Kazuma now had both the method and the formation diagram.
All that remained was to put the plan into practice.
Once the Grand Star Array was complete, it wouldn't matter whether the enemy was Yhwach or some hidden god lurking in the shadows.
He would kill them all.
What the hell would any of them have left to act arrogant about then?
"Three hundred and sixty-five Shinigami…"
Kazuma shuddered just thinking about the number.
"Dear God, this workload is going to kill me."
The difficulty was outrageous, but every great undertaking had to begin somewhere.
As long as he took the first step, perhaps the rest would gradually fall into place.
After careful consideration, Kazuma decided to start with the most important component of all: the primary formation anchor.
He already knew exactly who should carry the power of the Solar Star.
There was only one possible choice.
Captain-Commander Yamamoto.
Yama-jii was always complaining that he'd grown old, but what nonsense was that?
A man only a few thousand years old was still in the prime of his life.
How could he already have lost his passion and youthful vigor?
That simply wouldn't do.
Kazuma had decided that Yama-jii was going to experience a glorious second spring whether he wanted one or not.
With his mind made up, there was no reason to hesitate.
Kazuma didn't even bother going back to sleep. Under the cover of night, he shot toward the First Division like a bolt of lightning.
Knock! Knock! Knock!
"Yama-jii! I know you're still awake! Open the door!"
Knock! Knock! Knock!
There was no convenient moment of Yama-jii turning out to be awake too.
Kazuma's frantic pounding instead tore the peacefully sleeping Captain-Commander from his dreams.
"You had better have a reason for this, brat!"
The door flew open.
Yamamoto stood there with a haori draped over his shoulders, his usually composed face covered in storm clouds.
He was clearly furious about being dragged out of bed in the middle of the night.
"Heh, Yama-jii, don't be angry. I wouldn't have disturbed you unless it was absolutely necessary."
Kazuma smiled ingratiatingly.
He knew perfectly well that knocking on someone's door at this hour was inappropriate, but inspiration had struck him like an erupting volcano.
Besides, it was a long night, and neither of them needed to sleep. What could be better than finding someone to talk with until sunrise?
"Hmph! Spare me the sweet talk and tell me what this important matter is."
Yamamoto turned and headed back inside.
"If you woke me for nonsense, I will personally teach you a lesson."
Kazuma immediately scurried after him.
Once inside, Yamamoto entered the tea room, and Kazuma quickly sat across from him.
The Captain-Commander used Ryūjin Jakka to ignite the small stove on the table and began heating water for tea.
Kazuma pulled out his wine flask and took a long drink instead.
The liquor burned all the way down his throat, making him shiver before a satisfying warmth spread through his body.
"Well?"
Yamamoto lifted the freshly brewed tea and took a measured sip.
"You may speak now. Why did you come rushing here in the middle of the night?"
"Yama-jii!"
Kazuma suddenly raised his voice.
"Do you want to become stronger?"
The question landed like a thunderbolt directly in Yamamoto's heart.
"What are you planning?"
Caught off guard, the Captain-Commander frowned and regarded him warily.
"Heh. Aren't you always going on about how old you've become?"
Kazuma's lips curved into a sly smile.
"I have a way to give you a second youth. What do you think? Want to try it?"
He even waggled his eyebrows, wearing such an infuriatingly smug expression that Yamamoto's hands began itching to strike him.
"Stop playing games and explain yourself clearly."
Yamamoto held back the urge to beat him and fixed him with an intense stare.
Kazuma finally dropped the teasing expression.
He raised one hand and slowly pointed toward the clear night sky outside the window.
Yamamoto instinctively followed the direction of his finger.
Countless stars glittered overhead, large and small, set into the black sky like brilliant jewels.
"You intend to use the same method you applied to Rukia's Zanpakutō on my own?"
Yamamoto continued staring at the stars as he immediately grasped Kazuma's intention.
The idea was bold enough to border on madness.
"Exactly!"
Kazuma answered without hesitation.
Talking with an intelligent man saved a great deal of effort. Yamamoto had understood him almost instantly.
"Have you considered one problem?"
Yamamoto's gaze sharpened.
"Ryūjin Jakka is known as the strongest fire-type Zanpakutō. The flames contained within it are unmatched throughout Soul Society."
"Recklessly infusing star power into such a weapon could cause consequences neither of us can predict. The result may be the exact opposite of what you want."
He'd identified the central danger immediately.
Kazuma had forgotten that it was still the middle of the night.
Only ordinary stars were visible above them. The Solar Star had not yet risen.
Yamamoto had understood Kazuma's general plan, but not the true scope of what he meant by star.
"Yama-jii…"
Kazuma leaned forward.
"What if the star I'm talking about is the sun?"
Yamamoto's expression froze.
The corner of his tightly pressed mouth twitched.
So this reckless bastard was planning to put the sun inside his Zanpakutō?
That was delusion!
"What?"
A rare exclamation escaped Yamamoto as he stared at Kazuma in disbelief.
What kind of mind came up with an idea like this?
"Yama-jii, surely you know that the sun and moon are stars too."
Kazuma looked genuinely surprised.
"Don't tell me you didn't know that?"
He kept speaking as though he'd failed to notice Yamamoto's reaction.
Then Kazuma suddenly realized something deeply troubling.
Perhaps the Shinigami of Soul Society had no understanding whatsoever that the sun and moon were celestial bodies.
If even someone as knowledgeable and ancient as the Captain-Commander didn't know, how could ordinary Shinigami possibly be expected to understand?
Two names quickly came to mind.
Kurotsuchi Mayuri and Urahara Kisuke.
Both were mad scientists. They might possess some knowledge of astronomy and perhaps even grasp the scale of Kazuma's idea.
"Well?"
Kazuma grinned proudly.
"Isn't my plan brilliant?"
He'd become completely lost in his own fantasy.
The thought of what Ryūjin Jakka might become after merging with the power of the Solar Star set his heart ablaze like a roaring bonfire.
What kind of radiance would it unleash?
How terrifying would its destructive power become?
In the original course of events, the heat produced by Ryūjin Jakka's Bankai could be compared to the sun.
But it was only a comparison.
The true Solar Star possessed energy that could practically be described as endless.
Kazuma intended to make Ryūjin Jakka cross that seemingly impossible divide and transform into an actual sun.
He wondered whether Mayuri would finally acknowledge Kazuma as the true scientist once he learned about this plan.
After all, placing the sun inside a Zanpakutō was so insane that no normal person could possibly have conceived it.