"Hado #73, Soren Sokatsui!"
Ginrei raised his hand and chanted softly.
In an instant, a blue lotus of fire erupted from his palm, colliding with the crimson fireball unleashed by Koga.
Boom!
The sky was split between blue and red flames. The scorching heat blackened the surrounding wooden structures, and the air itself warped under the intense temperature.
Amidst the inferno, Koga's figure tore through the flames, creating a void in the blazing storm as he swiftly closed the distance to Ginrei.
Whoosh!
Before Koga's Zanpakuto could strike, Ginrei had already vanished with a Shunpo.
Boom!
Koga's slash landed, obliterating the spot where Ginrei had stood moments before, sending wooden splinters flying in all directions.
Swish, swish, swish, swish-
Without hesitation, Koga's body blurred into an afterimage as he continued his relentless pursuit.
Though Ginrei's combat experience and mastery of Shunpo far surpassed Koga's, age had become his greatest weakness.
Ginrei knew all too well… if he couldn't subdue Koga quickly, his own defeat would be inevitable.
"Bakudo #37, Enkosen!"
With his left hand outstretched, a rapidly spinning barrier materialized before Ginrei.
With a stretch of his left hand, a rapidly rotating barrier instantly appeared in front of Xiu Mu Yin Ling.
Clang!
Koga's strike was deflected by the rotating shield.
"Tch-!"
Koga gritted his teeth, unleashing a surge of Reiatsu that shattered Ginrei's Enkosen in an instant.
But that brief delay was enough for Ginrei to prepare his next move.
"Bakudo #62, Hyapporankan!"
Clapping his hands together before spreading them apart, dozens of blue spiritual rods materialized around Ginrei. With a swift motion, they shot toward Koga like arrows.
Shing, shing, shing-
Koga swung his sword with both hands, deflecting most of the rods… but three or four slipped past his guard, piercing his body and pinning him against a wall.
"Bakudo #30, Shitotsu Sansen"
Three yellow beams of light shot forward, binding Koga's arms and waist firmly against the wall.
"Surrender, Koga."
"It's not too late for you to turn back now."
Ginrei appeared before him in an instant, lowering his Zanpakuto as he spoke solemnly, "It's not too late to turn back."
"I don't wish to kill you."
"Kill me?" Koga's eyes narrowed as he stared at Ginrei, "Father… you just said you would kill me?"
"No-" Ginrei's voice was heavy, "Koga, you've lost yourself to your Zanpakuto's power. If this continues, you'll become a grave threat to the Seireitei."
"Even so… I cannot bring myself to take your life."
"If you surrender now, I will plead with Captain-Commander Yamamoto to spare you."
"Oh? Spare my life, you say?" Koga smirked, "Then what will you do with me?"
"Seal me away instead?"
Ginrei remained silent.
Sometimes, silence was an answer in itself.
"Hahahaha…"
At this, Koga's last shred of hope for his father shattered. He threw his head back and laughed.
Then, his lips curled into a cold smile as he met Ginrei's gaze: "Father… what ever gave you the illusion that you could kill me?"
Though Koga had only recently broken through to Captain-level strength, one thing had to be remembered… he was currently in Bankai, his Reiatsu not quite reaching 2nd-class Reiryoku but firmly anchored within 3rd-class Reiryoku.
Ginrei, on the other hand, had sealed away his heart, cutting himself off from his Zanpakuto's power. In terms of raw Reiatsu at this moment, the two were nearly equal.
Boom!
A sudden explosion of Reiatsu shattered the blue rods and yellow restraints binding Koga.
In the next instant, he vanished… reappearing right in front of Ginrei, his Zanpakuto descending in a ruthless slash.
Squelch!
"Drip…"
"Drip…"
Drops of blood fell to the ground, forming crimson patterns like scattered plum blossoms.
Shhhk-
Koga flicked his Zanpakuto, shaking off the blood clinging to its edge.
"Father, it seems the question is no longer whether you want to kill me-" His voice was cold, laced with mockery, "But whether you can even escape from me."
"Hah… hah…"
Ginrei pressed a hand against his shoulder, blood seeping through his fingers.
Though the wound was severe, his expression remained unreadable… only the raggedness of his breathing betrayed the pain.
This was the dignity of the Kuchiki Clan's head.
And the unyielding will passed down through generations.
"…"
Ginrei sighed inwardly.
No matter how much wariness he held toward Koga, the man before him was still the heir he had poured his heart into nurturing.
That was why, even now, Ginrei's sword carried no killing intent.
But Koga's actions made one thing clear… if he hesitated any longer, he would die here.
His own life mattered little.
But the reputation of the Kuchiki Clan could not be tarnished.
Whether it was the chaos Koga was about to unleash or the disgrace of a Captain falling to a rogue assailant… neither outcome was acceptable.
The only way to preserve the Kuchiki Clan's honor was for Ginrei to defeat Koga himself.
Even though, judging from the current situation, his chances of winning seem low.
However…
Ginrei's Reikaku had already detected the rapidly approaching presence of Yamamoto.
He didn't need to win.
He just had to hold out until Yamamoto arrived.
…
"Captain Kuchiki!"
Just as Ginrei steeled his resolve, members of the 6th Division arrived at the battlefield.
The moment they saw their Captain's injuries, their faces paled. Swords were drawn in an instant as they rushed forward, forming a protective barrier around him.
They didn't understand why their Captain was fighting the missing third seat, Koga, nor how Koga had managed to wound him.
But as members of the 6th Division, protecting their Captain was their duty.
"Ginjiro! Get them out of here- Now!"
Seeing the division's members protecting him, Ginrei's expression twisted in alarm.
In the battle against Koga, numbers were a disadvantage.
Because the more Shinigami present, the more Zanpakuto Koga could control… and the greater his destructive power became.
In other words, the arrival of these reinforcements wouldn't help him at all. Instead, it would only amplify Koga's strength. But unfortunately, Ginrei's warning came too late.
Shing, shing, shing-!
In an instant, dark shadows suddenly burst from the bodies of the Shinigami. These shadows brandished their Zanpakuto and launched attacks on their own wielders.
Caught off guard, more than half of the Shinigami collapsed in an instant.
The remaining ones were left struggling desperately against the onslaught of these shadowy figures.
"What… what is this?!"
"These are everyone's materialized Zanpakuto."
Seeing this, Ginrei, disregarding his own injuries, swiftly stepped forward, cutting down several of the shadows in front of his men, "Run! And evacuate all nearby division's members… don't let them get any closer!"
"This-"
Ginjiro glanced at Ginrei's back, then at the shadowy Zanpakuto that had appeared because of their arrival. Fear flickered across his face.
As the Lieutenant of the 6th Division, Ginjiro was well aware of Koga's Zanpakuto's abilities.
Before today, Koga had been the third Seat of the 6th Division, often working alongside Ginjiro on missions.
Back then, Ginjiro had admired the convenience of Koga's power… but now, he understood just how terrifying it truly was.
"Everyone, retreat!"
Taking a deep breath, Ginjiro immediately moved to assist the remaining division's members who were being overwhelmed by the dark shadows. After cutting them free, he began organizing their retreat.
There was no other choice.
This time, the twelve Shinigami who had arrived first had unwittingly given Koga twelve additional allies.
Among them, seven division's members had been severely injured in the previous attack.
Ginrei stepped forward and eliminated four of the Zanpakuto's shadows. After they retreated, he found himself surrounded by eight more shadows.
"Hmph!"
With a cold glance at Ginjiro and the others, Koga chose not to continue his assault on them.
Though his disappointment in Ginrei and the nobles of Seireitei burned fiercely, so much so that he longed to seize control of every Zanpakuto in the Gotei 13 and bathe Seireitei in blood, Koga understood one thing clearly: when power reached a certain level, numbers became meaningless.
And as it happened, Yamamoto was precisely that kind of powerhouse.
"Surrender, Koga."
After Gin and the others had left, Ginrei attempted once more to reason with Koga, "You haven't unleashed your rage on the innocent, which proves you haven't completely lost yourself to your power."
"Koga, with your Reikaku, you must sense that Captain-Commander is nearly here."
"If you yield now, you can still survive."
"Once the Captain-Commander arrives, even I won't be able to protect you."
"Tch. Father, even now, you're still lying to me."
Koga scoffed, "Then tell me… how long do you and Captain-Commander Yamamoto plan to seal me away?"
"Three days? Five?"
"A month? Three?"
"Ten years? A hundred?"
"Or do you intend to imprison me until the day I die?"
"If you think sealing me away until death counts as 'letting me live', then I'm sorry… I don't need your salvation."
"Right now, you should worry about whether you'll even last long enough to see Captain-Commander arrive."
"Otherwise, you won't even live to witness my fate."
With that, Koga raised his hand, and the eight Zanpakuto shadows surrounding Ginrei simultaneously lunged forward.
'Captain Kuchiki's Reiatsu is dropping rapidly...'
High above, Yamamoto was speeding toward the battlefield where Koga and Ginrei clashed.
As he flew, he extended his Reikaku to monitor the battle through fluctuations in their Reiatsu.
From the shifts in their reiatsu, it was clear Ginrei was at a severe disadvantage.
Yamamoto could also understand this.
Though Ginrei had nearly a thousand years more combat experience than Koga, fighting without his Zanpakuto crippled his strength.
Moreover, Ginrei's aged body could no longer endure prolonged high-intensity combat.
In Yamamoto's assessment, Ginrei's only chance of victory lay in relying on Kido.
But in his Bankai state, Koga's Reiatsu was nearly equal to Ginrei's. Even if his Kido were not good enough, his mastery of Shunpo could compensate for the gap.
Now, with Ginrei's Reiatsu waning, something unexpected must have occurred.
Boom!
Knowing full well the Kuchiki Clan's importance to Seireitei, Yamamoto unleashed his Reiatsu, propelling himself forward at even greater speed.
"Bakudo #81, Danku!"
Gritting his teeth, Ginrei incanted the strongest defensive Kido in his arsenal. A translucent barrier materialized before him, intercepting Koga's attack.
A blazing fireball struck the Danku shield, erupting into a storm of flames… yet it failed to breach the barrier.
As the ultimate defensive Kido, Danku could perfectly negate any Hado below #90.
The [Kongobaku] Koga had unleashed was only Hado #67… far from enough to break through.
"Hado #92, Hyoga Seiran!"
Seeing his attack blocked, Koga pointed his Zanpakuto at Ginrei and unleashed an even more devastating Kido.
In an instant, a wave of freezing air erupted from his sword, flash-freezing the atmosphere itself as it surged toward Ginrei.
Boom!
The glacial onslaught collided with the Danku barrier, unleashing a shockwave of cold that spread outward, transforming the surrounding moisture into jagged ice formations.
Click, crack…
Under the relentless assault of the frigid tempest, fissures began spiderwebbing across Dankū's shield.
Crack-
The barrier finally gave way, forcing Ginrei to use Shunpo to retreat at the last second to avoid being encased in ice.
Whoosh!
When he reappeared, fine shards of ice clung to his legs, evidence of his narrow escape.