The power of the Goddess of Death is to bring everything around her to an end. And that end doesn't only apply to physical things—it also affects abstractions, and can reach even a transcendent existence like Yoshio.
For example, it can permanently lower a person's spiritual pressure, the strength of their soul, and their physical ability. It can even affect someone's personality in an abstract way.
For instance, if it's used on a kind person, it can end their kind heart—so that kindness is gone for good.
These incarnations' abilities could make Yoshio grow strong in a short time. And as Yoshio himself became stronger, using the incarnations would naturally make him stronger still.
But this method is, frankly, a little… inhumane.
Yoshio isn't human, but still…
Normally, he wouldn't use it.
But he wasn't going to explain things to a stranger, and whether or not it involved Ashido, time was limited. He could use necessary measures.
Anyway, Yoshio had done plenty of bad things in the past. This time, he wasn't doing anything worse.
If he wanted to proceed normally and raise Ashido's favorability to eighty, even after decades it might still be impossible!
But now, he felt that in at most a few months, he could permanently obtain the soul ability called Past Reaper.
And taking Ashido to the so-called Tower of Death had another advantage.
This Tower of Death was actually built on the far side of the moon's Hueco Mundo—the place where the God Tree had once stood!
After Baelz's sacred writing power evolved, both the Tree of Evil and the Tree of Life appeared here.
As Baelz mastered this ability more and more, the God Tree ability also began to move closer and closer to The Almighty.
If Equivalent Exchange corresponds to Auswählen, then the God Tree corresponds to The Almighty.
As a supernatural power meant to benchmark The Almighty, the God Tree was naturally terrifyingly strong.
It was just that, in the past, Baelz had only just reached transcendence and hadn't been that powerful yet, so his abilities hadn't shown such overwhelming effects.
As time passed, not only did he fully master the God Tree, he also grew even stronger.
The God Tree split into the Tree of Evil and the Tree of Life. The Tree of Evil possessed an additional ability based on the past:
After forming evil node, it no longer needed to devour Baelz to acquire that ability.
In other words, even if the evil node itself was eaten by someone else, Baelz could still continue using abilities like Beelzebub's Faceless One.
When the evil node was reclaimed into the body, two identical abilities fused and grew stronger. Then the same evil node could be generated again and fed to others.
Just wait for the time to recycle.
This formed a cycle that made the ability stronger and stronger.
After the Tree of Life fully grew, it no longer produced sacred node.
Perhaps it was because Baelz had purified it into sacred node together with evil node.
The Tree of Life created void spaces.
Each floor contained one space—ten floors total. The life within those spaces would gradually merge with the Tree of Life, gain powerful abilities, and in turn feed back into the Tree of Life to make it grow.
Therefore, candidates could not be selected blindly. One had to find individuals who corresponded to the proper layer.
Ashido had been placed by Yoshio into the third stage, corresponding to Honor.
As long as Ashido remained on the third stage, he would eventually obtain the sacred power of honor. It could be considered compensation: surpassing the Shinigami would otherwise be nothing more than laziness.
In the end, the ten gatekeepers corresponding to the Tree of Life's ten textures would become Baelz's angels!
The Tree of Evil focused on its own growth. The Tree of Life placed greater emphasis on the evolution of the whole.
Having people guard the Tree of Life was actually meant to improve the Tree of Life's current rules.
The Tree of Life's most important power was not producing angels.
It was evolving people.
As long as one climbed the Tree of Life, their power would be strengthened.
If an ordinary person entered the Tree of Life and reached the first level—defeating the gatekeeper or being acknowledged—they would gain the power of an ordinary Shinigami.
If divided by the Tree of Life's levels, it becomes:
1st floor: ordinary Shinigami (1 = 10)
2nd floor: roughly ordinary seated officer (2 = 9)
3rd floor: upper seated officer (3 = 8)
4th floor: lieutenant (4 = 7)
5th floor: captain (5 = 6)
6th floor: powerful captain (6 = 5)
7th floor: Shinigami limit (7 = 3)
8th floor: transcendent layer (8 = 2)
9th floor: true transcendence (9 = 1)—like Aizen or Thousand-Year Blood War Kurosaki Ichigo
10th floor: the Soul King's power—spiritual pressure sufficient to support the Three Realms!
Of course, two of these ten floors were special.
The 5th floor (5 = 6) corresponded to captain level. If Baelz wished, he could mass-produce captain-class powerhouses—but he still couldn't.
Because if people wanted to evolve at the fifth level, they needed contact with the sacred guardian angel—yet Baelz had not birthed that guardian angel.
The second special layer was the 8th floor.
Crossing from the seventh to the eighth—becoming a transcendent who surpassed the limits of the Shinigami—was not easy.
Aizen had worked at it for years. Even within the Tree of Life, you would still have to be tested.
Because to reach the eighth layer, you had to cross the Abyss.
The Abyss corresponded to the guardian angel of the fifth layer—and in the Abyss of the eighth layer, there were demons.
To cross the Abyss, you had to make the demons acknowledge your strength.
Everything had its rules—unless you were strong enough to break them.
Like Shunsui Kyōraku's Katen Kyōkotsu: even though it was his own ability, in battle he still had to follow its rules.
And clearly, Baelz still couldn't ignore the Tree of Life's rules.
If one day he became unbelievably strong, he could wave his hand and force every gatekeeper and demon in the Abyss to climb the Tree of Life.
Then he could mass-produce captains—perhaps even transcendent beings!
But for now…
Slow and steady was fine.
Yoshio descended from the primordial moon and stared at the vast white land beneath his feet, counting the time…
It was also time to join hands with Hitsugaya.
Fourteen days after arriving in the Hueco Mundo, he met Hitsugaya again.
They had agreed to meet once every seven days. If one party didn't arrive, they would wait for the next seven-day interval. If the other still didn't come by then, something had happened.
In the first seven days, Hitsugaya had been trapped in Tres Cifras. He lost too much time and didn't make it.
After leaving the Tres Cifras, he also had to deal with Arrancar pursuit—so he missed the first meeting.
He had also searched for Ashido, but Ashido never appeared, no matter how long he waited. In his heart, he had become nearly certain that Ashido was dead.
Fighting Hollows was like that.
In this world, there are no victorious generals forever. Everyone experiences defeat one day. Some get a chance to start over after failing; others, after failing…
Start over only through death.
He hoped Ashido had fled back into the Forest of Menos, but if that was reality…
The probability wasn't high.
After waiting for a while, he planned to report Ashido's fate to the Gotei 13. At least the Shinigami should know that this hero had died in the Hueco Mundo.
So, in the second seven-day period, Hitsugaya was late again.
His life was exciting, too.
After leaving the Tres Cifras, he originally tried to infiltrate Las Noches. But the three-digit numbers pursued him obsessively—especially after he encountered a group of children.
Those children wanted to play with him, which truly irritated him.
In the end, that group of children turned out to be…
The three-digit 101!
Because those children were just playful, dealing with them was easier than it could have been—otherwise fighting them would have been a real headache.
And while playing, those children often let things slip.
"They said there really is a Rukia in the Tres Cifras—she's 104. That was supposed to be Picaro's number, but she occupied it first, so Picaro moved up and became 101."
"In fact, Picaro isn't strong enough to deserve the '101' position."
In the Hueco Mundo, the two Shinigami shared what they knew.
Hitsugaya spoke in a low voice.
"I asked Picaro what the 104 Rukia looked like, but she couldn't describe her. She only knew her aura was extremely cold, and it scared Picaro badly."
"I don't recognize those three-digit numbers. And unlike the ten Espada inside Las Noches, the three-digit numbers are outside the palace, holding vast territories."
"In other words, they have their own turf. Except for the sand guardians, the other group can move freely. The other three-digit numbers rarely go elsewhere under normal circumstances."
"Also, Picaro is a little afraid of 104, so she won't go look."
"…I see." Yoshio frowned. "Then the problem now is simple: if you go to Area 104 and see who that Rukia is, the truth will be revealed."
"I think so too," Hitsugaya said, shaking his head. "But my presence has already been discovered around Las Noches. I'm worried I'll run into an Espada. And I don't even know where Area 104 is."
"Anyway, it's on the outskirts of Las Noches," Yoshio said lightly. "Even if we run into an Espada, we move together…"
"As long as we don't go into the nest, there's nothing to worry about."
"Yes."
Hitsugaya had come for exactly that reason—he wanted to join forces and investigate together.
But just as Yoshio prepared to move, he suddenly stopped.
"What is it?" Hitsugaya asked.
Yoshio's face darkened.
"A bit troublesome. I just got a message from Rangiku…"
"The verdict for Rukia is out."
Hitsugaya froze.
"Why so fast?!"
It had only been two weeks!
Less than half the time had passed!
It wasn't surprising that Yoshio had a tool that could communicate with the Soul Society—after all, his Bankai could create strange little items like that.
What truly shocked Hitsugaya was: why had Rukia's judgment come so quickly?!
What on earth were Central 46 thinking?
Yoshio didn't say it aloud, but Hitsugaya could guess from his expression.
"Death penalty…"
Yoshio spoke softly.
"Execute in fifteen days!"
…
"Rukia are now being taken to the Repentance Cell."
The Repentance Cell was where prisoners sentenced to death were gathered—a place where they were forced to reflect on their sins before execution!
"Damn it!" Hitsugaya grew agitated. "The evidence we've gathered so far still isn't enough to clear Rukia."
"No matter what, we can't stay in the Hueco Mundo," Yoshio said grimly. "We have to return to Seireitei first and see if we can jointly write a petition that forces Central 46 to reconsider."
Hitsugaya knew full well how hard it was to change Central 46's decision.
But they didn't have much time left.
If they went into the Tres Cifras now, just getting there would take days. Then they'd have to fight Arrancar, investigate clues about 104, and only after learning the truth could they return to Soul Society…
By then, Rukia would be executed.
After thinking for a moment, Yoshio said, "Then you go back first. We split up again."
"You go to Seireitei and try to unite the other captains."
"I'll go alone to Area 104."
"No!" Hitsugaya's pupils tightened. "Going alone is too dangerous!"
He remembered Ashido—Ashido had been trapped in the Tres Cifras because he protected him.
"Go. I'm older than you and stronger than you. Where do you think you can stand in my way?"
Yoshio snorted and repeated himself.
"Alright. That's it. Go back immediately."
Before Hitsugaya could reply, Yoshio vanished in an instant.
"…Yoshio-san!"
Hitsugaya called out, but Yoshio was already gone.
Hitsugaya clenched his fist.
He hated his own weakness.
If he had been strong enough earlier, he wouldn't have had to wait this long. If he could've just defeated the three-digit numbers with Ashido, wouldn't they have found 104 directly?
Why did it have to come to this?
Ashido had fallen into the passage, and now Yoshio was taking risks alone.
But Hitsugaya also understood Yoshio was right.
Now was the time to split into two routes.
Next, he had to find a Hollow, force it to open a Garganta, return to the Human World, and then head for Seireitei.
…
Far away, Yoshio stopped, his gaze deepening.
It seemed…
The time had come.
The reason Aizen hadn't executed Rukia immediately was because he had been waiting for this moment.
He was waiting for Ichigo to grow stronger—so that Ichigo would have the sharpening effect—then come to Soul Society.
Aizen's plan ran along two lines:
The first was Rukia's line—to remove the Hōgyoku from within her.
The second was Ichigo's line—to make Ichigo stronger, and in the end, make Aizen himself stronger.
Or perhaps the ultimate purpose of both lines was to evolve Aizen.
Now that Ichigo had gained enough power, Aizen was finally going to officially execute his rebellion plan.
"This matter…"
"I still have to help."
At the very least, Aizen still had to merge the evil node. The others had already merged; they had to be fully fused.
Only Aizen and the two-headed one had not merged.
He needed to fuse those two quickly.
…
One hour earlier.
Beneath the Black Cat Bookstore, there was an underground space far larger than the store itself.
Ichigo and Urahara were there.
"Manager, we'll be ready soon."
This time, the schedule was earlier—Ichigo hadn't even gone to high school yet!
Since Rukia hadn't interacted with Inoue Orihime and the others, their Fullbring had not awakened.
This time, only Ichigo came alone.
But even alone, Ichigo wasn't afraid.
"I'm ready to go to Soul Society!"
He said to Urahara.
"I can already feel your resolve," Urahara said quietly. "Then it's time for you to depart."
"According to my intel, Rukia hasn't been sentenced yet. That means you should still have time to prepare after you arrive. Don't rush into challenging the Gotei 13."
"Those captains aren't opponents you can handle right now."
"Yeah, yeah," Ichigo replied lightly.
He hadn't fought a captain before, so he didn't truly understand how strong captains were—and didn't take it too seriously.
After Urahara's thirty months of special training, Ichigo felt reborn.
"So how do I get to Soul Society?"
"This…"
"Let's ask him to act."
Urahara seemed to call someone. In the next instant, a dark opening tore open, and a figure stepped out from the darkness.
Angra Mainyu walked forward slowly.
"Long time no see, Kisuke."
"Long time no see." Urahara smiled. "Sorry to trouble you again."
"Yoruichi already told me," Angra said calmly. "This kid is the one you're optimistic about?"
He looked at Ichigo.
Ichigo didn't sense anything wrong—because Angra Mainyu now looked no different from an ordinary person. Unless he revealed the hollow hole in his chest, no one would think he was a Hollow.
Even his mask had almost fully vanished. Without close inspection, no one would think it was a mask.
"Don't underestimate him," Urahara said. "This kid's potential is limitless."
"I don't underestimate the people you value."
"You're overselling me," Urahara chuckled. "Alright, Kurosaki…"
"Next, you can go to Soul Society with Angra."
Urahara and Yoruichi had both been exiled from Soul Society. Until the ban was lifted, neither could go there.
So only Angra could lead the team.
And Angra's power was very strong. He'd been injured by the Hollow King, but he should have recovered by now.
"Wait…" Ichigo frowned. "Who are you?"
He'd seen Angra around the shop a half month ago, but now suddenly being told, "He'll take you to Soul Society," still made him uneasy.
"Call me Angra," he said. "In any case, we're going to Soul Society this time. I'll guide you."
Before Ichigo could finish speaking, he saw Angra tear space open.
Ichigo was stunned.
Because this black hole felt strangely familiar.
Whenever a Menos Grande appeared, it seemed to come from a hole like this.
"You can trust Angra," Urahara said at the side. "But this matter is mainly your action. Angra won't move unless necessary."
Angra was extremely strong, but Urahara intended to keep him as a hidden card. If exposed now, Aizen would learn first.
And Angra didn't intend to deal with Aizen. The most important thing was dealing with the Rukia's situation.
"…Alright. I get it."
Seeing Urahara say so, Ichigo trusted Angra more. He took a deep breath, stared at the torn black hole, and stepped forward.
He was already in a spirit-body state, so he no longer needed the soul converter.
The two entered the Garganta together.
The Garganta was different from the Dangai.
The Dangai was a straight corridor, with harsh restraints on both sides—and perhaps even more terrifying restraints behind you. Still, it had solid footing.
But in the Garganta, there was nothing.
No road. No monsters.
Only vortices of reishi turbulence.
So to move forward inside, you had to build footing with your reishi.
For Ichigo, whose fundamentals were crude, this was practically an old sin.
"Wait up!" Ichigo shouted. "You're going too fast—I'm going to fall!"
He ran in panic, as if the landing points beneath his feet might collapse at any moment.
"How did Kisuke teach you? Why didn't he even teach you this basic Shinigami movement?"
"There wasn't time!" Ichigo protested. "Who feels like learning fundamentals from scratch?!"
"…We only have half a month left!"
"For a genius, mastering this basic method doesn't even take half a day," Angra said calmly. "Someone like you shouldn't be unable to learn it."
"That means one thing."
"What?" Ichigo asked, desperately trying to hide behind Angra as he spoke.
"It means your heart isn't calm enough, and not stable enough."
"The power of death is an extension of the soul—whether it's a Zanpakutō or a spirit."
"Your heart is in turmoil, so your soul can't separate cleanly."
"Ease your anxiety. Calm your heart."
"Don't fear. Don't panic."
"Just move forward steadily."
Ichigo tried to follow his words.
My heart…
Isn't calm enough?
My heart…
Is chaotic?
Above this torrent like a one-plank bridge, Ichigo slowly closed his eyes and did what Angra said.
Gradually, he felt that the road ahead was no longer steep.
Even with his eyes closed, he walked more steadily than before.
"Good. We've arrived."
Hearing Angra's voice, Ichigo opened his eyes.
In the next instant, he saw faint light. The two suddenly burst out through it!
A torn space sent them into another world.
This world was utterly different from the Human World: a desolate land, small houses, and people dressed in ancient-looking clothing staring at the two newcomers with curiosity and fear.
"Is this… Soul Society?" Ichigo murmured.
He had imagined many things.
Since it was the world of Shinigami, he had assumed it would be eerie and terrifying.
But it looked no different from human society—just like an ancient human settlement.
"This is Soul Society," Angra said lightly. "But not where the Shinigami live."
"The Shinigami live inside Seireitei—inside the world beyond that huge wall."
Only then did Ichigo notice the massive wall and the closed gate in front of him.
"The Shinigami are inside? But it's closed—how do we get in?"
"Go in," Angra said.
"Just… walk in?!" Ichigo's eyes widened. "Are you kidding me?"
Angra replied calmly, "Did you forget what you are right now?"
…What?
Ichigo looked down at himself.
Only then did he realize: Urahara had already forced out and awakened his Shinigami power.
Urahara had said that if he wanted to save Rukia, he had to become stronger.
The small amount of soul power he had before wasn't enough—he had to become a Shinigami.
Urahara had nearly burned away his Chain of Fate to force out the Shinigami power, leaving him almost hollowed out.
But in the end, it worked.
Ichigo gained Shinigami power and awakened his Zanpakutō.
Even his previous light greatsword seemed to have merged into his Zanpakutō, and he felt incredibly strong.
Now, hearing Angra's words, he finally understood: he was a Shinigami now—so naturally he could enter Seireitei…
Still, it felt unreliable.
Wasn't there supposed to be some kind of verification?
"What about you?"
"I have my own way," Angra said. "Can you ride with it?"
"…This is all we can do."
Ichigo steeled himself.
If it didn't work…
He'd force his way in.
With that mindset, Ichigo walked toward the gate. Just as he reached it and considered knocking—
A giant jumped out before him.
"Huh? A strange Shinigami."
The big man looked Ichigo up and down.
"Which division are you from?"
Ichigo wore a Shinigami uniform and had a Zanpakutō at his waist. Of course he'd be mistaken for a Shinigami.
This time, there was no Uryū, Orihime, or Chad.
The gatekeeper naturally assumed Ichigo belonged to some division.
"Uh…" Ichigo's mind raced. "The Thirteenth Division!"
Rukia had once told him she was from the 13th.
"I see. A Shinigami from the Thirteenth Division…"
The big man didn't doubt him. He opened the white-way gate directly.
"Go in."
Ichigo was overjoyed.
He didn't expect it to be this easy.
This big guy looked exactly as dumb as he looked.
As the gate opened, Ichigo finally saw the Shinigami world.
Compared to outside, Seireitei was much more advanced. Not quite a modern metropolis—but at least it looked like a city.
"Thank you," Ichigo said, and entered.
What shocked Ichigo even more was that Angra also entered.
More importantly, the gatekeeper seemed not to notice Angra at all—he watched Angra walk straight in?!
Ichigo's eyes widened.
Angra spoke in a low voice.
"Don't relax. Leave quickly."
"This clumsy trick can't fool the Shinigami for long."
"The instant we appeared in Soul Society, an abnormal spiritual pressure fluctuation occurred."
"They already noticed an intruder."
Angra continued, "Blend in with the Shinigami. Don't become a target here!"
This wasn't like Rukongai.
Even though this was the outskirts of Seireitei, Soul Society's supervision here was still extremely strict.
The abnormal spiritual pressure they produced upon entry would be detected instantly by the Research & Development Bureau, and a report would go out that someone had infiltrated Seireitei.
There was just a time delay—no one could reach the gatekeeper immediately.
Ichigo didn't fully understand, but he knew one thing:
This wasn't a place they could stay long.
So he immediately sprinted deeper into Seireitei!
…