Boom—!!!
The sky shuddered violently.
Clouds were torn apart, scattering in all directions.
Above Zaraki District, the heavens looked as though they were about to collapse entirely.
Even those who had already retreated far beyond the range of the Flame Formation broke out in cold sweat.
Terrifying currents of reishi spiraled chaotically through the air.
It was a scene of pure devastation.
The purification force—Shinigami who had withdrawn to what they believed was a "safe zone"—stared blankly at the two figures in midair, their bodies trembling uncontrollably. Some even felt an overwhelming urge to flee on instinct alone.
"This is absurd…"
"Watching Vice-Captain Baichen fight Zaraki… it's like watching two monsters slaughter each other…"
Looking up into the sky, her ash-gray hair fluttering wildly in the gale, Kotetsu Isane could not hide the anxiety in her eyes. Deep down, she was worried for Baichen.
He was radiating overwhelming momentum, and he had already crushed Zaraki Kenpachi once.
And yet—for reasons she couldn't explain—
That gigantic, cleaver-like Zanpakutō, Nozarashi,
And Zaraki's crimson-hued body after entering Shikai—
Both filled her with an indescribable sense of dread and unease.
Her confidence wavered.
"Vice-Captain Isane…"
"Even I feel my hair standing on end…"
Chojiro Sasakibe spoke with a heavy expression, his voice low and grave.
"This is instinct—our spiritual perception reacting to danger."
As one of the highest-ranking figures in Soul Society, someone who usually maintained composure no matter the circumstance, Chojiro no longer cared about appearances.
This pressure… even he was barely holding on.
At the very top of the Uchiha Flame Formation, under the glare of the sun—
Nozarashi came crashing down from the sky.
At the same moment, Baichen's Great Fire Extinguishes the Fan, wrapped in blood-red killing intent and blazing flame, swung upward to meet it.
The two supreme Zanpakutō collided.
BOOOOM—!!!
The explosion tore through the sky itself.
Crimson and gold light intertwined, erupting into a blinding sphere of energy—vast, destructive, and violent.
Black lightning crackled within the explosion as the air itself warped.
When the condensed wave of reiatsu finally cascaded downward—
Even the Uchiha Flame Formation seemed unable to withstand it.
The hellfire lining the barrier dimmed, flickering violently.
The four walls of flame shook as if on the verge of collapse.
Even with the barrier absorbing most of the impact—
The Shinigami outside, despite bracing themselves in advance, were still blasted away.
Hundreds of Shinigami were scattered like leaves in a storm.
For several terrifying minutes, the reiatsu surge swept across Zaraki District itself, turning the entire area into a natural disaster.
Elsewhere — Fifth Division Barracks
Deep underground, in a hidden chamber unknown to outsiders—
Though separated from Zaraki District by an immense distance, and unable to directly access the surveillance controlled by the Research and Development Institute—
Aizen's trio still sensed something was terribly wrong.
"My, my…"
A fox-like smile spread across Gin Ichimaru's face as he stared at an instrument overflowing with alarmingly high readings.
"Aizen-taichō, do you remember those spiritual seal traps we set long ago… to block the artificial passages leading to Hueco Mundo near the borders?"
Aizen's calm voice responded from behind him.
"Go on, Gin."
Gin turned, locking eyes with Aizen.
"Just to be clear—I didn't act on my own and deploy the Espada early."
"But right now, Zaraki District is experiencing a battle of massive scale."
"So intense that it nearly shattered the seal traps we planted back then."
"Aizen-taichō… you know what that implies, don't you?"
Aizen fell silent.
Behind the shadow of his glasses, his mind raced.
After a moment, he adjusted his frames.
"How interesting… a new variable has appeared."
"Aizen-sama," Tōsen Kaname said urgently,
"Should we head there immediately to observe?"
Aizen rejected the idea at once.
"Kaname."
His voice was cold.
"Are you questioning my arrangements?"
"Or do you doubt Ulquiorra's Shared Vision?"
"I—I wouldn't dare…"
Tōsen staggered back, drenched in cold sweat.
"Calm yourself," Aizen said dismissively.
"We've already issued the order."
"Ulquiorra will choose the optimal moment."
"All we need to do… is observe what he sees."
Even far from the battlefield, Aizen remained supremely confident—certain everything was still under his control.
Back to Zaraki District
The massive energy sphere finally dissipated.
What remained was an utterly transformed sky—
No clouds. No blue.
Only a sinister crimson hue, like the depths of hell itself.
The reishi storm gradually subsided.
Silence fell.
The purification force slowly regained composure, many shaking as if they had narrowly escaped death.
"If that clash happened again…"
"I swear the sky itself would be cleaved in half…"
"Both Baichen and Zaraki have surpassed ordinary captain-level combat…"
Then—
A figure fell from the sky.
"Zaraki!!!"
Kenpachi Zaraki slammed into the ground, his Zanpakutō tumbling beside him.
"He lost…"
"So Vice-Captain Baichen won in the end…"
Relief spread through the ranks.
Moments later, Baichen descended as well—unharmed, composed, his Great Fire Extinguishes the Fan still in hand.
He looked at the unconscious Zaraki, his expression complicated.
"Zanpakutō… Nozarashi…"
"A blade that once shone brilliantly during the Thousand-Year Blood War…"
The clash still lingered in his mind.
Zaraki's power was terrifying—pure, overwhelming strength.
If not for the superiority of Great Fire Extinguishes the Fan, the outcome might have been very different.
"Kenpachi Zaraki shouldn't fade into obscurity…"
Just as Baichen resolved to bring him back to Seireitei—
RIIIIIP—!!
A shrill tearing sound echoed from the distant horizon.
The sky split open like black cloth being ripped apart.
From the yawning Garganta—
Two overwhelming, sinister presences descended.
Black wings spread wide.
Darkness fell.
The real crisis had just begun.
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