Bleach: Stirring Up a Storm

”Captain Unohana!”

It seemed the two disappointing men weren’t the only ones preventing her from fulfilling her wish. Quickly adjusting her expression, Unohana raised her head, returning to her usual gentle and compassionate demeanor.

”So you are here as well, Lieutenant Ichimaru Gin.”

In truth, Ichimaru Gin wouldn’t be a lieutenant for much longer. It wasn’t because he had committed any crime, but rather because he was about to take over Squad 3, whose captain’s seat had been vacant for fifty-two years. Because of this, Unohana faintly viewed him as an equal.

”Not just me. Captain Aizen is also in the Shin’ō Academy; today happens to be the day he teaches calligraphy,” Gin said, suddenly offering a bitter smile. He continued, ”However, the situation right now isn’t looking too good. If we let those two keep fighting, I’m afraid Captain Aizen and I alone won’t be able to guarantee that there won’t be casualties in the academy.”

”We need your assistance, Captain Unohana!”

Hearing this, Unohana’s brows unconsciously furrowed. Although he didn’t say it explicitly, she knew Gin’s concerns were not unfounded.

On the surface, both Aizen and Gin were captain-class Shinigami. Their combat prowess should have been on par with the two currently fighting, meaning they could stop the conflict even without her help.

But that was only on the surface. The Kenpachi who led Squad 11 was inherently a fierce and battle-hardened warrior, consistently ranking in the top five for combat strength among captains of their generation. The two currently clashing were the cream of the crop, individuals whose strength even Unohana, the First Generation Kenpachi, acknowledged.

It was safe to say that either of them could simultaneously face two captains of the same generation without losing ground, and might even hold the upper hand!

And that was against captains of the same generation. For newer captains like Aizen and Gin, who had been in their positions for less than a century, they still lacked certain qualities compared to Kōe and Zaraki. Even though Aizen and Gin were extraordinarily talented, the other two were equally awe-inspiring prodigies in their own right. The gap in strength was entirely predictable.

*’It’s just...’*

As Unohana wrestled with her thoughts, Gin urgently pressed her, ”We at least need to stall them until the other captains arrive. If we hesitate any longer, it will be too late, Captain Unohana!”

*’This was destined to be a battle without a victor anyway, and I am currently the captain of Squad 4,’* Unohana silently reminded herself. Slowly drawing the Zanpakutō with her left hand, she looked straight ahead and said calmly, ”I will hold off Shihouin Kōe. I’ll leave Captain Zaraki to you and Captain Aizen for now.”

Gin nodded repeatedly and hurriedly replied, ”Captain Aizen will also use Kyōka Suigetsu’s ability to temporarily disrupt their vision, allowing us to seize the initiative.”

Kyōka Suigetsu, a running water-type Zanpakutō. Its ability utilized the reflection of water and mist to disorient enemies and cause them to kill each other. Simply put, it manipulated the reflection of light to alter a person’s vision.

In theory, this could indeed interfere with Kōe and Zaraki, but the problem was...

Before Unohana could speak, Gin spoke up first. ”Using a Kidō light bullet as a signal, Captain Aizen will activate Kyōka Suigetsu, but it will likely only affect them for a split second.”

”I understand. We will only have a momentary window of opportunity, otherwise we’ll be dragged into a bitter struggle.” Unohana nodded. Vision wasn’t strictly necessary for captain-class combatants, so rather than calling it an interference, it was more accurate to say the two men would experience a momentary lapse of shock. ”You may signal Captain Aizen to make his move.”

A pale blue light grew increasingly bright in Gin’s hand. As he slowly opened his fingers, the orb of light drifted leisurely into the sky, trailing a tail behind it.

Gin and Unohana were already nowhere to be seen. More accurately, the moment the orb of light left his hand, the two of them vanished.

At the same time, Aizen also vanished from his spot within the Shin’ō Academy. In the next instant, he suddenly appeared between Kōe and Zaraki. He slowly drew a gleaming blade, his deep voice ringing with absolute clarity through the rain.

”Shatter, Kyōka Suigetsu.”

Kōe stared intently at Aizen, acting as if he had no idea that Kyōka Suigetsu’s true ability was Complete Hypnosis, nor that this very moment was the ritual required to establish it.

The occurrence of this scene was actually entirely predictable. In fact, as far as Kōe was concerned, Aizen’s appearance was a bit late.

Zaraki Kenpachi’s arrival seemed like a coincidence, but from the moment they crossed blades, Kōe had been pondering a certain possibility—simply because Aizen also happened to be present in the Shin’ō Academy.

Of course, Aizen’s presence today might have been a coincidence as well; after all, it truly was his scheduled day to teach calligraphy. But when adding Zaraki into the mix, it was one coincidence too many.

Completely controlling Zaraki Kenpachi might be difficult, but merely guiding a portion of his behavior—such as his urge to fight—was actually quite simple. Not to mention, Kōe also bore the title of the Ninth Generation Kenpachi.

As long as someone ’inadvertently’ informed Zaraki of Kōe’s existence, given Zaraki’s nature, he would undoubtedly seek Kōe out immediately for a grand battle. Things like gathering intelligence or pre-battle preparations were completely unnecessary to him.

If there was any variable, it would likely be Zaraki’s hopelessly terrible sense of direction. Left to his own devices, it was entirely possible for him to wander aimlessly around the Seireitei for two or three days.

However, with Squad 11 being full of ’traitors’, there would always be some kind-hearted soul willing to point Zaraki in the right direction, or even act as his guide.

And once the two of them met, Aizen—as the captain who ’just so happened’ to be at the academy—stepping in to stop the two Kenpachi from tearing the place apart and taking the opportunity to release Kyōka Suigetsu to place Kōe under Complete Hypnosis... logically speaking, it couldn’t be a more perfect setup.

The ritual for Complete Hypnosis sounded simple enough: the opponent only needed to witness the exact moment Kyōka Suigetsu was released, and they would be permanently placed under its spell.

But in certain settings, such an action was actually incredibly abrupt. For instance, the release of a Zanpakutō within the Seireitei was strictly restricted. Drawing a blade on someone for no reason would be far too suspicious.

Was Aizen a man prone to suspicious behavior? The answer was definitely no. Before obtaining the Hōgyoku, he had always maintained an image of absolute normalcy. Compared to the other captains with their eccentric personalities, or even some of the lieutenants, his presence was somewhat weak.

According to Kōe’s deductions, whenever Aizen performed the Complete Hypnosis ritual, he either did so under the guise of ’instructing’ his subordinates as a captain, or he used external missions to slowly place others under his spell one by one. In short, he always made sure that releasing his Zanpakutō appeared perfectly justified.

But right now, Kōe was stationed at the Shin’ō Academy and wouldn’t be going out on missions. Furthermore, given Kōe’s own strength, Aizen didn’t exactly have the qualifications on paper to ’instruct’ him either.

Opportunities for Aizen to draw his blade in front of him were few and far between. There was no way Aizen would pass up a chance like this!

The moment Kōe figured this out was exactly when Zaraki removed his eyepatch to go all out. Kōe had decisively released his Bankai right then and there, waiting the entire time for Aizen to make his move.

Kyōka Suigetsu versus Kōki, Complete Hypnosis versus Static Recording—which was truly superior? It was time to find out.