Not long after—
To the north of Seireitei, atop Sōkyoku Hill, every captain-class Soul Reaper stood in orderly lines along the hanging bridge.
Their gazes were unified.
All of them looked toward the same place—
down into the distance, toward the vast forested plain below.
At this moment…
the two central figures of the coming "fire-element showdown" had already taken their positions.
Bai Chen.
Captain-Commander Yamamoto.
They faced each other in a clearing at the heart of the forest.
A battle watched by all…
was about to ignite.
"I never thought… the Captain-Commander—who's practically 'sealed his blade' for centuries…"
"would actually feel his battle spirit rise again and step onto the field!"
Under messy light-purple hair whipped by the cold wind, Ichimaru Gin narrowed his eyes, speaking with genuine awe.
And Gin wasn't exaggerating.
Ryūjin Jakka had never been "sealed" in name—
but after the Gotei 13 grew stronger and Soul Society became increasingly stable, the old man rarely had reason to act personally.
With the captains doing their jobs…
and every division keeping order…
the Captain-Commander simply didn't need to draw his sword.
Over time, Ryūjin Jakka became almost indistinguishable from something "artificially sealed," reduced to little more than a symbol—
that ancient wooden staff in his hand.
But today…
that blade was about to leave its sheath again.
"Captain Ichimaru," Kyōraku Shunsui leaned in with a laugh, lifting his straw hat slightly, "how do you think this fight will go?"
"Evenly matched… or a one-sided crush by Ryūjin Jakka?"
Gin shook his head, smiling with his eyes half-closed.
"If it were the old days, I wouldn't hesitate. I'd pick Ryūjin Jakka."
"But…"
He paused, his gaze drifting across the distance to Bai Chen's back—
to that enormous fire-red fan, glaringly vivid against the green landscape.
Hao Fire Fan.
"At the very least…"
"a zanpakutō that can remain in a permanent released form…"
is never ordinary."
"Bai Chen may still lose in the end…"
"but the process won't be easy. Not at all."
Gin's tone was firm.
Even without witnessing the Zaraki District battle in person, the abnormal data spikes from the underground lab's monitors had already made one thing clear—
Hao Fire Fan wasn't inferior to Wood Dragon.
It was another weapon capable of standing at the same height.
"I agree," Aizen said, stepping in with that gentle smile.
"As the only dual-attribute zanpakutō in Soul Society's history…"
that fact alone exceeds any praise."
Kyōraku raised his brow in surprise.
"Aizen-taichō… you're that confident in Bai Chen?"
Aizen smiled lightly.
"Is that strange? Back at the Shin'ō Academy…"
I was already strongly optimistic about him."
"I even invited him personally."
Kyōraku sighed, half-amused.
"True…"
"If Ryūjin Jakka weren't so overwhelming…"
even I'd feel like supporting Bai Chen without conditions."
That was the truth for most of the people on Sōkyoku Hill.
This "strongest fire-type" clash was too legendary—
no one dared call the result with certainty.
Meanwhile…
down on the forest plain below—
the Captain-Commander spoke with his eyes lowered.
"It's been hundreds of years…"
"just to ignite my battle spirit…"
Bai Chen—your zanpakutō…"
"That Hao Fire Fan alone…"
is already worthy of a place in the long history of Soul Society."
It was praise.
But unlike the captains' casual remarks—
Yamamoto's words carried a different weight.
Because the moment they fell—
the old man changed.
The aged dullness in his eyes vanished.
In its place—
was the fierce intensity of his youth.
His hunched spine straightened.
The staff-bearing silhouette that looked like a frail elder a breath ago—
stood suddenly like a mountain.
And the captains watching from Sōkyoku Hill all stiffened.
"The fighting posture of the strongest Shinigami in a thousand years…"
"When the old man gets serious…"
he stops being an elderly man."
"He becomes a walking, human-shaped sun."
And then—
Yamamoto's spiritual pressure, the kind that sat at the absolute apex of all Shinigami—
erupted without restraint.
BOOM—!!!
The pressure didn't remain an invisible force.
It became visible.
Thick enough to resemble true flame.
So intense it looked like fire was rising even from his brows.
His entire body was wrapped in blazing spiritual pressure—
like he was being forged inside a furnace.
In that instant…
the temperature across the forest plain surged at an absurd speed.
Within a thousand meters, everything felt like tinder.
Every tree, every leaf, every blade of grass—
seemed like it existed only to amplify the terror of that presence.
"So strong…"
"The power at the summit of Shinigami…"
is even more terrifying than I imagined…"
Because he stood directly in front of it—as the target—
Bai Chen felt it more clearly than anyone watching.
His breathing grew heavy.
Not suffocation yet—
but the pressure was real.
That vast flame-like spiritual force rolled toward him like a burning tide—
forcing Bai Chen to release his own spiritual pressure to resist.
BOOM—!!!
His deep, abyssal spiritual pressure flared outward.
The choking heat eased.
His breathing returned to normal.
Dust blasted up from the ground, blown outward by the collision of force.
Even the oppressive air around him was pushed back.
"Captain Soi Fon…"
"Thank goodness Bai Chen is a spiritual-pressure monster…"
"If he weren't…"
that pressure alone would've crushed him!"
Up on Sōkyoku Hill, Ōmaeda trembled behind Soi Fon, fat body shaking uncontrollably.
Even from this far away, the aftershock of that clash still stirred primal fear.
Soi Fon—who normally would've yelled at him on the spot—
didn't say a word.
She simply stared downward, unblinking.
Because even she could feel it:
Yamamoto hadn't drawn his sword yet.
And just the aura alone was already this terrifying.
What would happen…
when Ryūjin Jakka truly released?
"Don't worry," Unohana Retsu said softly beside her.
"If you care about Bai Chen…"
then you should believe in him even more."
Her eyes reflected Bai Chen's figure below, calm and steady.
"If he can endure Ryūjin Jakka head-on…"
then this experience will give him something priceless."
"It will become a stepping stone…"
toward the summit."
Unohana's confidence wasn't blind.
Among everyone present—
she understood Bai Chen's limits better than most.
And she firmly believed:
his ceiling was far above an ordinary captain.
One day—
he could stand shoulder to shoulder with Yamamoto himself.
Down below, the Captain-Commander's spiritual pressure climbed higher and higher.
Flame wrapped his clothing.
Edges of his haori looked like they were burning red.
The battlefield felt like it was turning into a furnace.
And then—
his deep voice rumbled through the air, as if it ignited the reishi itself.
"Bai Chen…"
"Are you ready?"
"From here on…"
it won't be as effortless as before."
The ancient staff in his hand began to swell—visibly—like it was expanding into something else.
Bai Chen narrowed his eyes, instinct screaming.
It's coming.
If Ryūjin Jakka released…
the danger would multiply by ten, instantly.
At that point, spiritual pressure alone wouldn't be enough.
The only way to face it—
was the same attribute:
Hao Fire Fan—
to defend, absorb, even reflect the flames.
Bai Chen's hand moved to his back—
gripping the handle of the giant crimson fan.
The air itself, overheated and scorched, felt like it was nearly stopping.
And then—
Yamamoto lifted his gaze.
His clothes whipped violently.
Flame-like spiritual pressure edged everything around him.
With the authority of a thousand years—
and the weight of the Shinigami apex—
he spoke the release command, slow and iron-hard, like it crossed time itself.
"All things in the universe… turn to ash."
"Ryūjin Jakka."
The suppression power—
hit maximum.
And in the instant Ryūjin Jakka truly released—
the atmosphere of all Seireitei…
was detonated.
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