{🥳Joining keeps me motivated and eager to work diligently, so please support me.🥰 You can access upto 70+ advance chapter through by using the link: The jagged cracks that split across the air from Shiraha's purple energy wave slowly stitched themselves shut, the warped space easing back into stillness. The cylindrical surge of power that had obliterated Baidaomen and the towering walls on both sides dissipated into nothingness, unraveling into spirit particles and scattering harmlessly into the atmosphere. Its devastation was contained within Seireitei's perimeter, leaving Rukongai untouched. "The Baidao Gate was actually destroyed?!" "How can this be possible?" "Captain Shiraha's strength… it's terrifying!" The cries of disbelief erupted among the surrounding Shinigami, their faces pale with shock. Baidaomen was not a gate that could be broken. Since the founding of Seireitei, no one had ever brought it down. The gate and its walls had been constructed of murderous stone—sekki-seki—crafted to absorb and negate spiritual power itself. For centuries, that stone had stood immutable, a silent fortress against invasion. And now it had been reduced to dust and spirit particles under a single strike. "Captain Shiraha…" Izuru Kira's voice was a whisper, his eyes wide, his body frozen at the sight. "Is this… the power of a captain?" Hisagi Shūhei murmured, his tone a mixture of awe and dread, yet his clenched fists burned with determination. "This kind of destructive force… what is going on here?" Ichigo Kurosaki's voice carried the same shock as the others, his orange hair catching the lingering glow of spirit particles drifting in the air. "Ichigo, move! Now!" Yoruichi snapped, her sharp tone cutting through his daze. Realization struck him. This was no time to be asking questions. If they stayed, they would be crushed in the crossfire. With no hesitation, Ichigo seized Sidanfang, and together with his companions, he sprinted into the distance, vanishing into the shadows of Seireitei's streets. Shiraha's gaze lingered on the devastation, his expression unreadable. The power isn't bad. Even with careful restraint, the sheer scope of the spell was staggering. Had he not compressed and limited its reach, that single strike could have devastated West Rukongai in an instant. His lips curved faintly. Now the commotion is loud enough. Aizen will begin his move. Indeed, this confrontation was no accident. Shiraha's clash with Ichimaru Gin was also a stage in Aizen's meticulous plan, one revealed to him only days ago. "Ah, ah… Captain Shiraha, are you truly trying to kill me?" Gin's figure appeared atop the roof of a tall barracks tower. His sly smile lingered, but his narrowed eyes betrayed a sliver of unease as he glanced at the vanished gate and the walls annihilated into nothingness. Had his reflexes faltered, had his Shunpo been a fraction slower, Shiraha's strike would have left him torn to pieces. Even with Bankai, survival would have been uncertain. "Captain Ichimaru," Shiraha answered softly, "if I truly wished to kill you, escape would not have been possible." And he was right. Had Shiraha layered his gravity over Gin before releasing that spell, no Shunpo, no trick, no escape would have been possible. "Well, then I must thank Captain Shiraha for his mercy." Gin's grin widened, though inside, unease gnawed at him. He remembered vividly the boy from over a decade ago—weak, barely on par with a lieutenant. Yet in those years, Shiraha had soared to a level that now inspired genuine dread, a strength that even he had not predicted. "It doesn't matter," Shiraha replied with his usual calm smile. "What matters is whether you'll follow me back quietly to face the Captain-Commander, or whether you'd rather test me further." "Captain Shiraha," Gin's voice lowered, the edge of a challenge threading through his usual false politeness, "you nearly killed me just now. Shouldn't I at least see your true skill?" "Then, Captain Ichimaru," Shiraha said, smile unbroken, "be careful. A lapse in focus will cost you your life." His right hand slowly slid his Zanpakutō from its sheath. A wave of crushing reiatsu surged outward, swirling purple streaked with blue. The pressure radiated in every direction, pressing down on stone, timber, and air alike. Buildings groaned, their beams creaking, walls splintering under the weight of it. Shinigami nearby turned pale as chalk, sweat pouring down their faces. Their knees trembled, their breath caught in their throats. Even insulated by the sekki-seki walls of Seireitei, which swallowed most of the force, the sheer malice of the reiatsu gnawed at their very souls. Had Shiraha's aura not been carefully directed at Ichimaru Gin alone, the weaker Shinigami would already have collapsed, their spiritual threads shredded to pieces. Gin did not shrink back. His own reiatsu burst forth, a cold azure, clashing head-on with Shiraha's storm of purple. Yet the difference was undeniable. His blue aura wavered against Shiraha's crushing tide, buckling and straining. The ground beneath Gin cracked and caved, a deep pit forming beneath his feet as the weight bore down on him. "Fall back!" Kira Izuru's voice cracked as he yelled. In an instant, he and Hisagi Shūhei led the other Shinigami away with Shunpo, retreating hundreds of meters to escape the suffocating air. Only then did they manage to breathe. "Just from their reiatsu… this much power?" Izuru gasped, disbelief in his tone. "Don't panic," Hisagi muttered, hand on Izuru's shoulder as his eyes stayed locked on the two captains. "The others will be on their way. We just have to hold out until then." Gin raised his Zanpakutō, its blade pointed at Shiraha, and spoke with deceptive calm. "Shoot him—Shinsō." The blade extended, a blur of silver flashing forward with a deadly hiss. "Clang!" Fresh chapters posted on novel✶fire.net It struck, but as it reached Shiraha's body, its movement slowed, as though mired in invisible molasses. The blade halted inches from his chest, quivering in place. "Captain Ichimaru," Shiraha said smoothly, "have you forgotten my Shikai's ability? Did you truly believe your reiatsu could exceed mine tenfold?" Though both knew their battle was staged under Aizen's plan, Shiraha still measured himself honestly. He wanted to see, clearly, whether his current strength truly eclipsed Gin's. "Forty times gravity." The words rang like a death sentence. In an instant, gravity surged down upon Gin, fortyfold what his body could bear. His muscles screamed under the weight, his limbs trembling as his blade faltered. The earth beneath him buckled, splitting into jagged cracks, stone groaning as it collapsed further under his crushed stance. Gin gritted his teeth, his reiatsu flaring desperately, but without his Bankai, it was futile. Shunpo was impossible under this weight. His body was locked, pinned by the force of a mountain pressing down. "Captain Ichimaru," Shiraha said with an almost kind smile, "you still have time to come quietly with me before I get serious." He raised his palm, and again purple energy gathered, swirling into a condensed wave of raw annihilation. "Curse—Chi." The beam roared forward, purple light shredding the air itself as it hurtled toward Gin. "Bankai—Kamishini no Yari!" Gin's voice cut through the chaos, his spiritual pressure exploding. { Enjoying the chapters? Please Support me on and unlock 70+ advanced chapters, with 3 new chapters released every two days! 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