"Tatsumi Weiss!"
At Aizen's command, Tatsumi Weiss, who had been summoned through Aizen's Kidō communication, strode into the hall from outside.
Under the watchful eyes of all the Espada, he walked directly to the front and took his place beside Aizen's throne, facing the assembled Espada.
From his position alone, it was obvious that his status stood above the other Espada.
"Your actions in Hueco Mundo will be directed by Tatsumi Weiss. When I am absent, he will act as your commander. You will obey all of Tatsumi Weiss's orders."
Aizen spoke with a serious expression.
Being forced to obey someone they had never met naturally made the Espada somewhat dissatisfied, but they also understood that this was not the time to oppose Aizen openly.
Lord Aizen was not known for his patience.
As a result, none of the Espada voiced any objections.
The matter was settled without further discussion.
"Very well. Everyone, begin."
Following Aizen's command, the Espada immediately left Las Noches and departed without hesitation.
"Gin, Tōsen, let's go as well."
Aizen opened a Garganta and calmly led the two through it, transporting them directly to Karakura Town.
Aizen naturally understood that Soul Society was not something to underestimate. Their appearance in Karakura Town would undoubtedly be detected.
At that point, Head Captain Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni would certainly lead the Shinigami to stop them.
However, to the current Aizen, without Uchiha Ryūjin present, even the entirety of Soul Society could not stop him.
Furthermore, to guarantee success, Aizen had specifically created an Arrancar to deal with Head Captain Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni.
There was no possibility of failure in Karakura Town.
Instead, Hueco Mundo was the matter that concerned him more.
...
Hueco Mundo.
Crackle!
Brilliant lightning illuminated the dark sky. Under its destructive force, several Menos Grande were instantly reduced to ashes.
Ryūjin's skin toughness +0.2%.
Not every Menos Grande was comparable to the mutated Adjuchas-class Hollows. Naturally, the increase to Ryūjin's skin toughness was much smaller.
Still, even a tiny gain was worthwhile.
Ryūjin did not mind in the slightest. He understood the value of steady accumulation, and he remained highly enthusiastic about killing Hollows.
"These Hollows are endless. When are we finally going to reach Las Noches?"
Omaeda, Soi Fon's timid lieutenant, sighed helplessly.
"Omaeda, shut up! Captain Ryūjin has personally dealt with nearly ninety percent of the Hollows. Aren't you embarrassed?"
Soi Fon frowned and mercilessly scolded him.
Several other Shinigami also looked at Omaeda with obvious disdain. Frightened, he immediately fell silent and no longer dared to complain.
"You're all too noisy. Let's keep moving."
Kenpachi Zaraki sheathed his Zanpakutō, still clearly unsatisfied. He could not wait to experience another exciting battle.
He had to admit that this trip had been extremely enjoyable.
Thump. Thump. Thump.
Led by the captains, the group continued advancing toward Las Noches without wasting any more words.
Suddenly, Ryūjin's expression changed slightly.
A trace of interest appeared in his eyes.
More leeks had delivered themselves to his doorstep.
And these were high-quality leeks.
"Captain Ryūjin, did you discover something?"
Tōshirō Hitsugaya immediately noticed the change in Ryūjin's expression and asked seriously.
After Hitsugaya spoke, Kenpachi Zaraki, Soi Fon, and the others all turned toward Ryūjin.
Everyone already understood that Ryūjin's perception was exceptionally sharp. Although none of them had sensed anything yet, if Hitsugaya had asked, then something had almost certainly happened.
"Strong enemies are coming."
Ryūjin spoke casually.
Yet his words immediately caused everyone's expressions to become serious.
If even Captain Ryūjin considered them strong opponents, then the enemies about to appear were undoubtedly extraordinary.
"Strong enemies? They're finally here!"
Only Kenpachi's eyes shone brightly, his fighting spirit practically overflowing.
"Captain Ryūjin, what kind of enemies are they?" Soi Fon asked solemnly.
"Do you remember the numbered Hollows I mentioned before, the ones created by Aizen? Other than numbers four, five, and ten, whom I already killed, the remaining numbered Hollows have all arrived."
Ryūjin answered lightly.
The expressions of the Shinigami immediately changed.
According to the intelligence provided by Captain Uchiha Ryūjin and Captain Unohana Retsu, the Hollow ranked fourth had already surpassed ordinary captain-level strength.
If that was true, then the Hollows ranked first, second, and third would be even stronger.
Perhaps they had already gone far beyond the level of ordinary captains.
Even if the sixth, seventh, eighth, and ninth ranked Hollows were weaker than the fifth, the difference could not be too great.
As for the tenth ranked Hollow, the intelligence had already confirmed that it possessed captain-level strength.
Yet they only had four captain-level combatants.
The situation was undoubtedly grim.
Thinking of this, Tōshirō Hitsugaya, Soi Fon, and many of the other Shinigami unconsciously looked toward Uchiha Ryūjin.
The coming battle would likely depend on Captain Ryūjin once again.
With Captain Ryūjin present, many of them genuinely felt useless.
"What terrifying spiritual pressure!"
"This spiritual pressure is unbelievable!"
Only then did the Shinigami finally sense the overwhelming spiritual pressure released by the approaching Espada.
The captains exchanged glances and immediately ordered everyone to stop advancing and prepare for battle.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
Soon afterward, the Shinigami felt their vision blur.
One figure after another appeared before them.
What?
These are Hollows?
This thought appeared in the minds of nearly every Shinigami seeing the Espada for the first time.
If not for the Hollow masks and the Hollow holes on their bodies, they would have looked exactly like Shinigami.
None of them had ever seen Hollows in such a form.
Under the gaze of the assembled Shinigami, the terrifying figures stood there.
Each of them radiated overwhelming spiritual pressure that placed enormous strain on everyone's nerves.
No one dared to relax for even a moment.
The ten terrifying Menos who shattered everything the Shinigami believed about Hollows had finally appeared.
They were the Espada.