"That's right!"
Rukia suddenly said, "Captain Yoshio, please help Ichigo! He suddenly disappeared for some reason—he was with my brother, and I'm worried…"
"Don't worry. He's fine."
Yoshio cut her off at once, released his Zanpakutō, and shattered the Sōkyoku.
Like the Sōkyoku, the Sōkyoku's ring-flame possessed tremendous power.
If the Sōkyoku's offensive power was equivalent to millions of Zanpakutō, then the ring-flame's defensive power was likewise comparable to millions.
However, when Surtr absorbed the Sōkyoku, the Sōkyoku's structure had already been destroyed. Part of the ring-flame's power had also been absorbed, and the remaining power was essentially broken.
So Yoshio didn't need much effort to rescue her from the platform above.
Rukia plummeted from the sky. Yoshio pointed with a finger and created a "Yoshio" below to catch her fall.
"Thank you, Captain Yoshio…"
Rukia jumped down from the Yoshio, scratching her head.
"By the way, why did you suddenly come back?"
She had never seen Yoshio with the captains before, so she assumed he wouldn't come—yet he arrived at the last moment.
"I came to retrieve something."
Yoshio waved and gestured for her to come closer.
Rukia didn't doubt him and hurried over.
"The captains disappeared. Ah—Captain Yoshio, I have something to tell you."
As she walked, she said, "When I was in prison, I met a woman who looked exactly like Captain Soi Fon!"
"And now… I feel like I've met her again…"
"I know," Yoshio said calmly. "In fact, the captains are all inside a different dimension she created."
"Huh? Another dimension?" Rukia paused, then asked, "What do you mean?"
She had already walked close to Yoshio. Seeing him right in front of her, she couldn't help but feel relieved.
"I should thank her. She trapped all the troublesome captains, so the two of us can be together so easily."
Rukia blushed.
"Um, Captain Yoshio… the way you say that… if someone heard it, they might misunderstand…"
"Sorry." Yoshio smiled apologetically. "Then let me put it another way—"
Before he could finish, a man's voice came from afar.
It carried confusion, violent anger, and extreme weakness and hoarseness—yet it still reached their ears with perfect clarity.
"Rukia… Rukia! Run! Captain Yoshio is the mastermind behind all of this!"
…?!
Rukia's pupils dilated the instant she heard it.
Because she recognized that voice.
It was Renji's voice!
What… did he mean?
Captain Yoshio was the mastermind?
How could that be?
Captain Yoshio saved me! He tried to save me before. Even earlier, he guided me step by step to become stronger. Even Captain Yoshio unlocked Bankai and became the Tenth Division Captain for my sake!
Rukia didn't believe Renji. She only stared at the panting Renji as he climbed up Sōkyoku Hill.
At this moment, Renji looked as if he had crawled out of a sea of blood. His black puppet uniform was dyed red like blood.
His body was covered in small wounds left by Senbonzakura. He had tried to ambush Dark Rukia—only to run into Byakuya Kuchiki instead.
He fought Byakuya, but even after mastering the Sōō Zabimaru, Zaga Teppō, he still wasn't Byakuya's match.
After the fierce battle, he collapsed heavily wounded. His spiritual strength was so weakened it seemed about to vanish.
If Hanatarō hadn't been there, he might truly have died.
But after recovering and continuing toward Sōkyoku Hill, he heard the Tenteikūra message.
On the way, even he couldn't believe it.
He couldn't believe Yoshio and Aizen would do such a thing. Both had been his superiors, and Yoshio in particular had saved them many times.
How could they hurt Rukia? How could they do that to her?
Renji wanted to believe Unohana was wrong.
But when he reached Sōkyoku and saw Rukia together with Yoshio, his unease peaked.
He couldn't help shouting the warning.
Rukia was shocked, but she still didn't believe Yoshio was the mastermind. She thought Renji had been deceived, so she didn't listen.
Just as she tried to say something—
A tremendous force from outside stabbed into the depths of her soul, bringing sharp pain!
"Ah!"
Rukia instantly froze, staring at Yoshio in front of her in shock.
Yoshio remained expressionless.
His long arm had pierced into her body and transformed into green vines, as if grabbing something deep within her soul.
Rukia's eyes froze.
That hand that had always seemed gentle and reliable had become a sharp blade of "betrayal."
Her strength drained away. When Yoshio withdrew his right hand, she suddenly collapsed to her knees, her eyes dull.
Shock and despair mixed on her face. As if she wanted to demand an answer with all her being, she weakly reached toward Yoshio.
"Captain… Yoshio… why…?"
"RUKIA!"
At that moment, Renji saw Rukia fall. His pupils widened in horror.
It's real.
It's really true!
Captain Unohana was right! It was all Yoshio's doing! All of it was Yoshio's plot!
Renji's eyes turned bloodshot. Roaring, he charged at Yoshio.
"…"
Yamiko watched silently, but of course she wouldn't let Renji reach him.
She appeared in front of Renji in an instant.
Renji kept swinging his Zabimaru, ignoring the darkness. But in just a moment, he lost the power to move forward.
Yamiko appeared behind Renji again.
Renji suddenly stopped—then his entire body exploded, a blood pillar several feet high erupting upward!
Already suffering massive blood loss before arriving, it was as if all the blood in his body poured out at once.
"Damn it… damn it…"
Renji's consciousness blurred. The world before him grew dim, yet he still tried his best to see clearly.
Yoshio and Rukia.
He wanted to see Yoshio's expression one last time, and know why he did this.
He wanted to confirm whether Rukia's life was in danger.
But no matter how he tried, the severity of his injuries made his vision fade.
Finally, he fell to the ground, soaked in his own blood, and completely lost consciousness.
"Re… Renji!"
Rukia couldn't move even a step, yet she hadn't lost consciousness. The wound Yoshio made had already disappeared.
There were no visible signs of injury, but she still couldn't move.
Seeing the critically wounded Renji, Rukia cried desperately.
"Captain… Yoshio… why did you do this?!"
"Don't worry. Yamiko won't kill him."
Yoshio said gently.
"After all… they were once my friends. I still feel a little reluctance."
"Actually, I didn't want it to be like this either. If it were you, no matter what I asked—even something as deep as the Hōgyoku hidden in your soul—you wouldn't refuse, would you?"
Rukia stared at the jewel glowing in Yoshio's hand. She knew that was his purpose.
She didn't know what it was, or why it was inside her body—but she still wanted to give it to him.
So why did he do this?
Seeing the shock, confusion, dissatisfaction, and despair on Rukia's face, Yoshio smiled faintly.
"I'm very sorry, but Captain Aizen believes that since we're leaving, we should hold a grand ceremony to say goodbye to the Shinigami."
"And… my friends inside your body will be fully freed."
"!"
Rukia remembered what Dark Rukia had said earlier, and her pupils widened.
She said…
She did it because she made a promise to someone very important to her.
Someone important to you?
"Is it… you?!"
"Right." Yoshio smiled. "That parasitic Hollow. It was originally my subordinate, but it happened to enter your body."
"Then…" Rukia could barely speak, yet still forced out words. "Back then… you did it… for it."
Why protect the parasite instead of me?
She couldn't say the last words.
In that moment, she felt as though her heart was being torn apart.
"…There's no need to belittle yourself. You and Renji are both my important friends. If I had to kill you, I couldn't bring myself to do it."
"What… is this?"
Even in grief, Rukia still wanted to know why.
With Yoshio's strength and talent, he could become a top candidate for the position of Commander someday. So why betray the Shinigami?
Yoshio looked at the Hōgyoku in his hand and whispered, "It's…"
He didn't finish, because at that moment, a sharp blade was already slashing toward him.
Yoshio vanished and reappeared beside Yamiko.
Yamiko said quietly, "I'm sorry. I couldn't stop him."
"It's fine." Yoshio smiled. "He's a distinguished guest from the Living World."
"Ichigo?!"
Rukia stared at the suddenly appearing Ichigo.
Ichigo had just charged at Yoshio, but Yoshio dodged. Ichigo was forced to retreat and stand by Rukia instead.
He looked at Yoshio and grinned. "What's wrong, Rukia? You look really down."
Ichigo was also covered in blood; he had been held up by Byakuya.
But it was clear their fight had ended.
Because Surtr's Ragnarok had actually been set two years in the future. Right now, she was only using her power to bring part of the scene forward in advance.
Ragnarok would only fully manifest two years later.
For now, Ragnarok was incomplete—so Ichigo and Byakuya could exit early.
Otherwise, Ragnarok would only end when one side died, or one side completely lost.
However…
That wasn't the only reason.
Ichigo did defeat Byakuya, but with Ichigo's personality, he would never kill him. Yet Ichigo appeared, while Byakuya did not.
That didn't just indicate victory or defeat.
It also indicated…
The issue of Ichigo's true identity.
Ragnarok was a battlefield of death. There was no other path…
Weaken and trap the Quincy!
And thus…
Kurosaki couldn't be trapped.
As long as one wished to escape Ragnarok, they could not trap Ichigo—who possessed Quincy power!
Therefore, he was the first to leave the battlefield.
And when he came out, he saw Yoshio and Rukia.
He didn't know what happened, but it was obvious Yoshio wasn't a good guy.
So he acted.
"Hold on—let me beat this guy first."
After defeating two captains, Kenpachi and Byakuya, Ichigo had never been so confident. Even though Yoshio wore a captain's haori, Ichigo believed in victory.
"Wait—!"
Rukia tried to stop him, because she knew Yoshio's strength. But before she could finish, Ichigo had already charged.
He was still in Bankai. Tensa Zangetsu condensed his power into his body; his speed was terrifying.
In an instant, Ichigo appeared in front of Yoshio.
Ichigo had never felt this good since stepping out of the burned battlefield.
Even after two battles, his strength and speed hadn't declined. Instead, the intensity of combat kept him at his peak.
This strike was fast and ruthless. It didn't aim at a vital organ, but if it hit, it would definitely cause injury.
This strike would decide the outcome!
This guy is underestimating me—just like Byakuya did. He didn't even release his spiritual pressure in front of me.
When facing Byakuya, Ichigo had the chance to defeat him instantly, but he wanted to defeat him only after Byakuya went all out, to prove his own beliefs were right.
But now, there was no need for that trouble. He just needed to defeat this mysterious captain as soon as possible.
However—
"H—How?"
An unbelievable scene unfolded.
Ichigo's seemingly unstoppable attack was blocked…
By a single finger.
"No… impossible!"
Yoshio didn't move.
Facing Ichigo's terrifying speed and power, his expression remained unchanged. A gentle, calm smile hung on his lips.
He merely raised his hand—extended a finger—
And Ichigo's blade stopped on that finger.
The instinct that could fell captains and cut steel in a single strike couldn't advance even one step!
In that moment, Yoshio's finger felt like the hardest substance in the world—ten times, a hundred times, a thousand times harder than steel; a hundred, a thousand times heavier than a mountain.
No matter how Ichigo exerted his full strength, he still couldn't shake Yoshio.
So he couldn't believe it.
How could this be possible?
Why was the gap so huge?
He refused to believe it.
Yet everything was happening right in front of him.
Yoshio smiled.
"Well done. Even though Urahara Kisuke couldn't come to Soul Society, being able to do this much as a piece on the board is truly a miracle."
"But by now, you should understand: your strong will alone will not allow you to cross obstacles that the world's flow refuses to yield."
"The gap between our power is that great."
With his other finger, Yoshio gently pinched Tensa Zangetsu. The blade didn't shatter—but its force transferred into Ichigo.
Instantly, the power from the blade caused a deep dent in Ichigo's chest. He spat blood.
The next moment, he fell.
Then Yoshio suddenly appeared beside Rukia.
"Let's continue what I was saying."
"This is called the Hōgyoku. It was created by Urahara Kisuke."
Hearing the name Urahara Kisuke, Rukia and the fallen Ichigo widened their eyes at the same time.
Rukia didn't know him in the Living World, but in Soul Society, "Urahara Kisuke" was a symbol of danger.
For many years, he had been Soul Society's hypothetical enemy—Shinigami's greatest foe—the mastermind behind countless atrocities.
The Hollowfication incident. The Arrancar of Hueco Mundo. Even prior incidents involving parasite hollow incident or Tokinada—many believed all of it could have been arranged by Urahara Kisuke.
Thus, every Shinigami had heard the name.
Rukia, already a lieutenant, naturally understood the danger Urahara represented.
So when she heard "Urahara Kisuke" from Yoshio, she was deeply shocked.
Inside me… is an item called the Hōgyoku—Urahara's tool?
But why is it in my body?
How does Captain Yoshio know?
Ichigo was equally confused. Urahara was the reason he could even come here. Yet Urahara had never told him that something of his was inside Rukia—and this man seemed to be targeting Rukia because of it.
"Oh? Looks like Urahara Kisuke didn't say anything."
Yoshio sounded faintly self-mocking.
"That man really is cautious."
"It seems that in his eyes, you're just a disposable shock trooper—only there to cause trouble. How did you think you could stop Captain Aizen and me?"
Ichigo said nothing.
Though badly injured, Yoshio hadn't killed him—only immobilized him temporarily.
"Don't make that face," Yoshio said. "I'm not someone who only seeks power. This is what Captain Aizen wants."
Originally…
Removing the Hōgyoku from Rukia should have been Aizen's task.
Yoshio didn't actually have such an evil humor to insist on playing the villain in front of Rukia.
Rukia's favorability toward him had risen above 90, and he had also obtained her soul ability.
But…
Who said it was over?
Perhaps Rukia's soul ability could change in the future.
Then he could obtain another soul ability.
Even if they became enemies, there was no need to make their relationship so tense.
However…
This was also Dark Rukia's request.
She didn't truly trust Aizen. Although she was created by Aizen, her feelings toward him were far weaker than her feelings toward Yoshio.
She trusted Yoshio more than she trusted Aizen.
So her condition was: she could act together with them, but only Yoshio could remove the Hōgyoku from Rukia's soul.
Thus, Yoshio had no choice but to play the villain.
He had considered that Rukia's soul ability might change again.
Because soul power represented complex things: a person's inner world, past and future, even commentary from a higher-dimensional viewpoint.
If those changed, the soul ability would naturally change.
Normally, such things wouldn't change—but Yoshio existed to change them.
To gain someone's favor, you had to interact and subtly influence them.
Obtaining a soul ability meant you had already influenced them; they would generate a new soul ability based on that change. If you continued to interact and change them, the soul ability might change again.
But…
If circumstances changed again, the chance of Yoshio permanently obtaining it would drop sharply.
After all, he had already reached level 90. If it changed again, would he need to reach level 100 to permanently acquire it?
Was this a joke?
Among everyone so far, Rukia's favorability toward him was the highest—an astonishing 94.
Even Nezuko's was only 93.
The higher favorability became, the harder it was to raise.
For someone above 90, it was like climbing to heaven.
Even someone like Rukia, willing to offer her life, still hadn't reached 95. Yoshio couldn't imagine what 100 would even look like.
Therefore, if her soul ability changed a second time, it was likely only usable once temporarily.
So it wasn't that attractive to Yoshio.
That was why they accepted Dark Rukia's request.
He originally thought doing this would make Rukia's favorability plummet.
But now… it was still 90?!
Yoshio was slightly baffled.
What did this mean?
He had acted like such a villain—shouldn't Rukia's favorability have fallen below 60 instantly?
Then he looked at Renji.
Renji's favorability was also 90.
"…"
At first Yoshio didn't understand—but now he finally did.
If favorability exceeded 90, and remained above 90 for a long time, then the favorability would permanently lock at 90.
Meaning: once it stayed above 90 long enough, no matter how much you tried to lower it, it could only drop to 90.
This was something Yoshio had never discovered before.
There was also Hinamori.
Back then, Hinamori's favorability had reached 90, but due to Aizen, she came to hate Shinigami for a time, and her favorability fell from 90 to 83.
However, at the time, those people had only just broken 90. It wasn't stable.
Favorability fluctuating within ±1 was normal—after all, there was no such thing as immutable feelings.
Stability required time. Only if favorability remained above 90 for a long period could it truly be considered 90+.
Hinamori had already been unstable, causing her drop.
Now, Rukia and Renji had been above 90 for a long time. Their relationship had stabilized. Renji was 92, Rukia 94.
So this favorability lock mechanism finally activated?
Was it related to the superpower level?
The ability to permanently seal someone's feelings sounded like power from an aberrant world.
Yoshio fell silent.
In his view, if you parted ways, you should do it cleanly.
Spending years with Rukia and the others, it would be a lie to say he felt nothing. But he spent even more time with Aizen and was deeply influenced.
He wasn't as cold as Aizen, but he believed feelings should be subordinate to ideals.
He had his ambitions, desires, and ideals.
But those ideals couldn't be realized in Soul Society. Inevitably, he would become the enemy of the Gotei 13.
So it was better to cut ties with friends in Soul Society—yet clearly, his system didn't think so.
Of course, that was only Yoshio's speculation.
Perhaps the truth was simply that even after being deceived, Rukia and Renji still valued him highly.
And Yoshio couldn't yet confirm whether this locked state was truly permanent.
No matter what, it won't drop?
That was hard to say.
To be clearer—
While Yoshio's mind raced, he continued explaining to Rukia on the surface:
"Captain Aizen wants to become an existence beyond Shinigami. That's why he needs the Hōgyoku."
"Beyond Shinigami…?" Rukia looked confused.
"Yes," Yoshio continued. "Few Shinigami know that Shinigami have limits. The four basic skills—Zanjutsu, Hakuda, Shunpo, and Kido—stop improving past a certain level."
"But people don't want to be trapped in one realm and unable to advance. So the Shinigami who know this began thinking of ways to break through that limit."
"…Could it be… the Hōgyoku?"
"Yes. How did Urahara Kisuke complete the Hollowfication experiments? Simple—the Hōgyoku."
"A Shinigami's soul has limits. Fuse Hollow soul factors with a Shinigami soul. Let two opposing forces collide—thus breaking the limit."
"This is Hollowfication of Shinigami. One hundred and ten years ago, Captain Aizen framed Urahara Kisuke and exiled him from Soul Society, but he couldn't find the Hōgyoku."
"It took him a long time to realize… he had hidden it inside your soul."
"I see."
A different voice suddenly sounded from behind.
The surrounding scenery shifted instantly, and captains began appearing one after another on Sōkyoku Hill.
Angra Mainyu, Genryūsai Yamamoto, Byakuya Kuchiki, Sōsuke Aizen… and others.
Because Surtr—who maintained the battlefield—had been defeated, the Ragnarok battlefield collapsed!
With the core force maintaining Ragnarok wiped out, everyone was naturally freed.
Angra Mainyu had faced the Quincy army alone and still defeated them.
Thus, the Ragnarok battlefield failed to achieve its intended effect.
Yamamoto had fought Aizen, but while Aizen was unharmed, Yamamoto had been injured—putting him at a disadvantage.
They seemed to have heard Yoshio's last words and looked at him immediately after appearing.
Especially Jūshirō Ukitake, who had been trapped on a battlefield with Shunsui and had no idea what was happening outside.
But as Surtr's power weakened, the boundary between the two worlds became fragile, allowing him to hear Yoshio's final words.
Even one sentence was enough—because he had already learned the truth from Urahara Kisuke.
He simply hadn't believed it before.
He couldn't believe Yoshio and Sōsuke Aizen would do such a thing.
"Yoshio…"
Ukitake looked at him as if he wanted to speak, but in the end, only his name came out.
At this moment, Ukitake truly didn't know what to say.
He couldn't believe the Yoshio and Aizen who were always so gentle and easygoing were actually this kind of person.
They had been lying all along.
Yoshio didn't reply. He only turned his gaze toward Aizen.
"Captain Aizen—do you mind if I talk a bit more?"
Even surrounded by captains, Yoshio showed no fear.
Instead, he spoke to Aizen in a somewhat light tone.
At this point, neither side could be said to fear the other. Though the other side had Angra Mainyu and Yamamoto, Yoshio and Aizen were also top-tier fighters.
However, the Shinigami side still had Shunsui and Ukitake, and—
At that moment, Unohana flew in on Minazuki and landed atop Sōkyoku.
More importantly, this was the Shinigami's home base. If this fight continued, even Division Zero might intervene.
Just like last time, when facing the Hollow King's invasion.
Aizen still harbored some doubts about Division Zero.
Why?
Even surrounded, Aizen remained calm and smiled gently.
"Before leaving, answering old friends' questions is only proper. How could I blame you?"
"Leave? You think you can leave?!"
Yamamoto trembled with rage. In front of so many captains, for Aizen to speak of leaving so casually—it was beyond expectation!
"Commander!"
At this time, more lieutenants arrived: Marechiyo Ōmaeda, Tetsuzaemon Iba, Nanao Ise, Shūhei Hisagi, and others.
Then two more approached.
Hinamori—and Kira.
"I'm sorry," Kira said to Gin Ichimaru, sounding guilty. "I couldn't stop them."
Gin waved it off. "It's fine. There are so many of them—of course the two of you couldn't stop it."
"Hinamori… Kira…"
Seeing them, Rukia couldn't help blurting out, "Even you…?"
Why?!
Her chest felt like it was being crushed. She even wondered why Yoshio told so many people, but never told her.
If Yoshio had told her…
What would she have chosen?
Would she have followed Yoshio and become an enemy of Soul Society?
Rukia's mind turned to chaos. The light vanished from her eyes. She couldn't speak a word.
At that moment, Angra Mainyu spoke calmly:
"Aizen Sōsuke. If you're thinking of escaping using Negación, don't get your hopes up."
"As long as I'm here, no other Hollows will come to help you."
Angra Mainyu was the strongest Hollow surpassing even a Vasto Lordes—a Hollow among Hollows.
Negación was indeed powerful. Once enveloped, even Yamamoto's Ryūjin Jakka could not break it.
But Angra was different.
Others couldn't break the barrier.
He could.
Thus, he directly blocked Aizen's escape route.
But Aizen only said:
"How could that be? You are a transcendent being beyond Hollows. Negación is child's play to you."
Angra had fought the Quincy fiercely, yet his body showed no obvious wounds.
Not because he hadn't been injured—but because the battle had not been easy.
To counter him, Yhwach had dispatched an extremely powerful force, nearly reaching the limit of what Ragnarok's battlefield could contain.
Surtr had absorbed the Sōkyoku's power, completing her final evolution, and also created the opportunity for Gerard Valkyrie to intervene.
If more Sternritter had joined, even Angra would not have won so easily.
As long as he wasn't killed, Angra could remain at the peak forever.
He possessed "high-speed regeneration" beyond even high-speed regeneration—given even a little time, he could return to full strength.
So from the outside, it looked like he had no injuries.
On the surface, Angra was undoubtedly the strongest present.
Aizen wasn't interested in confronting Angra directly. Forcing a breakthrough was clearly unwise.
Therefore, he indeed had his own plan.
Suddenly, a figure appeared atop the broken Sōkyoku platform.
It was Dark Rukia, nearly identical to Rukia, as if time had reversed to the moment of execution.
Looking down, black cubes appeared instantly beneath Aizen and the others' feet.
"…"
Black particles also coiled around Yoshio's feet.
Looking at Rukia in front of him, Yoshio whispered:
"Goodbye, Rukia…"