"Collapse, Sakanade!"
Hirako Shinji let go of his Zanpakutō. A massive ring extended from its hilt, and five circular holes appeared along the blade.
He hooked his index finger through the large ring, which began spinning rapidly around it. The Zanpakutō spun along with the motion.
"You bastard, you actually mastered Shikai too?!" Ōmaeda Kishinosuke shouted in disbelief. Like Muguruma Kensei, Hirako had unlocked Shikai in the middle of battle.
The spectators were just as surprised.
"I thought Ōmaeda Kishinosuke was going to win, but now... it's hard to say." Azashiro Kana let out a relieved sigh.
"Looks like I've got another rival for first place!" Muguruma Kensei laughed.
In the arena, Hirako continued spinning his Zanpakutō and chuckled softly. "That's all thanks to the pressure you gave me."
"Too late!" Kishinosuke scoffed. "So what if you've awakened your Shikai? Your leg's badly injured—your mobility's shot. Even if you've got Shikai, it doesn't change the fact that you're going to lose to me."
"Lie down already!" He raised his spiked mace and charged forward, slamming it down hard toward Hirako.
Bang! Kishinosuke's eyes narrowed. The sensation that ran through his weapon—it didn't feel like it had hit a person!
'Why did it miss?' He was stunned to find he had smashed the ground instead.
"Reality?" Hirako's voice echoed lightly from behind him. "Can you even see clearly?"
Kishinosuke spun around at once and swung his mace behind him.
But it hit nothing—no one was there!
"Damn it, what did you do to me?!" He looked around frantically and spotted Hirako still standing in place. Somehow, his sense of where Hirako had been was completely off.
He quickly realized this had to be Hirako's Zanpakutō ability. "Your Zanpakutō messes with vision? No… it's not just that. Even the direction of your spiritual pressure... it shifted?"
"Sharp, aren't you?" Hirako grinned. "Sakanade reverses everything you perceive—up becomes down, left becomes right, front becomes back."
"Your Zanpakutō sure has a lot of tricks," Kishinosuke growled, charging again. "But if you think flipping my sense of direction is enough to beat me, you're underestimating me!"
Yet once more, his attack struck nothing but the ground.
'What the hell?! I'm moving backward—why can't I reach him?!'
"Ah, forgot to mention," Hirako said playfully, "I get to decide when my ability activates."
Kishinosuke had been stepping backward, yet his movement twisted—lurching him in confusing directions as he spun in place.
"You can't touch me. But I can touch you whenever I want. This match is mine." Hirako limped toward him, dragging his injured leg.
Despite his limp, to Kishinosuke, Hirako's approach was still overwhelming.
Every step he took was a countdown to the end of their battle.
"Then—" Kishinosuke waited for Hirako to get close, then slammed his mace into the ground. "Can you survive another explosion?!"
He was out of options. Even if Hirako just walked straight toward him, hitting him seemed nearly impossible now. His only chance was to go all-in—trading damage for a larger blast radius.
Schlick. Kishinosuke's face froze as he looked down at the blade protruding from his abdomen.
"Why… didn't it explode…?" He finally realized—he'd swung his mace up into the air. It hadn't hit anything at all.
"Up and down reversed… what a terrifying ability..."
As Hirako pulled the blade free, Kishinosuke's strength gave out completely, and he collapsed.
"Hirako Shinji, victory!" Nanatsuki announced the match's result, and four members of the Fourth Division came forward to carry the two injured fighters away.
After Hirako was brought down from the arena, Nanatsuki inspected his leg. The injury was serious—he'd need two or three days to recover. Fortunately, the semifinals weren't scheduled immediately after the quarterfinals, so it wouldn't affect his future matches.
"Well done. Your Zanpakutō's ability is impressive. Make sure to keep developing it." Nanatsuki remembered that Sakanade didn't just invert visual perception—it could reverse sound too.
Muguruma Kensei and Azashiro Kana walked over as well.
"Your ability's incredible," Kana remarked. "Being able to manipulate perception—it's a lot like my Shishoku."
"I almost lost. Good thing I figured out Shikai in time," Hirako said with a grateful grin.
This year's students were insanely strong. If his Zanpakutō hadn't responded at that critical moment, he would've lost for sure.
"Take care of your injury. Hopefully, we'll get to face off on the arena soon!" Kensei clapped Hirako on the shoulder.
"Only four of us left. Odds are pretty good. Ladies," he turned to the two Fourth Division members holding his stretcher, "could you not take me to the infirmary? I'd like to stay and watch the next match."
"That's fine. Let's give you some quick treatment here first," one of the medics replied. She wanted to stay and watch the fights too, so she agreed and began treating his wounds on the spot.
The battle between Hirako Shinji and Ōmaeda Kishinosuke shocked even the guests in the spectator box.
Nakano sighed in admiration. "So even Hirako Shinji received a response from his Zanpakutō mid-battle. With students like this, we teachers can feel nothing but pride!"
"Hirako's Zanpakutō… must manipulate vision. It probably messes with the direction of spiritual pressure too," Kyōraku Shunsui reflected aloud. "Katori-sensei's students are all monsters, huh?"
"Another student from Class 2 has awakened their Shikai..." Kotetsu Ayane marveled. "This year's batch might be the best since Captain Kyōraku and Captain Ukitake's class."
Ukitake Jūshirō said humbly, "They might surpass us."
Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto gave a slight nod. "Counting Hirako Shinji, that makes four students who've achieved Shikai before even graduating. That's more than Kyōraku and Ukitake's year. The Academy is thriving."
Meanwhile, Tsunayashiro Tokinada's expression was stiff.
He never imagined that even Ōmaeda Kishinosuke, who had unlocked Shikai, would lose.
A thought crept into his mind, one he couldn't shake:
'Don't tell me... Kuchiki Sōjun might lose too?'