Bleach: Can't Fear Your Own World

Bleach: Can't Fear Your Own World is a Bleach novel by Ryohgo Narita that centers on Shūhei Hisagi. The novel is split into three volumes and reveals more details about the four Noble Houses, the Soul King, Arrancar and Fullbringers. The story features a new antagonist called Tokinada Tsunayashiro, and his protege, Hikone.

Summary
As head of the Seireitei Communication, Hisagi uses his journalistic skills to investigate when there is an attempted assassination aimed at the four great Noble Houses. An unknown Shinigami attacks the Quincy and the Arrancar that survived in Hueco Mundo. And with a rapidly growing, mysterious religious group in the Human World, there is turmoil in each of the three main realms of existence. It all connects to the new head of the Tsunayashiro family, one of the four great Noble Houses.

Prologue 1
In the Soul King Palace, shortly after Yhwach's final defeat at the hands of Ichigo Kurosaki, Ichibē Hyōsube is silently staring at the former Soul King's shrine when he is approached by Captain-Commander Shunsui Kyōraku. The two Shinigami have a cryptic conversation about the state of the current Soul King, and Shunsui confronts Ichibē about the latter's decision to potentially sacrifice Ichigo Kurosaki to become the new Soul King. While Shunsui makes it clear that such a decision would have weighed heavily on him, as well as Ichigo's companions, Ichibē nonchalantly says that he would merely have missed talking to the young boy.

Shunsui voices his relief that Ichigo did not have to be cut down, to which Ichibē responds that it was mere luck. He never expected Ichigo to defeat or even survive against Yhwach, but the latter's decision to absorb the former Soul King's powers was an unexpected fortune. When Shunsui tries to steer the conversation towards the Five Noble Families, the two are interrupted by the arrival of Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez and Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck, the latter of whom is carrying the now-freed Tier Harribel with her. As the two Tres Espada argue with a hostile Grimmjow, Ichibē assures them that they're free to leave, or even be escorted, back to Hueco Mundo. When Grimmjow remains suspicious, the Royal Guard commander adds that killing three Menos - class Arrancar would be too much trouble due to how disruptive their deaths would be to the balance of Souls.

Harribel interrupts them by asking if the "thing" enshrined behind them is what they call the Soul King, the core of Soul Society. When Ichibē confirms this, he asks her if she is able to tolerate such an existence. Harribel refuses to answer, saying only that she understands Sōsuke Aizen's motivations now. After parting words with Shunsui, the three Arrancar depart back to Hueco Mundo.

Ichibē prepares to leave as well, saying that he should revive the remaining Royal Guard members. Ichibē explains that, since their bones are infused with the Ōken, the Royal Guard members' very life essence is fused with the Soul King Palace. As long as the palace remains intact, Ichibē can revive the others by calling their names. While Ichibē mentions that he will not allow the rest of his squad to die easily, as is their fate, he suddenly becomes distracted as he senses someone has entered the palace without permission.

One hour later, after Ōetsu Nimaiya has been revived, he returns to the Hōōden to find most of his Zanpakutō Spirit guards defeated and heavily injured or killed, and an important Zanpakutō stolen. Looking at their various wounds such as burns, electrocutions, and poisoning, Mera Hiuchigashima wonders how large the army was that broke into the sanctum. One of the revived Zanpakutō guards says that there was only a single attacker, much to Mera's shock. However, to Ōetsu this is enough evidence to narrow down who the attacker was. Ōetsu then wonders who of the Noble Families would have stolen Ikomikidomoe and wonders what their intentions are.

Prologue 2
In the Seireitei, a few days after the end of the war with the Wandenreich, Shunsui Kyōraku asks Sōsuke Aizen if he has any last words before he is re-incarcerated in the Muken. While awaiting Aizen's words, Shunsui contemplates the massive losses of life the Gotei 13 led at the hands of the Quincy soldiers. While Orihime Inoue has been invaluable in helping the recovery and even reviving some of the recently deceased, even her powers have their limits. As a consequence, the Shinigami were becoming disheartened until news of victory reinvigorated them.

Aizen eventually says that there is nobody present worthy of hearing what he has to say, only mentioning that he would like to talk to Ichigo. Shunsui dodges the issue, and Aizen taunts him by wondering if the improved seals created by Kisuke Urahara will be able to hold him. Shunsui's only reply is that he hopes Aizen will repent after he has finished his sentence. But Aizen counters that Soul Society may not even exist anymore then. Aizen asks if Shunsui saw Soul Society's "Original Sin" in the palace. When Shunsui refuses to respond further, Aizen taunts him more by wondering if his words will cause more renegades like Kaname Tōsen to appear. This, however, causes an infuriated Shūhei Hisagi to storm towards them.

While Aizen notes that Hisagi still has heavy injuries from Lille Barro's attack, the Shinigami lieutenant demands to know what Aizen said to make Tōsen betray them. Shunsui forces Hisagi to calm down, after which the latter makes it clear that he'll never forgive Aizen for murdering Tōsen, even if the renegade helped defeat Yhwach. Aizen only retorts that killing Tōsen was his one act of mercy towards his former ally. He further explains that if Orihime or Retsu Unohana would have saved Tōsen, it would only have allowed the blind Shinigami to fall into unparalleled despair. So he granted his most loyal ally a quick, painless mercy.

Before Hisagi can confront him further, Suì-Fēng forcibly subdues him and chastises him for acting like he's the only one hurt by Aizen. She further says that a desire for revenge is pointless as Aizen will pay regardless. As the renegade Shinigami is about to be escorted away, he quotes Tōshirō Hitsugaya and says "Wielding one's blade out of duty alone is what it means to be a captain. Wielding one's blade out of hatred is nothing more than petty violence." Shunsui interrupts them and tells Aizen to relax his spiritual pressure on his retainers. He does so and as they carry him away, Aizen simply dares Hisagi and the rest to sacrifice their own blood, flesh, and soul to pursue the truth, as Tōsen once did. This leaves a shaken Hisagi behind.

Chapter 1
Hundreds of years earlier, in the Seireitei, a younger Kaname Tōsen is demanding to guards to receive an audience with the Central 46. Demanding to know why the murderer of his friend was never properly punished, Tōsen refuses to stand down despite the guards' disdain for someone from the Rukongai. Before they can attack him, however, an unidentified & high-ranking Shinigami stops them. The Shinigami tells the guards to behave in memory of Kakyou's death, which shocks Tōsen as that's the name of his deceased friend. The Shinigami recognizes Tōsen as Kakyou's friend and apologizes for not being able to protect her. He then takes Tōsen aside to talk about their mutual friend's demise.

Eventually, their conversation shifts towards the culprit. The Shinigami confirms to Tōsen that Kakyou's husband was the one who murdered her. When Tōsen asks why she had to die, the Shinigami guesses that her strong belief in justice and peace must have angered the wrong person. Tōsen mentions his anger at the injustice of her mudered not being punished, and the Shinigami realizes that this must be why he wanted an audience and shifts the topic towards the Five Noble Families. The man reveals that the murderer was a member of one of the families, and that the only reason the murder was even brought to light, rather than ignored, was because the culprit was not a high-ranking noble.

Tōsen demands to know why the Shinigami, the guardians of peace, allowed this to happen. The man only says that the noble families' peace was indeed defended. When Tōsen gets furious at this injustice, the Shinigami says that the Central 46 are controlled by the Noble families, especially by the Tsunayashiro family. The Shinigami then asks Tōsen if he wants revenge for Kakyou; if Tōsen had the power to take revenge, would he do it? Even if Kakyou would not want him to? This causes Tōsen to calm down, realizing that Kakyou would never want bloodshed in her name. The Shinigami congratulates Tōsen for keeping Kakyou's dying wishes intact. Happy, Tōsen asks the Shinigami for his name, but is stunned to hear the Shinigami identify himself as Tokinada Tsunayashiro, the very man that murdered Kakyou.

As Tōsen is paralyzed by sheer emotional shock, Tokinada says he's happy Tōsen won't walk the path of vengeance. Tokinada exerts his Reiatsu, which terrifies Tōsen because of the sheer violent and murderous intent he feels in it. Tokinada continues, saying that if Tōsen said yes, he would have killed the blind man then and there. As Tokinada prepares to leave, Tōsen screams in anger and lunges at him, but Tokinada violently subdues him. Tokinada crushes Tōsen's throat, and tells him to honor Kakyou's wishes for the peace the Shinigami enforce before ordering the guards to beat up and expel the defenseless Tōsen.

In the present, Tokinada Tsunayashiro awakens from his nostalgic dream on his throne. A childlike voice eagerly asks what Tokinada dreamt of. Tokinada explains it was a pleasant dream, and he'll never get tired of seeing a person get filled with boundless, crushing despair before turning towards the source of the voice. A childlike, androgynous Shinigami named Hikone. Hikone eagerly shows the numerous Onmitsukidō assassin' corpses that surround Tokinada. Tokinada approaches the only survivor, noting that they were employed by his own family, and asks why they still attempted to carry out their mission if their client was supposedly dead. As Tokinada tortures the assassin to death, he reveals that he covertly ordered the assassination himself, all to garner sympathy and get rid of all his rivals.

Afterwards, Hikone wonders if they should be more respectful towards the new head of the Tsunayashiro family, but Tokinada assures the child that it's not necessary, as Hikone will become the new Soul King anyway.

Chapter 2
Several days later, Shūhei Hisagi is preforming his duties as the editor-in-chief of the Seireitei Communication, during which he visits Kūkaku Shiba. While the Shiba family may have fallen in status, Hisagi notes they're still powerful and influential. Hisagi therefore requests her help in creating an article about the successful protection of the Soul King and the victory over the Quincy. Kūkaku replies that she only sent Ichigo's group towards the Palace, and redirects Hisagi towards her brother, Ganju Shiba, for more details.

As Hisagi prepares to take his motorcycle towards Ganju's location, he is approached by Kūgo Ginjō, Giriko Kutsuzawa, and Shūkurō Tsukishima. While tense towards each other, Hisagi is shocked to learn that the hostile Fullbringers assisted Ichigo in the Soul King Palace. Probing their intentions further, Hisagi asks Ginjō why he betrayed Jūshirō Ukitake all those years ago. When Ginjō realizes that Hisagi is far more ignorant about things than he expected, Ganju appears and diffuses the tension between them.

Hours later, at the Squad 1 Barracks, Shunsui Kyōraku reveals to Nanao Ise that he was approached by Central 46 concerning the assassination on the head of the Tsunayashiro family. While the news is being heavily suppressed, Shunsui knows that Byakuya Kuchiki and Yoruichi Shihoin must already be aware of it. Shunsui also mentions that, while the succession dispute is not in the Gotei 13's jurisdiction, he fears it might soon become so. He then asks for Shūhei Hisagi and Kensei Muguruma to be summoned to him.

At the same time, Ganju is recounting the events of the Soul King Palace fight to Hisagi. While Hisagi is interested to learn that Riruka Dokugamine and Yukio Hans Vorarlberna's powers allowed for access to the Palace, he once again probes Ginjō for what exactly happened between him and the late Ukitake. After Ginjō recounts the events of his deception of Ichigo, specifically mentioning Tsukishima's Book of the End powers, Ginjō reveals that the reason he turned against Soul Society was because a lot of his Fullbringer friends were killed by Shinigami. While Ginjō wanted to directly confront Ukitake after helping Ichigo in the Palace, he was too late as the Shinigami was already deceased. Hisagi is then summed to the Squad 1 Barracks, but before he leaves he says that his duties as a reporter will compel him to get the truth out, even if he is a Shinigami as well. Afterwards, Kūkaku and Ganju wonder if their late brother, Kaien, knew anything about it.

In the Seireitei, Shunsui informs Kensei and Hisagi about the Tsunayashiro assassination, and asks Hisagi to print the news all over the Soul Society. The new head of the family, Tokinada, wants to makes his ascension as public as possible. Upon hearing the name, Hisagi is stunned, as he recognizes it as the name Tōsen talked about. While Shunsui makes it clear he is more than suspicious of the assassination and Tokinada's sudden ascension to family head, he orders Shuhei to print the news regardless.

Chapter 3
In the Squad 4 Barracks, 3rd seat Hanatarō Yamada is talking to some of his squad mates about Hisagi and his current work, when Hanatarō is called away as he has a visitor. To his astonishment, Hanatarō discovers the visitor is his brother, the retired Shinigami Seinosuke Yamada. As Hanataro notes that Seinosuke is employed as a private medic for nobles, Seinosuke tells Hanatarō to take some time off, as he believes a small crisis will befall the Seireitei.

Meanwhile, in Karakura Town, Mizuiro Kojima, Keigo Asano, and Ryūnosuke Yuki find themselves fleeing from a Hollow. Mizuiro manages to temporarily incapacitate the Hollow with a device given to him by Ururu Tsumugiya, before they are saved by the arrival of Shino Madarame, who slays the Hollow with her Naginata - like Zanpakutō. When Shino chastises Yuki, Keigo mentions that Shino looks familiar to him, and she recognizes him as someone her relative Ikkaku Madarame used to talk about.

As the Shinigami and the humans talk to each other, they are interrupted by a loud cult nearby. Mizuiro explains that the cult was formed after the recent, mysterious quakes that happened all over the globe. The quakes that resulted from the previous Soul King's demise. Keigo mentions that the cult was formed by some mysterious woman, and Mizuiro tells the Shinigami what the name of the cult is.

At the same time, in Yukio Hans Vorarlberna's family company, he is approached by a mysterious woman who introduces herself as Aura Michibane, the representative of the "XCUTION Religious corporation".

Six months after the defeat of Yhwach, Hueco Mundo is once again in turmoil as the resident Hollows and Arrancar continue to fight against the surviving Quincy. Rudbornn Chelute reminisces about how he tried to maintain order in Hueco Mundo after Harribel's defeat at the hands of the Quincy King, but is snapped back to the present due to his and Loly Aivirrne and Menoly Mallia's battle with several Quincy. As the two female Arrancar argue with the Exequias leader about their responsibilities, the weaker Quincy are soon supported by the arrival of Liltotto Lamperd and Giselle Gewelle.

Giselle complains that she has trouble zombifying Hollows, but Liltotto tells her to send the zombified Bambietta Basterbine after them instead. When Giselle suggest just zombifying Liltotto, the Glutton counters by threatening to devour Giselle instead. As Bambietta unleasesh her powers on the Hollows, Liltotto flashes back to how she and the rest were saved from the war's end. .