Upon hearing this, Setsuna let out a scornful laugh. "What I hate most is your kind of 'riddler' attitude."
"When things can be clearly stated and explained, you insist on being vague and secretive, creating confusion, allowing the innocent to suffer unjustly, causing the living to anguish, and letting the schemers roam free!"
"Kisaragi Shusuke, a child, has been insulted and bullied by his classmates because of his father's 'crimes', abandoned by the entire world, and driven to despair, to the point of wanting to end his own life!"
"You, as Kisaragi Shin'etsu's teacher, not only fail to consider clearing his name or uncovering the truth, but you would also use words like 'classified' and 'danger' to push his son further into the abyss?"
"What?" The always calm and composed visage of Yamamoto finally showed a crack. He abruptly looked at Shusuke. "Shusuke! You... have you already..."
Shusuke raised his head, meeting Yamamoto's gaze. His voice was choked with sobs but clear:
"Yes. I... I was too weak. I thought that with Father gone, the world had turned dark, and living on as the son of a sinner was my only fate."
"If Setsuna-senpai hadn't appeared in time and stopped me, I might... might already have..."
He didn't finish, but his meaning was unmistakable.
Yamamoto closed his eyes. The hands resting on his knees trembled slightly.
After a long moment, he opened his eyes again. The deliberately maintained authority and distance in them had greatly diminished, replaced by a deep guilt and a trace of relief.
He gave Setsuna a solemn nod. "I, on behalf of Shin'etsu, and also on behalf of Shusuke, thank you, Captain Chiaki. This life-saving grace shall never be forgotten."
Setsuna waved a hand. "No need for thanks. I only wish to know the truth."
"A father for whom a son would willingly die to protect his innocence, a disciple for whom the Captain-Commander would grieve so deeply… I cannot believe he was as despicable as the rumors claim."
Yamamoto let out a long sigh, as if shedding a tremendous burden.
He looked at Shusuke, his gaze becoming gentle and apologetic:
"Child, your father Shin'etsu was by no means a traitor, nor did he go mad. He was acting under my secret orders, infiltrating the Kasumioji Clan to investigate the forbidden weapon, the [Bakkoto]."
Shusuke's eyes widened, and tears streamed down his face once more.
'Father was indeed wronged! He had been on a mission!'
Yamamoto continued, his tone heavy: "I originally did not wish for you to know, because the forces behind this matter run deep. The Tsunayashiro Clan, the Kasumioji Clan, and even the Central 46 may have their shadows within."
"Knowing the truth means you could be drawn into a great danger and vortex. I... I did not wish to expose Shin'etsu's only remaining blood to further peril."
However, Setsuna let out another cold laugh. "Vortex? Danger? Captain-Commander Yamamoto, have you sat in that seat for so long that even your spine has been bent by all those rules and regulations?"
He stared directly at Yamamoto. "Your Zanpakuto, Ryujin Jakka, possesses terrifying power sufficient to destroy the three worlds!"
"This power should be the blade that purges all filth and severs all injustice! But you? What exactly are you afraid of?"
"Are you afraid of backlash from the nobles? Fearful of censure from the Central 46? Dreading the so-called chaos that might come from shattering this surface calm, yet fundamentally rotten, order?"
"Holding the power to annihilate the world, yet fearing a vortex stirred up by some scumbag nobles? What a colossal joke!"
Shusuke's eyes were filled with immense admiration and shock, 'Setsuna-senpai was truly incredible, actually reprimanding the Captain-Commander for my sake.'
Facing this almost offensive questioning, Yamamoto did not become angry. Instead, his gaze grew deeper, as if recalling a distant past.
He spoke slowly: "When I was young, I once thought as you do. I believed power could solve everything, that absolute violence could bring absolute justice and order. But a thousand years have taught me one thing."
"Violence cannot bring true, lasting order to this world. It can only bring fear and temporary submission, while sowing more seeds of hatred and resistance."
"Even a terrible order, as long as it maintains basic functioning and prevents complete, indiscriminate chaos and slaughter, is infinitely better than total loss of control."
"The very existence of the Gotei 13 is to uphold this order, imperfect though it may be."
Contrary to Yamamoto's expectations, Setsuna did not continue his vehement refutation after hearing this. Instead, he nodded.
"I agree."
A flicker of surprise crossed Yamamoto's eyes.
Setsuna continued: "But this premise holds true when opposing forces are closely matched and order cannot be reshaped. With your power, reshaping order would be fundamentally effortless."
Yamamoto fell silent again. After a long while, he finally spoke: "The nobles are the foundation of this world. This is not merely empty talk defending the privileged. Captain Chiaki, you must have also heard of the [Three Worlds Balance] theory, have you not?"
Setsuna frowned slightly. "I've heard a little. Soul Society, the Living World, and Hueco Mundo maintain a certain fragile stability through the circulation of Reishi."
"Actually, the internal balance of the three worlds is merely a small balance. The true great balance is the balance between the three worlds and Hell." Yamamoto shook his head.
"More precisely, the three worlds act like a massive lid, covering the abyss called Hell. Within Hell are imprisoned unimaginable, ancient, and pure evil and sins."
"If the balance is severely disrupted and the Reishi Circulation becomes disordered, this 'lid' could develop cracks or even break."
"At that time, the demons of Hell may escape and wreak havoc on the world. It could even lead to the structural instability of the three worlds, causing them to entirely collapse and fall into Hell, becoming a world-ending catastrophe."
Setsuna frowned and asked, "I don't understand. What does this have to do with the nobles we're discussing?"
Yamamoto sighed. "The vast majority of residents in the Rukongai possess no Reiryoku. They can maintain their soul forms merely by drinking water."
"After their souls pass on, their Reishi returns to the cycle, but it cannot spontaneously combine to produce entirely new souls."
"Only unions between nobles within the Seireitei, official Shinigami, or a small number of spiritually aware commoners can give birth to new souls."
"Only through the continuous birth of new souls can the 'weight' of the lid increase, better pressing down upon Hell."
"For millions of years, the nobles, relying on their comparatively superior spiritual talent, stable lineage, and resources, have propagated generation after generation."
"Their descendants are naturally born with a certain amount of Reiryoku. They constitute one of the important sources contributing to the total amount of active Reishi in Soul Society, and even influencing the circulation of active Reishi across the three worlds."
"Through countless generations of noble inheritance and accumulation, their bloodlines, their very existence, are like countless fine threads woven into the deep network of Reishi Circulation within Soul Society and the three worlds, becoming, in a sense, a 'foundation'."
"Therefore, from the most fundamental perspective of maintaining the existence of the three worlds and preventing them from falling into Hell, the nobles do indeed possess a special, irreplaceable value."
"We uphold them, moreover, because... they are already a part of this fragile balance. To disturb them would risk the danger of collapse."