Chapter 211 – 211 ⥤ Gazes from the Darkness

In the empty research room.

A figure darted between the equipment, working with frantic precision. A pot of soup bubbled ominously, strange creature parts floating in its thick broth.

Kisuke held a book, periodically adding mysterious ingredients like some medieval witch.

{T/N: Here comes the Holloween… please understand the joke.}

“Strange, I followed the recipe exactly, yet the final product looks nothing like the sample.” He muttered, scratching his head in confusion. Something felt missing.

With his scientific rigor, he shouldn’t have made any mistakes.

Perhaps the recipe itself was flawed?

Kisuke pulled on heat-resistant gloves and lifted the pot down, intending to review the recipe one more time to identify the issue.

Just then, someone walked in.

“Oh, Kisuke, you knew I was coming? How thoughtful of you to prepare miso soup.”

Akira strolled over to the pot, produced his personal bowl and chopsticks, and ladled out some of the green-smoking miso soup.

“Captain, don’t! This is a failed experiment — I was about to dispose of it!” Kisuke tried to intervene, but Akira was too quick.

“Nonsense! I’ll be the judge of that!”

To Kisuke’s horror, Akira promptly emptied the entire pot.

“Mediocre — nowhere near Sōsuke’s level. The color’s off, but it’s passable.” He grinned, “Kisuke, want to know what’s missing?”

Kisuke’s mouth twitched. Though no chef himself, he could judge food by its appearance, aroma, and taste. That miso soup might not have been lethal, but it certainly wasn’t fit for consumption.

His Captain’s iron stomach defied reason.

“What is it?”

“Soul!”

Kisuke furrowed his brows.

“The most important ingredient in cooking is soul.” Akira declared, “It’s hard to explain, but you’ll understand once you taste Sōsuke’s cooking.”

{T/N: Hold up, let him cook!}

Something clicked in Kisuke’s mind.

He’d heard of Aizen’s culinary prowess. When Yuzuriha Kiryu was developing certain technology, she had enlisted the entire 12th Division’s research staff to create various dishes.

Aizen, a recent addition to the 12th Division, had distinguished himself as one of the finest. His luminous dishes became legendary works. Even Yuzuriha repeatedly declared that no one in the 12th Division could match Aizen’s cooking.

Given his Captain’s frequent visits to mooch meals at the 12th Division, Kisuke finally grasped the core issue.

Could soul truly be the secret behind those glowing dishes?

As he pondered this, Akira set down his chopsticks with a serious expression, “Kisuke, I have a question.”

Kisuke grimaced, “Captain, I won’t have time this month. That shadow space concept you proposed can’t be completed anytime soon.”

Akira erupted, “Am I the sort of boss who arbitrarily exploits employees?”

Kisuke’s mouth twitched. He wanted to say yes but valued his physical well-being too much.

Considering how petty the person was, he wisely swallowed his words. In this situation, the slightest misstep could be fatal.

“Please go ahead.” Kisuke yielded under duress.

Akira smiled, “Are you interested in working somewhere else?”

Hearing this, Kisuke’s eyes lit up like a drowning man seeing the last ray of hope for survival, suddenly bursting with unprecedented excitement.

“Could it be… are you planning to transfer me to another Division?”

Akira waved his hands frantically, “How could that be possible? Don’t think too much. You’re born of the Eleventh Division and you’ll die in the Eleventh Division. You’ll never leave in this lifetime.”

An expression of indignant grief crossed Kisuke’s face. He wished he could draw Benihime and cut down the bird-brain before him.

But given the vast difference in their combat abilities, such thoughts could only be realized in dreams. He decided — tonight he’d stack his pillow higher.

Under the infinite worker’s puzzled gaze, Akira briefly described his plans with Aizen and explained their current progress.

As the explanation continued, Kisuke’s expression shifted repeatedly — from bewilderment to shock, then to complete daze.

He had suspected his Captain’s motives before, but given how the person often seemed to have nothing but muscle for brains, he had dismissed his concerns.

Who would have thought this guy would drop such a bombshell?

Soul prohibition experiments, ruling Las Noches, conquering Hueco Mundo, modifying Hollows — each was an earth-shattering matter.

Having finally digested the shock Akira had given him, he took a deep breath and asked seriously.

“I want to know, Captain, what is your true purpose? Is it really as rumored, to overthrow Captain-Commander Yamamoto and take his place, unifying Soul Society?”

Akira crossed his arms, his lips curling upward, “How narrow-minded, too narrow-minded. I’ve said so much, yet you’re still confined to this tiny Seireitei? Look further ahead. Our journey is to the stars and seas!”

Kisuke’s breath caught — this answer was very much in line with this guy’s character.

“Kisuke, what factors do you think could threaten Soul Society right now?” Akira changed the question, “The kind that could affect world balance.”

Kisuke wanted to say “aren’t you one?” but his strong survival instinct made him modify his words:

“If I had to say, maybe Hell?”

As everyone knew, when Captains with Reiatsu of Rank 3 or higher died, their Reishi had to fall into Hell.

Over time, the balance between the two worlds would completely break, and when that happened, the gates of Hell would open, and the apocalypse would follow.

However, with Akira occasionally fishing in Hell now, the speed of the balance being broken had greatly slowed. Strictly speaking, he not only wouldn’t destroy the world but was actually an important factor in preventing its destruction.

Soul Society could do without anyone else, but it absolutely couldn’t do without the Kenpachi, Akira Kisaragi.

{T/N: Here’s the question: is our MC the 9th or 10th Kenpachi? Consider that Sōya temporarily passed the title to the Lieutenant of the 11th Division so that he could pass it to Akira as soon as he graduated and became Captain of the division. So technically, the title was passed to someone else, and then taken back again. I personally prefer to believe he is the 10th Kenpachi, it sounds better.}

“Half right.” Akira smiled, “Hell is just one of them. The immediate threat comes from the Lichtreich from hundreds of years ago.”

Kisuke frowned deeply.

As a scientist and scholar, he naturally knew the reason behind the Gotei 13’s creation.

Their purpose was to eliminate the Quincy who had initiated the Race War.

But hadn’t Captain-Commander Shigekuni Yamamoto killed Yhwach, the Quincy King?

Seeing that this foolish youngster hadn’t yet reached the level of treating the Daireishokairō as his personal library, he promptly shared intelligence about the Wandenreich.

After hearing the explanation, Kisuke fell silent.

He was stunned to learn that Yhwach wasn’t dead at all — instead, the Quincy King had been lurking in Soul Society’s shadows, building a new empire while gathering strength for his next war.

This revelation shocked him as much as watching Akira consume his experimental miso soup.

“Captain, I never imagined…” Kisuke sighed deeply after a moment’s pause, “You are truly noble, willing to wade through filth to protect Soul Society. Such determination—I cannot match it.”

Akira’s expression suggested this was only natural.

After all, this youngster was far inferior in both wisdom and talent, so it made perfect sense that he couldn’t measure up.

Kisuke studied him thoughtfully for a moment.

“Since the Captain has made such a sincere invitation, it would be discourteous of me to refuse. However, before that… Could you show me Las Noches?”

⤫⤬⤫⤬⤫⤬⤫⤬⤫⤬

Akira readily agreed to Kisuke’s request.

He personally guided him through Las Noches, introducing each Arrancar — including Starrk and the others.

The impressive assembly left Kisuke awestruck. According to Shin’ō Academy texts, the current Las Noches possessed enough power to annihilate all of Soul Society.

Without any grandstanding, Akira had achieved something remarkable. Once his power grew further, he might truly accomplish the extraordinary feat of overturning the heavens.

Most notably, Kisuke observed that Las Noches’s atmosphere mirrored the 11th Division so closely it could have been its twin.

Various types of Hollows coexisted there, and though they sparred occasionally, they maintained an overall harmony. Their faces showed none of the violence and negativity typically associated with Hollows.

After careful consideration, Kisuke decided to join Las Noches as an observer — partly to keep Akira from straying off course.

While Kisuke familiarized himself with Las Noches, the God-King headed to a laboratory.

⤫⤬⤫⤬⤫⤬⤫⤬⤫⤬

“Sōsuke!”

At the sound of that blood pressure-raising voice, Aizen frowned and halted his forbidden experiment.

Looking up, he saw Akira barge in, completely disregarding others, already launching into his nonsensical chatter.

“Kisuke is quite sensible after all. After I reasoned with him and appealed to his emotions, he immediately bowed his head in submission. He even said, ‘I had wandered half my life, only regretting never meeting a wise lord. If you would not reject me, I wish to take you as my adoptive father’…”

{T/N: The lineage is expanding. Yoruichi is already a stepmom, even before the marriage.}

After filtering through the exaggerations, Aizen nodded slightly.

Kisuke Urahara was indeed clever — though principled, he would make pragmatic decisions after carefully assessing situations.

Moreover, since Akira had shown genuine sincerity, he would naturally earn Kisuke’s authentic trust in return.

Additionally, while their actions violated Soul Society’s laws, they remained within acceptable bounds. All things considered, Kisuke had no reason to refuse.

“I understand.” Aizen nodded, “As it happens, I’ve completed what you asked me to develop earlier.”

Hearing this, Akira’s eyes lit up, “Quick, bring it out!”

⤫⤬⤫⤬⤫⤬⤫⤬⤫⤬

In an empty palace.

“Though Kaidō belongs to the same category as Hadō and Bakudō, they have fundamental differences.” Aizen explained seriously, “Since Kaidō lacks incantations, it requires more attention to minute control. The same applies to its patterns. For example, the branch point at node three…”

For once, Akira didn’t complain about his long-windedness and quietly listened to the explanation.

However, when Aizen finished explaining, he suddenly noticed someone’s head drooping, accompanied by steady breathing sounds.

⤫ Hadō #63: Raikōhō ⥤ Thunder Roar Sear! ⤬

A brilliant golden lightning pillar erupted in the palace, instantly engulfing the completely disrespectful person.

After the commotion, Akira memorized all the Kaidō patterns.

He began the engraving. The procedure matched the previous one, though it demanded more attention to detail.

Strangely, throughout the engraving process, Akira felt no pain at all. Instead, a cool, soothing sensation spread across his body, as if smooth hands were giving him a massage.

Was this what Kaidō felt like? So different from that flashy, gaudy Hadō!

Akira’s expression turned comfortable, looking thoroughly pleased.

Aizen narrowed his eyes slightly, his blood pressure rising. Here he was, worried about potential conflicts between the Kaidō and Hadō patterns, while someone was acting so shamelessly. It was inexplicably irritating.

As the final Reiatsu burst forth, black markings appeared across Akira’s body.

Seeing this, Aizen couldn’t help but recall a scene from Hell.

When Akira activated his Bankai, similar patterns had appeared on his body. Though later questioning revealed his Bankai was merely an all-around enhancement, with the black patterns serving as decoration.

But instinct told him things weren’t that simple, especially after this guy had mentioned the planets and chains.

“Do you feel any changes?” Aizen asked as Akira opened his eyes.

“Hmm, seems like, perhaps…” Akira furrowed his brows, “The same as before?”

He tried activating the Kaidō patterns several times but nothing happened. After brief consideration, he drew Aizen’s Kyōka Suigetsu.

Aizen: “?”

Before he could speak, he saw his friend swing the blade at his own arm.

Clang!

The sound of metal collision echoed through the empty palace. A barely visible cut appeared at the point of impact. Then, before their astonished eyes, the wound healed at a visible speed.

Akira sensed it and exclaimed, “Only minimal Reiatsu consumed. It’s very similar to Harribel and the others’ High-Speed Regeneration.”

With this ability, his endurance would greatly increase.

He could already envision himself defeating Yama-jii and laughing heartily while sitting in the Captain-Commander’s chair. On his right thigh sat a Storm Princess, and on his left thigh sat a Blood Queen!

Now was fantasy time!

However, just as the wound completely healed, branch-like patterns flickered briefly on his arm.

Aizen’s brows furrowed deeply, “Is this… A Quincy’s Blut Vene?”

⤫⤬⤫⤬⤫⤬⤫⤬⤫⤬

In endless darkness, a pair of crimson eyes slowly opened. An authoritative voice resonated in the void, creating eerie echoes as dense, heavy Reiatsu spread.

“What is this… A power independent of my bloodline?”

⤫⤬⤫

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Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep