"Once released from its sealed state, the dormant Hōgyoku, by temporarily fusing with someone whose Reiatsu is several times that of a Captain, can in that instant..." Sōsuke Aizen brought a hand toward the Hōgyoku. Before he even touched it, the Hōgyoku extended viscous, tentacle-like appendages that coiled around his fingers. Powerful Reiatsu surged through it, and a strange power burst forth. "It can display abilities equal to those of its fully awakened state."
The murk inside the Hōgyoku deepened, and for a moment it even turned completely black.
The sound of shattering glass rang out again and again. The cubic barrier broke into tiny fragments and vanished together with the layers of white bandages wrapped around the humanoid figure, revealing the boy hidden inside.
"Please..." Sōsuke Aizen looked down at the Arrancar before him. "Tell me your name, new partner."
"Wonderweiss..." Bewilderment filled his violet eyes. The naked blond boy's broken Arrancar mask resembled a crown. His mouth hung open, his front teeth jutted out, and his words came out slurred. "My name is... Wonderweiss Margela."
Satisfied, Sōsuke Aizen put away the Hōgyoku. "You still remember the order I mentioned to you a month ago, don't you, Ulquiorra?"
"Of course."
"Then go carry it out. Take Wonderweiss with you." Sōsuke Aizen turned his head. "I leave the choice to you. You may bring anyone you want."
"I understand."
Who should he take?
Ulquiorra had no one he particularly wanted to act with, but since Aizen-sama had given him the authority to decide, then it was necessary for him to bring someone.
Still, there was no need to dwell on it, though he himself did not possess such emotions as distress in the first place.
Someone would come to him on their own.
"Take me with you~" The first to seek Ulquiorra out was Luppi Antenor.
With short black hair and a side-swept fringe, Luppi fixed Ulquiorra with an eager stare from his pale violet eyes.
The remnant of his mask rested on the left side of his head. Compared to an ordinary Hollow mask, it looked more like some kind of hair ornament. Three pink diamond-shaped tattoos marked the left side of his forehead, giving him an alluring yet cutting appearance.
His long sleeves covered his hands. Luppi stood with his hands on his hips, the cutouts in his white clothing revealing a slim, supple waist.
On his right hip was the black number [106].
A three-digit number, it signified that Luppi had once been one of the Privaron Espada, formerly among the very strongest Arrancar, but had later been cast out for lacking the strength to remain there.
And the one who had shoved him out of that position was the current Sixth Espada, Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez.
"I heard somebody beat Grimmjow up pretty badly~" Luppi said, openly reveling in it. "Let me help him get revenge."
Ulquiorra's dark green eyes remained calm. Luppi obviously did not want to avenge Grimmjow. More likely, he wanted to use this chance to show power far beyond Grimmjow's and win his way back into the Espada.
His motives were far from pure, but someone like Luppi, whose purpose was clear, would plainly make a very useful helper.
However...
"Was this Szayelaporro again?" Ulquiorra had never cared much about the other Arrancar, but now he found himself beginning to dislike Szayelaporro a little.
This was the second time.
If he counted that incident long ago, the one that led to one of the Espada going missing, then this was already the third time Szayelaporro had pulled something reckless.
"He seems pretty interested in the World of the Living, but he doesn't have the guts to go fight on the front lines, so he wants to use me as a spear." Luppi spread his hands, his long sleeves swaying back and forth. "I don't really mind, though. He's still useful for now."
These restless troublemakers always reminded Ulquiorra of when he had just been born.
He was born in the depths of a cave where sunlight never reached.
Born at the bottom of black sediment, as though darkness itself had been compressed, then compressed again, until that pitch-black residue was all that remained.
His body was pure white, while his companions... were all black.
Pitch-black from head to toe, their eyes gleaming, their teeth bared as though they were biting down on something.
Ulquiorra tried to communicate with them, only to discover that he possessed nothing but a pair of eyes.
He could not hear sound, taste food, or smell anything.
After tearing apart the companions who had tried to devour him, he climbed out of the cave over their corpses.
Only then did Ulquiorra understand that eyes alone were enough for him.
Or perhaps... he did not even need eyes.
There was nothing.
Everything that entered his sight was meaningless.
Quarrels, conflict, birth, death...
Things that once did not exist would, in time, disappear and return to nothingness.
And these Arrancar were just like those companions from back then, hurrying and struggling for the sake of things that meant nothing at all.
Trying to obtain what they were destined to lose, trying to lose what they had already obtained.
"All right." Ulquiorra said nothing more.
In the end, they were all meaningless words.
Luppi would remember them, and then forget them.
And even if he did not forget, one day Luppi too would return to nothingness.
They could meet again then.
In that happy void where nothing could ever be lost.
...
"Ow. Wow. Too cute!" Yumichika Ayasegawa looked at Ikkaku Madarame in front of him. "Hahahahahaha!!! That woman's taste is unbelievable!"
The fierce-looking Ikkaku Madarame was currently wearing a white T-shirt.
The shirt was covered in little pink hearts, and on the chest was a crooked pink bear sticking out its tongue.
Thunk!
Finally pushed past his limit, Ikkaku Madarame drove his head into Yumichika. "Shut up already. You've been laughing in my face this whole time!"
"Pfft hahahahahaha!!!" Rangiku Matsumoto laughed so hard tears were nearly coming out. "It suits you way too well!"
"M-M-M-M-Matsumoto?" Ikkaku Madarame jerked backward. It was one thing for Yumichika Ayasegawa to see him like this, but for Rangiku Matsumoto to see it was unbearably embarrassing. "Where the hell did you come from?"
"The front door. It wasn't locked." Rangiku Matsumoto answered as if it were obvious. "Honestly, your guard is way too low... and your taste is even worse. Does coming to the World of the Living really change people that much?"
The veins on Ikkaku Madarame's forehead bulged. "The landlord made me wear this!"
"You actually obediently put on the clothes your landlord gave you?!" Rangiku Matsumoto looked genuinely surprised. She had always thought Ikkaku Madarame was the type to do whatever he wanted.
"What else was I supposed to do?!" Ikkaku Madarame's mouth twitched. "I'm getting food and a place to stay for free. Was I supposed to start criticizing the clothes they gave me too?"
"Really?" Rangiku Matsumoto clearly did not get it. "If something deserves criticism, then you should criticize it. That's how people improve."
"Not everyone is as easygoing as that girl Orihime." Yumichika Ayasegawa waved a hand. "Besides, what you're wearing is pretty good too, so there's no need to criticize anything."
"This? I bought it myself. Didn't you guys go shopping?" Rangiku Matsumoto blinked. "Oh. You spent it all on alcohol, didn't you?"
The area where the Eleventh Division was stationed had the most bars.
"None of your business..." Ikkaku Madarame asked irritably, "Why are you here?"
"Muten's been practicing Hollowfication lately. Considering the relationship between the Visored and the Shinigami, I didn't think it was a good idea for me to go with him. Orihime and Rukia are with Muten, and the Captain told me..."
Click.
Keigo Asano pushed the door open, wearing a fawning smile. "Hellooo... I'm back! Ikkaku-san, Yumichika-san, are you two doing... all right...?"
He got halfway through the sentence before his gaze locked completely onto Rangiku Matsumoto. "Oh my! Is this a dream or the World of the Living? A goddess has actually appeared..."
He cried out and lunged forward, only to be casually smacked flying by Rangiku Matsumoto.
"She's my landlady..." Ikkaku Madarame sighed as he looked at the unconscious Keigo Asano. "You could've gone a little easier on him."
"Ah... sorry. I'll be more careful next time." Rangiku Matsumoto dusted off her hands. "Captain..."
"I'm home, darling!" Mizuho Asano cheerfully pushed open the door. "Have you been a good boy today? Hmm?"
"Ah... sorry, wrong room..." Noticing Rangiku Matsumoto inside, Mizuho Asano froze, pulled the door shut, then yanked it open again. "As if! There's no way I got the wrong room! I almost fell for that. Who are you?!"
Rangiku Matsumoto turned to Ikkaku Madarame. "Is this whole family like that? Are you going to turn out like this too?"
"Don't make this even more complicated. Just say what you came to say and leave." Ikkaku Madarame urged her. "What exactly are you here for?"
It really was not complicated. If Ikkaku Madarame's outfit had not been quite so eye-catching, Rangiku Matsumoto would have finished saying what she came for ages ago.
Watching Muten Natsu, Orihime Inoue, and Rukia Kuchiki grow visibly stronger right before his eyes, Tōshirō Hitsugaya realized this period of time could not be wasted.
He should learn from Renji Abarai and find a way to improve his strength.
Sleeping beside Muten Natsu was obviously not an option. Rukia Kuchiki and Orihime Inoue had already tested it, and it only worked if you stayed very close to him.
There was no space left beside Muten Natsu.
And even if there were, Tōshirō Hitsugaya would not want to.
That meant the only option left was group training.
And then Tōshirō Hitsugaya regretted it.
"Aaaah!!!!" Yumichika Ayasegawa furiously swung his Zanpakutō. "Damn it! You little brat! Damn it, damn it, damn it! Just break already! Break for me! This is so damn irritating! Aaaah! I'm seriously pissed off!"
"You're so loud!" Rangiku Matsumoto scooped up a rock and hurled it at him. "Can't you keep it down a little?"
"But Fuji Kujaku is seriously infuriating!" Yumichika Ayasegawa glared angrily at the Zanpakutō in his hand. "Arrogant, conceited, acting like he's the most handsome guy in the world. It's disgusting! There's no way I can materialize a guy like this! No... I absolutely refuse to borrow his power!"
"What are you talking about? Isn't that exactly like you?" Rangiku Matsumoto frowned. "My Haineko is even more annoying. Spoiled, fickle, lazy, and stupid on top of that... she's not like me at all. We completely don't get along."
"Wow. Isn't that exactly the same as you?" Yumichika Ayasegawa shot back. "Rangiku-san, you're definitely the type to look at a photo of yourself and say, [I don't look like that at all.]"
"Then you're the type who picks apart other people's looks just to make yourself feel superior!"
"I'm stating facts! I'm beauty incarnate, so of course I have the right to judge beauty!"
"Does it count if you're the one who gave yourself that title?"
"That's still better than people who refuse to admit the truth..."
"You two are so damn noisy!" Tōshirō Hitsugaya felt his blood pressure spike. He had thought training together would help them push each other forward, but it had turned into them getting in each other's way instead. "Keep this up and I'm sending both of you back to Soul Society!"
He glanced at Ikkaku Madarame, who was sitting cross-legged on a rock, and sighed. "Seriously, can't you just calm down and talk to your swords properly?"
It would be great if they could learn a little from Ikkaku Madarame's focus.
Ikkaku Madarame's eyelid twitched, and he turned to look in one direction.
Tōshirō Hitsugaya caught the change in his presence. "Ikkaku, what is it?"
"Nothing." Ikkaku Madarame withdrew his gaze. "Just a few humans."
Shinigami?
The moment she saw their Zanpakutō, Tatsuki Arisawa knew who they were.
Shinigami from Soul Society.
Tatsuki Arisawa looked away and returned to the group, continuing to instruct the club members in their training.
Most karate club training was done indoors, but there were also classes meant to bring them closer to nature.
Those people... were the transfer students who had shown up in class before.
But after that, they never came to school again.
The same was true of Shinji Hirako.
Ichigo Kurosaki, Uryū Ishida, Yasutora Sado, Muten Natsu, Orihime Inoue, and Rukia Kuchiki had also all stopped coming to class lately.
It seemed like they were all preparing for something.
That oppressive feeling, as though a storm were about to break, filled Tatsuki Arisawa with unease.
And yet there was nothing she could do.
Orihime...
Tatsuki Arisawa looked up at the sky.
I can't keep walking beside you anymore.
Tatsuki Arisawa's eyes suddenly stilled as black lines appeared in the clear sky.
The black lines writhed, branching into more.
Like the tightly pressed, wrinkled mouth of an old man, they twitched twice, then suddenly split open.
Several figures emerged from the roiling darkness.
"Oh?" A dark-skinned brute with a broken mask covering his chin like a jawbone, four oddly shaped protrusions on top of his head, and symmetrical red markings on both cheeks looked down at the Shinigami below. A delighted grin spread across his face, and his rough voice boomed out, "Looks like we came to exactly the right place! These guys seem to have pretty high Reiatsu! Why don't we start here?"
"Our target is Muten Natsu." Ulquiorra tugged at his collar. "Yammy, don't forget the mission."
The last time Ulquiorra carried out a mission, Yammy Llargo had wanted to go with him.
But because Szayelaporro had leaked the mission details, which led Grimmjow to act on his own, Ulquiorra had not had time to call for Yammy and had gone to the World of the Living alone to make sure the mission proceeded smoothly.
Since he had missed the last mission, there was no way Yammy was going to miss this one.
"One, two, three, four!" Luppi braced his hands on his knees and bent over, counting them one by one. "Four Shinigami. How terrifying! Just imagining Soul Society panicking in fear after we kill them and surrendering on the spot scares me to death."
Grimmjow ground his sharp teeth. "He's not here..."