"Cole, what are you saying!?"
Ichigo, Chad, and Orihime all stared at Cole, completely confused.
To them, his words sounded like some foreign science, more incomprehensible than English.
Even Rukia and Uryu, who understood a little, were dumbfounded.
Cole had just dissected every component of the barrier in front of them, explaining the structure of kido within it in a way anyone could grasp.
It was like eating a mooncake and then listing every single additive inside.
"Cole-san…"
Urahara Kisuke's throat went dry. "Can you explain to me how you saw the kido distribution within the barrier!?"
It was unbelievable.
Even if his skill wasn't on par with Tessai's, in Seireitei he was still one of the top masters of kido.
And yet this kid laid his tricks bare in one glance.
Cole looked surprised. "Isn't that something you can just see immediately?"
Kisuke: "…"
After a long pause, he finally pieced it together. Stepping back, he stared at Cole like he was a monster.
"So, Cole-san, in less than a week you learned more than three hundred kido from Tessai, and you've already mastered them to the point of using them fluently?"
"Yeah!"
Seeing him nod, Kisuke felt suffocated.
He already knew Cole was a freak.
But this was too much.
In his heart, he decided that when they sparred, he had to go all out — to test just how far this human boy had come.
A captain-level spiritual pressure.
The strongest physical-type zanpakuto.
Hoho as fast as Soi Fong.
And mastery of over three hundred kido.
Could this brat's true strength already be at the level of bankai!?
"…."
"Ichigo, do you think Cole-kun can win!?"
Orihime asked nervously, clenching her fists as she looked at Cole and Kisuke.
Chad also turned toward Ichigo.
According to Cole, that strange fisherman-hat uncle was very strong, and only by beating him would he help them train properly.
"Well, that's a tough one…"
Ichigo scratched his head in frustration.
"I remember Rukia telling me… Urahara Kisuke used to be something in Soul Society, right? Because he invented the Hogyoku…"
"The captain of the Twelfth Division, and head of the Technology Development Bureau," Rukia corrected.
"Yeah, that's it!"
Ichigo finally remembered.
"Then, Rukia… is Urahara Kisuke really that strong?" Orihime couldn't help asking.
"Extremely strong!" Rukia said seriously. "According to Cole, Urahara Kisuke is one of the most dangerous Soul Reapers. His existence could pose a great threat to all of Soul Society."
Hearing this, Orihime, Chad, Ichigo, and Uryu all turned nervously toward the barrier.
If their opponent was such a powerful Soul Reaper, losing was to be expected.
Inside the barrier—
"Urahara-san, how do you want to spar?"
Cole hefted his golden staff, smiling. "As long as you don't use bankai, I'll accept any form of contest."
"How arrogant… Bankai!"
Kisuke pressed his hand on his hat, slowly drawing his zanpakuto, swinging it with a smile.
"Since Cole-san is so confident, how about a real battle? If I can't defeat you within ten minutes, I'll admit defeat. How's that?"
"Ten minutes…"
Cole looked slightly surprised.
"That's right." Kisuke grinned. "This way, you'll finally see… just how weak you truly are."
With those words, he stepped forward, his body flashing like green light.
"Show me how weak I am!?"
Cole smirked, excitement rising in his eyes as he raised his right hand, chanting:
"Oh sovereign! Mask of flesh and blood, all creation! Fluttering wings! He of the crown and name of man! On the wall of shining light, inscribe a twin lotus, waiting for the abyssal flames afar!"
"Hadō #73: Sōren Sōkatsui (Twin Lotus Blue Fire, Crash Down)!"
Blue flames suddenly filled the sky, falling like countless meteors.
Kisuke looked up, still smiling.
"Cole-san, starting with number seventy-three? That's a bit much. What if I get killed?"
He lifted a finger:
"Bakudō #39: Enkōsen (Round Lock Fan)!"
A circular blue barrier appeared, intercepting the twin lotus flames.
"Boom!!"
The meteors crashed, exploding in a storm of fire, but Kisuke strolled calmly through the sparks, shield in hand.
"Hey, Rukia, didn't you say the higher the kido number, the stronger it is? Then why didn't Cole's spell break that blue disc?"
Ichigo shouted from outside.
Uryu also frowned — the knowledge he had was that higher-numbered kido were stronger.
"If you live a few hundred years, you'll understand," Rukia muttered. "The stronger the kido, the easier it is to counter."
Kisuke had long since mastered such control.
Inside the barrier, he swung his zanpakuto, its edge glowing blood red.
"Play with fire, Benihime!"
His blade didn't change shape, but crimson energy covered it like blood.
"Cole-san, be careful now!" Kisuke warned cheerfully, slashing.
"Benihime, Shōkihi (Crimson Princess, Burning Lamp)!"
A red slash of light, like Ichigo's Getsuga Tenshō, shot forward.
Cole didn't flinch, lifting his hand as golden fire burst forth.
"Hadō #22: Shakkahō (Red Fire Cannon)!"
Golden flames roared against the crimson slash.
"Boom!!!"
The collision shook the entire barrier.
But Kisuke didn't stop. With a step faster than hoho, he closed the distance, blood-red threads streaming from his blade.
"Benihime, Tsunaki (Binding Threads)!"
The threads whipped toward Cole.
He frowned, dodging with hoho. Many strands were crushed by gravity, but their flexibility left countless others still intact, sticking like glue to his staff.
Cole raised his hand, chanting quickly:
"O thousand arms, wall of light, archer of the heavens! Shine upon the road of glory, ignite the winds of fire. Gather, without hesitation, follow my command! Cannon of Heaven's Wrath, shine brilliantly and vanish!"
"Hadō #91: Senju Kōten Taihō (Thousand-Hand Bright Heaven Culling Sear)!"
Purple orbs of energy formed, launching like artillery shells.
As they neared Kisuke, they detonated, tearing the barrier apart.
"Boom!!! Boom!!! Boom!!!"
The explosions shook the heavens.
If not for the barrier, Cole felt the blast could've leveled all of Karakura Town.
When the light finally dimmed, Kisuke emerged from the smoke, his hat gone, clothes tattered, face darkened.
Once a refined shopkeeper, he now looked like a beggar.
Cole couldn't hold back his laughter. "Urahara-san, what happened? If this keeps up, tomorrow you'll be joining the beggar's guild, hahahaha…"
Kisuke's face darkened further. Against high-level kido, even he had to take it seriously.
"That's enough laughing…"
Grinding his teeth, he lifted his zanpakuto.
"Now it's my turn!"
"Burst forth, Benihime!"
His blade shifted again, blood-red orbs of energy forming along its edge.
Cole grew serious.
"Urahara-san, what kind of zanpakuto is that? Just now it was offensive, then binding, now kido-based?"
"This is my Benihime's power!" Kisuke shouted, sending the orbs flying.
Each orb exploded with the force of a Shakkahō.
Cole narrowed his eyes. "Don't tell me you modified your own zanpakuto…"
It wasn't impossible. If anyone could, it was Urahara Kisuke.
Kisuke's heart skipped a beat — he hadn't expected Cole to even know that was possible.
He pressed the attack, charging forward as Cole enlarged his staff, filling a fifth of the barrier space.
"Boom!!!"
The golden staff and Benihime clashed head-on, shaking the ground. Kisuke sank half a meter, his legs buried.
"Cole!!!"
Rage flared within him — the brat had forced him into a frontal clash by expanding his weapon to crush the battlefield.
"Urahara-san, come on, don't hold back!"
Cole laughed, hammering down with his massive weapon again and again.
"Boom! Boom! Boom!"
Minutes later, the entire barrier was covered in smoke and dust, Kisuke's figure nowhere to be seen.
Then, through gritted teeth, his voice roared:
"Bankai!!! Kannonbiraki Benihime Aratame (Guanyin Opens Red Princess Modification)!!!"
(End of Chapter)
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