The video replayed.
In a gray, rain-lashed, gloomy scene—
After seeing Ichigo Kurosaki appear, Yhwach's low, faintly surprised voice rang out:
"Ichigo Kurosaki…"
"I don't know what method you used to break through the prison Quilge created…"
"But you really intend to fight me with a body that battered and torn?"
His black cloak draped down as Yhwach lifted a hand, stopping Haschwalth—who was about to move.
Facing the camera, he looked straight at Ichigo and asked coldly.
What answered him was Ichigo's furious demand, coming from beneath rain-soaked bangs:
"Are you the leader of the enemy?"
"You're the one who wrecked Soul Society like this, aren't you?!"
He raised—
Zangetsu arced upward.
The black blade pointed straight at Yhwach.
Ichigo roared, venting his rage.
And after receiving Yhwach's unequivocal answer—
The next instant…
"BOOOOM—!!!"
Reiatsu erupted.
A terrifying, physical shockwave spread outward from Ichigo in all directions.
In a flash, it was like a bomb going off—
Turning the screen from near-black into blinding brightness.
And that explosive reiatsu came with crackling black lightning, leaping and tearing at the air itself!
As if—
At that moment,
This battlefield,
The ground of Seireitei,
Could no longer contain the full force of Ichigo's power—released in fury!
Terrifying!!!
———
"So exaggerated…"
"What an astonishing presence!"
"An impact at this level already rivals the Transcendent tier!"
"Revenge really is frightening… As the protagonist, Ichigo Kurosaki cares about Seireitei's safety even more than the Shinigami of the Gotei 13…"
The audience was both stunned and moved, completely shaken by what they were seeing.
Among them—
The Shinigami of the Gotei 13,
And the captains in particular, felt genuinely touched.
Once again, they could feel that sense of security Ichigo always brought.
Because…
Standing across from him—
Was Yhwach.
That evil king of the pure-blood Quincy, the dark monarch who set foot upon the Soul King.
To face him alone—
To dare confront him head-on—
And to deliberately explode his killing intent without the slightest attempt to hide it—
Ichigo's actions made the audience feel nothing but respect—utterly, completely floored.
———
"Tsk, tsk, tsk…"
"Aizen-taichō… what a shame that, at this moment in the future, you're still imprisoned in Muken…"
"Otherwise you could've teamed up with Ichigo Kurosaki earlier—worked together—and beaten Yhwach ahead of time!"
"And then all those later events up at the Royal Palace wouldn't have happened…"
Pale bangs were whipped into disarray by the reiatsu gale spilling out of the screen as Gin Ichimaru spoke with a smiling squint.
Honestly—
The aura Ichigo released in that scene made even him feel alarmed—like a crushing pressure pressing down in waves.
That was why Gin had the thought:
They were missing a helper at Aizen's level.
Because if they weren't…
Then maybe—
Just maybe—
They really could have ended Yhwach's ambitions right here and now, stopping him in Soul Society.
However…
The moment Gin finished speaking, Aizen denied him at once:
"Gin… don't keep declaring conclusions like you understand everything. And what makes you so sure…"
"That I won't be helping Ichigo Kurosaki next?"
"That conversation in Muken didn't happen for no reason…"
Aizen's gaze went still and deep.
In his mind, a scene flashed back: during the previous "ranking," after he had fused with Kyōka Suigetsu, he had spoken with Yhwach.
Aizen was certain of one thing—
Even with his spirit apertures sealed,
He could still use Kyōka Suigetsu's power…
To hypnotize Yhwach in secret.
To interfere with his perception, even if only to a degree.
A fuse planted in the dark.
As for when it would blow—
That would depend on the outcome of this battle.
———
Meanwhile—
Under the watchful eyes of Aizen and the others,
Reiatsu burst,
Steel clashed,
And the figures of Ichigo Kurosaki and Yhwach tangled in midair—each swinging their weapon in a furious exchange.
Throughout the fight,
The ground of Seireitei suffered continuous bombardment—smoke and dust choked the air as countless fragments whipped and rolled.
The battle was so intense that the footage shook violently—
Even the transparent screen itself seemed affected, as if it might fail and shatter at any second.
Watching a scene like that left the audience dizzy—no one dared even breathe too loudly.
Even more so—
Within the shadow realm,
The pure-blood Quincy of the Wandenreich
Couldn't help but start worrying.
"Tch…"
"His Majesty isn't going to… mess this up, is he?"
"He already defeated the Shinigami Commander."
"Ichigo Kurosaki still hasn't reached the Transcendent realm—so His Majesty should still be his match, right?"
Lille Barro's eyes flickered, his tone carrying a trace of uncertainty.
He couldn't fully relax.
Because what he feared wasn't Ichigo's "normal Shinigami" strength—
What terrified him was the spirit inside Zangetsu.
Whether it was the "Zangetsu old man," or the horned Hollow White—
Those two cheats might forcibly take over mid-fight and play the match for him.
If that happened—
Even if Yhwach possessed "The Almighty"…
If he hadn't "opened his eyes" yet—
Against that kind of absurd advantage—
The result really was hard to predict.
A direct reversal was possible.
And that would be a massive blow to morale.
But…
Before Lille Barro's words had even settled—
Haschwalth, who also appeared clearly on-screen, lifted a hand with a cold expression, signaling there was no need to worry:
"You're overthinking it…"
"As the emperor's aide…"
"If anything unexpected happens, even without His Majesty's permission, my future self will intervene at once."
"Ichigo Kurosaki… has no chance of winning."
Those blue eyes held absolute confidence.
Even though, as things stood, Ichigo's combat power looked terrifying—
If he didn't "cheat," he was basically the strongest below the Transcendent tier.
Still—
Haschwalth, powerful in his own right, believed that even by himself,
Defeating Ichigo would be more than easy.
Two versus one—how could they possibly lose?
———
Sure enough—
The battle that followed ended when Ichigo's body fell from the sky.
Along with his body—
And his head—
He was violently slammed down by a sweeping hand, smashed straight into the cracked rubble.
"BOOM—"
That moment made it unmistakably clear:
Ichigo's power had been suppressed.
In his normal Shinigami state—
Even after reaching Bankai—
There was still a gap between him and Yhwach.
The fact he had managed to struggle for any length of time at all meant he had already pushed himself to the limit.
However…
Just as Yhwach raised his hand again—
Cold and merciless—bringing down his massive Quincy holy sword—
Trying to execute Ichigo on the spot—
Something nobody expected happened.
The blade came down.
But it didn't pierce flesh.
There was no blood.
Instead—
When the camera pushed in,
Zooming tight on Ichigo's neck,
Everyone immediately saw it:
Blue, flashing blood-patterns spreading and pulsing there.
"What is that…?"
"H—holy hell!!!"
"Did Blut awaken?!"
"So it's true! We weren't wrong—when fighting Yhwach, Ichigo's pure-blood Quincy lineage inside him…"
"Actually awakened at the most critical moment!!!"
In that instant—
Seeing the unmistakable pattern of Blut Vene,
The entire Bleach world exploded into an uproar.
The audience was ecstatic.
———
Finally—
After Shinigami, Hollow, and Fullbring…
The last power inside Ichigo Kurosaki awakened.
And the irony was—
It happened right in front of Yhwach, the king of the pure-blood Quincy.
He even "learned" Blut Vene automatically.
The moment this was revealed,
The viewing atmosphere instantly turned electric.
"Heh…"
"Masaki's spirit in heaven would be proud of Ichigo, wouldn't she?"
Inside the Urahara Shop—
After seeing Ichigo narrowly escape death at the critical moment,
As his father, Isshin Kurosaki finally let out a breath he'd been holding—and thought of his late wife, speaking as if to comfort himself.
Back then.
That night.
Meeting Masaki Kurosaki—
Had already destined this moment to arrive someday.
And thankfully—
From the strength of Blut Vene shown on Ichigo's body…
He could actually take Yhwach's strike without a scratch.
It was—
A shocking enough surprise.
His combat power shot up several tiers in an instant!!!
"Heh…"
"Isshin-san…"
"I told you—relax and watch. With a divine weapon like Zangetsu, Ichigo won't die so easily…"
Urahara Kisuke wore a leisurely smile,
As if he had predicted the plot long ago.
But in truth, deep down, even he was stunned.
They had already seen Blut Vene's strength in the earlier Hueco Mundo battle—
Through Quilge Opie.
And now—
If the one using it was Ichigo Kurosaki,
A man who would someday possess Soul King–level power and reiatsu…
Then once he could use Blut Vene on his own…
Wouldn't it become absolute defense?
If your reiatsu wasn't stronger than Ichigo's, you would never break through it.
In terms of raw "numbers,"
Across all of Bleach,
The people who could truly wrestle with Ichigo—and Zangetsu's power—
Wouldn't exceed the fingers of one hand.
"Heh…"
Yoruichi's lips curled up as she joked:
"You're all busy being happy for Ichigo, but have you considered…"
"Over in the Wandenreich right now, those pure-blood Quincy are probably dying inside after seeing this?"
With Yoruichi's jumping train of thought,
It wasn't hard to imagine:
The moment they saw those flashing Blut markings on Ichigo's neck—
They'd all be shocked.
And while they wailed in panic…
They'd also be even more furious.
———
In fact—
Yoruichi was right.
At that very moment, inside Silbern—
Within the vast crystal palace—silence reigned.
As they watched with their own eyes
The instant Blut Vene appeared on Ichigo Kurosaki—
Every pure-blood Quincy present—
Including big names like Haschwalth and Gerard Valkyrie—
Had their pupils contract as they stared wide-eyed.
They were utterly stunned.
They hadn't predicted this at all!!!
"Damn it…"
"Does this guy actually have some kind of 'can't-die' cheat?!"
"Why is it that every time he's about to be killed, he always manages to survive?!"
Gerard Valkyrie ground his teeth, furious.
Auto-defense.
Auto-learning the enemy's ability.
Even though they were at the final arc, Ichigo still "activated cheats" without warning.
Who could take that?!
"Next, don't tell me he's going to steal His Majesty's reishi techniques too…"
"If that happens, his Quincy abilities will instantly surpass all of ours…"
Lille Barro's face darkened as he spoke, exasperated.
After all—
Don't make it so they'd trained for centuries,
Only for their pure-blood Quincy skills to lose to Ichigo—the enemy.
That would be a complete joke.
A humiliation.
But—
Haschwalth, after settling his emotions, spoke blandly:
"Everyone, there's no need to worry. Even if Ichigo Kurosaki has Blut Vene, there is still a clear gap between him and His Majesty."
"Soul King–level offense and defense is only a matter of time."
His tone was absolute.
He didn't believe a single twist like this could rewrite Ichigo's inevitable defeat.
———
After that—
The footage sped along.
And the course of the battle really did match what Haschwalth believed.
Even though Blut Vene's appearance briefly surprised Yhwach—
He even explained directly to the camera:
Because Ichigo had fought Quincy Schrift abilities, his growth accelerated—
Which caused the bloodline power inside him to awaken early.
Still—
Even when Ichigo fought back,
Even when he fired Getsuga Tenshō and injured one of Yhwach's hands—
In the end, Yhwach released his power.
Ichigo was struck repeatedly by holy Quincy attacks—
And suppressed by a seal that restrained reiatsu.
After struggling and resisting,
Ichigo finally collapsed from exhaustion—
And was completely subdued.
"It's over…"
"In the end, Ichigo still couldn't hold on! He really gave it everything!!!"
Inside the First Division,
After watching the entire process—
Especially seeing Ichigo knocked down and brutally pinned—
The captains all shook their heads and sighed, hearts aching for him.
But separated by the screen, they were powerless.
There was nothing they could do.
They could only watch with their own eyes—
Ichigo, the "savior," standing alone,
With no support at all—
His situation unbearably lonely.
And this image—
Even with the Commander among them—
Filled the captains with guilt.
With self-blame.
However—
What nobody expected was—
Just as Yhwach raised the reishi holy sword again, sneering:
"Ichigo Kurosaki… this is the end."
"Even if Blut Vene has appeared, your body is still destined to be cut down by this holy sword!"
Killing intent surged.
Yhwach finished those words and brought the blade down—
But at that moment…
His body went rigid.
A black shadow suddenly spread out, covering the surrounding space—
Forcing Yhwach to stop.
He frowned, staring downward—
And then spoke words that shocked the entire world once again:
"Is the time already here? It shouldn't be this soon."
"Aizen… was it your doing?"
"In those meetings in Muken, I never imagined that in such a short time…"
"He would interfere with my perception to this extent!"
(End of Chapter)
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