A distortion rippled across the evening sky.
At first it was barely noticeable like heat haze over asphalt but within seconds, the air itself warped violently, tearing open into an irregular crack. The edges of the rupture twisted unnaturally, spiritual particles screaming as they were dragged apart.
Beyond the tear lay a vast, swirling expanse of pale sands and endless darkness.
Hueco Mundo.
From within that void, a massive form emerged.
A pale, centipede-like Hollow over ten meters long crawled out of the Garganta, its segmented body scraping against the air itself as if the world resisted its presence. Its mask was elongated and jagged, dozens of hollow eye-sockets lining its sides like dead stars.
This was not Raizen Kō's true body.
It was an Adjuchas-class clone he had deliberately created.
Because this clone had only recently taken form, Raizen Kō was still unfamiliar with fully controlling its pure centipede morphology. Moreover, this was the clone's first independent incursion into the Human World. The instability of crossing realms forced it to linger in Hueco Mundo for several days, carefully synchronizing its reiatsu before finally tearing open a Garganta leading to Karakura Town.
The centipede Hollow paused atop a rooftop, its many eyes slowly scanning the city below.
Karakura Town.
To Raizen Kō's surprise, the town had already entered modern civilization. Power poles lined the streets, electric lights glowed faintly as dusk approached, and rows of detached houses and low-rise buildings stretched outward in neat grids.
For a fleeting moment, an unfamiliar sense of déjà vu surfaced.
It reminded him of a quiet provincial city from a distant past one that no longer belonged to this world.
Based on everything Raizen Kō understood about Hueco Mundo's flow of time and the Soul Society's current state, he had estimated that the era of Kurosaki Ichigo and Aizen Sōsuke was still over a century away.
He had expected Karakura Town to resemble the late Edo period at best wooden buildings, primitive infrastructure, and humans still deeply ignorant of the spiritual world.
Instead, modern society had already taken root.
Raizen Kō let out a low, distorted hiss.
"…So this 'Human World' isn't that far behind."
Shaking off the distraction, he abandoned further observation.
This clone had only one purpose.
And it was time to execute the plan.
The centipede Hollow reared back and released a thunderous roar that split the air itself.
ROOOOAAAR—!
In the next instant, Adjuchas-level reiatsu erupted outward like a tidal wave. The oppressive spiritual pressure surged across Karakura Town, crushing down on streets, rooftops, and alleyways alike.
Windows rattled. Animals panicked. Sensitive souls collapsed where they stood.
Elsewhere in Karakura Town
A balding, middle-aged Shinigami in standard Soul Reaper robes staggered backward, narrowly deflecting a vicious strike with his Asauchi.
"Damn it!"
His opponent was a large, mosquito-like Hollow, its proboscis hardened like steel and dripping with corrosive spiritual fluid.
The Shinigami Kato Kōichi, an unremarkable seated officer of the Thirteenth Division gritted his teeth as he struggled to maintain footing.
"I knew I shouldn't have accepted another Human World garrison assignment," he muttered bitterly. "Every single time it's my turn, something goes wrong!"
Normally, Hollows appearing in this sector were newly transformed souls easy work for even low-ranking officers.
But this one?
This was far beyond that.
"They said this area only spawns low-grade Hollows… so why is something like this here?!"
The mosquito Hollow shrieked and lunged again.
CLANG!
Its proboscis slammed into Kato's blade, sparks exploding outward. His grip failed, and the Asauchi was sent spinning across the pavement.
"Damn it Hadō Number Three !"
Before he could complete the incantation, an overwhelming pressure crashed down upon the entire area.
Kato froze.
Every instinct he possessed screamed danger.
The mosquito Hollow reacted even faster letting out a panicked screech before fleeing into the shadows without a second glance.
Kato stared, trembling, then slowly turned toward the source of that suffocating reiatsu.
"…That pressure…"
Cold sweat poured down his face.
"…Is that a Menos Grande?"
Like most low-ranking Shinigami from non-noble families, Kato had never been educated on the finer distinctions between Gillian, Adjuchas, and Vasto Lorde. All he knew was that anything above an ordinary Hollow spelled disaster.
"Damn the Research and Development Bureau…" he cursed under his breath. "How could they miss something like this?! If I survive, I'm filing a complaint!"
Despite the terror gnawing at his spine, Kato retrieved his Zanpakutō and forced himself forward.
Running away wasn't an option.
Back to the Clone
Raizen Kō sensed the weak yet resolute reiatsu approaching.
"Oh?""So it noticed."
The centipede Hollow shifted slightly, its massive form casting long shadows across the street.
"But this presence…""…It's far too weak."
Still, the bait had worked.
From the far end of the road, Kato Kōichi finally saw it clearly and his legs nearly gave out.
The sheer scale of the Hollow dwarfed everything around it.
"This… this thing…"
It was unlike any Hollow he had ever encountered.
The centipede Menos began tearing through the street deliberately ripping out power poles, crushing asphalt, and reducing buildings to rubble as if announcing its presence to the entire city.
Kato swallowed hard, then screamed as he charged.
"AAAAAH—!"
"Admirable courage," Raizen Kō thought coldly.
As the Shinigami closed in, the Hollow casually swept its massive tail.
Kato was sent flying over ten meters, crashing violently into the ground and rolling several times before barely stopping.
Raizen Kō had held back intentionally.
Killing this one would serve no purpose.
To his mild surprise, the Shinigami staggered upright again and charged once more.
At that moment
A sudden flash of Shunpo split the air.
A tall, broad-shouldered young man appeared instantly between Kato and the Hollow. His black hair was tied back neatly, his expression calm and resolute, eyes the color of storm-darkened seas.
He caught Kato with one hand.
"You've done enough," the man said gently."Leave the rest to me."
"…Vice-Captain…!"
Kato's eyes widened.
"Vice-Captain Shiba Kaien!"
Raizen Kō's attention sharpened instantly.
"…So it's you."
Shiba Kaien of the Thirteenth Division scion of the Shiba noble family, and a Shinigami whose strength already rivaled that of many captains.
Perfect.
The plan was reaching its conclusion.
Raizen Kō had sent this clone for a single reason: to be slain by a Shinigami.
A Hollow purified by a Zanpakutō would have its soul cycle reset returning either to the Soul Society or, if burdened by grave sins, cast into Hell.
Either outcome benefited him.
"This Adjuchas will suffice," Raizen Kō concluded.
The centipede Hollow reared back and unleashed a deafening roar.
Dark violet reiatsu condensed rapidly before its maw.
A Cero black-purple and violently unstable erupted forth.
Shiba Kaien reacted instantly, grabbing Kato and flashing away with Shunpo as the blast obliterated everything in its path.
"…An Adjuchas," Kaien muttered grimly."Why would one abandon Hueco Mundo to rampage here?"
Turning slightly, he spoke to Kato.
"Contact the Research and Development Bureau. Request authorization for Gentei Reiin release."
As a vice-captain, his reiatsu was restricted to eighty percent in the Human World.
Against this opponent, even that margin mattered.
Kaien raised his Zanpakutō.
"Reverse the tides of heaven Nejibana."
The blade transformed into a spiraled trident, torrents of water erupting and slicing forward like countless invisible blades.
Raizen Kō did not dodge.
Instead
The centipede Hollow surged forward, allowing the attack to tear through its body.
"…So this is enough," Raizen Kō judged calmly.
Wounded and dissolving, the clone used Sonído one final time impaling itself deliberately upon Nejibana's tip.
Kaien froze in disbelief as the Hollow's form disintegrated into spiritual particles.
"…What?"
Beside him, Kato stared in stunned silence as his call finally connected.
"Moshi moshi this is the Research and Development Bureau…"
The battlefield fell quiet.
And somewhere beyond the cycle of souls
Raizen Kō smiled.