"Rukia..." Orihime Inoue looked worriedly in the direction Muten Natsu had gone. "Is it really okay for us to just leave like this?"
"If what you sensed is right, and there really is something wrong with that Hirako, then keeping our distance is the best choice," Rukia Kuchiki explained patiently. "If that really is the materialized form of Sakanade, then it possesses the power to invert perception. Against an ability like that, the more allies there are in battle, the easier it becomes to accidentally hurt each other."
"So we should stay far away and let Muten handle it alone." Understanding dawned on Orihime Inoue. "That way, Muten can use wide-area attacks without having to hold back..."
Her voice suddenly trailed off as she turned in another direction. "Rukia, over there... I think..."
Rukia Kuchiki had also sensed the familiar Reiatsu. She immediately quickened her pace toward its source.
"Aaaaaaah!!!"
Before they had even gotten close, a piercing scream reached their ears.
A bitter wind swept up the falling snow, encasing several Shinigami in solid ice.
"Stop!" Rukia Kuchiki shouted toward the source of the blizzard. "Sode no Shirayuki!"
The one who had frozen the Shinigami squad members was none other than the materialized form of Rukia Kuchiki's Zanpakutō, Sode no Shirayuki.
She wore a white, long-sleeved kimono with a pale purple Obi. Her snow-white hair streamed through the air, and her ice-blue eyes were cold and distant.
She truly lived up to her reputation as the most beautiful Zanpakutō in Soul Society. Even materialized, Sode no Shirayuki was breathtakingly beautiful.
"Rukia Kuchiki," Sode no Shirayuki said in a cool, clear voice. "You have no right to command me."
"I never imagined..." Rukia Kuchiki drew her Zanpakutō. "That one day, I'd have to tell you not to harm innocent people."
"I have already broken free from your restraints. I am free now," Sode no Shirayuki declared calmly. "Whatever I choose to do, you have no right to stop me."
"That's not true." Rukia Kuchiki's gaze remained unwavering. "Even if you're free now, even if you're no longer my Zanpakutō, even if you were nothing more than a stranger, if I saw you harming innocent people, I would still stop you. That is my duty as the Lieutenant of the Thirteenth Division!"
"There it is again... You're always like this." Sode no Shirayuki lowered her eyes slightly. "That's who you are, Rukia Kuchiki. Resolute and strong in everyone else's eyes. So how do you intend to stop me now?"
The moment the final word left her lips, Sode no Shirayuki was already standing before Rukia Kuchiki, wind and snow swirling around her outstretched palm.
Rukia Kuchiki darted backward. The blizzard bursting from Sode no Shirayuki's fingertips instantly froze the spot where Rukia had just been standing into a vast sheet of solid ice.
"Dance, Sode no Shirayuki!" Rukia Kuchiki swung her Zanpakutō.
But the Zanpakutō did not react at all. It remained in its Asauchi state.
Rukia Kuchiki sighed. "So I still can't perform Shikai after all..."
The chances had been slim, but she had still hoped that, given enough time, the Zanpakutō she had previously been unable to release might recover.
Now that she had tried again, she finally gave up that hope completely.
"How could you possibly perform Shikai? I'm no longer inside that katana." Cold air spread around Sode no Shirayuki, freezing the ground beneath her. "Until now, you have freely wielded my power as a Zanpakutō. I entrusted my power to you because you were the only person I could entrust it to."
Sode no Shirayuki brought her palms together, then slowly drew them apart. A pure white Zanpakutō gradually took shape between them.
"But from now on, things will be different. I will wield my power freely for myself. Including powers that you... could never use. Some no mai, Tsukishiro!"
With a single sweep of her hand, light flared beneath Rukia Kuchiki's feet.
Rukia Kuchiki immediately used Shunpo to evade, staring in alarm as an enormous pillar of ice formed in an instant.
Unlike when she used Tsukishiro herself, Sode no Shirayuki barely had to move, and the ice pillar formed far away from her.
"You need such an exaggerated sword swing because the power you release is too weak. And the reason you can only create Tsukishiro's freezing field close to your own body is because your control is inadequate." Sode no Shirayuki swung her katana again, raising another pillar of ice that nearly trapped Rukia Kuchiki inside it. "Your techniques are just like you. They look impressive on the surface, but there's nothing behind them."
Sode no Shirayuki swung her katana again and again. Four pillars of ice rose to block every direction Rukia Kuchiki could dodge.
"You're merely forcing yourself to appear strong..." Sode no Shirayuki's slender fingers brushed along the blade. "And losing yourself in the strength you pretend to possess. Tsugi no mai, Hakuren!"
Sode no Shirayuki thrust her katana straight ahead, unleashing a roaring torrent of frigid air.
At the same instant, the ice pillars created by Tsukishiro shattered and merged into the surging torrent.
Rukia Kuchiki's violet eyes reflected a blizzard that seemed to fill the entire world. A Hakuren this powerful was something she had never even dared imagine, yet now it was unfolding clearly before her eyes.
"Hadō #33..." Rukia Kuchiki raised a hand as deep blue flames surged in her palm. "Sōkatsui!"
The erupting flames slammed into the avalanche-like torrent of cold, only to be effortlessly swallowed and extinguished.
This won't work... Hadō alone isn't enough.
What do I do?
At a time like this, if it were Muten Natsu...!
The panic in Rukia Kuchiki's eyes vanished in an instant.
She drew a deep breath and sheathed her Zanpakutō.
["Want to learn? I'll teach you."]
Muten Natsu's lazy voice echoed in her ears.
["The key to drawing a sword is adjusting your own state."]
["In battle, all your senses become sharper than usual so you can react faster."]
["But when your senses become too sharp, you also start noticing information you don't need."]
["Ignore all of that useless information. Ignore even the enemy, and focus every bit of your attention on yourself."]
["If your Reiatsu surges at that moment, your body will become overly active as well, wasting your power."]
["So you have to adjust yourself in an extremely short span of time. Like compressing a spring, use your Reiatsu to restrain yourself and force your overactive body to store up power."]
["Regulate your breathing, then forget your breathing."]
["Adjust your posture, then forget your posture."]
["Adjust your technique, then forget your technique."]
["Entrust everything you can control, and everything you cannot, to your next strike."]
["Then..."]
Rukia Kuchiki opened her eyes and suddenly stepped forward.
["Slash!"]
The Reiatsu she had held tightly in check erupted all at once. It broke free from the blade she swung, transforming into a razor-sharp wave of sword pressure that cleaved the oncoming torrent of cold cleanly in two!
The howling wind and snow split apart just before striking Rukia Kuchiki, sweeping past either side of her body before freezing into crystal-clear ice that reflected her profile.