Double

Chapter 47: Onefold

"Unnecessary. For a slaughter... a single blade is enough!" Kenpachi Zaraki snorted, his tone dripping with utter disdain.

"What?"

Wu Biao tilted his head, looking at Kenpachi with an expression of growing dissatisfaction: "Asshole, the so-called martial arts is the pursuit of the pleasure found in constantly challenging others and, more importantly, challenging oneself. It is to better enjoy this process that all sorts of fighting techniques were born!"

What did that mean?

Kenpachi blinked, his pupils filled with confusion; it was clear that Brother Biao's lecture on combat was like playing the lute to a cow.

"The true romance of a man lies in fist-to-flesh combat! That is the charm of martial arts, not the bullshit slaughter you're talking about!" Wu Biao seemed to have turned into a chatterbox, staring at Kenpachi with contempt as he rambled on incessantly.

"Boring!" Kenpachi hoisted his Zanpakuto onto his shoulder, looking at Wu Biao with a savage grin: "Seeing blood with every swing of the blade is what a real slaughter is! The feeling of a blade slicing through flesh and blood is the highest form of enjoyment in battle!"

"Bullshit! Fist-to-flesh is a man's romance!"

"Dog shit! Blade-to-blood is the essence of slaughter!"

With those words, the two stopped fighting, staring each other down with wide, angry eyes. It was clear that both were convinced their own philosophy was the only correct one!

Although people of similar interests often attract one another, fundamental differences in ideology can lead to the exact opposite result... repulsion!

Take the current situation: in Brother Biao's world, what he craves is the thrill of fist-to-flesh combat, defeating his opponent, and constantly growing stronger; whereas in Kenpachi's world, he craves the thrill of blade-to-blood, the edge-of-death excitement where either he kills or is killed!

To summarize it simply...

Brother Biao is a sadist, enjoying the satisfaction of landing his fists on someone else.

Kenpachi is a masochist, enjoying the comfort of cutting his opponent or being cut by them.

While both pursue battles with the strong and are equally battle-crazed, there is a massive difference in their essence!

"I misjudged you!" A vein bulged on Wu Biao's bald head, his gaze filled with scorn and disdain: "You're not the same kind as me, you're just a brute. Slicing flesh is nothing but the slaughter of beasts, the way of a savage!"

He's cursing me?

Kenpachi was actually stunned by Wu Biao's insults. He never imagined that in the middle of a life-or-death struggle, this asshole would just start hurling abuse. To this, Kenpachi could only say that in all his years, this was the first time he'd seen such a thing.

His spiritual pressure surged in an instant, and Kenpachi glared at Wu Biao with a dark expression: "You idiot, that sissy Hakuda of yours, it doesn't even hurt when it hits! What the hell is the point of that!"

"You cursed me!"

"So what!"

Regarding the bickering between the two, Yachiru, the only spectator on the field, couldn't help but twitch her lips. These two... neither of them had any right to judge the other!

"I'll show you what 'fist-to-flesh' really means!" Wu Biao roared and charged at Kenpachi without a shred of restraint.

Kenpachi snorted, extending his Zanpakuto to meet him head-on. But this time, Wu Biao didn't continue his previous style of trading blows without dodging; instead, he unleashed a variety of fighting techniques that, while not flashy, were extremely practical.

The footwork of boxing was utilized to its fullest by Wu Biao, though with a twist—when he used it, it was as fast as teleportation.

The moment he leaped, the foot that touched the ground would tap it over a dozen times in a split second, creating high-speed movement over short distances. As he darted left and right, he left behind a trail of afterimages.

Kenpachi's blade was fast, but it was a long weapon. As the saying goes, "one inch longer, one inch stronger; one inch shorter, one inch deadlier." With Wu Biao's high-speed, close-quarters footwork and Kenpachi's unfamiliarity with this fighting style, he couldn't land a single strike on Wu Biao.

And so, a bizarre scene unfolded.

Wu Biao stuck to Kenpachi like a piece of adhesive plaster. When Kenpachi retreated, he followed; when Kenpachi lunged, he stepped back, always maintaining a distance of exactly one arm's length.

When a blade swung, he dodged; if he couldn't dodge, he smashed a fist into it. At such close range, Kenpachi's strikes couldn't exert their full power.

While dodging, he constantly applied throws and joint locks, hitting Kenpachi until the man roared in fury. It was clear that Wu Biao's style was frustrating him to the extreme!

Even Yachiru, watching from the sidelines, was terrified by such a death-defying style. Seeing Kenpachi's Zanpakuto graze Wu Biao's shiny scalp by a hair's breadth, she had the distinct impression that this man... actually didn't care if he lived or died.

A single mistake in his offense would result in something far worse than a heavy injury—at best, a severed limb; at worst, a cracked skull. No one in their right mind would choose such a madman's approach.

But Wu Biao was different. Relying on his heaven-defying combat instincts, he had nearly a seventy percent certainty of dodging those strikes, despite how dangerous it looked.

Perhaps to others, there was still a thirty percent chance of death, but to Wu Biao... that was enough!

Just as Rukia had assessed him, he was a maniac—a madman who didn't even care about his own life when he went berserk!

Kenpachi's spiritual pressure was too strong. Even though every strike only grazed Wu Biao's skin, the pressure radiating from the blade sliced countless wounds into his body, turning him into a blood-soaked mess in the blink of an eye.

Yet, Wu Biao acted as if nothing had happened, remaining glued to Kenpachi's side.

Kenpachi wasn't faring much better. Every punch, kick, palm strike, and grapple from Wu Biao landed with a heavy thud, shaking his internal organs and causing blood to trickle from the corner of his mouth!

The two figures flickered in and out of sight, shifting constantly. Even when Kenpachi tried his best to retreat, Wu Biao's footwork kept him pinned in close combat. And when Kenpachi lunged forward, Wu Biao would retreat just enough to maintain the pressure.

The rhythm of the battle was being controlled by Wu Biao to a masterful degree!

The ground they traversed looked as if it had been plowed, a complete wreck with not a single intact patch of earth left.

If this stalemate continued, it would come down to nothing but stamina and spiritual pressure.

Whoever ran dry first would be the loser. This was exactly what Wu Biao was counting on, as he wasn't a masochist like Kenpachi, who could treat being slashed by a Zanpakuto as a form of enjoyment!

However, battles rarely go as planned. This war of attrition didn't last long before it ended with a single punch from Wu Biao. It wasn't because Kenpachi had managed to shake him off, but because that punch had landed squarely in Kenpachi's right eye socket.

That, the eyepatch came off!

Boom--

Almost the instant the eyepatch fell away, a silent roar erupted, forming a tangible golden reiatsu that surged into the sky, scattering the clouds above the battlefield. The terrifying shockwave forced Wu Biao, who was standing within arm's reach, to retreat!

"Hmm?"

A look of gravity surfaced in Wu Biao's eyes. Watching the figure opposite him with reiatsu soaring into the heavens, he couldn't help but feel a sense of shock. Even under this heaven-shaking pressure, he felt a heaviness as if he were deep in the ocean, enduring endless water pressure!

Got stronger again?

"Tch!" Kenpachi, amidst the golden reiatsu, casually swung his blade toward the nearby wall. A fissure appeared instantly in the entire three-story building, and it then came crashing down.

"I was actually hoping to play with you a bit longer!"

Kenpachi's gaze slowly gathered on Wu Biao, a faint look of disappointment appearing in his eyes: "Although you have many strange combat techniques, that is all you amount to!"

As he spoke, the surrounding reiatsu surged once more. Under this terrifying pressure, cracks began to spiderweb across the walls of the surrounding buildings.

Wu Biao's pupils contracted as a sense of crisis emerged once again. That instinctive fear he had once felt from Byakuya Kuchiki flooded his heart once more.

"But never mind, you are indeed qualified for me to use my full strength in a fight!" Kenpachi Zaraki slowly held his Zanpakuto horizontally in front of him. Under the terrifying reiatsu, the void around the blade seemed to be sliced open, causing a visual distortion!

"I'm coming for you. This is what you call a slaughter!!!"

The moment the word "slaughter" fell, Kenpachi's figure vanished from where he stood—and it was a total disappearance, because...

That speed exceeded Wu Biao's dynamic vision!

Pfft!

The sound of a blade slicing through flesh rang out in the silence. Wu Biao's pupils shrank, and in the next second, his entire body was sent flying backward. He tumbled for dozens of meters, crashing into a building with a thunderous roar.

Instantly, the building burst apart under the terrifying impact, burying Wu Biao within the rubble.

Bang!

Accompanied by a muffled thud, a giant stone from the ruins was pushed aside, and Wu Biao's figure appeared in Kenpachi's line of sight once more.

However, he did not stand up, because after moving the stone, Wu Biao remained kneeling on one knee.

"Pfft..."

Fresh blood gushed from his mouth, spraying onto the ground in front of him. There was a gruesome blade wound on his chest, and blood continued to spurt out, quickly pooling into a puddle at his feet!

After all, Wu Biao was not Ichigo. Without the help of a Zanpakuto, in the hands of a Kenpachi who had shed his restraints, a single strike was enough to make him completely lose his ability to fight!

This is not to say he was weaker than Ichigo. The reason Ichigo was able to defeat Kenpachi in the original story was entirely due to the unreserved help of Zangetsu.

Ichigo, possessing the full power of Zangetsu—or rather, Ichigo with his Blut Arterie reinforced by the full power of Zangetsu—was not inferior to his Bankai, and perhaps even surpassed it. If Bankai Ichigo were to fight this unrestrained Kenpachi again, the final outcome of the battle would be anyone's guess!

"Is that all you've got?"

Kenpachi took a step, walking unhurriedly to the ruins and standing still. Looking at Wu Biao, who was kneeling in a pool of blood, his tone was filled with disappointment: "What a boring ending. It seems I overestimated you. But since you gave me a somewhat interesting fight, I will grant you... a death!"

As he spoke, Kenpachi carried his sword and approached the motionless Wu Biao in the ruins, who appeared to be dead. However, he stopped after taking only two steps, a look of disdain gradually appearing in his eyes.

"Has the fear of death made you tremble?"

That's right, Wu Biao's hands in the pool of blood had begun to tremble, and the amplitude gradually grew larger. Eventually, his whole body began to shake, and blood dripped down his trembling frame, making crisp, rhythmic sounds.

"You disappoint me more and more!"

Kenpachi slowly rested his Zanpakuto on his shoulder. The disdain in his eyes had vanished, because the person before him was no longer worth any emotion at all.

Because, he wasn't worthy!

"Extremely boring!" Kenpachi slowly turned around and began to walk away: "Someone like you is no longer worthy of being finished by me. Just go on trembling pitifully in your fear like that!"

As he said this, he walked off into the distance, just as he had said.

Wu Biao was not worthy; he didn't even have the qualification to be killed by his own hand anymore!

"Fear?"

Just then, Wu Biao, who had been silent, spoke up. This made Kenpachi's pace falter slightly. He stood where he was and turned his head, wanting to see what else this person had to say.

Wu Biao, kneeling on one knee, kept his head down, looking at his own trembling hands. His specific expression was unclear, but a bizarre atmosphere began to permeate the air, causing Yachiru, who was preparing to approach, to stop in her tracks!

"Can't suppress it, can't do it..." The low murmur was soft, yet it was clearly audible in the silent environment.

Can't suppress it?

Fear?

Can't do it?

Defeat me?

A ruthless look appeared in Kenpachi's eyes. There was no trace of disdain, but if one looked closely, they would see that his pupils had no focus at all, as if... he didn't see Wu Biao at all.

Those were eyes that completely regarded the person in front of him as nothing!

However, all of this ended when Wu Biao looked up. The moment he saw Wu Biao's expression, even Kenpachi felt a tremor in his heart.

His eye sockets were stretched to the point of tearing, and the corners of his mouth were split wide toward his ears, making anyone who saw it worry that his face might rip open. His blood-stained teeth flashed with a cold, sharp glint, like a beast waiting to devour its prey!

Those pupils... were filled with frantic, bloodshot veins, chilling to behold!

"This excitement is impossible to suppress!" A hoarse yet fanatically fervent voice erupted from the split mouth of Wu Biao.

Excitement!!!

The pupils of Kenpachi constricted instantly. His beast-like instincts caused him to turn around subconsciously, his body tensing up in a split second, even his own spiritual pressure manifesting a sense of oppression!

"I'm so excited I can't even stop my body from trembling! This world... is simply too amazing!"

Accompanied by these hoarse words, Wu Biao swayed as he stood up from the pool of blood, his bloodshot eyes never leaving Kenpachi for a single moment, a sight that sent chills rising from the depths of Kenpachi's heart!

What is going on?

Clearly, there was no change in him, so where exactly was this sense of crisis coming from?

Kenpachi did not understand, but he vaguely felt that the battle might not have reached its end just yet!

"This world has people like that sissy, people like you, and at least eleven others who exist just like you. Just thinking about it... makes my excitement impossible to suppress!"

Despite his appearance of extreme weakness, he gave off a terrifying sense of crisis; this was what Kenpachi felt at this moment.

"I originally wanted to save this move for that sissy..." Following Wu Biao's words, the spiritual particles in the surrounding air suddenly churned, rapidly converging toward where Wu Biao stood.

The blood that had been spurting incessantly from his body gradually faded, and in the end, it actually stopped flowing.

"I am still too weak!" The corners of Wu Biao's mouth, which had been stretched to both sides, gradually recovered, and the fervor in his eyes slowly calmed, his tone revealing an unprecedented level of indifference.

"When I lost to that sissy, I thought about it. I am too weak. Even after more than half a month of training, I am still too weak. This won't do... I don't even have the power to protect the people I cherish. That feeling of powerlessness, watching my important family lying in a pool of blood, I cannot have it... So I must become stronger, stronger than anyone else!"

Jingle, jingle, jingle...

The bells on Kenpachi's hair suddenly began to tremble violently.

It should be said that even without these bells, Kenpachi could feel the anomaly in the surroundings. The violent, churning spiritual particles in the air were something even he... could clearly perceive.

Because they were being forcibly dragged over, and even the spiritual particles themselves seemed to exude a sense of unease!

"Although I have tried this move once before, I cannot control it well. Even Master Kanonji told me not to use this move lightly, but... I don't want to lose here yet!"

Wu Biao, amidst the cluster of violent spiritual particles, slowly raised his palm to his mouth, and then, under Kenpachi's astonished gaze... he bit down hard on his own wrist. The blood vessels ruptured directly, causing blood to spray into Wu Biao's mouth, finally sliding down the corners of his lips!

"Because I cannot control it, so... don't you dare die on me!"

Following Wu Biao's words, the violent spiritual particles instantly rushed toward his damaged wrist, finally squeezing into the ruptured blood vessels and being forcibly pumped into his veins by Wu Biao's blood energy.

In the next moment, Wu Biao's body turned as red as a cooked lobster, and the blood vessels on his skin moved like little snakes!

Bang, bang, bang--

Rapid and powerful heartbeats accompanied the heaving of his chest, emitting a humming sound, and a blood-colored mist drifted out.

This was blood energy!

It was the blood energy produced by the violent spiritual particles constantly compressing the blood within his vessels.

All of this seemed to take a long time, but excluding the time spent speaking, it was merely an instant. When the violent spiritual particles dissipated, everything returned to calm—a strange and heavy calm!

"Ichibai Kanon Ken!"

As these five words were uttered, a terrifying ripple erupted with Wu Biao at the center, clearing the ruins. With the blood vessels on his face constantly writhing, a cruel and violent arc gradually hooked at the corners of his mouth: "As expected, my body is still too weak..."

"Hahahaha!" Kenpachi suddenly let out a series of long laughs. The spiritual pressure that had returned to calm on his body soared into the sky once again, and his figure surged out in the next moment, arriving in front of Wu Biao in an instant to strike!

"Interesting, it's getting more and more interesting, hahahahaha..."

A loud explosion rang out, causing the ground to collapse over a large area, the entire region caving in due to the scale of the collapse. Rubble flew, cracks spread for dozens of meters, and finally, the area exploded, the ground churning violently as if the end of the world had arrived!

"Where... did you strike!"

However, the voice of the person who had delivered that strike came from behind Kenpachi!

What?

The thought had barely crossed Kenpachi's mind when he subconsciously turned his head to look behind him, but what met his eyes was an ever-expanding palm. Intense pain transmitted from his cheek to his entire body in an instant, and an indescribable, massive force sent Kenpachi flying.

Where he had stood before, Wu Biao stood tall, his face still wearing a savage grin, his eyes as fervent as a demon's!

"You're too slow!!!"

Before the words had completely dissipated, he had already vanished from his spot, leaving behind only wisps of mist that reeked of blood!

When he reappeared, he was already above the rapidly retreating Kenpachi.

Kenpachi's pupils constricted, wanting to take action, but... the force of that slap, even after traveling nearly ten meters and piercing through several buildings, had not yet dissipated!

He could only watch helplessly as Wu Biao's fist smashed hard into his abdomen!

Bang--

Like a meteorite crashing into the ground, a heaven-shaking roar erupted in that instant. The entire ground paused for a moment, then exploded, a giant crater appearing as endless spiderweb cracks spread for nearly a hundred meters!

When everything returned to calm, this place had become a ruin. Within a hundred meters, nothing remained; all buildings had been reduced to rubble under the terrifying impact of that punch!

Only the crater, nearly dozens of meters in diameter, remained in the center!