Inside the car, Kurosaki Ichigo was extremely on edge.
He still didn't know who the man in the mask was, but the man's words had somehow calmed him. It was as if there was an instinct in him telling him to trust what that person said.
"Hurry up!"
He urged the driver, sounding a bit frantic.
"I'm already going as fast as I can!"
The driver replied helplessly.
He'd already been urged to hurry several times since the masked man approached and got in the car. If someone didn't know better, they'd think this was some American movie scene and that he was helping them make a quick getaway.
Ichigo knew the car was already running at top speed, and yet he still couldn't settle down.
Fortunately, he didn't have to wait much longer. They finally arrived at their destination.
The moment Kurosaki Ichigo stepped out of the car, a cold sensation washed over him.
It was the kind of chill that came from fear, like what someone with a fear of heights would feel looking down from dozens of stories up—or like a person lost in thought suddenly feeling a tap on their shoulder.
Yes. It was that feeling.
This cold power jolted Ichigo's brain, and he immediately realized it was the same feeling he'd had when facing that frog-like monster before.
So the masked man hadn't lied to him after all!
Ichigo instantly sprinted toward the arch bridge, and just as expected, he saw the frog Hollow there.
The frog monster was sprawled at the entrance of a cave. Beyond its gigantic body, Ichigo finally spotted Karin.
"Karin!"
He shouted and ran toward him.
Startled by the shout, the frog Hollow turned and saw Ichigo rushing over. Ichigo had a shining sword in his hand, and the frog Hollow's eyes widened at the sight.
In that moment, though it had almost forgotten the memories of when it was human, it still remembered this person… and this sword.
This was the man who'd driven it to suicide.
This was the sword that had torn it apart.
The frog Hollow roared in fury. No longer caring about the girl behind it, it focused solely on one thing—killing Kurosaki Ichigo to take its revenge!
Boom!
But Ichigo was simply too fast. Before the Hollow could react, his sword had already swung down.
"You… Gremlin!"
The frog roared toward the old wound on its body that Ichigo had once inflicted, but this time, the slash only cut across its mask!
The mask on its face split like flesh and blood, and a torrent of blood gushed out of the opening.
"Did you think I've been doing nothing all this time?!"
Seeing Ichigo's surprise, the frog Hollow stuck out its tongue. The tongue shot forth like a spear and instantly ran Ichigo through.
!!!
Ichigo's pupils dilated.
The tongue was steel-hard, slick and green. The moment it pierced his body, intense pain flooded his senses.
"Gh…!"
Blood poured from his abdomen, and it started to dribble from the corner of his mouth. Seeing his miserable state, the frog Hollow burst out laughing.
"Your soul must taste exquisite. I'll eat you first—
then I'll eat your little sister!"
The Hollow opened its massive mouth, clearly intending to swallow Ichigo whole in one go.
Karin…
Thinking of Karin, Ichigo suddenly found strength from nowhere. He swung his other sword and slashed down, instantly severing the tongue that had impaled him!
The force binding his body vanished. Ichigo crashed down heavily into the soft soil.
The tongue fell away. Writhing in agony, the frog Hollow hurriedly yanked half of its severed tongue back into its mouth. Its bloodshot eyes flared as it once again lunged at Kurosaki Ichigo.
Ichigo hastily rolled aside. As he tumbled twice, a thunderous crash sounded behind him—the frog Hollow had slammed into the ground right in front of him.
Its massive palm swung down, larger than before. If that slap landed, it would definitely turn Ichigo into minced meat.
Ichigo's pupils shrank. He knew he couldn't dodge in time and let out a roar with all the strength he had left.
In an instant, the golden blade in his hand shone even brighter, and a huge golden wave of cutting force exploded out from the sword.
Hmph!
The slash fell and cleaved the frog Hollow's palm and arm cleanly in two!
The power of that blow was still overwhelming, but the cost was enormous. The last time Ichigo used this move, he'd nearly passed out from sheer exhaustion. This time he managed to stay conscious, but he was gasping for breath.
"This monster…"
The frog Hollow, clearly itself a monster, nonetheless stared in shock and bellowed with anger and emphasis:
"You're the monster!!"
Its remaining arm clutched at the severed stump, blood spurting out like a fountain. The pain was many times worse than when its tongue had been cut.
"Eh… ah…"
Ichigo could barely hear the Hollow's words anymore. All he wanted was to swing his sword one more time. But now, the Hollow had already been frightened of him.
Of course, Ichigo couldn't unleash another wave like that.
The frog Hollow turned its body and tried to flee instead.
It knew very well that Ichigo's body wouldn't last much longer.
If that was the case, why confront him head-on now?
Just wait a bit. The boy would collapse on his own from exhaustion, and then it would be easy to eat him.
"I'll eat you later!"
The frog Hollow laughed, its voice like that of a murderer.
"Once I eat you, I'll get the strength I need to eat your sister too.
You coming here only made your sister die faster—didn't you realize that?!"
"Damn it…!"
Staring at the fleeing Hollow, Ichigo seethed with rage, but he couldn't catch up. The frog Hollow's leaps were too powerful.
The more he ran, the faster his strength drained. He could barely hold himself together.
But…
Just as he was sinking into despair, and just as the frog Hollow was laughing, certain of its victory—
A figure suddenly appeared right in front of it.
It was a short, slender person clad in black, with a sword hanging at her waist. She appeared sideways, standing between the Hollow and its path of escape.
The frog Hollow, which had been bounding forward, came to an abrupt stop.
Looking at the woman in front of it, it instinctively felt threatened.
"Who… are you…?"
"You don't even know what a Shinigami is, after you've become a Hollow?"
Rukia inclined her head slightly, speaking softly.
"Shi… Shi…
Shinigami…?"
The frog Hollow stared, momentarily stunned. But when it saw Ichigo in pursuit behind her, it threw caution to the wind and no longer cared about any Shinigami.
"Out of my way!"
It leapt with all its might, and its sheer weight alone would have been enough to crush the girl into pulp.
But at the very moment it jumped, Rukia's figure vanished again.
"...?!"
The frog Hollow's pupils shrank. It didn't even know when Rukia had reappeared behind its body.
She held the hilt of the blade at her waist with one hand. A moment ago she had been facing sideways; now her back was completely turned to the Hollow, looking instead at the panting, dazed boy in the distance.
A sharp crack rang out along the frog Hollow's back—a jagged line split open from the back of its head all the way down to its tailbone.
Fsssh!!
Blood sprayed forth, dozens of times more than before.
Yet not a single drop landed on Rukia's body.
After easily slaying the frog Hollow, Rukia frowned slightly as she looked at the boy before her.
"…And you are?"
Ichigo stared blankly for a moment, then grumbled,
"I should be the one asking that!"
"Who are you?!
And what was that just now…?"
"You don't even know what that was?"
Rukia furrowed her brows further. She looked at Ichigo with a puzzled expression.
"How strange. You clearly have a human body, yet you can form a spiritual weapon. Are you a Quincy?"
But Quincies use bows, don't they?
"I don't understand a word you're saying."
Ichigo replied in a low voice.
"Anyway, Karin—I came here to save my sister!"
Without waiting for her answer, Ichigo pushed past Rukia and headed straight for the cave opening. Karin was still in there.
Rukia watched his retreating back, still deep in thought.
Could it be…
Captain Yoshio's guess was right?
Back in the Seireitei, Yoshio had once raised a hypothesis:
The extraordinary concentration of reishi in Karakura Town might cause mutations among the humans living there.
The reishi density in Karakura Town was far higher than in normal districts of the Rukongai—though still below that of the Seireitei, it was several times richer.
Reishi this highly concentrated could transform material things into spiritual entities. If even matter could become spiritual, then human souls all the more so.
Under the stimulation of such a dense reishi environment, it was entirely possible for the human soul to undergo changes.
Was the orange-haired boy the product of such a mutation?
She had no idea how the Soul Society would deal with people like him.
Forget it. She was still stationed in Karakura Town.
She would report it once she returned.
After the unusual incidents in Karakura Town, management authority for the area had been restored to what it was in the past. The captains themselves, of course, would not be permanently stationed there. Instead, Lieutenants from the Tenth and Thirteenth Divisions took turns on rotation.
Each posted Lieutenant stayed between one to three months in the town.
She'd only just arrived, and something like this had already occurred.
In a way, it was a good opportunity to observe.
Before leaving, Rukia unconsciously glanced around. For some reason, she suddenly felt as if someone was watching her.
Only after confirming that no one was nearby did she use Shunpo to leave the scene.
"Shinigami really have gotten sharper."
Kurosaki Masaki spoke softly. Her gazed at this world—both familiar and unfamiliar—and felt a faint sense of loss.
In the end, she too left this place.
…
"Rukia has already made contact with Kurosaki Ichigo."
Deep within Aizen's secret research facility in Jinglinting.
Aizen, Yoshio, Ichimaru Gin, and Tōsen Kaname were all present.
Ichimaru Gin narrowed his eyes and smiled.
"Wasn't that all arranged by Captain Aizen?"
Aizen only smiled and said nothing. He glanced over at Yoshio, who was lounging nearby.
"What did Dark Rukia say?"
"She said she owes you a favor. This matter will help you, and she's very optimistic about your plan."
Yoshio was sprawled on the couch, a book held casually in his right hand.
Dark Rukia owed Aizen two major debts.
First was that Szayelaporro had used Shizuku and Homura for his research, eventually developing the Parasitic Hollow and together with them, manufacturing the original Parasitic Hollow incident. Szayelaporro was Aizen's subordinate, so this favor naturally traced back to him.
Second, it could be said that Dark Rukia herself had been created by Aizen.
One was the Hōgyoku, the other was White, who knew the truth of her origins. For Dark Rukia, refusing to join the three-digit group in Las Noches as herself and instead working with Aizen's plan was not unthinkable.
That way, she could also cooperate with Aizen's upcoming schemes.
And then there was…
Arguably the most important point:
She believed that this plan would not harm Rukia Kuchiki.
According to the plan, Kuchiki Rukia and Kuchiki Byakuya might be able to confront each other frankly. Their sibling bond was no longer as rigid as before, but Dark Rukia still felt awkward whenever they met.
Following Aizen's guidance, there was a high chance that brother and sister could finally open their hearts and be honest with each other.
For Rukia, it might mean a brief period of pain, but in the long run, the benefits would far outweigh the harm.
"Speaking of which, after all these years of preparation, it's finally time for us to move. Thinking about it… it's almost sad."
Yoshio said this while still lying languidly on the sofa.
"Is that so? I didn't think you capable of such sentiment."
Tōsen spoke lightly.
"If you knew you would leave sooner or later, you shouldn't have shown mercy anywhere, nor should you have allowed yourself any bonds."
"That's far too cold. That's not my personality."
"You did it on purpose, didn't you?"
Ichimaru Gin's tone remained playfully crisp.
"You want to see it—that look on their faces when they see your true self.
The pained, disbelieving expression of people who once trusted you, relied on you, and believed in you, don't you?"
"I never thought about it that way, Gin. It's a pity you do."
Yoshio smiled faintly.
"It's almost time."
Aizen said calmly.
"Once the Espada are in position…
we'll attack the Central 46 Chambers."
…
"Captain Yoshio!"
Upon returning home from the laboratory, Yoshio saw Renji waiting at his front door.
"Renji, you haven't come to see me in some time."
Yoshio greeted him, then asked:
"So, what is it? Is it all settled?"
Renji scratched his head, looking a little embarrassed.
"Sorry, Captain Yoshio. A lot's been going on recently, so I haven't been able to visit."
"The way you say that makes me sound like some lonely old man."
Yoshio chuckled.
"Come in, we can talk inside."
He opened the door and went in with Renji.
"Captain Yoshio, I've been transferred to the Sixth Division."
"Oh?"
Yoshio raised his brows.
"I see. So Ginjiro is finally retiring?"
He'd heard as much from Ginjirō Shirogane himself a few days ago.
"Yes."
Renji nodded.
"After Lieutenant Ginjiro retires, the Central 46 ordered that I be transferred to Division Six as the new Lieutenant."
"Congratulations!"
Yoshio clapped his hands in celebration.
"At this rate, every one of you will have become a Lieutenant."
Of the few who had once come to learn under Yoshio—Kira, Hinamori, Hitsugaya (Captain), Rukia—everyone had become a Lieutenant by now. Renji was the only one who hadn't, until now.
"That's because I was too weak."
Renji grew even more embarrassed, though in truth, it wasn't his fault.
Having the ability alone wasn't enough. There also had to be a vacancy.
There was already a Lieutenant in every squad—Renji couldn't just go and fight them all in a bloody power struggle.
He had no choice but to wait for an opening.
And now, the opportunity had finally come. The Sixth Division's Lieutenant, Ginjirō Shirogane, was about to retire.
Ordinary Shinigami didn't have the right to retire. They either died in battle or rose to high rank.
Anyone who wanted to enjoy retirement as a Shinigami had to at least reach the level of a seated officer, ideally a Lieutenant.
"Congratulations."
Yoshio smiled at Renji.
"Have you told Rukia?"
"I wanted to, but she doesn't seem to be with the Thirteenth Division right now."
Renji replied.
"She's probably in the World of the Living. It'll take one to three months before she comes back."
Yoshio said,
"This posting was something she and Captain Ukitake discussed together. I honestly don't know how long she'll be staying there this time."
"It's fine. It'll be the same telling her when she gets back."
Renji said, then bowed deeply to Yoshio.
"Captain Yoshio, thank you for training me."
"You're all my important juniors. There's no need for this."
Yoshio answered quietly.
"If you're going to the Sixth Division, you'd better prepare yourself. Byakuya is a head of one of the Four Great Noble Families. He cares a lot about rules."
"If you're working under him, you'll have to be careful about your conduct."
"I know."
Renji nodded.
"Then, I'll head back for now."
Yoshio watched Renji leave, then closed the door again.
"Azashiro."
Yoshio spoke toward the empty air.
"You're here, right?"
After a moment, the air before him darkened, like a rainbow being overlaid by a shadow.
A figure appeared and looked at Yoshio.
"What's the matter?"
Sōya Azashiro had in fact already moved his main body to Karakura Town, but there were still many fragments of his Urozakuro in the Seireitei. Because of that, he could still hear what happened in the Seireitei. When he heard Yoshio calling for him, he sent a portion of himself there to convey his main consciousness.
"Try fusing with this."
Yoshio handed him the Ōken—the King's Key—he had previously taken from Tsunami Tokida's body.
Sōya Azashiro took it. His pupils shrank.
"The King's Key…?"
"So you recognize it. That's right, it's the Ōken."
Yoshio smiled.
"But it only contains about a third of its full power, so it's not that strong."
Only someone at Yoshio's level would dare say that a third of the Ōken's power wasn't that strong. In all three realms, only a tiny handful of beings would share that opinion.
Azashiro knew Yoshio's power was unfathomable, but he was still shocked by this gesture.
This wasn't something that could be easily copied. Yet Yoshio had just handed it over so casually…
"…Thank you."
He didn't refuse. Whether for Yoshio's sake or his own, this fragment of the Ōken would be a tremendous help.
And his abilities were particularly suited to utilizing the King's power. As he integrated the reishi of the Ōken into his own Urozakuro, Azashiro suddenly felt a mighty force merging into him.
The power of the Soul King washed over his soul and reshaped it.
After a while, he successfully fused with this third of the Ōken.
"In this world, take Kurosaki Masaki with you to the company. There should be battles in Karakura Town for a while. Don't get involved."
"…Understood."
Azashiro nodded. His body gradually faded and finally vanished.
After devouring the Ōken, his spiritual power had grown stronger. More importantly—
The excessively frail body he once had had changed.
Sōya Azashiro's physical condition had always been extremely weak. He stayed in a state similar to Bankai year-round, transforming reishi into his own body and fusing with other entities to fight, which meant he hardly ever strengthened his physical body itself.
Now, after devouring the King's Key, his body and bones had been reconstructed by the Soul King's power, far surpassing what they had been before. From now on, he wouldn't necessarily need to fight in that constant Bankai-like state.
…
Aizen's plan had officially begun. This peaceful life was about to crumble.
It was time to make preparations.
Time to say goodbye to the Seireitei.
Truthfully, with his current strength, Yoshio no longer needed Aizen. He could easily stay in the pure Seireitei forever.
But becoming just another ordinary Shinigami in the pure Seireitei was not what he wanted. He had his own ambitions—ambitions the pure Seireitei would never allow.
As for the future, as long as he could obtain power equivalent to or surpassing the Soul King's, everything else would naturally fall into place.
As the saying goes, when a single limb moves, the whole body responds.
Under Aizen's will, the great gear of the three realms had already begun to turn.
Yet in this world, the people who knew nothing continued walking step by step along the path fate had laid out for them.
At the Kurosaki home, Ichigo had already returned with Karin and then gone back to his own room.
Karin's life was no longer in danger. She had merely fallen into a coma.
Ichigo himself, however, was exhausted, his stamina completely drained.
Once he confirmed that Yuzu and Karin were both safe, he rushed home.
But when he opened the door, he saw the woman in black from earlier standing by his desk, flipping through his manga.
"Wah!"
Ichigo yelped in surprise, suddenly wide awake again.
He hadn't forgotten that this woman was the one who had defeated the frog Hollow in a single strike. Compared to the Hollow, she was even more terrifying!
"Why are you being so noisy?!"
Rukia said angrily.
"Is this the first time you've ever seen someone like me?"
"Of course it's the first time I've seen someone like you!"
Ichigo replied, clearly tense.
"Who the hell are you?"
Rukia proceeded to explain the concept of Shinigami to Kurosaki Ichigo.
After listening, Ichigo's lips twitched.
"Can you not use such abstract drawings?"
"Your art… is a bit too advanced for the current human sense of aesthetics!"
Rukia froze for a moment, then turned into a chibi version of herself as she looked at her sketchboard.
"There's something wrong with my drawing?
It should be perfectly understandable."
Ichigo rested his chin on his hand, looking thoughtful.
"So… you people are a group that's responsible for maintaining the balance of souls in this world. That much I get."
"But what I don't understand is—why haven't I seen any of you for the past ten years?"
"The past ten years…?"
This time, it was Rukia who was stunned.
"You mean… you've been able to see ghosts for more than ten years?!
You could see spirits when you were just a kid?!"
"Yeah. I've been seeing ghosts for over ten years. What about it?"
Ichigo replied, confused.
Compared to Ichigo's confusion, Rukia was even more perplexed.
If Ichigo had only awakened his powers in recent years, that would have been understandable. But he'd said he'd been seeing ghosts for more than ten years.
That was extremely odd.
Even if Karakura Town's reishi had changed, it would take time for that to profoundly affect the local residents' souls. Ten years ago, the mutation in Karakura Town had only just begun. Someone like Kurosaki Ichigo shouldn't have appeared right after the change.
That left only one answer—
Kurosaki Ichigo's mutation had nothing to do with Karakura Town's reishi changes.
Seeing that she'd gone quiet, Ichigo spoke up with some dissatisfaction.
"You Shinigami say you're here to purify souls, but I see wandering spirits around town all the time. Some of them stay in the same place for years without passing on."
"Some wandering souls are simply too weak. It's inevitable that some will slip through our net."
Rukia was still preoccupied with thoughts of Ichigo's strange condition, and her answer came out somewhat absentmindedly.
Ichigo was clearly displeased by that reply.
"And that frog Hollow—
It's probably been in that place all this time, right?"
"In the end, you never took care of it until today.
Aren't you Shinigami a little too inefficient?"
This whole incident had left Ichigo rather resentful. After all, it had been about his sister.
At that moment, Rukia finally came back to herself.
"That's because a lot of major incidents have been happening lately in the world of the Shinigami. They're so busy handling their own matters that they can barely keep up, even within Soul Society."
"In short…"
Rukia looked Ichigo in the eye.
"I don't know how the Central 46 is going to treat someone like you. I'll have to make a report after I get back to the Seireitei."
"In the meantime, the two of us will be working together."
"Working together?"
Ichigo was surprised.
"You're so strong—do you really need my help?"
He still remembered how the frog Hollow hadn't even been able to move in front of Rukia.
She was truly incredible.
"The reishi concentration in Karakura Town is abnormally high and extremely chaotic. Even the Shinigami's reiryoku sensing is affected here, so there are many wandering souls we can't detect."
"But you… you've been able to see wandering spirits since you were a child. I hope you'll help me. We need to send them to Soul Society. If anything happens to them while they're here, it could be very bad."
"Why should I help you?"
Ichigo sighed.
"I've got high school entrance exams coming up in a few days."
"It's fine. I'll be in this world for around three months."
Rukia replied in a low voice.
"And the reason I want you to help, of course, is that I want to leave a good impression on the Central 46."
"…?"
Seeing Ichigo's confusion, Rukia put on a frightening expression.
"Spiritual power is not meant to be in human hands. A new type of human like you might get a destruction order from the Central 46 at any time!"
"So if you can prove yourself useful to Soul Society, there's a chance they might show leniency."
"...?!"
Hearing Rukia's words, Ichigo was stunned.
"You people…
What kind of underworld gang are you, Shinigami?!"
"Uh…"
Rukia didn't know how to respond to that. But if someone wanted to call Shinigami an underworld gang, she honestly couldn't say they were wrong.
Seeing her fall silent made Ichigo feel even more uneasy.
"Still, even as a Shinigami, I do understand how important your exams are."
Rukia continued.
"So I'll wait until your exams are over. Then I'll come back."
Besides, she also wanted to know what Kurosaki Ichigo's true power actually was.
That ligh sword…
Why did it seem just a bit like a Zanpakutō?
But that shouldn't be possible.
Even Shinigami couldn't make Zanpakutō, yet a human had developed such a power?
Before she acted, the frog Hollow had already been seriously injured. If he had caused all of that by himself, then his potential as a human was enormous.
Ichigo had no choice but to agree, though he had his own motives too.
Ichigo was sick of being powerless. Without strength, he couldn't protect his friends. All he could do was stand by helplessly as Yuzu was nearly taken, Orihime became a monster, and he struggled desperately to save Karin.
Then Rukia had appeared.
Her overwhelming power had shaken him to his core.
The enemy he couldn't even scratch had been felled instantly by her.
That image was burned deeply into Ichigo's heart.
He wanted to become as strong as Rukia.
Only then could he protect the people around him.
If he followed Rukia and worked with her, maybe he could get stronger.
With that expectation—and a fair bit of anxiety—the time for the high school entrance exam arrived.
He hadn't studied much recently, but his foundations were solid, and he managed to pass without any issues.
…
After the exam, his entire class cheered. They had finally gotten through the toughest period, and now they could enjoy a homework-free summer vacation.
As he walked toward the school gate, Ichigo suddenly spotted Nezuko and paused for a moment.
Normally, Nezuko walked home, but today a car had come to pick her up at the gate. Ichigo didn't know much about cars, but even he could tell this one was extremely luxurious.
Nezuko got into the car and it drove off.
"Huh?"
Ichigo walked over to Tatsuki, curiosity on his face.
"Where's she going? I thought her house was really close to school."
"She's going back to her hometown."
Tatsuki said casually. She and Nezuko were on good terms.
"She originally wanted to ask us to watch her karate tournament, but it looks like she won't have time."
"Come to think of it… her family's really loaded."
After she said that, Tatsuki rubbed her chin and added,
"That car just now must've cost… hundreds of millions of yen, right?"
"How many hundreds of millions?!"
Ichigo's eyes went wide.
"You're kidding, right?!"
"Why would I lie?"
Tatsuki shrugged.
"Isn't her family's tutor that… uh, you-know-who? No wonder they're so rich."
"What kind of person is that to make them that rich?"
Ichigo was confused.
At that moment, Tatsuki's expression suddenly turned serious.
"That was her dad, you know…"
"Have you ever actually seen Nezuko's father?"
Ichigo froze.
He tried to think back carefully and finally frowned.
"It feels like… maybe I have? But no, wait…"
He'd known Nezuko for many years, but thinking back, he realized he'd only seen her dad once or twice at most.
It would have been back in elementary school, or just after they'd started middle school.
Yet now, no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't recall Nezuko's father's face. All he could summon up was a vague, blurred image. And when he tried to focus on that image, an odd, familiar sense of intimacy washed over him.
That is…
What?
"I think…
I might have seen him once."
Ichigo said with some hesitation.
"You probably have. I've never seen him at all."
Tatsuki muttered.
"Isn't the Nezuko family some huge zaibatsu? Her dad let her grow up in Karakura so she could have a quiet, happy childhood."
"You could just ask her yourself, you know."
Ichigo had no interest in digging into someone else's family matters like a gossip hound. All he wanted was to hurry home—because today he'd promised to act as Rukia's assistant Shinigami and help with soul burials.
In fact, after Karin woke up, she'd already been able to see spirits. Ichigo, however, didn't want his sister getting involved in this world, so he hadn't told her about Rukia.
After saying goodbye to Tatsuki, he sprinted in the direction of home.
…
A few days later, Baelz and Yoshio were ready to divide the Soul King's left hand between them.
Within the pseudo Hueco Mundo, a glowing circle appeared—this was not the typical black Garganta, but a different form of passage.
Yoshio stood upon a desert of reishi sand, watching as Baelz and Pernida emerged from the round opening.
Yoshio said nothing. He simply manifested the Mind-Rending Blade and slashed Pernida.
Without waiting for the full effects to manifest, Yoshio asked Baelz to take Pernida back at once.
After they vanished, darkness began to seep out where Pernida had stood, as if the desert of reishi were exuding oil, the very fabric of space weeping black tears.
Once Pernida and Baelz had completely disappeared, that darkness coalesced.
A gigantic black hand appeared. It looked exactly like the left hand of the Hollow King from the era of reiryoku…
The right arm of the Hollow King.
Its appearance was nearly identical. There was a large mouth in its palm, and above that mouth, a vertical pupil.
The vertical pupil opened and locked onto Yoshio, brimming with ravenous desire.
Yoshio's soul quality was simply too high. Even in the ancient chaotic era, no one could compare.
As a soul that had surpassed the limits of the Shinigami, Yoshio was naturally an irresistible temptation to the Hollow King.
The moment it appeared, it wanted to devour him.
A bizarre force spread out from its body in an instant.
As the right arm of the Hollow King, it naturally possessed an extraordinary ability.
Yoshio felt the field of that power wash over him. He could feel it eroding his body, draining him, and he murmured quietly:
"So the right hand's power is 'Rewind,' is it?"
The left hand of the Hollow King had the power of "Forward." It could accelerate the practice of reiryoku, accelerate the healing of wounds, or simply speed up the movement and action of all things.
The right hand's power was "Rewind," the exact opposite of the left hand's, and completely contrary to the Soul King's left hand of "Forward."
Under the influence of this power, Yoshio felt the reiryoku in his body fading away, his soul's strength diminishing, as if he were about to regress and crumble.
This was truly a power worthy of the divine realm—overwhelmingly strong.
But this power… was his own.
"If I want to face myself, I'll have to use another method."
Yoshio said softly.
"Mother of the Hollow…"