The atmosphere in the joint training ground was constantly being pushed higher, with many injured Shinigami and Quincy acting as sparring partners screaming and clutching their legs and arms.
The drills tried to avoid fatal injuries, but the swords and Kido in real combat were real, so injuries were inevitable.
Just then, Aozaki was about to delve deeper into the details of his future family members when he was interrupted by Nanao Ise's sudden, almost instantaneous appearance.
She conveyed, "Captain-Commander, Vice-Captain Aizen is looking for you."
Upon hearing this, Aozaki's brows furrowed instantly.
It wasn't out of any dissatisfaction with Aizen, but rather confusion as to why this Vice-Captain wasn't diligently handling official business in his Squad, but instead came to find him.
He secretly wondered, "Could it be that he's coming to catch me slacking off?"
But then he shook his head, dismissing the thought.
After all, his neglect of official duties wasn't a new thing.
And how could the Captain-Commander's affairs be called slacking off?
This was clearly a sign of full trust in Aizen's abilities!
Moreover, for such a big event as the Squad joint exercise, it was perfectly reasonable for him, as the Captain-Commander, to come and oversee the battle!
It must be something else.
Aozaki stroked his chin, pondering in his heart.
He began to seriously consider whether he had done anything in recent times that might cause trouble.
Before the day before yesterday, he had been slacking off in Hueco Mundo for a full half a year.
When he returned the day before yesterday, he went with Senna to the Dangai's Scream Valley to continue slacking off.
And yesterday, he went with Kujō Nozomi to the Human World to slack off.
Thinking it over, his life seemed to have nothing special happening besides slacking off.
Aozaki recalled his boring past life, confirming that he had left no handle for Aizen to lecture him with grand reason.
Then, stroking his chin, he asked Nanao Ise:
"Little Nanao, what does that guy Aizen... I mean, Vice-Captain, want with me?"
Nanao Ise shook her head, indicating that she didn't know the specific situation, only that Aozaki needed to go himself.
Aozaki rubbed his chin, pondered for a moment, then said to Michibane Aura:
"Aura, you take this little fellow home first, I'll be right back. Retsu, I'll leave things here to you for now."
"Nanao, let's go!"
Aozaki's lazy voice sounded, then he put his hands into his sleeves and turned to leave.
Unohana immediately took over the command, systematically beginning to direct the on-site dispatch.
Judging by her skilled actions, this was clearly not the first time Aozaki had been a hands-off boss.
Nanao Ise sighed helplessly; this older sister didn't even have a single word of complaint or teasing, showing her obvious indulgence towards Aozaki.
Afterward, Aozaki and Nanao Ise went to the First Division together.
Along the way, the two chatted about everyday trivial matters, not mentioning a single word of official business.
They continued until they arrived at the First Division, passed through the hallway, and reached the door of the Captains Office.
Aozaki's heart tightened slightly, and he secretly mused:
It seems like there's serious business this time, otherwise Aizen wouldn't choose such a formal place.
But it shouldn't be anything major, otherwise he wouldn't have sent Nanao Ise to call me.
Thinking this, his mood relaxed, he grinned, and swaying his body, pushed open the office door.
Walking into the office, what met his eyes was Aizen kneeling at the desk.
One hand raised a teacup, the other gently tapping the tabletop.
His eyes were fixed on the envelope on the desk, seemingly lost in thought.
"A letter, could it be from the Soul King Palace?"
Aozaki was somewhat puzzled.
Currently, the only ones in the Seireitei still communicating by letter that he could think of were from the Soul King Palace.
Last time, it was with a letter that Hikifune Kirio and Senjumaru were lured down.
Slowly walking towards the room owner's seat, Aozaki sat down steadily.
His gaze was directed forward, his tone casual and direct,
"Aizen, what's wrong that you called me here?"
Nanao Ise stood quietly behind him, also casting a curious gaze.
Aizen glanced at her, then turned his gaze to Aozaki, and gently placed the letter in his hand on the desk.
Aozaki glanced at the opened letter, but was surprised to find that the envelope was written in English, and his curiosity grew even stronger.
However, in his previous life, he was an English underachiever, and in this life, he had no interest in studying it in depth. Even if he recognized every letter, he couldn't understand it.
Aizen's voice was calm and slow as he slowly said:
"Actually, it's nothing particularly important, we just received some new information about the Wandenreich."
"After careful consideration, I believe that although the Wandenreich's threat to us has been greatly reduced after evaluation,"
"Yhwach, as the Soul King's son, is always a potential threat, so I felt I should tell you this news immediately."
Aozaki's expression instantly became serious, his brows furrowed slightly, and a hint of ruthlessness flashed in his eyes,
"He's been hiding for so long, and finally there's news. Where is that kid now? I'll go take care of him immediately!"
Aizen smiled faintly, his smile carrying a hint of light amusement,
"Don't rush, he can't escape. Let's talk about this letter first. You've been Captain-Commander for so long, you should know about the West Branch Bureau, right?"
"Huh?"
Aozaki blinked, his face full of bewilderment.
He had almost completely forgotten the plot of Bleach. Even if this short story was in the same world view, how could he remember it?
To him, these three words were at most a slightly familiar but unfamiliar place name.
Aizen looked at him like this, seemingly having expected it, and said calmly:
"It's normal that you don't know, after all, the Soul Society hasn't had any contact with them for over a millennium."
He paused, then continued:
"If I hadn't read the Tsunayashiro Family's collection of books thoroughly, I might not have known that such a place existed in the world."
"A thousand years ago, when Yhwach led the Quincy invasion, he escaped from their territory."
Aozaki did not immediately respond to Aizen but fell into deep thought, trying to digest the information in his words.
Yhwach came from the West; he wasn't surprised by that.
From their names, attire, demeanor, and living habits, they were indeed very different from Easterners.
However, speaking of Westerners, he also recalled the first time he met Ginjō.
That blond, blue-eyed priest seemed to call Hollows "Dragons," and was even mocked by the Shinigami on duty in the Human World.
At the time, he didn't pay it any mind, but now that he thought about it, he vaguely remembered that Dragons seemed to have some connection with this so-called West Branch Bureau, probably something similar to Hollows.
The blurry memory, instead, gave Aozaki a sense of novelty.
Along with it, he also developed a hint of curiosity about this so-called West Branch Bureau.
Thinking of this, he directly asked:
"Aizen, what kind of place is this West Branch Bureau? Is it the Wandenreich's lair?"