"Bankai—Daiguren Hyōrinmaru!"
The instant the words fell, visible waves of frost erupted around Tōshirō Hitsugaya.
Cold Reiatsu surged from the blade of Hyorinmaru, spiraling outward like a raging blizzard. The air itself seemed to wail under the pressure of that overwhelming cold.
Then—
the world changed.
The once-clear sky was swallowed by dense frost clouds. Freezing winds howled across the battlefield in relentless waves. The sea stopped moving entirely, its surface sealing over into crystalline ice.
The entire Fred Sea—
had become a frozen hell.
Just the pressure of his Bankai alone had reshaped the battlefield.
"What… what is happening?!"
"Is this some kind of natural disaster?! What did that man do?!"
"It's too cold… my blood… it feels like it's freezing…"
All across the warships, Marine soldiers looked up in terror.
The swirling frost had completely blotted out the sun.
Darkness fell.
Temperature plummeted.
Life itself seemed to be drained from everything within this domain.
A disaster—one that inspired pure despair—had descended.
On one of the warships
"Well now… even Captain Hitsugaya has released his Bankai."
Gin Ichimaru tilted his head slightly, gazing up at the sky with his ever-present smile.
"The strongest ice-type Zanpakutō… it really can freeze an entire sea."
Not far in front of him, a corpse lay collapsed in a pool of blood.
Vice Admiral Wilton.
Both of his arms had been severed. A gaping hole pierced through his chest.
Even with strong Observation Haki, he had been killed in less than a thousandth of a second.
Against Shinsō—
he had never stood a chance.
The moment Gin's blade pointed at him, the battle had already ended.
"How boring. I was hoping you'd last a little longer."
Gin's gaze shifted lazily away from the corpse and landed on the remaining Marines, who stood frozen in fear.
He rested Shinsō at his side and took a slow step forward.
"D-Don't come any closer!"
Having witnessed Wilton's death firsthand, the Marines' minds had already collapsed.
A butcher?
An executioner?
No—
in their eyes, Gin Ichimaru was something far worse than either.
A demon.
"Oh, don't worry. I just came to have a little chat." Gin smiled gently. "If I just stand around watching, Captain Ren Kuro might think I'm slacking off."
As he spoke, his blade was already leveled.
The next moment—
his smile was swallowed by killing intent.
In less than a thousandth of a second, another invisible slash cut through the air.
Hundreds of Marines—
every single soldier aboard that warship—
were cut cleanly in half.
Blood flooded the deck.
The entire ship had been annihilated in an instant.
Not a single survivor remained.
And yet—
Gin hadn't even gotten serious.
"Too weak."
His voice dropped slightly as he looked toward the remaining ships.
"If you don't hand over Fisher Tiger soon… you'll all be wiped out."
Back to the main battlefield
As the icy mist dispersed slightly, Hitsugaya's figure reappeared.
After releasing Bankai, his appearance had completely changed.
Behind him spread a pair of enormous ice wings.
His arms and legs were encased in crystalline ice, forming armor reminiscent of a dragon's body. Above his wings floated three faintly glowing, purple, cross-shaped ice flowers.
Even in this incomplete Bankai state—
he radiated absolute confidence.
Against Aokiji—
he had no intention of losing.
"So this is your full power?" Aokiji stared up at Hitsugaya, shock rippling through him. From the boy's body, he could sense an overwhelming danger.
It was like—
a grazing animal suddenly encountering a predator.
A primal fear crept into his instincts.
"Who knows." Hitsugaya exhaled a breath of frost, his voice cold and indifferent. His wings spread wide, glimmering under the dimmed sunlight.
"You've become colder… in more ways than one," Aokiji muttered, frowning.
His gaze swept across the battlefield—
and his heart sank.
The entire sea had already been frozen solid.
At its center, a massive frozen trench had formed.
To cross it—
one would have to face Hitsugaya directly.
An impossible task.
"I already told you. There's no need to waste time."
Hitsugaya lifted Daiguren Hyorinmaru, his tone calm, almost lazy.
"No matter what you do… this fight will end quickly."
"…You brat."
Even Aokiji's patience had its limits. Being provoked again and again, the calm Admiral finally erupted.
Cold surged violently from his body.
"Don't get ahead of yourself!"
"Try it." Hitsugaya pointed his blade forward.
In the next instant—
his wings beat once.
And he shot forward.
"Ice Time!"
Aokiji surged upward as well, frost erupting from both hands as he stepped through the air.
Under countless watching eyes—
the two collided midair.
And in the instant their bodies crossed—
a low voice whispered beside Aokiji's ear.
"Admiral…"
"You'll be buried beneath the cold of a greater power."
Hitsugaya turned slightly, his blade moving in a quiet arc.
The moisture in the air gathered instantly.
Then—
froze.
"Thousand-Year Ice Prison!"
The moment the words fell, Daiguren Hyorinmaru erupted with blinding light.
All of Hitsugaya's Reiatsu poured into the blade.
The freezing energy flooded the air—
and in a single instant—
every drop of moisture crystallized.
Aokiji had no time to react.
The atmosphere itself solidified.
Massive pillars of ice formed in the sky—
locking him completely within.
A prison formed of ice—
absolute and inescapable.
The battle—
had been decided.
◇ I'll drop one bonus chapter for every 10 reviews (leave a review/comment!)
◇ One bonus chapter will be released for every 100 Power Stones.
◇ Read 60 chapters ahead on P@treon: patreon.com/KageNaruto