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Second Division, Surveillance Building.
Upon entering the Surveillance Building, as Ishikawa reached the outside of the Surveillance Division, the door was pulled open, and several figures swarmed out.
"Boss, you're simply too cool."
"Are you hurt?"
"What a joke, that kind of trashy Hollow, even if Boss was in a restricted state, it couldn't possibly hurt him."
"Sit down quickly, I've already ordered the Technology Development Bureau to lift the restriction."
"Seriously… I only went to the Human World for two minutes, and they still had to impose a restriction."
"…"
Under the enthusiastic support of the Supervisory Team members, Ishikawa, who had originally only intended to leave his Zanpakuto here and depart, was forcefully dragged into the Surveillance Division by everyone.
"Boss, I broadcasted your heroic posture the moment you arrived in the Human World!"
Nagano Kasyuu's overly proud words made Ishikawa understand why these people were reacting so strongly. Ishikawa's mouth twitched slightly: "What's there to see? It was just a small Hollow. Even if I hadn't gone, that kid from the Sugawa family could have handled it. It's just that President Sugawa of the Golden Seal Association is too doting on his son."
By the end, Ishikawa couldn't help but feel a bit speechless.
He didn't know what was going on in Karakura Town recently; Hollows were appearing with extremely high frequency, and many of them were large Hollows that had passed their initial stage. Although Sugawa Hato—that is, President Sugawa's son—was strong enough to deal with them without much difficulty, President Sugawa, as a father, was truly doting to the extreme.
It was said that because he provided Captain Kurotsuchi Mayuri with a large sum of research funds, whenever a large Hollow appeared, he would receive the news even faster than the Supervisory Team.
Even the slightest disturbance would prompt him to notify Ishikawa for immediate assistance.
However…
Although going to the Human World from time to time was extremely troublesome for Ishikawa.
Because of this, President Sugawa's favorability towards Ishikawa greatly increased. Recently, he often acted as an intermediary, transferring many aristocratic matters that the Golden Seal Association would originally handle themselves to Ishikawa's Everything Store in the form of commissions.
These commissions were incredibly varied: some asked him to discipline a certain Shinigami, some asked him to mediate disputes, and others even asked him to investigate infidelity… After a period of time, Ishikawa discovered that the noble circles of Seireitei were truly chaotic.
There was nothing Ishikawa couldn't imagine that they couldn't do.
However, this was not surprising.
If it weren't for Central 46 pressing down on them, these guys, who had been living comfortably for hundreds of years and were bored out of their minds, would probably do even more outrageous things.
Originally, Ishikawa thought it was already absurd enough for those noble young masters and ladies to constantly run off to the Human World, but after deeper contact, he found that these people were actually the more normal nobles.
Those abnormal nobles… their actions were simply outrageous. Some even built execution grounds in their homes, which had long been explicitly forbidden, and then threw their errant servants in to watch them fight; others bought artificial Hollows used for experiments from the Technology Development Bureau and had them chase down errant servants.
Execution ground.
As the name suggests, it was a place for displaying execution performances.
In the past, the execution ground within Seireitei was a giant prison concealed by a soul-blocking membrane. At the bottom of the cave, on both sides, were two cell doors made entirely of spirit-killing stone; one door transported criminals into the execution ground, and when the other door opened, countless Hollows would emerge.
Perhaps to many, this was an incredibly dark custom, but for those nobles who were bored out of their minds, it was an entertainment activity that brought them great pleasure, because it allowed them to watch the bloody battles between Shinigami and Hollows up close from a safe, elevated platform without having to take risks.
However, this was a custom from many, many years ago.
Perhaps deeming it to have a bad influence, Central 46 abolished the execution ground system many years ago and strictly forbade anyone from privately constructing execution grounds.
The ruins of the original execution ground are now used as a garbage dump.
But many of those nobles secretly built execution grounds in their own homes.
Central 46 naturally couldn't be unaware of these nobles' actions, but those nobles were very clear about Central 46's bottom line. The 'consumables' they used were servants within their families who could be slaughtered at will, and the Hollows they used were all harmless artificial Hollows that wouldn't evolve no matter how many people they devoured, and were even often killed in return.
It's worth mentioning that…
These artificial Hollows were all provided by the Technology Development Bureau and were one of the important sources of the Technology Development Bureau's research funds.
Therefore, as long as it wasn't too excessive or widely publicized to cause a negative impact, Central 46 basically turned a blind eye.
However…
Those nobles didn't care about the internal workings of the prison, nor did they know how to manage and seal prisoners. Coupled with the crude facilities, these privately built execution grounds frequently experienced accidents.
Either the experimental Hollows would go berserk, or the prisoners would accumulate strength and riot.
These kinds of incidents were originally handled by the Golden Seal Association as an intermediary, who would then ask the Onmitsukidō to resolve them!
But ever since Ishikawa came along, whenever there was a problem with these nobles' execution grounds, they would ask Ishikawa to resolve it.
Because asking the Onmitsukidō to resolve it would inevitably require informing Central 46 first…
Although this was no secret in the eyes of Central 46, doing it secretly was different from doing it openly. Even if it was to give an explanation to the Onmitsukidō members involved, Central 46 would punish the main personnel, explicitly forbid the rebuilding of execution grounds, and maintain continuous supervision.
But handing it over to Ishikawa to handle was completely different; there was no need to worry that Central 46 would punish them for it.
Ishikawa didn't refuse this type of commission either.
Since they chose to sell their lives to nobles as slaves for enjoyment, being treated as consumables was, in Ishikawa's opinion, their just deserts.
However, there were a few individual nobles that Ishikawa reported to Captain Soi Fon afterwards.
Because…
These nobles used 'consumables' that were not servants they could slaughter at will, but rather commoners captured from Rukongai.
What kind of place is Rukongai?
Although Seireitei didn't care, Ishikawa considered Rukongai his own base.
Most of these nobles, reported by him, were secretly executed by the Onmitsukido dispatched by Soi Fon under Central 46's secret order. The remaining secondary participants were also secretly thrown into the Maggot's Nest, because capturing people from Rukongai also violated Central 46's bottom line.
It wasn't out of compassion, but rather because the vast majority of Gotei 13 Squad Members today originated from Rukongai, which has led to a slight shift in Central 46's attitude towards Rukongai in recent years.
Of course, only slightly!
Back to the main topic.
These nobles, secretly dealt with by Ishikawa, were not publicized thanks to Central 46's secret orders and the cooperation of the Golden Seal Association; instead, their deaths were announced as 'died of illness.' Thus, Ishikawa's Everything Store gained an excellent reputation among the nobility, and whenever they had a need, they would immediately think of Ishikawa's Everything Store.
Through this…
Ishikawa gained access to a lot of dirt on the nobles.
Ishikawa hadn't thought about how to use it yet, but he felt it might come in handy in the future, and it was always good to be more prepared.
Slurp—
Drinking the tea brewed by Kiyohara Tsumugiya and eating the dori monaka that noble Squad Members had bought for him in the Nobility Street, Ishikawa looked utterly content.
The so-called dori monaka was precisely the glutinous rice and red bean pastry with sake lees that Ishikawa had once eaten at the Omaeda Residence.
Ishikawa basically ate this sake-fragrant pastry every day.
Although it was so expensive… that Ishikawa felt like he was eating money with every bite, satisfying his craving with this pastry was clearly better than drinking alcohol.
And with Ishikawa's current business, eating a few less pieces each day was still barely affordable.
"Boss, no commissions today?"
Kiyohara Tsumugiya refilled Ishikawa's tea cup and smiled: "Normally, I see you bustling about everywhere. It's quite rare to see you so relaxed here."
"There are some, actually."
Ishikawa replied indistinctly, and after swallowing the food in his mouth, he continued: "It's just that my elder brother was kicked out of his home again for fighting a Shinigami in a tavern… So all the commissions from Rukongai were snatched away by him and a few of his subordinates. I was originally planning to go to work at the Comprehensive Relief Station today, but you guys dragged me in here."
"That Ganju-nii?"
Kiyohara Tsumugiya frowned upon hearing this and hesitated for a moment before saying, "Boss, should I look into that Shinigami who fought with Ganju-nii?"
"Don't cause trouble for people over personal matters."
Ishikawa shook his head: "Although that Shinigami caused a disturbance in the tavern, it was limited to just that. The reason they started fighting was entirely because Ganju proactively provoked him."
Kiyohara Tsumugiya nodded upon hearing this, feeling a surge of emotion in her heart, because although she had just said 'investigate,' what she actually meant was to ask Ishikawa if he wanted the Squad Members of the Supervisory Team to teach that Shinigami a lesson.
It should be known that the Supervisory Team has immense power in monitoring Shinigami; even if the other party hasn't committed any errors, they can be imprisoned and tormented for days under the pretense of 'questioning.'
However, Ishikawa has never once used such a privilege.
Since becoming the Glory captain of the Supervisory Team, Ishikawa has only quietly guided them in their training from behind the scenes, helped them manage the prisoners in the Maggot's Nest, and assisted the Squad Members of the Supervisory Team in sending dangerous individuals into the Maggot's Nest.
Kiyohara Tsumugiya is actually someone who, like Soi Fon, is extremely rigid and strictly adheres to regulations, never abusing her authority; otherwise, Soi Fon would not have placed her in such an important position.
But if Ishikawa had just said to investigate, she would have unhesitatingly carried out Ishikawa's command.
Even if…
She was the actual person in charge of the Supervisory Team, and Ishikawa was merely an Glory captain without any real authority.
However, all the Squad Members of the Supervisory Team, including Kiyohara Tsumugiya, regarded Ishikawa as their captain in their hearts.
Ishikawa naturally understood Kiyohara Tsumugiya's thoughts, but he would not abuse this authority, as his work in the Supervisory Team was entirely for Soi Fon's favor.
Ishikawa would never do anything that might lower her favorability.
"By the way, when I arrived, I saw people from the Technology Development Bureau leaving the Surveillance Building. What were they doing here?" Ishikawa said, then shook his head, "If it's inconvenient, never mind. I was just asking casually."
"There's nothing inconvenient about it."
Kiyohara Tsumugiya shook her head, "They were just here to discuss the sealing of Muken with us."
"Muken?"
Ishikawa was startled, "The eighth prison on the lowest level of that underground prison—Muken Hell? Is that under our jurisdiction too?"
"...Uh."
Kiyohara Tsumugiya looked at Ishikawa with a strange expression, "You didn't know?"
How would he know...
Ishikawa's mouth twitched slightly. No one had ever told him that the Supervisory Team was also responsible for managing Muken.
"Captain Soi Fon should have told you, right? The Supervisory Team is the organization responsible for overseeing all prisons in the Seireitei. Although Muken is somewhat special, it is still a prison, so it is naturally managed by our Supervisory Team and we maintain its seal."
Kiyohime Orihime continued, "However, during the tenure of the former Onmitsukidō Commander, Yoruichi, she argued that 'instead of concentrating all seals in one place for management, it's safer to disperse them to various locations,' and transferred a portion of the sealing mechanisms to the hands of the first Director of the Technology Development Bureau..."
At this point, she hesitated before continuing, "Although both of them 'left' the Seireitei afterwards, the original arrangement was not overturned but continued."
Ishikawa nodded. He didn't know much about Muken, only that it was where a certain person would be imprisoned later.
It is said to be a place where only darkness exists... or more precisely, a space where even darkness cannot be discerned, with no up, down, left, right, or gravity.
Prisoners confined there are bound by 'Bakudo Chairs,' their limbs restrained and their five senses sealed. It is more accurately described as a seal than an imprisonment.
"However, we don't pay much attention to Muken now."
Kiyohara Tsumugiya smiled, "Because more than half of both the Bakudo Chairs and the seals are personally overseen by the Director of the Technology Development Bureau. We are only responsible for daily inspections and maintaining the seals under our management, which is why we rarely discuss Muken."
After speaking, she carefully observed Ishikawa's reaction and, seeing that he wasn't overly interested, breathed a slight sigh of relief.
Because if Ishikawa had expressed a desire to visit Muken, she truly wouldn't have known whether to agree or not.
After all...
Muken is different from other prisons. It is where the most dangerous criminals are held. There have only been a handful of prisoners confined there in the entire history of the Soul Society.
Yet, the Soul Society expended an extraordinary amount of effort to maintain this space for those few individuals.
To prevent the sinners from perceiving the world, to conceal them from the 'world,' to make them forget the existence of the 'world' forever—this is a vast void created by the Soul Society to 'erase their existence.'
Even the Supervisory Team, which is responsible for management, does not know the origins or names of those prisoners.
Only one person is an exception.
That is the last prisoner to be confined there, over 240 years ago.
Eighth Kenpachi... Azashiro Soya!!
"Don't worry."
Ishikawa looked at Kiyohara Tsumugiya's expression, understood what she was thinking, and couldn't help but smile, "I was just asking casually. I wouldn't go to a place like that even if I could, and Captain Soi Fon and Central 46 probably wouldn't feel comfortable letting me go anyway."
Kiyohara Tsumugiya nodded. Captain Soi Fon was one thing, as she essentially treated Ishikawa as one of her own; but Central 46 still harbored a high degree of vigilance and distrust towards Ishikawa.
Beep, beep, beep, beep—
Just then, an alarm suddenly blared.
Ishikawa and Kiyohara Tsumugiya simultaneously looked in the direction of the alarm, only to see that the device emitting the alarm was the surveillance equipment Nagano Kasyuu had brought from her home.
The two walked behind Nagano Kasyuu and found her looking at the monitor with a puzzled expression.
"Strange? A false alarm?"
"What's wrong?"
Kiyohara Tsumugiya asked, somewhat puzzled.
"Ishikawa asked me to keep an eye on Sugawa Hato, so I set up a special alert for him. As long as a Hollow appears near him, it will immediately trigger an alarm." Nagano Kasyuu mumbled, looking at the image on the large screen, "Maybe I made a mistake in my operation; there was a false alarm just now."
"That's normal. Even the Technology Development Bureau frequently has false alarms; don't worry about it," a nearby Squad Member of the Supervisory Team said with a smile.
Ukitake Hiro chimed in, "Indeed, I've also received false alarms here."
"This is very normal; no need to dwell on it."
"..."
Listening to her colleagues, Nagano Kasyuu nodded, but before she could reply, Ishikawa's voice suddenly reached her ears.
"Wait, can this image be rewound?"
"Huh?"
Nagano Kasyuu was startled, then subconsciously nodded, "Yes, it can."
"Rewind it thirty seconds; I want to see."
"Yes."
Nagano Kasyuu didn't ask further but directly adjusted the image to rewind.
"Stop!"
Ishikawa raised his hand and pointed at the screen, "Enlarge this area."
Nagano Kasyuu complied, and the surrounding Squad Members of the Supervisory Team all gathered around, looking at the large screen. On the screen appeared a small girl in strange attire, with black hair, resembling a cursed doll.
"Kiyohara, what do you think?" Ishikawa asked Kiyohara Tsumugiya beside him.
Although the address was a bit strange, Kiyohara Tsumugiya didn't mind. She shook her head and said, "It should be a soul."
"It is indeed a soul."
"What's there to see about a 'soul'?"
"..."
Upon hearing this, everyone immediately lost interest.
Ishikawa, however, couldn't help but smile, looking at the young man who said there was nothing to see about a 'soul,' and said, "Haven't you always wanted to move out of the collective dormitory and buy an apartment in Seireitei on installment?"
"Huh?" He was slightly stunned.
"The additional reward for this thing is enough for a down payment on a two-bedroom, one-living room apartment with a yard."
"Huh?"
At these words, everyone in the Surveillance Division couldn't help but be stunned, then their expressions changed.
"You mean..." Kiyohara Tsumugiya was startled, "This is a Hollow?"
"Mm."
Ishikawa turned and picked up his Zanpakuto from the sofa, saying, "Notify the Golden Seal Association. I'm going to Karakura Town. Just say..."
"Grand Fisher has appeared."
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