Having discussed Hell, let's now take a look at Soul Society.
More than half a year ago, Chun approached the current Expedition leader, Shūsuke Amagai, giving him a chance for revenge, but Shūsuke Amagai did not contact the Endless Sea, clearly indicating that he did not want to take this path.
So whatever his thoughts were, Chun's predictions about the Soul Society were always correct. The Expedition team soon discovered that the Senkaimon was unusually open, and many people were escaping from the Soul Society.
These people brought news from the Soul Society: a catastrophe is brewing in the Soul Society.
The incident began with the Battle of Karakura Town, where the Captain-Commander was defeated and severely injured. Fortunately, he was rescued in time and brought back to Soul Society. This period coincided with the time when Aizen left the World of the Living and Jun and the others moved to Hueco Mundo.
Kenpachi Zaraki, Soi Fon, Byakuya, and Rangiku followed them into Hueco Mundo. Mayuri Kurotsuchi was already in Hueco Mundo at the time, Unohana was in Soul Society, and the remaining captains were all in the World of the Living. The situation among these captains was also not good.
The new captain of the Third Division is dead again, the new captain of the Fifth Division, Tōgō Kō, has lost an arm, and the Seventh Division's Big Dog Sajin Komamura is covered in wounds but can still stand; his vitality is truly remarkable.
Eighth Division Captain Shunsui Kyōraku, who had been mostly inactive, finally took things seriously this time. However, he was facing Grimmjow, and the biggest difference between him and the original Starrk was that the current Grimmjow didn't engage in direct combat.
Kyōraku and Ukitake were both overpowered by Grimmjow alone. Ukitake suffered two cuts in his chest and back from Grimmjow, but his injuries weren't too bad. And it wasn't just them; Love Aikawa, Kensei Muguruma, and Chōjirō Sasakibe —five people in total—were also being suppressed by Grimmjow.
The new captain of the Ninth Division is Shūhei Shūhei Hisagi. Because his attack style is ranged, he and Soi Fon were engaged with Baraggan, but Baraggan ended up melting his sword. He didn't suffer physical injuries, but the psychological trauma was Kongbu.
Kuruyashiki Kenpachi's sword was also destroyed by Aizen, but Kuruyashiki had grasped the true meaning of the Heartspirit, so his sword could be restored. However, Shūhei Hisagi Shūhei didn't have that ability.
Tōshirō Hitsugaya the Tenth Division Ichigen. He went straight for Aizen in a one-on-one fight, acting like a madman. The result was predictable: his injuries were more severe than the Captain-Commander's. Rangiku, on the other hand, had been solely focused on keeping her captain alive and hadn't done anything else.
Before Jun and the others arrived, Kenpachi Zaraki and Byakuya faced Felix together. Of the two, Byakuya could control the situation, Zaraki originally wanted to fight Grimmjow again, but Felix was too strange, so he had no choice but to rely on his beast-like instincts to capture the elusive Felix.
In order to deal with Baraggan, Soi Fon unleashed her cannon, a method different from the one that had been tested on her before —the Suzumebachi Raikōben). However, given the circumstances, she had no other options.
After these people left, Ōtoribashi and others remained in the World of the Living. Since they couldn't Hollowfication Mask Fusion, they didn't go to Hueco Mundo. However, one person who could Hollowfication Mask Fusion remained: Mashiro Kuna.
Mashiro Kuna still harbored a deep grudge against Kensei Muguruma, so after Aizen and the others left, Mashiro Kuna immediately launched an attack on Kensei Muguruma.
Even Kensei Muguruma and Love Aikawa combined were no match for Mashiro Kuna, who possessed the ability to Hollowfication Mask Fusion. The difference in Reiatsu was too great, and besides, they had been beaten up by Grimmjow for a long time before, so their Spiritual Pool energy was running low.
Then Chōjirō Sasakibe, who had fought alongside him, joined the battle and tried to dissuade Mashiro Kuna. Chōjirō Sasakibe was the Vice-Captain of the First Division, more senior than everyone else combined. He appealed to Mashiro Kuna's sense of justice and genuine emotion, persuading him to turn back from his wrong path.
At this moment, Mashiro Kuna had never been more convinced of the truth of Soul Society? Why should I condone the murderer after my friend was killed? Wasn't my friend human?!
Mashiro Kuna asked the question, but Chōjirō Sasakibe gave a shocking answer.
"How can a traitor who betrays Soul Society still be considered human? As long as you still have your hearts set on Soul Society, we will always be your comrades."
Wow, Chōjirō Sasakibe! When the conversation reached this point, it was already decided that the war had to escalate. Mashiro Kuna's enemies were no longer just Kensei Muguruma, but now the Soul Society.
The battle resumed, Mashiro Kuna single-handedly suppressed more than three people. Kyōraku Ukitake and Big Dog had no choice but to come and help. These three were suffering, as Sasakibe's words had deeply upset them. Even Big Dog couldn't stand such a sense of right and wrong.
At this moment, Rōjūrō Ōtoribashi and the other Visoreds also let go of their deepest concerns. For many of them, their greatest Heart Demon was actually betraying Soul Society, but now they had all let go of that.
Of course, it wouldn't be enough to instantly grant them enlightenment and allow them to merge with the Hollowfication Mask, but when facing the Soul Reapers of Soul Society, they would no longer feel any psychological burden as enemies.
The battle finally stopped when Unohana arrived from Soul Society. Unohana didn't go too far; she only used her Asauchi to exchange blows with Mashiro Kuna. Mashiro Kuna, with his fused Hollowfication Mask, couldn't even scratch Unohana after dozens of moves.
"Stop it. We can settle any grudges later. Don't delay my rescue."
Retsu Unohana took it a little seriously, Mashiro Kuna seemed to see a prehistoric beast, a natural enemy. Under this pressure, Mashiro Kuna gave up, realizing that he really couldn't defeat Kensei Muguruma this time.
This is where it all began. After both sides returned to their respective homes, the problems in Soul Society began to escalate.
First, there's the threat posed by Jun, brought back by Soi Fon and that Fatso Ōmaeda. Jun wants to pursue the matter of the Kakyō incident from years ago, and he even defeated the Captain-Commander. What should we do now?
Secondly, even if Jun Shimizu and Aizen defeat the Captain-Commander together, the stabilizing force will be broken, and Jun Shimizu's power is now clearly unimaginably strong. What should be done?
Third, Byakuya Kuchiki, Shunsui Kyōraku, and Jūshirō Ukitake, who were close to Jun Shimizu, were not seriously injured in this battle, while everyone else was badly wounded.
Fourth, there's no need to worry about the rankings anymore. The most important question now is: how will Soul Society face and deal with Jun Shimizu?
The tide had turned, the Captain-Commander had been defeated; these two events occurred simultaneously, and Soul Society had finally encountered something unprecedented in history—something called...
A sense of crisis!
The Soul Society has always been the sole superpower, and there has never been any long-term pressure from it. All enemies facing the Soul Society choose to confront it head-on. In fact, they have no choice but to confront it directly, because without crippling the Captain-Commander, this sense of crisis will never arise.
Things are different now. The Captain-Commander was defeated, and Jun doesn't explicitly intend to attack, but Jun has said that he plans to destroy Soul Society in the future.
It's like two companies. One company was originally the best, but now another company suddenly appears and is about to acquire it. How could the company not be in chaos?
People will definitely want to know: what's the background of this new company? How is it so powerful? What will its personnel model be after the acquisition? Will there be layoffs? If so, how many people will be laid off? Am I qualified to stay? Do I have anyone in my current company who knows the new owner? Can I pull some strings?
Now, the Soul Society is starting to learn about Jun's story, which was impossible before. Jun actively spread his ideas, but no one paid attention to him. But now? Everyone is trying to find ways to understand Jun's ideas.
After being exposed to the ideals of purity, the students trained by Kakyō and Tōsen —these new generation of young Soul Reaper —immediately became restless, especially after learning that Kakyō and Tōsen were the first to come into contact with the ideals of purity; they were pioneers.
The ensuing questions are: Why did the Pioneers die? Why did Jun and Tōsen leave Soul Society?
This kind of thinking cannot exist in Soul Society; if it did, all the ills of Soul Society would be completely exposed. But that's precisely Jun's purpose, and now it has finally begun.
Once this situation arises, and a transformation of thought begins from the grassroots, nothing can stop it. In this state, ideas become the most Kongbu thing; this is what is meant by momentum.
Once a momentum takes hold, it can no longer be suppressed by ordinary violence. At such times, what is needed is the mindset of a demon king, the courage to overturn the table and start over. In this situation, if it were Nobunaga Oda, he would surely slaughter the entire Soul Society. But does Yamamoto have that kind of courage?
Yamamoto Genryūsai was a warrior, and only a warrior. In essence, he had no administrative ability whatsoever. From Yhwach's invasion to the start of the Thousand-Year War, what kind of Soul Society did he develop and witness over a thousand years?
In a way, he even forced the Soul Society to retreat, because a thousand years ago, when Yhwach invaded, the Soul Society devised a way to eventually seal Yhwach away. However, without Ichigo Kurosaki during the Thousand-Year War, the Soul Society would have been lost.
However, Ichigo Kurosaki was also created by Aizen, not by the Soul Society itself. So, fundamentally, it was Aizen saved the Soul Society, not the Soul Society itself.
This is the level of a martial artist, but they have a high opinion of themselves. The only reason is that Soul Society has no external enemies and no pressure. Now, facing the pressure that has emerged, the greatest test for Soul Society has arrived.
And their response was exactly as expected: suppression! Trial! Punishment! Kill a few leaders, and lock up or release the rest as needed, giving them a stern warning so they would understand that Soul Society has mercy, it also has its limits!
But does this solve the problem? Pure has provided the only solution: a do-or-die approach. The Soul Society is not facing a small disturbance, but a full-blown war!
Finally, an even greater rebellion erupted. One of the members of the Twelfth Division opened Senkaimon, and countless people escaped through Senkaimon to the Expedition Force. The Expedition Force was a purely established force, an entity capable of protecting them.
Hunting, intercepting, confronting. Escaping, pursuing, sheltering. Resisting, annihilating, then resisting again.
In just six months, the Expedition force had grown by more than 500 people, while the total number of Soul Reaper in Soul Society was only a little over 3,000. With one-sixth of the Soul Reaper having fled, what was the state of Soul Society now?