Shūhei Hisagi's Kazeshini, after equalizing and depleting the spiritual pressure of both combatants, would release its Bankai, leaving the powerless opponent vulnerable to a finishing blow from a third party.
Chains of Heaven, a tool of binding, served a similar purpose. Once an opponent was completely restrained, Ailin had a plethora of Zanpakutō within his King's Treasury perfectly suited for delivering the final strike.
Kazeshini's ability and Chains of Heaven were a perfect match. Within Ailin's King's Treasury, there was no shortage of Zanpakutō designed for precisely this purpose.
Ailin raised his right hand.
Golden ripples shimmered above the Seireitei, thousands of them, painting the sky in a golden hue. Zanpakutō blades emerged, crackling with golden lightning with their points aimed at Reigai-Zaraki.
"Raaaaar!"
Bound by Chains of Heaven, Reigai-Zaraki roared, his killing intent manifested as blue lightning crackling around his eyes. His spiritual pressure formed a golden pillar that reached towards the heavens.
However, golden flames now flickered along the chains binding him, rendering his struggles futile. He couldn't move.
In the next instant, a torrent of golden lightning rained down upon him.
Swish! Swish! Swish!
Reigai-Zaraki, despite being pierced by countless blades, didn't die. Bound by the Death Wind Rope aspect of Chains of Heaven, his life force was linked to Ailin's. Any injury, even death, would be healed by drawing upon their shared spiritual pressure. As long as their combined spiritual pressure remained, neither could truly die.
Reigai-Zaraki, though bloodied, was still alive. Such an attack, against him at full strength, would have been insignificant. Some of the lesser Zanpakutō had barely pierced his skin.
However, their sheer number, combined with the increased power of the higher-ranked blades, was taking its toll. Each wound, no matter how small, drained their shared spiritual pressure.
With each passing second, the golden pillar above Reigai-Zaraki, and the flames on the chains binding him, dimmed.
Minutes later, their shared spiritual pressure was almost completely depleted. The golden patterns on Reigai-Zaraki's body faded as Chains of Heaven released its Death Wind Rope.
Freed from the link, Chains of Heaven, connected to Ailin's Unlimited Blade Works, quickly replenished its spiritual pressure from Ailin's reserves.
Reigai-Zaraki, however, couldn't recover so quickly. Finally, under the relentless barrage of golden lightning, he dissolved into a bloody mist, truly dead.
…
"Incredible… He's so strong…"
Even within Kisuke Urahara's underground training ground, Orihime Inoue, Uryū Ishida, and Yasutora Sado felt the tremors from the clash between Ailin and the Reigai captains. They had witnessed Ichigo Kurosaki's Bankai and Ulquiorra Cifer's Segunda Etapa, a battle they had considered the pinnacle of power. However, the fight raging above was on a completely different level.
Ichigo and Ulquiorra's battle had been a clash of speed, discernible only through the shockwaves and the destruction of the surrounding buildings. To those with insufficient spiritual awareness, even their movements were imperceptible.
Ailin's fight, however, was a display of overwhelming power. The thousands of golden ripples in the sky were a spectacle of both awe and despair.
For the first time, the Shinigami of the Seireitei witnessed the true power of Ailin's King's Treasury focused on a single target. Reigai-Zaraki's spiritual pressure, already surpassing that of most captains, had been extinguished in minutes under Ailin's relentless assault.
While some marveled at Ailin's power, those who knew him better were filled with a deeper sense of awe. The King's Treasury was merely Ailin's Shikai. As for his Bankai… In all these years, no one had ever seen it. Not even Kageroza Inaba, the creator of the Reigai, could have anticipated such a swift and decisive defeat.
The key to Ailin's victory was Reigai-Ailin. The vast difference in their power had prevented Kageroza Inaba from completely controlling the Reigai's mind, forcing him to rely on other methods of restraint. It was this realization that had deterred Kageroza Inaba from creating a Reigai of Captain-Commander Yamamoto. Having witnessed Reigai-Ailin's defiance, he suspected that a Reigai-Yamamoto would likely target him first.
Reigai-Ailin, possessing Ailin's memories, had agreed to his proposal, willingly gambling everything on their duel. Victory meant gaining everything. Defeat meant becoming Ailin's steed, a chance to witness the worlds beyond the Soul Society. It was a worthy gamble.
Underlying Reigai-Ailin's decision, however, was a deep-seated trust in his original. The worlds beyond held countless treasures: the Dragon Balls, the Holy Grail, the Shikon Jewel, the Philosopher's Stone… Even the Hogyoku Ailin had given him was a wish-granting artifact. He believed that once Ailin obtained these treasures, once he overcame the limitations of his current power, he wouldn't hesitate to grant him true life, a chance to forge his own destiny.
…
In the World of the Living, Rukia Kuchiki watched Ichigo Kurosaki fighting a group of Hollows with a puzzled frown on her face.
During Ichigo's intrusion into the Soul Society, Rukia had been the Thirteenth Division's Third Seat. While Ailin and Aizen's manipulations had turned her into an unwitting instrument in their purge of the corrupt nobles, she hadn't interacted much with Ichigo.
However, she knew he had fought Gin Ichimaru, the former Third Division captain, at Sōkyoku Hill, the execution site. At that time, Ichigo had already displayed power comparable to a captain. Now, six months later, judging by his spiritual pressure, he was barely at Third Seat level.
What had happened?
Why had his spiritual pressure diminished so much?
And if she wasn't mistaken, his spiritual pressure seemed to be constantly leaking. If he didn't fight, it might take a year or two to completely dissipate. But if he used his powers, it could vanish in an instant, turning him back into an ordinary human.
With a flash, Rukia appeared before Ichigo.
Crimson sprays erupted from the Hollows as she swiftly dispatched them. They howled in protest before dissolving into white particles.
"Who's there?"
Ichigo's expression hardened as he leaped back, drawing the shorter of his two Zanpakutō. Against these weaker Hollows, even in his current state, a single blade was sufficient. However, the speed displayed by his rescuer was alarming. It wasn't a level of speed he could currently match, not unless he released his Bankai and regained some of his lost power. While doing so would accelerate his spiritual pressure loss, Ichigo had never backed down from a fight.
His apprehension faded, however, as he recognized the familiar captain's haori.
It was a Gotei 13 captain, though one he hadn't met before.
"Substitute Shinigami Ichigo Kurosaki, I am Rukia Kuchiki, the new Ninth Division captain."
Rukia sheathed her Zanpakutō and turned to face Ichigo.
"I've heard about the battle against Aizen Sōsuke from Mr. Urahara. He mentioned you spoke with Captain Byakuya Kuchiki of the Sixth Division. I was hoping you could share some details."
"Huh?"
Seeing Rukia's lack of hostility, Ichigo sheathed his own Zanpakutō.
"Captain Kuchiki, if you want to know more, why not ask Captain Kuchiki directly? I'm sure he wouldn't withhold information from a fellow captain. And if he refuses, I'm afraid I can't divulge anything he told me in confidence."
Rukia looked at Ichigo, surprised by his principled stance.
"Ichigo, I would ask Captain Kuchiki directly, if possible. However, after the captains departed for the World of the Living, an incident occurred in the Soul Society…"
Rukia explained the appearance of the Reigai captains and seated officers, their escape from the Seireitei, and their contact with Mayuri Kurotsuchi of the Twelfth Division. Kurotsuchi had discovered that someone had manipulated the Kōtotsu, the cleaner of the Dangai, to create a two-week time lag between the Soul Society and the World of the Living.
Rukia had left the Soul Society on the night of the battle against Aizen, yet she had arrived two weeks later. Similarly, the captains returning from the World of the Living would also arrive two weeks in the future. If she returned now, she might even arrive at the same time as them.
Kurotsuchi's investigation had identified a section chief within the Twelfth Division as the mastermind, but this individual was currently missing.
Ichigo listened without surprise. He was no stranger to temporal distortions within the Dangai.
After Byakuya Kuchiki had used Senka to destroy his spiritual restraints, Ichigo had trained with Kisuke Urahara for two weeks before returning to the Soul Society to rescue Shino Madarame. During their journey, they had encountered the Kōtotsu, arriving a week earlier than expected.
After rescuing Shino, their return trip had placed them two weeks later in the World of the Living. From the perspective of those in Karakura Town, they had only been gone for less than a day. Urahara had sent them to the Soul Society at noon and retrieved them from the sky that evening.
Similarly, Rukia's journey through the Dangai had placed her two weeks in the future. If she returned now, she would arrive two weeks later in the Soul Society.
Rukia, now in future Karakura Town continued, "Captain Kurotsuchi believes the mastermind is a section chief within the Twelfth Division, but this individual is currently missing."