The sudden turn of events made every Shinigami present freeze at the same time.
Aizen Sōsuke—Captain of the Fifth Division of the Gotei 13—was supposed to be guarding Sōkyoku Hill alongside Kuchiki Byakuya and the others, ensuring that the public execution of Nemu could begin on schedule.
And yet, right now, his Zanpakutō was sunk cleanly into Nemu's body.
"What are you doing?! It's not time for the public execution yet! Aizen Sōsuke!!"
Kuchiki Byakuya roared in fury.
"True, it's not time yet. But I think the game can end here already~"
Aizen stood in midair. In front of him was Nemu, held aloft by his Reiatsu.
As he poured his Reiatsu into her, a faint glimmer could be seen flickering inside Nemu's body—appearing and vanishing like a wavering light.
If this were a normal mastermind "final boss," he would have waited longer—waited until Yushima Ōko, Higashino Shuuichi, and the remaining Shinigami captains had battered each other into mutual ruin before stepping onto the stage.
But Aizen Sōsuke was clearly not a normal mastermind.
He had his own pride.
And that pride would not allow him—on the day he most shocked the world, the day he most stole the spotlight—to face opponents who had no strength left to resist.
That was why, even as Kuchiki Byakuya was already showing signs of defeat under Yushima Ōko's relentless pressure, Aizen struck without hesitation.
He wanted every gaze in the entire field to lock onto him.
"Game? What game?!
Aizen Sōsuke, what nonsense are you spouting?!"
Byakuya no longer had the luxury of paying attention to Yushima Ōko on the other side. He could feel it clearly—things had begun to spin out of control.
"What I'm saying… I'm sure that former head of the Shihōin clan over there understands perfectly~"
Extracting the Hōgyoku—hidden away by Urahara Kisuke—from within Nemu required time. So Aizen had plenty of leisure to answer Byakuya's questions.
It was only then that Byakuya followed Aizen's gaze and noticed Shihōin Yoruichi, who had already arrived at Sōkyoku Hill some time ago.
"Shihōin Yoruichi?!
When did you get here?!"
Byakuya was numb by now. There had been too many "accidents" at Sōkyoku Hill today.
Even if someone told him next that Higashino Shuuichi—locked away in Muken—had also slipped out in secret, he honestly wasn't sure he would even be surprised.
In contrast, Yoruichi wore a look of calm certainty that could not have been more different from Byakuya's.
She had long suspected that the one pulling the strings was Aizen Sōsuke. What she hadn't expected was that Aizen would reveal himself this cleanly, this directly.
"So all of this—something that nearly triggered a civil war among the Shinigami of Soul Society—was nothing but a game to you?
Heh. I suppose it fits. After all, you did the same thing more than a hundred years ago. That Hollowfication incident back then was also orchestrated by you from the shadows!"
Yoruichi stared at Aizen and spoke with a cold sneer.
She still didn't know why Aizen was choosing to step into the open like this today, but no matter the reason, Aizen exposing himself was a good thing.
At the very least, it gave her an answer she could take back to those Shinigami in the Human World—those forced to live in hiding day after day.
As that thought crossed her mind, Yoruichi seemed to realize something. She shifted her gaze to the side—and sure enough, she saw Muguruma Kensei, who had been locked in a fierce fight with Komamura Sajin just moments ago, abandon everything and charge straight at Aizen with his iron fists swinging.
"You bastard!!!"
This was the first time in Kensei's life he had erupted with such speed and power.
That instantaneous burst made Yoruichi, for a heartbeat, see her own shadow in him.
It was rage that had been piling up for nearly a hundred years—compressed into a single punch, unleashed at Aizen in one decisive strike.
The Reiatsu surge it kicked up along the way was so violent it nearly made Byakuya lose his footing.
"Idiot! That kind of brute force will hurt Nemu!"
Byakuya had no doubt that Kensei's all-out punch could deal a lethal blow to Aizen Sōsuke—because even he could feel a killing threat in that fist.
But what about Nemu in Aizen's hands?
It wasn't that Byakuya wanted to save her. It was simply that the execution time hadn't arrived yet—Nemu could not die before the scheduled public sentence.
Otherwise, wouldn't that be slapping the Central 46 and the Gotei 13 in the face?
If word got out, what would everyone think of the Gotei 13?
They couldn't even carry out a promised execution time—where was their authority supposed to be?
Cold reality answered Byakuya immediately.
Kensei's terrifying punch—one that even made Byakuya wary—was stopped by Aizen with eight casual words.
"Bakudō #81: Dankū (Severing Void)."
A Kidō spell cast without an incantation.
A mere #81 Bakudō.
Its power should have been weaker than the fully chanted original.
And yet—
Muguruma Kensei, in Bankai, at full throttle, giving everything he had—his punch collided with the Reishi barrier formed by Dankū… and he couldn't even crack that thin layer of Reishi.
There were differences between captains, too—differences that could be even greater than the gap between a captain and an ordinary Shinigami.
In that instant, Byakuya felt it in his bones—something Higashino Shuuichi had once mentioned offhand while speaking with Kyōraku Shunsui.
Back then, Byakuya had dismissed it.
Now, he treated it like gospel.
"How…?!" Kensei went stiff, stunned.
This wasn't how things were supposed to go.
How could Aizen Sōsuke stop him with nothing but an #81 Bakudō—
"This is the revenge strike you poured all your rage into?"
Aizen narrowed his eyes slightly, his right hand still gripping his Zanpakutō as he continued forcing Reiatsu into Nemu.
That Dankū he'd just used had been cast with his left hand—nothing more than a release of spare Reiatsu he didn't even need.
"Don't you look down on me!!!" Kensei roared at Aizen, furious beyond reason.
Who could possibly know how much he had paid for this day—how much effort he had spent, all for the chance to take revenge on Aizen?
He had trained until he broke.
He had forced himself to master that damned Hollowfication.
All for today!
"Danfū (Severing Wind)!!!"
Kensei's hoarse, desperate shout echoed through the entire sky.
In that moment, even those who had stood against him just moments earlier—Kuchiki Byakuya, Komamura Sajin, and the others—couldn't help but place a sliver of hope in Kensei's counterattack.
From the instant Aizen Sōsuke revealed himself, they understood: Yushima Ōko and the others were not their enemies—for now.
Aizen Sōsuke was.
The true culprit who had hidden himself away, who had plotted and engineered countless tragedies for Shinigami from behind the curtain—he was the enemy they needed to deal with most.
Yushima Ōko and Matsumoto Rangiku felt that same anticipation too—but unlike the captains, they already knew Aizen Sōsuke was never "a good person" to begin with. They watched Kensei's retaliation with the attitude of spectators enjoying a show.
They wanted to see it.
Aizen Sōsuke—so troublesome that even Shuuichi-sama had struggled against him—just how far could Muguruma Kensei push him?
Could he actually hurt Aizen?
Or would Aizen stop him just as easily again?
What?
You're asking why "one-shotting Aizen" isn't even an option?
Yushima Ōko and the others weren't fools. Kensei obviously didn't have that kind of power.
But among everyone present, there was one person whose expectations were… a little different.
That person was Higashino Shuuichi.
"How exactly is Aizen going to insta-kill you?"
Higashino Shuuichi's eyes widened as he stared at the sky without blinking.
He was, in his own tiny way, genuinely curious about the outcome.
And then he saw it.
A gigantic, pitch-black coffin that rose up from the earth.
Hadō #90: Kurohitsugi (Black Coffin).
"Why am I not even a little surprised?"
The moment Aizen used that Kidō, the smile on Higashino Shuuichi's face froze.
Because he saw it—at the instant Aizen cast Kurohitsugi, their gazes overlapped for a brief moment.
That look seemed to say:
"Back when you, Shuuichi, stormed back into Soul Society, you used one Kurohitsugi to insta-kill Komamura Sajin, the Seventh Division captain.
So now I'll use one Kurohitsugi to insta-kill the former Ninth Division captain, Muguruma Kensei.
That's not hard either~"
Fine. Great.
So this was Aizen's damned competitiveness, huh?
Higashino Shuuichi couldn't hold it in anymore.
He'd thought that since he'd already "stolen" that iconic scene, Aizen would switch to a new trick.
Turns out Aizen just switched to a different unlucky victim.
Same soup, different bowl.
Higashino Shuuichi quietly raised a thumbs-up at Aizen.
He knew Aizen probably wouldn't understand the gesture—and might not even bother looking his way again—but the respect had to be paid.
Because this was so painfully Aizen.
Now Higashino Shuuichi finally understood why Aizen would still jump into Urahara Kisuke's trap even knowing it was a trap.
Apparently Aizen wasn't just honoring the promise he'd made back then—he also wanted to show off properly in front of him.
And use actions to say, loud and clear:
Your boss is still your boss.
Meanwhile, setting aside Higashino Shuuichi's little aside, up in the sky—Muguruma Kensei, struck by Aizen's Kurohitsugi, did exactly what everyone expected.
When the Black Coffin dissipated, Kensei was forced out of Bankai. His entire body went limp as he fell from the air like dead weight.
"Kensei!"
Ōtoribashi Rōjūrō—the former captain of the Third Division—rushed in time to catch him, all while keeping a wary stare locked onto Aizen Sōsuke in the sky.
Through countless days and nights, they had imagined all sorts of strength Aizen might possess—yet never once had they imagined Aizen had become this overwhelming.
With power like this… perhaps only the Captain-Commander of the Gotei 13—the man hailed as the strongest Shinigami in Soul Society in a thousand years—Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni, could fight him head-on.
No—Ōtoribashi Rōjūrō realized that thought had a flaw.
Because the battle decades ago between Higashino Shuuichi and Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni was still shrouded in uncertainty even now.
Some said Higashino Shuuichi had lost—and that Yamamoto, wanting to see the Tsunayashiro clan brought down, had deliberately held back so Shuuichi could carve his way into the Tsunayashiro estate.
Others said Yamamoto had been utterly crushed—but Higashino Shuuichi, doting on his wife Kabuma Sayako beyond reason, had spared Yamamoto of his own accord, trading his freedom in exchange for the Kabuma clan's safety afterward so Kabuma Sayako could one day rebuild her family.
The truth likely belonged to only two people: Higashino Shuuichi and Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni.
But in Ōtoribashi Rōjūrō's heart, one thing was clear:
If it was that Higashino Shuuichi… then he probably did have the power to deal with a monster like Aizen Sōsuke.
"What exactly are you trying to do, Aizen Sōsuke?!" Byakuya demanded, after he'd finally managed to steady his breathing—his countless blades spread through the sky, all pointed at Aizen.
"What am I trying to do?"
Aizen lifted his brows faintly.
Within his spiritual senses, far away, Kyōraku Shunsui and Ukitake Jūshirō—those who had been standing against their teacher, the Captain-Commander Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni—had already abandoned their standoff and were racing toward Sōkyoku Hill at full speed.
Kisaragi Shūsuke—his ability countered by blood and forced into a stifling, frustrating defeat against Zaraki Kenpachi—was now dragging Zaraki along as they also sped toward Sōkyoku Hill.
Below him, Soifon, the current Second Division captain, and Shihōin Yoruichi, the former captain, both released the restraints on their Reiatsu. Powerful pressure swirled around their bodies as lightning cracked and storms churned.
Yushima Ōko—still unaware that Higashino Shuuichi had returned—also stared up at Aizen with aggressive intent, ready to join the battle at any moment, even though he and Aizen had once been both enemies and allies to Shuuichi.
Matsumoto Rangiku—who knew Higashino Shuuichi's identity but still didn't know what he intended—had drawn her Zanpakutō as well, eyes on Aizen, because being ready to fight could never be the wrong choice.
Among the few who showed little reaction were Unohana Retsu of the Fourth Division, and Higashino Shuuichi wearing Kabuno Takuya's face. Those two weren't important; the audience seats could be spared to them—one each.
Then there were the many vice-captains who had arrived at Sōkyoku Hill long ago but had no way to truly intervene in a clash of this scale. Even knowing they might not change the outcome, they still readied themselves for battle.
Except for one vice-captain.
Hinamori Momo.
The vice-captain Aizen had personally chosen.
In her eyes, Aizen saw only disbelief—and a kind of unspeakable bewilderment.
"Hehehe…"
Aizen laughed. With his left hand, he gently pinched the bridge of his black-rimmed glasses.
"Do you know?
No one ever stands in the heavens from the start—neither you nor I. Not even gods.
But now… this vacancy upon the throne of heaven is about to end."
Aizen removed his glasses and flung them into the distance.
The dazzling Hōgyoku slowly rose out of Nemu's body.
"From this moment on, I will stand at the top!"