CHAPTER 40

Looking at the blue light soaring into the sky, Akira finally understood why Kurosaki Ichigo had arrived so late.

Clearly, Urahara Kisuke and the others had been more cautious this time, likely due to recognizing the true extent of their own power. Unlike the original timeline, they had spent extra time training Kurosaki Ichigo, ensuring that he had fully mastered Getsuga Tenshō before allowing him to enter Soul Society.

"If that's the case, then this is the perfect opportunity to test my new technique..."

Akira gripped his Zanpakutō upside down and softly recited its release command.

"Reflect, Hikari no Kagami!" (Heaven and Earth Mirror!)

Instantly, a pure white radiance expanded across the battlefield, illuminating both sky and ground. But just as quickly as it had appeared, the light vanished.

In its place, Akira's blade had undergone only a subtle transformation—its surface now gleamed like liquid silver, but its shape remained largely unchanged.

"Is that… Akira's Shikai? It doesn't look like that lightsaber from before!" Yoruichi murmured, her golden eyes narrowing in suspicion.

Kurosaki Ichigo, however, remained unimpressed.

"Tch, so this is your Shikai? Doesn't seem like much. It's nowhere near as powerful as mine!"

By now, Ichigo understood that the size of a Zanpakutō was directly linked to the wielder's Reiatsu. Seeing that Akira's sword remained the size of a standard blade even after releasing Shikai, Ichigo smirked with confidence.

"Getsuga Tenshō!"

Without hesitation, Ichigo swung his massive cleaver-like Zanpakutō, unleashing a brilliant blue arc of energy. The powerful slash tore through the ground, surging toward Akira with destructive force.

But then—

Shh!

The crescent-shaped blast missed.

Ichigo's eyes widened in shock as his attack veered off-course at the last second, sweeping past Akira without even grazing him.

"Huh?"

"What the hell, Kurosaki?! Where the hell were you aiming?!" Ishida Uryū snapped.

"I— I know I was on target!" Ichigo protested, his grip tightening around Zangetsu.

From a distance, Yoruichi frowned, her sharp gaze tracking the path of the attack.

"The moment the slash got close… it seemed to twist?"

Her mastery of Shunpo had granted her extraordinary visual perception, and she had seen it clearly—the trajectory of Ichigo's attack had warped, as though space itself had distorted.

But light travels in a straight line. It shouldn't be able to bend like that…

"Is that his Zanpakutō's ability?" Yoruichi murmured. The name Hikari no Kagami suggested something related to mirrors. And when light reflects off a special mirror, it can be redirected—distorted in unexpected ways.

Even as Yoruichi analyzed the situation, the battle had already resumed.

"Brazo Derecha de Gigante!"

Despite Ichigo's insistence that they stay back, Sado Yasutora knew better—if even Ichigo's attack had been nullified, there was no choice but to step in!

With a powerful leap, Chad closed the distance and swung his right arm in a devastating strike.

"La Muerte!"

The red and black markings on his arm pulsed with Reiryoku as an enormous azure shockwave exploded forward at point-blank range.

If ranged attacks wouldn't work, then a direct impact might!

But—

"Where are you aiming?"

Chad's eyes widened as his attack shot past Akira, striking nothing but empty space and kicking up a storm of dust and debris.

A cold voice rang out behind him—accompanied by a flash of steel.

"Ugh—!"

Sado Yasutora was slashed by Akira and collapsed on the spot, seriously injured.

"Sado—!"

Kurosaki Ichigo and the others cried out in shock and anger.

Yoruichi's pupils shrank as she analyzed what had just happened.

"That wasn't just a distorted attack trajectory… the left and right were completely reversed?!"

She had seen a similar ability before—the Zanpakutō of Hirako Shinji, the former captain of the Fifth Division. His power inverted the enemy's five senses, creating disorientation. However, Akira's ability was fundamentally different—it reversed the actual direction of attacks in a physical sense!

"It's like looking into a mirror… An attack aimed at the left is reflected to the right. No wonder Sado couldn't land a hit on him!"

Realizing the nature of Akira's ability, Yoruichi quickly sought a way to relay this information. But what she didn't know was that Hikari's "Mirror World" ability was far more complex than just reversing directions.

Akira pointed at Kurosaki Ichigo and the others. "One down. Who's next?"

"You bastard—!"

Fueled by rage, Kurosaki Ichigo gritted his teeth as Inoue Orihime rushed to heal Sado. Uryū Ishida wasted no time, pulling back his spirit bow and releasing a barrage of arrows.

"Rain of Light!"

The sheer volume of attacks made it impossible for Akira to distort all of them. Even if their trajectories were reversed, some were bound to hit.

"Well done!"

Yoruichi praised Ishida for his quick adaptation to the situation. However, just as the arrows seemed to pierce through Akira's body, the ground behind him was riddled with holes instead.

"What?!"

Ichigo and Ishida's eyes widened in disbelief. The attack had passed through him without resistance—an illusion created by light and shadow!

"A new ability?!" Yoruichi exclaimed in horror.

In the blink of an eye, Akira used Shunpo to appear behind Ishida, his blade already descending.

"Cough—!"

Ishida, unable to react in time, collapsed into a pool of blood.

"I'll kill you!!"

Seeing his comrades fall one by one, Ichigo's fury erupted. His spiritual pressure skyrocketed as he charged at Akira with blinding speed, surpassing his usual limits.

At the same time, Orihime extended her hands, activating her only offensive technique.

"Koten Zanshun—!"

This time, Akira faced a simultaneous attack from both sides. Yet, his expression remained unfazed as he softly muttered:

"Upside down."

In an instant, Orihime's attack twisted, and Ichigo's slash was reversed. Before either of them could react, their attacks clashed against each other instead of striking their intended target.

"Ah! Mr. Tsubaki—!"

Orihime cried out in despair as she watched her spirit guardian, Tsubaki, get obliterated by Ichigo's redirected strike.

Ichigo's eyes widened in shock. His own sword, meant for Akira, had instead neutralized Orihime's attack. Before he could recover, Akira's blade moved without hesitation.

"The farce is over."

Slash—!

Blood splattered as Ichigo stood frozen in place.

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