Shinigami in the Ninja World (Re-upload)

The beam of light shot straight into the sky, pure and radiant, brimming with spiritual pressure of divine quality.

The Shinigami were bewildered, unable to comprehend the meaning behind this phenomenon.

Naruto glanced at it and immediately grasped the situation.

As expected...

What he had feared when leaving the Soul King's Palace had come to pass.

Yhwach had been waiting for this moment.

His goal was to invade the Soul King's Palace.

Naruto raised his hand, summoning the 'Vortex', and the blade disintegrated into the sky, transforming into a powerful, roaring current that surged toward the beam of light.

Suddenly, a mountain rose from the earth.

Majestic and steep, the cliffside jutted out just enough to block the wind's path.

An ordinary mountain wouldn't last long against the force of 'Vortex''s wind.

Grinding noises echoed as the wind eroded the mountain, reducing it to dust and debris, which mixed into the wind, amplifying its power.

However...

Before the first mountain was fully eroded, another rose, followed by another, layering one atop the next.

"The wind is fast," Gremmy Thoumeaux remarked with a smile, looking up at the mountains. "But the fastest thing in this world is imagination."

"Did you know?"

"Humans—ordinary humans without spiritual power—have already discovered that the fastest thing in the universe is light."

"It can travel at 290,000 kilometers per second."

"But in the realm of imagination, surpassing the speed of light is easy."

"Until you defeat me, you won't break through my barrier."

Back at the 1st Division barracks, Yhwach, bathed in the light alongside several Sternritter, spoke with calm confidence.

"Naruto Uzumaki, do you know what awaits us above?"

"With your perspective, you must have realized I've been waiting for this opportunity."

He stretched his arms wide, his body almost merging with the radiant light.

"However, no matter what…"

"I must apologize in advance," he said with feigned politeness, "but your plans and preparations won't stop me."

"For a thousand years, the Wandenreich has survived in the shadows."

"Now, it's time for us to step into the light."

The light swirled, pulling Yhwach and his followers upward, lifting them into the sky.

A sound like tearing fabric echoed across the heavens, reverberating in the ears of all present.

"The confined Quincy King regains his pulse after 900 years. His mind after 90 years. His strength after 9 years. And the world in 9 days."

The deep, resonant voice shook the Seireitei.

Naruto looked up.

The light had pierced deep into the clouds, the figures of the Sternritter now hidden within, carried by the light through the layers of barriers beneath the Soul King's Palace.

On the battlefield below in the Seireitei, Captain-Commander Yamamoto's face was stern. "It's worse than we thought. Their target isn't the Seireitei—it's the Soul King himself."

"I'm not surprised," said Shunsui Kyoraku, tilting his head and glancing at the blonde youth standing in the Roman coliseum. "He and the Zero Division already foresaw this."

"Captain Kuchiki, Captain Shiba—they're in the Soul King's Palace," said Nanao Ise, the 8th Division Lieutenant, standing behind them. "And the members of the Zero Division…"

"They should be able to hold out until Captain Uzumaki reaches them."

Yamamoto remained silent, his face calm. "Perhaps Naruto isn't even necessary. Yhwach going to the Soul King's Palace…"

"Could be his gravest mistake."

For Nanao, Naruto was the last hope.

However...

As one of the few who understood the monk's power, Yamamoto knew just how overwhelming the ancient figure, as old as the Soul Society itself, truly was.

Nanao looked thoughtful.

It seemed as though...

The Quincy might be walking into a trap.

If they could just eliminate the remaining Quincy in the Seireitei, the situation could be resolved.

She glanced up, her gaze aligning with Kyoraku's, both of them observing the coliseum where the battle raged.

Naruto turned his attention back to the smug man in front of him.

"Too bad, huh? Watching them leave, unable to do anything about it," Gremmy sneered. "It must be frustrating, and it's all thanks to me."

"Naruto Uzumaki."

"Have you ever thought about your own death?"

Naruto had no time for idle banter.

Though he had already clashed with the monk and understood how troublesome his abilities could be for ordinary Shinigami...

He still felt an unsettling sense of unease, not just instinctively, but also from the strange connection between the Soul King's energy and the Quincy.

The powers displayed by the Quincy, with their manipulation of reality, felt too similar to the Soul King's.

Yhwach, the Quincy King… Naruto suspected his relationship with the Soul King ran far deeper than anyone could imagine, even beyond the monk's connection.

He raised his hand and grasped the air.

The wind gathered in his palm, forming a long blade.

In an instant, he stepped forward, closing the distance.

Though Gremmy's abilities were strange and formidable, his physical body was fragile, completely mismatched with his power.

As Naruto's attack approached, Gremmy's mind registered the threat.

But his eyes and body couldn't keep up.

The sword slashed down.

Gremmy didn't move, only lowering his head to look at the place where he had been struck. His voice was calm. "You hit me."

"So powerful, I didn't even have time to react."

Naruto's expression remained unchanged.

Kurama, ever the perfect sidekick, looked shocked. "Why... isn't he hurt?"

The fox knew Naruto's strength well.

In terms of swordsmanship, Naruto ranked among the top captains of the Seireitei.

And Kurama had observed clearly that Gremmy's body wasn't particularly durable.

Yet, no damage had been dealt.

"That's a good question," Gremmy smiled. "I just imagined that my body was made of the hardest steel."

"So now..."

Upon hearing this, Kurama's face relaxed, and he scoffed, his voice filled with disdain.

"So all you have is your so-called imagination?"

"Do you misunderstand what swordsmanship is?"

"Or do you have a misunderstanding about the body of a Shinigami honed through countless battles?"

"Or perhaps you're underestimating what a Zanpakutō is?"

Gremmy's expression shifted slightly as he realized his clothes and body were beginning to disintegrate. Naruto's slash had created a whirlwind inside his body.

This wasn't an ordinary slash.

At least, not the kind Gremmy had imagined.

Naruto's expression changed too. 'Vortex' had torn through the outer shell of Gremmy's body, revealing his internal structure. Blood, muscles, and even bones—everything was unnaturally arranged, too precise to be human.

This wasn't a natural body.

It was artificial.

"Unexpected," Gremmy said, twisting his body at an unnatural speed, pulling himself free from the blade's path. He took his hands out of his pockets. "So that's what your attack does."

He bent his body forward.

The grotesque wound that had marred his body was healing at an astonishing speed.

"Imagining rapid regeneration?" Kurama whispered.

Naruto shook his head, still observing the wound.

Was this ability truly regeneration?

"You're right. Aside from my imagination, I'm not skilled in anything else," Gremmy said casually, still relaxed. "But it's not that I don't want to learn—it's just unnecessary."

"As long as I have my imagination, I can do anything."

He snapped his fingers.

"You're too dangerous."

"So..."

"This will be enough."

As he spoke, another "Gremmy Thoumeaux" appeared beside him.

Identical in appearance, height, and spiritual pressure—exactly the same as the original.

"You can imagine yourself?" Kurama gasped.

The two Gremmys raised their fingers in unison and wiggled them mockingly. "Not just one."

"There can be many."

Suddenly, countless Gremmys appeared, filling every corner of the coliseum.

Kurama shook his head, unimpressed. "So there's just a lot of you."

His earlier surprise was merely at the novelty of the self-replication. As for quantity...

He wasn't concerned.

Numbers alone didn't decide a battle. When there was a significant power gap, no matter how many there were, it wouldn't change the outcome.

Gremmy's physical body was weak, and his reaction speed was slow.

He was on par with an average-ranked officer.

Even a large number of officers wouldn't be able to handle a captain like Naruto, or any of the other Seireitei captains.

"I know in your battles, spiritual pressure is the foundation of everything," Gremmy said, all of his clones speaking in perfect unison, their voices surrounding Naruto. "And I also know that you, as the Captain of the 7th Division, can use a cloning technique."

"But my ability is different from your clones."

"For every version of me, my imagination doubles."

"With this many of me, my imagination multiplies exponentially."

He spread his arms wide.

"Infinite imagination means infinite power."

In the sky, countless objects materialized.

"Shurado," Kurama muttered, recognizing the objects. They immediately reminded him of the Asura Path from the Six Paths of Pain.

Missiles, mortars.

Helicopters circled overhead, and warships appeared out of thin air.

Artillery roared, leaving fiery trails behind them, tearing through the clouds as explosions engulfed the battlefield in waves of sulfur and smoke.

As the pinnacle of human invention, these weapons were more imposing than anything the Asura Path had wielded.

Naruto raised his hand.

"I've never been interested in human gadgets."

"But to think you can defeat me with these…"

"Do you think these weapons could harm Yhwach?"

Gremmy shook his head. No matter what his personal thoughts were, his external expression was one of unwavering loyalty to Yhwach. "My power was a gift from His Majesty. How could it possibly harm him?"

"Exactly. If these weapons can't even harm Yhwach, do you think they'll impress me?" Naruto clenched his hand.

'Vortex''s wind roared to life.

The entire coliseum began to disintegrate, as did the mountains Gremmy had conjured.

"You're underestimating me."

"Or overestimating yourself."

The wind howled, particles swirling, erasing the world's boundaries, as if layers of reality were being peeled away, leaving only a transparent outline behind.

Gremmy's power was formidable, but it had limitations.

His imagination could only affect objects he created or touched.

...

Outside the battlefield, Shunsui Kyōraku raised his hand, pressing down on his hat. "Is that... 'Bankai'?"

"No," Yamamoto Genryūsai immediately shook his head. "That is still 'Shikai'."

A look of surprise flashed across his eyes. He was all too familiar with this kind of power. A long time ago, after mastering the power of 'True Strike', this was how his own power manifested when using 'Ryūjin Jakka'.

However…

As he grew stronger and sought to aid the development of other Shinigami, he categorized the power of 'True Strike' into 'Shikai' and 'Bankai'.

"Is he really that powerful?" Shunsui lowered his head, pressing his hat a bit harder, his expression thoughtful. "To gain such improvement after visiting the Soul King's Palace."

Yamamoto shook his head. "It's not improvement. It's liberation."

Shunsui nodded in understanding. He was among the first in the Seireitei to understand Naruto's unique circumstances.

"I really am getting old," Yamamoto sighed. He had said this before, but this time, his tone lacked the bitterness of before—it was more of acceptance and peace.

Back on the battlefield, Gremmy Thoumeaux's imagined creations were being destroyed.

"Which one is the real him?" Kurama crouched on Naruto's shoulder, tugging at his clothes, trying to sense the presence of each Gremmy Thoumeaux. But no matter which one he checked, the energy signature was exactly the same.

Naruto shook his head. For now, it was difficult for him to discern the original.

The wind roared, chains flew, Kidō surged, and techniques were unleashed. Everything Naruto had learned from two worlds was now being used at once. When it came to the variety of attacks, he was perhaps the most versatile among all the captains.

One by one, the Gremmy clones were killed. And yet, more appeared.

"It's useless," the Gremmy clones said in unison, laughing provocatively. "I already told you, my ability allows me to turn my imagination into reality. I imagined myself, and thus, every single one of me is the real me."

"You can't kill us all, nor can you kill me."

He paused and tilted his head. "How did you kill Haschwalth again? I remember… It was through attrition. You drained Haschwalth's spiritual pressure. Now, I'll do the same to you. I'll use my imagination to drain your—"

Before he could finish, Naruto interrupted calmly. "I've already figured out how to kill you."

The Gremmy clones collectively let out a mocking "Oh?"

"Imagination is indeed a fascinating thing," Naruto remarked, "but no matter how strong your imagination is, no matter how bizarre it may seem, it still needs to rely on reality for it to function."

Gremmy looked at him. "Are you planning to destroy reality?"

"That seems like something you could do," Gremmy added. "But could someone like you, who seeks to protect the world, really have the resolve to destroy the very things you want to protect?"

Naruto shook his head. "Your body... it's also a creation of your imagination, isn't it?"

Gremmy froze for a moment. Even Kurama was stunned.

"I've been observing for a while," Naruto continued softly. "The structure of your body is far too perfect, almost to the point of flawlessness. Moreover, it's changing. In order to deal with my abilities, you've been imagining modifications to your body—imagining tougher skin, imagining features that allow you to better withstand the wind..."

The Gremmy clones glanced down at their bodies.

"If it were only the newly created versions of you showing these traits, I might not have suspected anything," Naruto explained, raising his hand thoughtfully. "But the fact that even the old versions of you exhibit these changes… that's what led me to this conclusion."

Gremmy forced himself to maintain a calm facade. "And what if you're right?"

"Your ability is imagination, but imagination requires a medium," Naruto continued. "If it's not part of yourself, your imagination needs to come into contact with it to alter it. So... your real body is among these clones."

Spiritual energy surged.

"Adamantine Sealing Chains."

Chains wrapped around the nearest Gremmy clone, as a breeze sliced open its head and body. Inside, fresh brain matter and a fully intact inner cavity were revealed.

Kurama clicked his tongue in distaste.

Naruto shook his head, using the wind to obliterate the brain. "That's not it."

He reached for the second clone. Gremmy's expression shifted slightly. His body convulsed, as if something was writhing inside him.

"Close call," he muttered, exhaling deeply. "I almost imagined myself being dissected on a lab table."

"Conventional methods won't work on you." Naruto raised his hand. In the sky, a bright light erupted—a massive meteor suddenly appeared.

"No matter how powerful a creature is, in the face of the world's forces, they're nothing but insignificant," Gremmy said, his face twisting in madness. "Can you withstand this kind of power?"

Kurama looked up, shaking his head. "He's imagining a 'Tengai Shinsei'."

During the battle with Madara Uchiha, Kurama had already seen this technique. However, the meteor Gremmy had conjured was far larger than the one Madara unleashed.

In the distance, the Shinigami were panicking.

"Is this the power of a Quincy?"

"Dammit, we can't escape."

"This entire Seireitei is within its attack range."

Someone tried to stay calm: "Don't worry, we have the Sekkiseki to protect us—" But before he could finish, the meteor crashed into the shield, shattering it.

Then it continued its devastating descent toward the Seireitei.

"Die, die!" Gremmy chanted. "With an attack like this, even if you wanted to run, there's no escape. You, the greatest obstacle to His Majesty, will die here with me—"

Naruto raised his hand. The 'Vortex' wind began to blow.

"Your idea isn't bad," he said softly, "but your power is too weak, and your perspective too narrow. You're neither strong enough nor do you understand what true strength really is. Even if you can turn your imagination into reality, it still depends on the limits of what you know. Your talent dictates the extent of your power."

The meteor froze in midair. Compared to the last time Naruto had stopped such an attack, this time it was effortless. The wind began to erode the meteor bit by bit. The fragments didn't fall but were swept into the wind, turning into "grains of sand" that accelerated the disintegration.

"A technique like this—I stopped it even when I was much weaker than I am now," Naruto lowered his hand. "What you think of as great power is nothing in front of me."

He began marking each of Gremmy's bodies, ignoring the newly created ones. Though this method seemed clumsy, it was effective. Gremmy continued to struggle, but none of his imagined creations could significantly hinder Naruto.

Finally—

Naruto split open one of the Gremmy clones. Unlike the others, inside its head was a single brain encased in a container.

"There's only one brain," Kurama extended his paw.

Naruto nodded. "It should be. No wonder he imagined such a perfect body for himself. No wonder that even after I pointed it out, he couldn't change his body."

Lava, storms, snow, and even cosmic phenomena appeared, but they were useless. Naruto simply applied a little pressure. The container shattered, and the brain was crushed into pulp, severing the only connection between imagination and reality. In an instant, all the imaginary creations were wiped out.

Gremmy Thoumeaux was dead. And with his death, his imagination died as well.

At the Soul King's Palace.

Yhwach and his followers stepped out of the beam of light. "So this is the Soul King's Palace," Yhwach said, gazing at the massive structure floating like a pillar in the air. "Quite surprising. I expected them to conceal it more elegantly. But they've truly built a gravestone for the Soul King."

The Sternritter following him bowed deeply, their expressions reverent.

"Let's conquer this place," Yhwach said softly, taking a step forward, then paused abruptly. "Naruto Uzumaki is still as fast as ever."

"'V' has returned."

Aside from Uryū Ishida, the other Sternritter froze at the implication of his words.

They all knew what His Majesty meant by that.

"When a power I've bestowed is used and its wielder dies, that power returns to me," Yhwach explained to Uryū with a kind expression. "'V' was Gremmy Thoumeaux, the knight I left behind to stall Naruto Uzumaki in the Seireitei. I thought his power and presence might trouble Naruto, but it seems the same flaws of the Sternritter were present in Gremmy." His gaze swept over his followers. "They receive my gift and think they are invincible. Arrogance, hubris, blindness."

The Sternritter bowed their heads.

"But it doesn't matter. The objective has been achieved," Yhwach extended his hand. "We've broken into the Soul King's Palace. Now, let them entertain me."

A loud noise accompanied his words. A massive oar-like weapon swung down. Barro blocked it, the two exchanging blows before stepping back.

"How rude of you. Don't you realize where you are?" said Tenjirō Kirinji, the first to arrive, his sharp eyes scanning the group of intruders.

...

In the Seireitei.

Naruto wiped the remains from his hand and looked to the side. "Captain Kurotsuchi, he's dead. There's no need to keep hiding."

Mayuri Kurotsuchi emerged from behind a rock, holding a portable device. "What a waste. Such a valuable specimen, so easily destroyed by Captain Uzumaki. If only you'd left it for me…"

Naruto countered, "Could you have controlled him?"

With an ability to turn unrestrained imagination into reality, few in the Seireitei could overpower Gremmy. At least, Mayuri was not among them.

"I could have," Mayuri replied confidently. "Imagination stems from thought. I just so happen to have a few serums that could perfectly counter that kind of power. Whether to accelerate or slow down..."

"That's why, Captain Uzumaki, you should have left this treasure for me."

Naruto shook his head, waving him off. "We'll deal with that later. Right now, we have more important matters. I need you to contact Kisuke Urahara."

Mayuri's eyes narrowed, his expression becoming more dangerous than before. "I believe I've already proven that I'm superior to Kisuke Urahara, haven't I? So why contact him?"

Naruto replied calmly, "It's about the Soul King."

Mayuri paused.

As reckless as he was, he knew where the line was, especially after being imprisoned in the Nest of Maggots. He knew what not to cross.

And so…

The subject of the Soul King was something he hadn't really delved into.

~~~

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