Disheveled

Disheveled

A Zanpakuto had weaknesses.

That was indeed an indisputable fact.

Even for Arima Shizuya, those words did not really matter... because he fully understood his own situation.

After all, in the world of Shinigami,

theoretically speaking... there was no such thing as true invincibility. Hadn't Strawberry Bro bulldozed his way through the Three Realms with sheer strength?

Embarrassing as it was to admit, in this world, if one wanted mechanics to take priority over base stats, then one's own stats had to be strong enough first.

Arima Shizuya was still far from that level.

What was more, this was only one Shikai of his Zanpakuto.

So, to return to the point.

Simply being able to injure Aizen was already an unexpected gain in another sense.

But honestly... Arima Shizuya was still somewhat curious.

Had Aizen truly seen through his Zanpakuto Ability? Or was he merely putting on a bluff? Regardless of the answer, today's battle would surely prove immensely beneficial.

Watching Aizen simply bandage his wound in the distance, Arima Shizuya did not remain idle. He took this chance to adjust his condition.

Arima Shizuya quickly reviewed his status panel.

These were the gains he had made during this period...

Zan: 59
Fist: 40
Movement: 30
Kido: 35

He had improved tremendously in every aspect, not only because of his previous battle with Guiganjo.

It was also thanks to his sparring sessions with Tōsen Kaname, as well as Aizen's all-around guidance.

Just as had been said before,

Arima Shizuya's Spiritual Pressure was essentially the sum of the Four Great Basic Skills.

Now that it had erupted once again and been fully perceived by others, they could clearly sense all the changes taking place within Arima Shizuya.

The most obvious of them was his Spiritual Might, which even made Tōsen Kaname unable to help but take notice.

"Fifth Level Spiritual Might..."

His rate of improvement was enough to make anyone sigh in amazement.

Even from the perspective of a friend, it was hard not to feel a little envious.

Was this the talent of someone Lord Aizen had taken a liking to?

His thoughts gathered and dispersed. Before long, the two assumed their stances again.

Because he did not know what Aizen was planning, Arima Shizuya's strategy remained quite conservative.

Rely on Bow Clothing's predictions and observe his movements a little longer first.

Rather than seeking to defeat Aizen outright, he set "injuring the opponent," or perhaps "suppressing the opponent," as his goal.

With that as the premise, the simulated scenarios he constructed would become relatively milder.

That was right—this was also one way of using his Zanpakuto Ability.

By adjusting his own objective, he could keep the illusory labyrinth from becoming too severe.

It was like using a dull knife to slowly grind away at flesh.

He would continuously gain the upper hand in various small details, gradually widening the gap in their stamina.

With that as his premise, Arima Shizuya, who grew stronger the longer he fought, could see a more advantageous future.

Then how would Aizen break it? Remaining silent, the light in Arima Shizuya's eyes began to flicker once more.

The devouring and conversion of Spiritual Pressure were completed in an instant. Hundreds, thousands of futures appeared, and Arima Shizuya swiftly found a viable plan among them.

This one.

His muscles tensed, and Arima Shizuya pressed his lips together before giving a low shout.

"Excuse me."

Shunpo.

Using explosive Spiritual Pressure to move his body, his flashing, shifting figure closed in on Aizen at top speed. Yet the other man showed not the slightest hint of panic.

Arima Shizuya could only watch calmly as Aizen opened his mouth and spoke a brief sentence.

"Tōsen, attack him."

In the next instant, Arima Shizuya's expression changed.

He could feel a fierce gust of wind coming from behind him... There was no time to turn around, but it definitely was not anything good.

He had to dodge.

As he instinctively stepped to the side, Aizen's voice came from his left like a ghost.

"Just as I thought. If I'm not mistaken, you did not foresee this... did you?"

Before he could react, a dazzling crimson sphere of light flashed and swallowed Arima Shizuya whole in an instant.

Hadō No. 31: Shakkahō.

BOOM!!! Arima Shizuya fled from the blazing light in a thoroughly disheveled state. He rolled across the ground, trying to put out the flickering flames on his body.

But Aizen gave him no time to recover.

The smiling Prison Master strode forward and landed a whipping kick squarely into Arima Shizuya's waist.

He was sent flying as though he had been hit by a truck. Before he could even break his fall, Arima Shizuya crashed to the ground, man and blade together, looking utterly miserable.

"Cough, cough... cough..."

Coughing, Arima Shizuya wiped away the streaks of blood seeping from the abrasions on his face. He struggled back to his feet.

His opponent had indeed discovered his weakness.

Aizen looked Arima Shizuya up and down, smiling as he spoke.

"After all, I only experienced it once, so I can only give a rough estimate. But that sense of discomfort just now was far too obvious..."

"I had prepared myself for your attack and conceived several follow-up measures. Yet none of them came into play during our exchange."

"It was almost as though all of my intentions had been seen through. It was quite exaggerated."

"So I made a bold assumption..."

"If I'm not mistaken, Shizuya-kun's Zanpakuto should be able to predict the course of events a few seconds into the future, correct?"

It was only their first exchange, yet he had already deduced so much.

It could only be called unexpected, yet reasonable at the same time... After all, it was Aizen. It was only natural that he would be formidable.

Arima Shizuya revealed a rather helpless expression.

"Teacher Aizen, aren't you a little too strong...?"

"Hehe, it is nothing remarkable. Once Shizuya-kun reaches my level, I believe you will feel the same way."

Aizen smiled calmly and casually adjusted his glasses.

"True experts have a general understanding of the extent to which they can wield their own strength."

"The use of Spiritual Pressure, control of the body... these are all experiences and lessons forged through time and countless trials."

"Shizuya-kun, your ability can find openings and weak points, then strike at the most suitable moment to interrupt your opponent. That is certainly impressive, but it also makes your opponent more wary."

"Especially those with abundant combat experience. It is not difficult for them to make similar responses."

As for the weakness,

the situation just now had made it quite obvious.

Aizen said with a smile,

"Your ability did not predict that a third party would suddenly intervene in our confrontation, did it?"

As he spoke, Aizen pointed toward Tōsen Kaname in the distance.

"Even though Tōsen merely threw a stone."