On the ground, Rukia wasn't about to let things go so easily.
"First Dance, Tsukishiro!"
A massive pillar of ice instantly froze Yammy's left hand. But with sheer brute strength, Yammy easily broke free from Rukia's restraint!
This ability of Yammy's was undeniably powerful. According to him, the more his rage grew, the stronger he became—with no upper limit. While that was something he himself claimed, it didn't sound entirely implausible.
And as his rage continued to increase, his appearance would also transform.
This ability was like something straight out of Marvel—a Hulk-like "the stronger the enemy, the stronger I become" setup.
Having broken free from the ice, Yammy smashed his massive palm down toward the fallen Rukia and Renji!
But—Chad arrived just in time!
"Right Arm of the Giant!"
Seeing Yammy's attack crash down, Chad decisively released the power in his right arm and clashed head-on with Yammy's giant fist!
Blue spiritual pressure wrapped around Chad's entire body. But even so, he couldn't withstand the sheer power of Yammy's strike!
If it hadn't been for Tatsuki and Senna pulling him away at the last moment, Chad might have been seriously injured from that one hit!
"You okay, Chad?" Tatsuki asked as she dropped him onto the sand.
"Yeah. I'm fine," Chad replied calmly as ever.
Seeing Chad unable to hold off Yammy, Renji quickly flash-stepped behind the giant Espada.
"Bankai! Sōō Zabimaru!"
The massive, ship-like zanpakutō coiled around Renji's body.
Meanwhile, Rukia and Senna worked together to distract Yammy from the front.
"Hadō #33: Sōkatsui!"
"Hadō #63: Raikōhō!"
The two women simultaneously launched their kidō attacks at Yammy.
But against someone like him, such attacks were like tickling a dragon—completely ineffective!
"Hahahaha! That didn't even hurt! Is that all you've got?!" Yammy laughed wildly at them.
Renji seized the moment as Yammy was distracted and hurled the massive Zabimaru like a cannon.
"Baboon Bone Cannon!"
The enormous head of Zabimaru launched toward the back of Yammy's head, the crimson blast charging up in its mouth.
Just one second later—Boom!
The red cannon fired!
But Yammy had already noticed Renji's sudden disappearance.
Before the cannon could even launch, Yammy turned and grabbed Zabimaru midair with his bare hand!
The massive blade in his hand looked no more threatening than a wriggling worm.
The crimson blast veered off course and shot harmlessly into the sky.
Renji struggled to retrieve Zabimaru, but Yammy had already locked onto his location.
Boom!
A powerful punch exploded through the air, knocking Renji away like a ragdoll!
He slammed into a distant stone tower, unmoving.
"Renji!" Rukia cried out in concern.
But Yammy wasn't done yet.
He swung his tail, sweeping Chad away just after he had been saved!
Not even Chad's enhanced reflexes could react in time!
Tatsuki watched Chad get launched away and growled with frustration.
A massive burst of orange flame gathered in her hand and blasted toward Yammy like a red laser.
But Yammy didn't dodge.
With the strength of his Hierro, he tanked the hit without flinching.
"Ow, ow, that really stung!" Yammy acted hurt for a moment, but seeing no reaction from the others, he grinned cruelly.
"Kidding."
Tatsuki flash-stepped next to Rukia. "What do we do? This is ridiculous. My attacks don't even work!"
Rukia glanced at Senna and made a decision. "Then let me do it."
Senna's expression changed drastically. "No, Rukia! You haven't fully mastered that power. If you use it recklessly, you'll hurt yourself! Let me handle it!"
Rukia shook her head. "Senna, it's the same for you. Your power is even more dangerous than mine!"
As the two argued, Yammy advanced on them.
Tatsuki suddenly perked up. "Stop fighting! He's here!"
She had sensed it—Ichigo's spiritual pressure was rapidly descending from above!
Rukia and Senna both smiled.
High above, Ulquiorra lay motionless on the floor, no longer resisting.
Orihime was tending to both Uryū and Ulquiorra's wounds.
"Ishida, I'll leave Orihime with you. The fight below isn't over yet—I'm heading down," Ichigo said.
The bull-horned mask on his head vanished, and he sheathed Muramasa.
But a third of his Bankai outfit was torn away.
Clearly, the fight against Ulquiorra hadn't been as easy as it looked.
Especially considering Ichigo had been in three consecutive battles—Grimmjow, then Nnoitra, then Segunda Etapa Ulquiorra.
Using only a third of his energy to deal with three Espada was already insane!
"Don't you want to recover first, Kurosaki-kun?" Orihime asked.
"No need. If I do, I'll go straight to the medics," Ichigo said.
"Alright. Leave it to me," Uryū added.
Although, he glanced at the dejected-looking Ulquiorra beside him.
Ichigo picked up on the look and said, "Don't worry. He won't be a threat."
Ulquiorra spoke up, "I've lost, Kurosaki Ichigo. I won't interfere with your group's mission in Hueco Mundo anymore."
Ulquiorra never lied. Ichigo, Orihime, and Uryū were all sure of that.
"Alright, I'm off," Ichigo said, leaping into the giant hole Ulquiorra had blasted in the ground and diving into the depths below.
As he descended, he immediately sensed the battered states of Chad and Renji—both under treatment.
He also sensed Rukia and Senna powering up.
"Rukia! Senna! Tatsuki! I'm back!" Ichigo shouted as he accelerated toward the battlefield.
His powerful spiritual pressure alone shook Yammy and disrupted his attack!
"Kurosaki Ichigo?!" Yammy howled, furious.
"Kurosaki Ichigo!"
Old grudges surged up again—Ichigo had once sliced off his arm, and now his comrade Ulquiorra had been defeated by him too!
A massive red Cero gathered in Yammy's mouth, aimed directly at Ichigo.
To Yammy, no one else mattered now—Ichigo had to die!
But how could such a slow Cero possibly hit Ichigo?
"Getsuga Tenshō!"
Ichigo raised his hand and launched a black Getsuga blast that struck Yammy right in the mouth before he could fire!
BOOM!
The Cero and Getsuga exploded inside Yammy's mouth simultaneously!
Any other Espada would've been incapacitated by that!
But Yammy was different.
Even such an explosion only caused him minor pain.
"Rukia, Senna, Tatsuki! Take Renji and Chad somewhere safe. Leave him to me!" Ichigo said without looking back.
The three girls didn't argue and immediately evacuated the wounded Renji and Chad to a distant stone pillar.
Meanwhile, Ichigo effortlessly dodged Yammy's next attack.
To others, Yammy in this form was insanely fast and strong.
To Ichigo?
He was slow. Very slow.
Yammy roared and swung both arms wildly, trying to catch Ichigo—but he couldn't even touch him!
"Getsuga… Tenshō!"
As soon as the girls were clear, Ichigo flashed behind Yammy and slammed a huge Getsuga into his back!
The blast knocked the beast to the ground!
Ichigo saw the cloud of smoke and nodded. "That should do it."
He turned to flash-step to the others—but then—
BOOM!
Yammy stood up again!
"Damn! That's the first time I've taken that much damage in ages!" Yammy groaned, rubbing his neck.
The massive wound on his back bled profusely—but it didn't stop him from moving!
To Yammy, this was just a scratch!
Ichigo was stunned.
That Getsuga was powerful enough to floor Ulquiorra if he wasn't in his second release!
Yet Yammy had tanked it with just his Hierro and spiritual pressure?!
No wonder he called himself the strongest Espada—it might actually be true!
Just as Ichigo was about to continue the fight, a familiar voice rang out.
"Hadō #33: Sōkatsui!"
It was the exact same kidō as Rukia's—but the difference in power was staggering!
The massive blue flame engulfed Yammy's head and shattered several of his teeth!
And that wasn't all—
"Hahahahaha!"
A wild, familiar laugh followed!
Kenpachi Zaraki charged in from another direction—one swing and he sliced off Yammy's leg!
Off balance, Yammy crashed to the ground again!
Byakuya Kuchiki also appeared beside Ichigo with a flash step.
"Byakuya? You came too?" Ichigo said, surprised.
But before Byakuya could answer, another figure rolled in—Mayuri Kurotsuchi, hauling a giant cart, followed by Nemu.
"Don't forget me, Kurosaki Ichigo!" Mayuri's eerie voice echoed.
"I've found the data on Hueco Mundo's Garganta. With analysis, I've basically cracked the way to reopen the portal!" Mayuri declared to everyone.
That meant the Soul Society rescue team could now return to the human world without Aizen's interference!
"Kurosaki Ichigo, do you want to return to the Human World?" he asked.
Before Ichigo could answer, Unohana Retsu arrived with Isane Kotetsu in tow.
"I'll go back with Ichigo to provide medical support. There must still be injured people in the Human World," she said.
She walked up to Ichigo and looked at his partially damaged robes, eyes soft but focused. "Faced a strong opponent?"
Her gentle gaze made even the confident girls like Rukia, Senna, and Tatsuki feel a bit intimidated.
Except for—
"ICHIGO!!!"
Nelliel came flying in from afar, transformed back into her child form midair, and headbutted Ichigo into a hug!
"You're going back to the Human World?" she asked tearfully.
"Yeah. I still have family to protect," Ichigo nodded.
"Then I'm going with you!" Nelliel declared. "I can open the Garganta!"
But Ichigo quickly responded, "That's why you should stay. These people are my friends—they'll need the portal too."
Mayuri chimed in at just the right moment. "My current method only allows two people through. If the others want to go, they'll need to wait at least six more hours for the next opening."
Nelliel sighed, disappointed. "Alright then… but Ichigo, once they're gone, I'll come find you!"
Having regained her Vasto Lorde strength, it would be easy for her to find Ichigo in Karakura Town.
"Okay. I promise, Nelliel. I'll welcome you properly," Ichigo smiled.
Meanwhile, Rukia, Senna, and Tatsuki were being treated by Isane—they had fought hard and burned through a lot of spiritual energy.
"Ichigo, we'll leave it to you!"
(End of Chapter)
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