Borrowing a Blade

A calm chant suddenly rang out at the edge of the battlefield. It was Liu Chuan.

He didn't even raise a hand to form seals. His lips merely moved slightly.

The next moment, a translucent wall of Spirit Particles appeared out of nowhere before Kaien Shiba like the sturdiest shield!

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM—!!!

Countless tentacles carrying terrifying corrosive power slammed violently into the wall of Spirit Particles, producing muffled thunderous crashes.

The wall didn't budge. Not even a ripple spread across it as it blocked every attack, erasing them into nothingness!

The purple-black corrosive Spiritual Pressure scattered and vanished the instant it touched the wall, like snow meeting the blazing sun.

Metastacia's mad laughter abruptly stopped. It stared in shock at the impossibly sturdy wall of Spirit Particles that had appeared from nowhere.

Then, before everyone's astonished eyes, Liu Chuan leisurely took two steps forward and did something none of them expected.

He removed the Zanpakuto hanging at his waist—Heavenquake—and flicked his wrist, hurling it like a javelin straight at Kaien Shiba, who still hadn't recovered from the shock of Severing Void.

Whoosh!

The plain silver-white blade streaked through the air. With a sharp thunk, it embedded itself firmly in the dirt less than a foot from Kaien Shiba, its blade trembling slightly with a clear hum.

Liu Chuan's calm gaze passed over the gradually fading wall of Severing Void and settled on Kaien Shiba's uncertain face.

"Borrow it for a moment. Remember to return it when you're done. That's fair, isn't it?"

Kaien Shiba stared blankly at the silver-white Zanpakuto lodged in the ground beside him, then abruptly looked up at the unfamiliar young man.

He'd cast Bakudō No. 81, Severing Void, without an incantation and instantly—and casually blocked a deadly attack... Such mastery of Kido was simply terrifying!

He wasn't from the Thirteenth Division. And yet... he'd actually thrown his own Zanpakuto to him?

After the brief shock came a surge of complicated emotions.

There was the relief of escaping death, gratitude toward this young man for coming to his aid, but more than anything, there was a cold clarity, like enlightenment striking him all at once.

At the very moment those deathly tentacles reached for him, he'd thought of many things.

He thought of Kūkaku's stubborn yet worried eyes, of Ganju's useless but dependent manner, and of the Thirteenth Division members who trusted him.

He thought of Captain Ukitake's pale but ever-gentle face... If he died like this—

If he were devoured and possessed by this Hollow, what would happen to them? Would they grieve? Rage? Or fall into even deeper despair and danger?

Perhaps Captain Ukitake was right about this being a battle for dignity.

But compared to the dignity of succeeding in revenge alone, staying alive—continuing to protect them and fulfill his responsibilities as clan head, vice-captain, and elder brother—seemed far more important.

Besides, this Hollow had used underhanded means to deprive him of his Zanpakuto. That wasn't fair to begin with.

Now, someone had given him a blade, given him an opportunity for a fair fight...

Having understood that, the blazing fire of hatred in Kaien Shiba's eyes didn't go out. Instead, it became calmer and more resolute.

He no longer hesitated. Reaching out, he gripped the hilt of Heavenquake embedded in the dirt.

It felt slightly heavy and icy cold in his hand, yet the curve and weight of the hilt fit his grip unexpectedly well.

What made his heart tremble even more was that, the instant he grasped the hilt, he seemed to sense an indescribable power sleeping within the blade—a power that seemed capable of shaking heaven and earth.

"Roar—!!! You bastard! Meddlesome Soul Reaper! I'll turn every last one of you into my puppets!"

Metastacia snapped out of its shock and fury with an enraged roar. Liu Chuan's interference had completely infuriated it, and it had lost all patience as it gathered all its strength.

All its tentacles swelled and twisted wildly, carrying an aura of utter destruction as they launched their final assault at Kaien Shiba, who had just taken hold of the blade!

This time, Kaien Shiba didn't dodge.

He gripped Heavenquake tightly with both hands. The silver-white blade seemed to glimmer faintly.

He fixed his eyes on Metastacia's charging path, on the core of that mass of wildly dancing tentacles—the twisted bone mask.

Then, facing that torrent of destruction, he stepped forward, swung with both hands, and slashed down with every ounce of his strength and will!

The instant the blade touched Metastacia's body—

Hummm!!!

A force of vibration erupted from the blade's edge!

There was no earth-shattering explosion, no dazzling flash of light.

Only a shattering sound that made even one's soul tremble!

Metastacia's writhing tentacles froze first. Then, like glass struck by an invisible colossal hammer, they began cracking from the point where the blade had made contact.

In an instant, countless fine cracks spread across them. Then, with a crashing sound, they shattered bit by bit into the finest black ash—not even enough to be called Spirit Particles!

Next came its body. Its twisted spirit form and bone mask didn't even have time to scream before the force of vibration dismantled, shattered, and erased them from within in exactly the same way!

With a single strike, the formidable enemy that had driven Kaien Shiba into a corner—

Was completely reduced to nothing beneath the unreasonable force of vibration unleashed by the Zanpakuto called Heavenquake.

The clearing fell deathly silent.

Only a faint breeze passed by, lifting a small amount of black ash.

Kaien Shiba remained in his downward slashing stance, both hands gripping Heavenquake.

He panted heavily, his face a mix of relief at having avenged his great hatred and deep shock at the destructive power he had just witnessed.

He could feel that after delivering its final strike, the terrifying force of vibration within the blade swiftly withdrew and returned to calm, as though everything that had happened moments ago had been an illusion.

Yet the spotless ground, without even a trace of residue left behind, proved that what had just happened was utterly real.

Rukia stood with her mouth agape, staring blankly. Even Jushiro Ukitake's pale face showed profound astonishment as his gaze shifted back and forth between Liu Chuan and the silver-white Zanpakuto.

Liu Chuan walked over at an unhurried pace, stopped beside Kaien Shiba, and calmly held out his hand.

"Finished? Can I have my sword back now?"

Kaien Shiba seemed to awaken from a dream. "Thank you for lending me your blade, sir!"

Liu Chuan accepted Heavenquake and casually hung it back at his waist, as though he had merely lent out an ordinary tool.

He glanced at Kaien Shiba, then at Ukitake and Rukia, before finally turning his gaze toward the distant forest where the Heavenly Pillar Carriage had crashed.

"It's good that the grudge has been settled. Now then, Vice-Captain Kaien, there's a small matter I may need to trouble the Shiba Clan with..."