"There are intruders!"
An enraged shout rose from the crowd. "It's Gotei Shinigami. Those dogs actually managed to find this place!"
"Bakudō #39: Enkōsen!"
There were not only researchers in the underground chamber, but also Shinigami assigned as guards.
A massive circular reishi shield formed in an instant, firmly blocking the onrushing wave of scorching heat.
But Naraku's perfected Shakkahō was far stronger than that.
Especially since he'd deliberately chanted the full incantation beforehand to boost its destructive power.
Boom!
The blazing fireball erupted. The reishi barrier shattered on impact, and the terrifying heat roared outward, swallowing the two figures standing at the very front.
Their shrill screams tore through the underground chamber, making everyone who heard it feel a chill down their spine.
"Modifying bodies, toying with souls—evidence is crystal clear."
Naraku stood high above, looking down at the figures in the smoke like a god of judgment.
"You scum aren't just ordinary criminals anymore. You're getting the heavy treatment."
Araki-sama glared coldly up at him, words squeezing through clenched teeth.
"Kill him."
The moment his order fell, several figures shot up from below, closing in on Naraku in an instant.
Crushing pressure surged from all directions, as if trying to squeeze the figure in the middle into a tin can.
Naraku bared his teeth in a feral grin and drew his sword.
His reply to these noble-bred attack dogs was a single strike strong enough to demolish a building head-on.
Savage Reiatsu erupted at that moment, condensing and wrapping around the cold blade, crashing forward and smashing the advancing Shinigami who had launched in the same way.
This blow carried no personal grudge.
Only pure rage.
The purest fury toward those who trampled innocent souls.
Level 10 Reiatsu might not be overwhelming, but it was still high seated-officer class. Combined with Hollow Power and his boosted growth potential,
the raw force he could unleash was enough to utterly crush anyone at the same Reiatsu level.
That was the power of stats.
Under that brute force, Zanpakutō clashed and sparked like fireworks. It was like being hit head-on by a runaway dump truck—blade and wielder were both hurled away at once.
Blood mist burst in midair like a glorious firework.
The Zanpakutō clattered to the floor as the guard Shinigami slammed into the hard wall, leaving a thick, red smear behind.
The researchers stood frozen, staring at what was happening.
The scene in front of them had completely exceeded their understanding—shattering their worldview.
His Reiatsu was clearly only around high seated-officer level. How could he have such terrifying power?
Anyone with half a brain wouldn't try to trade blows head-on with a "seat-level" brute who could one-shot another seated officer.
But the other guards were already committed. There was no turning back.
Naraku felled the attacker in front of him in one swift exchange, then turned his wrist and twisted his body, another clean, simple slash sweeping out.
Speed, strength, reflexes—maxed out.
Two more bursts of brilliant blood spray exploded in midair. The guard Shinigami were kicked back down, smashing into the floor and cracking it like a spiderweb.
"So this is what you're relying on?"
Araki-sama watched the boy walking toward him, voice hoarse with rage, eyes icy cold.
"From the look of you, you must be some academy prodigy who just graduated."
"I am Araki Shūto of the high noble Araki family. If you're willing—"
Before he could finish, Naraku was already moving, blade raised, bringing it straight down toward Araki Shūto's head.
There was nothing to talk about with a criminal who'd crossed this many lines.
If he weren't worried about diluting his "contribution rate," he would've asked Aizen to join in too. Trash like this wasn't worth him pretending to have any sense of "honorable dueling."
"Bastard!"
Araki Shūto cursed and vanished with Shunpo, narrowly slipping past the crushing blow.
When he reappeared, he was already standing by the blood pool.
"If you won't back down, then die."
He grabbed the Zanpakutō stuck in the pool and yanked it free.
Thick, viscous blood slid endlessly down the silver blade, as if it would never run dry.
The scene was downright eerie.
Araki Shūto raised the sword high, a mad grin twisting his face as he shouted:
"Boil, Ketsureigan!"
A strange wave pulsed from the trembling blade, instantly covering the entire underground chamber—even Aizen, keeping watch further away, was caught in its reach.
Aizen frowned slightly, feeling the changes in his body and immediately pinpointing the ability.
"Blood manipulation?"
"So it's a Zanpakutō tied to living organisms. No wonder he's doing this kind of research."
"But at this level, it'll be hard for Naraku to handle…"
Back before graduation, Aizen's Reiatsu was already vice-captain class, and now he was brushing the threshold of Level 3 Reiatsu.
Araki Shūto's Zanpakutō couldn't affect him at all.
But when he looked back at Naraku, he once again found himself caught off guard.
Solidified red Reiatsu coiled around Naraku's body like a serpent, radiating a brutality that didn't belong to any Shinigami.
Araki Shūto finally sensed something was off. Panic flickered across his face.
"Why can't I control your blood?!"
"Damn lowlife, what did you do?!"
Naraku grinned. "An unshakable conviction, obviously!"
In truth, he had been affected. But the moment he sensed something wrong, he'd wrapped his Reiatsu around every drop of blood in his body and forced it into submission.
If Shutara Senjumaru hadn't put him through hell for two days, he wouldn't have been able to pull it off.
That wicked woman used "helping him reach Shikai" as an excuse to constantly try new experiments on him.
Things like fusing two completely opposite types of reishi; picking out her specific reiryoku signature from among a thousand overlapping currents; casting fully chanted Hadō in an environment with almost no reishi…
"Cruel" didn't even begin to cover it—"utterly inhuman" was closer.
But as painful as the process was, at least the results were real.
Araki Shūto's expression froze. He grit his teeth.
"Don't be ridiculous!"
He vanished in another Shunpo, appearing right in front of Naraku and swinging down a vicious slash.
Unlike the previous guards, as a core pillar of the Araki family, Araki Shūto's strength surpassed seated officers and was just touching vice-captain level.
Level 6 Reiatsu.
Their blades collided, kicking up sparks and a shockwave strong enough to make the entire chamber shudder.
Both unleashed their full power at that moment.
Araki Shūto's face twisted with rage.
Even if Ketsureigan doesn't work, I can still kill you easily. In the end, you're nothing but noble-bred dogs, daring to bite your master!
Level 6 Reiatsu versus Level 10 Reiatsu—on paper, the advantage was his.
"Die, you little bastard!"