Marvel With Zanpakutou

Chapter 782: Captain Unohana Retsu of Squad Four

Captain of the Fourth Squad, Unohana Retsu.

Lord called a meeting of the Soul Society captains and publicly announced that she would be taking over as the new captain of the Fourth Squad. The reactions from the other captains were lukewarm, showing little concern.

It’s worth mentioning.

Due to Unohana Retsu’s timeline, which is set before she meets Zaraki Kenpachi and during the era of the original Kenpachi, the current captains hardly recognize her, including Zaraki Kenpachi himself.

After changing her name, Unohana formally joined the Thirteen Court Guard Squads of Soul Society.

And her appearance had changed significantly.

Her previously flowing black hair was now tied up with an ivory ribbon, and since she had not yet met Zaraki Kenpachi in this timeline, she did not wear her hair in a braid to cover the scar on her throat as in the original story.

Unohana wore white hair, but it was ill-fitting and better suited to a tall, slim man, making it look quite loose and somewhat bulky on her.

Moreover, the haori was somewhat dirty, with several patches sewn up where it had been torn, making one wonder if someone had skimped on funds, leading to a captain’s haori looking so shabby and poor.

This wasn’t the Lord’s fault.

He had intended to get Unohana a new one, but she stubbornly refused, insisting on keeping her current haori. After much arguing, Lord finally gave up.

Thus, things ended up as they were.

Unohana wore his haori, standing serenely in line, smiling warmly at him.

Anyone with a keen eye could tell.

Unohana’s haori was none other than that of the Soul King himself, though the reasons behind this were something no one dared delve into.

Particularly, Kyoraku Shunsui, known for his keen observations, had already noticed some clues.

For instance, the disheveled appearance of the two when they showed up and the Soul King’s eyes constantly darting away, while Unohana kept her gaze fixed on the Soul King, among other things.

He wasn’t the only one who noticed; Urahara Kisuke and Kira also sensed something; although their gossiping hearts were burning, none dared to be the whistleblower.

After all... some gossip could be deadly!

After announcing a few things, Lord waved his hand, dismissing the captains, and returned alone to the Soul King’s palace.

Reflecting on this gathering, Lord was quite satisfied.

It was as if he was a king reborn, not only gaining two powerful Quincy letters, the original Espada Tier Harribel, the black tech expert Mayuri Kurotsuchi, and the pure-blood Quincy, Kurosaki Masaki.

He also acquired two new Bankai, Ryujin Jakka and Hakka no Togame, which enhanced his capabilities by adding icing to the cake.

Even the original story’s near-bug-level Zanpakuto, Kyoka Suigetsu, was finally in his possession.

As for the sheath...

This sword was a bit special; in the original story, it was a Zanpakuto created by all the efforts of the sword god Nimaiya Oetsu, later deemed ’a failed creation.’

It looked like an ordinary Zanpakuto but possessed extraordinary sharpness; no matter how it was swung, it wouldn’t be damaged, and not even blood could stain it.

How sharp was it?

The wielder only needed to grip the sheath lightly and swing to cut through space, effortlessly slicing through any high-density spiritual particle attacks.

Because it was too sharp, making a sheath for it was impossible, so it had to be stored in a container filled with liquid.

The only drawback...

No soul could wield such a sharp divine sword, so the sheath did not have a Shikai or Bankai form.

For a Shinigami, a sword without Shikai and Bankai loses its purpose, so Nimaiya Oetsu called it a failed creation.

This lottery, though exciting.

But the real grand prize was a task reward from the system — a custom gift pack from the Zero Squad members.

The Zero Squad consisted of five members.

Directly under the royal special operations agency, answering only to the Soul King, their combined combat power surpassed the total of the Thirteen Court Guard Squads, and all members were immortal.

Moreover, not just in terms of combat power, each member of the Zero Squad brought cutting-edge technological innovations to Soul Society, which was more important to the Lord than the added combat power.

This was the greatest reward!

"Here it comes..."

Lord kept muttering, a testament to his excitement as he trembled and selected his custom gift pack. Then, his eyes settled on one person, and he confirmed his choice.

Who to summon, was there any doubt?

The wind surged from all directions like a tidal wave, and high-density spiritual particles gradually condensed into a human shape, nearly draining the Soul King’s palace of over half its spiritual particle reserves in the air, which, after such extravagance, became much thinner.

Such a situation was unprecedented.

The Lord’s anticipation grew stronger as the human form gradually took shape.

While gathering massive spiritual particles, a blue-white mist evaporated, resembling dawn light shrouded in fog, and a bulky, strong man slowly appeared within the Soul King’s palace.

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHA..."

A robust and hearty laugh echoed throughout the world of the Soul King, its sound waves stirring thousands of miles of clouds like waves crashing in all directions.

The bulky figure walked forward, the blue-white mist around him shredded to reveal the laughing man’s true face.

He was dressed like a monk, with a bald head shining like a high-wattage light bulb under the light, making it impossible to look directly at him.

Under thick eyebrows, his round eyes sparkled with spirit, a broad nose under which grew a thick beard hanging down to his chest, and a neck as thick as a thigh adorned with a string of deep red prayer beads.

Dressed in an oversized wide-sleeved haori, his seemingly bulky body concealed astonishing strength, muscles twisted and swollen like old tree roots, and he wore a pair of wooden sandals, the entire man dressed like a monk martial.

This appearance made Lord think he saw a disguised version of Lu Zhishen, half-expecting the guy to rush out next, asking him to cut some meat or uproot a willow tree.

But this wasn’t Lu Zhishen...

Instead, it should be Hikifune Kirio!

Once sealed the Soul King with the five great noble families and guarded the Soul King to this day, the real power-holder of the Zero Squad, who named everything in Soul Society, the most hidden character in the original story—Hikifune Kirio!

They are also known as... the True Name Monk!

His combat power was second only to Yhwach, the only one in the Thousand-Year Blood War arc who saw through the true nature of things and understood the Soul King and Yhwach.

If his combat power were to be discussed, even Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni, the most formidable Shinigami of a millennium, would have to admit his inferiority.

"Welcome back."

Lord looked at the monk before him, smiling, "How does it feel to live again?"

Despite the system’s repeated assurances that Hikifune Kirio would not betray him, he still couldn’t be at ease, especially since this man before him was one of those who had dismembered the original Soul King and sealed him!

In the end, it was even revealed that Hikifune Kirio had planned to make Kurosaki Ichigo the new Soul King to replace the linchpin, maintaining the three realms after Yhwach reshaped them.

"Hmm... feels quite good."

After a brief moment of confusion, Hikifune Kirio touched his thick beard, looked at Lord for a while, and then burst out laughing, "I never thought someone like me, a sinner, would have the honor to see the real Soul King again. What a great honor indeed."