Bleach: Awakened — Chapter 34 - Two Wielders of Twin Blades (Part 2)

As the release words ended, the Zanpakuto in Shunsui Kyoraku's hand transformed from a normal blade into a large dao, though unlike Ichigo's longsword, Shunsui Kyoraku's released form was a wide, deeply curved saber.

"A dual-blade release, huh..."

With an unreadable tone, Ichigo glanced back. Ukitake's twin blades hadn't grown larger at all, instead, a fin-like protrusion had appeared along the spine of one blade, while a red silk ribbon connected the two hilts, five iron tags hanging from it. Their purpose was unclear.

"Aren't you going to release?" Shunsui Kyoraku asked. "Those two Zanpakuto of yours look very different from each other."

"Ah, yeah—the way I look right now is already my released state." Ichigo swung the twin blades idly. "This is just how it was when I awakened my Soul Reaper powers."

"A permanently-released type? That's rare."

"Well, dual blades are already rare enough. Something like that doesn't really faze me."

"Fair enough."

WHOOSH WHOOSH,

A series of whistling sounds came from behind. Whatever gentle and easygoing impression Ukitake gave off, it didn't carry into the fight.

"Hm?"

Something made Ichigo's brow furrow. The golden spiritual pressure along his short blade flickered. Instinct told him this attack was going to hit harder than the last.

CLANG!

Sparks scattered. Unlike before, the blades met and the two fighters stood locked against each other, and this time, it was Ichigo whose footing slid back.

"That was a lot heavier than the last one..." The force had been harder to read than he'd expected. Ichigo's eyes narrowed. "And this time the attack came from one blade, not two..."

"Takaoni!"

A shout rang out from above. Shunsui Kyoraku leaped into the air, both blades swinging, and a visible surge of wind pressure tore through the air, flying straight at Ichigo.

"More power too?"

The longsword came up to block. It caught the blow from above, but not cleanly, a strip of Ichigo's Shihakusho was sliced away.

Before Ichigo could even react, Shunsui Kyoraku came down from above, twin blades dropping from on high with even greater force than the wind-pressure slash before.

"Ngh!"

His body bent involuntarily. It was a massive, crushing blow, and Ichigo, forced to receive it with only one arm, felt the strain.

At that moment, Ukitake's pressure finally eased. Ichigo seized the opening, weight dropped into his waist, his whole body spinning. The twin blades swept wide with the rotation and drove both opponents back, while Ichigo stumbled back a few steps himself.

"Takaoni—the one who stands higher wins."

The voice was calm, unhurried. Shunsui Kyoraku's eyes were flat and still as stagnant water, and there was something in that gaze that sent a chill through the air.

"So attacks launched from above hit harder." Ichigo shook out his arm. "Wouldn't it have been better not to tell me?"

"It's a game, a game." Seeing Ichigo had already worked it out, Shunsui Kyoraku dropped all pretense of concealment. "As a game, the rules have to be stated clearly. I only said it after two consecutive attacks, so I've already bent them a little."

"I see... Is there only one game?"

"Hmm... sharp." A small laugh. "Since it's a game, you'll find out when we're playing."

"Speaking of which, this white-haired captain's ability is pretty dangerous too." Ichigo glanced toward Ukitake. "One blade absorbs my spiritual pressure, the other releases it back, on top of the natural force behind it. Strong combination."

"You figured that out already." Ukitake scratched the back of their head. "That really is sharp. Battle instinct, I'd say."

"Ha. My spiritual pressure is pretty easy to feel, I guess."

The words had barely landed before Ichigo attacked again. He went straight for Ukitake this time, longsword swinging. Ukitake's expression shifted and both blades rose to block, deflecting the strike.

"As I thought." His spiritual pressure hadn't been absorbed at all. Ichigo smiled. "It can only absorb released spiritual pressure, physical attacks don't work?"

Terrifying force surged down the longsword. Ukitake stumbled back several involuntary steps, unable to stop the retreat. Without the boost of absorbed spiritual pressure, Ukitake's own strength simply wasn't enough to hold ground against Ichigo.

"Irooni—white!"

Shunsui Kyoraku's voice came from behind. The cryptic words put Ichigo on alert. Rather than take the blow, he jumped clear.

"Whoa!"

Shunsui Kyoraku pulled back just in time, both blades stopping short in front of Ukitake. The opponent had moved too fast, even Shunsui Kyoraku had barely kept up.

"It's been too long since a fight at this level. Has my body gone dull?" A self-deprecating mutter. Shunsui Kyoraku stepped up beside Ukitake. "You can't be slacking off like this, Ukitake, the opponent is strong."

"I know!"

"You two are seriously something else." Ichigo shook his head in admiration. "Way stronger than Gin Ichimaru."

"Not the same, completely different types." Shunsui Kyoraku waved it off. "And the margin isn't that wide, either."

"Ha... if you say so."

This time Shunsui Kyoraku moved first. One foot hit the ground, and Shunpo carried the captain straight to Ichigo's front, twin blades slashing horizontally.

"White!"

The longsword came up to block. Steel met the two curved sabers, and Ichigo's brow pinched, the force behind the slash had grown again.

"Black!"

Playing along without quite understanding the meaning, Ichigo called out the color and swung the short blade in his left hand.

CLANG,

The short blade was stopped cold. Ukitake appeared at exactly the right moment and blocked the strike for Shunsui Kyoraku, both hands trembling around the twin blades. What had looked like a casual swing carried crushing, devastating force.

"Tch!"

Ichigo clicked his tongue. Inwardly, he marveled at how seamlessly the two worked together. For a moment he couldn't find an opening anywhere, and the lethality of information asymmetry hit him like a fist.

Takaoni was fine, the literal meaning was plain enough. But those colors? Ichigo still couldn't crack it, and neither opponent showed any intention of explaining. Which meant the answer was buried in the riddle itself.

Try again.

Ichigo went at Shunsui Kyoraku again. The curved saber swept around in response, and a fierce wind-pressure slash came howling at his face.

"Tch!"

Branch-like lines spread across Ichigo's skin, and the spiritual pressure around him surged. One foot drove hard into the ground. His speed jumped past what it had been before.

So fast!

Shunsui Kyoraku's internal alarm fired and both legs kicked off upward. The charging Ichigo brought both blades hammering down.

"Too slow!"

Ichigo's physical strength had leaped, the boost was enormous. One sidestep carried him above Shunsui Kyoraku, and the longsword plunged straight down.

CLANG,

What caught the blade in midair was a massive sword. Its body ran approximately three meters long, a fin-like protrusion running along the spine, the tip trailing a red silk ribbon from which five iron tags hung. This was Jushiro Ukitake's Zanpakuto.

"When did it get so big?!"

The giant sword shuddered twice in the air, then dropped away powerlessly. Ichigo's eyes tracked down the red silk ribbon to the other end, and Ukitake's other Zanpakuto had, at that exact moment, shrunk down to almost nothing.