BLEACH: SURVIVAL SYSTEM

"Boom…!"

A blinding beam of light slashed across the battlefield!

At that moment, the very fabric of the Splitting Void was shattered completely. The first strike had already carved through, but before it dissipated, the second followed in perfect synchronicity, sweeping across the battlefield in a devastating arc.

The two attacks overlapped—then, an explosion of unprecedented magnitude erupted!

"Such terrifying destructive power… No matter how many times I witness it—"

Aizen Sōsuke calmly discarded the charred remains of Feathertexture, letting them fall to the flaming edges of the massive crater left behind. Even the hem of his Shihakushō bore signs of scorching, a rare blemish on his otherwise immaculate form.

From a distance, Akira snorted. "As expected of Aizen Sōsuke. Even with such a sudden attack, he barely managed to evade."

Another voice chimed in. "Indeed. If it had been any other captain-level Shinigami, they would have been struck down instantly."

Aizen merely smiled. "Unfortunately for you, I am not just any captain-level Shinigami."

Akira chuckled. "What a coincidence. Neither am I."

Both of them knew the truth—this was likely the strongest enemy either had ever faced.

Aizen's eyes gleamed as he raised a hand. "Since you can release such a powerful shockwave, let's see how you fare against an attack you cannot break!"

With that declaration, his Reiatsu surged explosively.

"Hadō No. 88: Hiryū Gekizoku Shinten Raihō!" (Flying Dragon Strikes Thief Thunder Cannon!)

At the same time, Akira unleashed his counterattack—

"60 million volts: Thunder Dragon!"

A brilliant azure thunderbolt erupted from Aizen's palm, colliding head-on with the roaring lightning dragon. The battlefield was swallowed by searing electricity as the two titanic forces clashed.

But Aizen was not done.

"Hadō No. 90: Kurohitsugi!" (Black Coffin!)

Without hesitation, he unleashed another high-level Kidō, the massive black prism forming around Akira in an instant.

Though caught within its grasp, Akira remained unfazed. A smirk tugged at his lips as he muttered under his breath, "This weakened Kidō, cast without an incantation… It's nothing to me."

Suddenly, golden light erupted from his palm—an overwhelming surge of raw power!

"Boom!"

The Black Coffin shattered before it could fully manifest, the sheer force of Akira's counter shattering its structure. The residual energy surged forward, obliterating the ground where Aizen had stood moments ago, leaving behind a gaping crater.

But Aizen was already gone.

Using Shunpo, he had effortlessly repositioned himself outside of the attack's range, watching from above with his usual calculating gaze.

"Of course, I knew this level of Kidō wouldn't stop you." He smirked. "But… I also knew that after breaking through so confidently, even you wouldn't be prepared for what comes next."

Akira's eyes widened slightly.

It was then that he noticed it—Aizen's Zanpakutō, Kyōka Suigetsu, had already fallen to the ground, its blade submerged in barely visible ripples of distorted air.

Aizen's voice carried a chilling certainty. "This is the result of precise calculation. When a warrior regains their vision after an overwhelming attack, their first instinct is to scan their surroundings—to take in everything at a glance."

His smirk deepened.

"And in doing so, Akira, you have already fallen under Kyōka Suigetsu's hypnosis."

Akira stood frozen.

Aizen's expression shifted into one of triumphant satisfaction. "It's over."

A rare sense of exhilaration welled within him. After all, this was the most formidable adversary he had ever encountered, and now—he had won.

"Thank you for the entertainment," Aizen said softly. "But your part in this ends here."

After finally suppressing his triumphant smile, Aizen reunited with Kyōka Suigetsu and drove the blade into Akira's heart.

A clean strike—solid, real. No illusions, no tricks.

Aizen felt a sense of relief. But as he lifted his gaze, he was met with an unsettling sight—Akira staring at him with an odd expression.

"Even you, Aizen… Do you talk this much when you think you've won?"

"What?!"

Aizen's pupils contracted. Just as he attempted to step back, Akira's grip tightened around him like a vice.

"Impossible… I struck your vitals!"

Aizen struggled, a rare flicker of fear in his usually composed demeanor. But in the next moment, a surge of electricity erupted from the blade embedded in Akira's chest, coursing through Kyōka Suigetsu and paralyzing Aizen's body.

"Look closely, Aizen. What did you actually pierce?"

Akira sneered as storm clouds gathered ominously above them.

Aizen looked down, and his eyes widened in disbelief. The point where his sword had pierced had transformed—into pure, crackling energy.

"This ability… It's unlike anything I've seen before!"

Gritting his teeth, Aizen forced himself to remain calm. "No matter… Even if you survived the strike, you still fell under Kyōka Suigetsu's perfect hypnosis!"

At these words, Akira chuckled and spoke a line that once belonged to Aizen himself:

"Tell me, Aizen… when did you have the illusion that I was the one being deceived?"

As he spoke, his eyes gleamed with an eerie red glow. Slowly, three tomoe began to spin—Sharingan.

Aizen's breath hitched. "What is this…? Another hypnosis technique?!"

A creeping sense of unease filled him. How had he never noticed those crimson eyes before? It was absurdly conspicuous.

Unless—

From the very moment their battle had begun, he had already been caught in the illusion of those red eyes, forced to overlook their presence entirely.

"Tch… A tricky technique," Aizen muttered, regaining composure.

Akira smirked. "Your Reiatsu is impressive, Aizen. The standard Sharingan alone wouldn't have been enough to fool you for long. That's why I let you think Kyōka Suigetsu's hypnosis had taken hold… to ensure you played right into my hand."

Above them, the swirling thunderclouds had reached their peak, crackling with violent energy.

"It wasn't easy, even for me, to find the one moment when a man as cautious as you would let his guard down…"

Akira's grip tightened around Aizen's arms.

"But now, the time for talk is over." His voice crackled with the storm's fury. "The thunder has reached its limit—now it's time for you to lose your soul!"

"Raikage!"

With those words, the amassed lightning in the heavens reached critical mass, forming a colossal sphere of pure destruction. Then, like the wrath of the heavens itself, it descended—a meteor of raw, electrified annihilation.

Aizen's expression flickered—was that panic? "Wait—stop! Do you intend to die with me?!"

Akira's eyes gleamed with untamed power. "Did you forget, Aizen? You already pierced the thunder itself. My own lightning cannot harm me!"

As he spoke, the brilliant blue light of the incoming strike bathed the battlefield.

And then—

BOOM—!!!

The explosion's radiance split the sky, its deafening roar shaking the very foundations of the Seireitei.

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