"A battle between captains…?"
Aizen's calm voice broke the silence in the underground chamber. He adjusted his glasses slightly, a faint smile curling across his lips.
"How intriguing…"
Compared to the previous clashes against the pure-blooded Quincy, this was different. These were familiar faces—captains of the Gotei 13. And among them, one of his own: Kaname Tōsen.
That alone made it all the more interesting.
"Captain Aizen," Gin Ichimaru drawled, his trademark sly grin widening as he turned to glance at him. "Do you think this 'Nozarashi' might really be Kenpachi Zaraki's Zanpakutō?"
"It's highly likely."
Aizen didn't even hesitate. His answer came quick, certain. "If it's Zaraki… there's no reason to doubt it."
He rested a hand on his chin, his voice smooth but laced with weight.
"He is one of the very few within the Gotei 13… who truly makes me feel uneasy. A walking instability."
Just one sentence.
But from Aizen's lips, that alone carried meaning.
Kenpachi Zaraki—acknowledged by the most calculating mind in Soul Society as a genuine threat.
Gin chuckled softly. "Ah… that so? Well then…"
He cast another amused look toward Tōsen, deliberately twisting the knife. "Tōsen, you heard the Captain. If even he admits Zaraki's dangerous, I'd say the future you should probably start praying right about now, huh?"
Tōsen's brows furrowed, but he stayed silent.
At that moment, the light from the monitor flickered again—resuming the footage.
"Komamura," a low, gravelly voice echoed from the screen, "that's not enough."
"Let me be the one to crush this lunatic completely."
The camera swung around to reveal Tōsen himself, leaping high into the air behind Komamura.
"Suzumushi Nishiki: Enma Kōrogi!"
With a sharp motion, his Zanpakutō traced a glowing arc through the air.
Instantly, dozens of gleaming spirit blades materialized in front of him—dense as rain, gleaming like molten steel. They locked onto Kenpachi's position and rained down like a storm of swords.
"BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!"
Explosions rolled one after another, shaking the ground and sending clouds of smoke and debris tearing across the frame.
Half the corridor collapsed in the blast. The tremor reached so far that even the screen itself seemed to shake.
No mercy. No hesitation.
This was a killing blow.
And as always, the moment the footage hit the airwaves, the entire Soul Society—and Hueco Mundo—erupted in chatter.
"Tch…"
"So this is what Soul Reapers are like, huh? Pretending to be all noble and righteous—but when it comes down to it, they're just like us Arrancar."
"Look at them—tearing each other apart. Hah! What a joke."
In Las Noches, Yammy's voice thundered across the hall as he burst into laughter.
He was practically glowing with glee, like a child who'd just been handed the perfect excuse to mock his enemies.
"They call us savages," he continued, snickering. "But look at them now—captains turning on captains. Hypocrites, every last one!"
"Even Tōsen's fighting now…" Grimmjow said flatly, shoving his hands into his pockets. "I never liked that guy anyway. The 'moral' one, huh? Always acting like he's above everyone else."
He spat to the side. "Without Aizen backing him, he's just another weakling."
"Ha! You'd only talk that big because Aizen-sama isn't standing here," Nnoitra sneered.
Then his grin widened, his single visible eye gleaming as he looked back at the screen.
"Still," he muttered, "I'll give credit where it's due. That big one—Komamura—and that blind idiot? Their attacks pack a punch. But…"
He smirked.
"I doubt that's enough to kill Zaraki."
His tone turned almost analytical.
"If a captain could die that easily, Aizen wouldn't have bothered waiting all these years to strike. He'd have sent us in to burn Seireitei to the ground long ago."
The logic was sound—even the other Arrancar nodded slightly.
And sure enough…
Only moments later—just as the smoke began to fade—the battlefield came back into view.
A deep, wild laugh echoed through the ruins.
"What's this…?"
The voice was unmistakable.
"Is it over already?"
"Pathetic. Looks like I'll have to take back what I said earlier—fighting you two only makes me sleepy!"
The smirk, the swagger—it could only belong to one man.
When the dust fully cleared, Zaraki Kenpachi stood there—bloody, battered, and grinning from ear to ear.
His captain's haori was torn, his shoulder still bleeding where several blades had lodged themselves deep in his flesh. But his stance was steady. His smile, feral. His eyes, alight with battlelust.
He looked less like a man and more like a beast that refused to die.
And the entire world watching him… shivered.
"Is… is this guy even capable of feeling pain?"
"He's bleeding everywhere, and he's still laughing!"
"This is insane! He's not human—he's a monster!"
"Heh… I think those two captains are about to regret picking this fight."
Across every corner of Soul Society and Hueco Mundo, the viewers erupted in disbelief and awe.
They weren't wrong.
In the next instant, Zaraki raised his sword.
And the counterattack began.
No strategy. No form. Just raw, chaotic, unrestrained force.
He swung with wild abandon, the length of his chipped blade tracing arcs of raw light through the air. Each impact forced Komamura and Tōsen backward, each clash heavier than the last.
One man—against two captains.
And he was winning.
Then, with a furious roar, Tōsen finally unleashed his ultimate move.
"Bankai!"
"Suzumushi Tsuishiki: Enma Kōrogi!"
The air trembled.
From the tip of his blade, a low hum reverberated like an insect's cry. A dome of pure blackness erupted outward, swallowing the battlefield whole.
Inside it—no light, no sound, no scent.
Every sense stripped away.
The screen darkened entirely, save for the faint outline of a circular shadow pulsing with spiritual energy.
A collective gasp spread through the audience.
"A Bankai that erases the senses…"
"How terrifying…"
In the Eighth Division, Kyoraku Shunsui set down his teacup, eyes narrowing.
"But that sort of ability—" he sighed, shaking his head. "—that might work on any other opponent. Not on him."
He leaned back, voice calm yet absolute.
"Zaraki Kenpachi doesn't fight with his senses. He fights with instinct. He's a beast that's lived his whole life cutting down everything in front of him."
He smiled faintly. "You can blind a man's eyes… but you can't take away the fangs of a wild animal."
A pause.
Then his tone turned sharp, confident.
"The moment Tōsen used that Bankai, the result was already decided."
He raised the teacup again, taking another sip.
"'Suzumushi's' darkness…"
"…is powerless against Zaraki Kenpachi."
(End of Chapter)
[100 Power Stones = 1 Extra Chapter]
[10 Reviews = 5 Extra Chapters]
[Check out my Patreon to read 20+ chapters ahead]
[[email protected]/Zukooo]
[Thanks for your support!]