Seireitei, Twelfth Division.
A squad member rushed in, knelt on one knee, and reported to Kisuke Urahara, who was sitting in front of the experimental table:
"Captain, your prediction has come true. As expected, about three hundred Menos Grande are attacking Las Noches."
"Currently, Nelliel and Harribel, the Kings of Hueco Mundo, have not yet returned. Do you think we should send Shinigami to support them?"
"If Las Noches falls, I'm afraid the Quincy's plot will succeed."
Kisuke Urahara listened to the report while staring intently at the flickering screen in front of him, deep in thought.
This was not a conspiracy but an open scheme, because no matter how things developed, the Shinigami would make the same choice.
But Kisuke Urahara insisted on doing the opposite.
He decisively refused to provide support and advised Yoriichi Tsugikuni on the other side not to act rashly.
Because once they acted, it would be equivalent to revealing the location of their trump card.
At that time, the Quincy would certainly launch a surprise attack from the side, targeting the Seireitei.
However.
"Sorry, Kisuke, three hundred Menos Grande..."
"Every Menos Grande could pose a threat to the Shinigami, not to mention those that have gained Quincy power and broken through the Hollow's limits."
"I cannot ignore them."
"The Seireitei has the Captain-Commander guarding it, so it will be fine."
Yoriichi Tsugikuni's calm voice slowly echoed in the headphones.
Kisuke Urahara was about to retort, but the words hadn't left his mouth.
The next second.
Yoriichi Tsugikuni's figure suddenly appeared on the screen.
He transformed into a beam of light and rushed into the Menos Grande group.
Even if Yoriichi Tsugikuni's movements couldn't be seen clearly, the constant wailing sounds from around him indicated the tragic situation the Menos Grande were facing.
"Ah! My leg..."
"My hand..."
These sounds made Starrk, who was barely holding his ground on the other side, turn his head.
He instinctively looked over, a complex expression on his face, sighing that Yoriichi Tsugikuni had indeed appeared.
He knew that with Yoriichi's personality, he would never stand by and do nothing.
These Menos Grande were too strong; like him, they could all attack from a distance, and they possessed Quincy physiques, enhancing their regeneration abilities.
In Hueco Mundo, they were unkillable no matter how hard he tried, and he also had to consider his teammates when attacking.
If he used unlimited Cero and accidentally injured his companions, he would feel incredibly guilty.
This led to Starrk fighting these Menos Grande with his hands tied.
If Yoriichi Tsugikuni hadn't appeared, this battle would have been an undeniable loss.
"Come on, Yoriichi, defeat them in one go. There are so many of them; they really overestimate me."
Starrk smiled bitterly. Suddenly, an arrow shot towards Lilynette's back.
His eyes narrowed, and without hesitation, he shattered it in mid-air. Immediately after, he fired another shot, directly heavily wounding the Menos Grande that launched the attack.
Then, he pulled Lilynette along and moved closer to Yoriichi Tsugikuni's side.
—Only there was safe; he had to protect Lilynette.
Kisuke Urahara watched the scene on the screen in silence.
He leaned back in his chair, his fingers gently tapping the armrest, his heart a mix of emotions.
The war had just begun, and their trump card had already been revealed.
Was Yoriichi Tsugikuni wrong? No, he was the Captain-Commander; everything he did had to be for the benefit of the entire Seireitei.
Solving those Menos Grande was beneficial for the safety of all Shinigami in the Seireitei.
However, in Kisuke Urahara's eyes, this approach was essentially an unnecessary action.
It was nothing to lose some Menos Grande; at worst, killing some Rukongai residents could resolve the imbalance of the Three Realms.
Kisuke Urahara was not so kind as to not even kill Rukongai residents.
However, Yoriichi Tsugikuni had actively appeared for those tens of thousands of Rukongai residents...
Kisuke Urahara placed his hands on the table, exhaled, and sighed with emotion:
"As expected of the Captain-Commander, such resolve makes us feel ashamed of ourselves. Fortunately, there's still room for recovery."
He made a decisive decision, quickly ordering the squad members to guard the surroundings of the Seireitei while informing Yamamoto Genryusai of the matter through a special communication method.
With the former Captain-Commander present, even if the enemy invaded, he could effectively protect important areas from harm and even deal with a few strong enemies along the way.
As for other places...
The Shinigami had been quietly developing for so many years; naturally, they couldn't just be for show. The baptism of blood and fire was the fastest way to improve.
As Kisuke Urahara expected, three minutes after Yoriichi Tsugikuni's action.
Dark holes appeared throughout the Seireitei.
From these holes, hundreds more Menos Grande rushed out, appearing ready for a fight to the death with the Shinigami.
...
Hueco Mundo.
Yoriichi Tsugikuni swiftly defeated the Menos Grande with his Zanpakuto.
He was not surprised to hear Kisuke Urahara's message about the Seireitei being attacked.
Just as Kisuke Urahara had said before, this was an open scheme.
The attack on the Seireitei was also a test, because they were undoubtedly monitoring Hueco Mundo.
Four Captain-Commanders must have greatly shocked them.
But after the shock, perhaps it was deep apprehension.
After all, they didn't know how many of him there were in total.
Therefore, they sent Menos Grande to cause trouble throughout the Seireitei, intending to force the other him out.
And thus, once they discovered that he couldn't appear, they would immediately understand the limited number of the current situation.
Then they would intensify their offensive, increasing Shinigami casualties and capturing the Seireitei before he himself returned.
—Haschwalth would definitely do that. For Yhwach, any means could be used.
Fortunately, the Seireitei still had Yamamoto Genryusai guarding it.
This was why Yoriichi was fearless in exposing his trump card.
"Ai is currently at the 1st Division; that's good. Unless the Seireitei completely collapses, nothing will happen to her no matter what."
After retiring, Yamamoto Genryusai had lived in seclusion near the 1st Division.
For the Quincy, that was the most difficult place to attack and also the least necessary place to attack.
Because the time was not yet ripe.
Instead of expending a large amount of military force to attack the heavily guarded central hub, it would be better to directly attack the Spiritual Arts Academy and cut off the future of the Shinigami.
It was also the time when the Spiritual Arts Academy had just started, and defenses were at their loosest.
The fusion of memories allowed Yoriichi to understand Haschwalth's thoughts very well.
After dealing with half of the Menos Grande, Starrk brought Lilynette to rendezvous with him.
At this point, Yoriichi received news that the Spiritual Arts Academy had indeed been attacked by Menos Grande.
The lower-grade students had already been urgently evacuated under the guidance of their teachers, leaving only the higher-grade students and some teachers fighting desperately.
The Zanpakuto spirits cooperated tacitly with them, greatly reducing their pressure, but there was still a tendency to be overwhelmed.
Fortunately, some Captains were rushing to the scene, and currently, the casualties were still within an acceptable range.
Hearing this, Yoriichi lowered his eyes slightly. He said nothing, only letting out a soft sigh.
...
Underground.
"It's indeed a big battle, but unfortunately, splitting into four of me is already the limit, otherwise..."
On Nelliel's back, the wind whistled in his ears, and Yoriichi's thoughts churned.
Unlike the situation on the surface of Hueco Mundo, he was quite worried about the Seireitei here.
Because the other him, who was currently working with Starrk, could return to Soul Society at any time, but he could not.
He had to deal with the potential threat and simply couldn't return in a short time.
He only hoped that the guy who turned Menos Grande into Quincy was in the Forest of Menos.
Nelliel, through her badge, also seemed to have heard the news from Yoriichi's side.
Her speed undiminished, she asked Yoriichi:
"Mr. Tsugikuni, what are you worried about?"
"Have those Quincy attacked the Shinigami again?"
"Yes." Yoriichi nodded, his expression grave. "Both Hueco Mundo and Soul Society have been attacked. This is a linked scheme."
"Although we can still resist for now, it shouldn't last too long."
Hearing this, Nelliel thought for a moment, a determined glint in her eyes, and then nodded firmly:
"Is that so? I understand. I'm going to accelerate. Please hold on tight."
"I once explored the Forest of Menos."
"Although the current situation is different from before, with all the surrounding Menos Grande gone, the Quincy's power definitely cannot cover the entire Forest of Menos."
"I believe there are certainly still Menos Grande in other places. As long as we find them, we can probably understand what's happening here."
"And... our missing companions."
"They must have been captured by the Quincy."
"If we make a big enough commotion, they might notice us, and that will be our chance."
Currently, in Nelliel's perception, a ten-mile radius was completely silent.
It was obvious what had happened to the missing Menos Grande.
Modification... what an evil act.
Nelliel would absolutely not let go of any guy who bullied the weak; she had to capture those Quincy.
Yoriichi fell silent, having to admit that some Hollows were more like Shinigami than Shinigami themselves.
Nelliel's words were almost overflowing with justice and protection.
How wonderful it would be if they could become Shinigami...
Sighing, Yoriichi slightly steadied himself, and then Nelliel used her super acceleration.
Her figure transformed into a green flash in the dim underground, so fast that even Captains couldn't catch up.
The two continued deeper into the Forest of Menos.
...
A short while later.
Thousands of miles away.
Kiruge · Opie, the prison warden, was counting the newly captured Menos Grande.
Just as he was secretly disdainful of why these useless creatures could gain Quincy power.
He received a message from Haschwalth.
Soon.
Using his Sternritter, through his control of reishi, he sealed all entrances on the surface of Hueco Mundo that led into the Forest of Menos.
Having done all this, before he could even ask Haschwalth when he could return.
Suddenly, ripples appeared in the space beside him.
Then, with a flash of light, Giselle Gewelle and Liltotto Lamperd emerged from within.
Kiruge · Opie squinted slightly.
"You two..."
He was secretly puzzled.
Why were these two here?
Having known them for a long time, Kiruge knew these two seemingly "fragile" "girls" inside and out.
Beneath their seemingly harmless exteriors, they actually hid extremely sinister and malicious methods.
As one of the few completely negative Sternritter, even he had to be careful when interacting with her, to avoid being infected or controlled...
Now... could Haschwalth have sent them as helpers?
Gigi ignored Kiruge's wary expression. He hummed an unknown tune, skipping and hopping through the special "Black Cavity."
As soon as he landed, he eagerly scanned his surroundings, a look of excited joy quickly appearing on his face:
"Is this Hueco Mundo? This is really good. It seems that Haschwalth didn't trick me."
"Kiruge, long time no see. It's been three years since we last parted in prison, hasn't it?"
Gigi turned his head, his ahoge bobbing, and looked at Kiruge with a faint smile.
"It's three years, one month, and three days."
Kiruge · Opie adjusted his glasses, a cold glint flashing across the lenses as he precisely corrected the time.
After speaking, he resumed his stern expression and directly asked, "Enough pleasantries. What are you and Leah doing here?"
"I don't recall you two being in the original plan."
"Plans can be changed at any time." Gigi's lips curved slightly upward.
"Haschwalth said this is a protracted war, so we must extend the front lines and give the Shinigami a sufficiently painful lesson."
"Leah and my mission is to contribute to this plan."
"You don't have to worry about us stealing your thunder."
He turned to look at the group of Menos Grande, not yet Arrancar, confined in the "prison," a playful smile on his face.
"Are these all the Menos Grande here?"
After speaking, without waiting for Kiruge · Opie to reply, he walked forward on his own.
"Never mind, whether they're all here or not, let's get down to business first."
"Little Leah, you come too. Let's work together to turn them into our puppets."
Gigi said, rubbing his hands, a glint of excitement in his eyes, eager to start.
Seeing this, Kiruge · Opie did not stop him.
He instinctively took a step back, already knowing what the two intended to do.
Lunatics… Not only are they lunatics, but Haschwalth is a lunatic too.
Zombies + disease, are they trying to create a biochemical virus to infect the Three Realms?
If it were His Majesty's decision, it would be another matter, but His Majesty has not yet been revived. Clearly, all of this is Haschwalth's arbitrary action.
Thinking of this, a faint light flickered in Kiruge · Opie's eyes. For his own protection, as the two were about to act, he added, "Hey, let me warn you beforehand. I have no objections to what you're doing, but if it gets out of control in the end, don't come looking for me."
"I'm not sure how Haschwalth commanded you, but you're not going to infect every single Menos Grande that comes next, are you?"
"Of course! Opportunities like this to wantonly increase our puppets aren't common!"
Gigi's tone was quite excited.
His eager gaze subconsciously glanced at Liltotto Lamperd beside him, his eyes holding a deeper meaning.
Death and disease are a perfect combination; not only did he know this, but Haschwalth also understood.
However, Haschwalth's eyes were only on His Majesty, but he was different.
For a long time, he had wanted to turn his friends into his puppets.
He had previously targeted Bambietta, and although he failed for some reasons, he never gave up.
Now… the opportunity had come again.
Once he captured Leah, would Bambi be far behind?
Perfecting his plan in his mind, Gigi's eyes flashed with greed.
To achieve his ambition as quickly as possible, he swiftly began to act.
After his blood, combined with Leah's disease, infected the Menos Grande, and they were sent away by the Black Cavity for Gremmy to modify them.
He used the excuse of being new to Hueco Mundo to go out and explore, looking for an opportunity.
However, Kiruge · Opie refuted him: "Explore? This is the Forest of Menos; there's nothing to explore, and the same goes for Hueco Mundo above."
"Don't forget that it's wartime. If you encounter an enemy, are captured alive, or killed, don't expect others to rescue you."
"Just behave yourself."
Gigi was never a law-abiding person; he completely ignored Kiruge · Opie's words.
He possessed an immortal body, so what was there to fear?
Being rescued by someone? No need. If he truly encountered a Shinigami he couldn't defeat, he would simply commit suicide, the decapitation kind.
Anyone who saw it would be convinced he was thoroughly dead.
With this thought, Gigi left Kiruge · Opie's hiding place.
Leah did not follow, merely holding a doll and feigning sleep, which was also within Gigi's expectations.
He understood this world-weary girl too well; she had no sense of adventure.
Therefore, to make her act with him, he had to create a situation where she had no choice but to leave.
He wasn't good at fighting, but he was excellent at causing trouble, as long as he didn't attract Shinigami.
Thus, he wandered through the Forest of Menos, searching for a suitable target.
Not long after, a slight tremor from the ground caught his attention.
The tremor seemed to be from someone running, and although the distance was far, the surging reishi was transmitted without concealment.
He immediately extended his perception, confirming it was the reishi of a Hollow, at the Vasto Lorde level, and there was no Shinigami presence…
Excellent, that's the one.
Gigi smiled and approached that direction without hesitation.
To save time, he even began to fly.
However, as he flew, his smile inexplicably froze.
Because that Hollow was getting further and further away from him, and its speed was incredibly fast; even using Hirenkyaku, he couldn't catch up.
There was nothing he could do. Considering that the next batch of Menos Grande was about to arrive, Gigi hesitated for a moment.
Ultimately, he could only temporarily give up this rare opportunity and silently remember the Hollow's reishi.
He thought to himself, as long as it remained in the Forest of Menos for another day, they would eventually meet.
Next time, he would make some noise to attract it.
He didn't know what it was doing… running so fast…
… …
At the same time, in another part of the Forest of Menos.
"Too fast, Nelliel, are you sure we're going the right way? Why do I feel like we're getting more and more remote?"
Yoriichi Tsugikuni looked at the rapidly receding scenery beside him, his expression slightly grave.
As he spoke, he quickly pulled out a map and glanced at it.
As expected, due to their excessive speed, they had deviated from their course by several thousand li.
He immediately told Nelliel to slow down and follow the correct route.
Nelliel felt a little wronged; she didn't want to go the wrong way either, but she was too eager to save the Hollows.
However, since Yoriichi Tsugikuni had corrected the direction, she couldn't ignore him.
Nelliel suddenly turned her body, and with a powerful swing of her tail, she rushed back in the direction they had come from.
Seeing that the direction was finally correct, Yoriichi sighed in relief.
"I apologize, my attitude might have been a bit serious, but the situation is urgent."
"Only by meeting with the other two clones first can I clearly understand the situation in all three areas."
"I understand, Sir Tsugikuni, you don't need to apologize to me."
Nelliel said with a serious expression, "I also fully understand the gravity of this matter."
"Along the way, we haven't even seen a single Gillians. It's clear to what extent those Quincy have destroyed the Forest of Menos."
"To be honest, I have an ominous premonition."
Her voice carried a hint of worry.
"Even if the Quincy hate Hollows and Shinigami, there's no need to kill all the Gillians."
"That's both time-consuming and laborious, and it would also leave some hard-to-remove traces in the environment."
"However, we haven't seen any of that along the way."
"It's as if they vanished into thin air, or were forcibly taken away by someone…"
"And based on the surface of Hueco Mundo and the scale of the Menos Grande that invaded Seireitei, you're saying…"
Before Nelliel could finish, Yoriichi thought of a possibility and interrupted, "Are you trying to say that the Quincy have mastered some technique to evolve Gillians into Arrancar Menos Grande?"
If so, then things would be troublesome.
Yoriichi was contemplating a solution.
Suddenly, Kisuke Urahara's slightly urgent voice came from the badge.
"This is bad, Captain-Commander. A group of Menos Grande that cannot be killed and carry a deadly infectious bacterium have appeared in Seireitei."
"Based on the current situation, it can be inferred that they are the product of Gigi and Liltotto Lamperd…"
"There's an over eighty percent chance that these two are in the Forest of Menos."
"Please, you must capture them!"
Kisuke Urahara quickly explained the situation.
Even with prior knowledge to avoid the contaminated blood, some of the virulent bacteria still volatilized through the air, infecting about forty Shinigami.
These Shinigami developed a series of symptoms in a very short time, such as persistent high fever, epilepsy, and convulsions.
The medicines in the Twelfth Division and Fourth Division could only suppress the onset of complications but could not eradicate the disease.
At the same time, as time passed, the number of infected people increased, and the antidote was quickly running out.
In other words, if these two were not captured and the Sternritter's effect dispelled, these Shinigami would surely die.
Normally, Kisuke Urahara would not be so anxious, but unfortunately, among these Shinigami, there were many Vice-Captains and Captain-level individuals.
"…" Hearing this news, Yoriichi Tsugikuni, as the Captain-Commander, felt an indescribable pressure.
He immediately responded, "How long can they hold on?"
"I don't know. I can only try my best to delay the time of death."
Kisuke Urahara wiped the sweat from his forehead and replied, "In short, I'll leave everything to you."
"If you can't catch them, it's fine; just do your best. We won't blame you."
"Because no one could have imagined they would use biochemical weapons. This is fate."
Fate? Yoriichi didn't believe in fate.
His expression gradually turned cold:
"Hold on as long as you can. I will capture them."
"Nelliel, change direction. There's no need to rendezvous with the clones."
"My surface self, you should be able to hear my voice, right? Return to Seireitei and find Bambietta."
"At this time, there's no need to hide your identity anymore. As long as we can find the location of these two, exposure is fine."
"Received, my underground self. I would do the same without your reminder." Another Yoriichi's voice came from the badge.
He immediately used his Zanpakuto to construct a passage between Hell and Soul Society.
Then, under Starrk's astonished gaze, he returned directly to Seireitei.
Immediately after, he took Tokito Iwákatsu's place and headed straight for Bambietta's residence.
—There was no time to lose; everything had to prioritize efficiency. Even a second's delay would be irresponsible for a Captain-Commander.
… …
Wandenreich.
Haschwalth received the information transmitted from the deaths of various Hollows, his face devoid of any expression.
Gremmy stood beside him, also receiving the information, his eyes lowered, muttering to himself:
"Tsugikuni Ai's location has been confirmed to be in the 1st Division in Seireitei."
"She has no protectors around her except for the 1st Division Vice-Captain, Chōjirō Sasakibe…"
"Excellent. It wasn't in vain that we infiltrated Hueco Mundo, stockpiled our forces, and waited so long. We finally got a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity."
He raised his eyes, which gleamed with excitement and anticipation.
"Haschwalth, should we go?"