The countdown ended.
Ten seconds. Shigure's hand had undoubtedly touched Aizen's Chain of Fate.
That place—the spiritual power source of all spirit bodies. The ultimate weakness of all life.
Rain stopped. Clouds scattered. Wind vanished. Thunder faded.
High above, all dust cleared completely.
The massive light wings on Shigure's back began slowly fading. Finally disappeared.
The enormous pressure around him vanished. His spiritual pressure gradually began rising instead.
In contrast, Aizen's spiritual pressure began rapidly declining.
On his soul, at his Chain of Fate and Soul Sleep, rainbow-colored light flickered faintly.
Each passing second, it grew brighter.
All of Aizen's thoughts vanished.
Segawa Shigure... when did he come over?
When did his hand pierce through my body?
This rainbow glow... what power is this... why so vast yet gentle?
He didn't know.
Completely incomprehensible.
His perception seemed to have jumped in that moment.
Below, everyone wore identical expressions. Completely frozen.
Not one person saw Shigure's movement.
One moment, he stood with his back to Aizen, piercing him with light wings—
The next moment, he suddenly stood before Aizen.
This intense dissonance made many scalps tingle.
Then Aizen's body in the sky suddenly trembled violently.
For the first time, sweat dripped from his forehead.
He murmured in disbelief:
"The Hōgyoku..."
"The Hōgyoku's will... disappeared...?"
Aizen suddenly realized—the Hōgyoku that maintained connection and evolution moments ago, he could no longer sense at all.
The Hōgyoku wasn't taken. Aizen was certain of that.
After being killed by Muken's blade, the Hōgyoku's evolution had completely fused his existence with it.
So even now, their existence remained connected.
But he simply couldn't sense it.
Aizen lowered his head slightly. His gaze gradually dimmed:
"This... what is this...?"
As he spoke, spiritual particles around Shigure suddenly began rapidly condensing. They formed blades. Became sealed state. Gripped in Shigure's hands again.
He slowly sheathed his swords. Only then did he answer softly:
"It's a seal."
Aizen's eyes flashed. He repeated:
"...A seal...?"
He raised his head slightly toward Shigure. Shigure's expression showed neither joy nor sorrow.
Meeting his gaze, Aizen's expression slowly began changing.
From shock to confusion. From confusion... to acceptance.
His gaze lowered. As if talking to himself, he said softly:
"I see. I understand now."
"So... the Hōgyoku still exists..."
"And you, Segawa—you used unknown power to temporarily block the connection between it and me..."
"Because you determined only this way could you seal me..."
"Right?"
"..."
"Why won't you answer, Segawa?"
"Even now, you still won't reveal your power to me?"
Rainbow light flashed. Aizen's eyes moved slightly as he looked at Shigure.
Shigure's expression didn't change:
"You said temporarily block?"
"...Don't misunderstand, Aizen."
"As long as my consciousness and soul exist, this seal inscribed on you and the Hōgyoku... is permanent."
"No form or type of power can break it."
"...?!"
Aizen's gaze froze. But then the rainbow light on his soul suddenly blazed.
His five senses began rapidly blurring. He could no longer perceive his surroundings.
Sky, clouds, ruins, barrier...
Everything rapidly disappeared from his consciousness. He tried to speak but couldn't.
Yet just as all his thoughts were about to cease—
In his mind, Shigure's indifferent voice suddenly came—
"Farewell, Aizen."
Everything returned to silence. Aizen's consciousness completely vanished.
...
On the ground, everyone silently watched the sky.
Before Shigure, Aizen's spiritual pressure had weakened beyond sensing under that rainbow light. His figure began gradually becoming transparent.
Finally disappeared completely—
But seeing this scene, not one person relaxed. Instead, everyone's nerves grew even tighter.
From Gin Ichimaru's sneak attack killing Aizen... to Shigure killing Aizen with Muken's blade later...
Every time they thought it would end, Aizen miraculously revived again.
So this time, even though Aizen's spiritual pressure had vanished long ago, they still didn't dare relax.
In the sky, Shigure also remained silent. He didn't speak.
So below, everyone waited for the result.
Though Shigure gazed at empty space, all his focus was now concentrated in the palace within his mind.
At the very bottom floor of that palace, in a sealed room—
Aizen Sōsuke sat unconscious and sleeping in a black chair.
His entire body was bound by exploding lightning and endless storms.
Directly above this room, dozens of floors up in another room, a figure stood alone inside.
Ulquiorra Cifer.
This palace was located in the Land of Deep Ash in Hueco Mundo—the final destination of Shigure's Soul Detention—
The Soul Wall Palace.
After repeatedly checking Aizen's condition, Shigure finally withdrew his focus. He looked at the air before him.
"Whew—"
He exhaled a long, gentle breath. Then looked down at everyone on the ground.
A faint smile appeared on his face. In a voice not particularly loud, he said—
"I won, everyone."
~~~~❃❃~~~~~~~~❃❃~~~~
Read up to (100+ ) advanced chapters on Patre\on
Visit us here: patreon.com/DarkGolds
Happy reading, everyone!