The desert of Hueco Mundo. Las Noches.
A thunderous roar echoed across the dead sands beneath the simulated sun of the Great Canopy. Uryu Ishida, the young Quincy, felt the tremors deep in his chest as he administered a sedative to the female Soul Reaper in the ruins of the 8th Espada Szayelaporro Granz's laboratory.
"Haaah... haaaah... Thank... thank you..."
After a few moments, the fever broke. Nemu Kurotsuchi, the Lieutenant of Squad 12, offered her thanks through ragged breaths.
"Are you... alright?" Uryu asked tentatively.
"Yes," she whispered, her face flushing a deep crimson. "Forgive me for the trouble."
The enemy's despicable abilities had stripped the Lieutenant of her dignity. Uryu tried to offer words of comfort, but seeing her hide her face in her hands in shame, even a gentleman like him decided the best course of action was to pretend the whole incident never happened.
Of course, neither of them would ever truly forget it.
"If you can stand, we need to hurry," Uryu said, looking toward the horizon. "The others are out there causing quite a stir."
He looked away from Nemu as she adjusted her tattered uniform, staring into the swirling dust storms of the desert. He could feel a clash of spiritual pressures on an astronomical scale. It was the source of the tremors: the final battle between two Gotei 13 Captains and the last of the Espada.
The 0th Espada: Yammy Llargo.
Uryu had heard the monster bellowing his own rank from across the dunes. It was the same enemy that had caused so much trouble back in Karakura Town. Against a natural disaster like that, Uryu knew there was little he could do.
—Ishida, I'm leaving everyone in your hands.
Those were Ichigo Kurosaki's parting words before he left for Karakura Town. Uryu didn't need to be told; his priority was the safety of his friends. He had stayed behind to care for Nemu as thanks for the antidote she had given him back in the Soul Society, but in truth, he was anxious to follow after Renji Abarai.
Actually, there was one more reason he wanted to leave. Uryu turned around and let out a heavy sigh.
"Looks like you've finished your 'inspection,' you closet pervert!"
"He certainly has, yup!"
Standing there were the two Arrancars, Pesche Guatiche and Dondochakka Birstanne. The usual loudmouths. Ignoring the crude jokes they'd been shouting since Nemu lost consciousness, Uryu turned back to the Lieutenant.
"They claim to know a series of underground tunnels that will let us bypass Yammy. We'll use them to regroup with Chad and the Soul Reapers."
"What about Captain Kurotsuchi?" Nemu asked.
"He's with the others. After analyzing the Garganta, Captain Unohana requested he oversee the defense of the treatment area."
Uryu allowed himself a small, private smirk, remembering Mayuri's indignant expression at being ordered around. Nemu, seemingly shocked at being "abandoned" by her creator, stood up quickly and nodded.
"I understand. Let's go."
***
The ruins of Szayelaporro's lab were a mountain of rubble. They managed to slip into a basement entrance revealed by Mayuri's previous search. To Uryu's surprise, the facility below was nothing like he expected—it felt strangely out of place, yet hauntingly familiar.
"What is this place...?"
"This is the production district," Pesche explained, leading the way without looking back. "This area was built to be exceptionally sturdy. Even Yammy's tantrums won't reach us here."
Uryu's curiosity was piqued as they walked through a series of specialized rooms.
One room contained machines that wove spirit particles into high-grade fabric, lined up next to massive sewing machines. Another room was filled with woodworking and resin-processing tools, used to create furniture. He even saw lathes and boring machines in a fully equipped machine shop. It was a workshop more advanced than many found in the Soul Society—an eerie sight for a base of Arrancars who were essentially evolved beasts.
"I'm impressed," Uryu admitted. "I noticed the architecture of Las Noches from a distance, but Aizen provided you all with a surprisingly civilized lifestyle."
"Don't be ridiculous," Pesche scoffed. "Lord Aizen, the King of this castle, would never waste his time on such charity for his servants."
"This was Lady Hinamori's pet project, yup!" Dondochakka added happily. "Lady Neliel used to be so moved by it when we did our patrols back in the day!"
Uryu recognized the name. The Lieutenant who had been kidnapped by Aizen—the one with the "complicated circumstances." Nemu, a former colleague, wore a look of mixed emotions at the mention of Hinamori.
"Oh! Oh! Up ahead is...!"
"Hey, what's gotten into you?"
"Stop! Don't run ahead of me! Dondochakka, wait!"
Dondochakka suddenly sprinted toward a large set of doors. When Uryu and Nemu caught up, they stopped dead in their tracks. They were looking at something that should not have existed in the heart of Hueco Mundo.
"What... is this...?"
A sea of green.
Using a lighting system similar to the Great Canopy, sunlight poured down onto neatly partitioned plots of lush vegetation. Trees were heavy with vibrant fruit, and in the distance, he could see golden fields of rice and wheat.
It was a miracle of life blooming in the middle of a dead desert, rivaling any orchard in the World of the Living.
"Who could have built this...?"
"APPLES! Finally, some real food, yup!!"
"You idiot, come back!" Pesche screamed, chasing his partner who was already crashing through the fields.
Uryu and Nemu walked through the garden, inspecting it with scholarly interest.
"This is a plantation large enough to feed a hundred workers for a year," Nemu noted. "I see varieties of plants from the World of the Living that don't exist in the Soul Society."
"The soil... it's sandier than the soil back home," Uryu observed. "Wait... are they using the desert sand from outside?"
The thought chilled him. He wasn't an expert in agriculture, but he could guess the sheer amount of labor and research required to turn Hueco Mundo's sand into fertile soil. It was an investment that seemed far too high for a leader who only cared about ruling through fear.
"APPLES!!"
"NOOOOOOO!!"
A desperate scream echoed from the distance. Dondochakka had proved too much for Pesche to handle; the giant Arrancar was currently trampling the crops, breaking branches, and stuffing his face with fruit.
"This is bad! Uryu, run!"
"Wait, what!?"
"If this place gets trashed, Overseer Tosen and General Hinamori will be furious! The Picaros haven't been let out of their cells for ten years because of stuff like this!"
Pesche grabbed Dondochakka and bolted for the exit. Uryu and Nemu followed close behind.
Uryu had experienced the power of Kaname Tosen's Zanpakuto firsthand; he didn't need to be told twice. Their spiritual signatures and footprints would likely give them away, but their only hope was that the two supervisors—and the rest of Aizen's inner circle—would be defeated in Karakura Town.
"We're all in this together now," Nemu whispered.
"The motive is ridiculous, but the consequences are all too real..." Uryu sighed.
The four of them successfully reached the exit of the underground facility. But the sight that greeted them was a literal hellscape of blood and spiritual storms.
***
"GROOOOOOOOAR!!"
A horrific roar split the air.
Emerging from the sands beneath the Great Canopy, the group was greeted by a colossal Arrancar whose head reached the heavens. Even without looking at the "0" tattooed on his shoulder, his massive spiritual pressure told them everything they needed to know about his rank.
"So that's Yammy Llargo...!"
"Uryu, we have to hurry! This whole area is going to collapse!"
The group huddled low, searching for their allies. The presence of the three monsters fighting was so overwhelming that it was impossible to pinpoint specific spiritual pressures. Finally, Nemu called out, sensing her creator.
"Captain Mayuri!"
"Hey, wait!"
Uryu and the Arrancars chased after the Soul Reaper as she ran toward a tilted cylindrical tower on the edge of the battlefield. Reaching the top, they reunited with the strangely dressed Captain of Squad 12.
"You're late, Nemu. You were making such a racket earlier that I gave you a sedative out of pity. Once it takes effect, you're supposed to report in immediately, you slow-witted girl."
Mayuri didn't even turn around as he stung her with his words. Nemu bowed her head in shame. Uryu wanted to defend her, but he felt a strange sense of dissonance from Mayuri's cold attitude.
However, he had other priorities. Uryu scanned the roof and rushed toward the group he found there.
"Orihime! Everyone!"
"Lady Neliel!"
The group turned as one. Orihime Inoue, Chad, Rukia Kuchiki, Renji Abarai, and two Soul Reapers from the medical corps looked at them in relief.
"Ishida! You're okay! Are you hurt?"
"I'm fine," Uryu replied. "I see you managed to get Orihime back."
"Did you see Ichigo? He was heading your way."
"Forgive me, Lieutenant Kurotsuchi... I ended up going on ahead..."
The friends celebrated their reunion. Pesche and the others were overjoyed to see the child-form Neliel sleeping peacefully beside Orihime. Everyone looked battered and pale, but it was a touching reunion after a series of grueling battles.
"I see... so that's what happened..."
After exchanging information with the medical reinforcements, Isane Kotetsu and Hanataro Yamada, the group agreed to wait for orders from the Soul Society.
Apparently, the last message they received was the good news that the "Espada Army" had been defeated. Since then, communication had been cut. The fragmented reports suggested that Aizen's rebels were gaining the upper hand, and there were even rumors that Squad Zero might be deployed. The Soul Reapers looked grim; the fate of the battle in the World of the Living was shrouded in doubt.
All they could do was believe in the man fighting in Karakura Town—Ichigo Kurosaki.
"It'll be fine," Uryu said. "He told me to leave things here to him. He'll win."
"Yeah..."
"..."
Uryu noticed the hollow expressions on his friends' faces. He realized that the war had left deep scars, or perhaps even a sense of lingering resentment. Neither Chad nor Orihime seemed to have the mental strength left to simply hope for victory.
Uryu's deduction was correct. Chad was consumed by a crushing sense of powerlessness.
Two months ago, he had been helpless against Yammy. The following week, he was protected by Ichigo from an Arrancar named Di Roy. He had used that frustration to gain new strength, culminating in his victory over the Privaron Espada, Gantenbainne Mosqueda. But being crushed like an insect by the 5th Espada and then Yammy again was a second, devastating blow to his pride as the man who was supposed to have Ichigo's back.
Orihime, too, was drowning in sorrow.
She mourned the death of the 4th Espada, Ulquiorra Cifer, who had looked after her for four days and for whom she had developed a strange, lingering sympathy. Worse, the tragedy had been caused by her own love, Ichigo, transforming into a Hollow—a transformation triggered by her own weakness.
The tragedy of finally starting to understand someone, only for them to die. The terror of the power her beloved boy had used to save her. And the self-loathing for being afraid of him when he was the one who had sacrificed everything. The final words of the Arrancar who sought a "heart" weighed heavily on her.
Rukia was silent, mourning the remains of her master, Kaien Shiba. Renji was cursing his own weakness for failing to do anything against Szayelaporro or Yammy. Everyone had been left with a deep wound from this war.
"I'm going to step away for a bit. I have some questions for Mayuri Kurotsuchi."
Uryu decided it was better to keep moving than to sit in silence. He approached the Captain of Squad 12.
Mayuri stood with Nemu, his brow furrowed in deep thought. Uryu swallowed his desire to snap at him and offered a light provocation instead.
"You look stressed. Is there a problem?"
"..."
Nemu gave a small nod. Uryu's eyes narrowed. He realized what had felt "off" about Mayuri when they reunited.
"It is merely a scientist's intuition," Mayuri muttered. "Some of the data I 'borrowed' from the Espada's lab doesn't sit right with me."
"Was it a fake? If it helped you analyze the Garganta, it must have been authentic."
"Good grief... and here I thought you were a bit clever. You're just another monkey hanging around Ichigo Kurosaki after all."
Mayuri's insults were uninspired. He was distracted—so distracted he had forgotten to berate Nemu. Uryu felt a chill of premonition.
Then, Mayuri whispered to himself.
"—I missed one, didn't I?"
Uryu went pale, but Mayuri ignored him and turned to Nemu.
"Nemu."
"Yes, Captain."
"Do not allow even a single gap in our spiritual sensing. Do not miss even the slightest hint of noise in the dimensions."
Mayuri stood up and stared into the void. It looked like a desperate act of bravado to hide his own vulnerability against whatever was coming.
"This war..."
"—...it isn't over yet."
***
Clip... clop... clip...
A single set of footsteps echoed down a white hallway filled with low moans of pain. The footsteps were slightly irregular, suggesting the person was wounded, just like the others. Above the door where the shadow stopped, a sign read: CUARTO TRATAMIENTO — Medical Ward.
"Oh? You're safe, I see."
A young man inside the room spoke. The shadow at the door offered a nonchalant smile. It was only natural; a high-strung scientist like the man inside would have been monitoring the battles from start to finish.
"My, my. If you knew I was here, you could have sent Roca to fetch me."
"My apologies. She is no longer under my command."
"How cold. You shouldn't be so mean to an injured man."
The shadow entered, chuckling as he pulled a strange device from the wall and held it to his chest. A faint green light of Healing Kido flickered, mending his wounds.
"Anyway... what's the plan? You know Captain Aizen has been captured, don't you?"
"Yes, how tragic. He was a great man..."
"He certainly was."
"Indeed."
Two laughs that held no sincerity dissolved into the air of the infirmary. After enjoying their little masquerade, the two men began to reveal their true thoughts.
"But returning to Las Noches now would just mean becoming fodder for the Soul Reapers' blades. We need a new leader to guide us, just as he did."
"What a coincidence. I barely escaped the Gotei 13 and made it to this hideout myself. I was hoping to find a new leader to hide behind until things cool down."
"Well, well."
The two men began to walk toward a massive set of double doors at the back of the ward.
Entering a giant hall filled with flickering monitor screens, they both stopped and looked toward the center.
"If that's the case, I have someone in mind," the scientist said. "A lovely, powerful General to lead our Arrancar army."
"We really do think alike," the other replied. "I know someone, too. A beautiful, adorable... monster."
Both men smirked.
In that moment, as if on cue, the space in the center of the hall warped into a circle. It was a phenomenon similar to a Senkaimon or a Descorrer, yet fundamentally more unsettling.
From the gate to another world, a small, floating, alien figure emerged.
"We have been waiting for you, Your Excellency. The new monarch of Hueco Mundo..."
"—Lady Momo Hinamori."
Fear, joy, and mockery. The men—Gin Ichimaru and Szayelaporro Granz—wore eerie smiles as they bowed deeply to the celestial maiden floating in the air.
"...What?"
At the sound of the girl's confused voice, the counter-attack of the Arrancars who had once plunged the Soul Society into terror...
...began.
***
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