69 Kōdoku no Ken

(3rd Person POV)

The years passed in the usual routine. Yamamoto was making a name for himself. He was getting very famous as one of the strongest Shinigami ever and that was not a lie. He truly was a monster with his Zanpakuto. But he also didn't neglect his other skills. 

Every once in a while when Yamamoto went to visit Eimin with his wife, they would spar together and Eimin would make sure that Yamamoto's armed and unarmed combat was still improving or at least not getting any worse. Whenever it seemed that Yamamoto was slacking off and only using the power of Ryujin Jakka, Eimin would beat him black and blue and have him train with him for days without rest.

Nobutsuna Shigyō was also getting rather famous. Not as much as Yamamoto because he wasn't a natural leader like Yamamoto was. Yamamoto's charisma and strength of character made him stand out and pull people in, strangely. But Nobutsuna didn't have that. He liked to spend his time fighting and also going about his other interests ... women ... 

Eimin had already told Nobutsuna not to focus on women and rather spend his time productively, but Nobutsuna realised that Eimin was just depressed whenever he saw Nobutsuna with a woman because he missed Senjumaru. And that was true. Eimin was trying to hold out on seeing her before she wanted to do that. 

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Eimin had kept track of Senjumaru's progress over the years and saw her navigate through life as a 'gamer' and a 'seamstress'. He was very proud of her and knew that if she continued on the Special Quests he had created especially for her ... then she would become truly powerful. So powerful in fact that he could take her with him to the DC universe without her feeling inferior.

Since he had known about Senjumaru's plans to join the dumb Zero Divison and protect the puppet that used to be his friend, he thought about what to do. He knew that she wanted to get powerful on her own but that would not make her nearly as powerful as she wanted to be. The Bleach world was strong but it was nowhere near enough when compared to the dangers of the DC Universe.

So he gave her the system the day she left. It was the best way to get strong on her own and still have some form of control and be able to help her. He planned the Special Quests to help her grow stronger in a field that she liked and that fit her. Eimin had planned for a while now to remove the three 'sisters' known as the Morai, or the three Fates, from existence. 

He hated those three for messing with everything that they thought they could. Everything had to go as they wished and it turned his family against him. He didn't care about Zeus or Metis, he didn't even care about Hera or Poseidon. But he was sad about Hestia and Demeter, who he invested so much time in to raise and the moment the fates fuck around they change his sisters to the way they were before.

So they were going to pay and you can believe that. 

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The question of who would then fill the role never crossed his mind before he met Senjumaru. He would take the position himself and be done with it. But now ... now he knew that giving all that power to his future wife was the best thing he could do. But he didn't want to push it on her. He wanted to tell her about his plans to kill the three f*cks and then offer her the position they held. 

You might be wondering why he didn't want to offer Senjumaru the power of the fates. Well, when Senjumaru got to the last 'Special Quest', she would not only be able to take it for herself if she wanted, but she would probably be stronger than them by that point. 

Yes. Eimin's Special Quest for Senjumaru was that broken. But don't get your panties in a twist, he made the rewards proportional to the difficulty of the quests. The difficulties would gradually rise and the opponents she would have to face or the Quest Requirements would become harder and harder.

But in the end, everything was made the perfect way for Senjumaru to grow and gain power.

He saw that she was close to finishing the second Quest and getting her rewards. But it was still some time before that would happen. 

Eimin made sure that her opponents were either strong enough to face her or they were stronger than their originals so that it was hard for Senjumaru to win. 

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Yachiru Unohana was growing up nicely. She was truly a prodigy with the sword. Her battle lust had somewhat dimmed but she still loved to fight and would spend days doing nothing else.

After a few years of training with Eimin, she didn't come every day anymore. She'd rather fight real people who give her a feeling of a challenge. What this meant was that she liked the uncertainty of whether she could win or if she would die. When fighting Eimin, she was sure that she would lose ... EVERY SINGLE TIME.

But when fighting against someone other than Eimin, there was the chance of death that she seemed to love. Nothing was certain and that was the thrill of the fight. 

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(Nobutsuna POV)

I was currently standing in front of Eimin in the training field. It was the open one without anything else in it. I came here today to show him the progress I made with my Zanpakuto. It has been a while since I got this Zanpakuto, but I was never able to activate Shikai no matter how long I meditated.

Eimin was trying to get me to calm down, to have me go inside my inner world and speak with my Zanpakuto spirit. But I was just unable to get into the right mindset. That was until just recently when I almost lost against that ... midget of a woman. I managed to get into a calm state just before I was about to die.

I heard a voice that called out to me. I found out that it was my Zanpakuto spirit calling to me and wanting me to hear it. So when I finally did, I was happy about that. I didn't feel like a whole fighter without knowing my Zanpakuto's blade. 

I didn't always think like this. Eimin taught me that arrogance was a fighter's doom. 

He said that a true fighter uses every tool available to them and doesn't care whether it would make a fight 'unfair'. There is no such thing as fair and unfair in a fight. Just winners and losers. So no matter what, I would not be able to call myself a true fighter if I neglect my Zanpakuto. At first, I didn't agree with him but he said he also knew the name of his Zanpakuto. If anyone was a fighter it was Eimin. So that convinced me to try and communicate with my Zanpakuto.

And now after years of being unsuccessful, I finally have my own Shikai. 

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"Release your venomous sting, Kōdoku no Ken" - (The Venomous Blade)

As I released my Shikai, my Zanpakuto began to release a purple poisonous mist. The surroundings begin to take on a purple colour as the concentration of my poison increases. 

The edge of my Zanpakuto begins to drip poison but in a fluid state. 'Kōdoku no Ken' is a very vicious and dangerous Zanpakuto. But not only for my enemies. I am also susceptible to the effects of the poison. Thankfully my Zanpakuto grants me a very high amount of resistance but it is not immunity. 

Basically, my Shikai grants me three things.

Venomous Strike: When 'Kōdoku no Ken' cuts an opponent, the blade releases potent venom into the wound. The venom induces weakness, paralysis, and hallucinations, making it difficult or impossible for the victim to fight effectively. This depends on the amount of Reiryoku someone has. The more concentrated someone's Reiryoku is, the less damage the Venomous strike does and the longer it takes to take effect.

Toxic Aura: 'Kōdoku no Ken' can emit a poisonous mist, creating an area around me that weakens and slows down anyone within its radius. The longer an opponent stays within this mist, the more potent the effects become. 

Serpentine Attack and Defense: 'Kōdoku no Ken' can create a defensive barrier made of swirling toxic mist, making it difficult for opponents to approach. The mist can also corrode and weaken any projectiles that come into contact with it.

Overall these should be the powers Kōdoku no Ken has, but I don't have access to all of them right now and only in a weak form. But I only wish to showcase it to Eimin and not defeat him with it. I am curious though how he will fare against Kōdoku no Ken's poison. 

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Eimin only stands there and looks at me as I begin to pump more and more poisonous mist into the air and into my blade. He is holding his cane in front of him and watches me prepare. He is in no hurry right now and only shows interest. I know that he is strong but this is just blatant disrespect towards my Zanpakuto.

I rush towards him and slash. The fluid poison splashes all around in an arc. But it misses Eimin as he dodges to the side. It seems he understands or at least guesses what the powers of my Zanpakuto are, due to its name. 

I tried again to slash him but with no luck. He keeps dodging. And we get nowhere due to him not attacking me. I smile at this tactic because I must believe that I am also weak to the poison in the area. But he is wrong, this amount is still nothing to me. I can't wait for him to notice the effects of the poison mist that is everywhere right now. 

The fight can take a while though and I try to make him use more of his spirit energy. 

I begin to gather the poison mist around me and it begins to move in a circular pattern. I concentrate and will the shape to take on a giant snake. As I focus Eimin is still only looking at me and waiting for the attack to come. I finish my preparation and then attack him with the Poison Serpent. 

The poison serpent's head is nearly three times my size and dwarfs Eimin. It rushes towards him and bites down. However just as it is about to bite him, I hear him speak.

"Shakkahō"

I watch as a small red orb of energy, collides with the poison serpent and then ... makes the entire thing explode from the inside. All the poison is evaporated due to the high temperature. The poison of Kōdoku no Ken is highly flammable and Eimin used that against the attack. 

"Did you think I was so easy to defeat, Nobutsuna? I you wish to defeat me ... train for another million years."

That f*cker.

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(Hades POV)

After that little show of Nobutsuna's Shikai abilities, we sat in the garden and enjoyed some refreshments and food, which Kikimaru prepared. 

"You have an impressive Zanpakuto, Nobutsuna. If you continue to train you will become one of the most powerful Shinigami and one of the most feared and dangerous as well. That poison was very potent and someone with less spirit energy than me would have surely been affected. 

There are weaknesses, however. You are not immune to your own poison. From what I saw, you do have a high resistance but not immunity. I believe you can train to increase your resistance with time. So you should try and expose yourself to your poison in short bursts and increase the amount slowly. 

As for the second weakness ... well it is fire. Any ability that concerns high amounts of heat or fire, is dangerous for you. Yamamoto would smoke you with his Shikai ... literally. So don't try and use your poison mist without knowing what your opponent can do. 

Other than that ... I believe you have a marvellous Zanpakuto."