Later, in order to better understand the details of the Visoreds' Hollowfication, Natsuro chose to speak with them for a while. Besides the few former captains, the other members were Former 12th Division lieutenant and Research & Development Institute head of a laboratory, Hiyori Sarugaki. At first glance, she looked arrogant and defiant, and on closer inspection even more cocky.
Former 8th Division lieutenant, Lisa Yadōmaru, the braided, sailor-uniformed, bespectacled pervy warrior girl!
Former Kido Corps lieutenant Hachigen Ushōda, a plump middle-aged man, who looked kind and gentle.
Former 9th Division lieutenant, Mashiro Kuna, a little girl, dressed like a naïve and innocent Kamen Rider, who… honestly looked kind of silly.
Natsuro glanced at Hachigen. Sure enough, the Visoreds also had a kidō expert, one whose abilities in binding spells were probably close to Tessai Tsukabishi's.
Otherwise, there was no way he wouldn't have noticed such a massive special space hidden beneath their base all this time. It had clearly been concealed through Hachigen's kidō.
This was the troubling thing: among Shinigami there were far too many kidō and tools for concealing spiritual pressure, which significantly reduced the effectiveness of his sensing abilities.
"So, you were forced into Hollowfication, weren't you? Can you tell me exactly what happened? I'm very curious." Natsuro fixed his gaze on Shinji Hirako.
Among them, aside from a few rough and rowdy types, Shinji at least looked somewhat normal.
"Natsuro, do you know Aizen Sōsuke?" Shinji asked, though he already knew the answer.
"Of course. When I graduated, he strongly tried to recruit me into his squad. But since I wasn't interested in work, I didn't join." Natsuro looked at Shinji. "So, you mean… Aizen was the mastermind?"
Shinji was taken aback. He hadn't expected that Aizen had once invited Natsuro.
A trace of relief flickered through him, it was fortunate Natsuro had declined. If Aizen had gained his power on top of everything else… Shinji dared not imagine the despair they would have faced back then.
After steadying himself, Shinji nodded. "Yes. He was once my lieutenant. I made him my lieutenant precisely because I sensed something was off about him. But I never expected that he was secretly conducting Hollowfication experiments on Shinigami."
He then recounted the process of their Hollowfication to him. It had been, essentially, an infection.
It started with Kensei Muguruma, who was ambushed by Aizen's subordinate who was the then–current 9th Division captain, Kaname Tōsen, using bankai. Tōsen's zanpakutō pierced him, and its blade had been coated with a substance that induced Hollowfication.
Thus, Kensei was the first to Hollowfy. Then the Hollowfied Kensei infected Hiyori when she came to his aid. One after another, every responder who arrived was infected in turn…
In the end, nearly everyone who came to help, apart from Kisuke Urahara and Tessai Tsukabishi, was wiped out and forced into Hollowfication.
Natsuro nodded. This infection must have come from the Hōgyoku.
To be honest, he was interested in the Hōgyoku. Unfortunately, he wasn't a researcher and couldn't make one himself. He remembered that Kisuke Urahara also had one, though if he recalled correctly, neither his nor Aizen's were complete.
And he didn't think either Urahara or Aizen would lend him their Hōgyoku just to "play around."
"I want to ask, after Aizen forced you into Hollowfication, were you immediately like you are now?" Natsuro asked, trying to remember but unsure of the details.
Shinji shook his head. At first, they had hardly differed from real Hollows, the only distinction was that they were stronger, retaining their combat experience.
But overall, they were still as violent and berserk as Hollows. Only after Kisuke Urahara treated them did they become as they were now: able to use their original Shinigami abilities while also accessing Hollow powers.
Natsuro nodded. That made sense. If there had been no such process, then Hollowfication would've been all gain and no drawback.
In that case, they wouldn't have been fugitives forced to hide in the human world. Even the Central 46 would have had to think twice before moving against so many captains enhanced by Hollow powers.
Suddenly, Natsuro paused, realizing, in his case, perhaps the Central 46 really wouldn't hesitate…
At that moment, Shinji looked at him with hesitation, then finally asked: "You… are you truly interested in Hollowfication?"
Natsuro glanced back at him. It wasn't surprising, given how obvious he'd been. So he simply nodded.
Shinji fell silent for a moment before saying, "The power of Hollows isn't a good thing."
"Power is just power," Natsuro replied evenly. "What matters is the one who controls it. After all, you don't go around attacking humans like ordinary Hollows, do you?"
"We're different!" Kensei interjected impatiently.
"Are you really so different?" Shinji cast him a sidelong glance.
"But you can rest easy on one thing. I pursue strength, yes, but not like Aizen, by any means necessary. I won't throw myself at him just to Hollowfy. If you ever see a chance, you can go find Kisuke Urahara. Have him pass the word to me."
With that, Natsuro left the Visoreds' hideout, leaving them staring at each other in silence.
"Hey, Shinji, is that guy really trustworthy?" Hiyori said, her expression still sour.
Though it seemed… that was simply her natural resting face.
"I don't know," Shinji sighed. "But for now, I think we can trust the latter part of what he said. After all, if he'd wanted to kill us here and now, he could have."
In truth, he couldn't understand it. Natsuro was already this strong, why would he risk his life for more power? Hollow powers weren't easily mastered. Even for them, it had taken years to barely control it.
"So, what do we do now?" Shinji asked.
"I'll report everything to Kisuke Urahara first, then we'll decide step by step." Shinji thought for a moment before answering.
And he'd make sure Urahara kept his Hōgyoku safe. There was a chance Natsuro would seek him out later.
The others could only nod, that was all they could do.
After leaving the Visoreds, Natsuro returned to the lake behind his residence. When he needed to think, he liked standing on the water's surface at its center.
Today's encounter had given him much to reflect on.
The Visoreds' situation, and the power of the story's protagonist, Ichigo, which he had personally witnessed.
The power of Hollows and Shinigami could be perfectly fused. But Ichigo's Quincy powers… those Natsuro likely couldn't obtain. That wasn't the kind of power one could just acquire.
Ichigo's Hollow power was unusual. According to Isshin, it had been a Hollow capable of transferring itself.
When its original body was destroyed by Masaki, it moved into her instead. That was why Isshin had to use his Shinigami power to suppress it within her.
"So what, do I need to find a Hollow to shove into my own body?" Natsuro muttered, twitching at the thought.
This setup felt strangely familiar. If he really did that, wouldn't he just be a Hollow version of a Jinchūriki?
He shook his head. No, it wasn't quite the same. Jinchūriki were humans containing Tailed Beasts, two separate beings. Whereas Ichigo and his Hollow were clearly one entity.
Besides, it wasn't as if he could just pick some random Hollow and stuff it inside himself. Not only did Natsuro dislike the idea of putting foreign things into his body, there were very few Hollows in this world worthy of his regard anyway.
And the underlying principle wasn't even clear. Recklessly inserting one might cause disaster.
Just look at Kaien Shiba. He, too, had a Hollow forced into him. But his strength was too weak, and he was consumed. Masaki had been different, if she had been stronger, perhaps she could have achieved something like the Visoreds instead.
It still didn't seem feasible. After all, the Visoreds only survived thanks to Urahara, it must have been Urahara who used the power of the Hōgyoku to create their current state.
And could the Hōgyoku's power be undone by anything other than the Hōgyoku itself?
Natsuro looked up at the sky. Should he go to Urahara Kisuke? But why would Urahara ever agree to such a request?
Or… should he just transform himself into a Hollow directly, to obtain Hollow powers that way?
"Something still feels off," Natsuro muttered, rubbing his temples. He simply didn't have enough information, and he'd forgotten too much of the original story.
At that moment, his eyes drifted to the zanpakutō at his waist, Meikyō Shisui.
His gaze lingered. He suddenly recalled, in the original Bleach, wasn't there an arc about zanpakutō manifestation?
Manifested zanpakutō had their own consciousness, their own powers, and could even turn against and kill their original wielders.
If a zanpakutō had an independent mind and soul… then didn't that mean a zanpakutō could also Hollowfy?
So what if his zanpakutō were the one to Hollowfy?
After all, a zanpakutō was the closest thing to a Shinigami, and Meikyō Shisui itself had been born from absorbing his spiritual power.
If he couldn't trust any other Hollow, surely he could at least trust his own power?
As if sensing his thoughts, the blade of Meikyō Shisui trembled faintly.
"Your unwilling?" Natsuro asked softly.
And suddenly, once again, the vision of the robed palace maiden appeared before him. She looked at Natsuro deeply, then shook her head.
Meikyō Shisui spoke: "If it is your will, I can attempt Hollowfication at any time."
Natsuro looked at his zanpakutō spirit, nodded, and said no more.
He wasn't surprised by her answer. Meikyō Shisui had been shaped from his own power, and his very nature was to pursue ever-greater strength. Of course she would be the same.
He also understood her hesitation. Just as he himself disliked the idea of forcing foreign things into his body, Meikyō Shisui felt the same about herself.
But from the very beginning, one fact had been clear: he was the sword's master.
Meikyō Shisui was bound to carry out his decisions.
So she had no choice but to agree.
"Don't worry. We're not at that stage yet," Natsuro reassured. He still needed to research how to manifest a zanpakutō, and what conditions were required for Hollowfication.
Only when he was fully prepared would he act.
And if, partway through, it proved impossible, he could always abandon the idea.
Meikyō Shisui said nothing more. Only her eyes grew slightly strange.
Because he did not know, but the zanpakutō herself understood something…
Did Hollowfication truly require physical manifestation?
As a Shinigami's weapon, he didn't know the inner workings of a zanpakutō. But as a zanpakutō spirit, she could faintly sense it.
Perhaps… from the very beginning… she had been a Hollow-like.
It was only that she had lacked self-awareness. As Natsuro's spiritual pressure had washed through the blade again and again, he had unknowingly infused part of his own soul into her.
Thus she gained consciousness, and, borrowing his strength, formed her abilities, namely, her bankai.
So when she heard his thoughts about Hollowfication, she did not truly resist. From the start, she was already close to a Hollow.
Her only hesitation lay in not knowing how to return to her original Hollow state.
Having sketched out this possible path forward, he also found himself thinking about another subject, the Arrancar.
The Visoreds were Shinigami who later Hollowfied.
Arrancar, however, were Hollows who later became Shinigami-like…
The exact reverse. And could those Hollows, after becoming Arrancar, ever return to being Hollows again? Perhaps not. They already had self-awareness, thought, and will.
At that point, what real difference was there between them and Shinigami?
Perhaps the essence of their powers differed, but one thing was the same: both paths led to far greater strength than before.
He finally shook his head. He couldn't make sense of it. In the future, he'd have to pay a visit to Hueco Mundo.
There, he could experiment on Hollows directly, see what would happen if he broke their masks by force.
With that thought, Natsuro closed his eyes. His consciousness sank once more into Meikyō Shisui's inner world, beginning another duel with her spirit, something he did nearly every day.
And at the same time, he waited.
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