The chamber's quiet now. The old lamps still flicker, but the weight in the air's changed.
Unohana-taichou dips her head and leaves first, silent as a ghost. Kyouraku follows, tippin' that damn hat like he's leavin' a card game before the last hand's played.
And then it's just me.
And Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto.
The old man don't move. Eyes like two burnin' coals behind that beard. Like he's been carved outta stone.
Perfect.
I take a slow step forward.
"Soutaichou."
He grunts.
"What is it, Ichimaru? The matter's settled."
I bow my head just a little.
"Beggin' yer pardon… but I got somethin' important. Can't let this one go unsaid. It's somethin' only ya and me can hear. Gotta stay sealed 'til death."
He frowns, but there's somethin' in his eyes. The way old wolves look when they catch a new scent.
Without a word, the old man lifts a hand.
A surge of pressure hits the room, like gravity thickenin'. The whole chamber hums as his reiatsu rises and weaves itself into a barrier — a cage made of flame and power.
"No one will hear."
He fixes me with that glare. "Speak."
I exhale slow. No grin this time. My voice drops, even my Kansai drawl thinner.
"Aizen Sōsuke's got ambitions. Ones ya ain't seen comin'."
The old man's brows lift a fraction.
"Explain."
I step closer, shadows stretchin' between us.
"Sixty-nine years ago — the hollowfication incident. The one y'all blamed Urahara Kisuke for. Shinji Hirako, Hiyori Sarugaki, them others. It wasn't Urahara. Aizen did it."
His reiatsu twitches. The air sharpens like a drawn blade.
I go on.
"He'd been workin' behind the scenes. Researchin' hollowfication, usin' 'em like toys. Framin' Urahara, turnin' the Central 46 blind. Been breedin' hollows, creatin' hybrids, findin' ways to fuse 'em with shinigami. And it ain't stopped."
Yamamoto's voice drops, rough like rumblin' earth.
"Do you have proof?"
I meet his eyes.
"Only my word. An' if that don't carry weight, reckon ya can cut me down now."
He studies me, fire flickerin' behind those old, scarred eyes.
"Why tell me this now?"
I smirk, somethin' colder behind it.
"'Cause killin' Aizen now'd be a waste."
That gets a real reaction. His brow knots.
"He's betrayin' the Gotei 13. Riskin' Soul Society's balance."
"Aye. But hear me out, Soutaichou."
I pace a slow circle around him, hand restin' on Shinsō's hilt.
"Right now, the Gotei's weak. Y'all got potential — good men, good women — but ya haven't been tested proper. No war worth a damn in ages. No enemy that pushes ya to your real limits."
I stop in front of him.
"Aizen's buildin' an army o' hollows. Think o' it like a fire. One big enough to burn away the rot. Force every captain, every division to sharpen their blades or fall. Make 'em stronger for what's comin'."
His eyes narrow.
"And what, Gin Ichimaru, is comin'?"
I lean in, voice low.
"The true enemy, Soutaichou. One ya don't even remember. Name of Yhwach."
The name tastes bitter on my tongue. The old man's reiatsu flickers again, recognition buried deep.
"Took ya nine hundred years to forget, didn't it?"
He stiffens.
I keep talkin'.
"He's comin'. Not now. Not soon. But one day. An' when he does, if the Gotei 13's still soft an' splittin' hairs over politics, this whole place'll burn. Better to let Aizen play his hand. Let him force ya to be strong. Then, when the time's right, cut him down."
Silence.
Yamamoto stands there, starin' at me like he's lookin' through every layer I got. I let him.
Finally, his voice rumbles.
"And what of your loyalty? Are your words to be trusted?"
I grin.
"Reckon that's up to you, old man. I ain't loyal to Aizen. Never been. Truth is, I just wanna be the one to kill him."
The old man's hand tightens on Ryūjin Jakka's hilt, then loosens.
"You'll keep this to yourself."
"Like my life depends on it."
"It does."
I bow, lips quirkin'.
"Wouldn't have it any other way."
He drops the barrier, the pressure bleedin' outta the room like a storm passin'.
"Go. Do your duty as captain."
I turn, headin' for the door.
But just before I step out, I glance back.
"Ya made the right call, Soutaichou. Soul Society's gonna need monsters before the end."
And then I'm gone.
Another mask. Another game.
But now…
The board's startin' to move.