Starting with Kengan beating up the Pirate King

Chapter 224 Feint to the East, Attack in the West!

"There's been an inexplicable tension in the Seireitei lately. Is it because of Captain Aizen? It's been more than three months already."

Walking on the streets of Seireitei, Rukia Kuchiki still found it hard to adjust to the somewhat desolate scene around her. She sighed inwardly. The arrest and detention of Captain Aizen, who had an excellent reputation, without any evidence had indeed caused a great uproar.

I vividly remember three months ago, when the incident first occurred, the Seireitei members were almost divided into two factions. One faction strongly supported the Captain-Commander and the other captains' decision, believing that Captain Aizen was guilty.

The other side naturally felt that the conviction of a captain should at least be fair and transparent, with evidence proving Captain Aizen's guilt.

In the midst of the argument, neither side could convince the other. Subsequently, the captains of each squad could only force their members to stop discussing the matter, which completely destroyed the originally good atmosphere of Seireitei.

Walking down the street, you can hardly see any smiling faces; every soldier seems to be in a hurry.

And for some reason, Rukia felt that the Seireitei was particularly oppressive today, with a sense of impending storm.

Is it just my imagination?

call out--

Just then, a jolt of electricity suddenly surged through Rukia's mind. She paused, but thanks to her excellent Kido skills, she quickly realized: "This is... Binding Spell Number Seventy-Seven, Heavenly Void? Who activated it? Why? What message needs to be disseminated throughout the entire Seireitei?!"

An ominous premonition seemed to be coming true, and sure enough, the next moment Rukia heard a voice echoing throughout the entire Seireitei: "This is Retsu Unohana, the captain of the Fourth Division. I am issuing an urgent highest alert to the entire Seireitei."

The highest alert order?!
"Upon investigation, there is concrete evidence that Aizen Sousuke, the captain of the Fifth Division, colluded with Hueco Mundo, and that he had two accomplices: Gin Ichimaru, the captain of the Third Division, and Kaname Tōsen, the captain of the Ninth Division."

Their motives are currently unknown, but their actions constitute the most egregious crime of defection!

Unohana Retsu's voice was devoid of emotion, yet it struck the sky like a heavy hammer, echoing in the hearts of every member of the Gotei 13.

"The following orders are hereby issued: All squads shall immediately enter a state of high alert. All leave is hereby cancelled, and all soldiers shall return to their units. A special force consisting of Squad Leader Byakuya Kuchiki, Squad Leader Soi Fon, Squad Leader Sajin Komamura, and Squad Leader Toshiro Hitsugaya shall be dispatched immediately to capture or annihilate the defector. The remaining squads shall hold their positions at key points of the Seireitei and guard against any possible enemy attacks that may be used to support the defector."

"above."

The order was clear and ruthless, completely dispelling the hesitation and uncertainty in the hearts of the soldiers.

A few seconds later, alarms sounded everywhere, and the barrier team began to strengthen the protective barrier of Seireitei. The entire Seireitei started running like a machine that had been suddenly wound up.

Rukia suppressed the turmoil in her heart, forced herself to calm down, and quickly returned to the 13th Division barracks—Captain Gin Ichimaru and Captain Kaname Tosen? Why so suddenly?!
……

Yes, it was so sudden.

Just three seconds before Unohana Retsu's voice echoed, Ichimaru Gin was leisurely drinking tea, enjoying the afternoon time spent with Matsumoto Rangiku.

Upon hearing the announcement from the entire Seireitei, he was momentarily stunned. His hand, holding the teacup, trembled slightly as he murmured to himself, 'Captain Aizen, this isn't how you predicted. Has that human sent some kind of evidence to the Captain-Commander again?'

Not far from him, Matsumoto Rangiku, who had been lying carefree on the wooden walkway, heard this message, and her expression changed several times in just three seconds—from bewilderment to disbelief, to doubt, and finally to determination.

With a whoosh, Rangiku drew her sword and placed it against Gin Ichimaru's neck in the next instant.

"Yin, what's going on?"

Gin Ichimaru regained his composure and then smiled slightly, saying, "Rangiku, sometimes I really wish you could be a bit like Vice-Captain Hinamori."

Vice Captain Hinamori Momo?

Rangiku paused, then understood what Ichimaru Gin meant—after Aizen was captured, the person he trusted most and who worked tirelessly for him was Hinamori Momo. She had never considered the possibility that Aizen was truly a traitor, and this had caused several uproars in Seireitei because of it.

Yes, even Vice-Captain Hinamori trusts Aizen so much, how can I not even trust Gin?
A brief moment of distraction caused her to lose her grip on the sword, so Gin Ichimaru gently grabbed her hand, pushed the sword away, and used Shunpo to move away into the distance.

Matsumoto Rangiku's pupils contracted slightly as she saw Ichimaru Gin, who had moved a short distance away, smile gently at her and say, "Just kidding. I still admire your personality more. Although I'd like to be held captive by you a little longer, it would be a bit bad if I were captured like Captain Aizen."

clang--

In the next instant, Gin Ichimaru drew his Zanpakuto and parried a slash that came from the side.

Squad 10 Captain Toshiro Hitsugaya appeared instantly, brandishing his sword and attacking Gin Ichimaru, shouting, "Rangiku, don't just stand there! This is the Captain-Commander's 'Supreme Alert Order'!"

Matsumoto Rangiku's grip on her sword tightened as Kuchiki Byakuya appeared in the distance. 'Were the captains called up ahead of time? So…' Matsumoto Rangiku gritted her teeth, staring at the man who remained nonchalant during his fight with Hitsugaya Toshiro: 'Gin, why?!'

……

"Why?! Tosen!"

Kashiwamura Sajin, who had surrounded Tosen Kaname in collaboration with Soi Fon, also raised the same question.

His response was Tosen's silence and the way he slowly drew his sword.

Kashiwamura Sajin was even more heartbroken: "Why is this?! Tosen! Is the justice we uphold truly worthless in your eyes?!"

Beside him, Soi Fon's eyes were sharp as needles, filled with a chilling killing intent towards the traitor. She had no patience to listen to Kashiwamura Sajin's conversation with the traitor, and simply said in a low voice, "Captain Kashiwamura, if you can't bear to take action, please don't get in the way. The Commander-in-Chief's orders are very clear!"

"No, I know what's important."

Bai Cun Zuo Zhen drew his sword and faced Dong Xian Yao, saying, "Since you refuse to answer, then I have no choice but to draw my sword against you, Dong Xian!"

bang——

The battle also began here.

……

Just as the Seireitei was under martial law and launching an arrest operation against Gin Ichimaru and Kaname Tōsen, many figures were silently watching the battle from the shadows of the Seireitei.

The Quincy, with their annihilation power, the spiritual space they built over a thousand years, and the invisible empire, exist in relation to the Seireitei, yet belong to another space. They can completely shield their spiritual pressure, so even if the Quincy act at will, the Shinigami cannot detect them.

Yhwach sat on his throne, watching all of this with an expression of amusement as if it were a farce.

In that battle nearly a thousand years ago, he was almost killed by Captain-Commander Yamamoto. It took him 900 years to regain his heartbeat and another 90 years to regain consciousness.

In other words, it has only been six years since he regained consciousness, and he has only heard about everything in Seireitei from his subordinates.

Aizen's actions deceived the Shinigami of Seireitei, but not the Quincy lurking in the shadows. Yhwach had initially thought Aizen was someone of importance after hearing about his deeds, but now he seemed to see him as nothing more than a mediocre talent.

The plot was in danger of being exposed, yet he simply withdrew himself, leaving two of his subordinates behind in Seireitei?
Yamamoto Shigekuni, who has been the Captain-Commander for a thousand years, has become far more soft-hearted than before. He received a report around the same time, but only because he doubted the source of the report, he delayed for three months? If Aizen Sousuke hadn't been so secretive, these two Shinigami captains would have already escaped to Hueco Mundo!
Ha, such an opponent is so ugly it's hard to look at. Three more years to reclaim all my power, and then…

Boom! Boom boom boom!!!

Just then, a series of explosions suddenly echoed from all directions, and the throne beneath Yhwach began to shake violently.

"What... happened?"

Why could the tremors from the Seireitei reach the Wandenreich? Wait, the Spirit Space is...

"His Majesty!"

Urgent cries came at the same time as an even more violent tremor emanating from the throne.

A member of the Sternritter appeared at the entrance of the hall, looking somewhat anxious: "Multiple 'Shadow Anchors' have been attacked by unknown forces! Spatial stability is rapidly declining! The technical unit reports... the attacks originated from within the Seireitei, but... but they were not random; they were precisely targeted at all the main entrances and key support nodes of the Wandenreich!"

"..."

Yhwach fell silent for a moment, then looked at the two battles taking place in the Seireitei, and at the various divisions entering martial law and guarding key routes. His expression suddenly turned extremely gloomy.

No wonder they could have secretly arrested the two, but instead they made such a big fuss.

Well done, truly well done.

"Yamamoto Shigekuni!"

A roar came from between his teeth.

(End of this chapter)