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Ishikawa's words made Hisagi Shuuhei and Hitsugaya Tōshirō behind him look strange.
But Matsumoto Rangiku and Abarai Renji, who were extremely familiar with Ishikawa, showed no surprise at all; in their eyes… it was completely normal for Ishikawa to say such a thing.
Harribel, on the other hand, had a calm expression, and said in a cold tone:
"Then come with us. Lord Aizen has invited you to Las Noches as a guest."
Her incredibly calm reply made the smile on Ishikawa's face freeze slightly, because he simply habitually wanted to see if he could communicate with her.
Ishikawa really didn't expect… Harribel to directly invite him to Hueco Mundo.
If he agreed, would his favorability increase?
"Hey, hey, hey~!"
Seeing the hesitation on Ishikawa's face, Hitsugaya Tōshirō, standing beside him, couldn't help but twitch his mouth.
This scoundrel isn't really going to agree, is he?
"Hmm…"
Ishikawa smiled faintly at Harribel: "I'll pass. I always feel like it would be hard to come back once I go."
Buzz—!
Almost the instant Ishikawa's words fell, a terrifying Reiatsu suddenly erupted from Harribel.
"Conquer him…"
With a soft cry, a tsunami-like wave of seawater erupted with a roar in the night sky.
"Tiburón!"
Having learned from her previous failure in Soul Society, Harribel wasted no words. After confirming that Ishikawa would not willingly go to Hueco Mundo with her and the others, she immediately used her Cero!
This time, she would complete Lord Aizen's directive no matter what!
The surging sound of crashing waves rose, instantly forming a vast ocean under the night sky.
Seeing this, Ishikawa's smile vanished, and a hint of solemnity flashed in his eyes.
Almost as soon as the waves appeared, a strong pressure descended upon everyone, making their bodies tremble uncontrollably, even making it difficult to stand in mid-air.
Harribel, in her Cero, stood in the center of the waves. At this moment, her hair was short, and the half-mask on her face had disappeared, revealing her delicate features. Deep blue lightning-shaped markings were on her cheeks, and her attire had changed from her original white uniform to a short skirt swimsuit-like outfit.
The changes in her appearance, while striking, were not the most astonishing.
What was most astonishing was the terrifying Reiatsu emanating from her, making everyone, including Ishikawa, feel a sudden heaviness, as if a large mountain had suddenly appeared on their backs.
Amidst the heavy whistling, Harribel pointed her shark-gill patterned greatsword at the group.
Rumble!
The waves, already poised, descended like a waterfall from the sky, surging towards Ishikawa and the other four amidst the roiling water.
Facing the terrifying tsunami, everyone instinctively retreated.
However, the waterfall-like waves were too swift, almost instantly engulfing everyone.
"Sōryūsenbon!"
But just then, Hitsugaya Tōshirō let out a low cry, and as cold air rose, an ice wall formed, blocking all the waves.
"Get out of the way!"
Hitsugaya Tōshirō shouted urgently.
Almost the moment his words fell, the four individuals, including Ishikawa, scattered without hesitation.
Crack, crack, crack—
In just an instant, cracks appeared on the ice wall. Seeing everyone leave, Hitsugaya immediately flashed away from his original position.
Then, with a loud bang, the ice wall was completely shattered by the whistling waves.
The unrestrained impact created an indescribable pressure, causing Hitsugaya and the others who had dodged to sway, pushed in various directions.
Fortunately, none of them were ordinary people, and they stabilized themselves in just a few seconds, stopping in mid-air.
"Hm?"
But when Hitsugaya Tōshirō and the other three looked up, the scene that met their eyes made their expressions change.
Because in these few short seconds, apart from the female Espada who first appeared with Ruby, the remaining four Espada had already formed a square, surrounding Ishikawa in the middle.
As everyone watched, the four of them reached into the void, pulling out an object. Before anyone could see what it was… a golden translucent light suddenly bloomed from their bodies and spread towards each other. In an instant, it formed a golden translucent space about a hundred meters long and wide.
That space was… Hitsugaya Tōshirō's expression changed.
Negación?
Although its form was somewhat different from what he had seen in Soul Society, Hitsugaya Tōshirō was completely familiar with that particular aura.
"This is bad!"
Without the slightest hesitation, Hitsugaya Tōshirō flapped his wings and rushed directly towards the four-sided space where the Negación was located.
But… "Tear it apart—Chūjō Itte!"
With a low cry, a figure appeared abruptly in Hitsugaya Tōshirō's field of vision.
"Get out of the way!"
Seeing this, Hitsugaya Tōshirō's expression turned cold. His charging speed did not decrease at all, and he simultaneously slashed his ice-crystal-covered long sword forward.
Swish, swish, swish… The moisture in the atmosphere instantly condensed, forming an ice blade tens of meters long, heading directly towards Tier Harribel.
—Hyōryū Senbi!
But the next second, the ten-meter-long ice blade was split in two by a dark arc of light.
This scene made Hitsugaya Tōshirō's pupils contract. He instinctively dodged, letting the black arc of light brush past him.
Those were black blade-like feathers, incredibly sharp. Wherever they passed, whether ice crystals, cold air, or even the air itself, they were cut apart.
Vibration?
Although it was only for an instant, he clearly felt the vibration coming from the blades as they brushed past him.
It was this vibration that made those feather-like blades so sharp!
"The vibration frequency of my wings in Cero is over 1.3 million per second, capable of cutting and pulverizing all Reiatsu-type attacks."
Tier Harribel, in her Cero, had grown large wings and arms, looking like a moth. But even as she floated silently in mid-air, her wings continuously cut through the surrounding space.
Troublesome~!
Hitsugaya Tōshirō frowned. Although he had already realized the power of the Espada, this female Espada in front of him made him feel incredibly troublesome.
Although Tier Harribel only explained one sentence, he instantly understood her ability.
This ability was not complicated; it was simply relying on incredibly sharp and keen feathers to attack with the vibration of her wings, and she could control the release and retraction of the feathers according to her will. However, this simple ability was, in some ways, the most troublesome.
When the vibration frequency reached a certain level, even if the feather blades themselves were fragile, as long as the vibration could not be eliminated, it would be impossible to block the attack of those feather blades.
Moreover… feather blades capable of withstanding 1.3 million vibrations per second would not be fragile in themselves.
To defeat this female Espada in front of him, there were only two methods: freezing the vibrations or eliminating them with vibrations of an even higher frequency. But from the previous clash, it seemed almost impossible for his ice to freeze her vibrations… unless she could give him a very long time to prepare!
Clang, clang, clang—
Just then, three consecutive impact sounds rang out. The black feather blades flying everywhere blocked Abarai Renji and the other two who were rushing towards the golden Negación barrier, one by one, but none of them suffered much damage.
"Give up."
Tier Harribel looked at Hitsugaya Tōshirō and said in a calm tone: "That barrier is a special spiritual tool modified from the 'Negación of the Bandit' created by Lord Aizen, capable of sealing spiritual bodies in a dimension. The duration of the sealing depends on the Reiatsu of the sealed person; those with weaker Reiatsu will be sealed in the dimensional space forever."
"So even if you rush over, you won't be able to enter!"
Tier Harribel looked at them, and couldn't help but feel a little worried about Ishikawa inside the barrier.
If it was just the Negación, she wouldn't be particularly worried. With Ishikawa's strength, the Negación of the Bandit wouldn't be able to trap him for long. She just needed to withstand the encirclement of the others during that time.
But… "He won't be able to leave that space!"
Tier Harribel glanced at the square barrier high in the sky: "That barrier is a special barrier modified by Szayelaporro specifically for Ishikawa. It can combine the Reiatsu of four Espada to completely suppress the release of Ishikawa's Reiatsu, which means… once Ishikawa, who is targeted, enters that space, he will become an ordinary spiritual body without any Reiatsu."
This was precisely why Tier Harribel had wanted Ruby to die earlier so she could replace him in casting the barrier.
Once the barrier was formed, the inside and outside of the barrier would become two different dimensions.
Except for the four who generated the barrier, no one else could interfere with the battle inside.
Yet, Ishikawa had still rushed here, knowing all of this, and refused her suggestion to assassinate one of the Espada while everyone's attention was on him.
What on earth was that idiot trying to do?
"How is such a thing possible?"
It wasn't Hitsugaya Tōshirō who asked the question, but Hisagi Shuuhei, whose face was grim.
"Why is that impossible?"
Tier Harribel looked at Hisagi. From their previous conversation, Ishikawa seemed to be the captain of the man with '69' tattooed on his face, so Tier Harribel didn't hide anything:
"Szayelaporro collected all of Ishikawa's data in the last battle, which allowed him to specifically create the spiritual device that generates the barrier. However, with Ishikawa's Spirit Core, one or two Espada would find it difficult to trap him, which is why Szayelaporro gathered four Espada to come to the Human World."
"And the purpose is precisely to fulfill Aizen-sama's command: to capture him alive and bring him back to Hueco Mundo!"
Upon hearing this, even Hitsugaya Tōshirō, who wasn't very familiar with Ishikawa, couldn't help but look troubled.
He could be said to have a deep understanding of Aizen's terrifying nature.
Hitsugaya Tōshirō didn't know why Aizen was trying to capture Ishikawa, but one thing he was certain of was that capturing Ishikawa would definitely help Aizen.
Otherwise, he wouldn't have sent people to capture Ishikawa repeatedly.
Hitsugaya Tōshirō looked up at the barrier in the sky and, without hesitation, charged towards it again.
Seeing this, Tier Harribel frowned.
To be honest, she didn't want to fight these people who wanted to rescue Ishikawa, but before he was trapped, Ishikawa had told her to fully block them and not expose her relationship with him.
"Hmm?"
Just as Tier Harribel was about to move to stop him, Hitsugaya Tōshirō, who was charging towards the barrier, suddenly paused, his gaze strangely fixed on the barrier... half a minute ago.
Ishikawa stepped on the golden transparent barrier, tried clenching his fists, and a strange glint flashed in his eyes.
It was indeed as Tier Harribel had said; the Reiatsu within his body was completely suppressed by this space. He couldn't even form Reiatsu steps to stand in the void. Even his Spirit Core, Soul Sleep, Binding Threads... and other vital points that generated spiritual power seemed to have vanished.
"How is it?"
Szayelaporro looked at Ishikawa, a smug expression in his eyes behind his glasses: "Hehehe~ How do you like this gift I prepared for you?"
Indeed, one shouldn't fight a scientist a second time.
Ishikawa looked at Szayelaporro, a hint of killing intent flashing in his eyes. Although this guy's current strength wasn't great, in some ways, he gave Ishikawa a sense of being troublesome, second only to Baraggan.
"Hurry up and finish him off. I need to deal with the remaining Shinigami."
Ruby looked at Ishikawa in the center of the barrier, his eyes filled with disdain. A Shinigami with no Reiatsu was nothing but a waste, and there was no need to waste too much time on him.
After he finished speaking, regardless of the others' reactions, his eight tentacles behind him simultaneously slammed down towards Ishikawa!
"Don't be careless!"
Harribel's voice came in time, but Ruby didn't stop his movements, merely replying casually:
"Don't worry, I won't kill him. At most, I'll just turn him into a sieve!"
Boom—!
The next second, a loud explosion echoed from within the barrier.
Accompanied by the deafening sound, the eight tentacles, like giant trees, completely enveloped Ishikawa's location.
Bang bang bang bang—
Dull thudding sounds continuously emanated from where Ishikawa was.
The eight tentacles, like long whips, transformed into streaks of afterimages, continuously smashing down towards Ishikawa's location.
"Boring~ So boring—"
Ruby covered his chin with his long sleeve and yawned, his gaze already drifting towards the outside of the barrier.
His attacks didn't carry too much power. Given the spiritual body strength of a Shinigami captain, it shouldn't be fatal.
If he really died, it would just mean he was a waste.
Compared to this guy named Ishikawa, the person he wanted to kill now was that ice-wielding brat!
But the moment he looked outside the barrier, Ruby's pupils suddenly constricted. He abruptly turned his head, looking with disbelief at the center of the tentacles.
Bang bang bang... The impact sounds continued to echo, and amidst the swirling afterimages, blood and torn flesh continuously scattered.
"This is impossible!?"
A sky-high blood mist rose, and beneath the blood mist... a pure white haori was already stained dark red, and the front ends of all eight tentacles, without exception, had instantly disintegrated into a sky-high blood mist.
Didn't he have no Reiatsu?
Then what was with this power!?
Ruby looked at Ishikawa beneath the blood mist in disbelief. Although his attacks didn't carry much power, Ruby knew very well the strength of his tentacles; they absolutely couldn't be destroyed by someone without Reiatsu.
However... the next second, endless killing intent burst forth from Ruby's eyes.
"Bastard!"
Repeated setbacks made Ruby, as a newly appointed Espada, feel utterly humiliated.
The mission, at this moment, was completely thrown to the back of his mind.
The eight tentacles, whose front ends had exploded, now regrew like a lizard's tail, sweeping towards Ishikawa with unmatched Reiatsu.
"Die!"
Seeing this, Ishikawa's expression remained cold, but battle intent surged in his eyes.
Although he didn't like this pure close-quarters combat, he had to admit... this way of fighting, relying solely on fists, truly made one's fighting spirit boil!
He crouched low, spread his arms, and his palms clenched tightly into fists!
The next second~
His fists transformed into a flurry of punches, instantly colliding with the seemingly countless tentacles.
Boom boom boom—!
Violent explosions rang out, and visible impacts spread from where the fists and tentacles collided.
Almost simultaneously with the collision, the countless tentacles suddenly stopped, as if the entire world had been paused. Then... bang bang bang bang... the tentacles, covered in incredibly powerful Reiatsu, were once again repelled, and though their tips weren't shattered, cracks still appeared on their surface and spread backward from the front!
And the spikes on their tips were smashed to pieces by those seemingly steel-like fists.
Why... why can someone with no Reiatsu fluctuation still exert such terrifying power?
The tentacles were like Ruby's arms; he could clearly feel that vast and heavy power, which was simply not something someone without Reiatsu could possess.
Is Szayelaporro deceiving me?
As this thought just arose in his mind, Ruby instinctively wanted to find Szayelaporro.
But just then... a sudden pulling sensation came. He saw one of his tentacles gripped by the Shinigami, and before he could react...
An indescribable force was transmitted from the tentacle throughout his body, and the surrounding scenery rapidly changed.
He was actually being forcibly dragged towards the opponent!!
In his vision, a fist was rapidly expanding.
Buzz~!!
A low whistling sound, chilling to the bone.
Even before it reached his face, Ruby felt a fatal sense of fear, almost instinctively mobilizing all his Reiatsu.
Then... Ishikawa's fist directly smashed into Ruby's face, the impact point visibly caving in.
Accompanied by a heavy thud, Ruby shot out like a cannonball.
Dozens of meters vanished in an instant, finally crashing heavily against the barrier wall with an even more violent thud.
Pfft—
Blood gushed from his mouth.
Thump~!
Ruby's body slid down, hitting the barrier, half his face almost completely destroyed, and in the blink of an eye, a pool of blood formed beneath him.
"Impossible—"
Ruby staggered to his feet, his gaze at Ishikawa filled with killing intent, but deep within that killing intent, there was a faint trace of fear!
No spiritual power... there was indeed no spiritual power in that punch just now.
But what was with that power?
"Who said you can't kill someone without Reiatsu?" Ishikawa said with narrowed eyes.
Despite his words, his heart sank.
Indeed, relying solely on physical strength, killing an Espada was still too difficult.
All of this seemed to take a long time, but in reality, from when Ruby launched his attack to when he was gravely injured by Ishikawa, only about ten seconds had passed.
Looking at the disheveled Ruby, Harribel frowned.
She naturally knew about Ishikawa's power; otherwise, she wouldn't have tried to dissuade Ruby earlier.
The reason she hadn't stopped him completely was to make Ruby recognize the opponent's strength and, incidentally, teach him a lesson.
However... Ishikawa, without Reiatsu, solely relying on physical strength, had gravely injured Ruby in such a short time, still exceeded Harribel's expectations, even leaving her subtly shaken.
Even if a large part of the reason was Ruby's overconfidence, the Hierro of an Espada was not so easily pierced.
To be able to do this... meant that even without the protection of Reiatsu, the opponent's body strength was completely on par with an Espada's Hierro!
What exactly is he?
join p atreon.com/KeyofStars for advance chapters | Every 100 powerstones = 1 extra chapter | Report issues @discord.com/GVBdncd9Wr