The maker of the game rules-Katen Kyokotsu

"Flowers flutter in disarray, the flower goddess weeps, the heavenly winds rage, the Heavenly Demon sneers, and the Katen Kyokotsu!"

Shunsui Kyōraku released his Zanpakuto before the battle even began, after all, his opponent was the mad captain Kenpachi Zaraki.

After its Shikai, Katen Kyokotsu consists of two Zanpakuto, one long and one short. These are curved swords with black blades and decorative ornaments on the hilts, and their heavy blades appear to be very suitable for slashing.

Faced with Kenpachi Zaraki's challenge, Shunsui Kyōraku had no choice but to release his Spiritual Pressure, and said with a helpless wry smile, "Captain Zaraki, please go easy on me when you're cutting me later."

Kenpachi Zaraki laughed heartily, "Such Spiritual Pressure, truly worthy of you, Captain Kyōraku!"

"Don't worry, I'll cut you with all my might, and it'll only take one hit before you don't feel any pain."

Shunsui Kyōraku sighed, "This is a real headache. I clearly only wanted to observe from the sidelines."

The above conversation was just a little trick the two captains used to relax. The moment their eyes met, they both saw a strong fighting spirit in each other's eyes.

Yes, we all used knives to slash people, slash at ghosts, and slash at Death God. We've killed countless enemies along the way, and our hands are stained with blood before we finally sit in our current position as captain.

Including the sickly Jūshirō Ukitake, once you peel away the outer layer, you'll find monsters who crave blood and slaughter.

Of course, the captain of the Tenth Division, Tōshirō Hitsugaya, is an exception. He is too young, and although he is an absolute genius, he really got the captain position by luck.

Tōshirō is considerably younger Shazo. When he graduated from the Central Spirit Arts Academy and joined the Gotei 13, Shazo had already been the Fourth Seat seat for almost 20 years.

But Tōshirō grew up so quickly that when Isshin, Isshin captain of the Tenth Division, had an accident, he was promoted to the youngest captain.

Youth means a lack of shrewdness, an inability to hide one's abilities and emotions, and vulnerability to being taken advantage of.

However, although the other captains concealed themselves in various ways, their true nature never changed. When the time was right, their bloodthirsty, murderous, and warlike nature would be revealed.

For example, right now.

Kenpachi Zaraki was covered in blood after being slashed by Ichigo Kurosaki. Stimulated by the blood and pain, he could no longer suppress his wild and belligerent nature.

Spurred on by Kenpachi Zaraki's murderous intent, Shunsui Kyōraku's fighting spirit tore away his slippery and decadent facade, revealing his reckless and willful true nature.

After seeing the desire to fight in each other's eyes, the two battle maniacs blurred instantly and then vanished from the spot at the same time.

The two captains clashed more than a hundred meters away. Mars three Zanpakuto were locked together, sparks flying from the point of contact, and the powerful Spiritual Pressure darkened the sky and earth.

This is not a false description, nor is it a visual contrast caused by strong light. Rather, it is the result of Spirit Particles degeneration caused by Spiritual Pressure, leading to environmental disorder in the Soul Society.

Immediately afterwards, a white light burst forth between the two captains, followed by a violent explosion.

The explosion stirred up a fierce wind, and the shockwave shook the air, creating ripples that blurred vision. The Death God, feeling like death itself, lost their footing and retreated.

Well, Shazo and Retsu Unohana, who had just arrived, exchanged a glance, activated [Shunpo], and retreated with the Death God, moving behind them.

Retsu Unohana had been pulled away to avoid the situation, spoke directly into Shazo's mind through spiritual contact:

Why are you pulling me so far back, Shazo Zuo?

Shazo didn't mince words either, and answered in return using his spiritual power:

[This is the safest way, Sister Hua.]

[Safe? Is there anyone here who could threaten you?]

[Sister, with such a commotion, even if the two captains can resist Zanpakuto Bankai, can they control their Spiritual Pressure to keep it from exceeding the lower limit of Bankai?]

[Little brother, even if they're just experiencing Spiritual Pressure breakthrough, even if they were using their true Bankai Zanpakuto, it wouldn't be a problem for you, right?]

[Sister Hua, are you confused? The battle intensity has exceeded the lower limit of Bankai. Do you think our Captain-Commander Yamamoto can sit still? With his fiery temper, the safest thing for him to do is retreat behind everyone else.]

[Hey, Shazo Zuo, you're not denying that Bankai no threat to you, are you? Hehe.]

[Huh? Oh! Sigh~~]

[Hehe, I just realized today that Shazo is such a fun little brother!]

Retsu Unohana smiled gently, her smile serene, her crescent-shaped eyes filled with tenderness.

Caught off guard, Shazo was run over in the face by the wheel. He could only shake his head helplessly, purse his lips at Captain Egg Flower, and dare not retaliate.

Sure enough, the older sister is always difficult to deal with; she drives without any hesitation.

Shazo suspected that if he dared to say, "Shazo's younger brother is also very fun," then the older sister Unohana might actually dare to play with him.

Hey, she's the captain of the Fourth Division, she's not afraid of messing people up, even the most serious injuries can be completely healed by her Minazuki.

We can't afford to mess with them!

For the sake of your own life, stop thinking about Huahua and just watch the show.

At this moment, the two captains at the center of the Spiritual Pressure storm remained motionless. After realizing that unleashing their most powerful Spiritual Pressure to attack their opponent was ineffective, they stopped trying this futile effort and instead raised their swords to slash at their opponent.

Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!

A series of clashing swords rang out, leaving countless Afterimage in mid-air and sparks flying everywhere.

Kenpachi Zaraki and Shunsui Kyōraku were evenly matched, neither giving an inch, engaging in a head-on clash of attacks that tested their strength and speed.

However, Shunsui Kyōraku soon regretted it.

As everyone knows, Kenpachi Zaraki is a sword fanatic who often disregards his own safety in order to fight.

But in the life-or-death battles and duels, Kenpachi Zaraki served as the captain of the Eleventh Division for 50 years, never being killed or losing an arm or leg. How could that be achieved by simply risking his life?

The veteran captains of the Gotei 13 all knew that Kenpachi Zaraki's Swordsmanship, though seemingly crazy and crude, was actually of a very high level.

There's no need, and it's really not advisable to engage him in close-quarters Swordsmanship.

But people always have a rebellious streak, and Shunsui Kyōraku still went ahead anyway, thinking of all sorts of reasons, such as: I'm just testing the waters, just getting a feel for things, so I'll know what to expect later.

Then, unsurprisingly, he was bullied by Kenpachi Zaraki.

Despite Shunsui Kyōraku having two swords and even Shikai, while his opponent Kenpachi Zaraki only had one sword, and it was Asauchi, he was still completely outmatched in Swordsmanship.

After only 30 direct confrontations, Shunsui Kyōraku was unable to continue and had to switch from offense to defense.

No, it should be said that he was left only with the option of desperately parrying. His attacks were broken as soon as he made a move, his crossed swords were broken by force, and his attacks from both sides with both swords were not only unable to reverse the decline, but he was also brutally attacked head-on by Kenpachi Zaraki, who was willing to risk his life.

Shunsui Kyōraku just wanted to shout: We're fighting with swords, not risking our lives!

But Kenpachi Zaraki's Swordsmanship was unreasonable, so Shunsui Kyōraku became more and more frustrated as the fight progressed.

As the serrated blade, accompanied by a gust of wind, guided the golden Sword Qi to strike the Katen Kyokotsu blades, Shunsui Kyōraku felt a numbness in his hands, and his wrists involuntarily bent.

He was naturally shocked and immediately activated [Shunpo], leaping backward a full hundred meters in an instant. However, when the golden sword light flashed, a long bloodstain was still left on her chest by the Sword Qi.

Blood flowed down the tattered Shinigami uniform, and the intense pain completely awakened Shunsui Kyōraku.

Not only was his mind completely clear, free from the hangover from yesterday's drinking, but he also recalled the previous generation Kenpachi, Kenpachi Kiganjō, who had died tragically in a duel years ago.

Shunsui Kyōraku cursed himself for being foolish.

The way the captain of the Eleventh Division rose to power was unique. Although all the previous Kenpachi were sword fanatics, there was never a record of them dying on the battlefield.

The Eleventh Division has a unique succession method involving a life-or-death duel. Every new captain must kill the current captain to inherit the name Kenpachi.

Apart from the First Kenpachi who resigned due to his weariness of killing, all subsequent Kenpachi died in internal duels at the hands of the next generation of Kenpachi.

Logically speaking, Kenpachi, who is inherited in this way, is naturally a swordsman who becomes stronger with each generation.

Kenpachi Zaraki followed this strict and cruel succession method, defeating Kenpachi in the dueling arena and rising to become a powerful Death God captain.

Even though he doesn't know how to Shikai, it doesn't stop him from being the strongest Kenpachi.

For a swordsman like Kenpachi Zaraki, engaging in close-quarters sword combat is tantamount to the most efficient form of suicide.

Since that's the case, then let's not compete with his Swordsmanship; let's use our true skills to fight him.

"Captain Zaraki, do you know?" Shunsui Kyōraku said with a smile, "The current rules of the game are that the person who stands the highest wins."

Having said that, he suddenly leaped high into the air, crossed his twin swords in front of his chest, and without even gathering his strength, he slashed at Kenpachi Zaraki [Takaoni].

Faced with such a weak, leaping slash, Kenpachi Zaraki was completely baffled. He gripped his long sword with both hands, aimed at the two black curved blades, and suddenly swung his sword upwards from below.

Kenpachi's movements were fast, but he had also gathered his strength. Golden Sword Qi swirled around his blade, making it seem as if he could slice Shunsui Kyōraku, sword and all, into six pieces.

The two figures clashed, blades flashing and blood gushing forth!

Kenpachi Zaraki looked at the wounds on his chest and shoulders, his face full of confusion as he stared at Shunsui Kyōraku, his eyes filled with questions.

Although Shunsui Kyōraku's attack was from a high position, his Zanpakuto didn't even have a trace of Spiritual Pressure, yet it was able to deflect his attack, which was full of Spiritual Pressure.

Moreover, its momentum continued to cleave through his Spiritual Pressure defenses, leaving deep, bone-revealing wounds.

Those two sword strikes were incredibly powerful.

Kenpachi Zaraki's Spiritual Pressure is incredibly violent. Not long ago, Ichigo Kurosaki, even if he used all his strength, would have his Zangetsu deflected by his Spiritual Pressure if his accumulated Spiritual Pressure wasn't strong enough.

Shunsui Kyōraku is certainly much stronger than Ichigo Kurosaki, but he didn't use his full strength or unleash any Spiritual Pressure just now, so how did he manage to injure Kenpachi Zaraki?

Seeing Kenpachi's pleading look, Shunsui Kyōraku chuckled and began to explain the abilities of his Zanpakuto.

"As I just said, the rule of the game is that the person who stands the highest wins."

"When I unleash [Takaoni], although I don't activate my Spiritual Pressure, my position, being higher than yours, amplifies the power of my strike, making it powerful enough to clear away all obstacles, cleave through all defenses, and kill you in one blow!"

Kenpachi Zaraki possessed an astonishing talent for combat; he instantly grasped the strange rules of battle.

Kenpachi, seemingly lost in thought, said, "According to you, if I were in a higher position than you, the power of your slash wouldn't increase dramatically; instead, my upward thrust would become even stronger, enough to slice you into six pieces just now?"

Shunsui Kyōraku nodded and said, "Captain Zaraki is right, the rule of this game is—whoever is at the top wins!"

Currently, there are only two Zanpakuto that pair up after Shikai in Soul Society, and both pairs possess unreasonable, rule-based abilities.

The Twin Sōgyo no Kotowari in Jūshirō Ukitake's hands has an ability derived from the rules of sending and receiving letters; one hand absorbs energy, and the other releases it.

In battle, one can use the enemy's power to strike the enemy without taking damage, and then combine this with one's own power to defeat an enemy several times stronger than oneself.

It is truly an unparalleled Divine Weapon for defeating enemies of higher ranks.

The power of the Katen Kyokotsu in Shunsui Kyōraku's hands is even more bizarre. It materializes the rules spoken by its master into reality. Anyone who steps into the range of Katen Kyokotsu's Spiritual Pressure will be forced to participate in the game and obey all the rules set by Katen Kyokotsu.

The power of Katen Kyokotsu originates from the Goki Game, and the outcome also corresponds to the game: the winner survives and the loser dies, even for Shunsui Kyōraku, who set the rules.

The rules are simple, brutal, and fair.

Kenpachi Zaraki Satori and fully understood Shunsui Kyōraku's abilities.

However, an even greater question arose in his mind, and Kenpachi asked without hesitation, "Why did you tell me about your Zanpakuto's abilities right away?"

In the Naruto World, battles between Ninja are extremely brutal. Without sufficient intelligence, even Chunin can kill Jonin, and there is even a chance to kill Kage-level Ninja.

The battle between the Death God wasn't this brutal, and intelligence wasn't enough to determine life or death, but it was still a powerful factor that couldn't be ignored.

Like Shunsui Kyōraku, carelessly revealing all his abilities to his opponent is an utterly foolish act!

They're completely courting death!

Shunsui Kyōraku explained helplessly, "There's nothing we can do about it; rules only hold true if both parties agree to them."

"For my game rules to become irresistible, I must tell my opponent all the rules; otherwise, the game cannot continue, and the rules are invalid."

"Honestly, this kind of ability is incredibly frustrating."

"My Zanpakuto is as naive as a child, treating its master like a servant. My bones are about to fall apart, and it only cares about its own happiness."

"Sigh, you wouldn't believe it, Katen Kyokotsu not only fun, but also incredibly cruel. In his relentless pursuit of fairness, he's determined to kill me."

Kenpachi Zaraki didn't feel sorry for Shunsui Kyōraku at all.

On the contrary, he was extremely jealous of Shunsui Kyōraku. How could he not be satisfied when Zanpakuto?

Kenpachi Zaraki doesn't even know the name of his Zanpakuto!

He glared fiercely at his opponent. "Hmph, I'll kill you!"

Shunsui Kyōraku: "Huh?"