Chapter 683 Hueco Mundo Expedition Team

After that, Aizen explained the truth about the Soul King, or rather, the truth about the three worlds.

How the Soul King had been dismembered by the ancestors of the Five Great Noble Families... his limbs severed, his organs removed... reduced to a living corpse suspended in the deepest part of the Soul King Palace, existing only as a wedge to maintain the balance of the three worlds.

How the Royal Guard, under the guise of 'protecting the Soul King', were in fact the jailers guarding this prisoner.

The cycle of souls for Shinigami, Hollows, Quincies, and even all souls in the Living World, essentially served this cold, balanced mechanism.

Kanae and Momo, standing nearby, were completely stunned.

They had never imagined that what they had learned in their Shin'o Academy's textbooks... that 'His Majesty the Soul King is the supreme ruler of the three worlds'... was built upon such a bloody and tragic truth.

Meanwhile, in Momo's eyes, Aizen at this moment looked somewhat unfamiliar, a far cry from the perpetually gentle, smiling, perfect big brother figure she had always known.

Finally, Aizen asked in a gentle but probing tone, "What do you think, Captain Busujima?"

To be honest, Saeko couldn't have cared less.

Having been influenced by Makoto, she had long grown accustomed to these power struggles among the so-called ruling classes.

This was a typically modern people's way of thinking.

As long as the common people could live well, it didn't matter whether the leader is a white man or a black man or an Asian.

As long as the people below had enough to eat.

"I don't have any particular opinion. I'm not close with the Soul King."

Saeko's tone remained flat, but then she shifted gears, looking directly at Aizen. "But it seems you're planning to rebel, Captain Aizen."

Aizen also smiled. "I never said that."

Though Aizen said that verbally, the fact that he had taken the initiative to meet with Saeko and reveal the truth about the Soul King was a clear indication of his rebellious intentions.

Saeko suddenly felt curious. "Aren't you afraid I'll report you to the Captain-Commander?"

Aizen smiled without answering. After a long pause, he spoke again: "Captain Busujima, do you have any evidence?"

To be honest, Aizen really wasn't afraid of being reported.

His popularity and reputation within the entire Gotei 13, without exaggeration, were second only to Captain-Commander Yamamoto.

Even though Saeko also had a sizable following in the Seireitei, if she went around telling people that 'Aizen is planning to rebel', they would only think Saeko had lost her mind.

Seeing that he had laid his cards on the table, Saeko didn't hold back either. "I'm not interested in the power games of this world's upper echelons. But if I could rule the three worlds, I wouldn't mind giving it a try."

As soon as she said this, even Aizen's eyes widened slightly.

Momo covered her mouth in shock.

Although Aizen had long realized that Saeko was the same type as Unohana, he had assumed she would be the type who had no interest in power and purely enjoyed battle for its own sake. He hadn't expected her to also have ambitions to seize power for herself.

This made Aizen even more interested in this female Captain.

"With Captain Busujima's talent, you've probably reached a bottleneck by now, haven't you? I happen to know a way for Shinigami to break through their limits. Would you be interested, Captain Busujima?"

Saeko narrowed her eyes and waved her hand in refusal without any hesitation.

Then she turned and left the calligraphy club with Kanae.

She felt that Aizen was too dangerous a person to make deals with.

After Saeko and Kanae left, only Aizen and Momo remained in the calligraphy club.

The room was silent for a long while. Momo looked at Aizen's back, opened her mouth several times, but couldn't utter a word.

After a long moment, Aizen stood up from the tatami mat, his movements as calm and elegant as ever, as if that treasonous conversation had never happened.

"Hinamori, let's go."

Momo was stunned for a full few seconds before she snapped out of it and hurriedly followed with small steps.

She walked half a step behind Aizen, watching the silhouette ahead. At this moment, she felt a strange unfamiliarity in that familiar figure.

Just then, Aizen spoke again. Though he didn't turn around, his voice had reverted to its usual gentle, wind-like tone. "Are you afraid of me, Hinamori?"

Momo's steps faltered.

Her mind involuntarily flashed back to that bloody night decades ago when they had first met.

That was her most precious memory.

At that thought, Momo suddenly looked up, as if she had made up her mind, and shook her head firmly. "No matter what Captain Aizen plans to do, I will always follow you."

Aizen stopped, turned around, and smiled, reaching out to gently stroke Momo's head as he had countless times before.

"Is that so? Thank you, Momo."

Aizen didn't mind revealing his true self in front of Momo.

As he had said in the original work, Momo was a girl who couldn't live without him.

Originally, Aizen had nurtured Momo, Kira, and these young students to serve as his loyal cadre when he eventually defected from the Soul Society.

But now that Hueco Mundo had become Makoto's territory, there was no need for him to defect anymore.

When the time was right, he could simply join forces with that man and launch a frontal assault on the Seireitei.

The news of Isshin's retirement due to injury sparked considerable discussion within the Gotei 13.

The silver lining was that Isshin had only been severely injured and unable to continue his duties, not killed in action. So the public sentiment wasn't particularly dire.

Moreover, the formation of the Hollow Extermination Team to Hueco Mundo had diverted most people's attention, preventing the situation from deteriorating too badly.

The Hollow Extermination Team quickly became the hottest topic of conversation among the Gotei 13 members.

Since the basic requirement for registration was mastery of Shikai, essentially only seated officers at the Fifth Seat level and above from each division were eligible.

Many of the women in Saeko's 7th Division signed up enthusiastically.

Their true purpose, of course, wasn't to serve the Soul Society. They wanted to use large-scale combat in Hueco Mundo to further improve their strength, complete the system mission sooner, and return to the real world to see their man.

Decades of separation had been long enough. They didn't want to miss any opportunity to speed up the process.

Many seated officers from other divisions also signed up.

Though the mission was extremely dangerous, the rewards were equally substantial.

Opportunities for promotion to seated officer, access to rare resources, or even direct promotion to Lieutenant could arise from this expedition.

Moreover, the expedition required personnel with various specialties... beyond Kaido specialists, they also needed scouts skilled in covert operations and reconnaissance. A well-rounded team had to be assembled.