Bleach: The Shinigami Who Inherited Hashirama

"Where is White right now?"

"If it departs immediately for Karakura Town, how long will it take to arrive?"

With his emotions clearly stirred, Aizen adjusted his black-framed glasses and stared without blinking at the live surveillance feed of Karakura Town.

"Aizen-sama…"

"White is currently lying low in Naruki City."

"If we activate the killing program immediately, it will need less than half an hour…"

"…to cross the distance and reach Karakura Town."

Tōsen Kaname answered with certainty, his tone respectful.

"Half an hour…"

"That's just enough time for us to move from Seireitei to the Human World…"

Aizen's lips curved into a satisfied smile. He turned away from the screen and issued a cold order to Gin and Tōsen:

"Put on the black cloaks."

"We leave for Karakura Town at once."

"With a heaven-sent opportunity like this…"

"…it's time to end Bai Chen's 'rise' for good."

When Aizen spoke Bai Chen's name, a glint flashed deep in his eyes.

At first, he'd been intrigued by Bai Chen.

Then he'd tried to approach him.

After being refused—and with no perfect window to trigger Kyōka Suigetsu's hypnosis—

Aizen gradually realized something he hated:

Bai Chen's growth was getting out of hand.

The possibility of quietly controlling him was shrinking by the day.

Now, however, this was a rare opportunity—outside Soul Society—where Aizen could act freely.

Whether he framed Bai Chen through "Hollowfication"…

or watched the fight and stabbed him in the back at the perfect moment…

Aizen only had one goal:

kill Bai Chen, no matter the method—

and erase this threat permanently.

East Karakura — Near Naruki City

High above the city, Shiba Isshin—hidden under a black cloak—leapt across rooftops.

But the instant the Visored base exploded, he halted midair and looked toward the shockwave.

"Hm?!"

"That reiatsu wave…"

"…that's Bai Chen's!"

After sensing it from long range, Isshin's brow twisted tightly, and he muttered in irritation:

"What is he doing over there?"

"We agreed to stay low…"

"And now he's caused a scene this big!"

"At this rate, the Research and Development Institute will definitely notice!"

Isshin clicked his tongue.

He had planned to remain concealed under the cloak the whole time, but now—

with an explosion loud enough to shake the area—

his illegal infiltration would eventually be exposed anyway.

So whether he stayed hidden…

was suddenly meaningless.

Three Shinigami Arrive

Just as Isshin was thinking that through, three Shinigami stationed in Karakura—also drawn by the shockwave—gathered nearby.

"What happened?!"

"A random explosion?!"

"Lately, weird things have been happening nonstop…"

While they talked, the three low-ranking Tenth Division soldiers wore miserable expressions.

Since the "rainy-night monster" rumor spread, guarding the Human World no longer felt like an easy assignment.

It felt like a death sentence.

They were about to keep discussing it—

when Isshin's voice suddenly appeared beside them like a ghost.

"What—are you three planning to get scared and run?"

"Let me be clear: until your assigned duty period ends, nobody leaves their post."

"W-WHAT THE—?!"

They yelped and whipped around—

only to see Isshin pull back the hood of his cloak.

"Captain Shiba?!"

Their panic instantly eased—barely.

"Relax. Don't jump like that," Isshin said lightly, patting shoulders as if nothing happened.

"I'm not that rainy-night monster you've been talking about."

Still, the three looked stunned.

A Shinigami captain—especially Isshin, famous for being lazy—showing up in the Human World?

That alone felt like a bad omen.

Isshin didn't bother explaining. He simply warned them not to wander around and not to overthink it.

The Sky Turns

Then—

as if the world mocked him—

BOOOOOM—!!

Thunder rolled above.

Heavy clouds swallowed the sky, and the first raindrops tapped against their faces.

"…You've gotta be kidding me."

"Clouds… rain…"

"Don't tell me my mouth just cursed us."

Isshin stiffened.

And when the thunder rumbled again and the rain grew heavier—

even Isshin lost his composure.

For some reason, staring at the black clouds and the rising downpour…

he had a powerful feeling:

The truth he'd insisted on investigating—

that "rainy-night monster"—

might be about to show itself.

Karakura Suburbs — Visored Base Ruins

On the shattered remains of the Visoreds' hideout—

"WHAT?!"

"You're not a pursuer sent by the Gotei 13…"

"You're Aizen's enemy?!"

"You expect us to believe that?!"

Shouts burst out one after another.

While Isshin encountered the patrol soldiers—

Bai Chen had already "made peace" with the Visoreds and openly declared his stance:

He wasn't here with hostile intent—

and he was already a marked enemy in Aizen's eyes.

Their first reaction was instinctive disbelief.

Of course it was.

They'd just been beaten senseless…

and had their base erased from the map.

Bai Chen stood atop a heap of broken stone, looking down at them, watching their expressions with calm amusement.

"I knew you'd react like this…"

Then Shinji's face twisted, and he gestured at the devastation around them.

"Not…"

"Bai Chen—if you really didn't come with hostility…"

"THEN WHY DID YOU DEMOLISH OUR HOME?!"

"We spent decades building this place!"

"And you flattened it in one move!"

Shinji looked like he wanted to vomit blood.

First they got destroyed.

Then their base got destroyed.

And worst of all—

they couldn't even demand compensation.

Bai Chen cleared his throat.

"About that…"

"Isn't it you who attacked first?"

"The moment we met, you tried to surround and restrain me."

"What I did was nothing more than defensive counterattack."

That single sentence jammed the Visoreds' throats.

Every one of them had something they wanted to argue—

but none of them had a clean rebuttal.

Shinji opened his mouth, turned red, struggled…

then finally gave up and forced the conversation back onto what mattered.

"…You're clearing your position now."

"Should I take that to mean…"

"…you want to build a relationship with us?"

His tone was cautious, probing.

Even after that humiliating battle, Shinji could tell something obvious:

Bai Chen had dropped his "Sage Mode" posture.

He wasn't pressing them with killing intent.

He was here to talk.

Bai Chen met Shinji's eyes and nodded.

"Exactly."

"To be precise…"

"I want the Visored Legion to form an alliance with me."

The moment those words landed—

the entire atmosphere changed.

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