Chapter 119: Black Cero Vs Black Flame Getsuga Tensho
Below the zenith, Byakuya Kuchiki's tsunami-like Reiatsu stunned both Ichigo and Ulquiorra fighting on the platform above. The overwhelming spiritual pressure rolled through the air like a physical force, causing the very atmosphere to tremble.
In the previous explosion, a small part of the mask on Ichigo's face was shattered by Ulquiorra's Luz de la Luna. At this time, he was panting slightly, when the massive Reiatsu from below suddenly surged upward, making Ichigo feel extremely familiar with its noble, refined spiritual signature.
"Is that Byakuya's Reiatsu?"
"How can it be so powerful?" Ulquiorra asked, his emerald eyes narrowing with curiosity.
Ichigo glanced down toward the source of the spiritual pressure, wanting to explore the situation below, when suddenly an afterimage passed by. Ulquiorra's figure appeared directly in front of Ichigo again with ghostly speed.
He heard the Espada whisper coldly: "Why are you distracted during our battle?"
"Do you think you have a chance of winning against me?"
Boom!
A knife-hand strike slashed heavily against Ichigo's Zanpakuto, the impact sending him flying hundreds of meters backward. He glided through the air for a considerable distance before finally managing to stop his momentum.
Holding Tensa Zangetsu in his hands with visible trembling, Ichigo forced himself to concentrate and focus. Suddenly, wind rushed behind him, and Ulquiorra's ghostly figure appeared next to Ichigo once more.
"Are you surprised by my speed?"
Ulquiorra's emotionless voice made cold sweat run down Ichigo's back. He gritted his teeth and slammed his blade behind him in desperation, but within seconds of swinging his sword, Ulquiorra had already positioned himself directly above Ichigo's head.
Ulquiorra hung upside down in the air, one pale finger pointing down at Ichigo's skull.
"You're too slow, Kurosaki Ichigo. Were all your bold declarations just empty words?"
Ulquiorra, who had completely grasped the initiative on the battlefield, seemed to adopt a playful attitude, constantly toying with and humiliating Ichigo through superior speed and positioning.
Kurosaki Ichigo's Bankai, Tensa Zangetsu, was designed to dramatically improve his Reiatsu concentration and movement speed. When he usually fought against enemies, he relied on his enhanced agility, overwhelming strength, and flexible combat style to overwhelm opponents and even toy with them during battle.
Therefore, when the situation was completely reversed, Kurosaki Ichigo's frustration and desperation could easily be imagined.
Whoosh!
Taking advantage of Shunpo techniques, Ichigo kept changing his position rapidly, and black afterimages flashed continuously through the air as he desperately tried to escape Ulquiorra's relentless pursuit.
When Ichigo appeared again, he thought he had finally escaped Ulquiorra's tracking. Then, suddenly, a cold hand was placed on his shoulder without any sound or warning.
"How is this possible..."
Ichigo, still wearing his partially cracked Hollow mask, turned his head in complete disbelief, looking at Ulquiorra who regarded him with the same expressionless, emotionless face as always.
"Haven't you given up this pointless struggling yet? How interesting. Are you worried about the Shinigami fighting down below?"
"Or are you concerned about that woman's safety?"
"Actually, there's no need for you to worry about any of them, because in the end, it will be you who loses this battle, without any surprises or exceptions."
Ulquiorra's cold words made Kurosaki Ichigo smile with grim determination despite his exhaustion.
"So what if that's true? I trust them to achieve victory, just as they trust me to defeat you here."
Ichigo's eyes were full of visible exhaustion at this moment, but his body remained tense and ready, always maintaining his fighting stance.
"I'm not fighting you just to win anymore. I absolutely have to win!"
Looking at Ichigo's stubbornly determined eyes, Ulquiorra felt genuinely surprised for the first time. Why? The outcome had already been clearly decided, yet this human still insisted on continuing this futile fight.
He knew he couldn't win, but still refused to surrender or give up. What was the point?
At this moment, Ulquiorra found himself stunned. The situation before him had surpassed his understanding and experience, and he simply couldn't comprehend the human's motivations.
"Is that so?"
"In that case, let me show you a cruel truth about reality."
"I remember that Getsuga Tensho should be your strongest attack technique, correct?"
"Release it with all your strength. Attack me."
Ulquiorra took several deliberate steps backward, staring down at Kurosaki Ichigo below with his arms outstretched and completely motionless, allowing his opponent to strike him with full power.
"Heh, you don't need to tell me something like that. I was planning to do it anyway!"
Kurosaki Ichigo raised Tensa Zangetsu high above his head, and the mask covering his face began changing dramatically. The original pure white mask transformed into deep, ominous black, while mysterious dark patterns appeared along his neck and wrists.
On Tensa Zangetsu's blade, black flames began flowing like liquid fire. Just looking at the supernatural flames was enough to feel breathless and overwhelmed.
"What kind of mask is that? It's definitely not a normal Hollow transformation!"
Ulquiorra had just made this mental judgment when Kurosaki Ichigo's devastating attack was already falling toward him.
"Getsuga Tensho!"
The black flames attached themselves to red and black Reiatsu, forming a massive crescent-shaped slash that attacked Ulquiorra with terrifying force and speed.
Seeing Kurosaki Ichigo's sudden transformation and the power of his attack, Ulquiorra was genuinely startled, but he understood that he couldn't take such a technique head-on without consequences.
He extended his finger with cold indifference, and a dark green light beam condensed at his fingertip. Soon, a massive black Cero collided directly with the flaming Getsuga Tensho released by Ichigo.
BOOM!!
The violent explosion sent Ichigo, who had exhausted most of his remaining strength, flying hundreds of meters away. He fell vertically toward the bottom of the zenith platform, completely out of control.
Seeing that his body was spinning helplessly through the air, Ichigo could only insert Tensa Zangetsu into the wall with great difficulty, using the friction to slow his dangerous falling speed.
After falling more than one hundred meters in a row, Ichigo successfully stabbed his blade into the wall to catch a brief moment of rest and gain some short recovery time.
However, Ulquiorra followed closely behind him, and the way he looked at Kurosaki Ichigo this time had finally changed slightly from his usual complete indifference.
"Is this truly all your strength?"
"I have to take my previous words back, Kurosaki Ichigo!"
"Compared to the other Shinigami I've encountered, you are indeed different and noteworthy."
"Although they imitate and learn from Hollows for the sake of gaining powerful strength, they can't become a true Hollow's opponent at all. Your strength just now was genuinely surprising to me."
"However, it was merely a surprise, nothing more."
As he spoke, the tail behind Ulquiorra flicked suddenly with whip-like speed, pulling the exhausted Ichigo out of the wall where he'd been resting. The tail wrapped around him like a serpent to bring him back up to the zenith platform.
"You are finished, Kurosaki Ichigo!"
Ulquiorra looked at Ichigo with his characteristically cold, indifferent eyes and spoke with finality.
"Ha ha..."
Suddenly, a mocking sneer came from Ichigo's throat. He opened one eye, looked at Ulquiorra with pure disdain and said: "You've said that same line many times already. I've heard enough of it!"
As he spoke those defiant words, the Reiatsu within Kurosaki Ichigo's body suddenly surged with renewed power. He directly broke free from Ulquiorra's restraining tail, then slashed viciously at the Espada's chest.
Puff!
A stream of crimson blood flowed out, and Ulquiorra stared with wide, disbelieving eyes at this impossible scene. He couldn't have imagined that he, while in his released Resurreccion state, could be injured by Kurosaki Ichigo, whom he had consistently regarded as inferior.
Just when he was about to counterattack in anger, Ichigo suddenly collapsed to his knees on the ground, retching in obvious agony. His eyes widened as if his skull was about to burst from internal pressure.
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