"You say that like I should be dead or something," Kaien Blaze said with a shrug as he stepped out of the black rift.
Snap!
With a finger snap, the dark garganta behind him snapped shut.
Boom, boom!
The moment Kaien appeared, the demon dragon Arazham instinctively took two heavy steps back, its massive frame trembling as it shouted in disbelief:
"Impossible! There's no way you survived my Roar!"
Kaien nodded while glancing around at the destruction the Roar had caused.
"You're right. The Roar of a dragon truly is terrifying. If I had taken that head-on, I'd be dead for sure. But just because I can't beat it doesn't mean I can't dodge it."
Right before Arazham unleashed its Roar, Kaien had activated the power he obtained from Ulquiorra. Among the Arrancar, there was one universally shared ability—
Garganta.
A technique that tears open space, allowing Arrancar to move freely between the human world and Hueco Mundo.
Kaien had used Garganta to temporarily slip into the space between worlds, evading the blast entirely and returning once it was over.
It had one drawback—activation was relatively slow. Fortunately, the Roar had a long enough charge time that he'd been able to escape just in time.
"Alright, let's get on with round two. Maintaining this form eats up a lot of mana, and my time is valuable."
Earlier, he'd used Yoriichi's powers. In base form, the drain was low, but once he went full output, the cost was enormous.
Those seemingly simple slashes were actually compressed mana strikes—each one burned a large amount of energy.
As he spoke, Kaien drew his Zanpakutō and began to chant the Resurrección release:
"Enclose… Murciélago!!"
Hummmmmm—!!
A dark surge of spiritual pressure erupted from Kaien, shooting toward the sky.
The once-clear blue skies were instantly swallowed by black clouds, casting the entire world into darkness.
Moments later, black raindrops began to fall from above.
Though the crowd had seen this phenomenon before, it still shook them to their core every time.
Soon the spectacle faded, and Kaien stood in his first Resurrección form.
Arazham narrowed its eyes and sneered.
"Brat, I've seen that battle form of yours. Your swordsmanship in that state is nothing special. You're weak—no match for me."
The dragon was baiting him. If Kaien dared take flight in that form, Arazham would simply ascend again and bombard him with another Roar, taking advantage of Kaien's inability to fly.
Kaien smiled.
"You're not wrong. But… did you forget something important? If you were still in peak condition, I'd never bother using this form against you."
"But you're badly wounded."
"And who told you this form is weak? Ulquiorra is the strongest Hollow in my heart. I won't let you insult him."
"But… since you think this is weak… why don't I show you something stronger?"
Kaien softly murmured:
"Segunda Etapa."
HOOOOOOM—!!!
An even more terrifying spiritual pressure exploded from his body, radiating a blue-black aura that blasted outward in waves.
"Uwaaaaaah!!"
People had to raise their arms to shield their eyes.
Kaien's upper clothes disintegrated. Black feathers appeared from his abdomen down to his legs, and across his arms and back. The lower half of his robe split into twin tails, like a black swallowtail coat.
His wings unfurled fully, now ending in batlike claws. The horns on his helmet lengthened and sharpened. A long black tail emerged from his lower back. His feet became talons, and a black hole opened in his chest—clearly visible, letting others see right through it.
"Th-That's… Mr. Kaien?!"
Even those who had witnessed his powers before were left speechless.
Arazham sneered again,
"You think transforming makes you my equal? Your mana won't let you maintain that state for long. That's why you ran off to rest after killing just five Nine-Star Beasts."
Now that it was injured, the dragon was thinking more clearly—and it remembered Kaien had withdrawn after the last battle.
Kaien nodded.
"True. With my current Magic Power, I can only hold this form for a little over a minute."
Arazham's expression lit up with delight.
"A minute? Hahahahahaha!! Just one minute?! Brat, looks like this is where you die!"
"Once your transformation ends, I'll make sure you suffer so badly you'll beg for death. You'll wish you'd died in that crater!"
Arazham was ecstatic. It loathed Kaien—the human who had humiliated and wounded it. Now it would have its revenge.
"One minute…"
The humans, upon hearing this, fell into despair. Could Kaien really kill the dragon in just one minute? If not… they were all doomed.
Kaien's voice remained calm:
"One minute is more than enough… to kill you."
Almost the moment he finished speaking—
"Such arrogance—"
Swoosh!
Kaien's figure appeared right in front of Arazham's massive face.
He spun midair and delivered a brutal roundhouse kick.
BOOM—!!
Arazham's enormous body was sent flying sideways by the blow.
"UWAAAHHH!!"
Kaien flapped his wings and launched forward again.
He caught up in seconds, then dove down and kicked Arazham from above.
BOOOOM—!!
"GUAAAHHH!!"
Arazham crashed into the ground with a howl of pain, forming a massive crater.
The kick had struck one of its earlier wounds directly.
Before the dragon could react, Kaien grabbed its tail with both hands.
"Let's go for a spin!"
He spun around with force, swinging Arazham through the air like a ragdoll.
"UOOOOOH!!"
Then he released it.
BOOM—!!
Arazham's body slammed into a nearby hill, smashing a giant hole into it.
"GUAAAHHH!!"
The dragon coughed up blood.
Already critically wounded, these relentless attacks only worsened its state. If not for a dragon's tenacious vitality, it would've died already.
Seeing Kaien charging in again, Arazham opened its jaws and fired a blast of ferocious dragon breath.
Swish, swish, swish!
Kaien used Sonído repeatedly, weaving through the flames while speeding forward.
In the blink of an eye, he was in front of the dragon again.
"You damned insect!!"
Arazham swiped at him—but hit nothing.
Kaien had vanished.
He reappeared behind the dragon, pointing his index finger at it.
A swirling black light condensed at his fingertip.
"Cero Oscuras!"