In a certain street of the Seireitei, Byakuya, having learned of the news from Squad One, shared the information with the Tenth.
"A madman who no longer cares about consequences is the most troublesome kind. Byakuya, we need to move faster," the Tenth said. "At the very least, we have to preserve the experimental data on those Modified Souls."
Flames ignited in both his hands. He no longer used Shunpo to travel. Flames of Hard Flame jetted from his hands, and his entire body rose into the air, flying parallel to the ground.
This method of travel could not conceal his Reiatsu, but it undoubtedly increased the Tenth's speed.
With the Tenth's control over his own flames, his flying speed through flame propulsion far exceeded his speed with Shunpo. And he was not only flying forward by himself.
Byakuya understood what the Tenth meant. He directly removed the Ginpaku Kazahana no Uzuginu from around his neck and used Senbonzakura to wrap it around the Tenth's waist, while tying the other end around his own hand. In this way, he let the Tenth pull him along at high speed.
As expected, the Kuchiki Clan's belongings were high-quality goods. The Ginpaku Kazahana no Uzuginu looked transparent and fragile, but its durability was not poor in the slightest. It was more than enough to carry Byakuya while flying.
Just as the Tenth and Byakuya began accelerating, a familiar Reiatsu came from the direction of Squad 12 .
It was Captain Hitsugaya's Reiatsu.
Outside Squad 12 , two Tōshirō Hitsugayas stood facing each other. Compared to the fake, who wore a neat and proper captain's uniform, the real Hitsugaya's tattered haori made him look more like an ascetic practitioner.
"I am quite curious. Why is Captain Hitsugaya's copy guarding the entrance to Squad 12 ? Is it here to protect something, or to destroy something?" Mayuri Kurotsuchi stepped forward and asked.
Logically speaking, the one guarding this place should have been his own copy.
"A man about to die does not need to know too much!"
This fake Hitsugaya had completely copied Hitsugaya's old pretentious attitude, making the real Hitsugaya himself feel somewhat embarrassed just watching it.
"Then you are here to destroy it, are you? Daring to destroy the technological achievements of my Squad 12 —you certainly have courage!"
Mayuri Kurotsuchi's expression turned quite ugly. He immediately released Ashisogi Jizō and launched an attack at the fake Hitsugaya. The fake Hitsugaya merely gave a cold snort, then drew Hyōrinmaru and cut out a block of solid ice, smashing it toward Mayuri.
"How dull," the fake Hitsugaya commented coldly.
In his view, a captain who could not use Bankai did not even have the qualifications to exchange blows with him.
"I am actually more interested in something else. If the goal is to destroy data, would it not be better to send a fire-type Shinigami? Why send you? Where is your Captain-Commander Yamamoto?"
Just as the fake Hitsugaya gave his evaluation, Mayuri Kurotsuchi's voice sounded behind him. There was no trace of Mayuri at the place where the block of ice had smashed down.
When had he done that?
Had Mayuri Kurotsuchi unknowingly broken through the fake Hitsugaya's defenses?
The fake Hitsugaya was just about to turn around and attack Mayuri when a voice even colder than his own forcibly stopped his movements. That voice seemed capable of freezing the very world itself.
"Your opponent is me."
The one who spoke was the real Hitsugaya. Yet those simple words plunged the fake Hitsugaya into a field of cold, rendering him completely unable to move.
At the fake Hitsugaya's feet, fine shards of frost had already spread over his soles. Merely the cold breath leaving the real Hitsugaya's mouth had caused freezing effects to appear in the surroundings.
The real Hitsugaya frowned slightly. He was somewhat dissatisfied with this situation. Once again, he had failed to fully control his own power. Ever since absorbing all of Hyōrinmaru's power, he had remained taciturn, precisely to avoid hurting the people around him.
"Captain Hitsugaya, I will leave the enemy to you. I need to go back and take a proper look."
Mayuri Kurotsuchi waved at Hitsugaya without the slightest courtesy. Then his figure gradually faded and disappeared from the entrance of Squad 12 .
This was Mayuri Kurotsuchi's improved technology known as camouflaged skin. In simple terms, it worked similarly to a chameleon, allowing him to blend into the environment and deceive the enemy. Just now, he had used this technique to directly bypass the fake Hitsugaya's attack.
Returning as casually as though he were going home, Mayuri revealed a faint smile. From the fake Hitsugaya's actions, he could already guess that the fake Yamamoto was not unwilling to come here; rather, he probably could not come here.
Just as Mayuri Kurotsuchi was about to open the squad barracks' gate, a somewhat unruly figure walked over from another street. He drew his Zanpakutō and swung a burst of flame toward the ground, freeing the restrained fake Hitsugaya and restoring his awareness.
"Inaba even created you?" the fake Hitsugaya asked.
"Isn't it because you can't handle this alone? My fire-type Zanpakutō happens to pair well with your ice-type one. Destroying Squad 12 will be much easier this way."
The person who appeared was none other than the wielder of Soul Society's other fire-type Zanpakutō, Isshin Kurosaki. However, Isshin had never come to Soul Society. Combined with the way he spoke to the fake Hitsugaya, there was no need to ask—this one was also a fake.
"A rat slipped past. Block the gate," the fake Hitsugaya said.
At that very moment, the gate of Squad 12 opened, and Mayuri Kurotsuchi quickly slipped inside. The fake Isshin also reacted and tried to rush toward the entrance.
A winged ice dragon descended from the sky, turning into a massive lump of ice that sealed Squad 12 's gate shut. Hitsugaya drew his Zanpakutō, and frost formed across his face.
"Tōshirō, I'll leave that opponent to you. I'm going inside to find someone," the fake Isshin said casually to the fake Hitsugaya.
He did not notice how shocked the fake Hitsugaya looked when he saw the real Hitsugaya draw his blade.
The fake Isshin wiped blood across his blade. He was preparing to use Engetsu's explosive power to directly blast through Squad 12 's wall. After all, they were here to destroy the place. Surely there was no requirement that they had to enter through the front gate.
Just as the fake Isshin was about to act, a glimmer of cold light flashed across the fake Hitsugaya's eyes. He hurriedly turned and shouted at the fake Isshin.
"Idiot, run!"
However, before the fake Hitsugaya could finish speaking, a terrifying cold had already descended upon the fake Isshin. That cold condensed into the shape of a sword light. Before the fake Hitsugaya could even react, the sword had already swept past him.
Under the sunlight, the ice crystals shone brilliantly and dazzlingly. The fake Isshin still maintained his grinning, sword-swinging posture, but he had already been completely frozen inside a massive block of ice.
Not only that, the power released by that burst of cold had draped half of Squad 12 's barracks in a new coat of frost. With only a single strike, the real Hitsugaya had already dealt with the fake Isshin.
The instant he saw the fake Isshin, the real Hitsugaya had already prepared to attack him. After experiencing his previous battle with the captain, Hitsugaya finally learned that Senior Isshin had actually been hiding quite powerful methods.
Compared to the fake Isshin, this fake Hitsugaya was far less interesting. The real Hitsugaya knew all of his combat methods completely, so there was no need to waste such a perfect opportunity for a sneak attack.
The fake Hitsugaya stiffly looked toward the real Hitsugaya. If he had not seen wrongly, when the real Hitsugaya swung that blade just now, he had not even released Hyōrinmaru's power.
No. He had to strike first.
If this dragged on any longer, the fake Hitsugaya suspected he might no longer even have the courage to fight him.
"Bankai, Daiguren Hyōrinmaru!"
Watching Daiguren Hyōrinmaru rise into midair, the real Hitsugaya finally realized why Tsunayoshi had always mocked him in the past for opening every fight with Bankai. Just looking at the version of himself in the air, clad in ice-dragon armor, Hitsugaya knew that his past self had not truly been worthy of the title of the strongest ice-type Zanpakutō's wielder.
The real Hitsugaya calmly raised his sword level with his head, the blade tip pointing toward the fake Hitsugaya in the air. One word after another, neither hurried nor slow, he spoke:
"Sit Upon the Frozen Heavens, Hyōrinmaru."
With every word Hitsugaya spoke, the surrounding temperature dropped another level. By the time the entire Shikai release command was complete, the area around them had already turned into a frozen field.
A pattern shaped like an ice dragon swam across Hyōrinmaru's blade. The crescent moon connected to the chain at Hyōrinmaru's hilt had already turned into a full moon.
Just like Yamamoto's Ryūjin Jakka, merely releasing Hyōrinmaru's power had already transformed the surrounding environment into a battlefield suited for him.
The surroundings had become so cold that the fake Hitsugaya could not even sweat.
Could someone tell him why the real Tōshirō Hitsugaya was this strong?
Clearly, all his power came from Hitsugaya. Yet the intensity of the Reiatsu he emitted after using Bankai could not even match the real body's Shikai.
Run?
As soon as that thought appeared, the fake Hitsugaya threw it to the back of his mind. He alone could use several techniques to imprison opponents. He did not believe the real Hitsugaya could not do the same.
In other words, this was a dead end.
Electric light surged in the fake Hitsugaya's eyes. He began recklessly driving the Reiatsu within his body. He was going to risk everything, even though he did not believe he could produce any real result.
"Oh?"
The real Hitsugaya watched the fake Hitsugaya's eruption with some interest. This kind of reckless Reiatsu burst would damage one's own body. Hitsugaya had never used it in the past, so seeing this fake use it now had some reference value.
The three ice flowers behind Daiguren Hyōrinmaru rapidly withered. One layer of ice armor after another covered the fake Hitsugaya's body. He was evolving toward the dragon-headed, human-bodied Hyōrinmaru form that Sōjirō Kusaka had once become.
Seeing this, the real Hitsugaya found it somewhat dull.
Just as Yamamoto had guessed, there were limits to the power these copies could use. In his eyes, the fake Hitsugaya's eruption was nothing more than a half-baked imitation.
He had thought he might be able to fight a complete version of himself.
Beneath the real Hitsugaya's frost-covered eyelids was only disappointment.
Daiguren Hyōrinmaru was effectively a limiter on Hitsugaya's power. When all the ice flowers withered, Hyōrinmaru's power would be fully released. At that time, Hitsugaya would briefly mature into his adult form and gain the power to freeze space itself.
But how could a Modified Soul copied from a tiny amount of Reishi possess the Reiatsu that Hitsugaya should have? As a result, even this power eruption became nothing more than a clumsy imitation—an empty display.
The fake Hitsugaya nearly ground his teeth to pieces when he saw the real Hitsugaya's expression.
What was with that undisguised disappointment?
Did he really look down on him that much?
The real Hitsugaya did not know how complicated the fake's emotions were. In any case, he had already lost interest. With a casual swing of Hyōrinmaru toward the sky, dozens of ice dragons soared upward and charged straight at the fake Hitsugaya.
"Guryū Hyōchū."
A modified version of Guncho Tsurara. In terms of power, continuing to call it "icicle" no longer seemed very appropriate, but Hitsugaya did not care. It was only the name of a technique.
The ice dragons tore into the fake Hitsugaya's body. The instant he clashed with them, he had already judged that he was no match for this technique.
No wonder he never placed me in his eyes.
Tōshirō Hitsugaya, I absolutely will not let you have your way so easily!
All his Reiatsu was poured into the tip of his blade. The fake Hitsugaya launched his attack.
Ryūsenka!
However, his target was not the real Hitsugaya. It was the fake Isshin, whom Hitsugaya had frozen into a block of ice.
Using Ryūsenka's rapid movement, the fake Hitsugaya seized a tiny opening. With the tip of his blade, he picked out the fake Isshin's Modified Soul. Then, using his final strength, he transmitted both Modified Souls away together.
By the time the ice dragons arrived and devoured them, only two lifeless Reigai remained.
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