Chapter 368: Advancing Fearlessly
BOOM!!!!!
Amid the massive explosion, Ōetsu was sent flying backward out of the smoke, flipping mid-air before landing steadily.
Watching Satoru emerge slowly from the smoke like a demon god descending upon the world, he grinned wryly, his feelings complicated.
Although he had known from their battles over the past few days that this was an opponent not to be underestimated, being suppressed to this extent still left him astonished.
This kid's rate of improvement... isn't it just too unbelievable?
He was, after all, the second oldest member of the Zero Division. Being beaten up like this by a youngster was somewhat embarrassing.
He released his grip, and the two Zanpakutō in his hands transformed into beams of light, flying into the distance before reforming into their physical manifestations.
"Hmph, little Satoru, I admit your strength is indeed formidable. No one can match your frontal assault capability."
"Correct."
Satoru nodded.
Ōetsu fell silent for two seconds.
Aren't you quite unmodest?
Adjusting his sunglasses, he continued:
"However, I happen to have a blade perfectly suited for dealing with someone like you."
Under Satoru's watchful gaze, he raised his hand and snapped his fingers.
A physical manifestation of a Zanpakutō sister leaped down from nearby, landing gracefully beside Ōetsu.
Behind her back, she carried a large glass container filled with a jelly-like colloid.
A Zanpakutō was plunged into this massive jelly, floating on its surface by the "buoyancy" of the sword's guard.
Ōetsu gripped the hilt and swiftly drew the blade from the jelly.
"Little Satoru, your Risō Jakumetsu's ability is to ignore defenses."
"However, this ability has a limitation: if the opponent counters with an attack instead of defending, the ability to ignore defenses cannot be activated."
"And the 'Sayafushi' in my hand has a similar ability."
"This blade possesses unparalleled cutting power—before it, everything will be sliced apart."
"Because of this, I haven't been able to find any material that can serve as its scabbard, so it can only be stored submerged in this colloid container."
"Little Satoru, let's test it out. In a direct confrontation, which is stronger: my Sayafushi or your Risō Jakumetsu?"
As he spoke, he pointed his Zanpakutō toward Satoru from a distance.
Hearing this, Satoru grinned:
"Alright, let's give it a try!"
The twin blades in his hands vibrated with a humming resonance.
"Hoho, rest assured, my beloved blades."
"Having journeyed this far together, I know better than anyone the heroic spirit you've shown in battle!"
"If anyone dares to deny your strength, I, Satoru Mikami, will be the first to disagree!"
Risō Jakumetsu seemed somewhat surprised by Satoru's words.
Under the watchful eyes of the onlookers and the materialized Zanpakutō spirits, Ōetsu and Satoru charged toward each other simultaneously.
Clang! Clang-clang-clang-clang!!
Amidst dazzling sparks, their Zanpakutō clashed over a dozen times in an instant.
Then, the two separated once more.
Ōetsu raised his blade, proudly displaying its edge.
The entire sword remained flawless, just as it had been at the start, gleaming with an integrated, chilling brilliance.
On Satoru's side, however, the edges of his twin short blades were now marked with numerous fine nicks.
"So, Little Satoru, have you witnessed the might of Sayafushi now~?"
Ōetsu laughed triumphantly.
Satoru snorted. "Again!"
With that, he flashed forward, closing the distance to Ōetsu once more as the two resumed their fierce battle.
Not far away, Senjumaru Shutara watched the scene with a look of disdain.
"Sayafushi... what an unpleasant sword."
As members of the Zero Division, they rarely interacted in daily life, but given their long lifespans, they occasionally engaged in sparring sessions and exchanges. Every time he fought her, Ōetsu would wield this Sayafushi. Against Sayafushi, all her meticulously prepared heavenly garments and woven barriers became meaningless—the blade could effortlessly slice through them with a single stroke. This eventually led her to dislike Satoru's Risō Jakumetsu as well. However, if forced to choose between Sayafushi and Risō Jakumetsu, she would undoubtedly support the latter.
Kirinji Tenjirō clicked his tongue in annoyance.
Sayafushi was truly a troublesome blade. The combat prowess it could unleash depended entirely on its wielder. In the hands of an ordinary Shinigami, Sayafushi was nothing more than an unremarkable common weapon. With his speed, he could easily outmaneuver opponents and secure victory. But in the hands of a seasoned veteran like Ōetsu, whose strength was terrifying, Sayafushi became a nightmare for all enemies. Even he, known as "Tenjirō the Thunderbolt," wouldn't dare claim he could surpass Ōetsu in the realm of speed. One misstep, and if caught by Sayafushi, it would spell certain doom.
Amid the group, only the Priest let out a soft chuckle.
The three instinctively turned to look at him.
"Mr. Hyōsube, you mustn't laugh at our teacher!" Kirio Hikifune protested unhappily.
Hearing this, the Priest laughed heartily. "Not at all, not at all. This old man isn't laughing at young Satoru. On the contrary, I'm amused by Ōetsu's underestimation of his opponent."
"Underestimation?"
These words left everyone momentarily stunned. Currently, Ōetsu clearly held the upper hand. If they continued clashing, Satoru's Zanpakutō would be ruined. Although a Zanpakutō could regenerate even if damaged in its Shikai state, if the damage was too severe, restoring it would be no easy task. Satoru might be without his Zanpakutō for several months, or even years.
Nevertheless, since the Priest had spoken, they all turned their attention back to the battlefield, observing more carefully.
A few seconds later, Kirinji Tenjirō was the first to notice something amiss. He blinked, his expression turning peculiar. "Hey now... you've got to be kidding me?"
On the battlefield, Satoru wore a frenzied grin as he relentlessly pressed his attacks against Ōetsu.
At first, Ōetsu was quite pleased. Even though he couldn't match the ferocity, why was Satoru fighting so fiercely? Was he in a hurry to destroy his Zanpakutō? Though Satoru's assaults were powerful and difficult to parry, as long as he endured this onslaught and waited for Risō Jakumetsu to break under the strain, victory would be his!
But after exchanging blows for a while, Risō Jakumetsu showed no signs of diminishing in power. Ōetsu began to grow puzzled. While maintaining his offensive and engaging in the intense sword clash with Satoru, he focused his gaze on the latter's blade. What he saw left him stunned.
The edge of Risō Jakumetsu remained intact! Aside from the few small nicks that had appeared moments earlier, the previous damage had vanished without a trace!
The next instant, under his bewildered stare—as if he'd seen a Komamura—the freshly made nicks began to heal at an astonishingly rapid pace.
In the blink of an eye, the gap above had vanished without a trace, becoming sharp and smooth once again!
Hax?
This has to be hax, right?!
In the stands, Senjumaru Shutara stared at the scene in astonishment.
"Priest, what in the world... is going on?"
She couldn't help but ask.
Under the gaze of his teammates, the Priest crossed his arms and grinned:
"This is the ability to control Reishi."
"You all surely know that everything in the Soul Society is composed of Reishi."
"A Shinigami's body, the food we eat, the houses we live in—they are all essentially made of Reishi."
"Due to certain special reasons, Satoru has a strong control over Reishi... Every time Risō Jakumetsu is cut by Ōetsu, he immediately gathers the Reishi from the surrounding air and replenishes it into Risō Jakumetsu's blade."
"Therefore, no matter how many times Ōetsu damages his Zanpakutō, he can never win through this method!"
Hearing the Priest's words, the group exchanged glances.
Kirinji Tenjirō's expression twisted slightly.
Although the Priest described it lightly, this ability was not something that could be explained so casually, right?!
Quincies may have the ability to control Reishi, but that is only one-directional control—by destroying the Reishi structure of surrounding objects, they purify the Reishi and absorb it into their bodies to convert it into combat techniques.
But Satoru was transforming Reishi into another substance.
This was no ordinary Shinigami... This verged on the realm of the gods!
He couldn't hold back his exclamation: "How is it possible that someone can do such a thing?!"
Senjumaru Shutara frowned slightly.
She said gravely:
"There is."
"According to the records I know, the last person capable of such a feat... was Yhwach."
Upon hearing this, both Kirinji Tenjirō and Kirio Hikifune showed stunned expressions.
On the battlefield, under Satoru's storm-like onslaught, Ōetsu's stamina continued to decline.
Gradually, he could no longer maintain his sword-clashing stance.
Facing Satoru's ferocious dual-blade downward slash, he instinctively raised Sayafushi in a defensive posture.
The moment he lifted his blade, his heart sank.
Damn it!
Under Ōetsu's contorted gaze, Satoru grinned and brought his dual blades down fiercely.
Sayafushi, having shifted from "offense" to "defense," was instantly caught by Risō Jakumetsu's ability rules.
CRACK!!!
Sayafushi's blade was deeply gouged by Risō Jakumetsu, cutting straight from the edge to the spine.
If Ōetsu hadn't withdrawn and retracted his blade in time, this strike would have cleaved Sayafushi into three pieces!
Staring at the nearly ruined blade in his hand, Ōetsu wore an expression of extreme anguish.
Since the day it was forged, Ōetsu had used Sayafushi to cut all sorts of things. It never needed sharpening or maintenance, and he had even come to believe it was an eternal, indestructible blade.
Who would have thought it would fall victim to Satoru today?
What a calamity!
Satoru rested one Risō Jakumetsu on his shoulder and pointed the other at Ōetsu:
"Keh keh keh, how about it, how about it?!"
"Now do you understand which is superior—your Sayafushi or my Risō Jakumetsu?!"
Seeing Satoru's triumphant expression, Ōetsu couldn't help but feel as if he'd been screwed over by Komamura.
He sheathed Sayafushi back into the jelly, planning to take it back for repairs later.
Then, he looked at Satoru and raised his hand:
"I yield, I yield!"
"I admit, you're stronger right now!"
"Damn it, you monster, a real monster... How can someone barely two hundred years old possess such power?"
But soon, as if recalling something, a smile reappeared on his face.
"Heh heh... Little Satoru, you've already fought every one of us Zero Division members."
"Next, it should be time to challenge the Priest, right?"
Satoru nodded.
"Exactly."
"Heh heh, then I'll be looking forward to it."
"I hope you won't be so thoroughly crushed that you can't even fight anymore."
Satoru raised an eyebrow.
"That old man gives you that much confidence?"
"Heh, it's not a matter of confidence or not."
Ōetsu shook his head.
"The last time you fought him, you only witnessed a fraction of Ichimonji's ability."
"Back then, you were still too weak to witness Ichimonji's true power."
"Now, you're fully qualified to see it."
"Unfortunately... the stronger one is, the more likely they are to collapse after witnessing Ichimonji's true power."
"Over millions of years, countless powerful individuals have stood before the Priest just like you, but... in the end, they all fell."
"At least seventy percent of them gave up their hope of climbing higher after losing to the Priest."
"I hope you won't be the next one, heh heh."
He looked at Satoru, hoping to see some pressure on him.
But to his dismay, far from pressure, he couldn't detect even a trace of worry in this guy's eyes.
Under Ōetsu's gaze, Satoru grinned:
"No problem."
"If once isn't enough, then a hundred times."
"If a hundred times aren't enough, then ten thousand times."
"No matter what kind of enemy, as long as I keep growing stronger and keep fighting, there will eventually be a day when I can win!"
Hearing this, Ōetsu was momentarily stunned.
If anyone else had said this, he would have burst out laughing.
Such absolute and righteous principles were precisely what he had always looked down upon.
Yet... when spoken from Satoru's mouth, they inexplicably carried a convincing weight.
This guy could truly practice these words and adhere to them unwaveringly!
"Damn it, I'm actually being persuaded by you."
"You really are a strange one, little Satoru."
Satoru waved his hand dismissively:
"If you also had a bunch of troublesome people around you, requiring your constant care every day, you'd become just like me."
Back in the Seireitei, Aizen, Kisuke Urahara, and others simultaneously frowned, feeling as if they had been severely slandered behind their backs...
...
...
To celebrate Satoru's defeat of all Zero Division members except the Priest, the Zero Division held a joyous banquet at the Resting Pig Hall.
Anyone unaware would have thought Satoru had defeated their enemies instead.
After enjoying fine food and drinks, everyone dispersed in high spirits.
Everyone had assumed Satoru would take the final step and challenge Hyōsube Ichibe'e after this.
But to everyone's surprise, after defeating Ōetsu, Satoru chose to begin training instead.
His training ground was the Detached Palace guarded by the Priest.
This place possessed the densest Reishi in the entire Soul King Palace, second only to the Soul King's inner sanctum.
For any other Shinigami, even captain-class, moving here would likely be extremely difficult.
Under such dense Reishi, even taking a step, swinging a sword, or simply speaking would be an unattainable luxury for most captains.
Yet Satoru came to this place without the slightest pressure.
Led by the Priest, he arrived at the Path of Trial.
This path was originally designed as an ultimate test - using immense Reiatsu pressure to force the subject to reach the end while enduring this pressure, thereby achieving sublimation.
But Satoru simply used it as an ordinary training ground.
Under the Priest's expectant gaze, Satoru stepped onto the path.
Advancing fearlessly.