"Uwaaaaah—!!!"
Screams of agony rang out. Katen Kyokotsu and Sogyo no Kotowari, who were closest to Muramasa, were engulfed by the flames released by Ryujin Jakka. The intense heat caused their bodies to begin burning.
Then, in an instant, Katen Kyokotsu and Sogyo no Kotowari were completely engulfed by Ryujin Jakka's flames and vanished without a trace.
Even Toshiro, Hyorinmaru, and Yamamoto, who were a little further away, couldn't help but frown.
Kyoraku and Ukitake were even more overwhelmed, unable to resist stepping back. Unohana, though slightly better off than them, also couldn't help but use her arms to shield herself from the incoming wave of heat.
Boom!
A fiery red pillar of flame erupted violently, shooting straight up, blasting a huge hole through the cave's ceiling.
Moreover, after breaking through the cave roof, the scorching pillar of flame expanded into a huge sphere, and the terrifying energy contained within spread in all directions. If one looked down from the sky, the entire scene was as shocking as a nuclear explosion.
The Shinigami and Zanpakuto fighting outside the cave, upon seeing this, had no time to continue their battles. They each desperately fled into the distance.
Fortunately, the cave was large enough. Ryujin Jakka released its power from the deepest part, and when the huge pillar of flame broke through the roof and erupted, it was relatively far from those Shinigami and Zanpakuto. Coupled with their timely escape, those who had been fighting outside were not affected.
"My, my, as expected of Old Man Yama's Ryujin Jakka… the Strongest Fire-type Zanpakuto. This power is truly terrifying. But it seems Ryujin Jakka has fallen into Muramasa's hands. This is quite troublesome."
Kyoraku sighed.
"Yeah."
Ukitake also frowned.
Toshiro, Yamamoto, and Unohana remained silent, just watching Muramasa stand aloft in the air at the center of the flames. As for Yamamoto's Zanpakuto, Ryujin Jakka, it was perhaps hidden within the flames... Toshiro and the others did not see a materialized form.
"Farewell, Yamamoto Genryusai, Hitsugaya Toshiro, and you Shinigami. You can no longer stop me."
With that, Muramasa's figure flickered and vanished into the flames, leaving the cave through the hole in the ceiling created by Ryujin Jakka's pillar of fire.
Kyoraku and Ukitake had intended to stop Muramasa, but the scorching flames and intense heat prevented them from getting close.
"Damn it!"
Watching helplessly as Muramasa left, even the easygoing Ukitake couldn't help but curse.
Ukitake looked at Yamamoto. "Genryusai-sensei, who exactly is Muramasa..."
"Muramasa is the Zanpakuto of a Shinigami named Kuchiki Koga. This is what I was trying to tell you all earlier."
Yamamoto said solemnly.
"Kuchiki!"
Kyoraku and Ukitake exclaimed in unison.
In the Soul Society, hearing the surname 'Kuchiki', the first thing that comes to mind is naturally the Kuchiki Clan, foremost of the Four Great Noble Houses.
"That's right, as you think, Kuchiki Koga was indeed once a member of the Kuchiki Clan. Moreover, he was the son-in-law of the former head of the Kuchiki Clan and Captain of the 6th Division, Kuchiki Ginrei."
"Unfortunately, back then, Kuchiki Koga committed an unforgivable mistake and was sealed away by Ginrei and myself working together. It seems this whole incident was orchestrated by Muramasa, Kuchiki Koga's Zanpakuto, to read my memories and learn the location of Koga's seal and the method to release it."
Yamamoto did feel some regret regarding Koga's fate, as Koga had initially only been framed.
However, although Koga possessed a powerful Zanpakuto like Muramasa, he lacked the matching character and temperament, ultimately embarking on an irreversible path.
Hearing Yamamoto's explanation, Ukitake couldn't help but realize, "So that's why Byakuya 'defected' from the Shinigami and joined Muramasa. Given Byakuya's extremely proud personality, valuing honor more than life itself, he probably wants to cleanse the Kuchiki Clan's shame caused by someone like Kuchiki Koga. He must be pretending to defect to resolve this matter in his own way."
"Kuchiki Byakuya defected?"
Yamamoto was a little surprised.
"No, no, it should be a pretend defection. He probably did this to resolve the incident in his own way. Please don't blame him, Genryusai-sensei."
Ukitake quickly explained.
"A pretend defection? Knowing his character, he would indeed do something like this."
Yamamoto said solemnly.
"Forget it. We'll deal with Kuchiki Byakuya's matter later. Now, let's focus on the main issue."
Yamamoto's expression became grave. "Muramasa is a Zanpakuto with the special ability of 'no hook, no line, no fishing'. He can invade other Zanpakuto and manipulate them according to his will. He is a special and unique existence."
"Everything Muramasa has done this time is ultimately aimed at rescuing Kuchiki Koga. Once he succeeds, the Soul Society will likely face even greater trouble. So, stopping his true goal is now the most urgent task for the Gotei 13."
Yamamoto declared loudly.
"Yeah, but to stop Muramasa, we first need to find a way out of here."
Kyoraku said helplessly.
Although Muramasa had left, Ryujin Jakka was still here.
And at this moment, Ryujin Jakka's flames surrounded them from all directions. This technique was probably Ryujin Jakka's [Ennetsu Jigoku], a quite powerful skill.
In the original work, during the decisive battle with Aizen, Yamamoto used this technique to temporarily trap Aizen.
Of course, Aizen wasn't in a hurry to get out either. Otherwise, with his strength, breaking through Yamamoto's [Ennetsu Jigoku] blockade wouldn't have been too difficult.
But regardless, the fact that it could be used by Yamamoto against Aizen shows that this technique is definitely very powerful.
If they made any move, they would probably immediately face Ryujin Jakka's lightning strike.
Just then, the scorching flames suddenly coalesced into several fiery dragons, attacking them.
"Dodge!"
Ukitake shouted.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Their figures flickered repeatedly, dodging the fiery dragons' attacks.
"How troublesome. It seems like it's toying with us."
Kyoraku said, a bit headache.
"It seems it wants to keep us here for now."
Ukitake added.
"Toshiro, aren't you going to act?"
At this moment, Yamamoto suddenly looked intently at Toshiro.
"If I were to personally deal with Ryujin Jakka, it would take considerable effort to subdue him again. But for you, who has already subdued your Zanpakuto and are at your peak strength, although you might not be able to quickly defeat Ryujin Jakka, breaking out of here would be an easy task. And what concerns me is..."
"If you had acted from the very beginning, even with Muramasa having Ryujin Jakka's help, he wouldn't have been able to leave. But from start to finish, you showed no intention of intervening. It's as if you deliberately let Muramasa go. Toshiro, what are you thinking!"
Yamamoto looked at Toshiro with a sharp gaze.