The Invading Army Part 1, 8-3

Kh...

Who are you?

I said, who are you?!

Huh?

Ichigo!

Guys? Does this mean I'm in the world of the living?

Yes, that's right.

You said you were going to defeat Kageroza. You promised you'd end this quickly and come back to us!

I'm sorry.

We all thought we lost you. That you were...!

I guess I blew it, huh? At least I was able to make it back here in one piece.

That reminds me, Renji. When I was stuck in there, were you the one who rescued me from the Cleaner?

Huh? That wasn't me. All I did was bring you back here after I found you passed out in the Precipice World.

(Then, who was that Soul Reaper?)

So, Ichigo. You were swallowed by the Cleaner, after all.

Do you know something about this, Kisuke?

Yeah, I do. But before we get into that, would you like some tea first?

So, I did find out the reason why Kageroza is so obsessed with the Precipice World.

I was able to determine that Kageroza's objective in studying the Precipice World was to obtain information hidden there regarding Mod Souls.

What are Mod Souls, specifically?

Years ago, an experiment took place. The Soul Society came up with a project called Spearhead.

The plan was to place artificial souls specialized for battle inside the bodies of deceased humans. These bodies would then be used as advance troops whenever Soul Reapers were forced to confront Hollows.

The project was abandoned as being reprehensible, but the result of the experiment was the development of Mod Souls.

She's right. Kon here is one of the surviving Mod Souls.

............

Not only did he out-maneuver me from the very beginning, he was able to literally stop my thoughts as well. Hahahaha!

This one time only, I'll admit to being a fool because of my overconfidence.

Careful, you'll overexert yourself.

And how did you reach that conclusion?

It's just that you look...weak.

No one tells me I'm weak!

Ah... So the drug can stop one's thought process, but not emotions as strong as hatred and anger. Didn't expect that. What a surprise.

Kh... Hah... Ah...

Oh my. Apparently, you've lost the power of speech, which is extremely unfortunate for me, since I wanted to ask why you possess Mod Soul technology.

Oh, I can still speak, Mayuri Kurotsuchi. Clearly, there's something you haven't understood. From the very beginning, I've been operating at a different level.

Ahhhhhhhh!!!

And what do we have here?

Hmph. In the simplest of terms, what you're seeing is an alternative use of Mod Souls. So did that spark your interest?

Oh, yes. You made the Mod Soul you just swallowed take the fall. It's suffering the effects of the drug I injected you with earlier.

Yes. It's not a perfect technique, but it does get the job done.

But how did you find out that the Mod Soul data was hidden in the Precipice World?

Pure chance. I got suspicious.

It was when we went into the Precipice World to retrieve Ichigo. I sensed there was something odd about the Reishi that was lingering around his unconscious body.

When I did an analysis there on the scene, I was surprised to find fragments of previous Mod Soul development data mixed in with the Reishi itself.

I realized that Kageroza had used that data to create the Mod Souls of the squad captains.

You're absolutely right.

I see now. You knew, didn't you?

He's the one who originally developed the Mod Souls.

You developed the Mod Souls? Well, that's just absurd.

I'm telling you all the truth!

The science behind the research was sound. The Mod Souls I was striving to create were to be incubated from a portion of a Soul Reaper's Reishi.

From that, they would inherit the Soul Reaper's mental structure, but their physical capabilities would be far more advanced.

However, your research was too dangerous.

Project Spearhead was dispensed with because the Central 46 recognized the immorality of using the dead as implements of battle.

That was the reason they presented, but that wasn't the real reason. The unrestricted power to control the capabilities of Mod Souls was judged to be an unacceptable threat.

You're correct. The fools feared my research. I found that unacceptable, and I determined I had to take action.

Before everything could be destroyed, I converted the immense amount of information I had developed into special Reishi. I then hid that Reishi in the Precipice World.

After that, Kageroza spent the next several years studying the Precipice World. He then retrieved the information from inside the Cleaner.

Heh...hah... That explains quite a bit, actually. It finally comes out that this bastard is the one who originally created Mod Souls!

It all makes sense now. It's no wonder you couldn't trust me, Nozomi.

You're wrong. That's not the reason.

Then, what is it?! You've kept me at arm's distance all this time and pushed me away!

It's obvious. You thought of me as nothing more than one of Kageroza's creations.

Please, just listen to me. He didn't create you.

And how in the world could you possibly know that?!

The truth is...

...out of all the Mod Souls that have been created...

...I was the first.

How did you put it, Captain Kurotsuchi? The thing that a scientist fears most is oblivion, was it? I have to agree.

I couldn't stand the idea of losing everything, of having my creations ripped away from me, forgotten, and buried in time.

Is that why you came up with the idea of resurrecting Project Spearhead?

That's right. I will rule the Soul Society! You will bow before my invading army!

Their power has skyrocketed!

Until this moment, my forces were holding back their power. Now, you will see the true capabilities of Reigai!

Hmhmhm... Hahahahaha!!!