“Ig-Alima… the Cleaving Mountain Sword.”
Yoruichi Shihōin murmured, her mind racing. She recalled the famous Zanpakutōs of the Soul Society, but none named “Ig-Alima” or “Cleaving Mountain Sword” came to mind. Could the Cleaving Mountain Sword be a divine artifact similar to the Sokyoku?
The Sokyoku was an execution tool used in the Soul Society, consisting of a long spear and a cross-shaped scaffold. When released, the spear transformed into a giant bird named “Kikōō,” said to have the destructive power of a million Zanpakutō.
Meanwhile, the golden light caught the attention of the criminals. Some instinctively looked up at the sky. Their pupils dilated in fear as they saw the enormous, boneless, double-edged sword. Even those who reveled in slaughter and the pleasure of blood and death couldn’t suppress their terror.
After a brief silence, someone shouted, “Run!”
The cry triggered a stampede. Even those with broken limbs forgot their pain and fled in terror.
Finally, the Cleaving Mountain Sword struck the ground.
Boom!
With a deafening roar, the earth cracked, rocks shot into the air, and dust clouds obscured the view, only to be punctuated by the criminals’ anguished screams.
The massive commotion drew the attention of the residents of Takoyaki’s central district. They turned their eyes, filled with shock, fear, and horror, toward the Vimana hovering in the sky and the enormous Cleaving Mountain Sword.
The sword was so massive that its hilt stood level with the Vimana. Renji Abarai and Rukia Kuchiki stared at the hilt, their pupils trembling. They couldn’t fathom how anyone could wield such a giant sword.
Despite summoning the Cleaving Mountain Sword, Gilgamesh’s stature was similar to Renji’s, making it seem impossible for him to wield it.
Then, to their astonishment, Gilgamesh slowly approached the sword’s hilt. Under the shocked gaze of Yoruichi, Renji, and Rukia, he gripped the hilt with his right hand. The hilt was so large that it looked like Gilgamesh’s hand was merely resting on it.
It seemed like Gilgamesh intended to lift the sword, but how could that be possible? Even with both arms, he couldn’t grasp the hilt, let alone lift the sword.
A golden ripple appeared in front of Gilgamesh’s left hand. He reached into the ripple and pulled out a golden chalice known as the Uruk Grail, the prototype of the Holy Grail in the Fate universe. Unlike the “all-powerful wish-granting machine,” the Uruk Grail was a pure magic crystal containing immense magical power.
In Sumerian mythology, Ig-Alima was the second son of the patron god of the city of Lagash. The Cleaving Mountain Sword was said to be a divine weapon forged from Ig-Alima and one of the two weapons of the war goddess Zababa, the guardian deity of Kish.
To wield Ig-Alima’s true power, one needed a vast amount of magical energy, which is why Gilgamesh took out the Uruk Grail. As Gilgamesh activated it, the immense magical power within the Uruk Grail flowed into him and then into the Cleaving Mountain Sword.
In the world of “Bleach,” there is no magic, so Yoruichi couldn’t sense it. She was puzzled as to why Gilgamesh took out a golden chalice, but her question was soon answered.
Before their incredulous eyes, the Cleaving Mountain Sword began to shrink until it became a three-meter-long double-edged sword that Gilgamesh held in his hand.
Gilgamesh had indeed lifted the Cleaving Mountain Sword. But what did he intend to do with it? This new question appeared in everyone’s mind.
Gilgamesh, seemingly reading their thoughts, did not explain. Instead, he held the sword horizontally and chanted the incantation for its release.
“The sword that splits a thousand mountains, the great boneless sword!”
“It doesn’t just cut with its blade; it doesn’t just break with its weight!”
“The horizon it holds separates the heavens from the earth!”
A terrifying power emanated from the Cleaving Mountain Sword, making the very air tremble. The forceful wind pushed Renji and Rukia back.
Yoruichi’s pupils shrank to pinpoints, a strong sense of danger washing over her. The criminals in Takoyaki’s central district felt the same alarm.
They would die… If they took this strike, they would die…
This was the warning echoing in their minds. Instinctively, they wanted to flee, to escape the danger, but the invisible pressure held them in place.
At that moment, Gilgamesh swung the Cleaving Mountain Sword toward the forest separating Districts 78 and 79, shouting, “Green Field Cutting Through the Thousand Mountains, Ig-Alima!”
In the next instant, a green horizon stretched from the sword’s path, sweeping across the forest. The world seemed to hold its breath, everyone entranced by the green horizon.
From the Vimana, Yoruichi, Renji, and Rukia had a clear view. The forest separating Districts 78 and 79 was sliced cleanly, everything from trees, plants, beasts, and criminals to cliffs and rocks, cut at the root. It was like watching grass being mowed, the process smooth and seamless.
Just as Gilgamesh had chanted, the forest and mountains gave way to a new horizon. Renji and Rukia were speechless, their minds blank with shock. Yoruichi, though not as stunned as Renji and Rukia, was deeply shaken.
To Yoruichi, that strike could rival the Bankai of the strongest captains. Yet she couldn’t sense the spiritual pressure that should accompany such power. She concluded that the Cleaving Mountain Sword must be Gilgamesh’s Zanpakutō. Only a Zanpakutō could wield such power.
After witnessing such a display, Yoruichi’s doubt about Gilgamesh’s ability to establish a kingdom began to waver.
‘Maybe, just maybe, he really can create a nation in the Rukongai…’
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