Bleach: The Path to Transcendence

Shiba Isshin stared ahead with a wary expression. In an instant, his spiritual pressure erupted, a surge of golden energy bursting from his body, like golden flames burning fiercely around him.

At this moment, he was utterly grateful that he hadn't reported to the Captain-Commander, thus avoiding any spiritual pressure restrictions and allowing him to descend upon the world in his full strength.

Suddenly, Shiba Isshin seemed to sense something, abruptly looking up. He then shouted loudly at the two Soul Reaper squad members who were opening the Senkaimon:

"Quick..."

However, his words still echoed in the air when the two squad members were instantly cut down, their heads separated from their bodies, plummeting straight down from the sky.

"Damn it..."

Shiba Isshin cursed under his breath. Sensing a spiritual pressure that was distinctly different from that of a Soul Reaper, yet no less powerful than that of a Captain-level, he immediately used Shunpo, rushing towards the scene at top speed.

Finally, on the rooftop of the opposite high-rise, he saw a humanoid Hollow, its entire body as black as ink, wearing a bull-headed mask. Its Hollow hole was blocked by a pulsating meatball that resembled a heart, making it look somewhat bizarre.

"This is a Hollow?"

Shiba Isshin wondered inwardly, watching the bizarre bull-headed Hollow charging crazily towards him. Without hesitation, he drew his Zanpakuto and met the attack.

......

She happily forked a piece of steak and stuffed it directly into her mouth.

Just as Ishida Izumi was about to continue her nagging, Ishida Ryuken, who was young but already had premature gray hair, wearing glasses and looking refined, pushed the door open and walked in, interrupting his mother's words. Seeing this, Kurosaki Masaki, who had already eaten her fill, seized the opportunity to slip away.

Before long, in the sky above Naruki City, the battle between Shiba Isshin and the bull-headed Hollow had entered a fever pitch. The Ishida mansion was not far from Naruki City, and Kurosaki Masaki keenly sensed the intense collision of the two powerful spiritual pressures.

"Hollow and Soul Reaper spiritual pressures?"

Sensing these two powerful spiritual pressures, Kurosaki Masaki immediately got up and jumped off the bed in her room, running towards the direction of the spiritual pressure. But as soon as she took a few steps, she was stopped by Ishida Ryuken, who reached out from behind.

"Leave such dangerous things filled with battle to those mixed-blood Quincies. You and I, as pure-blooded Quincies, should cherish ourselves more. Why take risks? Besides, that's a Soul Reaper's battle; we Quincies don't need to participate in the first place. We can clean up the mess after the Soul Reaper is defeated."

At this time, following behind Ishida Ryuken was a tall, beautiful girl in a maid outfit, the mixed-blood Quincy Katagiri Kanae.

Hearing Ishida Ryuken's words, Kurosaki Masaki, who was about to go out, slightly raised the corners of her mouth, revealing a faint smile. Then, her expression turned serious, and she said earnestly:

"The real way to cherish oneself is not to stand by and watch tragedy happen, but to do everything in one's power to help others."

With that, she quickly left without looking back.

Seeing this, Ishida Ryuken frowned slightly, unable to understand where his fiancée, who had been living in his home since childhood and growing up with him, had gotten these absurd ideas.

He smiled wryly and hurriedly chased after her with Katagiri Kanae.

At the same time, two vast spiritual pressures clashed in the sky above Naruki City.

The bull-headed Hollow raised its right arm, which was covered in black blades, and slashed down at Shiba Isshin with unparalleled force.

"Clang!"

The deafening sound of metal colliding was ear-splitting. Shiba Isshin raised his Zanpakuto to block the fierce blow.

"Strange, why does this Hollow know Soul Reaper sword techniques?"

Shiba Isshin, who had been fighting fiercely with the bull-headed Hollow for a long time, was filled with doubts. The bull-headed Hollow in front of him had the appearance of a Hollow, and the spiritual pressure it emitted was also the aura of a Hollow, but its fighting style was exactly the same as that of a Soul Reaper. Its skilled and experienced sword techniques were comparable to, or even surpassed, most active Captains.

Just as the two were in the midst of a fierce battle, a Soul Reaper squad member hiding in the shadows seized the opportunity and suddenly attacked, trying to help Shiba Isshin.

But before he could get close to the bull-headed Hollow, the bull-headed Hollow keenly noticed him and quickly turned around.

"Boom!"

In an instant, a loud bang like thunder exploded, and a purple Cero instantly accumulated between the bull-headed Hollow's horns, blasting towards the attacking Soul Reaper squad member. In just an instant, the squad member was blasted into dust and disappeared without a trace.

"Burn, Engetsu!"

Witnessing this scene, Shiba Isshin's eyes widened with anger, and he immediately roared, directly releasing his Zanpakuto.

In an instant, a scorching flame, like surging magma, gushed out from the blade. Then, he swung his sword fiercely, and the burning blade light contained terrifying power, directly blasting the bull-headed Hollow away, sending it crashing far away onto a high-rise building.

"Roar!"

The bull-headed Hollow sensed an unprecedented threat and let out a deafening roar, attacking Shiba Isshin again crazily.

"Crackle!"

In an instant, a purple Cero formed between its horns, like a bolt of lightning, blasting towards Shiba Isshin.

Shiba Isshin was not afraid and also swung his sword. In an instant, the sky-filled flames and the purple Cero collided violently, and the powerful impact created a terrifying spiritual pressure storm, distorting and tearing the surrounding air.

Shiba Isshin was shocked to discover that even after releasing his Zanpakuto, he still couldn't defeat this strange bull-headed Hollow.

At this moment, he had no time to consider whether to conserve his strength, nor did he care what impact this battle would have on the world.

He immediately held his long sword horizontally, his expression solemn, preparing to release his Bankai.

"Bankai..."

However, just as he was about to unleash his Bankai, the key to changing the battle, he didn't notice at all that a figure cloaked in black, holding a Zanpakuto, had quietly arrived behind him like a ghost!

The person didn't hesitate at all and directly slashed out with their sword. Caught completely off guard, Shiba Isshin's Bankai was instantly interrupted, and he fell from the sky like a kite with a broken string.

Shiba Isshin struggled to turn around and look, but found no one behind him. But he was very clear that the hideous wound on his back was clearly caused by a Zanpakuto. This meant that there must be a Soul Reaper secretly plotting behind this incident.

"Who is it, who exactly is it?"

Shiba Isshin roared to the sky, his voice filled with anger and unwillingness, but the only response he received was the whistling of the wind. No one gave him an answer.

Even worse, the Bankai put a great strain on his body. In his current severely injured state, he couldn't possibly activate Bankai again.

At this moment, in the shadows, Aizen and his two subordinates were hiding in a shadow cloak, closely monitoring every move in the field.

"Kisuke Urahara's shadow cloak is really useful, and when combined with Binding Art Number Twenty-Six - Kyokko, the two together can achieve such a perfect concealment effect. Kisuke Urahara, you really are a genius!"

Aizen Sōsuke spoke calmly, his seemingly calm tone faintly containing a hint of appreciation and admiration for Kisuke Urahara.