"Until now, I was in a state of soul reorganization," Aizen explained, seemingly pleased with his transformation. "The material derived from the Hōgyoku served as the sensory organs for my evolving body."
He flexed his fingers, examining them with satisfaction.
"Now that the reorganization is complete, I have regained my original appearance, enhanced with the power that stands at the pinnacle of both Shinigami and Hollow potential. I now possess the ultimate abilities of both races combined—truly god-like power."
While he spoke, Gin proceeded to open the dimensional gate.
The two of them walked through the portal unhurriedly, their figures gradually disappearing from Ichigo's sight as he stared with wide, golden-brown eyes. Until Aizen's silhouette completely vanished, Ichigo didn't dare even blink.
The oppressive force of Aizen's presence had been overwhelming, paralyzing him with fear.
Just as Gin had stated, all of Ichigo's methods and abilities had proven completely ineffective against Aizen thus far. From beginning to end, Aizen had remained utterly invincible.
Captain-Commander Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto, the assembled captains of the Gotei 13, the Visored, and even Urahara Kisuke—all had been defeated by Aizen's overwhelming power.
How could Ichigo possibly hope to prevail where they had failed?
...
"Captain Ichimaru..." Looking at Gin's retreating back, Izuru Kira, who lay defeated on the ground, watched with an expression of anguish and betrayal.
His face bore a profound melancholy that spoke volumes about his internal suffering.
Without the "strongest meat shield," as some jokingly called Sajin Komamura, Uehara Shiroha couldn't help but think that Kira had become the most pitiable figure in this conflict.
During their academy days, the blond reaper had often worn a smile, projecting the attitude of a sunny and cheerful young man with a bright future ahead.
But now he appeared so gloomy and broken, his spirit crushed under the weight of abandonment.
There was no avoiding this sad truth. Kira had first been systematically manipulated by Gin, subjected to a form of psychological control, only to be ultimately discarded when no longer useful. It would have been strange if his mental state hadn't collapsed under such treatment.
Uehara Shiroha recalled that in the original timeline, Kira would perish during the Thousand Year Blood War, only to be transformed into a "smiling" zombie soldier. Later, upon being restored, he would declare that he actually preferred his half-living, half-dead state, refusing Orihime Inoue's offers to heal the gaping hole in his chest.
One could only conclude that poor Kira had lost all hope for a normal existence.
The tragedy lay in Kira's lack of both strength and determination. Such a powerful Zanpakutō as Wabisuke, with its ability to multiply the weight of whatever it strikes, was wasted on someone without the resolve to use it to its full potential.
Controlling gravity represented an extraordinarily potent ability in combat. It could only be said that the effectiveness of a Shinigami's powers ultimately depended on their reiatsu and will to use them.
For comparison, the current Aizen was so formidable in performing Kidō that he could use a relatively ordinary spell like Kurohitsugi (Black Coffin) to produce the devastating effects of a gravity well strong enough to crush almost any opponent.
That was the true path of one who would be king—overwhelming power combined with the intelligence to use it effectively.
...
At that moment, the long-haired Aizen and Gin had arrived in a strange, tunnel-like dimensional passage.
Looking at the dark and desolate space stretching before them, Aizen remarked with an almost nostalgic tone: "The Dangai? How nostalgic this feels."
Gin nodded in agreement. "Indeed."
As they spoke, a golden light suddenly illuminated the passage from behind them.
The two turned to see what appeared to be a train-like entity approaching at tremendous speed.
At the front of this "train" shone a golden eye resembling a headlight. The golden light they had detected emanated from this mysterious eye.
This strange construct was composed of ultra-high-density reiatsu of a unique variety rarely encountered even by captain-class Shinigami.
Observing the "train" as it hurtled toward them, Aizen commented calmly: "Kōtotsu."
The Dangai was a special dimension existing independently from Soul Society, Hueco Mundo, and the World of the Living. It consisted of several layers of severed space overlapping each other, surrounded by currents of accelerated time.
Within this space, time flowed at a density approximately two thousand times greater than in the outside worlds. In the past, the Dangai had often been used by Soul Society as a place to exile certain prisoners.
The Kōtotsu served as a cleaner, responsible for eliminating unauthorized visitors who accidentally entered the Dangai, preventing them from remaining in this dimensional corridor for extended periods.
Through this mechanism, the balance between the various dimensions was maintained.
The Kōtotsu represented a pure manifestation of natural law, extremely difficult to damage using conventional Shinigami powers and capable of regenerating itself infinitely if harmed.
"Lord Aizen, this is dangerous! We should leave immediately!" When he spotted the Kōtotsu, Gin's normally composed demeanor showed signs of genuine concern.
This law-like entity was nearly impossible to defeat through conventional means, so evasion was typically the only viable strategy.
Hearing Gin's warning, Aizen took a step forward, directly confronting the oncoming Kōtotsu without hesitation.
"Lord Aizen?" Gin urgently continued his cautioning:
"The Kōtotsu embodies pure dimensional law, existing beyond the concepts of death and reiatsu. We must depart at once!"
As the "dimensional sweeper," the Kōtotsu was exceptionally dangerous to confront because it operated according to principles that transcended normal spiritual combat. This entity could affect anyone who merely approached it.
Similar to facing the aging breath of Baraggan Louisenbairn, contact with the Kōtotsu could instantly accelerate the flow of time within one's soul to an extreme degree.
Such a sudden temporal distortion could cause the soul to become disordered and age rapidly, resulting in catastrophic consequences for even the most powerful Shinigami.
No matter how formidable one's reiatsu might be, it provided no immunity against this form of rule-based ability.
Although Gin could no longer sense Aizen's reiatsu directly due to its transcendent nature, he was certain that after several evolutionary stages, Aizen's spiritual pressure had become truly terrifying.
Yet even so, Aizen could not overcome the Kōtotsu through reiatsu alone—or so conventional wisdom dictated.
Just as Gin finished speaking, a brilliant white light radiated from Aizen's purple eyes. An invisible barrier of condensed reiatsu suddenly materialized around him, creating a protective field.
This ability, which Aizen had named "Superior Reiatsu Field," was a special technique he had awakened after evolving to his third transformative stage.
When activated, this power formed an seemingly indestructible reiatsu barrier around Aizen's body. Any entity that came into contact with this barrier would be instantly shredded by the ultra-high-density spiritual pressure.
If the opposing force was sufficiently weak, it would be completely annihilated on contact, leaving no trace of its existence.
The Kōtotsu itself was an entity composed of ultra-high-density reiatsu, representing the power of dimensional law. But Aizen's evolution had carried him beyond such limitations.