Chapter 304: Each Has a Backup Plan, Uehara Shiroha is Ready to Harvest
And if you don't get paid for such dedicated service, you're no longer just a model employee, but a "saint employee" who works purely out of devotion.
"Mr. Uehara!" Ichigo Kurosaki immediately felt a wave of relief wash over him. Although Uehara Shiroha did not emanate any overwhelming spiritual pressure or intimidating aura, the moment he appeared and they saw those distinctive white clothes, both Ichigo Kurosaki and Kisuke Urahara felt completely safe.
With this man present, no matter how many tricks or backup plans Aizen might have prepared, they wouldn't be able to create any significant problems or cause any real waves.
Uehara Shiroha glanced at the two exhausted fighters and said with calm authority: "You guys did an excellent job. I'll take over the rest from here! I will make sure Aizen accepts the fate that he truly deserves!"
After saying that, he activated the combined power of the Infinity Gems and Unlimited Blade Works was unleashed simultaneously. The very scale of time and space was rewritten at this moment as he transcended conventional limitations and created a completely real alternate world.
In an instant, the space and time where Uehara Shiroha and Aizen were located became severely distorted. The sealed Aizen seemed to sense something fundamental changing around him. He looked up with growing awareness and found that the originally dark world had changed entirely.
His body seemed to have broken free from its original restraints and arrived in what appeared to be an abandoned industrial space. There were broad plains stretching out in every direction. At the end of the horizon, there were endless mountains, each of which reached high into the sky and appeared extremely steep and imposing.
Aizen looked at his own body in complete disbelief. He could move freely, and the kido seal that had bound him so tightly had suddenly disappeared without a trace.
His body felt normal! His reiatsu was flowing normally! His soul was functioning normally! His consciousness was clear and normal! However, the Hogyoku still wasn't responding to his calls!
Now Aizen was even more confused and concerned: "What is this place? Why did I suddenly break free from that seal? What exactly happened here?"
This definitely shouldn't be a simple illusion or ordinary kido technique. It seemed like someone had actively saved him, but who could it have been, and who would even possess the power to accomplish something like this?
For a moment, Aizen began to suspect that it might have been those corrupt nobles in the Soul King Palace who had taken action, perhaps even using the direct power of the Soul King himself. But he knew very well that this was completely impossible. Because those people were the exact ones he wanted to overthrow, and they certainly couldn't help him achieve his goals.
At this moment, a familiar voice reached his ears with an almost casual tone: "Aizen-san, long time no see! Welcome to my world!"
Hearing that distinctive voice, Aizen looked up suddenly and saw the handsome and graceful young man dressed in white. It turned out to be Uehara Shiroha himself!
But rather than panic, he felt somewhat relieved immediately. All he could say was that this was unexpected yet completely reasonable at the same time. If there was anyone who could create genuine miracles and defeat his expectations time and time again, it could only be Uehara Shiroha.
In the Infinite Sky World, Uehara Shiroha looked at Aizen with an amused smile on his face and said: "There's something quite interesting about the space barrier you set up around Karakura Town. Your 'homework' copying skills are fairly well developed."
"It's a pity that this barrier is ultimately just a poor imitation of my own abilities. In front of my true power, your barrier becomes completely useless."
He could clearly see that the barrier was based on the Negación techniques of Menos Grande and incorporated elements of Dangai manipulation. However, it was far too crude in execution and failed to imitate even one ten-thousandth of the Dangai's true essence.
A space barrier of this basic level could be destroyed in mere seconds even with the initial release of Dangai techniques. Not to mention the brand new Dangai abilities that had been strengthened by the Infinite Sword System.
The space barrier that even Urahara Kisuke had been helpless against was just like a broken wooden fence in his eyes—something that would fall down with the slightest push.
Therefore, Uehara Shiroha had easily dragged Aizen into the Infinite Sky World. If it had been Hollow Aizen in his absolute prime, his opponent might have been able to put up some symbolic resistance.
But after being sealed and losing contact with the Hogyoku, Aizen was completely vulnerable to Uehara Shiroha's Infinite Sky manipulation. In this alternate space, he would dominate everything about Aizen, including his spiritual pressure and very existence.
"If it were you, you would indeed be capable of accomplishing something like this." Aizen calmed down considerably and continued with renewed composure: "It seems we never had any proper conversation before this moment. This is actually the first time we've had a face-to-face conversation like this."
"In fact, I have been actively looking for an opportunity to have a good, honest talk with you. I know you're not a superficial person like Urahara Kisuke tends to be. However, the location you've chosen is indeed quite impressive. This shouldn't be the Soul Society, right? Is it perhaps a secret valley located somewhere in the Dangai?"
The so-called "valley" was actually a "bubble" of space suspended within the Dangai itself. The spiritual pressure and spiritual particles left behind by a powerful individual after their death in the Dangai could sometimes open up a small pocket dimension. This phenomenon was typically called a Valley.
Uehara Shiroha responded with calm confidence: "It's good that you want to talk. Then we'll use courtesy first and force later if necessary. Don't worry, you have plenty of time to say whatever you need to say."
"As for this place! You should know that this location is not called a Valley. This place is much more interesting and complex than any simple Dangai formation."
Uehara Shiroha did not take Aizen's obvious attempts at information gathering and his subtle behavior of dismissing Urahara Kisuke very seriously. In his own territory, his opponent was welcome to test him as much as he wanted.
Noticing Uehara Shiroha's confident and dismissive attitude, Aizen's heart sank slightly, and he said with forced calm: "This place is indeed not called a Valley. Because being in a simple Valley wouldn't make me feel this level of underlying pressure."
"This should be the physical embodiment of some kind of spiritual space, similar to the reiatsu manifestations like Bankai materialization."