One must know, Yamamoto is known as the [Strongest Shinigami in a Thousand Years].
The title of [Strongest Shinigami, Kenpachi] that Unohana Yachiru created was specifically to annoy Yamamoto and express her dissatisfaction.
Of course, the nobles who granted Unohana the various privileges of [Kenpachi] weren't good people either.
Having been defeated by the Quincies of the Lichtreich, they had no choice but to place their hopes of protecting the Seireitei on Yamamoto.
For this, they had to acknowledge the assassination group formed by Yamamoto as the [Gotei 13], the protectors of the Seireitei.
The unprecedented and unrepeatable great villain, Unohana Yachiru, competing with Yamamoto for the title of [Strongest Shinigami] was a way for them to vent their frustrations.
If Yamamoto developed a rift with Unohana because of this, causing internal strife within the Gotei 13, the nobles would be happy to see it.
However, they didn't expect that Yamamoto simply didn't care about the so-called Strongest Shinigami Title. On the contrary, the so-called [Kenpachi] privileges they created ended up causing the nobles quite a bit of trouble.
Now, Zaraki's seal has been partially removed by Kyoya, restoring his Reiryoku to 1st-Class.
And judging from the current trend, in his battle with Kyoya, Zaraki might very well completely remove his seal and restore his peak Reiatsu. Therefore, Unohana Retsu has also let go of Unohana Yachiru's past and, together with Isane, is embracing the future befitting the Captain of the 4th Division!
"It's really exaggerated!"
"Is that Captain Zaraki's Reiatsu?"
Although they were far away, Zaraki's soaring Reiatsu still shocked Kukaku and the others.
Even if this wasn't Zaraki's peak, the level of Reiryoku he displayed was something only a handful in the entire Seireitei possessed.
Among Kukaku's group, only Hitsugaya and Koga had reached 2nd-Class Reiryoku, while the others were all at 3rd-Class. Rukia and Renji were only at 4th-Class Reiryoku, just a step away from 3rd-Class.
For them, the intensity of 1st-Class Reiryoku was truly excessive.
"I feel like if I got any closer, my body probably wouldn't be able to move," Rukia said.
As the Deputy Chief of Staff of the Revolutionary Army and also Koga's adopted daughter, Rukia received an education that was among the top tier within the Revolutionary Army.
But precisely because of this, although Rukia possessed decent strength, she had experienced very few real battles.
In one-sided battles, it was fine, but if both sides were equally matched, or even surpassed Rukia, her fighting spirit couldn't support her in a prolonged fight.
Renji was different.
Although he also didn't have much experience fighting enemies, Renji's training was intentionally designed by Kyoya to be high-intensity, modeled after training for ordinary people without Reiatsu.
Every time he broke through his own limits was, for Renji, no less intense than a fierce battle with an opponent of equal strength.
In terms of fighting spirit, Renji was miles ahead of Rukia.
In fact, given the intensity of Renji's training, Kyoya suspected that even if Renji fell unconscious, his body might still retain some combat instinct.
This wasn't the 'instinct' protected by his inner Hollow like Ichigo, but a true physical conditioned reflex instinct.
"Don't even mention you… even I, in front of that one, probably wouldn't perform much better than you."
Kukaku pouted.
This trip to the Seireitei had been quite frustrating for her.
Her first battle was against the 2nd Division's Captain, Sui-Feng.
If she hadn't trained in Soru, adding it to her Shunpo to increase her speed a notch, she probably would have been defeated by Sui-Feng.
Her second battle was against the 3rd Division's Captain, Ichimaru Gin.
In that battle, aside from not using her Zanpakuto, she even used the secret techniques of Rokushiki, yet still failed to gain any advantage against Gin.
Her third battle was also against Gin. She was planning to release her Zanpakuto to teach Gin a proper lesson, but she didn't expect to be sneak-attacked and severely injured by Tosen.
"That Tosen Kaname, next time I meet him, I'll make sure he pays!"
Seeing Kukaku's gritted-teeth expression, Rukia wisely decided not to provoke her further.
"By the way, Chief of Staff Koga, where is that Kisaragi Shusuke?"
"That guy always said he was the strongest Army Commander. How come we haven't seen him this time?"
"Could it be that he didn't dare to fight the Gotei 13's Captains and hid in some corner?"
"Uh..."
Hearing Kukaku's question, Koga hesitated for a moment, but finally told the truth. "Army Commander Kisaragi went to the 1st Division on the first day he entered the Seireitei..."
"Alright, you don't need to say any more."
Just hearing Koga say that, not only Kukaku, but the others who had doubts instantly understood.
What a joke?
The 1st Division is the headquarters division of the Gotei 13.
The one stationed there is the Millennium's Strongest Shinigami, the Captain-Commander Yamamoto!
That's an existence even Kyoya has to take seriously.
It's only right that Shusuke going to the 1st Division didn't cause any stir.
Koga's expression was a bit strange… he seemed to want to laugh but felt he shouldn't, forcing himself to hold it in, making him look like he was having a spasm.
"The one who made the move was the 1st Division's Lieutenant, Sasakibe Chojiro."
"What? The Lieutenant?"
"Army Commander Kisaragi was defeated by a Lieutenant?"
"That... that's too exaggerated, right?"
Koga's words made everyone in the Revolutionary Army freeze for a moment, thinking they had misheard.
"Chief of Staff, is that true or false?"
"Hey, I'm telling you all..."
Seeing everyone like this, Koga couldn't help but massage his forehead.
"Don't think Lieutenant Sasakibe only has the strength of a Lieutenant just because he holds that position."
Even though he said that, the expression on Koga's face was exactly the same as Kukaku and the others.
Koga knew that even among the many Captains, Sasakibe could rank in the top three. After all, he was the wielder of the strongest Lightning-Type Zanpakuto and the man who managed to leave a scar on Yamamoto's forehead.
Forget Shusuke, even if Koga himself encountered Lieutenant Sasakibe, he would probably get thrashed.
But no matter what, Sasakibe was still just a Lieutenant.
Shusuke being defeated by a Lieutenant would definitely become one of his few black marks and would inevitably be mocked by everyone in the Revolutionary Army.
This was like 'You were killed by Sakura' in Naruto World.
No matter how high your status, how strong your power, or how remarkable you are, being beaten by Sakura is enough to be a fatal blow to your reputation.
"Let's go. We'll rescue Ashido and Ichinose first, then go to the 1st Division to save Kisaragi."
"Hey, Chief of Staff, you just want Army Commander Kisaragi to have a few more spectators, right?"
Kukaku chuckled, not even feeling the pain from her injuries as much.
"Cough, Army Commander Shiba, don't talk nonsense."
"Most importantly, it's because the 1st Division is simply too strong. Even their Lieutenant could defeat Army Commander Kisaragi."
"I don't know exactly how many powerful individuals like Lieutenant Sasakibe the 1st Division has."
"That's why I decided to rescue Army Commander Ashido and Army Commander Ichinose first, gather everyone's strength, and then go to the 1st Division together to rescue Army Commander Kisaragi..."
…
Thump thump thump...
Boom!
Zaraki swung his Zanpakuto, and instantly, a white flash of light passed by. A tall building beside him slid apart diagonally and crashed to the ground.
Rumble-
The collapsed building continued to break apart, while on the other side, the remaining half of the building still standing on the ground had a cross-section as smooth as a mirror.
"Hahahaha, Kyoya, let's continue our slaughter!"
Amidst maniacal laughter, Zaraki's body broke through multiple sound barriers, carrying an immensely powerful force as he slashed towards Kyoya.
Clang!
Facing Zaraki's attack, Kyoya simply gently held his Zanpakuto horizontally in front of him, blocking Zaraki's strike.
Boom!
Behind Kyoya, a building directly shattered.
It was destroyed by the Kenatsu from Zaraki's swing.
"Hahahaha, Hahahaha-"
The fact that his attack didn't harm Kyoya made Zaraki even more excited.
His Zanpakuto danced wildly in his hands. To increase his attack power, Zaraki didn't even touch the ground, swinging his sword mid-air. Countless sword shadows enveloped Kyoya's body.
Clang Clang Clang Clang Clang-
Boom Boom Boom Boom Boom-
Shockwaves spread out from the center of Kyoya and Zaraki's battle, destroying everything around them into ruins.
Then, the ruins were further destroyed into flatland.
Later, it became a desert.
Finally, apart from the spot where Kyoya stood, which remained undamaged, the area within a hundred-meter radius had turned into a hundred-meter-deep abyss.
In this circular abyss, only a single cylindrical earthen pillar stood firm in the center.
Even Yachiru had to withdraw from her original viewing spot.
If she had stayed in her original position, Yachiru would probably have been annihilated along with the surrounding buildings and land.
Ssshh-
Ssshh Ssshh...
Clang Clang Clang-
One wound after another appeared on Zaraki's body.
But as Zaraki's Reiatsu gradually increased, the wounds left by Kyoya's Zanpakuto cuts on his body became shallower and shallower.
Conversely, on Kyoya's side, Zaraki's Zanpakuto slashes, which initially couldn't harm him at all, had now progressed to being able to leave white marks on Kyoya's body.
Well, Kyoya's body defense was still far superior.
But the fact that he could now leave white marks on Kyoya's body showed just how much Zaraki had improved.
Even the Soul King, after being sealed, could have his limbs severed and his internal organs removed by the Tsunayashiro Clan.
From this perspective, Kyoya's current physical strength definitely surpassed that of the Soul King.
After all, Zaraki's current strength was absolutely above that of the successive heads of the Tsunayashiro Clan.
If even Zaraki couldn't break Kyoya's physical defense, then the ancestors of the Tsunayashiro Clan naturally couldn't have severed it either.
On the other hand, however, Kyoya also felt that the Soul King intentionally allowed the Tsunayashiro Clan's ancestor to remove him from the 'Crystal'.
After all, the Soul King could see the future and choose the future he desired.
Perhaps in one of the futures the Soul King saw, Yhwach became the victor, defeated the Gotei 13, but lost to the Royal Guard, never even reaching his presence.
Only by leaving the seal would the Soul King's remnants, carrying his will, join Yhwach's ranks to help him defeat the Royal Guard.
Therefore, the Soul King used the Tsunayashiro Clan's ancestor's hand to separate his own remnants, letting them fall into the world.
There was also a future where the Quincy group led by Yhwach annihilated the Royal Guard and came before him.
But because Yhwach only possessed the power of the Quincy, he simply couldn't kill the Soul King.
So, the Soul King chose Ichigo, granting him power closest to his own essence, yet also making him susceptible to Yhwach's control due to his Quincy bloodline, ultimately leading to his own demise at the critical moment.
Otherwise, Kyoya couldn't think of any reason why the Soul King, whom even Yhwach couldn't kill, would allow his limbs to be severed by the Tsunayashiro Clan's ancestors.
'I wonder if my current physical strength can withstand that one slash from Ichigo...'
It has to be said, Kyoya's current strength is a bit overpowered.
Even though Zaraki kept improving, kept growing stronger, the pressure he exerted on Kyoya didn't change much.
There was no helping it… if he couldn't even break through Kyoya's defense, even if Kyoya wanted to feel tense, he couldn't.
A massage was more damaging than Zaraki's attacks!
"Damn it!"
As if sensing Kyoya's fighting spirit waning, Zaraki directly gripped his sword with both hands, condensed his Reiatsu onto his Zanpakuto, and slashed down at Kyoya-
Boom-
That day, many people in the Seireitei saw a golden slash that seemed to pierce the whole world.