Chapter 409: Satoru, Use That!
"Whoa..."
Satoru let out an exclamation of awe.
Under his gaze, the Soul King's power surged like a floodgate opening, flowing madly along Yhwach's blade into the latter's body.
In the blink of an eye, Yhwach's power swelled, then swelled again!
As the last trace of the Soul King's power drained away, Yhwach, gripping the Spiritual Sword, raised his head and took a deep breath.
He released his grip, turned around, and faced the pursuing group.
"Welcome, Shinigami."
"Welcome, all of you, to witness this moment of changing eras."
As he spoke, he opened his eyes.
An additional pupil appeared in each of his eyes.
Six pupils gazed upon everyone present.
Though it was merely a calm look, it brought immense pressure to nearly everyone there.
Satoru scratched his head.
"This guy, he's completely on par with me now."
"While a good, hard fight sounds great, isn't the current situation a bit too strange?"
"This guy is dead set on destroying the world. Normally, shouldn't we kill him while he's still vulnerable to nip the problem in the bud?"
"In all sorts of stories, villains who raise their own nemesis never end well."
Hearing this, Aizen glanced at him with some surprise.
He had thought Satoru would be the happiest about Yhwach's newfound strength.
Unexpectedly, the guy had brought his brain along today.
After some thought, Aizen understood why Satoru had changed like this.
Long ago, Satoru had said that in the future he knew, Yamamoto Shigekuni would die by Yhwach's hand.
This guy, though usually seeming carefree, would suddenly gain a temporary boost in intelligence whenever the safety of those around him was involved.
Truly fitting the personality of a "protagonist" in a hot-blooded story...
That last line was not a compliment.
Under everyone's gaze, Yhwach's appearance began to change.
A layer of black, viscous Reiatsu, like dark mud, crawled over his body, covering half his face and form.
Eyes sprouted from the black mud.
Now, he resembled a creature of cosmic horror.
Ichigo frowned, showing an expression of discomfort.
Senjumaru and the others wore wary expressions.
From Yhwach, cloaked in black mud, a surge of Reiatsu erupted violently—
Boom!!
The terrifying shockwave was as if a hole had been torn in the sky, drawing down the Milky Way, threatening to crush a person from head to toe into pulp!
Yamamoto, Senjumaru, and Kirinji all let out muffled grunts in unison as the ground beneath their feet cracked layer by layer!
The Priest let out a loud shout, stomped heavily on the floor, and released a hemispherical membrane of Reiatsu.
Yhwach's Reiatsu crashed against it, causing the membrane to crack with a large, shimmering web of fissures, but it ultimately held firm.
"Mr. Mikami, this guy has gotten really strong!"
Ichigo looked toward Satoru and shouted loudly.
Yamamoto's expression was resolute as he tightly gripped his Zanpakutō.
Only Satoru suddenly brightened up.
"This guy is done for!"
"?"
Aizen looked at him with confusion.
Yhwach's strength had clearly advanced several levels now.
If there were tiers among Transcendents, the current Yhwach would likely rank even higher than Satoru.
So powerful, so ferocious—how could one conclude he was "done for"?
Seeing Aizen's look, Satoru laughed heartily:
"Sōsuke, battles in the Shinigami world ultimately come down to battles of style."
"Once you lose your coolness, your flair, no matter how much your power increases, you're just one step away from defeat!"
What nonsense...
Aizen shook his head.
He must have lost his mind to actually expect any meaningful analysis from Satoru.
After absorbing the Soul King, Yhwach flashed and suddenly appeared right in front of Satoru.
He didn't use his spirit blade but instead threw a fierce punch directly at him!
Seeing Yhwach's move, Aizen narrowed his eyes.
This guy, after becoming stronger, intended to use the very fighting style Satoru was best at to strike back.
What a vengeful fellow...
Facing Yhwach charging straight at him, Satoru laughed heartily:
"Perfect timing!"
He didn't raise his arms to defend but instead, without hesitation, threw a punch of his own!
Hum!!
A bizarre fluctuation of power twisted viciously at the point where their fists collided!
Large swathes of space shattered, revealing the Dangai hidden behind it.
Witnessing this scene, the Priest couldn't help but click his tongue.
The spatial integrity of the Soul King Palace was countless times stronger than that of the Seireitei. Even during his previous great battle with Satoru, they hadn't managed to create such a flashy effect.
Yet now, these two merely exchanged a single punch and directly shattered space.
A few more hits, and would even the fundamental laws be worn away?
After the punch, both men took a step back.
Then, Yhwach also grinned and threw another punch.
Satoru laughed loudly and swung a hook punch in response!
Boom!!
This time, the massive energy impact directly shattered the entire floating Soul King's inner palace!
The structure exploded mid-air, and everyone flew out from the cloud of dust.
Aizen flashed, appearing higher than anyone else.
His gaze swept rapidly across the entire battlefield.
He saw Satoru burst out from the dust cloud.
However, he wasn't charging out on his own; he was being pushed out, suppressed by Yhwach.
The two trailed long plumes of smoke across the sky before crashing violently into Kirinji Tenjirō's Zero Division Palace.
The large, disc-shaped palace floating in the sky was struck by the two, causing it to split apart right down the middle with a thunderous roar!
With a deafening rumble, the giant disc, now split in two, plummeted downward.
Kirinji Tenjirō, with a feeling akin to having been screwed over by Komamura, Flash Stepped beneath his falling palace, assumed a posture of holding up the sky with both hands, and desperately caught one half.
The other half was caught by Kirio Hikifune.
Beneath the Zero Division Palace lay the areas where civilians lived.
If such a massive detached palace were to crash down, they might as well resign from the Zero Division!
Mid-air, Yhwach pressed down on Satoru, continuing their descent until both crashed onto the main Omotesandō of the Soul King Palace.
BOOM!!
Amid the billowing dust, Yhwach waved a hand, dispersing the smoke entirely.
Not far in front of him, Satoru flipped over, rising from his prone position on the ground.
One of his arms was grotesquely twisted, broken by Yhwach's earlier punch.
Even in his Transcendent state, having stacked the power of his three parallel selves and unleashed a quadruple-force strike, he had been utterly suppressed by Yhwach.
While getting overpowered by a "dad" was part of the gaming experience—something one had to endure—could this round be interpreted as Sōsuke and the others collectively messing up?
At this thought, Satoru snorted.
Once this was over, he'd have to give Sōsuke a proper interrogation!
Gazing at Yhwach standing not far away, Satoru crouched slightly, ready to charge.
At present, in terms of strength, Yhwach surpassed him.
Against such a formidable Yhwach, the previously planned swarm-and-beat tactic likely wouldn't work.
But aside from swarm tactics, he had another, stronger, more invincible strategy.
The Sit-up Battle Method!
Colloquially known as "wearing down the old man"!
Though Yhwach was powerful, he had been lying dormant for a thousand years. His scraggly beard and gaunt cheeks made it clear his body was far from its prime.
In contrast, Satoru possessed a natural physique and near-limitless regenerative abilities—he was a true beast!
As long as he kept fighting Yhwach, battling to the ends of the earth, to the edge of the universe, one day he'd wear Yhwach down until he was utterly spent, sitting down and passing away on the spot!
Thinking this, Satoru couldn't help but let out a righteous laugh.
"Hehehe... Yhwach, I'm going to play with you..."
"?"
Seeing Satoru grinning like he'd just stepped out of a diving club, Yhwach couldn't help but feel puzzled.
Though he didn't understand what madness had taken hold of Satoru, he merely chuckled:
"Satoru Mikami, there's no need for further futile struggle."
"The end of everything is about to arrive."
"Huh?"
Satoru was momentarily stunned.
His first thought was that Yhwach was being cryptic to show off.
But soon, he realized something truly wasn't right.
Above the Soul King Palace, the Priest raised a hand, tracing a few gestures in the air, his expression growing grave.
Earlier, when Satoru and Yhwach were fighting, space had shattered easily. He had assumed it was due to the sheer force of their clash.
Only now did he suddenly realize that the growth in their power wasn't the sole cause.
The space of the Soul King Palace was becoming fragile!
Soul Society.
In Seireitei, Shinigami patrolling back and forth to ensure all Quincy had been cleared suddenly halted.
They were shocked to discover that the ground beneath their feet was shaking violently!
"An earthquake!"
"How is that possible... How could an earthquake occur in Seireitei?!"
The intense tremors caused surrounding walls and buildings to crack and collapse instantly!
Shinigami struggled to keep their footing, and chaos erupted.
In the crisis, Kisuke Urahara soared into the air, shouting loudly:
"This is Kisuke Urahara, Second Advisor to the Captain-Commander!"
"Everyone! Form into squads and rescue those buried!"
"The injured, and those who have rescued others, gather immediately in nearby open areas!"
Upon hearing Kisuke Urahara's words, the Shinigami sprang into action.
Witnessing the apocalyptic scene before him, Kisuke Urahara's expression turned grave.
Without a doubt, the being that maintained the balance of the Three Realms had fallen in the Soul King Palace.
With the Soul King—the linchpin—gone, the Three Realms would lose their support and rapidly collapse upon themselves.
If Mr. Mikami and the others didn't act quickly... there might be no future left for anyone.
In the Living World, Ishida Ryūken directed his company employees in an emergency evacuation.
An unprecedented earthquake swept through Karakura Town.
No... it wasn't just Karakura Town.
All of Japan, and even broader regions, were collapsing!
Watching Uryū Ishida nearby, loudly directing the crowd, a glint of determination flashed in Ryūken's eyes.
Feeling the reverberations from the Three Realms, Satoru's expression finally changed.
Earlier, when Yhwach spoke of destroying the Three Realms and returning the world to chaos, Satoru hadn't felt much sense of reality.
Only now, witnessing the Three Realms tremble and space shatter, did he realize the old man was dead serious!
He tore off his Captain's Haori, ready to go all out against Yhwach!
Just then, Aizen appeared beside him.
"Satoru, use that."
"That?"
Satoru was momentarily stunned before a look of realization dawned on his face.
"But if I use that, what about you..."
Aizen smiled.
"Don't worry. I've already made preparations."
Seeing Aizen wasn't joking, Satoru nodded.
He took a deep breath and closed his eyes.
Observing Satoru's demeanor, Yhwach curled his lips into a smirk.
With the Soul King dead, he was now the master of the Three Realms' linchpin.
Driven by his power, the Three Realms had less than half an hour left before they would completely collapse.
What could these two possibly do in such a short time?
Now, the only way Satoru could defeat him was by relying on infinite stamina and recovery to wear him down.
But even if he won that way, nothing could ever go back to how it was.
By then, the world would have already become exactly as he desired.
Satoru would either lose everything and join him, or lose everything and become a lonely avenger.
Either way, it didn't matter.
Satoru… in this new era, there is no ship that can carry you!
Just as he thought this, Yhwach suddenly froze.
He frowned, staring at Satoru, who stood there with his eyes closed, perfectly still.
For some reason, he suddenly felt an intense sense of danger emanating from this guy.
He used the power of The Almighty to peer into the future, trying to see what Satoru was plotting.
But every time he looked ahead, all he could see was darkness.
What did this mean?
Could it be the process of everything returning to chaos after the collapse of the Three Realms?
Under his puzzled gaze, Satoru slowly opened his eyes.
Those eyes had, at some point, turned golden.
His short black hair suddenly began to lengthen under the influence of some power, growing past his waist in the blink of an eye.
Satoru's Reiatsu surged at an unimaginable rate, growing wildly.
But after reaching an unimaginable level, his Reiatsu suddenly vanished.
Yhwach stared intently at Satoru, preparing for any possibility.
Suddenly, Satoru flickered and disappeared before his eyes!
Yhwach's pupils contracted.
How was that possible… he had been watching him the whole time!
In the next instant, Satoru's grinning face suddenly appeared right in front of him—
Boom!!
With a full draw, a fist brimming with explosive power shot straight through Yhwach's body, blasting half of it into a bloody mist!
Then, Satoru spun around and delivered a high roundhouse kick, smashing Yhwach's head with a resounding thud!
Yhwach, now missing half his body and his entire head, collapsed toward the ground.
But before he could hit the ground, Yhwach's voice echoed through the air:
"With the power of The Almighty, I grant myself flesh reborn!"
In a flash of light, the remaining half of Yhwach's mangled body instantly restored itself to its original form.
He spun in place, flickering several times as he moved out of Satoru's attack range.
Watching Satoru, with his long hair flowing like a demon god descending upon the world, Yhwach couldn't help but feel as frustrated as if he'd been screwed over by Komamura.
What had happened?
What… had just happened?!