"...An afterimage?!"
Ulquiorra froze. The spiritual pressure traces vanished before his eyes.
He got it now. Right before his strike hit, Shigure had used Flash Step to change position at impossible speed.
But this realization shook him.
No matter how fast a Soul Reaper's Flash Step was, he could always track step-based movement with his Arrancar detection network. He could sense their spiritual pressure route and predict where they'd land.
But this time was different. Even with his hand piercing straight through the afterimage, he couldn't sense the spiritual pressure transfer at all.
This speed was beyond his understanding.
Then Shigure's spiritual pressure suddenly appeared in the distance. His figure slowly materialized.
"Ulquiorra, if this is what you call an all-around breakthrough..." Shigure smiled gently. "I'm not impressed."
Ulquiorra withdrew his hand. The gathered spiritual pressure dissipated.
His expression stayed blank, but his green eyes grew deeper.
"That incredible speed doesn't even strain you, does it?" Ulquiorra's voice was cold. "Segawa Shigure... holding back against you was a mistake."
"Next—"
"What?!"
Shigure vanished again.
That ultra-high-speed Flash Step—again?!
Ulquiorra focused instantly, using his detection network to scan for spiritual pressure changes.
But when he finally locked onto Shigure's spiritual pressure, his face went rigid.
This wasn't what he'd expected. He'd thought Shigure would launch a surprise attack. He'd prepared to defend.
But Shigure's spiritual pressure wasn't approaching him at all.
It was moving away. Fast.
What...?
Was he running?
Ulquiorra's confusion lasted only a second. When he saw the direction of Shigure's movement, his pupils contracted sharply.
That place...!
No time to think. Ulquiorra disappeared, using Sonído to chase desperately in that direction.
Because now he understood.
Shigure wasn't fleeing. He was heading straight for the sealed laboratory.
His target had never been Ulquiorra.
It was the girl sleeping in the test tube!
Ulquiorra's brow furrowed deep. His green eyes blazed with terrifying intensity.
He'd never shown this much emotion before. Not even when Shigure killed Yammy.
Because now he couldn't read Shigure at all.
This Soul Reaper had completely changed tactics.
Meanwhile, Shigure had figured it out the moment he realized Ulquiorra's purpose.
That girl wasn't one of Aizen's failures. She was something important enough for Ulquiorra to break his orders.
Which meant she had to be destroyed. Now.
His Resonance Eyes showed no traps or barriers inside her body. Destroying her should interrupt Aizen's plan directly.
Shigure reached the laboratory floor and saw three heavy barriers blocking the way.
They meant nothing to him.
He walked forward without slowing. The instant his spiritual pressure touched the barriers—
CRACK!
All three spiritual particle barriers shattered completely.
The violent energy wave destroyed every piece of equipment in the lab.
Except for the massive test tube at the center. And the sleeping girl inside.
Shigure stepped through the wreckage. He slowed his pace and focused on the girl.
His Resonance Eyes contracted, scanning her spiritual pressure and soul carefully.
No traps. He was sure.
His expression went cold. Black energy gathered in his raised palm.
Deep purple lightning danced between his fingers.
His spiritual pressure spiked.
"Hadō #90: Black Coffin."
BOOM!
A massive black rectangular prison materialized around the test tube, swallowing both tube and girl completely.
Countless black gravitational swords erupted inside the dark walls, piercing her from every angle.
Glass exploded. Liquid sprayed everywhere.
The girl's soul was too fragile to resist his spiritual pressure. Under the Black Coffin's assault, she died instantly and began dissolving into spiritual particles.
That's when Ulquiorra arrived.
He saw the laboratory entrance wide open. The three barriers completely destroyed.
Something was very wrong.
But before he could enter, Shigure's Black Coffin activated.
Thud.
Ulquiorra's body went rigid. His breathing stopped.
He didn't need to see inside to know what had happened.
Lightning Alleste—the sleeping girl in the test tube—
Was gone.
~~~~❃❃~~~~~~~~❃❃~~~~
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