"L–look at that…!"
"Is that… the Spirit King?!"
Above the skies of Seireitei, the massive projection screen trembled and lit up again.
The image of the collapsing Spirit King Palace from the previous video had only just faded when a brand-new scene flooded everyone's vision.
The sky was black.
Not the darkness of night, but an absolute void, stripped of stars, clouds, even the concept of a horizon.
Suspended in the middle of that void, an enormous shadow slowly sank from above, as if falling from some higher, unreachable world.
It was vaguely humanoid.
But it had long since surpassed the bounds of "human."
Its upper body retained a human-like shape, yet its lower half was fused with an immeasurable mass of roots and tendrils. Pitch-black veins stretched outward like rivers, branching again and again, piercing through layers of space. Wherever they passed, the world dissolved like soaked paper.
The mere presence of that figure distorted everything around it.
Just looking at it made people's souls tremble.
"This… this is…"
"The Spirit King after being taken over by Yhwach… his complete form?!"
"Impossible! Didn't Zero Division chop that thing into pieces in the previous videos?"
"Wait, look carefully—this is different from before! The Spirit King's body seems to have… mutated again!"
On the ground of Seireitei, captains and lieutenants stared up, eyes wide.
Even the usually slack and lazy Shunsui Kyōraku had a rare solemn look in his eyes.
That gigantic torso hanging upside-down in the void…
The twisted face embedded in the center of the chest…
And that single, black, light-devouring eye—
Just one glance, and Shunsui felt his own reiatsu being squeezed.
The entire Seireitei groaned as if something invisible were pressing down on it.
The spiritual pressure of the Spirit King—no, of Yhwach fused with the Spirit King—poured down like a flood, pressing on all things. Everyone felt an instinctive difficulty in breathing, as if their lungs had been stuffed with lead.
...…
"Here we go again…"
In the Royal Realm, inside the great hall of the Zero Division, Kirinji Tenjirō spat out the grass stem in his mouth and clicked his tongue.
"Every time this guy shows up, nothing good happens."
Ōetsu Nimaiya folded his arms, sunglasses gleaming as he stared at the screen.
"Still, ya gotta hand it to him… from a 'scale' perspective, he really is sittin' at the top of the food chain. That's already way beyond what a normal Spirit King should be."
Senjumaru Shutara's many mechanical arms folded together with a soft metallic clatter.
"With the Spirit King's body as the foundation and Yhwach's Almighty layered on top… at this point, that thing is closer to a 'concept' given form than a mere living being."
"..."
Ichibē Hyōsube, the "Eyebrow Monk," stayed silent.
He simply stared at the figure on the screen, expression unreadable.
No one understood the Spirit King better than he did.
Likewise, no one better understood… just how terrifying that "fusion" would become if it truly completed its evolution.
"Oi, Monk."
Kirinji glanced sideways at him.
"Don't tell me you're gonna say something like 'this is still within my calculations,' yeah?"
Ichibē slowly closed his eyes.
"Unfortunately, this level is already beyond the scope of 'calculations'…"
"When the Spirit King's power begins to surge of its own accord, even I cannot predict how far it will rampage."
...…
Back on the screen.
The camera angle changed.
The unimaginably huge Spirit King—no, the Yhwach-Spirit King—spread his arms, like some god about to embrace the world.
Then—
A terrifying torrent of reiatsu exploded from his body.
Boom.
There shouldn't have been any sound in a video.
Yet everyone in the Bleach world instinctively clapped their hands over their ears.
They clearly "heard" something that couldn't be heard.
It wasn't noise.
It was the howling of the entire world.
With the Spirit King at the center, a vortex of pitch-black light expanded outward, layer by layer.
Reality peeled away like wallpaper.
Buildings, ground, sky, even the concept of "distance" itself—everything was ripped into tatters and sucked toward the center.
The storm of spiritual pressure surged like a tidal wave, sweeping across the Royal Realm, then spilling down into Seireitei, then farther, into the Human World, Hueco Mundo, and the Wandenreich's shadows.
Every living being that possessed spirit particles felt it.
A sharp sting deep in the soul.
"W-what is that…?"
In the Human World, ordinary people suddenly shivered and hugged themselves, hearts pounding for no reason.
They had no idea why, but it felt as if some distant, terrifying gaze had brushed across them for the briefest of moments.
On the Hill of the Twin Skulls where Urahara and the others were also watching the screening, Tessai's expression changed drastically.
"This reiatsu… this is no longer at a level that can be called an 'individual'…"
Urahara pushed up the brim of his striped bucket hat, his expression more serious than ever.
"That's the 'current' of the Spirit King."
"The very spiritual foundation of the world is resonating with him…"
...…
Back in Seireitei.
Many low-ranking Shinigami had already collapsed to the ground.
Even lieutenants were drenched in cold sweat.
Several of them instinctively reached for their zanpakutō, as if holding the blade could relieve the pressure weighing on their hearts.
"It's worse than the Quincy invasion…"
Madarame Ikkaku knelt on one knee, sweat dropping from his chin.
"Just one glance from this monster feels more suffocating than when the Wandenreich came knocking…"
Yumichika curled his fingers tightly around his sword hilt, expression stiff.
"Don't say it… if even you're shaking, what are the others supposed to feel?"
Beside them, Komamura's large, lupine body trembled faintly. The metal mask on his face seemed to quiver under the pressure.
"Is this… really a being that should exist in the same 'world' as us?"
Even Renji and Rukia, who had experienced the battle with Yhwach in the future footage, found themselves struggling to steady their breathing.
They all knew this was "just" a video.
But their instincts were screaming that if this scene were actually happening right now, Soul Society might already be finished.
...…
The screen zoomed in again.
At the center of the pitch-black vortex, the Spirit King's single eye slowly rotated, scanning the world.
Wherever its gaze swept past, the space inside the video visibly distorted and twisted.
In the very next instant, an invisible shock wave tore through the surroundings.
Countless spirit particles were drawn toward the Spirit King like freshwater streams rushing into a raging sea.
The entire Spirit King Palace began to crumble at an accelerated speed.
The Royal Realm, supported by the Spirit King's existence, seemed on the verge of collapsing into the abyss at any moment.
"Hey, hey, hey…"
Back in the Zero Division hall, Ōetsu whistled under his breath.
"Isn't this basically the world's 'root OS' going crazy and hitting a full system reset?"
"If this keeps up," Kirinji muttered, "forget Soul Society—even the Royal Realm might go boom."
Senjumaru's eyes flashed coldly.
"In the future shown by the video, this is clearly the moment when the 'Spirit King Torrent' truly begins."
"That is, the power of the Spirit King overflowing its container… and spilling uncontrollably into all realms."
Ichibē finally opened his mouth again, his tone dry.
"You're not wrong."
"The Spirit King is the wedge that stabilizes all existence. Once the wedge starts flowing freely…"
"Everything built upon it will naturally be swept away."
...…
On the ground in Seireitei, the audience was already freaking out.
"W–wait a second… didn't the future version of us already figure out a method to defeat Yhwach?"
"Yeah, didn't they say they were going to use Aizen's Kyōka Suigetsu to set up some huge plan?"
"Then why is the Spirit King still going berserk in this video?!"
"Could it be… even Aizen's hypnosis tricks couldn't completely stop him?"
"Don't scare me like that! If even Aizen can't fix this, what the hell are we supposed to rely on?!"
For the first time, a strange thought popped up in many Shinigami minds:
Maybe that traitor captain on the chair… really was the last hope of Soul Society.
The irony of that idea was so intense it almost made their heads hurt.
...…
"Speaking of which…"
Somewhere in the First Division's main hall, an officer suddenly muttered:
"Didn't the previous video say that to save Soul Society we'd have to rely on Aizen…?"
"And that at the critical moment, he would 'log in' from Muken?"
"Right, right, right! Where is he? Why hasn't he shown up yet?!"
As if responding to their complaints, the image on the giant screen suddenly shifted.
The terrifying Spirit King's figure froze like a paused frame.
The pitch-black vortex stopped expanding.
The picture blurred for a moment, then cut to an entirely different scene—
A dark underground hall.
Cold stone pillars.
Chains covered in spiritual seals hung from the ceiling.
At the very center of the hall, the familiar, oversized restraint chair slowly came into view.
"Found him!!"
Someone practically shouted in relief.
Even though it was completely unreasonable, seeing Aizen's silhouette on the chair gave them an inexplicable sense of security.
On the screen, Aizen sat on the special restraint seat as always, body wrapped in bindings, eyes half-closed.
However, unlike in the earlier clips where he appeared bored and uninterested, this time a subtle change could be seen in his expression.
His lashes trembled slightly.
Then—
He opened his eyes.
In that instant, even across space and through the barrier of a video, countless people felt their hearts skip a beat.
Those calm, amber eyes seemed to reflect everything.
Muken.
Soul Society.
The Human World.
The vast ocean of spiritual particles that made up all existence.
"So you finally decided to stand up, Aizen…"
In the Royal Realm, Ichibē narrowed his eyes.
"Or perhaps," Senjumaru corrected with a faint smile, "he doesn't need to 'stand up' at all."
"Just 'logging in' is enough."
...…
Inside the video, the camera circled around Aizen.
His body was still firmly fixed to the chair, unable to move even a finger.
Yet the moment he opened his eyes, the seals inscribed throughout Muken began to shine faintly.
Layer upon layer of kido-based restraints, constructed by the Central 46 and the Kidō Corps, reacted as if an enormous pressure were being applied from within.
They creaked.
They trembled.
Hairline cracks slowly began to spread across the surface of the enormous chair.
"W-wait, what's going on?!"
"The seals of Muken… are actually resonating with Aizen's reiatsu?!"
"No, look carefully—those aren't just cracks. The structure of the bindings themselves is changing!"
In the First Division's viewing area, the Kidō Corps officers watched with horror.
From their specialist perspective, they quickly realized something dreadful:
Aizen hadn't simply overpowered the seals.
He was rewriting them.
"Unbelievable…"
Urahara, watching from the Hill of the Twin Skulls, couldn't help but sigh.
"So this is Kyōka Suigetsu at full power, combined with the power of the Hōgyoku…"
"To hypnotize others is one thing—but to treat the 'concept' of a kido barrier as something to tamper with… that's on a different level."
Back in the video, the enormous restraint chair trembled once more.
Patterns appeared on its surface.
Not kido inscriptions, not mechanical circuits, but something that looked eerily like veins.
Spiritual particles surged toward Aizen through the chair like blood rushing through arteries.
In the next instant—
The chair's figure rose to its feet.
"Eh?"
All of Seireitei was stunned.
"That chair… moved?"
"Hold on, isn't Aizen still tied up?!"
"How is the chair standing up while he's stuck on it?!"
The video clearly showed it:
Aizen's body remained fixed in a sitting posture, but the restraints that had once limited his movement now twisted, turned, and reassembled themselves.
Four thick, heavy legs extended from the base of the chair, stepping onto the floor.
Segments of metal and kido-light formed jointed arms on either side, ending in massive palms.
The entire restraint device transformed into something halfway between a set of armor and a puppet.
Aizen remained seated at the "head" position, eyes calm, expression faintly amused.
"Muken's restraints…"
In the Zero Division hall, Kirinji's jaw dropped.
"…have turned into a mobile life-form?"
Ōetsu whistled again.
"Now that's what I call next-level disrespect. Went in as a prisoner, comes out riding the prison itself like a boss mech."
Even Senjumaru, who rarely showed surprise, raised her brows slightly.
"To use pure spiritual pressure and Kyōka Suigetsu's hypnosis to overwrite the design of a binding instrument… and then reconstruct it into a combat puppet…"
"His creativity is truly wasted on treason."
...…
On the screen, the "Aizen Chair" raised one gigantic arm.
Lines of kido seals along its surface shattered one after another.
Like a boot sequence finishing its checks, light flashed across its frame from top to bottom.
The next moment—
The space around Muken shook violently.
A black crack split the air open in front of Aizen.
It was not a normal garganta, nor a standard kido portal.
It was something more fundamental, directly rewiring the space of Soul Society itself.
Through that crack, they could faintly see…
The pitch-black vortex swirling above the Spirit King Palace.
The Spirit King's enormous, upside-down body.
And Yhwach's single, all-seeing eye, staring down at the world.
Aizen lowered his gaze slightly, corners of his mouth curving.
"Looks like the Spirit King has started to overflow."
"Truly a troublesome scene… If this continues, the world will collapse before I have time to enjoy it."
His tone was utterly casual, as if discussing the weather.
He lifted his eyes again, and the entire projection seemed to tighten, like the focus of a camera shifting.
All at once, everyone watching had the illusion that Aizen's gaze had brushed across their own.
"I suppose," he murmured, "it's time for me to 'log in.'"
"With my current situation, personally stepping onto the battlefield would be somewhat… inconvenient."
"So—"
The Aizen Chair took a single step forward.
With that step, the crack in space expanded sharply.
The underground hall of Muken vanished from the screen.
The next frame cut directly to the skies above the Royal Realm.
The enormous Spirit King still hung in the void, torrents of power surging wildly.
But this time, in front of his chest, another gigantic figure appeared out of nowhere.
A massive, black-and-white humanoid puppet, wrapped in kido bindings and armor, stood there with Aizen seated at the top like a king on a throne.
Everyone watching held their breath.
"The chair… really went to fight in his place?!"
"Is this what the title meant by 'the chair takes the field'?!"
"Who the hell fights the final boss by sending their chair instead of their body?!"
Even in the face of an apocalyptic crisis, countless viewers couldn't help feeling a sense of warped admiration.
This was Aizen Sōsuke.
Even saving the world, he had to do it in the most outrageous, most theatrical way possible.
On the screen, the enormous puppet raised its arm.
Aizen tilted his head slightly, looking up at the Spirit King's contorted face.
His voice was calm to the point of arrogance.
"Spirit King, Yhwach…"
"You may be the 'torrent' that threatens to wash away the world."
"But from this moment on—"
"This stream belongs to me."
The video froze on that scene.
Aizen seated atop the moving chair-puppet, facing down the berserk Spirit King in the center of the world's collapse.
(End of Chapter)
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