"You… damn Shinigami…"
"What did you do?!?!"
Just when everyone thought the dust had settled and the explosion was nearing its end, Lille Barro's panicked scream suddenly pierced through the video, unexpected and chilling!
This abrupt reversal naturally hooked everyone's attention!
---
Eleventh Division
"Huh? Did I hear that right? The guy calling himself a 'god' is screaming?!"
Standing protectively in front of his subordinates, Kenpachi Zaraki paused, frowning in confusion, wondering if he'd misheard.
"A reversal?!" Behind him, Madarame Ikkaku's eyes lit up.
"Katen Kyōkotsu's Shikai alone has multiple rule-changing abilities. Its Bankai should be even stronger! I bet Captain Kyōraku used some ability to counter him!" Ayasegawa Yumichika analyzed rationally.
The sudden shift in the tide dispelled the oppressive atmosphere in the office.
The Kenpachi trio buzzed with excitement, eyes glued to the screen, eager to see what had happened to Lille Barro!
---
Silver Frame City
"What… what happened?!"
"A scream?"
"Lille Barro… sounds like you're in trouble…"
When the panicked cry rang out from the screen, the Sternritter, previously watching passively, changed expressions dramatically!
What was going on?!
Wasn't the Shinigami already judged?
Why was his voice back, and why was Lille Barro screaming?!
Could it be…
This one-sided, near-certain victory had a reversal?!
Impossible!
Doubt clouded the air, the hall's atmosphere growing eerie.
As for Lille Barro himself, ignoring the uncertain glances from his comrades, his face darkened, standing silently.
His eyes, fixed on the screen, burned with anger.
As the captain of the Schutzstaffel, the last man granted a Schrift by Yhwach, he didn't believe he could lose to a Shinigami. This battle couldn't possibly have a reversal!
It must be a misunderstanding!
However, as the explosion's smoke cleared and his angelic, wing-wrapped form became visible, one glance made the real-world Lille Barro let out a panicked cry:
"Impossible! Absolutely impossible!"
"Why am I injured?! What are those blood holes?!"
Frantic! Furious!
His eyes blazed with rage!
Lille Barro lost his composure, his dark face twisting grotesquely.
He saw, in the video, two gaping, horrific blood holes on his waist and left shoulder!
Drip—!!!
Drip—!!!
Drip—!!!
As the explosion's sound faded, blood oozed from the holes, dripping along his pristine angelic form, each drop striking Lille Barro's nerves, driving him to the edge of reason!
Finally, as the blood pooled into a small puddle, Lille Barro's rage peaked, roaring thunderously:
"Damn it!!!"
"Filthy Shinigami! Weak! Insignificant! A mere ant like you—how dare you harm me, who's infinitely close to god?!?!"
In both reality and the video, the two Lille Barros roared in unison, their eyes venomous!
But…
To his impotent rage, Shunsui Kyōraku remained unfazed, brushing off the dust from his shoulder with a carefree smile, "Act One: Shared Wounded Trial! Looks like you fully felt the pain I endured earlier!"
With that, Shunsui grinned knowingly, pointing playfully at his own waist and shoulder, teasing, "Pure-blood Quincy…"
"No… high and mighty divine messenger who judges all, didn't you notice our wounds are in the same spots?"
"What… from your hesitant eyes, I already have my answer! Looks like the 'closest to god' is only close in terms of volume, huh?"
A barrage of mockery, like a relentless combo, slapped Lille Barro's face, humiliating him!
The tide turned instantly!
Shunsui, once chased like a rat and thought doomed, now stood unscathed, taunting his foe.
In contrast, Lille Barro, with blood endlessly seeping from his wounds, his cicada-like body stained red, was tainted by blood!
When an angel was no longer holy, it meant… imminent fall and destruction!
---
Thirteenth Division
"Shunsui, nicely done! You transferred all the wounds you took before Bankai onto the Quincy!"
Ukitake Jūshirō couldn't help but give a thumbs-up.
As Shunsui's millennium-long friend, often paired with him, he knew Karamatsu Shinjū's abilities well!
"Exactly…"
"Thanks to taking two hits before Bankai, it wasn't easy to wound that monster!" Shunsui chuckled self-deprecatingly.
Though the earlier battle wasn't shown, he could guess what happened.
Lille Barro fought with "long-range sniping," so his ability likely involved "marksmanship."
The blood holes were easily explained!
"But… though he's enraged, his aura hasn't weakened much. This move alone won't kill him!" Ukitake expressed concern.
Though they were discussing the future from the present, the video's events were real and tied to life and death!
He didn't want his friend to die!
"Ukitake, you're overthinking." Shunsui's eyes grew serious, locking onto Lille Barro, saying firmly, "I'm not naive enough to think Act One could easily kill that monster!"
"To truly kill him, it'll probably take until the final act! And by then, it might mean burning out my life!"
"Right, future me?"
"You'd go all out too, wouldn't you?"
---
Meanwhile, the battle in the video continued.
"Shinigami, I underestimated you. You actually harmed me…"
Calming his rage, Lille Barro regained his composure. As the Schutzstaffel captain, one of the strongest Sternritter, a few wounds wouldn't reduce him to mindless fury!
"Is that so…"
Meeting his gaze calmly, Shunsui squinted, his arms swinging in opposite directions, tracing an infinity-like arc in the air as endless black pines gathered behind him.
"That was just the prelude…"
"Watch closely. Next is Act Two—Pillow of Shame!"
As his words fell, the black pines surged, growing wildly.
Under the intense Bankai spiritual pressure, they spread in all directions—cracks, ruins, debris, even the sky!
Yes!
Wherever there was the slightest gap, the pines infiltrated and grew savagely, soon covering the entire screen!
In mere breaths, the scene turned pitch black—no blue sky, no clouds, no colors, only endless darkness and the blood pool on the ground!
Eerie and terrifying!
---
"What… what ability is this?!"
The moment darkness descended, Hitsugaya Toshiro felt drenched in cold sweat.
The sensation of being lost in endless darkness was heavy, oppressive, suffocating, even urging repentance!
"Captain, tell me… am I terminally ill?" Matsumoto Rangiku's fearful voice came.
Turning, Hitsugaya saw her lips pale, her face deathly white, her curvaceous body under her shihakusho limp, as if her cells were dying!
At first glance, she seemed like a terminal patient on the verge of death!
"Rangiku, it's okay. Take a deep breath and calm down—it's just an illusion!" Hitsugaya comforted, his heart reeling.
Karamatsu Shinjū targeted the Quincy in the video, and they were only affected by the spiritual pressure leaking through the screen!
Even this small portion nearly broke a lieutenant's will!
It was unimaginable what horrors the Quincy, the Bankai's target, was enduring!
The answer soon revealed itself.
As Hitsugaya calmed Rangiku and looked back at the video, a chilling scene unfolded:
Splurt—!!!
The sound of bursting wounds echoed.
On Lille Barro's angelic body, countless black ink-like spots appeared, covering him entirely!
Seeing this, Hitsugaya's first reaction was a flare-up of trypophobia!
Goosebumps erupted, and he nearly vomited!
Even more horrifying, blood gushed from these black spots, spraying everywhere!
Forehead, face, neck, body…
Lille Barro's entire form burst with blood, his once-red angelic body now riddled with holes!
At this moment, he was no longer a "human" or "divine messenger" but a pathetic creature formed of ink and blood, doomed to die in repentance!
--------------------------------------------
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