On Fūryū Mountain, watching the few Shinigami below force their way out of the encirclement, Neliel asked curiously,
"Those Shinigami… we're just going to ignore them?"
She'd noticed that Ichimaru Gin, who held full authority over the Hollows sent to Soul Society this time, seemed utterly unconcerned by their escape.
All it would take was summoning a few more Hollows from elsewhere to plug that gap immediately.
"Why bother? Don't forget, our goal this time is only to kill that Shinigami called Shiba Kaien. Whether the rest live or die doesn't matter to us.
If you're that interested, you can go down there yourself,"
Ichimaru Gin said with a sidelong glance at Nel.
"In that case, forget it. I'm not interested in them at all."
The moment Nel heard Gin trying to send her down, she refused on the spot.
If not for the fact that being one of the Espada saved her a lot of trouble in Hueco Mundo—that countless Hollows backed off the moment they saw the number on her body—Neliel would have had zero interest in being one of these so-called Espada.
On the other side, Tier Harribel gave Ichimaru Gin a long, meaningful look and was just about to speak when a gap suddenly opened in the reishi curtain that had cut all of Fūryū Mountain off from Soul Society.
Someone had forcibly torn a rip in it from the outside.
"Looks like our prey has come knocking~"
Before the one who opened the breach even showed himself, Ichimaru Gin had already guessed his identity.
Because in Soul Society as it existed now, there were only two Shinigami who could, in such a short time, locate a space that had been severed from Soul Society like this and then tear it open by brute force.
One was Aizen Sōsuke. The other was Higashino Shuuichi, who had fully mastered Hollowfication.
Even the 12th Division's Kurotsuchi Mayuri would need some time to determine the coordinates of this space.
And since Aizen Sōsuke was the mastermind behind this operation, there was no way he would appear here in such a way. For Ichimaru Gin, the answer was obvious.
And sure enough, once that pocket of space was broken open, the one who appeared before Gin and the others was Higashino Shuuichi, fully Hollowfied from head to toe.
There was no way Higashino Shuuichi had rushed here because he'd received Shiba Kaien's distress signal.
As the architect and initiator of this assessment, even if he'd temporarily left Soul Society for Yushima Ōko's sake, he ought to return to Fūryū Mountain and resume overseeing the test immediately. Otherwise, it would be too easy to make people suspicious.
So it was only natural that Higashino Shuuichi would detect that something was wrong this quickly.
Of course, that was only the surface reason.
The deeper cause was the appearance of Sakahone Saizō, which had forced Higashino Shuuichi to urgently contact Aizen Sōsuke.
They could kill Shiba Kaien any time—but absolutely not now.
If the power behind Sakahone Saizō, still shrouded in fog, decided to make a move at that moment, the entire situation in Soul Society would become even more tangled and unpredictable.
Aizen agreed with Higashino Shuuichi's judgment.
Because what he wanted had always been a whole Soul Society, not one shattered to pieces.
He wanted to change this world, not destroy it.
So when an unknown enemy appeared, Aizen was willing to put his plan on hold.
Otherwise, Shiba Kaien's death would inevitably cause a massive upheaval in Soul Society, and might even trigger a full-scale campaign against Hueco Mundo.
If that ended up playing right into the hands of that unknown enemy, it would be beyond laughable.
However, the order to pause obviously couldn't come directly from Aizen.
Sakahone Saizō's affair had only just happened; neither the Gotei 13 nor Central 46 knew anything yet. If Aizen halted the operation for that reason now, it would be hard not to make Ichimaru Gin suspicious.
And when Higashino Shuuichi heard this truly ridiculous rationale from Aizen, he didn't even know how many times he silently roasted Aizen in his heart.
That's what you get for wanting to keep Ichimaru Gin around just so you can play with him.
Now everything you do has to tiptoe around him. Why don't you just hurry up and clean this mess up already?
Still, as Aizen's outstanding "startup partner," Higashino Shuuichi once again took on the familiar job of cleaning up after him.
Which was why, after finishing healing Yushima Ōko, he'd rushed over here in such a hurry.
Luckily, when Higashino Shuuichi broke into this pocket of space, Shiba Kaien below was still trading barbs with the freshly promoted Espada No. 10, Aaroniero Arruruerie.
All praise to the art of trash talk.
However, it was impossible for Higashino Shuuichi to simply drop down and pull Kaien out. The moment he arrived, the two Arrancar and Ichimaru Gin had already moved to surround him in a triangle.
"Ichimaru Gin, so you are tangled up with the Arrancar from Hueco Mundo! And to think Yamamoto and Kyōraku Shunsui are still constantly speaking up for you in front of me—what a joke!"
To be honest, when Higashino Shuuichi first heard from Aizen that there would be "a surprise" for him this time, he had wondered what that surprise might be.
But no matter how he thought about it, he had never imagined this would be it—
Ichimaru Gin standing right in front of him, without even trying to hide.
Just what was this guy planning?
Surely he wasn't daydreaming about teaming up with Harribel and Nel to kill him here?
If Harribel were swapped out for Starrk, there might be the slightest bit of a chance. But with Ichimaru Gin's current trio lineup, wasn't he just serving himself up on a platter?
Surprised as he was inside, Higashino Shuuichi still put on an angry expression on the surface.
It was the only way to stay in character.
"That's right. Everything is just a game set up by me, Ichimaru Gin. Surprised, aren't you, Higashino Shuuichi? In front of me, you're nothing but a clown!
But don't worry—this clown's short little life ends today!"
Ichimaru Gin stood opposite Higashino Shuuichi, laughing wildly as he pronounced his death sentence.
This out-of-character behavior, though, set off a warning bell in Higashino Shuuichi's mind.
Is he doing this on purpose?
Is he taunting me? Or calculating something?
Higashino Shuuichi wasn't sure yet—but with his own overwhelming strength as backing, he felt he could afford to play along.
So he wanted to goad Higashino Shuuichi into attacking him?
Fine. Higashino Shuuichi would grant that wish.
He just hoped Ichimaru Gin was ready to take the brunt of his fury.
"Hadō #91: Senju Kōten Taihō (Thousand-Hand Bright Heaven Culling Cannon)!"
With a single thought, Higashino Shuuichi let his Hollowfication drop. A vast swell of reishi gathered before him, condensing into a sphere of light. As it spun faster and faster, countless beams of light shot out from it, all aimed at the three who had encircled him—Harribel, Nel, and Ichimaru Gin.
Higashino Shuuichi's casting was so fast that both Harribel and Nel were caught off guard and forced into a hasty defense.
Harribel got off relatively lightly. As an Arrancar already brought over to Higashino Shuuichi's side, the barrage of Senju Kōten Taihō directed toward her was more for show than substance.
Nel, on the other hand, wasn't so lucky. The dense light beams punched more than a dozen holes straight through her body.
Fortunately, as Espada No. 3, Nel had unique skill in healing techniques, and her Hollow-born High-Speed Regeneration had been honed to perfection. That alone kept her from getting killed outright the moment she and Higashino Shuuichi crossed paths.
As for Ichimaru Gin—since he was the one who had provoked such a reaction from Higashino Shuuichi in the first place, he'd long since anticipated his response.
So every last beam of reishi flying his way was shattered without exception by the power of his Zanpakutō, Shinsō (Divine Spear).
But while he was using Shinsō to block Senju Kōten Taihō, Higashino Shuuichi wasn't some turn-based RPG character locked in place after using a skill.
Riding the cover of the explosions' smoke and reiatsu turbulence, Higashino Shuuichi swung down a world-rending slash at Ichimaru Gin.
Nadegiri!
Not the "Inner" version he'd favored more recently—Ura Nadegiri (Inner Stroke-Cut)—
But the original Yamamoto-style Nadegiri, which unleashed an enormous area slash forged from overwhelming reiatsu, far easier to land in an open environment with no spatial constraints.
For Higashino Shuuichi, Ura Nadegiri was more of a control-type move.
The ground split apart. The vast bulk of Fūryū Mountain was cleaved cleanly in two by his attack.
And in that instant, the Shinigami still struggling desperately to flee below finally saw the pocket of space Ichimaru Gin had been blocking from their sight and senses all this time.
"It's Shuuichi-sama!"
"Teacher Shuuichi!"
"Captain Shuuichi?!"
Almost simultaneously, the Shinigami below all cried out their own versions of his name.
That earth-shattering strike had nearly swallowed Aaroniero Arruruerie, the Arrancar facing Shiba Kaien.
The crushing pressure that had been weighing down on Kaien vanished in an instant.
"You're finished, Aaroniero. Reinforcements from the Shinigami side are here. All you Hollows' delusions are about to be shattered right here and now!
Tajū Suiten Tatsumaki (Multiple Water Heaven Tornado)!!"
Shiba Kaien brandished the trident-shaped spear in his hands.
All around him, where the ground had already been transformed into a shallow sea by his ability, a dozen or so water tornadoes suddenly rose into the sky, each one containing a giant Hollow within.
But just like before, while this attack might have some effect on the other Hollows, to Aaroniero it was nothing more than something he could disperse with a casual sweep of an arm.
"Carriage of thunder, bridge of a spinning wheel, with light, divide this in six—"
This time, thanks to Higashino Shuuichi's arrival, Kaien no longer needed to worry about damaging Aaroniero. All he had to do was restrain him and wait for Higashino Shuuichi to come finish him off.
That was the standard approach the 13th Division used when facing powerful enemies in the World of the Living.
After all, simply binding the enemy instead of killing them was much easier for most Shinigami.
What Kaien hadn't expected, however, was that before he even finished chanting for Bakudō #61: Rikujōkōrō (Six Rods Light Prison), his target was already gone.
Aaroniero had straight up abandoned him and shot toward Higashino Shuuichi in the sky.
"Higashino Shuuichi, you're the one who killed my predecessor Atedis Utori, aren't you? Heh… then I'll fulfill Atedis's unfinished wish!"
The moment he saw Higashino Shuuichi, Aaroniero went completely berserk.
Even Harribel, watching from above, involuntarily frowned.
What's wrong with this Aaroniero?
He's ignoring the orders Aizen gave him?
Has he forgotten that his one and only mission is to kill Shiba Kaien?
Of all the people present, only Ichimaru Gin—who had just barely taken that one Nadegiri and was hanging onto half a life—curved his lips into a satisfied smile.
Aizen hadn't implanted any sort of obedience chip in the Arrancar. Even if Aizen was one of Aaroniero's creators, how could he compete with Ichimaru Gin, who had been whispering ideas into Aaroniero's ears nonstop ever since the Arrancar was born?
Yes—Aaroniero was one of Ichimaru Gin's trump cards.
Knowing perfectly well that he was no match for Higashino Shuuichi, how could Gin possibly pin his hopes on unreliable Arrancar like Harribel and Nel to block Higashino's attacks?
So he'd constantly praised Higashino Shuuichi in front of Aaroniero, and raved about how Atedis Utori had come this close to killing him—just to kindle Aaroniero's desire to defeat Higashino Shuuichi.
And just as Gin had expected, this newly born Arrancar's mentality was no different from that of a child.
As Aaroniero flew toward Higashino Shuuichi, he opened his chest, revealing the dense array of test tubes within.
"I have all your data! Higashino Shuuichi, kneel before me!
Mumō (Lightless)!!"
As Aaroniero's shout fell, one of the test tubes within his body shattered, and countless streams of reiatsu began surging through the Garganta-shrouded pocket toward Higashino Shuuichi.
In that instant, Higashino Shuuichi felt himself lose control of his position in midair and begin to plummet.
All of his Shinigami powers had been neutralized by Aaroniero's ability. He couldn't even use reiatsu to hold himself in the air.
Because in Aaroniero's "materials archive," this too had been cataloged as one of Higashino Shuuichi's Shinigami techniques.
Normally, with the level of reiatsu Higashino Shuuichi possessed now, Aaroniero could never have fully canceled it the way Atedis had in the past. Aaroniero's reiatsu simply wasn't on his level.
But inspired by Baraggan's earlier use of Las Noches, Szayel Aporro had tried out a brand-new piece of tech on Aaroniero this time.
He'd taken all the spiritual energy generated within this closed space by the black Garganta that the other Hollows had created and maintained, and lent it to a single Arrancar—breaking their limits for a short time.
And the one enjoying this privilege now was, of course, Aaroniero.
This was the main reason Aaroniero dared to charge Higashino Shuuichi head-on.
In one sentence: the advantage was his.
And with Higashino Shuuichi's Shinigami reiatsu erased ahead of time, he couldn't use his Bankai (Final Release) the way he'd done when he finished off Atedis.
Watching Higashino Shuuichi falling from the sky, Aaroniero burst into wild laughter.
This was exactly the "sure-kill against Higashino Shuuichi" strategy that Ichimaru Gin had taught him—and it worked like a charm.
At the same time, Harribel's expression turned grim.
"Chastise him—Kōkō (Empress Shark Queen)!"
She activated her Resurrección without hesitation. Her target, of course, was not Higashino Shuuichi.
She knew that if she betrayed Aizen and Starrk here, they might not spare her afterward.
But even so, she didn't hesitate.
Aaroniero had to die.
Someone else moved faster than she did.
A red Cero (Hollow Flash) streaked across the sky, and in Aaroniero's stunned gaze, it pierced half his body. A deluge of unknown liquid came spilling chaotically down toward the ground.
"Heh…"
Far off in the distance, Ichimaru Gin watched it all, then simply turned his back. A white bandage cocoon appeared around him.
"There's something I forgot to tell you, Aaroniero. Higashino Shuuichi… doesn't just possess Shinigami powers. His Hollow form is every bit as strong as his Shinigami self."
Did they really think Ichimaru Gin had cut off the space above from the battlefield below just so he wouldn't be seen by the Shinigami down there?
The moment he realized Higashino Shuuichi wasn't on-site, he'd known Higashino would break in using his Hollow form. He'd severed the space so Aaroniero wouldn't get to see that form in advance.
Now, fully Hollowfied and clad in skull-like armor from head to toe, Higashino Shuuichi stood once more in midair like a monarch.
"When Atedis blindsided me with Baraggan's help, I let that slide. But you think you're qualified to try the same?"
Higashino Shuuichi looked toward Aaroniero in the distance, his eyes filled with restrained anger.
With two more Arrancar nearby and an Ichimaru Gin whose tricks he still didn't fully know, he couldn't let negative emotions cloud his judgment.
But as far as he was concerned, Aaroniero was already a dead Hollow.
He was just gearing up to fight Nel and Ichimaru Gin for real—and put on a little show with Harribel—when Nel didn't say a word and became the first to bolt.
Her move left Harribel completely stunned.
But Nel had her own logic.
From her point of view, Aaroniero had already abandoned his target and been crippled by Higashino Shuuichi in a single blow. Expecting him to then complete Aizen's mission of killing Shiba Kaien was clearly impossible.
Her task had been to hold back Higashino Shuuichi and buy Aaroniero the time and space to finish Kaien.
Now that the latter result was obviously out of reach, sticking to the former condition was meaningless.
So this wasn't running away. This was a strategic withdrawal.
And if Aizen wanted to blame someone afterward, he ought to blame Aaroniero for failing his mission properly.
Judging from how things looked, though, Nel wasn't even sure Aaroniero would live long enough to make it back to Hueco Mundo.
From where she was standing, her logic was flawless.
Once Nel had set the example as the first deserter, Aaroniero turned despairing eyes toward Harribel. He knew that now, only she might still take him back.
What he saw made him even more desperate.
Hueco Mundo's Espada No. 2, Tier Harribel, was gazing at Higashino Shuuichi with what looked suspiciously like tender affection—and after Higashino gave her the slightest nod, she followed Nel back to Hueco Mundo as well.
Without even making a token attack.
"So I've… been abandoned?"
Aaroniero was finally forced to confront reality.
In truth, the moment Higashino Shuuichi sensed Ichimaru Gin's reiatsu vanish from this pocket of space, he understood exactly what Gin's game had been.
Simply put, Aaroniero was nothing more than a pitiful sacrificial pawn pushed onto the stage by the combined plotting and maneuvering of three people: Higashino Shuuichi, Aizen Sōsuke, and Ichimaru Gin.
"You're not dying unjustly~"
Using Shunpo (Flash Step), Higashino Shuuichi appeared before Aaroniero and drove his Zanpakutō into the Arrancar's body.
And just like that, he brought Aaroniero Arruruerie's short and inglorious life to an end.