If the Fool Would Persist in His Folly He Would Become Wise

If the fool would persist in his folly he would become wise.--William Blake<The Marriage of Heaven and Hell>(1790-1793)

"Sorry, let's end this farce quickly. I don't have that much time to play along with you guys."

Renji raised his hand and wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand. His Shihakusho had been ripped to shreds by the Snake Man's tail, and his back was covered with torn flesh and congealed scabs.

"What are you talking about, you bastard!" The Snake Man's vertical pupils contracted sharply, and his tail lashed out at the ground, sending shards of stone flying. "Where do we look like we're joking around?"

He was about to rush forward when the chains rattled on the collar, but the Monkey Woman pulled him back.

"Etc."

The Monkey Woman stood on the edge of the roof, looking down at Renji, a slow smile spreading across her lips, "You're quite something—it seems you've finally decided to fight us."

"It's not just a matter of making a decision." Renji held the Zabimaru horizontally in front of him, the snake-like structure of the blade gleaming coldly in the moonlight, "It's about fighting you all for real!"

"Don't misunderstand, Renji." The Monkey Woman released the chains, and the Snake Man stood beside her. "Even if you're determined to fight us, don't think you can defeat us."

"That's right." The Snake Man crossed his arms, his long snake tail swaying slowly behind him. "No matter how determined you are, you're still weaker than us!"

The Monkey Woman clenched her fist in mid-air, and the blade of Zabimaru reformed in her palm. She slowly raised the blade, her cold, piercing eyes reflected in its edge. "Want to try it, Renji —your own blade!"

The moment she finished speaking, she leaped off the roof and charged towards Renji like a green lightning bolt.

He swung the Zabimaru in his hand, the segmented blades spreading out in the air, biting at Renji's throat like a living giant python.

Renji also made his move at the same instant. The two Zabimaru rapidly approached each other in mid-air. Just as the blades were about to collide, the Zabimaru in the Monkey Woman's hand suddenly flashed red and the entire sword disappeared into thin air.

Renji's blade missed its mark, and his body leaned slightly forward due to inertia. The Monkey Woman took advantage of this opening to dodge his attack. Almost at the same moment, a red light bloomed in the hand of the Snake Man not far away— Zabimaru appeared in his palm.

"How naive!" Snake Man gripped his knife and slashed directly at Renji's side, the blade sweeping across with the force of a gust of wind, aiming for Renji's waist.

Renji swung the hilt of his sword, and the snake-belly sword, which had already extended, tumbled again in mid-air. The blade arched like a wave, and the blade section pierced towards the Snake Man, forcing the Snake Man to retract his sword and block. The blades clashed, and sparks exploded between the two.

The Snake Man used the momentum to retreat, landing beside the Monkey Woman. The Monkey Woman watched Renji sheathed the Zabimaru, the snake's belly structure on the blade retracting segment by segment. "You're really something. You've mastered using us so skillfully."

"I haven't been training for decades for nothing," Renji fighting spirit high.

"That's true." The Monkey Woman looked at him, remained silent for a moment, then revealed a sinister smile. "Then there's nothing we can do."

The Snake Man turned to look at her, a glint of excitement flashing in his snake-like eyes. "Should we use it?"

The Monkey Woman raised her left hand and grasped the chain connecting her to the Snake Man. Reiatsu began to slowly surge from her body, and a crimson light spread along the chain, dyeing the entire chain a scarlet red.

Her lips moved:

"Bankai!"

The moment she uttered those two words, a violent surge of air erupted from her palm.

The airflow enveloped the Snake Man, his figure twisting and expanding violently in the crimson light, while two flickering crimson flames, carrying the airflow, began to swirl around the Monkey Woman.

As the air currents slowly dissipated, the Snake Man was gone, replaced by a giant Bone Serpent.

It coiled around the Monkey Woman's body, and was made up of countless thick vertebrae, each with an edge as sharp as a knife.

The vertebrae were connected by pure crimson Reiatsu flames, which flowed slowly in the night sky, like lava surging between the bones.

The head of the Bone Serpent hovered above the Monkey Woman's head, its upper and lower jaws slightly open, revealing a crimson core of light burning in the depths of its mouth, shaped like a flame.

"You seem quite surprised." The Monkey Woman stood at the center of the coiled Bone Serpent, the chain connecting her and the Snake Man now transformed into the last segment of the snake's tail, forming the hilt of a sword, which Monkey Woman gripped. "We are Zanpakuto —you should have expected this situation."

Renji looked up at the Bone Serpent that blotted out the sky. He knew how terrifying Zabimaru was in his Bankai state, but knowing was one thing, but the feeling of oppression was completely different when the sword was turned around and pointed at him.

"Boiling Bone Cannon!"

The Bone Serpent opened its massive jaws, and the crimson core of light deep within its mouth suddenly expanded, transforming into a huge Reiatsu projectile that shot towards Renji with destructive power.

Renji dodged to the side, the Reiatsu cannon grazing his shoulder before exploding in the ruins behind him, sending rubble and dust billowing into the sky.

But when he looked up, he saw that the Bone Serpent's huge mouth was not closed, and crimson Reiatsu bullets were constantly shooting out from it, pouring down on him like a torrential rain.

Renji could only dodge amidst the hail of bullets, one after another the Hikotsu Taihō whizzing past him, the Heat air stinging his body. He gritted his teeth, lowered his body, and sped through the ruins, trying to find an opening to retaliate.

But the Bone Serpent gave him no chance to catch his breath. While he was busy dodging, the Bone Serpent's massive body caught up—it rushed in front of him under the cover of the artillery fire, its huge mouth opened, and the fangs on its upper and lower jaws gleamed coldly in the moonlight, and it bit down hard on Renji.

Renji had no time to dodge, so he could only step on the Bone Serpent's lower jaw with his foot and hold the sword against its upper jaw with both hands.

The inside of the Bone Serpent's mouth was made up of countless tiny bone spikes, which scraped against his Shihakusho, leaving countless fine bloody marks on his skin.

The Bone Serpent's strength far exceeded his expectations. He lost his balance with one foot on its jaw and was pushed backward by the Bone Serpent.

"This won't do." Renji gritted his teeth, used his arms to pry open the upper jaw half an inch, and used that momentary opening to escape from the snake's mouth.

He landed deep in the ruins and looked around. This was the area near the core of the Twelfth Division. There were many specially reinforced buildings around it. Most of these buildings were constructed with powdered Sekkiseki mixed in, which not only interfered with the perception of Reiatsu but were also exceptionally hard.

"I need to restrict this guy's movements first!" Renji plunged into the dense cluster of buildings.

"Don't even think about escaping, Renji!" The Monkey Woman urged the Bone Serpent to give chase.

The Bone Serpent's massive body smashed through a wall, sending debris flying everywhere. However, the specially reinforced building frame proved difficult to break through. The Bone Serpent's head, which had tried to force its way in, became stuck between the frames and it took a great deal of effort to pull it out.

The Monkey Woman let out an angry growl, "You come out here! Renji! Didn't you want to fight us for real? Then stop hiding like a coward and come out!"

The Monkey Woman drove the Bone Serpent to sweep relentlessly, while Renji hid behind a thick Reishi pipe, leaning against the cold metal wall, panting heavily.

He heard the sound of the Bone Serpent rampaging through the buildings as he crept closer to the Monkey Woman, clinging to the wall panels.

When the Monkey Woman was shouting and had gotten close enough, he closed his eyes, adjusted his breathing, and tightened his grip slightly on the hilt of his knife.

"Now!"

He sprang out from behind the pipe, thrusting forward at an angle he could never quite manage when using his Bankai.

However, the Monkey Woman merely glanced back and said, "Naive!"

The Bone Serpent turned its head at the same instant, its massive head slamming into Renji with destructive force.

"What!?"

Renji's pupils contracted sharply—he hadn't expected the Monkey Woman to react so quickly.

The Bone Serpent's head slammed into his chest, the immense impact sending him flying. The Zabimaru in his hand flew out of his grasp, twirled several times in the air, and stuck into the stone slab not far away.

He slammed heavily against the wall, then slid off and knelt in the center of the broken stone slab.

"Damn it... I'm completely exhausted..."

Renji lay trembling in the rubble, his limbs feeling as heavy as lead, making it difficult for him to even get up.

He could even feel his consciousness fading little by little, and the edges of his vision beginning to turn white.

The Monkey Woman slowly walked over with the Bone Serpent, its massive body coiled behind her, and crimson Reiatsu flames slowly swirling between her vertebrae.

"Unlike your inaccurate Bankai, mine has no blind spots." The Monkey Woman stood before him, looking down at him. "The battle is over."

"My Bankai is Shikai." A hint of pity lingered in her words. "You should understand now—you cannot defeat us."

"Shut up!" Renji braced himself against the ground with both hands, enduring the groans emanating from his bones, and forced himself to his feet from the pile of rubble.

His legs trembled violently, his bones were creaking, and he shook his head violently, trying to stay awake.

The massive body of the Bone Serpent slowly dissipated, and the crimson Reiatsu and flames vanished into the night like sparks scattered by the wind. Its vertebrae disintegrated segment by segment, reforming into the Snake Man's form.

The Snake Man leaped into the air, supporting himself with his thick snake tail, and lazily looked at the Monkey Woman, asking, "What should we do next, Monkey Woman?"

"Continuing to fight is nothing but a death throes." The Monkey Woman turned around, the chains around her waist rattling. "This guy should know that himself."

She took a step, the Snake Man followed behind her, and the two walked towards the edge of the ruins.

"Bakudō #4: Hainawa: Gray Rope!"

A Reishi rope shot out from Renji's hand, precisely binding the bodies of the Monkey Woman and the Snake Man.

The two stopped simultaneously. The Snake Man looked down at the ropes binding him and sighed, "They really don't learn their lesson."

The Monkey Woman turned to look at the disheveled Renji: "Stop being unreasonable, Renji."

Renji ignored her words, and a crimson fireball condensed at the tip of his left finger, shooting towards the Monkey Woman with the Heat wave.

"Hadō #31: Shakkahō!"

The Monkey Woman merely shifted her Reiatsu slightly, shattering the Bakudō ropes. "Zanpakuto, so you're planning to use Kidō? But—"

The Shakkahō exploded not far from her, billowing smoke, but it didn't even touch the hem of her clothes. "Unfortunately, your level of demonic Kidō is ultimately useless."

"Let's see if it's a waste of time!" Renji gritted his teeth, and crimson fireballs continuously condensed in his palm.

One shot after another, some with considerable power, some with little, and some even exploded directly in his palm before being fired, charring his tiger's mouth black.

Renji gritted his teeth and continued firing, relying on his near -Captain-level Reiatsu to compensate for the lack of quality with quantity.

While dodging the Shakkahō that flew around with unpredictable trajectories, the Snake Man couldn't help but complain, "Idiot, using Kidō is really dangerous! Who uses Kidō like that!"

The Monkey Woman had already completely lost interest in Renji and just wanted to see what Renji tricks he could pull. She slightly turned her body to dodge Shakkahō that was flying towards her.

But the fireball exploded the instant it grazed her ear, the smoke covering her face, which truly enraged the Monkey Woman.

"If you're so eager to attract attention, I'll grant your wish!"

The Monkey Woman grabbed the chain around her waist and swung it violently. The chain drew an arc in the night sky, throwing the Snake Man towards Renji.

The Snake Man adjusted his posture in mid-air and casually picked up Renji's Zanpakuto, which was stuck in the ground.

"Hehe, got it!" The Snake Man gripped the hilt of the knife, grinning smugly. "Now you're out of luck, aren't you—wait, huh?"

His words trailed off as the extended structure of his Zanpakuto suddenly loosened, the snake-like structure of the blade drooping limply, like a snake with its bones removed, completely unusable.

The Snake Man flicked the blade twice, but it only wobbled weakly, emitting a very faint metallic scraping sound.

The Monkey Woman paused for a moment, then threw her head back and burst into laughter. "Haha! Renji, it seems your sword is no longer up to par."

She wiped away the tears of laughter from the corners of her eyes, and with a flash of red light, the Zabimaru reappeared in her palm.

She charged at Renji with a knife in hand. "You're finished, Renji!"

The Snake Man, carrying the now limp Zanpakuto, pounced on the Monkey Woman as well.

Renji roared, and crimson fireballs rained down from his palms like a storm. "It's not over yet! Shakkahō! Shakkahō! Shakkahō!"

"Annoying!" Snake Man looked at the fireballs flying towards him and subconsciously raised his soft Zanpakuto to block them.

However, the moment the Shakkahō struck the blade, a cracking sound came from the Zanpakuto.

And just like that, Renji's sword was easily blown apart in his hand, the snake-like blade shattering into pieces, the fragments scattering in the air.

The destruction of the enemy's weapons should have been a good thing, but when that enemy is Renji, things are different...

"Etc--"

The Snake Man's expression changed drastically as he looked at the fragments floating in the air.

"This is!"

A triumphant smile spread across Renji's scarred face.

"Fang Boil! Devouring Bite!"

The blade fragments suspended in mid-air burst into a blinding crimson light at the same instant.

As if controlled by an invisible hand, the fragments, carrying crimson flames formed purely from Reiatsu, shot towards the Monkey Woman and the Snake Man from all directions.

The Monkey Woman and the Snake Man had no time to dodge; shards of blade rained down on them like a storm.

The crimson Light Rain pierced directly through the two of them. The Snake Man's figure began to blur, and the Monkey Woman's outline flickered continuously—the moment the last fragment struck them, the two lost their forms.

The two Reiatsu intertwined and converged in the air, finally condensing into a Zanpakuto that fell straight to the ground.

Renji stood there, panting heavily. The palms of his hands were torn and bleeding from the backlash of the Kidō.

He staggered to Zabimaru's side, moonlight filtering through the cracks in the broken walls, falling on his scarred back and on Zabimaru.

"Perhaps I was indeed very weak in the past." His voice was hoarse and low.

"In the end, I always place my hopes on others. When Rukia was taken away by the Kuchiki Clan, I hoped that the Kuchiki Clan would treat her well."

When Rukia is sentenced to death, I hope Captain Kuchiki will protect her.

When Rukia was about to be executed and I was defeated by the captain, I hoped Ichigo could save her.

When Rukia took the Hōgyoku from Aizen right in front of me, I hoped that Koko could protect her.

"But from this day forward—" He looked at his hands, now torn and bleeding, the exposed flesh charred black by the Shakkahō, and clenched them tightly despite the pain, blood flowing from his fists. He raised his head, his eyes burning with an unprecedented determination, "I will become stronger!"

"No! I will be strong and show you. I will protect her with my own strength!"

He straightened his scarred back, strode past Zabimaru without a trace of lingering affection or reluctance.

Having made up his mind, he didn't even care whether Zabimaru responded to him. If he didn't respond, it would just be another way for him to become stronger. However, how could Zabimaru, as Renji half, not respond to Renji who had faced his true feelings?

"What are you trying to show off for, Renji?"

The Snake Man's voice came from Zabimaru, with its usual flippancy, and Renji stopped in his tracks.

"That last hit was pretty good, wasn't it, Snake Man?"

The Monkey Woman's voice rang out as well, still in her steady tone, but this time her words were filled with satisfaction and pride, "Renji, you're pretty good too."

Renji turned around. "You two..."