Chapter 4: The Seven Ninja Swordsmen, Twin Swords: Hiramekarei

Gin Ichimaru and the others worked with high efficiency.

Although he and Rukia Kuchiki had not exchanged words, their division of labor was clear.

Rukia Kuchiki led twelve squad members to purge the miscellaneous ninja within the Land of Whirlpools.

Gin Ichimaru headed toward the coast of the Land of Whirlpools.

In his spiritual pressure perception, there was one figure there barely worth engaging.

The coast of the Land of Whirlpools.

Sato Himokihara, one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Mist and master of the Twin Swords: Hiramekarei, sat on a reef gazing at the sea.

His face wore an expression of extreme impatience.

"Too slow!"

He wondered what resources could possibly be scavenged in this tiny, pellet-sized nation called the Land of Whirlpools.

And yet they still dispatched him here to stand guard.

It was simply boring to death!

It was all the fault of the Land of Whirlpools being too weak, collapsing so easily.

His twin swords hadn't even gotten a satisfying slash yet.

"Aaaah, hurry up and send someone for me to cut down!"

Tap, tap, tap!

Clear footsteps suddenly echoed on the sandy beach.

Sato Himokihara's ears twitched, and he spoke in an impatient tone: "You're so slow; I'm nearly bored to death!"

As he spoke, he turned his head.

Upon clearly seeing the owner of the footsteps, Sato Himokihara, who had been about to say more, abruptly fell silent.

Staring with one eye, he asked strangely, "Who the hell are you!"

Gin Ichimaru maintained his signature smile and introduced himself: "Target of the 3rd Division of the Gotei 13 in the Land of Whirlpools, Gin Ichimaru; pleased to make your acquaintance."

"Hah?"

Sato Himokihara froze for a moment.

Weren't all the people of the Land of Whirlpools already killed off by them and the Cloud ninja?

How did another person suddenly appear?

And what exactly is this Gotei 13?

It sounds like some kind of organization?

Sato Hyokigen hurriedly shook his head, trying to shake these thoughts away.

"Guard this or guard that, who cares!" Sato Hyokigen untied the Twin Swords: Hiramekarei from his back, slammed them onto the reef with a loud bang, and his eyes lit up with excitement as he grinned viciously, "You're an enemy, right? Then stop talking nonsense and come over here so I can cut you a few times!"

Gin Ichimaru smiled and said, "Oh my, how terrifying."

Sato Hyokigen's face darkened, feeling mocked.

But when he saw the sword Gin Ichimaru drew, his mood instantly improved, and he sneered, "Hahaha, are you here to tell jokes? Using such a short sword!"

With that, Sato Hyokigen showily spun the Twin Swords: Hiramekarei, creating a flourish of blades.

Gin Ichimaru narrowed his eyes and said, "Dying beneath this blade is your honor, you know."

Tsk!

Sato Hyokigen stared at Gin Ichimaru's face, feeling increasingly irritated.

The bandages on the Twin Swords: Hiramekarei were instantly torn off; with a gloomy look in his eyes, Sato Hyokigen wielded the dual blades, quickly executed the Body Flicker Technique, appeared above Gin Ichimaru, and slammed the twin swords down fiercely!

The air pressure generated by the terrifying force and weight scattered Gin Ichimaru's short hair.

He slightly raised his head, still narrowing his eyes, and slowly lifted his Zanpakuto, positioning it directly in the path of Sato Hyokigen's attack.

"Hehaha! You think you can block my Twin Swords: Hiramekarei with that tiny little knife!"

Sato Hyokigen looked utterly disdainful, as if he could already see Gin Ichimaru smashed into minced meat.

His Twin Swords: Hiramekarei were special ninja swords forged from chakra metal and unique materials!

How could they possibly be blocked by an ordinary, even somewhat ridiculous, broken blade?

Clang!

In a flash of lightning and spark, the Twin Swords: Hiramekarei collided with the small sword in Gin Ichimaru's hand.

A crisp sound like striking metal rang out.

Sparks flew in all directions!

Contrary to Sato Hyokigen's expectations, that ridiculous sword did not shatter upon impact; instead, it steadily blocked his assault.

Gin Ichimaru felt the force on the blade, made a judgment about his opponent's strength, and smiled warmly, "You're about the same as those ninjas I met earlier; the only difference is that your weapon is slightly better."

Those ninjas from before?

Sato Hyokigen paused for a moment.

Then he realized Gin was referring to the fellow villagers who had been scavenging resources in the Land of Whirlpools.

His eyes immediately widened, and a nameless fury rose within his heart!

"How dare you! Compare me with them!!"

"I am one of the Seven Ninja Swordsmen of the Hidden Mist Village!!"

Completely enraged, Sato Hyokigen swung the Twin Swords: Hiramekarei, launching attacks at Gin Ichimaru from every angle.

"Oh my, you've completely turned into a wild beast."

Gin Ichimaru calmly deflected his attacks while continuing to mock him verbally.

Seeing that his attacks were yielding no results after a long while, Sato Hyokigen gradually calmed down.

After stopping his assault and creating some distance, Sato Hyokigen said in a deep voice, "In that case, let me show you the true power of the Hiramekarei!"

"Hiramekarei Release!"

Hum!

Air currents rose from the two circular holes on the Twin Swords: Hiramekarei; blue light enveloped the entire blade, and massive amounts of chakra condensed upon its surface.

"This is getting slightly interesting."

Watching the released state of the Hiramekarei, Gin Ichimaru felt it resembled the release of a Zanpakuto.

"Hahaha, now that you've witnessed the true power of the Hiramekarei, you can die without regrets!"

Sato Hyokigen wore an arrogant expression.

He swung his sword!

A chakra cannon blast instantly surged forward!

The sand beneath the chakra cannon was plowed into a deep trench.

The terrifying energy impact blew Gin Ichimaru's Shihakusho robe, making it flap loudly.

Sato Hyokigen grinned viciously, anticipating the sight of Gin Ichimaru being blown into fragments.

But Gin Ichimaru remained just as calm, wearing his signature smile, and said unhurriedly, "Shoot to Kill, Shinsou!"

Hum!

The wakizashi-like sword, as if hearing a command, instantly extended, piercing through the chakra cannon.

With a loud bang, before the chakra cannon could reach Gin Ichimaru, it shattered into countless bits of chakra, vanishing into the air like a broken mirror.

Sato Hyokigen's pupils contracted sharply; his sixth sense, screaming with frantic warning, made him instinctively raise the Hiramekarei to block his body.

Boom!

Shinsou struck the Hiramekarei; the kinetic energy, exceeding the speed of sound, smashed Sato Hyokigen along with the Hiramekarei into the sea with tremendous impact!

"Cough, cough!!"

Sato Hyokigen struggled to crawl out of the sea, his internal organs churning violently, and he spat out several mouthfuls of blood.

When he looked at Gin Ichimaru again, his gaze inevitably carried terror.

A monster!

All those with narrowed eyes are monsters!

This thought surfaced in his mind unconsciously.

And that blade!

To think that besides the Seven Ninja Blades of their Hidden Mist Village, other special ninja blades existed!

That ability to extend and retract its length, and a speed invisible to the naked eye!

Recalling the situation just now, Sato Himukihara felt a chill run down his spine.

So close!

Just a little bit more!

He would have met his end right here!!

In an instant, the thought of retreating arose in Sato Himukihara's mind.

But the next moment, he felt as though he were being targeted by a venomous snake.

Sato Himukihara's body tensed as he stared at Ichimaru Gin's face, which resembled that of a snake.

He realized almost instantly the fact that there was no escape for him.

Once he turned and fled, given that strange blade's ability to extend and retract and its speed, he would surely die!

The Land of Whirlpools, why does such a figure still exist there!!