Starting with Naruto, I'll become stronger through my own efforts.

Chapter 425 The Rule-Maker of the Game—Kyokotsu Katen

"Flowers flutter in disarray, the flower goddess weeps, the heavenly winds rage, the heavenly demon sneers, the flower-heavenly madness reigns!"

Kyoraku Shunsui released his Zanpakuto before the battle even began, after all, his opponent was the mad captain Kenpachi Zaraki.

After its Shikai form, Katen Kyokotsu consists of two Zanpakuto, one long and one short. These are curved swords with black blades and decorative ornaments on the hilts, and their heavy blades appear to be very suitable for slashing.

Faced with Kenpachi Zaraki's challenge, Shunsui Kyoraku had no choice but to release his spiritual pressure, and said with a helpless wry smile, "Captain Zaraki, please go easy on me when you cut me later."

Kenpachi Zaraki laughed heartily: "Such spiritual pressure, truly worthy of you, Captain Kyoraku!"

"Don't worry, I'll cut you with all my might, and it will only take one cut before you don't feel any pain."

Kyoraku Shunsui sighed, "This is a real headache. I clearly only wanted to observe from the sidelines."

The above conversation was a little trick used by the two captains to relax. The moment their eyes met, they both saw a strong fighting spirit in each other's eyes.

Yes, everyone here uses knives to slash people, slash ghosts, and slash death gods. They've killed countless enemies along the way, their hands stained with blood, before finally reaching their current position as captain.

Including the sickly Jushiro Ukitake, once you peel away the outer skin, you'll find monsters who crave blood and slaughter.

Of course, the captain of the 10th Division, Toshiro Hitsugaya, is an exception. He is too young, and although he is an absolute genius, he really got the captain position by luck.

Toshiro is considerably younger than Shaza. When he graduated from the Shinigami Academy and joined the Gotei 13, Shaza had already been the fourth seat for almost 20 years.

But Toshiro grew up so quickly that when Isshin, the captain of the 10th Division, had an accident, he was promoted to the youngest captain.

Being young means being naive, unable to hide one's abilities and emotions, and easily taken advantage of.

However, although the other captains concealed themselves in various ways, their true nature never changed. When the time was right, their bloodthirsty, murderous, and warlike nature would be revealed.

For example, right now.

Kenpachi Zaraki was covered in blood after being slashed by Ichigo Kurosaki. Stimulated by the blood and pain, he could no longer suppress his wild and belligerent nature.

Spurred on by Kenpachi Zaraki's murderous intent, Shunsui Kyoraku's fighting spirit tore away his slippery and decadent facade, revealing his reckless and willful true nature.

After seeing the desire to fight in each other's eyes, the two battle maniacs blurred instantly and then disappeared from the spot at the same time.

The two captains clashed more than a hundred meters away. Their three Zanpakuto were locked together, sparks flying from the point of contact, and the powerful spiritual pressure darkened the sky and earth.

This is not a false description, nor is it a visual contrast caused by strong light. Rather, it is the result of spiritual particle degeneration caused by spiritual pressure, leading to environmental disorder in the Soul Court.

Immediately afterwards, a white light burst forth between the two captains, followed by a violent explosion.

The explosion stirred up a fierce wind, and the shockwave shook the air, creating ripples that blurred vision. The onlookers, feeling like death itself, lost their footing and retreated.

Well, Xia Zuo and Unohana Retsu, who had just arrived, exchanged a glance, activated [Shunpo], and retreated with the Shinigami, moving behind them.

Unohana Retsu, who had been pulled away to avoid the situation, spoke directly into Natsu's mind through spiritual contact:

Why are you pulling me so far back, Xia Zuo?

Xia Zuo didn't mince words either, and answered in return using his spiritual power:

This is the safest way, Sister Hua.

[Safe? Is there anyone here who could threaten you?]

"Sister, with such a commotion, even if the two captains can resist unleashing their Bankai Zanpakuto, can they control their spiritual pressure to keep it from exceeding the lower limit of Bankai?"

"Little brother, even if they're just experiencing a spiritual pressure breakthrough, even if it's a real Bankai Zanpakuto, it wouldn't be a problem for you, right?"

[Sister Hana, are you confused? The battle intensity has exceeded the lower limit of Bankai, how can our Captain-Commander Yamamoto sit still? With his fiery temper, the safest thing for him is to retreat behind the crowd.]

【Hey, Xia Zuo, you didn't deny that Bankai poses no threat to you, did you? Hehe.】

【Huh? Oh! Sigh~~】

[Hehe, I just realized today how fun Xia Zuo is!]

Retsu Unohana smiled gently, her smile serene, her curved eyes full of tenderness.

Caught off guard, Xia Zuo was run over in the face by the wheel. He could only shake his head helplessly, purse his lips at Captain Egg Flower, and dare not retaliate.

Sure enough, the older sister is always difficult to deal with; she drives without any hesitation.

Xia Zuo suspected that if he dared to say "Xia Zuo's younger brother is also very fun", the older sister Unohana might actually dare to play with him.

Hey, she's the captain of the Fourth Division, so she's not afraid of messing things up. Even the most serious injuries can be completely healed by her ultimate ability.

We can't afford to mess with them!

For the sake of your own life, stop thinking about flirtatious talk and just watch the show.

At this moment, the two captains at the center of the spiritual pressure storm remained motionless. After realizing that unleashing their most powerful spiritual pressure to attack the opponent was ineffective, they stopped trying this futile effort and instead raised their swords to slash at the opponent.

Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!

A series of clashing swords rang out, leaving countless afterimages in mid-air and sparks flying everywhere.

Kenpachi Zaraki and Shunsui Kyoraku were evenly matched, neither giving an inch, engaging in a head-on clash of attacks that tested their strength and speed.

However, Kyoraku Shunsui soon regretted it.

As everyone knows, Kenpachi Zaraki is a sword fanatic who often disregards his own safety in order to fight others.

But in the battlefield and battles where life and death are at stake, Kenpachi Zaraki served as the captain of the 11th Division for 50 years. Not only was he not killed, but he also did not lose any limbs. How could he have done that by risking his life?

The veteran captains of the Gotei 13 all knew that Kenpachi Zaraki's swordsmanship, though seemingly crazy and crude, was actually of a very high level.

There was no need, and it was really inappropriate to engage him in close-quarters swordsmanship.

But people always have a rebellious streak, and Kyoraku Shunsui still went ahead anyway. He had all sorts of reasons in mind, such as: I'm just testing the waters, just getting a feel for things, so I'll know what to expect later.

Then, unsurprisingly, he was bullied by Kenpachi Zaraki.

Despite Kyoraku Shunsui having two swords and having reached Shikai, while his opponent Kenpachi Zaraki only had one sword, and it was an asabu-uchi, he was still completely outmatched in swordsmanship.

After only 30 direct confrontations, Kyoraku Shunsui was unable to continue and had to switch from offense to defense.

No, it should be said that he was left only with the option of desperately parrying. His attacks were broken as soon as he made a move, his crossed swords were broken by force, and his attacks from both sides with both swords were not only unable to reverse the decline, but he was also brutally attacked head-on by Kenpachi Zaraki, who was willing to risk his life.

Kyoraku Shunsui just wanted to shout: We're fighting with swords, not risking our lives!

But Kenpachi Zaraki's swordsmanship was unreasonable, so Shunsui Kyoraku became more and more frustrated as the fight progressed.

As the serrated blade, accompanied by a gust of wind, guided the golden sword energy to strike the Katen Kyokotsu twin blades, Kyoraku Shunsui felt a numbness in his hands, and his wrists involuntarily bent.

He was naturally shocked and immediately activated [Instant Step], leaping backward a full hundred meters in an instant. However, when the golden sword light flashed, a long bloodstain was still left on her chest by the sword energy.

Blood flowed down the tattered shihaka armor, and the intense pain completely awakened Kyoraku Shunsui.

Not only was his mind completely clear, free from the hangover from yesterday's drinking, but he also recalled the previous generation Kenpachi—Oni Genjo Kenpachi—who had died tragically in a duel years ago.

Kyoraku Shunsui cursed himself for being foolish.

The way the captain of the 11th Division rose to power was unique. Although all the previous Kenpachis were sword fanatics, there has never been a record of them dying on the battlefield.

The 11th Division has a unique system of succession through a life-or-death duel. Every new captain must kill the current captain before inheriting the name Kenpachi.

Apart from the first Kenpachi who resigned due to his weariness of killing, all subsequent Kenpachis died in internal duels at the hands of the next generation of Kenpachi.

Logically speaking, Kenpachi, who is inherited in this way, is naturally a swordsman who becomes stronger with each generation.

Kenpachi Zaraki followed this strict and cruel succession method, defeating Kenpachi Oniwajo in the dueling arena and rising to become a powerful Shinigami captain.

Even though he doesn't know how to use Shikai, it doesn't stop him from being the strongest Kenpachi.

For a swordsman like Kenpachi Zaraki, engaging in close-quarters sword combat is tantamount to the most efficient form of suicide.

Since that's the case, then let's not compete with him in swordsmanship, let's use our real skills to fight him.

"Captain Zaraki, do you know?" Kyoraku Shunsui said with a smile, "The current rules of the game are that the person who stands the highest wins."

Having said that, he suddenly leaped high into the air, crossed his twin swords in front of his chest, and without even gathering his strength, he slashed at Kenpachi Zaraki with the [Shinki].

Faced with such a weak, leaping slash, Kenpachi Zaraki was completely baffled. He gripped his long sword with both hands, aimed at the two black curved blades, and suddenly swung his sword upwards from below.

Kenpachi's movements were fast, but he had also gathered his strength. Golden sword energy swirled around his blade, making it seem like he could cut Kyoraku Shunsui and his sword into six pieces.

The two figures clashed, blades flashing and blood flowing!

Kenpachi Zaraki looked at the wounds on his chest and shoulders, his face full of confusion as he stared at Shunsui Kyoraku, his eyes filled with questions.

Although Kyoraku Shunsui's attack was from a high position, his Zanpakuto didn't even have a trace of spiritual pressure, yet it was able to deflect his attack, which was full of spiritual pressure.

Moreover, its momentum continued to cleave through his spiritual pressure defenses, leaving deep, bone-revealing wounds.

The power of those two swords was immense.

Kenpachi Zaraki's spiritual pressure is incredibly violent. Not long ago, Ichigo Kurosaki, even if he used all his strength, would have his Zangetsu swords deflected by his spiritual pressure if his accumulated spiritual pressure wasn't strong enough.

Kyoraku Shunsui is certainly much stronger than Kurosaki Ichigo, but he didn't exert any force or unleash any spiritual pressure just now, so how did he manage to injure Zaraki Kenpachi?

Seeing Kenpachi's pleading look, Kyoraku Shunsui chuckled and began to explain the abilities of his Zanpakuto.

"As I just said, the rule of the game is that the person who stands the highest wins."

"When I unleash [Shinki], although I don't activate my spiritual pressure, my position, being higher than yours, amplifies the power of my strike, making it powerful enough to sweep away all obstacles, cleave through all defenses, and kill you in one blow!"

Kenpachi Zaraki possesses an astonishing talent for combat; he instantly grasped the strange rules of battle.

Kenpachi, seemingly lost in thought, said, "According to you, if I were in a higher position than you, the power of your slash wouldn't increase dramatically; instead, my upward thrust would become even stronger, enough to slice you into six pieces just now?"

Kyoraku Shunsui nodded and said, "Captain Zaraki is right. The rule of this game is—whoever is at the top wins!"

Currently, there are only two Zanpakuto that come in pairs after Shikai in Soul Society, and both pairs possess unreasonable, rule-based abilities.

The Twin Fish Li in Ukitake Jushiro's hands has an ability derived from the rules of sending and receiving letters; one hand absorbs energy, and the other releases it.

In battle, one can use the enemy's power to strike the enemy without taking damage, and by combining this with one's own power, one can defeat an enemy whose strength is several times greater than one's own.

It is truly an unparalleled divine weapon for defeating enemies of higher ranks.

The ability of the Katen Kyokotsu in Kyoraku Shunsui's hands is even more bizarre. It materializes the rules spoken by its master into reality. Anyone who steps into the range of Katen Kyokotsu's spiritual pressure will be forced to participate in the game and obey all the rules set by Katen Kyokotsu.

The power of Katen Kyokotsu originates from the Goki Game, and the outcome also corresponds to the game: the winner survives and the loser dies, even for Kyoraku Shunsui, who set the rules.

The rules are simple, brutal, and fair.

Kenpachi Zaraki suddenly realized and fully understood Shunsui Kyoraku's abilities.

However, an even greater question arose in his mind, and Kenpachi asked without hesitation, "Why did you tell me about your Zanpakuto's abilities right away?"

In the Naruto world, battles between ninjas are extremely brutal. If a chunin doesn't have enough information, he can kill a jonin, and even has the chance to kill a kage-level ninja.

The battle between the Grim Reapers didn't reach such a brutal level, and intelligence wasn't enough to determine life or death, but it was still a powerful factor that couldn't be ignored.

Like Kyoraku Shunsui, carelessly revealing all his abilities to his opponent is an utterly foolish act!

They're completely courting death!

Kyoraku Shunsui explained helplessly, "There's nothing we can do about it. Rules can only be established if both parties agree to them."

"For my game rules to become irresistible, I must tell my opponent all the rules; otherwise, the game cannot continue, and the rules are invalid."

"Honestly, this kind of ability is really devastating."

"My Zanpakuto is as naive as a child, treating its master like a servant. My bones are about to fall apart, and it only cares about whether it's happy or not."

"Sigh, you have no idea that Katen Kyokotsu is not only fun, but also exceptionally cruel. In pursuit of fairness in the rules, he relentlessly tries to kill me."

Kenpachi Zaraki didn't feel sorry for Shunsui Kyoraku at all.

On the contrary, he was extremely jealous of Kyoraku Shunsui. How could he not be satisfied with something that could communicate with his Zanpakuto?

Kenpachi Zaraki doesn't even know the name of his Zanpakuto!

He glared fiercely at his opponent: "Hmph, I'll kill you!"

Kyoraku Shunsui: "Huh?"