CH 163: DANGEROUS NIGHT
Somewhere else in the city, in the garden of Kisuke’s house, a tall man with an eyepatch could be seen swinging his sword repeatedly.
Looking at Zaraki training, Kisuke took a swing of his bottle of alcohol while wondering just what kind of monster both Unohana and Satoru were trying to create.
Zaraki Kenpachi - Though, now that he wasn’t the captain of the 11th division anymore, it was weird to still call him Kenpachi - was a man with the potential to break the inherent limitations of Shinigami without having to use external means.
The only reason he didn’t manage to do so until now was because of his weird obsession with limiting himself in order to enjoy fighting more.
Unohana had once told him that her one greatest regret had been facing Zaraki and not being strong enough. Even though she won the fight back then, it was only because of the great difference in experience and skill. The simple fact that Zaraki as a kid could shred apart her defensive Reiatsu and left a scar on her body showed that his Reiatsu wasn’t any weaker than her back then.
In Unohana's initial plan, once she judged that the Soul Society didn’t need her anymore, she would fight Zaraki to bring him to the brink before finally falling to his blade. Only then would he break all through the conscious and unconscious limitations he put on himself.
But now, her plan had changed, Unohana didn’t tell him what caused this change but he had his own inkling. Clearly, her relationship with Satoru made her less willing to throw her life away.
‘Love truly changes people.’
The years of training that followed hadn’t been in vain. Slowly, Zaraki was becoming more monstrous and Kisuke even wondered now if he could win against the current Zaraki if he didn’t use his Bankai.
“Ken-chan is the best, right?”
Kisuke chuckled and looked at the pink-haired ‘girl’ sitting close to him while munching on sweets prepared by Nemu. What a surprise it was when Gojo revealed to him her true nature.
This revelation was followed by weeks of research as he tried to understand what might have made her existence possible. But the only answer he could come to was that it was the kind of Zanpakuto she was.
It wasn’t as Zanpakuto that could materialize themselves to the real world were rare. What made ‘Yachiru’ so special though was the fact that even as a Zanpakuto, she was able to obtain her own Zanpakuto.
“Indeed. He is very incredible.”
He was about to continue the discussion when,
“Aloa!”
None of them seemed surprised to see the silver-haired man appear while floating above them.
“Humph.”
Zaraki ignored the new arrival and continued to swing his sword but Gojo wasn’t offended. He knew that Zaraki was just a little miffed since he didn’t have any new challenges lately.
No matter how much he loved fighting, doing so against the same people everyday would become boring with time.
That was exactly why Gojo came here.
“Don’t worry, Zaraki, I believe you will like what I got for you. What do you say about fighting a new captain?”
Zaraki immediately stopped swinging his sword and looked at Gojo suspiciously, “Captains are sealed when they come to earth, right?”
He had no interest in facing weakling.
“I promise you that he is in no way sealed.”
This made the suspicion of Zaraki increase further.
“Do you want to destroy the town?”
If, as he said, the captain in question didn’t have 80% of his power sealed, then if the two of them were to fight, the town would be totally erased from the map and the victims would be countless.
Zaraki had no hang-up about such a thing but he found it weird that Gojo was willing to do so.
“You forgot about my Bankai?”
Gojo shrugged, causing Zaraki to nod in acceptance.
“So, what do you say?”
The bloodthirsty smile on Zaraki’s face was all the answer he needed.
“What about you, Kisuke? Are you interested?”
Kisuke looked at both Zaraki then Satoru, then prayed for the poor man that would face them.
‘They say to not kick a man while he is down.’
“Of course, I am going to follow you.”
Kisuke liked kicking bastards when they were down.
—-
Tsukishima was holding a sword while his hands were trembling. Behind him was a bleeding Ginjo and facing him was the man who put them in such a situation in the first place.
‘Concentrate, concentrate.’
His power, known as the book of the end, was very complex. It allowed him to mess with the very History of the world. Changing the past to affect the present.
‘I just need to touch him once.’
He gulped. If he could enter the memories of the man, he would be able to make him believe they were friends or even family. This was how potent this power was.
Of course, since the man was a shinigami, it meant that he would have to navigate through hundreds of years of memories. If he wasn’t careful, he might lose himself in them. But, it didn’t matter.
‘If I do nothing, we will die.’
Doing nothing meant death. But acting meant a slight chance of living. So the choice was evident.
Even then, it wasn’t easy. His lack of experience compounded with the clear difference in power between the two sides made him feel like nothing he could do would work.
For Fullbringer that depended on their ‘will’ to bend the world around them, mindset was very important and Tsukishima knew that his current mindset would bring them nothing.
“Tsukishima, get behind me.”
“Ginjo!?”
Tsukishima screamed in shock when he felt a hand on his shoulder pull him back. Looking up, he could see Ginjo giving him a weak smile.
“Let me deal with it.”
All this while, Tokinada had stayed silent but watching this scene, he couldn’t help but laugh.
“My, oh my, what a touching scene. I am nearly in tears at this sight. Haha. A mentor sacrificing himself to protect his prized student. I would nearly spare you.”
“Heh, then why not do it? I would be grateful if you did. Just take us as bereaved dogs on the road.”
Ginjo gave a low laugh as he made the proposal. He had no illusions about his chance of survival, but any seconds he could stall him would give one more second for Tsukishima to calm down.
Surprisingly,
"It isn't as if I need to kill you."
Ginjo's eyes opened wide in surprise, before becoming thoughtful.
"What do you want in exchange?"
He wasn't a fool. Even more so after the recent events, he now knew that there was nothing free in this world.
Tokinada gave a devilish smile.
"Weren't you searching for a way to take away the power of Fullbringer? I want you to continue doing it. Do it until you reach a level that will allow you to take revenge against the Soul Society."
Like the sweet words of a devil, they slowly entered his ears and his heart.
"Why hesitate? Don't you already hate the Soul Society that used and discarded you? I am offering you the chance to take the revenge you so desperately want."
Ginjo gritted his teeth, he knew that the proposal was too enticing to refuse. He wanted to object. To say that he didn't need it. To spit on the face of that son of bitch.
But, so what even if he did so?
He was betting everything on a poor kid who couldn't even hold his sword properly.
Rather than burdening Tsukishima more with the weight of their life, wouldn't it be better for him to take the proposal?
"Why…?"
"Hum? Hah! You are asking why I am letting you go even though you wish revenge? It's pretty simple."
Tokinada's smile stretched further, "Watching a worm like you struggle and struggle futilely for years and centuries only to finally realize how impossible your goal is will be a delight to witness.
"Hahaha, and in the off and unlikely chance that you do succeed, I will be able to witness a sight I always dreamt of for hundreds of years. Isn't it beautiful?"
Ginjo's pulse quickened. He could see it. In the eyes of this man, this world was nothing but a joke. A huge spectacle he watched from afar while laughing at the people struggling below.
There was no deep purpose, no subtle plan…Only pure entertainment.
'I will make you pay one day.'
He gritted his teeth, despite his bleeding wounds, he wished for nothing more than to rush and destroy the smug bastard. But he held back.
"I…"
"Oh damn. What a sick bastard you are. You remind me of a dude that liked to play with souls[1]. Very dangerous bastard. Very sick bastard."
Ginjo looked up as three people appeared above in the sky. Each one of them seemingly stronger than the other.
He did not know why, but he felt like the night would end very differently from what he previously imagined.
[1] He is speaking of Mahito for those who didn't watch Jujutsu kaisen. You should search for the dude on wiki. Really sick bastard. Though he isn't human so yeah.