bad after all.*

Suddenly, a seated officer on the ground shouted:

“No! Don’t listen to him! Something’s off!”

“There’s no way Captains could be impersonated like this—it’s too ridiculous!”

“I say this is all—”

He stopped mid-sentence.

The surrounding Shinigami turned their heads toward him… and stared.

A few seconds later, eerie grins spread across their faces.

“Hold him down!!”

“He’s a fake!”

“Alert Captain Kaelith!!”

A few remaining Reigai who tried to salvage the situation were instantly overpowered by their peers.

Kaelith stood in the sky, arms crossed, nodding in satisfaction.

“Excellent! With comrades like you, I’m at ease!”

“However—listen up! The fakes are good. Acting rashly might hurt innocent people.”

“When in doubt, subdue first—no killing unless confirmed!”

The Shinigami shouted in agreement.

Back then, they might have hesitated to follow Kaelith.

But after his legendary battle with Yamamoto, and taking over the kingdom’s affairs in the old man’s absence, Kaelith’s words carried absolute weight.

Now with Crown Prince Kaelith and Deputy Crown Prince Kyōraku present, who would dare question a command?

When Kagerōza heard the reports from the frontlines, he nearly had an aneurysm.

His carefully planned trap—ruined just like that?

*Why?!*

*Since when was Seireitei this hard to fool?!*

With things momentarily stable, Aizen left alone.

Kaelith and Kyōraku began touring the divisions to verify which captains were real, and which had been replaced.

---

*Central 46 Chambers, Grand Assembly Hall.*

Behind numbered partitions, the ancient officials gathered again.

Sitting high above, they issued decrees.

Behind the panel marked “3,” an elder spoke slowly:

“Kaelith has conspired to rebel. His crimes warrant execution.”

“Immediately dispatch the Onmitsukidō to capture Kaelith and his associates.”

“At the same time, announce to all of Seireitei that Kaelith, Aizen Sōsuke, and Kyōraku Shunsui have betrayed the Gotei.”

“Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni—was slain by their hands.”

The relay officer from the Inner Court Guard froze at these words.

He wanted to say something—but as a member of the Onmitsukidō, blind obedience was his nature.

He lowered his head, just about to reply—

When suddenly, a figure appeared beside him.

Startled, he looked up.

There stood a young man with soft features, glasses, and brown wavy hair—smiling gently.

A wooden badge marked with the number “5” was strapped to his arm.

The elders of Central 46 turned pale.

“Aizen Sōsuke!”

“One of the traitors!”

“Guards! Seize him!”

The command barely left their mouths before masked Shinigami armed with iron forks poured from the side corridors, surrounding Aizen.

He merely smiled.

“First time meeting and I’m already labeled a traitor?”

“Honestly, I was wondering how I’d determine whether you’ve been replaced.”

“Now I don’t need to worry.”

“Truth be told, I’ve been wanting to try this for a while—but because of a certain someone, I held back.”

“Now’s the perfect time.”

He drew his Zanpakutō.

A wave of invisible Reiryoku, laced with visual distortion, rippled across the entire hall.

An elder shouted:

“Take him! If he resists, kill him!”

The guards surged forward.

But after only a few steps… they paused in confusion.

Wait—why was Aizen suddenly so far away?

Why was he standing… right where the Central 46 elders were?

Everyone began to panic.

If Aizen took the elders hostage, it would be a national crisis.

The guards roared and charged toward the high dais.

The old men of Central 46 watched in horror as their own guards charged them, bewildered.

“Stop! Who told you to come up here?!”

“He’s over there! OVER THERE!!”

“No! Don’t—NOOO!!”

“AGHHH!!!”

The chamber echoed with the screams of the elders and the piercing crunch of bones as steel forks struck.

Moments later, the elders lay dead—nothing left but scattered red Reigai pills.

The fake “Yadōmaru Lisa” stared, cold sweat running down her back.

Aizen walked toward her.

“Originally, I planned to find a test subject en route.”

“But looks like you’ve saved me the trouble.”

His smile turned twisted, half of his face veiled in shadow as he reached for her.

Lisa’s pupils trembled.

She suddenly began to wonder…

Was this entire operation ever under their control at all?

Or had these two been the true puppet masters from the start?

..................................

................

.

*Modern world – A certain hospital.*

A group of salarymen in suits, briefcases in hand, waited anxiously outside the emergency room.

Their company’s greatest cash cow—the impossibly handsome and perfectly obedient rising star named Ulquiorra—was currently unconscious inside.

It was supposed to be a simple commercial shoot. Who could’ve guessed that halfway through, he’d suddenly drop dead?

They had rushed him to the hospital some time ago, but both heart and lungs had stopped. There was no sign of recovery.

When the doctor came with the death certificate, everyone collapsed into despair.

“It’s over… We worked our top asset to death.”

“How will I face the department chief… or Director Ishida?!”

“Uuugh… Mom, I’m going to get fired. No company will ever want me again after this. I’m about to suffer social death!”

Just then, footsteps echoed from the corridor.

Seeing who it was, everyone was startled.

“D-Director Ishida…”

Ryūken gave them a nod, adjusting his glasses.

“Call the hospital staff. We’re transferring Ulquiorra to Ishida General Hospital.”

“…Huh?”

The employees looked confused.

One of them cautiously stepped forward and whispered:

“Director Ishida, Mr. Ulquiorra has already…”

“I know.”

Ryūken cut him off flatly.

“Don’t worry. Ulquiorra is merely in a state of physiological pseudo-death. He’s just overworked.”

“Transfer him to Ishida Hospital immediately. We can still save him.”

The staff exchanged glances.

Has the director gone insane?

Though they didn’t believe him, orders were orders—they had no choice but to carry them out.

Before long, the long-dead Ulquiorra was transferred to Ishida Hospital.

After over thirty minutes of “emergency treatment,” he regained vital signs, returned to consciousness, and could speak normally.

Once the shock passed, the staff’s gaze toward Ryūken changed.

This director wasn’t just an unbeatable businessman—his medical skills were divine!

Heart and lungs had stopped for over two hours—and he still brought him back?!

This wasn’t medicine anymore.

This was a miracle.

Starting today, we are disciples of Director Ishida!

.................................

.............

.

Seireitei was in turmoil.

The noble families were shaken to discover that many of their painstakingly trained subordinates had mysteriously disappeared.

Following the trail, they found the culprit—Kaelith!

They had always known he wasn’t someone to be trifled with, but this… this was too much!

Unable to stand idle, they stormed the Yurei estate to demand answers.

As voices clamored outside, Kaelith stepped out.

The moment they saw him, the nobles instinctively swallowed hard, feeling the urge to back away.

But then they quickly caught themselves.

“Lord Kaelith, this is too far!”

“Our people did nothing to provoke you! They posed no threat to Seireitei—why kill them?!”

Kaelith raised an eyebrow.

He walked slowly toward them, sweeping his gaze across the crowd.

Each noble he looked at felt their blood run cold.

Then—before anyone could react—Kaelith suddenly struck!

So fast it was nearly invisible.

One noble—who had just been shouting with the others—had his skull shattered by Kaelith’s palm.

There was a moment of stunned silence, then chaos.

Nobles screamed and shrieked, some collapsing to the ground in terror, sobbing uncontrollably.

A few brave ones turned to flee—but before they could move, Kaelith’s spiritual pressure came crashing down from the sky, pinning them in place.

“Don’t be afraid. Look—what do you think he is?”

Kaelith pointed to the noble he had just killed.

Everyone turned to look.

The noble’s body began to crumble, disintegrating into dust… and in his place, a red Reigai pill was left behind.

The nobles stared in shock.

What… is going on?

Kaelith knelt and picked up the pill, holding it out for them to see.

“My friends, we are all nobles here, so I won’t sugarcoat it.”

“I previously said that Kisuke Urahara had created fake Shinigami who infiltrated Seireitei.”

“That was only half true.”

“The fakes do exist—but they weren’t made by Kisuke. They’re the work of invaders lurking in the shadows!”

“Someone out there is using some method to create artificial Shinigami, replacing real ones across Soul Society.”

“In all likelihood, the noble who used to hold this identity… is already dead.”

The nobles’ eyes widened, goosebumps rising across their skin.

If what Kaelith said was true, then Soul Society was facing an unprecedented crisis.

Friends, guards, their mistresses...... and even family members could be fake. The thought sent chills down their spines.

“Lord Kaelith—what do we do?!”

“Seireitei is the lynchpin of all three realms—we cannot afford disaster!”

“The Gotei 13… aren’t you currently managing it? Please send protection!”

Kaelith raised his hand and gestured downward.

“Calm yourselves.”

“The Gotei 13 is already responding swiftly to this crisis.”

“I’ve mastered a technique to distinguish artificial souls. One by one, we’ll purge them—our enemy will be routed, and you will be safe.”

The nobles lit up with hope.

Kaelith continued:

“Those guards I killed? They were already replaced by Reigai. I didn’t harm your people—I’m protecting them!”

The nobles exchanged uncertain looks.

They still had doubts—but after seeing Kaelith easily destroy one of their own only to reveal a red pill… part of them believed.

When weighing their own lives against a few dead guards, they gritted their teeth and chose to trust him.

“Captain Kaelith, we’re counting on you!”

“Please end this nightmare soon!”

“Thank you so much!”

After the nobles left, Soi Fon emerged from the shadows.

Kaelith turned to her and grinned:

“So, Soi Fon—what did I tell you?”

----------------------------------------

You can check out here for 65 advanced chapters!

Patreon(.)com/IDKjust 

Btw you also get 2 daily chapters