Chapter 256

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[Adam C. POV.]

Grinning, I felt my fingers tightened around my Zanpakuto, its hilt slick with sweat, before taking a step forward with a burst of reiatsu, charging at Yhwach, closing the distance between us in the blink of an eye, bringing my blade down on him. Our blades clashed, the metal ringing out as we both struggled against each other's strength. 

The force of our collision sent shockwaves rippling through the air and shaking the ground beneath our feet like waves in the sea, waves that extended as far as the Seireitei. 

Yhwach, with that unnerving calm that seemed to be his permanent state of being, barely batted an eye as he deflected my blade with a sharp turn of his wrist.

I smiled, a feral grin splitting my face, as I felt a surge of exhilaration pump through my veins. This was it! The battle I had been yearning for, a fight where I could give my all!

"Let's keep this going!" The words left my lips in a growl as I mustered every ounce of my soul's energy, channeling it through my Zanpakuto, before releasing it in a crescent wave of dark energy erupted from the blade, an black comet racing towards Yhwach with the fury of a thousand storms, an attack of pure concentrated void, one that would consume anything in its way.

Yhwach's eyes gleamed with a mix of amusement and acknowledgment of my resolve, the faintest hint of a smirk playing on his lips. "Blut Vene Anhaben!" A dome of blue energy erupted around him, radiating a pulsing glow that absorbed the impact of my attack, dispersing my crescent wave as though it was nothing more than a gentle breeze. 

Undeterred, I leapt back, landing lightly on my feet and skidding across the rubble-strewn ground. "It seems someone prepared themselves to deal with my void, I wonder why..." I chuckled, cracking my neck. 

Yhwach's low chuckle echoed through destroyed landscape. "It was only natural, brother... after all, I can't use my eyes with you, as you cant use yours with me, besides... we are at war."

He was right, just like it was against Lille... Gerard... and Pernida, my eyes seemed to be ineffective against him, though I suppose the fact he couldn't use his own eyes against made served as a consolation price. 

Taking a deep breath, I moved forward once again, blurring in and out of sight with a series of flash steps, before coming to a stop in front of him, my arm extending as my sword sliced through the air silently in a swift upward arc, aimed directly at his chest.

Yhwach sidestepped, his cloak billowing as he evaded death by a hair's breadth. But I didn't stop there, I immediately spun on my heel, anticipating his counter-attack even before it was launched, blocking his blade, before kicking him away. He coughed blood, his eyes widening slightly in surprise at the strength of my attack. His feet skidded against the ground, cracking the earth beneath as he regained his balance.

He smiled, the smile not reaching his eyes, which were now fixed upon me with a newfound intensity. "Impressive," he said, wiping the trickle of blood from his lip with the back of his hand. "It's been ages since I've had to exert myself to this extent."

Giving no reply, I moved behind him with the barest whisper of movement, my reiatsu flaring. "Then let's not disappoint each other, Yhwach," I replied, voice steel wrapped in velvet.

Yhwach spun, his own sword coming up in a fluid arc that met mine with a ring of steel against steel. The reverberation of our clashing blades sent shockwaves through the already fractured landscape. Fragments of debris lifted into the air, suspended momentarily as if gravity had lost its grip on the world.

"You speak of disappointment," Yhwach began, thrusting forward with renewed vigor. "Yet, you hold back your true power. What are you afraid of?"

My lips curled into a faint, mocking smile as I parried his thrust and pushed back, creating distance between us. "Afraid? You mistake caution for fear, Yhwach. To unleash everything in the opening act would be a poor performance, wouldn't it?" 

He was right, I was holding back... but not in the way he imagined. I simply hadn't shown all my cards yet... why? Well, the answer was simple, I didn't want this to end too quickly, I wanted to enjoy this feeling a bit longer, the feeling... I wasn't in control, the feeling of a true fight.

Yhwach's expression changed, the glimmer of understanding lighting his features; he was no fool. His laughter, deep and resonant, filled the air, acknowledging the game between us. "I see... so that's what you seek... so simplistic... Yet... How exhilarating!" he exclaimed, the excitement in his voice betraying his usually composed demeanor.

I chuckled, it seems the bastard read my mind. "Well, what can I say... it's boring being strong."

"I suppose it is," Yhwach conceded, his eyes narrowing into slits of concentrated thought. "But let us not while away the hours in idle chatter. I have a world to change, and you have a brother to kill, so let's see what ideal prevails."

"Then let us continue," I said, repositioning my sword in a stance that invited the next exchange. 

There were three stages to my bankai. 

First, the release stage. The one I have always been using. It allows me to use the basic abilities of my Bankai, which for most would be enough, seeing they are quite devastating.

Second, the controlled stage... the one I am currently using. It's not necessarily more powerful than the first stage, but it's more versatile. It allows me to apply the void into all of my attacks without having to bring everything into the void itself, giving me a bigger range of options when attacking. 

Third... the final stage, the one I have kept veiled in the shadows until now. A stage where the amalgamation of power and void becomes something... transcendent. It is a realm unexplored, an apex where I risk oblivion in exchange for absolute dominion over the Void. It short, I become the void itself... there's a reason why I call it the final stage, and its because its.... quite final for everyone involved.

This stage has a time limit, as in... there is a certain amount of time I can use it without dying, one minute.

The explanation behind this is... simple, The Void rejects all, and destroys it all. Including me. One minute its just the amount of time my reiatsu can buy me while I use this stage. Any second after that limit, and... I might just disappear into the void. 

That was my triumph card. 

For now though, I would enjoy this feeling just a little bit more... he would die soon enough, until then, I would just... enjoy.

Yhwach moved forward, closing the distance between us in the blink of an eye, bringing his blade down on me. 

I shifted my stance, not retreating but advancing, mirroring his speed and attack. Our blades clashed, creating a shockwave that expanded as far as the eye could see, we stood there for a moment, refusing to give an inch, before moving once again, our blades clashing over and over again, each collision shattering the already broken ground around us.

I grinned, ducking under one of his attacks, trying to deliver a deep cut to his back, only to receive an arrow to my shoulder as he turned to face me. The arrow, solidified from pure reishi, burned with an intensity I hadn't expected. Dodging his follow-up attack, I repositioned myself a few feet away, shattering the reishi arrow with a burst of reiatsu.

Time for a test of speed. 

Shunpo vs Hirenkyaku.

Without any words, we moved once again, a dark blur against a streak of light. We darted across the skies, our blades clashing faster than anyone could see. Spectators, if there were any capable of witnessing this, would see nothing more than the occasional spark and hear the delayed sonic booms of our passing.

"Heilig Pfeil!" Yhwach's voice cut through the air, the stern command heralding a volley of luminous arrows that rained down upon me like a divine judgment.

I raised my sword, and with a fluid motion that seemed to distort the very fabric of reality, I began slicing through each arrow, disintegrating them upon contact. Focusing the void on the edge of my blade for extra power.

As the arrows dissipated into the void, he charged forth, unaffected by the deathly aura emanating from my sword.

I smiled, only to feel... like something was off... like something was going terribly wrong, something that Yhwach himself seemed to notice as well, seeing he came to a stop, his eyes narrowing as if trying to discern the source of this sudden shift. I wasn't sure what exactly had changed... but I could ripple going around, a subtle yet powerful disturbance that neither of us had anticipated.

Was it fear that flashed across Yhwach's face for a brief moment?

"What..." I stopped, just now realizing I was shaking, my hands trembling as if a chill had seeped into my very bones.

Yhwach, too, seemed unnerved, his unflappable demeanor momentarily faltering. Meaning this wasn't the result of our powers. No, this was something else, something ancient and foreboding that slithered into our midst like an unwelcome shadow.

"What is happening?" I asked.

"I can't keep wasting my time here," Yhwach replied, turning around to face me. "If I don't kill you now... I won't be able to accomplish what I sought out to do."

...

Somehow... I felt the same way about killing him now, there was a primal part of me screaming at me to kill him now, or... run away, and it wasn't away from him, which I couldn't understand.

I closed my eyes and inhaled deeply, focusing on the weight of my Zanpakuto in my hands, then with a swift movement, I raised it above my head and plunged it into my chest. It was time for the final stage, The True Void.

Sixty seconds, from this point on... I would only have sixty seconds to end this.