"Wait—what?! That meteor… was destroyed that easily?"
"This guy, Kenpachi Zaraki… he's not human! He's a monster!"
Within the icy fortress of the Silbern, the members of the Sternritter stood frozen, their eyes glued to the screen.
Then, one by one, their faces changed—
a flash of disbelief, followed by silent dread.
What they were witnessing defied reason.
Kenpachi Zaraki, the so-called "beast of the Gotei 13," had cleaved apart a star-falling meteor with a single swing of his now-awakened Zanpakutō, Nozarashi.
Even though the Quincy War was still years away,
the Sternritter could already sense it—
this man was going to be one of the greatest threats to their Emperor's return.
"He has to die now," whispered Bambietta Basterbine, eyes glinting from beneath her military cap.
"If we wait until his blade fully awakens, he'll become unstoppable!"
But before her words could spread, Haschwalth's calm, steel voice cut through the tension.
"Enough. You're thinking too much."
He shook his head slowly. "Until His Majesty awakens, none of us are to leave the shadow realm. No exceptions."
Yet even as he spoke, his hand unconsciously brushed the hilt of his spiritual sword.
That subtle gesture was enough to show it—
he wasn't afraid of Kenpachi Zaraki, nor of Nozarashi.
After all, the battle wasn't over yet.
The meteor's destruction didn't mean victory.
The true wielder of imagination—Gremmy Thoumeaux—was still standing.
At that same moment, deep within the ranks of the Sternritter, the boyish Quincy clenched his fists and glared at the screen.
"It's not over yet," Gremmy muttered, teeth bared.
"My imagination has no limits!"
He trembled, laughing through his fury.
"If Kenpachi Zaraki is that strong, then I'll imagine myself as his equal!"
And on the screen, his future self did exactly that.
In the footage, Gremmy screamed, veins bulging as he poured every ounce of his imagination into one last, desperate act.
"I want to win! I will win!"
"I'll crush you, Kenpachi Zaraki—using your own strength!!!"
His body began to mutate.
Muscles swelled, skin tightened, and his bones creaked as they stretched.
The boyish Quincy was gone—replaced by something grotesque and monstrous, his veins pulsing with blood-red energy.
The viewers stared in horrified silence.
"This guy's insane!"
"He's… imagining himself into a monster?!"
In the decrepit warehouse of the Visoreds, Hiyori Sarugaki scoffed and folded her arms.
"Idiot. If Kenpachi could be copied so easily, he wouldn't be Kenpachi!"
Shinji Hirako nodded in grim agreement.
"With power like that, he's bound to self-destruct. There's no way that body can withstand his own imagination."
And sure enough—
he was right.
"RAAAAAAAH!!!"
Gremmy's scream pierced the heavens.
His monstrous form twisted, skin splitting apart from the pressure of his own thoughts.
Blood vessels ruptured; bone tore through muscle.
Then—
BOOM!!!
A wet explosion.
Blood rained down like crimson mist.
Within the camera's frame, Gremmy's body simply… burst.
He never even touched Kenpachi.
"W-what… he blew himself up?!"
The collective gasp from the audience echoed through every realm.
It was true.
Just as he was about to strike, Gremmy's body imploded—
his mind unable to contain the very monster he'd imagined himself to be.
And Kenpachi, hovering above him, didn't even flinch.
His voice, calm and scornful, cut through the smoke.
"Idiot."
"You imagined me inside yourself as a monster… and that monster tore you apart."
He didn't even raise his blade.
Just one cold glance—
and the "Miracle of Imagination" perished by his own hand.
The battle was over.
Nozarashi stood tall against the heavens, its massive blade gleaming like a mountain of light—
the embodiment of pure, crushing power.
Back in Hueco Mundo, the Espada could only stare in stunned silence.
The echo of that explosion still rang in their ears.
"Impossible…" murmured Starrk, his normally lazy eyes wide with disbelief.
"That Quincy's ability was… limitless. And yet he died just like that."
Beside him, Nnoitra looked like a corpse himself.
"The guy imagined himself into a monster," he muttered hoarsely, "and Kenpachi still killed him without even trying…"
He clenched his teeth. "With that blade fully awakened, he's completely lawless now…"
Meanwhile, in Urahara's Shop, the shopkeeper adjusted his hat, shaking his head.
"Tch… a spectacular buildup, only to end in self-destruction. What a waste."
His expression darkened. "And to think, I was actually curious about that Quincy's 'Imagination' ability. Turns out even it had limits."
"Compared to the Hōgyoku…" he added softly, his tone almost smug, "this power's nothing but a child's fantasy."
At his side, Tessai Tsukabishi crossed his arms.
"Still, Kisuke… if that was only Shikai, doesn't that mean Nozarashi might still have a Bankai?"
The air went still.
Urahara blinked. "Bankai? You think that monster has another form beyond this?"
He waved his hand quickly. "No, no, that's absurd! Even I can't imagine that!"
But Yoruichi chuckled under her breath.
"Honestly… I wouldn't be surprised. He's already strong enough to shatter stars. What's left—slicing through dimensions?"
The three shared a brief, uneasy silence.
And then—
the screen flickered back to life.
The new footage showed a collapsed battlefield.
Dust and rubble stretched for miles.
Amid the wreckage stood Yachiru, calling out in her small, trembling voice:
"Ken-chan… what are you doing? Come on… wake up already!"
The camera turned—
and there, lying motionless in the crater, was Kenpachi Zaraki.
His spiritual pressure had vanished.
Beside him, his colossal blade, Nozarashi, was cracked and nearly broken in half.
The audience went silent.
"Wait… what?"
"He lost?"
"But he just destroyed a meteor!"
"Who could have possibly done that to him!?"
The screen flickered—
and the next name, half-revealed in white text, began to appear…
(End of Chapter)
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