Changing history comes with a price. Yoshio understood that—at least for now, he had no intention of changing history. If he wanted to, he'd need power on par with the Soul King! Otherwise, not only would actual history run wild, he'd also fall victim to backlash from the change.
After choosing the corresponding history, Yoshio suddenly felt himself falling, as if plunging from a mountaintop into a bottomless pit, and eventually landed in a village.
"This is the world a thousand years ago." Yoshio reached out, feeling the spiritual flow in the air. It didn't take him long to spot the stables.
There, he witnessed a strange scene: a woman who'd just given birth emitted a faint blue glow, and the unbelievable happened—her body twisted, and in the next instant, that blue light flowed into the child like a cloud of gas!
It seemed to enter through the navel!
The mother, after giving birth, still attached by the umbilical cord, entered the child through the cord.
In other words, she gave birth to her child with her own body, then the child absorbed her into his.
Seeing this, Yoshio couldn't help but raise an eyebrow.
Yhwach's ability was truly bizarre. Absorbing his mother at birth—it was no wonder he later wanted to devour the world.
This child… He was a god's child.
Yoshio walked over, peering down at Yhwach.
What if he forcibly changed history and killed Yhwach now? If history didn't change, another like Yhwach would be born—perhaps Haschwalth would take his place. The corrective force was on the Quincy's side. If it went out of control, it could create multiple powerful Quincy and destroy the Gotei 13 a thousand years ago.
As expected, this ability wasn't easy to test. A small action could have big consequences, and Yoshio would bear them all.
It was like a broken domain, where time density was two thousand times higher than outside. A year inside meant two thousand years outside!
But stopping this bug didn't make you stronger. The domain contained scavengers that destroyed anything trapped inside. Even if you trained for two thousand years, when you left, time would wash it all away—returning you to your original state.
Changing history was similar—even if nothing changed, if it did, the flood of time would wash your soul away!
Returning to his senses, Yoshio continued watching Yhwach. The newborn had no vision, hearing, speech, or movement, but did have awareness.
"…"
He also seemed to sense Yoshio's approach. Though he couldn't see outside, Yoshio could feel a faint fluctuation from the child.
"Is it… time?" Yoshio murmured, looking at Yhwach.
He felt reality pulling at him, this historical journey about to end in an instant. He no longer wanted to stay—there was no point. Yhwach couldn't speak or hear anyone. Unless he stayed for years, communication was impossible.
He'd only come to test his ability, so he'd chosen a history that minimized any impact.
Once he returned, he could learn the side effects—and confirm his guesses.
Before leaving, Yoshio glanced at the baby once more. Just as he was about to disappear, the immobile Yhwach suddenly… opened his eyes!
Just a tiny slit, but those eyes were definitely watching him!
"…"
Yoshio said nothing, vanishing from the world and returning to reality.
Was this a miracle? Had his arrival caused the motionless baby to look at him? By the way, Yhwach was his little nephew—was the uncle visit too exciting?
But what interested Yoshio most wasn't the glance from Yhwach.
"There are interactions between abilities. It seems right to build a good relationship with Rukia," Yoshio smiled.
He'd suspected before: the side effect of the Soul Ability "Past Reaper" was to make others forget you, but what if you had another Soul Ability that deepened others' impressions of you?
That was Rukia's "Star"!
"Stars: After use, you easily attract attention and leave a deep impression on others."
One ability makes people forget you; the other deepens your impression. In other words, the "Star" can be used to offset the "Past Reaper" side effect!
Of course, the effect depends on amplitude. At least, Yoshio felt there'd be no problem in this era, and he could stay longer without consequence.
His journey to history was a mistake, and verifying the canceling effect between abilities was what mattered!
In fact, this kind of "mutual support" between Soul Abilities is common. For example, "All-Rounder" and "Basic Mastery." The Basic Mastery benchmarked Hakuda and Kidō against Aizen; the All-Rounder cut through with fists to reach the same level. Using both, you could benchmark Aizen in both sword and ghost skills!
They'd repeatedly pull up and down, a complex process.
But now, Yoshio was himself a rare being, on par with Aizen, so he didn't need him as a benchmark.
At this moment, "Past Reaper" and "Star" were almost equal—the Star first deepens others' self-perception of you, while Past Reaper allows the past god to weaken it. It's a pure comparison of increase versus decrease.
But…
These Soul Abilities are both "fixed value." If you keep using "Past Reaper," even if the impression weakens only a little each time, the deepening from the Star will gradually run out, and finally you'll start fading from existence.
The "Star" can act as a shield, but once its power is exhausted, the effect applies to you. In fact, he also has "Sun," which is similar, so he's got a double shield and should be fine for a while.
"What if, instead of changing history, I left something as a setup for the present?" Yoshio mused. If he went into history, left something behind at that point, sealed it, and retrieved it in the present… It might just work.
Gradually, the idea took root.
"Alright… let's try it."
He activated his ability again, this time choosing the era a thousand years ago—when Yhwach led his army to attack Soul Society. As soon as he appeared on the battlefield, he used a Garganta to enter Hueco Mundo.
Leaving that era, he felt his existence begin to blur, as if he couldn't leave the center of the chosen history. He used reiatsu to forcibly slow time, even using "Goddess of Death," which could influence time itself!
Thanks to this power, the sense of being pulled back faded.
He found a cave in Hueco Mundo, casually lured a large Hollow in, and began laying a seal.
After the seal was set, he removed a piece of evil matter from himself. This was the "evil" that Kotani Shitana had fused with—the evil particles had been purified, but with Beltz's evolution, the evil Shadow could now be regenerated.
He forced this material into the large Hollow, who didn't understand what was happening.
As Yoshio took on the form of the Goddess of Death, his aura became terrifying, and the Hollow King's right hand within him left the Hollow paralyzed. He moved Angra's black mud into the Hollow's body to maintain control.
Suddenly, the Hollow was enveloped in black mud.
Unable to bear it any longer, Yoshio vanished from there.
The next moment, his face twisted in pain as a torrent of time surged through his body. Even though history hadn't changed, even the slightest alteration brought fierce backlash.
But…
Yoshio was no ordinary person. As a transcendent, combined with the Hollow King's right arm, his current power greatly surpassed all Shinigami in the Three Realms!
Even a torrent of time couldn't do him much harm!
Invisible power radiated from Yoshio, twisting space-time itself. He stood at the center of the temporal vortex, wrapped in shifting lights and shadows, as if tightly bound by a massive net.
Yet, gradually, his face calmed, and as his power grew, the lights and shadows solidified, and the turbulence faded.
"…"
Once all was calm, Yoshio vanished.
Luckily, the time turbulence wasn't too strong. If he'd truly changed history, the distortion might have been a hundred times stronger!
But it proved the method was feasible!
He immediately returned to the sealed spot. The cave was unchanged—though a thousand years had passed, for Hueco Mundo, it was only a few days.
Upon arrival, the seal was still there, as expected—after all, he'd set it himself. Only a monk could break it, and no one else would even think to try.
He entered, feeling a wave of spiritual pressure.
A giant hand slammed toward him, but Yoshio didn't dodge—he just reached out and blocked it. The palm was much larger than his body, but he stopped it easily—an overwhelming contrast.
"After a thousand years, have you forgotten your teacher?" Yoshio chuckled. "Use the gesture you know best."
With that, he took on the form of the Goddess of Death again—a terrifying power spread through his body, black lines covering him as he transformed into a slender, elegant goddess.
Seeing this, the monster in the cave finally showed its true form—a gigantic dragon. Though huge, it had not lost the quality of its spiritual pressure, matching a Vasto Lorde!
But its body was a bit decayed, and its eyes—once oppressive—now seemed a bit fearful.
Long ago, it had been this goddess who captured it and gave it great power. For thousands of years, it had been trapped here, but felt nothing wrong with that.
For Hollows, the most important thing isn't freedom or loneliness—but evolution!
Though it had huddled in this cave for ages, it was always evolving, and that was the most wonderful thing it had ever experienced.
This Hollow was not a normal Gillian—once an Adjuchas, it had failed to evolve into a Vasto Lorde, and in despair, regressed. If an Adjuchas falls to Gillian, it's the most hopeless fate—a total loss of self and the inability to evolve further.
But it had been saved by this goddess. Hollows don't talk about feelings or gratitude, but at least now, in its Vasto Lorde dragon form, it bore no malice toward her.
Especially…
It felt the vast power within her, and thought it should submit to her in order to evolve further.
And so, seeing the dragon-shaped Hollow submit, Yoshio nodded in satisfaction. In a thousand years, by fusing with evil plasma, it had evolved into a Vasto Lorde.
Evil matter was indeed powerful. Each time it reformed, it grew stronger—evil never truly disappears, but returns even stronger after a brief absence.
Thus, the evil node the dragon Hollow swallowed now was even stronger than what Tokinada had fused with.
Having confirmed this, Yoshio vanished again. He only came to check—next time, he'd only need to reach out through the evil mass in the air. He'd let the Hollow keep devouring others and evolving. It would be helpful soon enough.
…
While Yoshio was busy in Hueco Mundo, the Seireitei Shinigami were also in chaos. Rukia had reappeared, snatching her zanpakutō in front of captains and lieutenants, further confirming her betrayal. And besides Rukia, many Arrancar had appeared, plunging the situation into greater turmoil.
According to the information, Angra Manyu and the other Arrancar weren't in the same group, but why were there now more Arrancar chasing Rukia?
Now that Rukia had retrieved Sode no Shirayuki, she could leave the Seireitei—there was nothing left to worry her. Catching her would become even harder. The world was vast, and now that she'd found a hiding place, who knew how long it would take to find her? Would the Gotei 13 taste nothing but bitter defeat this time?
Just as the captains were at a loss, Mayuri suddenly received a report.
"He's really in the Ugendō?" Yamamoto frowned. "Ugendō is Ukitake's place—it's impossible for an intruder to get in."
"He's your student. You should know him best, right?" Mayuri sneered. "Kuchiki Rukia is his subordinate. Would he really do nothing?"
"…"
Mayuri's words left Yamamoto silent. True, it was not in Ukitake's character to abandon a subordinate so easily. If he hadn't acted, that was proof… he'd already acted in secret, hidden from everyone!
According to Mayuri's report, Hollow reiatsu had been detected in Ugendō, including the reiatsu of the Ryoka who fought Byakuya!
In other words, the Ryoka was hiding in the Ugendō!
Seeing Yamamoto remain silent, Mayuri continued, "Still, the Ryoka may be full of hatred, but our real target is Kuchiki Rukia. Don't forget that."
"What are you suggesting?" Yamamoto demanded. "Speak plainly."
"Fine. Don't rush in; surround the Ugendō and spread the rumor. Wait for Kuchiki Rukia to show up at the door."
"…Will she really come?"
"Don't underestimate your subordinates—or the new generation. Do you really think today's Shinigami are like in your time? This generation cares deeply about their companions."
Mayuri's words dripped with sarcasm.
"The Ryoka risked his life to save her. Would she really abandon him?"
"..." Yamamoto had no rebuttal, contemplating the plan carefully.
"Angra Manyu's strength is extraordinary. Only you can handle him. Gather the remaining captains who can still act—have them move!"
…
Rain fell on the Ugendō. Angra sat to the side, watching Ichigo, still cocooned.
Ichigo had been cocooned once before, but it hadn't been as significant—just stimulating his soul's strength and potential reiatsu. After training, he'd defeated Renji upon arriving in Soul Society and achieved bankai. Renji, too, had improved greatly under Yoshio's guidance.
This time, the cocoon's formation was obvious. It was both for healing and for… his reiatsu!
Ichigo's reiatsu had grown much stronger. Cracks appeared in the cocoon, and powerful reiatsu leaked out.
Crack…
As the cracks grew, the cocoon rapidly fell away.
At last, Ichigo emerged—fully healed from previous wounds, even his broken sleep and chains restored!
Though he'd lost some of his power as a Shinigami due to the destruction of his Hakusui, it was clear—his strength had only grown!