Leaving the Squad 1 barracks, Naraku Sora made his way back to the Shino Prison quarters.
Now that the Soul Burial Festival had concluded, the Seireitei had once again returned to its usual tranquility.
However, in just half a day, the events of the Soul Burial Festival had already spread to the prison through the word of mouth of numerous Captains and Lieutenants.
When they learned that Naraku Sora, despite carrying a human from the World of the Living and having to hold open the Senkaimon with one hand, still slaughtered his enemies across the city and remained completely invincible, his already peak prestige skyrocketed even further.
It was worth noting that ever since Kurotsuchi Mayuri chose to back down, Naraku Sora's words held even more weight than Shutara Senjumaru's.
Revering the strong was a fundamental principle in the Soul Society. Even for organizations outside the Gotei 13, this held true.
Therefore, even during simple daily briefings, the squad members stood straighter than ever, uniform and perfectly aligned like poplar trees in a field.
The gazes they directed at the head of the room were filled with fanaticism, their faces bearing expressions of absolute devotion. It was enough to make Naraku Sora himself feel a bit creeped out, unsure of what was going through their minds.
At the same time, he noticed that after taking in a batch of inmates from the Maggot's Nest, coupled with the return of squad members from outside missions—the number of jailers was no longer inferior to any of the Gotei 13 squads, perhaps even exceeding them.
Despite this, there was no managerial chaos whatsoever. Under the leadership of a certain workaholic, the crowd was disciplined to the extreme. Aside from their daily duties, they spent all their time immersed in training.
Even the recently arrived Kuchiki Kōga had integrated into this passionate atmosphere. He frequently went around the prison proclaiming the greatness of his one and only best friend—if it weren't for Naraku Sora, he might have already been framed by that treacherous Tsunayashiro Taketori.
Furthermore, even Kakyo chose to add fuel to the fire. In her eyes, Naraku Sora clearly distinguished between good and evil, and wouldn't ruthlessly slaughter all enemies just because of differing stances. Although his methods still deviated slightly from her own ideals, he was undeniably a kind-hearted person. Following such an existence was her honor.
With these two acting as his personal hypemen, the situation only escalated.
Looking at the adoring gazes of the crowd, Naraku Sora suddenly felt that he should do something for these simple-minded guys.
Driven by this thought, he headed straight for the laboratory at the east end of the barracks and found Kurotsuchi Mayuri and Urahara Kisuke.
"You two, I'm thinking of renovating the barracks. Do you have any good ideas?"
When speaking to smart people, Naraku Sora chose to get straight to the point.
Hearing this, Kurotsuchi Mayuri frowned. He was already displeased about having his research casually interrupted, and now being asked to do such menial work made him quite irritated.
"What is there to renovate about the barracks? Do you expect to perform some kind of miracle?"
Urahara Kisuke, on the other hand, grew wary. Drawing from past experience, he asked cautiously, "May I ask what Lord Naraku's requirements for this renovation are?"
Hearing this, Naraku Sora pondered for a moment, countless potential facilities flashing through his mind.
"First, unify the architectural style so it looks a bit neater."
Urahara Kisuke pulled out a notebook and began taking notes.
"Second, as the pillars of the Shino Prison, you two deserve the highest standard of treatment. The research institutes and laboratories will all be expanded, and all equipment and instruments will be upgraded to the latest models."
"It would also be best to incorporate some spatial Kidō inside the buildings to maximize the usable area."
Urahara Kisuke and Kurotsuchi Mayuri exchanged a glance, both seeing the amusement in each other's eyes.
As genius scientists, what they lacked most wasn't ideas or plans, but hard resources. Things like equipment, instruments, and various rare materials. They often wasted a massive amount of time just collecting these items.
Now that Naraku Sora was preparing to handle all of it for them in one go, how could they not be thrilled?
"Please continue, I'm writing this down."
A flattering smile appeared on Urahara Kisuke's face, and even Kurotsuchi Mayuri's expression softened significantly, no longer looking so tense.
"The squad members have been highly enthusiastic about their training lately, but due to various reasons, their progress has been slow. Considering this, I've decided to build a batch of special facilities to assist with their training."
"For example, Squad 2's special martial arts arena, Squad 4's comprehensive medical station, Squad 5's Kidō recovery room, Squad 7's Zanjutsu training ground, Squad 12's gravity room..."
With every word Naraku Sora spoke, Urahara Kisuke's face darkened a fraction more, until his original expression was completely unrecognizable.
Were these the words of a sane person?
Setting aside the special facilities of the other squads, Squad 5's Kidō recovery room alone took decades to build, requiring the collaboration of multiple Kidō masters. Today, it served as a powerful bargaining chip for recruiting Kidō prodigies.
And now he wanted to build a brand new one? Was he really not afraid of Hirako Shinji sneaking over in the dead of night to stab him in the back?
Hearing these demands, even Kurotsuchi Mayuri couldn't maintain his composure.
He had to take back his previous words; renovating to these specifications would indeed create a miracle. He just didn't know if this guy was planning to build a new Seireitei or a new Gotei 13.
Looking at the notes in his book, Urahara Kisuke's eyebrows knitted tightly together. His face was filled with distress, not even knowing where it would be best to start.
"Lord Naraku, I've discovered a very serious problem."
"What is it?"
"We don't have any money!"
Urahara Kisuke held up his notebook, his expression dead serious.
"Look, whether it's upgrading the instruments and equipment or adding special facilities, every single item will cost an astronomical sum."
"Our prison's budget is already tight. If we want to save up this kind of money, I'm afraid it will take over a hundred years."
Save up.
Hearing this, Naraku Sora raised an eyebrow. "What are you talking about? If we don't have money, we just need to find someone who does, right?"
Urahara Kisuke and Kurotsuchi Mayuri froze.
As scientists, no one knew better than them how difficult it was to raise funds. Sometimes, they had to spend a massive amount of time accumulating capital just for a single experiment. Occasionally, they even had to work for the nobles, researching flashy but useless things.
Yet, for Naraku Sora, this was somehow the easiest problem to solve?
"You two just focus on the work. Leave the money to me."
Naraku Sora patted them on the shoulders. After leaving them with this confident instruction, he turned and walked out of the laboratory.
Urahara Kisuke and Kurotsuchi Mayuri watched his retreating back, subconsciously furrowing their brows.
*'This guy... he isn't planning to go rob the nobles, is he?'*
After leaving the laboratory, Naraku Sora first sought out Kuchiki Kōga and got straight to the point, explaining his intentions.
"You need money to renovate the barracks?"
Kuchiki Kōga grinned and readily agreed. "Leave it to me. I'll go back and have a chat with my father-in-law later. Even if he doesn't give us any, there's still that kid Sōjun."
"Kuchiki Sōjun?"
"Yeah, the next heir to the Kuchiki clan. We've always had a pretty good relationship. The kid has a humble personality, and his strength and talent are both excellent. The only problem is his poor health."
Kuchiki Kōga looked regretful.
Hearing this, Naraku Sora narrowed his eyes and said seriously, "Kōga, when you see your father-in-law, tell him that I have a way to restore Kuchiki Sōjun's health."
Kuchiki Kōga frowned.
"Sora, it's best not to joke about this kind of thing. That's a problem even Captain Unohana is helpless to solve."
"Heh, just because Unohana can't do it doesn't mean I can't."
Naraku Sora said with absolute confidence. "You know me. I never make empty boasts. My word is my bond, and there's never been a promise I couldn't keep!"
Kuchiki Kōga took a deep breath, his expression instantly turning much more solemn.
"Sora, if you can truly restore Sōjun's health, the Kuchiki clan will forever stand by your side!"
Naraku Sora waved his hand, not saying anything more.
Having roped in one wealthy backer, he didn't linger. Instead, he headed straight for Squad 2 and found Ōmaeda Marechinmoshin, who was busy training new recruits.
"Haha, then you've certainly found the right person."
Marechinmoshin let out a hearty laugh.
"The Ōmaeda family lacks many things, but money isn't one of them."
"Besides, contributing to the construction of the Shino Prison is something we ought to do anyway."
Naraku Sora smiled.
Talking to rich people was just so easy.
However, right at that moment, Marechinmoshin suddenly looked troubled and hesitated.
"Lord Naraku, I wonder if you still remember the topic we discussed previously... about how you managed to become a true powerhouse in such a short amount of time."
Naraku Sora nodded. "I have some recollection of it."
"Actually, I didn't ask that question for myself, but for my son."
Ōmaeda Marechinmoshin offered a bitter smile. "Perhaps it's because I spoiled him, or maybe for some other reason, but my boy falls far short of how I was at his age."
"And that kid will have to take over my position sooner or later. If he doesn't have some capability, he could easily lose his life on a mission."
"Because of this, I was wondering if I could send him to the Shino Prison for some advanced training."
"I don't expect him to become as strong as you, Lord Naraku. As long as he can take over my position in the future without disgracing Squad 2 and the Ōmaeda family, that will be enough."
Hearing this, Naraku Sora realized what he meant and grinned.
"I was wondering what it was. So it's just this little matter."
"Just send him over. I guarantee I'll return him to you with satisfactory results!"
Seeing how straightforward he was, Ōmaeda Marechinmoshin naturally didn't hold back either, immediately pulling out an exaggerated sum of money.
He also promised that if more was needed later, Sora only had to ask.
After securing a massive investment for the Shino Prison, Naraku Sora politely declined Marechinmoshin's dinner invitation, turned around, and left Squad 2.
"Lord Document Dragon, you absolutely have to help me!"
Aizen was in the middle of recording data in the laboratory of his secret base. Just as he reached a critical moment, a blood-pressure-raising voice barged in.
He had thought that now that this guy had Urahara Kisuke and Kurotsuchi Mayuri, he would reduce the frequency of his torment, but he was just as bothersome as ever.
"Speak. What is it this time?"
Aizen paused his experiment, properly saved all the data, and turned around, looking expressionlessly at his friend's flatteringly smiling face.
Gesturing wildly as he spoke, Naraku Sora described his grand master plan, casually bringing up Kuchiki Sōjun's problem along the way.
"That's pretty much it. Aizen-emon, you wouldn't just leave me out to dry, would you?"
Aizen let out a deep sigh, his face full of helplessness.