The rat hiding behind the world

"If I'm not mistaken, that Hōgyoku flew towards him on its own—"

"The Hōgyoku's Self-Healing ability is limitless; after fully absorbing the Hōgyoku, one can become immortal."

"Then wouldn't my Bankai be able to kill him?"

What exactly does all my years of infiltration amount to?

Gin Ichimaru wore a sly smile, but inside, a storm was raging.

Aizen's Yamato and rapid advancement within half an hour completely overturned his century-long plan of infiltration.

Because all of Gin Ichimaru's preparations and plans were for that final, decisive blow of his Bankai.

A century of preparation—wasn't that itself a century of hesitation?

By procrastinating, I turned what was originally a 30% sure plan into a complete joke.

The white fox's self-doubt lasted for three minutes, after which he rallied.

In Gin Ichimaru's mind, the scenes of his century-long lurking were quickly forgotten: Aizen's conspiracy, the method to break the Illusion, the Carnage in Hueco Mundo, and even his own sinful self—all were cast aside.

The chaotic aura subsided, and the wavering conviction was reaffirmed. A startling killing intent flashed briefly in Gin Ichimaru's light blue pupils.

Then, its slender eyes closed, and the furry fox transformed back into a cold, venomous snake, a fake smile reappearing on its face.

It's like a mask that never fades.

But a touch of tenderness sprouted from his Mind Stone resolve; it was the source of Gin Ichimaru's strength, and it was a face that haunted his dreams.

That's right, just her face. Because when this face was at its most beautiful and youthful, she wasn't this well-endowed yet.

Rangiku!

With his gaze fixed on the holy figure standing motionless in mid-air, Gin Ichimaru gripped his Zanpakuto.

[I did all this for you, so don't forget me!]

Why is he still further ahead?

No, that's not right. Why is he farther away from me now?

Aizen looked at Shazo, utterly dejected, and asked, "What was that line about?"

Shazo replied, "If you are merely the Death God, you see me as a frog in a well gazing at the moon; if you transcend the boundaries of Death God, you see me as an ant—"

The dragonfly sees the blue sky."

"Yes, that's the line." Aizen said with a wry smile, "An ant sees the blue sky, an ant----blue sky----"

"So that's how it is. Only now, having reached this point, am I but an ant, finally having enough eyes to see the vast blue sky. Haha, how utterly despairing."

"Lord Shazo Zuo, just how much of a gap is there between us?"

Shazo smiled.

After Aizen took this step and completely surpassed the limits of Death God, he became the best benchmark of strength, allowing Shazo to confirm just how far his strength had reached.

Don't underestimate the ant; it's a benchmark.

Before Shazo saw the ants, those single-celled organisms that were Death God could not be used as a measure of his strength at all.

It's funny, actually; Qingtian has no idea how tall he is.

Now that he knew, he was in a great mood and explained with exceptional patience, "From the perspective of the largest and most complete power system in Myriad Worlds, it is divided into tiers."

"From the initial stage of cultivation, one progresses through the Qi Refining Realm, followed by the Foundation Establishment Realm, Core Formation Realm, Nascent Soul Realm, Deity Transformation Realm, and Void Refinement."

Body Integration Realm, Mahayana Realm, Tribulation Transcendence Realm, and finally True Immortal.

"Aizen, now that you can communicate with the Soul Society and Hueco Mundo through the Hōgyoku, you can basically be considered to have entered the Fifth Stage of the Deity Transformation realm."

"As for me, I can barely be considered True Immortal who has crossed the Ninth Stage of the Tribulation Transcendence Realm. Well, perhaps it's an incomplete and bankrupt version, but my realm is still there."

Aizen asked in surprise, "Only halfway?"

"Oh, I see. Each subsequent leap in realm is a world of difference, and the gap will only widen."

Shazo nodded and said, "That's true."

"You've reached this point, which means you've completely exhausted your potential, even—"

After looking him up and down, he continued, "He's even gone a bit astray; the possibility of him being promoted again in the short term is no longer there."

Do you still want to fight me?

Aizen's eyes suddenly lit up. "Of course!"

"Of course I want to have a good fight with Lord Shazo!"

"Having expended so much effort to reach this point, how can we not feel the majesty of the heavens?"

"Please rest assured, I already know what you're thinking."

"I will do everything in my power to destroy Karakura Town, trigger the reaction of the Spirit-Heavy Land, and bring Hueco Mundo and Soul Society to the surface, forcing out the Nezumi hiding behind the world."

"After we're done fighting, I will voluntarily hand over the Hōgyoku and confess my guilt."

9

Shazo was extremely satisfied. Aizen was indeed Aizen; his mind was truly brilliant.

With just a few words, he guessed that his true intention was to fight him in order to scheme against some hidden force in the dark side of the world.

He even guessed what was going on with him and sincerely accepted it.

This made Shazo feel a little embarrassed, so he decided to hold back a bit when he struck later, so as not to hurt him too much.

The terrifying battle has paused, and after the failed ambush Sneak Attack Aizen, the tense Death God have regained some of their energy.

Meanwhile, Ichigo Kurosaki, having broken free of his Hollow form, also returned.

His father, Isshin Kurosaki, asked, "You killed that masked man?"

Ichigo Kurosaki instinctively replied, "Ah, he turned to ash."

In reality, the battle between Ichigo and Ulquiorra resulted in both being severely injured. However, Ulquiorra, who possessed the ability to regenerate at an extremely fast pace, was inexplicably unable to Self-Healing his internal organs.

It feels like he died from a plot device, rather than being killed by Ichigo Kurosaki.

However, the Death God didn't care about that; once they heard that the troublesome Arrancar was dead, they simply forgot about him.

Realizing what was happening, Ichigo Kurosaki grabbed his Pops's Shinigami uniform robes by the collar and demanded, "Dad, you're Death God?"

Why didn't you tell me this?

"Let go, let go now!" Isshin Kurosaki, the son-in-law, was sweating profusely with anxiety. "Give your Pops some face in public!"

Ichigo Kurosaki, being quite accommodating, let go. "Then you have to tell me what happened?"

Isshin Kurosaki sighed, his voice filled with reminiscence and sorrow. "It's a long story; I'll tell you it slowly when we get back."

"Alright----" Ichigo Kurosaki looked around and asked, "Karakura Town has been destroyed so badly, there are so many new things. Where are Yuzu and Karin?"

Isshin Kurosaki patted his son on the shoulder. "Don't think too badly of your dad. I only came to help after I got them to safety."

"By the way, I've also notified your friends, and they've all evacuated with their families."

Isshin Kurosaki sighed and said, "As for the others, there's nothing I can do. After all, no one would believe me even if I told them."

Ichigo Kurosaki breathed a huge sigh of relief, "It's good that Yuzu and Karin are alright. Pops, you've done more than enough. There's really nothing more we could have done."

The father and son spoke in hushed tones.

Meanwhile, Kisuke Urahara began constructing a new Barrier.

It's not about rebuilding, but about establishing a strong enough defense to protect Death God in the battles to come.

There was no way around it; everyone wanted to see what the next battle was like, but they were also afraid of being killed by the aftershocks.

At this moment, the former Grand Master of Kido and the Deputy Kido joined forces to create Barrier Kido, a lineup that was extremely luxurious.

The two of them represent the highest level of Kido in Soul Society and Soul Society; the Barrier they erect is enough for all Death God to survive in battles that surpass even Death God.

With nothing else to do, Kisuke Urahara of the ceasefire to retrieve his green hat, carefully put it on his head, and meticulously adjusted the brim.

Yoruichi Shihōin sighed, "Such a good opportunity was wasted, and Aizen has become even stronger now. It's safe to say there's no chance of killing him anymore."

Kisuke Urahara said with a hint of helplessness, "It's alright. Judging from Shazo's words, he will deal with Aizen, even if it's not in a way that satisfies us."

Yoruichi frowned and said, "I never expected that the Fourth Seat of the Shazo could completely suppress Aizen —how come I didn't know he was such a terrifying guy before?"

Kisuke Urahara and said, "Yoruichi, I've never cared about you in the past, but from now on, you must show Shazo the respect he deserves."

As the creator of the Hōgyoku, Urahara knew the Hōgyoku very well, understood what its infinite potential represented, and could comprehend the terrifying power of Aizen when he fused with the Hōgyoku.

However, the combination of Hōgyoku and Aizen was no match for Shazo; it was easier for them than an adult beating a child.

Kisuke Urahara wasn't just a researcher; he knew what that meant.

This means that Shazo can destroy the Soul Society single-handedly!

The destruction here is not a word game, but a real, material destruction.

And it's not the Soul Society, it's the Soul Society!

The entire Soul Society, including the Rukongai Soul Society, all districts of Rukongai, the wastelands, and the borderlands.

Beside Kisuke Urahara, the seven Visored members remained silent, the atmosphere so somber it was almost palpable.

Now Hiyori Sarugaki knows that their hopes for revenge have been dashed, and the road to vengeance ahead will be long and arduous!

Captain-Commander Yamamoto remained silent.

He understood the implication in Kisuke Urahara's words: he was actually worried that he and Shazo would clash and accidentally destroy the Soul Society or even the Soul Society.

The stubborn old man scoffed at his concerns. "Does he really think I, Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto, am an idiot?"

[If I were a stubborn, reckless fool, how could I have held the position of Captain-Commander for thousands of years? That would be a joke.]

[In crucial moments, even I can be quite resourceful!]

Otherwise, you troublesome brats would have been beaten to death a hundred times over, a hundred times over!

Although he was certain that nothing would happen, Captain-Commander Yamamoto still turned his gaze to Kenpachi Zaraki.

As the captain of the Eleventh Division, Shazo is his Fourth Seat, so he must know Shazo very well.

Who knew Kenpachi Zaraki would grin and say, "I don't know Shazo. If I did, I could make him slack off in our fight."

Year?"

Yumichika Ayasegawa head repeatedly. "I am indeed quite familiar with Shazo, but only to a limited extent. I don't even know what his Bankai is."

Then, everyone's attention turned to Retsu Unohana.

"Snort!"

Retsu Unohana snorted coldly, not uttering a single word.

But Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto already understood what his old comrade meant. "I know, but not much, and I don't want to say. You all rejected me earlier, huh!"

Suddenly, a burst of Spiritual Pressure erupted, and seeing its milky white color, one could tell it was Aizen's Spiritual Pressure.

The milky-white Spiritual Pressure suddenly erupted, then quietly subsided, just like when Shazo had unleashed his Spiritual Pressure earlier.

The difference this time was that Captain-Commander Yamamoto and Retsu Unohana sensed Aizen's Spiritual Pressure limit at a distance close to their perception limits.

Captain-Commander Yamamoto sighed, "Aizen has indeed broken through the boundaries of Death God and embarked on the path of approaching the Soul King alone."

Retsu Unohana gritted her teeth and said, "Shazo, the power he's been hiding is actually this strong—"

Surprisingly, Ichigo Kurosaki also sensed it, and he asked in a daze, "Their combined power is too strong, how can they be so powerful?"

After calming himself down, Aizen regained his composure and suddenly drew his sword without warning.

As the Illusion cleaved through the air, an extremely sharp Sword Qi was released from the blade, fiercely and simply rushing towards Shazo.

Accompanied by a violent, piercing storm, the Sword Qi struck Shazo's phantom, passing through it and carving a straight trench in the densely built Karakura Town before finally dissipating into the body of a 66-story building.

Shazo was very satisfied with Aizen's hard work. "Well done, Inui. Keep going and fully demonstrate your strength. This will be very beneficial for your future imprisonment."

"Lord Shazo Zuo, please don't joke around."

Aizen snorted coldly and unleashed his Sword Qi once more, attacking the Afterimage that Shazo had deliberately left behind.

[No matter what, one of them must be true. I'll attack them all, and I still can't hit them?]

The Illusion drew a beautiful arc like Antelope Hanging Horns, and after being infused with terrifying Spiritual Pressure, it unleashed Sword Pressure capable of destroying everything.

Sword Qi was being released by Aizen from all directions—front, back, left, and right!

However, Shazo did not merge with the phantom, and all his attacks missed.

Karakura Town was really unlucky; in an instant, a third of its buildings were destroyed, another third became dangerous buildings, and only the remaining third remained intact.

Boom-

Amidst a deafening roar, Shazo and Aizen clashed. This time, Xia Zuo initiated the attack, and Aizen was immediately overwhelmed and forced to defend himself.

Although no one could sense Shazo's Spiritual Pressure, he completely overwhelmed Aizen in terms of Spiritual Pressure, and the collision between the two also triggered a terrifying storm.

The rubble of the buildings piled up around Aizen was instantly blown away by the terrifying storm, and the immense energy even evaporated some of the fine dust.

In an instant, the confrontation between the two created a massive meteorite crater in Karakura Town, 30 meters deep and over 5,000 meters in diameter.