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The earth split apart with a violent detonation, sand and rock erupting as dust engulfed the streets. Su Li's figure flickered clear of the blast, reappearing on a distant rooftop with the unconscious Kurosaki Ichigo slung over his arm. Rukia landed nearby, Orihime following close behind.
"O SĹŤten Kisshun!" Orihime cried, summoning the golden shield that wrapped Ichigo in a healing glow.
Rukia's eyes remained fixed on the silhouette stirring within the smoke below. Her voice lowered. "Captain Su Li… what is he doing? His reiatsu feels sharper, heavier than before."
"He's releasing his ResurrecciĂłn," Su Li answered flatly.
Rukia blinked, uncomprehending. "Resurrección…?"
"Aizen's little gift to the Arrancar," Su Li continued. "Like a Zanpakutō's Shikai. Only instead of liberating their blade, they liberate themselves—returning to their Hollow form."
Rukia's brows lifted. "You've studied them deeply, Captain."
"No. Yammy told me last time," Su Li replied without a trace of shame.
"Eh?!" Orihime tilted her head, thoroughly lost, before abandoning thought altogether to focus on Ichigo's wounds.
The smoke thinned. From within emerged Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez, his form completely transformed. His once-short blue hair now streamed to his waist, his uniform dissolved into bone-white armor plating. The arm Su Li had crushed earlier had reformed beneath jagged layers of hierro, dripping killing intent. His breath tore violently through the air, chest heaving as his animalistic instincts surged back.
Blood roared in his veins. The hunt had returned.
"I am the Leopard King, Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez!" His voice carried the primal snarl of the predator he once was. "I'll tear you apart with my own claws!" He never called himself Espada. To him, the rank was nothing; the title of Leopard King was all that mattered.
Su Li regarded him with calm indifference, but before he could answer, Rukia smirked faintly. "If you call yourself a leopard, your claws had better be sharper."
Su Li blinked. "Huh?" His words stolen, he could only stare blankly.
Rukia clapped his shoulder with a grin. "Do your best, Captain Su Li. We're counting on you."
Su Li was left dumbfounded by her timing, though her attempt at levity carried warmth even in the chaos.
But Grimmjow had no patience left. The ground split under his step as he lunged, faster than before, claws streaking for Su Li's throat. Su Li's gaze never left Rukia's smile, yet his body shifted at an angle so unnatural the claws missed by a hair's breadth. Grimmjow twisted midair with equal inhuman agility, striking again with a feral cross-kick. His bladed toes gleamed with killing light.
Su Li leaned back effortlessly, one arm sweeping Rukia clear as his foot snapped upward, connecting squarely with Grimmjow's chest. The Espada's eyes widened as the kick launched him skyward.
Rukia staggered as Su Li set her down gently. She blinked, only now realizing what had happened—the attack, the evasion, the counter—all completed before she even registered the movement.
"Stay safe," Su Li murmured, before his presence vanished.
Above, Grimmjow steadied himself, hand trembling from the numb shock of Su Li's blow. Snarling, he thrust out his palm as power gathered into a burning red sphere. The air warped under its pressure.
A Cero.
But not ordinary—a Gran Rey Cero, the king's strike. If unleashed upon the city below, devastation would follow.
Su Li's voice drifted upward, calm yet edged. "You'd destroy Karakura? The old man would scold me for letting it happen… but truth is, I've always wanted to try this."
Grimmjow froze, pupils contracting as he caught the faint smile on Su Li's lips. Blue reiryoku condensed in Su Li's palm, crackling with quiet menace.
With a roar, Grimmjow released his mightiest Cero, a blazing scarlet beam that tore the night sky open.
Su Li answered with a single push of his hand.
Blue light roared forth, colliding headlong with crimson.
The heavens split. Above was the star-strewn night swallowed by violent red, below the lights of Karakura illuminated in tranquil blue. Two worlds clashed on the horizon.
Orihime and Rukia stared upward, breath caught. For a moment the sight was beautiful—a red and blue flower blooming across the heavens. Then came silence, suffocating and absolute, as the explosion devoured all sound.
The shockwave followed, tearing through rooftops and scattering trees in its wake. Orihime screamed as she was hurled backward, only to be caught mid-fall by Rukia's desperate shunpo.
The pressure eased suddenly. Rukia turned, startled to see several figures shielding them from the brunt of the blast—Urahara Kisuke, Shihōin Yoruichi, and two unfamiliar Shinigami, Hirako Shinji and Sarugaki Hiyori. All four watched the sky, faces carved with gravity.
The result was already clear.
The blue beam surged through, devouring Grimmjow's Gran Rey Cero without slowing, driving relentlessly into the heavens until its brilliance finally dissipated.
Silence fell. The sky returned to calm. Grimmjow's reiatsu was gone—scattered to ash.
"Was that… a Cero?" Hiyori muttered, frowning. "That's not any kidō I know."
"Heh," Shinji sneered lightly, though unease flickered in his gaze. "Call it what you want. I've never seen a Cero like that."
Urahara and Yoruichi exchanged glances, their faces unreadable, their thoughts heavier than words. Neither had ever seen Su Li release such an attack.
Above the ruins of the clash, Su Li hovered alone, blue light fading from his palm. A shadow crossed his expression.
"Tch. Ulquiorra. Always on time to ruin my fun…"
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