Chapter 697 In Love, Childhood Friends Are Always The Losers

According to their agreement, after taking down the Seireitei and the Soul King Palace, the final battle would be between Hueco Mundo and Aizen.

But if Aizen's forces were this small, the so-called final battle would be a joke.

Hearing this, the Gotei 13's members still standing in place were stunned again.

'Weren't these two on the same side?'

'Why did it sound like they were also going to fight each other?'

Aizen gave Makoto, who was enjoying the show, a meaningful smile in return. "Makoto-kun, just wait and see."

As per their previous agreement, they would first join forces to take the Seireitei and the Soul King Palace, then have their final battle.

For now, they should focus on taking down the Gotei 13.

"Chojiro."

Facing the two greatest threats, Makoto and Aizen, Yamamoto was the first to give an order to his Lieutenant.

Chojiro, Lieutenant of the 1st Division, leaped from the ranks and, without a word, immediately removed the Reiatsu Restraints on Kisuke.

The black bindings that had been wrapped around Kisuke for nearly a century finally fell away, one coil at a time. Kisuke's Reiatsu was released in an instant, adding another heavy-weight asset to the Seireitei's side.

And on this chaotic battlefield, the first to truly make a move was unexpected yet also quite predictable... Zaraki Kenpachi!

The Captain of the 11th Division swung his jagged Zanpakuto, charging like a frenzied beast across multiple lines of defense. His first target was Saeko.

As he swung his blade down with a laugh, Saeko had already drawn her own Zanpakuto, striking back in return.

The two Zanpakuto clashed in the center of the Seireitei plaza, Captain-level Reiatsu exploding outward in a ring.

Zaraki grinned ferociously amidst the sparks of the collision. "I don't know why you're doing this, but this is a good opportunity. Since joining the Gotei 13, I haven't had a proper fight with you."

Saeko was briefly surprised, then a smile curved at the corner of her mouth. "Alright. Let's settle this then."

With that, Saeko's other palm aimed directly at Zaraki's chest, less than two meters away... "Hado #33: Sokatsui!"

A blast of blue flames erupted from her palm, exploding almost point-blank against Zaraki's chest.

Even Zaraki had to step back half a step to slash the flames apart when faced with such a close-range Kido.

But Saeko gave him no chance to breathe. She immediately released the next Kido.

"Hado #73, Soren Sokatsui!"

Two even larger blue fireballs traced symmetrical arcs through the air, striking Zaraki from both sides simultaneously.

"Ha!"

Zaraki roared, releasing his Reiatsu wildly.

His golden Reiatsu formed a near-solid wall around him, forcibly blocking the two massive fireballs outside.

Then he swung his blade backhanded. A simple, skill-less yet immensely powerful sword energy swept out, extinguishing the two Sokatsui and the surrounding flames.

The fiery rain fell from the sky, reflected in his excited eyes.

"Since when did you start liking such boring fighting methods? This isn't like the old you at all."

Zaraki hefted his jagged Zanpakuto back onto his shoulder, his tone full of disappointment and provocation.

Saeko smiled even deeper after hearing this.

She held her Zanpakuto horizontally in her right hand, her voice carrying a fighting spirit she had never shown in the Seireitei: "Alright, let me show you the real me."

With that, she softly chanted the release command of her Zanpakuto—

"Roar, Aoshishi."

The moment it was released, the Zanpakuto erupted with astonishing blade energy and Reiatsu.

A deep blue light shot up from the blade, coalescing, changing shape, and expanding in the air. Eventually, it formed nine translucent blue lions, each as large as a giant Gillian.

The nine blue lions silently roared in the air above her, casting their shadows over the entire plaza.

In terms of visual impact, this move was quite reminiscent of the [Lion Menace: Earth Coiling] used by her former swordsmanship teacher in the One Piece World, Shiki.

Only the scale was much larger, and the pressure was on an entirely different level.

"This is Captain Busujima's Zanpakuto... That's insane..." The ordinary officers below, still struggling to fend off the Arrancar army's attacks, looked up at the sky, their eyes wide.

Most of them were seeing Saeko's Zanpakuto release for the first time.

'If her Shikai was already this spectacular, just how terrifying would her Bankai be?'

On the other side of the battlefield, Komamura had already unleashed his Bankai without hesitation.

The colossal Kokujo Tengen Myo'o rose from the Seireitei plaza.

Komamura's target was naturally his former friend Tosen.

"Answer me, Tosen! Why are you doing this!?"

Komamura's roar echoed out.

He controlled Kokujo Tengen Myo'o to swing its building-sized giant blade, striking down at Tosen.

But to Komamura's surprise, Tosen's displayed strength far exceeded his expectations.

His friend held his Zanpakuto one-handed. With that Suzumushi, which was tiny as a toothpick compared to the giant blade, he easily blocked the full-force swing of Kokujo Tengen Myo'o.

Tosen raised his face, his expression blank. "I've said it before, Komamura. To me, what I see is justice. And right now, all I see is darkness."

With that, Tosen maintained his stance... one hand holding his blade, single-handedly blocking the attack... and raised his other hand to his face, swiping it across.

A Reiatsu completely different from that of a Shinigami erupted from within him.

Under the shocked gazes of Komamura, Hisagi, and the others, Tosen's face was now covered with the same white bone mask as the Vasto Lorde beside Makoto.

Hollowfication.

This forbidden power, which had taken down multiple Captain-level fighters nearly a hundred years ago, was now appearing on a comrade they had lived and worked alongside for years, once again proving that the true culprit behind the catastrophe a century ago was indeed Aizen.

Meanwhile, more members of the Gotei 13 found their desired opponents amidst the chaos.

Toshiro was no exception.

His gaze immediately locked onto the petite figure standing behind Aizen.

Like Komamura, his first instinct was to ask why.

But unlike Komamura, who had immediately used Bankai and attacked, Toshiro, facing his childhood friend who was like an older sister to him, was far gentler.

He called out in a trembling yet forced calm voice, "Momo... why?"

Momo pressed her lips together, her eyes quickly glancing at Aizen's back, then responded in an apologetic yet resolute tone: "I'm sorry, Shiro-chan. No matter what Captain Aizen does, I will follow him."

There was no flash of swords or clashing steel in these words, but their impact on Toshiro was more deadly than any attack.

"Hey, white-haired kid."

Just as Toshiro's eyes widened, his mind reeling in disbelief, a voice suddenly interrupted.

Toshiro instinctively turned toward the sound and found himself face-to-face with Makoto, who was grinning down at him.

The King of Hueco Mundo had somehow seated himself atop Pochi's massive head. He said with exaggerated seriousness, "Remember one thing... In love, childhood friends are always the losers."

This statement was the last straw that broke the camel's back.

"Sit Upon the Frozen Heavens! Hyorinmaru!"

In a fit of rage, Toshiro released his Zanpakuto directly. The burst of blade energy transformed into a roaring ice dragon, charging toward Makoto with enough freezing power to chill the earth itself.

But Harribel simply stepped sideways and raised her hand, shattering the ice dragon with a single strike.

The shattered ice crystals reflected countless tiny rainbows in the sunlight, tinkling as they fell to the ground.

Aizen, seizing the perfect moment, delivered a gentle yet deadly finishing blow:

"I'd advise you not to choose opponents you can't handle, Hitsugaya-kun. It only shows your weakness."

"Aizen—!!!" Toshiro finally lost all control.

"Bankai: Daiguren Hyorinmaru!!!"

He unleashed all his Reiatsu to activate Bankai. The fully released power of Hyorinmaru manifested as a pair of massive ice crystal wings spreading behind his back.

His figure shot toward Aizen like a silver-white meteor, the cold energy wrapped around his blade leaving a long frosty trail in the air.

Seeing this, Harribel's hand again moved to the hilt of the white great sword at her waist, ready to intercept.

But just as she was about to draw her sword, a petite figure suddenly rushed up from below, spreading her arms wide to stand between Aizen and the screaming silver-white meteor.

"Don't get in Captain Aizen's way... Shiro-chan!"

The moment Toshiro saw Momo's face, he instinctively stopped his attack.

The blade of Hyorinmaru halted less than a foot away from Momo.

At this moment, Toshiro's expression resembled nothing so much as the male protagonist in an NTR doujin, watching the heroine being broken in by the blonde bastard.

A single Momo was enough to completely neutralize this genius Captain, the youngest in Soul Society history.

"A huge win."

Makoto sat atop Pochi's head, happily crossing his legs.

One Lieutenant-level fighter had taken out an opposing Captain-level genius in one move.

But the next moment, Makoto suddenly felt a surge of violent Reiatsu rushing toward him.

Looking aside, he saw Yamamoto had already drawn Ryujin Jakka and swung it down.

A sky-covering blaze, like a wall of fire falling from the heavens, roared toward Makoto.

Wherever the flames passed, the clouds above the Seireitei were vaporized instantly. The air was filled with a suffocating heat.

The Captain-Commander had also entered the fray!

The war had fully erupted.