Chapter 77: Is Something Wrong, Mr. Clown?
Meanwhile.
After sending the latest update to Takeru, Hachihara put away her denreishinki and turned to the two people performing the Hogyoku extraction surgery.
The Fifth Division vice captain, the girl most people believed had been brutally murdered, was not only alive and well, but dressed in a white lab coat. Paired with her delicate face and petite frame, she looked like a proper doctor.
Only, the procedure in front of her looked nothing like medicine. It was closer to witchcraft.
First, a spirit array was laid across the floor. The moment the patient, Rukia, was brought in, she was placed at its center and the array was activated.
Light flared.
Green clusters surged upward, ringed by sharp, rigid structures like the claws of some unseen beast. Rukia was lifted inside the formation as if cradled in a palm. Then an invisible gaze seemed to pierce her chest, exposing something buried deep within her soul.
Hachihara watched, tense enough that she barely dared to breathe.
"This is… the Hogyoku?"
Momo Hinamori was under crushing pressure. Her small face was drawn tight as she slowly reached forward. Her wrist, altered by the ritual and coated in strange substances, sank into the darkness of Rukia's chest. From within, she drew out a crystal wrapped in a transparent barrier.
The moment the Hogyoku was removed, the gaping hole in Rukia's chest vanished as if it had never existed.
"Cough, cough…!"
The spirit array shut down. The eerie phenomena disappeared with it.
"Kuchiki, are you alright?" Hachihara asked as she hurried forward.
"I'm fine. Everything feels normal." Rukia touched her chest and, finding it as flat as ever, stopped caring immediately. Her gaze shifted to the odd crystal in Hinamori's hand. "So it really was inside me."
"And this is that dangerous substance Urahara made, the one people say can turn Shinigami into Hollows?"
"It is dangerous," Hinamori said, expression solemn. "The spiritual pressure reaction is faint, but the aura is wrong. Even I can feel it making my heart tremble."
She looked down at it, voice low. "If I keep it near me too long… I do not know whether I can resist the urge to do something with it."
Captain Aizen's tireless guidance flashed through her mind, steadying her. Hinamori carefully placed the crystal into a prepared box, then slipped the box into a Fourth Division style satchel dyed a different color and slung it over her shoulder.
"Alright. Done. Let's go."
"Go where?" Hachihara and Rukia asked at the same time.
"To Captain Aizen, of course," Hinamori replied without hesitation. "Handing it to Takeru or Ichigo would also work, but the key is still Captain Aizen."
"If Captain Aizen personally delivers it to Captain Commander Yamamoto, then petitions together with Captain Ukitake and the others, the verdict should be overturned."
"The Hogyoku is the source of the crisis. Once that hot potato is thrown away, Kuchiki will be safe. Captain Aizen said so."
She paused, then added more softly, "Still, just in case, we should first send Kuchiki somewhere safe and wait for Central 46's final judgment."
"The chance is small, but Kuchiki, you need to be prepared to say goodbye to Soul Society."
Rukia nodded, heavy and calm. "I understand. Thank you for everything you've done for me. Even if I end up in the World of the Living, I will remember this for the rest of my life."
"Don't worry," Hachihara said quickly, sincerity pouring out. "Even if the worst happens, you can still come back once Takeru becomes Captain Commander."
Rukia and Hinamori both gave her a dry laugh.
Even with Takeru and Ichigo shattering convention again and again, even being called the greatest geniuses in history, neither of them could imagine, or accept, anyone other than Genryusai Yamamoto sitting in that seat.
They packed up and left the facility.
To be fair, the research facility was extremely well hidden. It was built underground, beneath a lake less than a kilometer from the Fifth Division training grounds. The entrance was concealed inside a hollow tree trunk. With kido masking it, discovering it was nearly impossible.
But once they stepped outside, secrecy stopped mattering.
Out in the open, all those defenses were useless.
They had barely emerged when they ran straight into Shuhei Hisagi, waiting above.
"The spiritual pressure vanished here without a trace," Shuhei said coolly. "It was obvious something was wrong. I did not hesitate to spend spiritual power and watch from a high vantage point."
"It seems my patience paid off."
Then his eyes widened, like he had seen a ghost.
"Wait."
"Why are there three of you?"
And one of them was someone he knew.
"Hinamori? Weren't you dead?!"
"There was… a small misunderstanding," Hinamori said, forcing an awkward chuckle.
Even though there were reasons, having such a lie exposed still made her cheeks heat. She could barely meet the eyes of someone who had once been a friendly senior.
Shuhei's expression spun through shock, suspicion, and dread, like colors being thrown into a dye vat.
"A trap? So Captain Aizen too… No." He swallowed. "Maybe Captain Hitsugaya, maybe other captains… Are all of you involved?"
"Did I just stumble into some kind of terrifying conspiracy?"
Shuhei was not the only one who felt the temperature drop.
A burly man in sunglasses stepped out of the woods. Iba Tetsuzaemon stared at Hinamori and spoke in a low, heavy voice.
"Hinamori… I never thought even you would betray us."
"It's chilling." His jaw tightened. "I don't even recognize the Gotei 13 anymore."
"Mr. Iba…"
Facing a second senior, Hinamori found her fear and guilt fading. Her eyes hardened with resolve.
"We have not betrayed anyone."
"We simply refuse to watch the Gotei 13 commit wrongdoing at Central 46's unreasonable command."
"Hinamori…" Shuhei murmured, conflicted.
Iba adjusted his glasses. "And you call that anything but betrayal."
"If you insist on seeing it that way," Hinamori said, "then I have nothing more to say."
She drew her Zanpakuto. Her stance made her answer clear.
At that moment, Hachihara hesitated, then asked, "Hey, Vice Captain of the Seventh Division… is that Rindo you're carrying?"
"This kid's name is Rindo?" Iba said, amused. He shifted the unconscious boy on his shoulder. "Don't worry. He's just knocked out."
"I never thought a mere first year could reach Bankai." Iba's grin widened. "He even gave me and Hisagi trouble with sheer guts and a sharp head."
He set Rindo down carefully.
"Honestly, I like him. He looks dull, but he's efficient, loyal, and not some hotheaded idiot."
"And you, and those two weird ones, too. The Spirit Arts Academy really surprised everyone this year."
He glanced at Hachihara. "A talent explosion like this usually means something big is coming."
"So once this is over, if you all graduate safely, I'll recommend him to my captain. I'd take him as a subordinate."
His tone cooled.
"But until then, he's an accomplice who helped the ryoka, and a fugitive."
"So let's make a trade."
"Hand over Kuchiki Rukia, and I return this kid."
"Otherwise, don't blame me if he suffers a little."
Hinamori, Hachihara, and Rukia all froze.
They weren't attacking. They were negotiating.
A second later, the reason became obvious.
Hinamori was here. Another vice captain. The gap in strength was not overwhelming. And Shuhei and Iba knew nothing about what was inside that facility. If the three retreated into the passage, the two would hesitate to chase, worried about a trap.
They also did not know whether something had been brought out.
Add the unsettling fact of Hinamori's "death" and sudden return, and it made sense that the cautious Iba would choose leverage over a straight clash.
Shuhei looked surprised, but he did not object. It was clear the two had discussed it on the way here and were prepared for this exact scene.
That, however, trapped the three in a brutal choice.
Do they hand over Rukia, who no longer had the Hogyoku inside her, or gamble that the other side valued Rindo and would not truly harm him, then flee without looking back?
Either way, a direct fight was not an option.
Rukia inhaled, about to stall for time and offer herself for Rindo, when two figures appeared by the lake.
"Oh my. We finally found it."
The air stiffened.
"Captain Ichimaru?!"
Cold sweat broke out on every face.
It was not that Gin Ichimaru alone was terrifying.
It was the immense Hollow like pressure rolling off the man beside him, and the unsettling sight of his broken mask. The weight of it crushed down through bone and spirit, leaving everyone feeling like their insides were being squeezed.
"The Hogyoku," Arturo said coldly. "Which one of you was it hidden in?"
Every glance he threw made people feel like objects on a shelf.
Gin smiled, eyes narrowed. "No doubt it was little Rukia, the girl in the white prison uniform."
"But now…" His smile sharpened. "Hard to say."
"If I'm not mistaken, it's in that satchel."
Before Gin finished speaking, Arturo was already gone.
He moved like space itself had been cut and re stitched, vanishing with a sound like something snapping apart.
The next second, he stood on the grass.
The satchel was in his hand.
"That's…!"
Hinamori's pupils shrank. Her hand shot toward her back.
Pain bloomed in her chest.
Blood sprayed.
Pfft.
It sounded like one strike, but in truth several sounds layered together.
"Ugh…!"
"Damn it!"
Hinamori, Hachihara, Rukia, Iba, Shuhei, all of them were hit at once, as if invisible blades had carved through them.
The spiritual pressure packed into those blows invaded their bodies and ripped away their ability to resist. They collapsed almost simultaneously, unable to move, able only to force out unwilling groans and broken breaths.
"I thought you'd kill them outright, Mr. Arturo," Gin said as he drifted down, smiling while Arturo pulled the Hogyoku from the satchel and examined it. "Has your hatred for Soul Society and Shinigami faded after two thousand years?"
"That," Arturo said, turning his head, "is the most foolish thing you've ever said to me."
His contempt swept over the fallen group.
"I will not spare Soul Society."
"I will not spare a single Shinigami."
"But killing them now would be a waste."
"It will be better once I reclaim my past power and retrieve my Zanpakuto."
"Because the spiritual power of enemies I kill will become mine."
Gin's smile thinned into something wary. "Oh my. What a terrifying ability. No wonder you dared challenge Soul Society alone."
"For you, having companions would only steal your prey."
He sighed, theatrical and light. "It seems I shouldn't have let you out. Now even I might be in danger."
"I am not a bloodthirsty beast," Arturo snorted, clearly displeased. "If I were, there would be no need to come here. Killing and devouring in Hueco Mundo would be far more convenient."
He lifted his chin, pride sharpening his voice.
"I crave worthy opponents."
"Like Genryusai Yamamoto."
"And like the Soul Society beneath my feet."
"These are the enemies the King of Hueco Mundo, the strongest ruler of a world, should conquer and kill."
"As for spiritual power, it is only a trophy. Like taking the head of powerful prey and keeping it as proof."
Gin's smile returned, careful. "Then I'm relieved. If I had to fight you, I'd turn and run, then pray you wouldn't chase me."
"A man who only runs is not worthy of being my opponent," Arturo replied flatly.
Then he studied the Hogyoku in his hand, voice dropping into satisfied awe.
"I can feel it. A powerful fluctuation."
"I didn't lie, did I?" Gin spread his hands. "Unfortunately, I don't know how to use it. You'll have to figure that out yourself."
"A minor issue," Arturo said, lips curling. "I do not fully understand what it is, but I know the power it emits is harmless to me. That is enough."
"If it can Hollowfy a Shinigami, then it can help a Hollow break past its limits. It can let me surpass my past self."
"Learning to absorb it completely will take time." His eyes narrowed. "But taking the spiritual pressure it releases and making it mine is not difficult."
He tore open his chest with one hand. Blood spilled. Pain did not slow him. From within, he pulled out a silver needle like spike.
Thanks to his high speed regeneration, the wound sealed in an instant.
The spike transformed in his grasp into a magnificent treasure mirror.
For the first time, Gin's eyes opened slightly, blue green pupils filling with rare seriousness.
"Tch. After absorbing so much of my spiritual pressure, and sitting inside my body for two thousand years, it can only barely be pulled out…"
He stared at the mirror. "As expected of a divine relic passed down through generations. Even that woman had to sacrifice her life to awaken it."
Arturo's method was clear. He used the mirror he had taken from his own body.
He poured spiritual power into it, forcing resonance, yet it did not ripple. It was like a hero that had finished its duty and fallen into deep sleep.
Only when blood was used as a catalyst, like a Gran Rey Cero, did the mirror finally stir.
It released an invisible force, drawing out the spiritual pressure leaking from the Hogyoku in Arturo's other hand.
That fragmented power separated from the Hogyoku itself, and Arturo seized that opening to absorb the unclaimed spiritual pressure into his body.
Just as Retsu Unohana had concluded when she saw him destroy the Tenkei Kuro, Arturo possessed the special ability to absorb spiritual power.
After his self initiated Arrancar evolution, that ability had sharpened into something even more grotesque: killing enemies and plundering all of their spiritual power.
That full level required releasing his core and returning to his original form.
But absorbing unowned spiritual power like this, he could do right now.
"It's back…" Arturo's voice trembled with shock. "The spiritual power absorbed by the Shisuikyo is coming back."
"Even a little that escaped carries this much force…"
The pressure pouring from him climbed and climbed. It was no longer like mercury filling the air. Even vice captains like Iba and Shuhei could barely breathe, feeling death pressing closer every second.
Rukia and Hachihara had already fainted. Even unconscious, their bodies shook as if they might fracture and collapse at any moment.
Arturo himself stared, shaken by how dramatic the change was.
"Genryusai Yamamoto…" he said, voice cold with certainty. "Your doomsday, and Soul Society's, has arrived."
He cut off the absorption through sheer will.
His current power was already enough. Comparable to his peak.
And while the man who had once defeated him was far stronger than in the past, it was also true that continuous battles would wear anyone down.
Now was the best moment to erase humiliation and remove the greatest obstacle to destroying Soul Society.
Once the strongest Shinigami fell, no one would be able to stop him.
But before he confronted Yamamoto, he needed to retrieve his sword.
Arturo placed both the Hogyoku and the Shisuikyo into a white spirit particle box. Then he opened his chest again and shoved the box inside.
He would not lose these two treasures, not if they were going to make him the sole king of the three realms.
A triumphant smile spread across his face. He raised one hand and shouted,
"Return to me, my core. Immortal King!"
Boom.
His spiritual pressure, no longer restrained, exploded into a pillar of light that pierced the clouds and shook the entire Seireitei awake.
But even more startling was the sudden violent reaction from the dormant Sokyoku on Sokyoku Hill. Without the Kidō Corps doing anything, it broke free on its own.
It transformed into a giant firebird and flew straight toward Arturo.
"What's going on?" Renji stared, stunned, as the firebird tore away into the distance. "The Sokyoku broke free of its seal, and that spiritual pressure…"
"A Hollow? No." His throat tightened. "It doesn't feel like one at all."
Then a low voice nearby made him flinch.
Renji remembered too late that he was still in battle, still on the ground after being smashed down by his opponent's Bankai. He had been about to force himself up and fight again.
But when he turned his head, he saw Chojiro Sasakibe, vice captain of the First Division, the man who had knocked him down, paying him no attention.
Sasakibe's eyes were fixed on the direction the firebird had flown, face grim.
"That man…" Sasakibe muttered. "He actually escaped…"
Renji's eyes widened. "Escaped? Who are you talking about? Who escaped?!"
"Arturo Platedo," Sasakibe said without hesitation. "A monster that evolved from an advanced Menos Grande, a Vasto Lorde."
"Two thousand years ago, he attacked Soul Society alone."
"Even Old Man Yamamoto was once no match for him."
"But he was overconfident. He was ambushed by a noblewoman of that era wielding the ancestral divine relic Shisuikyo, a mirror that can absorb spiritual power."
"Old Man Yamamoto ultimately sealed him on Sokyoku Hill."
Sasakibe's voice hardened. "That is what the ancient records say."
"In reality, what was sealed here was only his core."
"His true body was imprisoned in the Great Underground Prison, Muken."
"Who exactly… who…" Renji began, but before he could finish, the bell that had only rung yesterday, when Yoruichi and the others forced their way through the Shakonmaku, echoed across Seireitei once again.
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