Clang!
As his Asauchi left its sheath and parried the white blade, Makiya used the momentum to retreat, using Shunpo to reach the roof.
Looking around, the entire street... no, the entire district had already fallen.
Souls infected by the power of the Hollow instantly broke through their own limits, gaining immense power for a short duration.
This power was not long-lasting. Under the erosion of the cold, ominous Hollow power, the ultimate fate of these souls was for their spiritual bodies to dissipate and die completely.
But before they vanished, these souls, having completely lost their sanity, would attack everyone around them indiscriminately. It was like the T-virus from Resident Evil; souls injured by the monsters would be eroded by Hollow power, transforming into new monsters that pounced on others.
The infection spread exceptionally fast. The erosion speed of the Hollow power on souls was much faster than the T-virus. Almost instantly, the entire district was filled with monsters, and the streets were packed with souls covered in snow-white bone masks.
Makiya's eyes narrowed as he saw a group of souls who had organized themselves to resist. They were using the terrain and furniture to block the monsters from the doors, and their defensive line was gradually stabilizing.
Suddenly, a gash was sliced open on someone in the crowd. Their body twisted as they let out a roar, and white bone began to grow.
The resistance alliance collapsed from within as the crowd was instantly devoured.
Invisible enemies were causing chaos in the shadows.
'Aizen is still accelerating the spread; the one acting must be Kaname Tosen.'
Makiya parried Shinobu Eshima's attack with one hand and extended his left, joining his fingers into a palm:
"Bakudo #30. Shitotsu Sansen."
Three massive beak-shaped beams of light formed in front of him. Under Makiya's control, they slammed into the charging Tōdō Gizaemon, firmly pinning his hands and waist to the wall.
The Reiwei levels of the three seated officers were not low. The brief breaking of their limits caused their Spiritual Pressure to surge. Although they had lost their sanity and couldn't perform Shikai, their raw strength alone could reach the cutting power of Captains and Lieutenants.
After multiple enhancements, Makiya wasn't afraid of them either. Fighting all three alone, he was more than capable, even finding time to clear out the surrounding monsters.
Despite holding the upper hand, Makiya's expression remained bitter. The appearance of Arrancarification experiments meant Aizen was definitely watching nearby. His loyal dog, Kaname Tosen, might even be holding a blade and thinking about an ambush.
'Just my luck. Were these three even in the original Arrancar incident?'
"Bakudo #37. Tsuriboshi."
"Bakudo #61. Rikujokoro."
Slashing Shinobu Eshima down, Makiya used two incantation-abandoned Bakudo spells in quick succession. His spiritual power transformed into a hammock, firmly binding Shinobu Eshima, whose face was now completely covered by a bone mask.
Six pillars of light streaked through the air, catching Heizo Kasaki at the waist during a gap in his sword swing.
Heizo Kasaki roared in anger, his Asauchi swinging wildly, but he was unable to break through the restraint of the Six-Rod Light Restraint in the short term.
The auras of the individuals began to drop. Makiya knew that his three former classmates' lives had entered their final countdown.
Arriving at a high tower via Shunpo, Makiya raised his blade in a defensive stance and began the incantation:
"Carriage of thunder. Bridge of a spinning wheel. With light, divide this into six..."
"Footprints, distant thunder, sharp peak, returning land, night ambush, sea of clouds, blue formation, fill the circle and soar to the heavens..."
"Bakudo #77. Tenteikura!"
His Spiritual Pressure transformed into a network, rapidly extending toward the Seireitei, including all perceived Captain and Lieutenant-level Spiritual Pressures into the communication list.
"Emergency! Emergency!"
"This is Makiya, Sixth Seat of the Fifth Division. An incursion from Hueco Mundo is occurring in East District 24. Heizo Kasaki, Third Seat of the Ninth Division; Shinobu Eshima, Fourth Seat; and Tōdō Gizaemon, Sixth Seat, have been infected by Hollows, and their Spiritual Pressures are vanishing. Please send reinforcements immediately."
"Repeat, East District 24..."
As a worker, notifying superiors promptly was the correct move. He would only consider acting high-profile once a true heavyweight arrived in the mysterious space.
Makiya's voice traveled through the Spiritual Pressure into the ears of various Captains and Lieutenants. The high-end combat power of the Gotei 13 began to converge on the First Division.
In East District 6, a white-haired, short-haired handsome man and the cute green-haired girl behind him suddenly froze.
After hearing Makiya's words, the white-haired man waved his haori and turned to head toward East District 24: "Mashiro, let's go."
"Eh? Aren't we going to the First Division for the meeting? But the Captain-Commander's side..." Mashiro Kuna followed him, skipping along, her finger on her lip as she blinked her large, doll-like eyes.
"There won't be time then. We'll travel at full speed. It won't waste too much time. I will explain it to the Captain-Commander personally afterward."
Whoosh, whoosh!
The two left via Shunpo.
In East District 24, on a certain high building, three figures stood openly on the roof, making no attempt to hide their presence as if they didn't fear being discovered by anyone.
"What an impressive Kido. As expected of someone Captain Hirako had his eye on." The short Gin Ichimaru squinted his eyes with a fake smile. "Suppressing one Captain-level and two Lieutenant-level opponents on his own... it seems Sixth Seat Makiya has been hiding his strength all along."
"They are nothing more than mindless beasts. How can they be considered Captain-level?" Beside him, the blind Kaname Tosen with his star-shaped afro spoke indifferently.
He wore a sleeveless white haori with the markings of the Ninth Division and the number six on the back.
Gin Ichimaru ignored Kaname Tosen and turned to the man beside him: "Lord Aizen, aren't we going to stop him?"
"It matters not." Aizen always wore a smile, looking like everything was within his grasp. "This was always part of the plan."
Despite his words, a trace of boredom flashed in Aizen's narrowed eyes. Makiya's performance truly disappointed him.
Initially, Aizen had trusted Shinji Hirako's judgment.
After all, Shinji had used only intuition during their first meeting to discover that he was plotting something in secret. Shinji had even specifically recruited him into the Fifth Division to keep him under constant surveillance. His intuition was terrifying.
Since Shinji Hirako considered Makiya a talent, Aizen had also held a high opinion of him. He had even personally visited to teach Makiya Shikai, bringing this variable under control while making the other party feel overwhelmed by the favor.
Now it seemed Shinji Hirako had misjudged. Makiya was merely a mediocre person.
So what if he was proficient in Zanjutsu, Hakuda, Hohō, and Kidō? A Soul Reaper's battle was a battle of Spiritual Pressure. He couldn't perform Shikai, and his Spiritual Grade talent wasn't high. Such a person was only fit to be nourishment for the Hogyoku.
"Tosen." Aizen called out softly.
Kaname Tosen stepped forward respectfully: "Lord Aizen."
"The main course is about to be served. I look forward to your performance."
"Yes, Lord Aizen."
Makiya remained on guard for a while and found that Aizen had not made a move against him. Instead, two figures were rapidly approaching from the horizon, their massive Spiritual Pressure released without reservation, announcing their arrival to everyone.
"Makiya!" A snow-white haori appeared beside Makiya. The burly, white-haired man cracked his neck, his face full of fury: "Who turned my squad members into this?!"
Ninth Division Captain, Kensei Muguruma, has arrived!
Mashiro Kuna followed closely behind. As soon as she landed, she stepped forward to check on Heizo Kasaki and the other two.
Makiya's eyes widened. He had clearly mentioned a major event like a Hueco Mundo incursion, so why were these two the only ones to arrive? Was this fate? Where were the other Captains?
"Watch out!" Makiya quickly pulled Mashiro Kuna back, saying hurriedly: "Just being injured by them will cause that bone mask infection and an instant loss of sanity. There's an invisible enemy hiding in the shadows."
"Insects hiding their heads but showing their tails." Kensei Muguruma gave a disdainful laugh, his fists clashing in front of his chest as a powerful Spiritual Pressure erupted: "Makiya, Mashiro, you two take Heizo and the others back to the Seireitei first. I'll handle the enemies. Don't worry, I'll catch up with you soon. It won't waste..."
Squelch!
Before he could finish his sentence, a deep-to-the-bone slash appeared on Kensei Muguruma's chest. The '69' tattoo on his abdomen was split in two, and a large amount of thick white liquid sprayed from the wound.
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