After discovering the three seal sites in Hell and confirming one had already been destroyed, the Hell Expeditionary Force split its manpower. They left garrisons at the two remaining intact sites, ensuring that at least two Captain-class powerhouses were on rotation at all times to defend them.
However, Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto did not give up the hunt. He continued to lead an elite team personally, scouring the vast, desolate landscape of Hell for any trace of Yhwach.
But while Sora, Aizen, and Nelliel were battling elsewhere in Hell, the team led by the Head Captain encountered an anomaly.
Yhwach, whom the Hell Expeditionary Force had failed to locate for so many years, was now standing boldly right in front of Yamamoto!
"This Spiritual Pressure... I finally caught you, Yhwach!"
Yamamoto had fought the Quincy King a thousand years ago; he would never forget the sensation of that overwhelming power. He made a sharp hand gesture, signaling his deputy to notify the Department of Research and Development (SRDI) immediately and request support.
Yhwach had remained hidden for centuries, yet now he revealed himself voluntarily. The situation was definitely a trap.
The deputy was Furōfushi Saitō. The condition for Central 46 to release her from Muken was to accept the Head Captain's direct supervision until the mission ended, so she had been shadowing Yamamoto throughout the expedition.
She pulled out her Denreishinki, only to frown at the screen. "Old Man Yama, the signal is dead! It's being jammed!"
"As expected. He came prepared."
Yamamoto narrowed his eyes. For Yhwach to disable their communications, there was a high probability he was confident in his ability to deal with them here and now.
However, the SRDI had anticipated this scenario.
"How long until the next positioning signal synchronization?" Yamamoto asked without taking his eyes off the enemy.
The Denreishinki of the Hell Expeditionary Force were equipped with an automatic beacon that synchronized coordinate information every ten minutes. If a signal blackout occurred, the SRDI would immediately activate the emergency protocol and send reinforcements to the last known coordinates.
Genshirō Okikiba, the 3rd Seat of the 1st Division, checked his device. "Eight minutes left."
"Eight minutes..." Yamamoto gazed at Yhwach, who stood motionless on a hill of bone and ash. He slowly drew his Zanpakutō. "You all retreat immediately to the location of the last signal ping. Once you leave the jamming range, contact the SRDI."
Whoosh—
Without waiting for a response, Yamamoto vanished using Shunpo.
"Hey!" Saitō felt a surge of unease. After hesitating for a split second, she decided to disobey the retreat order—partially. She turned to the others. "You guys go! Get back to the beacon point!"
Their small team consisted of only five people. Apart from her and the Head Captain, the other three were seated officers of the 1st Division without Captain-class strength. Staying here would be suicide for them. It was better to send them out of the jamming zone to call for help.
"Be careful, Lady Saitō!" Okikiba nodded grimly and led the two others away at full speed.
Saitō turned around and flashed away, rushing toward the clash between Yamamoto and Yhwach.
The battle had already begun.
Yamamoto had no intention of exchanging pleasantries. The moment he appeared in front of Yhwach, he unleashed a horizontal slash aimed at the Quincy King's waist.
Yhwach reacted instantly, condensing a Heilig Pfeil (Holy Arrow) in his hand and swinging it like a dagger toward Yamamoto's chest.
Yamamoto shifted the trajectory of his blade mid-swing, knocking the Heilig Pfeil aside, and followed up with a second slash.
The speed of this strike was blinding, even faster than the first.
Yhwach's reaction speed was equally terrifying. He punched the flat side of the blade with a bare hand reinforced by Blut Vene, forcibly deviating the lethal cut.
At this moment, Saitō arrived. She utilized her immense physical strength to launch herself from a rock formation, appearing behind Yhwach and delivering a crushing kick to the back of his knee.
Yhwach's balance broke instantly, and he was forced down onto one knee.
Yamamoto didn't miss the golden opportunity; his blade descended like a guillotine.
At the same time, Saitō swung her own oversized blade in a pincer attack.
In desperation, Yhwach was forced to raise both arms to block the simultaneous strikes.
The Blut Vene protecting his arms shattered under the combined force.
Splurt—
Both of Yhwach's arms were severed cleanly by the Zanpakutō. However, the sacrifice bought him a sliver of reaction time.
Whoosh—
Yhwach used Hirenkyaku to retreat, putting distance between himself and the two Shinigami.
A cloud of Reishi gathered above his head. Countless threads of spirit energy hung down like puppeteer strings, connecting to his severed arms and reattaching them to his shoulders.
Ransōtengai!
Although Yhwach had lost both arms in the first exchange, Yamamoto felt a deep sense of wrongness.
It was too easy.
"Old Man Yama, we might actually win this?"
Saitō was also confused. They had only used Shikai, yet they had already driven the legendary Quincy King to this state?
Yamamoto stared intently at the figure before him and asked coldly, "Who are you, exactly?"
Yhwach didn't respond. Instead, another voice rang out from the shadows nearby.
"Bankai. Shōken Goun, Kaihi Gōka (Illuminating the Five Skandhas, Returning the Karma Fire). Gōkyō (Karma Mirror)."
A strange, ethereal light suddenly bathed the three combatants.
Splurt—
Without warning, a deep cut appeared on Yamamoto's right arm and Saitō's left arm. Blood sprayed as their severed limbs fell to the ground.
Meanwhile, Yhwach, whose arms had been severed just moments ago, was instantly restored to his original, unharmed state.
"As expected of Head Captain Yamamoto. This Reigai was almost hacked to death by you in an instant."
A figure wearing a hooded cloak stepped out from behind Yhwach.
The figure lowered his hood, revealing a face etched with gloom and sunken features. However, his eyes were a jarring, blood-red color that didn't match his sullen expression.
And in his hand, he held Ryūjin Jakka—the very sword Yamamoto had just dropped when his arm was severed.
"Chigiri Shijima?!"
Saitō exclaimed in shock.
Standing beside Yhwach was none other than the First Generation Captain of the 4th Division, Chigiri Shijima!
"Controlled by the Will of Hell!"
Shijima's deep red eyes reminded Yamamoto of Nobutsuna Gyōbu, another former comrade who had fallen under Hell's influence.
"A Reigai made by Miyamoto Tetsuya? How dare you mock me with a doll!" The fire in Yamamoto's remaining hand blazed; his anger had reached its boiling point.
He suddenly remembered that Miyamoto Tetsuya, the traitor allied with Yhwach, was the originator of the Reigai (Mod Soul) technology.
This "Yhwach" was nothing more than a high-level duplicate created by Tetsuya.
"That's right. Yhwach even shared a portion of his power with this Reigai. Otherwise, it probably would have been obliterated by your first slash," Shijima said softly, his voice devoid of emotion. "Even so, this puppet found it difficult to withstand your attacks."
Chigiri Shijima's Zanpakutō ability was terrifying: it could reflect injuries inflicted upon a target back to the attacker. However, the condition was strict—it had to be activated while the injured target was still alive.
If the Reigai had been killed instantly by Yamamoto's strike, the Bankai would have failed to reflect the damage.
"You appeared here to pin us down, didn't you?" Saitō growled as she quickly wrapped her severed stump with a hemostatic bandage from her kit. "Head Captain, their true target is the Seal Site! This is a diversion!"
Shijima's ability was tricky, but his raw power was inferior to both hers and Yamamoto's. Relying only on himself and a weakened copy of Yhwach, it was impossible to defeat the two of them in a straight fight.
His goal was simply to stall them.