Bleach: Stirring Up a Storm

”How is that possible! How could we possibly fit this many people in here!”

Renji yelled loudly, but the situation didn’t seem that simple. ”Still, we really don’t have anywhere else to stay. Could you please try your best to help us find a place to crash?”

*Sure enough, it’s exactly like this,* Ichigo thought, covering his eyes as if doing so would mean Renji and the others had never shown up, sparing him the headache of figuring out what to do with them.

To allow such an unruly bunch to just barge into someone’s home, the team leader either had terrible taste in personnel, or he was no different from the people he brought—just a bastard using official business as an excuse for a field trip...

”Achoo!” Currently sitting in the Urahara Shop, Kōe had no idea he was being cursed as a bastard again. He rubbed his nose and sighed, ”The weather really got cold all of a sudden after autumn set in.”

”Do Shinigami even catch colds from the weather in the World of the Living?” Yoruichi clicked her tongue, mercilessly exposing Kōe. ”You’re definitely just being cursed at by someone.”

”Don’t be so blunt about it. I’ll end up losing sleep, spending the whole night wondering which guy out there has misunderstood me again.”

”It might also be *those* guys.”

”Which is exactly why I’d spend the whole night thinking about such a boring thing.” Kōe rolled his eyes at Yoruichi, who refused to be outdone and made a face right back at him.

*These two are such children,* Urahara thought, giving a dry cough and lightly tapping his fingers against the table. If he just let them be, he’d probably end up getting dragged off-topic by them too.

”You two, we still have actual business to discuss.”

”Oh, right. Let’s continue our previous topic.” Kōe was about to speak but paused. ”What were we just talking about again?”

”That Aizen had been looking up a massive amount of geographical data regarding the World of the Living in the Great Spirit Book Gallery.”

Right. Kōe slapped his forehead. He had really been confused by Yoruichi—or perhaps it was just because he felt more relaxed when he was around her?

”At the same time, I also found a document in the Great Spirit Book Gallery regarding the Jūreichi. The so-called Jūreichi refers to a spiritual singularity located in the World of the Living. Interestingly, this location isn’t fixed; it shifts and changes with the passing eras.”

Kōe smiled and continued, ”There is no set pattern, and its cycle of change is extremely chaotic. Therefore, determining the location of the Jūreichi requires observation over time. The specific landmass that most easily gathers souls in any given era is highly likely to be the Jūreichi.”

Urahara lowered his head in thought. He had also briefly skimmed through related materials in the past. The Jūreichi didn’t just refer to a place with dense Reiryoku; its uniqueness was closer to a much more ethereal concept—aptitude.

The majority of humans born and raised on the Jūreichi would be endowed with spiritual aptitude far surpassing that of ordinary people. This aptitude might never awaken, but as long as there was a catalyst to trigger it, these humans could begin interacting with the world of souls ahead of time, despite their mortal bodies.

”So, you think Aizen wasn’t looking through those documents to find a suitable experimental site, but rather to locate the Jūreichi? And the Jūreichi of this era is right under our feet?”

Kōe nodded. ”Inoue, Chad, and the others all possess unique abilities. Furthermore, I recall that a normal human girl managed to survive an encounter with a mature Arrancar. So, while it’s only a hypothesis, Karakura Town is most likely the Jūreichi of this generation.”

”In other words, by suddenly sending two mature Arrancar over, Aizen’s true goal might have been to confirm whether or not Karakura Town is still the Jūreichi.”

The intelligence Kōe brought was highly valuable. Following this line of thought, Urahara continued, ”And by continuing to keep an eye on Karakura Town, we can assume Aizen has other arrangements for the Jūreichi... I think I understand.”

Possessing an endless curiosity for all things since childhood, Urahara had seized every opportunity to read just as many documents as Aizen had. Not to mention, he also had the experience of traveling to the Soul King Palace. It wasn’t strange at all that he could figure out Aizen’s motives.

”But how did you figure it out, Kōe?”

*Figure it out?* A pile of question marks instantly popped up in Yoruichi’s mind. What exactly did these two suddenly figure out?

It had to be said, Urahara understood Kōe’s style far too well. Coupled with a mind that was significantly calmer than Yoruichi’s, he was always able to immediately probe the secrets hidden deep within Kōe’s heart just from his words and demeanor.

With the clues already converging on the Jūreichi, they were only one step away from uncovering Aizen’s true motives. Under these circumstances, it was impossible for Kōe to just drop what he was doing and run off to the World of the Living in such an anticlimactic manner.

”Although the Jūreichi grants exceptional spiritual aptitude to the humans within its area, Shinigami, who are already spiritual bodies, are barely affected by it. That’s why the Seireitei only recorded the existence of this peculiar location, but never bothered to protect or utilize it.”

”And its most prominent feature is that ethereal aptitude. But since Aizen hopes to use the Hōgyoku to break boundaries, he no longer needs to use its aptitude-altering properties to open his own door. Since the door isn’t on himself, it can only be external, right?”

”Hueco Mundo, the World of the Living, Soul Society... The only door that Aizen isn’t sure he can open, even with the Hōgyoku, can only be that one—the door leading to the Soul King Palace.”

He had to admire him. Urahara smiled and shook his head. It should be known that Kōe had never been to the Soul King Palace, nor did he have many opportunities to browse the archives in the Great Spirit Book Gallery. To be able to analyze so much just from the Jūreichi and the Hōgyoku was truly impressive.

”Are you certain?” Yoruichi asked in a low, serious voice. Even if it was Kōe’s deduction, since it involved the Soul King, they had to be cautious.

”I can’t be certain, but this is absolutely the maximum extent to which the Jūreichi can be utilized. Applied to Aizen, I think it fits perfectly.” After saying this, Kōe shifted his tone, continuing with a hint of self-deprecation, ”Of course, if he hasn’t thought that far ahead and simply wanted to whittle down our potential fighting force by targeting Ichigo, I’d be much happier.”

Yoruichi turned her gaze back to Urahara. Although his earlier words essentially agreed with Kōe’s guess, she still needed to confirm it.

”If the traces Aizen left behind aren’t misleading, then the answer they point to is already very clear. Confirmation is only a matter of time.”

*Bang!* Yoruichi slammed her fist onto the table. That self-righteous, arrogant bastard didn’t understand what the Soul King truly meant at all!

”We need to protect Karakura Town immediately! Notify the Gotei 13, and then...”

Yoruichi’s momentum weakened the more she spoke, suddenly realizing a problem. If Urahara only just figured this out now due to a lack of information, then why hadn’t Kōe informed Old Man Yama of this hypothesis? Was it just because he wasn’t sure, or because he specifically came to verify it with Urahara? It probably wasn’t that simple.

”What do you need time for?”

”If our reaction is too fast, some things will become rather difficult to execute. I think...” Before Kōe could finish his sentence, Yoruichi raised a hand to cut him off.

”No matter what you’re thinking, when it comes to the safety of the Soul King, you must be cautious and avoid any possible accidents.”

”The opponent is Aizen Sōsuke!”

Kōe paused for a moment, sitting up slightly straighter, and spoke to Yoruichi with absolute seriousness. ”If the opponent were only Aizen Sōsuke, I might be sitting on pins and needles. But with the Hōgyoku added into the mix, there is no possibility of us failing.”

”Huh?”

”I trust Urahara’s attitude and judgment regarding the Hōgyoku. After all, he is its true creator.” Kōe finished speaking and turned to Urahara with a smile. ”You aren’t going to tell me now that your judgment was wrong, are you?”

Urahara let out a soft sigh, resting his head against his left hand as he smiled helplessly.

”Looking at you, I have to admit, even with small eyes, one can see a whole lot of things.”