"C-Captain-Commander..."
Orihime's beautiful eyes widened in shock, her right hand flying up to cover her mouth.
Tatsuki was just as stunned.
She had found out from Orihime who Yamamoto really was—that he was the Captain-Commander of the Seireitei.
Practically the ruler of all of Seireitei.
And also the absolute peak of that world's combat power.
And now that same man, with such status and position, had just been whacked from behind by Cole and was lying on the floor in a totally undignified heap.
Cole weighed the golden staff in his hand and said, "Orihime, come on, hurry up and heal him, then toss him out."
He really didn't want to have a fight with Yamamoto here.
Any destruction caused in this place...
He would have to be the one to fix it all afterward.
Orihime dumbly nodded, walking forward and raising both hands toward Yamamoto.
"Sōten Kisshun (Twin-God Reflection Shield)!"
A pale yellow triangular shield appeared.
Under that golden light, new flesh slowly grew from the severed shoulder, with muscle, tendons and bone reappearing in order.
Seeing this, Unohana sheathed her blade a little reluctantly, then gave Cole a displeased look.
"Cole-kun, you interrupted my battle. You'll have to compensate me later and let the two of us have a proper fight."
Spare me...
Cole raised both hands helplessly.
"Spare me, okay... I'm really worn out today. At least let me rest for a few days first, yeah?"
He might not have fought much just now, but learning so many top-secret truths had left his brain feeling overloaded.
On top of that, he still had to think about the Invisible Empire and Hell.
The crises from both sides were clearly pressing ever closer.
Unohana was a little surprised. It was the first time she'd ever seen Cole look this exhausted.
Was the battle over there really that dangerous?
At that moment—
The other Shinigami all hurried over.
A big crowd surged into Cole's villa, packing the room completely full.
When they squeezed up to the bedroom door, they all froze in disbelief at the sight of Yamamoto on the floor.
"Captain-Commander!?"
"Didn't they say the Captain-Commander had already woken up?"
"Why does the Captain-Commander have such a huge bump on his head!?"
Cole hefted the golden staff onto his shoulder and, feeling no guilt at all, cleared up their confusion.
"Oh, that? I hit him."
Shunsui and the others all stared, black lines practically crawling down their faces as they looked at the black-haired boy.
"You clubbed the Captain-Commander from behind!?"
They felt like Cole was really getting more and more outrageous lately.
Not only had he invaded the Soul King Palace...
Now he even dared to smack the Captain-Commander on the back of the head.
"What else was I supposed to do?"
Cole shot back, pointing the golden staff at Yamamoto's severed arm.
"If I didn't knock him out, which one of you was planning to go restrain this old man? Or were you all going to let him walk around with one arm missing?"
The Shinigami at the door were instantly speechless.
Them, go restrain the Captain-Commander?
Give them a break!
Even if they had the power now, they definitely didn't have the guts.
If the Captain-Commander settled the score later, they didn't even dare imagine how miserable their future in Seireitei would be.
As for whether they wanted his arm restored...
Did that even need to be asked?
Of course they did!
Without the Captain-Commander, who had the strength to protect Seireitei?
So everyone just crowded at the doorway, staring eagerly as the severed arm gradually regenerated.
But as they watched—
They were stunned all over again.
Because this wasn't treatment at all.
It looked more like time itself was being rewound.
As if the very fact of the Captain-Commander's arm being severed was being denied at the source, and in a way they couldn't even comprehend, the arm was restored as if nothing had ever happened.
"T-This..."
The Shinigami all looked at each other, at a loss for words.
Kisuke let out a slow breath and said, "In the end, it's still because Miss Orihime's spiritual pressure isn't high enough. Otherwise, she'd be truly terrifying."
Rejecting phenomena from the very root—this had already stepped into the realm of gods.
Even the Soul King might not be able to pull something like that off.
And this was just one of Orihime's abilities.
She still had Santen Kesshun (Triple-Heavenly Linked Shield) and Koten Zanshun (Solitary Heavenly Cutting Shield). The former could achieve perfect defense, the latter could cut down enemies.
You could say that Orihime's Shun Shun Rikka (Six Flowers of the Hibiscus Shield) was a perfect existence that combined defense, healing, and offense into one.
As long as her spiritual power kept up.
Her combat power definitely wouldn't be inferior to Cole's.
Thinking of that, Kisuke also thought of Chad. A serious look appeared in his eyes.
"And it's not just Orihime. Now that I really think about it, Chad's Giant Right Arm and his Devil Left Arm look very similar to Hell."
"Hell?"
Cole raised an eyebrow.
Kisuke nodded. "Especially that Devil Left Arm. Cole, don't you feel like that ability is really similar to Hell?"
Cole frowned, thinking it over carefully.
When Chad's white-and-red Devil Left Arm struck, a vicious skull mark was left at the point of impact.
That definitely didn't resemble Hollows.
But if you said it was connected to Hell...
It really did feel that way.
Hell's defining trait was also skulls. There were even two skeletal frames on the Gate of Hell itself.
"So that means we were already connected to Hell long ago? Any future disturbance in Hell is sure to spill over here..."
As he was deep in thought—
Yamamoto, lying on the ground, seemed to stir as the healing finished and slowly opened his eyes.
"Who just now... sneak-attacked this old man from behind!?"
When he spoke, his voice was absolutely grinding his teeth.
He knew the one who hit him wasn't an enemy.
After all, an arm he had already lost now clearly had sensations again, and that feeling was very real.
But didn't that make it even more infuriating?
He was the strongest Shinigami in a thousand years, and yet someone had managed to smack him from behind with a sneak attack. It was the sort of thing people could laugh at for ages.
All of the Shinigami's gazes turned toward Cole at the same time.
Their meaning was obvious.
You made this mess. You deal with it.
Cole's face darkened, and he silently mouthed at them, "All of you cast kido together, or I'm not helping with this old man's arm next time."
He'd known for a long time that this old man Yamamoto was extremely petty.
If Yamamoto figured out that he was the one who clubbed him, then once he recovered, who knew how he'd try to get back at Cole.
The Shinigami all looked at each other. No one dared to move first, but in the end, after exchanging glances, they all quietly nodded.
Losing an arm would definitely weaken the Captain-Commander.
Now that they had such a chance, they obviously had to fully restore his injuries.
Yamamoto let out a breath and glanced at his arm, which had already recovered halfway. He spoke in a deep voice to Orihime.
"Little girl, this old man already told you, don't heal—"
Before he could finish, behind him a chorus of kido incantations suddenly rang out:
"Bakudō #30: Shitotsu Sansen (Single-Bite Triple Flash)!"
"Bakudō #61: Rikujōkōrō (Six Rods Prison of Light)!"
"Bakudō #63: Sajō Sabaku (Locking Bondage Stripes)!"
"Bakudō #79: Kuyō Shibari (Nine Sunlight Bindings)!"
"Bakudō #99: Kin (Seal)!"
In an instant, countless beams of binding kido slammed into Yamamoto all at once, wrapping him up like a giant rice dumpling.
Especially that final Bakudō #99—its binding power was at the very peak.
White cloth-like seals wound around his entire body, making him look like a life-sized mummy.
Inside those bindings, Yamamoto's face had practically turned purple.
He was the strongest Shinigami in Soul Society for a thousand years, and yet here he was, tied up like this someday...
Feeling the oppressive spiritual pressure of all those binding spells on him, Yamamoto snarled in fury,
"Shunsui! Kisuke! Shinji! And that one... Isshin! You bastards hurry up and let me go!"
Before this, he could have shrugged off bindings of this level whenever he felt like it.
But his injuries were simply too severe now, especially after using the forbidden kido Ittō Kasō (One-Blade Cremation), which had left massive burns all over his body.
Even if the injuries had now been healed, his stamina and the like would still take a few days to recover.
Hearing their Captain-Commander's roar, the ones who'd been called out just kept their eyes looking at their noses and their noses at their hearts, acting like they hadn't heard a thing.
After all, they were doing this for his own good too.
Just like that—
A few more minutes passed.
Yamamoto's severed arm finally finished regenerating, looking almost exactly the same as before.
Orihime raised her head, saying happily, "Cole-kun, the Captain-Commander's arm is completely restored."
Cole smiled and nodded.
The other Shinigami were even more awed by how terrifying Orihime's power was.
She had healed the severed arm of the strongest Shinigami in a thousand years, and yet Orihime didn't look the least bit tired, completely ignoring the difference in sheer power between them.
If this ability were fully developed, its potential would be unimaginable.
Ignoring everyone's thoughts, Cole grabbed Yamamoto by the collar and with a sharp tug flung him straight toward Shunsui.
"Uncle Shunsui, take your old man home."
Shunsui sucked in a sharp breath, frantically reaching out to catch Yamamoto in a princess carry.
"Brat, this is the Captain-Commander, not some stray cat or dog. Can't you be a little more gentle?"
He glared fiercely at Cole.
Yamamoto was so angry his beard practically bristled straight up. He forcibly tore away most of the kido binding him and stomped back to the floor.
"Cole, was it you just now who whacked me with that damn staff!?"
He fully intended to teach Cole a lesson.
Cole stared back coldly, swinging the golden staff in his hand.
"Uncle Shunsui, if you don't haul this old man away right now, believe it or not I'll give him another smack?"
Shunsui coughed lightly, pretending he hadn't heard that last part at all.
He hurriedly dragged the fuming Yamamoto away by the arm while talking nonstop to placate him.
"Old man, Aizen escaped. A lot of people are seriously injured right now. We still need you to take charge of the overall situation..."
And just like that, Yamamoto was taken away.
The villa finally quieted down a lot.
Tatsuki hesitated for a moment, then said in a small voice, "...Cole..."
"Wait, wait..."
Cole raised a hand to stop everyone from speaking, yawned, and simply flopped down onto the bed, saying lazily,
"I'm really too tired today. Let me rest for a while first."
He really was exhausted.
Right now he didn't even feel like saying another word.
With that, Cole closed his eyes, slowly drifting into sleep, letting his body and spirit recover.
Seeing this, the others could only give up for now and decided to wait until he woke up to question him.
Time slipped by—
And before they knew it, it was late at night.
Warm moonlight poured in through the window, bathing the bedroom in a soft pale glow, giving it a strange, cozy warmth.
Click...
The sound of someone nudging the window latch echoed faintly.
The sleeping Cole immediately opened his eyes. As cold light flickered in them, his expression turned odd.
He glanced down at the bulge in his blanket.
"Sode no Shirayuki, what kind of prank are you pulling?"
He'd thought an enemy was attacking.
But then he felt the chill under the blanket.
That icy, snow-like touch—
There was no doubt.
Only the ice-type zanpakuto Sode no Shirayuki could make him feel that.
The figure under the blanket didn't answer.
Cole was just about to say something when he suddenly hissed in a sharp breath, instinctively pressing both hands down on the blanket.
A mix of freezing cold and burning heat seemed to crash into him at the same time.
Minutes ticked by like that.
Finally, a snow-white beauty with faint lavender hair poked her head out from under the blanket, resting her chin on Cole's legs as she looked up at him with a sweet smile.
"Master's boyfriend, feels pretty good, doesn't it?"
As the manifestation of an ice-type zanpakuto, her entire body carried a chill like winter snow.
But inside, she was blazing hot.
Cold outside, hot inside.
She was sure Cole had enjoyed that "contrast" very much.
Cole's mouth went dry. He couldn't help pressing a hand lightly on Sode no Shirayuki's head.
"Shirayuki, don't torture people like that. Leaving things hanging halfway is really painful. Go back, or I'm going to take matters into my own hands."
Sode no Shirayuki giggled, reaching out her soft, jade-like hand and tightening her grip just enough to make him shiver again from the sudden chill.
"That won't do, master's boyfriend."
Watching Cole's troubled expression, she pointed with a smile toward the bedroom next door.
"You can always go find my master."
"Rukia?"
Cole's eyes lit up instantly, but then hesitation crept in.
"But I've still got at least a hundred years to live..."
He remembered Rukia saying that she would only be with him after he died.
Sode no Shirayuki ground her silver teeth, her fingers tightening sharply again, making Cole suck in another sharp breath.
"Hurry up and go already. Or are you not hoping that dyed-hair master of mine will sneak into your room in the middle of the night?"
With that one line, Cole's spirits immediately shot back up.
He didn't even bother putting on clothes and went straight to the bedroom next door.
The lights in the room were off, everything pitch black.
Even so, with his sharp vision, Cole could clearly see Rukia pretending to be asleep.
He couldn't help but chuckle.
This adorable Rukia was obviously faking sleep, her face red all the way to her ears, and those small hands tightly clutching the blanket.
Thinking that, Cole walked up to the bed, leaned down, and whispered in her ear,
"Rukia-chan, since you're asleep, then what happens next... I'll decide on my own, okay?"
Rukia's body trembled, her face turning even redder, like a perfectly ripened apple.
But she still didn't open her eyes.
Cole chuckled softly, carefully climbing onto the bed and pressing Rukia gently beneath him, murmuring to her,
"Next... is going to feel really good."
(End of Chapter)
[Check Out My P@treon For 20+ Extra Chapters On All My Fanfics!!]
[[email protected]/Draumel]
[Thank You For Your Support!]