Bleach: The Strongest Shinigami

Mayuri had a nightmare.

In his dream, he lay on a basic operating table while unsterilized instruments dismantled his once-intact body.

The technique was so poor it made him sick.

As a scientist who had lived for over a hundred years, Mayuri had his own philosophy.

He deeply despised the word "perfect." Perfection meant the end — no room for creation — signifying that everything he had would become useless.

For scientists, "perfection" was despair. His life goal was to surpass anything currently in existence, but never to achieve perfection. To him, scientists were creatures who thrived in this contradiction, finding joy within their endless pursuit.

But even if one wasn't pursuing perfection, it shouldn't be this terrible, right?

The crude technique resembled a child's scribbles — erratic movements following no pattern whatsoever. The handling methods were riddled with errors.

Even a newcomer to the 12th Division wouldn't perform such an inferior dissection, let alone someone of his caliber.

Just as they were about to operate on his brain, Mayuri jolted awake, his eyes snapping open, his body drenched in sweat — as if he'd been through an intense battle.

"Awake now, Third Seat Kurotsuchi?" A calm voice echoed in the room.

When Mayuri clearly saw the speaker's appearance, his golden pupils contracted in surprise.

"You?"

"Surprised?" Aizen spoke casually, "Third Seat Kurotsuchi went to the World of the Living to search for experimental materials and had a conflict with the Quincy. I'll keep this matter secret for you. However, I need you to help me with something."

From his description, Mayuri received an answer close to his speculation.

Aizen had gone to the World of the Living to search for suitable Hollows as test subjects and discovered his residual poison gas near a valley.

After questioning and discussion, the Quincy revealed his actions but, under pressure from Soul Society, chose to let him go.

Although something felt off about the narrative, Aizen hadn't restrained him and had even healed his injuries. From this perspective, the other party seemed to have no ill intentions.

After this incident, he found himself viewing this Officer of his Division more favorably.

"Tell me, what kind of help?" Mayuri sat up straight after contemplating, stretching his stiff neck.

"An experiment related to Reishi." Aizen said expressionlessly, "Follow me, the laboratory is next door."

The two left the room and went next door.

What greeted their eyes was an extremely precise operating station, where a silver metallic culture dish contained a black substance resembling mucus. It writhed continuously like a living organ.

"This was given to me by Akira Kisaragi." Aizen casually betrayed his close friend, "I cannot analyze its essence with my abilities alone. I need an assistant — one with considerable achievements in the scientific field."

Mayuri didn't respond. Instead, he walked straight forward, his eyes fixed on the black substance's movements as he conducted a detailed observation.

Curiosity was both an essential quality and cultivation for any qualified scientist. From his first glimpse of this black mass, Mayuri had been captivated, his intense curiosity compelling him to explore, to discover, to seek truth.

As he became completely absorbed in his work, Aizen silently left the laboratory.

"How is it going?" Akira asked curiously in the corridor.

Aizen calmly glanced at him and nodded, "Very effective. To be precise, Mayuri is completely immersed in the research. By the way, what exactly is that thing?"

The previous night, a mysterious figure had appeared in the laboratory, producing a black liquid and explaining in detail how it could control Mayuri.

Originally, Akira had planned to handle it personally, but after careful consideration, Aizen decided to take his place.

After all, using this person's research as an excuse would be insulting to one's intelligence.

Let alone Mayuri — even Zaraki wouldn't believe it.

"The power of the One-Eyed God." Akira explained, "Force fragments mixed with some miscellaneous materials."

Mimihagi, who always granted his requests, hadn't directly provided the means during the ritual but had instead planned it methodically.

Mayuri's most valuable asset was his research ability. Trying to control him through force would only backfire. For someone like him, they had to exploit his greatest weakness.

As long as they managed this aspect well, neither Mayuri nor even the principled Kisuke could suppress their ever-growing curiosity.

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One day became two, then three, a week passed, then two, then three...

When Mayuri finally emerged from the laboratory, he was barely recognizable.

His blue hair stood wild like a bird's nest, his golden pupils were rimmed with red, and the white paint on his face had flaked away from neglect.

He resembled a college student after a week of all-nighters — hardly human anymore.

He found Aizen immediately, fixing him with bloodshot eyes.

"Aizen, I need more of that unknown material." Mayuri declared, playing his trump card without hesitation, "I'll pay any price!"

After brief consideration, Aizen summoned Akira.

The two locked eyes in an intense stare.

"Sign this contract first." Akira produced a pre-prepared document from his pocket — one that Kaname had written.

Best not to question how a blind man managed such a task.

Kaname handled most of the 11th Division's paperwork these days, since everyone except him and Kisuke was, well, a brute.

Even Sajin had been transformed under Akira and Zaraki's influence, his wild and fierce nature awakening in that "harmonious" atmosphere.

Though in daily life, he remained gentle and approachable — the 11th Division's most beloved figure after the Lord Magistrate himself!

Mayuri snatched the contract and signed immediately, not bothering to read it.

Everyone present knew the truth: this paper meant nothing more than a blank sheet, its power resting solely on conscience. Pure formality, nothing more.

"Before continuing the research, I think you should rest first." Akira issued his first order, "Otherwise, if you die from overwork, it would be a huge loss for me."

Mayuri looked at him strangely, "Don't you need to put any restrictions on me?"

In his life principles, no one should be trusted easily. Even his own Zanpakutō had been modified with self-destruct devices installed — his personality was clear from this fact alone.

"How should I restrict you?" Akira asked, "Should I implant Kidō in your organs? Or bury bombs in your brain? Would any of these methods actually work on you?"

For a scientist who could manufacture a complete set of organs and extensively modify his own body, even planting devices in his brain wouldn't be reliable.

Akira had absolutely no doubt about this psycho's talent. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say he could create another brain for himself.

Mayuri fell silent. He hadn't expected someone who appeared so foolish to understand him so well.

"I understand." He nodded and turned back to enter the laboratory.

Before resting, he needed to record all the data he had obtained during this time in his mind.

Watching his retreating figure, Aizen let out a gentle sigh.

Using current scientific methods to research the power of the One-Eyed God would take a hundred years — and that wasn't an exaggeration. As long as Mayuri maintained his curiosity about this, he would have to keep working for Akira.

Thinking of this, he couldn't help but look at that smug person.

Who would have thought that someone who usually seemed so guileless could manipulate human nature to such an extent — was this what they called growth?

"Akira, I have something to tell you." Aizen shook his head, putting that thought aside.

The two came to another empty room.

"I've completed my research on the Quincy's abilities, but we have a problem." Aizen said gravely, "Sōken Ishida has been away from the Wandenreich for some time now, and based on his understanding of their Quincy, they won't stop developing. Their ultimate goal is war. If Soul Society continues on its current path, catastrophe awaits."

Akira raised his eyebrows, "You make it sound like I'm not making any progress. The past is past, and now is now. I'm invincible right now, aren't I? I have Kisuke on my left and Mayuri on my right, plus Sōsuke as my adopted son. Add to that my world-shocking wisdom as backup — forget about the mere Wandenreich — even if the Soul King were to be resurrected, we could take his position!"

Aizen: "..."

He was wrong to try having a serious discussion with this person.

"The Quincy's main fighting style relies on forcibly absorbing and manipulating external Reishi." Aizen remarked, "They've developed spiritual combat techniques like Heilig Bogen for this purpose. Similar techniques like Heilig Pfeil and the use of Gintō for spellcasting were all developed on this foundation."

"According to Sōken Ishida, many years ago, the individual strength of ordinary soldiers in the Wandenreich had already surpassed the Shinigami Officers of the Gotei 13. Even the Soul Society from several hundred years ago paid a considerable price to defeat the Quincy."

Akira frowned.

This much he knew. Although he couldn't remember the details clearly, he still had some impression of Soul Society's heavy casualties during the Thousand-Year Blood War.

The casualty numbers among Captain-class Officers were nothing compared to those of ordinary division members. For any Division, the casualties exceeded the total losses of several decades — or even a hundred years.

Speaking of which, how did the Quincy Emperor die again? It seemed he was cut down in one strike by that overpowered Ichigo, right?

Does this mean that to protect Soul Society, this Lord Magistrate needs to play matchmaker?

Thinking of Ichigo's three nominal fathers, Akira's gaze toward Aizen subtly changed, becoming somewhat strange.

Noticing someone starting to act up again, Aizen gave him an annoyed glare before continuing.

"Based on research and Sōken Ishida's statements — the Quincy are a race with no immunity to Hollows. Therefore, in opposing the Wandenreich, Hueco Mundo is an indispensable force. Or rather, we need to utilize the power of Hollows."

Hearing this, Akira was stunned for a moment, "You mean having Shinigami master Hollow powers?"

Aizen's gaze paused, his eyes filled with confusion.

How did this guy suddenly become so perceptive?

"This is one of the projects I'm currently developing." Aizen continued, "Remember what I told you before about how both Shinigami and Hollows have limits to their souls?"

Akira nodded. He had some recollection of similar discussions.

"Szayelaporro's form (Arrancar and the Zanpakutō) gave me some inspiration. If Hollows can achieve this transformation, shouldn't Shinigami be capable of it too? However, this development will require extensive exploration. The soul's rejection isn't easily overcome. Our immediate task is to obtain sufficient test subjects to verify our hypotheses. I'm confident I can complete this before Yhwach awakens."

Hearing this, Akira clicked his tongue.

As expected of Aizen, whose wisdom was second only to his own — with limited information, in less than a month, he had formulated plans to counter the Quincy.

This being the case, he would have to risk his life to accompany this gentleman.

"Tell me, who do you want as a test subject? Kisuke?" Akira rolled up his sleeves, "Just say the word, and I'll knock him out and bring him to you right away."

At the mention of Kisuke's name, a rare look of sympathy crossed Aizen's face.

Recently, due to someone's unreasonable demands, the poor man had been losing hair in clumps. He looked completely drained — his face as pale as a ghost, his eyes weary and lifeless, like a walking corpse.

He shook his head, "Actually, you've misunderstood my meaning. Breaking through the soul's limits isn't simple. There are many risks involved, and it needs time to develop gradually. Since Quincy have no immunity to Hollows, why don't we make Hueco Mundo our territory?"

Hearing this, Akira's eyes widened.

He often found himself at odds with his friend because his own ideas weren't ambitious enough. While he was still contemplating how to defy the heavens, Aizen was already planning to conquer Hueco Mundo.

Such an audacious, such a brilliant scheme.

To this, Akira declared:

"Count me in!"

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