The Execution Begins

At Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto's command, the ropes that sealed the giant spear were untied, revealing the instrument of torture itself.

Spiritual pressure began to spiral and converge towards the spear, which then rose into the sky and rotated towards Rukia, its tip pointing Rukia.

By this time, the instruments of torture had gathered enough spiritual pressure, and the spear Shikai. A giant bird made of spiritual pressure appeared out of thin air, with its head positioned at the tip of the spear.

The giant bird circled the Sōkyoku with great excitement. It had been so long since it had enjoyed the freedom of liberation. This giant bird was called the Destroyer King. It was usually sealed inside the spear and was only released when the Soul Society used the Sōkyoku Execution on the squads.

The Destroyer King hovered before Rukia, its wings flapping incessantly, awaiting the executioner's final command.

Feeling the terrifying spiritual pressure Rukia's palms began to sweat. She didn't know if Ichigo and the others could make it in time, and even if they did, could they really handle the Destroyer King, who possessed the destructive power of a million Zanpakuto?

Rukia hesitated. This was her last chance. Should she trust Ichigo or struggle with her own conscience? What should she do?

At this moment, all the captains watching the ceremony paid their respects to the enormous Destroyer King in the sky, but three of them were not so well-behaved.

Kurotsuchi Mayuri was smiling as he took notes in his notebook. Opportunities to witness the Sōkyoku Execution up close were rare, and he wanted to take this chance to record data that interested him.

Kurotsuchi Mayuri's hands flew across the paper as he took notes, but his eyes never glanced at the notebook. Instead, he had an eye on the wrist of the hand holding the pen, indicating that he had modified his hand so that he could record the data he needed without wasting any energy.

Kenpachi Zaraki stretched his arms, looking at the terrifying power of the Destroyer King in the sky. He really wanted to slash at it to see how strong it was. If it weren't for the fact that Ikkaku and Yumichika had repeatedly told him not to interfere with the execution, he probably would have already grabbed his sword and slashed at it.

The last one was Byakuya Kuchiki, who was in the center of the group. His hand was already quietly resting on the hilt of his sword. Although Tsuna had told him that Rukia Kuchiki would be alright, he couldn't help but feel nervous.

What if those Ryoka can't arrive in time? What if the Ryoka can't stop the Destroyer King? Wouldn't Rukia be in danger? Hisana Kuchiki's entrustment and the rules of Soul Society were constantly battling in Byakuya Kuchiki's heart. Byakuya was the most conflicted person on Sogyoku Hill at this moment.

Seeing that the instruments of torture had been removed, Sasakibe consulted Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto and, after receiving Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto's approval, shouted, "Execute!"

As the order to execute was given, Rukia closed her eyes with difficulty, determined to take control of her own destiny.

Just as Byakuya was about to grasp his Zanpakuto, Kyōraku nudged his shoulder. Prompted by Kyōraku, Byakuya looked towards the execution rack. There, standing next to Rukia, was an orange-haired man carrying a large sword, his cloak fluttering in the wind under the pressure of the Destroyer King's spiritual pressure.

"It's been a long time, Rukia!"

Following the familiar voice, Rukia realized that Ichigo was already standing beside her. Suddenly, she couldn't control her emotions, and two streams of tears welled up in her eyes. She pouted and said, "You're too late, you idiot!"

"It's not too late, I'll get you out right away."

A flash of light, and Zangetsu the restraints Rukia with a single strike. Because of the large sword on her shoulder, Rukia casually held Rukia like Ichigo pet, the gust of wind revealing her Shinigami Uniform hidden beneath her cloak. (This scene is too iconic to delete.)

Enjoying the fierce winds blown by the Destroyer King, Rukia anxiously shouted, "Run! You idiot!"

If she weren't completely defenseless, Rukia would have kicked Ichigo right now. Saving him and then posing for a photo—does he really think he's so cool?

Ichigo's sudden intrusion caused the execution to pause for a moment. After hearing the angry thud of Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto's cane, Sasakibe realized that he had controlled Ichigo and Rukia them flying over.

Ichigo paid no heed to Rukia's warning, instead sporting an excited smile. His strength had increased too much in the past two days. Ichigo and Kenpachi Zaraki standing below shared the same mentality: they couldn't wait to personally test the power of these so-called million Zanpakuto.

Ichigo Zangetsu high, let out a powerful shout, and swung Zangetsu down with all his might, "Getsuga Tensho!!!"

The enormous golden crescent moon and the giant bird Destroyer King collided at close range. To Ichigo's astonishment, this so-called giant bird, which supposedly possessed the power of a million Zanpakuto, was cleaved in two by Ichigo's crescent moon.

The soaring momentum of the Destroyer King instantly plummeted, its bird body cleaved in two by the Getsuga Tensho. Its spiritual pressure could no longer maintain the bird's shape and transformed back into a spear.

However, this was a spear shattered into dozens of pieces, with even the spearhead broken into three sections, and it no longer posed any threat.

Ichigo was a bit dumbfounded. Before they came, Urahara and Yoruichi had been explaining to him how terrifying the Destroyer King was and how powerful a million Zanpakuto were, so they told Ichigo not to hold back and to go all out.

Therefore, Ichigo's Getsuga Tensho was his strongest attack in his Shikai state, but he was still prepared to use Hollowfication and Bankai. If things went wrong, Ichigo would immediately buff himself to finish off the opponent.

Ichigo never imagined that this attack, which had been touted as something extraordinary, couldn't even withstand a single strike from him. Ichigo stared blankly at his Zangetsu, wondering if it was really that strong.

On the Sogyoku Hill, the Sasakibe, who was in charge of guiding the Destroyer King, was dumbfounded. The monster that appeared out of nowhere destroyed the strongest torture instrument in Soul Society with a single slash. Just as he came into contact with Getsuga Tensho, the Sasakibe clearly felt that he could not resist Ichigo's attack. As the result was as the Sasakibe had expected, the Destroyer King was cut down with a single slash.

Sasakibe couldn't help but wonder if his strength was really too weak. First there was Sawada Tsunayoshi, and now there's this kid wearing a genuine Shinigami Uniform.

Regardless, the Sōkyoku were destroyed by the Sasakibe. If it had been Lord Genryūsai wielding the Destroyer King, that kid would surely have been wiped out.

Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto slammed his cane down in anger once more, and immediately afterward, Sasakibe heard Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto's command, "Sasakibe, re-tie Ryoka and Rukia Kuchiki to the rack. I will carry out the execution myself!"

Sasakibe understood that Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto was giving him a chance to redeem himself. As long as Ichigo and Rukia were captured, the matter of him causing the destruction of the Sōkyoku could be downplayed. "Yes, Genryūsai!"

Ichigo and Rukia heard Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto's words, Rukia immediately urged, "Ichigo, run!"

"Why are you running? Didn't you hear they're going to use this rack to torture people again? I'll destroy it right now, let's see how you'll punish us then!"

Ichigo was in the prime of his life, and when he heard that Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto's target wasn't just Rukia, but also him, he wasn't about to leave. He had to teach them a lesson.

Ichigo, still holding Rukia, flipped Zangetsu with one hand. Seeing the figure of the Sasakibe rushing towards him, he smiled confidently, and golden spiritual pressure surged wildly from his body towards Zangetsu.

Ichigo planted Zangetsu had accumulated a large amount of spiritual pressure, directly into the rack beneath his feet. The golden spiritual pressure quickly squeezed out cracks on the rack, which continued to spread and soon covered the entire rack.

With a smile at the Sasakibe who had just charged at him, Ichigo immediately spun Zangetsu. As Ichigo moved, the spiritual pressure on the rack exploded instantly. With a bang, the rack that had stood on Sōkyoku for countless years was destroyed by Ichigo.

This was the second time today that Sasakibe had been dumbfounded. He had failed in his mission again and had watched helplessly as Ichigo destroyed the rack. The peace of mind he had maintained for many years shattered instantly. He drew his Zanpakuto and shouted, "Pierce him, Genryūmaru!"

Genryūmaru did not pierce Ichigo, but the small rapier was blocked by Ichigo. However, Ichigo was also forced to fall from the sky to the ground by the impact of the Sasakibe.

The moment their feet touched the ground, the golden Zangetsu once again revealed its sharpness. With Ichigo strike, another Getsuga Tensho appeared, forcing the Sasakibe to retreat more than ten meters away.

With Ichigo's current fighting strength, it was impossible for him to be suppressed by the Sasakibe's Shikai. He simply landed following the Sasakibe's attack. Because Rukia couldn't stand in the air, Ichigo had to use one more hand to protect her. After landing, things were much better. As long as Rukia by his side, Ichigo could fight with both hands with all his might.

That Getsuga Tensho was just a feint and didn't have much power. Ichigo. After the Getsuga Tensho, Zangetsu flew directly towards the Sasakibe.

Sasakibe had never seen anyone attack like this before. For Bleach, abandoning their Zanpakuto was no different from abandoning their main weapon. He quickly used Genryūmaru to parry Ichigo's attack.

Genryūmaru resembled a Western-style sword, and its main attack method was thrusting. This kind of head-on slashing collision was not advantageous. In addition, Zangetsu was a heavy blade, which bent Genryūmaru in one go.

Just as Zangetsu was about to strike Sasakibe, he noticed that Zangetsu was being dragged back by something—a bandage wrapped around the hilt of the sword.

With Ichigo hand pulling on the bandages, Ichigo dragged Zangetsu back to his side, while with the other hand he controlled the direction Zangetsu was thrown, continuously using Zangetsu's mid-range attack advantage to block the advance of the Sasakibe.

Sasakibe was grinding his teeth in frustration. He had just taken a step forward when he was forced back by Zangetsu's heavy blade. Now, let alone capturing Ichigo and Rukia, he couldn't even get close to them.

Sasakibe wondered if he had really neglected his training over the years. There were rumors in Seireitei that he was a Vice-Captain didn't participate in battles, but Sasakibe never took these insults to heart. He had his own pride, which was the power that only captains could wield: Bankai.

Now, Sasakibe is being hit hard by the stark reality. Whether it was Tsuna's time or Ichigo's this time, he doesn't seem to have gained any advantage, whether it's Shikai or Bankai, which makes him doubt his own strength.

No, it's definitely not because he's not strong enough. He's going to take down this rampant Ryoka now. A thousand years of experience allowed Sasakibe to quickly get out of his Corner Tip. After once again deflecting the Zangetsu, he held the Genryūmaru upright against his chest.

"Swastika..."

"Alright!"

Just as the Sasakibe was about to unleash his ultimate attack, he heard a voice he knew all too well. The voice belonged to the person he respected most, Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto.