Tap, tap...
"It's Senior Yachiru. It truly has been a long time."
Shijima Chigiri felt his face stiffen, his smile becoming exceptionally rigid.
"Shijima, you seem quite nervous."
Unohana Retsu smiled gently, her expression as warm and comforting as the spring sun.
However, in Shijima Chigiri's eyes, this woman's smile was more terrifying than Hell's cruelest torture. Just her standing there was enough to make him break out in a cold sweat.
*Damn it, you're already dead. There's no need to fear her.*
*At most, it's just dying once more. There's nothing to be afraid of!*
Shijima Chigiri tried to hypnotize himself, but the smile on his face only grew stiffer, and his hand involuntarily gripped the Zanpakutō at his waist.
Seeing this, Unohana Retsu immediately understood.
"So you didn't seek me out to catch up."
"Could it be that you were dissatisfied seeing Squad Four become a logistics squad, and specifically came to see if the succeeding captain meets your expectations?"
As fellow captains of the first-generation Gotei 13, although they hadn't spent a particularly long time together, they were still comrades who had fought side by side.
Thus, they had a relatively good understanding of each other's personalities.
Even though Shijima Chigiri had only spoken a few polite words, Unohana Retsu still picked up on the clues from his micro-expressions and movements.
"I am very sorry about Squad Four being changed into a logistics and medical squad."
"Actually, it was my own arbitrary decision that led to the current situation."
Unohana Retsu explained calmly, her fair hand gently resting on the hilt of her sword.
"Shijima, do you know why I learned Kaidō back then?"
Hearing this, Shijima Chigiri froze for a moment, raising his gaze in slight bewilderment.
"Kaidō can heal injuries sustained in battle."
"That way, I can enjoy the thrill of slaughter even more..."
As her voice fell, a heavy, viscous killing intent surged forward, making his hair stand on end.
In Shijima Chigiri's line of sight, a black aura seemed to constantly swirl and fill the space around Unohana Retsu, instantly transforming the quiet courtyard into a hellish landscape composed of mountains of corpses and seas of blood.
*Cold.*
Even as a dead man, he still couldn't suppress the fear spreading from the depths of his heart.
This was an instinct carved into his very soul.
Without a hint of hesitation, the moment Unohana Retsu's aura shifted, Shijima Chigiri was the first to draw his sword. The silver blade illuminated the courtyard, dispelling the freezing cold brought on by her killing intent.
He knew very well that if he continued to let her build up her aura, he would likely lose even the courage to draw his sword in the end.
Among the many captains of the first-generation Gotei 13, Yamamoto belonged in a league of his own.
Unohana Retsu was in the tier right below him. Perhaps a few of their colleagues could exchange a few blows with her, but it definitely wouldn't be him, Shijima Chigiri.
Even after being strengthened by the Will of Hell, he still had little confidence.
The moment the sound of his sword being drawn rang out, Unohana Retsu moved.
Her pure white figure was wrapped in materialized killing intent as she instantly closed the distance between them. Her fluttering robes swayed, and her curved blade slashed out at an extremely bizarre angle.
Terrifying Reiatsu was completely compressed onto her Zanpakutō, emitting a heart-palpitating faint light.
Clang!!
The moment they collided, a vibrating, piercing ring echoed through the courtyard.
Without any stalemate, Unohana Retsu twisted her wrist, swinging diagonally upward along his blade, smoothly slashing toward the neck of Shijima Chigiri, who had yet to recover his strength.
The transition was so fluid it seemed like pure instinct, forcing Shijima Chigiri to respond in a panic.
Clang!!
He didn't retract his forward-slashing Zanpakutō. Instead, as his Reiatsu erupted, a section of black chain emerged from the light.
It perfectly blocked Unohana Retsu's slash.
The chain wasn't sturdy, but it could manage to block for an instant. The moment the two collided, the links shattered, and fragments scattered in all directions.
In doing so, it bought Shijima Chigiri the perfect opportunity to retreat.
"What is this?"
Unohana Retsu looked at the shattered chain and asked with some curiosity.
Out of caution, she didn't touch the chain, even releasing a Reiatsu barrier to specifically separate it from herself.
The Soul Society's understanding of Hell was still too lacking.
With insufficient intelligence, it was better to be careful.
She didn't want to hold her side back at such a critical juncture.
"A symbol of a Sinner's identity."
Shijima Chigiri scratched his head. "It has no practical meaning."
"Tsk..."
"I don't know if it's my imagination, but Senior Yachiru seems even stronger than before."
Unohana Retsu nodded and said calmly, "I have Sora to thank for this."
"If not for him, I might still be stagnating. It was Sora who taught me some Zanjutsu techniques, opening the door to a new world for me."
Shijima Chigiri's head was full of question marks.
*Could the 'Sora' this great villain before me is talking about be Naraku Sora, the one who caused even Hell to tremble?*
*Did that kid actually manage to tame even this dangerous woman?*
Just as he was thinking, Unohana Retsu's figure suddenly vanished from his sight, replaced by a sharp blade of light that seemed capable of severing heaven and earth.
Shijima Chigiri's pupils shrank drastically. He instinctively erupted with all his Reiatsu, attempting to block while forcefully twisting his body to dodge.
However, even with ample preparation, the moment they touched, his Reiatsu barrier completely collapsed. Flesh tore, and half of his arm was severed.
The two figures crossed paths, and Shijima Chigiri looked at the figure in front of him in horror.
Unohana Retsu stood holding her sword, bright red drops of blood rolling off the gleaming blade and falling into the earth below.
"Shijima, bring out your full strength."
"Consider it a congratulatory gift for Squad Four's rebirth..."
Looking at Unohana Retsu, who was gradually overlapping with the image in his memory, Shijima Chigiri's heart was filled with sorrow.
"But if your strength is too lacking, you really will die!"
Tōsen Kaname nodded with a serious expression.
Ever since becoming a member of the Shino Prison, he had taken his habit of intense internal competition to the extreme.
Especially after his eyes were healed and he saw the colorful world for the first time, he secretly resolved to train hard, grow stronger, and strive to become a valuable asset to Lord Naraku as soon as possible.
Now the opportunity had finally appeared; it was time to show the results of his training.
Tōsen Kaname slowly drew his sword, holding the Zanpakutō upside down in front of him. The surrounding air trembled violently, displaying chaotic patterns.
"This is Mr. Urahara's gift, and Lord Naraku's trust."
"Bankai!"
"Locust's End・Enma Kōrogi!"
Looking at the darkness that suddenly spread out, and the man standing in the center of the darkness, Kumoi Entetsu actually felt a long-lost sense of palpitation.
He grinned, raised the heavy mace in his hand, and stepped forward.
*Let this senior properly experience the caliber of his junior!*
Zenjōji Uhin looked in horror at the burning figure standing tall above the ruins. With his intellect, he simply couldn't understand it.
*Why is the aura this guy displays even more terrifying than Yamamoto Shigekuni's back in the day?*
*This fucking thing can't even be called human anymore!*
Even the monsters of the Will of Hell that guarded Hell were more humanoid than the guy in front of him.
*Speaking of which, could someone swap opponents with me?*
Naraku Sora stared at the burly man covered in cold sweat, grinning like an evil spirit, his stark white teeth particularly striking under the sunlight.
The fat man opposite him was a fighter who specialized in Hakuda close combat.
Miraculously, after completing his Shikai, his Zanpakutō actually melted into his palms, and a dim light immediately covered his originally pale skin.
In short, it was very bizarre.
Naraku Sora couldn't analyze his specific abilities, so he simply couldn't be bothered to try. No matter what it was, he would just blow it all up.
A terrifying pillar of fire shot into the sky, erupting with a brilliance that made it impossible to look at directly.
Boom!!
The collapsed ruins trembled violently at this moment, and an unimaginably heavy Reiatsu shook the battlefield.
Tyrannical lightning and scorching flames intertwined, wrapping around his body, making his already intimidating figure appear even more terrifying.
Then, without any explanation, he threw a punch.
*Let's use the combat style you are most adept at to determine the final outcome.*
The ferocious smile instantly closed in. Zenjōji Uhin's breathing stagnated, and he subconsciously raised his thick arms, crossing them in front of him in an attempt to offset the destruction brought by this strike.
However, the moment the collision occurred, a world-shaking power landed on his body.
Defenses comparable to the hardness of a Menos Grande's Hierro completely disintegrated. Flesh collapsed, bones were crushed, and more than half of his body was directly blown into a mist of blood under this punch.
A myriad of colors intertwined, painting yet another hellish picture.
When unbearable pain erupted from the depths of his soul, Zenjōji Uhin's meager remaining consciousness was instantly annihilated, welcoming death once again.
Having finished off a first-generation captain, Naraku Sora raised his head and smiled at the remaining Hell Sinners.
"Do you desire freedom?"
Hearing this, everyone's faces were filled with terror.