Bleach: Reborn — Chapter 297 - The War Ends

"Uwaah—!"

Fluorescent purple blood sprayed from Aizen's mouth. His black, bewitching body began to crack.

A pale-gold Cero of Annihilation, wreathed in deep blue and phantom silver, erupted from his chest, as if it meant to pierce the heavens themselves.

The Hōgyoku was blasted free. A massive hole gaped through Aizen's torso. When the Cero faded, the orb returned, embedding itself once more at the center of his chest, but the power that had been restoring him had gone utterly silent. His Hollow-beast regeneration struggled to close the wound, yet it could not fully erase the lingering force of the Cero of Annihilation.

Crack. Crack-crack!

Fluorescent purple fissures spread across Aizen's body. He collapsed to his knees, crumbling. That black, savage face and white form fractured like fired clay, splintering, collapsing, until both dissolved into dark-violet Reiatsu and vanished into the air. In that dissolution, Aizen reverted to the face he had worn before.

"Impossible! How?! How could a mere Hollow beast wield such power!"

"Huff... huff..." Wayne exhaled slowly. "Why is it impossible?"

The Cero of Annihilation had nearly drained every drop of his Reiatsu. Maintaining his Tercera Etapa was already an ordeal.

"Aizen. You placed too much faith in the Hōgyoku. Too obsessed with climbing to the next so-called level. You neglected the power that should have been your own." He steadied his breathing. "You have no idea how much I prepared for this. From the moment I was a low-tier Hollow, I was working toward who I am today. If you hadn't cut me down back then, I might have reached the peak of Hollow beasts long ago. But I got a second chance. And that is why I stand here now."

"You... bastard!"

Under the clash of the Hōgyoku's repair and the Cero's lingering force, Aizen's body tore itself apart and stitched itself back together in a ceaseless cycle of agony. "Hmph. The Hōgyoku's power is infinite. As long as I, "

Shunk!

A pale pink spike punched through his chest. Then a second. A third.

"What is this?! Kidō?" The sudden light cones sent fresh waves of pain ripping through him.

"Huff..." Wayne let out a long breath. "It finally activated."

"What? What do you mean!"

"The seal." Wayne released his Tercera Etapa, reverting to his Arrancar form, and dropped to the ground. The moment those light cones appeared, he knew this fight was over. "The seal. Kisuke Urahara planted a seal on you."

"As expected of Wayne-san."

At some point, Urahara had roused from unconsciousness. Seeing the battle finished and the seal triggered, he rose and shuffled over, unsteady but upright. "That's right, that Kidō was one I slipped into Aizen's body under the cover of another spell, right when he was at his most unguarded, just before his transformation completed. But for such a subtle move to be noticed by Wayne-san... truly impressive."

"Trigger it. Don't waste time." Wayne shot him a sidelong glare, then raised his hand toward Aizen's chest and made a grasping motion.

"Ughh—!"

Aizen roared in agony. The Hōgyoku was ripped from his chest by a spatial barrier and locked inside multiple layers of spatial confinement. This time the orb did not fly back to him. In that moment, Aizen's hold over it was severed completely.

Urahara formed hand seals, accelerating the process. Nine pink light cones arranged in a cross pierced Aizen's nine most critical Reiatsu points, blocking all spiritual flow within him. Without the Hōgyoku sustaining him, the seal took hold with visible speed.

"Hahahahaha! Ridiculous. Utterly ridiculous!" Aizen laughed like a man possessed, as if this outcome could never break him. "Ridiculous! Kisuke Urahara! I despise you! With a mind like yours, why won't you use it properly?! Why submit to that thing?!"

"That thing? The Soul King?" Urahara considered the words. "I see. You can perceive it too, the Soul King's existence. Without him, Soul Society would collapse. The Soul King is the lynchpin. Remove the lynchpin and everything falls apart. That is the nature of this world."

"The logic of the defeated!"

Aizen's face twisted. Whether from the seal's torment or his contempt for Urahara, as the pink light cones solidified into white, tangible restraints, he finally bared the truest feeling in his heart. "The victor should not fixate on what the world is, but on what the world ought to become!"

"That's the work of a creator god," Wayne cut in. "But most of those gods fall eventually, too."

"Ace Wayne! Why do you aid these fools?! You possess superior talent and power! You've even glimpsed the future! Why would you, "

"No." Wayne pointed a finger at him. "I simply have a personal grudge against you. That's all. What the world becomes doesn't matter to me. But a world without you, that matters a great deal."

"I don't understand! You could go so much further! You could break free from the spir, "

Urahara accelerated the seal, cutting off Aizen's final words before they could leave his mouth.

"Oh my~ what an epoch-making battle." Urahara exhaled, his sudden lightness almost too casual, as if covering something over. "You've worked hard, Wayne-san."

"Shared interests, nothing more." Wayne paid no mind to whatever wariness or concealment lurked in Urahara's tone. "Now, spoils. Aizen is yours. Kill him, lock him up, whatever you want. But the Hōgyoku comes with me. I'll return it once I've had my fun."

"No problem~" Urahara flicked open his folding fan, hiding his expression behind it. "But... the people of Soul Society, may I trouble you to return them?"

Swoosh.

Wayne caught the Hōgyoku as spatial force delivered it to his palm. With his other hand, he tore open a deep-blue rift. Moments later, Retsu Unohana stepped through.

"Tsuki-chan?" She took in the sight, Wayne slumped on the ground, Urahara standing nearby, and understood. The battle with Aizen was over.

"Captain." Wayne grinned, teeth showing. "I handled it."

"Mm." Retsu Unohana nodded slowly, her eyes warm with pride. "You've worked hard, Tsuki-chan."

---

One week later.

"Once again, our thanks — Ace Wayne, Ichigo Kurosaki."

The First Division assembly hall in the Seireitei was filled with captain-class figures. Shinji Hirako and the other Visored captains stood among them. Ichigo and his father Isshin were present as well. Aizen had been sealed in Muken, the eighth and lowest prison beneath the Seireitei. Old Man Yamamoto and the other Soul Reapers had been released from Wayne's spatial rift. Under the healing care of the Fourth Division, led by Retsu Unohana, every captain and lieutenant had survived, though none had walked away unscathed.

Fortunately, the Twelfth Division's Flesh Restorative proved remarkably effective for severed limbs and grievous wounds, sparing the captains from lasting scars or amputation.

With Aizen sealed, the old man had brought everyone back to the Seireitei to recover. After a week of reorganization, the barriers between the World of the Living and Soul Society were finally restored to their proper configuration.

The World of the Living was peaceful, as if that stolen week had never happened. The Seireitei's technology saw to that.

"It's nothing, old man. Ichigo and I are both half-Soul Reapers, after all. Helping out is no trouble." Wayne waved it off.

"Ah, Captain-Commander, we'll be taking our leave now." Isshin Kurosaki was the first to excuse himself. "But before that, I'd like to visit the Shiba family home."

"Mm." Genryusai Yamamoto's low grunt was assent enough. Isshin left with Ichigo in tow.

"Ace Wayne." Old Man Yamamoto's eyes opened a fraction, fixing a stern gaze on the Arrancar Hollow beast he himself had once cultivated.

"Alright, alright. I understand." Wayne cut off the lecture before it could begin. He knew exactly what Genryusai Yamamoto meant. "Maintaining the balance of the Three Worlds, I'm not opposed. But even I can't fully restrain Hueco Mundo. There are still plenty of powerful Hollow beasts out there. I can guarantee that the ones I know personally — Vasto Lorde-level and above — won't move against Soul Society or the World of the Living. My Adjuchas-class subordinates won't set foot in the living world without cause either. But below that? I can't promise to leash them all. My space holds only my own forces. And Hueco Mundo is vast."

"Acceptable." The old man inclined his head. "Once, I had hoped you would become a Soul Reaper, a lynchpin to suppress Hueco Mundo. I never imagined you were a Hollow all along. Recalling those words now... I find them rather ridiculous."

"Different identities, same person. I'm still me." Wayne shook his head. "I have my own goals. And I lived happily as a Soul Reaper. But I can't keep the Tenth Division captain's seat, leave it to Shiro-chan. As for this so-called lynchpin, I'll do what I can to maintain order in Hueco Mundo and reduce unnecessary conflict. Life isn't eternal, and war is inevitable. But if our mutual influence can curb large-scale warfare, that benefits all three worlds."

"Mm." The old man nodded. "In that case, do as you see fit."

"Ah, I'll head home for a meal first. Won't stay long." Wayne turned to leave, grabbing Shiro-chan by the arm on his way out. Shiro-chan had no time to say a word to the Captain-Commander before he was teleported away.

"Now then... the captains' meeting will begin." With all outsiders gone, the old man commenced the proceedings. "We will discuss the punishment for the traitor Sōsuke Aizen, as well as matters concerning the former Third Division captain, Gin Ichimaru."

The battle had left everyone battered. Reorganization was urgent. But Shinji Hirako's return with his people eased the pressure of having lost three captains.

---

Wayne brought Shiro-chan home. Momo, off duty, had already prepared a full table of dishes with Granny. They were waiting.

Over the past week, Wayne had sent Nel and Timd back to Las Noches to begin reorganizing, while he stayed at Granny's house, a warm, quiet week with Granny, Momo, and Shiro-chan. But today, he had to leave. He was a Hollow beast at his core, and thousands of comrades awaited his return.

"Big Brother... are you leaving?"

After dinner, Momo had felt the shift in the air. This past week had been the most peaceful she had ever known. The Aizen nightmare was over. Big Brother had come back safe. His identity had changed, but he was still the same, her gentle, impossibly strong big brother.

"Yeah." Wayne didn't deny it. He leaned back in his seat, eating watermelon with one hand and propping himself up with the other, utterly at ease. "A few days to rest, then I need to go consolidate Hueco Mundo. More than half of it is still unconquered. True equilibrium takes work."

"When will you come back?" Shiro-chan set down his teacup.

"Probably a while. But I can always drop in for a meal when I'm free, my ability lets me move between Soul Society and Hueco Mundo freely. It's just..." He shrugged. "Every time I arrive, it's with Vasto Lorde-level Reiatsu. Probably causes a fair bit of chaos in Soul Society."

His expression said he couldn't care less. Soul Society in chaos, what was that to a Vasto Lorde-class Menos?

"Oh." Shiro-chan's reply was soft. He wasn't happy. The battle had barely ended, and now they were parting again. That wasn't good news.

"Train hard. Don't stop." Wayne reached over and ruffled Shiro-chan's hair, smearing watermelon juice across his head. "Next time we meet, who knows? Might be another fight waiting."

"Eh?" Shiro-chan ducked away in disgust, then frowned. "We still have enemies? You mean Hollows?"

"No. Just saying." Wayne shook his head. "For your path forward, go train in Zanjutsu. Seek out Captain Unohana. Tell her I sent you. After that, study Kidō with Momo. Learn to fuse blade and spell."

"Didn't you tell me before to develop Bankai?" Shiro-chan's head was full of question marks and watermelon juice. "Why suddenly..."

"Don't ask. Just do it."

Wayne raised his hand. A flash of deep blue light, and several white jade discs etched with greatsword patterns landed in his palm.

"Take these. If you ever face a crisis, crush one. I'll sense it." He pressed his faction's emblem into Shiro-chan's hand, then stood and addressed everyone. "Take care of Granny. If danger comes, you can reach me through this."

As he spoke, he released a Timd clone.

"Big Brother, what kind of crisis, "

"I'm off."

Wayne cut him off. A flash of deep blue, and he was gone.

➤ Next: China's Return