Bankai: Adamantine Exhaustion

Once a Soul Reaper had mastered Bankai, they could use Shikai without a release command.

Kiganjō's silent release of his Shikai was no different from a sneak attack.

If Kyōsuke Kuchiki hadn't reacted quickly just now, Kiganjō might have succeeded.

By now, the Zanpakuto in Kiganjō's hand had transformed into its Shikai form.

The blade had grown thicker and heavier, with a blood groove on either side.

Its edge had grown considerably longer and sharper, gleaming with a strange black light.

The whole sword resembled both a shield and a door panel, giving off an eerie, ominous aura like a demonic blade.

"A damage-enhancing type. That suits this brute's personality."

With just one glance, Kyōsuke Kuchiki had more or less guessed the Shikai ability of his opponent's Zanpakuto.

"Be afraid, noble brat! I'll cover this place with your flesh and blood!"

After several roars, Kiganjō flashed forward, swinging his sword at Kyōsuke Kuchiki.

The hot-tempered man opened with a killing blow, holding nothing back.

After releasing his Shikai, Kiganjō's Reiatsu had grown stronger, and his large, dark, rotund body had become much more agile.

He reached Kyōsuke Kuchiki in a single step, then brought his blade down on his head.

Killing intent filled the air and a demonic wind surged as the blade tore through everything, thirsting to drink its fill of blood.

With Kiganjō's brute strength and the powerful Reiatsu of his Shikai behind it, that single slash could have cut even an Adjuchas in two.

As the blade drew near, Kyōsuke Kuchiki focused his mind and gripped Dijiang in one hand.

At that moment, aside from the sword in his hand, not a single stray thought remained in his mind.

The next instant, Kyōsuke Kuchiki's eyes blazed with divine light.

He swung his right arm, turned his wrist, and swung his sword again.

In less than half a breath, he blocked, jolted the opposing blade aside, and slashed, the three movements flowing together like lightning.

"Don't think that weak, feeble swordsmanship can stop my Zanpakuto! Die!"

At first, Kiganjō paid no mind to the force he felt through his blade.

He thought that as long as he kept pushing, he could cut the hateful brat in two.

But when their blades met, his opponent's Zanpakuto slid along his own like a swimming snake, sweeping downward.

Somehow, that block and sweep diverted most of the force behind his slash.

Then, the next second, he howled in pain. Somehow, his left knee had been cut.

After that slash, Kyōsuke Kuchiki moved his feet, using Shunpo to get behind Kiganjō and continue his assault.

"Despicable brat! All you do is launch sneak attacks!"

Kiganjō endured the pain, turned, and slashed behind him, blocking Kyōsuke Kuchiki's incoming blade.

"Clang, clang, clang!"

Wielding his sword one-handed, Kyōsuke Kuchiki attacked again and again.

He seemed to have become a tornado, circling Kiganjō nonstop.

For every move Kiganjō made, he made several.

Each sword stroke either came from a tricky angle Kiganjō had no way to avoid,

or cleverly tapped the blade of Kiganjō's released Zanpakuto, preventing him from properly exerting his strength.

Every move had a clear purpose and a definite target, each supporting the others and linking together.

The moves Kyōsuke Kuchiki used were all ordinary basics, ones even the sixth-year students present could use with ease.

Yet those very ordinary moves left Kiganjō helpless, able only to rage impotently as he suffered wound after wound.

"Bastard! Bastard! Bastard!"

"If I could just hit you once, I could..."

"Can you do nothing but run? I order you to fight me head-on!"

In his extreme fury, Kiganjō roared repeatedly, his attacks growing ever more violent and swift.

But though the enemy was right before him, he was like a phantom, impossible to hit.

He couldn't even strike his enemy's weapon, leaving him unable to bring his powerful Zanpakuto ability into play.

How stifling!

Unbearably stifling!

The sight deeply shocked the group of Shin'ō Academy students in the distance, drawing cries of astonishment.

"So strong! He's way too strong!"

"So cool! He's way too cool!"

"From today on, I'm Lord Kyōsuke's die-hard fan."

"It's a shame he joined the Kidō Corps, or else I..."

Not only were these Soul Reaper students, who had seen little of the world, amazed; even the captains were dazzled by Kyōsuke Kuchiki's Zanjutsu.

"What beautiful Zanjutsu!"

Retsu Unohana, Yoruichi Shihōin, and the others who saw it were spellbound, their eyes shining.

As Shunsui Kyōraku released his Reiatsu to maintain the barrier, he grumbled again:

"Even his Zanjutsu is this strong? Isn't this kid a bit too much of a monster?"

"Doesn't that make us captains look useless?"

Jūshirō Ukitake, who had also arrived with the Captain-Commander, was somewhat puzzled.

"That's a school I've never seen before!"

"It doesn't belong to any school. It's just a combination of basic moves." Retsu Unohana had been watching Kyōsuke Kuchiki ever since the fight began.

Even as she spoke, she didn't look away.

"Swordsmanship like that requires tremendous personal strength. This young man's physique is no simple matter either."

Captain-Commander Yamamoto looked somewhat shocked as well, then glared at Shunsui Kyōraku.

The latter had grievances he couldn't voice. When he'd suggested letting Kyōsuke Kuchiki duel Kiganjō, he had only been joking.

Who could have imagined the two would actually fight?

If anyone was to blame, it was Kiganjō for being so hot-tempered, acting like a madman.

At that moment, Kensei Muguruma suddenly noticed something they had overlooked.

"Hey, hasn't he still not used Shikai?"

That seemed to be true!

Only then did the captains realize it, and everyone fell silent.

After a moment of silence, all the Gotei 13 captains had the same thought:

"Kiganjō, quit the squad!"

This Kiganjō was truly a disgrace to the Gotei 13!

The captains knew the man was a dud, but they hadn't expected him to be this much of a dud.

Even after using Shikai, he couldn't take down a sixth-year student who hadn't even released his own Shikai.

With this, he had dragged the Gotei 13 captains' level of strength below the horizon.

Chapter 45: Bankai: Adamantine Exhaustion

After that fierce exchange, Kyōsuke Kuchiki was still in high spirits and full of energy.

Because he held his sword in one hand, his movements were even more graceful and flowing when he attacked.

By comparison, Kiganjō looked like a clumsy bear.

For those who cared about looks, that alone meant Kiganjō had already lost completely, no fighting necessary.

Powerful control gave rise to incomparably precise swordsmanship.

The timing, distance, and angle of every move Kyōsuke Kuchiki made were exquisite to the finest detail.

He controlled each of them with precision.

As such, there was no suspense in the entire battle for him.

Once he had mastered every aspect of the battle, victory would be within easy reach.

Even as he attacked swiftly, Kyōsuke Kuchiki made a point of provoking his opponent:

"Kiganjō, weren't you shouting pretty fiercely just now?"

"How come you can't back it up when the fighting starts?"

"With strength like yours, never mind being the strongest Kenpachi, you don't even deserve the name."

"Brat, you're asking for death!" Becoming Kenpachi was the achievement Kiganjō was proudest of in his life.

Kyōsuke Kuchiki's words amounted to a direct rejection of everything Kiganjō was.

He had already felt humiliated and furious that he still couldn't take down a sixth-year student.

Now, Kyōsuke Kuchiki's words, which "killed the man and crushed his heart," snapped the last string in Kiganjō's mind.

Endless rage burned away what little reason and brains he had left.

"I won't let you die easily! I'll break every bone in your body and make you scream for three days and three nights, begging me to kill you!"

"Bankai: Adamantine Exhaustion!"

With a roar like a thunderclap, Kiganjō gripped his sword hilt tightly and poured his essence and spirit into it.

In an instant, his entire aura, Reiatsu, and killing intent erupted.

His surging Reiatsu exploded outward in an instant, while frenzied killing intent swirled through the air. At last, it turned into streaks of red light that sped toward the black blade.

Powerful Reiatsu scattered in all directions, smashing every obstacle in its path to pieces.

Only when it reached the barrier erected jointly by Shunsui Kyōraku, Retsu Unohana, and several other captains was it stopped.

Sensing that terrifying aura, the captains' expressions grew grave.

Tessai Tsukabishi looked even more worried, hesitating over whether to intervene and stop the fight.

Yoruichi Shihōin was silent as well.

As for the students, they were so frightened they couldn't speak.

Faced with a Zanpakuto's final release and a captain's ultimate killing move, they felt as though heaven and earth were collapsing, as if the end of the world had arrived.

In a battle like this, even feeling a little of its aftermath was enough to utterly destroy their will to fight.

In an instant, the already broad Zanpakuto in Kiganjō's hand swelled several times over, becoming a giant sword several dozen centimeters wide!

At the same time, a vast amount of eerie, bloody baleful energy coiled around its black blade.

The enormous red-and-black Zanpakuto radiated an ominous, bloodthirsty chill.

Then Kiganjō grew immensely confident.

His Zanpakuto was a purely physical type!

After Bankai, it not only greatly enhanced his own strength and defense,

but every sword stroke he swung would also carry an extending blade of Reiatsu!

The current Adamantine Exhaustion had several times the attack distance and range it had in Shikai.

"Brat, try dodging again!"

"Come on—!"

With an angry shout, Kiganjō swung the giant sword in his hand without hesitation.