"Gosuke... I really underestimated you."
Mole City Kenpachi gripped his Zanpakutō tightly, eyeing Gosuke Shigure, who was locked in combat with him. There was genuine acknowledgment in his tone.
He had assumed that killing Gosuke would be a simple matter.
But reality had proven otherwise—Gosuke Shigure was far more formidable than anticipated.
The next moment, Kenpachi raised his empty left hand, beginning a chant with eerie composure:
"Ye Lord! Mask of flesh and bone, flutter of wings, ye who bears the name of Man! Truth and temperance, upon this sinless wall of dreams unleash but slightly the wrath of your claws—Hadō #31: Shakkahō!"
But just as his voice rang out, another chant erupted over the landscape—one entirely different, with equally potent words.
"Destructive thunder beast, roar through the heavens! Steel towers, ruby tips, winds in motion, skies unmoved—Hadō #63: Raikōhō!"
While Kenpachi's Shakkahō chant resonated in the air, another correctly-intoned Raikōhō chant overlapped it seamlessly.
And that wasn't all.
Multiple chants began overlapping—distinct voices, yet all eerily bearing the tone of Mole City Kenpachi.
"Twin lotus bloomed in crimson flame—Hadō #73: Sōren Sōkatsui!"
"Ruby towers, red crystal, wheels of steel… what moves is wind, what remains is the sky…!"
"Ye who bears the name of Man—flames of discord, traverse the sea southward!"
The desolate wilderness became saturated with arcane echoes. The incantations were so dense, they felt like a storm battering the atmosphere.
What was most bizarre was that all these voices... were Kenpachi's. Every chant bore his cadence, but they sounded from different places, as though the earth itself was speaking.
Gosuke Shigure was startled. He had not expected Mole City Kenpachi to rely on Kidō so heavily in battle—let alone cast multiple mid- to high-level spells with proper incantation. But more so, he was now observing the reason.
In that moment, as he watched stones, sand, and nearby debris sprout small mouths from which Kenpachi's voice emerged, it became clear.
Kenpachi wasn't chanting alone.
"Is this... his Zanpakutō's ability?"
Gosuke didn't wait to find out. He knew better than to allow a Kidō user—especially one with this strange power—time to complete a full chant. In an instant, he vanished using Shunpo, appearing right before Kenpachi's face, slashing upward with full force.
His blade glowed with white-blue spiritual energy, cutting through the dust and wind like lightning.
But Mole City Kenpachi didn't flinch.
It was true—Gosuke's reaction was sharp, precise. But there was one thing Gosuke underestimated.
The ability of Kenpachi's Zanpakutō.
After Bankai, Yuru Toraryū allowed Mole City Kenpachi to fuse his Reiatsu—his spirit particles—with other matter, whether living or non-living. Once merged, he could control the object or being as easily as his own limbs. If fused with a physical space, he could monitor, perceive, and manifest through it as though omnipresent. The larger the area, the more time-consuming the fusion.
If fused with a living target, he could temporarily control that being's body—though if the target's Reiatsu was high, the body would resist him, reducing the effectiveness and duration.
Still, in combat, even a few seconds could change everything.
Just as Gosuke's blade came down, his body suddenly froze.
Half his limbs lost sensation—as if they no longer belonged to him. Inside him, a second presence stirred: a distinct Reiatsu... foreign, invasive.
Kenpachi's Reiatsu.
"Gosuke… meet death."
Mole City Kenpachi's voice was calm, foreboding.
In a swift motion, he retreated several steps, and the myriad spells he had prepared were unleashed all at once.
These were not weakened incantations. Every Hadō was fully chanted—their power maximized.
Even for a captain-level Shinigami, defending against one of these attacks could prove dangerous.
But this was no single attack.
BOOM. BOOM. BOOM!
Shakkahō! Raikōhō! Sōren Sōkatsui!
Red flame burst across the battlefield. Bolts of lightning cracked the sky. Twin blue firestorms spiraled downward in ferocious succession.
Each spell collided, merged, and exploded against Gosuke Shigure's body.
Despite his Reiatsu struggling to repel them, he was completely engulfed.
Yes, it was true—Kenpachi had to sacrifice part of his own spirit to take over half of Gosuke's body. But since it was not a full fusion, the damage he received in return was manageable.
So long as it killed Gosuke... the price was worth it.
The battleground was chaos. Explosions raged like a tempest.
But amid that storm of Hadō, a voice rang out:
"Break the silence—Raijin no Ikazuchi!"
Electricity surged—this wasn't part of Kenpachi's spell.
Amidst the arcs of lightning from Raikōhō, a separate current shimmered—pure, refined, alive.
Kenpachi narrowed his eyes.
Before he could react, he felt his spirit within Gosuke's body... rupture. A force from within had completely expelled his presence.
The backlash was immediate—an intense shockwave of spiritual trauma coursed through him. Kenpachi stumbled, blood trickling from his mouth.
Still, he instinctively raised his Zanpakutō to block.
A flash of light burst before him.
SLASH!
A blade—wreathed in crackling blue lightning—collided with his own.
It was Gosuke Shigure.
He stood unharmed, electricity dancing along his arms and shoulders, his Zanpakutō blazing with arcs of thunder.
He had survived.
And now, he stood reborn in his true fighting form.
This was his Shikai—Raijin: Kaminari no Saika (Thunder Calamity).
Unlike elemental blades that fired projectiles or manipulated terrain, Thunder Calamity boosted its wielder's attributes—speed, reflexes, power, defense—all drastically amplified through the manipulation of lightning-element Reiatsu.
Although technically categorized as a Kidō-type Zanpakutō, it functioned as a pure reinforcement-style weapon—best suited to those who excelled in close-quarters combat.
In the hands of an average Shinigami, it would be little more than a spark.
But in the hands of a battle-hardened warrior like Gosuke Shigure—once considered among the finest tacticians and duelists in the Gotei 13—Thunder Calamity became a living storm.
Lightning surged with each heartbeat, empowering him further.
He raised his blade once more, electricity arcing across the steel.
Kenpachi of Mole City narrowed his eyes.
He had dealt a mortal blow, or so he thought.
But now, Gosuke stood in Shikai—faster, sharper, and angrier than ever.
And this battle… had just begun.