Night.
After leaving the Fourth Division barracks and returning to the Thirteenth, Bai Chen waited until the compound fell completely quiet—no outsiders, no interruptions.
Inside his room, he sat cross-legged and laid his zanpakutō, Wood Dragon, flat across his knees.
Just like the previous times, he deliberately assumed the Blade Zen posture, then slowly closed his eyes.
Not long after, drowsiness washed over him.
His consciousness blurred—
and he slipped once again into his inner soul space.
Entering the Soul Space
"The second template…"
"The new blade spirit that represents Six Paths Madara's power…"
"I wonder how you'll greet me this time."
At the final moment before his awareness sank fully, Bai Chen's heart was full of anticipation.
Welcome or hostility—
no matter what attitude this second spirit took, he was confident he could handle it.
He would seize this chance…
and unlock the second template.
A World That Had Burned
When Bai Chen opened his eyes again, he found himself back in the familiar inner world.
But after only one sweep of his gaze, his brows knitted hard.
"…Something's wrong."
"This place… is completely different from before."
Within his field of view—
there were still clouds drifting overhead, yes.
But the blue sky was gone.
In its place was a vast, deep crimson canopy—like scorched sunset clouds—mixed with thick black smoke that swallowed the light.
"This is…"
"A wilderness after a massive wildfire…?"
Bai Chen's shock was genuine.
His soul space had always been tied to Wood Dragon—to wood release itself.
It had always been lush and tranquil.
A forested paradise.
And yet now…
because the second template was about to awaken—
his inner world had been ravaged by flame.
Even though he'd prepared himself mentally, the contrast hit like a slap.
Then Bai Chen exhaled slowly, and his expression steadied.
"Madara…"
"Of course."
"Even as a fragment of my zanpakutō's origin…"
"You still have to oppose Hashirama at every turn, huh?"
If he had to guess, the one who started this fire was obvious.
Not necessarily Madara's full consciousness—
but it had to be born from him.
The Beast Appears
Bai Chen started to move, planning to follow the direction of the flames toward the far end of the world—toward the Valley of the End.
Then—
ROOOAAAR—!!!
A thunderous roar exploded across the entire soul space with no warning, like an ancient calamity-beast awakening.
Bai Chen stopped immediately, eyes sharpening as he locked onto the source.
At the far edge of his vision, flames churned violently—
then condensed.
A massive shadow formed from raging fire itself, descending onto the burned forest like a catastrophe given flesh.
Bai Chen's pupils contracted.
"No way…"
"That's… the Nine-Tails?!"
One glance at that shape—those tails, that monstrous outline—and he recognized it instantly.
The very thing he'd briefly imagined after stealing Ecliptic Corridor…
Back then, it was only a passing thought:
Could I one day summon the Nine-Tails?
And now—
that "fantasy" was standing right in front of him.
Bai Chen felt excitement flare—
but he didn't mistake the roar for welcome.
That was rage.
Hostility.
The same as Wood Dragon had been at the beginning:
If he wanted to advance deeper into this soul space—
if he wanted to reach the Valley of the End and meet the two statues again—
then he would have to do what had always worked:
crush it with overwhelming force.
Suppression
ROOOAAAR—!!!
The fiery Nine-Tails stomped down, shook the earth, and lunged straight at Bai Chen.
Bai Chen remained calm.
"Back in the shinobi world, the one who suppressed the Nine-Tails…"
"…was Hashirama."
"Now…"
"It's my turn—as the master of Wood Dragon."
He didn't need to "release" his zanpakutō here.
This was his soul space.
He only needed intent.
His hand moved to the sword at his waist.
"Grow—Advent of the World of Trees!"
The moment the words fell—
wood release erupted.
BOOOOM—!!!
The ground—already scorched black—split open like shattered glass.
A storm of dust rose hundreds of meters into the air, and pitch-black fissures raced outward like a spiderweb from Bai Chen's feet.
The violent tremors nearly threw the Nine-Tails off balance—its enormous body swaying as if it might be swallowed by therift.
Before it could roar again—
countless massive roots blasted upward from the fractures.
They flared with brilliant green light, then grew at an absurd speed.
In the blink of an eye, a vast forest surged into existence.
"Come."
"Nine-Tails—step into this forest…"
"And you'll be bound by roots and vines."
"Your fire attribute…"
"will be stripped away in an instant."
Bai Chen's mouth curved into a confident smile.
Standing there with one hand on his sword, he looked less like prey—
and more like a hunter who had already laid the trap, simply waiting for the beast to walk into it.
And just as he predicted…
Even knowing it was a trap, the Nine-Tails didn't hesitate.
It roared, wrapped in blazing chakra-like flame, and swung a burning claw at Bai Chen—
wild, brutal, unstoppable.
"Bind—Wood Dragon Technique!"
Bai Chen's voice cut through the chaos.
The earth tore open again.
A colossal wooden dragon—its body not inferior to the Nine-Tails in size—rose from therift and surged forward.
BOOM!
It slammed into the Nine-Tails with crushing weight, then coiled and pinned it down.
The Nine-Tails shrieked in furious pain.
Its flames visibly dimmed—red light devoured by green suppression.
"That should calm you down."
"No matter how vicious your power is…"
"I'm the master of this soul space."
Bai Chen didn't move.
Through the link between him and Wood Dragon, he could clearly feel it—
a power distinct from wood release, pouring into him after being ripped away.
Hot.
Violent.
A burning, crimson spiritual pressure—
fire.
"Fire power…"
"If I absorb the Nine-Tails…"
"and the second template truly opens…"
"Am I about to awaken… a second zanpakutō?"
The thought struck him like lightning.
A strong instinct told him:
Beyond Wood Dragon, a second blade was forming—
one tied to the Nine-Tails and Madara.
A brand-new zanpakutō with a scorching, violent attribute.
"…So I really will have twin blades."
Bai Chen's excitement surged, almost spilling out of his eyes.
In all of Soul Society, paired zanpakutō were rare. Known examples were basically only:
Kyōraku Shunsui's Katen Kyōkotsu
Ukitake Jūshirō's Sōgyo no Kotowari
And now—
a third name was about to be added.
His.
A second zanpakutō born alongside the second template—
a blazing, fire-type blade.
The Fire Fades
The Nine-Tails thrashed and tore.
It burned and clawed.
But the forest kept growing, endlessly.
The dragon kept binding, endlessly.
And as its spiritual power was continuously stripped away…
the Nine-Tails' body—made of flame—began to dim.
Its blazing form turned dull, as if drained to ash.
In the end, with one final unwilling roar—
it was swallowed completely by Wood Dragon.
"It's done."
"The rampaging Nine-Tails… has been suppressed."
Bai Chen looked around.
The red sky began to fade, returning to blue.
The smoke thinned.
The flames across the forest and earth extinguished one by one.
Soon, the soul space returned to its usual vitality—
green, lush, alive.
But Bai Chen's mental energy had been consumed too heavily.
Before he could continue forward and reach the Valley of the End—
his consciousness was forced out.
A New Sign-in Task
Bai Chen opened his eyes in the real world, a deep regret on his face.
"What a waste…"
"If I'd made it all the way…"
"I probably would've heard the voice of the second blade."
Then—
Ding!
A familiar system prompt rang out.
"New sign-in task issued!"
"No time limit. Please go to the 80th District of North Rukongai—Zaraki Ward and sign in!"
"After signing in, you will receive a special reward: Open the second template and awaken a dual-element zanpakutō (fire-type)!"
Bai Chen's black eyes lit instantly.
"So I was right."
"The Nine-Tails didn't appear by accident."
"It's the sign of a new fire-type zanpakutō."
His heart surged with anticipation.
He couldn't wait to head to Zaraki Ward and complete the sign-in—
and he couldn't help imagining…
Just how terrifying would the fire-type blade tied to the Nine-Tails and Madara truly be?
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