Bleach: The Shinigami’s Zanpakutō That Unleashed Bankai On Its Own

Moyu didn't join the battlefield. Instead, he stood at the edge, silently observing the one-sided fight unfolding before him.

"It feels… a little too easy."

A trace of doubt flickered in his pale violet eyes.

Everything was going too smoothly. So smoothly, in fact, that it stirred an uncomfortable sense of unease in him.

Abarai Renji and the others had already reached the level of standard Shinigami in both Reiatsu and combat technique. If they continued developing at this rate, it would only be a matter of time before they stepped into vice-captain or even captain-level strength.

In less than half an hour, the battle had nearly concluded.

Despite the rogue souls' frenzy, they were limited by shallow Reiatsu and lack of formal combat methods. Most relied on crude weapons they'd scavenged, and beyond that, nothing but brute force.

Moyu tapped his chin with his right hand, deep in thought.

"Something's off..."

He studied the battlefield more closely, eyes narrowing as he scanned the final rogue souls about to fall.

And then—he noticed it.

In one of the bloodshot eyes of a rogue soul, he saw it—fear.

A cold jolt went through him.

"That's it..."

He murmured under his breath. "Fear. How can creatures driven to madness still feel fear?"

"And more importantly—not one of them is trying to escape...?"

"This feeling…"

His eyes sharpened. They gleamed like starlight under moonless skies.

"It's like something stronger—something terrifying—is driving them from the shadows."

"Rukia—get out of here!"

The instant Moyu understood, he bolted onto the battlefield, shouting at the top of his lungs.

Rukia heard his voice and didn't hesitate. Without a second thought, she turned and sprinted toward the outskirts of the fight.

BOOM!!

The derelict buildings flanking the street suddenly exploded outward, rubble bursting into the air, dust blotting out the sky.

While Renji and the others stood frozen, unable to react, several bone-forged chains shot from within the smoke!

They cut through the air with explosive force, creating shockwaves loud enough to deafen.

BOOM!

The thick bone chains slammed into the students with terrifying might, launching their bodies hundreds of meters away and gouging trenches into the ground.

Before they could even process what had happened, most of them were already seriously wounded.

"Cough—what…?"

Renji coughed up blood, staining his chest crimson as he stared in horror toward where the chains had come from.

"This... this oppressive Reiatsu!"

Kira Izuru fared no better. He too clutched his side and spat blood, eyes wide with disbelief.

The remaining students collapsed around them, bloodied and dazed, their ability to fight completely gone.

Thud. Thud. Thud.

A deep, echoing sound pulsed from within the dust cloud.

"Delicious souls…"

A raspy, overlapping voice stirred the air—then, in a sudden burst, the dust scattered.

And finally, the true enemy stepped forward.

Towering tens of meters tall, cloaked in bone-white armor and black mist, a spider-like Menos Grande emerged.

Its dozen serrated leg tendrils scraped the ground as it moved, its massive, grotesque head shaped disturbingly like a human face.

"Ahahaha... I never expected to find such high-quality souls."

The warped voice sent chills into the heart. Its spiritual pressure rolled over the battlefield like a tsunami.

This one was beyond the standard—it wasn't just a Gillian. Not quite Adjuchas, either.

Its Reiatsu was bizarre. Even Moyu couldn't clearly define what class it belonged to.

"But it's definitely intelligent," he muttered, eyes sharp with realization.

"It has to be connected to Aizen."

By now, even Moyu could piece together what had happened.

This was a test. Aizen had used the mission as cover to plant an experimental Menos Grande in Inuzuri.

And the target?

Maybe Moyu himself. Maybe something else.

Either way—it was far from random.

But whatever the reason, that was a problem for another day.

"Really now…"

Moyu sighed and stepped forward, slowly approaching the massive creature.

"Why is it so hard to find sincerity in this world?"

Rukia cried out from behind him, panicked:

"Brother Moyu, you can't fight that! It's too strong!"

But before she could finish, Moyu turned slightly toward her, the corner of his mouth curled upward.

"Watch carefully. Learn something."

"The way of the sword—that's what it means."

As he spoke, his pale hand rested calmly on the hilt at his side.

The wind began to rise.

A cold, steady gust swept through the ruined street, stirring the dust once again, cloaking the world in a curtain of sand.

"Foolish prey!"

The spider-like Menos roared.

"Food should act like food!"

Its thick chelicerae clacked open, exuding deadly spiritual pressure as it lunged toward Moyu.

And then—

A clear, resonant voice echoed down the wind-choked alley.

"A sword… always leaves a path behind."

Gale—unsheathed!