"Fake?"
Naraku Sora rubbed his fingers together, feeling that the tactile sensation was somewhat off.
As an angel investor with rich experience, the number of Soul Reapers he had beaten up was at least several dozen, if not a hundred.
It should be known that ordinary squad members didn't even have the qualifications to be beaten by him.
Generally speaking, one needed to be at least at the level of a seated officer to withstand his direct teaching. Those with slightly weaker strength would likely struggle to even resist the aftershocks.
Therefore, based solely on this sensory feedback, Naraku Sora concluded that Azashiro Sōya wasn't dead. Instead, he had used some method to evade the 'Dark Hell Nirvana Drop' from just now.
*A clone?*
*Or a body constructed from Reishi?*
While he was thinking, countless specks of Reishi light gathered, swarming together like fireflies, and a new body condensed once more.
Azashiro Sōya's expression appeared calm, but his slightly twitching eyes revealed a lot.
Observing from afar and experiencing it firsthand were two completely different things.
Only at this moment did he truly understand exactly what those Soul Reapers who had fought Naraku Sora felt.
This guy could no longer be called human.
Fortunately, Urozakuro's ability naturally countered this kind of brute.
"It's useless, Prison Warden Naraku."
Azashiro Sōya propped up the surrounding light sources, continuously dispelling the darkness and gradually illuminating the surrounding space.
The cavern-like structure formed Muken, the prison that held countless heinous criminals.
"Since you have some understanding, you should know Urozakuro's ability."
"Although the Sekki-seki structure prevents me from fusing with Muken, even so, this place cannot completely imprison me."
"Furthermore, just now, you shattered the Sekki-seki beneath your feet with your own hands."
"Therefore, witness true despair."
The moment his voice fell, the ground transformed into surging waves, rolling forward layer upon layer. In an instant, it climbed dozens of meters high, crashing down to engulf Naraku Sora like an apocalyptic tsunami.
And this was merely the signal that the battle had begun.
An attack of this level was far from enough to kill Naraku Sora, a man who stood above the vast majority of Captains.
Azashiro Sōya stood in place, a blue light flickering in his eyes.
As the endless torrent of earth pressed down, countless Reishi blades materialized within it, cleanly piercing through that—Shishakushō.
The ever-successful blade light once again capsized against Naraku Sora. After merely tearing open that layer of Shishakushō, it lost its momentum, unable to advance even a single inch further.
Azashiro Sōya took a deep breath, his expression becoming incredibly complicated.
*Even for a pure Vasto Lorde, isn't this Hierro's defense a bit too ridiculous?*
"Naraku Sora, you are indeed strong, and very special."
"But you have undoubtedly gone down the wrong path. As a Kenpachi, I have an obligation to set you strai—"
However, before he could finish speaking, the piled-up earthen wall suddenly tore open. A violent Reiatsu burst forth from within, slamming directly into Azashiro Sōya's face.
"Babbling on and on, what kind of nonsense are you spouting?"
"Out of all the Kenpachi I've beaten up, you are the one with the least self-awareness."
Secret Technique・Dragon Flash.
The unpretentious slash carried massive momentum, plowing through the ground like divine punishment and instantly cleaving the surging earthen torrent ahead in two.
*He drew his sword!*
Azashiro Sōya's expression changed slightly. He instantly activated his ability to dodge, his body collapsing in a flash and turning into countless Reishi that scattered into the atmosphere.
When he condensed his body once more, a massive, abyss-like trench had shockingly appeared right beside him.
As a challenger who had once fought Kuruyashiki Kenpachi, he naturally knew his stuff. He could clearly sense the terrifying destructive power contained within that slash.
*Since ordinary methods won't work, let's try Kidō.*
Azashiro Sōya was different from other Kenpachi. When he used his Bankai to fuse his own Reishi with other things, his physical attributes remained locked in their current state.
They could never be improved.
Therefore, Zanjutsu was actually the skill he was least proficient in.
But similarly, after paying the corresponding price, he had also gained unimaginable rewards.
Azashiro Sōya lowered his gaze slightly and softly chanted a Kidō incantation.
"—Scorching iron flickers, profoundly silent."
Naraku Sora raised an eyebrow and delivered a backhand slash, the sword pressure instantly shattering the distant figure.
But the voice did not stop because of this. In the profound darkness, the chanting continued.
"—The sound of clashing spears fills the empty castle."
"—The wall of pale fire engraves the twin lotuses, the distant sky awaits the abyss of the great fire."
"—Draw the bow to the beyond, fading in bright white."
"—Interrupting sleep, the crawling princess of iron."
The Kidō incantations overlapped one after another, turning into a continuous, earth-shattering roar that drowned out the entire battlefield.
The fully chanted Kidō were not released; their overwhelming power accumulated within the surrounding space, waiting for all the incantations to be completed.
The next moment, a Reiatsu wave composed of a complex intertwining of Hadō and Bakudō continuously expanded, as if to crush everything in its path.
Then, hundreds of Kidō were unleashed simultaneously, distorting the surrounding air into blinding arcs of light.
An apocalyptic, dam-breaking torrent explosively erupted, soaring into the sky!
Wherever it passed, dust vaporized and rubble was annihilated; even the surrounding space twisted and trembled in its wake.
Watching the surging wave approach, the corners of Naraku Sora's mouth split open into a sinister smile. Without a shred of fear, he raised the Zanpakutō in his hand.
Scorching flames of Reiatsu ignited upon it, and a terrifying high temperature suddenly permeated the air.
Arcs of electricity surged, wrapping around the dazzling blade and causing it to erupt with lightning-like extreme speed.
The pitch-black slash followed like a shadow, as if it had severed even sound itself.
After a brief moment of dead silence.
A terrifying shockwave erupted. The earth transformed into a tyrannical ocean, and everything within sight was swept up in rippling layers of fluctuation.
The rock strata churned and surged. The intertwined Kidō were instantly annihilated under the permeating pitch-black darkness, unable to hold on for even a single second.
The mighty aftershocks swept out, turning into a new torrent that rushed forward.
In an instant, it obliterated Azashiro Sōya's body, causing him to shatter into countless Reishi that scattered amidst the hurricane.
However, as the grand momentum gradually died down, countless Reishi gathered once more, and Azashiro Sōya appeared before Naraku Sora completely unscathed.
"Meaningless."
"Ordinary methods have absolutely no effect on me."
"A long time ago, I already completed my fusion with the Seireitei."
Azashiro Sōya's gaze was calm, as if he were stating an established and unalterable fact.
"In a sense, unless the entire Seireitei is destroyed, it is fundamentally impossible to defeat me."
From the very beginning of the battle, he had already stood in an invincible position.
Naraku Sora raised an eyebrow, somewhat surprised.
*Although I can't remember the exact details, if I'm not mistaken, this guy seems to have broken out of prison once in the future, only to be defeated by that guy Zaraki.*
*We're both brutes, so why could he do it?*
Just as he was pondering a countermeasure, Azashiro Sōya spoke slowly:
"Prison Warden Naraku, do you know why I abandoned the Vanguard Project back then?"
"Aside from sensing the Spirit King's will, the most crucial reason was that the so-called Vanguard Project could not annihilate all the Hollows in the world."
"After so many years of contemplation, I finally realized that if one wishes to fulfill the duties of a Soul Reaper, they must start from the root."
"Hollows are born because unnecessary thoughts and emotions exist within human souls, preventing them from ascending to heaven after death."
"Therefore, even if every Hollow in Hueco Mundo is annihilated, as long as the World of the Living still exists and humans still exist, new Hollows will continuously appear."
"The duty of a Soul Reaper will never be completed."
"To this end, I came up with a perfect solution: to completely erase human emotions. The first thing to do is to modify the structure of the human brain."
"This is something your two subordinates are entirely capable of doing."
Naraku Sora, who was just about to cleave Azashiro Sōya to death with a single slash, froze upon hearing this and subconsciously said:
"Kisuke and Mayuri?"
Seeing the other party fall into his rhythm, Azashiro Sōya nodded with a softened expression:
"At first, I didn't notice anything special about those two. But after they started following you, I finally noticed their wisdom and talent."
"With their abilities, developing a device to erase human memories wouldn't be difficult at all."
"When the time comes, I only need to fuse my Reishi into it to implement this plan in the World of the Living."
"Without a source, the Hollows of Hueco Mundo will be like duckweed without roots; sooner or later, they will completely disappear."
"The only sacrifice would be a few insignificant emotions, but humans would also be able to understand each other and break the spiritual barriers between them—"
Hearing this, Naraku Sora couldn't hold back his laughter.
*What kind of Human Orange Juice Project is this?*
*Before doing all this, did you even ask the humans in the World of the Living if they agreed?*
*After staying in Muken for so long, this guy's way of thinking has clearly become somewhat pathological.*
"There are a few things I need to correct you on."
Naraku Sora reached out to interrupt the other's lengthy speech, speaking bluntly:
"Who exactly told you that a Soul Reaper's duty is to annihilate all Hollows in the world?"
"Tell me their name, and I promise I won't blow their head off."
"Lord Genryūsai," Azashiro Sōya replied with an honest face.
"?"
Naraku Sora's eyes widened:
"Is that old geezer's brain full of sweet potatoes? How could he spout such nonsense?"
"A Soul Reaper's true duty is to maintain balance—the balance between the three realms—not to annihilate any single side."
Azashiro Sōya frowned but didn't say anything.
"Secondly, who told you that erasing all human emotions would make Hollows disappear from the world?"
To prevent the other party from saying Yamamoto's name again, Naraku Sora sped up his speech:
"According to my research, Hollows also possess the ability to reproduce. So even if you launch a human extinction plan, you won't wipe out all Hollows."
"And the last issue: you said that unless the entire Seireitei is destroyed, it's fundamentally impossible to hurt you."
"If that's the case, then shouldn't I just destroy it?"
Under Azashiro Sōya's horrified gaze, a scorching pillar of fire shot up into the sky. A terrifying high temperature instantly swept through all of Muken, and a tyrannical aura permeated outward.
A pair of golden, slit-like pupils emerged within the pillar of fire. Amidst the suffocating Reiatsu, a ferocious demon slowly materialized, the corners of its mouth splitting open into a delighted curve!