In a dark cave.
Drip!
Water droplets fell, hitting the hard stone and shattering, becoming part of the water wearing away the stone.
"Hey, I said... how long are we supposed to stay here? I'm already tired of it." A girl in cool pink attire, with short red hair and a cat's tail, yawned.
"No, I'm going out for a walk." The cat-tailed girl jumped down from a rock.
"Don't do that. We haven't all gathered yet." A young woman wearing a white kimono, with long, light purple hair and a gentle, virtuous appearance, stepped forward to stop the cat-tailed girl.
"Everyone... exactly how many more people are coming?" The cat-tailed girl asked impatiently.
"Well... that's hard to say." The light purple-haired woman said calmly.
"Ehehehe... There's no need to rely on numbers. Even if I had to handle it alone, it would be fine." A man's laughter came from the shadows nearby.
"Shut up, chattering away is so annoying." Another voice sounded.
"Really, impatient men won't be popular, you know." A girl the size of a palm, resembling a bee, flew in mid-air.
Step, step, step...
Suddenly, the sound of footsteps came. Everyone immediately stopped arguing and looked towards the cave entrance. Then, a cute and charming girl proactively walked towards the entrance.
The girl wore a white and purple kimono, with a pink ribbon draped over her shoulders, and two large bells tied to the ribbon.
Reaching the entrance, the girl found a pale-faced man wearing a fur-lined garment walking towards them.
"Welcome back."
The girl proactively greeted him.
"Mm." The pale-faced man nodded and walked inside.
"Hey, I asked, how long do we have to stay here?" The cat-tailed girl asked the pale-faced man.
"Bear with it a little longer. The remaining companions will also awaken soon." The man replied.
But the cat-tailed girl still looked impatient: "But..."
The pale-faced man suddenly reached out to stop her. His nails, even longer and more slender than a woman's, almost pricked the cat-tailed girl, silencing her.
"Bear with it a little longer. The era of the Shinigami... is about to end!" The pale-faced man withdrew his hand and said firmly.
…
In the courtyard outside the 10th Division's Captain's Office.
Toshiro stood in the center with his eyes closed, gripping his Zanpakuto, its tip pointing towards the sky.
A powerful Reiatsu erupted from Toshiro's body. Immediately, a cold wind howled, white frigid air filled the area, small blue ice crystals danced in the air like jewels, and the surrounding plants and trees were covered in a thick layer of frost.
"Sit Upon the Frozen Heavens, Hyorinmaru!" Toshiro suddenly swung his Zanpakuto.
Boom!
A blue pillar of Reiatsu shot into the sky. Instantly, dark clouds gathered in the sky, plunging the entire Seireitei into darkness.
"Yare yare, is Toshiro training his Zanpakuto's abilities again? Although he has to fight an enemy like Aizen, he doesn't need to be this diligent, right?" Kyoraku lay on the rooftop, looking at the darkening sky.
Nanao beside him said irritably, "Captain, I think if you could train as hard as Captain Hitsugaya, you wouldn't have been so easily surpassed by him."
"Really, Nanao-chan, you're saying that again." Kyoraku said with a grimace.
"Well, even though it's not night yet, since it's dark, I'll just sleep first." Kyoraku yawned and then closed his eyes.
"Cap—tain! It's still broad daylight! You haven't even finished your work yet, and you're going to sleep!!" Nanao's eyebrow twitched wildly.
"What do you mean 'daylight'? Can't you see the sky is dark?" Kyoraku muttered with his eyes closed.
"Th-That's just Captain Hitsugaya's Zanpakuto ability! It's not actually night!!" Nanao trembled with anger.
But Kyoraku still slept with his eyes closed, showing no sign of getting up.
"Roar!"
A huge roar sounded. A blue ice dragon, several dozen units of length long, with wings on its back, condensed from Toshiro's Reiatsu.
Then Toshiro maneuvered the huge blue ice dragon, galloping through the mid-air.
Because the power contained in the blue ice dragon was too great, Toshiro did not maneuver it to attack real objects. He just let it soar and gallop in the air, thereby training his control ability.
"Harken to my voice..."
A voice, as if real yet illusory, suddenly came from afar. Toshiro suddenly felt his connection with Hyorinmaru stall for an instant.
Crack!
The huge blue ice dragon suddenly shattered, turning into countless tiny ice crystals that fluttered down from the sky.
'Hmm? What's going on? Did I make a mistake in my control just now?' Toshiro looked puzzledly at the tiny ice crystals falling from the sky.
Just now, he had suddenly felt his connection with Hyorinmaru stall for an instant, and then, losing the support of his power, the ice dragon instantly shattered.
'Just now... I seemed to hear some voice? Could it be... Is someone spying nearby?' Toshiro quickly carefully sensed the surrounding situation.
'Was it an illusion?' After carefully sensing and finding nothing unusual, Toshiro wondered.
'No, there was definitely some sound just now. I'll use the True Eye of the Dragon to investigate...'
Bang!
Accompanied by the sound of breaking glass, a pen holder suddenly flew out of the Captain's office window and landed at Toshiro's feet.
"You should come out by now!!" Rangiku's loud shout also came from the captain's office.
"Matsu—moto! Was that voice just now from her?!" Toshiro's eyebrow twitched wildly.
"Really, daring to disturb my training. Just wait until I teach you a lesson, Matsumoto!!" Toshiro gritted his teeth and angrily walked into the Captain's office.
In a grove not far outside the 10th Division, a pale-faced man in a white robe sped here.
"Pant, pant, pant..." The pale-faced man gasped for breath, while two streams of bright red bloody tears suddenly flowed from his eyes.
"I didn't expect... Hitsugaya Toshiro's strength to be so immense. The ability I exerted with all my might only caused a momentary interruption in his connection with his Zanpakuto. I wonder if that momentary interference will have the intended effect?" The pale-faced man murmured to himself.
"And Yamamoto's strength is definitely not inferior to Hitsugaya Toshiro's. It seems I need to be even more careful when making a move against him next..."