Eight surges of Reiatsu erupted across Sōkyoku Hill in rapid succession.
After taking Aizen's strike, the Visored retreated to a safe distance. Their appearances began to change—white, viscous substance spread across half their bodies, pouring out from their wounds, transforming them into something half-human, half-monster.
This was the power they had mastered over the years—
Partial Hollowfication.
In this state, they could utilize High-Speed Regeneration to heal their injuries. That was precisely why they dared to stage this entire act in front of Aizen.
As for full Hollowfication, it was still beyond their control.
Previously, Rōjūrō Ōtoribashi (Rose) had been forced into full Hollowfication only because Ichimaru Gin was too fast—and too ruthless. Without it, the three of them might have already fallen to Gin's blade.
Everything the Visored had done…
Was to take that one strike from Aizen.
Or rather—
To counter Kyōka Suigetsu.
After Sawada Tsunayoshi revealed the information, everyone knew there were only two ways to break free from Kyōka Suigetsu:
Never witness its Shikai releaseTouch the blade itself
Given Aizen's personality, there was no way he would willingly let anyone touch his Zanpakutō.
And so, Shinji, Urahara, and the others devised this plan.
If their hands were cut by Kyōka Suigetsu…
Didn't that also mean—
They had touched it?
Urahara glanced at the Visored with a hint of envy.
Freeing them from Kyōka Suigetsu's control was already the limit. If he or Yoruichi were included, Aizen would become extremely cautious.
Only these "failures," whom Aizen looked down upon, had the opportunity to get close enough.
Though Shinji was furious, after understanding Urahara's plan, he had no choice but to accept the fact—
He had never been taken seriously by Aizen.
With their objective achieved, Urahara and Yoruichi immediately withdrew.
They couldn't stay.
If they did, Aizen would simply use them against the Visored.
Aizen's expression darkened.
Of course he had realized that Shinji and Urahara were targeting Kyōka Suigetsu.
But there was one unavoidable flaw in their plan—
How did they identify his real body at the final moment?
Urahara's trick had already been neutralized.
And the Visored alone were incapable of such a feat.
Aizen scanned the battlefield—
And his gaze landed on someone casually roasting food in the distance.
Noticing Aizen's stare, Sawada Tsunayoshi smiled and waved.
That was all Aizen needed to confirm it.
At the critical moment—
It was Tsunayoshi.
After their earlier deal, Tsunayoshi had made it clear he wouldn't intervene directly—but would provide support.
Aizen had been wary of him.
But Urahara's appearance had stirred his emotions just enough—
For him to overlook Tsunayoshi, who had been quietly watching the entire time.
From beginning to end, Tsunayoshi had only acted once.
At that crucial instant—
He pointed out Aizen's true position to the Visored.
The method was simple.
Unnoticed by Aizen, the skewer in Tsunayoshi's hand had already turned into a trident.
Tsunayoshi himself was unaffected by Kyōka Suigetsu.
At the key moment, he cast another illusion—
An illusion of reality itself—
on top of the Visored, who were already under hypnosis.
Knowing the plan in advance, they immediately adjusted their attacks—
And struck the real Aizen.
However, this trick couldn't be used repeatedly.
If overused, Aizen would detect Tsunayoshi's Reiatsu.
At that point, it would devolve into—
An illusion layered over illusion over illusion—
A direct clash between Tsunayoshi and Aizen.
And Tsunayoshi had no interest in that.
He bore no grudge against Aizen.
Revenge belonged to Shinji and the others.
And now—
With Kyōka Suigetsu's control broken—
They could finally fight freely.
"Aizen, didn't expect this, did you? Your Kyōka Suigetsu is no longer—"
Before Shinji could finish—
A small figure had already charged forward.
If not for breaking Kyōka Suigetsu's control, Hiyori Sarugaki would never have obediently followed Shinji's plan.
Her Zanpakutō, Kubikiri Orochi, glowed with red energy. Though she couldn't fully condense a Cero into her blade, she could still channel Hollow Reiatsu into it.
Raising her weapon high—
She brought it down in a furious, mountain-splitting strike.
Clang!
A crisp metallic sound rang out.
Gin blocked her massive blade effortlessly with his short sword.
Realizing something was wrong, Gin and Tōsen had abandoned pursuit of Urahara and Yoruichi and rushed back immediately.
Even with partial Hollowfication, Hiyori lacked the strength to move Gin.
With a slight push, he forced her back—
And immediately countered.
Shinsō shot forward like lightning.
A harsh screech echoed—
Kensei Muguruma intercepted the attack.
At the same time, a Cero formed in his mouth and blasted toward Gin.
Since Gin stood in front of Aizen, the attack encompassed all three of them.
The trio used Shunpo to evade—
But were forced apart once again.
The Visored each engaged their targets.
As before:
Shinji and Love Aikawa vs. AizenKensei and Rose switched opponents deliberately
Their earlier "revenge" against former squad members had all been an act—
To lower Aizen's guard.
To the Visored, all three were enemies.
Revenge didn't need to be selective.
Repeatedly interrupted, Gin finally lost patience.
His eyes narrowed.
A surge of Bankai-level Reiatsu erupted.
Though his blade appeared unchanged—
Shinsō had already evolved into Kamishini no Yari.
A torrent of white light shot forward.
At the same time, a cubic Kidō barrier formed, shielding Kensei's group and blocking the first wave.
"Hachi, drop the barrier. I'll handle him," Kensei said, rolling his shoulders as his Hollow mask faded.
"Don't worry—I won't take long."
The moment he stepped out—
The blade struck.
Kensei grinned.
"Bankai—Tekken Tachikaze!"
Caterpillar-like armor enveloped his body. Blade gauntlets formed over both fists.
Without even looking at Gin's attack, Kensei unleashed a barrage of storm-like punches straight ahead.
If the attack came from the front—
Then he would simply overwhelm everything in front of him.
As expected—
The wind-based Reiatsu formed a defensive wall.
After a brief clash, Gin withdrew his blade.
Interesting…
Gin hadn't expected that the "weakest captain" from a century ago now had the composure to fight like this.
Back then, choosing Squad 9 as their test case had been simple:
No backgroundSimple-mindedAnd most importantly—weak
So weak that even in a berserk state, he could be subdued by the three of them.
Gin gripped his blade with both hands, pressing the hilt to his chest.
A river of white light surged outward.
Butō Renjin.
A single rapid extension of Kamishini no Yari was called Butō.
This—
Was a continuous barrage.
So fast that it appeared as a flowing river of light.
Kensei didn't fall behind.
A violent storm erupted across Sōkyoku Hill.
All air currents converged—
Gathering into a single fist.
He struck forward with everything he had.
"Danfū!"
In that instant—
It felt as though all air had been stripped away.
A wind barrier, similar to Dankū, formed before him—
Blocking the barrage while pushing forward.
Gin increased his attack speed—
Breaking through the pressure just in time.
This was Kensei's style—
Direct. Overwhelming.
Despite wielding a wind-type Zanpakutō, he preferred crushing enemies head-on.
A glint flashed in Gin's eyes.
Normally, he relied purely on speed.
Few could survive even a single thrust of Shinsō—
Let alone Kamishini no Yari.
Yet now—
Against Kensei—
He had to get serious.
Gin swung his blade.
Countless strikes formed a net—
Butō Rasen.
By subtly altering the extension angles, the blade curved unpredictably.
Combined with relentless strikes—
It became an inescapable net.
Kensei's straightforward attacks were now useless.
Yet—
Kensei showed no fear.
Only excitement.
This—
Was what true revenge felt like.
A red glow flashed across his face.
His Hollow mask appeared once more.
Unlike before, the Visored captains could now maintain Hollowfication even in Bankai.
Though deeper Hollowfication was still beyond them—
This was enough.
Far stronger than before.
(Tsunayoshi had once jokingly measured it as "ten to twelve trucks" worth of power—depending on Kensei's fighting spirit.)
Mask on—
Fists ready—
Kensei charged straight into the deadly net.
Meanwhile—
Rose took the initiative against Tōsen.
As for Hiyori and Lisa Yadōmaru , he had them support from the sidelines—firing occasional Ceros.
Normally, Hiyori would protest.
But after seeing Gin casually block her full-power strike—
She held back.
She understood the bigger picture.
Tōsen, like Gin, was irritated.
Nothing had gone smoothly all day.
Without hesitation—
He drew his blade.
"Bankai—Enma Kōrogi."
As the dome formed, Rose quickly spoke before his senses were stripped:
"Do you know why I'm your opponent? Because my Zanpakutō is your—"
"Shut up, baldy!"
Bang!
Hiyori kicked him flat on his face.
Lisa quietly lowered her hand—she had been about to do the same.
They all remembered Tsunayoshi's warning:
Rose's biggest flaw—
Was his mouth.
He loved revealing information mid-battle.
Rubbing his head, Rose stood up helplessly.
"…Bankai—Kinshara Butōdan."
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