It was three o'clock in the afternoon, and the breeze was gentle.
Tenkai Town, Tenkai Municipal Middle School.
"Ding-a-ling!"
With the ringing of the dismissal bell, a large group of uniformed boys and girls surged out of the school gate like dumplings pouring into a pot.
Thirteen-year-old Ishida Zongyu was one of them.
"Ishida, see you tomorrow!"
A short-haired girl in a sailor uniform enthusiastically waved and greeted Ishida Zongyu.
Ishida Zongyu merely nodded in response.
After school, Ishida Zongyu did not rush back to Star Brilliance Fortress; instead, he first went to an arcade and only leisurely walked out two hours later.
He then made a special trip to an teppanyaki restaurant called Teppan Sennin to buy Kurosaki Nan her favorite octopus teppanyaki.
Just ten meters behind him, a figure in a white hooded cloak had been tailing him since school.
Passing through a small alley, Ishida Zongyu's lips curved slightly upward, and then he quickly darted in.
"Did he find me?"
Ichinose Maki, who was behind him, immediately gave chase upon seeing this.
But when he actually went through the alley, he found that it was a dead end, and the alley was empty.
"Damn it, I lost him?"
Just as Ichinose Maki was annoyed, a Holy Arrow shot from a nearby wall, aiming for his forehead.
"Whoosh!"
Just as it was about to hit, Ichinose Maki executed a thrilling Shunpo to narrowly dodge the arrow, then turned his head to look at Ishida Zongyu, who was hiding on the wall nearby.
"Kid, your killing intent is too strong. The person disappeared, but the killing intent remains!"
Ichinose Maki chuckled and looked at Ishida Zongyu.
Seeing his attack fail, Ishida Zongyu also jumped down from the wall openly. Facing the Shinigami's provocation, Ishida Zongyu retorted without showing weakness:
"Your tracking method is too clumsy, Shinigami!"
"Oh, little brat, tell me, how was I exposed?"
A hint of curiosity appeared on Ichinose Maki's cold face.
"Chirp!"
"Chirp!"
"Chirp!"
In response to Ichinose Maki's question, he was met with three Holy Arrows.
Ichinose Maki swung his Zanpakuto, intercepting all three arrows one by one.
"Why are this kid's arrows so heavy? Something's off!"
Ishida Zongyu continuously changed positions using Hirenkyaku while incessantly firing Holy Arrows.
"Did you think that by putting on that strange hood and disguising yourself as a human from a spirit, and then suppressing your spiritual pressure, I wouldn't be able to detect you? No matter how well you hide, you can't change a Shinigami's spirit-veins. A human's spirit-veins are white, but yours are red!"
"So that's it, I made a fool of myself!"
Under the continuous barrage of gravity arrows, Ichinose Maki was forced to retreat, directly using Shunpo to flee. Seeing this, Ishida Zongyu immediately used Hirenkyaku to pursue him closely.
"No need to run, your Shunpo can't outrun my Hirenkyaku. Just surrender and die, Shinigami!"
Clearly, the hatred between Shinigami and Quincy, a hatred of extermination, was higher than mountains and deeper than oceans. Even the young Ishida Zongyu would try to kill a Shinigami as quickly as possible upon seeing one.
The two chased and fled until they reached an empty, deserted area, where Ichinose Maki suddenly stopped.
"Run, why aren't you running anymore? Did you realize you can't escape?"
Ishida Zongyu drew his bow to a full moon, aiming at Ichinose Maki.
"No, it's you who can't escape!"
Ichinose Maki took off his hooded cloak, then held his Zanpakuto horizontally.
"Shine! Koga!"
In an instant, a burst of strong, colorful light erupted from the Zanpakuto's blade, blinding Ishida Zongyu, making him unable to open his eyes.
Ichinose Maki seized the opportunity, stepped forward with Shunpo, and slashed at Ishida Zongyu's legs with his sword. After all, Kariya Jin only said he wanted him alive, not intact.
"Clang!"
However, the scene of flesh and blood splattering that Ichinose Maki had expected did not occur; instead, there was a sound of metal clashing.
"This is…"
Seeing the light blue markings covering Ishida Zongyu's body, Ichinose Maki's face showed surprise.
"You think your broken sword can hurt me? What a delusion!"
Suddenly, Ichinose Maki realized that five sword-hilt-like objects had appeared around him, forming a five-pointed star on the ground.
"Oh no!"
"Breaking Dawn Formation!"
Ishida Zongyu immediately covered himself with Blut Vene, then firmly grabbed Ichinose Maki's hand with both of his own. Thus, both of them stood together in the Breaking Dawn Formation, enduring the burning of spirit particles. After all, he had Blut Vene, but this Shinigami did not. Speaking of which, he got the inspiration for this move when fighting Kurosaki Hiro.
A moment later, the light blue spiritual particle radiance dissipated, revealing two figures: a slightly scorched Ishida Zongyu and a completely charred Ichinose Maki.
Clearly, Ishida Zongyu's Blut Vene was far from reaching the level of Kurosaki Hiro, who could withstand a double Breaking Dawn Formation without injury.
But fortunately, the result was good. Ishida Zongyu severely wounded Ichinose Maki at the cost of his own minor injuries.
"It's over, Shinigami!"
Ishida Zongyu charged up a Holy Arrow, intending to deliver the final blow to the Shinigami opposite him.
Ichinose Maki, who was already severely wounded and on the verge of death, struggled to his feet and then roared:
"Damn it, don't underestimate me! I am a Squad Member of the Eleventh Division, a subordinate of Kenpachi Oniiwa! How could I lose to you, a Quincy brat!"
"Glow of the Mist: Shattered Jade Rainbow Mist!"
With a loud roar from Ichinose Maki, his spiritual pressure erupted, and his Zanpakuto's blade emitted a dazzling strong light as he charged violently towards Ishida Zongyu.
Facing Ichinose Maki's counterattack, Ishida Zongyu once again drew his bow to a full moon. What was different this time was that the tip of the Holy Arrow was stained with a deep black, clearly indicating his gradual application of his quietly awakened Holy Text Power.
Unexpectedly, the next moment, snakes suddenly covered Ishida Zongyu's body, and more and more snakes appeared, binding him tightly. That Holy Arrow could not be fired.
As a spotted snake gnawed on Ishida Zongyu's shoulder, he immediately felt his eyelids become incredibly heavy.
"Oh no, I was careless…"
This was Ishida Zongyu's last conscious thought, and then he completely fainted.
"You look quite disheveled!"
A middle-aged man with a yellow python coiled around his neck, brown hair, and a mustache, dressed in British style, quietly emerged from the side.
It was the Bount's first and second-in-command, Udagawa Ryo.
"You… you were here all along, why did you only act now?"
Ichinose Maki looked at Udagawa Ryo with resentment.
"Don't be angry. This kid is very strong. I was also looking for an opportunity to take him down in one blow!"
When Ishida Zongyu opened his eyes again, he found himself in an unfamiliar ancient castle. He discovered that not only were his limbs bound, but his spiritual pressure outlets were also sealed.
"Hello, young Quincy. We Bounts need your help."
Kariya Jin looked at the bound Ishida Zongyu and spoke calmly.
...
In Star Brilliance Fortress, Kurosaki Hiro was about to eat the lavish dinner brought by the little maid when Ishida Soken rushed in in a hurry.
"Little Hiro, something's wrong! Zongyu is missing!"
Hearing this, Kurosaki Hiro immediately frowned. He knew that this was ninety-nine percent the work of those Bounts.
"Well, I was just about to look for you guys, but you actually made the first move!"
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