"So, you're that elusive mysterious person. I should thank you, actually. If Captain-Commander Yamamoto hadn't put me in charge of investigating you, I wouldn't have had the chance to collect so many high-quality 'nutrients'."
Mashō directed a ferocious smile at Aizen, releasing his grip on the two Shinigami he was holding. The two corpses, now shriveled and emaciated as if devoured from the inside by insects, thudded to the ground.
"Perfect. Since you've delivered yourself to me, I'll capture you to hand over. I can also pin all the missing Shinigami cases on you."
Feeling the abundant reiatsu within him, Mashō felt as if he had reached the limit of a Shinigami's power. Even Yamamoto might not be my match now.
"I see. Able to absorb others' spiritual pressure and convert it into your own? An interesting experimental specimen."
Having witnessed Mashō's absorption process, Aizen developed a keen interest in this ability. Understanding its principles would undoubtedly advance his Hōgyoku experiments.
"Still putting on airs even at death's door? Today, I'll let you experience the power of a Captain-level combatant."
"A word of advice: those who truly possess power never need words to prove themselves."
Slowly drawing the Zanpakutō at his waist, Aizen murmured softly.
"Shatter, Kyōka Suigetsu."
The moment he saw Aizen draw his sword, Kensei immediately reached out to cover Yoruichi's eyes beside him while simultaneously shutting his own eyes and lowering his head. He had no desire to fall under Aizen's hypnosis like that. I won't take a skill unless Aizen begs me to!
"What are you doing?!"
Yoruichi had just seen the mysterious person draw his Zanpakutō when Kensei covered her eyes. She had wanted to analyze the intel so they could swoop in after the two fought each other to a standstill.
Only when the sounds in his ears faded did Kensei cautiously peek out to assess the situation, withdrawing his hand from Yoruichi's eyes. Thinking about it now, that might have been unnecessary. For all I know, I'm already under Kyōka Suigetsu's effect; that was just for psychological comfort.
"What's wrong? Weren't you acting so arrogant just a moment ago? Now you don't even have the strength to fight back?"
Watching Mashō scream wildly while slashing at empty air, Kensei lamented at how impressive Aizen's Kyōka Suigetsu truly was, capable of affecting even a Captain-level opponent.
Dammit, how great would it be if I had that complete hypnosis ability? I'm an expert at hypnosis!
Remembering his own Zanpakutō was still just an Asauchi, Kensei felt his teeth were shattered with envy.
"Wrong! This isn't the real body!"
Grabbing onto 'Aizen', Mashō prepared to absorb the mysterious person's spiritual pressure, but the concentration of energy transmitted through his hand was completely off. Being a Captain-level fighter, his wealth of experience made him realize this wasn't the real person.
An illusion? When?!
Aizen stood to the side, watching like someone observing a monkey performing tricks at a zoo, contemplating how to handle Mashō. While he wanted to tie him up and drag him to his laboratory to contribute to the Hōgyoku's completion, the thought that the Captain-Commander would undoubtedly increase manpower to search for him if Mashō disappeared...
Problematic...
"Bankai — Soul-Devouring Blade!"
Enraged at realizing he'd been completely played by the mysterious person, Mashō roared. His Zanpakutō erupted in a blinding silver light.
Fully released, the Zanpakutō seemed alive, burrowing into Mashō's body. Countless sharp, serrated blades sprouted from his skin. His soft hair transformed into needle-like blade structures, clanging as his spiritual pressure surged.
Post-Bankai, Mashō resembled a humanoid Zanpakutō more than a person. His violent spiritual pressure, sharp as blades, carved deep furrows into the nearby ground.
"Show yourself!"
Countless sharp blades rained down from Mashō's body in all directions. If I don't know where the mysterious person is hiding, I'll just attack everywhere. Mashō closed his eyes, enhancing his senses, trying to detect the slightest fluctuation of spiritual pressure around him.
Aizen's Kyōka Suigetsu wasn't ideal against such a wide-area, dense attack. He had to mobilize spiritual pressure to use Kidō for defense. However, Kyōka Suigetsu's hypnosis affected all five senses and spiritual perception. He randomly simulated spiritual pressure in another location.
"Found you."
Detecting the spiritual pressure fluctuation, Mashō's expression turned ferocious. He instantly shot towards the perceived location, his two arms transforming into sharp blades, intent on piercing the mysterious figure.
Whoa! Why is he charging at me instead of Aizen?!
Aizen watched Mashō rush towards the unknown location, then was astonished to see two figures in black cloaks appear. Wait, were there really other people here?
Kensei and Yoruichi split up to dodge the attack of the plum needles. Looking at the two newly appeared black-clad figures, even Aizen found it hard to remain calm now.
"And who are you two?!"
His supposedly flawless attack plan was disrupted by two figures in black appearing out of nowhere; Mashō's anger was understandable.
"Since you asked so sincerely, I will mercifully tell you!"
Hearing the somewhat familiar style, Aizen's lips twitched involuntarily. It felt like that dim-witted Kensei. Not sure, let's see.
"I am the dashing Sakata Gintoki! This carefree one is Kagura! As for this one..." Kensei walked over to Aizen and expertly put his arm around his shoulder, "This is the invisible person and my pet, Shimura Shinpachi! Nickname Sadaharu!"
Alright, now it's confirmed. It's Kensei. So the other one is probably Yoruichi Shihōin.
Hearing this nonsense, Aizen was so angry that he directly swung his sword at Kensei, who barely managed to dodge.
"Sōsuke, it's me, Kensei! We're on the same side here!"
Kensei leaned close to Aizen's ear and whispered. Yoruichi watched with a very subtle expression as Kensei cozied up to the mysterious person, feeling she probably shouldn't have brought him along.
"Bastards! One after another, all looking down on me!"
Being toyed with repeatedly by small fries he considered insects, Mashō's sanity was almost burned out by rage. Like a raging stone golem, he slammed into the trio of Kensei. He would completely devour the spiritual pressure of these three insects, then push the limits to become the Soul Society's strongest.
"This is why I always say these purely offensive Bankai are the most useless."
Watching Mashō, who had long been misled by Aizen, stumbling around aimlessly, Kensei hoped his own Zanpakutō wouldn't be some embarrassing physics-related type... unless its stats were ridiculously high like Zangetsu.
Kensei and Yoruichi activated Shunkō and simultaneously used Ikotsu to slam into the headless, fly-like plum needles. Behind them, Aizen adjusted his physics to use Bakudō, temporarily slowing Mashō's movements. The impact of the two Ikotsus directly shattered the blades covering Mashō's surface. If not for that hard blade layer absorbing the majority of the damage, Mashō would now have several extra holes like Kishita and Shirakura.
"So, you should drop the disguise now, shouldn't you? Kensei's roommate — Sōsuke Aizen."
After dealing with Mashō, Yoruichi warily addressed the still-unclear figure of Aizen. Kensei hadn't met Many people were involved, and even fewer were those he knew as friends. Yoruichi could easily deduce this.
With a sigh, Aizen removed the Kidō covering his body, his mind racing with thoughts of what to do next. Fighting was certainly not an option. If necessary, he could only retreat temporarily, hide, and wait until his research was complete before leaving the Soul Society.
Kensei was deeply valued by Yamamoto. He shouldn't have led him astray. From the moment he began researching the forbidden Hōgyoku, he had already embarked on a path of no return.
Before Aizen could even speak to bid farewell to Kensei, the tense atmosphere was completely dispelled by Kensei's next nonsensical remark.
***
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