Chapter 45: Descend

"Descend, Raijinmaru,"

[Note: Raijin is the Shintō god of lightning, thunder, and storms. "Maru", meaning "perfection" or "full circle"]

With Yamahiko's low chanting, his Zanpakuto had vanished from his hand.

At some point, thick dark clouds had gathered in the sky, forming a towering wall that stretched across the horizon. Amidst these dark clouds, blue arcs of electricity crackled and shone.

"Oh?"

Seeing this, Kenpachi Zaraki stopped in his tracks, looking up at the sky.

Roar after roar echoed through the air as thunder rumbled louder and louder.

Boom!

Another deafening crash, and a bolt of lightning descended from the sky, striking just before Yamahiko.

Lying there, Yamahiko suddenly reached out and caught the lightning.

The next moment, the lightning transformed into a short spear, about four feet three inches in length. It was entirely azure, with four facets along the spearhead that shimmered with a cold light.

This short spear was enveloped in a blue electric aura, and electrical arcs ran along Yamahiko's right arm into his body, surrounding him and continuously flashing.

"Is this your Shikai? You're becoming more interesting," Zaraki said, raising the sword in his hand with a pleased smile.

Yamahiko slowly stood up, calmly looking at Kenpachi Zaraki and saying, "Captain Zaraki, I would like you to remove your eyepatch. Otherwise, I'm afraid I might kill you."

Kenpachi Zaraki possessed formidable strength, but he was not only limited by his eyepatch but also by his own seals. While his hidden power was significant, if Yamahiko unleashed a force far beyond what was currently displayed, it could potentially kill him. If Zaraki intended to kill him, Yamahiko also would not hold back.

However, Yamahiko preferred not to face an opponent with concealed power. He couldn't confront the version of Kenpachi Zaraki from a thousand years ago directly, or at the very least, he wanted him to remove his eyepatch before defeating him.

"Very well, you finally show some resemblance of a man, no longer that hypocritical kid."

Kenpachi Zaraki extended his hand and lifted his eyepatch. In the next moment, an overwhelming Reiatsu(spiritual pressure) surged into the sky.

Yamahiko felt the immense power of his opponent, and a smile formed on his lips.

"Come on."

...

"This is? Such a large area of dark clouds, but it's only in that specific region. It's not Kidō; it should be the ability of Zanpakutō. The power of this magnitude is not to be underestimated."

Kyōraku Shunsui sat in the cool pavilion of the squad barracks, holding a wine glass and gazing at the distant sky.

But then his expression changed.

"This Reiatsu, it's that guy, Kenpachi, is he in a battle?"

...

The Thirteenth Division's Captain, Jūshirō Ukitake, looked at the distant horizon and said, "It's a Zanpakutō of the elemental type."

Ukitake smiled, "Well, I'll know who it is once the battle ends.'

...

In the Fifth Division, Sōsuke Aizen sat in his chair, gazing at the sky outside, and gently asked, "Gin, do you remember which Zanpakutō can influence the weather?"

Gin Ichimaru, the current Vice-Captain of the Fifth Division, smiled and answered, "The First Division's Vice-Captain, Chōjirō Sasakibe, has the Kōkō Gonryō Rikyū. Then there's the Tenth Division's Third Seat, Tōshirō Hitsugaya, with the Hyōrinmaru. And the Captain-Commander's Ryūjin Jakka can affect the weather through its scorching heat."

Aizen smiled and said, "It seems we have another one, I just wonder who it could be."

...

In the Fourth Division, Retsu Unohana sat under the eaves, holding a tea cup, and a faint smile appeared on her lips. "Eleventh Division's location? This Reiatsu indicates that young Zaraki is going all out."

...

The bizarre phenomenon in the sky and the overwhelming Reiatsu radiating from Kenpachi Zaraki and Yamahiko's battle made the people of Seireitei talk. Members of the Eleventh Division, who were relatively close to the battle site, had already retreated to a safer distance.'

Meanwhile, the two causing this phenomenon stood face to face, staring intently at each other without letting their guard down.

"You've mastered Shikai, but so what?"

With a fierce shout, Kenpachi Zaraki, launched the first attack. He leaped in front of Yamahiko, his blade aimed to strike.

This strike carried tremendous force, shattering the air around it. Accompanied by a sonic boom, the attack arrived in front of Yamahiko in an instant.

Faster speed, greater strength.

If it were the pre-Yamhiko, he wouldn't have been able to dodge. A single blow would have ended him right there.

However, Kenpachi Zaraki abruptly halted his downward swing, lifting his sword upward instead.

zz-zaap-BOOM!

From the sky, a lightning bolt struck down, hitting the blade in Kenpachi's hand.

"Lightning strike."

One of Yamahiko's Zanpakutō abilities is to summon lightning from the sky to attack his enemies.

Kenpachi Zaraki 's sword struck the lightning, and the metallic blade gathered the thunderbolt. In the next moment, electric arcs spread along the blade, running down Zaraki's arm and striking his body.

Hmph.

Zaraki abruptly swung his arm, sending the lightning flying and hitting the nearby wall.

Crash.

The wall shattered, and bricks and stones scattered on the ground.

Zaraki rubbed his shoulder and said, "Is that all the power you've got? It can't even scratch an itch for me."

"Of course, not just that."

Yamahiko spoke softly. In the next moment, lightning gathered in the sky once again, and bolts of lightning descended toward Kenpachi Zaraki's head.

Kenpachi Zaraki raised his sword to strike the lightning.

But there wasn't just one bolt descending.

BOOM, BOOM, BOOM.

Successive lightning bolts overwhelmed Kenpachi Zaraki. His body was enveloped in electric light, and he disappeared into the blue.

No matter how formidable you are, you can't stop this, can you?

But when the blue light dissipated, Kenpachi Zaraki, now covered in black soot, had a series of wounds on his body. The edges of these wounds had turned black.

Seeing Kenpachi Zaraki, who still had fighting strength, Yamahiko's eyes narrowed. He had managed to withstand several lightning strikes.

"I admit, it's quite powerful, but not enough."

The fighting spirit in Kenpachi Zaraki's eyes intensified as he raised his longsword and struck towards Yamahiko.

Yamahiko's eyes narrowed, and he raised the short spear in his hand, pointing it forward.

In the next moment, the spear's body emitted a brilliant blue light, converging at the tip of the spear and then unleashing its power

"Hiryū Gekizoku Shinten Raihō."

Yamahiko converted high-density Reishi into lightning attribute energy through his short spear and finally unleashed it from the spear tip, simulating the Hadō #88. Hiryū Gekizoku Shinten Raihō

A massive beam of lightning instantly covered Kenpachi Zaraki's body, directly enveloping him and extending into the distance.

Behind Zaraki, the 11th Division's barracks were pierced through by a blue light, as if it had taken a bite, instantly losing a portion.

This should bring you down, right?

Yamahiko was panting. Although the technique was powerful and not much inferior to the strength when unspoken Hadō #88, it consumed a tremendous amount of Reiryoku, making Yamahiko somewhat exhausted.

However, when the lightning dissipated, Zaraki Kenpachi was still standing there. His body was scorched on the front but blocked near the heart by a sword.

He can still stand? Is he even 'human'?

"Hahahaha, not bad. Do you have any more powerful techniques?" Kenpachi Zaraki emitted a hoarse voice and walked towards Yamahiko.

Seeing this scene, Yamahiko clenched his teeth. The electric light on his body gathered, forming a pair of thunder wings behind his back.

Zaraki walked up to Yamahiko and raised his longsword, preparing to strike again.

But just as his sword was about to fall, Yamahiko's figure disappeared and reappeared behind Kenpachi Zaraki.

"So fast."

Kenpachi Zaraki hadn't reacted yet, and Yamahiko was already behind him.

Moreover, the tip of his spear was pressed against Kenpachi Zaraki's back, just an inch away from piercing his heart.

"What a satisfying battle."

Kenpachi knew he had lost. He had a joyful expression on his face but was powerless to stop Yamahiko's attack.

However, the expected attack didn't come. Yamahiko's body went limp and fell to the ground, blood flowing all around.

With Yamahiko's fall, the lightning in the sky disappeared, and the dark clouds gradually dispersed.

"Oh?"

Kenpachi Zaraki raised an eyebrow, turned around, and looked at Yamahiko on the ground. He said, "It seems that the ability you used puts too much strain on your body, making it unable to support you, especially with your already severe injuries. Moreover, the technique requires an enormous amount of Reiryoku, and your current body is nearly depleted."

Kenpachi Zaraki sighed and continued, "I really didn't want to win like this."

After saying that, he threw his Zanpakuto to the side and said, "Hey, Captain Suì-Fēng, your squad officer completely wrecked my barracks. Shouldn't you take responsibility for it?"

As Kenpachi Zaraki finished speaking, a figure appeared beside him. This figure was not tall, dressed in a black combat uniform, and had the distinctive bobbed hairstyle. The cold and stern face showed a hint of concern.

The newcomer was Suì-Fēng.

Suì-Fēng glanced at Yamahiko and said to Kepachi Zaraki, "Captain Zaraki, I will personally pay for the repairs of your barracks. There won't be any negligence. Also, I want to thank you for what happened today."

Kenpachi waved his hand and said, "No need for thanks. When you asked for my help, I found it too troublesome. But now, it turns out to be a thoroughly satisfying battle, which makes me very happy."

"Then I'll take Yamahiko for treatment."

Suì-Fēng walked over to Yamahiko and lifted him up.

Kenpachi Zaraki looked at Suì-Fēng and curiously asked, "We're not close, and I know you don't like to accept help from others. So why did you come to me for this kid?"

Suì-Fēng looked at Yamahiko's pale face with closed eyes and smiled, saying, "He helped me accomplish something very important, which holds great significance for me. I want to repay him, and I knew he was troubled by not being able to achieve Shikai. So I tried various methods, but my experience couldn't help him. Finally, I thought of a battle. Breaking through in a life-or-death battle is the path many Shinigami take to master Shikai. At this point, I needed to find someone suitable to execute this, and at the very least, I didn't want to harm him."

Kenpachi Zaraki asked with curiosity, "Do you think I'm a suitable choice?"

Suì-Fēng nodded and said, "Among the entire Gotei 13, you are the only Captain who would fight Yamahiko and would be willing to kill a complete stranger."

"Hahaha, that's true."

Zaraki burst into laughter, then quickly composed himself and stared intently at Suì-Fēng. He said, "But you know, if he didn't achieve Shikai at that moment, I would have genuinely killed him. Aren't you afraid of his death?"

Suì-Fēng looked at Kenpachi Zaraki and replied calmly, "If he hadn't received his Shikai, I would have taken him away before you could strike him."

"Hmph."

Kenpachi Zaraki snorted but didn't deny her words. He continued, "Fortunately, you didn't intervene, because if you had interfered with my battle, I would have killed you along with him."

"Is that so?"

Suì-Fēng raised an eyebrow and said, "If it were a month ago, I might have been wary. But now, well, I can only say that even if you, Captain Zaraki, went all out, you couldn't do it."

Leaving these words behind, Suì-Fēng vanished with Yamahiko in a flash.

Suì-Fēng had absolute confidence because Shunko had been fully mastered a month ago. This was the reason she sought Kenpachi Zaraki's help in the first place—to ensure Yamahiko's safety before helping him master Shikai.

"Can't do it, huh?"

After Suì-Fēng had left, Zaraki picked up his Zanpakuto. He held the hilt with his right hand, moved back a bit, and placed his left hand in front, gripping the blade together. He muttered to himself, "Do I really have to use the swordsmanship that Old man spoke of?"