"!!?"
The fifteen captains and vice-captains present—including Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto—reacted with varying expressions upon hearing Retsu Unohana's urgent announcement. But soon, as if by unspoken agreement, they all turned to look in the same direction—
Swish!
The Sentan Hakuja fell silently as it manifested out of thin air.In the next instant, Aizen and Ichimaru Gin appeared before the assembled captains and vice-Captains!!
"Oh? Captain Aizen, it seems we're surrounded," Gin remarked lightly, crouching at Aizen's side as he glanced around. His gaze eventually fell upon Fūjin Taichi, whose body was charred black, his chest pierced by a gaping bloody hole.
What? That guy actually got taken out?
This makes things a bit tricky... I suppose I have no choice but to follow the original plan.
Though that thought flashed through his mind, Gin's expression did not change as he continued casually, "And… Captain Tōsen, who was supposed to meet up with us, has been killed."
"It doesn't matter, Gin."
Aizen calmly surveyed the captains glaring at him and smiled faintly.
"Though the timing is less than ideal... I would still like to say: it's been a long time, everyone.
As you can see, I—who had already 'died'—have returned under rather 'dramatic' circumstances. So tell me… will I receive flowers and cheers, or blades and hatred?"
"Sōsuke Aizen! Shall I take those words as a confession?! You, who dared to make fools of the Seireitei and its people... I shall never show you mercy!!"
Yamamoto was clearly enraged. Flames erupted violently from his body, and the Zanpakutō in his hand radiated a heat capable of incinerating all things.
"I see…"
Aizen responded softly, removing his black-framed glasses. Crushing them in his hand, he said dismissively, "I must say, your reaction is quite slow, Captain-Commander Yamamoto!"
Without another word, Yamamoto slashed forward. A roaring fire dragon surged toward Aizen.
"I can't let you have your way, Captain-Commander!" Gin suddenly stepped in front of Aizen, forming a blade of spiritual pressure that barely deflected the blazing attack.
"To think you have fallen as well, Ichimaru!"
Yamamoto's eyes burned with fierce light as he stared at Gin.
"Once hailed as a prodigy and pride of Soul Society… and yet you chose to betray it."
"My, my... to receive such praise from the Captain-Commander is truly flattering," Gin replied lightly. "But—"
He paused briefly, thinking:
I thought that with that guy stirring things up, we might be able to bring Captain Aizen down here. Who knew… you fools are just as blind as you were 110 years ago.
Though that was his inner thought, he continued aloud:
"But compared to that, I'd rather follow Captain Aizen toward the new future he envisions."
"That's enough, Gin."
Aizen crushed the broken glasses frame in his hand and said gently, "Though our plans were disrupted by outside interference, what I wished to confirm has already been proven. Therefore—"
Whoosh! Whoosh!
At that moment, two petite figures shot down from the sky, flanking Aizen from either side. Their Zanpakutō blades pressed against his throat.
"Don't move, Aizen! Or your head will fall from your shoulders!"
"What a nostalgic face… Yoruichi."
Though restrained by Yoruichi Shihōin and Soi Fon, Aizen remained completely composed.
"Tell me, is Kisuke Urahara doing well?"
"Shut your mouth, Aizen! You aren't escaping this time!" Soi Fon shouted coldly.
"Is that so?" Aizen smiled indifferently. "I'm afraid… time's up."
"What?!" Yoruichi's heart skipped. Sensing something wrong, she immediately shouted, "Pull back, Soi Fon!"
Rip— Rip— Rip—
The azure sky was suddenly torn open by countless Gillian-class Hollows, splitting apart into a black void. Three pillars of golden light descended from above, enveloping Aizen, Gin, and the fallen Kaname Tōsen within separate beams.
"Trying to escape, Captain Aizen?!"
Iba Tetsuzaemon raised his Zanpakutō and prepared to charge forward, only to be sharply stopped by Yamamoto.
"Stand down, Iba! That light is Negación—the beam used by Hollows to rescue their own.
Once someone is enveloped by that light, the inside and outside become completely separate and untouchable spaces!
Any Shinigami who has fought Hollows should know—once that beam descends, no one outside can attack Aizen!"
"Damn it! You're even taking the dead with you to Hueco Mundo? To deny the departed their rest like this…
I will never forgive you, Aizen!!"
Seeing Kaname Tōsen's corpse being lifted into the air by the Hollows, Sajin Komamura slammed his fist into the ground and roared furiously at Sōsuke Aizen.
"..."
Aizen paid Komamura no heed. He simply raised his right hand and swept his hair back from his forehead, smoothing his once-messy black bangs into a commanding slicked-back style.
He even left a single loose strand falling before his brow, and in an instant, his entire demeanor shifted—from that of a mild, somewhat greasy middle-aged man to that of an elegant, composed gentleman.
"So you've fallen so far as to ally yourself with Hollows, Aizen!! What exactly are you trying to accomplish?!" Jūshirō Ukitake called out, looking up at Aizen as he slowly ascended into the sky.
"To pursue a higher realm," Aizen replied calmly. "Though regrettably, there was a small disruption to my plan—"
He glanced down at the motionless, life-or-death-unknown Fūjin Taichi on the ground and let out a soft chuckle.
"However, you conveniently resolved it for me. From this moment onward, there will be nothing left to hinder my path."
"Aizen… So it's true. You really have fallen," Ukitake said, staring intently at him, his eyes filled with complicated emotions.
"No… it is you who are arrogant, Ukitake."
Aizen slowly drew from his waist a Zanpakutō with a crimson hilt and held it before his eyes, admiring it.
In a low, deliberate tone, he continued:
"No one stands atop the heavens from the very beginning—not you, not I, not even the gods.
But the unbearable vacancy of the throne in the sky is about to end… From this day forth, I shall stand in the heavens!!
Now then—farewell, my fellow Shinigami."
Whoosh—
The sky torn open by the Hollows gradually sealed itself, returning to its former blue. White clouds hung peacefully above, as if nothing had happened.
"Rustle—"
The sun finally dipped halfway below the western horizon, casting its final, orange-red glow over the quiet Soul Society. The low, tiled buildings were rendered in silhouette like a traditional ink painting.
Whoosh—
A stray gust of wind swept in from the wilderness, carrying a cool breath of air across the serene Seireitei—
And across the Sōkyoku Hill, now fallen into deathly silence.