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Chapter 325 B
🕑 Added 2025-04-21 15:02:02 +0000 UTCChapter 325
2-in-1 chapter:
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The first generation Captains stared, momentarily stunned.
Katori Batsu’unsai closed her eyes and rubbed her forehead. Whatever else could be said about Kaelith, spectacular truly described him.
Shihōin Chika laughed.
“Interesting, this kid has a bit of my style. Kid, my name is Shihōin Chika. Shall we be friends”
Kaelith looked at him, eyed his features, then grinned.
“Friend might be a stretch, but I can certainly call you elder.”
“Huh”
Chika blinked. What did that mean
Kaelith chuckled.
“The current head of the Shihōin family, Shihōin Yoruichi, is my girlfriend. We are not married yet, but it is pretty much settled. You share the surname Shihōin and you resemble her, so you must be one of my elders.”
At that, Chika flared in anger.
“Scoundrel, you dare lay hands on my granddaughter. Today I will take your head to ease my rage”
He roared and charged, fists flying. Kaelith and Chika grappled, trading blows while the first-generation Captains watched in silence. Their grand entrance clearly was not going according to plan. They had pictured overwhelming pressure and overwhelming style; instead, the scene had collapsed into farce, and their collective blood pressure rose.
Kaelith planted a fist on Chika’s face, raising a swell. Chika gritted his teeth and readied a counter, but sudden pain stabbed his abdomen. Startled, he looked aside to see Katori Batsu’unsai, zanpakutō released into a long naginata, the butt end pressed into his gut.
“Captain Shihōin, my fight with Captain Kaelith is not finished. No cutting in line.”
“What cutting in line My granddaughter—”
“Captain Shihōin, you are already dead. Matters of the living do not concern you.”
Her smile vanished. With a shove she sent Chika tumbling away, then faced Kaelith. “Captain Kaelith, let us finish our match. This time Hell will not take control of me. I will settle this properly”
Eyes flashing, she leapt, naginata cleaving downward. The impact hurled both of them from the sky, smashing a cloud of debris across the ground.
A grey haired man scratched his head as he watched them fall.
“Would have been simpler if we had all attacked together. Now things get messy.”
He drew his sword with a grin as figures on the ground streaked upward trailing brilliant reiatsu.
“Since it is first generation against current generation, let us keep things tidy and fight our own Divisions.” The others nodded. Each was curious about the successor who wore the same numeral.
The grey haired man brandished his blade. He was the first Captain of the Fourth Division, Chigiri Shijima.
Before the war with the Quincy, Divisions had no fixed roles and all focused on combat. After that war, each Division gained a specialty. The Fourth became medical and support. Surely his successor was some healer. How could a simple medic trouble him He would finish quickly, then assist the others.
He scanned below for the haori marked with the number Four. The moment he spotted the wearer, his smile froze.
“Unohana Retsu
“The Killing Princess is Captain of the Fourth. You have to be joking. Did the Gotei shuffle its roster and turn the Fourth into a combat corps?
“Someone trade with me I refuse to fight Unohana”
The twin tailed woman smirked at him.
“Shijima, you asked for it. Be a man and go.”
Laughing, she sped off toward her target.
Shihōin Yoruichi flashed through the air. She had already found her quarry. Shihōin Chika at last, a chance to test herself against him. Since childhood she had studied the notes he left behind. She revered this grandfather she had never met. She would greet him properly with her fists.
She blinked forward and appeared before him. No introduction needed, no numeral to check. The instant he saw her, Chika knew. Skin tone, features, and the unmistakable family bond said everything.
He grinned broadly.
“Pleased to meet you, Shihōin Yoruichi. I am Shihōin Chika.”
Yoruichi nodded, thought a moment, then bowed.
“Pleased to meet you, Grandfather Chika.”
“Excellent, excellent. You are far more polite than a certain scoundrel.” At the mention of Kaelith, his brow knotted.
“Little Yoruichi, let me ask you something. Are you really that close with Kaelith”
He illustrated with an indecent gesture. Yoruichi’s eye twitched.
“Mister Chika, please mind your manners.”
How often had Soifon scolded her that way She felt odd delivering the same line. Still smiling, she answered.
“Kaelith is very important to me. When his work is done, we will hold a grand wedding.”
“Guwaaaah”
Seeing his granddaughter’s blissful expression, Chika felt as though a ghost had stepped on his tail. One mild insult toward Kaelith and he was demoted from Grandfather Chika to Mister Chika.
“That scoundrel managed to tame my granddaughter so thoroughly. No, first I will slaughter him, then—”
He pivoted to leave, but a hand barred his path. Startled, he turned to see Yoruichi smiling.
“Leaving before defeating your opponent Grandfather, the Shihōin family has no such custom.”
The look on her face felt strangely familiar. After a moment’s thought he almost spat blood. It was the same smile Kaelith wore when they fought earlier.
Chika’s blood pressure spiked. Snarling, he tossed aside his zanpakutō and kicked at Yoruichi.
“Good” she laughed, swinging her leg to meet his.
....................
..
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In a field of ruins, Katori Batsu’unsai landed lightly, naginata spinning into a graceful rest across her back. Nearby, Kaelith shook off chunks of shattered timber and tile.
Facing the youthful looking woman, he grew thoughtful.
“Captain Katori, I have a very serious question.”
“Yes?” she tilted her head.
“Forgive my bluntness, but do you have a husband or a lover”
She shook her head. “No. I was made a Captain very young, then it was endless war until I died.”
Kaelith clapped.
“Excellent. In that case, would you consider settling for me”
Katori froze, cheeks suddenly red.
“M...marriage is not something to treat lightly.”
Her ready stance wavered in confusion. Kaelith sighed gently.
“As a junior of the Thirteen Court Guard, I grew up on tales of your exploits.
Every time I thought of how much you sacrificed for the Seireitei and all the wars that left you no time to enjoy life, not even its simplest joys, my heart ached.
“We have met across time and space. It is really a fate given by heaven!"
“If offering my youthful and handsome body lets you taste the happiness you deserve, my sacrifice is worth it. Let us pledge ourselves here and indulge in every delight.”
Katori’s eyes widened, the expression of a startled fawn magnified by round glasses and long braided hair.
“Captain Kaelith is thinking so much for me, but how can I…”
“If that hurdle feels too high, let us add a condition.”
Kaelith smiled.
“If I win this fight, you will be my beloved. How about that”
Katori gave a helpless laugh.
“Impossible, Captain Kaelith. Hell has granted us only temporary bodies to fulfill its mission. Whether we succeed or fail, Hell will reclaim us as mindless wardens afterward.
“Your wish cannot be—”
“In that case, we will change Hell”
Kaelith cut her off. Arms folded, he declared.
“I, Kaelith, aim to turn the Soul Society, Hueco Mundo, and the World of the Living into a paradise. Adding Hell to that dream is entirely within reach.
“Very well, Captain Katori. I hereby proclaim that I shall rewrite Hell’s laws and place it beneath my feet. To fire my resolve, become my lover.”
Katori stared, unable to believe the audacity of the man before her.
“I am sorry, I do not know how to respond…”
“Just fight me.”
His warm smile shattered the grand scene. Katori blinked, then returned the smile with confidence.
“I understand.”
They locked shining eyes and charged. Twin explosions of reiatsu rocked the land.
***
Kensei Muguruma skyward, confronting a bald, bespectacled giant. “You are the Ninth Division Captain of the old era?” he asked with a smile.
“I am Entetsu Kumoi, once Captain of the Ninth.”
His lips were missing, exposing teeth like a Hollow.
Kensei Muguruma lifted his chin proudly.
“I heard the first generation would return, but seeing you in person is still surprising. Perfect. I have always wondered which generation is stronger.”
He drew his blade.
“No chit chat. I will not take long.”
Entetsu scratched his bald head.
“No conversation at all Very well.”
Blades clashed. Minutes later Kensei crash landed, battered and broken. Entetsu looked complicated.
“This generation seems a bit lacking…”
Before the thought finished, he Shunpoed aside as a figure appeared where he had stood. Kyōraku Shunsui smiled, lifting his blade.
“Good day, senior of the original Thirteen. I hear your era never played games, always busy. Allow me to entertain you with a few of them”
Hearing the word “Games” Entetsu recalled that deadly chill a moment earlier and grinned.
“Sounds lethal.” Curious, he raised his sword and engaged.
***
Ukitake Jūshirō faced an elderly man, thin and hunched, haori trailing like a rag. “So you inherited my Thirteenth Division” the old man chuckled, voice creaking.
Ukitake bowed slightly.
“I am Ukitake Jūshirō, Captain of the Thirteenth Division. You are the first Captain, Saizō Sakahone.”
“Indeed, Saizō of the Sakahone District.”
His trembling hand reached for his blade. He looked too frail for battle, yet Ukitake remained on guard. Yamamoto had briefed them on the first generation. Besides the Commander, this unassuming elder was the most dangerous. Any carelessness would be fatal.
As Saizō drew his zanpakutō, Ukitake responded without hesitation.
“Waves are my shield, thunder my blade. Sōgyō no Kotowari”
Reiatsu roared as the twin blades linked by threads of light manifested. Saizō nodded.
“Twin zanpakutō A rare sight. Worthy successor indeed. Let us test your mettle.”
He released his weapon.
“Weep, Great Mausoleum”
A black gale howled forth, packed with countless insects. Anything the swarm touched was devoured within seconds. Even prepared, Ukitake felt a chill. He slashed, sending arcs of energy, but the insects merely scattered then reformed.
Saizō smiled.
“These are not ordinary bugs. They are my reiatsu given form. They convert anything they touch, spirit particles or solid matter alike, into more of themselves which become my nourishment.
“Killing them is like destroying countless tiny kidō spells. Feel free to try.”
Ukitake nodded thoughtfully.
“I see, something like kidō. That simplifies matters.”
He raised one blade into the oncoming swarm. At the last instant every insect veered, sucked into the blade as if into a black hole. Half the swarm vanished inside.
Spinning, Ukitake aimed the second blade forward. The absorbed energy transformed into pure destructive force and erupted. The remaining insects were obliterated, and the beam carved a trench kilometers long. Saizō flashed away, eyebrows rising.
“Cheating, are we? Your ability completely counters mine. Are you really Thirteenth Division Not a last-minute swap by Yamamoto to restrain me”
“Of course not.” Ukitake smiled faintly.
Saizō scratched his head with the sword hilt. Embarrassing to ask for a different opponent, yet… perhaps a delaying tactic. He could devour surrounding structures and spirit particles to build an overwhelming reserve, then slowly grind the youngster down.
As he pondered, a familiar scent drifted.
“Wait” he sniffed, eyes narrowing. Kid, have you been to the Sakahone District”
Ukitake’s face tightened. Saizō grinned.
“I knew it. I was born there, I know that smell. You sought the land god Mimihagi to save your life. Mimihagi does not heal gently. The life it grants is always reclaimed.”
Ukitake sighed. Memories surfaced of childhood illness, snow white hair, parents begging the district deity. The right hand of the Soul King had spared his organs; in return his life would one day revert to it. He had accepted that fate long ago. After all, he should have died at the age of three. It was very lucky that he could live so long now. He shouldn't ask for more.
Unexpectedly, the captain of the first generation 13th Division in front of him also knew this legend.
Saizō’s grin widened.
“I wondered how to handle you, but now it is simple. Your stamina is poor thanks to Mimihagi’s crude work.
“Even I can outlast you.”
Scarlet reiatsu erupted around him.
“Bankai—
Sakotsu!”
A storm of power surged. Ukitake raised an arm against the blast as Saizō emerged transformed: long hair flowing, youthful body filling the once sagging haori, black winds spiraling around his blade. He flashed forward with a sweeping strike.
The battle of successors and predecessors raged on.
Comments
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Not gonna lie, I've seen Katori Batsu’unsai and I probably would've done the same as Kaelith.
