Stabbed and thrown out right after stepping through the gate—Ichigo's mission to rescue Rukia had gotten off to a terrible start.
Although he didn't know who that squinty-eyed, smiling idiot was, Ichigo had no intention of giving up. He even considered launching a frontal assault on the Seireitei, but Yoruichi firmly rejected the idea.
Yoruichi was also troubled. As the leader of this expedition, she absolutely had to get Ichigo and the others into the Seireitei. To that end, she and Urahara had deliberately withheld basic information about the Seireitei, fearing it would crush the kids' confidence.
Now, however, it seemed their confidence was a bit excessive...
At this moment, Ichigo was beginning to doubt his life choices. The plan to rescue Rukia had hit a wall at the very first step, and the problem seemed to lie entirely with him.
With a frontal assault on the Seireitei out of the question, they had to find an alternative route. Thus, the group arrived at the home of someone named Shiba Kūkaku.
Contrary to Ichigo's expectations, Shiba Kūkaku was actually a woman—and a very well-endowed one wearing a traditional halter top at that.
Of course, that wasn't the main point. After visiting the Shiba household, he learned that she was the premier fireworks master in the Rukongai. Their method for entering the Seireitei was to use the absurdly massive fireworks launcher in her home to shoot themselves in like cannonballs.
No matter how he looked at it, the plan sounded incredibly unreliable. However, after Kūkaku's thoroughly reasoned explanation, Ichigo had to accept this bizarre method. It was just like her weirdly designed house—strange, but capable of keeping out the wind and rain. From the perspective of being a house, it worked perfectly fine.
Ideally, they could have made their move as early as tonight. Not only were they pressed for time, but infiltrating the Seireitei under the cover of darkness would also be much safer.
But a problem had arisen. As it turned out, being a good cannonball required both skill and talent!
According to Shiba Kūkaku's explanation, the walls that had fallen from the sky earlier were called the Seireitei Walls. They were forged from a special ore found in Soul Society known as Sekkiseki.
Through the energy released from the cut surfaces of the Sekkiseki, the entire Seireitei—from deep underground to high in the sky—was protected by an invisible barrier. Any object composed of Reishi would begin to disintegrate upon contact. And as everyone knew, everything in Soul Society was made of Reishi, including themselves.
Therefore, if they were shot out like cannonballs without any protection, it would be certain death.
There was a solution, which was the object Ichigo was currently holding in his hands—a Reishūkaku. By channeling Reiryoku into it, they could temporarily form a protective layer strong enough to breach the Seireitei's barrier. Only a cannonball like that could successfully penetrate the Seireitei!
But the problem lay precisely in this step of channeling Reiryoku. Ichigo felt like he was about to crush the orb in his hands, yet he simply couldn't pour his Reiryoku into it.
If channeling Reiryoku was supposed to be difficult, Inoue Orihime, Sado Yasutora, and Ishida Uryū had all succeeded on their first try. He was the only one failing miserably.
Doubting himself was one thing, but more importantly, time was slipping away. Ichigo was stuck in a rut, and wasting time on something like this was enough to throw him into a panic.
Watching Ichigo look as though he were severely constipated, Ganju shook his head helplessly from the sidelines. Although he was extremely reluctant to interact with the Shinigami who kept bothering their family, his older sister had her reasons for helping them.
"This is so boring. I guess I'll review it again!" Ganju snatched the Reishūkaku from Ichigo's hands. Glancing at him, he continued, "Don't you dare eavesdrop. This is a secret technique taught to me by a super amazing big bro of mine!"
'Is he trying to teach me?'
Ganju didn't care what Ichigo was thinking. He closed his eyes and began muttering to himself, "Start imagining. Draw a circle in your mind, the darker and heavier the color, the better. Then, imagine your entire body diving right into the center..."
"Birds, beasts, swaying chains, and so on—you can see anything in there. Try to grab the things you need to grab one by one, and that will lead you to the Kidō you want to release. Got it, kid?!"
Kōe's words from when he taught him Kidō were still vivid in his mind, but there was no need to tell this idiot the rest! Ganju opened his eyes. "That's the basic secret to visualizing all Kidō!" He tossed the Reishūkaku back to Ichigo. "You give it a try."
'I should go see Big Bro Chōzuka in the Seireitei this time. While I'm at it, I can ask him where my brother actually went...'
"Even the Goddess of Flash, Yoruichi, needs my help to enter the Seireitei. Don't tell me it's just to bring those helpers of yours inside." In the main hall of the Shiba household, Kūkaku looked at Yoruichi seated below her. Taking a drag from her pipe, she continued, "If they were actually useful, I would have stormed the Seireitei to save my brother a long time ago."
Ganju still knew very little, but Kūkaku—who had temporarily taken over as the head of the Shiba clan after Kaien—knew better. The story about him leaving the Gotei 13 to search for his wife was nothing but an excuse fabricated by the Seireitei. Her brother was definitely locked up in the Maggot's Nest.
The creation of the Reishūkaku was no coincidence. She had always harbored thoughts of rescuing Kaien, but she was well aware of the Gotei 13's strength. Going in with just her and Ganju would undoubtedly be a suicide mission. And while the kids Yoruichi brought were a bit stronger than Ganju, they were still far too fragile compared to the Gotei 13.
"I need them to distract the Gotei 13, and Dead-Fish Eyes needs them to do the same."
Kūkaku nodded. That made sense. With Dead-Fish Eyes and Yoruichi—the husband and wife duo—they had a real chance of catching the Gotei 13 off guard in a short window of time.
However, just as Yoruichi said, if she entered the Seireitei alone, it would inevitably draw attention. Dead-Fish Eyes' situation wasn't great either. Over the years, let alone seeing him in person, he hadn't even been able to send out a birthday greeting since her brother's disappearance.
"I don't understand why you, Urahara, and even Dead-Fish Eyes are so obsessed with saving that girl instead of rescuing my brother..."
"That's..."
"But it doesn't matter. I know you naturally have your own considerations." Before Yoruichi could finish, Kūkaku waved her hand dismissively. "It's just... could you and Dead-Fish Eyes also look out for my brother? If we miss this chance, I don't know when we'll ever get another one."
Yoruichi fell silent for a moment before speaking slowly. "If the plan goes smoothly, Kaien will naturally be cleared of suspicion. But I can't go rescue him first. Once I reveal myself, Dead-Fish Eyes and I won't have much time."
"I'm in charge of the rescue, and he's in charge of providing backup. Furthermore, we can't guarantee that we'll be able to bring out everyone we take in."
"Is that kid named Rukia really that important?" Kūkaku asked. Seeing Yoruichi nod, she pressed further, "Why?"
"Forget it. Looking at you, I can tell you're not going to tell me." Kūkaku shook her head with a bitter smile, her gaze suddenly turning sharp. "Since the plan has to succeed in order to save my brother, Ganju and I will lend a hand too. I absolutely cannot miss this opportunity!"
"When the time comes, I'll be waiting outside the Seireitei ready to back you up. I'll let those old geezers know that even if the Shiba clan is in the Rukongai..."
"...we are still a Great Noble House!"