(T/N: This is the bonus Chapter!! Thank you guys again for your support! I hope you enjoying the story so far!)
The Adjuchas broke free from the shadow's restraint. He also sensed that more than half of the Gillians outside had been wiped out, and instantly erupted in fury.
"You dare ruin my plans?!"
The Adjuchas' body began morphing rapidly, soon taking on a humanoid form.
Though consuming a Shinigami's soul doesn't grant him their Zanpakutō powers, he still gains their memories—along with their mastery of Zanjutsu, Hakuda, Shunpo, and Kidō.
Taking on a humanoid form allowed the Adjuchas to better utilize these techniques.
In front of Nanatsuki, a shadow coalesced into a sword.
Gripping the hilt, he used the shadows on the ground in place of fingers to store power—then in an instant, he slashed out a brilliant stream of light.
Thump!
With a faint drumming sound, the Adjuchas vanished from sight.
The slash missed—an extremely rare occurrence. Most Shinigami weren't fast enough to dodge Nanatsuki's Flowlight.
But the Adjuchas' Sonído was faster than Nanatsuki's Shunpo by a margin.
The next instant, the Adjuchas appeared at Nanatsuki's side.
Just as he emerged, Nanatsuki raised his right leg, twisted his waist, and launched a sharp kick straight at him.
At the same time, his upper robe burst open. A torrent of Reiatsu surged out from his back.
Electric arcs crackled across his body.
Shunkō: Raikiri Form!
Now that Nanatsuki had honed his Hakuda, his control of Shunkō had greatly improved.
He could now enter Shunkō: Raikiri Form almost instantly, with little to no preparation.
The Adjuchas' pupils contracted sharply. The Shinigami's speed had exploded—this kick was too fast, even for him to evade with Sonído.
Thud!
Nanatsuki's foot smashed into the Adjuchas' chest. The sheer force caved it in.
The Adjuchas was sent flying by the impact.
Everything before his eyes blurred as the scenery zipped past. In an instant, he was blown clear out of the encampment.
Bang!
He slammed into a stone pillar and finally came to a halt.
Crumbled rubble from the collapsed column buried the Adjuchas underneath.
Whoosh— Nanatsuki chased closely behind, his figure appearing before the fallen debris.
But from under the rubble, a red light burst forth.
A powerful Cero pierced through the stone and shot toward Nanatsuki.
But Nanatsuki was still maintaining his Shunkō: Raikiri Form—his speed was a cut above even the red Cero.
Whoosh—! The red beam passed cleanly through Nanatsuki's body—but it was merely an afterimage, left behind by sheer speed.
The Adjuchas burst out of the rubble.
Strangely, the chest that should have been shattered by Nanatsuki's kick was now completely restored, showing no signs of damage.
Nanatsuki reappeared behind the Adjuchas. A flash of his blade—and the creature's body was cleaved in two.
"Useless!" The Adjuchas grew a bone blade from his hand and laughed wildly. "I can split my body at will. Even if you cut me into ten pieces—or a hundred—you can't hurt me!"
With his division ability and the Zanjutsu-Hakuda-Shunpo-Kidō he had absorbed from Shinigami memories, his combat power was terrifying—even among Adjuchas-class Hollows, he stood out.
"So that's how it is. Physical attacks just split you—they can't destroy you..." Nanatsuki realized that this Hollow's ability was incredibly unusual. Even its mask could divide. To truly kill it, he would have to annihilate its entire body.
But Nanatsuki wasn't concerned. He already had a solution—and this would be the perfect chance to test his Bankai-level ability.
They were outside the camp, out of sight from others—he could unleash his powers freely.
The Wandenreich possessed technology that could absorb Shinigami Bankai abilities via Reishi. But they needed full intel on a Bankai before they could do so.
Nanatsuki didn't know what year this tech was completed—so before facing the Wandenreich, he wasn't going to fully reveal his ability.
The Adjuchas lunged forward after drawing his bone blade, showing off his swordsmanship.
He had absorbed many Shinigami's Zanjutsu-Hakuda-Shunpo-Kidō, and his skill with the blade surpassed that of most Vice-Captains.
But if he thought he could overpower Nanatsuki with swordsmanship—he was dreaming.
The Adjuchas' bone blade slashed continuously through the air, launching wave after wave of attacks—but Nanatsuki blocked each one effortlessly.
The repeated clashes rang out like metal striking an anvil.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
"Shinigami, your swordsmanship is excellent—perhaps the best I've seen—but soon, it'll be mine!" the Adjuchas sneered. "Once I eat you, I'll savor every memory of yours!"
He was convinced his division ability gave him the edge. As long as he could wear Nanatsuki down—deplete his strength and Reiatsu—he'd eventually devour him.
"Carriage of thunder, gap of the spinning wheel… divide this light into six…"
Nanatsuki raised his left hand.
"Bakudō #61: Rikujōkōrō!"
Six golden beams of Reishi light slammed into the Adjuchas, pinning him in place and halting his movements.
Over the past year, Nanatsuki had rewarded his students with many Kidō techniques. Rikujōkōrō was one of them.
As Nanatsuki's thoughts stirred, his shadow powers activated.
Behind him, a blade-wielding shadow slowly emerged.
The shadow had long, flowing hair—but as a shadow, its appearance was completely obscured.
Yet Nanatsuki knew that outline well—it was the shadow of Azashiro Kana.
Kana's shadow stepped forward, merging into Nanatsuki's back.
Then—her shadow fused with his body.
The shadow now clung to Nanatsuki like flickering black flame.
He gripped the shadow's Zanpakutō.
"Enter the shadow and reflect its form—Eikō Mugen'ei!"
Nanatsuki now stood draped in shadow, wielding a blade of shadow—his presence overwhelming.
He could now use Shishoku!
Upon releasing his Bankai, Nanatsuki could control others' shadows within the space, and replicate part of their abilities—including their Zanpakutō powers.
However, shadows could only replicate a portion of the original's strength—typically between 10% and 50%, depending on the person.
But beyond that, Nanatsuki had another method: fusing the shadow with himself as a Shadow Cloak, allowing him to personally wield the replicated powers.
The power ceiling remained the same—his replication of Shishoku wouldn't exceed 50% of Kana's original strength.
But this allowed him to fully integrate Shishoku into his own swordsmanship.
"Taste it, Shishoku," Nanatsuki whispered the release command.
Though the shape of the shadow blade remained unchanged, it now carried the abilities of Shishoku.
"What's that cloak on you… Whatever. You still can't beat me!" the Adjuchas snapped the six Reishi bindings around him. Seeing that Nanatsuki still hadn't used any large-scale destructive techniques, he grew even more arrogant.
He charged up a red Cero once again.
"Die—meddling Shinigami!"