"My Zanpakutō is Kyōka Suigetsu, yes... but I never said my Zanpakutō is only Kyōka Suigetsu."
Aizen met Hirako Shinji's eyes, which were gradually filling with horror, and said unhurriedly.
"No... impossible!"
Hirako Shinji's pupils suddenly contracted, and then rapidly dilated. At the same time, his body tensed and twitched in alternating spasms.
If the suffocation he felt earlier had consumed his entire body, then now—what replaced it was a bone-deep chill that flooded through every inch of his flesh and blood.
Even the blood in his veins seemed to be affected.
His body temperature plummeted.
It was only now that he truly understood—
The more one learns about the Sōsuke brothers, the more terrifying they become.
Each time he thought he had come to understand Aiyan, the cruel truth would slap him in the face—
Telling him that his so-called "understanding" was nothing but the tip of the iceberg.
But even that tip was enough to chill the soul.
"Do you know why you lost?"
"Do you remember what you just said?"
"You said I was conceited... but I'm not. The truly conceited one is you... Hirako Shinji."
Aiyan turned his back to Hirako Shinji.
"That day, I made it so you couldn't even use Bankai."
"So now, you show up again—why did you think you'd win this time?"
"What made you think you had a chance? What gave you the courage to come to me? Was it your Bankai?"
"If so, then—"
The words hadn't even finished—
And he had already raised his hand, hovering it midair.
"Kidō Forbidden Technique—Golden Light Curse."
Golden Reiatsu, like burning flames, surged up from Aiyan's body.
The area it covered was not large, but its light was dazzling—like the radiance of dawn cutting through the black of night—illuminating every corner of the dark Confession Palace.
Immediately after—
A colossal golden hand extended from that brilliant golden light, reaching out and grabbing Hirako Shinji's materialized Zanpakutō in its palm.
Then—
It closed its fingers.
A crushing grasp—fierce enough to create shockwaves of Reiatsu that swept toward the center of its grip.
"No!"
Seeing this, Hirako Shinji immediately used Shunpo, rushing toward Sakanade—his Zanpakutō—who was now trapped in that golden giant hand.
Even though he had been stabbed in the back by his own Zanpakutō, he understood very well—
It was only because of Aizen's manipulation.
As an extension of his soul, his Zanpakutō had been with him for centuries.
How could he just let Aiyan destroy it?
Crack—
Accompanied by a chilling sound like fabric tearing—
Sakanade, trapped in the golden grip, could not endure the violent pressure. Even the surrounding air was compressed into collapse.
With a boom—
It exploded on the spot.
Then, the giant golden fingers slowly opened.
In its palm—
Only shattered Zanpakutō fragments remained.
Just like that, it was done.
Only then did Hirako Shinji manage to flash in front of the golden hand.
He stared blankly at the fragments of his Zanpakutō, broken and scattered like pieces of scrap metal.
Sakanade… completely crushed.
Hirako Shinji's whole body went rigid.
His eyes became dull and lifeless.
He couldn't accept the reality unfolding in front of him.
His Zanpakutō had been destroyed—before his very eyes.
After a moment—
The dullness in his eyes faded.
Replaced by anger—
And a murderous rage so strong that even the strongest flowing water-type Zanpakutō couldn't extinguish it.
"Aiyan!"
With a beast's roar, Hirako Shinji turned and charged at Aiyan—
But before he could go far, his vision suddenly lit up—
Before he could react, the same golden hand that had just crushed Sakanade stretched out from behind him.
Lightning-fast—
It seized him, wrapping him completely in its palm.
"I'm going to kill you...!"
He hadn't finished roaring out his hatred—
The golden hand tightened.
A powerful force surged through its grip.
CRACK—
That same shattering sound echoed again.
But this time—
Hirako Shinji wasn't crushed into fragments like Sakanade.
Instead—
Like an overripe tomato stomped flat, his entire body caved in—
And then—
BOOM—
A violent explosion of blood and mist erupted into the night sky.
Everything collapsed inside the golden grip.
There were no signs of death.
Only the brilliant red mist hanging thick in the air—
A halo of crimson near the hovering hand.
Suddenly, the giant golden hand clenched again, squeezing tighter.
The burst of Reiatsu it released was like a howling typhoon.
It surged outward—
Until even the walls of the Confession Palace a hundred meters away cracked apart—
Fractures spread like spiderwebs across the stone.
Only then—
Did the waves of power gradually fade.
After a while—
The golden hand, still suspended in mid-air, slowly opened its fingers.
From its palm—
Tiny spirit particles drifted upward—
Rising into the sky.
Only—
Hirako Shinji was nowhere to be seen.
Well—
Not entirely gone.
Plop.
As the spirit particles scattered across the Confession Palace—
A severed head with wide, bloodshot eyes and a twisted expression rolled from the edge of the golden hand.
It dropped to the ground with a dull thud.
Just one move.
Sakanade—
Shattered into dozens of pieces.
Gone without a trace.
Just one move.
The former captain of the Fifth Division—
Hirako Shinji—
Crushed by Aiyan's Kidō Forbidden Technique—Golden Light Curse.
Only his head remained.
His limbs, torso, organs—even his Shihakushō—
Were all pulverized into spirit particles and scattered into the wind.
It was almost identical to what had happened to Kuchiki Ginrei not long ago.
His four limbs shattered into pure Reiatsu.
But at least Kuchiki Ginrei had Hollowfication and High-Speed Regeneration to barely survive.
Hirako Shinji?
He couldn't.
Even if you handed him High-Speed Regeneration and Hollowfication, it would be useless.
Unless he swallowed two Hōgyoku just before death.
And made the Hōgyoku fully submit, unlocking perfect regeneration—
Even then, it might not have been enough.
"That wasn't a Kidō numbered under ninety-nine..."
Though blind, Tōsen Kaname's spiritual perception told him clearly—
He had memorized all Kidō numbered 1 through 99.
And none of them matched this forbidden spell—Golden Light Curse.
"Created your own Kidō...?"
"As expected… You've reached that level."
"There's Bakudō for binding and defense. Hadō for destruction and attack."
"If you're caught, it's like being sealed by a level #90 Bakudō. If you're hit, it's like being obliterated by a level #90 Hadō."
Aizen gently pushed up the bridge of his glasses.
A gleam flickered across the lens.
He had seen it.
That one move just now—
Golden Light Curse—
Already showed full-scale Hadō and Bakudō capabilities above level #90.
Homemade Hadō.
Plenty in Seireitei have tried.
But one that fuses Bakudō and Hadō—
That matches or surpasses both in power—
One that can imprison like a Bakudō in the 90s, and destroy like a Hadō in the 90s...
That—
Had never existed.
Not in all the thousands of years of Soul Society history.