Naruto: Sasuke Uchiha Returns from Soul Society

No longer distracted, in a few leaps, they arrived at the familiar prison door.

The door was ajar, and traces of his previous use of lightning to destroy it remained on it.

Sasuke didn't go in immediately. He stood quietly at the door, silently surveying the scene inside the cell.

Rukia Kuchiki was curled up on the cold stone bed, her back to the door, her thin shoulders trembling slightly, as if she had fallen into a deep sleep.

Everything was the same as when he last came.

However, Sasuke frowned.

Not right.

An extremely restrained spiritual pressure permeated the air.

Sasuke's gaze slowly moved, finally settling on the deepest shadow in the cell.

It was at this moment.

"Your perception is more acute than I imagined."

A cold, clear voice suddenly rang out from the shadows.

As the words fell, a figure wearing a captain's haori slowly emerged from the darkness and stopped beside Rukia's bed.

His handsome face was expressionless as he silently watched Sasuke from half a cell away at the door.

It was none other than the captain of the Sixth Division, Byakuya Kuchiki.

It finally appeared.

Sasuke slowly drew "Takemikazuchi" from its sheath.

Byakuya Kuchiki's gaze slowly moved from the sword in Sasuke's hand to his cold, handsome face, and finally landed on the other sword at his waist.

That completely black "Indra".

"I'm curious."

Byakuya spoke slowly, his voice devoid of any emotion, "In the battle against Zaraki, which of your swords forced him to unleash his Shikai?"

Sasuke did not answer.

He simply held the "Takemikazuchi" sword horizontally in front of his chest, his crimson Sharingan slowly rotating, and asked in return, "Are you the only captain?"

This question made Byakuya Kuchiki narrow his eyes slightly.

That brat...

Was he checking to see if there were any other ambushes here?

Or are you... underestimating me?

Byakuya showed no emotion, simply replying, "I am enough to deal with you alone."

Upon hearing this, Sasuke's lips curled into a mocking smile.

As agreed, he should immediately use the summoning technique to summon Yoruichi and have her escape with Rukia.

This is the safest and most efficient plan.

but......

Sasuke looked at the arrogant man before him, at his eyes that were as haughty as Itachi's.

A thought arose in his mind without warning.

Aizen said that my actions would not affect his plans in any way, which meant that Rukia was no longer in danger.

In this case...

"That's perfect."

Sasuke's voice was soft, "Before you die, there are some things I want to ask you."

"Ask me?" Byakuya frowned.

"About Rukia Kuchiki."

Sasuke's blade pointed towards the still-sleeping figure, "What exactly is she to you?"

"Is it a relative?"

Or perhaps...

Sasuke's eyes sharpened. "A 'tool' that can be discarded at any time to maintain the Seireitei and your ridiculous noble honor?"

These provocative questions instantly extinguished the tension in the cell.

Even Byakuya's calm eyes finally showed a slight ripple.

After a moment, he slowly spoke, his voice devoid of emotion.

"Rules are rules."

He didn't answer Sasuke's question directly, but muttered to himself, "As the head of the Kuchiki family and the captain of the Gotei 13, my duty is to uphold these rules."

"No matter who it is, even myself, once I violate this rule, I will be subject to the same judgment."

"Heh...just like Itachi, they're the same kind of people." Sasuke sneered inwardly.

Without further ado, Takemikazuchi drew a cold arc, his blade already aimed directly at Byakuya Kuchiki's throat!

Despite the sudden attack, Byakuya Kuchiki remained calm, his figure flickering slightly as he appeared behind Sasuke.

Without exchanging any further words, the two men became two blurry afterimages in the cramped cell, the sound of clashing blades ringing out in rapid succession.

"boom!"

With a loud bang, the walls of the Confession Palace tower were smashed open from the inside by a brute force.

Two figures, one after the other, leaped out of the broken hole and finally landed on the top platform of the highest tower in the Palace of Repentance.

A fierce wind blew, causing the two men's wide sleeves to billow.

"Right here, you will pay for your rudeness." Byakuya Kuchiki slowly turned around and placed his hand on the sword at his waist.

However, he was answered with a powerful and rhythmic chant.

"You who reign supreme! You mask of flesh and blood, you myriad things, you who soar with wings, you who bear the name of man!"

Sasuke took the lead in creating distance, standing on the edge of the tower, chanting a high-level Kido incantation.

"Twin lotuses are inscribed on the Azure Fire Wall, awaiting the Abyss of Great Fire in the distance..."

Byakuya Kuchiki's eyes narrowed slightly; he certainly recognized the technique.

As the head of the four noble families, the Kuchiki family's research on the way of the dead far surpasses that of ordinary Shinigami.

He also raised his hand, and a pure spiritual pressure gathered in his palm.

"Hado #73, Twin Lotus Azure Flame Fall!"

Two even larger azure fireballs arrived first, crashing head-on into Sasuke's attack.

However, just as the fireballs were about to collide, Byakuya Kuchiki's pupils suddenly narrowed.

Suddenly, a wisp of black flame appeared at the edge of Sasuke's fireball.

The moment that wisp of black flame came into contact with his Azure Fire Fall, it began to erode him like a ravenous beast!

The azure flames were completely assimilated by the ominous blackness in just a few breaths, transforming into a pillar of fire made of black flames that roared toward him with undiminished force!

"what?!"

Even Byakuya Kuchiki couldn't hide his astonishment when he saw this illogical scene.

But being a seasoned captain, his astonishment lasted only a moment.

"Scatter—"

Byakuya slowly reversed the hilt of the sword in his hand and released it.

"Senbonzakura".

With his cold, clear words of release, the Zanpakuto in his hand quietly dissipated amidst a slight hum.

Like cherry blossoms scattered by the wind, it formed a dazzling pink torrent, spiraling upwards to form an impenetrable wall of blades, precisely blocking the pillar of black flames.

"Sizzle sizzle sizzle—!!!"

Contrary to expectations, the countless blade fragments of Senbonzakura were forcibly torn apart, cut, and scattered the black flames the moment they came into contact with them.

The pitch-black flames, like ink scattered by a gale, transformed into countless tiny sparks that flew in all directions.

It landed on the pure white tower, silently melting the hard, murderous stone, creating one pit after another.

A scorching wave of heat emanated from the top of the tower and spread outwards, raising the temperature of the area by several degrees.

Seeing this, Sasuke abandoned his probing attack.

Sasuke pushed the speed of "Takemikazuchi" to its limit, and with a sound as if space itself was being torn apart, he silently appeared behind Byakuya Kuchiki.

He concentrated the blue-white lightning release and the pitch-black Takemikazuchi power in his right palm, where they intertwined wildly under the gaze of his Sharingan.

"Sizzle—!!!"

A sharp shriek, like the cry of a thousand birds, suddenly resounded throughout the entire top of the tower!

However, Byakuya Kuchiki simply turned his handsome face to the side.

Sasuke's pupils suddenly contracted. In his field of vision, he clearly saw the millions of pink cherry blossom blades tracing back from all directions at an incredible speed.

A reverse-flowing, cherry-colored galaxy began to rapidly condense and take shape behind Byakuya.

Byakuya Kuchiki's expressionless face was gradually and completely obscured by the slowly closing cherry blossom blades.

In the end, all that remained were a pair of emotionless eyes, staring indifferently at Sasuke.

"Clang!"

The black and white lightning collided violently with the cherry-colored metallic storm!

Sasuke felt a terrifying force rebounding from his palm, and he was sent flying backward uncontrollably.

He grunted, forcibly twisting his body in mid-air and landing on the other end of the tower. His right hand trembled slightly, and the lightning in his palm had long since died out.

"..."