"Ha!"
Toshiro shouted, and the fully charged Ice Dragon Flash transformed into a massive ice-blue slash, surging towards Muramasa with unstoppable force.
"Uwaaaaah—!!!"
Muramasa, who had been waiting, also roared, channeling all his power into the blade in his hands. He gripped it with both hands and held it before him, preparing to first withstand Toshiro's attack, then deflect its power onto the barrier behind him.
But Muramasa had underestimated Toshiro's strength and overestimated his own.
Boom!
The massive ice-blue slash struck Muramasa's blade.
Crack!
Cracks instantly spiderwebbed across Muramasa's sword. It seemed Toshiro's attack was about to cleave Muramasa, man and blade, in two.
'Damn it! Am I... am I going to die here!!'
'Unwilling! I'm so unwilling!! Koga! Koga!! I haven't been able to rescue you yet!!!'
Just as Muramasa was despairing, unwilling, on the verge of being completely destroyed by Toshiro's power, a sudden surge of powerful, ominous energy erupted from within him.
Boom!
A massive black and red Reiatsu emanated from Muramasa, momentarily managing to block Toshiro's attack.
"That's the Reiatsu of a Gillian!"
Toshiro exclaimed in shock.
"How can this be! This situation... could it be..."
Toshiro suddenly remembered that Muramasa, to sustain his own Reiatsu consumption, had once devoured countless Gillian, and those Gillian had not truly died.
Now, at the moment of Muramasa's life and death, those devoured Gillian within him also sensed the danger and ultimately chose to erupt their own Reiatsu to help Muramasa withstand Toshiro's attack.
After all, Muramasa and the devoured Hollows were in the same boat. If Muramasa died, those devoured Gillian would also truly perish. So, although unwilling, they had no choice but to help Muramasa.
Now, supported by the Reiatsu of those Gillian, Muramasa, who had been on the verge of being slain by Toshiro, managed to barely block the attack.
"Ha!"
Muramasa shouted, then suddenly twisted his body. With the help of the Reiatsu support from the countless Gillian inside him, he forcibly changed the trajectory of Toshiro's Ice Dragon Flash, completely deflecting its power onto the barrier behind him.
Boom!
When Toshiro's Ice Dragon Flash was deflected onto the barrier by Muramasa, the terrifying power contained within violently erupted.
Crack, crack... Bang!!
First, cracks appeared on the green, pyramid-shaped barrier, spreading more and more, until finally, with a bang, it completely shattered.
"The barrier... is broken..."
Seeing this, Toshiro couldn't help but be stunned for a moment.
Although Toshiro had originally intended to break the barrier and rescue Yamamoto, he had planned to deal with Muramasa first.
But he never expected that even fate would help Muramasa.
Just as he was about to die, the power of the Gillian suddenly erupted within him. Not only did he survive, but he actually achieved his original goal, using Toshiro to break Yamamoto's barrier.
The moment the barrier shattered, before Toshiro could act again, Muramasa's figure suddenly vanished without a trace.
Of course, Toshiro knew Muramasa hadn't truly disappeared. He had invaded Yamamoto's Inner World, preparing to read Yamamoto's memories and find the location of Koga's seal and the method to release it.
"Ara ara, Toshiro. Letting Muramasa succeed like that... how embarrassing."
Hyorinmaru, like someone who enjoys watching a spectacle and doesn't care if it gets bigger, seeing Toshiro fail to kill Muramasa and instead let him achieve his goal, actually 'mocked' her master.
"Cough, cough... This... this was just a mistake, just a mistake."
Toshiro coughed lightly, a little embarrassed.
"But even if Muramasa succeeds and learns the location of Kuchiki Koga's seal and the method to release it, it's not necessarily a bad thing. Even if Muramasa really releases Kuchiki Koga, it might not be a bad outcome."
Seeing Muramasa invading Yamamoto's Inner World and preparing to read the memories concerning Kuchiki Koga, Toshiro didn't become angry from embarrassment. Instead, he appeared calm and composed.
"Oh? Releasing Kuchiki Koga would be a good thing?"
Hearing Toshiro's words, Hyorinmaru couldn't help but be a little surprised.
"Mm, that's right. If Muramasa had been killed by me just now, then this incident would naturally end here. But the sealed Kuchiki Koga would ultimately remain a time bomb. Who knows when he might suddenly explode? If we don't deal with him, who knows when someone might use him to cause harm to the Soul Society?"
"And don't forget, Muramasa is, after all, just a Zanpakuto. Even if we kill him now, as long as his master, Kuchiki Koga, is alive, who knows when he might 'revive' again?"
"In that case, it's better to kill Kuchiki Koga and completely eliminate the source of future trouble. But to kill Kuchiki Koga, we must first release him from his seal."
"But even if I actively proposed releasing Kuchiki Koga and then killing him, Genryusai-sensei would most likely disagree. Genryusai-sensei's personality is still a bit rigid and outdated. In his view, since Kuchiki Koga is already sealed, why go to the unnecessary trouble and risk releasing him only to kill him? Especially since Muramasa might not necessarily be able to 'revive' again."
"So, even if Muramasa releases Kuchiki Koga, it's actually a good thing. First, isn't that guy Byakuya trying to personally kill Kuchiki Koga to cleanse the Kuchiki Clan's shame? He's even willing to go so far as to 'defect to the enemy'. If he doesn't achieve his goal, he'll probably be unwilling, right?"
"With the current situation, if Muramasa fails, Byakuya's purpose probably won't be achieved either. This is probably one of the reasons Byakuya chose to 'join' Muramasa."
"Second, as long as Kuchiki Koga lives, he's ultimately a hidden danger. I don't want him suddenly jumping out to cause trouble while we're dealing with Aizen and Yhwach. So, it's better for Kuchiki Koga to die."
"But for Kuchiki Koga to die, someone needs to release him first. And that someone can only be Muramasa."
"Otherwise, whether I or Byakuya released Kuchiki Koga, the repercussions wouldn't be good. After all, we're both members of the Gotei 13. Even if we released him only to kill him, it would give the future Central 46 or others who oppose us an excuse to cause trouble."
While Muramasa was invading Yamamoto's Inner World and reading the memories concerning Kuchiki Koga, Toshiro also explained his thoughts to Hyorinmaru.
"Hey, Toshiro. Aren't you just saying all this to cover up the fact that you failed to kill Muramasa and let him successfully invade Yamamoto Genryusai's Inner World?"
Hyorinmaru looked at Toshiro suspiciously.
"Cough, cough... How hurtful. Is this how you see your master?"
Toshiro said, looking extremely 'pained'.
"Ugh..."
Hyorinmaru was speechless.
"Besides, if I really wanted to kill Muramasa, I could still do it when he reappears after reading Genryusai-sensei's memories. Even if he knows the location of Kuchiki Koga's seal and the method to release it, he won't have the chance to actually release him."
Toshiro said righteously.
"Yes, yes, yes. You're absolutely right, okay?"
Hyorinmaru said helplessly.
"Of course I'm... Hmm?"
Just as Toshiro was about to continue bickering with Hyorinmaru, he suddenly sensed something and stopped.
"He's coming out?"
As soon as Toshiro spoke, Muramasa, who had invaded Yamamoto Genryusai's Inner World, reappeared.