Kisuke was very much in favor of the anticlimactic ending for the [Chained] since it means less problems for him. However, he didn't really like how it was achieved.
Kisuke's tattered Shihakushou and long hair from Hollowfication swayed in the air as he looked up to the doors that began opening.
One by one, members of the Gotei 13 and two other people from the Zero Division stepped out with their Reiatsu and killing intent flaring up.
From what Kisuke could see, except for the Captains and Lieutenants of the 1st, 2nd, 4th, 5th, 12th Divisions and Hikifune Kirio, everyone else is present. At this lineup, Kisuke couldn't help but squint his eyes, 'I understand 1st, 4th, and even Hikifune-san's absence... But what about the other three? Especially when I have a direct connection to the 2 of them.'
"Surprised?" Ichibei suddenly asked with an amused tone and when Kisuke turned to him, he continued, "We just want to be safe. Initially, I was just thinking of containing the Captain of the 2nd Division, but because she has been too close with the Captain of the 5th Division, we had to include him too. It seems that was a good call."
Thankfully, Ichibei was still looking down on Kisuke and the latter is able to immediately pick up a few things from what he just said, 'They were suspicious of Soifon-san from the start and only made a move against Shinji-san after considering how close he is to her lately and not because of my past relationship with him. That would mean that they don't know that [Belial] and I are the same person prior to this.'
In the midst of all this bad news, Kisuke was relieved due to one thing, 'They don't have direct surveillance of our actions.'
'Now then, how should I play my cards? There's a reason why these guys haven't attacked me in earnest yet. He probably wanted to figure out where I came from since he's probably sure that my group and I are not Hell's residents like everybody else.'
And Kisuke is exactly on point. Ichibei wanted to observe him more since Kisuke and his group were an unknown variable to him. If he wanted to clean this mess up, he also had to clean the loose ends. In the first place, Ichibei didn't really want to engage with him this early due to prior reasons and was only forced to move his plans forward when they unexpectedly managed to kill one of the [Chained].
.
.
.
"...Eijisai..." Choujirou called out to Yamamoto who's also staring at the members of the Gotei 13.
Yamamoto remained quiet and it wasn't just Choujirou who was waiting for his response but also the other Shinigamis except for Batsu'unsai who was still locked in battle with Saizou.
The group could also feel their stares landing on them and they could see the conflicting emotions they have on their faces. Yamamoto and the rest knew that since they already died, it was easy for the Central 46 and the Zero Division to label them as evil and the enemy of the world. It's not hard to imagine that they are here to hunt them down all for the sake of the world's balance and safety.
Yamamoto didn't want to make it hard for them and thought of escaping to avoid this essentially unnecessary confrontation. However, that almost certainly meant abandoning Kisuke's companions.
Yamamoto has a feeling that they are not really after the 'dead' Shinigamis but instead are here to stop whatever Kisuke is trying to do. And the moment they escape and they don't go after them, Serafall and the young girls will be trapped and, much worse, killed.
But more than that, Yamamoto promised Kisuke that he would be on his side.
With a small grin appearing on his face, Yamamoto finally replied, "Let's see how much they have improved through the years."
Choujirou sighed but soon also smiled, "Understood!"
Juushirou chuckled and stepped forward, "Leave Rukia and Sentarou to me. Would it be a good idea to divide their forces?"
"If that's the case, I want another round with Zaraki." Unohona smiled in excitement. Because her opponent only knew how to swing his big blade wildly, she didn't feel any satisfaction from fighting him. But now an old opponent showed himself, she couldn't help but tremble in anticipation as her bloodlust also spread out."
Juushirou stared at Unohana with a tired expression and thought, 'I hope at least both of them are still alive after all of this.'
"So we are now reigniting our old relationships? I don't know if that's a good idea, but I'd like to get along. I'll take care of Toshirou and Rangiku." Gin said with the same grin as Yamamoto. Immediately after that, he turned around and stared at a certain tree not far from them, "What about you? What are you going to do?"
From the shadows of the said tree, a dark-skinned man with a blindfold walked out, "I'd like to just peacefully watch."
It immediately became obvious to everyone who he turned to that the chains previously seen from him had already disappeared, "I see. Since Komamura is not present, you're not interested, huh?"
Kaname didn't say anything and just returned to his hiding spot.
Furoufushi turned to Chika and asked, "What about you?"
"Isn't it obvious? We know that most of them would be going after the Captain so I'll take the leftovers." Chika shrugged his shoulders while answering. Several of his 'clones' in his fight earlier and it'd take a while to regenerate them so he didn't want to fight as much as possible. Nevertheless, he didn't really have a choice.
"I see! Then I'll do the same! There are still a few things I want to try." But before Furoufushi could get away, Chika suddenly grabbed her shoulder, "What?" Furoufushi asked as she turned around.
"You stay here. Katori is still fighting and we need to keep an eye on them. You're the most suitable for it since you actually learned some defensive spells."
"Eh~~~~~~" Furoufushi grimaced. But after thinking about the situation more, she dejectedly agreed, "Fine. But if it's hard to handle without losing any of your clones, send some people to my side." She then looked at the nonmembers of the Gotei 13, "One of them will probably go after the swordsmith so what are we going to do with the other one? I hate to admit it, but we don't have a chance of defeating any one of them if we don't cooperate."
At that moment, another presence showed herself, "About that, leave it to me." Serafall appeared with Tanis, Kunou, and the unconscious Claire behind her, "I'm thankful that you're staying behind to defend since that's not really my forte. Please take care of them."
"Oh~ The big sis is finally doing something! I'm looking forward to it!"
"Big sis?" Serafall tilted her head in confusion upon hearing Furoufushi's words.
"You're on par with the old man, right? It's only right for me to call you big sis! Or would you rather me call you old lady?"
"No." Serafall instantly answered with a smile that wasn't a smile.
Now that their lineup is ready, all the Shinigamis except for Furoufushi moved with a Flash Step while Serafall slowly floated up, waiting for further development, 'The cards have lined up. What are you going to do, Ki-tan?'