Chapter 396

2-in-1 chapter:  

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Kaelith curled the corner of his mouth.

Then he looked up at the powers that Yhwach had stolen.

These powers were flying skyward, nearly vanishing into the void.

Kaelith narrowed his eyes.

The power of us living-world Quincy isn’t something so easily devoured!

He extended his hand toward the sky, gripping at the distant energy.

Strands of gray spiritual energy formed from thin air, fusing into the light of the Auswählen as it vanished.

“Yhwach, enjoy the gift I prepared for you.”

“Keh keh keh…”

As Kaelith laughed brightly, Aizen slowly descended beside him.

Having achieved his mission objective, he had halted the Hōgyoku’s evolution.

In response to Aizen’s command, the Hōgyoku perfectly ceased its activity.

Even so, having broken through three Hōgyoku stages in succession left Aizen’s body feeling unfamiliar and unstable.

He turned to Kaelith and extended a hand.

Kaelith understood and opened his shadow space, pulling out a large bundle of black bandage-like material.

Aizen reached out and unfurled it with a snap.

The black bandages fluttered and circled around his body on their own, binding tightly across his frame until he was wrapped like a massive cocoon.

In the end, only his hair and facial features were left exposed.

Bound in place, Aizen let out a breath of relief.

He flexed his fingers, wrapped in black bands, clenched his fist, and nodded in satisfaction.

This was a special piece of equipment developed by Urahara Kisuke and Mayuri Kurotsuchi before they arrived.

It was a powerful restraint designed to halt the activity of spirit particles within the body, preventing the loss of control due to overactive reiryoku.

If an ordinary captain were wrapped in this, they’d probably be paralyzed on the spot.

But for Aizen, the restraints only imposed limited suppression—they didn’t hinder his movements or even restrict combat at a normal level.

Looking at the bandage-wrapped Aizen, Kaelith grinned:

“A rare sight—Sōsuke’s post-breakout limited-edition look. Gotta take a picture of this.”

He raised a hand toward Aizen.

Aizen was puzzled.

This guy didn’t bring a camera, so how was he taking a picture?

The next moment, under Aizen’s Komamura-level glare, Kaelith directly manipulated the reishi in the air, conjuring a photo from nothing.

Since it was generated purely by visual data, the clarity was even better than a mechanical camera.

Can this guy not use his powers for something more productive??

Aizen’s blood pressure spiked.

“Big bro!

Master!”

Isshin appeared with a grin, greeting the two.

On his back, he carried Kurosaki Masaki. Though she insisted she had recovered and didn’t need to be carried, Isshin refused to let her walk.

Ichigo, wearing his Shihakushō, followed beside him.

Looking at his father in Soul Reaper attire with a Zanpakutō at his waist, Ichigo was briefly stunned.

So his dad was actually a Soul Reaper all along?

His background was a bit too insane.

A Quincy mother with overwhelming power… and a Soul Reaper father?

What kind of combination was this?

Looking at Shiba Isshin, Aizen asked:

“Seeing your son like this, don’t you have any particular thoughts?”

“Hm?”

Isshin turned his head and glanced at Ichigo.

Ichigo tensed unconsciously, standing straight.

Isshin turned back and laughed heartily:

“Not really. I already knew this kid became a Soul Reaper... with those moves, who would he fool?”

“I was planning to look into who helped him out back then, but then Master came to visit the world of the living.”

“This brat slipped around in Soul Reaper form right under Master’s nose. If there were any issues, Master would’ve acted.”

“Since you didn’t say anything, that meant it was fine—so I left it alone.”

“And now, it turns out it was Big Brother Kaelith guiding Ichigo all along.”

At these words, Aizen gave a faint chuckle, his expression showing approval.

As expected of his student—far better than a certain unreliable someone.

And when Ichigo heard his father’s words, he couldn’t hold his composure anymore.

So Dad had known all along that he’d become a Soul Reaper…

Kurosaki Masaki, however, was slightly annoyed. She grabbed Isshin’s ear.

“Dear~ why is it that I never heard you mention any of this?”

“Ow, I couldn’t find the right moment… no no no, my dear wife, I was wrong, aaaargh!!!”

As Shiba Isshin cried out in pain, Ichigo scratched his head.

Today had been overwhelming in terms of information.

Luckily, it had ended well.

His mother was safe, and the Hollows that invaded Karakura Town hadn’t caused any real disaster.

Thinking of this, he suddenly froze:

“Right… Dad, Mr. Kaelith—just earlier, a lot of Hollows descended across Karakura Town. One humanoid Hollow appeared and told me to protect my mom while he went to handle the situation… do you know who that was?”

As he asked, he looked toward Kaelith.

Because that pale-skinned Hollow had referred to Kaelith as “Lord Kaelith.”

But before Kaelith could respond, Shiba Isshin grinned:

“That was Ulquiorra. He’s one of Kaelith’s crew… Though he’s an Arrancar, he’s one of us.”

“Back in the day, your old man almost got killed by Kaelith—if it weren’t for Ulquiorra, I wouldn’t be standing here.”

“So from that perspective, calling him ‘uncle’ wouldn’t be a stretch.”

Ichigo tilted his head.

Weren’t Soul Reapers and Hollows supposed to be enemies?

Why was his dad on good terms with a Hollow?

This was getting way too chaotic.

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The next day, Ichigo got up early.

After confirming that his mom was really fine, he left for school in high spirits.

Around noon, Uryū Ishida arrived right on time.

While eating lunch together, Ishida frowned and said:

“Something strange happened at my house yesterday.”

“My mother suddenly fell seriously ill yesterday morning. Neither my father nor my grandfather could do anything. From the way they looked, they had nearly given up.”

“But then, a light suddenly appeared and saved my mother.”

“I tried sensing that light… but there was no trace of spiritual pressure in it. It’s just too weird…”

“Could it really be… a miracle?”

Hearing that, Ichigo laughed proudly and puffed out his chest with a smug look:

“Idiot, that wasn’t a miracle. It was my master who saved your mom.”

“Hah?”

Ishida gave him a look like he was an idiot.

“I don’t know who your master is… but if even my grandfather couldn’t handle it, how could your master possibly manage it?”

“Bastard, how dare you insult my master?”

“Bastard, how dare you insult my grandfather?”

The two of them put down their lunch boxes and immediately started wrestling.

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Meanwhile, things weren’t going so well for Kaelith.

Seireitei, First Division barracks.

“You bastard!!!”

Yamamoto’s thunderous voice shook the entire barracks—something that hadn’t happened in a long time.

Sasakibe, walking through the corridor, looked up.

Dust was falling from the ceiling.

He thought he’d have to schedule a major cleaning soon...

Inside the office, Yamamoto glared angrily at his idiot disciple.

He had received communications from the Zero Division indicating that Kaelith had returned to the Seireitei long ago.

At first, Yamamoto had waited for Kaelith to report in, maybe give him a shoulder massage, pound his legs a bit.

But no matter how long he waited—nothing.

For a time, he’d even wondered whether that fool had been kept up in the Royal Palace, and he almost went there himself to get him back.

Just before he could go, Aizen caught wind of the situation and came to inform him of Kaelith’s whereabouts, thus avoiding a major misunderstanding.

Now, seeing Kaelith standing there with an innocent look, Yamamoto just wanted to roast his delinquent disciple with Ryūjin Jakka—

Extra cumin, of course.

After Kaelith delivered a thorough and professional apology, the old man’s attitude softened slightly.

Under his unhappy gaze, Kaelith reported everything that had happened over the years in detail.

When Yamamoto heard that Kaelith could now hold his own against the monk, his eyes widened in shock.

Then, upon hearing that both Kaelith and Aizen had, through some method, once again broken through their limits and become beings surpassing all others, the old man’s eyes grew even wider.

He glanced at Aizen, who stood next to Kaelith, completely wrapped in black bandages like a sealed object, and showed a complex expression.

Finally, when Kaelith explained the new power he had mastered—the ability to flip through infinite parallel worlds and extract even the faintest possible outcomes to overwrite reality itself—

The old man felt like he was dreaming.

Just hearing it felt ridiculous.

Such flashy abilities were like they belonged to another universe compared to his own path of cutting through all with a single blade.

For a moment, Yamamoto actually considered fusing with Hollow powers himself.

But the thought was gone as soon as it came.

No… if he did that, how could he still call himself a Shinigami?

He smirked slightly.

How fortunate.

If it weren’t for this kid, he would’ve been left to hold up this crumbling fortress alone.

Facing the unprecedented threat of Yhwach, how long could he have lasted?

But now, with Kaelith, he could finally breathe easy.

Before he realized it, that clumsy boy who once swung his sword beside him had grown into someone whose back he now watched.

Yamamoto Shigekuni… you’ve grown old.

There was some sentiment, but more pride and joy.

Yhwach would be his final battle to help this brat.

Whether he died or miraculously survived afterward, the Gotei 13 could be entrusted to this damned kid.

Hmph… what kind of face would he make when that day came?

Just picturing it made Yamamoto a little giddy.

Suddenly, a thought came to him. He turned to Kaelith and said:

“Brat, your power has grown immensely—your control over the shadow realm must be far beyond before, right?”

“Can’t you just pull Yhwach out of the shadow space directly?”

“With you, Vice-Captain Aizen, and myself together, Yhwach wouldn’t stand a chance!”

Kaelith shook his head.

“I thought about that as soon as I got back from the human world.”

“The conclusion: it’s not possible.”

“Now that the Auswählen is complete, Yhwach has fully awakened and recovered most of his power.”

“With his reinforcement, the Wandenreich’s barrier is no longer just a passive construct.”

“At this point, unless Yhwach appears on his own, no one else can possibly find him.”

At that, Yamamoto clicked his tongue.

“900 years to regain his heartbeat, 90 to regain consciousness, and 9 to regain power.”

“If we count from the moment he died…”

“Then the final battle will be in eight years!”

“Brat, order all squads to begin intensive anti-Quincy invasion training!”

“Kaelith Tech Division and the Twelfth Division must finish revamping all of Seireitei!”

“We can’t just rely on the Soul Veil—Quincy are adept at manipulating Reishi. We have no idea how they’ll get in, so we must be fully prepared!”

“Also, even if the prophecy gives us a timeline, we can’t fully trust it. Be ready in case the Wandenreich moves earlier!”

“All Reishi detection systems—24/7 operation. Don’t miss a thing!”

With Yamamoto’s flurry of orders, the Seireitei stirred into activity once more.

As Kaelith and Aizen were about to leave, Yamamoto called out:

“Wait.”

“Vice-Captain Aizen, you’ve always claimed you were unqualified to be a captain.”

“But now, like this brat, you’ve become a being beyond Shinigami... you won’t still use that excuse, will you?”

Feeling the pressure emanating from Yamamoto, a flicker of helplessness flashed in Aizen’s eyes.

He looked at Yamamoto and said calmly:

“If the Captain-Commander has need of me, I will follow your orders.”

“Good.”

Yamamoto nodded in satisfaction.

“No rush… once the matter with Yhwach is resolved, I’ll assign you a proper position.”

Aizen thought for a moment, then smirked and nodded without saying more.

As they walked back, Kaelith looked at Aizen:

“The old man’s weird. Says he’ll assign you a position but doesn’t do it now… waits till this whole Yhwach thing is over. Why bring it up now?”

Aizen gave him a somewhat reflective look.

“You’ll understand when the time comes.”

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Kaelith’s return to Seireitei caused quite a stir.

First, the Eleventh Division was thrown into chaos.

The whole squad erupted in cheers from top to bottom.

While obeying Yamamoto’s alert orders, they also started planning a feast.

Good booze, fine meat, even a band—all hauled into the Eleventh Division.

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