Above the skies of Soul Society...
Floating in the vast airspace was a massive cylindrical structure divided into two sections, standing vertically like a towering obelisk. This was the Soul King's Palace, held in place by the immense spiritual force of the Soul King himself.
This was the main hall of the Royal Palace, where the legendary Soul King—rumored to maintain the balance of the worlds—resided.
Below the main hall floated five saucer-shaped cities arranged symmetrically in midair. These were the residences granted by the Soul King to the members of the Royal Guard—the Zero Division. The five cities encircled the Soul King's inner palace, standing guard at all times.
Ichigo and the others first arrived at the enormous passageway located below both structures.
This was the transit hub that connected to each of the five palaces. Using the teleportation device stationed there, Ichigo and the group prepared to depart.
As he gazed at the strange and majestic sight before him, Ichigo recalled the incident from two years ago involving Aizen Sōsuke's betrayal.
It turned out… the place Aizen had sought to invade, even at the cost of destroying the sky of Soul Society, was this very realm!
Remembering this, Ichigo suddenly turned to Tenjirō Kirinji and asked, "Wait… entering the Royal Palace requires a Royal Key, right? When did you use it?"
Tenjirō simply lifted his sleeve, revealing his arm. "The so-called Royal Key is not a tool, but rather the reconstruction of our bodies by the power of the Soul King himself at the time we were chosen."
He went on to explain that there were only two ways to enter the Soul King's realm: either be chosen by the Soul King, or… create a Royal Key yourself.
"That's what Aizen wanted—to create a Royal Key by himself. In other words, he wanted to forge new life from his own power. He didn't just want to defeat the Soul King... He wanted to replace God Himself."
"Aizen Sōsuke was the embodiment of evil," Senjumaru Shutara added coldly.
"However, Ichigo," she warned, "this time, the Quincies we face… may be even worse."
After a brief explanation of the current state of the Soul King's realm, Ichigo used the teleportation system to begin his journey through the various palaces of the Zero Division.
The others had already been taken away earlier by Kirinji—except for Senna, who was now soaking in one of Kirinji's hot springs.
Due to the constant battles, many of them had accumulated hidden internal injuries. But with Kirinji's famed healing springs, not only could those injuries be healed—they might even gain a breakthrough in spiritual pressure.
Ichigo soon arrived as well.
As for Byakuya… the poor guy was immediately kicked straight into the bath by Kirinji, forced into a long submersion session.
Renji was caught and dunked repeatedly like a pineapple being washed, his head bobbing up and down.
Ichigo, meanwhile, simply laid in the spring, feeling his spiritual pressure slowly growing stronger.
Kirinji turned to Ichigo and explained, "This spring is called the Blood Pond Hell. The water here expels damaged spiritual pressure and corrupted blood from the body."
"And over there is the White Bone Hell, which replenishes the blood lost during the healing process."
"Soaking repeatedly between these two pools purges the bad blood and replaces it with special spiritual fluids forged from my own reiatsu."
Honestly, Kirinji's healing method was brutal. At one point, he even tossed Byakuya into the Blood Pond Hell like garbage.
The mixed-bathing hot spring that Yoruichi once showed Ichigo back in the World of the Living? That was actually just a knockoff created by Kisuke Urahara based on Kirinji's technique.
However, soaking in Kirinji's springs wasn't without risk. If someone stayed too long in the White Bone Hell, their blood and spiritual pressure would be completely drained—hence the need to wear a towel to prevent total depletion.
On the flip side, staying too long in the Blood Pond Hell could cause physical collapse from over-recovery.
Thanks to a full night of treatment, even Ichigo was fully healed.
Just as Ichigo was preparing to move on to the next spring—
"I'm completely healed!" Renji shouted from the side.
Kirinji didn't say a word. He just punched Renji in the stomach.
Even though Renji was clearly in pain and trembling slightly… he didn't collapse.
Kirinji gave a satisfied nod. "You passed. You can move on."
Renji exchanged a glance with Ichigo and followed him onward.
Kirinji watched Ichigo's back as he left and couldn't help but mutter to himself, "That brat... he dodged my punch just now without even realizing it."
What a scary guy...
Back in Soul Society.
Unohana looked at Kyōraku. "What is it, Captain Kyōraku? Do you have something to say?"
Kyōraku had already put on his signature eyepatch and said solemnly, "Captain Unohana, I respectfully request that you teach Zaraki Kenpachi the true way of the sword."
Unohana tapped her finger on the desk thoughtfully. "Are you sure?"
Kyōraku exhaled, "It's not ideal... but Soul Society needs more power."
After a moment of silence, Unohana replied, "Fine. Then let's have Genryūsai teach him—through me."
Kyōraku was relieved.
During the last battle, Kyōraku had already sensed it: Unohana's strength had long surpassed that of her former teacher, Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto.
If she truly trained Zaraki... the power that would emerge might shake all of Soul Society.
As for the Central 46?
Heh. Forget them.
Right now, Unohana held the true authority over the Soul Society. The noble families' power had been compressed to near insignificance.
If not for Byakuya and Kyōraku—both high-born nobles still holding captaincies—the entire aristocracy would have collapsed.
Frankly, the Gotei 13's de-nobilization reform had been wildly successful. Among the original Four (or Five) Noble Houses, only the Kuchiki Clan remained relevant.
The Shihōin and Shiba clans had already fallen from grace.
It was very likely that the next generation of captains would have no ties to nobility at all.
Back at the Royal Palace—
Ichigo and Renji descended into Kirio Hikifune's palace.
The Gastronomy Hall.
Looking at the plump woman before him, Ichigo found it hard to reconcile her with the elegant beauty that Shinji and Hiyori had once described.
"Hahaha! Ichigo Kurosaki! Come in! Let me give you a proper welcome!" Hikifune laughed.
She offered them an extravagant meal, and neither Ichigo nor Renji held back—they devoured it eagerly.
Then, right before their eyes, Hikifune instantly slimmed down.
She was now a totally different person—slim and graceful like a noble lady!
Hikifune smiled and explained, "Whenever I cook, I burn through all my spiritual pressure. That's why I lose weight after each meal. To avoid collapsing, I fatten myself up in advance."
Ichigo and Renji both breathed a sigh of relief.
Hikifune then explained the truth about the Zero Division.
Only Shinigami who had created something revolutionary in Soul Society's history could enter the Royal Realm.
They had all changed history in some way—and only with the Soul King's approval could they become protectors of the dimension and guardians of the balance.
In her case, Hikifune had created the artificial soul.
The prototype for Mod Souls—essentially the foundation for the very tech Kisuke Urahara later expanded upon.
That's also why Urahara was never invited to the Royal Realm—his work was derivative of Hikifune's.
In fact, the dishes Hikifune served to Ichigo and Renji had been infused with similar spiritual technologies, allowing them to absorb massive amounts of spiritual essence and further enhance their power.
For Ichigo, this was a nice bonus. For Renji… this was a feast of miracles.
After completing their training in the Gastronomy Hall, the next stop was...
The Phoenix Palace.
Meanwhile, deep beneath the Shinō Academy—
In the lowest floor of the underground prison...
Genryūsai Yamamoto sat in quiet meditation.
This empty void was meant to erase all spiritual presence.
Zaraki Kenpachi had assumed that Unohana would be the one waiting for him here... but instead, he was met by the founder himself.
After realizing the extent of Unohana's power, it was clear—even if Zaraki had regained all his strength, even if he unlocked both Shikai and Bankai, he was still far behind her.
As he looked at Yamamoto, Zaraki hoisted his sword lazily and muttered, "Oh, it's the old man."
Yamamoto snorted, "Do you know who you are? Unohana has no time to train you. So now, I will."
Zaraki grinned and began his training.
After that crushing defeat by Yhwach, Zaraki knew—he wasn't ready. Not even close.
Back at the Phoenix Palace—
Ichigo and Renji stood before a massive palace.
Here dwelled the blade god: Ōetsu Nimaiya. The creator of all Zanpakutō. Also... a rapper.
The moment they landed, the two were greeted by a freestyle rap performance.
After entering the Phoenix Palace, they were shocked to find it wasn't swords waiting for them…
But a group of busty, energetic women who seemed very, very excited to see them.
"What the hell is this?" Renji frowned.
"Don't get too excited," Ichigo muttered. "They might all be dudes."
"Yo! Ichigo! Renji! You liked that opening performance? Let me introduce myself! I'm the one and only Ōetsu Nimaiya—your guide to sword enlightenment!"
Ōetsu ran toward Ichigo with open arms.
Ichigo instinctively dodged. No thanks.
Seeing their cold reactions, Ōetsu adjusted his glasses, annoyed. "Tch. So serious. You wanna go home instead?"
Before he could finish, he was kicked aside by a red-haired girl.
"Ugh, boss, you're getting nowhere again. I'll take it from here."
This girl was Mera, one of Ōetsu's subordinates.
Apparently… she didn't trust her boss to handle anything serious.
Under her guidance, Ichigo, Renji, and Ōetsu arrived at a small hut hidden in the rear cliffs of the Phoenix Palace.
"This is the true Phoenix Palace," Mera explained.
"The fancy stuff outside is just a façade because our master doesn't want people to know the truth."
Inside the hut was a massive, death-like void. The floor wasn't flat—and the moment Ichigo and Renji stepped in, they plummeted straight down.
Watching them fall, Ōetsu said, "Other than me, everyone you've seen so far in this palace... were Zanpakutō. Not Shinigami."
That's right—Ichigo and Renji had failed to notice. Every person they met was actually a manifested Zanpakutō.
"How strange," Ōetsu mused. "You two are Shinigami, yet you can't even tell the difference between your comrades and your swords."
He then pulled out their Zanpakutō and declared, "No wonder... you've turned your blades into such pathetic shapes. That's why you can't tell."
Without warning, he slammed the two blades together—shattering them into fragments!
"Oops. A Zanpakutō that hasn't received love... is so easy to break."
[The END]
(Zaelum: Yeah this is the end of this fic. Looks like the author quitted... anyway thanks for reading till now!! If the Author restart it, I will do the same! probably...)