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Hibari Kyoya stared at the screen, replaying the suffocating surge of Hollow power bursting from Kurosaki Ichigo. Shock flickered in his eyes.
"In my opinion, he's just being a coward. If he had even a bit more guts, that bastard 'Black Blade' would've been torn to pieces already."
The words came from Lambo's mouth, of all people. The same Lambo everyone in the Vongola Family agreed was a total scaredy-cat.
Even Sawada Tsunayoshi couldn't help rolling his eyes at that earth-shaking declaration.
…
The Demon Slayer world.
For once, the ever-smiling Flame Hashira, Rengoku Kyojuro, looked solemn.
"That power… it's terrifying. No matter which side it is, both far surpass anything I can reach."
He paused, his voice sharpening with anger. "But tearing open the barriers of hell just for personal grudges… such an act is unforgivable. Absolutely enraging!"
Tanjiro's clear eyes brimmed with compassion as he spoke softly. "Yes. Even if Black Blade has his own suffering… using his pain as an excuse to drag others down with him, even seeking 'evil' as a form of salvation, is still wrong."
Kind-hearted as he was, Tanjiro understood how wicked Black Blade's goal was, yet he couldn't help feeling a trace of pity for the man's tragic past.
"Tanjiro! That purity of heart of yours is truly admirable!" Rengoku praised him without hesitation.
Meanwhile, in the quiet Butterfly Mansion, Shinobu Kocho gazed at the glowing screen. Tears shimmered in her eyes, sorrow impossible to hide.
"If… if my sister had even a fraction of that power, then maybe… she wouldn't have been killed by that demon."
…
Deep within the Infinity Castle.
"Hell… what a dreadful place. That pressure feels like it could swallow everything."
Upper Rank One, Kokushibo, clenched his crimson Nichirin blade as the oppressive aura from the screen bore down on him. The hilt creaked under the strain.
"Ah! I want nothing more than to fight them with everything I have!"
Akaza, the battle-crazed demon, felt his blood boil. His eyes burned red as he stared at the images of Kurosaki Ichigo and Black Blade at the height of their power. This kind of overwhelming strength drove the demon, who had devoted his life to martial perfection, into near-mad ecstasy.
…
On the screen, around the massive crater formed by Ichigo being slammed into the ground, crimson magma began to ooze inward.
Black Blade's foot pinned Ichigo down like an immovable mountain. Ichigo couldn't break free. Standing up was nothing more than a fantasy.
All he could do was watch as the scorching magma, carrying a temperature of pure destruction, crept relentlessly up his arm.
"Sssss—!"
Flesh charred in an instant. His Shihakusho turned to ash.
"AAAAAAH!"
The scream of agony tore through the sky as the magma engulfed his arm completely, pushing his suffering to its limit.
Crushed beyond resistance, Ichigo couldn't even twitch. Then, with a thunderous rumble, the earth shook violently. The ground beneath him split apart, and magma erupted like a volcano, blasting upward with devastating force.
The explosion hurled Ichigo high into the air before smashing him back down onto shattered bones.
Black Blade was swallowed by the eruption as well, but for a "sinner" like him, that level of flame was meaningless.
Ichigo, however, was battered and broken after blow upon blow. Facing Black Blade now, he had no strength left to fight back.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Grinning viciously, Black Blade swung the chains wrapped around his body. They lashed out like venomous snakes, instantly locking around Ichigo's ankle. Treating him like a massive meteor hammer, Black Blade slammed him wildly in every direction.
Ichigo's body crashed into giant skeletons, jagged rocks, and charred dead trees. Every impact came with a dull, bone-splitting thud.
"How about this…" Black Blade said casually, his words dripping with malice. "How about I go back and capture those two adorable little sisters of yours again?"
That single sentence detonated the fury buried deep within Ichigo's heart.
"ROAR!"
Red-black spiritual pressure exploded outward like a nuclear blast. The overwhelming shockwave sent the overconfident Black Blade flying.
Freed at last, Ichigo sprang to his feet. Shadows swallowed his eyes once more, turning them pitch black. Thick white matter spewed from his mouth and chest, rapidly wrapping around his body in layer after layer.
"Yes! That's it!" Black Blade laughed, watching Ichigo struggle in agony, a sick smile spreading across his face. "Once your body has tasted a power rampage, losing control again becomes easy!"
"You can't escape that monster anyway! Trying to suppress it with sheer willpower is a joke!"
The white substance spread fast, forming the initial outline of a mask on Ichigo's face.
From atop a distant pile of skulls, Rukia shouted desperately, trying to wake him. In a flash, Black Blade appeared beside her and clamped a hand around her throat.
"Shut up. The show's only just starting."
At last, the white coating hardened into steel-like armor, and the savage mask of the Ox-Head Hollow was complete.
As Ichigo continued to writhe and howl under the Hollow's backlash, enormous Hell Wardens began to emerge from the towering black pillars around them. Each carried instruments of punishment that symbolized hell's authority.
"They'll be coming for you soon," Black Blade sneered. "You're the one who messed up hell's order."
His laughter echoed like a demon's whisper. "Go on, Ichigo! Become a monster! Will you be devoured by hell, or will you fully embrace Hollow power?"
"Don't worry," he added cruelly. "In hell, you can resurrect endlessly. As long as you don't destroy this place, this pain will repeat forever!"
Amid Black Blade's insane taunts, Ichigo staggered to his feet. His condition was wildly unstable, as if he might fall into the abyss at any moment.
"Who would… who would ever choose to become a monster like that?!"
His growl was weak, yet unshakably firm.
"Who would hate the world just because their wishes weren't fulfilled? That's nothing but a coward blaming others for their own helplessness!"
Ichigo raised his hand and grabbed the iconic horn at the center of his mask. With a sudden burst of strength, he snapped it in half.
Crack!
As the horn broke, the Hollow armor and mask covering him began to crumble and fall apart.
"I'll save my companions," Ichigo declared. "But I will never do it at the cost of sacrificing anyone else!"
As he made his choice, the Hell Wardens were already upon him. Massive shadows loomed overhead.
"I swear on my soul," Ichigo roared, "the real battle starts now!"
A gigantic hand slammed down, tearing through the air, ready to crush him to pulp. Yet in that instant, Ichigo's spiritual pressure didn't weaken. It surged, exploding to a level far beyond before.
When the massive palm met flesh, what burst forth wasn't death, but dazzling golden light.
Golden spiritual pressure poured out from the Hell Warden's hand, illuminating the dark inferno of hell.
"Hahahaha! So you did lose control after all!" Black Blade shouted in ecstatic delight.
He felt only the suffocating golden pressure and became convinced that Ichigo had completely gone berserk.
"Kill them! Smash those nuisances to pieces!"
Under Black Blade's urging, Ichigo underwent a shocking transformation. The Hell Warden that struck him began to break apart, liquefying and dissolving into the golden torrent of spiritual pressure. Incredibly, it was drawn straight into Ichigo's body.
In the end, the entire massive Hell Warden was absorbed without a trace.
Boom!!!!!
After a brief silence, an overwhelming eruption of golden spiritual pressure shot into the sky like a volcano. The crushing force twisted space itself, blasting all nearby Hell Wardens apart and forcing them to collapse to the ground.
Even Black Blade had to cross his arms to barely withstand the supreme pressure surging from Ichigo.
…
The Soul Society.
Inside Urahara's shop, the atmosphere was heavy.
"What is going on?" someone exclaimed. "This form is completely different from the rampages we knew before!"
Wrapped in golden light, Ichigo radiated power that felt nothing like the terror of being controlled by a Hollow.
"The Hell Wardens," Urahara Kisuke said at last, breaking his silence. His voice was graver than ever. "They represent the will of hell itself."
He continued, eyes sharp with thought. "Ichigo absorbed a Hell Warden. That means… he absorbed the will of hell."
The room fell into stunned silence.
The will of hell. What kind of incomprehensible, terrifying existence was that?
"If that's the case," Urahara murmured, ignoring the shock around him, "then perhaps the will of hell can forcibly suppress the Hollow rampage within him."
His eyes gleamed with a complex, unreadable light as he continued his deduction.
"....."