Chapter 120: Fiander Is Dead?
Seeing this unexpected scene unfold before him, Ulquiorra stopped his planned attack, lowering his raised hand. His originally severed tail, with just a light shake, unexpectedly returned to its original undamaged state through High-Speed Regeneration.
He walked calmly to the side of Kurosaki Ichigo, looked down at his agonized appearance, and spoke with something resembling compassion: "As I suspected, you borrowed power that doesn't belong to you, and now you're suffering the backlash?"
"How pitiful. Let me grant you a merciful death!"
Saying that, Ulquiorra stretched out his right hand to pierce directly through Ichigo's heart and end his suffering.
However, the moment he extended his hand forward, Kurosaki Ichigo tremblingly stretched out his own right hand to grab Ulquiorra's pale palm, then forced himself to stand up with visible effort despite his weakened state.
"Cough—cough—cough—"
Unknown liquid was still flowing from his mouth, and his legs began to shake uncontrollably beneath him.
"I... I don't need your mercy!"
"I can still fight!"
Ichigo lifted Tensa Zangetsu again with tremendous effort, but his strength was completely exhausted. He could only let the blade fall against Ulquiorra's body along the natural inclination of his failing body.
Then he collapsed heavily once more.
Seeing Kurosaki Ichigo brush against his body and fall hard to the ground, Ulquiorra's heart was finally moved by something he couldn't quite understand. For the first time, he followed his inner curiosity and asked a genuine question.
"What drives you to continue fighting like this?"
"This will to fight—what is it exactly?"
Ulquiorra was genuinely confused, because for countless years, what he had been desperately seeking was to discover the true meaning of having a heart.
"Fighting?"
Ichigo propped his head against the cold ground to support his trembling body. Even though he couldn't open his eyes properly, he still refused to give up entirely.
"I never... never... saw it as something necessary for its own sake."
"Everything I've done so far... has been to... protect those people around me."
Ichigo struggled to get up again, but his strength was completely spent. He couldn't maintain his grip on his weapon. With the metallic sound of "clang clang," the Tensa Zangetsu in Ichigo's weakened hand fell directly to the ground.
Looking at Kurosaki Ichigo, who was still attempting to fight with trembling, unsteady hands, Ulquiorra approached him and said coldly, "It's unfortunate that you cannot protect the people around you, because they will all die anyway."
Ulquiorra leaned his head close to Ichigo's ear and whispered, "Haven't you realized it yet?"
"Throughout this entire time, whether it's the battle between you and me, or the other Shinigami fighting elsewhere, or even Master Aizen's movements, their actions give off detectable spiritual pressure."
"Have you sensed even a hint of Reiatsu from that man Fiander Moros fighting those people down there until now?"
Ulquiorra's pointed words made Kurosaki Ichigo's pupils contract with sudden realization, and he responded instinctively: "You... what do you mean by that?"
"It means that you are far too weak—so weak that man doesn't want to fight seriously with any of you. It's that simple!"
Below the zenith, in the Palace, within the ice barrier that had contained their battlefield.
The brilliant sea of light had engulfed Fiander's body in an instant, and the enormous Reiatsu generated by the technique even shattered the surrounding ice formations, creating countless spreading cracks. The frigid air that had dominated the atmosphere was gradually being reversed by the overwhelming power of the light-based attack, allowing the temperature to rise slightly from its supernatural low.
"Captain..."
"Brother!"
Both Rukia and Renji looked at Byakuya Kuchiki with hopeful, expectant expressions. Such a devastating and powerful blow might truly be capable of defeating that seemingly invincible man.
After all, Fiander's overwhelming strength had already made them feel genuine despair. That kind of complete, all-around dominance had left them feeling utterly helpless.
As the sea of light gradually dissipated, the countless cherry blossom petals transformed back into Zanpakuto form and returned to Byakuya's hand. Simultaneously, the surrounding ice barrier began making distinct sounds of structural failure.
Crack
One crack appeared, then two cracks, then three cracks... Countless fractures spread across the surrounding ice surfaces. With the crisp, sharp sound of shattering mirrors, all the ice barriers that Fiander had released crumbled into powder and dissipated completely, leaving only a pool of deep, freezing water covering the ground that rose up to everyone's shins.
"Brother! Did you actually kill him?!"
"That's incredible, Captain!"
Rukia and Renji looked at Byakuya Kuchiki with pure admiration shining in their eyes. They could hardly believe that the man who had been so overwhelmingly strong—who had defeated their entire group single-handedly with apparent ease—had actually been defeated by the elder brother and captain they so deeply respected.
Byakuya Kuchiki carefully sensed the spiritual pressure in the surrounding area, searching for any trace of his opponent's presence. He found nothing abnormal or threatening, yet his battle-honed intuition kept insisting that something was wrong, as if the conclusion was too convenient and clean.
But had that dangerous man really been killed by his ultimate technique?
Byakuya Kuchiki found himself genuinely puzzled by the situation. During their previous encounter in Karakura Town, Fiander had demonstrated far superior strength compared to what he had shown in this battle.
Could it be that he, Byakuya, had truly become that much stronger in the intervening time?
Just as Byakuya Kuchiki was questioning his own assessment of the situation, Rukia released her Tozansho barrier and freed Inoue Orihime, then thanked her with heartfelt sincerity: "Thank you so much, Inoue! If it weren't for your timely healing, my brother wouldn't have been able to defeat him!"
Rukia rushed forward enthusiastically and grabbed Inoue's hands with excitement.
Inoue blushed deeply and was about to respond when suddenly there were several sets of hurried footsteps echoing from outside the main hall's entrance. Captain Unohana Retsu was leading a group that included Zaraki Kenpachi, Kurotsuchi Mayuri, and several vice-captains, along with Ishida and Sado, whom they had encountered along the way. The entire group stepped into the great hall together.
"Hmm? There's strong residual Reiatsu here. Was this your doing, Kuchiki?"
Zaraki Kenpachi sniffed the air with his nose, walked directly to the center of the hall, and asked with obvious interest in the recent battle.
"Captain Zaraki, Captain Kurotsuchi, Captain Unohana, and Lieutenant Kotetsu—why are you all here?"
Since Rukia and Renji had infiltrated Hueco Mundo secretly alongside Urahara Kisuke, they had not reported their mission to Soul Society according to proper protocol, making their presence here technically unauthorized.
"Hmph, you think that just because you guys snuck into Hueco Mundo, Soul Society wouldn't know about it?"
Hearing Rukia's surprised question, Kurotsuchi Mayuri responded with a cold snort of derision.
"We simply allowed Urahara Kisuke to continue testing the stability of the Garganta, to determine whether it can safely maintain spiritual pressure at captain-level intensities."
Kurotsuchi Mayuri's explanation made both Rukia and Renji look embarrassed. They bowed their heads and stopped talking, realizing their mission had been monitored from the beginning.
"By the way, Captain Kuchiki, were you engaged in combat with an enemy here just moments ago?"
At this point, the gentle and eternally peaceful Unohana Retsu continued with Kenpachi's line of questioning, though her tone remained characteristically calm.
"Reporting to Captain Unohana, the captain has just defeated the Arrancar named Fiander here!"
Renji suddenly stepped forward with military precision, saluted properly, and replied with complete confidence in his statement.
However, as soon as he finished speaking, he noticed that the group of newly arrived Soul Reapers were all looking at him with expressions that ranged from suspicious to outright contemptuous.
"Impossible! Although Byakuya Kuchiki is indeed very strong, it's absolutely impossible for him to defeat that particular Arrancar!"
Kurotsuchi Mayuri's expression changed dramatically, and he spoke with obvious agitation and disbelief.
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