Bleach: The Path to Transcendence

Byakuya Kuchiki swiftly recalled the scattered Senbonzakura, the dazzling cherry blossoms rapidly coalescing in mid-air, reforming into a gleaming longsword.

Immediately afterward, his eyes sharpened like a hawk's, and his spiritual pressure surged wildly, as he charged towards Kouga Kuchiki like a bolt of black lightning, brimming with killing intent.

"Clang!"

"Clang!"

"Clang!"

Accompanied by a series of crisp and intense clashes of weapons, sparks flew.

Byakuya Kuchiki and Kouga Kuchiki's figures flickered amidst the interplay of light and shadow, their blades crisscrossing, each collision carrying the force to split mountains and shatter rocks.

Just as the two were in the heat of battle, a series of hurried footsteps came from outside, and a group of Kuchiki family assassins, clad in special white robes and wielding Zanpakuto, finally rushed to the scene.

These hundreds of assassins each possessed considerable spiritual pressure, with the weakest being at least at the level of a seated officer. They lined up neatly, like an indestructible wall of steel, surrounding the battlefield.

However, facing this vast crowd, Kouga Kuchiki showed no fear.

He smiled contemptuously, slowly wiping his Zanpakuto, a flicker of madness flashing in his eyes.

"Bankai – Muramasa, the Hookless!"

With a low and menacing roar, a dense purple spiritual pressure surged from the blade, spreading wildly in all directions.

The assassins who had been poised to strike instantly revealed expressions of horror. They discovered that the Zanpakuto in their hands were trembling uncontrollably, and then, the blades turned, slashing at their own masters.

In an instant, the entire Kuchiki clan estate descended into chaos, with screams and shouts rising and falling, like a scene from hell.

Seeing this, Byakuya Kuchiki's heart tightened, and he made an immediate decision. He quickly formed hand seals, chanting incantations, and casting a special Kidō technique.

"Spirit Binding!"

With a shout, a cyan oval barrier instantly formed, like a giant cage, trapping him and Kouga Kuchiki within the barrier.

At the same time, the uncontrolled Zanpakuto outside seemed to be restrained by some powerful force, immediately returning to normal and ceasing their attacks on their masters.

"Interesting, activating the Kuchiki clan's estate, a barrier that completely isolates spiritual particles, trying to weaken Muramasa's control over the outside Zanpakuto? But by doing so, aren't you putting yourself in danger as well?"

"Dealing with the shame of the Kuchiki family like you, is something I alone can do!"

Byakuya Kuchiki spoke calmly and indifferently.

Hearing this, Kouga Kuchiki's eyes flashed with a hint of mad laughter, staring intently at Byakuya Kuchiki, as if trying to see through him. As soon as he finished speaking, he suddenly raised the longsword in his hand and shouted loudly:

"Ice Fang Rampant Storm!"

In an instant, a chilling aura swept towards Byakuya Kuchiki like a surging tide, freezing the very air in its path.

"Binding Art Number Eighty-One – Dankū!"

Byakuya Kuchiki's expression turned stern, and without hesitation, he pointed his right hand forward, chanting the spell, and a transparent barrier instantly appeared in front of him, attempting to block the oncoming cold wave.

However, to his surprise, this seemingly indestructible Dankū was easily broken through by Kouga Kuchiki's peculiar Kidō.

"Whoosh!"

Byakuya Kuchiki's expression changed slightly, and he immediately tapped his feet on the void, his figure flickering like a ghost, nimbly dodging the remaining cold currents. His figure flickered constantly in the cold mist.

"Hmph! If I hadn't been sealed for hundreds of years, and my spiritual pressure was only at 50%, that attack just now would have been enough to take your life!"

Kouga Kuchiki looked at Byakuya Kuchiki, who was dodging everywhere, and said indifferently, his tone full of disdain.

Hearing this, Byakuya Kuchiki raised his eyebrows slightly, a look of surprise flashing in his eyes. He secretly observed Kouga Kuchiki's spiritual pressure and found that the other party's strength was on par with his own, both being at the peak of the third seat, but he didn't expect that this was only half of the other party's spiritual pressure.

"Bankai – Senbonzakura Kageyoshi!"

Byakuya Kuchiki whispered, a firm light flashing in his eyes. He released his longsword, and it merged into the ground.

In an instant, countless giant blades burst out of the ground, their momentum magnificent. Then, these blades instantly transformed into billions of dazzling cherry blossom petals, tumbling and surging in the air like pink clouds, beautiful yet deadly.

Since Kouga Kuchiki was not at his full strength at this moment, it was a good opportunity to completely eliminate him.

"Senkei – Senbonzakura Kageyoshi!"

With a cold shout from Byakuya Kuchiki, his hands danced quickly, and streams of spiritual pressure poured from his fingertips, drawing the countless cherry blossoms.

The countless pink petals seemed to receive the strongest call, carrying a fierce killing intent, like a surging pink tide, rushing fiercely towards Kouga Kuchiki's direction. The power of this display was far from comparable to when Senbonzakura was activated alone, each petal resembling an unmatched divine blade.

"Vajra Blast!"

Seeing this, Kouga Kuchiki's eyes flashed with a hint of ruthlessness, and he unhesitatingly held the Zanpakuto in his hand horizontally, his spiritual pressure converging wildly around him.

In an instant, an extremely hot, dazzlingly bright giant fireball formed out of thin air, carrying a whistling wind and rolling heat waves, rushing towards Byakuya Kuchiki like a burning meteor.

"Rumble!"

The cherry blossoms and the fireball collided fiercely in mid-air, and a powerful energy erupted instantly, setting off a deafening roar. Because the space where the two were located was shrouded by the Spirit Binding barrier, the energy could not be released outward. For a time, smoke and dust filled the barrier, obscuring the sky and making it difficult to see the situation inside.

"Fang Light Barrage!"

Just as the smoke filled the air, Kouga Kuchiki's voice sounded again. Then, dozens of spiritual particle spears, flickering with a strange green light, pierced through the smoke like arrows leaving the string, flying towards Byakuya Kuchiki with a whistling wind and fierce aura.

Byakuya Kuchiki's expression turned stern, and he immediately used Shunpo, trying to avoid this deadly attack.

However, just as he was about to move, he was shocked to find that his limbs seemed to be tightly bound by an invisible force, unable to move. He looked down and saw countless shadows, like black vines, spreading rapidly from Kouga Kuchiki's feet, tightly entwining his body, binding him firmly in place.

"It's over!" Kouga Kuchiki looked at the trapped Byakuya Kuchiki, a smug grin on his face.

Just as Kouga Kuchiki's face was contorted with a sinister expression, and he was full of confidence that he had won, and was about to unleash a fatal blow to completely end Byakuya Kuchiki, the Senbonzakura Kageyoshi, which had been suspended in the air, suddenly began to move on its own without anyone controlling it.

Countless dazzling cherry blossom petals, as if endowed with life, rushed towards Kouga Kuchiki with a dazzling trajectory. The overwhelming pink sea of flowers, with its fierce aura, seemed to devour Kouga Kuchiki.

Seeing this, Kouga Kuchiki's heart was startled, and the smug look on his face disappeared instantly. He raised his longsword to release Ice Fang Rampant Storm again, trying to resist this sudden attack.

However, just as he was concentrating on dealing with the overwhelming petals, he did not expect that these petals seemed to be rushing towards him, but they were just a feint. Their real target was the shadows that bound Byakuya Kuchiki.

Those seemingly randomly flying petals were actually precisely attacking the shadow bonds below Byakuya Kuchiki, cutting the black shadows like sharp blades.

As the petals continued to impact, the shadow bonds that tightly entangled Byakuya Kuchiki were gradually cut off, and the power binding him was weakened.

Byakuya Kuchiki keenly noticed this change and unleashed his own spiritual pressure at the same time, completely breaking through the shadow bonds.