58 Chapter 58: Metastacia

Yamahiko followed the inspection corp member out of the Seireitei, heading in the direction of the Southern Rukongai.

He halted his steps and said, "I'll go on my own from here; you can go back."

"Understood," the inspector replied, then turned and left.

There were a couple of reasons for him to send the inspector back. First, the inspector returned early, just knowing the direction and not the destination, which wouldn't be particularly useful. The other reason was that Aizen should be observing the situation on-site, so if he noticed any premature preparations, it could raise suspicion.

His current objective was to disguise himself as if it were his first time going there and accidentally stumble upon their battle.

With this in mind, he began to sense Miyako Shiba's spiritual energy(reiryoku). The battle had not started yet, so the reiatsu wasn't particularly strong.

But as he moved forward and reached the 4th District, he noticed a vague spiritual pressure in the distance. It wasn't very powerful, but it was detectable.

It's quite far.

Using Shunpo, he rapidly increased his speed, closing the distance instantly.

Getting closer.

He sensed that the reiatsu was right ahead and charged forward, entering a cavern.

At the entrance of the cavern, a medium-sized Hollow, Metastacia, crouched there. Its body was robust, with six legs supporting it, and its back and neck were covered in tentacle-like hair.

This was Metastacia.

Currently, Metastacia was engaged in combat with a woman, who was already injured and covered in blood. She appeared to be struggling. That woman was Miyako Shiba.

Apart from these two, the ground was littered with bodies.

With a loud thud, Yamahiko appeared, interrupting their battle. Metastacia was slightly stunned, giving Miyako the opportunity to create some distance. She stood not far away, gazing at Yamahiko, and said, "Yamahiko, hurry and leave. This hollow can neutralize Zanpakuto."

Miyako knew Yamahiko, and she was well aware of his close relationship with her husband. Upon seeing him, she instinctively wanted him to depart.

Upon hearing her words, Yamahiko asked in return, "Neutralize Zanpakuto?"

Metastacia, upon hearing this, said, "That's right, I can neutralize Zanpakuto. Release your Zanpakuto."

Yamahiko inwardly chuckled, understanding that he was trying to persuade him not to release his Zanpakuto.

Metastacia possessed two abilities. The first was fusion and devouring, allowing it to enter a spiritual being and control their body. The second was Zanpakuto neutralization. This neutralization was restricted, as it only affected the first Zanpakuto touch on its arm each day.

In the original story, Kaien encountered Metastacia on the second day, and his Zanpakuto was neutralized. Metastacia then explained its abilities, entered Kaein's body, and incapacitated and injured Rukia who was also unable to fight, so the situation was left to Ukitake.

Yamahiko was aware that Metastacia couldn't neutralize his Zanpakuto, but he couldn't let on.

So, Yamahiko responded, "Even if my Zanpakuto can't release, I can still deal with you."

Leaving these words behind, lightning erupted from his right hand and legs, coursing through his body.

Shunko-Raijin.

"What kind of technique is this? Never mind, I'll kill you first."

Metastacia and Miyako Shiba were somewhat surprised, but the former didn't mind, as long as he didn't use his Zanpakuto, nothing unexpected would happen.

The fighting ability of most Shinigami depended on their Zanpakuto's abilities. Most Shinigami only possessed intermediate-level Kido, so they didn't pose much threat to medium-sized Hollows.

Metastacia charged towards Yamahiko, but his figure disappeared without a trace.

"Where is he?"

Metastacia was left stunned, searching for Yamahiko's trace. In just an instant, with a "puff," a long blade pierced his neck.

With the physical strength of most Shinigami, it was challenging to pierce through Metastacia's skin. As, without her Zanpakuto, Miyako was no match for him. But Yamahiko was different. His rich supply of lightning-based spiritual energy gave him tremendous power.

However, this single strike wasn't too deep, as the moment he was pierced, Metastacia's hair swept towards Yamahiko.

Yamahiko could only withdraw his long blade, disappear, and reappear at his side, slashing with his long blade.

Pfft.

One of Metastacia's arms was severed, and his body staggered. Once again, the hair attacked.

Yamahiko's figure vanished once more.

Metastacia couldn't keep up with Yamahiko's speed.

However, he wasn't without a plan. He clenched his teeth and charged toward Miyako Shiba.

If he couldn't win, he'd enter Miyako's body and control her. Seeing that these two individuals knew each other, there would certainly be concerns. Though their fighting abilities would decrease, they had no other choice.

Metastacia's body abruptly shrank as he charged towards Miyako.

But just as he was about to touch Miyako, a great force pulled him back. Yamahiko's left hand had grasped one of Metastacia's legs. A flash of lightning enveloped it, reeling him in.

"Damn it."

Metastacia's hair swept towards Yamahiko once more, completely engulfing him in an instant.

"Yamahiko!"

Miyako shouted, charging towards Metastacia. The blade in her hand thrust towards his face. But before she could strike, multiple blue lights soared, and Metastacia's back exploded. Each hair strand was severed.

Then, Yamahiko reappeared on Metastacia's back, his Zanpakuto shrouded in blue light.

"Raikiri."

This was a technique Yamahiko had recreated, similar to the one in Naruto. Instead of condensing the blade with thunder, he used high-density lightning energy to cover the long sword, increasing its power.

Whoosh.

The long blade directly cleaved Metastacia in half.

"Ah!"

Metastacia let out a roar and slowly collapsed to the ground.

Yamahiko sheathed his sword and approached Miyako Shiba, asking, "Are you alright?"

Miyako finally relaxed and, looking at Yamahiko, curiously asked, "Yamahiko, how did you suddenly appear here?"

Yamahiko scratched his head and replied, "I was born in the Inuzuri district of Southern Rukongai. I wanted to go back and visit, but I sensed reiatsu, so I came here."

Miyako nodded and said, "I see. Without you, I might have died here."

She shuddered at the thought of what might have happened and thanked Yamahiko for his help.

Yamahiko smiled and said, "You're too kind. I think you could have turned the situation around even without me."

Miyako looked at the corpses on the ground and said, "But all of my teammates are dead."

Yamahiko agreed and said, "In that case, I won't go to the Inuzuri district today. I'll accompany you, to report this matter. Hollows capable of nullifying Zanpakuto are not to be underestimated."

Most importantly, they needed to leave this place quickly, as they had no idea where Aizen might be.

"You're right."

Miyako realized that leaving was the best course of action. She and Yamahiko swiftly departed.

...

"Oh dear, it was killed. What a pity."

In the sky above Metastacia, there were two figures wearing black cloaks. One of them was Gin Ichimaru, crouching there with a mischievous smile on his face.

Gin Ichimaru and Sosuke Aizen had been staying in the area above Metastacia, but neither Yamahiko nor Miyako Shiba could detect their presence.

This was due to the black cloaks they wore, a re-work of the one developed by Kisuke Urahara. These cloaks were made from special materials that completely suppressed spiritual pressure. They also had a special Kido applied to conceal their presence, making it impossible for even captain-level individuals to detect them.

Shinji Hirako was ambushed from behind by Aizen using this method, which led to his battle with the Visored.

Aizen said, "I never thought that little guy would pass through here."

Gin Ichimaru smiled and said, "He's indeed quite strong. Achieving this level of power without even using a Zanpakuto, they say he's already at a captain-level strength, and I'd say that's accurate."

Aizen nodded and added, "Yes, his strength is remarkable. He has even more potential than Toshiro Hitsugaya."

Gin Ichimaru, curious, asked, "Should we kill him? After all, he foiled Captain Aizen's experiment. If needed, I can take care of it."

With that, Gin Ichimaru licked his lips, showing a strong desire for battle.

"You can't seem to resist when you find suitable prey," Aizen remarked.

Aizen shook his head and continued, "No need to kill him. Metastacia experiment is a success by nullifying Miyako Shiba's Zanpakuto. The fight with Yamahiko, on the other hand, exposed its weakness. It's too weak in close combat, and its reaction speed is too slow. Thanks to Yamahiko, I have a new direction to work on."

~End of the chapter.~

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Note: There will be no chapter released tomorrow, but I will upload 10 chapters on Patreon. I already have 7 chapters translated, and I will translate 3 more tomorrow and upload them on Patreon as two separate tiers, with 5 chapters and 10 chapters.

I'll also include a small announcement chapter tomorrow.