Tsunayoshi threw out all three fish-dragon daggers.
They swam through the air like three darting fish. He used the daggers like throwing knives, and every curve they traced through the air became another attack against Inaba.
Swish, swish, swish.
The fish-dragon daggers rapidly stabbed back and forth through Inaba's body several times, almost turning him into a sieve. Yet Inaba did not care at all.
Under the high-temperature flames covering him through Zanjitsu Gokui, his body had also become part of the flames. This ability, similar to elementalization, allowed Inaba to fearlessly ignore Tsunayoshi's dagger attacks.
It was not that Tsunayoshi had failed to attach Rain-attribute Flame to the fish-dragon daggers. It was just that The spiritual pressure contained within Zanjitsu Gokui was immense. The small amount of Rain-attribute Flame on the daggers could only slow the repair of the holes in Inaba's body. It was not enough to kill him.
Old Man Yamamoto's techniques really are troublesome. Looks like I need another method.
"This method no longer has any effect on me. Show me your true strength, Sawada Tsunayoshi!"
Inaba's tone was filled with anger. His eyes locked tightly onto the two longswords on Tsunayoshi's back. Those, surely, were Tsunayoshi's true power.
"Old man, is Tsunayoshi really going to be fine?"
Ichigo moved closer to Yamamoto and asked. He and the others had never seen the battle between Tsunayoshi and Yamamoto.
After sensing the Reiatsu of Zanjitsu Gokui, Ichigo felt strangely uncertain. He felt that if he were the one up there, he truly would not be able to handle Zanjitsu Gokui. Remembering that this was Yamamoto's technique, Ichigo came over to ask him.
"Don't worry, Little Ichigo. Tsunayoshi's Rain swordsmanship is even stronger than the Captain-Commander's."
Unexpectedly, before Yamamoto could answer, a gentle voice spoke first.
Looking closely, Retsu Unohana had appeared beside them at some unknown point. Her eyes were fixed on Tsunayoshi's back, her face wearing a sickly, fanatical expression.
"Captain Unohana, are you saying that this old man cannot defeat Sawada Tsunayoshi?"
Yamamoto opened his eyes by a narrow slit and glanced at Unohana. He was not displeased. He merely wanted to know why Unohana had such confidence in Tsunayoshi.
Judging from Byakuran's words, Sawada Tsunayoshi was clearly using this form's power for the first time. On what basis was Unohana so confident in his strength?
"The sword style Tsunayoshi uses is Shigure Sōen Ryū. In Tsunayoshi's hands, that style has already become a sword art he can create and shape at will."
"Every time I cross blades with him, he always gives me a new surprise."
Unohana held her face in her hands and said:
"I'm so excited. I wonder what kind of powerful technique this Rain Transcendent Bankai will produce."
"Captain-Commander, Tsunayoshi's creativity and unpredictability are both far above yours."
Yamamoto did not even need to look to know what Unohana was thinking.
This woman, who loved killing with bare steel, had probably already set her sights on Tsunayoshi's Rain-attribute Transcendent Bankai.
Thinking this, Yamamoto could not help reminding her:
"Unohana, raise your Zanpakutō's recognition of you as soon as possible. Only battles on the same level can bring ultimate pleasure."
Yamamoto was mainly worried that Unohana would foolishly challenge Tsunayoshi to a duel. Transcendent Bankai was an extreme power. If Tsunayoshi failed to hold back, his Gotei Thirteen would lose one of its top fighters.
Interrupted by Yamamoto's words, Unohana's joyful expression was immediately stained with worry. How could she not understand the effect of a gap in strength?
Thinking of her Zanpakutō, dressed in green robes, gave Unohana a headache. She was a madwoman, and her own Zanpakutō was no less mad. Who knew how long it would take to cultivate a Transcendent Bankai?
Woof.
A dog's bark pulled Unohana's thoughts back.
An Akita had appeared where Tsunayoshi had originally been, barking loudly. Tsunayoshi himself, meanwhile, had arrived in front of Inaba.
He drew the blade with his left hand.
Then he slashed down.
With a sizzling sound, a large amount of white steam immediately rose from Inaba's body. Tsunayoshi's slash, which contained Rain-attribute Flame, was blocked by the extreme heat of Zanjitsu Gokui and instantly evaporated into vapor.
Even so, the strike startled Inaba.
Just a little.
It had only been by a little that Tsunayoshi's blade had failed to pass through Zanjitsu Gokui and cut into his body.
Originally, under the effect of Zanjitsu Gokui, Inaba's body had entered a nearly elementalized state. But at the instant Tsunayoshi slashed just now, a large amount of Rain-attribute Flame had locally tranquilized Inaba's body.
Because of that, when Tsunayoshi's blade fell, the portion of Inaba's body that was struck was forcibly suppressed by the power of tranquility. In that instant, across the thin line of the slash, the power of Zanjitsu Gokui was suppressed, and that part of his body reverted to flesh.
In other words, as long as Tsunayoshi wanted to, he could still harm Inaba by attaching Rain-attribute Flame to his attacks.
It would not be fatal.
But it would hurt.
What if Sawada Tsunayoshi cut him hundreds or thousands of times and actually found his Modified Soul?
No. Even Zanjitsu Gokui was no longer stable.
After a burst of flashing movements, Inaba retreated. He no longer dared to let Tsunayoshi approach him lightly. In just a single exchange, Inaba had become afraid.
Tsunayoshi did not choose to pursue him. Instead, he looked at the left-hand katana in his hand, seemingly thinking about something.
Just now, he had borrowed the intimidating power of the Rain Dog to slow Inaba's mind. He had wanted to test the power of Zanjitsu Gokui.
Originally, he had not expected that slash to achieve anything, but unexpectedly, he had really discovered something.
Inaba's Zanjitsu Gokui was far weaker than Yamamoto's.
Tsunayoshi was certain of it. Against Zanjitsu Gokui, which approached the temperature of the sun, the Rain-attribute Flame on his blade should have evaporated before it even touched Inaba.
There was no way such a large amount of steam should have appeared.
The only explanation was that Inaba's power had not reached the required standard.
That was fine too.
Inaba could no longer stir up any real waves. Taking him down was only a matter of time. Tsunayoshi could now slowly test the power of this Transcendent Bankai.
Inaba still did not know that Tsunayoshi had already regarded him as a sandbag. His mind was still turning, trying to find a technique that could deal with Tsunayoshi.
There it was.
If he did not want to fight Tsunayoshi in close combat, he could send a suicide squad to do it instead.
Zanka no Tachi was turned upside down. A sea of fire spread from the tip of the blade, and skeletons awakened within the flames.
South: Kaka Jūmanokushi Daisōjin.
The essence of this technique was to awaken the dead who had perished under Yamamoto's blade. However, as Yamamoto's duplicate, this body had not spilled much blood at all. Logically speaking, it should not have been able to awaken many dead.
But Inaba found another way.
It did not matter that this body had not killed many people. What he awakened were the Modified Souls used to drive Zanka no Tachi.
The skeletal frames were draped in humanoid appearances. They were unmistakably members of the current Gotei Thirteen—or rather, Inaba's copied Gotei Thirteen.
Inaba had awakened the Modified Souls he had created and then personally crushed.
These Modified Souls had vacant eyes. After fully appearing, they raised their Zanpakutō like zombies and charged toward Tsunayoshi along roads built from flame.
The three fish-dragon daggers guarded Tsunayoshi, and with the left-hand katana in his grasp, not a single dead soul could get close to him.
Without exception, every one of them was reduced back into ash by flashes of blade-light and the Rain attribute's tranquility as soon as they neared Tsunayoshi.
"Is this all?"
Tsunayoshi asked somewhat boredly.
Inaba's flames were not condensed enough. He could not use them to recreate the powers these dead souls had possessed in life. These dead, who seemed so vivid and lifelike, were no different from identical skeletons.
Inaba's expression also looked terrible.
If East: Kyokujitsujin and West: Zanjitsu Gokui had not shown any obvious differences at a glance, then South: Kaka Jūmanokushi Daisōjin was the most direct proof of the gap between his Zanka no Tachi and Yamamoto's.
An endless charge of mere skeletons could not be considered one of Yamamoto's techniques at all.
He should have been able to use fire to recreate their powers from when they were alive.
Ash gradually piled into a small mound beneath Tsunayoshi's feet. Inaba understood that this so-called army of the dead could not threaten Tsunayoshi in the slightest. His eyes shifted, and another idea formed in his mind.
Tsunayoshi could defeat these dead souls, but that did not mean the others could handle them so easily.
Right now, because of the Rain-attribute Flame's intervention, the temperature in Soul Society had gradually stabilized. Inaba did not mind adding more fuel to the fire.
If he pulled Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto's Zanka no Tachi into this battle as well, Inaba refused to believe that Tsunayoshi could calm the power of two Zanka no Tachi at once.
Even Inaba himself did not realize that, before he knew it, his desire to destroy Soul Society by himself had completely faded.
The current him only wanted to extract more rotten debts from Soul Society before his death.
Seeing the dead souls coming toward them, Ichigo and the others all tightened their grip on their weapons.
Watching was one thing. They could not allow their own side to affect Tsunayoshi's battle.
"Relax. That man will not allow this kind of battle to affect the people around him."
Unohana kept both hands tucked in her sleeves and showed no intention of acting at all.
"Ichigo, trust Tsunayoshi."
Tatsuki suddenly spoke. Her expression was incomparably firm. Like Unohana, she had her arms folded across her chest and had no intention of making a move.
Ichigo felt as though he had been surrounded by some inexplicable aura. He could only lower Tensa Zangetsu, which he had already raised. Even so, his hand remained tightly gripping the hilt, ready to attack at any moment.
After realizing that Inaba intended to spread the skeletons outward, a trace of seriousness finally appeared on Tsunayoshi's face.
Inaba had spread the battlefield very wide. If Tsunayoshi only used swords to cut them down one by one, some of the dead would definitely escape.
Tsunayoshi needed a large-area attack.
His gaze fell on the left-hand katana. Sensing what Tsunayoshi intended, Jirō rubbed against the back of Tsunayoshi's hand twice.
Then let's test the ultimate Rain-attribute power after fusion.
With a thought from Tsunayoshi, Jirō immediately leapt down from the sword hilt. It stood on all fours in midair and raised its head to howl.
Awooo!
Tsunayoshi did not know why Jirō, clearly a dog, let out a wolf-like howl. But he could clearly sense that with Jirō's cry, the moisture in the air rapidly condensed above his head.
A deep-blue radiance rose from the left-hand katana.
Tsunayoshi gripped it with both hands and raised it above his head. The ultimate Rain-attribute Flame shot straight into the sky. At that moment, all moisture was assimilated into rain and accumulated above Tsunayoshi's head.
The veins on Tsunayoshi's hands bulged.
Never before had he felt the left-hand katana become so heavy. It was as though he were carrying a great cauldron, and inside that cauldron was the ultimate rain after assimilation.
As Tsunayoshi moved, the Reiatsu produced by the Transcendent Bankai was finally sensed by everyone.
Inaba's expression darkened even further. Vaguely, he even felt that Zanka no Tachi's power could not compare to the other side's.
How is that possible?
Inaba immediately denied that absurd thought in his heart.
This was the power he had created by investing all of his Modified Souls.
If he had to blame someone, then he could only blame Yamamoto's power for being inadequate. It was being suppressed by Sawada Tsunayoshi, and that was all. It definitely was not because there was any problem with Inaba's research ability!
After shifting the blame to Yamamoto, Inaba rapidly pushed the dead souls to spread outward, while he himself, still wearing Zanjitsu Gokui, quietly took half a step back.
He could not keep playing with Sawada Tsunayoshi anymore.
He had to use Yamamoto's Shunpo to quickly destroy Soul Society. Otherwise, he might truly end up accomplishing nothing.
Because of the power Tsunayoshi had displayed, Inaba changed his plans once again.
At the very moment Inaba retreated that half-step, Tsunayoshi's left-hand katana came slashing down fiercely.
In an instant, torrential rain poured down.
All chaotic noise vanished.
The only sound that could be heard was the sound of rain.
Dense, countless raindrops formed a white curtain between heaven and earth. Within the downpour, nothing could be seen.
A powerful sense of separation filled everyone's senses.
The rain zone perfectly covered the entirety of South: Kaka Jūmanokushi Daisōjin. Yet where Ichigo and the others stood, there was not even the slightest trace of moisture.
It was as though a gap had opened in the heavenly river.
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