It happened again!
I blacked out again.
How many times was that?
I black out amid battle, again and again...
only to find myself back where I left off.
This brings back memories.
I always enjoy my battles,
but not to the point where I'd lose myself
or have blackouts in the middle of it.
That happened only once...
That day I fought you.
The blue skies above are hopelessly clear
At my wit's end, I feel a growing frustration
As if to laugh at us hopeless cowards
Countless eyes stare at us
This soul of mine breaks again and again
All I can do is hold it tight
Until the day it turns to ash
I've absorbed all of this sorrow
It has shaped me, painted me
But that's how we got here, right?
One step at a time, just like breathing
These countless scars on my palm
That no longer fade
Are my badge, my story
I faced the fear and shred it to pieces
And let it walk beside me once more
BLEACH: THOUSAND-YEAR BLOOD WAR
RUKON DISTRICT - SEVERAL HUNDRED YEARS AGO Captain!
It's just not possible...
No matter how much we search the Rukon District...
I doubt we'll find anyone strong enough to satisfy you.
I'm impressed you figured out my true intent...
Cutting down gangs from the Rukon District won't
make much difference in preserving the peace in the Seireitei.
The size of this pile of bodies is the size of your dissatisfaction!
That pile...
How long has it been there?
Huh? This wasn't your doing?
Who's that kid?
I was bored...
With the sword. With fighting.
And so I wandered around in search of a foe
who could please my sword.
That's probably why our swords drew us two weary souls together.
Such bliss...
I hadn't expected this.
I never would have thought that
I could experience such unparalleled joy
by crossing blades with a child...
But I never thought
that child would place shackles on himself because of our battle.
I landed one!
Before, I could only react. But now, I can counter it.
It's almost as if each time I experience a blackout...
I wake up feeling reborn!
Kenpachi Zaraki, you probably have not realized this...
That you are unconsciously
restraining your powers while in battle.
Do you know why you narrowly lost your battle with Ichigo Kurosaki?
Do you know why you narrowly won your battle with Nnoitora Gilga?
Was it because they were strong...?
I'm sure that's how it seemed to the others.
But I knew that wasn't the case.
In each instance, you suppressed your power to the limit.
During that battle, we both experienced unparalleled joy.
The only difference was that
you learned the joy of fighting on the edge.
That is my sin.
You must have been ecstatic.
Everyone around you was weak.
You had no enemies you could test your sword against.
I was the first foe you encountered who could rival your power.
However...
I was weaker than you.
I was the first person in your life you could call a foe.
You believed that if you lost me,
you would never experience the joy of battle ever again...
You wanted to bring yourself down to my level,
so little by little, you unconsciously
began to suppress your power into a deep, dark place.
I was devastated.
My weakness drove you to suppress your power.
But one day, I noticed something.
Each time you flirt with death against a powerful foe,
you start to break your shackles
and return to the person you used to be...
I am strong.
Stronger than anyone besides you.
That is why I will kill you.
Even if it takes a hundred or a thousand tries.
That is why I will heal you.
Again and again...
Until you return to what you really are.
From there...
you will surpass me and reach even greater heights...
Do it!
You thought I was dead, didn't you?
Guess again.
You, of all people, should know the reason why I mastered Kaido.
Bankai...
Minazuki.
Playtime is over...
Ah, I'm melting...
I'm melting away...
This is fun.
What is this?
It's different.
All of it.
Everything feels different.
But why?
So that's it...
I've been asleep this whole time.
I've been playing out our exchange in my dreams.
All this time, I thought there wasn't a word for this exchange.
But thanks to you, I've finally learned what it's called.
Thank you.
So this...
This is...!
This is battle!
Hey, did you know?
I love fighting. I love it.
There's nothing I can do about it.
Yes, I knew.
Probably long before you ever did.
Say, Kenpachi Zaraki...
You learned the ability to suppress yourself
so you could enjoy the battle for eternity.
I learned the ability to heal myself
so I could enjoy the battle for eternity.
But now, I am certain.
This power I obtained was for this single battle.
In any era, there can only be one Kenpachi...
That is the rule as well as an inevitable fate.
Because when the strong find the next strongest,
they can no longer swing their sword for their own sake.
The tip of their sword will always be pointed
either toward killing the next strongest...
or toward nurturing them.
The tip of my sword is...
He's the one.
This child is the one to be worthy of the name Kenpachi.
Farewell...
The one man in this world...
who brought me joy.
That was magnificent, Kenpachi Zaraki.
And now, this battle is over...
It's over?
Wait, are you going to die?
No, don't die.
Not yet.
I still haven't had enough.
Please don't die.
I'm begging you...
Don't die!
He's like a child.
What is there to cry about?
Sure, now that you've regained your strength and defeated me...
You might see yourself returning to the days
when you find many of your battles to be boring.
But right now,
you have foes you can fight to your heart's content...
and comrades you can cross swords with on equal terms.
Most of all, you have a partner who has awakened alongside you.
Everything I have gained until now, I've relinquished to you.
I no longer possess anything.
Even the name of Kenpachi, which I couldn't give to you back then,
has finally vanished from my hands.
Rejoice, Kenpachi Zaraki...
Rejoice for me as I pass away.
Ah, what sheer bliss to die from accomplishing one's purpose...
Kenpachi...
Kenpachi of Zaraki...
Who's there?
Who's calling my name?!
Show yourself!
It seems my voice has finally reached you.
The voice of the one
who has been watching you longer and closer than anyone.
Huh? Who the hell are you?
Kenpachi...
Kenpachi of Zaraki!
It's nice to meet you, Kenpachi Zaraki.
My name is...
HOOHDEN - LANDING AREA
There's nobody here.
What is that noise?!
Lower your heads, lower your heads!
Because...
Your heads are so high!
I am the number one Zanpakuto creator!
Oh-Etsu Nimaiya!
S-I-K-U...
Y-O-R-O!
Sikuyoro, whazzup!
Zanpakuto...!
Love it!
"GALAXY HOOHDEN" - Welcome! - Welcome!
What the hell is all this?
Paradise! Paradise!
Don't be fooled...
They're probably
- illusions or something. - This is truly paradise!
Shut up...!
So, Kurosaki! Abarai!
And that strange stuffed animal, too!
Did you guys enjoy my welcoming show?!
Once again, I am Oh-Etsu Nimaiya, the master of this Hoohden!
"BLADE GOD" - OH-ETSU NIMAIYA
Sikuyoro, whazzup!
Uh, uh! Pow, pow, pow!
Hey!
Trade places with me...
I can't keep up with this guy's vibe.
You idiot! I can't keep up with it, either!
Hmm...
Something's not right...
You guys aren't any fun!
Want to leave?
- Huh?! - Huh?!
- No, we'd like to stay, sir! - Please let us stay, sir!
No! No, no, no!
That's not the right way to ask!
The formal way you do it in Hoohden is... like this!
Please, sir!
I'm not doing that pose!
Calm down, Ichigo!
We've got to do it!
Damn it...
- Please, sir! - Please, sir!
Nice pose!
- Take a look, my honeys! - Oh my god, that's hilarious!
- Take a look, my honeys! - They look like bananas!
- Bastard... - Bastard...
How long are you...
going to be doing that?!
What was that for, Mera?!
Follow me!
"HOOHDEN" This is the real Hoohden!
"HOOHDEN"
I don't know what to say...
Come on in!
I don't want to go into such a depressing place!
I wanna go back to that other place!
I agree with you, strange stuffed animal!
You feel me, right?!
That hurt...
Hey! What the hell is this?!
Kurosaki, Abarai, have you noticed?
You two have not met a single Soul Reaper besides me
on your way here.
All of my honeys you saw earlier are...
Zanpakuto.
Zanpakuto?!
What's this? That's odd.
Very odd indeed.
You guys are Soul Reapers
yet you can't tell the difference between Soul Reapers and Zanpakuto?
What is wrong with you guys?!
Is it because you're both the sort of unloving souls
who would allow this to happen to your Zanpakuto?
Hey! When did you—?!
Oh my...
A Zanpakuto that doesn't receive love is so easily broken.
You two are completely surrounded... by the anger of Zanpakuto.
If you can make it out of there alive,
I'll consider fixing your Zanpakuto.
What?!
I'll say it one more time!
I am the number one Zanpakuto creator!
Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five...
four... three...
Two, that's me, Oh-Etsu Nimaiya!
I don't make swords for losers.
You bastard...
Sikuyoro, whazzup.
There's something here...
Yeah...
There's nothing to be afraid of.
They are the ultimate Zanpakuto that can become anything...
They're Asauchi.
Asauchi...?
ASAUCHI
It's the nameless Zanpakuto...
temporarily issued to the over 6,000 members
of the Thirteen Court Guard Squads during their time in the Academy
and then officially issued when they become a squad member.
Every Soul Reaper eats and sleeps with their Asauchi.
Through continuous training,
they imprint the essence of their soul upon their Asauchi
to create their personalized Zanpakuto!
And the one who creates all of those Asauchi by himself...
is me, the Blade God, Oh-Etsu Nimaiya!
Why do we have to be attacked by these Asauchi?!
There's no need to think about why!
The important thing to know is that they're angry with you.
For what?!
For the way you use your Zanpakuto.
The way we use them?!
You don't understand? Of course, you don't.
Is it how you fight, or how you swing?
That's not it, so what is it?
This is how they think of you.
"We're fundamentally different!"
Let's start by discussing
whether Zanpakuto or Soul Reapers are superior!
Everything we had left behind
Our breaths blending as mist
without form or expression
We lie buried as we glare into the distance
I can't hear anything
I can't seem to cut anything
It feels like I'm sinking
Falling, falling
Touching
Eyes struck wide open
Something no one has ever seen
The furthest reaches are now visible to us
It cannot be undone and cannot be stopped
This ensuing struggle
Whisk it away beyond the ends of the earth
Along with our breaths
Take everything
Whisk it away beyond the ends of the earth
Along with our futures
Along with our world
Something no one has ever seen
The furthest reaches are now visible to us
Don't you know God's demand?
As we tear each other down
71 hours and 48 minutes...
You lasted for three days.
I'm impressed.
You pass, Renji!
And... you fail, Ichigo!
W-Wait... I can still...
Nope! No waiting. You're done.
You fail. The end.
I...can still keep going!
Let me do this...!
There's no time limit, is there?!
There isn't a time limit, but rather an emotional limit.
I'm not talking about whether you can keep going or not.
You just weren't chosen by an Asauchi.
It's not going to happen.
It's over. The end.
- Wait! - Give it a rest.
You were dumped. So stop whining.
What's become perfectly clear in these last three days
is that Renji's a Soul Reaper while you, Ichigo, are not.
Don't worry, I'll open up a way out of there.
And so,
time for you to go home.
What?
- Mera! Pull him out of there. - Sure.
H-Hold on a second!
You're joking, right?!
Oh, one more thing.
Don't enter the Soul Society ever again.
The Soul Society is the land of Soul Reapers.
An ordinary human without a Zanpakuto
has no right to enter it.
Damn it...!
You really think I'm just going to leave after coming this far?
If I leave now, what'll happen to Zangetsu?
Whether you leave or not, it makes no difference.
Zangetsu cannot be fixed anymore.
Or rather,
I won't fix him.
As I said before...
Ten, nine, eight, seven, six, five...
four... three...
Two, that's me, Oh-Etsu Nimaiya!
I don't make swords for a fake Soul Reaper.
You bastard!
Bye-buh-bye, Ichigo!
You're no good as you are now, Ichigo.
The fact that an Asauchi didn't choose you...
The fact that you've fought this long without an Asauchi...
You don't understand the significance of this.
You need to go back...
Back to your roots.
And you must learn what your roots are.
Even if you are unable to return upon learning them.
"KUROSAKI CLINIC" Even if you are unable to return upon learning them.
"You, without sin, are like the sun."