Sosuke Aizen, Captain of the Fifth Division, was, in everyone's eyes, a "good man." He was gentle, refined, confident, and generous. After his death, all the captains had been deeply saddened. But now, as a living, breathing Aizen stood before them once more, it was beyond belief.
This meant that Aizen's death, and perhaps everything that had happened in the Seireitei recently, had been orchestrated by him.
All fighting ceased.
Captain-Commander Yamamoto's face turned incredibly grim. Aizen's appearance proved that his two students had not been lying. It was as if he had been nailed to a pillar of shame.
"What are you doing, Aizen!" he roared, the flames swirling around his body uncontrollably spreading outwards. The temperature at the Sokyoku Hill skyrocketed, the extreme heat scorching the very air.
"Whoa, the old man is really angry now," Ukitake and Kyoraku quickly retreated, looking with lingering fear at the towering inferno. Just a few simple exchanges with the Captain-Commander had made them feel as if their very souls were about to melt.
Crack. Before everyone's furious eyes, Aizen's hand plunged into Rukia Kuchiki's chest and pulled out a pale purple, gem-like object.
"You bastard, what are you doing!" Seeing Rukia lose consciousness, Ichigo felt his own mind snap. He drew his Zanpakuto and charged at Aizen.
"Shoot to kill, Shinso." Gin's Zanpakuto instantly crossed the distance, piercing Ichigo's chest and knocking him back. Gin then appeared at Aizen's side, accompanied by the captain of the Ninth Division, Kaname Tosen.
"Gin, why are you there?"
"Tosen, why have you betrayed the Soul Society? Have you abandoned your own justice?" the other captains cried out in shock and confusion.
Faced with their questioning gazes, the three of them simply offered arrogant smiles.
"So you've finally shown yourself, Aizen," Yoruichi said, her expression wary. She and Kisuke Urahara were the ones who truly understood Aizen's nature. The reason she had accompanied Kurosaki Ichigo into the Soul Society was to stop Aizen's conspiracy.
"Have you fallen so low, Aizen?" At Ukitake's angry question, Aizen merely smiled with contempt and uttered his now-classic line.
As a blue light shot out from a Garganta, the three of them began to ascend.
"Aizen!" Captain-Commander Yamamoto roared, swinging his Zanpakuto.
But Aizen's next words brought everyone's emotions to a screeching halt.
"Your opponent is not me," Aizen said from high above, his words filled with meaning. "My performance is over."
"The rest is up to you, Naruto."
As Aizen's words faded, a figure suddenly appeared in the center of the field, facing Captain-Commander Yamamoto. He had brilliant blond hair and a gentle expression, but his eyes were sharp and piercing.
"It's a pleasure to meet you, Captain-Commander Yamamoto. I've heard you are the strongest Shinigami in the Soul Society. I've admired you for a long time."
Uzumaki Naruto placed his hand on the hilt of his Zanpakuto, his voice calm.
Facing Yamamoto up close, he could feel the terrifying Reiatsu and the heat that could melt anything. A Zanpakuto with such a wide area of attack was the perfect counter to Kyoka Suigetsu. No matter how you manipulated the five senses, the attack range was what it was. There was no escaping it. The current Aizen was no match for Yamamoto, which was why he had planned so much.
Naruto's unfamiliar face made Yamamoto frown. The Reiatsu hidden within Naruto's body was no less than that of any captain present, except for Yamamoto himself.
Who is he? An accomplice of Aizen's? Why didn't he leave with him? From Aizen's words, it seems this mysterious man's target is... me.
"Mr. Naruto?" Amidst the many surprised and confused gazes, Kurosaki Ichigo's face lit up with joy. Without Naruto's guidance, he never would have been able to improve so much in battle and defeat captain-level Shinigami. Moreover, Naruto was human, just like him. In a way, they were on the same side.
"Ichigo, you know him?" Hearing Ichigo's words, everyone was surprised.
Seeing the questioning looks from Yoruichi and the others, Ichigo explained, "I told you before that someone trained me. It was him."
"Him?" Yoruichi's gaze on Naruto immediately became wary. To be able to enter someone's dream and help them train... this Naruto's strength was clearly no simple matter.
"What is your purpose?" Yamamoto was wreathed in flames, a fire dragon materializing behind him. The ground beneath his feet dried and cracked. He was on the verge of exploding with rage.
"I want to experience the strength of the most powerful Shinigami," Naruto said, slowly drawing his Zanpakuto.
As their auras locked, Yamamoto seemed to transform into an insurmountable volcano. The pressure was definitely greater than that of Might Guy with all eight gates open. And this was just Yamamoto's Shikai. It was said that his Bankai could destroy the entire Soul Society.
Under such pressure, Naruto's Zanpakuto trembled, and it even began to show signs of transformation. A jolt of joy went through him. This was the pressure he was looking for.
Boom. A violent surge of Reiatsu erupted from Naruto's body, rivaling Yamamoto's.
"Such Reiatsu! Who is this person?" The entire area was enveloped in their combined spiritual pressure. The ground shook violently, and any Shinigami below the rank of lieutenant fainted on the spot.
"No matter what your purpose is, for trespassing in the Soul Society and siding with the traitor Aizen, your crime is death!" Yamamoto slashed down, and a heavy sea of fire pressed in on Naruto. The earth split, and the air was instantly sucked away. The scorching flames instantly created a natural tomb.
"Ryujin Jakka!"
The flames roared, and souls screamed.
At the center of the inferno, Naruto felt his hands begin to tremble uncontrollably. It was fear, but also excitement. His expression changed, becoming excited, frenzied.
A white, viscous mist appeared, swirling in front of him. To the horror of all the Shinigami, it condensed into the bone mask of a Hollow, attaching itself to the side of his face.
"A Hollow?! Hollowfication and a Shinigami... you dare to touch the power of a Hollow!" Yamamoto's killing intent boiled over.
Hollows and Shinigami were fundamentally opposing races. To a Shinigami, the power of a Hollow meant losing one's essence, one's reason and emotions. It represented destruction. No Shinigami in history had ever been able to touch the power of a Hollow. But now, this man with a Zanpakuto could... Hollowfy!
The boundary between Shinigami and Hollow had been broken. Yamamoto knew that the Soul Society was about to face a new era of turmoil. Countless Shinigami would be filled with a desire for and fear of this power.
"He cannot be allowed to leave here alive!" Yamamoto's eyes hardened, and he pushed Ryujin Jakka to its full power. The roaring flames instantly swallowed Naruto.
"The old man is really angry now," the other Shinigami and the Ryoka quickly retreated, stopping a thousand meters away. They looked at the area completely engulfed in the sea of fire and sighed. "I can't believe someone can actually control the power of a Hollow. It seems the limits of a Shinigami can be broken. If one could control both the powers of a Hollow and a Shinigami, they might reach a new level. But he can't possibly survive this. The old man is the strongest Shinigami in a thousand years. He would never allow any being that disrupts the balance of the Shinigami to exist."
A Hollowfied Shinigami. If this forbidden information were to leak, it was inevitable that some disillusioned or malicious Shinigami would choose to research Hollowfication. The potential consequences were incalculable.
All the captains knew that although the Seireitei seemed orderly on the surface, it was internally divided. The noble houses controlled most of the resources, leaving commoner Shinigami with few opportunities. Basically, your birth determined your starting point and your upper limit. Only a very few exceptionally talented Shinigami could become captains as commoners.
And only the Captain-Commander, Kyoraku, and Ukitake knew that above the Captain-Commander, there was the Soul King and the Zero Division. With Aizen's talent, he could have easily become the Captain-Commander. But as he had said, he would fight against anyone who tried to control him. Even if he became the Captain-Commander, he would still be controlled by the higher-ranking Zero Division and the Soul King. This was likely the reason for his betrayal.
But Naruto, having successfully Hollowfied, revealed an eye from behind the mask that was filled with a dense killing intent. A terrifying Reiatsu shot into the sky, actually scattering the flames that had blotted out the sun. The flames trembled, the earth continued to crack, and the pressure spread outwards, engulfing the nearby buildings in fire and causing them to collapse.
"Bakudo #81: Danku!"
"Multiple Mud Wall!"
"Triple Rashomon!"
"Rasengan!"
"Cero!"
Naruto unleashed a continuous stream of Kido, ninjutsu, and other techniques to meet the world-burning flames.
Boom, boom, boom. The Rasengan and Cero were instantly swallowed, exploding and then disappearing as if they had been completely absorbed. The Multiple Mud Wall didn't even last a second before it was consumed by the sea of fire and turned to ash. Danku and the Triple Rashomon were extremely durable, but they were able to hold back the flames.
Seeing that he couldn't take down Naruto, Yamamoto's eyes turned cold, and an even more violent flame erupted from his body.
Boom! The three gates of the Rashomon collapsed one by one, leaving only Danku.
Hum. Naruto was drenched in sweat, his body gradually dehydrating from the intense heat. His lips turned pale as he stared at the encroaching flames.
I'm going to die... I can't block it!
The thought flashed through his mind. On the brink of life and death, his adrenaline surged, and he actually felt incredibly excited! So excited he wanted to laugh maniacally.
The Zanpakuto at his waist trembled violently, its color shifting from green to white, colorless, red, and various other hues.
"Come on!" Perhaps due to the Hollowfication, a hint of madness had crept into Naruto's personality. He roared at the sea of fire, his eyes filled with an uncontrollable fervor.
Boom! The flames descended, swallowing him whole.
"It's over. A Shinigami who has broken the boundaries is not allowed to exist," Yamamoto said silently, sheathing his sword. There was no longer any sign of life in the sea of fire.
The once brilliant space was now a deathly gray. The sky was filled with gray, lifeless lines.
Click. Naruto's footsteps echoed.
Arriving in his personal space once more, Naruto's eyes held less confusion and more determination. He slowly walked towards the throne.
Ugh. On the way, demonic hands shot out, grabbing his ankles, trying to stop him. But Naruto's steps were firm, and he soon reached the throne. A black figure and a white Hollow materialized beside him, bowing slightly to him.
Naruto slowly sat down on the throne.
The next moment, the throne erupted in a blinding light. An abundant Reiatsu began to compress the space. At this moment, Naruto's heart was incredibly calm. He should have realized the extraordinary nature of his Zanpakuto long ago.
From Aizen, he had learned that the reason a Shinigami's Hollowfication was so difficult to control was because the inner Hollow, White, possessed all of the host's abilities. Therefore, in the process of controlling White, one had to fight it. White was in no way inferior to the host, and was even more frenzied in its fighting style. So, it was common for the host to lose to White. Once that happened, White would devour the host's consciousness, turning them into a Hollow with Shinigami abilities.
But when Naruto Hollowfied, he had no such trouble. The Hollow within him only possessed Hollow abilities; it had no Zanpakuto, and not even any ninjutsu. At that time, Naruto had already sensed that something was wrong. He was very special.
And now, everything was confirmed.
Outside.
A blade of light suddenly flashed within the sea of fire. Then, to Yamamoto's disbelief, the flames were split in two.
Naruto walked out from within, his entire body also burning with fire, a slight smirk on his face.
"Thank you, Captain-Commander Yamamoto. Without you, I would never have been able to fully master this power," Naruto said, lightly crushing the Hollow mask on his face, a playful smile on his lips. His body was wreathed in the flames of Ryujin Jakka.
"To express my gratitude..." As Yamamoto watched in shock, Naruto slowly ascended into the sky.
His calm voice echoed throughout the Seireitei: "The power of a Shinigami has its limits. But this limit can be broken. As long as you master the power of Hollowfication, you can break through the limits of life and reach a new level."
"Silence!" Yamamoto went berserk, slashing with Ryujin Jakka again and again, tearing through the air and even space itself. He couldn't imagine what kind of uproar Naruto's words would cause in the Seireitei. The entire Soul Society would be thrown into chaos!
Hum. A black gate appeared in the void. Before leaving, Naruto gave the Soul Society one last look, a dismissive smile on his face. "Such a corrupt world. No wonder Mr. Aizen left."
With that, he stepped into the gate and vanished from the Soul Society.
Swish. The flames of Ryujin Jakka passed through the sky and fell as scattered sparks.
"Mr. Naruto," Kurosaki Ichigo stared blankly at the now clear sky, his expression dazed.
"With great power comes great responsibility. Before you fight, you must know what you are fighting for!"
Naruto's words echoed in his mind. Ichigo was confused. Why would the seemingly righteous Naruto do something that seemed to harm the Soul Society, just like Aizen? Had they really fallen?
Or... was there really a great deal of darkness in the Soul Society?
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