West District 1.
Outside the walls of Seireitei, everything lay in disarray. The traces at the scene alone made it clear that a fierce battle had taken place here not long ago.
The ground was covered in bloodstains. Jidanbō lay in the middle of the street, his left arm severed at the shoulder, while more than a dozen residents used ropes to hold the arm in place against the wound.
"Sōten Kisshun, I reject!"
Orihime Inoue stood to one side and called out. Two tiny points of light immediately flew from her hairpins, circling Jidanbō's left arm as they spread a golden barrier that completely enclosed his severed limb.
The next second, an uproar rose from the watching crowd.
The completely severed arm began healing at a speed visible to the naked eye... No, rather than healing, it felt as though time itself was reversing around the wound.
Meanwhile, under the elder's direction, the remaining residents began clearing the battlefield in an orderly fashion.
As they worked, everyone could not help discussing what had happened earlier.
"That orange-haired youngster really is amazing. He actually managed to smash Lord Jidanbō's axe."
"Indeed! Not many people can make Lord Jidanbō admit defeat so wholeheartedly that he makes an exception and opens the Byakudō Gate for them. Even Boss Duan Mu never got Lord Jidanbō to make an exception."
"Boss Duan Mu didn't need one. He has a Pass Token, after all. And I heard Jidanbō mention that Boss Duan Mu once forced his way through the Spirit Gate. Though he didn't go through the Byakudō Gate, but the Black Mausoleum Gate in the north. Supposedly, he defeated the guards with one strike and lifted the Black Mausoleum Gate with one hand."
"Come on, even boasting has to make sense. I admit Boss