"Heh, what a pity, Toshiro-kun," Aizen suddenly said with a light laugh.
"A pity? What is there to pity?"
"What a pity... you didn't manage to kill me just now, Toshiro-kun. That was my last opening... and your last chance. Having lost that chance, you no longer have any hope of killing me. In fact... even wounding me is a luxury."
Aizen said calmly.
"Heh, what are you boasting about, Aizen? Haven't I already wounded you?" Toshiro said with a disdainful sneer.
Although Aizen had dodged with all his might, because Toshiro's attack was too sudden, Aizen ultimately could not completely avoid it. He was struck on the left shoulder by Toshiro's Kenatsu, nearly severing his entire arm.
Under normal circumstances, Aizen's left arm would be considered useless. And for Toshiro, crippling one of Aizen's arms before the fight would undoubtedly give him a huge advantage in the upcoming battle.
Of course, that was under normal circumstances. But Aizen was clearly not a normal person...
"A wound? Can something like this... be called a wound?" Hearing Toshiro's words, Aizen looked somewhat surprised, as if Toshiro was making a fuss over nothing.
And just as Aizen finished speaking, the muscles at his wound wriggled. Then, in just a short moment, the injury, which had been severe enough to nearly sever his entire arm, almost completely healed, leaving only a very small scratch, as if he hadn't been injured by Toshiro but had simply scratched himself.
Seeing this, Toshiro frowned: "High-Speed Regeneration..."
"No! This is not... High-Speed Regeneration. And besides, do you think... I would choose the path of Hollowfication?"
Hearing Toshiro's words, Aizen showed a rare expression of anger, as if Toshiro's suggestion that he had chosen the path of Hollowfication was an insult to him.
And in fact, Aizen was indeed somewhat angry at this moment. He had always been arrogant, looking down on others. Only Toshiro was his recognized 'enemy', an existence on the same level as himself.
But now, Toshiro, whom he regarded as his equal, was questioning that he had chosen the lowly method of Hollowfication to enhance his strength. This undoubtedly made Aizen feel belittled.
So Aizen tore open his upper uniform, revealing the Hogyoku embedded in his chest: "This is not High-Speed Regeneration... It is merely the Hogyoku's defensive instinct to protect its master."
Having said that, Aizen extended his right hand and gently stroked the wound on his left shoulder, which had healed leaving only a scratch like a fingernail mark. Then a blue Reiatsu emerged from the wound and flew into Aizen's hand.
"This is your Reiatsu, isn't it? It seems a bit stronger. How surprising, Toshiro-kun. In such a short time, not only did you escape the trap I set, but your strength has also improved considerably..."
"If you had a little more time, perhaps you really could have broken the limits of Shinigami on your own and evolved to another realm," Aizen said with some admiration.
Then Aizen couldn't help but say with some regret: "However... unfortunately, you no longer have that chance."
"Originally, I planned to complete all my plans and successfully evolve to another level before completely killing you. But you have obstructed me again and again. So... I have no choice but to settle things with you first!"
Earlier, Aizen had not wanted to fight Toshiro. This was not because he feared Toshiro, but because there was no need.
In terms of personal combat power, Toshiro was indeed slightly stronger than him. But with the enhancement of the Hogyoku, Aizen's combat power was not weaker than Toshiro's... it might even be stronger.
But even if Aizen's strength was greater than Toshiro's with the Hogyoku's power, it wouldn't be by much. Overall, their strengths were still similar. In this situation, it would undoubtedly be very difficult for them to determine a victor.
Of course, with the Hogyoku in hand, Aizen's Reiatsu was almost inexhaustible. In a battle of attrition, Aizen believed he would ultimately win.
But that would be too troublesome. Even if Toshiro's Reiatsu was less than his with the Hogyoku, he was still a pinnacle Shinigami, with Reiatsu as vast as the sea. Who knew how long the fight would go on to exhaust Toshiro's Reiatsu.
And Aizen undoubtedly did not want to waste that much time fighting Toshiro for nothing.
So earlier, he had used Kyoka Suigetsu to manipulate Kyoraku and the others to temporarily hold off Toshiro, while he took the opportunity to complete his plan.
Then, after he finally broke the Shinigami limit and evolved to another level, he would come back and easily deal with Toshiro.
However, unfortunately, Toshiro did not go along with his wishes and always obstructed him at critical moments. So, with no other choice, Aizen had to choose to deal with Toshiro first.
'Well, whatever. Since I can't hold off Hitsugaya Toshiro, I'll just have to fight him first. And besides...'
'Perhaps in the fight with Hitsugaya Toshiro, I might feel true fear and then complete my final evolution...'
Thinking this, Aizen no longer resisted the fight with Toshiro.
"Well then... come, Toshiro-kun. Let us have our final duel!"
Aizen drew his Zanpakuto, pointing it at Toshiro: "We have fought many times before, but never reached a conclusion. But this time... this will probably be our last battle. So, use all your strength to fight me. And I..."
"...to show respect for you, my only opponent, will also use my true strength... to see you off..."
Toshiro said with a light laugh: "Heh, see me off? Sorry, Aizen. I'm still young... I haven't lived enough yet. How can I die? So... let me see you off instead!"
Before he finished speaking, Toshiro suddenly erupted, pushing his unique technique, Shunkuho, to its limit. In the blink of an eye, he closed in on Aizen and swung his sword at him.
Aizen seemed not to have anticipated that Toshiro would attack so suddenly, so in the haste, he could only raise his Zanpakuto horizontally to block Toshiro's slash.
Clang!
Swords clashed, sparks flew.
Then, under the collision of powerful forces, Aizen, blocking hurriedly, had the web of his thumb split, his Zanpakuto nearly flying from his hand. Toshiro, who had launched the sudden attack, was also affected by the recoil, his hand numb and weak.
However, as if he had anticipated this, Toshiro took the opportunity to suddenly extend his left hand and grab Aizen's neck. Then, a blue light flashed.
A pair of huge ice-frost wings appeared on Toshiro's back.
"Ha!"
Toshiro shouted, and the huge ice-frost wings on his back suddenly flapped. Then, grabbing Aizen by the neck, he flew away like lightning.
Boom!
Boom!
Boom!
Along the way, without dodging, Toshiro crashed Aizen through one high-rise building after another, finally stopping only after reaching a position far from where they had been.
"Alright... Aizen, now... our final battle can begin," Toshiro said in a deep voice.
Only then did Aizen have a chance to break free from Toshiro and put some distance between them.
"Cough, cough, cough... You deliberately came all the way over here... Were you worried that our battle might affect Yamamoto Genryusai?" Aizen couldn't help but ask while coughing.