"It's a technique that brings the dead back to life."
Seeing the confusion on the other man's face, Naraku Sora took a moment to explain it seriously.
Aizen frowned, not understanding what kind of nonsense this guy was spouting now.
How could the dead possibly be resurrected?
It was the same principle as time not being able to flow backward.
Any resurrection events mentioned in the records of the Soul Society had varying degrees of limitations and could not be considered true resurrections.
They involved the transformation of Reishi properties and the secrets of the soul, truly stepping into the domain of "God."
With his current level of scientific research, he was not yet capable of reaching that level.
Moreover, resurrection was not on his research agenda at all, so it was normal for him not to know much about it.
After briefly explaining the principles that resurrection might involve to a certain someone, Aizen seemed to suddenly think of something. He furrowed his brows and said,
"You aren't thinking of having me or Urahara Kisuke master a method of resurrection so you can go court death without any worries in the future, are you?"
"If that is your idea, then I advise you to give it up while you still can.
"The foundation of resurrection lies in the soul. Perhaps only the Spirit King from a million years ago could have achieved such a feat.
"Furthermore, forcibly gathering Reishi to resurrect someone also has its limits. Once a soul is erased, it will completely disappear from this world."
Hearing Aizen's prejudice, Naraku Sora loudly retorted,
"Do I really look like such a reckless person in your eyes?"
"Yes."
Naraku Sora: "..."
'At least hesitate for a second. Answering instantly like that makes me lose face, bro.'
Ignoring Aizen's slander, Naraku Sora raised his right hand, snapped his fingers, and grinned.
"As everyone knows, my intellect is world-shattering.
"Unlike a certain someone who mocks others the moment they meet, I, Sora, have come bearing my latest research results.
"Just recently, on a whim, I developed a method of resurrection that can bring the dead back to life."
Aizen looked at the eloquently speaking man with a strange expression, suspecting for a moment that Naraku Sora had been beaten so badly by Yamamoto that his brain had been damaged.
Seemingly sensing Aizen's presumptuous thoughts, Naraku Sora didn't bother arguing with him.
Seeing is believing.
Rather than wasting so much breath, it would be better to just demonstrate it in practice.
It was the perfect opportunity to give Aizen a little shock with a forbidden technique.
Naraku Sora pulled out a prepared list and then selected an unimportant test subject in the laboratory.
It was a material previously imprisoned in Shino Prison, later given to Aizen for experiments.
Now, it no longer held much value.
Aizen took the list and read it carefully.
It was filled with complex Kidō formulas. Even with his level of Kidō mastery, he found it strenuous to comprehend.
Could it be that this guy really had developed a forbidden Kidō for resurrection?
Aizen looked up just in time to see a certain someone release his material from its container, then place his hands on the top of its head and chin, twisting sharply to instantly scrap it.
Next, he brought out a Gigai from another lab.
This was a vessel used by Soul Reapers when walking in the World of the Living. It could serve as a container to protect a Soul Reaper, and different manufacturing methods gave Gigai different functions.
The most basic of which was isolating Spiritual Pressure and restoring spiritual power.
"Sōsuke, watch closely and learn."
Naraku Sora stood in front of the corpse, clapped his hands together, and said with a serious face,
"Now is the time to witness a miracle.
"Impure World Reincarnation!"
The moment his voice fell, Aizen's eyes widened in slight surprise. He saw a Kidō barrier unfold on the ground, centered around the Gigai.
Accompanied by the bloom of intense, incandescent light, the Gigai—which did not contain any Soul Reaper—slowly stood upright. As if imbued with life, it constantly twisted and struggled.
Countless ash-white specks of dust clung to the Gigai like pieces of paper.
Then, within the range of Spiritual Pressure perception, the originally dissipated Reishi was forcibly gathered into the Gigai by some kind of power.
Something unbelievable happened.
The material that had already died was resurrected within the Gigai, even erupting with a Spiritual Pressure comparable to when it was alive.
"What in the world... happened to me?!"
The Soul Reaper test subject looked bewildered, completely oblivious to what had just transpired.
Even Aizen furrowed his brows, a strong sense of confusion flashing in his eyes.
To be honest, he hadn't understood what had just happened at all.
This guy had merely formed a few hand seals, laid out a Gigai, and then brought a dead person back to life.
If Naraku Sora had truly researched and developed this, then his intellect could indeed be called world-shattering.
Even he would have to admit inferiority.
"How did you do it?"
Naraku Sora grinned, revealing a smug expression.
"Naturally, it's a forbidden Kidō I developed using my world-shattering intellect.
"By utilizing an ultimate understanding of Kaidō, I simulated and transformed the Reishi cycle, and then...
"Hmm, I forgot the rest.
"Anyway, this is the advanced technique I developed.
"If you want to learn, I can teach you."
Aizen couldn't help but roll his eyes.
'You developed it yourself, yet you can't even explain the principles behind it?'
Although the explanation was incoherent, he had a vague guess.
It was most likely related to Naraku Sora's special ability. The Hollowfication he had mastered probably came about the same way.
Thinking of this, he stopped dwelling on the origins of the forbidden Kidō and instead began to consider the benefits and changes that "resurrection" could bring.
"Based on my observations just now, the basic operating principle is to forcibly bind Reishi that is about to enter the cycle into a Gigai. Then, through rearrangement, it creates a body identical to the original.
"The foundation still lies in the soul.
"Looking at it this way, it seems as if Gigai were naturally prepared for this forbidden Kidō."
Naraku Sora snapped his fingers. "As expected of Sōsuke, whose intellect is second only to mine. You guessed the correct answer in just a few words."
Aizen: "..."
'Why do I not feel happy at all despite being praised?'
If his previous guesses were all true, then this guy's value would have to be re-evaluated.
Or rather, was this the fundamental reason why Ichibē Hyōsube and the Spirit King were paying attention to him?
Thinking of the various anomalies this certain someone displayed on a daily basis—his absurdly exaggerated cultivation talent, his perfect Hollowfication form, his immensely powerful Zanpakutō, and his world-shattering intellect that was so simple it seemed entirely composed of muscle...
Aizen suddenly calmed down.
It seemed that no matter what happened with this strange guy, it wouldn't be surprising.
"If it only resurrects the recently deceased, then the value of this forbidden technique isn't too high. At most, it is on par with forbidden Kidō like time suspension and spatial transfer.
"After all, whether it's a Soul Reaper or a Hollow, once they die, their soul merges into the cycle. This is the underlying logic of the world.
"But there is one exception."
Aizen adjusted the glasses on the bridge of his nose, an inexplicable light flashing across the lenses.
"Reishi of first-class Spiritual Power cannot return to the cycle. It will continuously drift through the Soul Society until the Konso Reisai is held, after which it completely falls into Hell.
"So the question is, can the dead who have fallen into Hell be resurrected by this forbidden Kidō?"
Hearing this, Naraku Sora's eyes lit up.
"It won't hurt anyway. We might as well give it a try first."
Aizen pondered for a few seconds.
Considering that no Soul Reapers with first-class Spiritual Power or higher had died recently, a Konso Reisai wouldn't normally be held, so there wasn't much risk.
Therefore, he gladly agreed.
The two hit it off instantly and directly dragged out the only precious material related to Hell—Zommari Rureaux—from the deepest part of the laboratory.
Just in case.
Zommari's entire body was restrained by various Bakudō. He was bound completely from number one to ninety-nine, and there were even sealing Kidō created by Aizen himself.
Noticing that the person who had beaten him up back then was right in front of him, Zommari immediately let out muffled whimpers, trying to warn the man not to mess around, as his current value was not what it used to be.
Naraku Sora ignored the guy's howling and directly began preparations for the second round of Impure World Reincarnation.
He prepared another Gigai, casually applying a few restrictive Kidō to prevent the subject from breaking free of control after resurrection.
Then, under Zommari's incomprehensible gaze, Naraku Sora clapped his hands together.
"Impure World Reincarnation!"
A powerful gravitational pull erupted, and the Gigai on the ground bloomed with dazzling white light.
To his horror, Zommari realized that his body was constantly crashing against the outer layers of the restraining Bakudō seals. In less than a few seconds, over a dozen Bakudō shattered.
Next.
As if turning to sand, his body completely shattered, transforming into countless tiny Reishi particles. Breaking free from the Bakudō restraints, they all rushed into the Gigai.
When Zommari regained his senses, a look of shock suddenly washed over his face.
The powerful suppressive force that had always acted upon his soul had inexplicably vanished. In its place was another entirely different kind of power.
Following the sensation, he looked over and happened to lock eyes with Naraku Sora.
Zommari frowned, completely failing to understand what had just happened.
But judging from his current state, it seemed to be a good thing.
He had escaped his status as a Sinner of Hell and regained his freedom.
Although it couldn't be considered a complete resurrection, he no longer had to worry about suddenly being dragged back into Hell by the Will of Hell one day.
That place was simply not meant for the living.
Now, the only thing left to do was to escape from these two guys.
However, just as this thought emerged, an irresistible force crashed down upon him like a collapsing mountain.
Zommari's facial features instantly twisted. His legs buckled, and he fell to his knees with a thud. Then, his entire body flattened out, pressed tightly against the cold floor. He couldn't even move a single finger.
"The experiment seems to be a great success."
Naraku Sora ignored this Zommari. Lacking the support of Hell's miasma, this guy's strength had already fallen behind the current meta.
Let alone him, even if you picked any random member from the current Espada, Zommari wouldn't be a match for them at all.
Aizen watched quietly from the side, an inexplicable look flashing in his eyes.
To think... it had actually succeeded.
Zommari had completely broken free from the restrictions of Hell, and even the nature of his Reishi had changed. If this forbidden Kidō were to be released now—
It seemed he could return to the Reishi cycle?
He seemed to have understood the correct way to use Impure World Reincarnation.