Shin'etsu's heart sank. He demanded sternly, "What do you plan to do?"
"Do?" Tokinada walked to one side of the room where a long, cloth-covered object lay.
He reached out and slowly pulled back the black cloth, revealing a sword.
The blade itself was an ominous dark purple. The tsuba and hilt were twisted and bizarre in form, inlaid with a dark red gem that resembled an eye, which pulsed with a faint, malevolent Reiatsu Fluctuation.
"Isn't this what you were ordered to investigate?" Tokinada gently stroked the sheath, as if displaying a treasure.
"Now, I'm giving you a chance to... thoroughly, personally experience its charm."
Shin'etsu's pupils contracted sharply. "No! Don't you dare!"
He struggled fiercely, but the restraining Kido binding him was exceptionally firm.
Two retainers stepped forward and roughly pinned him down.
Tokinada himself picked up the Bakkoto, slowly extending the hilt towards Shin'etsu's forcibly pried-open hand.
"Touch it, feel it, and then... embrace it." Tokinada's voice was like a devil's whisper.
The instant Shin'etsu's fingers touched the cold, slippery hilt—
"Aaaaah!"
A scream, so wretched it scarcely sounded human, erupted from Shin'etsu's throat.
His entire body convulsed violently. His eyes rolled back sharply, then were quickly veiled by a murky, dark purple hue.
A powerful Reiatsu, filled with violence and chaos, surged wildly from the Bakkoto into his body, clashing fiercely with and eroding his own Reiatsu.
His consciousness was like a small boat in a raging storm, battered and drowned by countless malevolent whispers, frenzied murderous intent, and a distorted thirst for power.
Dark purple patterns began to spread from the wrist gripping the hilt upwards, crawling like living things up his arm, neck, and cheeks.
His expression flickered rapidly between pain, struggle, bewilderment, and a gradually emerging, eerie smile.
Yuka watched this scene excitedly, a morbid gleam in her eyes.
She walked up to Shin'etsu, whose consciousness was already fading and whose body was being gradually controlled by the Bakkoto's power, and spoke in a commanding tone:
"Listen well, Kisaragi Shin'etsu. Go and kill the one who sent you here! Use this sword to fulfill your mission!"
Tokinada, however, shook his head and interrupted, "Yuka-dono, that won't work."
Yuka frowned at him.
Tokinada explained, "What kind of person is Yamamoto Genryusai? Even if Kisaragi Shin'etsu is controlled by the Bakkoto and his power increases dramatically, there is absolutely no chance he could succeed in an assassination."
"On the contrary, it would be immediately exposed, giving the Captain-Commander ample reason and evidence to thoroughly investigate the Kasumioji Clan with lightning speed, and might even implicate us. That would be handing him the sharpest blade."
"What we want is not a doomed assassination attempt, but sustained chaos, suspicion, and anger. Let Kisaragi Shin'etsu kill his comrades, preferably seated officers or members of other divisions who have a certain reputation and standing."
He looked at Shin'etsu, whose eyes were gradually being filled with dark purple, leaving only emptiness and brutality, and spoke slowly:
"Think about it. A prized disciple of the Captain-Commander, a Shinigami with a promising future, suddenly goes mad, wielding a forbidden evil blade, brutally murdering his comrades within the Seireitei. What kind of waves would that stir? What would other Shinigami think?"
"They would be angry, afraid, and question how the Captain-Commander instructs his disciples. Is there something wrong with the First Division? Where is the internal security of the Gotei 13?"
"This distrust, panic, and anger spreading from within will shake the very foundation of the Gotei 13 far more than a futile attack on the Captain-Commander himself."
Yuka stared at him, then suddenly sneered, "I get the feeling Tokinada-sama wants to use him to cover up your own crimes? When it comes to killing comrades, a good person always attracts more attention than a villain like us."
The corner of Tokinada's mouth twitched slightly, 'Had this woman's IQ actually increased after turning dark?'
But he remained calm and said, "Ridiculous. I am a member of the Tsunayashiro Clan. Would I fear such accusations?"
"Under normal circumstances, of course not. But I've heard that the Captain-Commander's other disciple, Kyoraku Shunsui, wants to put you in prison. However, never mind..." Yuka looked back at Shin'etsu.
"Go, Kisaragi Shin'etsu. Return to the Seireitei. Find your comrades. Use the new power in your hand to pour out your pain and loyalty to your heart's content."
…
Two days later, the Central 46.
Pale light filtered down from the high vaulted ceiling. The air was thick with the musty scent of aged Reishi and the invisible pressure of authority.
Below, standing at the plaintiff's station was Kyoraku, who had shed his usual laziness and now showed a serious expression.
Before him lay a thick stack of documents and evidence… the detailed chain of evidence he had painstakingly gathered concerning Tokinada's murder of his comrade and his wife, Kakyo. It included Reiatsu Residue analysis, scene reconstruction reports, covert testimony from some witnesses, and a rigorous deduction of motive and behavioral logic.
At the defendant's station, Tokinada stood alone.
He still wore that dark green noble's attire, but deep in his eyes lurked gloom and the irritation of a miscalculation.
'Damn it. This guy Kyoraku... he moved faster and more decisively than I anticipated.'
He had begun preparing countermeasures the moment he learned from Setsuna that Kyoraku was investigating him.
He knew well that crimes like killing a comrade and a wife could be treated as either major or minor in the Soul Society.
The key lay in two points: irrefutable evidence, and an accuser with sufficient standing who was willing to pursue the matter relentlessly.
And his old classmate, the Captain of the 8th Division, Kyoraku Shunsui, undoubtedly fit that criteria.
Therefore, he had meticulously planned the Kisaragi Shin'etsu move.
He intended to use Shin'etsu, controlled by the Bakkoto, to create a series of serial murders within the Seireitei. This would draw everyone's attention to the sensational case of 'the Captain-Commander's disciple going mad and murdering comrades'… an incident far more likely to shake the internal stability of the Gotei 13 and undermine Yamamoto's authority.
At that point, his own old case would seem insignificant in comparison.
Then, by leveraging his family's influence within Central 46, he could likely have his case handled discreetly, or even dropped entirely.
But two days had passed.
From Shin'etsu's side... there was absolutely no movement. The anticipated bloody chaos hadn't occurred. The Seireitei remained peaceful.
'Kasumioji Yuka...' Tokinada laughed coldly inwardly, gritting his teeth. 'Is that stupid woman do something behind the scenes? Does she want to provoke a conflict between the Tsunayashiro Clan and the Gotei 13?'
'Tch. To think I'd be outmaneuvered by this seemingly mad woman! Indeed, hatred blinds people, but sometimes it can also breed ambitions and schemes that shouldn't exist!'