"Lord Aizen."
Sensing the door to the facility open, Tōsen Kaname stopped his writing and turned around.
His face, hidden behind dark glasses, turned toward the doorway, looking at the four people who had just entered.
Tōsen fully extended his senses, observing Ren and the other person standing behind Aizen and Ichimaru Gin.
"My Lord, who are these two?"
Although he could not see, his senses were exceptionally sharp.
He could distinguish Ren's identity just by his spiritual pressure.
During Kuchiki Kōga's rebellion years ago, he had followed Aizen and fought against this man.
Now, for Lord Aizen to bring this man to their secret base was beyond his imagination.
However, since it was Lord Aizen's decision, there must be a reason for it.
Naturally, he would not object.
Aizen laughed softly. "Kaname, I don't think an introduction is necessary. You've known him for a long time."
Tōsen nodded.
The current Ren held immense power in the Seireitei, far surpassing even Captain-Commander Yamamoto. It would be difficult not to know him.
"From today on, Senior Ren is our ally. Let's get along well from now on."
"Yes, Lord Aizen."
Tōsen turned his head toward Ren.
"I never thought the Commander-in-Chief of the Onmitsukidō, who holds such a high position, would come here. It's truly hard to believe."
Aizen introduced Tōsen to Ren. "This is my subordinate, Tōsen Kaname. Senior Ren should remember him."
Ren nodded. "Of course I remember. He made things quite miserable for my Toji back then."
"Senior, that's all in the past. We should look toward the future," Aizen said in a gentle tone.
"I'm not that petty." Ren waved his hand. "Besides, that's between him and Toji. If there's a grudge, let them settle it themselves."
Truthfully, he didn't feel much resentment toward this blind man.
Fushiguro Toji being injured by him was just part of a battle; injuries were inevitable.
He didn't care much at all.
Of course, if Toji couldn't let it go and wanted revenge, he wouldn't stop him either.
At the moment, he was more curious about other things.
Ren walked over, his gaze sweeping across the screens before turning to Tōsen.
"Kaname, I remember you're blind. Can you see the screens?"
Hearing Ren call him by his first name so familiarly, Tōsen was momentarily stunned.
Were they that close?
They had only met a few times.
Even if he was a high-ranking official in the Seireitei, wasn't this a bit too casual?
Tōsen glanced at Aizen, but Aizen maintained his usual gentle expression, showing no sign of concern.
He composed himself and replied, "I can see."
"Though I am blind, my spirit vision is very sensitive. I can see the information displayed on the screen."
When Soul Reapers observe things, they use more than just physical eyesight; they have a specialized sense called spirit vision.
Compared to ordinary people, Soul Reapers focus more on this spiritual perception.
Because Tōsen was blind, his spirit vision and other senses were actually more refined than those of a normal person.
"I see."
Ren nodded, not dwelling on the matter, and turned to Aizen.
"Sousuke, you said you brought me here to see something. What is it?"
"Senior, follow me."
Aizen led the way, passing through rows of massive glass containers.
Ren glanced around, his eyes sweeping over the strange things inside.
Some were humanoid, some were beast-like, and others had Hollow masks on their faces... all were soaked in jars and bottles, devoid of life.
Seeing this, Ren felt a strange sense of déjà vu, as if he were visiting Mayuri Kurotsuchi's laboratory.
Did all these researchers have a hobby of pickling their samples?
Sensing Ren's curiosity, Aizen's voice was calm as he explained, "These are samples from previous experiments. They still have some value, so I kept them."
He turned his head and asked, "Are you curious, Senior? If you like, I can give you one or two."
He had already finished most of his research on these things, so giving them to Ren didn't matter.
"No thanks. I have similar researchers under me, so I'm not that curious."
Ren waved his hand, refusing outright.
He had no special interest in such things.
These things were hideous; if he looked at them too much, he was afraid he'd have nightmares.
"We're here."
The group reached the end of the corridor, and Aizen stopped.
Pointing at the glass in front of them, he said to Ren, "Senior, please look."
Ren stepped forward. Through the glass, he saw a massive recessed space.
The area was enclosed in glass. As they approached, the lights inside turned on, illuminating the space.
A grotesque figure stood in the center of the area below.
"This is..."
Seeing the figure, Ren's expression faltered.
The figure below was clearly humanoid, but its hands and feet had turned into beast-like claws, and its skin was covered in grayish-blue fur.
There was a hole the size of a bowl in its abdomen, through which the background could be seen.
But what caught Ren's attention most was the pale mask on its face.
"A Hollow?!"
Without a doubt, it was a Hollow!
And not just any ordinary Hollow!
Ren's gaze swept over the black clothing the Hollow wore; it was clearly a Shihakushō!
He turned to Aizen, his expression showing a hint of surprise.
"Sousuke, is this a Soul Reaper?"
"You've completed the Hollowification experiment for Soul Reapers?"
How long had it been? Was Aizen really this fast?
Aizen pushed up his glasses, a white light flashing across the lenses.
His eyes remained warm as he looked at the Hollowified Soul Reaper below.
"In a way, yes, but the state is far from stable."
He turned, a look of regret on his face as he looked at Ren.
"Previously, I used souls from the Rukongai for experiments and made significant progress."
"Then I shifted my focus to Soul Reapers. Unfortunately, their spiritual power is too strong, so the Hollowification experiments haven't been smooth."
"After consuming many Soul Reapers, this is the only one I've completed so far. As soon as I made progress, I came to find you."
Ren nodded slightly.
He looked at Aizen, his gaze fixed on the space between Aizen's brows.
"How many Soul Reapers did you use? Aren't you afraid of being discovered if you make such a big move?"
"About thirty or so," Aizen said. "You don't need to worry, Senior. You know my ability. Ordinary means cannot find a flaw in Kyōka Suigetsu."
His Kyōka Suigetsu wasn't a direct-attack type Zanpakutō, so it didn't provide a massive boost to his combat power.
However, in terms of illusions, the power of Kyōka Suigetsu was terrifying.
With his meticulous handling, those thirty-plus dead Soul Reapers were still working perfectly fine within the Seireitei.
"I'm not worried about you."
Ren pointed at the Hollowified Soul Reaper below and asked, "What about this one? Where did it come from?"
Aizen introduced it. "This was the fifth seat in my squad. His spiritual pressure was decent, and it took a lot of effort to finally succeed."
"The fifth seat of your squad?"
Ren was momentarily stunned, showing a hint of surprise.
"You're the lieutenant, and he was your subordinate. Using your own men for experiments... you truly have no heart."
Having said that, his gaze drifted to Ichimaru Gin nearby.
"With your style of treating subordinates like objects, it's no wonder Gin wants to leave you and come to my side."
"Senior, didn't I say that Gin and I were just playing a little joke on you? Are you still holding onto that?"
A look of helplessness appeared on Aizen's face.
"Now that you've seen it, what do you think? Can you forgive me now?"
"Barely."
Ren reached out and pointed at the Hollowified Soul Reaper below.
"How's the strength of this thing? Can I test it?"
"The current results are less than ideal," Aizen said, shaking his head.
Perhaps sensing their presence, the Hollowified Soul Reaper in the space below suddenly moved.
It snapped its eyes open, its white mask clicking and cracking as it opened its maw.
Its yellowish-brown eyes immediately locked onto the target, staring up at Aizen with murderous intent.
"He's awake," Ren said, looking over.
The Hollowified Soul Reaper below stretched its limbs, its claws glinting with a metallic sheen that looked exceptionally sharp.
With almost no preparation, the Hollowified Soul Reaper flickered to the glass, slashing its claws against it and producing a piercing screech.
Seeing its movement, Shisui showed surprise. He quietly activated his Sharingan to record all information about it.
"That wasn't Shunpo; it was a Hollow's Sonído!"
Sonído was a Hollow's high-speed movement technique, comparable to a Soul Reaper's Shunpo, but it was a high-level skill that only Great Hollows could typically use.
The fact that this Hollowified Soul Reaper could use it exceeded his expectations.
However, despite using Sonído, it could not scratch the glass.
Aizen had specially made this glass for observation; while it was transparent, it possessed considerable defensive power.
Hearing the piercing sound, like nails scratching a chalkboard, Ren couldn't help but cover his ears.
"Sousuke, can't you make it calm down?"
Aizen opened his mouth as if to say something, but Ren was covering his ears and couldn't hear him clearly.
He could only see Aizen's lips moving.
Perhaps realizing its actions were futile, the Hollowified Soul Reaper stopped, landed on the floor, and slowly opened its mouth.
Seeing this, Ren finally lowered his hands and asked Aizen, "What were you just saying? I didn't catch it."
Aizen didn't answer. Instead, he looked down, the gentle smile fading from his face as his brow furrowed deeply.
"This is getting a bit bad."
Seeing Aizen's expression, Ren also looked down.
The Hollowified Soul Reaper's spiritual pressure surged, creating a violent air current that whipped its clothes around.
Spiritual energy gathered in front of its mouth, condensing into a crimson orb of light aimed upward.
"It can even fire a Cero!"
Ren raised an eyebrow, recognizing the move instantly.
The Hollowified Soul Reaper continued to compress its spiritual pressure frantically. Its body trembled violently, and the light of the Cero flickered unevenly, but it could not seem to fire.
When it reached the critical point, Aizen sighed softly.
"Oh no!"
As soon as the words left his mouth, the Hollowified Soul Reaper seemed unable to take it any longer. The light at its mouth instantly collapsed, scattering into shimmering fragments.
Not only that, but its body also began to show abnormalities.
White matter suddenly erupted from the mask's mouth and the hole in its abdomen, flowing down over its body.
It collapsed to the ground, its limbs flailing wildly. After a moment of struggle, it stopped abruptly and lay there motionless.
Ren was about to say something when he saw the white matter flowing from the Hollowified Soul Reaper's body evaporate into thin air.
Along with it, its distorted body vanished in an instant.
On the empty floor, only a black Shihakushō remained, a silent testament to the innocent life that had once existed.
Ren turned his head toward Aizen, tilting it slightly with a questioning gaze.
Though he didn't speak, Aizen instantly understood Ren's meaning.
'Is this the thing you wanted me to see?'
Aizen's expression was complex, and then he sighed.
"Senior, don't look at me like that. I told you, its state was far from stable."
"It tried to fire a Cero, but the sudden surge in spiritual pressure caused an irreversible collapse in its unstable body."
"Does that explanation satisfy you, Senior?"
Ren thought about it and slowly nodded.
"Even though it ended in such a mess, at least I saw some progress."
"Overall, it's barely passable."
Hearing Ren say this, Aizen's usual gentle smile returned.
"I'm glad Senior can understand my difficulties."
"It's not about understanding."
Ren said, "Make a copy of your experimental data and give it to me. I'll take it back to look at."
He originally had two major talents under him, but unfortunately, Urahara Kisuke had ulterior motives, so he couldn't trust him.
Fortunately, there was still Mayuri Kurotsuchi.
Or rather, Mayuri was more sensible, and he was easier to use.
"That's no problem, but doesn't Senior have anything to offer in return?"
"I'll have the funds and materials for your subsequent experiments sent to you."
"As expected of Senior, so generous."
Aizen wasn't lacking in these things, but having someone else handle the trouble was better than doing it himself.
He nodded slightly to Tōsen Kaname behind him, and Tōsen walked toward the equipment in front.
Before long, he returned with a stack of documents and handed them to Aizen.
"Senior, this is all the data."
Ren took them and flipped through them briefly.
Unfortunately, he knew nothing about this field and would have to wait until he returned to give them to Mayuri.
Handing the documents to Shisui for safekeeping, Ren saw that today's goal had been achieved and turned to leave.
Suddenly, he paused and asked Aizen.
"By the way, Sousuke, how is the state of the Sphere?"
Hearing Ren mention this, Aizen showed no surprise and smiled slightly.
"The Sphere is in good condition. That Soul Reaper was only able to complete its Hollowification thanks to the power of the Sphere."
"Would Senior like to see it?"
Ren nodded and followed Aizen toward a room on one side.
Seeing this, Shisui, Gin, and the others did not follow but stayed behind, waiting quietly.
A moment later, the two of them walked out.
Ren's expression was relaxed, and he seemed to be in a good mood.
Aizen said from the side, "Senior, when will you be able to obtain the other Sphere you mentioned?"
"Don't be in a hurry. I have a plan and need you to cooperate."
"No problem."
The two of them walked over.
Seeing Shisui, Ren didn't linger and waved his hand.
"Let's go, Shisui. Back to the Seireitei."
"Yes, my Lord."
[Reviews - Power St0nes - Comments are highly appreciated to keep me going.....(+50 chapters) patre0n.c0m/talecrafter]