At this moment, Rukia was already frightened out of her wits by everything that had just transpired.
She looked at the man before her—once gentle and refined, now resembling a demon—and her body couldn't stop trembling.
"...Captain Aizen..."
"Don't be afraid, Rukia."
Aizen reached out and gently stroked Rukia's cheek, like a kind elder.
"It will be over soon. It won't hurt."
His hand slid down her face, eventually stopping at her chest.
"If the Sokyoku were used, your soul would completely disappear," Aizen said softly, his tone even carrying a hint of smugness. "But now, thanks to my research, you will survive."
His fingers suddenly turned an eerie translucent color, wrapped in the green light of Kido.
*Squelch!*
Aizen's hand directly pierced right through Rukia's chest!
"Ah...!"
Rukia let out a short gasp.
However, just as Aizen had said, she felt no pain. She only felt that something important inside her body was being forcibly stripped away.
It was an empty sensation, as if her soul were being torn apart.
Aizen's arm groped around inside Rukia's body for a moment before a flash of joy crossed his eyes.
"Found it."
He slowly withdrew his hand.
In his palm rested a gemstone emitting a faint, dark blue glow.
The light was profound and captivating, as if it contained the truths of the universe, yet also resembling a black hole that devoured everything.
This was the Hogyoku created by Kisuke Urahara.
To conceal its existence, Kisuke Urahara had gone to great lengths, ultimately hiding it inside Rukia Kuchiki's body.
Unfortunately, because of Asuka, Aizen had long been keeping a close eye on Urahara's every move.
He hadn't struck earlier simply because he wanted Urahara to outsmart himself and hand the Hogyoku over...
As the Hogyoku left her body, Rukia's eyes rolled back and she fainted, casually tossed aside by Aizen.
"..."
Aizen looked at the Hogyoku in his hand, no longer able to conceal the fanaticism in his eyes.
He pulled another gemstone from his robes.
It was a gemstone that also emitted light, though its color was slightly murky.
That was the Hogyoku he, Sosuke Aizen, had created himself through a century of soul experiments.
Although countless souls of Rukongai residents and Soul Reapers had been sacrificed to create it, it had never been able to reach a state of perfection.
"...Become one."
Aizen slowly brought the two Hogyoku together.
*Hum!*
A fierce resonance erupted between the two gemstones, and a harsh noise like grinding glass filled the air.
Under the gaze of heaven and earth, the two Hogyoku slowly merged into one.
A brilliant light flared!
A terrifying Spiritual Pressure erupted with Aizen at the epicenter!
It was not the Spiritual Pressure of a Soul Reaper, nor that of a Hollow. It was a higher-dimensional, purer power that seemed to stand above all living things!
When the light faded.
In Aizen's hand remained only a single, crystal-clear, perfect gemstone radiating a prismatic halo.
The complete Hogyoku.
"This is... true power."
Feeling the pulsation coming from the Hogyoku, the overwhelming sensation that he could achieve anything made Aizen want to throw his head back and laugh.
But time was of the essence, so he held himself back.
The Prison Realm on the ground was vibrating more and more violently, and the red on the box's surface had turned a blinding incandescent white.
Clearly, Genryusai Yamamoto was on the verge of breaking the seal.
"You truly are stubborn..."
Aizen pulled a small glass vial from his robes.
Inside the vial were several extremely twisted, unsettling worms.
If Asuka were present, he would have recognized what they were at a glance.
Crest Worms.
Aizen gently placed the Hogyoku on the scalding surface of the Prison Realm, then poured the Crest Worms from the vial onto the Hogyoku.
*Pop! Pop!*
The moment those Crest Worms touched the terrifying heat of the Prison Realm, they burst open without exception!
However.
Under the influence of the Hogyoku, the black blood inside the worms did not evaporate.
The blood rapidly spread across the surface of the Prison Realm, outlining a complex and twisted magic circle.
"Makiri, open the gate."
He commanded softly.
"Hehehe, understood."
"But I'll say the ugly truth upfront... A magic circle drawn using the spiritual power of this world isn't guaranteed to succeed..."
A sinister voice echoed from the communicator in Aizen's robes.
Then, somehow... the array patterns began to writhe like living creatures, emitting a highly ominous aura.
"In the name of Sosuke Aizen, I make a wish—"
Aizen pressed his hand against the Hogyoku, pouring his will into it.
"Open the path to the void! Banish the obstacle before me!"
*Vmm—!!*
Amplified by the Hogyoku, an unimaginable resonance occurred.
The magic circle drawn with worm blood suddenly came alive.
It detached from the surface of the Prison Realm, suspended in midair, and began to spin madly.
Slowly... the surrounding space began to collapse and fracture.
Soon, a pitch-black, miniature void rift formed, seemingly connecting to the end of the universe.
"Although the Hogyoku is an item capable of breaking past limits..."
Aizen muttered to himself as he watched the spatial rift gradually take shape, his tone carrying a hint of awe.
"If the chosen vessel itself lacks the capability, opening a door to another dimension is impossible using the power of a Soul Reaper alone."
"After all, I am not Number Seventy-Eight..."
He watched the black magical lightning dancing within the rift.
That was the spacetime mark belonging to Makiri Zolgen.
"Fortunately, fate favors me, allowing me to repeatedly encounter powers that shouldn't exist in this world."
"And because of this old worm, I am able to cause a brief convergence of spacetime turbulence in this world."
Aizen looked at the Prison Realm on the ground, which was on the verge of exploding, and revealed an elegant, farewell smile.
"Farewell, Head Captain Yamamoto."
"Continue to burn your fury in that endless void."
"Hado #90・Kurohitsugi!"
A torrent of black spiritual power wrapped around the Prison Realm, then violently shoved it!
The box imprisoning the strongest Soul Reaper instantly turned into a blazing white meteor, plunging straight into that pitch-black void!
Then, it slammed shut!
*BOOM—!!!*
At the same time, a massive explosion echoed from the sky above.
Aizen instinctively looked up.
The Shakonmaku protecting the Seireitei had actually been smashed open, leaving a massive hole!
A sphere radiating dazzling spiritual light, trailing a long tail of flames like a meteor, was plummeting straight toward him!
Inside the sphere, a familiar Spiritual Pressure was rapidly approaching.
"We're gonna crash!!!"
It was none other than Asuka and his group, who had forcibly broken through the Seireitei's barrier using Kukaku Shiba's Flower Crane Cannon!
"Ahhhhh! Slow down! Slow down!!" Kaien, still unaccustomed to the ride, let out a scream that echoed through the clouds.
"How are we supposed to slow down at a time like this?! Hold on tight!!" Asuka's voice was calmer, but still laced with tension.
Aizen, having just sent Yamamoto away, looked in that direction with some surprise.
Then, a look of wild ecstasy appeared on his face.
"That is..."
"I truly am the one chosen by fate..."
*Bang! Bang!!*
The Spirit Orb crashed heavily into the ground, smashing several deep craters before slowly coming to a halt.
"Cough, cough... Ouch, ouch, ouch..."
The dust and smoke gradually cleared.
Asuka patted the dirt off his body and staggered to his feet.
As soon as he looked up, he saw a scene that made his blood run cold.
Although the man opposite him wasn't wearing glasses and his hairstyle was slightly different...
Even if the other party were reduced to ashes, he would still recognize him.
"Aizen—!!!"
He drew Kakudatsu, black marks crawling across his face as the ferocious patterns condensed from All the World's Evils surfaced on his body.
His Zanpakuto began to burn fiercely, his teeth grinding together so hard they creaked.
"Aizen—!!!!"
Asuka roared, drawing all eyes toward him involuntarily.
"Long time no see, Number Seventy-Eight."
Aizen smiled and waved.