There were three entrances near the expedition camp—one to the east, one to the north, and one to the south.
Nanatsuki led seven academy students to the eastern gate of the expedition camp.
He chose this location because it was equidistant from the other two entrances, making it convenient to provide support in case of emergencies.
Ashido's adjutant Yūtarō and Kuchiki Sōjun didn't have captain-level strength. If they encountered Baraggan or another powerful Menos, they might not be able to hold out.
"Sensei, what are you doing?"
Yadōmaru Lisa noticed Nanatsuki channeling Kidō into several stone trees.
The faint glow of Kidō vanished into the stone trees without any visible effect.
"This is a type of Kidō that can be triggered after a delay," Nanatsuki explained. "Once the Hollows get here, I'll activate the formations."
It was a spell he found in the archives of the Tsunayashiro Clan—Hundred Rod Light Prison, an advanced version of Rikujōkōrō.
While Rikujōkōrō summoned six rods of light to immobilize the target, Hundred Rod Light Prison's number of rods depended on how many spells had been prepared in advance.
With proper setup, even captain-class opponents would struggle to break free.
"Our mission is to lure the Hollow army to the designated location, where the Kidō Cannon can eliminate them. But we may also encounter powerful enemies. If that happens, I'll hold them off. I'll be relying on you all to lead the Hollow army toward the target zone."
Nanatsuki continued explaining the plan while embedding the formations.
"No problem! We'll get it done!" said Shiba Isshin confidently.
"Understood!"
The others nodded in agreement.
Moments later, Nanatsuki's eyes suddenly shifted toward the entrance.
"On alert! The Hollow army is approaching!"
He had already sensed the incoming Reiatsu signatures closing in rapidly.
Unlike human warfare with cold weapons, Hollows had exceptional mobility. The moment he sensed their Reiatsu, their silhouettes were already visible.
"There's so many of them!"
Kyōraku Munemitsu felt his palms starting to sweat. He could sense two spiritual pressures in that crowd that were far above his own.
They were at least Adjuchas-class!
In addition, there were dozens—maybe hundreds—of Gillian-class Hollows, and two to three thousand regular Hollows.
If Katori-sensei weren't here, he'd have turned tail and run!
"This is going to be a tough one…"
Isshin's eyes sharpened. Rather than fear, those overwhelming Reiatsu only fueled his fighting spirit.
"They're heading the wrong way!"
Lisa noticed the Hollow army wasn't going in the pre-designated direction after entering.
"We'll need to draw their attention first," said Komamura Sajin.
"Here we go!" Nanatsuki raised his hand.
"Hadō #88: Hiryū Gekizoku Shinten Raihō!"
Suddenly, a brilliant blue beam shot through the stone forest.
BOOOOM!!!
The blue blast crashed into the heart of the Hollow army, erupting with a deafening roar.
The students standing on the stone trees nearly lost their balance from the shockwave.
"That's terrifying Kidō…" muttered Iba Tetsuzaemon in awe. Thank goodness it was their ally casting it—if they'd been the target, they'd already be wiped out.
As the dust settled, they could see a chunk of the Hollow army had been annihilated. Several Gillian-class Hollows and over a hundred regular Hollows were obliterated in a single strike.
"Get down!"
Nanatsuki warned.
The Menos launched a counterattack—dozens of Ceros fired directly at them.
BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!
The explosions were just as powerful as the Hadō Nanatsuki had cast moments earlier.
But Isshin and the others weren't weak—they had already dodged preemptively.
Thud, thud—
Two humanoid Menos stepped out of formation and charged toward them. One had a head of writhing red hair—which, upon closer inspection, were actually tentacles.
The other had an oval-shaped skull mask.
Both were slightly taller than humans, about the same size as Komamura.
Isshin quickly drew his blade and struck at the red-tentacled Menos.
Clang.
His eyes widened—his sword had been caught in the enemy's palm!
The red-tentacled Hollow grabbed the Zanpakutō and flung both blade and wielder into a stone tree.
Raising his hand, a blue light began to form in his palm.
Shing—
A streak of light flashed by, slicing a bloody line across the Hollow's wrist.
"?!" The Hollow looked stunned.
In the next instant, its right hand fell away from the arm—cleanly severed.
"That's a fast blade…"
The Hollow turned to Katori Nanatsuki. "Heh… Looks like I ran into a strong one among the Shinigami."
Only the upper half of the Hollow's face was masked—the lower half was exposed.
Its face didn't resemble a human's at all. Sharp fangs jutted from a mouth with no lips, lending it a monstrous appearance.
"High-Speed Regeneration…"
Nanatsuki's eyes narrowed as he saw the Hollow's wrist rapidly regenerating.
In just a few seconds, it was fully restored.
Regeneration was a common Hollow ability—but at this level, it was rare even among them.
This red-tentacled Hollow's Reiatsu was even stronger than the other one—it was clearly a Vasto Lorde.
"You're not the commander of the expedition… then you must be a captain from Soul Society!"
The Hollow rolled his wrist. "If I kill you, I'll rise above Baraggan in status!"
He coveted Baraggan's bone throne. Slaying a Shinigami captain would earn him the loyalty of many other Hollows.
"Then you'll be disappointed. I'm not a captain… yet."
Nanatsuki glanced at the battlefield.
Isshin and Komamura were fighting the oval-mask Hollow together.
Lisa, Isane, Tetsuzaemon, Munemitsu, and Maki had already clashed with the Hollow army, falling back while guiding them toward the target zone.
"What a buzzkill," the red-tentacled Hollow sneered and suddenly spat at Nanatsuki.
Nanatsuki used Shunpo to dodge—the spit hit the ground where he'd just stood, corroding a hole in the stone.
"Acidic saliva!"
Nanatsuki's eyes sharpened.
Meanwhile, Isshin and Komamura were under heavy pressure as well.
They had both already released their Zanpakutō.
"These Hollows are even stronger than expected!"
The oval-mask Hollow's right arm had transformed into a massive bone hammer.
Though he had no special abilities, he had immense strength and terrifying speed.
With raw power, he suppressed both Shinigami.
He leapt up, bringing down the hammer on Komamura's giant blade mid-air, neutralizing the strike.
Then, using the recoil, he lunged and slammed the hammer at Shiba Isshin.
Isshin barely dodged—missing a crushing blow by inches.
BOOM!
The hammer struck the ground, creating a massive crater.
Komamura frowned—this Hollow even used his own allies' attacks for positioning.
"I can't afford to use my high-cost techniques so early…"
He felt troubled—no one knew how long this battle would last, and he couldn't afford to exhaust himself. His large-area techniques could also harm his allies.
Before Komamura could think further, the Hollow appeared behind Isshin, raising the hammer high.
Isshin had just dodged a strike and hadn't yet recovered—he was moments from being crushed.
Komamura reacted instantly—his giant blade blocked the hammer just in time.
CLANG!
"That was close!"
Isshin exhaled—he had nearly died.
"He's fast and strong… We'll need to create an opening!"
Isshin pulled back beside Komamura.
"I'll distract him. You look for the chance."
Komamura understood.
Against this kind of speed, only wide-range techniques would work—but not here, not now.
"Got it!"
Isshin nodded.
He was preparing to unleash Getsuga Tenshō.
Meanwhile, Nanatsuki's battle with the red-tentacled Hollow continued.
The Hollow appeared behind him, mouth wide, launching a spiked red tongue straight at Nanatsuki.
"This is it!"
Nanatsuki's palm flared with Kidō light—he activated the spell formations he had prepared.
At once, the entire stone forest lit up with glowing seals.
The Hundred Rod Light Prison activated.
Dozens of Reishi blades shot toward the red-tentacled and oval-mask Hollows.
Startled, the two quickly attempted to dodge—but there were too many projectiles.
Over ten rods pierced the red Hollow, pinning his tongue to the ground.
"!!!"
He was paralyzed—unable to move, unable to retract his tongue.
The oval-mask Hollow fared no better—multiple rods pinned both his body and weapon in place.
The red-tentacled Hollow's Reiatsu surged. His tentacles expanded and shattered the rods with brute force.
But just as he broke free, eight lightning-wreathed figures closed in.
In a rush, he could only shield himself with enlarged tentacles.
SLASH SLASH SLASH!
Eight blades flashed—the massive tentacles were severed nearly simultaneously.
"Shinigami! I'll tear you to pieces!"
The Hollow bellowed in rage. His severed tentacles writhed and regenerated.
"Hollows with high-speed regen sure are tanky…"
Nanatsuki frowned. This one was regenerating too fast.
If it were a Shinigami of equal strength, eight slashes would leave them near death.
But this Hollow just burned some Reiatsu and healed right back.
"Let's see if your head grows back, too."
Nanatsuki appeared behind him. The Hollow turned quickly, tongue shooting out again.
CLANG!
Tongue met blade—metal clanged.
At the same time, a blue light formed in the Hollow's hand.
A beam shot out—but Nanatsuki's body erupted in lightning and blurred away.
The beam missed and struck the Hollow army instead.
BOOOOM!!!
Hundreds of Hollows were disintegrated by the Vasto Lorde-class Cero.
Nanatsuki and the Hollow flickered through the air, vanishing and reappearing rapidly.
CLANG! CLANG! CLANG!
The Hollow whipped his long tongue like a steel lash, trying to block Nanatsuki's strikes.
"He's fast enough to keep up with my Sonído?!"
The Hollow was shocked. Shinigami Shunpo was just fast movement, while Sonído was true space-shifting.
His Sonído was faster than most—but this Shinigami could keep up?
"No matter how fast your Shunpo is, it still leaves traces!"
"PUH PUH PUH PUH PUH!"
The Hollow spat five globs of corrosive green mucus, cutting off Nanatsuki's escape routes.
Forced into a trap, Nanatsuki landed right where the Hollow wanted.
"You dare mock me—haven't even released your Zanpakutō?" He gathered another blue beam. "Then die!"
The Hollow was enraged. After all this time, the Shinigami hadn't even released his blade. How insulting!
"Who said I haven't?" Nanatsuki smiled.
The Hollow paused—his hand was caught by something. He couldn't aim the Cero.
A pitch-black shadow had gripped him.
It coiled up around his body, binding him.
Nanatsuki wasn't arrogant—he had released his Zanpakutō from the start.
But now, his Shadow Space remained hidden beneath his feet.
The Hollow didn't know what had ensnared him. He grimaced and decided to release the Cero downward.
At this close range, even a miss would cause massive damage.
But Nanatsuki was faster. All his power focused into his blade as he unleashed a Shun Strike.
The Hollow, bound in place, couldn't dodge. The blade pierced straight through his mask.
CRACK!
The blade bored into his brain—Reiatsu exploded.
BOOM!
The Hollow's skull shattered. Red and white matter sprayed out.
The body crumpled.
"I… I've lost… Baraggan…"
With half a head remaining, the Hollow muttered weakly.
But in the next moment, the unstable Cero in his palm detonated.
The blue light of destruction devoured his remains completely.
BOOOOOOM!!!