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The arena from earlier had already been completely destroyed by Komamura Sajin.
The Kidō instructors were working quickly to rebuild a new one.
"This is the final match, huh? Both students are disciples of Katori-kun," Ukitake Jūshirō remarked as he glanced over the profiles. "Shiba Isshin and Aizen Sōsuke have both achieved Shikai—impressive!"
"Shiba Isshin..." Kuruyashiki Kenpachi scratched his head. He'd heard the name somewhere before. "Ah, right, isn't he the one the Shiba Clan is grooming heavily?"
"He's from the branch family," Kuchiki Ginrei explained with familiarity. As the head of the Kuchiki clan—one of the Five Great Noble Houses—he was well aware of the Shiba Clan's affairs. "He's expected to become the next branch family head."
Kyōraku Shunsui reached into the Reishi Pocket sewn into his robes.
He was craving some sake and planned to sneak a bottle out, but then he remembered that the old man was here and quietly put it back.
Drinking in the guest seats? He'd absolutely get scolded by the old man for that.
"Sigh... I wonder which one of them is stronger," Kyōraku muttered.
"Aren't you their teacher? You should know better than anyone," Ukitake teased, turning to Nanatsuki. "Which one do you think is stronger?"
"You'll all see for yourselves soon enough," Nanatsuki replied without giving a direct answer.
"This year's champion is likely to be Shiba Isshin," Ginrei said after glancing over Aizen's profile. He analyzed slowly, "As the Shiba Clan's focus of cultivation, Isshin not only benefits from Vice Dean Katori's personal instruction but also enjoys the full resources of the Shiba household. It's only natural for him to win."
As a fellow noble, Ginrei understood exactly how desperate the Shiba Clan was.
It had been decades since the Shiba Clan last produced a captain-class Shinigami.
They were eager—desperate, even—to raise a new one.
Once a prodigy like Isshin appeared, the clan would invest everything into molding him into a captain-level force.
Aizen Sōsuke, on the other hand, was born in Rukongai. The gap between their starting points was immense.
Nearby, Yoruichi opened her mouth as if to speak, but seeing her teacher offer no clear opinion, she kept quiet.
As a fellow disciple, Yoruichi knew Aizen's strength well.
In fact, she had a distinct feeling—Aizen had never shown his full power.
Kyōraku took note of her hesitation.
He stroked his chin, seeming to think of something amusing, then turned to the man seated on the other side—the Tenth Division's Vice-Captain.
"What do you think, Vice-Captain Shiba?"
"Captain Kuchiki is absolutely right," the man replied with a smile. "Thanks to Vice Dean Katori's guidance, Isshin has grown rapidly. I'd wager he's this year's champion."
He was clearly confident in this outstanding junior.
Several of the other victors had shown promising strength—but none matched the backing or expectations surrounding Shiba Isshin.
"Since it's the last match, how about we make it interesting?" Kyōraku grinned. "Let's bet on the winner. Loser buys the drinks!"
They were drinking buddies, and Kyōraku had noticed Yoruichi's odd reaction—so now he was just trying to get his friend to foot the bill.
"Haven't had a drink with you in a while. You're on," Shiba chuckled. "But I'm still betting on Isshin!"
"Then I'll put my money on Aizen Sōsuke," Kyōraku said with exaggerated reluctance.
"Much appreciated!" Shiba laughed heartily.
He still thought Kyōraku just wanted to treat him to drinks. The bet was probably just a pretext.
Thanks to the Kidō instructors' hard work, the arena was fully restored.
Shiba Isshin and Aizen Sōsuke stepped onto the stage together.
"That last move from Sajin was crazy," Isshin said with admiration. "But we can't let him hog all the spotlight, right?"
He looked intently at the opponent before him.
Aizen Sōsuke was strong.
But he wasn't weak either.
He believed the two of them were evenly matched.
Their previous sparring bouts often ended with razor-thin margins, separated by just a move or two.
This time—he would win!
"Let's begin." Isshin rested his hand on his sword.
Clang—!
Both fighters unsheathed their Zanpakutō almost at the same time.
In the blink of an eye, two streaks of light collided, ringing out in a piercing clash.
TANG!!
"If that's all you've got, you won't beat me." Aizen smiled faintly.
'Damn, his reflexes are fast...'
Isshin had hoped to catch him off guard.
"Then I'll show you my real strength!"
"Burn—Engetsu!" he shouted, releasing his Zanpakutō.
A surge of Reiatsu burst from within him, flooding into the blade.
A blazing layer of flame enveloped his sword.
"A fire-type Zanpakutō, just like the old man's," Kyōraku remarked offhandedly.
The next moment, he felt a terrifying killing intent from nearby.
"Ahem—a fire-type Zanpakutō, just like Captain-Commander Yamamoto's," Kyōraku quickly corrected himself.
"Isshin's 'Engetsu' is a flame-type Zanpakutō with extreme offensive power," the Vice-Captain of the Shiba Clan added with a smile.
Perhaps because Captain-Commander Yamamoto also wielded a flame-type Zanpakutō, the entire Soul Society regarded them as the most powerful type.
At that moment, Aizen also released his Zanpakutō:
"Shatter—Kyōka Suigetsu."
Upon release, the blade's appearance remained completely unchanged.
Aizen subtly glanced toward the guest seats.
None of the captains seemed to notice anything unusual.
A faint, unreadable smile curved on Aizen's lips.
This—was his greatest gain from the Shin'o Spiritual Arts Academy's True Combat Trial.
Captain-Commander Yamamoto and the other captains were all seated there.
They had now seen Kyōka Suigetsu's release.
Although Aizen wasn't yet confident he could completely hypnotize someone as powerful as Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni…
Yamamoto's Reiatsu was overwhelming. The gap between them was simply too great. If he attempted to use Kyōka Suigetsu's ability now, it might expose flaws.
But just because it couldn't be done now didn't mean it would never be possible.
The hypnosis of Kyōka Suigetsu had no time limit.
As long as someone had seen the Shikai release, Aizen could hypnotize them at any time and manipulate their senses.
He couldn't use it against Yamamoto or the captains just yet—but someday, he might.
In truth, Aizen lived with a constant sense of unease.
His teacher's lab was filled with secrets that could never be made public.
Whether it was the Reishi Shell experiments involving Hollows, Shinigami, or fragments of the Soul King—all of it could bring enormous trouble if revealed.
Aizen was already deeply bound to that lab and its projects. If anything happened to it, he would be implicated too.
So when he heard there was an opportunity to release Kyōka Suigetsu in front of the captains and noble families, he agreed without hesitation.
Normally, he wouldn't be the type to participate in flashy public duels.
In the guest seats, curiosity about Aizen's Zanpakutō was mounting.
"His sword didn't change at all," Shiba Vice-Captain muttered, stroking his chin in thought.
"I wonder what it does…"
"Kyōka Suigetsu is a water-type Zanpakutō," Shihōin Yoruichi said plainly.
"A water type, huh? That's a direct counter to fire-types like Engetsu," Kyōraku laughed as he clapped the Shiba Vice-Captain on the shoulder. "Looks like I've got the winning bet."
"That's only true in theory," the vice-captain replied calmly. "Ryūjin Jakka is also a flame-type Zanpakutō—yet no water-type blade dares claim it can counter Ryūjin Jakka."
He was clearly flattering Yamamoto, but it was also the truth.
Shiba Isshin thought the same.
"Don't think just because you're a water-type you can counter my 'Engetsu'!"
He swung his Zanpakutō—the flames on the blade flared dramatically, roaring toward Aizen like a tidal wave of fire.
Aizen moved as well.
From Kyōka Suigetsu, torrents of water surged outward in response.
A towering wave formed, crashing toward the incoming fire.
To the audience—and even to Isshin—it appeared that these waters had been released by Kyōka Suigetsu itself.
But Katori Nanatsuki knew better.
He understood exactly what Kyōka Suigetsu was.
That water didn't come from Aizen's Zanpakutō.
It came from a Kidō-based sword technique—Wave Break.
'Of course it's you, Sōsuke… only you could wield "Wave Break" with such mastery,' Nanatsuki thought to himself.
The crashing wave met the flames in a cataclysmic impact. Steam exploded across the arena, blanketing it in thick mist.
But "Wave Break" didn't just unleash a wave.
The spray that burst forth from the crashing water transformed into countless blades—cutting through the blaze and slashing toward Isshin.
Each wave hid a blade, indistinguishable from the real flow.
Tang! Tang! Tang!
Isshin reacted swiftly. He spun and slashed, his Zanpakutō intercepting each incoming strike in a flurry of sparks.
Then—he heard a voice behind him.
"Hadō #63: Raikōhō."
Isshin's eyes widened in shock. He dove forward instinctively.
A bolt of lightning streaked just past his back.
The golden blast shot beyond the arena, slamming into the Kidō Division's Reishi barrier—and exploded.
BOOM!!
"Damn it! That Kidō was way too strong! We need more people reinforcing the barrier!"
Cracks spread across the translucent shield. Several Kidō instructors broke into a sweat.
There were audience members sitting behind them!
If this barrier failed, it'd be a disaster.
Just then—a new figure appeared beside them.
"It's Vice Dean Katori!"
Nanatsuki had descended upon seeing things start to go sideways.
"Thank goodness! Vice Dean, please help us stabilize the Reishi barrier. That Kidō was too intense!" one of the instructors said, relieved.
"My student doesn't know how to hold back. Apologies for the trouble," Nanatsuki replied with a wry smile.
"Not at all! It's an honor to have such talented students!" the instructor grinned.
Nanatsuki raised his hand and released his Reiatsu, instantly reinforcing the cracked barrier.
Meanwhile, the battle on stage continued.
Isshin, having avoided the blast, rolled across the ground and repositioned himself.
"Bakudō #62: Hyapporankan!"
Aizen's voice rang out again.
Multiple rods of light formed from Reishi and shot down toward Isshin.
He leapt backward repeatedly, dodging most of them.
"Rah!"
He swung his blade and shattered the last rod that came too fast to dodge.
'Unchanted Kidō like that—it's hard to keep up with… I really can't let this turn into a battle of attrition.'
"Sōsuke!" Isshin roared, swinging his flaming sword. "Crimson Tide—Getsuga Tenshō!"
This was Isshin's finishing move.
The principle was similar to Flowlight: highly compressed Reiatsu released in a slash.
But "Getsuga Tenshō" covered a wider area and consumed far more Reiatsu.
His entire body radiated searing heat, distorting the air around him.
The firelight condensed at his blade's edge. Vast spiritual pressure surged through his arms and into the Zanpakutō.
At that moment, even the air above the arena felt like it was being consumed by fire.
The Kidō instructors holding the barrier could hardly breathe.
Reiatsu and flame merged into a crimson arc that burst from the blade.
The flaming slash roared toward Aizen.
"Bakudō #81: Dankū."
Aizen raised his hand, summoning a semi-transparent barrier of Reishi.
"O child of heaven, iron-walled fortress… dragons march, lions roar, tigers howl, wolves charge… sever heaven and earth before collapse!"
Using a Post-Chanting technique, Aizen cast one of the strongest defensive Kidō—Dankū.
The crimson blade of flame struck the wall—and exploded.
BOOOOM!!
The blast instantly obliterated the arena, which had only just been rebuilt.
"What a terrifying move!" one Kidō instructor cried out. "If Vice Dean Katori weren't here, the barrier would've failed for sure!"
The others shared the sentiment.
Thankfully, Nanatsuki was present—otherwise the shockwave would've torn the shield apart.
"Aizen's gotta be down after that, right? No way he could tank a move like that."
The intense spiritual turbulence on the stage made it impossible to sense what was happening inside.
"Don't be so sure," Nanatsuki chuckled softly.
"I feel the same. Don't forget what Aizen just did!"
"Right, he used 'Dankū'—and cast it with Post-Chanting!"
The dust and smoke from the explosion gradually began to settle.
Shiba Isshin's face appeared through the haze—his expression grim.
Standing across from him, Aizen Sōsuke was completely unscathed.
"A solid move. Compressing more Reiatsu than Flowlight. The burst power is stronger… but it lacks Flowlight's precision," Aizen commented slowly.
"But…"
He took a step forward.
"It's not enough to defeat me."
He continued walking.
The nobles were scheduled to attend only the semi-finals.
'I'll take this victory right here, Isshin.'