The sky above the Seireitei turned completely black as mountain-like monsters charged out from the Gates of Hell.
The chaotic and heavy Reiatsu made the air incredibly viscous, making people feel as if they were submerged in mercury, and even breathing became sluggish.
In the courtyard, Saitō Furōfushi's eyes widened as she looked up at the sky in disbelief.
"The Will of Hell!?"
"To think they sent out so many... Has Hell gone mad?"
As a Sinner of Hell, she was well aware of how powerful these monsters were.
According to some Sinners who had been there even longer than her, the Will of Hell was actually formed when people completely lost their sense of self, and any random one of them possessed formidable combat power.
Coupled with their immortal and indestructible mechanics, even Captain-level Soul Reapers might not necessarily be their match.
Boom, boom, boom!
The heavy sounds of their landings were like falling artillery shells, smashing deep craters into the ground one after another, instantly triggering the Kidō formulas left on the buildings.
Blazing fireballs and flashing lightning erupted in succession, setting off a carnival of Kidō within the Seireitei.
The Soul Reapers watched the exploding waves of dust with solemn expressions, desperately hoping that these Kidō attacks would deal a heavy blow to the invaders from Hell.
But soon, as iron-cyan thick skin emerged from the smoke and dust, looks of despair appeared on the Soul Reapers' faces.
The Kidō they had painstakingly set up had absolutely no effect.
There weren't even any visible scars on the monsters' bodies. They were merely tainted with a bit of dust, and with a surge of powerful Reiatsu, they recovered to their original state in the blink of an eye.
For a moment, the squad members couldn't help but feel their resolve waver, no longer possessing the high-spirited fighting intent they had just moments ago.
"This is truly exaggerated."
Zenjōji Uhin rubbed his chubby face. He had already recovered from the severe injuries he sustained earlier, but he clearly had no combat power to speak of.
"I thought we were the main force in this attack on the Soul Society, but I didn't expect us to just be the vanguard."
"Hell never placed its hopes on us from the very beginning."
Ōtogawa Furūki gripped his Zanpakutō tightly, a look of horror flashing in his eyes as his expression grew incredibly solemn.
"This is really troublesome now."
"But it's fine. Being able to fight alongside the Soul Reapers again means this trip wasn't in vain."
"Let's stabilize the army's morale first. These little guys don't seem able to handle such a grand spectacle."
Just as he was about to unleash his Reiatsu to attract the nearby squad members, an extremely scorching aura suddenly ignited at the edge of his perception.
In the next second, a burst of flames flashed and vanished.
With a bright eruption, the temperature in the air sharply rose.
The darkness covering the entire Seireitei was instantly dispelled, as if the afterglow of the setting sun had returned to the world.
Yamamoto leaned on his walking stick and slowly opened his eyes, a wisp of golden-red firelight flashing in his pupils.
"Boy, this is the great enemy I spoke of."
"As a commander, you must remain calm and collected at all times, maintaining your ability to think during critical moments. Remember this well; this is also a lesson I am teaching you."
Naraku Sora blinked, only to find that a figure had suddenly appeared in front of him. Though not very tall, the figure provided an immense sense of security.
The white Captain's haori fluttered in the wind, the thick character for 'One' particularly striking.
A burst of golden-red erupted from the walking stick in Yamamoto's hand, instantly burning the outer wooden fibers to ashes with a swish, revealing the Zanpakutō hidden within.
The brown scabbard featured an oval tsuba, and the deep purple hilt was tightly gripped by an old, weathered hand.
The next moment.
An aura scorching to the extreme violently erupted, like a blazing sun rising into the sky.
Amidst the raging flames, Yamamoto stood in place, his gaze burning bright.
"All things in the universe, turn to ashes!"
The old man gripped the hilt tightly and drew his blade with an upward slash. A terrifying pillar of Reiatsu light that made one's scalp tingle shot straight into the sky. As it illuminated the entire courtyard, a bright spark bloomed upon it.
"Ryūjin Jakka!!"
The moment his words fell, crimson flames surged and erupted from the blade. The terrifying aura swept across the entire Seireitei, blanketing the hearts of everyone present.
A tornado of flames rose from the ground, transforming into hundreds of meters of scorching heat.
Wherever Ryūjin Jakka passed, everything was reduced to ashes and dust.
Amidst countless low, buzzing sounds that resembled a swarm of bees, the tornado of fire crashed down, sending pure destruction hurtling toward the massive Wills of Hell.
The scorching light seemed as if it would illuminate the entire world.
Yamamoto took a step forward, transforming into a rising sun. In an instant, he swept past hundreds of buildings, as exaggerated pillars of fire rose across the territory of the Seireitei, obliterating the invaders.
Because pre-war mobilization had been conducted in advance, valuable people and items had already been evacuated, allowing him to fight with his hands completely untied.
As for the property damage to the Seireitei...
His rebellious disciple had said that Ōmaeda Marechinmoshin of Squad Two would be solely responsible for it.
Whether that was true or false, he couldn't afford to care about it right now.
Waiting any longer would only result in unbearable casualties.
Ordinary Soul Reaper squad members were absolutely no match for these Wills of Hell. With such massive numbers, even Captains would have to retreat and evade.
Right now, only he, the Head Captain, could step forward to turn the tide of the battle.
And this was exactly his, Yamamoto Shigekuni's, duty.
This was what it meant to protect the Seireitei!
"Ennetsu Jigoku!"
A terrifying technique capable of easily destroying a city rose above the ruins, crashing into the horde of the Wills of Hell. It transformed into an all-encompassing wave that dyed the sky, wantonly obliterating everything in its line of sight.
Taking advantage of the fact that the Wills of Hell hadn't completely scattered yet, Yamamoto directly unleashed a massive attack.
The squad members watched the figure standing amidst the endless flames with immense excitement, witnessing the greatness of the Head Captain of the Gotei 13 for the first time.
Compared to the heroic bearing of that lord in the Dangai back then, he was not inferior in the slightest.
With the Head Captain personally taking action, victory was assured!
Naraku Sora stepped on a foothold formed from Reishi, standing high in the sky. Looking at Yamamoto within the tornado of flames, he couldn't help but click his tongue.
He really had to hand it to him.
Although he could also achieve destruction on such a scale, he still had a long way to go in terms of the precision of his control.
Moreover, his Reiatsu was also inferior to Yamamoto's.
He could only say that there were differences even among those with First-Class Spiritual Power.
From the words of the several first-generation Captains, it wasn't hard to deduce that Yamamoto had already achieved First-Class Spiritual Power a thousand years ago.
Although so many years had passed and he couldn't break through that boundary due to the limitations of a Soul Reaper's soul, he was undoubtedly much stronger than he was a thousand years ago.
The strongest Soul Reaper in the truest sense.
Anyone stronger than Yamamoto had clearly transcended this category.
"Senior Genryūsai is truly terrifying."
Shihōin Chika smacked his lips, his face full of reverence.
"The Wills of Hell, who used to throw their weight around in Hell, have absolutely no power to fight back against Senior Genryūsai."
"He truly is the man who led us to victory."
Looking at the old man who erased a Will of Hell with a casual wave of his hand, he couldn't help but recall the war that had nearly engulfed the entire Soul Society a thousand years ago.
The other first-generation Captains who had broken free from Hell's control gathered together. Hearing these words, they all nodded in deep agreement.
As people who had once followed Yamamoto, they were well aware of his strength.
When they first invaded the Seireitei and didn't see Yamamoto take action, they thought that after being the Head Captain for a thousand years and getting older, his temper had mellowed out.
Or rather, that he was old and frail, no longer possessing the bravery of his youth.
They didn't expect that he was just hiding his edge, specifically waiting for the most critical moment to strike.
It truly gave the first-generation Captains an unadulterated surprise.
And compared to back then, Yamamoto had clearly become even stronger.
Even if they had targeted him the moment they appeared, they would have only been instantly killed on the spot.
Without any suspense.
Seeing this, Shihōin Chika frowned.
He suddenly realized that earlier, when he accidentally targeted a certain bratty kid, he seemed to have been slashed by the other party in a single strike.
Thinking back on it now, his neck still seemed to be throbbing with a dull pain.
That slash didn't seem to be any inferior to Yamamoto's.
Were the juniors of the Soul Society nowadays all this fierce?
Shihōin Chika subconsciously looked up at the sky, at the figure with his arms crossed over his chest, surrounded by a suffocating Reiatsu.
A faint, intense heat evaporated the moisture in the air.
Right at this moment, several Wills of Hell broke out of Ryūjin Jakka's attack range and began indiscriminately destroying the defensive lines constructed by the Soul Reapers.
Naraku Sora remained standing in place and raised a finger.
"Hadō #88: Hiryū Gekizoku Shinten Raihō."
In an instant, an explosive roar descended like heavenly thunder, as a beam of azure light wrapped in crackling, twisting arcs of electricity shot forward.
It directly engulfed the massive monsters that were dozens of meters tall. Amidst deafening roars, they gradually turned to ash and dissipated between heaven and earth.
They thought this was already his limit.
Unexpectedly, right after unleashing the previous number eighty-eight Hadō, he consecutively threw out several more of the exact same Hadō.
He was like a tireless Kidō machine.
A casual strike from him was a goal that ordinary Soul Reapers pursued for their entire lives.
Although the hidden danger was eliminated, Naraku Sora couldn't bring himself to be happy.
For some unknown reason, a somewhat ominous premonition welled up in his heart.
The Wills of Hell looked terrifying, but in reality, they would at most deplete Old Man Yama's stamina and Reiatsu. They didn't pose any serious threat at all.
Even if there were casualties, they would all be within an acceptable range.
At most, a few nobles would accidentally die, and a few mansions would be leveled.
In Naraku Sora's eyes, these were all good things.
*But why did he still feel a faint sense of unease?*
*There was definitely a problem!*
Just as he was on high alert, a familiar Reiatsu swept over, enveloping him like a net.
"Sora, I've captured a lingering, abnormal Reiatsu."
Aizen's voice rang in his ears; it was Tenteikūra.
"The Wills of Hell are just a smokescreen. The real trump card hasn't been played yet."
"Leave the situation on the other battlefields to me. Keep your eyes on the Gates of Hell."
Just as Naraku Sora was about to respond, he seemed to notice something and looked up at the sky.
He saw ripples stirring once again within the open Gates of Hell. From the dark red vortex, a burly figure stepped out, with sticky phosphorus gas lingering around his body.
He exuded a heart-palpitating pressure.
A white haori fluttered in the wind, and the sharp, blade-like character for 'Eleven' reflected in the pupils of the Soul Reapers.