Chapter 115: Excitement
Four figures rushed swiftly across desolate wilderness.
The farther west they traveled, the more desolate surrounding scenery became.
Beneath dim skyline, dark green mountain forest silhouettes gradually clarified.
That was the area where the advance team's last signal vanished.
Approaching the forest edge, everyone stopped.
"Just ahead."
The forest before their eyes appeared even denser and deeper than when viewed from distance.
Trees stood tall, branches and leaves layered upon layers. Combined with darkening sky, the entire forest proved pitch black—like an opened abyssal maw, silently awaiting prey to walk into the trap.
"They entered the mountains from here."
"Footprints are very orderly. They should have penetrated to some position within the forest before being killed."
Suoh's gaze swept once. Form flickering, he arrived at open ground nearby, observing multiple footprints of varying depths remaining in ground soil, analyzing.
"Can you track them, Tsukasa?"
Shiba Kaien walked to his side, inquiring.
"Remaining spiritual pressure fluctuations are very faint. I'll try."
"Rangiku-san, Hitsugaya, spread out on both sides to help maintain vigilance."
Suoh nodded, expression focused.
"Understood."
Both nodded in acknowledgment, hands pressing sword hilts, protecting left and right flanks.
Suoh and Shiba Kaien stood back-to-back at the center.
He crouched, fingertip hovering before ground markings, emanating spiritual radiance.
Low incantation sounds arose.
"Heart of the south, eye of the north, finger of the west, heel of the east. Gather with wind, scatter with rain!"
"Bakudō Number Fifty-Eight: Kakushitsuijaku!"
Starting from Suoh's fingertip spiritual radiance, complex runic arrays appeared from nothing, rotating and expanding like compass, enveloping ground traces within.
As the technique activated, centered on Suoh, an invisible spiritual pressure ripple spread in all directions like water halos, silently enveloping the entire forest area.
Extremely fine detection networks raced through the forest at high speed, capturing spiritual pressure traces remaining in air and branches.
Within Suoh's spiritual perception, the world shed material form, transforming into intricate spirit particle networks.
Residual spiritual pressure traces from advance team members had grown very faint, scattered sparsely throughout the forest.
Borrowing these traces, Suoh clearly sketched a route in his mind of squad members' advancement after entering mountains.
Trace distribution initially appeared orderly, displaying the squad's cautious exploration process.
Until reaching one area, traces suddenly became chaotic—like startled birds instantly scattering, leaving countless trace fragments in surroundings.
There was where squad members met their end.
Among residual presence at the scene, he captured another entirely different spiritual pressure remnant.
This spiritual pressure's nature proved extremely peculiar—different from all previously encountered Hollows. Breath mixed yet bizarrely maintained a twisted unity.
More critically, this bizarre spiritual pressure trace didn't exist independently.
Extending from the battlefield center's other side, mixed with one squad member's spiritual pressure trace, leading toward deeper forest.
The Hollow had taken a squad member as food back to its lair.
Precisely this cruel action exposed its whereabouts, clearly indicating its hiding location to Suoh.
Information gathering complete.
Suoh opened both eyes, speaking gravely.
"Found it."
"Only one Hollow appeared."
"That Hollow didn't kill and devour all squad members on site, but rather took away someone still alive—that's why I found the lair's location."
Cold, heavy facts sank into everyone's hearts.
Everyone clearly understood—that dragged-away comrade likely already faced grim prospects, perhaps even enduring unimaginable suffering.
However, precisely because of this, even with only slender hope, none would abandon them.
Stern killing intent silently spread between the four.
"Move!"
Without slightest hesitation, four figures shot into mountain forest like released arrows.
Deeper inside, trees grew increasingly tall and dense.
Radiance on Suoh's body dispelled a small area of surrounding heavy darkness, positioned at team forefront, serving as beacon indicating direction for everyone.
Silent all along the route.
Only subtle sounds when stepping over branches merged into forest silence.
En route, everyone saw bloodstains scattered across forest floor in various places, plus some black shihakusho fragments, along with several shattered blade pieces.
All represented final traces left behind by other advance team members during life.
Each silently narrated recent brutality and despair occurring around here.
Passing a larger shihakusho fragment, Matsumoto Rangiku saw clearly marked Tenth Division insignia on the lining. Gaze trembled.
She didn't speak, only gripped tighter, fingernails nearly digging into her palm.
Hitsugaya continuously gazed forward, face frozen calm as ice, surroundings emanating bitterly cold air.
The four's footsteps showed no pause whatsoever, pressing all emotions into heart depths.
Shunpo speed beneath feet flew swiftly, charging forward toward Suoh's indicated direction.
Finally, they arrived at a forest clearing.
At the clearing's end, pressed against rock face, a profoundly dark cave entrance starkly appeared.
Before the cave entrance, clear movement traces plus scattered bloodstains extending into darkness within.
The four stopped before that enormous cavern.
Before any action, viscous gurgling sounds and hoarse low laughter clearly transmitted from cavern depths.
Laughter proved grating and annoying like rusted iron scraping.
"Heh heh heh heh heh heh..."
"Such fragrant food smell. Four arrived at once. Truly makes one's heart itch unbearably..."
Hollows naturally fed on souls with high spirit particle density.
Different from ordinary squad members, merely spiritual pressure breath leaking from movements of these four—like supreme bait completely hooking that Hollow's greed and desire within the cave.
Stronger Shinigami tasted more delicious.
Heavy footsteps approached from far to near, gradually closing toward the four.
Under moonlight.
An enormously uncoordinated massive Hollow slowly revealed its terrifyingly repulsive form from cavern shadows.
Six extremely thick arms supported its torso walking on ground. Dark red tentacles extended like hair from atop the white mask.
The large mouth split across the mask—between clearly interlaced sharp white teeth gaps, dark red bloodstains clearly remained.
Tubular eye sockets beneath monster head patterns greedily locked onto the four. Completely lacking encirclement tension and fear, overflowing with excitement and greed toward delivered prey.
From that twisted shell emanated viscous substantial malice, causing forest clearing atmosphere to plummet to freezing point. Air grew heavy and foul.
It thoroughly understood Shinigami.
Deeply knew these creatures wearing shihakusho possessed ridiculous yet tragic comrade bonds.
Just capture one—the rest wouldn't flee everywhere. Instead they'd actively step onto battlefields, advancing one after another.
The survivor barely clinging to life within the cavern precisely represented its carefully prepared arrangement.
Eye sockets slowly swept across the four standing in formation. Drool overflowed from mouth edges, speaking in deep voice.
"Heh heh, who should we start with?"
Gaze fell upon the curvaceous Matsumoto Rangiku on the team's left side.
It had still regretted that previous batch of food lacked female Shinigami's presence—what a pleasant surprise!
"You!"
One arm slowly raised pointing toward her. Tentacles atop its head danced excitedly with movements.