Chapter 007
Unlike the era when Kurosaki Ichigo was active, the Soul Society in recent decades had been relatively peaceful. No heroes had emerged to cause trouble, and even the occasional crusade against Gillian-class Hollows was now considered a major event.
Peace was certainly welcome, but it had the unfortunate side effect of dulling the combat edge of newer Shinigami generations (aside from the 11th Division). Even someone like Tone Kazuki-who had risen to the fifth seat of the 8th Division-had only participated in just over twenty missions, most of which had been routine cleansings of low-level Hollows. None had truly honed his battle instincts.
Even so, Kazuki could tell at first glance that the opponent before him was weak.
Her stance was unsteady, her arm positioning off-balance, her focus scattered, and she retreated unconsciously at every exchange.
Adjuchas? That's it?
Leaving aside ordinary Hollows, Adjuchas-class Hollows were those that had clawed their way past mountains of corpses and seas of blood. Even idle types like Starrk possessed extraordinary talent, not to mention those who ascended to the ranks of the Espada-most of whom achieved their status through relentless battle alone.
An Adjuchas should have at least some fighting instinct-not cowardice.
Kazuki frowned slightly at the odd mismatch of expectations and reality. With cautious curiosity, he lifted his hand and tested with consecutive Kidō spells.
"Bakudō #63: Sajō Sabaku!"
Chains of golden light surged forward like spiritual serpents, wrapping around the Hollow's body before constricting tight.
"Hadō #63: Raikōhō!"
Brilliant white-gold lightning erupted from his palm and crashed forward, striking the bound Adjuchas straight in the head.
It should have ended there.
As the light subsided, the Hollow lay motionless. Her long white hair stood on end from the current, her whole body scorched black as she fell forward with a dull sound.
Kazuki froze.
"…Huh?"
Wait-what? She fell? You're supposed to be Adjuchas-class! Apologize to Nnoitra and Grimmjow-this is disgraceful!
Even if he claimed later that he'd taken down an Adjuchas with two Kidō spells, his peers would laugh him out of the barracks.
To be sure, he fired another bolt of Byakurai. The Hollow only gave a weak jerk, no hint of spiritual pressure responding-like a fish washed ashore and left to dry in the sun.
It was actually over.
Kazuki exhaled and layered several additional high-level Bakudō bindings around the fallen Hollow, then leaned exhaustedly against the doorframe in silence. Despite having easily won, he felt oddly drained-his anticipation had evaporated into nothing.
Damn… give me back the tension I've been building up for hours…
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Anishte opened her eyes sluggishly.
She tried to move but immediately realized her body was bound. Some force held her in place, leaving her immobilized in the same sitting position as before-still in her workshop, on her own chair.
In front of her stood a man in the black uniform of the Shinigami-a Shinigami of the Gotei 13.
Right… he's the one who knocked me out…
"I'll ask you some questions. Do you understand?"
For some reason, the man's eyes looked empty, as if he'd recently lost some important emotion. The vacancy made her hesitate. Fearing for her life, Anishte nodded quickly.
"Your name?"
"A… Anishte Bionis."
"What are you doing here?"
"I assist Lord Szayelaporro with managing experimental subjects… and I make self-regulating defense dolls of my own design."
"Recently, multiple Garganta have opened across the Soul Society and failed to close. Many Hollows have emerged from them. Do you know anything about this?"
…It's about that!
Anishte's shoulders trembled. Tears welled in her eyes as sheer panic flooded through her.
Kazuki stared blankly for half a second. Her reaction was so exaggerated that he almost felt guilty.
Why does this look like I'm the villain here?
Her mask had been partially broken during his Raikōhō attack; through the cracked upper edge near her left eye, he could see her expression clearly-wide-eyed and tearful. Her delicate features and frightened demeanor made him feel as if he were tormenting some helpless girl rather than interrogating a Hollow.
And he was broadcasting this over open communication lines… If anyone from the 8th Division's gossip circle heard this, his reputation would be finished.
Anishte sniffled and stammered. "T-that… that's…"
"Speak clearly!"
"Baah-!" She flinched in shock, choking off the rest of her words.
Kazuki caught himself immediately. Raising his tone had only worsened the situation-now she looked even smaller and terrified in front of him. To any observer, the roles were painfully backward: he was the aggressor, she the victim.
He sighed under his breath. "Tch… just answer."
Anishte nodded rapidly. "It was… it was the Hollows released into Soul Society under Lord Szayelaporro's orders, to test my ability-he said they were to collect souls as experimental material…"
Her trembling confession made the listening channels in the Eighth Division's mobile communicator erupt in activity. The Technological Development Bureau officers on the other end immediately launched into overlapping analysis and debate-none of which Kazuki had the background to follow.
Frowning, he lowered his tone and pressed further. "Continue. Who is this Szayelaporro?"
"Lord Szayelaporro… is the research officer of Las Noches."
Kazuki didn't react to that-he'd heard the name in passing reports before.
"Unleashing power-what exactly do you mean?"
Anishte hiccuped between tears. "I… I'm not strong myself. My ability just lets me open Garganta easier than other Hollows. Lord Szayelaporro noticed that and made me devour many Gillians. He told me that I might be… useful someday…"
Kazuki exhaled through his nose, understanding dawning grimly. A forcibly evolved Hollow pushed beyond her limits by experimentation-her current state explained itself easily enough.
She continued nervously, "Later… I evolved into Adjuchas. I learned to maintain Garganta using devices that store my spiritual energy. The experiment this time was to test how long I could keep one open… I didn't want to do it, but if I disobeyed Lord Szayelaporro, I'd be killed… so I had no choice…"
PS GOALS: 150 PS= 5-10 extra chapter on an update.
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