"That's it again.

"What's going on with this ability that looks like Menos Grande's Hierro?"

"He isn't a Hollow, he's still a Shinigami, and he can't use Reiatsu, so why does he have such a defense comparable to Hierro?"

Seeing that his Zanpakutō couldn't hurt Aiyan's skin at all, Urahara Kisuke's heart was shaken.

This strike— he had used Reiatsu,

It was a full-power swing, yet it still couldn't break through. And that's with Aiyan unable to even use Reiatsu.

Clang

When Aiyan saw this, the corner of his lips raised slightly. The fist that had struck Urahara Kisuke's Zanpakutō suddenly changed into an eagle's claw, grabbing the blade. Though made of flesh and blood, when he clutched the blade, a sound like clashing steel rang out. At the same time, lightning shot from his left hand.

"Shigan (Finger Pistol)."

His index finger fired like an arrow loose from a bowstring, charged with enough force to shatter mountains, stabbing directly at Urahara Kisuke's left chest.

"Blood Mist Shield."

Even though his Reiatsu sense didn't detect any energy from Aiyan's Hakuda technique, Urahara Kisuke didn't dare underestimate it. He went all out, instantly manifesting a red Reiatsu shield in front of him.

BOOM

The moment the Shigan (Finger Pistol) touched the Blood Mist Shield, a tremendous shockwave erupted, and then cracks began to spider across the surface of the shield.

The sight sent a chill through him.

If that finger had landed directly—at minimum, a hole would've been blown through his chest.

"Split, Benihime."

Seeing the Blood Mist Shield on the verge of collapse, Urahara Kisuke made a split-second decision and activated Benihime's Shikai.

Swish

A red light flared, and the Blood Mist Shield shattered into countless Reiatsu arrows, all of which shot at Aiyan.

"Kamaitachi."

Faced with the Reiatsu rain, dense as a thousand arrows and fired from point-blank range, Aiyan didn't panic. He simply released his tension and let himself float like leaves in a storm. Within that storm of razor-sharp arrows, he drifted as if dancing through wind currents—avoiding each strike with unnatural grace.

He slipped around to Urahara Kisuke's side, raised his right leg, and swept it out in a wide arc.

"Rankyaku (Tempest Kick)."

A vacuum slash howled through the air, blue and sharp like a blade of compressed air. Urahara Kisuke instinctively raised his arms to block, but the wave struck hard enough to send him flying back, his shoes skidding across the ground from the force.

"Soru (Shave)."

Before Urahara could stabilize himself, Aiyan had already reappeared in a blur, stopping behind him mid-motion. Then, without pause, he launched another cutting wave with a powerful spinning kick.

"Bakudō #81: Dankū."

Urahara Kisuke's senses flared in all directions—Reiatsu perception, instincts, reflexes—everything was pushed to their limit.

His right hand blocked the frontal slash, while his left cast a Dankū wall behind to block the second strike from reaching his back.

However—

Just as he finished executing both defenses, his vision blurred—and a figure appeared before him.

At that moment—

His soul itself screamed in warning.

Without thinking, Urahara executed a Shunpo to retreat—but Aiyan was faster.

Hair tendrils snaked out like vipers, wrapping around Urahara's waist and halting his escape just after a dozen meters.

At the same time—

Aiyan stepped forward and gently placed his right hand on Urahara Kisuke's chest.

A touch. Barely a nudge.

But in the next instant—a devastating shockwave burst from his palm, blasted through Kisuke's torso, and exploded out his back, vaporizing the ground behind him.

"Rokuōgan (Six King Gun)."

Urahara's body trembled violently. A mouthful of blood mist burst from his lips, but he gritted his teeth through the pain. Before he could fall, he raised Benihime and slashed upward across Aiyan's chest.

"Nake, Benihime."

Blood flashed—

A crescent-shaped Reiatsu slash tore across Aiyan's body.

The immense pressure split the earth, launched debris, and blew Aiyan several meters back.

BOOM

Then—

A single foot smashed into the ground, forming a ten-centimeter-deep crater. It halted his movement instantly, like a steel spike driven into stone.

tsk

Aiyan stood straight, then casually tore off the shredded remnants of his captain's haori and uniform.

The death uniform—linked to one's Reiatsu—was now just torn cloth. Without Reiatsu, it was nothing more than rags. But if Reiatsu remained, it would be stronger than armor and self-repair.

At this moment—

His Reiatsu was sealed. His death uniform was fragile. And even so, Benihime's crescent slash could tear through the cloth—

But not his flesh.

"Kuh..."

Urahara coughed up more blood, stabbing Benihime into the ground to stay upright. He didn't even bother wiping the red from his lips. He just looked up—at Aiyan's chest, where the slash had landed.

Not only was there no wound—

There wasn't even a scratch.

"Not even Benihime…?"

Seeing his ultimate strike fail, Urahara's pupils shrank to pinpricks. A deep dread gripped his heart.

He had planned so carefully.

With months of preparation.

Strategies layered upon strategies. Betraying centuries-old friendship with Shihōin Yoruichi. He'd played his every card.

It worked.

Aiyan's Reiatsu was sealed. His Zanpakutō couldn't be used. No Kidō. No Shunpo. No Kendo.

Everything had gone according to plan.

But he never anticipated this:

That even without all of that—

Aiyan would use pure Hakuda—the weakest and most overlooked Shinigami art—to not only resist, but seriously injure him.

It defied logic.

Even with all his intelligence and preparation—he felt completely powerless.

"Urahara Kisuke, you've let me down."

"I thought all your maneuvering had led to some decisive killing blow."

"I didn't expect… this level."

Aiyan wiped the dust off himself from their scuffle.

"Out of all the Shinigami arts, Hakuda is the one I'm worst at."

"And yet..."

"No Zanpakutō. No Reiatsu. No Kidō. No Kendo. Not even Shunpo."

"And the gap between us… still can't be closed."

His words were full of disappointment.

Then he launched forward—each step shaking the ground—moving so fast it looked like teleportation.

He appeared right in front of Urahara.

And in the moment of stunned silence—

Aiyan raised one finger and drove it through his heart.

"I already gave you a chance to struggle."

"But now..."

"It's too much effort to keep holding back just to match your level."

He looked down at Urahara's devastated expression, slowly pulling his bloody finger out from the wound.

Drip

Scarlet drops hit the ground.

And with it—

Urahara Kisuke collapsed to his knees.

...

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