Sāgara Ryū stood behind Seiya, no longer just a ghostly shadow visible only to him.
She had become real, a true figure manifested beside him — shoulder to shoulder in battle.
And this, Hyōsube Ichibē witnessed with his own eyes.
The Zanpakutō named Sāgara Ryū, now fully visible even to others.
—To bring a Zanpakutō to this level of materialization, even if Ōetsu Nimaiya were here, he might have gasped in awe.
It was proof of perfect resonance between Shinigami and sword —
the ultimate state of a Shinigami as an individual.
Through willpower alone, Seiya's ability here…
deserved admiration.
After countless hardships,
stripped of his name, losing his left hand—
Seiya still chose to trust everything he was.
Ikka.
The simulated release he had devised earlier had become the key to breaking through —
self-bestowed, self-reclaimed power.
He had truly become another existence altogether.
"Ho."
Witnessing this firsthand, Hyōsube couldn't help but let out a low exclamation.
He truly marveled.
"Seiya Arima… you are indeed a once-in-a-lifetime prodigy."
From the dawn of time—
As the Warden of the Soul King Palace, Hyōsube had faced countless invaders who sought to overturn the heavens and the earth.
But he remained,
the final guardian standing before the Soul King.
His pride,
his power,
lay in dominating names —
the very essence of beings.
Yet today,
this young man's actions were overturning even Hyōsube's assumptions.
"You gave yourself a new name…"
Such an interesting idea!
Hyōsube's smile turned intrigued.
But—
That was all it was.
"A last-minute trick won't save you!"
With a shout, he swung Ichimonji fiercely —
the black ink slashing wide arcs through the air.
"Second Bout, Seiya Arima!"
Hyōsube flashed forward —
a brutal thrust aimed directly at Seiya's face, ink leading the strike.
Rather than a slash,
this was corruption —
far more terrifying.
If slashed, it would only wound.
If the name was erased—
even the ability to breathe could be lost.
A name is everything.
No Kidō or flash step necessary —
Ichimonji itself was enough.
And now,
Hyōsube had grown even faster.
—He had been holding back all this time.
But Seiya,
with Sāgara Ryū by his side,
could now restore some of what had been taken.
Using Ikka,
he stretched time to an almost infinite crawl.
In that suspended moment,
he adapted.
Analyzing Hyōsube's speed, power, movements—
adjusting his battered body to respond.
The mental strain, the missing arm, the body on the verge of collapse—
All of it.
And yet—
Through sheer will, Seiya grasped the outline of victory.
Closing his eyes—
He could dodge.
One step.
Pivot.
Ink narrowly missed him.
Instead of retreating,
Seiya advanced.
"…!!!"
Even Hyōsube's eyes widened.
Seiya slipped close,
Sāgara Ryū raised high—
and swung a ferocious downward cut.
Calmly, Hyōsube parried with Ichimonji.
Clang!
A burst of black ink erupted at impact, dulling Sāgara Ryū's glow.
Still—
Ichimonji's power remained.
The theft of names continued.
Behind Seiya,
Sāgara Ryū's form began to flicker,
fading toward transparency.
Once again,
as before—
Was it all about to collapse?
No.
Because this name had never truly existed in the first place.
It was imaginary.
It couldn't be taken.
It could simply be made again.
Sāgara Ryū gritted her fists, standing firm behind Seiya.
The bond between them resonated stronger than ever,
resisting Hyōsube's invasive power.
Now—
"You can't take my name anymore."
"Hah! Is that so?!"
Hyōsube laughed, swinging again.
Ink burst forward—
splattering directly onto Seiya's eyes.
His vision was blotted out.
Seiya's eyes dulled,
like stones,
losing all ability to perceive the world.
Blinded.
An unbearable handicap.
And yet—
Even as Hyōsube lunged forward—
"What can you even do now?!"
Seiya did not panic.
He simply drew a deep breath—
focused—
tilted his head as if listening to the wind.
Shifted slightly—
avoiding the next strike.
He had already seen this future.
Through Ikka —
he had mapped every move ahead of time.
Step. Twist. Retreat.
Every counter was calculated.
"I've already seen it all."
With precision,
Seiya stepped in and—
BOOM!
Delivered a full-force punch to Hyōsube's chest!
The technique—
a fusion of Hakuda and his personal mastery of I-ryū.
Behind him,
the ghostly silhouette of Yamamoto Genryūsai loomed momentarily.
A move—
I-ryū.
"Puagh!!!"
Hyōsube, for the first time,
was blasted back—
blood spurting from his mouth.
He crashed into the Soul King Palace—
shattering a quarter of it!
Smoke and dust billowed.
Sāgara Ryū landed lightly behind Seiya,
sticking out her tongue at the collapsed enemy.
"Stupid old monk!"
Hands on her hips, she turned.
"Hey! Can you still see?!"
Seiya chuckled bitterly, touching his eyelids.
"What do you think?"
Still blind.
The battle was far from over.
The girl frowned,
clearly worried—
but before she could speak,
Seiya cut her off.
"I know what you want to say."
"So don't."
He had crossed too many dangers to retreat now.
Even if this was his limit.
Sāgara Ryū grumbled, grabbing his arm again.
"If you collapse, don't blame me!"
"Hah. You're terrible at joking."
"Still laughing? Want me to push you off the edge?!"
Their banter hid the tension.
Because in the distance—
Hyōsube was getting up.
"Good... Good…"
"Impressive, Seiya Arima!"
Hyōsube's voice was full of unfeigned admiration.
"Cough… You even forced this old man to use 'that'."
"You've reignited my blood!"
Seiya said nothing, frowning instead.
"Is he hurt?"
Sāgara Ryū, proudly:
"No! He's seriously wounded! His chest's blown through, ribs shattered, organs maybe spilled out—"
"And yet he's still standing! Monster!"
Of course.
Seiya smiled thinly.
He had reached his limit.
Punching Hyōsube away had been his last gambit.
Beyond that—
Nothing but fog.
Seiya clenched his fists tighter.
No retreat.
But then—
The atmosphere changed.
Not just from Sāgara Ryū's comments—
but something deeper.
Hyōsube's breathing grew heavy.
Power surged.
Sāgara Ryū muttered:
"His eyebrows turned white…"
"His wounds—healing!"
A new light bloomed.
Pure white.
"Real Release — White Brush Ichimonji."
Hyōsube's real power.
"This isn't the Ichimonji you know."
"Before anyone ever achieved Bankai—this was its true name."
No dramatic transformation.
No grand visual.
Only a terrifying, suffocating pressure.
"I don't have Bankai."
"But my power… isn't inferior to yours."
"Ichimonji takes names away."
"White Brush Ichimonji…"
"I grant new names."
At those words—
Seiya suddenly felt something vanish beside him.
He stumbled slightly,
confused.
"Sāgara Ryū?"
No response.
Only Hyōsube's voice,
steady and cold:
"Your Zanpakutō? Oh..."
"She no longer exists."
"Because now—"
"Sāgara Ryū has been renamed 'air.'"
"Seiya Arima—"
"Your Zanpakutō is no longer there."
----------
Powerstones?
For 20 advance chapters: patreon.com/michaeltranslates