Akane woke up surrounded by flames.
The air was suffocatingly hot, yet the embrace she found herself in felt warm and reassuring.
She slowly opened her eyes and saw Akira holding her securely in his arms, his expression calm and resolute.
"Did you… save me?" Senna asked instinctively.
"Thank you, Mr. Shinigami."
Akira gave a small smile and replied, "It's fine. It was my duty."
"Where's Ryōdoji Clan's Ganryū?" she asked, scanning her surroundings.
Akira tilted his head slightly. "Hmm… probably reduced to ashes by now."
Akane turned her gaze outward. The battlefield—once standing strong—was now engulfed in black flames, leaving barely any place untouched. Aside from where Akira stood, the entire area was a charred wasteland.
She looked up at him again, a sudden realization washing over her.
It was him.
The black flames—this immense power—it was his doing.
"Did we actually win this time? No more surprises, right?" she muttered.
Soul Society
Shinigami who had witnessed the battle firsthand were left in stunned silence, unable to shake off their unease.
They had seen too many enemies rise from the ashes. The mere thought of Ganryū suddenly resurrecting sent a shiver down their spines.
"The enemy has to be finished this time! We have to believe in Captain Akira!"
"Yeah! Look at the state of the battlefield—if the enemy were still alive, it'd be a miracle!"
"Captain Akira is unbelievably strong!"
Slowly, doubt gave way to certainty. This was an overwhelming, undeniable victory.
"Is it over?"
Standing near the Kido Cannon, Yamamoto Shigekuni turned toward Kurotsuchi Mayuri.
"Yes, theoretically speaking," Mayuri replied, analyzing the data on his monitoring device. "The ritual to merge the lost soul with the prayer beads has ceased. Furthermore, the residual soul energy has been almost entirely incinerated by Captain Akira. That being—Gu—should soon disappear entirely."
Nearby, Soifon exhaled in relief. "We finally overcame this crisis…"
"Yeah," Hitsugaya agreed. "I didn't think Captain Akira would actually pull it off… though he's usually slacking off, he really comes through when it counts."
Even Yamamoto gave a small nod. "It seems Akira made the right choice in the end," he admitted.
"What are you all talking about?" Zaraki Kenpachi suddenly interjected, his voice laced with irritation. "If it's over, why hasn't that thing disappeared from the sky?"
"...?"
Only then did the captains turn their eyes skyward—
The ominous image of Gu and the World of the Living still loomed overhead. It had not dissipated.
"Nemu, what's going on?!"
Hearing the rising panic in the voices around him, Mayuri wiped away a bead of sweat. Just as he was about to analyze the situation further, his instrument let out a blaring alarm.
WARNING! WARNING!
Soul Society will collide with the World of the Living in five minutes! Prepare for impact!
"WHAT!?"
Even Mayuri's face twisted in shock. "It's accelerating much faster than expected!"
"I asked you—what the hell is going on?!"
Hitsugaya, still in his wheelchair, rolled forward and grabbed Mayuri by the collar.
Kurotsuchi Mayuri's eyes swept across the screen as he muttered, "I see… I understand."
"Although the effects of the Dangai's collapse have dissipated, the gravitational pull between the Soul Society and the Human World still remains! This force continues to draw the two realms toward each other, like two magnets rapidly closing in!"
"What…?!" The captains' expressions shifted in alarm upon hearing this.
If the gravitational force of both worlds was acting upon them, wouldn't that mean there was nothing they could do?!
Even someone as powerful as Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni couldn't simply negate gravity itself!
Unohana Retsu calmly asked, "Is there any way to stop this?"
Kurotsuchi Mayuri pondered for a moment before responding, "If I had to put it simply… the closer the two worlds get, the stronger the gravitational effect. However…
"As long as the force hasn't reached the point of being completely unstoppable, it should be possible to counteract it with a shockwave exceeding the current gravitational influence."
Kurotsuchi's method was undeniably sound. In the original timeline, it was Senna who sacrificed herself by leading countless lost souls into the precipice of destruction within the Garganta, an act that halted the Soul Society's collision with the Human World.
Yet, hearing this plan now only filled everyone with deeper despair.
"The gravitational force may not have reached its peak yet, but it has already grown strong enough to draw the two realms together!"
Soifon muttered in disbelief, "Even if you say we need an impact greater than this force… how exactly do we create that?"
"What about the Kidō Cannon?" Hitsugaya Tōshirō suggested. "If we fire it at the Garganta now, could it disrupt the connection?"
"Yes! If we evacuate the Captain of the Ōkami Division quickly, then—"
Just as a glimmer of hope emerged, it was ruthlessly crushed by Kurotsuchi.
"It's useless. The fundamental nature of the Kidō Cannon is to seal space. It was designed specifically to obliterate distortions like the Garganta along with the surrounding dimensional fabric."
"In other words, the Kidō Cannon doesn't create a conventional explosion. It won't generate a shockwave strong enough to counteract the gravitational pull!"
"Then what do you suggest?!" Soifon snapped. "We're running out of time!"
Kurotsuchi shook his head. "There's… nothing we can do."
"There are less than five minutes left. Even if we wanted to reach the precipice of the boundary… it's too late."
A heavy silence fell over the captains. They had fought so hard, managing to stop the threat of Ganryū at Ryōdangai, only to now stand helpless as their world faced destruction.
"Do not lose hope! We are not finished yet!"
A sudden, commanding voice rang out.
Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni slammed his Zanpakutō into the ground, his reiatsu flaring.
"We still have one final hope—do not forget! Akira is at the valley, the very boundary between the two worlds!"
"If it's him… if he exerts all of his power, he may be able to accomplish what we cannot! That is the conclusion I have reached—confirmed through my own strength!"
His words were filled with absolute conviction.
Yamamoto's trust in Akira's strength was unwavering.
Now, the fate of both the Soul Society and the Human World rested on Akira's unparalleled power!
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