Betrayer Will be Betrayed

A Quick Reminder. This battle in the manga didn't make any sense, as there were tons of plot holes. I did my best to cover them and alter in such way that Kai's addition tipped the balance, but it is still not something can be salvaged. Sooo, please read with that in mind.

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Above, in the air, the Shinigami looked around, trying to process the whirlwind of events. The unease in the air was palpable. They had been thrust into a situation with multiple variables, and while Kai had seemingly given them an advantage, they couldn't ignore the feeling of uncertainty he brought.

Kyoraku chuckled, breaking the tense silence. "Well, that's one way to level the playing field." He adjusted his hat, eyes twinkling with amusement. "Seems like our friend here doesn't like complications."

Soi Fon's face remained impassive, but her voice held a tinge of awe. "Who is he? Such power... and yet he seems so..." She struggled to find the right word.

"Indifferent?" Kyoraku supplied with a smirk.

"Exactly."

Zaraki Kenpachi, never one for subtlety, roared with laughter. "Ha! Aizen, you look like you've seen a ghost!" The maniacal gleam in his eyes was even more pronounced. "I don't know who you are," he shouted to Kai, "but I like your style!"

Byakuya Kuchiki, ever the stoic, simply raised an eyebrow. "Interesting."

Hitsugaya Toshiro frowned, his youthful face contorted in thought. "We need to be cautious. He might have severed Aizen's connection, but he's an unknown factor."

Ukitake nodded in agreement. "True, but for now, he's given us an edge. We should use it."

Aizen, recovering from his momentary lapse, looked around, his poise returning. "Well, this certainly adds a new dimension to our game." His eyes fixed on Kai, who seemed to be dozing off atop the building, utterly unconcerned. "No matter," Aizen murmured. "The outcome remains unchanged."

To everyone's surprise, the first to act was Barragan. The aged lines of his face and the heavy cloak he wore seemed to melt into the atmosphere. His transformation was swift, leaving in its wake a skeletal figure crowned with a magnificent circlet. The eerie sight of the hollowed-out eyes and the barren bones sent shivers down the spines of even the most experienced Shinigami present. With his true form revealed, the very space around him warped and distorted. It was as though reality itself was aging, deteriorating, under the weight of his immense power—power symbolizing the inexorable march of time, the eventual decay and death of everything in its path.

The atmosphere thickened with tension. The fact that he lunged not at the Gotei 13, but at Aizen himself, added to the profound shock. His voice, now more hollow and haunting, rasped out, "Aizen..."

The Espada had been forced into submission by Aizen's cunning, but now, with the tables turned, the embodiment of aged death sought to exact his revenge.

Aizen softly smiled, not flustered at all, "you think freedom grants you the right to challenge me?"

Barragan's hollow gaze fixed on Aizen. "Freedom? No. This isn't about freedom. This is about settling scores." His voice echoed with the weight of countless years, and every syllable dripped with loathing.

As Barragan lunged again, his skeletal hands outstretched, aiming to decay whatever they touched, the nearby Shinigami could feel the pull of time around them, their energies threatened by the sheer proximity of his power. They knew that to be caught within his grasp was to experience eons in mere moments.

Aizen swiftly sidestepped, using his Shunpo to dodge the brunt of the attack. But as he did, the ground where he once stood aged and decayed, turning to dust and emphasizing the mortal danger of Barragan's ability.

Aizen softly pulled out his sword, its blade gleaming dangerously under the diffused light. The captains and lieutenants watched intently, the fear of Aizen's shikai palpable in the air. Murmurs of caution spread through the ranks of the Gotei 13, advising everyone to avert their gaze lest they fall victim to the complete hypnosis.

Hitsugaya's eyes narrowed slightly as he whispered to others, "He's going to release it. Close your eyes."

However, as Aizen began to speak, it was not the name of his shikai that left his lips, but a low, mocking chuckle. "Barragan," he cooed, his voice dripping with faux concern, "do you honestly believe your newfound freedom grants you the power to defeat me?"

In response, Barragan's hollow, raspy voice echoed around, each word laden with millennia of arrogance and scorn. "Your tricks are meaningless to me, Aizen. My power is eternal."

Aizen shifted, a movement so swift it was nearly imperceptible. Suddenly, he was right beside Barragan. Even without releasing his shikai, there was a certain dread attached to Aizen's presence—a predatory grace that had most Shinigami on edge.

In a seemingly casual motion, reminiscent of one brushing away a speck of dirt, Aizen's blade swung at Barragan. The sheer speed and precision of the strike meant there was no resistance, no clashing of energies. It was a clean, almost surgical cut. Barragan was cleaved in two, the halves of his skeletal form crumbling away, even as the vestiges of his aura seemed to momentarily distort the surrounding space.

The battlefield was silent, save for the faint rustling of the wind. Even the ever-boisterous Zaraki Kenpachi looked on in stunned silence. There was a collective, unspoken understanding that they had witnessed an extraordinary display of power, one that rendered even the mightiest Espada's abilities null.

Ukitake, visibly shaken by the sheer audacity of Aizen's move, whispered, "That was... terrifyingly effortless."

Hitsugaya clenched his fists, his gaze fixated on Aizen. "He didn't even need to use his shikai," he murmured, his voice filled with a mix of admiration and dread.

Zaraki, recovering from his initial shock, let out a boisterous laugh. "Well, that was quick!" he bellowed, his eagerness for a fight barely contained. "Who's next?"

Byakuya, always composed, remarked coldly, "It seems Aizen's power is beyond our initial estimates."

Unohana, her gaze piercing and ever observant, nodded slowly. "His strength is not just in his shikai. It's in his very being."

Soi Fon, her sharp eyes darting around, suddenly shifted her attention to Gin and Tousen. "Stay alert. The other traitors might make a move."

Kyoraku, adjusting his hat, smirked slightly. "I was hoping for a more entertaining bout, but it seems Aizen isn't one for drawn-out affairs."

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