Chapter 301 – 301 ⥤ God

Parallel Aizen’s pupils contracted as he vanished with Shunpo, once again distancing himself from his opponent.

He had expected the other to lower his guard, given his overwhelming advantage, yet his opponent remained vigilant.

Though uncertain how the other had broken through Kyōka Suigetsu, he knew from experience that breaking this ability wasn’t particularly challenging.

Aizen watched his opponent’s cautious expression and curved his lips upward.

Indeed, a certain husky’s twisted sense of humor deserved recognition — watching oneself in misfortune was truly delightful.

“You’ve been the aggressor until now. My turn.”

Aizen raised his finger, and blue-purple serrated light gathered at his fingertip, forming a sphere that emitted space-distorting pressure.

If Parallel Aizen’s earlier Reiatsu blast was a normal Cero, then what Aizen now unleashed was—

⤫ Gran Rey Cero ⥤ King Hollow Flash! ⤬

The ruins quaked as a pillar of light streaked across the azure sky, its suffocating pressure obliterating everything in its path.

Parallel Aizen’s gaze darkened as he chanted:

⤫ Bakudō #81: Dankū⥤ Splitting Void! ⤬

An indestructible transparent wall — capable of blocking any Hadō up to #89 — descended from the sky, forming a solid fortress before him.

The collision erupted, scattering light in all directions.

In the explosion’s roar, Parallel Aizen — Soul Society’s greatest enemy — was engulfed by the blue-purple light.

His Dankū barrier shattered under the aftershock’s impact, breaking apart with a thunderous crash.

Parallel Aizen’s Reiatsu fell silent, vanishing completely from everyone’s perception.

Yamamoto looked toward the battle with bewilderment, his expression puzzled.

“Is it over already?”

Akira grinned. “We’re dealing with Sōsuke here. It won’t be that easy. Besides, if the battle ended too quickly, what would that say about you as Captain-Commander?”

Yamamoto fell silent.

Though this person had healed his wounds and gave off an inexplicably reassuring presence, something felt not quite right, and Yamamoto remained wary.

Moreover, this talk of parallel worlds seemed far too fantastical to believe.

Just as Yamamoto questioned Akira’s motives, a sweet-smelling roasted sweet potato materialized before him.

The old man started, looking Akira up and down, wondering where he had produced it from.

Akira chewed on his own sweet potato, speaking casually, “Old man, stop worrying so much. This is Sōsuke’s battle — just leave it to him.”

As if in a trance, Yamamoto reached out, and before he knew it, he held the sweet potato.

His weathered face darkened. While others lay injured, here he was — the Captain-Commander — eating sweet potatoes with a stranger.

What a disgrace, what a disgrace!

Yamamoto meant to throw the sweet potato down, but when he looked up and met Akira’s sincere, unpretentious gaze, his heart softened. He brought the sweet potato to his lips.

Wait! Why did this sweet potato’s taste feel so familiar?

His eyes widened as he instinctively looked at Akira.

Akira grinned and said, “That’s right — this is from the Sweet Potato Sage Shigekuni Yamamoto of our world. How’s the taste?”

Yamamoto chewed slowly, at a loss for words, his feelings a complicated tangle.

Strangely, he felt an urgent desire to know more about this young man’s past.

“Young man, can you tell me…” He swallowed the sweet potato, gazing deeply at the person before him, “About your past?”

Akira was stunned for a moment before his lips curved upward.

“Nothing would please me more.”

⤫⤬⤫⤬⤫⤬⤫⤬⤫⤬

The Dankū shattered completely, and Parallel Aizen took an unprecedented hit.

As burnt ashes and swirling dust dispersed in the wind, a thin figure slowly rose from the broken ruins. The white outer layer of his body peeled away continuously, accompanied by cracking sounds from his fissured face.

Like glass struck by a pebble, countless waves of heavy Reiatsu rose from within Parallel Aizen’s shell, enveloping him.

“I see.”

His face emerged through the cracks, familiar yet changed in expression.

“I’ve understood your power now. I never expected my counterpart from another world had fully merged with the Hōgyoku.” With emotion in his voice and admiration in his eyes, Parallel Aizen calmly continued, “Fortunately, the Hōgyoku has fully accepted me. Now, we’re equal.”

As his words fell, fragments peeled from his face. His eyes’ whites turned pure black, golden pupils emerging within. His lips curved upward into a confident smile.

On the cross-shaped crack in his chest, the Hōgyoku emitted a blue-purple light, pushing him toward a higher evolution. Though confused before, with a living example before him, he could now clearly see the path ahead.

Aizen nodded slightly, acknowledging his counterpart’s intelligence.

Indeed, worthy of being him from another world. Even facing nearly insurmountable pressure, he could transform it into a driving force for evolution.

The current Parallel Aizen had reached his soul’s limit — the limit of a Shinigami, just one step away from transcendence.

Parallel Aizen gripped his Zanpakutō and swung it casually. A blue-purple crescent of sword pressure shot past instantly, followed by a thunderous explosion.

Deafening blasts erupted above the ruins. The violent impact, like a Category 8 hurricane, obliterated the broken buildings, grinding everything to dust as if the entire world had plunged into chaos.

A hurricane rose from the ground, sweeping up debris, and within it appeared Aizen’s unscathed figure, calmly pushing up his glasses.

With his footsteps landing, Parallel Aizen appeared before Aizen, raising his left index finger as his calm voice rang out.

⤫ Hadō #91: Senju Kōten Taihō⥤ Thousand-Hand Incandent Heaven Culling-Sear! ⤬

His massive Reiatsu, vast as an ocean, instantly condensed into cherry-colored flames of intense heat. In a flash, they transformed into space-distorting beams of light that hovered left and right.

The azure sky turned cherry red, like a setting sun approaching dusk. A thunderous roar burst from his fingertips, unleashing waves of terror that gripped everyone’s hearts.

All who watched froze, their breath caught as they witnessed the apocalyptic scene unfold.

Facing this display, Aizen’s lips curled into a smile. White light appeared in his pupils as his Reiatsu descended like a falling sky, building layer upon layer.

In an instant, a million layers of Reiatsu formed a shield that radiated prismatic light before him.

⤫ Millón Escudo⥤ Million Shield! ⤬

This Millón Escudo, enhanced by his fusion with the Hōgyoku, far surpassed a fully-chanted Dankū in defensive strength. Blocking a single Hadō #91 would be trivial.

Senjū Kōten Taihō exploded violently, its flames reaching skyward and transforming into a cross of light that annihilated everything in sight, eating through the layers of Reiatsu shields.

Yet in that moment of mutual destruction, a Zanpakutō gleaming with cold light materialized behind the Millón Escudo, before Aizen, as concentrated Reiatsu burst forth.

The Hadō had been merely a feint — the true killing blow was only now revealed.

But as the blade descended, a single index finger rose to meet it.

Clang!!

Parallel Aizen watched in astonishment as his Zanpakutō struck Aizen’s finger with full force.

Not a drop of blood appeared. The blade met resistance as though striking steel, his carefully planned strike casually deflected.

Aizen’s lips curved slightly upward as his index finger bent, resting on Kyōka Suigetsu’s blade. Heavy Reiatsu erupted wildly, making the ground groan beneath its unbearable weight as dense cracks spread throughout the ruins.

Boom!!!

From their point of contact, wave-like aftershocks rippled outward, like circles spreading across a still pond after a stone’s impact.

Where the shockwave passed, buildings crumbled and boulders shattered.

Shunsui, who had been idle until now, suddenly tensed. Gathering his remaining Reiatsu, he positioned himself before the wounded, summoning Dankū to shield them from the aftershocks.

“It’s over, Aizen.”

Aizen’s calm voice rang out, his composed gaze piercing into Parallel Aizen’s heart like a blade.

“Your power is mere weakness, every move within my control. As you noted earlier, this is nothing but a boring farce. We were never equals.”

As the words fell, countless cracks appeared on the pure white body, and blood erupted like a fountain, staining Parallel Aizen’s shell crimson.

Aizen released his Zanpakutō as his counterpart staggered backward, eyes wide with disbelief.

He had known there was a gap between them, but never imagined it would be this vast. The feeling mirrored his experience on Sōkyoku Hill, when he’d faced the gulf between himself and Sajin Komamura and Ichigo Kurosaki.

A single sword stroke had been enough to defeat him utterly. The once-invincible Parallel Aizen, his pure white shell now blood-soaked, stood twisted and broken.

Aizen raised his right index finger, blue-purple serrated light condensing at its tip. The moment the sphere formed, a beam of light crossed space, piercing through Parallel Aizen as explosive power surged into him.

As blood poured from his chest, Parallel Aizen finally comprehended what had happened. He reached instinctively for his chest cavity, but his fingers passed through empty space.

Looking down, he saw a massive hole in his chest, blood flowing endlessly from the wound.

His presence faded to near nothingness.

Urahara watched, dumbfounded, his expression hardening as his bucket hat slipped unnoticed from his head.

The power gap between the two Aizens was overwhelming. He had expected them to fight at least three to five rounds, even if not evenly matched.

The best outcome would have been both suffering heavy injuries, giving Soul Society an opening to exploit.

But now it was clear — this world’s Aizen posed far less threat than his counterpart.

This realization filled Urahara with dread. If the other-world Aizen wasn’t the mindless brute he appeared and harbored ill intentions toward their world, they needed contingencies.

Even if they couldn’t resist his malice after their Aizen’s defeat, they needed some means of opposition.

Urahara drew several deep breaths and, while all eyes remained fixed on the two Aizens, slipped silently away.

“Isshin.”

“Hmm?”

Urahara looked at the scruffy middle-aged man before him and said gravely, “The plan continues. We don’t know this Aizen’s true intentions, but we must activate the backup plan as a precaution. If he turns against us, we’ll at least have a chance at a final stand.”

Isshin’s face twisted with inner conflict as he said hesitantly, “But, Ichigo…”

Urahara sighed, “Don’t worry too much. Even if he loses his Shinigami powers, there are ways to restore them. Remember, Ichigo isn’t an ordinary Shinigami.”

Isshin nodded silently.

Though his heart ached for his son, they couldn’t waver at this crucial moment. One mistake could spell catastrophe for the entire world.

Isshin went to Ichigo, who stood transfixed by the battle, and explained Urahara’s analysis in detail, telling him of the Shiba family’s secret technique — Saigo no Getsuga Tenshō.

Isshin crossed his arms, his expression grave.

“That’s the situation. The choice is yours.”

Ichigo lowered his head in thought, then raised it again, his eyes blazing with determination.

“Dad, I want to learn it!”

Isshin smiled, punching his son’s shoulder.

Then the two opened a Senkaimon and, taking Urahara’s prepared tools, entered the Dangai.

⤫⤬⤫⤬⤫⤬⤫⤬⤫⤬

“Aaaahhh!!”

The searing pain from his chest cavity was driving Parallel Aizen to madness, his brown hair whipping wildly as if possessed.

A massive pillar of light suddenly shot skyward, obliterating the thick cloud layer and illuminating the ruins of Karakura Town below.

Aizen watched with growing satisfaction, his smile widening.

The pillar of light shattered like a chrysalis, revealing the creature within.

Parallel Aizen emerged in a transformed state — three pairs of massive white butterfly wings sprouting from his back, the Hōgyoku embedded in his chest displaying a Hollow-like void. A crack split his forehead, revealing an eye within.

Parallel Aizen gazed ahead with divine indifference, his face bearing a god-like smirk.

“I should thank you, my other self. Evolution often springs from fear, and as death approached, I finally became… A being that transcends both Shinigami and Hollow!”

⤫⤬⤫

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