My Teammates Must Be Reliable
Somewhere in the Hollow Forest.
Rising clouds of dust and flying wood chips, scattered by the two-edged subordinates guarding the gate, rolled away like waves along the darkened path, stretching for who knew how many kilometers through the dense forest.
Sar Apollo gazed into the distance, fingers tangled in his pink hair, his gesture enchanting, his voice husky yet captivating. "Gio is dead. I never expected Nelliel to still possess that level of power. Now that she's left the Hollow Forest, she must be gathering the other Espada."
"What a headache," one subordinate muttered, untangling its fingers from its hair. "What should we do?"
"Why ask when you already know the answer?" A white-haired old man emerged from a tree hollow.
Though elderly, he showed none of the frailty of an average old man. His burly figure commanded respect, and a white crown adorned his head. His face carried a Western, three-dimensional quality, complete with bushy white eyebrows and a flowing white beard.
A scar permanently closed his right eye, leaving his left eye sharp as a blade. This was the Two-Edged Sword, Bylergon.
"Haha, wasn't I just asking for your opinion? Since you already guessed my thoughts, let me speak."
Sar Apollo crossed his arms, golden eyes narrowing. "First, return to the Palace of the Nightingales. We don't want to give Nelliel an excuse to lead the other Espada into the Hollow Forest."
"Why bother?" a bird-like subordinate asked, clearly confused.
Sar Apollo chuckled dismissively. "Don't use the original cave entrance. Create another path. Understood?"
"Yes," Bylergon replied proudly, eyes fixed on the tree hollow. "And what should we do with that guy?"
"I'll place a Soul Recorder on him and send him to Soul Society. After all, you and I witnessed the fusion process firsthand. There's no need for him to guide us," Sar Apollo explained.
Bylergon nodded. "That makes sense. Let's proceed."
"Yes, Your Majesty," the four subordinates echoed.
Sar Apollo turned back toward the tree hollow and closed the door behind him, keeping out dust and debris. Cleanliness was a priority in his laboratory.
Inside, the hollowed tree was spacious, illuminated by hanging lights in each corner. In front of some metal instruments rested a massive, blood-red embryo. Veins crisscrossed its surface, pulsating like a heartbeat.
Sar Apollo's eyes gleamed with a hunger for knowledge. He stroked the embryo, recalling the day he had intended to use a stray Shinigami as research material.
Instead, he had been offered an experiment that intrigued him even more: the fusion of Shinigami and Hollows to achieve Hollowification.
He had agreed to participate, in exchange for help capturing a rare Hollow—Aronilok. Tracking this creature exceeded his power, so he had enlisted Bylergon's aid.
Bylergon's ambition to reclaim his throne was well known. But everyone understood that surpassing Aizen by conventional means was impossible. This experiment presented a shortcut: merging with a Hollow and acquiring its abilities.
If Genjiro could successfully fuse with Aronil, continuous fusion could theoretically allow them to surpass Aizen. Failure, however, would render all efforts meaningless.
Sar Apollo regretted he couldn't witness the results firsthand, but there was nothing to be done. Aizen's presence—his godlike disguise and unfathomable intentions—was intimidating even to him.
Sighing, Sar Apollo pulled his hand away from the embryo. With a snap of his fingers, a dark crack appeared beside him, its oval edge resembling a clam opening.
He grasped the embryo and sprinted into the black cavity.
"Beep! Beep!"
An alarm blared from the Reiwa Observation Room, which had been monitoring the Dangkai. Tsubomi Rin, in charge, frantically tapped at the keyboard. "Hollow reiatsu detected! Location: North Ryuhun Street, District 36, west—"
Zaraki Sou ignored the exact coordinates. The alarm jolted him awake, a sharp pain piercing his head.
His Bankai fusion ability carried a major drawback: if the object he fused with was destroyed, he suffered corresponding damage. In the Seireitei, minor damage was tolerable, but in the Hollow Forest, he hadn't fused a large enough space to absorb the impact.
Consequently, the fused space was destroyed, forcibly expelling his consciousness and inflicting a concussion-like injury.
He ignored the minor injury, his mind racing: Was the superior Hollow dead?
It should have been. With Shiraishi nearby to finish it off, survival seemed impossible.
Breathing a sigh of relief, he asked, "How long was I unconscious?"
Yu Lu Takuliu appeared at his side, leaning on his shoulder. "About one minute and thirty seconds in real-world time. What a mess. You said you wanted to purify Hueco Mundo, but ended up being pushed back by a superior Hollow. No wonder Aizen doesn't care about your actions."
She mocked him playfully, clearly enjoying his frustration.
Zaraki Fuuya pursed his lips. "I was careless. Next time, I'll integrate a more spacious space to fight against a superior Hollow."
"I told you to stay in Soul Society. That way, nothing happens," Yu Lu Takuliu said.
"Shut up," Zaraki Fuuya interrupted, closing his eyes. "I need to concentrate and return to Hueco Mundo."
"Don't you care about the Hollow that appeared here?"
"The other Shinigami will handle it," he replied.
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