"Ho-ho!"
Asakura Yoh held Abarai Renji in his palm, lightly tossing him up and down like a ball.
The once-majestic Lieutenant of the Gotei 13 had been transformed into a round fireball, unable to do anything except emit frustrated whimpers.
Renji's face was flushed a deep red—if that thing could even still be called a face.
He squirmed desperately, trying to break free from Yoh's grip, only to end up rolling around in the palm of his hand like a hamster being held by the scruff of its neck.
This humiliation was far more painful than being killed outright.
Kuchiki Byakuya's gaze turned completely cold.
He could tolerate his mission being obstructed, and he could even tolerate a human possessing power beyond his imagination, but he could never tolerate the dignity of his subordinate—the dignity of a Soul Reaper—being trampled upon like this.
"Human."
His voice was terrifyingly calm, like the dead silence before a storm.
"Does humiliating us Soul Reapers bring you such pleasure?"
Before his words even finished, he had already drawn his Zanpakuto, pointing the tip directly at the bright moon in the sky. The blade reflected a cold, sharp light under the moonbeams.
His movements were elegant and composed, every detail reflecting the grace expected of the head of the Kuchiki Clan, but there was no longer any warmth left in his eyes.
"Brother! Stop!"
Kuchiki Rukia's voice trembled with a tone bordering on a plea.
She knew her brother all too well—when he wore that expression, it meant he was truly enraged. And she could hardly imagine anyone being able to withstand Kuchiki Byakuya's wrath.
"Scatter—Senbonzakura."
His voice was as light as a sigh.
Then, the world was submerged in flower petals.
The blade disintegrated under the moonlight, transforming into countless tiny blade fragments. Each piece was as thin as a cicada's wing, shimmering with a cold light in the night as they drifted down like a beautiful cherry blossom rain.
But anyone who knew Senbonzakura understood the deadly intent hidden beneath the beautiful exterior of those petals.
Countless tiny blades, nearly invisible to the naked eye, surrounded their prey from all directions. There was nowhere to hide and no way to defend; one could only be slowly 'sliced into a thousand pieces' amidst the dancing cherry blossoms.
"Then I'm joining in too!"
Asakura Yoh grinned, casually thrusting the massive stone tablet into the ground beside him. Then, he leaned over and picked up something else from the floor.
Zabimaru.
Abarai Renji's Zanpakuto.
Seeing this, the balled-up Renji suddenly stopped struggling.
An intense sense of foreboding surged from the depths of his soul—even though he didn't seem to have a 'heart' right now, his instincts were screaming a warning at him.
"Wait...! What are you doing...?!"
His voice turned sharp and pitched up, his original anger replaced by pure panic.
"No, wait! Hold on...! Don't, stop, noooo!"
He squirmed and struggled with all his might, but other than making distorted expressions on his round face, he could do nothing.
He could only watch helplessly as his 'body' was lifted by Yoh and aimed directly at the Zanpakuto that had accompanied him through decades of battle.
Then, he was pressed in.
"Oversoul: Abarai Zabimaru!"
Yoh casually shouted a temporary name he had made up as dense flames of Furyoku ignited on his hand.
The flames instantly swallowed both Abarai Renji and Zabimaru.
"Huh?!"
Rukia's eyes bugged out and her mouth hung open; her usual Soul Reaper aesthetic was starting to look more like something out of One Piece.
A Soul Reaper... stuffed into his own Zanpakuto?
This was a complete violation of the natural order...
The grief that had been weighing on her chest was mostly dispelled by the sheer absurdity of the scene.
She stared blankly at the crimson flames, her mind a total void.
But Byakuya didn't freeze.
No matter what tricks his opponent used, his Senbonzakura would not stop.
Even if his attack might harm Renji as well, he believed his subordinate would rather die standing in battle than be humiliated by an enemy.
The dancing petals suddenly accelerated, turning into a swirling torrent that swept toward Yoh. The scene was breathtakingly beautiful yet chillingly dangerous.
The sound of blades cutting into flesh should have followed in the next second.
But instead, what rang out was the 'clash and clang' of metal hitting metal.
Sparks flew everywhere.
Byakuya's pupils constricted slightly.
That Zabimaru—or more accurately, the Zabimaru wrapped in crimson flames—had curled into a hemispherical shield, firmly protecting Yoh at its center.
Countless petals slammed into it, but other than kicking up a shower of sparks, they left no mark.
'A human... is using a Soul Reaper's Zanpakuto?'
Byakuya didn't want to believe it. A Zanpakuto was the manifestation of a Soul Reaper's soul; an outsider shouldn't be able to control it, let alone a mere human.
Yet the scene before him was challenging his common sense.
The shield suddenly exploded outward.
A powerful shockwave blew back the scattered petals, revealing the sight within—
Six blade segments were floating in the air.
Zabimaru, which was originally connected by steel joints, had completely disintegrated.
Each segment floated independently, surrounded by crimson flames the same color as Renji's hair.
The steel cables that had connected the blades hadn't disappeared; instead, they were wrapped around Yoh's right arm, forming a set of gauntlets with a metallic sheen.
Yoh looked down at his arm, looking thoughtful.
Then, a face emerged simultaneously on the flames of all six blade segments.
It was a face where the eyebrows and tattoos were joined together.
Six faces opened their eyes at once.
Six mouths spoke at once—
"What the hell is this?!"
The already noisy voice was now multiplied sixfold.
"What are you guys?!"
"I am Abarai Renji!"
"You bastard! I'm Abarai Renji!"
"Bullshit! I'm the real Abarai Renji!"
"Shut up! You're all fakes!"
"You're the fake one!"
...
Rukia was completely petrified.
She watched the six 'Renjis' cursing each other out, feeling her worldview undergo some kind of irreversible collapse.
If this was a nightmare, she would gladly trade ten years of her life to wake up—no, even a hundred years wasn't out of the question.
Kurosaki Ichigo lay on the ground, his mouth agape, unable to utter a single word.
Ishida Uryu had regained consciousness at some point; he was now leaning against the wall, staring at the scene with a blank expression as if contemplating the meaning of life.
Byakuya remained silent.
He didn't speak or move, merely watching the six 'Abarai Renjis' having an intense internal feud.
There was no expression on his face, but if one looked closely, they would see his hand gripping his sword tighten slightly.
The combat atmosphere of the scene had been completely shattered by the noisy racket.
"This is all your fault, you bastard!"
Finally, the six Renjis reached a consensus on one thing—the culprit behind all of this was Asakura Yoh.
They all turned toward Yoh, their flame-composed faces full of rage.
Then, they all charged at him at once.
But halfway there, they all stopped abruptly.
"Dammit! I can't move!"
"You bastard! What did you do this time?!"
"Stop this right now!"
"..."
The steel gauntlet on Yoh's right arm blazed with intense Furyoku flames.
He looked at the six angry faces expressionlessly, then raised his left hand and made a zipping motion in the air.
Instantly, all six mouths were sealed shut.
They could only make faint muffled sounds, but the flames on their bodies burned even more fiercely.
The world was finally quiet.
Yoh let out a long sigh of relief, and Ichigo, Uryu, and Rukia followed suit.
Even Byakuya felt a subtle sense of relief deep down.
Six Abarai Renjis... were indeed far too noisy.
"Human..."
Byakuya finally spoke. His tone was subtly different than before.
"What is your name?"
This was the first time tonight he had proactively asked for a human's name. Before this, he didn't feel the other party was worthy of him knowing it, but things were clearly different now.
"Asakura Yoh," Yoh replied with a smile.
"Nice to meet you."
"There is no need for that," Byakuya's voice returned to its calm state. "Because—"
He raised his hand, pointing his finger at Yoh.
A golden light condensed at his fingertip, so dazzling it was hard to look at directly.
"You will be dying very soon."
"Bakudo 61—Rikujokoro."
The moment the words fell, six rectangular prisms of golden light appeared around Yoh.
They closed in toward the center with lightning speed, looking as though they were about to pierce his body—
The sound of blades slicing through the air rang out.
The six floating segments of Zabimaru moved simultaneously, racing in from six directions and accurately slamming into the six bars of light, shattering the golden prisms instantly.
The six Renjis with their mouths sealed stared wide-eyed at the scene, veins nearly visible on their fiery faces; it was clear his internal rage was about to explode.
Yoh glanced at them, the corners of his mouth curling up slightly.
'That rage meter is filling up remarkably fast... no wonder he generated this kind of ability...'
"Go! Abarai Number One!"
He pointed casually, and one of the blade segments spun toward Kuchiki Byakuya.
One meter away.
The petals of Senbonzakura swarmed in instantly, blocking the blade segment firmly.
"If this is the extent of your—"
Byakuya cut his sentence short, stopping mid-word.
Because he saw that the fiery head of Abarai Renji was swelling at a visible rate.
Bigger...
And bigger!
The face, distorted with rage, was written with the resolve of 'I'm taking you with me.'
"Self-destruct! Abarai Renji!"
Just as Yoh's voice fell, the explosion occurred.
Boom!
A massive flash of fire bloomed in the night sky. The shockwave shattered the surrounding walls and glass windows, and even the ground trembled.
"Brother Byakuya!"
Rukia's voice carried a sob as she stared intensely at the center of the explosion, her eyes already turning red.
When did the situation get completely flipped on its head?
Originally, she thought Yoh would be easily handled by her brother, just like Ichigo. After all, that was Kuchiki Byakuya—a figure she and countless other Soul Reapers looked up to, one of the strongest Soul Reapers in the Soul Society.
But now—
The flames gradually died down.
The center of the explosion was empty.
Only a shredded Captain's Haori lay silently on the ground, its edges still smoking.
Rukia's pupils shrank violently.
"No... how is this possible...?"
Her voice trembled, as did her legs. Looking at that haori, she felt as if an invisible hand was squeezing her heart, making it hard to breathe.
The remaining five Renjis floated in the air, their bloodshot eyes wide. Unintelligible sounds came from their sealed mouths, but the fury in the flames was almost overflowing.
Ichigo's mouth hung open, having completely lost the ability to speak.
Uryu sat against the wall, his pupils quivering slightly.
Then—
"Hey, hey, what's with those reactions?"
Yoh's exasperated voice rang out.
"You don't actually think he died like that, do you?"
Rukia snapped her head up.
"What do you mean...?"
Yoh didn't say anything, merely gesturing with his chin toward a nearby utility pole.
A figure stood silently atop it.
Kuchiki Byakuya, having shed his Captain's Haori, was completely unscathed. The moonlight outlined a cold silhouette behind him, his expression so calm it was as if nothing had just happened.
"Shihouin Secret Step, Number 3—Utsusemi."
His voice was flat, like he was stating an insignificant fact.
Using a garment to take the hit while the body escapes instantly—this was an advanced technique of the Shihouin Secret Steps.
To be able to use this move the instant the explosion occurred meant his speed and judgment had reached a staggering level.
But after saying that, he didn't move again.
He just stood on that pole, looking at Yoh.
The contempt in his eyes had completely vanished.
Replacing it was a sense of seriousness.
'This human... is no longer an opponent I can deal with using only twenty percent of my spiritual pressure.'
He made the silent judgment in his heart.
Perhaps he should send a request for 'Limiter Release' to the Department of Research and Development.
The night wind blew past, carrying the scorched smell of the explosion.
And 'Abarai Number One,' who had caused the explosion, was now lying quietly on the ground, his bloodshot eyes turned into dizzying spirals.
Byakuya naturally saw this too.
'It seems that kind of attack is not without its price...'
That said, the one paying the price didn't seem to be the enemy who launched the attack, but rather his own subordinate...
The five Renjis who saw their 'comrade' self-destruct now seemed to have a sense of fear mixed with their anger.
Even they felt the pain just watching that kind of attack; they all turned their gaze toward Yoh, the dread in their eyes unable to be suppressed.
'This guy is a literal demon!'
'Is the World of the Living really such a dangerous place?!'
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