Chapter 238: A Gentle Man?
"You want to leave? Did you ask for my permission?"
With a furious shout, the man raised the Zanpakutō in his hand.
At that moment, Ishihara also turned to look.
"Good heavens! That Zanpakutō is being completely suppressed by this man?
Who is he? How is he able to suppress that Zanpakutō? Even a Jōnin would struggle to suppress it, wouldn't they?"
Ishihara was shocked. He knew a little about that Zanpakutō's background.
"Hmph! That's because those samurai never wanted me to become one of them. They refused to teach me anything and even beat me up whenever I tried to train in swordsmanship."
The man spoke with deep resentment. He had suffered far too much injustice—all because he was the son of the previous daimyō, who had been completely eradicated!
The only surviving descendant of the former daimyō.
Because of this, he had been ostracized by everyone, yet he had developed an unbreakable will—the strongest in the world.
It wasn't as if he wanted to restore the previous daimyō's rule, yet he still suffered endless discrimination.
Perhaps… that was just the way of the ninja world.
Hearing the man's words, the Zanpakutō froze.
So that's how it is… Wait, no! How could it be like this?!
There was no way it would willingly submit to this guy!
Realizing this, the Zanpakutō flared up in rage.
It trembled violently, struggling madly to break free. It had to return to its master!
"Let me go! I need to go home! I have to find my master! If my master finds out about this, you'll die!
He'll never let you off…!"
The Zanpakutō roared in fury, trying to intimidate the man into letting go.
But to its shock, the man didn't just hold on—he tightened his grip even more.
"You think I'd let you leave? Besides, you only have one master now—and that's me!
Still, I am interested in the one you mentioned. Is he as strong as you, or even stronger? Can he give me greater power?"
The man spoke calmly.
In the past, he had no way to become stronger, so he had hidden all his ambitions deep inside.
But now, with power in his grasp, he naturally wanted to rule, to dominate, to see the world from its highest peak.
Of course, he had no interest in restoring the daimyō's glory.
Daimyō? Whoever wanted to be one could have it.
He only believed in power.
After everything he had been through, he had come to understand—nothing was more important than strength.
At that moment, his eyes burned with ambition and desire.
Ishihara sensed that something was wrong.
This guy… he could actually control the Zanpakutō?
That couldn't be allowed! He still needed to find the true master of this Zanpakutō.
If that was the case… he had to kill this man!
With that thought, Ishihara immediately plummeted down.
"Hmm?"
The man instantly noticed Ishihara, who had transformed into a caterpillar.
He gripped the Zanpakutō tightly and slashed toward Ishihara.
Ishihara was stunned.
That Zanpakutō hadn't detected his transformation just moments ago, yet this guy had noticed?
He wasn't sure if the man had actually seen through his transformation technique or if he was simply trying to cut down a falling bug.
Either way, Ishihara had no intention of getting sliced.
Just as he prepared to revert to his true form and block with his own Zanpakutō, he suddenly realized—
The man wasn't trying to kill him?
That shocked Ishihara even more. This guy…
To his surprise, the man caught the tiny caterpillar Ishihara had transformed into with the blade of his Zanpakutō, holding it steadily.
"Be careful. Falling from such a height could get you killed."
"You bastard! I'm a sword made for killing! Do you even realize what you're doing?!
Letting a caterpillar crawl on me—and saving it, no less?!"
The Zanpakutō exploded in anger.
This was outrageous! How could this man use it to save a caterpillar?
What kind of sick joke was this? Had anyone ever seen a ninja use a legendary blade to rescue a caterpillar?
"Shut up!"
The man snapped.
The Zanpakutō immediately fell silent.
Whether it was out of genuine obedience or something else entirely was unclear.
The man then gently placed Ishihara's caterpillar form on the ground.
"Be more careful next time. Don't climb so high again."
Looking at the man before him, Ishihara suddenly thought of Naruto.
Naruto had likely fallen under Kotoamatsukami's influence.
But this guy… he was genuinely kind.
At least, to the weak.
In that case, there was no need to retrieve this Zanpakutō anymore.
As for its original master…
There were still many more Zanpakutō left to recover.
Eventually, he would find the right one.
The Shadow Organization, huh?
Ishihara took note of it.
"I will cut down all injustice in this world—with this blade and my will!
And today, let this little caterpillar bear witness!"
The man suddenly declared, then swung his Zanpakutō forward with all his might.
A crescent-shaped energy wave shot out, slicing through the air.
In an instant, a vast swath of forest was severed at the waist!
The Zanpakutō shuddered, gasping in shock.
It had never expected the man it had randomly ended up with to possess such terrifying power.
Perhaps… if it stayed with him for a while…
He might even surpass its original master.