"I really don't get it. At this point, that Aizen guy's power and level are clearly way below His Majesty's…"
"Yet in every single battle, the pressure he gives off…"
"Just makes him feel completely unassailable! The style, the presence, it's all cranked up to the max!!!"
Silbern,
Inside the Ice Crystal Palace.
Lille Barro frowned as he looked at the figure on the screen: Aizen, gripping his zanpakutō in just one hand, his aura overwhelmingly strong.
Even as the leader of the Schutzstaffel,
He still couldn't help but feel a genuine, instinctive fear and wariness in his heart!
This feeling…
Made Lille Barro subconsciously resist it,
Made him, from the bottom of his heart, unwilling to acknowledge the strength of an enemy Shinigami!!!
"Tch…"
"Compared to the negative emotions Aizen brings, what I'm even more concerned about is that zanpakutō of his—Kyōka Suigetsu."
"From the start of this round of rankings up until now, it still hasn't… truly been released even once, has it?"
In the Guard's Palace,
Gerard Valkyrie knit his brows together; not only was his expression irritated and restless, deep in his heart he also had a powerful sense of foreboding.
His concern
Was the same as that of Squad Zero.
They had all thought of the same thing—the possibility of using the live broadcast to carry out mass hypnosis!
For all they knew, that might very well happen at any moment.
So that the viewers, inevitably, while watching the hypnotic ritual with their own eyes…
Every powerful being in the entire world!
Shinigami, Hollows, pure-blood Quincy… not a single one would be able to escape!
All of them, at the very instant Kyōka Suigetsu was released,
Would be permanently marked!
Their five senses would be taken over, and from then on they'd be reduced to Aizen's playthings!
That would be the truly terrifying moment!!!
"Damn it…"
"No wonder he could rank second!"
"Aizen and his Kyōka Suigetsu really complement each other. Their threat levels amplify one another to a ridiculous degree—there's just no defending against them!"
Down below,
The other pure-blood Quincy
Finally began to understand just how infuriating and suffocating it must have felt for the Shinigami of the Gotei 13, back when they faced Aizen and were completely at the mercy of his control!
————
At the same time,
Back in the video.
Even though Hitsugaya Tōshirō had already been knocked down with a single slash,
This particular clip hadn't ended yet.
With his zanpakutō in hand,
Aizen suddenly turned around to face the path he had come from.
Then he shifted his gaze toward another entrance and smiled. "Captain Unohana Retsu… You too. Just as I expected, you've quickly made your way here as well, haven't you?"
In that instant, yet another Shinigami captain appeared!
And not just any captain, but Unohana Retsu, one of the most experienced and powerful among them all!
In the blink of an eye, the scene caused an uproar!
The Shinigami of the Gotei 13 started discussing all at once:
"Great! Captain Unohana got here in time!"
"This time, Captain Tōshirō shouldn't end up getting cut down by Aizen again, right?"
Many Shinigami,
Especially the seated officers and squad members of Tenth Division,
All quietly let out a sigh of relief.
The appearance of Unohana's silhouette
Gave everyone a tremendous sense of security!
Even though, at present,
Within all of Soul Society,
The number of people who knew about her past identity and history could be counted on one hand,
Basically only the Head Captain, Kyōraku Shunsui, and a few others!
Even so…
Respected by all, unfathomably strong—
That was the impression Unohana Retsu usually left on everyone.
And now,
It wasn't just the rank-and-file.
Inside First Division, the captains' expressions also shifted ever so slightly.
"Unohana…"
"If it's you, then in that kind of environment, you shouldn't be afraid of Aizen at all, right?"
Kyōraku Shunsui turned to the side,
Glancing at the spot where Fourth Division stood opposite him, and spoke in a meaningful tone.
The first Kenpachi…
Founder of the Yachiru-style swordsmanship…
Back in the earliest days of the Gotei 13, a celestial executioner who bathed in slaughter!
Kyōraku knew very well in his heart
That Unohana Retsu's arms had once been stained with countless lives.
Once she tore off her mask and revealed her identity,
Once she returned to being the first Kenpachi and fought him one-on-one in a straight duel,
It wasn't at all certain that she would lose to Aizen!!!
In response to this,
Unohana's reply
Came with calm eyes and flawless beauty; she remained as serene and elegant as ever, speaking softly:
"Captain Kyōraku, you seem to be forgetting something… Even now, our understanding of that zanpakutō, Kyōka Suigetsu, is far too one-sided."
"Unless it's someone like Ichimaru Gin, who had the chance to get in close and actually touch the blade, no one can lightly claim they have any chance of victory…"
She shook her head slightly,
Making her own judgment.
The first Kenpachi, a legendary figure… so what?
If the illusion cannot be broken,
Then no matter how powerful your techniques are, they still won't be able to hurt Aizen in the slightest!
And sure enough…
Right after that,
In the video, right in front of Unohana,
Aizen's confident smile appeared as he displayed the power of Kyōka Suigetsu!!!
"Captain Aizen… no!"
"I should now be calling you… traitor to all law and order, General-in-Chief Aizen!"
Her long braided hair hanging down in front of her, Unohana frowned and rebuked him in a low voice.
"So then… how did you figure it out and come here?"
Aizen asked with an unchanged smile.
"First of all, that exquisite 'doll' you specially prepared to hide yourself…"
"That alone guaranteed that your hiding place could only be in Seireitei—specifically in one of the forbidden areas where outsiders would never step foot!!!"
Just as Aizen had hoped, Unohana angrily laid out her reasoning.
However, she was quickly refuted by him:
"'Doll'?"
Aizen shook his head slightly and denied it. "Look carefully… this isn't some so-called doll at all!!!"
In just an instant,
Even though Aizen clearly hadn't done anything,
A dead body that looked exactly like him appeared in his hand out of nowhere—a fake corpse, identical to his true self!!!
This bizarre development
Not only stunned Unohana in an instant,
It also shocked the viewers outside the scene as well. Every last one of them was taken aback by the sudden visual impact!!!
"???"
"When did it change?!"
"I'm sure I didn't even blink just now!"
"We're screwed… don't tell me… even we viewers were already caught in his illusion from the start?"
"That bastard Aizen! Is he really planning to hypnotize the entire world?!"
In that moment,
Throughout the Bleach world, even in Hueco Mundo, which had already submitted to Aizen,
Every strong fighter felt cold sweat pouring down their backs in unison.
Once again, they felt just how overwhelming the illusion of the zanpakutō Kyōka Suigetsu truly was!
And then,
In the video,
Aizen's next move instantly multiplied that terror several times over:
"There's no need to make those shocked faces…"
"Next… the two of you will understand very soon!"
His words sounded as if they were being spoken across the screen directly to the viewers.
At the same time,
In the very next second,
From behind his black-framed glasses came the release phrase of Kyōka Suigetsu!
Through the playback of the ranking video, it rang out crystal clear:
"Shatter, Kyōka Suigetsu—!!!"
With a bang,
The video picture
Shuddered lightly, as if it were a mirror suddenly cracking.
Right after that,
The fake corpse vanished, replaced by the original form of the zanpakutō, now reversed in Aizen's grip!
Because this all happened
In an extremely short span of time—only a few brief seconds—
By the time the viewers reacted,
Aizen had already let go; the zanpakutō dropped, its blade stabbing into the ground!
As though silently declaring…
That the hypnotic ritual was now complete!!!
Just now, in that single instant—not only Unohana Retsu and Kotetsu Isane!
But…
Everyone!
All the powerful beings watching across the entire world had been hypnotized!!!
Once they realized this,
The entire Bleach world erupted on the spot!!!
"Damn it…"
"That bastard Aizen!!!"
"Just now… did he secretly hypnotize all of us AGAIN without us noticing?"
"Unbelievable. Watching a ranking video through a screen… and we STILL got caught?!"
"I'm starting to suspect the creator of the video might actually be Aizen himself!!!"
"What kind of perfectly timed setup is this?!"
Countless strong fighters cursed in frustration.
Especially the Shinigami of the Gotei 13—
they didn't hold back and even started yelling at the mysterious "video author," glaring at the screen together!
Holy crap…
This was too dirty…
Using a ranking video to forcibly carry out a global hypnosis ritual right in front of every viewer?!
Who could even come up with a plot like this?
Probably only Aizen himself would think of something this insidious!!!
"..."
The Head Captain was speechless.
That flicker on the screen earlier,
And the release phrase of the zanpakutō—
He had heard it clearly. He had seen it clearly.
If not for the fact that he had been watching for so long,
enduring round after round of these rankings,
and had had his senses overwritten again and again…
Otherwise,
With his personality in the old days—
He would have drawn Ryūjin Jakka and SLASHED the screen with a flaming strike already!!!
But now,
The Head Captain's reaction…
Other than silence, was only a helpless, bitter smile.
Being ambushed like this as a viewer… truly made one speechless!
"Heh…"
"Even the Aizen of the future… even the Aizen who no longer exists due to timeline distortion…"
"Can casually toy with us here in the present?"
Kyōraku Shunsui was stunned.
His emotional reaction was just as intense,
But in the end, just like the Head Captain, he could only feel helpless.
For a brief moment…
Kyōraku completely accepted it in his heart.
He acknowledged that Aizen and his zanpakutō—Kyōka Suigetsu—were truly unbeatable.
Whether in the past,
The present, or the future—
at ANY point in time—
Aizen could manipulate his enemies however he pleased!
An absolutely terrifying monster!!!
The shock this caused was no less than Ichibei's Ichimonji.
In terms of psychological impact—
Kyōka Suigetsu was clearly the stronger weapon!!!
Finally,
At the end of the video clip,
Kotetsu Isane voiced her disbelief, saying that in everyone's common understanding, Aizen's zanpakutō should have been
a water-type zanpakutō—
Its ability supposedly relied on confusing reflections of mist and flowing water, causing enemies to become disoriented and kill each other.
"No…"
"That was just a lie!"
Aizen took a step forward.
Walking down the steps,
His figure moved closer to the camera.
Behind the reflective lenses of his glasses, his lips curled up, his voice carrying a hypnotic magnetism.
Facing the camera head-on, he corrected them and revealed the true ability:
"Complete Hypnosis…
After taking control of the five senses, I can manipulate perception of weight, shape, form, texture, even smell—anything that can mislead the enemy."
"In other words… I can make someone see a fly as a dragon!"
"I can make a swamp appear to be a beautiful garden!!!"
"And the condition for activating the illusion—
is simply for someone to witness the moment Kyōka Suigetsu is released!
And that requires only ONCE!!!"
"From that instant onward, the target falls into complete hypnosis…
and all five of their senses are placed under absolute control!!!"
Finally—
Directly facing the camera,
Aizen personally revealed the full nature of Kyōka Suigetsu's ability and why it could not be countered!!!
At the same time, he once again triggered the fear everyone felt
from the deliberate release he had performed just moments earlier!!!
"So that means…"
"As long as someone witnesses it once, they're permanently affected?
Even we in Squad Zero… can't escape?"
In the Soul King Palace.
Inside the Zero Division Hall.
Kirio Hikifune—usually relaxed and lounging—
was no longer leaning back casually, legs crossed.
The expression under her wild, high hairstyle became more serious than ever before.
This was the first time since the ranking videos appeared—
even after so many rounds—
That she truly felt the meaning of the words "main character of the ranking."
Clearly—
In this round, Aizen was without a doubt the absolute protagonist!!!
Everything he had done—
whether in past or future timelines—
made Squad Zero feel an enormous sense of danger!
Even Yhwach had never given them this level of threat!!!
"Complete hypnosis… control of the five senses…"
"That zanpakutō, Kyōka Suigetsu—only in Aizen's hands can it be called a perfect match!"
Shutara Senjumaru stared at Aizen, her expression dark.
She could sense illusion and hypnosis with the five organs of her body.
When she used her own techniques, they too were powerful—shaking the Three Realms.
But…
Aizen still possessed the Hōgyoku.
That was the artifact that allowed his spiritual pressure to grow endlessly in the future!
Even though Squad Zero's members,
After hundreds or thousands of years living in the Soul King Palace,
already possessed terrifying levels of reiatsu—
Even so—
The Hōgyoku's lack of an upper limit meant…
That Kyōka Suigetsu's illusions would also grow the same way!!!
With enough spiritual pressure, Aizen could hypnotize ANY level of existence!
Even someone on the Soul King's level—
Aizen could still affect them!!!
That was the true, overwhelming threat of this zanpakutō!!!
Meanwhile,
While Squad Zero was in the middle of discussing,
The transparent screen flickered again.
Scenes changed—new footage appeared.
Blue skies and white clouds.
Towering buildings.
And flames still lingering in the air, hanging over the battlefield.
At this moment,
Above the city of Karakura Town—
Nearly all the Arrancar in Hueco Mundo's forces had been killed!
Only Harribel remained!
Along with Aizen, Ichimaru Gin, and Tōsen Kaname—
the three former traitor captains.
The moment this scene appeared,
It triggered a fresh wave of uproar.
The viewers quickly recalled all the previously shown clips from the Karakura Town battle.
Soon, everything connected in their minds, and they understood:
"If I'm not mistaken, the three of them must've just escaped from old man Yamamoto's inferno barrier!"
"No idea what method they used, but… that woman—the Tres Espada!"
"She actually broke through the ice blossom barrier! And she's fighting one against three?!"
Inside First Division, the Shinigami captains nodded together,
their gazes turning in unison toward Hitsugaya Tōshirō.
At this moment,
His expression froze, then turned extremely unpleasant.
His turquoise eyes stared at the screen.
Reflected in it was not only himself—
But also Lisa Yadōmaru and Hiyori Sarugaki fighting at his side.
Even in a three-on-one scenario…
It looked painfully obvious that they still couldn't take down Harribel!
This was the part that left Hitsugaya the most frustrated!!!
However…
What happened next—
In particular, Aizen's shocking action—
Instantly stunned the entire world!
Countless viewers stood up in disbelief and yelled:
"???"
"HOLY—!!!"
"No way?! This guy Aizen…
he actually CUTS DOWN HIS OWN PEOPLE?!"
"This is INSANE!!!"
(End of Chapter)
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