Deep within Hueco Mundo, on a high platform of a white quartz castle, stood a tall figure facing the wind.
Her long golden hair gently fluttered in the pale moonlight of Hueco Mundo, and behind her hips hung a shark-like tail.
Her slender body was wrapped in white bone armor, and the fullness of her chest could not be concealed.
A tooth-shaped bone mask covered most of her face, leaving only a pair of beautiful green eyes and a small patch of tanned skin exposed.
"Hm?"
Her emerald-green pupils slightly narrowed as she sensed waves of spiritual pressure from a distant direction.
It was a familiar, physiologically repulsive scent.
"This spiritual pressure… is it from a Shinigami?" she murmured to herself, and in her seductively mature voice there was a hint of hesitation.
Almost at the same moment, deep in the Forest of Menos in another direction, a red-haired man with an antelope skull mask also sensed the familiar spiritual pressure.
Just as he was about to leave the area and head toward the source of the spiritual pressure, a group of Gillians around him suddenly became agitated.
Dozens of Gillians gathered in unison and moved outward, as if they had a clear purpose.
The red-haired man frowned, staring in disbelief at the unusual behavior of this group of Hollows.
He had resided here for hundreds of years and had killed so many Gillians he couldn't count them even with ten hands. He was accustomed to their habits and roughly knew their behavioral patterns.
But even so, he had never heard of anything like this, nor had he ever seen such organized, mass movement among the Gillians.
Although a Gillian had surpassed the level of a regular Hollow and evolved into a lower-ranked Menos Grande, it was still a lifeform of low intelligence and should not display this kind of deliberate, intelligent behavior.
Why was this happening?
He thought long and hard but couldn't come up with any answers.
He had no choice but to carefully follow the group of Hollows, tracking their direction.
Some things aren't a problem even if you don't understand them right away. Just listen and observe, sooner or later, you'll find the answer.
That's what an old friend once told him, and he always carried those words in his heart.
---
The sound of a Zanpakutō being sheathed echoed through the desert.
A small skirmish had ended. The tension and seriousness had not fully dissipated from the air, but were already beginning to mix with fatigue and a slight sense of relief.
The leader of the expedition, Amagai Shūsuke, looked around; he saw that all the attacking Hollows had already been eliminated. He then pulled a specially made communication device from his chest.
After establishing contact with members of the 12th Division stationed at the temporary base, he received information that there were no more enemies within a ten-kilometer radius.
He took a deep breath of the Hueco Mundo air, thick with high concentrations of Reishi and carrying a distinctive dusty scent, and issued an order in a deep voice:
"All members, rest in place! The logistics team will set up a temporary camp here!"
"Maintain alert level three. All combat group leaders and officers with appropriate ranks, report to me within ten minutes for a war meeting! All students must stay within the safety zone of the camp and are strictly forbidden to leave it without permission!"
As soon as the order was given, a hurried but orderly atmosphere spread through the camp.
Several members of the 12th Division who had traveled with the unit pulled out large portable tents they had brought with them, then began operating some equipment that no outsider understood.
With a buzzing sound, a pale blue light barrier rose from the ground, encircling a relatively flat patch of sand in the shape of a ring, completely separating the camp from the harsh external environment.
Other logistics personnel skillfully erected a simple command post and several medical tents for the wounded.
A few campfires were lit; orange flames danced under the pale moonlight of Hueco Mundo, gradually dispelling the cold of the long desert night and the silent chill that crept into your bones.
This was Hueco Mundo. Unlike the Soul Society, where there is a shift between dawn and dusk, here there is only a moon that hasn't changed for millions of years and an eternal night.
At that moment, the entire camp was filled with mixed scents: dry desert sand, the faint stench of wounded blood, and the aroma of food cooking over the campfires.
Arata's combat group gathered around several campfires in one corner.
While eating the meal provided by the logistics team, he was mentally tallying today's spoils.
In four skirmishes with groups of Hollows, he had killed a total of eleven Hollows and rescued eight comrades from their jaws.
The system judged that he had greatly changed the fate of those eight and rewarded him with a total of 287 destiny points, so his overall count once again rose above the thousand mark.
Madarame Ikkaku sat casually on the sand, his legendary bald head gleaming in the firelight.
"Tsk, so boring!" Ikkaku curled his lips, the dissatisfaction clearly evident in his voice. "Today we only ran into a bunch of worthless Hollows. I haven't even warmed up, and it's already over. Not a single real opponent to fight seriously."
He was irritated precisely because he hadn't encountered anyone truly worth his attention.
"Ah la la…" Ayasegawa, who sat next to him, was elegantly combing his long hair that fell over his shoulder, then began carefully wiping grains of dust from his face with a small handkerchief he pulled out from somewhere.
He then took out a mini mirror and checked his reflection with an expression completely intoxicated by his own beauty.
"Ikkaku, you're so crude that you'll scare the kids from the Spiritual Academy. We've been friends for so long, and you still haven't learned a thing from my elegance."
"Ayasegawa, honestly, your behavior will scare them more than mine." Ikkaku paid no attention to Ayasegawa's complaints and shot back in kind.
The soldiers of the 11th Division burst out laughing, they were long used to their daily bickering.
Other sixth-year students, who had also been assigned to this sector, watched in confusion. They had already learned from the seniors that this flamboyantly groomed guy was actually the fifth seat of the 11th Division.
"Incredible…"
It simply didn't make sense to them. How could the 11th Division, known for its pure warrior maniacs, even tolerate the existence of such an oddball?
"Hey, Saitō-kun, I heard you really stood out today. Do you have any interest in joining our 11th Division after graduation?"
Ikkaku stopped arguing with Ayasegawa and shifted his gaze to Arata, who was quietly eating and observing the situation, clearly interested.
Even though it was just an ordinary dinner, the way this kid moved and held his utensils had a subtle nobility to it, just like those nobles they used to beat up in Rukongai.
This guy surely comes from some special house, Ikkaku thought.
Although he'd spent most of the day caught up in his own fights, he'd still kept an eye on the situation on Arata's side.
When Arata first cast Hadō #4: Byakurai, Ikkaku thought the kid was just a good student skilled in Kidō.
However, later, when Arata began clearing out those Hollows that slipped through the lines, Ikkaku was shocked by his Shunpō speed and the purity of his sword skill.
Several times, the soldiers of the 11th Division didn't even have time to react before Arata had already taken out all the Hollows that appeared in front of them in a single slash.
You couldn't even say it looked easy, it was more like something he did casually, without the slightest bit of effort.
His Zanpakutō cut through the Hollows like a surgical scalpel, slicing them in two without any resistance.
Precise and elegant.
Ever since he started following Captain Zaraki Kenpachi, entered Seireitei, and became the third seat of the 11th Division, Ikkaku had personally witnessed numerous graduation exams of the Spiritual Academy.
He could swear that no student who had graduated in past generations could reach this level.
Moreover, Arata wasn't just strong, mentally, he was far above average.
While other students trembled in fear and could barely surround a single Hollow in groups, he could jump into battle completely alone and defeat the enemy with a calm face.
He was like a wolf among sheep, completely dissonant with the rest of the picture.
———
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