"I've almost remembered your foolish and childish plan, but I can't be bothered to learn more," Masatsuki Aozaki said casually.
"If I spend too much time talking to someone as immature as you, Aizen will mock me."
A faint smile played at the corner of his lips as he slowly raised his hand, pointing a single finger precisely at Kenpachi Azashiro.
In the next instant, an overwhelming and terrifying Reiatsu surged in his palm.
Boom!!
A black-and-white pillar of light shot from his fingertips like a bolt of lightning!
Chant abandoned—
Hadō No. 4: Byakurai!
Masatsuki Aozaki smiled indifferently, but a cold glint flickered in his eyes. The streak of black-and-white lightning carried an unstoppable force as it shot forth, enveloping Kenpachi Azashiro's entire body.
Azashiro's form shattered instantly under the impact—but just as quickly, it reassembled.
"Trying to run now?" Masatsuki Aozaki snorted.
"Too late!"
In a flash, he moved like light itself, his fist crashing forward with the force of a thunderclap.
Azashiro didn't even consider dodging.
He knew it was impossible.
Instead, he chose to meet Masatsuki Aozaki's fist head-on.
With a deafening explosion, Azashiro's entire body burst apart, dissolving into a scattering of Reishi.
But in the very next second—
Several dozen meters away, another Kenpachi Azashiro emerged.
He was already preparing to manipulate the surroundings and launch an attack.
However, to his shock, Masatsuki Aozaki was already there, waiting at the exact spot where he had materialized.
"Pointless struggle."
Another punch.
Azashiro was blown apart once more.
In the past, such attacks would have meant nothing to him. He only needed to merge with the surrounding matter and reclaim his scattered Reishi to resurrect himself endlessly.
If Masatsuki Aozaki had the stamina, he could keep punching forever. Even if he exhausted himself, fists alone could never truly kill Azashiro.
As long as the Seireitei remained, he would not die.
If you have what it takes, then destroy the Seireitei!
However... that wasn't an option now.
His earlier words were nothing more than an attempt to put pressure on Masatsuki Aozaki.
Muken was layered with countless seals and barriers, all designed to weaken prisoners like him.
Here, even a Zanpakutō's abilities were severely restricted.
Trapped in this prison, he had no control over external Reishi—the only function they could serve was surveillance.
Even though his Bankai could still be maintained, both his fusion and control had been drastically weakened.
Simply put, the amount of his own Reishi required to reconstruct his body now was far greater than when he was outside.
And more importantly—
Masatsuki Aozaki's attacks didn't just shatter his body.
They were systematically destroying the Reishi that made up his existence.
Every "death" he suffered here drained him irreparably.
His true consciousness—his soul's core—was what had been imprisoned.
If the Reishi in this place were to be completely depleted…
Even if there were fragments of him remaining outside—
There would be no escape from death.
Although his soul wouldn't be completely annihilated, a Captain-class Reiatsu would ultimately fall into Hell.
However, in a pure soul state, he would lose all self-awareness, reduced to a primitive existence—mindless, devoid of ego or thought. In such a state, even Bankai could no longer be maintained. The Reishi that had once fused with Seireitei would fully become part of the natural world.
As his body was blown apart once more, Kenpachi Azashiro realized this couldn't continue.
He didn't immediately reconstruct himself. Instead, he manipulated the dwindling Reishi he had left and scattered like the wind, drifting into the distance.
Muken had long been reshaped into a unique space, layered with countless barriers. It was a chaotic void—devoid of light, indistinguishable from darkness, and even Reiatsu perception was hazy and unreliable.
If he could put enough distance between himself and Masatsuki Aozaki, avoiding direct confrontation, then it would be difficult for the other man to pinpoint his presence in a short amount of time.
Even if Masatsuki Aozaki's Reiatsu perception was extraordinary, with billions of Reishi dispersed across every corner of Muken, completely eradicating him would be impossible—unless Masatsuki Aozaki obliterated Muken itself.
This was Muken, the deepest prison for Soul Society's most dangerous criminals, fortified with countless defensive measures.
Masatsuki Aozaki couldn't remain here indefinitely.
If Azashiro could hide long enough, he might just be able to wait him out.
With that thought, he let out a faint breath of relief.
But at that moment—
A sudden, violent gale erupted from nowhere!
Boom!!
A deafening explosion rang out as a surge of Reiatsu crashed like a tidal wave. The very fabric of space seemed to twist, the world spinning in disarray, and the air itself trembled under the pressure.
This wind… it can't be fused.
The sheer force of the Reiatsu within it repels my Reishi.
Is this the power of Rangiku Matsumoto's Zanpakutō?
No… this Reiatsu…
A sense of disbelief overtook Azashiro as he turned his gaze behind him.
And what he saw was—
Masatsuki Aozaki.
Standing there, utterly at ease, hands at his sides.
The raging wind howled around him, laced with streaks of white Reiatsu, billowing his robes as it poured from his very being.
The immense force he radiated sent shivers down the spines of every imprisoned Shinigami still clinging to life in this place.
And then, despite their fear, excitement stirred in them as they stared at the chaotic, empty void ahead.
A foreign Reiatsu…
It wasn't Yamamoto. It wasn't Shunsui Kyōraku. It wasn't Jūshirō Ukitake.
Since when did Soul Society have someone like this?
What a terrifying Reiatsu… Could even that old man Yamamoto match this?
An extraordinary monster had arrived.
What was someone like this doing here?
Azashiro wanted to flee.
But against this Reiatsu—one that far exceeded the limits of any Shinigami—how could he possibly escape?
Masatsuki Aozaki's presence sent shockwaves through all of Muken.
The sheer intensity of his unleashed Reiatsu evoked both fear and reverence.
And Kenpachi Azashiro—before such overwhelming power—felt utterly powerless.
He tried to run, but quickly realized he couldn't.
This suffocating despair made it clear—Masatsuki Aozaki's strength was beyond anything he had ever imagined.
A crushing wave of Reiatsu surged through the space.
Azashiro's body, still in particle form, was forcibly expelled, re-materializing against his will. He crashed to the ground, disoriented and disheveled.
He looked down at himself in shock, his body suddenly unresponsive.
But what stunned him even more—
Masatsuki Aozaki had completely enveloped the space with his Reiatsu, precisely locking onto every single Reishi.
And with terrifying precision, he had forcibly expelled Azashiro's Reishi from its fused state.
Was such mastery even possible for a mere Shinigami?
Even the Quincy, renowned for their control over Reishi, would struggle to achieve something like this!
For the first time, fear crept into Azashiro's heart.
The composure and elegance he had displayed upon entering had long since vanished.
Now, he was kneeling on the ground, gasping for breath, his gaze locked onto Masatsuki Aozaki—full of confusion and horror.
What the hell is this guy?!
This was Muken.
The eighth level of the True Underworld Prison, suppressed by countless layers of powerful barriers.
And yet, even with all these restraints, he was still able to release such an unfathomable surge of Reiatsu?
This… this was no power a Shinigami should possess!
In all these years I haven't seen him… just what has happened to him?
I thought I had everything under control.
How did things turn out like this?!