Bleach: Watch Closely, This Is How You Use a Zanpakutō-Chapter 380: Sounds Impressive When Said Out Loud

Seireitei’s shadows—The Wandenreich. The sky was dark as night, cloaked in a heavy gloom. Along the wide road stretching from the wilderness

Seireitei’s shadows—The Wandenreich.

The sky was dark as night, cloaked in a heavy gloom.

Along the wide road stretching from the wilderness to Silbern, rows of Shinigami stood in formation—an unusual sight for this land. Among them were numerous members of the Kidō Corps.

Their presence raised questions. Was this an invasion? Or did they have another purpose?

But the truth was far more complex—This was a mission of vengeance.

A thousand-year-old blood debt was about to be settled.

At the front of the formation stood an elderly man with a long beard, his face calm and composed, yet grave.

Flanking him on both sides were a man and a woman, standing like guardians beside the seemingly frail elder.

"Captain-Commander."

Gin Ichimaru quietly approached and bowed respectfully.

"A small squad is approaching ahead—about twenty of them. They look like Quincy from the Wandenreich. Most likely a patrol unit."

The old man’s eyes narrowed slightly, a glint of sharpness flashing through them. He didn’t answer right away and simply waited in silence.

Then, another voice cut in from behind—brimming with excitement and fighting spirit.

"Finally! An enemy to fight!"

It was Zaraki Kenpachi, and the eager hunger in his voice was unmistakable.

"Only twenty? That’s too few," he said with a hint of disappointment.

"But I’ve been itching for a good fight. Let me handle it."

"Very well, they’re yours," the old man finally spoke, his voice steady and commanding.

"Go!"

With that, Zaraki Kenpachi led several subordinates forward, quickly breaking off from the main force. Their figures receded into the distance as they closed in on the Quincy patrol...

...

"These guys are sloppy. Their Reiatsu isn’t strong either... Doesn’t look like they’ve noticed us yet."

Frowning, Ayasegawa Yumichika gripped the hilt of his blade and muttered,

"Exactly twenty. That should be them."

Zaraki Kenpachi slowed to a halt, drew his Zanpakutō, and paused for a moment to listen to the faint jingling of the bells in his hair. Then he sneered.

"We’re deep in enemy territory now, right? No need to leave anyone alive—we can kill them all, yeah?"

Before Yumichika could respond, Zaraki had already rushed ahead.

Madarame Ikkaku was the first to react, shouting to Yumichika:

"No way I’m missing out on this! I’m going too! Hurry up, Yumichika!"

"You guys..."

Yumichika barely got a word out before the two were already gone.

...

"Who’s there?!"

The sudden appearance of Zaraki and Ikkaku left the Quincy stunned. They reacted quickly, but against these two ferocious Shinigami, their resistance was futile.

As Zaraki approached, the leading Quincy shouted sharply, raising his Reishi bow in warning.

"Who are you?! That outfit... Shinigami? You dare step into our territory? You’re looking to die!"

The other Quincy around him followed suit, raising their Reishi weapons.

Zaraki’s eyes lit up with joy, and he sped up.

Opponents who fight back—that’s what makes it fun.

For some reason, Menos attacks had become rare in Soul Society lately, and Shinigami weren’t allowed to kill freely. But these Quincy? Fair game.

And if he got a pat on the back from the Captain-Commander for it? Even better. A reward fight, just the way he liked it.

Zaraki swung his Zanpakutō, each strike brimming with deadly power. His eyes gleamed with bloodlust. All he wanted was to cut down every single enemy before him.

Meanwhile, Madarame Ikkaku weaved through the crowd with agile footwork and precise strikes, his Hōzukimaru glinting with cold steel.

Watching the fierce battle unfold, Yumichika let out a long sigh. He knew there was no stopping those two. All he could do was follow.

Under the onslaught of Zaraki and Ikkaku, the Quincy were cut down one after another.

Though they outnumbered them, it didn’t matter—Before these two Shinigami, numbers meant nothing.

As time passed, more and more Quincy fell in pools of blood.

The battlefield had become a slaughterhouse.

...

Shinigami forces.

Shunsui Kyōraku felt the surge of Reiatsu from afar and exclaimed with exaggerated awe:

"No matter how many times I feel it, this Reiatsu is still terrifying!"

To Yamamoto’s left, Retsu Unohana lightly rested her hand on her Zanpakutō, then glanced back.

This time, four Divisions had mobilized to declare war on the Wandenreich—the 1st, 4th, 8th, and 11th Divisions. The first three brought most of their squad members, while the 11th had deployed its entire force—except for its captain. That was why their overall numbers were limited.

The operation was personally led by Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto, the strongest Shinigami of the past thousand years. Even without the 11th Division’s captain, Masatsuki Aozaki, they still had four captain-class combatants. And with veterans like Retsu Unohana and Shunsui Kyōraku, both experienced and formidable, Yamamoto couldn’t imagine losing to foes he had once defeated.

So he entrusted Jūshirō Ukitake and Isshin Shiba with temporary command of the Gotei 13, leaving them to guard Seireitei alongside several weaker captains.

In the distance, a barren city began to come into view. Though filled with buildings, it looked desolate—hardly a soul in sight.

Yamamoto exhaled deeply, almost to himself:

"All grudges will end today."

Retsu Unohana furrowed her brow and asked in a low voice:

"Captain-Commander, do you truly not need the Shin’eiyaku?"

"I have no need to borrow the power of Hollows. You don’t actually believe those defeated scraps could force me to use my Bankai, do you?"

Yamamoto stared into the distance, let out a cold chuckle, and shook his head.

"I didn’t think you’d go soft too. Relying on something like this... Did that damned disciple of mine rub off on you? I don’t remember you as the kind of woman to be so spineless."

Though his tone was full of mockery, there wasn’t the slightest trace of malice—if anything, there was a hint of satisfaction.

Yes, she was a killer, but aside from her bloodlust, she was flawless in every respect. Among all the captains of the Gotei 13 since its founding—including the original—plenty had admired her. And now, she had been taken by his own disciple.

When he finally went to Hell, he’d have something to boast about to the old crowd.

That woman you couldn’t catch or beat? She picked my disciple.

What a flex!

That troublesome brat was occasionally useful after all. Now he just hoped everything up there was going smoothly...

Yamamoto sighed, a flicker of regret crossing his mind. Maybe he should’ve waited a bit longer before making his move. If something happened up above, there was nothing he could do now.

Meanwhile, Retsu Unohana quietly thought to herself:

"I don’t actually need it."

But she didn’t say it aloud. Exposing her Hollowfication now might cause trouble for that kid. So, she kept her silence.

As for the Shin’eiyaku, it had been publicly released by Mayuri Kurotsuchi after the attack on Rōjūrō Ōtoribashi—he’d put on a show of studying it for a few days before presenting it as an official measure.

To take down Rōjūrō Ōtoribashi, the Quincy had even used Medalizing. Probably because Masatsuki had infiltrated once before, and thinking their intel was compromised, they decided there was no point hiding anymore.

If they leveraged that kind of tech and intel gaps to deal with the Shinigami, it would definitely be a major headache.

With that in mind, Retsu Unohana stepped a bit closer to Yamamoto. Not out of concern for the old man’s safety—she had several bottles of Shin’eiyaku on her.

If he lost his Bankai due to carelessness or some mishap, she could chuck the stuff at him like it cost nothing.

That old man’s Bankai was a double-edged sword. One misstep, and it could trigger a world-ending crisis.

She wasn’t planning to die just yet.

She still wanted to clash blades with Masatsuki Aozaki for a few more years!

...

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