"Stop him! Take Enrakyōden from him!"
The head of the Tsunayashiro family shouted in terror. He never expected Tsunayashiro Tokinada to strike here of all places.
What he didn't know was that this Tokinada, who had supposedly been acknowledged by the family's ancestral Zanpakutō, was in fact a fake.
The guards were already prepared and launched their attacks at once.
The two Shinigami standing beside the family head also released their spells simultaneously.
"Bakudō #61: Rikujōkōrō!"
"Hadō #63: Raikōhō!"
More than ten beams of Kidō — Bakudō and Hadō alike — shot toward the hall's center where "Tsunayashiro Tokinada" stood.
But their target was nothing more than an illusion created by Aizen Sōsuke.
To their eyes, Tokinada swung Enrakyōden, and roaring flames swallowed every Kidō spell in an instant.
Katori Nanatsuki had discussed this operation with Aizen Sōsuke beforehand.
This time, there were too many people to hypnotize, so mimicking overly complex powers would have been risky.
Among Zanpakutō to imitate, Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni's Ryūjin Jakka was relatively simple.
They only needed to conjure illusions of fire — and as long as the Tsunayashiro members died by flame and blade wounds, no one would notice the difference.
While the Tsunayashiro retainers attacked, Katori Nanatsuki didn't remain idle.
In the world only he and Aizen Sōsuke could see, flames ignited across Nanatsuki's body and blade.
The next instant, eight versions of Katori Nanatsuki appeared among the guards.
Crimson Tide: Quadrant Shun Strike!
Eight blazing arcs slashed through the air. The guards erupted into fire as if drenched in accelerant, and within moments, they were reduced to cinders.
"Your strikes are precise and swift, sensei. They didn't even have time to scream," Aizen Sōsuke praised.
"Your ability is truly convenient. They had no idea what happened…" Nanatsuki sighed softly.
Kyōka Suigetsu's hypnotic power was overwhelming.
Unless one's spiritual pressure far exceeded Aizen's, it was nearly impossible to detect the illusion.
Nanatsuki's figure vanished again.
The next instant, he appeared beside the Tsunayashiro head.
Slash!
A searing blade flashed by. The family head clutched his throat, eyes wide in disbelief.
He felt his vision distort — the "Tsunayashiro Tokinada" before him twisted, its face warping and blurring.
He opened his mouth, trying to say something — but no sound came. His throat had already been burned through.
Flames spread rapidly from the wound, engulfing his body in a roaring inferno.
The two lieutenant-class Shinigami beside him hadn't even realized that the guards and their lord had already been slain by Katori Nanatsuki.
Aizen Sōsuke synchronized the illusions to match Nanatsuki's attacks and the deaths of each guard.
To the others, the events appeared a heartbeat later. Before they could react, Nanatsuki had already cut them down.
Even the Tsunayashiro head was no exception.
Only at the moment of death did they sense something was wrong — but Nanatsuki's blade gave them no time to respond. Every one of them was cut down cleanly.
The two remaining lieutenant-class fighters and the rest of the Tsunayashiro retainers soon followed, clutching their throats before collapsing.
Because Tsunayashiro Tokinada, who was thought dead, had suddenly returned, this was a major event for the clan.
The conference hall was filled with the family's main and branch members — and all of them had now been annihilated by Nanatsuki and Aizen Sōsuke.
"It's done."
Nanatsuki looked up at the ceiling. Ōmaeda Kishinosuke and Obana Jirō were still on the roof.
"Don't worry, sensei. Their illusion is delayed — unless they come down to confirm it, they won't notice anything."
Aizen Sōsuke spoke with complete confidence in his ability.
"Then let's proceed according to plan."
Nanatsuki nodded and drew from his robes a Sakkise box containing a Hell Pearl.
The Hell Pearl was a condensed mass of infernal energy.
Nanatsuki intended to use it to create traces suggesting the presence of Hell Reishi.
When a Hell Pearl touched Reishi, it would transform it into particles laced with the aura of Hell —
erasing any lingering traces of Nanatsuki and Aizen Sōsuke's own Reishi in the process.
"So this is the 'Hell Pearl,' sensei mentioned. Another piece of evidence pointing to 'Tsunayashiro Tokinada Returned from Hell,' huh?" Aizen Sōsuke smiled.
The Tsunayashiro clan held enormous influence within the Soul Society, and their annihilation would cause ripples across the entire Seireitei.
The Katori-ryu Dojo and the Tsunayashiro family had long been at odds.
If the Tsunayashiro suddenly perished, suspicion would naturally fall upon Katori Nanatsuki.
That was why Nanatsuki needed a stronger scapegoat — one that would draw all attention toward Hell itself.
"Hell isn't somewhere a Shinigami can casually enter. They can't possibly investigate it," Nanatsuki chuckled.
"The Lord of Hell and the long-dead Tsunayashiro Tokinada make for perfect scapegoats."
Once they finished with the conference hall, the two moved on — there was still work to do.
Meanwhile, up on the roof, Ōmaeda Kishinosuke and Obana Jirō were still watching Aizen's illusion.
In their eyes, the Tsunayashiro retainers were still locked in fierce battle.
"They're really fighting now! Should we still be here?" Obana Jirō whispered.
With chaos raging below, he dared to whisper only faintly.
"The deaths of the Tsunayashiro have nothing to do with us… But Tokinada's appearance can't be ignored. Let's move farther away before we get caught in their fight," said Ōmaeda Kishinosuke.
He decided to report this incident later, but for now, avoiding the battlefield took priority.
Soon, they saw "Tsunayashiro Tokinada" raise his blazing sword.
In an instant, he Shunpoed before the clan head and swung.
The head clutched his throat and fell, flames consuming his body in seconds.
"The clan head was killed by Tsunayashiro Tokinada!"
Obana Jirō gasped in shock.
"He's gotten so much stronger… Could it be because of the Lord of Hell? Or maybe it's Enrakyōden's power. They say that blade can copy the abilities of other Zanpakutō — and Tokinada must've replicated Captain-Commander Yamamoto's Ryūjin Jakka! Incredible!"
Ōmaeda Kishinosuke found Tokinada's power impressive, though not unbelievable — he'd heard of that Zanpakutō's legendary heritage.
"The clan head's dead… and we're the first to know. By tomorrow, this will spread across the entire Soul Society!"
"Tokinada just slaughtered everyone! Let's go!"
With that, Ōmaeda Kishinosuke and Obana Jirō left the roof of the conference hall.