Bleach: Stirring Up a Storm

”Where is Shiba Miyako now?”

”Don’t worry, she is perfectly safe right now.” Aizen smiled, smoothly changing the subject. ”Before that, would Mr. Chōzuka care to evaluate my new creation?”

Kōe raised an eyebrow, a bad premonition rising in his chest, though his tone remained perfectly calm. ”I can take a look. Please bring it out, Captain Aizen.”

”Bring it out?” Aizen said, his voice gradually shifting to come from behind Kōe. ”Hasn’t it been right in front of you this whole time?”

The Aizen standing in front of him grew further away, the smile on his face gradually twisting into something sinister before finally transforming into an ugly, giant white face.

The hand Kōe had been holding had, at some point, turned into a red tentacle. Although it felt as rough as old tree bark, Kōe subconsciously thought of something slimy and immediately let go of it.

”Is this a Shinigamified Hollow?”

”Oh? So Mr. Chōzuka also knows about Shinigamification?”

”I heard about it from Urahara, and I’ve always been quite curious.” Kōe nodded, then changed his tone with a scoff. ”But now I’m a bit disappointed. How does this look anything like a Shinigami?”

”Shinigamification is not just about appearance. More importantly, it grants special abilities akin to a Zanpakutō,” Aizen replied slowly, walking over to stand beside Kōe. He turned his head and asked, ”Would you like to know what ability Metastacia possesses?”

”I hope it piques my interest.”

Aizen didn’t speak, but instead gave Metastacia a look. The Hollow understood and whispered with a grin, ”You just touched me...”

”A highly unpleasant experience,” Kōe interrupted Metastacia, speaking with blatant displeasure. ”Bring that up again and I’ll slaughter you right here.”

”An ability that can only be activated once a night. The Zanpakutō of anyone who touches me will vanish, hehehe!” Seeing no reaction from Kōe, Metastacia continued to mock him. ”So how are you going to slaughter me? Are you going to tear me apart with those soft, delicate little hands of yours? I’d really hate to see that!”

*If you can destroy the Zanpakutō of the Shinigami who is about to arrive, then he is yours to dispose of. He tastes much better than this woman.*

Recalling the words Lord Aizen had just spoken to it, Metastacia couldn’t wait to swallow Kōe whole and chew him thoroughly. Just his scent was incredibly appetizing.

And this arrogant, high-and-mighty attitude—would it shatter in an instant, turning into panic or even a complete breakdown? That would be the perfect seasoning. Of course, even without it, the prey himself was already perfect.

One second, two seconds, three seconds...

One minute, two minutes, three minutes...

Metastacia drooled, waiting for that black mask to disappear, eager to see exactly what kind of expression was on the face beneath it. It completely failed to notice that so much time had passed, and the fact that its ability hadn’t worked at all.

”Is that... it?”

”Huh?” Metastacia froze, finally noticing that nothing had happened to Kōe. ”How can this be? I clearly touched you...”

”A product of Shinigamification. That means I can treat you as a Shinigami,” Kōe said, slowly walking toward Metastacia. ”And a battle between Shinigami is a battle of Reiatsu. Without sufficient Reiatsu to back it up, there is no such thing as an absolutely effective ability.”

”Obviously, your Reiatsu isn’t strong enough to make my Zanpakutō disappear. At best, you can only affect someone at the lieutenant level, right?” Stopping in front of Metastacia, Kōe turned his head and spoke flatly to Aizen. ”A result like this should be considered a failure, shouldn’t it, Aizen?”

Despite looking as cool as a cucumber right now, the truth was that the moment he touched Metastacia, Kōe had felt a surge of panic in his heart.

This Hollow created by Aizen could indeed make a Zanpakutō disappear, according to the intel from the manga in his past life. But thinking about it carefully, the Ninth Espada who would devour Metastacia in the future was able to use the abilities of Kaien’s Zanpakutō. Didn’t that prove that the Zanpakutō’s abilities never actually disappeared?

Combined with Kaien’s original experience of being fused with Metastacia, Kōe deduced that this ability likely just prevented the Shinigami from sensing their Zanpakutō’s presence, or temporarily shared the opponent’s Zanpakutō. This was also the trigger for activating its fusion ability.

There were many possible mechanics behind it, but this ability definitely didn’t just outright erase a Zanpakutō. It couldn’t be an irresistible ability like Complete Hypnosis.

True, what Kōe had just said wasn’t entirely factual either. Zanpakutō abilities didn’t solely rely on Reiatsu to take effect; his own Zanpakutō was proof of that. Telling a few lies to an opponent every now and then might just yield unexpected rewards in the future.

Returning to Metastacia itself, as long as the ability wasn’t absolute and had room for resistance, then there was a possibility to fight it off, which brought it down to a clash of Reiatsu. Therefore, Kōe wasn’t worried about Metastacia at all.

*Yeah, right.* He admitted that he had been careless just now. By only focusing on the history that had yet to unfold, it was easy to forget the fact that he was already a player on the board.

Using Shiba Miyako’s death to affect Kaien and thereby conduct an experiment on a lieutenant-class Shinigami was indeed one line of thought. But Aizen was not someone who would be satisfied with merely testing his results on a lieutenant.

Thinking back to his past life, when Kaien was selected for the experiment, aside from some unique traits he might have possessed, could the frail Ukitake Jūshirō standing behind him have also been part of the calculation?

This point might be impossible to verify, but looking at the present situation, was Kaien the only person who could be influenced through Shiba Miyako?

Of course not. Concern clouds judgment. Shiba Miyako’s death would affect Kaien, but if she didn’t die, wouldn’t the person affected become him? Kōe Shihouin?!

Compared to Shiba Kaien, wasn’t Kōe Shihouin a far more suitable test subject? There was absolutely no comparison! If he were Aizen, he would definitely choose himself for the experiment. He believed Aizen wouldn’t deny this perspective—no, he *definitely* wouldn’t deny it!

Thinking about it this way, Tōsen Kaname might have been waiting in the Seireitei from the very beginning. Aizen had perhaps anticipated early on that Kōe would negotiate with him. Or maybe, in Aizen’s plan, Kōe was supposed to show up all along; even if Shiba Miyako had died, Aizen would have ensured Kōe received false intel first.

Therefore... Kōe looked at Aizen, who wore an innocent expression and smiled while agreeing that Metastacia was indeed not very successful. If his Zanpakutō had truly disappeared just now, his fate probably wouldn’t have been any better than Hirako and the others. He could practically hear the prison blues playing for him in advance.

Interacting with someone like Aizen, it felt as though no amount of preparation was ever enough. This gave Kōe a slight sense of defeat, and the smugness he had felt back in the Seireitei when his Kidō triggered completely dissipated.

But the arrow was already nocked; it had to be fired! He was already here—what was he going to do, pack up his things and wave a white flag? It was just a minor hiccup. If he let himself be intimidated by this, the upcoming negotiation would turn into a surrender ceremony!

They were both men of status, so he needed to act the part!

”[Hadō #88・Hiryū Gekizoku Shinten Raihō]!” His slender fingers slowly spread open, and a pale blue light gradually grew blinding. Kōe’s icy voice echoed in Metastacia’s ears, pronouncing its death sentence.

Deafening thunder continuously assaulted the eardrums. Aizen watched Metastacia being swallowed by the lightning, figuring it had likely been blasted to ashes.

”Since it wasn’t very successful, there’s no need for it to exist.” Kōe’s voice rang out from the left, clearly audible even over the roaring thunder. ”Are you satisfied with my evaluation, Aizen?”