Ishikawa Sāsuke would swear on his life he had never, in all his years, seen a Shikai this ridiculous.
When that Zanpakutō wreathed in searing flames came crashing down on him, he felt like he was watching the entire world collapse.
At the last second, he hadn't given up his final sliver of hope.
Pouring out every drop of Reiatsu he had, he released his Zanpakutō.
Its ability was formidable: it could instantly change the temperature of the blade, affect the weather, and even merge with Kidō to form traps like the one that had just turned the forest into a disaster zone.
He'd spent nearly a week squatting in this forest, crafting that "natural disaster" of a trap.
And in the end, it hadn't accomplished anything.
Who would've thought—two mere seated officers, and each more absurd than the last.
Not even a hint of what a normal Shinigami should look like.
It was pure nonsense.
When Ishikawa tried to use his Zanpakutō's cooling power to extinguish the towering pillar of flame crashing down on him—
He realized that, even going all out, all he managed to do was dim the color slightly.
Compared to the violent, overwhelming heat, it was essentially nothing.
The fire pillar struck, ripping open the barren ground with brutal force. Lava surged back up from the cracks.
Memories flooded his mind, his life flashing before his eyes, spinning faster and faster until it pushed him right to the end.
At the bottom of a huge crater, a charred figure let out a faint, pleading sound:
"Shikai… that explains it…"
"Even the Five Great Houses have no record of a Zanpakutō like this…"
"To stand against a monster like you… I can see what awaits them, now…"
Naraku reined in his Reiatsu and walked slowly to the edge of the pit. The fiery red aura around him faded away, leaving him back in his usual form—though clearly drained.
"But…"
Ishikawa bared his blackened teeth in a warped grin, his burnt face twisted to the point of grotesque.
"Once they realize I died by your hand, something far worse will follow. You're not going to live long."
"I'll be waiting for you in Hell."
With that final venomous line, Ishikawa's life flickered out. His charred body crumbled apart like shattered pottery.
"Whew…"
Naraku let out a long breath, adjusting to the emptiness in his body.
It was strong—but the cost was a bit much.
[Punishment of Jaya]—that was his Zanpakutō's name. Or more accurately, part of its true name.
Just like Shutara had taught him, only by fully mastering Bankai could a Shinigami know the complete true name.
Shikai was essentially a reflection of one's own power upon the Zanpakutō.
And since a Zanpakutō was part of a Shinigami's soul, in a sense Bankai itself was still just the Shinigami's own power.
Unlike Kyōka Suigetsu's flashy trickery, Punishment of Jaya's ability was plain and simple.
It burns Reiatsu.
By doing so, it enhances the entire body, pushing it to the current spirit-body's absolute limit in an instant.
For any other Shinigami, that would be a one-way ticket to the floor in a few seconds. A completely trash ability.
But Naraku was different. Thanks to that earlier "spirit-body toughness +100%" upgrade, he could burn much longer and unleash far more destructive force.
In simple terms: raw stats.
Maybe it was shaped by his usual way of fighting—his Shikai had evolved in the same direction: spike the numbers to absurd levels and blow everything away.
According to Academy textbooks and Soul Society common sense, once a Shinigami fully mastered Bankai, they could even activate Shikai without chanting or calling the name.
In other words, even without a sword in hand, they could still enter Shikai.
If he really reached that point… could he just stay in Shikai permanently?
As he drifted in that pleasant fantasy, the air in front of him rippled like silk, and a black system screen—visible only to him—appeared.
[Successfully executed criminal: Ishikawa Sāsuke. Sin Value: 1213. Contribution: 100%!]
[Your Reiatsu has increased!]
[Your Zanjutsu has increased!]
[Your understanding of Kidō has improved. You have perfectly mastered triggered Kidō techniques!]
More rewards.
Unlike the small fry he'd killed before, both the Gillian and Ishikawa Sāsuke had given Naraku a hefty return.
His Reiatsu hadn't quite jumped up to Grade 5, but he could clearly feel how much stronger he'd become.
So.
What did Ishikawa and the Gillian have in common?
Naraku turned it over in his mind and quickly caught the key point.
Sin value.
Both Ishikawa and the Gillian had sin values over 1000.
The other criminals he'd killed before had been in the low hundreds at best.
Mystery solved.
On top of that, a flood of Kidō inspiration poured through his head.
For a moment it felt like he was reliving a chunk of Ishikawa's life—layer upon layer of experience meshing perfectly with his own knowledge.
There was no awkwardness, no need to adapt. It felt as natural as a technique he'd trained himself.
Naraku opened his eyes. They shone brighter than before.
"Mask of blood and flesh, all things in the universe, flapping wings, that which bears the name of man!"
"Heat and strife, across the sea, surging south—step forward!"
As the chant began, Kidō Reiatsu surged into his palm, coalescing into a delicate, complex sigil.
A simple touch would trigger a Shakkahō blast.
This was the most basic use of triggered Kidō.
At a higher level, you could fuse your will and Reiatsu into it and set custom conditions for activation.
Though you couldn't make it too complicated.
And it had plenty of drawbacks—like needing deep mastery of a given Kidō before you could adapt it into a triggered form.
In short: not especially useful for Naraku himself.
But for certain scheming types?
The possibilities were endless.
As he was thinking about how to teach it to someone, Aizen appeared at the edge of the crater, a conflicted look on his face.
His mood had been all over the place today.
First he'd exposed the power he'd always hidden, assuming it would put some distance between him and Naraku—
Only to realize the guy didn't care about any of that surface-level stuff.
Then, instead of creating an opening to escape together like they'd planned, Naraku had whipped out a "small surprise."
Gone straight into Shikai.
And flattened a vice-captain-class Shinigami head-on.
Judging from how the fight had looked, that wasn't even his true limit.
"Aizen," Naraku said suddenly.
"Hm?"
Naraku turned to look at his friend's complicated expression and flashed a grin.
"Interested in pulling off something big with me?"
Aizen: "?"
~~~
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