Abilities of a Zanpakuto

"This is my lord's Zanpakuto release!"

From afar, Uchiha Shisui watched the glowing blade in Shikashuin Kenma's hand, the dense, delicate strands of light, and the contracts his clansmen had signed.

He had experienced it firsthand not long ago and had already completed this agreement with a Shinigami.

During the brief time he had spent learning at Kenma's side, he had gained some understanding of a Shinigami's methods of attack.

The so-called Sword, Fist, Kido, and Step were Zanpakuto, White Strike, Kido, and Flash Step.

Of these, a Shinigami's primary means of combat was the Zanpakuto!

A Zanpakuto's form, state, and abilities were constructed with the Shinigami's own soul as their foundation. Its abilities varied from person to person.

By learning its true name, one could release its true power. This was divided into Shikai and Bankai, and either release could drastically enhance a Shinigami's strength.

After seeing that Shisui had the potential to become a Shinigami, Kenma had considered training him as one. His previous bits of instruction had merely been a test.

And Shisui's talent was indeed formidable. He had learned Flash Step in a short time, greatly boosting Kenma's confidence.

"When we return to the Soul Society, I'll find you an Asauchi too."

An Asauchi was the most primitive form of a Zanpakuto, as well as the mark of becoming a Shinigami!

Kenma's words stirred waves in Shisui's heart, filling him with longing.

"Can an ordinary person like me become a Shinigami too...?"

The contract Kenma had just formed with the Uchiha was one of the Shikai abilities of his Zanpakuto, [Kiritsugu].

It could connect and communicate between two things!

After years of exploration, Kenma had gradually discovered some ways to use his Zanpakuto.

The most representative was connecting with others and forming an ironclad community of shared fate.

As the master of the Zanpakuto, Kenma naturally held the greatest initiative in the relationship between both sides, able to establish all kinds of binding agreements.

He could even use the threads of this connection to obtain part of a Contractor's abilities and Spiritual Pressure. There was no limit to the number of Contractors; it only depended on whether his Spiritual Pressure was sufficient.

This portion of the ability alone was similar to [Auswählen], though nowhere near as overbearing and absurd as Yhwach's [Auswählen].

As his Spiritual Pressure continued to grow stronger, the number of people he could connect to would continue to increase.

At this moment, connecting to Thousands of People from the Uchiha had nearly consumed half of Kenma's Spiritual Pressure and occupied half his capacity.

The reason was that he wanted to be safe. This way, he could be more at ease when bringing these people back to the Soul Society.

If he found them burdensome, Kenma could wait until the elderly, weak, women, and children could live normally in the Soul Society before dissolving their contracts.

"Next, I will open a Senkaimon. By passing through it, you can reach the Soul Society, where you shall live from now on."

Kenma said to the Uchiha:

"I have already instructed Shisui on certain matters requiring attention. He will explain them to you one by one later. I hope you will conduct yourselves properly."

"We obey!"

Kenma passed through the crowd and arrived at one end of the street. Whenever he passed an Uchiha, these members of the strongest clan in the Ninja World immediately dropped to one knee and lowered their proud heads, displaying their respect for their New Lord.

At the open space at the end of the street, under the gazes of over a thousand Uchiha, Kenma raised his Zanpakuto again.

"Sever, Kiritsugu!"

The blade lit up once more with crystalline Clear Light, but this time, the Clear Light did not turn into threads. Instead, it flowed across the blade, radiating a chilling cold beneath the bright moonlight.

Kenma swung his blade through the air. The Spiritual Pressure accumulated on it erupted in an instant, transforming with his slash into a silver-white crescent blade of light that shot forth.

Crack!

Crack! Crack-crack!

A series of crisp sounds, like shattering glass, rang out in succession.

Under everyone's stunned gazes, as the crescent blade light swept past, it tore an enormous rift through the void. Its interior was Pitch Black, as though a gigantic beast were concealing itself while opening its bloody maw.

Kenma snapped his fingers soundlessly, and a somewhat ancient sliding Wooden Door appeared within the spatial rift.

He gave a light wave of his hand.

Whoosh!

Under his control, Spiritual Pressure gathered into a straight, broad path between the ground of reality and the Wooden Door within the rift.

One side of the Wooden Door slid open, revealing a vast white glow within.

"This is the Senkaimon. Beyond this door lies the Soul Society, where the dead live."

Kenma stood beside the spatial rift, extending his Zanpakuto into it to prevent space from repairing itself.

His gaze swept over the Uchiha before him. Every one of them had their eyes wide and mouths slightly agape, utterly shocked and awed.

"Even space... can be cut apart so casually!"

"This is... the power of a god!"

A storm raged within Fugaku's heart.

Even in this strange Ninja World, tearing space apart was the stuff of legends, while Space-Time Ninjutsu was even rarer.

Now that they had seen Kenma display it before them so effortlessly, they came to their senses one by one, and their gazes toward him grew ever more reverent.

Kenma's gaze settled on Shisui. "Shisui, go in first and put your clansmen at ease. The compound on the other side is a place I prepared in advance. Remember, keep the clansmen from moving around or running off."

"We obey!"

Shisui swallowed, his face showing barely suppressed excitement and unease.

As long as they crossed that door, they could travel to an unfamiliar world and begin a new life.

Before everyone's eyes, Shisui stepped onto the path formed by Spiritual Pressure and walked toward the Senkaimon one step at a time, eventually entering the white light beyond the Wooden Door.

Only moments after entering, Shisui suddenly reappeared. He gave the Uchiha clansmen outside a heavy nod, then entered once again.

Kenma ordered the Uchiha, "Hurry up and go through as well!"

"We obey!"

Under Fugaku's and the Guard Division members' supervision, the Uchiha clansmen stepped onto the unknown journey in orderly fashion.

"Madam, I'll carry the child."

"Mother, I'll carry you over."

"Brother, sister, let's go. Don't waste time."

One Uchiha after another stepped onto the Spiritual Pressure path and entered the Senkaimon.

Whenever each of them passed Kenma's side, they would pause, bow to him, then hurry to catch up with the clansmen ahead.

Watching the Uchiha clansmen enter one after another, Kenma's expression remained unchanged as he calculated how long his Spiritual Pressure could still last.

In his current state, it was more than enough to send all of them through, with time to spare.

Kenma glanced toward the spatial rift, feeling rather moved.

This was another ability his Zanpakuto possessed after Shikai—Severance!

It could sever anything in the world, tangible or intangible. As long as it was something within his understanding, and he had enough Spiritual Pressure, he could cut it all apart.

Even elusive space itself!

Using this ability, Kenma could even cut an opening through the spatial barriers between two different worlds and Travel Back and Forth freely.

To Open Up a passage between the Soul Society and the Ninja World had taken him nearly two full days.

Fortunately, once the passage had been opened, he could use the ability of [Connection] to stabilize it. In the future, he would not need to expend so much effort. With the Coordinates left behind after Shikai, a casual slash could sever the Ninja World's space and reveal the entrance to the passage.

Severance and Connection!

Just like the name of his Zanpakuto, [Kiritsugu], its Shikai abilities were completely opposite extremes depending on the Release Command.