The Vasto Lorde’s hand was already touching Yoruichi Shihōin’s chest, just about to pierce her heart, when the shouts of Tansei Shihōin, the Shiba siblings, and the others rang out.
At that very instant, Yoruichi felt a pair of arms wrap around her waist and shove her aside.
“Splurt…” The sound of flesh being pierced and blood spraying through the air echoed out.
Shadow had arrived in an instant, but all he had time to do was push Yoruichi away.
Fortunately, his instincts, sharpened through countless brushes with death, made him shift his body slightly at the last possible moment, avoiding a fatal wound.
The Vasto Lorde’s hand plunged into Shadow’s shoulder and burst out the other side.
Time seemed to freeze.
Scalding blood splashed across Yoruichi’s face.
The heat made her heart ache.
Her body continued flying backward, completely beyond her control.
Her mouth opened, yet not a single sound came out.
Tears streamed uncontrollably down her cheeks, soaking the front of her clothes and striking deeply at the softness she had always kept hidden within her heart.
“BOOM!” The Vasto Lorde casually flung Shadow away.
His body smashed into the ground, sending a massive cloud of dust into the air.
“Shadow!” Yoruichi tore herself free from Tansei’s grasp and stumbled desperately into the cloud of dust.
Tansei said nothing.
His expression was livid as he stared at the Vasto Lorde, his eyes filled with murderous intent.
“We should finish him quickly.” Jūshirō Ukitake drew his Zanpakutō, his expression grave.
“We’ll attack together.” “All right!” Just as the captains were about to move, a cold voice rang out.
Beneath its indifference was unmistakable stubbornness and resolve.
“None of you are allowed to interfere!” The atmosphere seemed to freeze instantly.
The captains turned around in disbelief, staring toward the place where the dust was slowly beginning to clear.
Step…
step…
Footsteps sounded from within.
A figure slowly emerged from the dust.
His entire body was covered in blood, and he looked as though he might collapse at any moment, yet those pitch-black eyes were as cold as ever, filled with the same stubborn, unyielding determination.
“None of you are allowed to interfere!” Shadow pushed past the captains and walked forward.
“This…
is my fight alone!” Blood continued pouring from the hole through his shoulder.
Combined with the enormous amount of Reiatsu and mental energy he had already exhausted, it left Shadow feeling faint.
He bit down hard on his lip.
The sudden pain forced him to remain conscious, preserving that final thread of awareness and composure.
“Shadow, come back!” Yoruichi looked frantic and was about to rush forward to drag him back, only for Tansei to suddenly stop her.
She turned toward him in confusion.
“Father, you…” “Yoruichi, let him go.” “But Father, Shadow is badly injured.
He’ll die…” “This is Shadow’s pride.” Tansei stared steadily at Shadow’s back, his voice solemn.
“Yoruichi, even if you don’t understand it now, you need to remember that not every battle is the same.” “One kind of battle is fought over life and death.
Others can participate in such a battle, because the only choice involved is whether you live or die.” “But another kind of battle concerns dignity and honor.
No one else can be allowed to interfere in a battle like that.
Without dignity, without honor, even surviving would leave a man nothing more than an empty shell.
Living like that would be worse than death.” “Yoruichi, Shadow is completely loyal to you, but that loyalty is exactly why he has to face this battle alone.
He cannot forgive himself for allowing you to nearly die because of his own carelessness.” “This isn’t Shadow’s fault!” Yoruichi said through clenched teeth.
“No, it is Shadow’s fault.” Tansei nodded firmly.
“He rushed after the enemy without properly considering the situation.
For a shadow, that means he failed in his duty.” “So for you, for himself, for the oath he made to you, and even more for his dignity, honor, and pride, he has to face this battle, even if it kills him.” “Is that so…” Yoruichi fell silent for a moment.
Then she suddenly raised her head and shouted toward Shadow.
“You’d better remember this, Shadow!
You have to…
come back alive!
Don’t make me…
hate you!” Shadow’s footsteps paused so slightly that almost no one noticed.
He didn’t look back, but the corner of his mouth curved upward.
“Yoruichi-sama, I promise you.
I will…
come back alive!” He mobilized the Reiatsu remaining within his body.
He had less than a third of what he possessed at his peak, and his mental energy had also been severely depleted.
“Shinigami, you’re an interesting one.
Then remember my name!” The Vasto Lorde laughed loudly.
“Noniar!
That’s the name of the one who’s going to kill you!” “I should be the one saying that.” Shadow coughed softly and wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth.
Shunshin no Jutsu.
His figure vanished instantly.
He didn’t have much Reiatsu left, and his body was already close to its limit.
If he wanted any chance of winning this battle, he had to end it quickly.
Shadow appeared behind Noniar and was just about to attack when his body suddenly froze.
His black pupils contracted sharply.
“What?
He’s gone!” “Shinigami, your Shunpo is pretty good!” Noniar appeared above Shadow and raised one hand, intending to pierce straight through him once again.
“But my Sonído is faster than your Shunpo!” “Poof!” A cloud of smoke erupted.
The Shadow who had supposedly been pierced suddenly transformed into a section of tree trunk.
Kawarimi no Jutsu.
“What…” Noniar’s pupils contracted as well.
“What kind of Kidō is this?!” “The kind of Kidō that kills you!
Cough, cough…” Shadow appeared again, but the movement tugged violently at his wound.
Intense pain surged through his body, forcing several harsh coughs from his throat.
Noniar frowned.
What was that supposed to mean?
Then, as though sensing something, he suddenly looked up at the sky.
At some point, dense, heavy storm clouds had gathered overhead.
“RUMBLE!” Violent streaks of lightning writhed through the thick clouds like enraged serpents.
Brilliant flashes illuminated the sky, accompanied by deafening thunder.
Another tremendous crash shook the heavens.
Then a torrential downpour suddenly began.
Thunder continued rolling endlessly across the sky.
“What is this?” Noniar asked in surprise.
“Remember my name, Hollow,” Shadow said coldly.
“Shadow.
That’s my name.” He raised his left hand.
Blinding lightning crackled within his palm, accompanied by a sharp chirping noise that sounded like a thousand birds crying out at once.
“Chirp, chirp, chirp…” The piercing sound carried far across the battlefield.
Shadow held his left hand high.
The lightning rampaging through the storm clouds immediately resonated with the Chidori in his palm, almost as though the heavens themselves were answering it.
Vast, violent, and carrying enough destructive force to annihilate everything in its path, the lightning descended from the clouds and merged with the Chidori in Shadow’s hand.
The cry of a thousand birds became even louder.
“He altered the weather?” Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto narrowed his eyes, a sharp gleam flashing within them.
“What kind of Kidō is this?” “ROOOOOAR!” A deafening thunderclap shook the world.
The storm clouds churned violently, and from within the dense darkness emerged the enormous head of a savage beast formed entirely from raging lightning.
“Kirin!” Shadow curled his fingers into a claw.
The lightning within his palm connected with the colossal beast in the heavens.
Then he violently brought his hand down toward Noniar.
Blinding lightning flooded the entire sky, transforming the heavens into a seemingly endless ocean of electricity.
All sound disappeared.
Everything on the ground was reduced to ash in an instant.
“BOOOOOOM!” After the tremendous explosion, everything fell silent.
Shadow stood there gasping heavily.
Blood continued flowing from his wounds, staining the shattered ground beneath his feet crimson.
His legs trembled violently, and he could barely remain standing.
This was not one of Shadow’s usual techniques, but in his current condition, it was the strongest attack he was still capable of using.
There was only one reason.
His own unique Raiton was simply too powerful.
So powerful that, with Shadow currently suffering such severe injuries, he was completely incapable of using it.