"Hadō #88: Hiryū Gekizoku Shinten Raihō."
Naraku Sora raised his left hand, pointing forward as crackling arcs of electricity flashed from his fingertips.
The next second, countless bolts of lightning transformed into a torrent, converging into an unparalleled azure pillar of light that erupted forward.
Brilliant light bloomed, and everything standing in the path of the lightning pillar met with complete vaporization.
As the heat from the aftermath spread, countless ruins melted and dissipated, turning into pure Reishi.
Wherever it passed, everything was utterly destroyed.
The Hiryū Gekizoku Shinten Raihō landed with unerring precision into the soaring cloud of dust, causing countless ashes to dissipate and vanish like bubbles.
Immediately after, the mountain peak fell apart, its rock layers melting and collapsing downward.
Because of his perfect mastery over Kidō, Naraku Sora could unleash the full power of a complete incantation used by other Soul Reapers, even when casting without an incantation.
Yet, facing such a devastating Hadō did not diminish Vajrayati's presence in the slightest. Instead, that Reiatsu, permeated with desolation and scorching heat, flared up even more intensely.
A dark red sword pressure tore through the lightning pillar, annihilating the electric arcs, and even directly shredded the clouds in the sky.
Amidst the surging gale, a tall and graceful figure appeared without warning. Slender fingers pressed against the hilt of her blade, drawing it at a speed indiscernible to the naked eye.
The dim sword pressure flashed and vanished. In just an instant, it arrived right before him. The moment the heavy, oppressive aura enveloped Naraku Sora, it also created an excellent opportunity for the next attack.
The older sister sword spirit blinked, parted her lips, and softly chanted:
"Limit of the thousand hands, respectful hands, unable to touch the darkness. Shooting hands unable to reflect the blue sky..."
A majestic Reiatsu, like a collapsing sky, settled upon the barren wasteland. Wherever the eye could see, the scorched earth sank and compacted, as if smashed by a heavy hammer.
In front of Vajrayati, cherry-blossom-colored, scorching flames ignited. The heavy pressure continuously increased, as if it had no upper limit.
Beside them, Urahara Kisuke watched, completely dumbfounded.
He had thought that the man and his blade would fight like before—like a brute from Squad Eleven, hacking away with swords to compare their respective raw stats.
He never expected that the two sides would actually exchange Kidō.
And it was a high-level Hadō that even ordinary Captains found difficult to master. Judging by the sheer power, it could no longer be described as mere proficiency.
It was simply turning Hadō into an instinct as natural as swinging a sword.
Naraku Sora was one thing; Urahara Kisuke had never really considered him human anyway, in every sense of the word.
But the one fighting him was a manifested Zanpakutō!
Could Zanpakutō learn Kidō too?
Urahara Kisuke suddenly thought of his own Benihime and couldn't help but fall into deep thought.
"Hadō #91: Senjū Kōten Taihō!"
The moment her words fell, Naraku Sora perfectly crushed the incoming sword pressure.
Immediately after, the cherry-blossom-colored, scorching flames burned out in an instant, transforming into brilliant beams of light that hovered in the sky, resembling a king's treasury.
New stars rose once more in the blazing red night sky, as if life had returned and time had reversed.
The older sister sword spirit smiled as she gazed at Naraku Sora ahead. With a casual point of her finger, countless cherry-colored beams of light suddenly shot out, heading straight for the burning figure.
The Senjū Kōten Taihō erupted with a boom. A scorching pillar of fire soared into the sky, transforming into a cross of light that ruthlessly annihilated the remaining embers on the ground.
The Reiatsu wrapping around Naraku Sora's body recklessly obliterated the incoming blazing light. The two forces were distinctly separated, and the shockwaves swept out in all directions, shaking the heavens and the earth.
Wherever the aftermath passed, layers of the barren earth were lifted, turning the dry skeletons below into flying ash that dissipated into the air.
His Reiatsu defense could not offset the entire attack. After all, the Reiatsu of the man and his blade were on the exact same level.
Although he didn't know why Vajrayati could cast Kidō, in terms of sheer power, it was not inferior to Naraku Sora's Kidō in the slightest.
It might even be stronger!
The cross of light swallowed Naraku Sora. The first to suffer was his outermost haori. Because it was not crafted with the same technique as the Shihakushō, it offered almost no defensive power to speak of.
The Shihakushō resisted for a moment before melting away like snow.
The remaining blazing light swept over like a torrent, landing squarely on Naraku Sora's body.
Accompanied by an ear-piercing sound of friction, countless sparks shot out. His tough Hierro absorbed and neutralized all the impact, leaving only a shallow layer of scorch marks.
Seeing this, Vajrayati raised an eyebrow, a hint of surprise revealing itself in her eyes.
Although she was the manifestation of a Zanpakutō, she spent most of her time on the twisted, winding stars, simply trusting him without reservation.
She knew Naraku Sora was strong, and that was it.
Enduring the stinging pain spreading across his body, Naraku Sora grinned widely. A wisp of white steam flowed from between his stark white teeth, and amidst his savage smile, arcs of electricity instantly surged.
The moment his right foot stepped forward, he erupted with terrifying speed.
Like a thunderbolt streaking across the sky, he crashed down toward Vajrayati's position, slashing downward.
Dragon Flash: Rhino Strike!
With a single slash, the berserk sword pressure seemed to ignite, wrapping around Vajrayati's vicinity and distorting the surrounding air.
In the blink of an eye, the earth collapsed, stirring up visible shockwaves.
Because this area was an uninhabited zone, Naraku Sora fought without the slightest hesitation, freely unleashing the terrifying power hidden within his shell.
Correspondingly, Vajrayati was not inferior either.
Her dazzling and complex techniques were like brilliant stars, releasing endless light and heat. Just the dissipating aftermath tore hideous rifts into the barren earth beneath their feet.
Like an abyss.
But this time, she only held on for a brief few minutes before completely falling into a disadvantage.
When Naraku Sora once again sent her flying with a single slash, Vajrayati plowed a charred trench into the ground, barely managing to halt her momentum.
She raised her head, a gratified smile appearing on her face.
"It seems I can no longer stop your advancing footsteps."
"In that case, let's end it here."
As soon as her words fell, the apocalyptic, barren scenery before them abruptly vanished.
Vajrayati flipped her wrist, and a heavy Reiatsu coated her Zanpakutō. The originally thin blade sprouted pitch-black branches, continuously extending and growing outward.
A profound crimson spread from the center, climbing onto the branches and emitting a ferocious glow.
Glorious, blazing light brewed upon the blade, erupting and soaring into the sky, transforming into a torrent that distorted the surrounding air.
The broad blade and her slender body formed an extreme contrast. The older sister sword spirit looked at Naraku Sora gently and said softly,
"Sora, here I come."
Without any hesitation, when Vajrayati revealed this form, her pitch-black Reiatsu erupted in a spiral, turning into an unparalleled pillar of light that shot straight into the firmament.
The originally azure sky instantly became incredibly dim.
A heart-palpitating aura spread out as well.
Countless Reishi condensed, instantly forming a ferocious Hollow mask that covered Naraku Sora's face.
Hollowfication!
Blazing flames and leaping electrical arcs intertwined, attaching to his lean, muscular body, exuding a terrifying pressure.
Facing the descending, twisted giant blade, Naraku Sora did not dodge; instead, he met it head-on.
In his hands, thunder roared, and the outline of a thin blade could faintly be seen.
Just the moment he raised his sword, countless scattered rays of blazing light stirred up a new round of storms upon the earth.
The disproportionate blades clashed. The world seemed to have been put on pause, falling into a brief dead silence, as even sound was erased.
The next instant.
A deafening explosion erupted like thunder, overlapping and intertwining, turning into a mighty melody that shot straight into the sky.
Light, brilliant to the extreme, burst forth from this point. The earth turned into a tyrannical ocean, and everything within sight was lifted into layers of stacked ripples.
Countless waves erupted.
At the center of the collision, a scorching light lit up in Naraku Sora's eyes. His Reiatsu poured out without restraint, desperately resisting the pitch-black heavy blade pushing forward.
Crack—
The sound of shattering was so crisp.
Cracks surfaced on the Zanpakutō in Naraku Sora's hands. Like some sort of signal, they instantly spread across the entire blade, reaching all the way to the tsuba.
The terrifying impact surged down, continuously eroding the blade.
Accompanied by the final, overwhelmed wail, the Zanpakutō completely shattered.
The pitch-black heavy blade landed on Naraku Sora's chest without reservation.
Boom—
A muffled explosion rang out. His previously invincible Hierro defense lost its effect. His chest immediately caved in as the impact struck his heart.
Then, his vision went black.
However, he did not lose consciousness because of this. He could clearly perceive the changes in his surroundings.
Countless Reishi emitted a faint light, continuously piecing together the barren world before his eyes.
It was as if time was flowing backward.
Before Naraku Sora's eyes, a majestic palace gradually appeared, suspended high in the sky.
As his perspective shifted, four disc-shaped buildings generated around it.
"The Soul King Palace?"
Naraku Sora was somewhat stunned.
As a Soul Reaper who had once ascended to the Soul King Palace, he was naturally no stranger to the sight before him.
It was just that there was a slight deviation from the scene in his memory.
Boom!
Just as he was observing, the ground suddenly shattered. Buildings of wildly different styles rose from beneath the earth, completely crushing the original palace and taking its place.
Naraku Sora raised an eyebrow, seemingly guessing something.
A sticky, heavy Reiatsu enveloped the entire Soul King Palace, making the surrounding air feel viscous.
The following scenes seemed to have been fast-forwarded. Familiar yet somewhat foreign figures appeared in this True World Castle, erupting into thrilling battles one after another.
Naraku Sora became a bystander, shuttling through them, watching all of this with some confusion.
He didn't understand.
Was this the future?
Or was it a replay of the scenes in his memory?
Although perplexed, he still watched calmly.
He was like an entity from another dimension, completely unable to interfere with everything happening before his eyes.
However, just when Naraku Sora thought the ending would be as he remembered—that Yhwach would die under the blade of a certain stats monster—
A sudden change occurred.
The Quincy King, who was supposed to lose The Almighty to the Still Silver Arrow, was completely unaffected. Beneath the shattered Zangetsu, he rewrote the future of his own death.
Ink-like Reiatsu poured out like a burst dam, effortlessly crushing the enemy before him.
The only person capable of stopping him died completely, and what followed was a suspense-free massacre.
No one could stop the footsteps of the Quincy King. The Soul Society began to collapse.
Like some kind of chain reaction, Hueco Mundo, the Human World, and the Dangai were stripped away and decomposed layer by layer, finally blending together and returning to their original state.
The cycle of the world ended here.
When Naraku Sora tried to touch the things in his line of sight, the scene before his eyes suddenly began to blur. When he regained his senses, he had already returned to the debris-strewn Rukongai.
The two scenes overlapped, causing a trace of trance to flash through his eyes.
'The destruction of the world?'