— — — — — —
High in the air. The three figures standing on condensed reishi naturally formed a triangle.
"Looks like I showed up at just the right moment."
Holding a severed hand between his fingers, Ryo smiled as he glanced at Yhwach and Yamamoto not far away.
His eyes narrowed slightly when he looked at the old captain wearing that Hollowfied mask. A hint of surprise crept into his voice. "Never thought you'd choose this path."
A Hollowfied Yamamoto—this had to be close to the absolute ceiling of power in Bleach.
"Your appearance made it clear to this old man that a stable order can no longer save the Seireitei." Yamamoto's tone was calm, almost unnervingly so. "So I must move forward. There's no other direction for me but forward."
Yhwach's mouth twitched. Though his previously severed limbs had regenerated, phantom pain still lingered.
"If you put it like that, I suppose I've done a good deed?" Ryo raised a brow in mock surprise.
While the two spoke, Yhwach finally noticed the hand Ryo was casually holding.
"That is… Pernida?!"
Pernida Parnkgjas—the Soul King's left hand, the embodiment of "Progress," a being that could purify itself through nerve contact. One of Yhwach's personal Schutzstaffel. Sternritter C.
"Oh? You mean this?" Ryo tossed the severed hand lightly into the air and smiled.
"I was curious about the Soul King's power, so I sought him out."
"It really was a fascinating ability."
"Too bad. Even after I deliberately had him imitate me and evolve, he still couldn't handle the strain. In the end, he collapsed on his own."
Yhwach's eyes sharpened as he turned to fully face Ryo.
"...I see."
"In that case, I'll finish the two of you here… then kill Aizen. After that, everything will fall into place."
Ryo arched a brow, smiling faintly at Yhwach. "You really shouldn't brag so early. It only makes you look stupid."
"Heh. The me standing before you has already surpassed the dimension you exist in."
"Despair... this is the power of the Almighty."
Yhwach chuckled softly. He slowly raised his hand, fingers spread, then clenched.
Crack—!
A crisp snap rang out.
Yamamoto stared at the Zanpakutō split cleanly in half in his hand, his pupils contracting.
"My Bankai… was cut in two?"
"I already broke your blades in the future." Yhwach lowered his hand, his face emotionless. "The fight's decided, Yamamoto Genryūsai. Ryo Yagami."
At those words, Ryo silently placed his hand on the sword at his waist.
Seeing this, Yhwach spoke lightly. "Still planning a pointless struggle?"
Ching—!
Ryo drew a clean, unbroken blade.
Yhwach's eyes went wide, disbelief flooding his face. "Impossible. My Almighty should've already shattered your sword in the future!"
"The Almighty, huh?"
Ryo twirled the blade once, flipped it in his hand, and said with mild curiosity. "More accurately, your power should be called future interference, shouldn't it?"
"Observing the future. Editing the future. That is the true form of your ability. And that ability… belongs uniquely to the Soul King."
Yhwach glared darkly at him—anger from being exposed, and fear of the unknown mixing in his eyes.
He had broken Ryo's and Yamamoto's blades in the future. Yamamoto's sword had indeed snapped as expected—so why not Ryo's?
"Are you afraid?"
The moment Ryo spoke, Yhwach's eyes widened, reflecting Ryo's taunting smile.
"Your future interference failed—so now you're scared of me?"
Ryo stepped forward in midair.
Instinctively, Yhwach stepped back—then realized it, face flushing with humiliation. He roared. "Enough nonsense!"
"You could never inspire fear in me!"
A teasing smile tugged at Ryo's lips. He lifted his right hand, fingers spread. "Do you want to know why your Almighty failed?"
"…Why?" Yhwach blurted out.
Ryo's smile widened.
"Because I can use the Almighty too."
The moment the words fell, Ryo closed his fingers.
Yhwach's eyes bulged as he looked down at his arms.
Both his forearms had been severed at the elbow.
As if cut by an invisible blade, they'd separated in a perfectly clean line.
"What…? My hands…"
"You cut my arms off in the future?!"
His face twisted. He shouted. "Ridiculous! You think such a trick can fool me?! Only I have the Almighty."
But mid-roar, his pupils shrank. He snapped his head to the right—
—just as a presence appeared behind him.
"You're seeing me standing behind you right now, with my sword against your neck, aren't you?"
Ryo lifted the blade slightly, letting the edge press closer to Yhwach's throat.
Yhwach's pupils contracted sharply. Ryo continued in a soft, almost bored tone. "And next, you'll alter the future again—switching your position with Yamamoto's—so that I'll kill the enemy you hate most."
"N–no way…" Yhwach's eyes trembled. "How can you see… the futureI see?!"
Then, all at once, his expression froze.
There were only two beings who possessed future interference.
One was himself, Yhwach—the Son of the Soul King.
The other… was the Soul King.
Someone who could observe the same future, someone whose Almighty overshadowed his own—
That could only be one being. The god who birthed him—the Soul King.
In an instant, everything snapped together in Yhwach's mind.
Ryo appearing out of nowhere, claiming to be from another world; the bizarre "Little Garden" lie; Yamamoto and Aizen's sudden alliance; the future shifting again and again; Ryo collecting the Soul King's left and right hands…
All of it formed one coherent truth.
Yhwach's expression relaxed. Excitement and fervor lit up his eyes as he stared at Ryo.
"So that's it!"
"My father… you've finally escaped!"
As those words fell, Ryo froze.
.
.
.