Chapter 7: Chapter 7: What Pierces My Chest Is...
Chapter 7: What Pierces My Chest Is...
SPLASH!
A bucket of cold water cascaded over his head, jolting his agonized, exhausted nerves awake.
Uchiha Yato slowly opened his eyes, finding an old man and a youth standing before him.
They wore exquisite kimonos and carried swords at their waists. Their facial features shared many similarities; they were clearly father and son.
Yato slowly turned his head, taking in his surroundings.
He was unmistakably in a basement. The walls, built from gray stone blocks, radiated a bone-chilling cold. The air was thick with the metallic stench of blood that could never be washed away. Various instruments of torture hung on the walls, exuding a grim, murderous intent under the flickering light of the torches.
He was pinned in a spread-eagle position. Short swords, rusted and barbed, pierced his skin, tore through his flesh and bone, and nailed him deeply into the wooden posts behind him.
He had reached a dead end.
"I just used Kaido to heal you, and applied some medicine. You won’t die for a while."
Yosuke Horiuchi tossed the wooden bucket aside.
"But listen well, boy. You must understand that if you still refuse to tell me where that item is, the only thing awaiting you is something far more terrifying than death."
Yato responded with silence, offering no pleas for mercy.
"You have guts, I’ll give you that." Yosuke Horiuchi nodded. He wasn’t in a rush to immediately resume the torture. Instead, he stepped to the left, making way for Yuma Horiuchi behind him.
It was only proper for the future helmsman of the family to see a little blood.
"We have plenty of time, boy. We can play this out slowly."
Yuma Horiuchi whistled, stepping forward with a frivolous air. He leisurely picked through the torture devices.
These were the prized collection of the Horiuchi family, each with a unique design. There were tools specifically for severing tendons in the hands and feet, tools for gouging out eyes... it was a highly specialized assortment.
Yato focused his attention entirely on the youth.
Even though he had shed his gaudy floral attire, Yato could still smell the faint odor of alcohol and powder on him.
Yato’s gaze drifted downwards, pausing for a fraction of a second on Yuma Horiuchi’s waist.
The pause was fleeting, so quick that even the seasoned Yosuke Horiuchi failed to catch it.
"You should consider yourself lucky, boy." Yuma Horiuchi picked up a sharp boning knife and dragged it lightly across Yato’s ribs.
"Dying here means you’re acting as a twisted witness to the history of the Horiuchi family."
Blood splattered as Yato felt the icy blade slowly scrape against his bones.
His gaze locked onto Yuma Horiuchi’s face. Deep within his pitch-black eyes, an imperceptible flame seemed to ignite:
"A little to the left. I’ve got an... itch right there."
Yuma Horiuchi raised an eyebrow and sneered. He tossed the boning knife aside and reached for a bowl-shaped contraption, intending to scoop out the boy’s eyes.
But right then, Uchiha Yato spoke again:
"I have a question."
"Oh?" Yuma Horiuchi halted his movements.
Willingness to converse meant there was a crack in his mental armor. Breaking down psychological defenses combined with physical torture was the optimal interrogation method!
Yuma Horiuchi wasn’t entirely a clueless rich kid; he understood this much basic logic.
"To go to such lengths just for a Shin’o Academy acceptance letter..." Yato lowered his head, glancing at the gaping wound in his abdomen.
"Hiring the lowest Seated Officer of the Gotei 13 to make a move... the price couldn’t have been cheap, right?"
"What do you know, kid?" Yuma Horiuchi scoffed disdainfully.
"Hiring Kentaro Koizumi is nothing! The truly exorbitant cost is altering that acceptance letter after killing you! Even for my Horiuchi family, it cost us an entire century’s worth of savings!"
The acceptance letters were imbued with Kido, making them impossible to counterfeit. Once they were issued, the Shin’o Academy submitted the roster of names to the "Great Spirit Book Gallery" for backup and anti-forgery purposes.
Therefore, altering the information on the letter also required buying the silence of the Great Spirit Book Gallery.
The Tsunayashiro Clan, one of the Four Great Noble Families, had controlled this institution for generations, recording all of the Soul Society’s secrets and history.
Faced with the dazzling majesty of a higher noble family, the Horiuchi clan didn’t dare to clash head-on. They could only humble themselves and bleed their coffers dry to curry favor.
As for why they were willing to pay such a staggering price, desperate to enroll Yuma Horiuchi this very year...
"I’ll tell you, kid." Yuma Horiuchi gave a light cough, his expression turning somewhat reverent.
"This year, a certain grand figure will be enrolling. The kind of grand figure you wouldn’t even dare to imagine!"
Yato tilted his head, feigning a brief moment of thought before uttering a name:
"Byakuya... Kuchiki?"
The moment those words left his mouth, the Head of the Horiuchi family, who was resting his eyes with his arms crossed nearby, abruptly furrowed his brows. He closely scrutinized the boy from the Rukongai, unable to fathom where he could have possibly obtained such information.
"You’re quite well-informed." Yuma Horiuchi wasn’t as meticulous as his father and spoke openly.
"Exactly. Becoming classmates with the young master of the Kuchiki Clan, one of the Four Great Noble Families... that is what our Horiuchi family desires.
"Six years as classmates, serving him faithfully, forming a tight-knit circle, forging an unbreakable bond... Hmph, the affairs of nobles—you wouldn’t understand even if I explained it."
"I see." Having resolved his inner doubts, Yato let out a long breath.
"However, even if you kill me and steal my enrollment spot, you’re still just a..." He smiled sweetly, drawing out his words:
"...piece of trash who couldn’t pass the Shin’o Academy exams."
The vein on Yuma Horiuchi’s temple seemed to throb.
However, he quickly realized this was a deliberate provocation and forced a loud laugh:
"You think you can anger me into giving you a quick death? Wrong!
"Let me tell you, we nobles never concern ourselves with momentary gains or losses!
"Since I was young, the family hired experts to spar with me, teaching me Zanjutsu and Kido. Some were Shin’o Academy students, others were genuine Soul Reapers!
"We even had the channels to purchase Asauchi left behind by deceased students!
"By familiarizing myself with the weapon early on, adapting to its weight and characteristics, I’ll be able to cultivate rapidly and achieve Shikai the moment I officially enter the Shin’o Academy and am granted my own Asauchi!"
"I see." With his hands pinned to the posts, Yato couldn’t clap, but he repeatedly snapped his teeth together, emitting a grating, mocking sound:
"Your family sacrificed so much, yet you still couldn’t enroll smoothly. It seems I was right. You really are just a piece of..."
He drew out his words again, pronouncing each syllable with deliberate clarity:
"...TRASH!"
Yuma Horiuchi’s smile froze on his face.
—Why dress in gaudy clothes and go to a place like the pleasure district to try and curry favor with Kyoraku Shunsui?
Why personally handle the interrogation, dirtying his hands with blood and grime?
Ultimately, it was because he wanted his father to view him in a better light.
Ultimately, it was because he wanted the family’s sacrifices to yield a return.
Some people choose to hide their weaknesses; others choose to flaunt them, pretending not to care.
But at the end of the day, this was the thing he cared about the most. It was the chink in his mental armor.
"Boy... you talk too much."
Yuma Horiuchi’s voice turned raspy. Enraged, his arm trembled slightly. He swiftly drew the sword at his waist and plunged it into Uchiha Yato’s chest!
Yosuke Horiuchi hesitated for a moment but ultimately didn’t stop his son from venting his anger.
—The blade pierced the right side. It wouldn’t cause instant death, and he could use Kaido to sustain the boy’s life for further interrogation.
Squelch!
The blade impaled Uchiha Yato’s chest.
The youth felt every inch of his skin, every nerve, every single cell in his body screaming.
But,
This wasn’t pain.
It was absolute elation!
Because his Spiritual Pressure, his will, his soul—at this very moment, they had finally found a sanctuary, a means to manifest in this world.
...I won the bet.
Just as I thought!
As expected, this wasn’t just a simple accessory!
This is... an Asauchi!
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