Walls, ceiling, and even the wooden floorboards were pulverized instantly by the massive impact, followed immediately by ruthless, incinerating flames.
Facing the incoming wave of fire, Yamamoto adjusted the path of his raised Zanpakuto, swinging it horizontally in front of him.
Boom!
Surging flames erupted from the blade, forming a thick wall of fire that shielded Yamamoto and the captains behind him, leaving no gaps.
Feeling the scorching heat, it was clear that if those present weren't captains of the Gotei 13, they would have been unable to withstand it.
Any ordinary spiritual body would have been dehydrated and killed by the intense temperature before they could even get close.
Even with Captain-Commander Yamamoto's protection, the parched lieutenants felt their lips cracking from the dry heat.
Marechiyo Omaeda stood at the edge of the group.
The moment the flames erupted, he had instantly appeared in front of the two wounded captains, Shunsui and Ukitake, spreading his arms.
Looking at the surging flames just inches away, the air itself seemed to warp under the heat.
Omaeda's expression softened slightly.
Fortunately, the Captain-Commander had reacted quickly enough to prevent them from being caught in the blast.
He hadn't actually been forced to serve as a human shield for Shunsui and Ukitake.
"Whew... Thank goodness the old man is here, otherwise we'd be in serious trouble."
Nearby, Iba Chikane's expression was far from relieved.
"But the enemy's Zanpakuto ability is incredibly powerful. We still haven't figured out the situation, and it remains unclear."
Thinking about how Ren Shihoin had just used his Zanpakuto to defeat two veteran captains and mock the Captain-Commander, Iba Chikane's face turned pale.
For the Captain-Commander of the Gotei 13 to be humiliated like that was a disgrace to all of them.
Yet, despite the enemy using his ability multiple times in front of them, none of them had been able to see through it!
Seinosuke Yamada, who was helping Unohana treat the wounded, breathed a sigh of relief as Shunsui Kyōraku's condition stabilized.
Looking up, Seinosuke glanced gratefully at Marechiyo Omaeda.
"I can't thank you enough, Vice-Captain Omaeda."
"It was nothing, really."
Omaeda waved him off.
Looking at Seinosuke, he suddenly remembered something and asked hurriedly, "Vice-Captain Yamada, you were Ren's junior once... do you know what his ability is?"
Although he had worked with Ren for a time, the Second Division's operations were covert, and he had never asked about Ren's powers.
Seinosuke Yamada looked nostalgic as he glanced at the Captain-Commander.
He saw Yamamoto turn his head slightly, though his gaze remained fixed on the flames ahead.
This movement clearly showed he was paying attention to the conversation.
Seinosuke straightened up and said urgently, "Regarding Senior Ren... I only know his Shikai. Its ability is to cut through things. While simple, it's exceptionally powerful—truly a top-tier direct-combat type!"
"I am already aware of that. Tell me what I do not know," Yamamoto said, his eyes narrowing. "His Bankai... do you have any clues?"
"That... to report to the Captain-Commander, I have no idea."
Seinosuke shook his head.
Back at the Academy, he had only ever seen Ren demonstrate his Shikai.
The current form, which resembled a blue-dyed blade, was clearly a Bankai, likely achieved after graduation.
Yamamoto's heart grew restless.
The fire wall he swung out could protect them from threats, but he also intended to use this time to gather ideas and uncover the secret of Ren's strange Bankai.
The clear, ringing voice that had just countered his flames was clearly a fire-based ability as well!
The fire wall he created probably wouldn't last long.
'It seems he's specifically using fire to counter mine...'
Yamamoto turned his gaze toward the other Second Division Vice-Captain.
"Vice-Captain Yamada, you were also a junior to Ren Shihoin. Do you have any thoughts on his Bankai?"
Yamada's face lost its usual gentleness, replaced by deep gravity.
He shook his head with regret. "My information is no better than Seinosuke's. I only know of Senior Ren's Shikai."
Yamada spoke these words from the heart, without a hint of a lie.
Whether openly or secretly, he had tried to investigate Ren's powers, yet clear information eluded him.
Especially the ability Ren showed today; it was a first for him as well.
In Yamada's view, Ren's deliberate concealment of his power didn't fit the typical style of a Soul Reaper's battle.
However, considering the Stealth Force's ways, keeping abilities secret was understandable.
Using the phrasing he'd learned from Ren, he thought, 'Why did you go straight to Bankai? The battles of Soul Reapers aren't like this.'
'You're supposed to use Shikai first, gain the upper hand, and then indulge in some talk-no-jutsu to explain your ability. Then I reveal my Shikai, turn the tables, and defeat you once. Finally, in the ultimate showdown, we both release our Bankai and go through the special cutscenes explaining them.'
'How could you just release your Bankai without even an explanation? Soul Reaper battles aren't like this at all. I refuse to accept it!'
At this thought, Yamada felt an urge to laugh.
When Ren had said those words to him, there were many terms he didn't understand, but he grasped the general meaning.
He had heard many such phrases from Ren.
Whenever he remembered the way Ren looked when saying things like that, Yamada felt a sense of ridiculous amusement.
Fortunately, his willpower was strong. In front of so many captains, he suppressed the urge to laugh, his expression remaining unchanged.
The moments where Ren defeated Shunsui and the others, cut the Captain-Commander's blade, and forced him back played over in his mind.
Yamada frowned and adjusted his glasses.
'To be honest, that strange speed and ability... even I couldn't see through it.'
'My own abilities have reached their peak, yet even I couldn't track him. Is that possible?'
'Something is wrong... very wrong!'
The more he thought about it, the more obvious the sense of dissonance became.
'If it were just defeating Shunsui and Jushiro in an instant, even I could do that!'
'But in that same instant, he also severed the Captain-Commander's Zanpakuto and forced the old man back uncontrollably. That clearly isn't something that can be achieved through pure speed.'
It was as if time had stopped...
"Hm?!"
Yamada's eyes widened slightly.
'Time stop... cutting things... time stop?!'
In a flash, everything clicked together in Yamada's mind.
Beneath his lenses, his eyes sparked with a bright light.
Seeing his reaction, Ginrei Kuchiki quickly asked, "What did you think of?"
"Yes." Yamada nodded and looked at Shigekuni Yamamoto with a solemn face.
"Captain-Commander, a Bankai is generally a strengthened version of the Shikai, correct?"
"Correct."
Upon receiving confirmation, Yamada's serious face took on a look of excitement.
'Senior, since you're so strong, I'll add a little surprise for you. You won't mind, right?'
"Senior Ren's ability is to cut through things. His current massive blade is clearly the form of his Bankai."
"If the power to cut things is enhanced after Bankai, could it be that he can even cut through ethereal concepts like space or time..."
"Hm?"
Yamamoto paused, a look of realization dawning in his eyes.
Recalling Ren's previous actions, the more the old man thought about it, the more likely it seemed.
"Severing the flow of time... creating a momentary freeze..."
"And he himself enters a special world within that frozen time, which is why his speed seems so supernatural."
Yamamoto murmured to himself, his eyes growing brighter.
He ended with a series of nods.
The others, hearing their imaginative conclusion, had various expressions on their faces.
"Stopping time... is something so heaven-defying really possible?"
"It is! It's entirely possible! The Kido Corps has similar forbidden spells!"
"I remember Grand Kido Chief Tessai can use such a forbidden technique!"
"But... even if we see through his ability, how do we counter it?"
These words brought the discussion to a sudden halt.
Indeed, with such an exaggerated ability, even if they understood it, how could they win?
The opponent could enter frozen time at any moment. In that world, resistance was meaningless.
No—if the opponent got serious, they wouldn't even have the chance to resist!
Yamada shook his head inwardly. Even with his arrogance, he found this incredibly troublesome.
Stopping time—what a broken ability!
Looking at the thoughtful Yamamoto, Yamada felt a surge of curiosity behind his solemn mask.
'Captain-Commander, as the strongest Soul Reaper in a thousand years, how will you handle this?'
Suddenly, Yamada remembered the scene of Yamamoto being pushed back, and linking it to the time-stop ability, he couldn't help but feel amused.
'The old man's repeated backward steps... could it be that my dear Senior Ren simply picked up the Captain-Commander's body during the frozen time and moved it back...' Thinking of that scene, Yamada almost laughed out loud.
Fortunately, he was well-trained and wouldn't laugh easily.
Yes, he was a professional.
Yamada pressed his lips together, suppressing the urge to smile.
'Stay focused. Don't laugh!'
Laughing now would ruin the tense atmosphere!
It was all Ren's fault. Spending too much time with him had infected him with these unprofessional, strange thoughts.
Yamamoto remained lost in thought.
After a few seconds, he spoke softly, "Perhaps I have a way to deal with it."
"Captain-Commander, what way?"
The captains were instantly intrigued.
Yamamoto shook his head. "It would be too difficult for you. Only I can likely pull it off."
He then turned to Ginrei Kuchiki.
"Ginrei, I have an idea to try, but it is very dangerous. I need you to protect me."
As an old comrade who had worked with Yamamoto for many years, Ginrei Kuchiki thought for a moment before suddenly realizing something... He then looked at Yamamoto with great surprise.
"Captain-Commander, are you serious?"
Yamamoto nodded, his expression grim.
Seeing this, Ginrei Kuchiki took a long breath.
"In that case, I will certainly cooperate with you!"
"Good."
Yamamoto's brow smoothed out.
Just then, a clear, textured voice suddenly rang out from within the fire barrier.
"Having waited so long, it seems you've finally come up with a plan."
"In that case, I'll go ahead and lower the flames, okay?"
Hearing the voice, everyone was shocked.
Once they recovered, they all looked toward the source of the sound.
It was directly in front of them.
But all they could see was the wall of fire created by the Captain-Commander.
Blazing flames, rising heat—there was nothing else!
"No, someone is coming out of the flames!"
A warning rang out from the crowd. Everyone looked closer and finally saw a blurred humanoid figure appearing behind the fire.
The figure was walking toward them, getting closer and larger.
Poof!
A head poked out from the fire wall, while the rest of the body remained immersed in the flames.
The head clearly had a human silhouette, but it was massive, about half the size of a person.
It had no specific features, only constantly flowing and rising flames that simulated a nose, eyes, and ears.
There was even a hat made of fire on its head.
"W-What kind of monster is that?!"
"Ren Shihoin's subordinates... he actually recruited something like that?!"
"Moving freely inside the flames—and the Captain-Commander's flames, at that! How is that possible?"
Amidst the cries of surprise, Yamada pushed up his glasses and looked at the fire-head with curiosity.
'Ren has such a unique lifeform under his command?'
'Not only is its body made of fire, but it can move freely within it!'
'It can even speak?!'
'This clearly shows significant intelligence!'
'Interesting!'
He had never heard of this before!
It seemed that in their previous collaborations, his Senior Ren had hidden many novel things from him.
Hearing the captains' exclamations, the flames on the head shifted, revealing clear distaste.
"You captains sure have a rude way of talking."
"Calling me a monster? And referring to me as 'something'? You really have no manners."
'No, no... the fact that a unique existence like you understands human manners is much more shocking...'
The head seemed to understand the expressions on their faces and looked speechless.
"The big boss is waiting for you outside. I'll take down the fire now."
With that, the head retracted into the wall of fire.
The moment it withdrew, the fire barrier created by Yamamoto began to change.
Originally, the flames flowed in a specific direction to form a stable defense.
But now, that direction suddenly shifted, becoming chaotic.
Boom!
The captains inside saw the flames dance wildly like dragons and snakes, as waves of heat crashed against them.
Just as they braced themselves for the exploding fire, the scorching heat vanished into thin air.
Their vision suddenly cleared; the sky full of fire was gone without a trace.
If not for the lingering heat in the air, they would have thought the flames were an illusion.
"So easily... he extinguished the Captain-Commander's flames!"
"To be this powerful..."
"Ren Shihoin... what kind of monster did he raise?"
As the flames died down, everyone could finally see the scene inside the meeting room.
The previously intact walls and buildings were now gone, leaving only piles of ash.
Only the small patch of wooden floor beneath their feet remained; the roof above had vanished, likely blown away by the earlier explosion.
Without the walls of the meeting room to block their view, the surroundings became visible.
It wasn't just the meeting room—the entire barracks of the First Division had been destroyed in that massive blast.
Most importantly, Ren and his group stood ahead, completely unharmed, just as the captains had expected.
Not only were the enemies unaffected, there wasn't even a speck of dust on their clothes.
Ren had already gripped his massive blue-dyed blade, a smirk on his face as he watched them quietly.
But the captains' gazes only lingered on him for a moment before shifting to the space in front of him.
There, a figure shrouded in flames stood tall.
The man was tall, bare-chested, and wore an orange cowboy hat, his face cast in shadow.
He held one hand out, flames burning on his arm and fingers.
As the fire dissipated, he slowly lowered his arm and used a flaming index finger to tip his hat.
The fire didn't seem to burn the hat; the man lowered his finger, and the corners of his mouth curled up.
"My name is Yamamoto, Portgas D. Yamamoto."
"Captains of the Soul Reapers, I look forward to your guidance."
Ace tilted his head slightly, revealing his youthful face dotted with freckles. His smile was confident and vibrant, full of the pride and directness of youth.
Hearing Ace's familiar voice and seeing his normal appearance, the Soul Reaper captains were taken aback.
The contrast between Ace's previous fire form and his current appearance was truly shocking.
"Being able to move in fire... I thought he'd look like some kind of monster."
"Yeah, I thought so too."
"Looking at him now, isn't he just an ordinary young man?"
"In fact, this ordinary look is even more unexpected."
Hearing their murmurs, Ace shrugged.
"Hey now, I can hear everything you're saying."
"What kind of monster were you imagining me to be, anyway?"
Ace's gaze swept over the captains one by one, finally landing on the silent Yamamoto.
"So you're the Captain-Commander of the Soul Reapers? Seeing you in person, you definitely have a strong presence."
"But playing with fire at your age... be careful not to wet the bed tonight."
Yamamoto took a step forward, his mouth twisting into a fierce smile.
"A brat your age is in no position to lecture me!"
His gaze moved past Ace to Ren.
"Ren Shihoin, I have seen through your ability. I will not let you toy with me again!"
"Hoh?" Ren stepped forward, patting Ace on the shoulder to signal him to step back.
He stared at Yamamoto's face, sensing a confident air of certainty radiating from the aged features.
His interest was piqued.
"Ace already told me about the result of your little discussion in the flames."
"Good. I haven't wasted my time giving you this chance. Now, let me see what plan has made you so confident."
Ren gripped his blade tightly.
Suddenly, cries of alarm erupted one after another from the group of captains.
"What is that?!"
"Everyone, look outside!",""
[Reviews - Power St0nes - Comments are highly appreciated to keep me going.....(+50 chapters) patre0n.c0m/talecrafter]