"Hmph."
Seeing Squad Zero restored to perfect condition, Aizen smiled faintly.
Now this was interesting.
If he cleared this battle without even being forced to draw out his true strength, would that not be terribly dull?
Inside the cage, Aizen raised his hand and wiped it along the sword's body, all the way to the tip. Wherever his palm passed, the blade was wrapped in a layer of white.
The fusion of Shinigami and Hollow power — that was Aizen's true strength.
The blade had originally been composed of a liquid formed from Hollow power. Now that Aizen had re-imbued it with that power, his Zanpakutō was no longer restricted to the form of a katana.
Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!
The Zanpakutō transformed into a long, blood-red whip, which Aizen lashed about wildly. Every time it swept across the cage, it tore open a gap. Aizen swung it with astonishing speed. Without Kirio Hikifune's Reiatsu supporting it, the cage had no chance of holding him.
Watching the cage thrash violently, Ōetsu's expression turned grave. He ordered, "Tenjirō, use your speed and recovery to tie him down. Senjumaru, Kirio, work together to weave a canopy. I'll look for an opening!"
After the previous experience of being instantly countered, Ōetsu no longer dared to use a pincer attack against Aizen. Instead, he shifted to a strategy of having Kirinji Tenjirō face him alone.
With a thunderous boom, the cage exploded apart.
Aizen emerged, his eyes flashing with violet light, his expression terrifying. The Hōgyoku had already intervened, allowing him to fully mobilize both Shinigami and Hollow power.
Kirinji had no time to examine Aizen's appearance. In a flash of golden light, he charged straight toward him. His long blade collided rapidly with the sinister whip, yet even at full speed, Kirinji gained no advantage whatsoever.
No — it was not merely that he gained no advantage.
The whip would also shift direction in bizarre ways from time to time. Kirinji felt as if he were not fighting a Shinigami, but rather someone clutching a Cero in his hand.
In that brief instant of distraction, the whip suddenly changed shape, splitting into branch-like tendrils. Seven or eight Cero-like branches split apart at the same time. Kirinji no longer had time to brake. With only one blade in hand, he could not block every attack.
With a wet sound, Kirinji Tenjirō was pierced clean through by Aizen.
Fortunately, he had prepared for this. The scalding surge of his hot spring washed over his body, and Kirinji's golden light shone once again.
"How troublesome."
The corners of Aizen's mouth dipped slightly.
Extreme speed and restorative hot springs gave Kirinji an exceptionally irritating set of traits. He was like a fly buzzing beside one's ear — unable to truly threaten Aizen, but extremely annoying.
And it was not only Kirinji.
There was also Ōetsu watching him from afar like a tiger eyeing its prey. That strange blade, Sayafushi, might deliver a fatal strike at any moment.
Not to mention the two who had yet to participate in the battle, Senjumaru and Kirio Hikifune. Ever since Ōetsu issued his orders, the two of them had vanished from the plaza, and Aizen had no idea what they were doing.
A faint unease rose in his heart.
Using a cannon to swat a mosquito was not necessarily a bad option.
Aizen continued lashing Kirinji with one hand while gathering Reiatsu with the other. With the Hōgyoku supplying energy, one Kidō spell after another was prepared.
The moment Kirinji once again used his hot spring to repair his body, Aizen unleashed several Hadō in rapid succession.
"Hadō #91: Senjū Kōten Taihō."
"Hadō #73: Sōren Sōkatsui."
"Hadō #99: Goryūtenmetsu."
A row of pinkish-purple shells opened the way, accompanied by two enormous masses of flame. Finally, five purple dragons filled the sky.
Kirinji, who had just stepped out from the curtain of water, was clearly startled.
No matter how he thought about it, he had not expected to receive such grand treatment. Aizen was obviously filling the sky with Kidō to completely compress his movement space.
Ōetsu, who was observing from the side, saw Kirinji's predicament. He immediately prepared to intervene and help Kirinji block one or two of the attacks. With Kirinji's speed, that would be enough for him to escape.
However, what Ōetsu failed to notice was that Aizen's gaze had been on him the entire time.
The instant Ōetsu shifted his attention to Kirinji, the tip of Aizen's blade was already pointed at him.
"Hadō #88: Hiryū Gekizoku Shinten Raihō — Modified Cero-Wrapped Version!"
At Aizen's level, it no longer mattered whether Kidō was released from his hand or his Zanpakutō. A massive straight beam of light arrived before Ōetsu in an instant. To further increase the spell's power, Aizen had even wrapped the outermost layer of the beam with Cero from his Zanpakutō.
The beam was extremely fast. Aizen had calculated Ōetsu's movement trajectory precisely, leaving him no way to escape with Shunpo. In that hurried moment, Ōetsu could only aim Sayafushi at the incoming Hiryū Gekizoku Shinten Raihō.
Two thunderous explosions rang out.
The originally straight beam was split in two, spreading apart in a V-shape and destroying every pillar near the Omotesandō. Yet Ōetsu remained standing where he was, completely unharmed, still holding his sword in position.
This truly surprised Aizen.
It was one thing for Sayafushi to be sharp, but its durability was so great that even Hiryū Gekizoku Shinten Raihō could not shake it.
This so-called failed creation was stronger than the vast majority of Zanpakutō wielded by Shinigami in the lower world.
The sharpest blade was also the toughest shield.
That phrase was displayed perfectly through Sayafushi.
The explosions beside Aizen also came to an end.
Kirinji stood in the air covered in wounds. Aizen's full-area bombardment tactic had worked. Kirinji had exhausted the spring water he carried with him, and he himself had also been injured.
Even now, bubbles continued to rise from Kirinji's body. His hot springs were created through his own ability. Given a short amount of time, he could recover completely and once again have a hot spring surrounding him.
Ōetsu moved.
Before Kirinji recovered, he would have to become Aizen's opponent.
But Aizen moved even faster.
With Shunpo, he appeared in front of Kirinji, raised his hand, and cut him in two with a single slash.
Members of Squad Zero could die as well.
After that slash, all life left Kirinji. His two severed halves fell powerlessly toward the plaza.
"Though I hate to admit it, that guy Aizen really does have some skill," Kensei Muguruma commented as he watched Aizen cut down a member of Squad Zero.
But in the next moment, Kensei sensed that the surrounding atmosphere had become strange.
Even if there was no cheering, there should at least have been discussion. Why was everything so heavy and silent?
"You guys?"
"Kensei, didn't you notice?" Shinji said. "The Squad Zero member Aizen killed didn't even use Bankai. Every member of Squad Zero is captain-class. There's no way that man doesn't have Bankai."
Just as Shinji was puzzled, Aizen also felt something was strange.
But the fact of Kirinji's death was right before him. He did not dwell on it and instead turned his blade toward Ōetsu.
What puzzled Aizen just as much was that there was no emotional change on Ōetsu's face after the death of a comrade.
Doubt was doubt, but Aizen still attacked.
If Sayafushi could cut through any attack, then he simply had to prevent Ōetsu from using it.
"Bakudō #61: Rikujōkōrō."
"Bakudō #63: Sajo Sabaku."
"Bakudō #75: Gochūtekkan."
Bakudō spells were fired one after another.
Ōetsu rapidly swung Sayafushi to block them, but there were simply too many. Each one targeted his body directly. No matter how refined his Zanjutsu was, there was still a limit to how many Bakudō he could cut down.
At last, thick chains climbed onto Ōetsu's body and bound him tightly.
Ōetsu had just begun to twist his blade to cut through the restraints when a white rod pierced his immobilized arm, preventing him from moving.
Then Aizen's next action was even swifter.
With one slash, he severed Ōetsu's sword hand along with the blade it held.
Without Sayafushi, Ōetsu was like a beast with its fangs pulled out. He could no longer pose any threat.
"Interesting. But how long can mere Bakudō restrain me? Once my two teammates arrive…"
Ōetsu was about to mock him out of habit, but before he could finish speaking, he saw a blade pierce through his chest.
"I know. That's why you won't get that chance."
Aizen appeared behind Ōetsu.
He knew very well that Bakudō had limited effect on Squad Zero after their bodies had been modified by the power of the Soul King. Therefore, the moment he found an opening, he stabbed Ōetsu without hesitation.
This time, without Kirinji Tenjirō's hot spring, Ōetsu was dead beyond saving. He fell headfirst toward the plaza.
"Two left…"
Aizen silently calculated the situation of the remaining two members of Squad Zero.
They had already been gone for some time.
A shadow covered Aizen's field of vision.
He raised his head and saw that the sky had gone dark.
Through the still-bright scenery in the distance, Aizen keenly realized that the weather had not changed. Rather, a canopy had appeared above his head.
A pitch-black curtain descended toward Aizen.
Since its range covered the entire Omotesandō, it was impossible for Aizen to escape in such a short time.
Aizen simply stopped trying to flee.
Facing the descending canopy, he charged straight upward. He used Raikōhō to open the way, only to discover that Raikōhō could not damage the canopy in the slightest.
He then changed powers.
A crimson Cero shot upward, creating faint ripples across the canopy. Aizen immediately wrapped Cero around his blade and swung fiercely at the target point with a Kyōka Flash.
The good news was that the black canopy had been torn open.
The bad news was that inside the canopy, countless fine branches formed a framework that supported its strength.
This technique was the result of Senjumaru and Kirio Hikifune working together.
Senjumaru used her weaving ability to swiftly create a canopy that Aizen could not escape from in a short time, while Kirio Hikifune extended her Cage of Life into the interior of the canopy to reinforce it.
As the Great Weave Guard, the fabric Senjumaru wove already possessed considerable strength. Ordinary enemies would never be able to break through it.
However, taking into account Aizen's earlier record of breaking through the Cage of Life, Ōetsu had arranged for Senjumaru and Kirio Hikifune to work together. With the Great Weave Guard's fabric combined with the Ruler of Grain's Cage of Life, even Aizen should not be able to break free from this canopy.
Ōetsu's plan had been to use this canopy to seal Aizen.
He had taken an interest in Aizen's body. Originally, he intended to seal Aizen, bring him back to his Hōōden, and slowly forge him there. Unexpectedly, he had been killed by Aizen first.
But Ōetsu's plan itself had no flaw.
The canopy created by Senjumaru and Kirio Hikifune together could not be broken even by Aizen's slash, which combined Shinigami and Hollow power.
The canopy slowly closed like the surface of an umbrella, covering Aizen inside. As the fabric rolled inward, it gradually formed a black sphere. All that remained was to apply Kidō sealing formulas to the sphere.
"I didn't expect this Aizen to be so troublesome," Senjumaru said as she appeared, staring at the black sphere that wrapped around Aizen. "Even Tenjirō and Ōetsu were killed by him."
"It's fine. The result is what matters."
Kirio Hikifune walked forward with a smiling expression. She blew out several more seeds, which grew into bizarre claw-shaped forms. The claws reached toward the black sphere.
"I'll add the seal."
Senjumaru had no objection.
Anyone could handle the sealing. It was just that if she did it, it would be more troublesome, since she would need to weave special fabric specifically for sealing. Kirio Hikifune's method was more convenient. She only needed to blow out seeds.
However, as she used her ability, Kirio Hikifune's body also began to grow thinner.
Her originally perfect, mature figure started to take on a slender, sickly beauty.
Kirio Hikifune controlled the claw-shaped branches and began sealing the sphere.
Just as the mark of the Ruler of Grain was about to be completed, the black sphere suddenly changed.
A burst of Reiatsu capable of shaking the entire Soul Society erupted from within the black sphere.
Not only could Renji and the others in Rukongai feel it, even Tsunayoshi and the others hiding underground sensed it clearly.
For Kirio Hikifune and Senjumaru, who were at the center of the Reiatsu, the sensation was even more intense.
They were obviously startled by the Reiatsu that had appeared so suddenly, and for a brief instant, they froze.
In that moment of hesitation, the black sphere abruptly transformed into a sharp cone.
The tip of the cone pierced straight through Kirio Hikifune's body.
◇ BONUS & SUPPORT
◇ 1 bonus chapter for every 10 reviews — drop a comment!
◇ 1 bonus chapter for every 100 Power Stones.
◇ Read 70+ chapters ahead on P@treon → patreon.com/Sagamaster789