"Fear!?"
"That kind of thing… I won't be afraid of it!"
Rukia stared coldly at As Nödt.
Seeing this, Byakuya said in a deep voice, "Rukia, calm down. This guy's ability is fear. There's no real defense against it."
In his view, the power of fear was simply too outrageous. After all, everyone had fear in their heart. And this Quincy in front of them could not only stir up the fear buried deep within a person's heart, he could also actively impose that fear onto them.
In that situation, As Nödt could absolutely defeat the strong with the weak.
What's more, he didn't believe that even after Rukia's Bankai (Final Release), her overall strength would completely surpass this Quincy.
Hearing that, Rukia said calmly, "Nii-sama, you don't have to worry."
Byakuya froze. He hadn't expected Rukia's voice to be so indifferent.
He didn't know that Rukia's body temperature had already dropped to negative one hundred and twenty degrees—an absolutely calm state.
Or rather, an absolutely rational state.
As Nödt didn't realize this either. With a furious roar, that scalp-prickling wall of eyes appeared once again.
One by one, eyes opened from the void, staring straight at Rukia.
These eyes could ignore any defense, directly peering into a person's heart and triggering the deepest fear inside them.
And they could overlay all kinds of fear illusions.
But what shocked and enraged As Nödt was this—he couldn't sense even a trace of fear from Rukia at all.
This woman's heart was like a slab of ice, cold to the extreme, without the slightest emotional fluctuation that belonged to a human being.
Rukia lifted Sode no Shirayuki (Sleeves of White Snow), its chilling cold spilling out, and said flatly:
"Under absolute zero, even fear will be completely frozen. The 'fear' you boast about is nothing but useless junk in my eyes."
As she spoke, frost blossomed across Sode no Shirayuki's blade, freezing the ground into a sealed sheet of ice.
The wall of eyes in the sky was also covered in thick frost, cracking apart continuously under the freezing cold.
Only then did Byakuya let out a breath, looking at Rukia with complicated emotion.
He hadn't expected that the little sister who once needed his protection had grown to this level—strong enough to protect him in return.
"Impossible! Everyone has fear in their hearts! I don't believe you can be free of all that!!"
As Nödt roared in fury. His body warped again, the already grotesque form swelling even further.
From the black stitches across his body, a huge amount of blood sprayed out. The outer layer of his skin peeled away, dangling around the outside of his head.
His body turned horrifying—bulging eyeballs, exposed ribs, twisted lower limbs.
It was the kind of thing that would give you nightmares just from one look.
And in that state, As Nödt's body kept expanding until he was several times taller than the Repentance Palace.
The Shinigami and Quincy around them all saw this terrifying sight.
They wanted to scream, but they couldn't—because the lingering fear dragged them into an abyss.
Everyone became just like Byakuya had been earlier.
Some were even so terrified that they couldn't breathe properly, their faces turning bluish-purple, on the verge of suffocating to death.
Rukia also saw it. Wearing a white dress like ice and snow, she walked forward unhurriedly.
With every step she took—
the ground beneath her would inevitably be frozen.
In this state, Rukia's body temperature descended to absolute zero.
To the point where even cells and atoms would be stilled.
"Six seconds."
In that state, she silently counted in her heart—this was the maximum time she could maintain it.
Originally, she could only sustain it for four seconds. But as her strength increased, the duration of absolute zero was also lengthening.
If she exceeded that time, the cold of absolute zero would endanger her body itself—
it could even cause her body to shatter and die.
Thinking that, Rukia's figure turned into a streak of white light, carrying heaven-filling cold, rushing in like a snowstorm.
And the suffering-giant-like As Nödt didn't retreat at all, roaring as he slapped down with a massive hand.
"Ah!"
The silver-white blade sliced across his arm.
It wasn't a large wound, yet in an instant that arm was wrapped in thick frost—no blood even had time to drip.
Rukia stared at it without emotion and continued upward toward As Nödt's head.
Under absolute zero, anything struck by her blade—organic or inorganic—would be completely frozen.
Seeing this, As Nödt suddenly felt fear rise inside him.
This was the second fear he had ever felt, after Yhwach.
"Impossible!!!"
"The only one who can make me fear is His Majesty!!!"
As Nödt roared violently, swinging his right hand down at Rukia.
But in that instant, Rukia had already reached above his head and stabbed down with Sode no Shirayuki.
In the blink of an eye, boundless cold exploded inside As Nödt's skull.
Across his body, a thick layer of frost spread rapidly, ice-flowers blooming all over him and continuing to expand.
In just two seconds, As Nödt's body was stiff and motionless.
Cold flooded through him.
The massive hand he'd swung down stopped right above his head, coated in frost, unable to move no matter what.
Snow and ice spread over his surface, turning that iron-blue body into pure white.
It became a gigantic humanoid ice sculpture.
Rukia's expression stayed cold, without the slightest change. She simply released her absolute-zero state, letting her temperature gradually rise again.
Then she drew back Sode no Shirayuki and, like an icy snow maiden, looked down at As Nödt beneath her feet and said lightly:
"In that case…"
"You won't have to feel fear anymore."
As Nödt was the master of fear, yet at the brink of life and death, Rukia still sensed his fear.
It wasn't fear of death.
It was fear of Yhwach.
That fear had likely accompanied him for over a thousand years—and perhaps that was exactly why his Schrift was Fear.
And now, under the absolute-zero seal of ice, he would never feel fear again.
It could be considered a kind of release for him.
A return to eternal quiet.
As Rukia leapt away, the ice-sculpture As Nödt shattered instantly.
Large chunks of his body, like blocks of ice, crashed down with heavy booms.
Seeing that, Byakuya let out a long breath. A rare smile appeared on his face as he gently ruffled Rukia's hair.
"Rukia… you've become strong."
Hearing that, even though she was still in that below-zero state, excitement still flickered in Rukia's eyes.
"Nii-sama…"
Hueco Mundo, within the Forest of Menos.
A black-haired少年—Cole—walked leisurely through the place, unhurried, until he stopped beneath a patch of shadow and smiled.
"I really didn't expect it. Your plan actually succeeded—completely breaking free of the identity of a zanpakuto and becoming an independent life."
"I think… even Aizen wouldn't be able to sense your existence anymore, right?"
"Kyoka Suigetsu (Mirror Flower Water Moon)!"
A few seconds after Cole's words fell, a subtle shimmer flashed in the shadow before him, revealing the figure hidden behind it.
It was someone who looked exactly like Aizen.
Kyoka Suigetsu.
He stared at Cole with an ugly expression and said, "Why are you here looking for me? I'm not like Aizen. I have no interest whatsoever in climbing some 'Throne of Heaven.'"
"Can't you just let me live here properly?"
As he spoke, he shot Cole an unwilling look.
He had clearly already broken free of Aizen. He had even gained a fully independent life by devouring Hollows.
He'd wanted to enjoy true freedom as an independent existence, but this guy still found him anyway.
The problem was—
he didn't even know what went wrong.
He had hidden himself extremely well, staying within the boundless Forest of Menos and never going to any other world.
To avoid being discovered by the Arrancar of Las Noches, he had even created all sorts of illusions as cover.
Yet this human少年 seemed to have known from the very start that he was hiding here, coming straight for him.
Cole chuckled. "Relax. I didn't come here to lay hands on you. I came to ask you for help."
"Ask me for help? What strength do I have that could help you?"
Kyoka Suigetsu looked at Cole suspiciously.
He knew himself well. Even though he had knowledge and experience nearly identical to Aizen's—
those were old records.
The current Aizen had evolved again and again. His strength had reached an unfathomable level—he could probably crush Kyoka Suigetsu with a single finger.
And this human少年 in front of him was even more terrifying, actually able to suppress Aizen in that state.
In that situation, Kyoka Suigetsu truly didn't know what he could possibly do for Cole.
Suddenly, Kyoka Suigetsu seemed to think of something. He looked at Cole in surprise.
"You're not planning to have me go hypnotize girls for you, are you?"
He'd heard of Cole's reputation. This was a bona fide little pervert—going that far wouldn't be strange.
Of course, he really could do it.
If he activated complete hypnosis, he could make countless girls fall head over heels for Cole.
Cole's face instantly darkened. He smacked Kyoka Suigetsu hard on the head.
"Is that how trashy I look in your eyes?"
To keep Kyoka Suigetsu from saying anything even more outrageous, Cole directly tore open a Garganta and said flatly:
"Go to Soul Society and make every Bankai-level zanpakuto materialize."
As he said that, Cole smiled at him.
"After you finish, I can give you a promise—one that will make Aizen give up the idea of taking you back."
Hearing that, Kyoka Suigetsu's eyes lit up. He looked at Cole excitedly.
"Really?"
Who knew how long he'd been terrified.
Even though he now had an independent life, every time he closed his eyes, Aizen's shadow would appear in his mind.
He was afraid that monster-smart Aizen would take him back again.
After tasting freedom, he didn't want to become a blade ever again.
He wanted to live freely.
"Really. Hurry up and go."
Cole couldn't be bothered to argue more and kicked Kyoka Suigetsu straight into the black rift.
To the current Aizen, whether Kyoka Suigetsu returned or not didn't matter much.
After all, Aizen had already surpassed the boundary of Shinigami and Hollow.
He no longer needed a zanpakuto to fight.
Since that was the case, Cole didn't mind asking Aizen for a promise on Kyoka Suigetsu's behalf.
Kyoka Suigetsu traveled through darkness. When he arrived in Soul Society again, he saw Byakuya and Rukia—and froze in surprise.
The two of them were just as surprised when they saw him.
"Aizen!?"
"No… it's Kyoka Suigetsu!"
They quickly understood. After all, there were differences between the man and the blade.
Rukia seemed to realize something and stared at Kyoka Suigetsu with excitement.
"Cole sent you, didn't he? I knew it—after you devoured the demon zanpakuto Muramasa, you gained the power to materialize zanpakuto too."
"Yeah… that guy sent me…"
Kyoka Suigetsu answered casually. Looking toward the Seireitei, now engulfed in war, he couldn't help but smile.
"Looks like you're in a pretty awful situation. What happened that made you actually want to materialize zanpakuto?"
You had to know—even during the last war between Aizen and the Seireitei, it hadn't truly spread to the point of ravaging the Seireitei itself.
He was curious who had managed to push things this far.
Byakuya stepped forward and said calmly, "It's troublesome to explain. Don't waste words—hurry up and call out my Senbonzakura."
Kyoka Suigetsu pursed his lips but didn't refuse.
After all, he didn't have the conditions to refuse. He could only hope Cole wouldn't go back on his word.
As Kyoka Suigetsu's figure disappeared, next to Byakuya, a warrior-like figure in armor appeared
Senbonzakura.
The moment he saw Senbonzakura, Byakuya couldn't help but feel relief.
"This will do…"
Once a zanpakuto materializes, it gains independent consciousness and can resist a Quincy's "Star Sealization" that steals power.
A Shinigami's Bankai would no longer be restricted.
Thinking that, Byakuya called Rukia along and the two of them hurried toward other battlefields.
But at the same time, a doubt surfaced in their hearts.
Since Cole had called Kyoka Suigetsu here
then where was Cole himself?
(End of Chapter)
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