Forging
"Nineteen, eighteen, seven... Ōetsu Nimaiya!!!"
After the blood oath was rotated, the person who appeared in front of Aizen was naturally Ōetsu Nimaiya. No one knew where he got his hands on a speaker and microphone, and he showed off in front of Aizen for quite a while.
Aizen was speechless; he found it hard to believe that his opponent was such an unreliable fellow.
Suddenly, Ōetsu Nimaiya squatted down in front of Aizen, a sharp glint flashing behind his sunglasses. "Little Aizen, are you wondering what's wrong with me?"
"I'm celebrating!" Ōetsu Nimaiya shouted, raising his arms. "Celebrating the imminent birth of another great work of mine!"
"By the way, welcome to the Phoenix Hall!" Ōetsu Nimaiya bowed very politely and showed Aizen his Phoenix Hall.
At the end of the cliff stood a dilapidated thatched hut, with a crooked plaque bearing the words "Phoenix Hall." Was this the palace of the Sword God Ōetsu Nimaiya?
In other words, he was completely immobilized. Otherwise, Aizen would have given Ōetsu Nimaiya a good beating. After all, he was a member of the Zero Squad, and it would be a disgrace not to have a magnificent palace built for him.
Even in the desolate and boundless Hueco Mundo, Aizen could still raise a Las Noches; in Aizen's eyes, prestige was still quite important.
"No, no, no Aizen, appearances don't matter!" Ōetsu Nimaiya saw through Aizen's thoughts. "What truly matters is the inner workings of the Phoenix Hall!"
As they spoke, the dilapidated Phoenix Hall seemed to transform into the gaping maw of a giant beast, swallowing Ōetsu Nimaiya and Aizen whole.
Upon regaining his vision, Aizen found himself in a vast space surrounded by a curtain of water, with nothing particularly unusual about it.
Is this the interior of the Phoenix Hall? Aizen had a plan in mind, but he didn't ask aloud, continuing to silently break the seals on his body.
"Don't waste your energy." Ōetsu Nimaiya 'Aizen every move. "Unless you destroy all the Zero Division's Residence, you won't be able to get out."
Aizen realized that Ōetsu Nimaiya was right; every time he destroyed a part of the trees, new ones would immediately grow back. If this continued, he would never be able to escape.
Seeing that Aizen didn't speak, Ōetsu Nimaiya resumed his playful demeanor, exaggerating his gestures as he said, "Next, please allow me to formally introduce you to the Nimaiya Royal Guard! Welcome to my show!"
Five female voices with different tones responded behind Ōetsu Nimaiya. Five girls with different styles jumped out from behind him in one go. What they had in common was that they all started punching and kicking Ōetsu Nimaiya without any politeness.
Perhaps they all knew the situation was important, because after beating up Ōetsu Nimaiya Yue, the Nimaiya Guard immediately began their work.
One of the pink-haired loli girls with cross-shaped eyes sprouted two shovels from her hands and began working around Aizen. Before long, she had dug out a high platform around Aizen, with Aizen positioned in the center of this platform.
"Her name is Zeshi Noomi, isn't she cute?"
Even while lying on the ground, Ōetsu Nimaiya didn't forget to introduce his personal guard members to Aizen, regardless of whether Aizen wanted to listen or not, Ōetsu Nimaiya proudly continued his introduction.
Another girl, petite with fiery red mogan-style hair, struck a hammer with both hands, sparks flying, before unleashing a torrent of flames towards the platform.
"This is Suijima Mera, she has a bit of a fiery temper," Ōetsu Nimaiya said, pinching his little finger. Suijima Mera, after spitting fire, didn't forget to turn around and punch Ōetsu Nimaiya.
On the edge of the platform, a sentimental woman was collecting seawater from the surrounding area while complaining about the troubles.
"Oh, that's Togawa Tokie. You'll get used to her tears."
Next came a blonde girl with twin ponytails, who swung her exaggerated twin ponytails and firmly immobilized Aizen, who had already begun to move.
Under the scorching heat of the flames, the trees binding Aizen began to weaken slightly. Just as Aizen was about to break free, he saw that his body was bound by twin tails, and the binding force of these twin tails seemed to be even stronger than that of a postpartum diaper.
"Stop struggling. Hashihara Renka has already caught countless disobedient Zanpakuto. Don't even think about escaping."
"Oh right, Tsumemiya Zaiko, give me a hammer." Ōetsu Nimaiya called out to the last silent, bandaged black-haired woman.
Tsumemiya Zaiko removed the bandage from her mouth, broke off a tooth, and the tooth transformed into a long black hammer in her hand. She then threw the hammer to Ōetsu Nimaiya.
As Ōetsu Nimaiya caught the hammer, he took off his sunglasses for the first time, revealing a serious expression completely different from his usual playful demeanor. Aizen recognized this expression; he had shown the same look when he encountered exciting experimental materials in the past.
At this point, Aizen had figured out his own situation.
Ōetsu Nimaiya is using Aizen as material for his Zanpakuto; he wants to forge a sword!
"Hiss! No way, Aizen is going to be forged?"
At the entrance to the Central Underground Prison, several people gasped in shock. Hirako, in particular, asked in disbelief, voicing the question that had been nagging at him: Was the powerful and arrogant Aizen really so vulnerable and helpless in front of the Zero Squad?
Especially the captains of the Visored, seeing Aizen's disheveled state, felt a chilling fear mixed with a sense of joy.
It is precisely because they know Aizen's power that they are terrified by what they see before them; the strength of the Zero Squad is simply too great.
The other captains who weren't Visored mostly wore solemn expressions. None of the captains were fools. Ever since Seireitei started promoting training Beyond Bankai, they had a vague feeling that they might be about to clash with the thing above their heads.
"Sawada Tsunayoshi, what do you think?" Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto asked, his previously squinted eyes now wide open, his gaze sharp.
"Dealing with the others is manageable, but this Ōetsu Nimaiya, who can forge Zanpakuto, has never even brought out his own Zanpakuto. It's hard to say..." Without seeing Ōetsu Nimaiya's trump card, Tsuna didn't have much confidence either.
"From what I've observed, those girls around Ōetsu Nimaiya should be his Zanpakuto, right?" Byakuya Kuchiki asked, clearly mistaking Ōetsu Nimaiya's personal guard for Ōetsu Nimaiya Zanpakuto.
"All the Asauchi in Soul Society were forged by Ōetsu Nimaiya, but have you ever considered that Zanpakuto already existed in Soul Society before the Asauchi appeared?" Tsuna countered.
"That's possible," Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto affirmed. "When I was a child, I witnessed someone fighting with a sword that possessed special abilities."
Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto's words stirred up a huge wave of controversy. Everyone was staring at Tsuna, wondering how he knew about something that was almost ancient.
"Don't look at me. I only know that before Ōetsu Nimaiya forged his Zanpakuto, Bankai was called ' Shin'uchi '!"
Tsuna recalled the Monk who had lived longer than Ōetsu Nimaiya. He never expected that Aizen would be defeated by Ōetsu Nimaiya Yue without even seeing the Monk's face.
"Shin'uchi? So there's also a shadow fight? Corresponding to our Bankai and Shikai?" As a nobleman, Byakuya was quite insightful.
"I don't know, but because of this name, I suspect that when Ōetsu Nimaiya invented the Zanpakuto, he already possessed his own Shin'uchi!" Tsuna guessed.
"Very likely. He's someone who's lived longer than me. Even my Ryūjin Jakka was forged by him." Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto confirmed Tsuna's guess.
"Isn't Aizen doomed? Even if he manages to escape, Ōetsu Nimaiya still has a Bankai waiting for him?" Kensei asked in surprise.
"It's still uncertain whether he can escape Ōetsu Nimaiya's beating." Urahara Kisuke's face was also serious as he quickly recorded the scene on the screen. "His life wasn't in vain; at least it gave us an understanding of the abilities of the others."
While everyone was discussing, Aizen had already taken several blows, and he could clearly feel his body changing under Ōetsu Nimaiya's punches.
Combined with Ōetsu Nimaiya's increasingly excited expression, Aizen could only conclude that this change was detrimental to him.
Aizen wasn't one to sit idly by and wait for death. After the trees on his body were burned away by the flames, he immediately used the power of Kyoka Suigetsu to try to escape, but Hashihara Renka's twin tails held him firmly in place, preventing him from moving.
If Aizen were to use Hollow power to attack Ōetsu Nimaiya, the Hollow's power would be burned away completely by the surrounding flames as if impurities were being burned away, the moment it left Aizen's body.
He could no longer use the Kido). The girl named Tsumemiya Zaiko wrapped a bandage around his mouth, and the bandage had a mysterious power that sealed away his ability to chant the Kido.
Is this the last resort?
Aizen raised his head in resentment, and a slit suddenly appeared between his brows, from which a sharp blade shot straight out from his forehead.
It is Kyoka Suigetsu. After he began to merge with Kyoka Suigetsu, Kyoka Suigetsu traveled through Aizen's body and he could summon it from any part of his body.
Aizen now is to ambush Ōetsu Nimaiya. If he can create an opening, he can unleash his spiritual pressure to break through Ōetsu Nimaiya's personal guards.
However, Aizen saw through Ōetsu Nimaiya's scheme completely. Seeing the blade shooting towards him, he remained calm and spoke as he swung his hammer.
"To strip away the sharpness of Kyoka Suigetsu and mirages."
Without a sound, the Kyoka Suigetsu, Water Moon" stab felt like a finger poking into Ōetsu Nimaiya Ōetsu Nimaiya's cheek, failing to even pierce her skin.
Having lost all further power, Kyoka Suigetsu could only fall helplessly at Ōetsu Nimaiya's feet. Ōetsu Nimaiya gave Kyoka Suigetsu a disgusted look and kicked him back into Aizen's body, whereupon Aizen was also beaten by Ōetsu Nimaiya Yue.
"Fine, let this soulless failure keep you company."
Ōetsu Nimaiya's tone remained unchanged. He had forged countless blades and destroyed countless failed attempts; this was just a routine forging operation.
Ōetsu Nimaiya's indifference was Aizen's last resort. After even his Zanpakuto became ineffective, he seemed to have lost all his strength, and on the surface, he no longer struggled, allowing Ōetsu Nimaiya to forge him.
"Hiss! Tsuna, Aizen's slash might just be Ōetsu Nimaiya's ability!" Urahara Kisuke one hand on his nose, revealing a wise look in his eyes.
"If it were about controlling Zanpakuto, Ōetsu Nimaiya alone could easily defeat the entire Seireitei."
Tsuna uttered a chilling guess, and everyone else gripped their Zanpakuto tightly while focusing their gazes on a certain dark-skinned person. When it came to someone who possessed formidable combat power without relying on Zanpakuto, it seemed that only Yoruichi Shihōin.
Ōetsu Nimaiya's hammer continued to fall steadily, one strike after another. As time passed, no impatience was visible on Ōetsu Nimaiya's face; instead, excitement accumulated on his face.
In Ōetsu Nimaiya's view, following the previous ancient Gillian, another powerful and terrifying Zanpakuto is about to be born in his hands.
(PS: Personally, I'm not optimistic about the scene where Ichigo to the Soul King Palace to reforge his Zanpakuto.)
From a plot perspective, the moment when all things cease to rain allowed Ichigo to realize his own power, and that process was indeed very touching. However, in my opinion, because of the existence of White, even though Ichigo already possessed Zanpakuto, he simply couldn't recognize his own power. Going to the Soul King Palace to forge a Zanpakuto would essentially be handing over his weakness to the Soul King Palace.
I don't believe that Ōetsu Nimaiya, as the Sword God, wouldn't have added his own personal touches to his Zanpakuto, just like how the Monk Unohana controls the world in a sense through the concept of "name." Similarly, Monk Ōetsu Nimaiya could control the Bleach group by controlling his Zanpakuto.