"Haha, so it was him!"
Tsunayashiro Taketori slashed at the shadow rising from the ground against the wind, his expression twisted into ultimate madness.
"Now, not even Yamamoto can save you."
"Come to Hell and accompany this old man!"
"This is the price you lower-class scum pay for rebelling against the Tsunayashiro clan!"
Answering him was an incredibly sharp Kidō slash, Hadō 78: Zangerin.
The dazzling golden sword pressure nearly took off Tsunayashiro Taketori's head along with it. Just grazing the edge of a nearby building caused the towering spire to collapse instantly.
Kyōraku Shunsui temporarily forced back the arrogant Tsunayashiro Taketori, finally buying enough time to look up at the sky.
That familiar back and haori made him fall into silence.
His expression grew extremely solemn.
That was a deceased old friend, known as the Captain who least fit the style of Squad Eleven.
No one understood the terrifying nature of this old friend better than him.
In terms of raw strength, he might not be a match for Yamamoto or Naraku Sora, but when it came to the threat he posed to the Seireitei, no one was greater.
At the Squad Four barracks, Unohana Retsu chopped Shijima Chigiri into meat paste, rendering him unable to regenerate for a short while.
At the same time, she looked up at the figure in the sky with a stern expression.
"It's the Seventh Kenpachi, Kuruyashiki."
She took a deep breath, preparing to use Tenteikūra to notify Naraku Sora.
Among the upper echelons of Soul Society, the abilities of this Seventh Kenpachi were no secret.
He had even specifically released his Bankai in the Dangai, witnessed by multiple Captains.
Even the highly experienced Unohana Retsu had to admit that it was one of the most terrifying Bankai she had ever seen in her life.
However, to her surprise, when she released Tenteikūra to contact Naraku Sora, she found another powerful Reiatsu blanketing the area.
It was also Tenteikūra, but with her level of Reiatsu, she actually couldn't break through it.
"It's Kuruyashiki Kenpachi."
Aizen had clearly also caught the anomaly near the Gates of Hell and quickly relayed the relevant intelligence.
"When you captured the Zanpakutō spirit of Enrakyōten before, you saw his Bankai."
"But if Kuruyashiki himself uses it, the power will only be greater."
"It is an utterly unreasonable and overwhelmingly powerful ability. Once the release is complete, it forms a giant maw with a radius of several spiritual miles."
"Then, it indiscriminately attacks all living and non-living things within the maw's range, except for Kuruyashiki Kenpachi himself."
"Because of this, Central 46 strictly forbade Kuruyashiki Kenpachi from using his Bankai within the Seireitei, no matter how severe the situation."
"After being enhanced by Hell, his Bankai will only become stronger."
"It might not even be impossible for it to cover the entire Seireitei."
"My suggestion is to evacuate!"
"Open a Garganta, have Urahara Kisuke notify Las Noches, and gather the Menos Grande to use Negación to transfer the Soul Reapers to Hueco Mundo."
"Although there will still be significant casualties, this is the optimal solution at present."
Aizen seemed worried that a certain reckless brute would act rashly, so he described the plan rapidly and directly had Urahara Kisuke notify Las Noches.
"Alright, I got it."
"Execute it according to your plan."
Naraku Sora hung up the 'phone' expressionlessly. Then, under the gaze of countless eyes, he drew his blade and charged up into the sky against the howling wind.
Seeing this, Aizen's face turned extremely ugly.
The worst-case scenario had occurred; this reckless brute really couldn't understand human speech.
Meanwhile, Yamamoto, who was slaughtering his way through the horde of Hell's Wills, also noticed this scene.
When he saw that figure clearly, his blood pressure spiked.
*Damn it, I was deceived by Hell!*
The so-called Wills of Hell were just a smokescreen to trick him into attacking, draining his Reiatsu and stamina while pinning him down so he couldn't strike at Kuruyashiki Kenpachi.
*Damn it!*
In just that brief moment of thought, the remaining Wills of Hell broke through the encirclement of Ennetsu Jigoku, rushing out of the flaming tornadoes to launch suicide attacks at Yamamoto.
Now they weren't even pretending.
Their main strategy was just to stall.
As long as they could pin down this short old Soul Reaper, their mission would be complete.
"Bankai—"
"Zanka no Tachi!"
Flames of fury ignited in Yamamoto's eyes. He completely unleashed his Reiatsu and raised his long sword.
In an instant, the sky-filling sea of fire vanished completely.
The sky, the earth, all the burning flames disappeared.
But the temperature continued to rise, and the moisture in the air evaporated rapidly.
Wisps of blue smoke rose from the fissures, the atmosphere blurred, and space itself warped.
That long sword took on a scorched appearance.
It looked as if it had endured the baptism of endless ages, covered in rust, losing its former sharpness, and even giving the impression that it would crumble at the slightest touch.
Yet the heat wave grew increasingly terrifying.
The Wills of Hell surrounding Yamamoto were instantly wiped out, not even leaving ashes behind.
The old man seemed to transform into a true sun, obliterating everything in his line of sight.
The Soul Reapers felt their mouths go dry, sweating profusely, only for the sweat to evaporate the moment it touched the outside heat.
The slightly weaker Soul Reapers had already begun to retreat from Yamamoto's battlefield under the direction of the seated officers.
A battle of this scale was simply not something they could endure.
Even Captains only had the right to watch from afar; they couldn't participate at all.
"Yamamoto's Bankai seems to have changed compared to a thousand years ago."
In the Squad Ten district, the hunched Sakahone Saizō grinned, looking at the stern-faced Ukitake Jūshirō opposite him.
"To condense all the flames released by Ryūjin Jakka into the blade... I really underestimated him."
"To think that pedantic fool from back then could actually reach this step."
"However, if it's only this much, it won't be enough to stop the disaster from happening."
A pair of sinister eyes stared intently at Ukitake Jūshirō, the hoarse voice sounding as if it were right next to his ear.
"Mr. Ukitake, it's time to release that thing hidden in your body."
"Only He can save the Seireitei and the Soul Reapers."
Hearing this, Ukitake Jūshirō showed a bitter expression and said helplessly,
"If Senior Sakahone is referring to Lord Mimihagi, then you can forget about it."
"A few years ago, He was extracted by Ichibē Hyōsube of the Zero Division."
"I have already lost the power of 'Kamikake'."
Hearing this, a look of astonishment appeared on Sakahone Saizō's face.
"Ah..."
When Naraku Sora rushed into the sky, he found that the Kuruyashiki Kenpachi opposite him had pitch-black eyes, looking completely controlled by Hell.
He had entirely lost his sense of self.
The moment his Reiatsu stabilized, he parted his mouth and gave Naraku Sora an incredibly eerie smile.
With the blade pointed downward, a gleam of black light erupted from the tip.
Without the slightest hesitation, Naraku Sora instantly erupted with all his Reiatsu. Black and red arcs of lightning intertwined around his blade as he swung it forward fiercely.
Rhino Strike: Black Flash!
Condensing all his power into a single point, he unleashed his strongest attack in his base form.
With Naraku Sora's current strength, even Yamamoto wouldn't dare take this move head-on.
His idea was simple: as long as he killed Kuruyashiki Kenpachi before he could activate his Bankai, he could end this apocalyptic disaster.
Boom!!
There was no earth-shattering destruction, nor any dazzling special effects pollution.
With just one strike, the figure with the eerie smile was cleaved from top to bottom, cut cleanly in two.
Pure destruction followed, completely obliterating Kuruyashiki's body, leaving only fine Reishi and phosphorescent gas floating in the air.
Just as Naraku Sora thought the crisis had been averted, a heavy, hoarse voice suddenly echoed out of nowhere.
"..."
"Gagaku Kairyū..."
The moment this voice fell, the sky and ground of the Seireitei began to tremble, as if the apocalypse had arrived.
Countless fissures squirmed and spliced together until they formed the phantom of a giant maw that covered the entire Seireitei.
An aura of despair began to permeate the Seireitei.
"What kind of Ghost God Blache is this..."
Naraku Sora couldn't help but mutter as he looked at the giant maw slowly opening below.
He suddenly remembered that the Gagaku Kairyū Bankai copied by Enrakyōten before only covered the size of a valley.
Compared to the one before him, it was like comparing a puddle to an ocean.
The two were simply not on the same dimensional level.
At that time, relying on his absurd stats, he had forcibly blown up a valley to stop the expansion of Gagaku Kairyū.
Could it be that he had to blow up the Seireitei now?
Looking at the despairing faces of the Soul Reapers, Naraku Sora couldn't help but fall silent.
Right at this moment, Yamamoto cleared out the nearby Wills of Hell and flashed to his side with a Flash Step.
"Brat, although I don't want to see this happen either, there is no other way now."
"Once Kuruyashiki's Bankai expands, there is no way to stop it. Take the Soul Reapers and leave the Seireitei as quickly as possible."
"When this is over, you and I will slaughter our way into Hell."
As someone who had weathered countless storms, Yamamoto accepted this reality in less than a second.
He knew his disciple had done his best, so he didn't offer any harsh criticism at this time, even going so far as to come up with an excuse to absolve him.
Even though the losses this time would be unacceptably massive, with more than half of the Gotei 13 Soul Reapers likely to perish in the giant maw, Yamamoto still forced himself to stay strong.
"Teacher, we can talk about slaughtering our way into Hell later. I suddenly have a bold idea."
Naraku Sora frowned in thought for a few seconds, turned to Yamamoto, and spoke seriously.
Yamamoto's eyes widened. "I don't care what bold idea you have, get the hell out of the Seireitei right this instant!"
However, his reprimand didn't spur Naraku Sora into retreating; instead, he raised his Zanpakutō.
"Although I don't have concrete proof, relying on my world-shaking intellect, I've guessed a little something."
"Now, I'm going to show you the other side of my Bankai."
Yamamoto was just about to open his mouth to stop him, but watched in horror as his reckless, rebellious disciple charged straight toward the giant maw below, his speed incredible.
Like a meteor streaking across the sky!
Scorching black and red Reiatsu suddenly erupted, transforming into a terrifying pillar of light that pierced the heavens and earth, plunging straight into the giant maw covering the Seireitei.
Crimson flames ignited from it, spreading and forcibly tearing space apart, forming a rift-like spectacle.
The Reishi boiled accordingly, and boundless ruins and wreckage appeared between the rifts, as if an apocalyptic cataclysm had descended upon the Seireitei.
It completely overwrote the original scenery.
On the scorched earth, blistering heat danced and warped. A scorching wind carrying sulfur and ash whipped up, blowing away the heavy black clouds that blotted out the sun, revealing a burning red night sky.
Naraku Sora walked through it, like a god!