Three days later, Seireitei.
The flames of war were reignited, its brutality far surpassing the first attack.
Under Yhwach's personal supervision, the Sternritter of the Wandenreich launched a full-scale assault.
The Gotei 13 resisted desperately, blood staining the stone paths of the Seireitei red. Countless Shinigami dissolved into Reishi beneath Heilig Pfeil and Schrift abilities.
The core of the battle ultimately focused before the 1st Division's barracks.
Facing Yhwach, who had mastered the power of the Almighty and recovered most of his strength, even Yamamoto, bearing the title of [Strongest Shinigami], fell into an unprecedented bitter struggle.
The flames of Ryujin Jakka burned away the sky and earth, yet struggled to reach the Quincy King who seemed to foresee the trajectory of every attack.
Finally, amidst a sigh, Yamamoto's majestic body, which had weathered millennia of vicissitudes and protected Soul Society for countless ages, collapsed under Yhwach's indifferent gaze, scattering into countless flying, scorching Reishi particles.
Ryujin Jakka, the symbol of the Gotei 13's spiritual pillar, dimmed with its master's passing, thrust diagonally into the scorched earth.
The Captain-Commander had fallen in battle!
The news, like the coldest wind, instantly swept across the entire Seireitei, an intangible gloom enveloping the hearts of every surviving Shinigami.
In fact, if Yhwach hadn't voluntarily withdrawn, Soul Society might have been destroyed by now.
…
Hell.
Completely different from the tragic chaos of the Seireitei, a battle beyond common sense was unfolding here.
Hell's space was already shattered beyond recognition. The land and sky formed by Dark Reishi were torn and disfigured.
Rampant energy currents and spatial cracks, like man-eating beasts, devoured all condemned souls and the will of Hell that dared approach.
At the edge of this apocalyptic scene, several figures emanating ancient, powerful Reiatsu were struggling to stabilize a small, relatively safe area.
Suddenly, the space in their area fluctuated slightly. A familiar yet unfamiliar powerful Reiatsu suddenly descended.
The light coalesced, revealing Yamamoto, who had died in battle in Soul Society.
There was no trace of the pain of death in his eyes. He quickly surveyed his surroundings.
The earth was shattered, the sky was broken, Reishi was disordered, void currents raged.
"Hmm? Is Hell's environment usually this harsh?" Yamamoto was somewhat surprised, but didn't think much of it, simply assuming Hell had always been like this.
"Yo, a rare visitor." Furofushi's voice sounded.
"Captain-Commander." Chika greeted.
"Furofushi, Chika, it's you." Yamamoto was both surprised and delighted. He hadn't expected to see familiar faces so soon after arriving in Hell.
"Didn't expect an old fossil like you to die too." Saito moved closer, looking up and down at Yamamoto's somewhat ethereal spiritual body, her tone even more surprised.
"Ho! Such injuries, impressive! Is there still someone in Soul Society fierce enough to beat you up like this?"
Yamamoto succinctly explained: "Yhwach has returned with renewed force. The Zero Division is occupied with its own affairs. I decided to take this opportunity to come and assist Setsuna."
He paused, then added, "As for Soul Society, I trust the wisdom of those who come after."
He believed that his carefully nurtured disciples, Kyoraku, Ukitake, and the current Captains who had undergone trials, would, after his departure, also fight desperately to protect Soul Society and find a glimmer of hope.
However, after hearing Yamamoto's plan, which could be described as 'dying a worthy death by taking an unconventional path', the reactions of the original Captains were rather subtle.
Furofushi rolled her eyes and pointed behind them, at the terrifying storm that occupied most of Hell's field of view and made space itself wail.
"Hey, old fossil. The idea is quite heroic." Saito's tone carried a mocking undertone of 'you're too naïve'. "But are you overestimating your current state and underestimating what's happening over there?"
She pointed towards the storm's center. "Look over there. Do you think you can even intervene?"
Yamamoto followed her direction and focused his gaze.
Having just arrived, his mind unsettled, and then attracted by the original Captains, it was only now, looking carefully, that he truly saw the terrifying full scope of the storm.
It was a chaotic storm like the beginning of the universe.
At the storm's edge, countless condemned souls and the will of Hell were torn apart.
At the storm's core, the sky was shattered, revealing the gloomy, violent void currents beyond.
What horrified him even more was that several figures seemed to be fighting at extreme speed in the storm's center.
Each collision between those figures caused large-scale spatial collapse. Even the battle's aftermath made him feel a deadly threat.
"Th-this is... Setsuna fighting the Ancestors of the Five Great Noble Clans?" Yamamoto was shocked and momentarily dazed. "He has actually grown to this extent?"
Chika heard this and slightly shook his head. "No, Yamamoto. The Ancestors of the Five Great Noble Clans have all been annihilated."
"What?" Yamamoto turned sharply, once again shocked.
"The Ancestors of the other noble clans were, in a previous upheaval, devoured by the Tsunayashiro Clan's Ancestor seeking to restore his power." Chika calmly narrated. "As for the Tsunayashiro Clan's Ancestor, he was devoured by Setsuna and the Hollow that emerged from within Setsuna."
The amount of information was too great. Yamamoto couldn't quite process it for a moment.
'The Tsunayashiro Clan's Ancestor had devoured the other founders? And was then devoured by Setsuna and a Hollow?'
"Wait, you said that Hollow is..." Yamamoto's eyes widened.
Chika nodded. "The one fighting Setsuna now is the Hollow within his own body."
Yamamoto felt that the shock he had experienced in his thousands of years of life was less than what he had experienced this single day. Such an earth-shattering battle was actually the clash between Setsuna and the Great Hollow within his own body.
After the shock, he couldn't help but smile bitterly. "It seems I died for nothing this time."
…
Seireitei, 1st Division's Barracks, Temporary Strategic Meeting Room.
Cracks on the walls had not yet been repaired. The aftertaste of intense Reishi collisions still lingered in the air.
The Captains and Lieutenants of each division, and also the Substitute Shinigami, Kurosaki Ichigo gathered here, but the former sharpness or composure had vanished from everyone's face.
The collapse of their spiritual pillar had plunged the Gotei 13 into an unprecedented low.
Amidst the deathly silence, a deep voice broke the stillness.
"Everyone!" Captain of the 7th Division, Komamura Sajin, stood up. "The current situation has reached a critical juncture for the Seireitei's survival. Powerful enemies surround us, the Captain-Commander has fallen, and our conventional combat strength is clearly insufficient."
"I propose that we put aside past grievances, temporarily cooperate with Aizen and his group, and release the Captain of the 11th Division, who was exiled to Hell… Chiaki Setsuna!"
The name 'Chiaki Setsuna' was mentioned again, like a stone thrown into water, stirring up ripples.
Toshiro asked confusedly, "Captain Komamura, is that senior truly that powerful? Even the Captain-Commander has fallen in battle. Since that senior was exiled by the Captain-Commander, doesn't that mean his strength should be inferior to the Captain-Commander's?"