CHAPTER 460: CHAPTER 460: IT HAD TO BE AIZEN’S DOING

Masatsuki Aozaki stared coldly at the bodies before him, a faint sneer tugging at the corner of his lips.

"But I really have to thank Kagerōza Inaba this time. If it weren’t for the Reigai mess, it wouldn’t have been this easy to send so many people off at once."

"The old man was a real headache, but now everything’s legitimate and aboveboard. No need to worry about making the Gotei 13 restless."

Masatsuki chuckled, visibly pleased with how things had turned out.

He believed the plan had been seamless—nothing short of perfection.

"Oh, right. Don’t forget to confiscate their family assets for Seireitei. Aizen still has plenty he wants to do, and funds are tight right now," he added, brushing a hand through Nemu Kurotsuchi’s long hair as a final reminder.

By then, the sky had grown darker, thick clouds gathering overhead, as though signaling a much greater storm on the horizon.

Nemu stood quietly at his side, letting out a silent sigh.

What consequences would this bloodbath bring?

And how would Masatsuki Aozaki seize this opportunity to further his ambitions?

Would the Three Worlds really become a better place?

She didn’t know. It wasn’t her concern. Her world had never been that big.

As the great machine that was the Gotei 13 began to move in full force, the nobles realized they were completely outmatched.

In this game of power and profit, they were doomed to become casualties.

And Masatsuki Aozaki now stood on the winning side.

His laughter echoed through the air, like a harbinger of a new era...

Yet even as they trembled in fear, the nobles began to entertain other thoughts. After all, the ones who had played lapdogs for Masatsuki had suffered losses—but compared to those being purged now, their fates looked far more favorable.

Given the choice, better to act than wait to be slaughtered...

Compared to the survival of their family lines, things like honor or disgrace were fleeting and meaningless.

They acted immediately.

In the days that followed, countless nobles lined up to visit the Aozaki household, pledging their loyalty to Masatsuki Aozaki.

At the same time, Masatsuki showed no hesitation in eliminating a number of unruly Judges and Wise Men.

Once that was done, he issued a direct order to the Gotei 13—under the guise of a state of emergency, the entire Seijōtōkyorin was to be sealed off, with no one from the outside permitted to enter.

From that moment on, Aizen began frequently traveling back and forth between the Central 46 Compound. Every one of his proposals was swiftly approved.

Many of these suggestions would’ve been inconceivable under normal circumstances.

But right now, the nobles were in a state of utter panic—living in constant fear, unable to sleep at night.

Hardly anyone noticed what was really going on.

Those few who did were the shrewd and calculating types—foxlike in their cunning.

Their minds were still sharp, and all they could think about was how to cling tighter to the towering tree that was Masatsuki Aozaki.

And so, power in Seireitei began to shift rapidly...

...

Inside a spatial bubble belonging to the Ryōdoji Family in the Dangai, in a hidden laboratory—

Kagerōza Inaba stood before a massive screen, his brow tightly furrowed.

Ever since Masatsuki Aozaki returned from the World of the Living, Kagerōza had been making preparations, eager for the day he could go head-to-head with his powerful rival.

But after waiting so long...

The news he received was not of battle—but of Masatsuki Aozaki leading a purge of Reigai throughout Soul Society.

What puzzled him most wasn’t that his Reigai were found and eliminated with such precision.

It was that the number Masatsuki had supposedly purged didn’t line up at all with Kagerōza’s own loss records—the gap was massive.

Could it be that he had created so many Reigai that he forgot to record the data?

No—that’s impossible. A genius like him would never make such a basic mistake.

Sure, some of the purged were indeed Reigai he had created, but the vast majority had nothing to do with him. Even if he wanted to, with the current level of technology and materials, it would be impossible to mass-produce that many.

Masatsuki Aozaki must be out of his mind.

Is he seriously planning to kill everyone just because he can’t tell who’s a Reigai?

That doesn’t make sense.

If even he couldn’t tell who the Reigai were, then how did the Gotei 13 manage to root out their infiltrators so precisely?

Damn it... this has to be deliberate!

And now, for whatever reason, he’s in control of the Central 46 Compound...

So this is all just an excuse to purge dissenters!?

That old fool Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto actually handed the position of Captain-Commander to someone like that?

Furious, Kagerōza Inaba clenched his fists, blood dripping from his palms as his nails dug deep into the skin.

He had never felt this kind of rage before.

He’d always seen himself as a genius, with only Mayuri Kurotsuchi, Kisuke Urahara, and Aizen Sōsuke as his intellectual equals.

Masatsuki Aozaki?

He was nothing more than a muscle-bound brute.

Yet now, he’d been completely outplayed by the very person he used to look down on.

Wait a minute—Aizen is Masatsuki’s Lieutenant. This had to be Aizen’s idea!

Yes, this was definitely his doing!

After a brief outburst, he quickly composed himself, forcing his anger down.

...No, something doesn’t add up.

His goal was to destroy Seireitei, to make those arrogant nobles pay for rejecting his worth.

But Masatsuki Aozaki’s actions didn’t seem to run counter to that goal.

If anything, wasn’t he doing exactly what Kagerōza had always wanted?

As conflicted as he felt, after some thought, Kagerōza decided it was best to hold back for now.

Sending more Reigai to Soul Society at this point would be nothing short of suicide.

As for those already sent—they were as good as lost.

Still, as long as he remained, the Reigai could always be replaced.

After all, thieves can strike for a thousand days, but no one can guard against them forever.

He could always wait until Masatsuki settled down, then send new Reigai into Soul Society.

In short, now was not the time to give up. For now, he’d lay low and observe.

Thinking this, Kagerōza let out a sigh of relief and slowly sank into his chair.

He had to admit—even now, he didn’t dare face Masatsuki head-on.

If he had completed the fusion with Nozomi Kujō and become Ōko Yushima, he was confident he’d be invincible.

But as Kagerōza Inaba...

Yeah, not a good idea.

Just then, a sudden voice rang out behind him.

"Kagerōza-sama, if I were you, I wouldn’t be so relaxed."

The voice cut through the air like a chill wind, making Kagerōza’s heart skip a beat.

He looked up sharply, a flicker of surprise and unease in his eyes—then quickly masked it with composure.

"This isn’t the time to rest."

Hearing that familiar voice stirred a flicker of annoyance in Kagerōza’s chest.

Living under someone else’s roof really meant no privacy at all.

Frowning, he turned around.

There stood a figure who had silently appeared in the room—Ganryū Ryōdoji.

He seemed utterly fascinated by his surroundings, carefully inspecting every detail.