Dressed in a kendo uniform and wielding dual blades, Tsunayoshi activated his Rain-Attribute Bankai. Among all his abilities, only the Rain Attribute utilized swordsmanship. Facing Kenpachi without using a blade would make little sense.
A strange smile curved at Unohana Retsu's lips. Beneath that calm Reiatsu, she could feel the turbulent power surging within Tsunayoshi. Only such prey was worthy of her.
Against the first Kenpachi, Tsunayoshi had no intention of holding back.
His hand fell onto the hilt of Kojirō, the Rain Swallow. In a flash, the tachi was drawn—
Special Form — Right Blade: Rain Severing!
Dozens of crescent-shaped slashes shot forward like a torrential downpour toward Unohana.
Unexpectedly, she didn't dodge at all. Instead, she spread her arms and welcomed the attack.
Not a single strike missed. Every slash carved into her body. Blood erupted from her in torrents—
Yet there was no trace of pain on her face.
Instead, she let out a cry of exhilaration.
Blood poured down in sheets, but Unohana remained unmoved. Her expression grew increasingly bewitching, making Tsunayoshi feel a chill in his heart.
Maybe… I should just leave, he thought.
With Unohana severely wounded, escape wasn't impossible. But the moment he shifted his footing, her slash appeared instantly before him. Tsunayoshi hurriedly raised his blade to block.
Only then did he notice the intense green glow enveloping her body—
Kaidō.
As the Captain of Squad 4, Unohana Retsu possessed the greatest healing abilities in all of the Seireitei.
Under the reinforcement of her Kaidō-infused Reiatsu, her wounds rapidly regenerated. As she felt the pain fade, the excitement on her face only intensified. She began swinging her Zanpakutō wildly at Tsunayoshi.
Though she had long set aside the title of Kenpachi, her thousand years as a captain had never dulled her strength. Whether it was Shunpo or Kaidō, she had refined every ability that allowed her to revel in battle.
In terms of Shunpo alone, aside from lacking elaborate footwork, her speed was no less than Shihōin Yoruichi's. That was why she could appear before Tsunayoshi in an instant.
Her attacks grew faster and faster.
Tsunayoshi responded in kind.
In terms of speed, he wouldn't lose either—
Special Form — Right Blade: Swift Rain!
One of the Rain Swallow's defining traits was speed. Wings suddenly sprouted from the hilt of the right blade, and Tsunayoshi's movements accelerated sharply. In an instant, he surpassed Unohana's attack speed, leaving several wounds across her body.
Yet Unohana ignored her injuries entirely. With a look of pure enjoyment, she shifted her offense and thrust her blade toward him.
At that critical moment, Tsunayoshi pressed his left hand onto the secondary blade—
The Akita hound on the hilt opened its jaws and unleashed a terrifying roar at Unohana.
Special Form — Left Blade: Rain Hound Suppression!
Her attack stalled for a split second, giving Tsunayoshi the chance to evade.
Carefully sensing the delay in her body and thoughts, Unohana finally understood how Zaraki Kenpachi had been defeated so easily. When both mind and body slowed, one became nothing more than a target before Tsunayoshi.
But Unohana was no brute like Zaraki.
She used Kaidō to accelerate the flow of blood within her body. Before long, she broke free from the binding effect of Tsunayoshi's Rain-Attribute Flames and regained full control.
"What an troublesome power… that blue Reiatsu," she said.
She had already recognized the danger of those Rain flames—but she had no intention of retreating.
After all, how many enemies with strange abilities had she slain over the centuries?
As her blood flow accelerated, her speed rose to another level.
Tsunayoshi immediately drew his left blade. Fighting with both swords, the underground chamber of Squad 4 filled with the sharp, relentless clash of steel.
He quickly realized—
The longer the battle continued, the stronger Unohana's strikes became.
It was clear that, after so long without a true battle, she had grown rusty. But through fighting him, she was rapidly reclaiming her former strength.
This can't go on.
Gripping his left blade tightly, mist began to pour from it—
Special Form — Left Blade: Mist Rain!
Concealed within the fog, Unohana temporarily lost sight of him. Tsunayoshi used the opportunity to retreat into a corner of the underground chamber.
With a single slash, Unohana dispersed the mist with her sword pressure—and immediately spotted him.
At that moment, the Rain Swallow flew out from the right blade, circling Tsunayoshi once. Dense Rain flames enveloped his body as he lowered himself into a charging stance.
A clear sign of a powerful technique.
"Interesting."
Unohana also readied herself.
Tsunayoshi's gaze sharpened.
This was one of the rare moments he chose to attack head-on—and the technique he used bore the unmistakable style of Yamamoto Takeshi—
Special Form — Tenth Form: Swallow Assault!
He surged forward at incredible speed. The Rain Swallow flew ahead of him, further amplifying the technique. Faster and faster he went, merging with it into a spiraling, cone-shaped blaze of blue flames.
A glint flashed in Unohana's eyes.
She had already locked onto his position.
With no elaborate movement, she simply stepped forward and struck—
The culmination of eight thousand sword styles, refined into a single, unadorned slash.
Yachiru Style — Single Flash!
In an instant, they passed each other.
They stood back-to-back.
Each bore a wound that pierced through the chest.
Blood sprayed outward.
As before, Unohana covered her wound with Kaidō, stopping the bleeding almost immediately.
Tsunayoshi, on the other hand, used the calming property of his Rain flames to suppress the bleeding.
But his injury merely stopped worsening—it did not heal like hers.
If this continued, his disadvantage would only grow.
He could no longer trade blows.
He had to seize the initiative.
Special Attack — Left Blade: Pursuit Hunt!
Spinning around, he slashed.
The Akita hound Jirō leapt from the blade, charging toward Unohana.
His movement didn't stop.
After the left-hand strike, his right arm lifted the blade horizontally, its tip locked onto her—
Special Attack — Right Blade: Swallow Reversal!
In an instant, three blue arcs of sword light followed behind Jirō, forming a triangular formation that sealed off all of Unohana's escape routes.
She had nowhere to evade.
Jirō lunged forward and clamped down on her Zanpakutō, locking her in place.
Then came the three piercing strikes—
They struck her left shoulder, right shoulder, and right leg.
Blood erupted in three streams.
With her major joints crippled, Unohana dropped to one knee. Jirō still held her blade firmly, refusing to release it.
"Ha… hahaha…"
She laughed.
There was no misery in her voice—only unrestrained delight.
Yes.
This was how it should be.
Only like this… could she finally fight with everything she had.
A blood-red aura gathered upon her Zanpakutō.
Jirō's body suddenly convulsed violently as the blood energy invaded it—before exploding into a mass of crimson spikes, completely obliterating it.
Unohana slowly rose to her feet.
With a blood-soaked hand, she wiped across her blade.
As her palm passed, the Zanpakutō became coated in blood—transforming into a curved, crimson blade.
"Bankai… Minazuki."
At her words—
Endless blood poured forth from the blade.
In an instant, the entire underground chamber was flooded.
An artificial sea of blood formed, swallowing Tsunayoshi within it.
Standing atop the surface using Rain flames, Tsunayoshi didn't dare step directly into it. When the blood had spread earlier, he had already sensed its intense corrosive nature.
This blood contained terrifying power.
Along with it came overwhelming Reiatsu—filled with killing intent and suffocating pressure.
At this moment, Unohana Retsu became something monstrous.
Within that sea of blood, Tsunayoshi seemed to see mountains of corpses—and Unohana seated atop them like a demonic master of the blade.
"What's happening? Such terrifying Reiatsu!"
The moment Unohana released her Bankai, the entire Seireitei was shaken.
Younger Shinigami like Hitsugaya Tōshirō could only stare in shock at the cold, oppressive pressure—
But in Squad 1, two veterans immediately understood.
"Captain-Commander, this is Captain Unohana's Reiatsu," said Sasakibe Chōjirō.
"Is the Ryoka truly this powerful…?"
Even Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto showed a trace of surprise. For someone to force Unohana into using Bankai—
He quickly issued an order.
"Sasakibe. Go to Squad 4. Support Captain Unohana."
"And the Ryoka?" Sasakibe asked.
"If they are dangerous—kill them."
Yamamoto had no doubt whatsoever.
In his eyes, Sasakibe was the finest assassin. Whether the enemy lived or died depended only on whether Sasakibe chose to conceal himself and strike.
With the order received, Sasakibe vanished.
Left alone, Yamamoto slowly opened his eyes.
He had briefly considered going himself—
But with Unohana and Sasakibe, two comrades who had fought beside him a thousand years ago, he had absolute confidence.
Together, they were more than enough.
Within Squad 4—
The moment that cold, murderous Reiatsu erupted, chaos spread throughout the division.
No one understood why Squad 4 had become the center of such terror.
Some weaker Shinigami were overwhelmed instantly, collapsing to the ground, unable to move under Unohana's crushing Reiatsu.
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