Just as they were about to leave the vicinity of the Central 46, a figure, accompanied by the Corps of Punishment, walked slowly towards them.
It was Tokinada, who had just been sentenced to a hundred years in prison yet remained completely composed.
There was even a faint, barely perceptible smile on his face, as if he were heading to a banquet rather than to serve his sentence.
His gaze bypassed Setsuna and Aizen entirely, landing on Kyoraku, who was preparing to leave alone.
"Captain Kyoraku, my old schoolmate," Tokinada spoke. His voice was not loud, but it was enough for those nearby to hear clearly. "I am truly indebted to you this time for thinking so highly of me, for going to such trouble to 'look after' me."
Kyoraku stopped. Beneath his bamboo hat, his gaze was calm and unruffled as he silently regarded him.
Tokinada took a few steps closer, leaning in, and spoke in a volume only the two of them could hear, his tone carrying a malicious familiarity and boastfulness:
"In return for this old school friendship and your special consideration, I have also prepared a small gift for your teacher, Yamamoto. I hope the old man will like it."
The smile on his face widened. He even gave a slight nod towards Kyoraku, as if performing a farewell bow.
Then, at a signal from the Corps of Punishment, he turned and walked towards the underground prison. His pace was unhurried, his back exuding a strange and eerie ease.
Kyoraku stood still. The shadow of his bamboo hat obscured most of his face, making his expression unreadable.
But his fingers, wrapped around the hilt of his sword, tightened almost imperceptibly for a moment.
A powerful sense of unease, like a cold serpent, quietly coiled around his heart.
'A gift? A gift for old man Yama? What did that madman plan before the trial even began?'
He pondered for a moment, suppressing the tumultuous thoughts, and quickened his pace to leave this suffocating place.
The slightly crisp air of the Seireitei's streets eased the tightness in Kyoraku's chest somewhat, but the weight in his heart remained undiminished.
He walked alongside Setsuna, their steps neither hurried nor slow, yet each lost in their own thoughts.
The silence persisted for a stretch of road before Kyoraku finally spoke: "Captain Setsuna, what did you think of today's trial?"
Setsuna smiled faintly. "Ugliness, as expected. Power shielding evil, status overriding law. The so-called scales of justice were tilted from the very beginning. However..."
He paused, then added, "To have this ugliness displayed so nakedly on the stage is, in a way, progress. At least it lets us see clearly just how rotten certain things have become."
Kyoraku sighed softly. "Yes, naked ugliness. But Captain Setsuna, do you know? From what I understand of history, the Soul Society of today is actually much better than it was in the past, compared to before."
Setsuna turned his head, adopting a listening expression.
Kyoraku continued, "Before the establishment of the Gotei 13, starting from when Genryusai-sensei founded it a thousand years ago, and going back millions of years before that, that was the true, endless age of darkness."
"Back then, the power of the nobles was completely unchecked. There was no independent, powerful armed force, nominally loyal to order rather than a specific noble, to counterbalance them."
"Nobles could act with even greater impunity towards the souls in the Rukongai, towards lower-ranking Shinigami, and even towards each other."
"Life and death, taking and giving, were decided at a whim. Plunder, oppression, human experimentation, all kinds of forbidden research... It was an era deliberately obscured, but one where blood and despair never truly faded."
He looked up, gazing towards the direction of the 1st Division's barracks, his eyes showing sincere respect:
"Therefore, I admire Sensei from the bottom of my heart. Not only for his immense power, but for establishing the Gotei 13."
"This organization might have its problems here and there, internal factions, and be subject to the Central 46. But its very existence is a blade hanging over the heads of the nobles!"
Setsuna nodded slightly. "Captain Kyoraku is absolutely right. The Gotei 13 is indeed a beam of light in the long night of Soul Society. Though this light can sometimes be obscured by clouds, and though it inevitably gets stained by dust itself, without this beam of light..."
He paused, his tone affirmative: "The depth of darkness in Soul Society would likely far exceed anything we can imagine today."
"The chasm between nobles and commoners, between the strong and the weak, would have completely transformed into an unbridgeable abyss. Rules would have utterly degenerated into a mere fig leaf for violence. In this sense, Captain-Commander Yamamoto's contributions are indeed monumental."
Thus, discussing history and the present, the two returned to the Gotei 13's headquarters area.
Just as they were about to reach the vicinity of the 1st Division's barracks, an unusually heavy, even sorrowful and murderous atmosphere washed over them.
On the Seireitei's streets, which should have been orderly, numerous Shinigami were hurrying past with grim expressions, murmuring among themselves. The air itself seemed to retain traces of fierce Reiatsu Fluctuations that had not yet fully dissipated.
"What happened?" Kyoraku stopped a 5th Division's member rushing past and asked.
Upon seeing the two, the Shinigami quickly bowed, his face carrying a look of lingering shock: "Captain Kyoraku, Captain Setsuna, you haven't heard? Just now, a major incident occurred in the 1st Division!"
"The 1st Division?" Kyoraku's heart sank heavily.
"Yes. Kisaragi Shin'etsu, the Sixth Seat of the 1st Division, suddenly went berserk within the barracks. He attacked several fellow officers with his sword. Ninth Seat Okizaru was severely wounded, and several other members unfortunately... died in the line of duty!"
The Shinigami's voice trembled. "Most terrifying of all, he... he eventually charged towards the Captain-Commander's office, attempting to attack the Captain-Commander himself!"
"What?" Kyoraku exclaimed involuntarily.
"What happened afterwards?" Setsuna asked in a grave voice.
"Afterwards, the Captain-Commander took action." The Shinigami's voice dropped, filled with reverence and a trace of pity. "Kisaragi Shin'etsu was... was killed on the spot by the Captain-Commander. The Captain-Commander seemed very angry, and also deeply grieved."
Kyoraku's breath caught. He was among Yamamoto's first students and was not from the same era as Shin'etsu, but he was not entirely without understanding of the man.
Shin'etsu might have been somewhat old-fashioned, perhaps overly adherent to the rules, but he was by no means someone who would without cause go berserk, murder his comrades, and even attack his revered teacher!
Connecting it to Tokinada's malicious 'gift', Kyoraku almost instantly pinpointed the mastermind behind it all.
Given his usual laid-back personality, he couldn't help but feel anger rising at this moment: "Tsu-Na-Ya-Shi-Ro To-Ki-Na-Da!"
Setsuna, meanwhile, frowned slightly, 'Kisaragi Shin'etsu?'
The name stirred a sense of familiarity within him.
'Kisaragi Shin'etsu... That's right, the Bakkoto!" Setsuna suddenly recalled. The name seemed to be mentioned in the anime-only arc related to the Bakkoto.