Chapter 90: Girl, Have You Heard of Sword-Wielding Techniques?

As Unohana Yachiru lunged forward, Yamabuki Haruto raised a hand, signaling a pause. “Hold on! I’ve got something to say!”

Unohana tilted her head, her expression a mix of amusement and skepticism. “Now? Why not just charge in and fight? Are you even a man?”

Haruto coughed, unfazed. “Keep this up, and we’ll be at it till nightfall with no winner. Your swordsmanship’s near its peak, right? Want to see something new? It’s way more interesting than just trading slashes.”

Unohana’s eyes narrowed, studying the young Shinigami. “You still have tricks left at this stage?”

Haruto circled her slowly, his left hand glowing as he condensed Reishi into a shimmering blade of pure energy. With a gentle toss, the Reishi sword floated in the air, hovering steadily.

“In my hometown, there was a legend,” Haruto said, crafting another Reishi blade and sending it aloft. “A sword immortal who could slay enemies from a thousand miles away, flying on his blade, unstoppable.” He formed three more, each floating obediently, until five Reishi swords glimmered above him.

Unohana remained silent, her grip on Minazuki tightening. Haruto’s rapid growth in their duel unnerved her—his Zanjutsu now rivaled hers after mere minutes of combat. She braced for his next move.

“I dreamed of being that sword immortal as a kid,” Haruto continued, raising his Zanpakutō. “Flying on a blade, taking heads from afar. Guess death made that dream real.” With a fierce swing, he commanded the five Reishi swords to streak toward Unohana from different angles, guided by his will like a conductor’s baton.

Unohana’s pupils contracted. She wielded Minazuki like a shield, deflecting the onslaught with precise strikes. Clang! One Reishi sword shattered against her blade, its fragments scattering. But in an instant, the broken pieces reformed, lunging at her again with unrelenting ferocity.

Caught off guard, Unohana took a cut to her shoulder. The other four swords targeted her vital points, their speed and power matching Haruto’s own strikes. His earlier clashes with her had honed his perception, allowing him to pinpoint her weaknesses with ruthless accuracy. The Reishi swords attacked without mercy, exploiting every flaw in her defense.

Even Unohana, a Zanjutsu master, struggled against what felt like five Harutos at once, each ignoring damage to focus on her vulnerabilities. After a barrage of strikes, her body was riddled with over a dozen wounds, blood staining her haori.

“Sword-wielding techniques are a game-changer against standard Zanjutsu,” Haruto taunted, his voice calm but confident. “Give up, girl. You’re done.”

Unohana wiped blood from her face, her smile defiant. “You think this can defeat me? Those swords are just extensions of your Reiatsu. If I take you down, they stop.”

She tapped the ground with her toes, flashing toward Haruto with blinding speed. The five Reishi swords darted to intercept, forming a barrier around him. Unohana’s blade flashed, shattering all five in a single, devastating strike. But as the fragments fell, Haruto smirked.

The broken Reishi condensed into a tiny, glowing orb, radiating a terrifying aura. Haruto vanished in a burst of Shunpo just as the orb detonated, unleashing a shockwave that sent a plume of dust and debris soaring tens of meters high.

“I hope that didn’t kill her,” Haruto muttered from a safe vantage point. The Reishi bomb, crafted from his ability to manipulate spirit particles, could cripple even a captain if it caught them unprepared.

As the dust settled, Unohana stood amidst the rubble, bloodied but smiling—a chilling, predatory grin. “Surrender now, and I’ll heal your wounds,” Haruto said evenly. “You’re bleeding out fast.”

Unohana coughed, glancing at Minazuki. “At first, I feared you were too weak, that I’d kill you in one strike. Now, I can unleash my full Reiatsu without worry.” Her smile widened, a glint of excitement in her eyes.

Haruto’s expression grew grim. She hadn’t been fighting at full strength? Unohana closed her eyes, then snapped them open. A blood-red Reiatsu erupted, sharp as a blade, piercing the sky. The sheer pressure was suffocating, rivaling the might of Captain-Commander Yamamoto himself.

In a battle of Shinigami, Reiatsu was king. Unohana’s unleashed power dwarfed Haruto’s, a rookie captain-level at best. His face darkened as the reality sank in.

“Let’s pick up where we left off,” Unohana said, her form blurring as she appeared behind him. Haruto reacted with Shunpo, but she was already in front of him, her blade slashing horizontally. He raised his left hand, summoning the five Reishi swords again, but Unohana’s speed outmatched them. These weren’t true flying swords, just Reishi constructs under his control.

She stepped back, raising Minazuki and unleashing a wave of sword pressure that obliterated the Reishi swords and carved a clean gash through the ground, splitting it like a sliced cake. Haruto’s eyes widened. Sword pressure of that caliber?

Every Shinigami wielded sword pressure, its potency tied to their Reiatsu. The strongest could rend the earth itself. Haruto knew he was outmatched, but he had one last card to play.

“Bakudō #21, Sekienton!” Haruto shouted, releasing a cloud of red smoke to obscure Unohana’s vision. He retreated swiftly, pressing his hands to the ground. “Hadō #99, Goryūtenmetsu!”

Five dragon-shaped torrents of energy erupted, spiraling toward Unohana with devastating force.