Tsunayoshi directly activated his Storm-attribute Bankai.
A barrage of rockets and bombs fired from the skull launcher, shooting straight toward Ichibē's face.
Of all Ichibē's abilities, the one Tsunayoshi dreaded most was Ichimonji. He had no desire to be blackened by Ichimonji and turned into some muddled little black figure.
Tsunayoshi acted with such caution, yet Ichibē did not take him seriously at all.
Ichibē merely held Ichimonji and drew the character for "exchange" in front of him with a single stroke. His figure vanished, and in his place appeared Ōetsu, who instantly took over the position targeted by Tsunayoshi's attack.
"Ichibē, at least give me a warning!"
Seeing the scene suddenly change, with a pile of attacks appearing right in front of him, Ōetsu hurriedly took the tongs and hammer from his waist and quickly dealt with them, protecting his handsome face amid a series of violent explosions.
Ichibē ignored Ōetsu's complaint.
In truth, Tsunayoshi held no place in Ichibē's eyes. As far as he was concerned, Tsunayoshi Sawada and Ichigo Kurosaki were already in his grasp. Among this group of rebels, the one who required the most caution was instead that old man who looked as though he was already one foot in the grave.
If he had the leisure, Ichibē would even have Ōetsu thank him properly, because he sensed an aura from Yamamoto that was completely different from the past.
There was a very high chance that Ōetsu would not be Yamamoto's match, even if he held authority over Zanpakutō.
That was why Ichibē had directly exchanged places with Ōetsu without even saying hello. Letting Ōetsu deal with some brat should have been as easy as reaching out and grabbing him.
That was what Ichibē thought.
As a wily old veteran himself, Yamamoto also saw through Ichibē's thinking. When Ichibē appeared within the range of his flames, Yamamoto did not act rashly. Instead, in a rare move, he mocked Squad Zero.
"If you underestimate Tsunayoshi Sawada, you will regret it."
"You should worry more about yourself. Without a body formed from the Ōken, how many of my attacks can that body of yours withstand?"
Ichibē did not fall into Yamamoto's verbal trap. Instead, he attacked Yamamoto's physical condition. If Yamamoto had agreed back then to become a fighting force of the Soul King Palace, then with a body formed from the Soul King's power through the Ōken, he would never have aged like this.
Although the situation was escalating and the battlefield had already been divided, every person was still holding back as they fought. By tacit agreement, none of them used their true power, fearing that they might endanger Soul Society.
Ōetsu's mastery of Shunpo was very high. While he could not match Tenjirō in pure speed, it was enough for him to stroll casually through the storm of bullets and explosives fired by Tsunayoshi.
He moved easily through Tsunayoshi's attacks, occasionally using his tools to block stray shots while gradually closing the distance.
"Ichibē, I'll turn this Tsunayoshi Sawada into part of my collection!"
Ōetsu shouted loudly.
Forging Tsunayoshi into a blade would make up for the regret of Ichibē suddenly swapping him away. After all, he had clearly wanted to test just what kind of confidence Ryūjin Jakka had given Yamamoto, enough for the old man to openly oppose the Soul King Palace.
"As you like."
Ichibē's light words drifted over.
With two Soul King candidates available, he had more than enough confidence.
"Then it's time to take you down!"
Ōetsu showed Tsunayoshi a gentlemanly smile. His palm swept across his waist, and all of his tools floated into the air.
He made a hip-hop gesture toward Tsunayoshi. One arm pointed high toward the sky as he announced loudly, "Next up, let us welcome Ōetsu's Royal Guard! Awaken, Ōetsu's forging tools!"
The flint, chisel, hammer, tongs, and water tank all transformed into adorable girls. They stood beside Ōetsu and struck entrance poses, looking like some kind of idol girl group.
Tsunayoshi's attacks still did not stop.
Bullets and explosives slammed into the girls' faces, only stirring up a bit of dust.
"Enough! Get this idiot out of here!"
Hashihara Renka, a golden-haired woman with twin tails, kicked Ōetsu until he curled up like a cooked shrimp. Then she spun her twin tails like a fan, blocking Tsunayoshi's attacks.
Because Ōetsu's Royal Guard were essentially Zanpakutō, they were not afraid of Tsunayoshi's attacks. But in order to let their idiot master indulge his dream of being a superstar, they had no choice but to pose with Ōetsu and help him block stray bullets.
Although they were not afraid of the enemy's attacks, being struck in the face by that storm-like barrage still made them feel pain. That was why Hashihara Renka took the initiative to block the enemy's offensive and let the others take Ōetsu somewhere relatively safe.
Feeling the familiar pain in his abdomen, Ōetsu had already expected this when he used his ability to materialize these tools.
Up to this point in the battle, the one causing him the most harm was not Tsunayoshi Sawada, but rather his own unreliable subordinates.
"Oh? Not continuing the attack?" Hashihara Renka asked.
After Ōetsu escaped, Tsunayoshi no longer continued attacking Hashihara Renka. His gaze moved back and forth between Ōetsu's Royal Guard and Ōetsu himself.
When Ōetsu summoned them, Tsunayoshi had felt something strange.
Ōetsu seemed to be using Shikai.
"You are… his Zanpakutō?"
Hashihara Renka said with an irritated expression, "As much as I don't want to admit it, we were indeed forged by that idiot."
"No…"
Hearing Tsunayoshi's words, Hashihara Renka suddenly understood.
"So that's what you wanted to ask. That idiot's original blade has already been fused into the five of us. Strictly speaking, the five of us are his Zanpakutō."
Ōetsu's Royal Guard were people inseparably connected to Ōetsu.
Who knew how many years ago, in order to create suitable forging tools, Ōetsu personally melted down his own Zanpakutō and forged these five tools together with other materials.
Within Ōetsu's Royal Guard, the core power of Ōetsu's Zanpakutō still remained.
So that was it.
Tsunayoshi came to a realization.
When Ōetsu summoned his Royal Guard, what he used was likely the ability of his Shikai: the materialization of a Zanpakutō.
It was different from Muramasa's Zanpakutō materialization. Muramasa materialized the sword spirit, while the master still held the Zanpakutō's physical body.
Ōetsu's materialization directly transformed the blade into the form of the sword spirit. Just like now, Ōetsu had lost his tools, and all the tools had taken on the form of beautiful girls.
Just as Tsunayoshi understood the principle, he suddenly felt a chill beneath his feet.
He hurriedly leapt up while placing the C.A.I. defensive barrier beneath him.
A pink-haired, curly-haired little girl emerged from the place where Tsunayoshi had just been standing.
It was Nomino Nonoko.
So when Hashihara Renka had been talking with Tsunayoshi, she had been buying time for Nomino Nonoko's sneak attack.
Unfortunately, Tsunayoshi had the most cheat-like ability of all: Hyper Intuition.
Nomino Nonoko slammed headfirst into the barrier. She pouted and covered her forehead. The sudden change in her path forward had caught her completely off guard.
Tsunayoshi ignored Nomino Nonoko and instead looked in the direction where Ōetsu and the others had dodged.
He could no longer find Ōetsu or the other members of his Royal Guard.
As expected, Ōetsu's silliness was part of his coordination with his Royal Guard. At this moment, they were probably hiding somewhere, preparing to launch an attack against him.
The sound of surging water came from the hole Nomino Nonoko had drilled beneath his feet.
A pillar of water shot into the sky toward Tsunayoshi.
Just as Tsunayoshi was about to counterattack, a wave of heat swept over from above his head.
It was Mera Hiuchigashima's flame attack.
Together with Tokie Tonokawa's water pillar, they surrounded Tsunayoshi. The violent collision of flame and water produced a massive cloud of high-temperature steam, instantly robbing everyone nearby of their vision.
The battle lines locked in confrontation elsewhere seemed to reach a mutual understanding and withdrew farther away. The core battlefield shrouded in steam was left to Tsunayoshi, Ōetsu, and his group.
Tsunayoshi, at the center of the explosion, was not having an easy time.
The C.A.I. System's barrier was not all-encompassing protection. Scalding steam could still slip through the gaps and batter him.
Not only that, but two rushing sounds came from beside his ears.
Ōetsu and Tsuchimiya Tsumiko each held a massive hammer as they swung toward him.
Boom! Boom!
Two heavy impacts rang out.
The two hammerheads still had a meter of distance between them. They had not completely closed together and crushed Tsunayoshi into a meat patty as originally imagined.
Before the hammers was a layer of green lightning, blocking the hammerheads from advancing any further.
Before Ōetsu could think carefully, the sense of danger in his heart drove him to grab Tsuchimiya Tsumiko and leave their original position.
The instant Ōetsu moved away with Shunpo, green spikes appeared where they had just been.
Elektrico Cornata.
Under the impact of the lightning, the steam dispersed.
The equipment on Tsunayoshi's body had already changed form. The red ammunition belt had been replaced by a green horned helmet.
At the instant he was struck by the two members of Ōetsu's Royal Guard, Tsunayoshi decisively switched from the Storm-attribute Bankai, which lacked defensive ability, into his Lightning-attribute Bankai.
Ōetsu and the others' hammers had smashed into the lightning defense layer Tsunayoshi released. Compared to the gaps in the C.A.I. barrier, the all-around protection formed by the hardening property of lightning was far more complete.
"Hm?"
Hashihara Renka looked at the two giant horns on Tsunayoshi's head and felt a sense of familiarity.
She simply flung out her two long twin tails as well, locking down the pair of bull horns.
When it came to a contest between twin horns, Hashihara Renka, who possessed the most outstanding figure, did not believe she would lose to anyone.
However, when Ōetsu saw Hashihara Renka's actions, he cried out in alarm, "Renka, let go!"
Before Hashihara Renka could react, lightning had already surged along her twin tails toward her.
Although they were twin tails, their essence was still metal. The lightning Reiatsu still struck her directly.
Hashihara Renka's whole body convulsed from the shock, and her twin tails unconsciously loosened.
Tsunayoshi seized this chance to condense lightning into his horns and charged toward Hashihara Renka. He intended to use this opportunity to take down one member of the Royal Guard first, especially Hashihara Renka, who appeared to be their core.
Mera Hiuchigashima and Tokie Tonokawa appeared in front of Tsunayoshi at the same time.
Water and fire emerged together, once again erupting into a violent surge of Reiatsu that rushed toward Tsunayoshi.
However, Tsunayoshi's physical defense while using the Lightning attribute was far beyond what the Storm attribute could compare to.
He forcefully pushed through the erupting steam and Reiatsu, pressing toward the two of them.
Ōetsu saw at a glance that Mera Hiuchigashima and Tokie Tonokawa's abilities could not stop Tsunayoshi.
He appeared between the two of them, holding a chisel in one hand and a hammer in the other.
Nomino Nonoko and Tsuchimiya Tsumiko had already been returned by Ōetsu to their original forms. In this state, the equipment could bring out the two of them at their utmost power. He believed that in this form, they could break through Tsunayoshi's lightning defense.
The chisel and hammer attacked Tsunayoshi together.
Ōetsu's choice was indeed correct. Together, they pierced through the lightning defense covering Tsunayoshi's body.
As long as they wounded Tsunayoshi, they would be able to begin another round of battle.
Wounding Tsunayoshi in order to save his Royal Guard—this was Ōetsu's plan.
But during execution, a slight problem appeared.
The chisel and hammer actually passed straight through Tsunayoshi's body.
By the time Ōetsu tried to react, it was already too late.
Tsunayoshi passed directly over Ōetsu and slammed his electrified horns into Mera Hiuchigashima and Tokie Tonokawa.