Following Satoru's voice, the blade of Senbonzakura fell.
In the blink of an eye, the entire goodwill event forest dimmed, becoming the backdrop behind Satoru.
The blade of Senbonzakura slowly slid into the ground, sending ripples across the surface. These ripples spread outward, silently drawing everyone's attention.
However, behind Satoru—who stood center stage and unnoticed—massive blades began to rise from the ground, arranged neatly in twin rows behind him.
Some tried to count how many blades there were in those two lines, but it was impossible to keep track.
The moment someone tried to start counting, the thousand blades behind Satoru instantly shattered, bursting apart into countless pieces that reformed into hundreds of millions of cherry blossom blades once more.
This time, even the hilt of Senbonzakura had disappeared from Satoru's hand. The entire blade had dissolved into cherry blossom blades floating in the sky, completely under Satoru's control...
This was Satoru's Bankai.
Senbonzakura Kageyoshi.
...
"Bankai! This is Satoru's Bankai!"
Shoko and Suguru stared at him in a daze. Seeing Satoru's current posture, along with the overwhelming presence of the blades behind him, both of them were inwardly shaken.
This was Bankai, the only one they had seen aside from Satoshi's.
And the power it displayed was terrifying.
Now, with his Bankai complete, Satoru had the right to stand on equal footing with Satoshi.
The power of Senbonzakura's Bankai was simply overwhelming.
...
"Satoru! You really didn't disappoint me, nor did you disappoint Senbonzakura. Let me witness the full might of Senbonzakura!"
Satoshi's eyes were full of anticipation. In this worldline, Satoru was undoubtedly the most talented.
Senbonzakura Kageyoshi would not be tarnished in his hands.
If the original owner of Senbonzakura—Byakuya Kuchiki—knew it had been entrusted to Satoru, he'd likely be at peace.
"You're too arrogant, Satoshi. Even if you're the one who forged Senbonzakura, do you really understand its full strength?"
Satoru felt the countless cherry blossom petals flying above and brimmed with confidence.
After releasing Bankai, Satoru could clearly feel his power had soared.
With the Limitless Technique combined with Senbonzakura Kageyoshi, he believed he could defeat Satoshi.
Even if Satoshi used Sode no Shirayuki's Bankai, he was confident in holding his ground.
As for Ryūjin Jakka, Satoru acknowledged its overwhelming might. But he knew Satoshi couldn't wield two Zanpakutō at once in combat.
Besides, with the Limitless Technique and Senbonzakura under his command, he had no intention of giving Satoshi the chance to switch blades mid-battle.
In short, once Satoshi chose one Zanpakutō, Satoru would never allow him to draw the other.
"Draw your Zanpakutō, Satoshi. You might not get another chance."
As Satoru waved his right hand, the billions of cherry blossom petals surged toward Satoshi like a tidal wave.
Though he said this calmly, in truth, he had no intention of waiting for Satoshi to fully prepare.
He was aiming to catch him off guard.
Senbonzakura Kageyoshi's power far surpassed the Shikai state. If Satoshi hadn't already been prepared, he could've taken a direct hit.
Unfortunately, Satoshi knew full well how powerful Senbonzakura was. That's why he gave it to Satoru in the first place.
And so, the moment Satoru launched his attack, Satoshi had already activated the technique he previously mentioned—Dankū.
Facing the onslaught of Senbonzakura Kageyoshi, Satoshi used the chantless version of Bakudō #81: Dankū.
The high-speed cherry blossom blades collided with the square air wall formed by Dankū, dyeing the transparent barrier a shimmering pink. It looked strangely mesmerizing.
Everyone was watching this clash.
Not long ago, Satoshi used Dankū to block Satoru's Reverse Cursed Technique: Heal. But could it defend against his Bankai now?
Mei Mei and Utahime stared closely. In their eyes, Satoru's Bankai still seemed somewhat unstable and not overwhelmingly dominant.
After all, they didn't possess Zanpakutō themselves and lacked understanding of its full potential. Naturally, they were more inclined to believe in Satoshi's superiority.
Even though they were technically allies with Satoru now, the one-against-many battle Satoshi fought earlier had deeply shaken their confidence.
Meanwhile, Kamo Kenshin and Suguru paid close attention to Satoru's performance. Suguru had his own Zanpakutō, Hōzukimaru, and Kenshin, being part of the Kamo family, had long heard rumors about the terrifying power of Bankai.
Besides, Satoru's attack just now had been swift and fierce. In contrast, Satoshi's Dankū had been activated without a chant, making it clearly inferior to the previous version.
Both of them hoped Satoru could defeat Satoshi.
At the very least, they believed Satoru had room to improve, while Satoshi felt utterly untouchable.
If Satoru could overcome Satoshi using Bankai, then Suguru would definitely devote more effort to mastering Hōzukimaru.
As for Kamo Kenshin, he secretly hoped Satoru and Satoshi would annihilate each other.
To be born in the same generation as Gojo Satoshi and Gojo Satoru... was a truly cruel twist of fate.
...
Crack!
As countless cherry blossom petals continued to batter the barrier, cracks began to form across the surface of Dankū.
Eventually, under everyone's watchful eyes, Satoshi's Dankū shattered completely under the force of Senbonzakura Kageyoshi.
The liberated petals scattered across the sky in a frenzy, then immediately surged toward Satoshi once more.
Success!
Satoru had broken through Dankū's defense.
Whether it was the participants on-site or the audience watching the live broadcast of the goodwill event, a cheer erupted in their hearts.
Without realizing it, most had already begun to support Satoru.
With this form, this composure, and this strength, Satoshi had been subconsciously crowned the "final boss" by everyone.
After all, that one-against-many battle had already shown the world—Satoshi's power far surpassed his peers...
(To be continued.)
***
For every 200 PS = 1 extra chapter. Support me on P/treon to read 30+ advanced chapters: p-atreon.c-om/Blownleaves
(Just remove the hyphen to access normally.)