“Obsessed with organization, obsessed with the clan, obsessed with ourselves. A worthless compulsion that enslaves us and limits our capabilities, leading us to fear what we don’t understand.” — Itachi Uchiha.

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“What do you mean I’ve been compromised?! Say it again you damned bastard!” Hiyori screamed and lunged at Tessai but was caught midair by Kisuke who no longer had his usual sleepy expression on his face.

“Calm down, Hiyori. You’re not been convicted for any crimes. However…” Kisuke touched the Kidō barrier and read the energy signals coming off from it. “Someone has you under their control. That fact is undeniable.”

He afterwards turned to Itachi. “What can you tell me from this, 3rd Seat Itachi? You’re the expert on illusions here.”

Itachi looked at Kisuke and then at Hiyori, what went through his mind wasn’t hard to guess.

Kisuke’s face was rigid stone cold as he drew his sword and stepped into Itachi’s space, nodding to Tessai to activate his Kidō.

“You give me your answer.” It wasn’t a request for an explanation but a demand for an answer. Kisuke was pissed; even now he could feel the suspicious stares from some of the Shinigami in the room.

“Kisuke… keep your Reiatsu under control.” Tessai warned, sensing how pricked to attack the Captain’s Reiatsu was.

This was also a special moment for Itachi to deeply feel how potent a bonafide Captains’ Reiatsu was; a bit overreaching but he considered Kisuke’s level as the appropriate benchmark for a Captain.

When he sent his Reiatsu into Kisuke’s mind, the first thing he felt was his Reiatsu being arrested by a thread-like sensation. It didn’t let his budge one bit.

‘No wonder he was among the first to see through my illusions back then.’

‘What an interesting Zanpakutō spirit.’

‘I thought so.’ Itachi hummed in acknowledgement. He could feel how potent the strength of Kisuke’s Zanpakutō was. ‘She’s just like us in the sense that they have a very deep and mutual relationship.’

“Captain Urahara, keep your Zanpakutō under control.”

Yamamoto’s stern warning drew everyone’s gaze to Kisuke’s sheathed Zanpakutō that was releasing wisps of red malevolent Reiatsu.

“Relax, Benihime. He’ll die before he can do anything untoward against us.” Even with Kisuke coaxing it, the sword’s Reiatsu rose up unrepentantly as if challenging Kisuke before going down after Kisuke’s Reiatsu rose to suppress it. Turning to Itachi, Kisuke regarded humorlessly. “She hates you.”

‘An interesting spirit indeed.’ Tsukuyomi remarked, only to give way to Amaterasu’s suspicion-laced tone. ‘You’re being awfully intrigued by her, Tsukuyomi. And I don’t remember you being this impressed with any of the thousands of Zanpakutō surrounding us on a daily basis.’

Itachi ignored the discussion between his Zanpakutō spirits, not understanding why they had to let him listen to it.

‘Maybe, but I haven’t seen such an intricately controlled manipulation of Reiatsu from a Zanpakutō spirit that can easily arrest Itachi’s probing. She’s dangerous is what I mean.’ Tsukuyomi replied as calmly as ever, meanwhile Itachi was halfway with piercing Kisuke with his sword.

However, different from his experience with the 3rd Seats and some few Lieutenants, instead of the normal smooth sailing, he appeared in a dark red space with strings and crooked noise.

“Hmm?... You!!” A raging cold voice said but before Itachi could react to the danger, his right hand was gone and the rest of his body was sewn to the space around him.

A woman in red robes and puppet-like arms loomed over him with a glare in her eyes.

“You’re awfully calm with someone in such a state. How did you get in here?”

Itachi looked around calmly and noted that he was probably in Kisuke’s Zanpakutō’s space, something that should otherwise be impossible especially given how Kisuke was.

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Itachi looked at his arm and frowned slightly at it. Under Benihime’s slightly astonished gaze, the stump of the arm burst into black flames and burned away whatever was keeping him in place.

Before she could lash out, two small spirits rose up from behind Itachi who turned to look at them, especially the small crow that perched on his shoulders.

“What is the meaning of this, Tsukuyomi?” He asked Tsukuyomi because he too was ignorant of why he was inside Kisuke’s Zanpakutō’s space, where he was the weakest he’s ever been.

“I only responded in kind to her attack. Or do you consider that a lie, Benihime?”

Benihime snorted dismissively at Tsukuyomi’s question and waved her hands toward Itachi, trying to capture him, but hissed menacingly when her hands touched his clothes.

“You uncouth woman!” She snarled.

Amaterasu’s voice in reply to her came from Itachi’s clothes. “Keep your manipulating hands away from my charge, woman. Or the next thing that will be burned will be your host.”

Amaterasu’s flames consumed Itachi and Tsukuyomi until they were gone from Benihime’s space.

‘Get stronger, Itachi.’ Was Amaterasu’s curt remark after Itachi came back to himself before her presence disappeared.

“3rd Seat Itachi?”

Itachi knew why Amaterasu behaved like that but there was little he could do right now so he focused on what he might actually have the strength for.

“Well, you’re clear.” Itachi said dryly.

“But you don’t look it, or rather you seem dissatisfied with it.” Kisuke said, his hand resting on the hilt of his sword. “Now tell me, how did Hiyori fall under someone’s illusion without me or her noticing?”

“That is something I don’t know, but I’m sure Hiyori Sarugaki is not the only one under this influence. I’d reckon Soi Fon is too.”

“What are you saying, Itachi Uchiha!” Soi Fon barely managed to let it out through gritted teeth. Oh she was angry.

Itachi showed no reaction to Soi Fon’s anger and replied while facing Kisuke. “There’s no way Soi Fon would accept a mission, one she knows I never carry out, without express permission from Yoruichi.. Captain Yoruichi, or something that leaves no doubt that Yoruichi sanctioned it.”

‘This is most probably a scheme to throw everyone off balance and I’m the driving force for this part of their plan. In other words, someone is primed to take the fall in a way that leaves no doubt in anyone’s mind. What are they banking on? My abilities? My perceived overconfidence?... Or maybe the general ignorance of the higher ups?’

Soi Fon stepped forward, scowling at Itachi with a hateful gaze. “I can’t believe I once trusted you.” She muttered under her breath for Itachi to hear.

“Your thoughts are flawed, Soi Fon. Will it make you feel better if I glare and rage about the injustice I feel instead of being realistic? Or should I blindly trust you even after being an accomplice, willingly or not, to my attempted murder? Will that make it easier for you to understand, Soi Fon?”

Without much fanfare, as just like he expected, Soi Fon too was under such illusions. Apart from Soi Fon, another Lieutenant, Sōjun Kuchiki, Lieutenant of the 6th Division and son of its Captain, Ginrei Kuchiki, was found under the influence of an unknown Zanpakutō.

“Tessai, your evaluation.”

Everyone kept silent as Tessai adjusted his glasses to speak with a frustrated expression on his face.

“Head Captain, to be frank, without Itachi’s blade to point something like that out, it’s practically impossible to find it out with Kidō or any way I can think of. As far as I can tell, nothing like that existed until 3rd Seat Itachi plunged his blade into their bodies.”

“Doesn’t that mean he’s the one practically putting it in there? I mean, there’s coincidences and whatnot, but this is hella convenient if you ask me.” Kensei Mugurama smirked. “If you’ll allow me, Head Captain, this has gone too far and it’s no longer funny.”

Kensei applied his Shunpo and appeared behind Itachi with his hands lit with a restraining Kidō, however the moment his fingers pointed to Itachi to fire off the Kidō, Itachi blurred and the next thing he saw was his fingers pointing at himself and his Kidō restraining his own movements.

“Oya? Just how did you get in that position, Kensei?” Shinji, along with a few Captains, instantly reassessed Itachi’s strength level with how effortlessly he subdued a Captain. His illusion might have been in play but that didn’t take away from the fact that he easily subdued a Captain with his own Kidō.

Itachi paid no attention to Kensei who forcefully broke out of his own Sai Bakudō, and faced Yamamoto who was watching him with clear eyes under his squinted eyelids.

“Your decision… Head Captain?”

Instead of answering Itachi, Yamamoto turned to Tessai and Kisuke and asked. “I shouldn’t be asking this as it is the same as questioning your capabilities, but we’re far past that point. What can you say for certain?”

Itachi and Kisuke stared at each other, the tension between them clearly felt in the room. “There’s not much to say, but based on Itachi’s sharp intuition in the past, his words should be heeded to a certain extent.”

Hiyori’s face blanched as she heard Kisuke’s words that hit the nail on the head in regards to her compromised status.

“I’m not entirely sure, but I can say that Itachi’s Reiatsu is entirely different from whatever it was that had its influence over these Shinigami.” Tessai said.

“Hmm.” Yamamoto nodded and banged his cane on the ground. “2nd Division Captain, Yoruichi Shihōin; 6th Division Captain, Ginrei Kuchiki, 12th Division Captain, Kisuke Urahara; Executive Militia, Soi Fon, 6th Division Lieutenant, Sōjun Kuchiki; 12th Division Lieutenant, Hiyori Sarugaki — you’re henceforth temporarily suspended from your duties until the investigative procedures of the Kidō Corps and Onmistukidō have been carried out and the judgment of Central 46 has been passed.”

The air instantly chilled with Yamamoto’s words but the three Captains called out paid little attention to it as their minds were on entirely different things.

“The same goes for you, 3rd Seat Itachi.”

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