"Is this really just Shikai?"
The leader of the black-robed assassins squinted into the golden light flooding the sky. His vision had barely recovered, but what he saw made his heart tremble.
He had seen countless Zanpakutō liberations before Shikai, Bankai, everything in between.
But never like this.
The glow from Ran En's Shikai bathed the entire night in light. Even Bankai from renowned captains never caused such a cosmic disturbance.
"Apologies," Ran En said, his voice calm and elegant. "This is my first time using Shikai. I'm still adjusting."
"Thank you for your patience. As compensation... allow me to show you a glimpse of the strongest flash-type Zanpakutō the Soul Society has never seen."
Before the last word even reached the air, Ran En had vanished.
No, not vanished transformed.
His entire body burst into photons, scattering like golden fireflies before streaking forward in a radiant arc.
The leader tried to track him. With eyes, with Reiatsu perception nothing worked.
He didn't even realize he'd been hit until he was flying through the air.
Boom.
The golden light slammed into his chest like a warhammer. Bones shattered. Pain didn't even register.
The black robe vaporized on contact, reduced to ash.
His body was launched like a cannonball, punching through boulders, splintering trees, and finally smashing into the ground a hundred meters away.
Cracks split across the earth in spiderweb patterns.
He lay in a crater, dazed, broken, blood painting his tattered uniform.
"What... what just happened?"
He coughed blood, every breath more painful than the last. He looked down and saw the faint imprint of a boot glowing on his shattered chest.
"Speed is power."
Ran En's voice echoed from above, casual and unhurried.
"Have you ever been kicked by the speed of light?"
The assassin's eyes widened.
Now he understood.
When Ran En's mouth moved earlier, he hadn't heard anything because the attack had landed before the sound reached him.
Light outran sound.
Even his scream had been late.
Suddenly, the leader's vision dimmed again. This time, it wasn't from light or shock it was a shadow.
Ran En stood over him.
One foot raised.
The sole of his shoe hovered inches above the assassin's face.
"Now," Ran En asked softly, "will you tell me your master's name?"
The man spat blood.
"Even if you knew... it wouldn't matter."
"That man stands at the peak of the Soul Society. He makes the rules. You "
He choked mid-sentence.
"You'll only die cursing your own weakness. That's all you'll have."
"Even if your Zanpakutō is the strongest of the flash-type, you can't stop what's coming."
Ran En didn't argue.
He just brought his foot down.
The impact cracked the ground open, golden light flooding the fractures like magma.
A shockwave ripped outward, swallowing the night in a thunderous roar.
When the light faded, only a twitching, headless corpse remained beneath his foot.
"Wrong answer."
Ran En turned without looking back.
His voice was calm, but his thoughts were cold.
"Shiba. Shihouin. Kuchiki. Tsunayashiro..."
He whispered the names like curses.
Among the Four Great Noble Houses, only Tsunayashiro was known for targeting Spirit King fragments. Even marrying a woman from Rukongai had been part of some cruel experiment.
It all lined up.
"Right. Aizen."
Ran En suddenly remembered his little brother.
If he'd been attacked, Aizen surely had too. But unlike in the original timeline, Aizen wasn't hiding his strength. He would be a prime target.
Ran En pressed one finger to the ground.
"Bakudō #58: Kakushitsuijaku."
Golden symbols spiraled from his fingertip and glowed in the air. His spiritual sense expanded tenfold, a hundredfold.
Soon, he found it.
A familiar spiritual signature pulsed in the distance.
Locked in.
A streak of golden light tore through the night sky.
Within seconds, Ran En had crossed over 50 kilometers, arriving at a high cliff overlooking a moonlit valley.
Down below, near a mountain stream, the battle was in full swing.
Aizen stood alone against six black-robed assassins.
Four more bodies already lay at his feet.
It was clear: they'd given Aizen the same treatment ten against one.
And like Ran En, he'd started cutting them down.
In a blur of steel and flame, Aizen slashed a man across the chest and raised his left hand.
"Hadō #33: Sōkatsui."
A blast of blue fire surged outward, forcing two attackers to leap back.
Even without full Shikai, Aizen's raw talent in swordsmanship and Kidō had carried him through the ambush.
His movements were sharp, precise.
Not a single blow had landed on him.
It was only a matter of time before the rest followed their fallen comrades.
Ran En watched from above, suppressing a yawn.
Impressive, yes.
But not enough to excite him yet.
No flashy tricks. No dramatic speeches. No perfect one-liners.
Aizen hadn't unlocked his full potential yet.
He was powerful, but not dazzling.
Still, as always, he would catch up.
Just then, one of the remaining assassins began to raise his Zanpakutō.
"Roar "
The start of a release command.
Ran En flicked his wrist.
A beam of golden light exploded from above, piercing the man clean through the chest before he could finish.
His eyes widened in confusion as blood poured from the hole in his torso.
Zanpakutō slipped from his hand, his mouth still frozen mid-syllable.
He never got to finish.
Boom.
The beam hit the ground a moment later, erupting into a violent explosion.
A golden fireball swallowed the battlefield, washing over the last few assassins in a blazing shockwave.
Their screams were cut short.
When the dust settled, nothing was left but silence.
Ran En lowered his hand.
"Flash-type Zanpakutō."
"It's only just getting started."