BLEACH: UNOHANA RETSU IS MY WIFE

The place where Captain Sasakibe and Araki fought was right next to the 11th Division's training dojo—separated only by a thin wall. So when the two captains stepped onto the grounds, they were immediately noticed by the division's shinigamis. At the very moment Captain Sasakibe and Araki faced off, a crowd of 11th Division members had already pressed themselves against the wooden wall, peeking through the light-transmitting paper windows...

"Unbelievable! Captain Araki just defeated the Vice-Captain of the 1st Division with a single blow! And he hasn't even drawn the Zanpakutō at his waist..."

The shinigamis watching from inside gasped repeatedly. None of them had expected this. Captain Araki—who had rarely shown himself since joining the 11th Division—possessed such overwhelming strength!

"As expected of the man who defeated Captain Unohana... He's on another level."

A shinigami sighed at the sight.

"6th Sea Iruma, that's not what you said before…"

"I distinctly remember you claiming Captain Araki only beat Captain Unohana with tricks—and that he gained his position through his connections with Head Captain Yamamoto! You even swore you'd never acknowledge him as our captain!"

Before the speaker could finish, another voice cut in.

"Ahem, how was I supposed to know Captain Araki was really that strong?!"

Iruma sounded defensive.

"It's not my fault—our captain is always so mysterious! If Vice-Captain Sparrow hadn't come to visit, I might've forgotten what Captain Araki even looks like."

The other shinigami scoffed. "Really? That's the excuse you're going with?"

"You...!" Iruma choked, unable to find the words to respond.

"Quiet! Vice-Captain Sasakibe is getting back up!"

At the top of the human wall formed by Iruma and dozens of others, several higher-ranked officers hushed the crowd. Instantly, the division's shinigamis fell silent.

Outside the 11th Division's Kendo Dojo—in the clearing that Unohana Retsu had just swept clean...

"Is that it, Araki? With your current strength, you can take me down without even drawing your Zanpakutō?"

Sasakibe Chojiro panted heavily, blood staining his uniform as he struggled to his feet. He glared at the still-sheathed Zanpakutō Araki had casually thrust into the ground nearby.

Araki said nothing. Arms crossed, his gaze cold, he stared down at Sasakibe. He knew—Chojiro Sasakibe was not finished yet.

"You've always been like the sun, Araki," Sasakibe muttered.

"No matter how talented the other geniuses around you were, whenever you appeared, we were just stars—dim lights meant to decorate the backdrop and highlight your brilliance."

"I remember back at the Central Spiritual Academy... all the instructors said watching you was like witnessing the young Head Captain Yamamoto. I didn't understand back then."

"But after seeing you again, I get it. You and the Captain-Commander… you both use a single Zanpakutō to suppress an entire generation of Shinigami."

His voice carried both admiration and bitterness. His memories drifted back...

At that time, Captain Yamamoto was still the chief instructor at the Academy. And Araki—newly certified with the Genryū Menkyo Kaiden—was a rising legend.

Sasakibe still remembered: the moment he laid eyes on Araki, he knew he could never beat him. But he refused to yield.

Back then, Araki defeated him without even drawing his blade.

That was when Sasakibe understood.

"So I rejected Head Captain Yamamoto's offer to become an instructor at the Academy. I couldn't stand to follow behind you as a teacher. I chose instead to become the Head Captain's shadow—to follow in his footsteps not as an equal, but as someone determined to serve."

"I gave up my light to serve his. And I've never regretted it."

"But today, for the sake of the man I revere—Head Captain Yamamoto—I will shine once more. Araki, witness it. This is the conviction that allows me to follow in Genryūsai-sama's footsteps!"

His voice rose like thunder across the sky.

And then—the heavens darkened.

Clouds rolled in, black and heavy, blotting out the sun.

"The stars may never match the sun's brilliance," Sasakibe declared, raising his sword high. "But the clouds—only they can block the sun's light!"

"Bankai! Kōkō Gonryō Rikyū!!"

Golden lightning burst from the tip of Sasakibe's western-style sword, surging upward into the heavens. The storm clouds ignited with electric arcs. Pillars of golden thunder crashed down, forming a grand cage of lightning around him.

Eleven pillars of lightning stood tall—like the foundations of a sacred hall.

Sasakibe Chojiro stood at its center, cloaked in divine thunder.

This was his Bankai: Kōkō Gonryō Rikyū—the Radiant Palace of Flame and Thunder.

"…A splendid Bankai."

Facing the tempest, Araki remained still. His spiritual pressure quietly surged, encasing him in a thin barrier to ward off the scattering static and golden arcs flashing around them.

After all, Araki was different from that bald old man on the mountain—he had magnificent hair. If he didn't use spiritual pressure to shield himself, his hair would frizz into an unruly, ridiculous afro under the lightning...

"Bankai?! Vice Captain Sasakibe can actually use Bankai?!"

On the other side, the shinigamis of the 11th Division who had been peeking through the dojo windows were shocked by the sudden change in the weather. None of them had expected the always "mild-mannered" and "refined" Sasakibe Chojiro to wield a Bankai—let alone one that could manipulate the elements.

"Wait—did someone say Bankai?!"

"Let me see!"

"Don't push! I can't stand—"

"Ouch!!"

The crowd of excited shinigamis, who had formed a "human wall" to peek through the window, began to wobble—and finally collapsed in a heap, knocking down the dojo's wooden wall entirely.

Now that the wall was gone, nobody had to squeeze anymore. Everyone had an unobstructed view of the battlefield.

"Whoa! The sky's turning black!"

Flat on their backs, legs up in the air, the shinigamis gawked in silence as dark thunderclouds covered the heavens above.

"Araki! Please teach me!"

Amidst the shinigamis' stunned amazement, Chojiro Sasakibe finally moved. Holding a Western-style longsword, he slashed through the towering "pillars of lightning" around him—golden thunder that had erupted during his Bankai activation.

As the sword cut through the lightning, the massive voltage converged into the blade. Electric light exploded from Sasakibe's body as though he had become the eye of a storm. With each breath, the lightning crackled and surged—nature itself had become his ally.

"Be careful!"

With that warning, Sasakibe transformed into a bolt of golden lightning and shot forward at blinding speed.

In the blink of an eye, before the onlookers could react, Sasakibe's blade pierced through Araki's chest.

"I… I killed Araki?!"

Sasakibe froze. His eyelids twitched as panic set in. He never intended to kill Araki—how could he possibly explain this to Captain-Commander Yamamoto?!

"It's over… It's all over. I… I've destroyed the future of the Gotei 13…"

Sasakibe's voice trembled. His face went pale.

He had followed Genryūsai Yamamoto since the Genjijuku days, served faithfully, made countless contributions—and now, this? Standing paralyzed in shock, he couldn't fathom how to face the consequences of "killing" Araki.

Pah~

Before Sasakibe could even process his thoughts, a sharp gust of wind—followed by a familiar slap—sent him flying.

Araki—the man he'd just supposedly killed—was standing tall, casually brushing dust off his haori.

"Araki! Are you okay?!"

Sasakibe scrambled up, ignoring the sting of his swollen cheek. He stared at Araki, who now held Sasakibe's sword—with a gaping wound where it had once been embedded in his chest.

"Kill me? Don't flatter yourself…"

Araki pulled the blade from his chest, unfazed.

To be fair, Sasakibe's sword had been fearsome. Even the old man Yamamoto might've taken some damage from that blow.

But Araki had used his mastery over spirit particles to partially 'atomize' the section of his chest that would've been struck—akin to the elementalization used by Katakuri or Aokiji in One Piece.

Frankly, even someone as powerful as Ōetsu Nimaiya, who possessed the Soul King's nail, couldn't pull off this level of precision partial-phase shifting.

However, Araki, with his advanced Observation Haki and Fullbring-enhanced soul manipulation, had all the necessary abilities to make it work. His fusion of Bleach-style spirit control with One Piece-style precognition created a terrifying synergy.

"Phew…"

On the other side, Sasakibe finally let out a long sigh of relief. He had truly been terrified just moments ago.

"Heh…"

As for Araki, he now held Sasakibe's Zanpakutō in hand, a cold smirk curling on his lips.

The last person who had tried something this reckless?

Araki remembered his name: Ichigo…

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