Clang! Clang! Clang!
Amid the windswept wasteland, two figures clashed repeatedly as they pursued each other.
Every time their Zanpakutō collided, shockwaves of wind erupted in all directions.
Kiganjō smirked. "Not bad. As expected of someone who killed the vice-captain of the 7th Division."
"You're decent!"
The moment his words fell, his hands suddenly accelerated, slashing five times in rapid succession!
Aizen barely blocked three of the strikes before the remaining two landed squarely on him. With a pained grunt, he was sent flying again, crashing into a small hill with a thunderous impact!
Standing mid-air, Kiganjō shook his head slightly in disappointment.
Before coming here, he had prepared multiple contingencies for every possible scenario.
Yet none of them had been necessary.
The gap in their strength was simply too vast.
Though his opponent had some clever tricks, raw power was something no amount of cunning could overcome.
So, what would he do next…?
A desperate last stand? Or a futile attempt to flee?
As if to confirm his suspicion, a figure suddenly burst out from the side amidst the billowing dust, dragging a long trail of smoke behind them.
"Fool. Even when you were unharmed earlier, you couldn't escape my grasp. Now, after taking two of my slashes, you still think you can run?"
Shaking his head lightly, he gave chase once more.
Amidst the distorted light and shadows, Aizen remained calm, showing no trace of tension despite being pursued.
He glanced at the spot where he had been struck earlier.
During his escape, he had already set up pre-triggered shields at several key points on his body.
Their strength was tailored precisely to match the power of Kiganjō.
The latter's slash would just barely break through the shield, leaving nothing more than a superficial cut.
With this little trick, he could create the illusion of being at a disadvantage without actually sustaining any real injuries.
Aizen felt a faint sense of amusement.
What would Satoru's reaction be if he knew the skills he had taught him were now being used against the Gotei 13?
He'd probably look utterly betrayed, unable to believe it.
Imagining Satoru's wide-eyed stare, his finger pointing accusingly, his expression twisted in pain and confusion—Aizen first felt a flicker of satisfaction.
Then, inexplicably, he frowned, a hint of irritation surfacing.
Distracted, he nearly forgot to control his speed, almost leaving Kiganjō behind.
Snapping back to the moment, he quickly feigned a flare-up of his injuries, slowing his pace.
Kiganjō followed close behind.
For a moment, he had been startled.
Somehow, the elusive figure had suddenly sped up drastically, and even with his full-speed Shunpo, he couldn't close the gap.
Just as he was beginning to question his own abilities, the figure stumbled, slowing down again.
Kiganjō let out a small sigh of relief.
It seemed the guy had just been making a desperate last effort.
With a few more Shunpo steps, the distance between him and Aizen steadily narrowed.
Taking aim at Aizen's back, he raised his Zanpakutō and slashed down.
At the last possible moment, Aizen accelerated slightly, causing the blade to miss by a hair's breadth.
Kiganjō blinked.
A coincidence?
Anger flared in his chest, and he forced himself to speed up again, swinging his blade once more at Aizen's back.
But Aizen seemed prepared this time, twisting his wrist to block with his Zanpakutō.
Clang!
Kiganjō's slash landed squarely on Aizen's blade, the impact sending Aizen flying forward.
He nearly laughed in frustration.
"Damn bastard, full of cheap tricks!"
As they fought and moved, the battle stretched on for nearly half an hour without either noticing.
Their location had shifted from District 70 all the way to District 74.
The prolonged game of cat and mouse had completely worn down Kiganjō's patience.
Seizing an opening, he raised his blade high—
"Cleave him—Rekkū!"
As the release command was spoken, an eerie, distorted light enveloped his Zanpakutō.
Aizen glanced back out of the corner of his eye.
Kenpachi Kiganjō, Captain of the 11th Division.
He had done some research on this man.
Formerly the vice-captain of the 11th Division, his strength was decent—but only decent.
The previous Kenpachi had been imprisoned in Muken for violating the laws, leaving Kiganjō to inherit the title of captain.
Because of this, few knew the true extent of his abilities.
Under Aizen's mildly curious gaze, Kiganjō swung his blade from a distance.
From that far away… was it a Kidō-type?
The thought had barely formed when a sudden sense of alarm shot through Aizen.
Instinctively, he flipped midair, gripping his Zanpakutō and slashing at the empty space before him.
Sssshhhh!!
The blade cut through nothing.
Yet on his body, a long wound split open across his light brown linen clothes.
Aizen raised an eyebrow.
I see. A slash that ignores space and distance.
Now this... is quite an interesting ability.
Seeing Aizen struck, Kiganjō snorted with a smirk.
That's it?
He had no intention of giving Aizen a chance to recover, continuously swinging his Zanpakutō to unleash one invisible slash after another.
In an instant, seven or eight wounds appeared on Aizen's body.
With so many injuries, he could no longer maintain his aerial stance and plummeted straight toward the ground.
Kiganjō pursued him downward.
The moment his feet touched the ground, he heard a soft whisper—
"Shatter, Kyōka Suigetsu."
"?"
Kiganjō froze momentarily before tensing up completely.
His opponent had released his Zanpakutō!
Under his watchful gaze, Aizen held his sword in a reverse grip, smiling at him.
Yet, the expected strange attack never came.
What's going on... Is this guy just bluffing?
Perhaps it was just his imagination, but Kiganjō felt his vision blur slightly.
Snapping back to reality, he suddenly realized the man before him had shed his disguise.
Standing there was a middle-aged Shinigami, clad in a somewhat tattered shihakushō.
His body bore several wounds, large and small, clearly inflicted by Kiganjō's slashes.
It seemed the injuries had rendered him unable to maintain the kido used for disguise.
Kiganjō grinned widely.
He looked Aizen up and down. "Hiding your face like that, I thought you'd be someone famous. Turns out you're just plain-looking."
"Was there even a point to disguising yourself? Even without it, no one would remember your face."
Aizen opened his mouth as if to speak.
But the moment he did, blood gushed forth.
Thud!
The middle-aged man's legs gave way, and he dropped to one knee.
By now, blood was flowing faster from his numerous wounds.
The lower half of his shihakushō was completely soaked in crimson.
Seeing this, Kiganjō's gaze turned bored.
It seemed even if he did nothing, this guy would soon bleed to death.
Under his watchful eyes, Aizen forced an awkward smile.
"As expected... of the 11th Division's... Captain..."
"I... lose."
With that, the light faded from his eyes as he collapsed face-first onto the ground.
Gradually, spiritual particles began drifting upward from his body.
Lying there, Aizen manipulated Kyōka Suigetsu to maintain the illusion while inwardly smiling.
After today, the Shadow Killer would vanish from the stage completely.
In truth, after killing the 7th Division's Vice-Captain, he'd realized he'd stirred up significant trouble.
The death of a Vice-Captain—even one secretly aligned with the rebels—would never be overlooked by Seireitei for the sake of appearances.
Though he'd used kido to conceal his identity when leaving, constant vigilance was impossible.
To resolve this permanently, Aizen had devised a plan.
First, deliberately reveal his location in the Rukongai.
When Seireitei sent pursuers, he'd use Kyōka Suigetsu to fabricate a random face for them to witness.
Finally, after putting up some resistance with this face, he would simply drop dead on the spot.
This way, all the clues he had left behind would cease to exist.
Though the plan was somewhat simplistic overall, it was more than enough to deal with the bloated and corrupt system of the Seireitei.
However, just as he was idly thinking this, he saw Kiganjō hastily perform a Kidō spell, seemingly in a hurry.
Watching the Kidō Kiganjō had cast, Aizen's eyes widened slightly in surprise.
This was… a Kidō specifically designed to prevent spiritual particle dispersion and preserve a Shinigami's corpse?
What was wrong with this Kiganjō? Why would he want to preserve his body?
To desecrate it later?
Couldn't people just not be as insufferable as Satoru?
Though exasperated, if Kiganjō only wanted to desecrate his corpse, he still had a way out.
Having fought his way here, he had already gauged Kiganjō's level.
This guy, despite sitting in the captain's seat of the 11th Division, didn't possess true captain-level spiritual pressure.
His lab was nearby. As long as he activated Kyōka Suigetsu and cast a powerful enough illusion, he could disorient Kiganjō's senses for a dozen seconds.
During that time, he could return to his lab and retrieve a Shinigami corpse.
Then, using Kyōka Suigetsu's power, he could make Kiganjō believe it was his own corpse and let him vent his anger however he pleased.
Watching Kiganjō approach step by step, Aizen gathered his spiritual pressure, preparing to act.
Just then, he suddenly heard Kiganjō mutter to himself:
"Nameless guy, don't blame me."
"I didn't want to do this, but you killed so many of our righteous comrades. That lord has long despised you."
"As long as I bring your head back and offer it to him, when he ascends to godhood, he'll surely grant me more power."
"You're already dead, so lending me your head shouldn't be a problem, right?"
With that, he brandished his sword, ready to strike at Aizen's neck.
Aizen: "..."
He was tired. Truly tired.
His Kyōka Suigetsu could easily fool Kiganjō.
But if Kiganjō took a fake head back to present to "that person," the deception would be exposed instantly.
Since he had never hypnotized "that person," there was no way a fake head would suffice.
With a sigh, he slowly sat up.
Kiganjō: "?!"
The sight of the "corpse" suddenly rising nearly made him scream in shock.
But then, he quickly realized—
This guy wasn't dead. He had been faking it!
Aizen stood up, wearing a somewhat resigned expression.
"I never expected the captain of the 11th Division to also be part of the rebels."
The moment he heard the term "Righteous Army," he knew Kiganjō's identity.
That term was often uttered by the rebels he had killed.
"But this works out just fine."
"Killing you won't be a concern now."
The instant his words fell, an overwhelming spiritual pressure erupted from Aizen's body!
Feeling the torrent of power surging from him, Kiganjō's eyes widened as if he had seen a ghost.
"How is this possible… You were still hiding your strength?!"
"This power… It's already close to captain-level—no, it's surpassed captain-level?!"
Aizen nodded.
"Indeed."
"Unlike you, who possesses only mediocre talent… Just now, on the way here, my spiritual pressure officially broke through to captain-level."
Hearing this, Kiganjō's eyes bulged in shock.
Mediocre talent—those were the words that had haunted him his entire life.
Now, hearing them from this man before him made it hard to even breathe.
Aizen watched him calmly.
"Captain Kenpachi, before I kill you, I'd like to ask you something."
"Rennosuke Kamikawa, Yasushi Takada, and you… You've already reached the highest positions among the Shinigami. What exactly did the rebels promise you? Why would you betray the Gotei 13?"
This was a question he had been curious about for a long time. But in his usual act of feigning mediocrity, he had never had the chance to interact with captain-level figures.
Now that such an opportunity had presented itself, it would be a waste not to ask.
Gozaru Kenpachi sneered. "Fool. What do you know?"
"The so-called 'rebels' you speak of are just a label forced upon us by the Gotei 13."
"The true rebels… are the Gotei 13 themselves!"
"Do you really think the Gotei 13 exists to protect Seireitei? To protect the Soul King?"
"What a joke!"
Aizen frowned slightly. "What do you mean?"
He felt as though he had brushed against some enormous secret.
A fierce thirst for knowledge stirred deep within his soul.
Under his gaze, Kiganjō spoke slowly.
"Fine, I'll tell you. Exposing the truth of history was always part of the Righteous Army's mission."
"You must have heard that the Soul King is protected by the Royal Guard, who relay his decrees to Seireitei, correct?"
Aizen nodded.
He had read about this in historical records.
Kiganjō scoffed. "That's a lie."
"The ones truly ruling this world aren't the Soul King at all…"
"It's the Five Great Noble Families and the Royal Guard—they are the real masters of this world!"
"The Soul King is nothing more than a puppet in their hands!"
Hearing Kiganjō's words, Aizen froze in disbelief.
The Soul King is a puppet?
What kind of joke is this...
The Soul King is a being who stands above the heavens, possessing infinite divine power!
The Five Great Noble Families, the Royal Special Forces—when it comes down to it, they're all just Shinigami. How could they possibly have the ability to control the Soul King?
Just as he was about to press Kiganjō for more details, the latter suddenly moved.
After revealing so many secrets, Kiganjō's goal was to shake Aizen's resolve.
Seizing the moment when Aizen was momentarily distracted, he decisively took action.
"Bankai!!"
"Ressatsu Kōjō!!!"
BOOM!!!!
A dazzling pillar of Spiritual Pressure shot into the sky, igniting the night!
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