As the firelight faded, Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto stood in midair, holding the long sword that radiated scorching waves of heat.
The pale tendrils around him had all been burned into black ash that fluttered through the sky amid the towering sea of flames.
The old man's haori snapped in the hot currents, and even the wrinkles on his face exuded an imposing pressure without a trace of anger.
Yamamoto glanced down at the enormous pale hand below, his tone full of disdain.
Mayuri Kurotsuchi put away the screen panel at his waist and clicked his tongue in displeasure. "Captain-Commander, that is the finest dissection specimen I had reserved for myself."
"Making a habit of meddling is hardly a virtue."
Yamamoto paid no mind whatsoever to his penchant for experimentation and simply ignored his complaint.
"I merely happened to be passing by."
The old man rested both hands, one over the other, on the end of his sword's hilt and spoke slowly. "If a monster happens to block my path, I need only cut it apart while I am here."
Having lived for more than two thousand years, he had long since tempered his heart until it was as still as an ancient well.
The most important thing now was to clear out these small fry as quickly as possible, then eradicate that scourge Yhwach once and for all.
Who killed them, or what methods they used, did not matter in the slightest.
The eyes on Pernida's palm darted about before finally fixing on Yamamoto in midair.
The coarse, beastlike noise gradually faded, replaced by a clear, refined baritone.
"Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto... one of the Soul Reapers' greatest combatants."
This creature's vocal system had actually undergone an extraordinarily advanced degree of evolutionary development in barely more than ten seconds.
"For His