Board Thread:Questions and Answers/@comment-10797017-20130627100621/@comment-5657895-20130707033337

Kyūkyoku KON wrote: Sternritter M wrote: He was clear on the fact that he wanted to leave SS before the RG showed up, probably because he knew they are a very powerful force. He's not stupid, he wouldn't just sit around and wait for them and risk to lose half of the present Stern Ritters. It reads like the attack was to draw out Squad 0. At least in some part. They knew the attack would draw them out and Yhwach stated they will retreat and wait for them. Not really sure what he meant by wait though so there's the murky part. That's when Ichigo shows up to confront him and causes a minor change in their plans.

Makes me wonder how powerful he is, if he was willing to engage them after a temporary respite. He lost five men during the attack and captains like Unohana, Ukitake, and Mayuri hadn't been beaten yet. With the Royal Guard, essentially another force with Gotei 13 powers arriving to fight it's surprising he was still confidant.