Saito crouched low, then launched herself skyward.
The Gagaku Kairō beneath her feet buckled under the recoil, pressed flat against the ground.
The seemingly delicate girl spun through the air, crossing dozens of meters in a flash, her blade with its purple hilt and star-shaped tsuba carving a dazzling arc through the sky.
Her speed was astonishing.
The edge of her sword aimed straight at the monster before her.
"Die!"
Facing this unassuming figure, Takasugi's lips curled into a sneer.
As a veteran of the Genji School, he had long heard of Saito, the legendary master said to be unaging and undying.
But so what?
Already a captain-level powerhouse, he had augmented himself with the strength of both Shinigami and Hollow, elevating his reiatsu to heights he once couldn't even fathom.
A mere first-generation captain?
The arrogant thought barely crossed his mind before his scythe, moving faster than his thoughts, slashed without hesitation toward Saito as she plummeted from the sky.
Clang!
The scythe's blade reached its peak in an instant.
Sword met scythe.
The smug expression on Takasugi's face shifted abruptly.
In the next moment, a colossal force erupted from his palm, surging relentlessly through the scythe's handle, nearly wrenching it from his grip.
His hooves, firmly planted, were forced back a step, sinking into the dirt with a thud.
'Such strength!?'
Before Takasugi could react, Saito's lips twisted into a bloodthirsty grin. Her petite frame spun with the force of their clashing weapons, and with a sudden kick, her foot slammed into his face.
The delicate-looking foot, clad in straw sandals, struck his cheek. What he thought he could ignore turned out to be a blow that made him feel as though his entire facial structure had fractured, collapsing into his skull. His vision went black, his mind dazed for a fleeting moment by the violent shock.
When he came to, his body was already hurtling like a stone skipping across water, skidding along the ground and kicking up a cloud of dust.
'Her speed is unreal!'
'This woman?!'
In that moment, Takasugi realized he might have miscalculated.
Or perhaps, one of the thirteen masters of the Genji School, renowned since its early days, could never have been a mere pushover.
As this thought raced through his mind, his vision caught Saito's form rapidly closing in.
And the terrifyingly sharp katana in her hand.
Takasugi shed all traces of underestimation. One hand gripped the scythe's handle, the other yanked the long chain from his palm.
As Saito closed within three meters, he whipped the chain forward, the blade dancing with it, displaying a scythe technique honed to perfection over centuries.
Yet Saito's swordsmanship was far more ferocious than he'd imagined.
Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!
The metallic clashes came at a blistering pace, the scythe and chain scraping against her blade, sparking fiercely, almost forming a continuous stream of light.
Despite his weapon's reach and unorthodox techniques giving him the edge, every one of Takasugi's attacks was met head-on by Saito's brute strength and reflexes.
The three-meter gap closed rapidly.
Takasugi could now clearly see the crimson killing intent flashing in Saito's single eye.
Until the final strike.
Clang!
Her katana and his scythe rose together, sparking in midair.
Saito's face broke into a disdainful smirk.
Before Takasugi could react, her hand shot out, grabbing his belt. With a single hand, she yanked him off the ground, hurling him over her shoulder like a tattered sack, slamming him headfirst into the earth.
"Boom!"
His frame, twice her size, was half-buried in the ground, the impact unleashing an earth-shattering explosion.
The once-flat, barren ground cracked into a sprawling web of fissures.
The surrounding air blasted outward, dispersing the lingering dust and forming a perfect ring of smoke.
"Hey, you bastard!"
"This can't be all you've got, right?!"
Saito bared a savage grin, her tongue flicking across her lips.
"I haven't even begun to vent her anger yet."
The insult of being called a 'little follower'? You won't be forgiven until I've killed you a hundred times, you scum.
Veins bulged at Saito's temples.
Watching this scene, both Ryoma nearby and Ginrei, bearing fresh scars, couldn't hide their shock and wariness.
The enemy who had just fought them on equal footing was now being overwhelmed by Saito, who usually kept a low profile, seeming like nothing more than Makoto and Captain Unohana's sidekick. Did she really possess such power?
Three hundred years of peace was indeed too long, even for Shinigami.
To most of today's 'youngsters,' and even the 'veterans' who joined or opposed the Genji School in its waning days, the deeds of Rukongai's old villains were completely unknown.
They had no concept of these seemingly approachable first-generation captains.
These were warriors who could stand toe-to-toe with Yamamoto and earn his respect.
Saito alone should be enough, right?
Makoto stood nearby, observing the expressions of the two.
The thought crossed his mind.
Yet his peripheral vision remained fixed on the spot where Kinroku had vanished.
...
"Let leave to firmament, Tenjima Wataru!"
As the words rang out, Kensei's Zanpakutō transformed into a key-shaped blade.
With a gentle twist in midair, it effortlessly 'pried' open a pitch-black void.
His footsteps light, he moved to step through to the other side.
But another master of spatial manipulation had no intention of letting him go so easily.
"Well, well, well."
"You're from the Tenth Division... what was your name again?"
The moment the voice sounded, an odd sense of alarm rang in Kensei's heart.
His step toward the spatial gate halted, and he even retreated a step.
In that instant, the open portal slammed shut into a narrow slit.
Half a second later, and he would have been sliced in two.
Kensei's expression flickered with confusion, his cool gaze turning toward the source of the voice.
A weathered man in a captain's haori, wearing tinted glasses, stood calmly, hand resting on his sword, looking at him.
His gaze was serene.
Yet, despite the playful taunt, Kensei showed no anger, his tone warm.
"What an honor."
"To be remembered by Captain Kinroku, even after just one meeting."
"I am Kensei Aizen."
"Humble fifth seat of the Tenth Division."
At this, Kinroku awkwardly scratched his head, laughing heartily. "Sorry, sorry. When you get old, the memory starts to slip."
His jovial tone shifted abruptly, his smiling eyes narrowing, his voice turning cold.
"So, Kensei-kun..."
"Care to explain why you're skulking around in the depths of space?"
"I'm quite curious."
As he spoke, Kinroku's hand tightened on his sword's hilt.
"Hold on."
Kensei maintained his warm, gentle demeanor, saying calmly, "This might sound a bit late."
"But I'm no good at fighting."
"From the start, I've only been a messenger and escape artist."
"If there's something you want to know, Captain Kinroku, just ask."
"Oh?"
Seeing his timid act, Kinroku's interest piqued, and he said with surprise, "Kensei-kun, you'll tell me?"
"Of course."
Kensei's smile grew warmer. "After all, your team never had a chance from the start."
"..."
Hearing his arrogant yet calm tone, Kinroku couldn't hide his astonishment.
To say such a thing, one was either clueless or genuinely confident.
Even he couldn't help but feel a chill.
"Even against Makoto?"
"Heh."
Kensei shook his head with a faint smile. "That name has been mythologized for far too long."
"In my two hundred years of life, I've heard stories about him countless times."
"My ears are practically calloused from it."
"You people don't understand."
"While Soul Society stagnated, the researchers in Hueco Mundo paid immense costs to grow stronger, achieving leaps in power you can't imagine."
"Makoto, before that monster..."
"He's nothing."
"Only my Lord's research can touch the true 'ultimate' of this world!"
At this, Kensei's eyes gleamed with irrepressible reverence, like a fanatic devotee.
"?!"
Kinroku's pupils contracted sharply.
...
Thud.
Stones tumbled from the cracked earth, clattering sharply as they fell.
Saito instinctively glanced downward.
A gust of wind roared before her.
Whoosh!
Pale, bone-like spider legs shot out like spears, piercing through layers of shattered rock, tearing a scrap of her clothing.
Saito narrowly dodged, twisting her body aside.
When she reappeared, she was several meters away.
Staring at the spider leg embedded in midair, even the bloodthirsty girl had to regain a sliver of composure, her brow furrowing slightly.
What is this thing?
Before she could process, a series of grinding noises echoed from the pit.
Takasugi slowly clawed his way out from the center of the fractured earth.
The four spider legs coiled behind him unfurled completely.
If her eyes weren't deceiving her, they seemed nearly half a meter longer than before.
Clawing and writhing.
At Takasugi's sunken face and broken ribs, white Hollow energy flowed like water filling a stream, knitting his wounds together.
High-speed regeneration.
Saito narrowed her eyes at the sight.
"What a feeble strike." Takasugi rasped, his voice colder and hoarser. "Captain Saito, was that truly your full strength?"
"If so, it's my turn to attack."
Saito's gaze grew more puzzled.
Despite his grievous injuries, his reiatsu showed no sign of weakening. If anything, it felt as though the wounds had shattered some limit, enhancing his body further.
When she'd seen him fight Ginrei and Ryoma earlier, he hadn't displayed this regenerative ability.
What was going on?
But Saito wasn't the type to overthink in battle.
The flurry of thoughts flashed through her mind in an instant.
The next moment, her hand rested on her asauchi, her grin turning wicked.
"You're awfully cocky, kid." She said, her fingers gliding along the blade.
"No matter."
"Devour all to extinction! Shuketsukyū!"
She eyed the monster before her, the tip of her blade dipping toward the ground. "Since you recover so fast, let's see how you like having all your blood drained in one go."
"You?" Takasugi's voice grated, harsh and inhuman.
The moment his words fell, he moved.
A step, then a sprint.
The mere dozens of meters between them didn't even allow time to reach full speed.
His scythe whirled again, slashing straight toward her blade.
Saito's swordsmanship remained ferocious.
But this time, as their weapons clashed, her body froze for a split second.
Her single eye widened slightly.
Clang!
Her supposedly dominant strike was overpowered by the scythe's force.
The scythe's tip pierced her shoulder, drawing specks of blood.
'What's happening?'
The thought barely crossed Saito's mind before she instinctively jerked her head aside.
Whoosh!
Takasugi's writhing spider legs struck again, like cunning spears, grazing her hair.
Before she could adjust, the remaining three legs launched simultaneously, shooting from different angles at a speed surpassing even the scythe.
The air crackled with faint sonic booms.
No time to think or retreat.
Saito's blade danced on instinct, swinging at blinding speed, too fast for even afterimages to form.
Her ears rang with relentless metallic clashes.
But merely blocking demanded her full focus.
What was wrong with this guy?
As a battle-hardened warrior who'd walked through countless killing fields, Saito sensed something off the moment they clashed.
Just moments ago, he was no match for her.
Yet in half a second, his strength, speed, and reflexes had all surged just beyond her own.
It was as if he'd evolved specifically to counter her.
"Heh." Noticing the shock in her eye, Takasugi grinned maliciously.
The next moment...
Clang!
Two spider legs pinned her blade.
Saito's swing faltered for an instant.
Takasugi lashed out with a kick, mirroring her earlier attack.
She had no chance to resist.
Her single eye wide, Saito was sent flying dozens of meters, crashing into sand and dust with a boom.
But the battlefield wasn't hers alone.
The instant she was thrown out, Ginrei and Ryoma appeared on Takasugi's flanks.
Their blades arced symmetrically, slicing toward his neck like twin crescent moons.
Clang!
A sharp metallic ring echoed.
Unbreakable?
Ginrei and Ryoma froze in shock.
Then, spider legs pierced their shoulders, the immense force hurling them far away.
But that brief delay was enough.
A blood-wreathed katana with a purple hilt and star-shaped tsuba burst through the dust, slashing at Takasugi's unprotected back.
Crimson blood gleamed, carrying an unnatural power.
Saito's usually playful face was uncharacteristically solemn as she struck.
Yet the sensation from her fingertips as the blade met skin made her expression darken.
Slash!
Their bodies crossed.
Saito turned to inspect the wound.
On Takasugi's back was a shallow mark, barely a palm's length and razor-thin.
It couldn't even pierce his steel-like skin?
This was a complete reversal from before.
Saito exhaled softly, her expression growing warier.
Ryoma struggled to his feet, staring at Takasugi's unscathed form, cursing aloud, "Damn it! How'd he get so much stronger in the blink of an eye?"
Ginrei's face was darker still.
"Can't comprehend it?" Takasugi's voice was muffled, as if speaking through a thick barrier. "A guy you could barely handle just turned into a monster."
"This is the power of evolution!"
"With enough stored reiatsu, I can evolve to counter any force, nullify any threat!"
"Be it immense strength, blinding speed, an unbreakable shell, or rapid recovery-"
"I can have it all!"
Though his appearance hadn't changed, a microscopic view would reveal a radically altered internal structure.
Takasugi gazed at them calmly, his expression increasingly devoid of emotion, as if his humanity was being stripped away.
"This is the power I sought at all costs…"
"Stronger than anyone."
He stepped forward slowly, raising his scythe, its edge aimed ahead, his voice flat.
"This version of me-"
His form vanished.
At a speed the others could barely track, he appeared before Saito.
The scythe's blade whistled toward her pale neck.
"...who can stop me?"
Instinct, honed through countless life-or-death battles, drove Saito to raise her blade.
But the next moment, a sharp ding rang out.
Her swing froze.
A tall, lean youth stood beside her, his left hand gripping a scabbard, thrusting it forward.
Less than three inches from Saito's face, the scabbard's end blocked the scythe's tip.
A familiar, lazy voice, tinged with annoyance, came from her side.
"You talk too much."
"Delusions of grandeur?"
***
Bonus Chapter:
100 Power Stones = 1 BC
300 Power Stones = 2 BC
500 Power Stones = 3 BC
700 Power Stones = 4 BC
1000 Power Stones = 5 BC
***
If you want to read up to 50 chapters ahead, don't hesitate to visit our patron: pat reon . com / XElenea (removespace)