Keiko's double pupils quickly faded. At her current level, even simulating Soul King power through the Age-Age Fruit was exhausting. Truthfully, she relied heavily on the Soul King fragments within her; without them, Beltz's hypnosis alone wouldn't have sufficed to manifest "Distorted Future: The Future of the Soul King."
Because she possessed a significant amount of Soul King power, she had the latent aptitude to become a candidate. If she, Beltz, and Erensig were to merge, they would simultaneously possess the powers of a Shinigami, Quincy, Human, Fullbringer, and Hollow. Keiko represents the Shinigami, Erensig the Hollow, and Beltz the Quincy/Human. As for Fullbring... it would naturally emerge from the resonance between Erensig's Hollow power and Keiko's Soul King fragments.
Thus, becoming the Soul King was not an impossible dream for her. However, even with this foundation, maintaining the form for just a few seconds drained her immensely—far more than Bonney's use of Nika's power in the original story. It proved the adage: the more taxing the move, the more powerful it is.
Regardless, Keiko's performance completely awed the Tsunayashiro clan. They looked at her with fanatical reverence, as if gazing upon a god. In the Soul Society, no one understood the weight of that sight better than them. Could a member of their own family truly wield the Omniscient, all-powerful divine might?
The original Soul King was sealed and dismembered because the Five Noble Ancestors feared his power. They worried he might stop maintaining the three worlds or seek revenge for their betrayal. Dismembering him turned him into a harmless idol. But if one of their own became the Soul King, they wouldn't seal her—they would worship her! Keiko would replace the old king, and the Tsunayashiro would become the sole "God Race" of the new era, leaving the other four noble families in the dust.
"Greetings, Clan Head!"
The elder, thinking of this glorious future, knelt before Keiko. His authority in the family was high; once he acknowledged her, others followed suit.
"I wish to go to the Great Spirit Book Gallery. Make the preparations," Keiko commanded softly.
The Tsunayashiro oversee history, and the Gallery—which forcibly records all phenomena in the Soul Society—is effectively their domain. Although the guards are from the Amakado family (high-ranking nobles serving as sages in the Central 46), even they were insignificant compared to the Tsunayashiro, who lead the Gold Seal Noble Council.
In the Soul Society, power is structured like this: The Central 46 holds supreme judicial and decision-making power, directly commanding the Gotei 13. However, since the 46 sages are drawn from noble families, and the Tsunayashiro lead the council that governs those families, the Central 46 effectively acts as their puppet. This was a political compromise; by ruling from the shadows, the nobles let the 46 sages absorb the public's resentment while they maintained ultimate control.
Keiko was now one of the most powerful individuals in the Soul Society. Entering the Gallery was easy. Her goal? To find the records of how the Hogyoku was created—and perhaps some other interesting tech for Vegapunk. Both Aizen and Urahara's methods were recorded there. If Beltz had one fragment and Vegapunk could manufacture another based on these records, they could create a complete Hogyoku.
"Do not broadcast my succession. Act as you did before. I have no interest in petty politics; I have simply returned to the family," Keiko added.
In Wano, Rukia returned after half a year of traveling. Though she hadn't become a pirate, she had a bounty. Initially a pirate hunter, she had killed marauders, but eventually realized that some Marines were just as corrupt. When she took down a corrupt Marine Captain, she was branded a criminal with a bounty of several tens of millions.
She had matured significantly. Beltz patted her shoulder. "You've grown up."
Rukia blushed. "What are you saying? I'm over a hundred years old!" (Though in Soul Society terms, she was still young).
"Once we part this time, I don't know when we'll meet again," Beltz said wistfully. Once Rukia returned to the Gotei 13, she couldn't stay in the One Piece world.
"I'm grateful to you, Beltz," Rukia whispered.
"Don't be sad. Just stay safe. Especially regarding Aizen—do not confront him. You are no match for him."
"I told you, I've matured," Rukia smiled. "I won't be as impulsive as before."
"Let's go. I'll remove the Hogyoku from your body. That way, Aizen won't focus his attention on you." This was Beltz's original goal for taking her. He had waited until Vegapunk finished the clones to avoid distractions.
They entered the lab. Vegapunk was prepared. While the Op-Op Fruit would be ideal for such a delicate extraction, Vegapunk's technology was equally reliable. (Keiko could have used her fruit to simulate the Op-Op power, but Beltz kept his clones a strict secret).
Vegapunk had actually been aided by the Hogyoku within Rukia over the past years; its desire-manifesting power had likely accelerated his research.
"Don't worry, it won't hurt," said Lilith, the "Evil" aspect of Vegapunk. Since Rukia had the Snow-Snow Fruit and a Logia body, extracting an object was much simpler than with a physical body.
"Do you need my Haki to help?" Beltz asked, since normal tools can't touch Logias.
"No need, just get out," Lilith huffed. "Don't underestimate me."
"Once the Hogyoku is out, let me study it for a bit," Vegapunk requested.
"No problem," Beltz signaled 'OK.' "I'll have another surprise for you in a few days" (referring to the Hogyoku data Keiko was retrieving).
As Beltz stepped out, his face darkened. He had received a transmission from Liltotto.
"Get ready. The Op-Op Fruit you've been looking for has appeared in the North Blue. The World Government has sent agents to claim it. Also... the World Government has its eyes on Edward Newgate. They're planning to make a move on Whitebeard!"