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"Uncoordinated? Captain Unohana, do you mean to say Sōsuke is not actually dead?"

Kyoraku Shunsui's eyes narrowed as he studied the body on the bed. From its faintly dissipating reiatsu to its stillness, there was no flaw he could detect. To his perception, the corpse lying there truly was Aizen.

"As expected of Captain Unohana," Shiraha thought. Even if it was Aizen's Kyōka Suigetsu, the so-called Complete Hypnosis, Retsu Unohana could still discern from the corpse that something was out of alignment.

Yoruichi, standing nearby, also gave her a look of quiet surprise.

"Of course, perhaps this is only my mistake. It may simply be that I am too busy and weary of late," Unohana said softly, shaking her head. Her voice carried doubt, for even she was not entirely certain of the anomaly. She spoke only because both Shiraha and Shunsui were present—and only after Komamura Sajin and Tōsen Kaname had already departed.

"Captain Unohana, please place a barrier. What I am about to say must remain secret." Shiraha's tone was grave.

Yoruichi raised an eyebrow at his sudden seriousness. She had expected Shiraha to remain silent until Aizen revealed himself, yet here he was, ready to speak plainly.

"I understand." Unohana's calm reply carried no hesitation. As the captain of the Fourth Division, her mastery extended beyond Kaidō and kendō. Few realized her knowledge of barriers. Extending her hand, she began a low incantation. A golden sheen rippled across the ward, and in moments, the entire chamber was sealed from all outside perception. No one beyond would sense a thing.

"The barrier is set. Speak freely, Shiraha," Unohana said.

"Captain Unohana, your instincts are correct. The corpse before us is not Aizen Sōsuke. His true body is hidden, waiting for the right time to execute a larger plan." Shiraha's words were measured, heavy with intent.

At once, Unohana and Shunsui's expressions shifted to disbelief.

"Shiraha… what do you mean?" Shunsui pressed, brows furrowed.

"Exactly what I said. Aizen is not dead. The body you see is nothing more than his Zanpakutō's ability. That is why Captain Unohana sensed that it was out of sync."

"Impossible," Unohana murmured, her calm breaking slightly.

"Aizen's Kyōka Suigetsu is no simple water-type Zanpakutō, Captain Kyoraku," Shiraha explained. "Its true nature is illusion. Its ability is Complete Hypnosis—a power that seizes control of all five senses."

The words struck like a thunderclap. Both captains stiffened, pupils contracting sharply. To hear of a Zanpakutō that could manipulate the five senses so completely was beyond anything they had encountered.

Shiraha continued without pause, describing Kyōka Suigetsu's true abilities in detail. When he finished, Shunsui spoke first.

"Then… could it be that Aizen used Kyōka Suigetsu to frame Urahara Kisuke? The Hollowfication incident, the disappearance of those souls—was that all his doing?"

Suspicion that had lingered for years suddenly aligned. Ten years ago, the massacre in the Maggot's Nest and the slaughter of Yiguan Banshōfang's men had remained unsolved mysteries. If Shiraha's words were true, then every thread tied back to Aizen Sōsuke.

The mastermind Yamamoto, Unohana, Shunsui, and even the Kuchiki clan elders had searched for all these years had been hiding in plain sight—within Seireitei itself.

"Since you already know this truth," Unohana said, her gaze narrowing, "why did you not tell Captain Komamura and Captain Tōsen earlier? Unless…"

Her voice trailed, yet her mind had already drawn the conclusion. Shiraha's silence toward them meant only one possibility: that at least one of them stood with Aizen.

"Captain Unohana, you can already guess," Shiraha said with a faint, almost weary smile. "There was one among us who served Aizen."

"Who?" Her voice sharpened, quiet anger breaking through her composed exterior.

"Ninth Division Captain, Tōsen Kaname." Shiraha did not flinch as he spoke the name. With Aizen's ability already revealed, there was no point in holding this back. What he did not disclose, however, was the full scope of his own knowledge of their cooperation.

"A traitor…" Unohana's usually calm body trembled, the words escaping like venom. Anger surged in her heart, tightly controlled but undeniable.

"What? Tōsen Kaname, Aizen's subordinate?" Shunsui's face hardened, disbelief coloring his tone. He had suspected Aizen's treachery but not that another captain would willingly serve him. He had imagined perhaps a vice-captain, or low-ranking officers—but never this.

"Shiraha, with me, Shunsui, and you—along with Komamura—we should have enough strength to take Tōsen alive," Unohana said.

Her logic was sound. Four captains combined could easily corner and subdue one, even if that captain was Tōsen.

But Shiraha shook his head. "Captain Unohana, Tōsen Kaname is nothing more than Aizen's pawn. Capturing him alive changes nothing. On the contrary, it will alert Aizen that we are aware of his movements. With Tōsen's loyalty, you will gain no information even under capture. Aizen will abandon him without hesitation."

The truth was simple: Tōsen was expendable. His worth lay only in his usefulness as a piece on Aizen's board. To expose their hand now would be far more dangerous than allowing him to remain.

Shunsui exhaled slowly, then asked the question weighing on him. "Shiraha… how do you know all of this? For Aizen to hide within Seireitei so flawlessly, not even Yamamoto-sōtaichō sensed him. He has deceived comrades for decades. How could you, of all people, have uncovered his secret?"

Shiraha met his gaze evenly. He had expected this question.

"During my years stationed in the World of the Living, I met with Yoruichi-dono and Urahara Kisuke by chance. It was they who revealed this truth to me, including Aizen's Zanpakutō ability."

His smile carried no hint of shame. If blame needed to fall somewhere, Urahara Kisuke was the perfect scapegoat. In the shadow of suspicion, there was no safer name to hide behind than the exiled founder of the Twelfth Division.

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