Hearing Aizen's words, Shimo did not seem particularly concerned.
His gaze shifted slightly as he stared at Aizen's arrogant eyes.
"Evolution doesn't seem to have changed your conceited personality, Aizen."
Shimo spoke calmly.
"Do you remember what I once told you?"
Hearing this, Aizen thought for a moment before smiling faintly.
"The arrogance?"
"No. This isn't arrogance, this is confidence."
Shimo couldn't help but chuckle softly. Those words were originally his own.
After being defeated once, Aizen had clearly begun paying close attention to everything related to Shimo.
Beneath that seemingly arrogant exterior still lay a cautious mind.
However, the spiritual pressure Aizen was displaying now clearly proved that he had already reached a level beyond both Shinigami and Hollow.
It seemed that the evolution guided by the Hōgyoku was indeed effective.
Now that he had entered this state, it meant he had undergone a true transformation.
A Zanpakutō appeared in Aizen's hand. He pointed the tip toward Shimo and said:
"Regardless, Shimo-kun… your existence is something I truly appreciate."
"Among all the opponents I've faced, only you have forced me to fight with everything I have—even to the extent of setting up multiple schemes."
"Even someone known as the strongest Shinigami, Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto, had his combat ability crippled by merely a single Wonderweiss Margela."
Aizen's gaze was indifferent, a cold smile forming at the corner of his lips.
"Perhaps long ago, you already possessed power that surpassed everything."
"But because of certain emotional burdens… you were unable to truly cast everything aside."
"That… is the greatest difference between you and me."
His words were not concealed in the slightest. They echoed clearly to the Shinigami gathered below.
After hearing this, their expressions varied.
Shock. Doubt. Admiration. Trust.
Different identities led to different reactions.
However, one thing was certain—
Those who trusted Shimo had never wavered from beginning to end.
Only individuals like Marechiyo Ōmaeda swayed between belief and doubt.
As for Shimo's strength, no one questioned it.
Ever since he defeated Kenpachi Zaraki without suffering any injuries—
Shimo's legend had spread throughout the Seireitei.
And ever since then, his battle record had only grown more terrifying.
It left people astonished—
And raised an inevitable question:
What was the limit of Third Division Captain Kyōraku Shimo's power?
At this moment, the Shinigami could no longer intervene in the battle between the two.
The overwhelming spiritual pressure alone prevented even the captains from approaching.
And Aizen's Kyōka Suigetsu made it impossible for powerful captains to join the fight.
Even Yamamoto himself was no exception.
Soi Fon bit her lip, her gaze complex as she stared upward. Her soft murmur drifted into the wind:
"Shimo… you must win…"
Above, Kyōka Suigetsu's blade still pointed at Shimo.
Aizen spoke calmly:
"This ends here."
"We've already spent enough time. After killing you, I will proceed to the real Karakura Town and create the Ōken."
"I will replace the Soul King and stand atop the Royal Palace!"
Hearing this, Shimo lowered his gaze slightly and raised the arm holding his Zanpakutō.
The blade tip met Aizen's—
Desolate spiritual pressure erupted.
"Stand atop?"
A faint smile appeared at his lips.
"Is all your effort… merely to become a puppet-like existence?"
Black spiritual pressure and pale-purple spiritual pressure condensed into tangible forms—
And then collided in the sky.
BOOM!
Terrifying pressure spread across Karakura Town.
Centered on the two of them, the shockwaves expanded outward.
Now that Aizen had truly become a being beyond Shinigami and Hollow, the quality of his spiritual pressure had already approached Shimo's.
As for quantity, however...
He was still lacking.
After all,
The hundreds of thousands of layers of the Time Staircase were no mere decoration.
Hearing Shimo's words, Aizen paused slightly, but quickly dismissed them.
An enemy's words could be provocation.
Manipulating emotions was also a tactic.
And in that regard—
Aizen was the true master.
As the desolate spiritual pressure continued to expand, the sky above Shimo gradually returned to a darkened, descending night.
"Though I don't particularly wish to admit it… it's rare for us to agree on something."
"The battle… should indeed end."
Aizen raised his chin slightly, a smile appearing.
"Then… let's begin."
The moment his words fell—
The colored sky spread outward.
Like opposing factions on a battlefield—
Ink-black and pale-purple divided the sky above Karakura Town into two distinct halves.
It proved that Kisuke Urahara's earlier preparations had been extremely effective.
The tangible black and pale-purple spiritual pressures continued expanding outward.
Under such overwhelming pressure—
Even captain-level Shinigami were struggling.
If the city hadn't been replaced beforehand, the humans in nearby cities would likely have had their souls crushed entirely.
As the desolate spiritual pressure intensified—
Strange patterns gradually appeared in Shimo's eyes.
The intricate patterns merged together, forming something resembling a clock.
Seeing this, Aizen narrowed his eyes slightly.
"Your bankai, Shimo-kun?"
"What an awe-inspiring power…"
However,
Shimo shook his head with a faint smile.
"I'm sorry to disappoint you, Aizen."
"From beginning to end… I've never mastered Bankai."
"This… is simply another form of Shikai."
Aizen froze.
Even he found it difficult to understand.
"The same Zanpakutō… displaying completely different levels of spiritual pressure through different Shikai?"
Shimo nodded, a dangerous smile appearing.
"Exactly."
"I hope you can withstand what comes next… Aizen."
Under everyone's shocked gaze—
Shimo spoke the release command of his Zanpakutō:
"Pierce all Phenomena, Akatsuki."
At that moment...
The world, in his eyes… changed.
---------------------------------///
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