The Connection Between Shinigami and Zanpakuto

"Exactly..."

Unohana Retsu nodded, then gracefully brushed a strand of hair aside as she explained.

"A Zanpakuto is something both highly complex and remarkably simple. It is born from a Shinigami's soul, a true manifestation and conceptualization of a Shinigami's power."

"Generally speaking, the power represented by a Zanpakuto is born alongside each Shinigami. Thus, among many of the great noble families in the Seireitei, blood-related members often possess Zanpakuto abilities that are broadly similar. This is caused by the characteristics of their spiritual bodies..."

"However, even between the closest relatives—father and son, or brothers—there can never be completely identical Zanpakuto. Do you know why?"

Chiba Makoto shook his head, looking at Unohana Retsu with innocent eyes full of curiosity as he waited for her to continue.

A disciple had to act like a disciple. Trying to show off or randomly guess at a time like this would only disrupt Lady Unohana's flow...

As a disciple who respected his teacher, all Chiba Makoto needed to do was quietly cheer her on with an "Awesome!" and encourage Lady Unohana with the fullest possible display of curiosity, so that she would explain as much as she could. That was the correct approach.

Unohana Retsu seemed entirely unconcerned that this knowledge would be considered secret even within the Seireitei, and continued gently.

"Because aside from the characteristics and strength of the spiritual body itself affecting a Zanpakuto's formation, the Shinigami's own will, thoughts, emotions, and so on will likewise cause all sorts of subtle changes in the Zanpakuto. These changes may even extend to the abilities of its Shikai and Bankai!"

"Mm-hm~"

Chiba Makoto nodded repeatedly. In a sense, this matched his earlier speculation perfectly.

For example, Shaolin Fon's Jakuhō Raikōben was probably a cross-type Bankai born from an incorrect development path after she had been ruthlessly abandoned by Yoruichi Shihoin?

During the Shikai stage, Shaolin Fon had merely been the blade Yoruichi Shihoin kept hidden in the shadows, which was why she developed an ability similar to the Fon Clan's inherited Two-Hit Kill.

But after Shaolin Fon was ruthlessly abandoned, did her emotions become twisted?

And since Shaolin Fon needed to become the captain of the Second Division and stand in the open, her Bankai became the Jakuhō Raikōben—a strange "one-hit kill" Zanpakuto whose abilities seemed somewhat contradictory between its earlier and later forms?

Besides that, the most obvious example was surely Unohana Retsu beside him.

Her Shikai was a completely harmless flying creature and healing kit, while her Bankai seemed to have utterly mutated into some purely slaughter-oriented ability. It had a completely different feel from the usual connection between a normal Zanpakuto's Shikai and Bankai.

Then... what was going on with my Zanpakuto, which was constantly thinking about torturing its master to death?

The corner of Chiba Makoto's mouth twitched as an unsettling possibility arose in his mind.

Could it be some kind of mistaken Bankai? Could I have gone down some branching path, with All Things in Nature obsessed with slaughter while I was full of healing and kindness, causing a conflict?

No, that doesn't seem right. My true inner thoughts don't really seem all that healing or kind either, so... was it the other way around?

Chiba Makoto blinked, feeling that this matter was truly rather complicated.

Still, All Things in Nature seemed far simpler than Kurosaki Ichigo's Zanpakuto, which had been crossbred amid some bizarre triangular racial relationship and was absurdly complicated.

After all, he himself should still be fairly pure. His soul had simply transmigrated here directly, without any miscellaneous things seeping into his body and turning him into some strange existence.

Between different races... No good!

No, no...

Chiba Makoto patted his head. After spending so long with All Things in Nature, he felt that he had somehow picked up some strange vocabulary.

Watching Chiba Makoto's actions, Unohana Retsu could not help asking, "Is there something you are confused about?"

Hearing that, Chiba Makoto seemed to recall something and asked, "Teacher, then what if two completely identical Zanpakuto really existed?"

Unohana Retsu pondered for a moment. She did not instinctively dismiss Chiba Makoto's wild idea, as though she too were considering something, before saying, "In the history of the Soul Society as I know it, such a case has never occurred. The only two dual-blade Zanpakuto have very special reasons for existing. But if what you mean is two completely identical Zanpakuto appearing in the hands of different Shinigami..."

After a pause, Unohana Retsu looked at Chiba Makoto and said, "Then either one party has stolen or replicated another Shinigami's Zanpakuto power, or the Shinigami themselves have been replicated through some forbidden experiment. Only then could such a situation occur. That is also why the Soul Society forbids the existence of two identical Zanpakuto."

"I see..."

Chiba Makoto, playing the role of a disciple, revealed an enlightened expression, giving Unohana Retsu an unconscious sense of accomplishment at having successfully nurtured him.

Then, as though he had thought of something, Chiba Makoto asked, "Teacher, so you suspect that the missing parts of those residents' souls include the power belonging to their Zanpakuto?"

Unohana Retsu's eyes narrowed slightly as she answered.

"That is possible. An Asauchi is not necessary for awakening a Zanpakuto, so it is not impossible for Rukongai residents to possess Zanpakuto representing Shinigami powers."

"If all the residents with incomplete souls have lost a great deal of emotion, then it is highly likely that someone is secretly attempting to strip away Shinigami powers on a massive scale. That would be a serious and malicious incident that cannot be ignored."

Chiba Makoto blinked as he listened to Unohana Retsu's suspicions and deductions, becoming even more determined to cling tightly to her beautiful thigh.

From only a few peripheral clues, Unohana Retsu had inferred so much. As expected of the only powerhouse in the entire Seireitei who had seen through Kyōka Suigetsu purely through detail and intelligence!

They said that marrying a woman three years older was like carrying a brick of gold. Lady Unohana was already over a thousand years older—didn't that make her an inexhaustible treasure waiting to be explored?

"Burp~"

Just then, Chiba Makoto, having finished the rice ball, let out a satisfied burp without thinking.

"Full?"

"Yes. Thank you, Teacher. This rice ball was soft, sticky, and fragrant," Chiba Makoto praised sincerely.

Unohana Retsu smiled gently, took the lunch box from Chiba Makoto's hands, and tossed it into Minazuki's mouth. Minazuki naturally swallowed the lunch box whole.

In an instant, Chiba Makoto's expression changed.

Earlier, had Unohana-the-black-bellied-Retsu also taken the lunch box straight out of Minazuki's stomach while he wasn't paying attention? Had she??

Insulation effect +11111...

Appetite effect -99999...

For a moment, Chiba Makoto felt that Unohana-the-black-bellied-Retsu's rice balls really were not so easy to swallow.