togophonebook #229 - Let Luofu become the new Spirit King! Covering the world of the heavens!
#229 - Let Luofu become the new Spirit King! Covering the world of the heavens!
At this moment, Gin Ichimaru could only be described as feeling utterly despondent. He didn't even care about what his former colleagues were saying.
Even as one of the captains of the Gotei 13, Gin Ichimaru's original aspiration was never to become a Soul Reaper or a captain.
Gin Ichimaru's only thought was to help his childhood friend, Rangiku Matsumoto, retrieve the portion of her soul that Aizen had stolen back in Rukongai.
Gin Ichimaru, the captain of the 3rd Division, and Rangiku Matsumoto, the vice-captain of the 10th Division, had similar origins to Kenpachi Zaraki, both being just souls from Rukongai.
They gradually became Soul Reapers after entering the True Spirit Arts Academy.
And Rukongai, although named a 'district,' is actually a collective term for the entire Soul Society outside of the Seireitei.
In the world of Soul Reapers, the human world might still have a semblance of fairness, but in the Soul Society, all areas outside the Seireitei are Rukongai, directly numbered. This shows what kind of living environment souls entering the Soul Society face.
In the Soul Society, the closer one is to the Seireitei, the higher the concentration of spirit particles.
And spirit particles are exactly what wandering souls need most. Living in a place with abundant spirit particles can greatly increase lifespan, while scarce spirit particles shorten it.
The hardships of their origins only strengthened Gin Ichimaru's unwavering feelings for Rangiku Matsumoto.
Now, years of lurking and effort have been reduced to nothing as he was abandoned by Aizen. Gin Ichimaru's heart is completely dead, and he remains unmoved no matter what the captains say.
Seeing this, Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni coldly said, "Although Gin Ichimaru is a captain, his sins are grave and he shows no remorse. He shall be sentenced to death."
"Captain Yamamoto," Toshiro Hitsugaya suddenly exclaimed in surprise.
Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni, however, seemed determined, saying, "Guards, take this sinner Gin Ichimaru away."
"Old man, wait a moment," Shunsui Kyoraku said as if he had thought of something, "Captain Gin Ichimaru doesn't seem to be so loyal to Aizen. Perhaps he has other reasons for joining Aizen."
"Regardless of his reasons, he has sided with the sinner Aizen and remains unrepentant. His sins are unforgivable."
Seeing Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni so unmoved,
Kyoraku Shunsui quickly said to Gin Ichimaru, "Captain Gin Ichimaru, I don't know your experiences, nor can I understand your feelings, but I know that if you still refuse to speak now, then your persistence will be completely meaningless."
Perhaps moved by Kyoraku Shunsui,
Gin Ichimaru's dead eyes suddenly flickered for a moment.
Seeing this, Kyoraku Shunsui pressed on, saying, "If you are willing to tell us everything now, no matter what conditions Aizen has used to force you to submit, the Seireitei will help you."
"It's useless!" Gin Ichimaru shook his head and said, "You high and mighty fellows simply don't understand."
Although it was also apparent that Gin Ichimaru must have some hidden suffering,
the most urgent matter was not to rush to deal with Luo Fu.
After all, Luo Fu's strength was obvious to all. If they wanted to deal with Luo Fu, they had to first resolve the Seireitei's internal troubles.
The Vandenreich.
After Gin Ichimaru was taken away,
Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni went straight to the point, saying, "Captain Mayuri Kurotsuchi, what is the situation now? Have you found a way to enter the Vandenreich?"
Although they now knew that the so-called Vandenreich was hidden in the shadows of the Seireitei,
it was still not an easy task for Soul Reapers to enter it.
As the captain of the 12th Division, responsible for technological development within the Gotei 13,
Mayuri Kurotsuchi could be said to be doing everything in his power to find a way to enter the Vandenreich.
Hearing Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni's question, Mayuri Kurotsuchi said with a stiff expression, "Captain-Commander, please forgive me, our Technology Development Bureau is currently searching for a way, but the so-called shadows of the Vandenreich are created by a special technique. Naturally, it is possible to break through and enter it, but unless we can find a way to resist this technique, entering it is tantamount to seeking death."
Nodding, Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni thought for a moment and said, "Send someone to enter it. I want to talk to Yhwach."
Without a doubt, all the Soul Reaper captains now had a tacit understanding that to deal with Luo Fu, they could only gather the Soul Society's top combat power. Any single person who faced Luo Fu would only meet their demise.
Although Retsu Unohana was an ancient existence in the Seireitei Gotei 13, second only to the Captain-Commander Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni,
Luo Fu had betrayed the Soul Society and the Seireitei, so how could he care about his former captain?
With little sentimentality involved, sending Retsu Unohana to Hueco Mundo would inevitably lead to a certain death if she encountered Luo Fu.
Little did they know that Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni's suggestion made Retsu Unohana's blood boil instantly, wishing she could go to Hueco Mundo now and have a good fight with Luo Fu.
"Captain Yamamoto, Luo Fu was once a member of the 4th Division. As his captain, I am naturally duty-bound to deal with his affairs. But Captain Yamamoto's hope for me to go to Hueco Mundo shouldn't just be to have me fight Luo Fu, right?"
Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni knew Retsu Unohana's personality very well.
That seemingly gentle and demure appearance was only because, in Retsu Unohana's eyes, neither the Seireitei nor Hueco Mundo had a target worthy of her serious attention.
When someone truly aroused Retsu Unohana's interest, they would truly feel how terrifying the name Yachiru Unohana was.
It was no exaggeration to say that Retsu Unohana was known as the foremost villain in the Seireitei for a thousand years, which she had truly earned through unbridled slaughter.
Even Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni himself had almost suffered a loss at Retsu Unohana's hands back then.
Hearing this, Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni nodded slightly and said, "I hope you can personally go to Hueco Mundo, find Luo Fu, and find out what this traitor intends to do."
"Find out his purpose?" Retsu Unohana thought for a moment and then said, "I will do my best, but I think if I have a big fight with Luo Fu, I may not have a chance to return. How should the news be transmitted then?"
Many captains immediately looked grave.
In their opinion, Retsu Unohana was clearly planning to complete this mission with her life.
"The problem of transmitting the news will be handled by Great Priest Ichibei Hyosube." Having long known Retsu Unohana's personality, Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni acted as if he hadn't heard Retsu Unohana's determination and said, "Captain Unohana only needs to find out the traitor's intentions. If possible, remember to protect yourself."
"I understand." Giving a slight bow, Retsu Unohana said, "Please forgive me for wanting to take my leave now. After going back to pack up and explain the 4th Division's affairs, I will immediately go to Hueco Mundo."
Retsu Unohana's impatient appearance made the captains look even more grave.
Even Soul Reaper captains like Shunsui Kyoraku, who knew a little about Retsu Unohana's background, only knew slightly that Retsu Unohana's strength was very powerful, but they would never know what kind of yandere personality this 4th Division captain, who specialized in healing, truly had.
Inside Hueco Mundo.
With Aizen's help, in a short period of time, ten Espada Arrancar had been gathered in Las Noches.
Of course, the so-called Espada were not simply ten Arrancar, but the ten strongest among the Arrancar.
In addition, these ten Arrancar also needed to master different types of power.
Among the Espada, Luo Fu was most concerned about Barragan.
After all, his ability to age was almost at the level of a concept, and even Barragan himself in his skeleton form could not withstand the aging power of the Skull Ground.
It could be said that if Barragan hadn't been careless during the battle, allowing his opponent to send the power of the Skull Granary into his body, he would have been one of the most powerful Espada.
Even Aizen couldn't defeat Barragan head-on. He relied more on his Zanpakuto's Kyoka Suigetsu ability, using hypnosis to disrupt Barragan's five senses, making it impossible for him to determine Aizen's location.
This concept-level, almost unstoppable aging power even made Luo Fu envious.
During this time, besides researching how to accelerate the localization of his Sharingan ability, Luo Fu also relied on his immense spiritual pressure to learn the abilities of Barragan and others.
However, what no one knew was that Luo Fu mastered Aizen's Zanpakuto ability, Kyoka Suigetsu, the fastest.
Yes.
Whether it was because of the ability gained through Sharingan, or because of the effect of Luo Fu's Zanpakuto after his Bankai,
his power began to approach its essence even more.
In comparison, Aizen's Kyoka Suigetsu actually had many similarities to the genjutsu in the ninja world.
More importantly, Luo Fu possessed the ultimate genjutsu, Izanagi, which could break the boundaries between reality and dreams.
And when he began to understand the ability to control the five senses, Luo Fu had already faintly begun to touch the realm of truly inverting dreams.
Of course, Luo Fu wasn't like that guy from Marvel, who obtained the Reality Stone in advance and mastered Chaos Magic.
Even with Izanagi's ultimate genjutsu, plus referring to Aizen's Zanpakuto, he couldn't have reached this point so quickly.
But even so, with Luo Fu's methods, playing around with Barragan was not a problem.
Just as Luo Fu was gradually grasping the essence of the Skull Granary's power through sparring with Barragan,
an unexpected message, through Aizen, reached Luo Fu's ears.
During this time in Hueco Mundo, besides Orihime Inoue, Luo Fu had the most contact with Aizen.
As for Orihime Inoue and Tatsuki Arisawa, these two girls had already been sent to the human world by Luo Fu.
After all, they were still students.
Moreover, Luo Fu also wanted to see if he could use Orihime Inoue and Tatsuki Arisawa to play a game of 'fishing'.
Of course, whether the Wandenreich and Soul Society would take the bait was irrelevant in Luo Fu's eyes.
Although he had only experienced two Sharingan transfers, Luo Fu knew that he now had enough foundation to dominate this world.
If not, Ichibei Hyosube, the captain of the Zero Squad, wouldn't have personally left the Soul King Palace.
Don't think that going back and forth to the Soul King Palace is a simple matter.
It's unknown whether it's because of the Soul King's special state, but Soul Society had made many preparations regarding the Soul King's issue.
Entering and exiting the Soul King Palace was an extremely difficult task.
The appearance of Ichibei Hyosube alone was already quite rare.
Ichibei Hyosube's appearance could only prove one thing: Luo Fu's existence had truly begun to threaten the Soul King's safety.
Although the Soul King had been turned into a 'human-pillar', it was undeniable that whether in Hueco Mundo, Soul Society, or the human world, the Soul King was an indispensable existence, the pillar of the three realms.
Anyone who threatened the Soul King's existence was someone the Zero Squad had to eliminate.
Others didn't know, but Luo Fu knew that the current Soul King seemed to have reached a state of exhaustion. Otherwise, Yhwach, who was qualified to replace the Soul King, wouldn't have been born.
And Luo Fu's appearance gave the Soul King Palace a second choice.
Compared to Yhwach, who was suppressed by Soul Society in the beginning, and even almost lost his life, spending thousands of years to recover, the Zero Squad undoubtedly hoped that Luo Fu could become the new Soul King even more.
Moreover, they hoped that Luo Fu could actively become the Soul King.
It's just that Luo Fu relied entirely on himself, sharing so many of his abilities from the myriad realms. No matter what, he couldn't choose to become a Soul King, a puppet-like existence placed on the spirit platform.
Orihime Inoue and Tatsuki Arisawa were the tools Luo Fu used to test Ichibei Hyosube and others' attitudes.
Inside the room in the Soul King Palace where no one was allowed to enter except Aizen and Orihime Inoue.
Luo Fu looked at Aizen with interest and said, "Captain Retsu Unohana actually took the initiative to visit me?"
In Luo Fu's eyes, even if Soul Society wanted to send someone over now, it shouldn't be Retsu Unohana.
After all, those of the new generation didn't understand that back when the Seireitei was first established, Retsu Unohana was known as an unprecedentedly great evildoer before she joined the Gotei 13.
Putting aside everything else, just the fact that she was fond of fighting and killing meant that once Retsu Unohana came over, if things went wrong, the two sides would end up fighting.
In theory, before the Seireitei had dealt with the Wandenreich's problem, they shouldn't have attacked Luo Fu, an enemy whose spiritual pressure was terrifying enough to shake the three realms.
Putting aside everything else, once the Seireitei attacked Luo Fu, if those unresolved Wandenreich came out to target the Seireitei, the result would inevitably be being attacked from both sides.
The truly correct approach should be to solve the threat of the Wandenreich first.
Even if this threat didn't have to be in the form of war, even temporarily appeasing the Wandenreich could allow the Seireitei to free up their hands to target Luo Fu.
Of course, the best approach was actually to join forces with the Wandenreich.
It's just that back then, Yhwach was personally led by Captain-Commander Genryusai Shigekuni Yamamoto, who annihilated almost all of the Quincy. Even Yhwach himself was severely injured and only barely recovered after a thousand years.
This deep hatred, coupled with the opposition between each other in terms of positions, ideas, and other aspects.
For the Seireitei, the approach of 'internal stability before external resistance' was really not that simple.
But even at its worst, they shouldn't have let Retsu Unohana come.
Just looking at the situation when Luo Fu defected and fought with Retsu Unohana, it should be enough to understand that there wasn't much affection between him and Captain Unohana.
Under this circumstance, letting Retsu Unohana come, even Luo Fu couldn't figure out what the Seireitei was thinking.
Could it be that they really thought that relying on the power of the Zero Squad and the Gotei 13 would be enough to contend with Luo Fu?
"Lord Luo Fu." Seeing Luo Fu frowning and pondering, Aizen said, "Should we refuse Captain Retsu Unohana's request to see you?"
Snapping back to reality, Luo Fu shook his head and said, "No need, let Unohana wait for me in the grand hall of Hueco Mundo! I'm also a little curious now what old man Yamamoto is thinking."
Seeing Aizen leave to carry out his orders, Luo Fu glanced at Aizen meaningfully before quickly arriving at the grand hall of Hueco Mundo.
As soon as he entered the grand hall, Luo Fu saw at a glance that, like a Yamato Nadeshiko, with a gentle temperament, from the outside, anyone would probably not have imagined that the woman in front of him was actually the unprecedentedly great evildoer of Soul Society a thousand years ago.
Noticing Luo Fu's appearance, Retsu Unohana looked in Luo Fu's direction with a few traces of fanaticism in her eyes.
"Seat Officer Luo Fu, long time no see. Perhaps I should now call you the King of Hueco Mundo?"
"Captain Unohana is joking, it's just a temporary shelter." Luo Fu had no interest in discussing the issue of his identity with Retsu Unohana.
After all, he now wanted to know what Retsu Unohana, or the Seireitei that sent her to visit him, was up to.
Arriving in the grand hall, after sitting down on the high throne, Luo Fu said, "Captain Unohana, Captain-Commander Yamamoto sent you here, could it be that he wants to negotiate with me?"
Retsu Unohana smiled and shook her head, saying, "The Seireitei will not negotiate with traitors."
"A traitor?" Luo Fu smiled indifferently. He was very clear about Soul Society's positioning of him.
Although he had indeed betrayed Soul Society, in this world, strength was the foundation of everything.
Unless the Seireitei had sufficient confidence to defeat him, otherwise, at most, they would just take advantage of him verbally.
"Luo Fu." Retsu Unohana changed the subject, her tone suddenly becoming excited, and said, "Do you know? I've kept all the scars you left on me."
At this moment, Retsu Unohana acted like a yandere.
But Luo Fu knew that Retsu Unohana was just looking forward to an existence that could defeat him in a head-on fight.
Of course, this battle wasn't relying on the Zanpakuto's abilities, but on a true, beast-like brawl, a duel of swordsmanship.
Don't forget that Retsu Unohana also had another name, Yachiru Unohana, a swordsman who claimed to have mastered eight thousand styles of swordsmanship.
In the previous fight, Luo Fu displayed swordsmanship that made Retsu Unohana's eyes light up. Of course, more importantly, Luo Fu relied on this swordsmanship to truly leave Retsu Unohana with more scars than Kenpachi Zaraki had back then.
Before Luo Fu, Retsu Unohana had always used a long braided hairstyle to cover the scar on her chest that had almost been pierced through.
That scar was left by Kenpachi Zaraki. Before Luo Fu, Retsu Unohana had always hoped that one day, Kenpachi Zaraki would truly grow, to the point where he could defeat or even kill her.
But Luo Fu showed Retsu Unohana another possibility.
Although the differences between Luo Fu and Kenpachi Zaraki are vast, in Retsu Unohana's eyes, they have each embarked on two different extremes.
Kenpachi Zaraki is like a true beast, possessing amazing combat intuition in battle. The scar on Retsu Unohana's chest was also left by Kenpachi Zaraki with his astonishing combat intuition.
Luo Fu is different. He is like a madman absorbing combat wisdom, although it is unknown how he obtained this combat wisdom.
But Retsu Unohana had an intuition that if Luo Fu could completely digest and absorb those inexplicably sourced combat experiences, then in an instant, he could even reach or surpass his own attainments in swordsmanship.
This time, Retsu Unohana took the initiative to come and see Luo Fu, not to complete the Seireitei's mission.
Her purpose was very simple: to fight Luo Fu.
If she could kill Luo Fu in battle, it would be a compensation for not realizing that there was such an ambitious and amazingly strong rebel like Luo Fu in the Fourth Division.
And if Retsu Unohana died at the hands of Luo Fu, then it would be a worthy death.
As the unprecedented great villain of the Soul Society, Retsu Unohana did not care about the lives of others, and she did not even care about her own life. What she cared about was battle, and peering into higher swordsmanship attainments above her own 'Eight Thousand Flows'.
Luo Fu looked at Retsu Unohana with a strange expression.
Although he did understand Retsu Unohana's meaning, what Retsu Unohana was saying now was a bit suggestive.
Luo Fu's strange expression did not attract Retsu Unohana's attention at all.
After all, for Retsu Unohana, the most important thing about Luo Fu was whether she could once again experience the kind of swordsmanship that was completely different from everything she had seen and experienced before.
Don't think that the swordsmanship of the Bleach world is the same as human swordsmanship.
On the contrary, in a world with extraordinary power, the so-called swordsmanship is not as simple as it seems on the surface, but a deeper application of extraordinary energy.
And Luo Fu's swordsmanship just happened to be a product of the Breathing Techniques from the Demon Slayer world.
Of course, completely different from the orthodox Breathing Techniques, Luo Fu's swordsmanship also incorporates the chakra of the ninja world and the innate Qi of the Inhumans.
It has already become a profound inheritance that leads directly to the Great Dao.
That is why, after witnessing Luo Fu's swordsmanship, Retsu Unohana seemed to have transferred her affections, abandoning her obsession with Kenpachi Zaraki and replacing it with a more persistent, even yandere-like attitude, to pursue Luo Fu.
Because Luo Fu's swordsmanship made Retsu Unohana truly feel the greatness and vastness of another system.
It must be admitted that after passing the initial stage, for Luo Fu of the current myriad worlds, sharing his physique, bloodline, aptitude, and other aspects from other worlds has become an icing on the cake.
Instead, the wisdom of each world is the key for Luo Fu of many worlds to break out of their own systems.
And the first to break out of this path was undoubtedly the demon Luo Fu of the Demon Slayer world, but this is also because the power ceiling of the Demon Slayer world itself is not high.
For other Luo Fu, breaking out of their own systems is not so simple. Even as the members of the shared space become more and more numerous, the Luo Fu of the myriad worlds will become more and more similar.
This trend is irreversible and is a realm like the Great Luo of mythology.
Although their experiences, memories, emotions, and so on are different, each is a true Luo Fu.
The concept of Luo Fu encompasses and covers himself in the myriad worlds, eventually reaching the mythological realm of eternal proof.
Just as all roads lead to Rome, Rome is the realm of the Great Luo, and the Luo Fu of the myriad worlds are just choosing different roads that are most suitable for themselves.
This attraction of wisdom made Retsu Unohana completely fascinated by Luo Fu after experiencing a battle with him.
Seeing Retsu Unohana's expression becoming more and more strange, even giving people a feeling of fanatical yandere.
Luo Fu couldn't help but shiver.
"Captain Unohana, are you here to fight me?"
"Compared to my mission this time, I am more interested in fighting you," Retsu Unohana said, her tone becoming more and more eager.
After experiencing this sharing, Luo Fu's essence has already reached a level comparable to the Soul King.
The mere suppression of spiritual pressure alone could instantly crush Retsu Unohana to death.
It's just that Luo Fu knows that what Retsu Unohana really cares about is not the strength of his power, but the wisdom of that battle, which is a unique system born after countless worlds of Luo Fu absorbed the inheritance of different worlds.
Retsu Unohana is so fanatical about battle, so can Luo Fu use this to make Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni lose both his wife and his army?
Does he have a chance to use Retsu Unohana's weakness to bring this ancient member of the Gotei 13, second only to Captain Commander Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni, under his command?
The more Luo Fu thought about it, the more likely it seemed, and his eyes became brighter and brighter.
Staring at Retsu Unohana, Luo Fu said, "Captain Unohana, I believe you should be able to perceive that the current Seireitei is not qualified to be my enemy at all."
Retsu Unohana is quite an intelligent existence. After all, fools, unless they are monsters like Kenpachi Zaraki with inhuman fighting talent, would not be able to live from the chaotic Soul Society when the Seireitei had not yet established order without enough wisdom.
Especially since Retsu Unohana can also be called the unprecedented great villain in the Soul Society, it is impossible to have a bad brain.
It's just that Retsu Unohana has always been more concerned about power itself, focusing her energy on this point, mastering eight thousand sword styles and still seeking more profound inheritance.
As a result, Retsu Unohana gave people the illusion that she was not very present in the Soul Society.
Except for people like Shunsui Kyoraku, Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni's disciples, who can vaguely understand a little about Retsu Unohana's extraordinary nature through the old man Yamamoto, others at most only regard Retsu Unohana as an ordinary captain.
As a smart person, Retsu Unohana vaguely guessed some of Luo Fu's thoughts the moment he opened his mouth.
Looking at Luo Fu with a smile, Retsu Unohana said, "Back then, Captain Commander Yamamoto also said the same thing to me. If you can defeat me with swordsmanship that I don't understand, then I can submit to you."
Yes.
Don't look at Retsu Unohana, who has been a Soul Reaper in the Seireitei for thousands of years, and doesn't even know how long she has been in the position of captain of the Fourth Division.
But in fact, Retsu Unohana has little loyalty to the Seireitei at all.
Back then, when she was carefree in the Soul Society and even made a name for herself as a great villain, Retsu Unohana was also defeated and recruited by Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni in the same way.
Now Luo Fu's words made Retsu Unohana feel a sense of familiarity.
Hearing this, Luo Fu's eyes flashed, and he said, "Okay, then please follow me, Captain Unohana."
In terms of pure swordsmanship, Luo Fu may not necessarily be Retsu Unohana's opponent. After all, the Luo Fu of the myriad worlds now do not have many who truly focus on swordsmanship.
But if the Star Breathing Technique is paired with gravity, it can produce an extremely mysterious chemical reaction.
Even if it is transformed into the swordsmanship of the Bleach world, Luo Fu still believes that he can completely defeat Retsu Unohana unexpectedly, and bring this Fourth Division captain, second only to Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni, under his command.
In the vast and desolate Hueco Mundo.
While Luo Fu and Retsu Unohana unfolded a battle that was enough to make Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni vomit blood, and even greatly injure the Soul Society's vitality.
In the Soul Society.
Originally, Gin Ichimaru, who was in a state of dead silence and did not say a word, finally broke his silence under the strategy of attacking his heart.
When he obtained a promise from the Seireitei that they would help him regain part of Matsumoto Rangiku's soul.
Even knowing that this possibility was pitifully low, after years of planning completely failed, Gin Ichimaru could only place his hopes on the Seireitei.