Blood sprayed from Shinji Hirako's wounds. Fortunately, his Hollowfication granted him a degree of high-speed regeneration, allowing him to rapidly heal by expending spiritual pressure. However, the disparity in strength was too great. Gin's attacks outpaced Shinji's recovery.
Minutes later, Shinji's mask shattered. Covered in blood, he plummeted from the sky. The Visored, led by Shinji, were defeated.
No, Hachigen Ushōda still stood. But with all the other Visored gravely injured and requiring his attention, he couldn't participate in the battle against the Arrancar.
Barragan, freed from the icy prison, grunted at Gin but didn't attack. Shinji's Bankai had briefly turned them into enemies, but the memory of their fight lingered even after the illusion faded. While Barragan longed to kill Aizen and his two accomplices, he realized he might not be their equal. Not even Gin.
He would bide his time, engaging Soi Fon to delay the inevitable. This wasn't true obedience to Aizen's orders. Barragan had sensed the captains' power. Perhaps they could kill Aizen. Even if they couldn't, Barragan would find an opportunity to strike. He wouldn't be subservient to a mere Shinigami, not when he was the true King of Hueco Mundo. What did Aizen take Hollows for?
With this resolve, Barragan clashed with Soi Fon again. This "delaying tactic," however, was self-deception. Soi Fon, in her Mukyū Shunko state, moved too quickly for Barragan's Respira. Her attacks, in turn, were neutralized by his miasma. Their fight became a battle of attrition, a contest of spiritual pressure reserves. In this, Shinigami were at a disadvantage.
Hollows gained spiritual pressure by devouring souls. Each large Hollow, though possessing a single consciousness, was a composite of thousands of souls. Even if each soul contained only a small amount of spiritual pressure, the aggregate was immense. Shinigami, on the other hand, increased their spiritual pressure through training and physical growth. While the quality of their spiritual pressure rivaled that of Hollows, the quantity couldn't compare. If their fight continued, Barragan would undoubtedly win.
With Urahara and his allies having ceased their attack, Ailin stopped as well. He observed the ongoing battles. Despite the Visored's defeat, the Shinigami held the advantage elsewhere. The lieutenants accompanying the captains were all potential captain-level fighters, some having already mastered Bankai. Several of the Tres Espada's Fracción had fallen, and the remaining Arrancar were losing ground.
"Hmm?"
Ailin's expression suddenly shifted. Someone was accessing his King's Treasury. How? Aside from himself, only the Reigai created by Kageroza Inaba decades ago, using Ailin's spiritual particles, could connect to Unlimited Blade Works. Was Kageroza, exploiting the Gotei 13's absence to enact his plan to destroy the Soul Society?
…
Within the Twelfth Division's Dangai Precipice World Research Lab, Kageroza Inaba, through years of studying the Dangai, had gained some control over spacetime. Sensing the spatial distortion emanating from Rukongai, he knew the captains had departed for the World of the Living.
"A perfect opportunity!"
He rushed to his computer and began typing on the keyboard. Using his knowledge of the Dangai, he manipulated the Kōtotsu, the "cleaner" of the Dangai, tampering with the Senkaimon, the World of the Living's gate to Soul Society. If the captains returned through it, they would arrive two weeks later. Two weeks was all he needed.
He opened a Senkaimon and, wearing a device that suppressed his spiritual pressure, stepped into the Dangai. Before him was the Kōtotsu, feared by all Shinigami. It was said that any Shinigami, regardless of strength, who touched the Kōtotsu would die.
The Kōtotsu was the cleaner of the Dangai, dissolving any traces of spiritual pressure within it. Only beings without spiritual pressure, like a powerless Ichigo Kurosaki or someone using specialized equipment, could survive within it.
Kageroza, understanding the Kōtotsu's nature, had turned it into his personal vault, storing forbidden items within its depths.
A flash of white light, and Kageroza was absorbed into the Kōtotsu. To his horror, however, his other half, Nozomi Kujō, was gone.
"Impossible! I'm the only one who can access the Kōtotsu."
His cries were unanswered. Nozomi's disappearance was undeniable. Who had been here?
Countless possibilities flashed through his mind. Within the Kōtotsu, time and space held no meaning. Unless someone had entered and left, causing spacetime fluctuations, Nozomi couldn't have escaped. Perhaps a fluctuation had caused a temporal displacement, creating a discrepancy between Kageroza's entry point and Nozomi's presence. No matter how many times he entered, he wouldn't find her.
"Damn!"
Using his spacetime manipulation, he left the Kōtotsu and returned to Soul Society, to his lab in the Twelfth Division. His face was dark. Without Nozomi, he couldn't merge with her, couldn't become the complete Ōko Yushima.
Destroying the Soul Society was Ōko Yushima's goal. It had to be Ōko Yushima who brought the Gotei 13 to its end. Nozomi's disappearance was a setback. If he couldn't merge within two weeks, the returning captains would discover his tampering.
"Only Mayuri Kurotsuchi and Kisuke Urahara could access the Kōtotsu. If Nozomi escaped, she would be near one of them."
"I'll seize control of the Soul Society, station guards near them, and when Nozomi appears, I'll retrieve her and begin the merging experiment."
With this resolve, he navigated the labyrinthine corridors of the Twelfth Division, arriving at a sealed lab. Black Kidō seals covered the door. He raised his index and middle fingers.
"Seal, release!"
The seals flowed back into the doorframe. The door opened with a groan, revealing a dimly lit room filled with cylindrical glass tanks containing a green liquid. Within the tanks were figures, the captains and lieutenants of the Gotei 13, and several high-ranking seated officers. Kageroza's Reigai army, created from their collected spiritual particles.
Each Reigai, thanks to Kageroza's modifications, was even more battle-hungry than its original. With this army, he believed himself invincible, capable of challenging the entire Soul Society. This was his trump card.
He manipulated the controls, and grey pills were dispensed into the tanks, entering the Reigai's mouths through tubes.
Rumble!
As the Reigai ingested the pills, their spiritual pressure surged. The tanks shattered, releasing the figures wearing captain haori and Shihakushō.
Clang!
Metal on metal. All eyes turned to the golden-armored figure, the Reigai of Captain Ailin, the Eleventh Division captain said to rival Captain-Commander Yamamoto.
The Reigai's eyes opened, memories flooding back. He confronted Kageroza by unleashing his immense spiritual pressure.
Boom!
Kageroza was slammed to the ground, pinned by the weight of Ailin's reiatsu.
"S-Stop!"
Caught off guard, Kageroza coughed up blood.
"Ordering me around, insect?" The Reigai raised his foot, bringing it down on Kageroza's head. With a bang, blood splattered.
"Consider this punishment for your previous transgression. Next time, I'll destroy you."
After saying this, Ailin's Reigai folded its arms and strode out of the lab, leaving Kageroza on the floor.
"Damn it!"
Kageroza rose, wiping the blood from his mouth. If it hadn't been for the surprise attack… He glared at the other Reigai, who had remained motionless during his humiliation. His voice dripped with fury.
"Go! Seize control of the Soul Society! Replace your originals! Turn the Gotei 13 into my Gotei 13! If you encounter your original, kill them! And if anyone witnesses your actions… silence them."
"Yes, Lord Inaba."
The Reigai vanished, spreading throughout the Seireitei.
…
"What was that spiritual pressure just now?"
In the Ninth Division barracks, Rukia Kuchiki looked towards the Twelfth Division. She had sensed familiar spiritual pressures, but those captains and lieutenants should be in the World of the Living, fighting Aizen. Why were their spiritual pressures in the Twelfth Division? And… had she sensed her own among them?
As she wondered, those familiar spiritual pressures began to spread throughout the Seireitei. One, her own, was approaching the Ninth Division. She drew her Zanpakutō. Despite her confusion, she sensed hostility.
"Me?"
Her doppelganger, identical in appearance and attire, stood before her. Rukia felt her mind short-circuit.