Chapter 280 - 280 Overwhelming Advantage
Whoosh!
Like a flash of lightning, Toshiro, who had been some distance away, instantly appeared beside Momo.
Glancing at Momo and confirming she wasn't injured, Toshiro turned to Gin.
"Ichimaru Gin! Who gave you the nerve to lay a hand on Momo? Do you have a death wish?" Toshiro's tone was icy.
Whether an illusion or something else, as Toshiro spoke, Gin felt the surrounding temperature drop significantly in an instant. Even with his strength, he felt a chill.
"Ara ara, could the Captain of the 10th Division be misunderstanding? I just wanted to spar with Lieutenant Hinamori, nothing more." A drop of cold sweat rolled down Gin's forehead, but he still defended himself.
Although he knew Toshiro was powerful and likely beyond him, just standing face-to-face and feeling such immense pressure, making his body feel heavier, was beyond Gin's expectations.
"Oh? Sparring? Just sparring led to bloodshed and injury? If I had been any later, would there have been casualties?" Toshiro glanced at the injured Kira.
"Bloodshed? Injury? You mean Izuru? That's just because, as the 3rd Division's Lieutenant, he disobeyed his Captain's orders. So I gave him a little lesson." Gin said.
"Whatever happened to Izuru is irrelevant now. But you daring to lay a hand on Momo is absolutely unforgivable!" Toshiro said coldly and mercilessly.
Kira was definitely involved in this. After all, he tricked Momo into coming. So, Toshiro was extremely angry with Kira right now.
"A dragon has its reverse scale… touch it and die! A phoenix has its vulnerable neck… offend it and perish!"
"Ichimaru Gin, regardless of your purpose, daring to lay a hand on Momo means you die today!" Toshiro stated firmly.
Originally, for Rangiku's sake, Toshiro hadn't planned to do anything to Gin. After all, everything Gin did was for revenge for Rangiku, even infiltrating beside his enemy Aizen for over a hundred years. Toshiro held some respect for that.
But now, Gin targeting Momo had completely enraged Toshiro.
Clang!
Toshiro didn't waste more words. He directly drew the Zanpakuto from his back.
"Surrender, Ichimaru Gin!" Toshiro pointed his blade at Gin.
"Ara ara, that won't do, Captain Hitsugaya. If you draw your Zanpakuto here, I'll have no choice but to stop you." Gin also pointed his Zanpakuto at Toshiro.
"Hmph! Overestimating yourself! What gave you the courage to oppose me?" Toshiro said disdainfully.
Gin's strength was indeed very high, at least Advanced Captain-level. His true Bankai was also formidable. Even Aizen, without the Hogyoku, would absolutely die if sneak-attacked by Gin's true Bankai.
But this meant little to Toshiro. As Gin himself said earlier, no matter how powerful an ability, it's useless if it can't hit the enemy.
And the true Bankai that Gin kept hidden, only using it to sneak-attack Aizen in the original work, Toshiro already knew about.
By staying cautious, with the absolute gap in strength, Gin had no chance of victory against Toshiro.
"Ara ara, although you, Captain Hitsugaya, might indeed be a bit stronger than me, such an attitude is really too dismissive, isn't it?" Being so scorned by Toshiro made Gin somewhat angry.
"Hmph!" Toshiro snorted coldly, not bothering to argue, intending to speak with strength.
Boom!
Immense Reiatsu erupted from Toshiro.
'Urgh... such powerful Reiatsu... probably not inferior to Aizen's... No, possibly even stronger than Aizen's...'
'He's truly a monster... Hitsugaya Toshiro...' Although Toshiro's Reiatsu didn't cause substantial damage, Gin still felt his body grow heavy, needing more effort than usual to move, even finding it hard to breathe.
Nearby, Kira couldn't even stand under Toshiro's Reiatsu… he was directly pressed to the ground.
And that was because Toshiro's Reiatsu was primarily directed at Gin, while Kira only faced residual waves.
If Kira faced Toshiro's Reiatsu head-on, he might be instantly crushed to death.
This wasn't an exaggeration. In the original work, Nanao, facing Yamamoto, was directly overwhelmed by his presence. If not for Kyoraku's timely intervention, Nanao might have died.
Kira, like Nanao, was a Lieutenant. And Toshiro's current strength might not be inferior to Yamamoto's. Therefore, even against Lieutenant-level opponents, Toshiro need not directly attack… just his Reiatsu and presence alone could crush or even kill them.
"Such... such immense reiatsu... Toshiro has already grown this powerful?" Kira, lying on the ground, watched Toshiro not far away.
Kira tried to stand but couldn't.
Among those present, except for Momo, whom Toshiro deliberately shielded from his Reiatsu, Gin and Kira were affected to varying degrees.
"Ichimaru Gin, die!" Toshiro shouted and suddenly attacked!
Whoosh!
Toshiro's figure flashed, vanishing from Gin's sight, then appearing beside him in an instant, slashing down.
Faced with this incredibly fast attack, Gin couldn't even block, only instinctively twisting his body to avoid vital spots.
Rip!
Gin's Captain Haori was directly torn by Toshiro's slash, a bloody gash appearing on his body.
"What?!" Gin exclaimed in shock.
Although he knew he was no match for Toshiro, he didn't expect to be injured in their first exchange.
While Gin was shocked, Toshiro showed no mercy. His Zanpakuto slashed up and down, like a fluttering butterfly, delivering graceful yet lethal attacks.
Whether in power, speed, or swordsmanship, Toshiro held absolute advantage. Under his assault, Gin retreated step after step, falling into an absolute disadvantage.
Even if Gin wanted to counterattack, he lacked the strength.
As the saying goes: an inch longer, an inch stronger… an inch shorter, an inch riskier. Gin's Zanpakuto was as short as a dagger, while Toshiro's was longer than average.
Therefore, unless Gin could close the distance, his Zanpakuto couldn't even reach Toshiro.
Not to mention, under Toshiro's onslaught, Gin could barely parry, appearing in imminent danger. Counterattacking was even more difficult.
With the vast difference in strength, from the start of their battle, Toshiro held an overwhelming advantage.