Chapter 402

2-in-1 chapter:  

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Then, behind them, hundreds—thousands—of Hollows appeared one after another.

Among them were even several tall and thin Gillians wearing long-nosed masks.

Kurosaki Ichigo stood at the front, gripping his oversized Zanpakutō like a demon king leading a night parade of one hundred demons.

He pointed his sword forward.

“Take back Mr. Kaelith!!”

The Arrancar, already instructed in advance by Aizen, charged without hesitation.

As for the regular Hollows, they were even more direct—they obeyed only the strong.

And Ichigo, the moment he shouted, launched upward like a jet, charging straight toward Kaelith’s location!

“The ryoka is here!!!”

The Shinigami shouted.

As Ichigo flew in, Kyōraku Shunsui's figure suddenly sank, disappearing into his own shadow.

In the next second, he emerged from Ichigo's shadow in mid-air and swung his blade in an ambush strike!

Faced with this hard-to-defend, eerie move, Ichigo didn’t panic in the slightest.

He spun in mid-air, his oversized blade carving a cold, sweeping arc, slicing cleanly through Katen Kyōkotsu’s strike.

Feeling the powerful spiritual pressure on Ichigo’s blade, Kyōraku showed a trace of surprise.

He had thought this was just a talented kid, coaxed into coming by Kaelith’s antics for training.

Now it seemed—maybe... they were the ones being trained?

With rising excitement, he lunged forward again.

But someone beat him to it.

“Ha ha ha ha ha!!”

With wild laughter and a golden pillar of spiritual pressure, Zaraki Kenpachi charged Ichigo with his sword raised.

Seeing Zaraki, Ichigo knew he couldn’t waste time.

He extended his left hand and placed it on his right forearm.

“Bankai!!”

With his shout, a swirling storm of spiritual pressure exploded outward.

As it dispersed, under the stunned gazes of all, his Shihakushō transformed into a sleek, waist-tied design with narrow sleeves.

The massive oversized blade transformed into a thin, black katana.

“Tensa Zangetsu!”

At the same time, the red veins of Blut Vene crawled up his arm.

Facing the charging Kenpachi, Ichigo's face remained calm. He accelerated in an instant, reaching Kenpachi faster than the latter could react.

“Getsuga Tenshō!”

The black blade swung, releasing a massive black crescent slash that roared forward!

This time, Kenpachi didn’t hesitate. He roared and poured his spiritual pressure into his blade, matching the Getsuga Tenshō head-on.

But the deadlock lasted less than two seconds.

In Kenpachi’s shocked gaze, his sword pressure was unable to overpower Ichigo’s Getsuga.

The black torrent of energy swallowed him whole, blasting him backward into the ground at Sōkyoku Hill, erupting into a massive cloud of smoke.

“Beautiful!!”

From the execution platform, Kaelith shouted in applause.

“?”

The Shinigami turned to look at him in confusion.

Kaelith quickly coughed.

“Brothers! The ryoka is acting wild! We can’t let him run rampant—go all out!”

“Ohhhhh!!!”

Watching Ichigo strike down Zaraki in one blow, Kyōraku rubbed his chin.

“Aiya... terrifying.”

This boy was absurdly strong.

Where had Kaelith dug up this monster?

If Old Man Yamamoto had lived to see this, he’d be grinning so hard his snot bubbles would pop...

Suddenly, he seemed to realize something and turned toward Shiba Kaien, who was fighting Ukitake with a long-spear-like Zanpakutō.

Those faces...

Ah...

Kyōraku’s eyes slowly widened—something clicked.

By now, the battlefield was utter chaos.

Ordinary Shinigami and seated officers were clashing with regular Hollows.

The captains were going head-to-head with Arrancar.

And the top-tier combatants—everyone was focused on stopping Kurosaki Ichigo.

This boy was simply too strong.

At first, Kyōraku had approached with a playful mindset.

But the moment they exchanged blows, he realized—this boy was not someone he could defeat with a hopeful attitude.

He fought seriously, engaging the ryoka boy in intense aerial combat that sent shockwaves across the sky.

At some point, Unohana Retsu also joined the fray, blade in hand.

That was a surprise.

Even Kyōraku had never seen this senior truly fight before.

Was this her being drawn in by the thrill?

High above, Unohana clashed fiercely with Ichigo, wielding her Zanpakutō in countless sword styles.

She knew—this was the child Kaelith wanted to nurture.

What Kaelith desired was what she would do too!

Ichigo had immense power, but his techniques lacked polish.

As the original captain of the Eleventh Division, master of the “Yachiru Style,” she was the perfect match to help refine his skills.

Dragged into the prolonged fight, Ichigo tried several times to disengage, but couldn’t.

Meanwhile, at the Sōkyoku, the execution flames burned higher—it could activate at any moment.

Ichigo couldn’t wait any longer.

In Unohana’s slightly surprised gaze, he raised his hand, clawed it across his face—

A white mask with red patterns appeared instantly.

Beneath the mask, his eyes turned black with golden pupils.

Hollowfication…

A flicker of seriousness passed through Unohana’s eyes.

She had seen the power of this move before, and readied herself immediately.

Even so, despite fighting at full strength and without using Bankai, she could only fall back under Ichigo’s near-berserk assault.

In the distance, Yamamoto was surprised to see the Gotei 13—despite all their preparation—begin to falter under Ichigo’s attack.

He didn’t know whether to worry or laugh.

Laugh—because Kaelith had orchestrated one hell of a trial.

After this, the newbies who’d joined after the rebellion would finally understand what real war was.

Worry—because this kind of experience might just break their spirits.

Some people simply had too many blessings....

Unlike the chaos below, the captains were faring better.

Though the Arrancar had been enhanced and trained by Kaelith and Aizen…

The current Gotei 13’s strength was simply too high.

If the previous generation fought this one, they likely wouldn’t last half an hour before being completely routed.

With such overwhelming force, and with the Arrancar not aiming to kill, suppression was inevitable.

At that moment, the Sōkyoku was fully activated.

Red spiritual energy flared, and a massive firebird began forming in the air.

The giant bird fixed its eyes on the bound Kaelith on the execution platform.

“SCREEEEE!!”

Its screech shook the air, and many Shinigami winced in pain.

The bird flapped its wings, releasing a wave of heat powerful enough to melt steel as it flew toward Kaelith.

“Mr. Kaelith!!!!”

Ichigo cried out.

In truth, he wasn’t the only one. Many who had initially come just to watch the spectacle now couldn’t sit still.

They trusted Kaelith’s power, but this was still the Sōkyoku.

If he miscalculated, he might be reduced to ash.

Byakuya Kuchiki swung his blade—countless cherry blossoms surged into the air to intercept the firebird.

Komamura summoned the massive Kokujo Tengen Myo'o, swinging its blade at the firebird.

Gin Ichimaru, from who knows where, thrust Shinso forward.

Multiple techniques surged toward the firebird at once!

In mid-air, Ichigo, who had been preparing a Getsuga Tenshō to intercept the attack, paused in confusion.

What was happening?

Weren’t these people here to execute Kaelith?

Why were they all suddenly turning on the Sōkyoku?

Before his eyes, the firebird shrieked as it was struck by countless attacks.

It twisted in the air, then exploded into a flurry of sparks and vanished.

Ichigo let out a sigh of relief.

He turned toward Kaelith, smiling.

“Mr. Kaelith, I’m here to—”

His words cut off.

He froze.

Before he knew it, someone had appeared between him and Kaelith.

Brown curls. A black bandage over one eye. A faint smile on his lips.

Seeing the man, Ichigo smiled.

“Aizen-san? You’re here too?”

“Great, let’s—”

Suddenly, Ichigo seemed to sense something and raised Tensa Zangetsu.

CLANG!!!

Aizen flickered and appeared before him.

The glinting blade struck Ichigo’s sword directly.

Had he not raised his weapon in time, he might’ve been wounded.

“Aizen-san?!”

Staring at the man with cold eyes and a smiling mouth, Ichigo felt his heart sink.

Aizen raised a finger and flicked it slightly.

Ichigo leapt back with Hirenkyaku, putting distance between them.

Just then, a Kurohitsugi rose from the spot he’d just stood.

Feeling the gravitational torrent inside, Ichigo knew—if he hadn’t dodged, the consequences would’ve been dire.

“Aizen-san—what the hell is going on?!”

Aizen chuckled softly.

“Kurosaki Ichigo, you completed your mission well.”

“Wh…at?”

Ichigo looked stunned.

Aizen smiled.

“From the start, my target has always been Kaelith.”

“My research requires his powerful life force as an energy source.”

“But I couldn’t break through the captain’s defenses alone to get to him.”

“When I learned Kaelith would be executed by the Sōkyoku, I couldn’t hesitate.”

“You’re… you’re saying…”

“If he died to the Sōkyoku, all his life force would be burned to ashes.”

“My research would be ruined.”

“What… are you saying!!!”

Veins bulged on Ichigo’s neck.

“Fortunately, I met you.”

“You defeated the captains, destroyed the Sōkyoku… giving me the chance to reach him.”

As Ichigo looked on in shock, Aizen thrust his hand forward—

Splurt.

It pierced into Kaelith’s body.

Ichigo’s pupils dilated.

He flashed forward instantly.

His blade was wrapped in black Shinigami reiatsu, blue Quincy energy, and red Hollow power.

The terrifying strike roared toward Aizen’s neck!

Aizen didn’t dare take it lightly.

He knew—if he underestimated this boy, it would cost him.

Gripping Kyōka Suigetsu, he clashed fiercely with Ichigo in mid-air.

To raise himself to Ichigo’s level, he ripped off the black bandage covering his right eye.

From within, a glowing blue light flared.

At the same time, his chest shone with the light of the Hōgyoku.

Third Phase of Hōgyoku evolution—Begane once more.

For years, Aizen had focused on adapting to the Hōgyoku’s transformations.

At first, he had to wrap his whole body in bandages, leaving only his face exposed.

Gradually, he reduced the amount.

Now, only his right eye remained sealed.

This moment—was when he’d prepared to advance further!

Phase Three, stepping into Phase Four.

Now, even if the entire Gotei 13 stood against him, he would claim himself invincible.

On the ground, everyone was pinned by the spiritual pressure released from their battle.

The spiritual storm caused even seated officers and vice-captains to collapse unconscious on the spot.

The captains quickly gathered, deploying barriers to block the force from above.

But Aizen’s reiatsu—advancing from Hōgyoku Phase Three to Four—was already far beyond human comprehension.

And Ichigo, consumed by rage, kept ascending in power.

Inside him, Zangetsu—or rather, the man named Zangetsu—tried to stop him from losing control.

If this continued, Ichigo would awaken the power of the “Wedge.”

Then, powers from the upper world would begin watching.

Even Zangetsu couldn’t promise he could protect him then…

But just then, a figure appeared beside him.

Seeing who it was, Zangetsu was stunned.

“Kaelith?!”

He leapt back, putting distance between them.

At the same time, he instinctively raised his hand, summoning a glowing blue spirit bow.

“Impossible… you actually invaded Ichigo’s inner world?!”

Kaelith, in sunglasses and flowing hair, showed a slightly sentimental look.

“Zangetsu…”

“The first time I saw you, I was stunned by how cool you looked.”

“Sunglasses, black coat, melancholic vibe, quoting poetry now and then… total chūnibyō slayer.”

“It’s been who knows how long, but I finally get to meet you in person.”

Zangetsu said nothing.

He only held deep suspicion.

This man had seemed to target Ichigo from the very start.

Back then, Ichigo hadn’t shown any power, yet he’d locked on to him immediately.

Could it be… this guy, like his true self, had awakened All-Knowing, All-Powerful-The Almighty?

Kaelith stroked his chin as he looked at the man holding the spirit bow.

“You’re not Zangetsu, are you?”

“I don’t know what you mean.”

Kaelith grinned.

“I don’t feel any Zanpakutō spirit from you at all.”

“If anything… you feel more like a Quincy.”

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