"Ginjo!"
The usually emotionless Shūkurō lost his composure upon seeing Kūgo's death.
He wanted to check on the situation, but Zaraki held him back, making it impossible to disengage.
Everyone else watched in astonishment, having expected another major battle after Kūgo severed the Ōin.
Instead, it ended so abruptly, with Kūgo seemingly dying from an inability to withstand the power.
However, his last words before dying caught the attention of Shin and Shunsui.
He was clearly pointing at Tokinada.
If that were the case, Shin didn't believe things would end this way.
At this moment, Yamamoto and Mayuri also arrived at Sōkyoku Hill.
Soi Fon explained the situation to Yamamoto.
"He severed the Ōin, but now he's dead. Why hasn't the Ōin appeared yet?" Mayuri said, looking at Kūgo's corpse on the ground.
Shin nodded.
As Mayuri said, something was amiss.
Stimulated by Kūgo's death, Shūkurō's attacks grew increasingly fierce.
He tried to use Book of the End on Zaraki's Zanpakutō, but found it to be a blank slate, unable to yield any useful information.
Finally, he seized an opening during Zaraki's somewhat unguarded attacks and struck Zaraki's body.
In Zaraki's memories, he replaced Yachiru's existence.
Instantly, Zaraki paused, confused as to why he was fighting Shūkurō. But he quickly regained his composure and continued his assault, because for him, no matter who the opponent was, if it was a fight, there was no reason to stop.
This stunned Shūkurō. Why was Zaraki still attacking him even after he had replaced the existence of the person closest to him?
"What's wrong? Why the stunned look? Hurry up and continue fighting."
Zaraki grew stronger with each blow, and even though Shūkurō had access to Zaraki's memories, it was of no help. After all, Zaraki's attacks had no discernible pattern. In a word, it was just slashing.
Ultimately, after Zaraki released his Reiatsu, Shūkurō couldn't keep up and was wounded by a single strike.
However, because Zaraki didn't strike with lethal intent, he wasn't severely injured.
Just then, a sudden change occurred.
A Zanpakutō pierced Shūkurō's heart from behind him.
"This guy's ability is quite troublesome."
Tokinada pulled out his Zanpakutō, pushed Shūkurō aside, and revealed a sinister, playful smile.
Shūkurō fell to the ground, blood gushing from his mouth, glaring at Tokinada with hatred.
"Tsunayashiro Tokinada." Shunsui's eyes narrowed slightly.
Yamamoto asked, "Tsunayashiro clan head, why are you here?"
This was a matter for the Gotei 13, nobles should not interfere.
Tokinada put on an innocent expression. "Captain-Commander, what are you saying? I'm here to help you."
"Nonsense! What are you really here for?"
Tokinada was a student of the same generation as Shunsui and Jūshirō, all having studied under Yamamoto. Yamamoto knew exactly what kind of person he was.
Given his vile personality, he would never appear simply to help.
Tokinada answered, "The nobles have fallen. Now the authority of Soul Society is entirely in the hands of the Gotei 13, and I, the head of the Tsunayashiro clan, am merely a figurehead."
Yamamoto roared, "Answer!"
Tokinada, however, merely smiled nonchalantly. "Captain-Commander, don't get angry."
"Look, as you can see, these two humans on the ground were instigated by me."
Byakuya asked, "Tokinada, what exactly do you intend? Do you mean to destroy Soul Society?"
"Destroy Soul Society? No, Kuchiki clan head, why would you have such a terrifying thought? Everything I've done is for us nobles." Tokinada wore an expression of painstaking effort.
"For the nobles?"
"Exactly, to allow the nobles to reclaim their exclusive glory and return to a leadership position in Soul Society."
"So the ones who absolutely should not be standing against me are you, Kuchiki clan head, and the former Shihōin clan head." Tokinada shifted his gaze to Yoruichi.
Yoruichi said, "This is nothing more than your personal ambition."
"Tsunayashiro Tokinada, Ginjo Kūgo is dead, and Tsukishima Shūkurō has also been killed by you. Do you still intend to stir up trouble?" Tōshirō questioned loudly, unsure of Tokinada's true confidence.
Tokinada smiled mysteriously. "Dead? That's not necessarily true."
"What do you mean?"
The two people before them had no signs of life, and their Reiatsu had vanished, they were clearly dead.
"Thanks to Ginjo's greed, my plan could proceed smoothly. Just a mere human, yet he wanted to cooperate with me, as if I didn't know what he was thinking."
"I gave him many fragments of the Soul King, and he used his abilities to devour and fuse them."
"But what he didn't know was that the more fragments he fused, the greater the pressure on his soul."
"Finally, he even greedily plundered the powers of several other Fullbringers, which only accelerated his death."
"When he severed the Ōin, the power of the Ōin would crush his soul."
Everyone suddenly understood. No wonder Kūgo had died so inexplicably.
"Next, everyone, please witness the birth of the Soul King."
As soon as he finished speaking, Tokinada produced a large quantity of Shinigami, Quincy, and Hollow corpses from an unknown source, piling them into a small mountain.
The Shinigami side was still pondering the meaning of Tokinada's recent words, while Shin, seeing so many miscellaneous corpses, immediately understood.
Mayuri instantly recognized the familiar experimental materials. "You bastard, so the incidents at the SRDI were your doing?"
He simply assumed Tokinada was in league with Sōjirō.
Tokinada had no time for Mayuri. He placed his hand on Kūgo's brow, muttering incantations.
"Stop him!"
Yamamoto sensed something was wrong and ordered everyone to interrupt Tokinada.
As everyone was about to advance, a huge earthen wall rose before them, blocking their path.
By the time they destroyed the earthen wall, Tokinada had already completed the ritual.
The Ōin on Kūgo's brow glowed, and golden Reiatsu enveloped Kūgo's corpse and the small mountain of bodies.
Kūgo floated in the air, while the corpses transformed into Reishi and were absorbed by his body.
Shin unleashed a crimson flame, sending it towards Kūgo. However, the flame vanished the moment it touched the golden Reiatsu.
Seeing this, Tokinada laughed loudly. "It's useless. This is the Ōin's power. Enjoy it, everyone! Don't waste your efforts!"
As the Reishi continuously fused, Kūgo's body underwent a massive transformation.
His hair turned white, his body became taller, his limbs were covered in black solid Reiatsu, his torso was encased in skull-like black and white armor, and fluffy fur grew around his neck, wrists, and ankles.
Suddenly, Kūgo opened his eyes. His sclera had also turned black, making his entire eyes appear extremely hollow and devoid of any light.
His body abruptly erupted with a heavy Reiatsu, a pressure so immense that many captains present felt extreme strain.
'What kind of monster is this?'
Shunsui even felt the same urgency he had experienced when facing Yamamoto.
"Hahahahaha!"
"Behold your Soul King!"
"But he's a Soul King who will only obey my commands!"