Chapter 867: [867] : The Unexpected Benefits of Aizen and His Arrancars

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The Human World offered little peace these days. Arrancars were constantly showing up in Karakura Town to stir up trouble, and lately, they’d been getting particularly brazen.

Shin stared at the wreckage of the amusement park. He’d brought Nel here to have some fun, only for it to be ruined.

"I think these pests are starting to get on my nerves. It’s time for a cleanup."

"You call them ’pests’?" Yoruichi shot him a look. "Even I can feel the dread from their power."

If she were to face the top four Espada in a one-on-one fight, she wasn’t entirely confident she could win.

"Shinji Hirako and the others have started showing up recently, helping out the Soul Reapers. It looks like they’re finally ready to move against Aizen," Shin mused. "Speaking of which, what’s taking that guy so long?"

Shin looked genuinely disappointed. If Aizen would just hurry up and finish his research on the Hōgyoku, things would get interesting. Had he not put enough pressure on him?

’Yes, that must be it. In that case, I’ll have to find a way to apply a little more pressure. Aizen needs the proper motivation, after all.’

If Aizen knew what Shin was thinking right now, he probably wouldn’t be too happy about it.

"You’re getting that look in your eye. Are you planning on making a move?"

Yoruichi watched Shin with suspicion. She had a feeling he was about to get involved.

"Of course I am. Watching from the sidelines is getting boring. Besides, I want to give Aizen a little push."

"Do you have some kind of grudge against him?" Yoruichi asked, noticing how Shin was clearly targeting Aizen.

"No, we don’t have any personal history. I just need him to finish creating the Hōgyoku," Shin said, shaking his head.

"What exactly is this Hōgyoku? I’m getting really curious. Can you tell me?" Yoruichi asked, her curiosity piqued.

Aizen’s goal was the Hōgyoku, and so was Shin’s. The Yoruichi from the original timeline would have known what it was, but this Yoruichi hadn’t spent much time with Kisuke Urahara, so she was in the dark. If she knew the truth about the Hōgyoku, she would be just as shocked.

"The Hōgyoku can protect its host, making them immortal. When the host reaches their limit or their life is threatened, it forces them to evolve to the next level, endlessly."

"It even has the power to manifest desires, to bring what’s in a person’s heart into reality."

"Now do you see why I’m so interested in it? The power of the Hōgyoku is almost unbelievable."

After hearing Shin’s explanation, Yoruichi took a sharp breath. The first two words that came to mind were "divine artifact." This thing was nothing short of that.

"That thing sounds way too dangerous."

"It is. And to make matters worse, the Hōgyoku has its own consciousness, since it was created from countless souls."

"What? It has a consciousness? If that’s the case, Shin, I think you should stay away from it," Yoruichi said, her expression turning serious.

"Don’t worry. I don’t actually want the Hōgyoku," Shin said with a slight smile.

Yoruichi was confused. She couldn’t understand what he meant. He said he was after the Hōgyoku, but now he was saying he didn’t want it. It seemed like a contradiction.

"I don’t need the Hōgyoku itself, just its ability. I simply want to obtain its power."

Shin explained to Yoruichi. An object with its own consciousness... he thought it over and decided against it. In the original story, Aizen’s defeat was partly his own fault, but perhaps the Hōgyoku itself played a role.

That was just speculation, but what Shin really needed was to copy the Hōgyoku’s ability.

Once he made its power his own, he wouldn’t need the actual object.

"Ah, so that’s your game. You’re just going to copy its power?"

Yoruichi knew about Shin’s ability to replicate powers. She was well aware that the Zanpakutō abilities he used were all copied.

"Exactly. You’re pretty sharp, Yoruichi. I barely said anything, and you figured it out," Shin said with a smile.

"I don’t feel like you’re praising me. And do you think I’m an idiot? You’ve made it pretty obvious," Yoruichi retorted, rolling her eyes. Did he really think she was a fool?

"If the Hōgyoku is that powerful, then Aizen, who possesses it, must be incredibly difficult to deal with. Are you sure you can handle him?"

"When have you ever seen me do something I wasn’t sure about?"

Of course, Shin was confident he could handle Aizen. If he wasn’t, he would have eliminated him long ago. Shin wasn’t one to let a threat fester. The fact that he allowed Aizen to exist meant Aizen was no threat at all.

"That’s a relief." Yoruichi relaxed. She didn’t want an ambitious man like Aizen causing too much chaos.

"Actually, the existence of Aizen and the Arrancars is a good thing for the Soul Society," Shin said with a slight smile.

"Though they’ve caused a lot of death and destruction, it’s not without its benefits for the Soul Society."

"First of all, they’ve forced the Soul Society to become stronger. The Soul Reapers weren’t weak, but they’d grown complacent without a major threat. The appearance of Aizen and the Arrancars has forced the Gotei 13 to reach their full potential."

"This will also significantly close the gap between them and the Sternritter. Without the Arrancars, the Sternritter would have completely crushed the Soul Reapers."

"By the way, I was thinking of having Retsu Unohana take a look at the scar on Nel’s face."

Yoruichi gently stroked Nel’s small head, pointing to the scar on her face.

Though Nel was adorable, the scar was quite jarring. Her hair usually covered it, but it was still there.

"I can heal it," Shin said to Yoruichi.

"You can?" Yoruichi looked at him doubtfully.

"Are you underestimating me? Of course I can. If you took her to Retsu, she wouldn’t know what to do," Shin retorted.

"If you can heal it, then why didn’t you help Nel sooner?" Yoruichi ignored his glare and asked.

Shin’s face flushed with a rare hint of embarrassment. "Honestly? It wasn’t that I didn’t want to. I just... kept forgetting."

"But once her injury is healed, Nel won’t be like this anymore," Shin couldn’t help but add.

If he healed Nel’s injury, she would definitely regain her memories and her original form.

Nel’s current child-like appearance was because she was injured. Once she recovered, she would return to being the former 3rd Espada.

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