"Limit of the thousands hands, respectful hands, unable to touch the darkness. Shooting hands unable to reflect the blue sky. The road that basks in light, the wind that ignited the embers, time that gathers when both are together, there is no need to be hesitant, obey my orders. Light bullets, eight bodies, nine items, book of heaven, diseased treasure, great wheel, grey fortress tower. Aim far away, scatter brightly and cleanly when fired."
"Hadō #91: Senju Kōten Taihō!"
The full incantation of a Hadō spell.
As the chant, infused with spiritual pressure, echoed across the skies above Karakura Town—
Golden hair fluttered.
Kisuke Urahara stood with his back to the camera, his olive-green coat billowing dramatically in the wind.
His face wasn't visible as he recited the incantation,
But the overwhelming spiritual pressure radiating from him—and the subtle warping of space around him—said everything.
The sheer force he concealed was terrifying.
"So... this is a Shinigami's Hadō?"
Starrk stared blankly at the screen.
The usual listless look on his face had completely vanished,
Replaced by a euphoric expression—like someone who had just discovered a whole new world.
Yes—
The No. 1 Espada,
Was trembling with excitement.
"Hey hey hey... Starrk, can you calm down a little?"
His other half, Lilynette, couldn't help but roll her eyes at his reaction.
"You're the Primera Espada, for crying out loud! Can you at least act like a top-tier warrior? You're totally embarrassing us!"
Seriously?
It's just Kido.
No matter the number, at the end of the day, it's just a Shinigami spell.
Why get so worked up?
"No..."
Shaking his head absentmindedly, Starrk's eyes gleamed with fervor.
"As far as I know, Kido numbered in the nineties are legendary—there are only a handful of Shinigami in the entire Soul Society capable of using them."
"Legendary Kido?"
Lilynette raised an eyebrow. "So, what you're saying is… this sandal-wearing guy is actually a seriously powerful Shinigami?"
"Exactly."
Starrk nodded. "Looks like that ranking list wasn't just talk. At the very least, no one's going to underestimate Kisuke Urahara after this."
At that moment—
The entire inner chamber fell silent.
Even the Espada displayed unusual expressions—
Fear. Shock. Awe.
And this was just the prelude.
The incantation alone hinted at the staggering visual and destructive force that would follow once Senju Kōten Taihō was unleashed.
---
Meanwhile.
Second Division Barracks, Seireitei.
The situation in the Second Division operations room mirrored that of Las Noches—
Utter silence.
On the screen, the sky had gone dim and lightless.
Following the final words of the chant, the spiritual pressure around Urahara surged,
Manifesting into hundreds upon hundreds of dark crimson energy cones.
They hovered in mid-air,
Flickering with destructive light,
Radiating a suffocating aura of annihilation.
They filled the sky.
"Ho—Holy shit!"
Ōmaeda, stunned into silence for a long time, finally blurted out a curse.
He stared at the screen in disbelief, sweat beading on his jiggling face.
The fear etched on his features made it look like he'd just seen a ghost in broad daylight.
"Captain..."
"Kisuke Urahara... he's insanely strong!"
He spoke with genuine shock.
Before the incantation began, Ōmaeda had reacted the same as the Arrancar—doubtful of Urahara's strength.
Sure, he knew about the man's past,
But in Ōmaeda's mind, Urahara was more of a scientist than a warrior—
Power just wasn't something he associated with him.
After all, a hundred years ago,
When he was still Captain of the Twelfth Division,
Aside from formal meetings, Urahara rarely left the lab.
He spent most of his time buried in experiments, right up until he defected from the Soul Society.
As a result,
Aside from Yamamoto and a few others,
Almost no one knew just how powerful Urahara truly was.
To many older Shinigami,
He ranked near the bottom in terms of combat ability among captains of that era.
"A fully chanted Hadō #91…"
Soi Fon finally spoke, her voice tight.
Her shock went even deeper than Ōmaeda's.
Back then, driven by jealousy,
She had always looked down on Urahara,
Seeing him as a lazy, untrustworthy presence who led Yoruichi astray.
Even after he became a captain,
Her negative impression never really changed—until now.
And yet—
The sight before her eyes had shattered everything she thought she knew.
As a captain herself, Fon knew better than anyone how difficult high-level Kido could be.
She specialized in stealth and assassination,
But even so, she'd once tried to learn higher-level Hadō—
And failed to even approach the threshold.
Which is precisely why—
She was so shaken now.
"This is my first time seeing a fully chanted Kido in the 90s... It's terrifying," Ōmaeda muttered, wiping sweat from his brow.
At that moment—
All the energy cones shifted.
Under Urahara's will, they locked onto Aizen—who stood fused with the Hōgyoku.
They were about to be unleashed.
"In a direct hit, even a captain-class Shinigami could be completely vaporized..." Fon said grimly.
"No way... Seriously?"
Ōmaeda was so scared, he covered his mouth with both hands.
Even captains could be one-shotted?
That was way beyond terrifying.
"I finally get it now. Why Kisuke Urahara was ranked in the top 15. Just this one spell alone—fully chanted Hadō #91—is enough to justify it."
Ōmaeda no longer had any doubts.
Even Fon had to concede defeat.
That alone proved—
In the entire world of the Shinigami,
Very few could withstand a blow like this.
Urahara's power was the real deal.
"There's no denying it... Urahara is incredibly strong. I really misjudged him," Fon admitted through gritted teeth, extremely unwilling to say it aloud.
But Ōmaeda, a seasoned bootlicker, instantly picked up on her tsundere tone and chimed in:
"Don't worry, Captain! The ranking list has just started! You might even be ranked above him!"
"...Maybe."
A hint of pride returned to Fon's eyes.
As one of the few female captains in the Gotei 13,
She was fiercely competitive, unwilling to believe she was inferior to anyone.
If Urahara could make the list—
Then she, the unrivaled master of Shunpo,
Surely had a spot too.
Just as that thought crossed her mind—
The video resumed.
"Fire."
Gripping Benihime, Urahara pointed forward.
Hundreds of crimson light pillars—like falling stars at the edge of the heavens—
Rushed forth with world-shattering might,
Engulfing everything in their path.
In that instant—
The skies howled.
The clouds shattered.
The sheer destructive force carried the aura of death,
Shaking the heavens and the earth alike.
"This... this is insane!!!"
Ōmaeda's eyeballs nearly popped out of his head.
He stood there, mouth agape, speechless from the shock.
Not far away,
Fon's face had also turned solemn.
Especially at the moment the energy cones exploded—
She felt a chill that reached her very soul.
And finally—
As both of them watched—
The entire screen was engulfed by a blinding crimson explosion.
The first round of the rankings had come to a spectacular close.