At the same time,
inside Las Noches—
As the screen briefly went black,
Aizen and Ichimaru Gin began to talk about what had just been shown.
"Aizen-taichō…"
"So in the future, I end up closing my eyes, huh?"
"And you'll fight against Kurosaki Ichigo… and later against Urahara Kisuke and Shihōin Yoruichi."
Gin's voice was calm, but his smile thinned.
"Seems like with every frame revealed, the picture of that Karakura battle becomes clearer."
He looked up.
On the high throne, Aizen sat unmoving.
Gin's half-lidded eyes gleamed with something unreadable.
In truth—
Mayuri's earlier guess had been absolutely right.
As the person involved, Gin could tell instantly:
the "future him" in that video had clearly held back—fighting only half-seriously.
Otherwise…
If the future Gin had truly wanted to kill Kurosaki Ichigo,
he could have done so with one gesture.
Just one fingernail-sized fragment of Shinso left inside Ichigo's body—
and the boy's cells would have dissolved from the inside out.
There wouldn't even be a corpse left.
"Heh… so the future me's already getting impatient, huh?"
A flicker of thought crossed his eyes,
and Gin's expression darkened.
Even if he and Aizen would one day defeat every Shinigami captain,
and have the chance to be alone together—
the prerequisite was clear:
He would have to touch the blade of Kyōka Suigetsu.
That was the only way to gain immunity to Aizen's illusion.
The only method to break Kyōka Suigetsu's spell.
And Gin was the only one in the world who knew it.
It had taken him more than a century of patience—
a hundred years of acting, smiling, pretending—
to coax that secret out of Aizen's mouth.
That single phrase, that incantation,
became Gin's one and only trump card to shatter Aizen's perfect hypnosis.
So Gin understood:
the future version of himself shown in the video must have succeeded.
He must have touched the blade—
and thus escaped Aizen's illusion.
From the moment he had chosen to stay by Aizen's side,
he had already wagered his life on that plan.
And in the end—
the future him had fulfilled that long-cherished wish.
Yet now,
watching it unfold from the present,
Gin still felt doubt creeping in.
"I suppose…"
"The next scenes about Shinso had better not disappoint me."
Under the sleeve of his white uniform,
his fingers brushed the hilt of his Zanpakutō.
From the very start of this countdown,
Gin had already sensed it—
that sooner or later, his future self would strike.
So he waited.
Patiently.
For the moment the screen would reveal that exact scene.
Only then could he make his move—
while the real Aizen was distracted,
seeing himself get stabbed and dissected on screen.
That single instant of shock,
that flicker of disbelief—
would expose Aizen's one fatal opening.
And only then—
could Gin synchronize with his future self,
and strike through the screen.
It was a plan he had prepared for decades.
In his mind, the odds of success had never been higher.
But…
without a god's-eye view,
he couldn't be sure what would actually happen.
Would the future him truly succeed,
or fail?
It was impossible to know.
And if, by the end of the video,
no such opportunity arose—
then he would have to stay silent,
keep the mask on,
and continue watching as though nothing happened.
Still—
as he stared at the pitch-black screen,
Gin could feel it.
That moment was coming soon.
The scene he longed for—
the stab in Aizen's back—
was almost here.
When it arrived,
the entire Soul Society would tremble.
The world itself would erupt.
Then—
after a short pause, the screen lit up again.
A new scene appeared.
The background had changed—
and yet, not.
It was still Karakura Town,
but somehow, there wasn't a single trace of destruction.
Buildings stood pristine.
Roads were untouched.
As if the entire war had never happened.
"Huh?"
"What's going on?"
"Did we time-travel, or were we watching a fake video?"
For a moment, the whole world was confused.
But in the Urahara Shop,
Kisuke immediately understood.
His eyes lit up.
"I see now. The earlier battlefield—it was fake!"
"What we're seeing now is the real Karakura Town!"
Though the footage hadn't shown the full sequence,
Kisuke grasped what had happened:
Aizen and Gin, after defeating everyone—including the Head Captain, who lost an arm—
had opened the Garganta
and moved to the real town.
Urahara's face darkened.
"So Aizen's true goal wasn't just defeating the Gotei 13."
"He wants to use Karakura Town—this spiritual nexus of the living world—
to create the Ōken, the King's Key,
and gain access to the Soul King's Palace."
At that, Yoruichi and Tessai's expressions turned grim.
"Then everyone in Karakura is in danger!"
On the screen—
a soft step echoed.
Two figures appeared, one after the other.
The one in front…
had evolved again.
Aizen.
"That's… Aizen?!"
In the First Division hall,
all the captains stared wide-eyed.
Aizen's new form was breathtaking.
His long hair flowed down to his waist.
His eyes glowed violet, piercing through the world.
And in the center of his chest,
the Hōgyoku pulsed like a living heart.
Every trace of humanity had vanished—
only perfection remained.
A flawless, radiant monster.
Even through the video,
his aura crushed every watcher.
Some captains instinctively lowered their heads.
And the camera zoomed in—
slow motion—
showing only Aizen and Gin.
Just the two of them.
"No way…"
"Don't tell me the next fight…"
"Gin's opponent… is that Aizen?!"
The entire Soul Society went wild.
Even the captains turned simultaneously to look at Mayuri.
"Captain Kurotsuchi…"
"You're not telling us you were right, are you?"
Kyōraku was speechless.
Unohana frowned.
Ukitake trembled.
Even Byakuya and Soi Fon, usually expressionless, were visibly shaken.
Ichimaru Gin betraying Aizen—
to challenge his third-form evolution?!
It sounded insane.
But it was real.
Gin… really was about to act.
That meant—
he had been a spy for a hundred years.
A century-long deception.
Patience beyond reason.
"Heh…"
Mayuri's lips twisted into a grin, eyes gleaming with mad excitement.
"Look closely. The camera's making it clear."
"The next battle will be only between Aizen and Ichimaru Gin."
"No one else."
"You all feel it too, don't you? The tension in the air."
His grin widened until it almost split his mask.
"He's not just a fox," Mayuri murmured, voice quivering with anticipation.
"He's a snake—waiting to bite."
If the next scene showed Gin's rebellion,
it would be the ultimate thrill for him.
"Will he really do it…?"
Even the Head Captain whispered.
His expression was complicated—doubt, shock, and a faint, reluctant hope.
Yamamoto was not a man of deceit.
But after Aizen's betrayal,
his heart had hardened.
Aizen and Gin were both traitors.
If one turned on the other—
he wouldn't mind watching.
Call it justice.
Retribution from within.
Then, the video's dialogue began again.
"Aizen-taichō,"
Gin's voice came softly as he landed before him, smiling as always.
"I'm back."
Aizen turned his head slightly, eyes cold.
"So you are. Where's that woman, Matsumoto Rangiku?"
Gin's smile didn't waver.
"I killed her."
The words hung in the air, casual, indifferent—
like the final drop before a storm.
(End of Chapter)
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