7-1...

Woah... That's really cool.

Oh! I mean, not cool! What's going on?

Damn. She couldn't have picked the worst time to walk through that door if she tried.

I must commend you for taking care of this so quickly, Captain Hitsugaya.

Ah, it's the Head Captain!

The recent development made it imperative that we establish this emergency channel as soon as possible.

We have discovered Sosuke Aizen's true objective.

That's what this is about? So you've found out what Aizen's after.

Mhm. We have indeed.

As you may know, Sosuke Aizen disappeared months ago. And since then, we have launched an extensive investigation.

We've had teams scouring the Squad 5 Captain's room where Aizen lived, the underground assembly hall of Central 46, the Seijoto Kyorin, where he hid himself after his famed death.

And even the Daireisho Archive, where, after countless hours of sifting through all the data, Captain Ukitake discovered something.

It seems he accessed all the research and data related to the Hogyoku.

But there was one file that had been marked read, and this information was completely unrelated to the Hogyoku.

The information Captain Aizen had been looking at... What was it?

The Ouken.

Umm... What exactly is an Ouken?

The literal translation is "the royal key."

You may not have known, but the Soul Society has a royal family.

We do have a king, but he placed Central 46 in charge of governing the Soul Society, and the royal family chose never to get involved.

Neither the Captain nor myself, none of us have actually seen the royal family in person.

Indeed. Our king is called the Reio, or Soul King. Not only is he revered, he is also an important symbolic figure within the Soul Society.

The Royal Palace is located in a completely separate dimension and is guarded by its own private force, an elite group known as the Royal Security Guards.

And the Ouken is the key that opens the gate to the dimension where the Royal Palace is.

If that's true and Aizen's after the key, that means he wants to...

Murder the king. I'm afraid we must assume that is his motive.

However, I believe there is a more immediate threat.

Could there have been any information in the book Aizen was looking at that would lead him to the location of the Ouken?

Not exactly.

The location of the Ouken is a secret that has been passed down from one Head Captain of the 13 Court Guard Squads to the next for generations.

There has never been nor ever shall be a written record of its whereabouts.

The document Aizen was looking at dealt not with the location but the creation of the Ouken.

He now possesses the knowledge with which to create the Royal Key.

So you mean to tell us that the problem lies in how the Royal Key is created?

Not just how. What concerns us is the materials that are needed for it.

The materials required to create an Ouken are a hundred thousand souls and a Jureichi one spirit mile in diameter.

A hundred thousand souls...

That is correct.

But the souls isn't the only thing that you should worry about.

A Jureichi is an enriched spirit zone found in the world of the living.

It's location changes over time. Because it is so spiritually charged, it's an area spirits are drawn to.

Perhaps you understand now. The Jureichi that Aizen is after...is Karakura Town.

Ah!

If Aizen is able to follow the instructions which he now possesses and he succeeds in completing the Ouken...

Karakura Town, the land on which it stands, and every person living there will be carved out of this world and erased from existence.

No... That's not possible!

But isn't there anything you can do? Isn't there some way to stop him?

We will find a way.

The 13 Court Guard Squads were created for this very purpose.

Thankfully, we still have a little time to work with.

According to Captain Kurotsuchi's report, the Hogyoku remains in a dormant state for a period of time after being released from it's seal.

There is nothing Aizen can do to change that.

Aizen will be unable to assemble his forces until the Hogyoku is fully awakened. Then, he will make his move.

Until then, we most hone our skills and not rest until we are prepared for battle!

Now, as for you, Orihime Inoue...

Since Aizen's objective is the world of the living, the area may be too large for us to handle by ourselves. We will need the world of the living to gather its strength as well.

Go. I want you to inform Ichigo Kurosaki of this matter.

Yes, sir!