Demons aren't afraid of the dark, are they?
Enma Kōrogi. This was Suzumushi's Bankai. By utilizing the ring on the sword's guard, it created a space where anyone trapped inside would be stripped of all senses except touch, unless they were holding Suzumushi itself.
Tōsen felt that this Bankai was the best way to let others experience his pain. Aside from the unforgettable agony and the terrifying isolation, there was nothing else.
However, Zaraki Kenpachi still managed to catch him. If the first time was relying on the sensation of the blade piercing his flesh, then how could this second time be explained? He hadn't even landed a strike yet, but his opponent had grabbed him preemptively.
As expected, demons weren't afraid of the dark.
Another slash fell. Tōsen no longer had the strength to maintain Enma Kōrogi. Large mouthfuls of blood surged from his lips. Compared to Zaraki, who had only suffered a few minor scratches, he looked far too pathetic.
But Tōsen didn't want to fall, especially not in front of Zaraki Kenpachi. That would be far too ironic.
"It's... it's not over yet..."
"I'm already bored. I have no interest in half-dead corpses." Zaraki looked entirely unimpressed. "I'm leaving. After all, it'd be no fun if I hacked you to death. Once you're dead, I can't cut you anymore."
This was exactly it. This was what he couldn't stand. Deliberately stirring up battles simply because he enjoyed fighting. Without a stance, there could be no justice—it was all just for the sake of a ridiculous hobby!
Demons weren't just unafraid of the dark; they enjoyed it.
Swinging his blade, Tōsen charged at Zaraki once more, like a dying man's final surge of vitality. This was the one person he absolutely refused to lose to. This was the one demon whose charity he would never accept!
Unfortunately, what stance could he possibly claim when he had long been dominated by hatred? After all, by the time he recklessly launched another attack at Zaraki, the Sōkyoku had already been activated.
His mission to stall Zaraki was already over, yet he hadn't noticed at all...
Three blocks suddenly rose from the base of the Sōkyoku execution stand. Rukia felt the weight on her wrists vanish as her arms were forced open uncontrollably. Guided by the wooden blocks, she was slowly lifted to the very top of the stand.
At the same time, the halberd opposite her began to change. The thick ropes coiled around its shaft slowly unwound from the bottom up, spinning as they went. From a distance, it looked like an octopus inching its way upward.
The thick ropes on the long shaft uncoiled loop by loop. Upon reaching the final loop, the ropes suddenly snapped taut, shooting straight down Sōkyoku Hill and piercing the ground like a volley of long spears.
To possess such momentum just from the beginning of its release—Omaeda shielded his face with his arms, squinting against the sudden, violent gale.
The wind came as suddenly as it left. Omaeda watched the tip of the halberd dip slightly, pointing directly at Rukia on the execution stand. He couldn't shake the feeling that things wouldn't be this simple. If this was all there was to it, the Sōkyoku's reputation was somewhat unearned and disappointing.
"The Sōkyoku has been released."
"I can go save Rukia now, right, Yoruichi?"
In the bushes at the base of Sōkyoku Hill, Yoruichi, her face concealed by a scarf, cast a helpless glance at Ichigo. "Did you even listen to a word I just said?"
"Of course I listened. You said when the Sōkyoku is released, that's the time to save Rukia," Ichigo stated matter-of-factly. Those were indeed Yoruichi's exact words, without a single embellishment.
It was the truth, but only part of it. Yoruichi shook her head. "You have to destroy the execution stand to save Rukia. But to destroy the stand, you must first destroy the halberd the moment the Sōkyoku is released."
Before she could finish speaking, a wave of intense heat poured down from above. The two of them looked up simultaneously to see crimson flames rapidly expanding, looking as though they were about to scorch the sky red.
"Is someone really going to help us destroy the halberd, Yoruichi?"
Yoruichi didn't answer. Instead, she muttered inwardly about Shunsui and Ukitake. *'What in the world are those two doing?'*
Shunsui watched helplessly as the Sōkyoku halberd was engulfed in flames, slowly changing its shape. There was absolutely nothing he could do.
What Yoruichi had asked of him wasn't to save Rukia, but to destroy the Sōkyoku. To accomplish this, two conditions had to be met. First, they needed the Shihōin clan's spiritual tool, and at least two individuals who had achieved Bankai to channel their Reiryoku into it through their Zanpakutō.
The second condition was timing. The spiritual tool could only be used after the Sōkyoku had been released. Neither condition could be missing.
This was the real reason he had agreed to assist Yoruichi. Would destroying the Sōkyoku actually save Rukia? Not necessarily. Especially with the majority of the captains present for the execution, trying to take Rukia away from Sōkyoku Hill—the very center of the Seireitei—was practically a fool's errand.
To put it bluntly, what Yoruichi—or rather, Urahara—wanted to do was stop the execution itself. This was the part that Shunsui had always found bizarre.
There was no issue with punishing Rukia for breaking the law. The problem lay in the extreme penalty itself. It was a punishment that should never have been applied to Kuchiki Rukia, yet it was genuinely happening.
If there was a conspiracy revolving around Rukia, then the extreme penalty itself must be an indispensable condition. By shattering this condition, the perpetrators of the conspiracy would naturally surface to respond. After all, the Sōkyoku was a completely unique existence within the Seireitei.
Similarly, Shunsui knew exactly what this plan meant for Yoruichi. According to their agreement, Yoruichi would also do her best to take Rukia away, but in reality, this was tantamount to walking right into a trap. It was an operation where she was gambling her own life.
If the masterminds behind the scenes didn't show themselves, let alone Rukia, Yoruichi wouldn't have a chance of surviving either.
Therefore, what Yoruichi wanted to prove was simply this: someone wanted Rukia dead, but she *had* to be killed by the Sōkyoku. If it were by any other means, that person would actually step forward to stop it.
Of course, it was also possible that Yoruichi wouldn't show up as promised. That would mean she was simply sending a bunch of brats into the Seireitei to die, destroying the Sōkyoku in the process, and conveniently framing him and Ukitake.
Setting aside why Urahara would target him and Ukitake, just looking at the framing aspect—given the weight he and Ukitake held, even if they destroyed the Sōkyoku, as long as they immediately confessed the whole situation to Old Man Yama, it would result in a slap on the wrist at most.
Moreover, this coordination was simply too perfect. Central 46 and Urahara Kisuke: one was responsible for creating an eerie atmosphere, while the other appropriately tossed out the answer. If that were truly the case, and Central 46 couldn't provide a necessary justification for the extreme penalty, Old Man Yama likely wouldn't accept it.
A plan like this was truly hard to refuse. If there really was a hidden faction at play, the greatest beneficiary of dragging them into the light would actually be the Seireitei, while the one bearing the most risk was Yoruichi, acting on Urahara's behalf.
"Is that the Sōkyoku? It's truly astonishing."
Beside him, Nanao marveled to herself. At this moment, the Sōkyoku had transformed into a fire phoenix slowly spreading its wings. Compared to its initial halberd form, it lacked any aura of slaughter; instead, it felt somewhat lofty and divine.
Shunsui adjusted the straw hat on his head. It was his first time seeing it as well. He hadn't expected the fully released Sōkyoku to look like this.
So, where exactly was Ukitake? He couldn't be planning to make a flashy entrance at the very last moment, could he?
Probably... not...