"It seems something's being hidden here..." Yuno muttered, his eyes narrowing behind the mask as he processed Orleans' panicked words.
After a brief silence, he stepped forward, coldly declaring,
"Secrets like this are best kept by the dead. Don't waste my time."
But even as he spoke, Yuno's expression twisted strangely beneath the mask.
Why did he sound like the villain?
He was clearly eradicating evil—purging scum from this island.
He wasn't some hero, true. But a villain? That was nonsense.
Absolutely not!
"This is your family's style, huh? Not even giving us a sliver of hope!"
Orleans's voice cracked with fury. His gaze burned with madness.
"Even beasts bare their fangs in their final moments. Even if I die, I'll tear a piece off you—KILL ME!!!"
With a savage howl, Orleans charged, followed by the last of his minions.
"...What a waste of time," Yuno sighed calmly.
He had already lingered too long.
Delay breeds complications—an ironclad truth in war.
Better to end things now.
His blade rose—
A single slash!
A black arc of spiritual energy roared through the air, severing dozens cleanly.
Only Orleans managed to dodge, barely.
But as he rolled to his feet, Orleans retaliated, firing a lightning bolt from his weapon.
Yuno snapped his finger—White lightning surged out.
CRACK!!
The two bolts collided midair, scattering arcs in all directions.
Yuno's lightning forced the other back, but lost accuracy in the clash.
"Hmph. Still stronger," he said coldly.
Then his figure blurred.
A streak of black lightning leaped into the mob.
Sword flashing.
Blood erupting.
Each swing a death sentence.
"Hado No. 33: Sokatsui."
His left hand thrust forward, and pale-blue flame erupted from his palm—
a burst of ghostly fire that swallowed dozens ahead.
A thunderous boom echoed out.
Some were vaporized instantly, others blasted into the air and hurled across the battlefield.
When they hit the ground, they didn't move again.
These criminals—no, these insects—weren't worth full effort.
Casual strikes from Yuno could annihilate them.
He didn't even need a named technique.
It made him pause, momentarily.
"Just how strong am I now?"
Could he face someone with a 100 million bounty?
The strongest on this island, Orleans, was worth barely 10 million. And he was no match at all.
True, bounties don't equate to strength exactly, but still...
The correlation was real.
In barely ten seconds, only a few enemies remained alive.
Orleans stood barely upright, a deep slash carved into his torso.
He was bleeding heavily, panting, but kept his eyes on Yuno.
There was no fear in those eyes now—only a grim, resigned fury.
But that didn't matter.
He couldn't even touch Yuno.
Yuno stepped forward, silent.
One hand reached out, grabbed Orleans by the neck, and lifted him like a doll.
Their eyes met.
"I don't like that look in your eyes," Yuno said flatly.
"Looking at me like that… do you think I'm a villain?" he asked, voice like steel.
"Or do you think you're innocent?"
From Orleans's point of view, the masked figure's eyes gleamed with an eerie red glow.
His voice… inhuman. His presence… suffocating.
The killing intent rolling off him—dense, heavy, bloodstained—
It was murderous aura, born from hundreds of deaths.
Orleans wanted to scream.
To say yes, that Yuno was a monster.
A devil in human skin.
But the crushing grip around his throat silenced him.
Behind them, the final few survivors tried to run—
but were cut down in a single arc of sword-light.
Yuno turned back to Orleans, his voice low and final:
"For a man like you, who's soaked this island in innocent blood...
The word 'innocent' is a joke."
Orleans's eyes suddenly narrowed, his words squeezed out with difficulty, "You... are... not... a member... of the... Vinsmoke... family?"
Yuno loosened his grip slightly, as if granting the man a final breath in exchange for information.
With a faint smile under his mask, Yuno answered coolly, "Not sophisticated reasoning, but... it won't change your fate."
"Then... who are you... really... who are you?" Orleans rasped again, confusion swirling in his bloodshot eyes.
Even now—on the verge of death—he wanted to understand. If this monster wasn't from the Vinsmoke family... then who would descend upon their hidden base with such calculated carnage?
Yuno leaned in, his voice like steel in a snowstorm:
"Just an ordinary man… you shouldn't have angered."
Crack!
With a final twist, Yuno snapped Orleans's neck like dry wood.
The light vanished from Orleans's eyes, his face frozen in disbelief—
If he had a second life, he would no doubt scream, "Ordinary my ass!"
Thus, the infamous Orleans family—the final remnant of the island's underground triumvirate—was eradicated.
The three major factions of the Chaos Zone had all been erased in blood and steel.
Just then, the mechanical chime echoed crisply in Yuno's mind:
[Ding! Annihilation of the Orleans Family – Reward: 50 Achievement Points]
[Ding! Total Eradication of the Three Underground Factions – Reward: 100 Achievement Points]
[Ding! Title Acquired: "Thousand Slayers" – Reward: 150 Achievement Points]
His gaze swept to the panel in his mind. Achievement Points: 405.
Yuno's eyes lit up.
"Over four hundred already?" he murmured. "Time to see what I can unlock…"
He willed open the system interface and navigated to the [Zanpakutō] branch.
He expected a dazzling array—rows upon rows of legendary blades waiting to be claimed.
Instead…
"…What the hell?" he muttered.
Only a handful of icons glowed.
His excitement dimmed slightly. "So few?" he complained. "Don't tell me they're that expensive…"
Apparently, even slaughtering a thousand enemies wasn't enough to casually unlock legends.
Kyōka Suigetsu – Dimmed.
Hyōrinmaru – Locked.
Ryūjin Jakka – Untouchable.
Senbonzakura – Grayed out.
Yuno stared for a long moment. "Even in death, Yamamoto still doesn't want to share…"
He sighed. "So the system plays favorites too, huh?"
Still, he couldn't help but feel drawn to one particular icon—steady, glowing, pulsing with barely restrained power.
[Zangetsu] – 400 Points
"…Ichigo's blade, huh?"
He hovered his mental cursor over the icon, his breath shallow.
The blade that carried duality. The embodiment of resolve and despair. The one that cut through destiny itself.
He clicked.