"Spiritual pressure like the Espada?" Tsunade stared at Kabuto in shock, frozen in place.
"Well, I didn't expect Orochimaru-sama to figure it out," Kabuto said, taking off his hood with a small smile. "Even the Sage of Six Paths didn't notice."
Gasp.
Everyone there drew in a breath as they saw Kabuto's real face.
White bony structures circled his forehead like a metal band, stretching backward to cover the back of his head. It looked like he was wearing a headpiece.
"You... you're an Arrancar too?" Tsunade's eyes were wide with disbelief.
"Hmph. You sure hid it well." Orochimaru stared at him and said calmly, "You were Aizen's spy from the very start, weren't you?"
"Not sent by him." Kabuto shook his head and smiled. "I went to Aizen-sama on my own and offered to infiltrate."
"Then why fight Kinkaku?" Tsunade frowned. "If you'd teamed up with him back then, none of us would be standing here now."
Of course, it was under Aizen-sama's orders—your safety had to be guaranteed.
But Kabuto didn't say that. His expression stayed calm. "Because he was useless. Trading a piece of trash like him for your trust? That's a great deal, don't you think?"
What?
Everyone there was stunned by Kabuto's words, completely baffled.
Kinkaku had taken down Tsunade, Jiraiya, and the Fourth Raikage—three former top-tier shinobi who had turned into Shinigami—all by himself. And this guy just called him trash?
"You people really have no bottom line," Tsunade said with a look of disgust.
"Thanks for the compliment." Kabuto ripped off his red cloak, revealing a white shirt and pants underneath.
Everyone could clearly see a bold number "5" on his stomach.
"That brat Yakushi Kabuto was your spy?" Watching from the battlefield, Otsutsuki Hagoromo frowned as he saw the scene unfold. "So cold-blooded… treating someone who trusted you like that."
"Trust and reliance mean the same thing," Aizen said with his eyes still closed, his face calm. "And that's something only weak people need."
"So all your followers are built on lies and manipulation?" Otsutsuki Hamura sneered. "That sure fits your style."
"You still don't get it. I've never once told my subordinates to trust me."
Aizen slowly opened his mouth and said, "I've told them to follow me, but never to trust me while doing so. I even said not to trust anyone—me included."
"But the sad truth is, very few powerful beings can truly follow that idea. All living things want to believe in someone stronger than themselves. Once someone gets trusted like that, they'll try to avoid the weight of that trust by chasing someone even higher. And those at the top will crave someone even stronger they too can depend on."
"And that's how all kings are born. That's how all gods are born."
As the words fell, Aizen slowly opened his eyes.
His brown pupils held unshakable confidence and calm, the kind that couldn't be questioned.
That gaze made both Hamura and Hagoromo feel a pressure settle over them like an invisible weight. A hint of fear stirred inside them without warning.
The boy trapped in the barrier before them now looked like a god holding the universe in his hand.
Boom.
A thunderous crash suddenly rang out. It snapped Hagoromo and Hamura out of their daze.
Down in the valley, a giant Buddha hundreds of meters tall had appeared from nowhere—its entire body wrapped in a bright blue aura.
It looked both powerful and carried a kind of sacred mercy.
"Did they combine Susano'o with the Great Buddha from the war?" Otsutsuki Hagoromo sighed and murmured, "Those two kids sure are creative."
"Aizen, your followers are finished." Otsutsuki Hamura snorted, his expression a little mocking.
Aizen didn't reply, seeming to accept the situation.
And that was true.
Facing a fused form like Susano'o with the Great Buddha—a power close to a cheat—Pakura and Ginjo really struggled. Even though they were in Resurrección form, they could only barely hold on to their undefeated status on the surface.
If even these two Espada had a hard time, it was even worse for the normal Arrancar.
Boom after boom of explosions shook the area. Every punch smashed the canyon land flat into a plain. All the Arrancar caught under the Great Buddha Susano'o's iron fists were turned to ashes.
"It's over." Otsutsuki Hagoromo showed a look of relief on his old face.
"Yeah, it's definitely time for this to end." Aizen nodded in agreement.
What?
Otsutsuki Hagoromo was stunned and looked at him confused. "What do you mean by that?"
Buzz.
Right after he spoke, before Aizen could answer, the air suddenly shook violently.
Tear.
A huge black tear ripped open the sky, like a fierce monster swallowing the heavens.
Shock and blank stares.
Everyone there—Uchiha Madara, Senju Hashirama, Konan, Uchiha Itachi—instinctively stopped what they were doing and looked up at the sky.
Under everyone's watchful eyes, a small figure wrapped entirely in bone-like armor stepped out from the crack and appeared in their view.