Nimaiya could sense the location of every Asauchi he had ever forged. Yet when his gaze fell on the weapon in Yuta's hand, the recognition wasn't there. For a moment, the thought crossed his mind that what Yuta held might not even qualify as a Zanpakutō at all. To his eyes, it appeared as nothing more than a sword without definition. Even when Byakuya had been struck down earlier, the anomaly had gone unnoticed. Now, confronted with it directly, he realized the problem he had missed.
He was the God of the Sword, the one who had forged every Zanpakutō within Soul Society, and yet Yuta's blade existed completely outside his awareness. In his perception, Yuta's grip appeared empty, as if the weapon itself was formed from nothingness. No matter how he strained his senses, there was no signature to detect.
"This one…" His voice held a rare weight. "Could this be the person who forced the collapse of the Asauchi meant to evolve without limits?"
Kirinji Tenshirō blinked in confusion, the words colliding with the doubts still clouding his mind.
"What did you just say? Collapse? The Asauchi are supposed to hold infinite potential. How could they possibly break down?"
Nimaiya's tone was steady, but there was an edge of finality to it.
"Theoretically, yes. The Asauchi's potential is viewed as infinite, but that infinity has an upper threshold. Never in all of Soul Society's history has anyone reached it. That is why it was called limitless." His gaze shifted back toward Yuta. "And yet someone has broken past that limit. He alone stands beyond it."
"His potential has surpassed the Asauchi's design… surpassed even what is recognized as the power of a Shinigami."
The Zero Division fell into silence at the declaration. No one missed the implication.
Tenshirō hesitated, then spoke again.
"Monk. You know the names of all Zanpakutō. Can you tell us the name of Yuta's weapon?"
It was a logical thought. Ichibei Hyōsube, the man who had given names to all within Soul Society, should have held the truth. Yet when their eyes turned toward him, the answer was not what they expected.
"You are mistaken," Ichibei said evenly. "The thing in Yuta's hand is not a Zanpakutō at all."
The room stirred with unease. Even Shutara Senjumaru's expression darkened. The blade had cut into Kuchiki Byakuya, had drawn blood as any Zanpakutō would, but the commander's words stripped it of conventional definition.
One of the guards spoke next.
"That is the Great Spirit Book Corridor."
At once the chamber grew heavier. Tenshirō's eyes widened.
"The Great Spirit Book Corridor? That place is supposed to be under the control of the Tsunayashiro family."
The others exchanged tense looks. Legends spoke of the archive as an absolute record of Soul Society's history, inaccessible even to the Zero Division. Its secrets were guarded too closely for them to ever tread inside. Only Ichibei, who had been present since the founding alongside the noble families, seemed to know more.
Ichibei raised his hand and directed one of the guards to reveal what had been recorded. The projection showed Yuta wielding Ryūjin Jakka's flames.
"Impossible…" one of the seated officers murmured. "How could he use another Shinigami's Shikai?"
It was unthinkable. A Zanpakutō's abilities were bound to its wielder alone. Yet there Yuta was, drawing power that should never have left its master's grasp.
Nimaiya spoke slowly, as if testing the weight of the words before letting them fall.
"Could it be that the sword he wields carries a function similar to the Tsunayashiro family's Enra Kyoten? A sword that 'copies' the powers of other Shikai and Bankai?"
Tenshirō's jaw tightened.
"So the Tsunayashiro had something like that in their possession all this time?"
Nimaiya gave a short nod. "Yes. That cursed blade existed long before I forged Zanpakutō. Rarely has it been seen, and rarely has it been used. The family guarded it as their deepest weapon. Few ever learned of its ability… and nearly all who did became corpses."
Ichibei's voice cut through the murmurs.
"No. What Yuta wields is not dependent on that Corridor. The blade is nothing more than the vessel he happens to carry. The true source is Yuta himself. The abilities of Shikai and Bankai you see do not belong to the weapon. They belong to him."
The words unsettled even the most composed among them. For the first time since Yuta's appearance, there was no doubt-he wasn't bound by the laws that shaped every other Shinigami in existence.
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