"What the hell is happening?!"
The pitch-black night sky was suddenly lit by a blazing sun.
The Solar Star hung overhead, radiating such unbearable heat and light that it seemed ready to set all of Soul Society on fire.
Countless residents had only just fallen asleep when the sudden brilliance jolted them awake.
They rubbed their bleary eyes and stared at the impossible sight above, completely baffled by what was happening.
A massive ball of fire burned in the midnight sky.
At Kazuma's command, the Solar Star had sent down a portion of its power.
As that overwhelming energy poured into Soul Society, the temperature began rising at a terrifying rate.
In the Rukongai, weaker souls barely had time to react before the heat nearly roasted them on the spot.
Even powerful Shinigami found the temperature unbearable. Their throats dried out, and an intense thirst swept over them as though the air itself had become fire.
Fortunately, the catastrophe lasted only two and a half seconds.
The Solar Star's vast power then surged like a raging flood into Ryūjin Jakka, held tightly in Yamamoto's hand.
Had it continued for even a little longer, every living being in Soul Society might have been thoroughly cooked.
They would all have become very familiar with one another — because they would all be equally well done.
"That came from the First Division! What happened?"
The captains of the Gotei 13 were badly shaken by the sudden disturbance.
None of them dared waste a second. They pushed their speed to the limit and raced toward the First Division with everything they had.
"What exactly is going on?"
Suì-Fēng was the first to arrive.
She anxiously surveyed the area and quickly spotted Chōjirō, who looked just as confused as everyone else. She hurried over to him.
"I don't know either!"
Chōjirō shook his head with a bitter expression.
"I was inside the First Division the entire time, but everything happened too suddenly. I never had a chance to understand what was going on."
"Under normal circumstances, I would have immediately reported something like this to the Captain-Commander, but…"
His face grew steadily grimmer.
He'd searched the entire First Division and found no trace of Yamamoto anywhere.
"Could the Captain-Commander be fighting an unknown enemy?"
Kyōraku Shunsui arrived in a hurry and frowned as he considered the terrifying heat that had erupted moments earlier.
"I don't believe that was Yama-jii's power."
Ukitake Jūshirō pointed toward the blazing sun still hanging in the sky.
"Ryūjin Jakka may be the strongest fire-type Zanpakutō, but even it shouldn't have the ability to command the sun itself."
The sight was impossible to ignore.
It was the middle of the night, yet the sun had appeared overhead.
Within barely a minute, the captains and lieutenants of every remaining division had gathered at the First Division.
Soul Society was facing an unprecedented crisis, yet its central authority — the Captain-Commander — had vanished without a trace.
The normally disciplined ranks descended into confusion.
Without Yamamoto present to lead them, even the captains were uncertain what action they should take.
"Has anyone noticed that another important person is missing?"
Unohana Retsu finally spoke.
As one of the Gotei 13's most experienced captains, she showed remarkable calm despite the emergency. Her clear thinking and composed manner far surpassed those of the younger captains around her.
She slowly swept her gaze across everyone present.
"Captain Kazuma!"
Her reminder caused the others to look around as though waking from a dream.
Someone finally cried out in realization.
For an incident of this magnitude, Kazuma should normally have been among the first to arrive.
Yet there was still no sign of him.
That strange absence only deepened everyone's unease.
"Tetsuzaemon, where is your captain?"
Unohana turned toward Iba Tetsuzaemon among the crowd.
As Kazuma's lieutenant, he should have known his captain's whereabouts.
"C-Captain Unohana… I don't know where he is!"
Tetsuzaemon's body trembled slightly, and a thin layer of sweat appeared across his forehead.
The moment the disturbance began, he'd naturally rushed to find Kazuma and report the situation.
He'd reached the captain's office as quickly as possible, only to discover it completely empty.
Kazuma's bedroom had been empty as well.
Tetsuzaemon had assumed his captain had already gone ahead to the First Division, but when he arrived, Kazuma was nowhere to be found.
"This is extremely strange."
Shunsui's brows drew tightly together.
"Yama-jii and Captain Kazuma have both disappeared. Could an overwhelmingly powerful enemy have infiltrated the Seireitei?"
The two missing men represented the highest level of combat power in Soul Society.
Even if they'd encountered an extraordinarily dangerous enemy, neither should have been defeated in an instant.
More importantly, before their disappearance, no one present had sensed either Yamamoto or Kazuma release any reiatsu.
The entire situation was deeply unsettling.
"Everyone, listen carefully!"
Unohana stepped forward and temporarily assumed the Captain-Commander's authority.
"Use the First Division as the center point and spread out. Conduct a complete search of the surrounding area. Do not overlook a single location."
The assembled Shinigami immediately carried out her orders.
Before long, Chōjirō — who knew the First Division grounds better than anyone — noticed something unusual about the tea room where Yamamoto often spent his time.
When he approached, he discovered that the entire room had been sealed inside an immensely powerful barrier.
Chōjirō immediately attacked it with everything he had.
No matter how much force he used, however, the barrier refused to break.
Left with no alternative, he quickly reported the discovery to the others conducting the search.
"It appears the Captain-Commander's disappearance is connected to Captain Kazuma."
Unohana, Shunsui, and Ukitake arrived shortly afterward.
One glance was enough for them to recognize the barrier as Kazuma's work.
That meant the situation was probably not as dangerous as they'd feared.
"Captain Kyōraku, Captain Ukitake, and I will remain here."
Unohana turned toward the others.
"Everyone else, return to your respective divisions and stand by in case another emergency occurs."
Now that they'd determined Yamamoto and Kazuma were most likely both inside the sealed tea room, there was no reason to continue the search.
Unohana dismissed the remaining personnel.