"Even in Hueco Mundo, people as annoying as you are still quite rare."
As Cirucci spoke, her hand on Loly's neck tightened. With the tightening grip, Loly's face turned purplish-blue, and her eyeballs rolled uncontrollably upwards.
However, what was extremely bizarre was...
Even on the verge of death, Loly, whose neck was clutched by Cirucci, still didn't move an inch, like a doll waiting to be slaughtered.
Although in recent years, for the sake of keeping a low profile and not attracting Aizen's attention, Cirucci's temper had improved significantly.
But that didn't mean Cirucci had become a good person.
Quite the opposite, in fact!
Even among Arrancar, Cirucci belonged to the particularly extreme type. For victory, she would stop at nothing, and to become stronger, she could sacrifice everything except herself. She had no concept of 'comradeship' towards other Arrancar.
In the past, to ensure Ishikawa's research succeeded, she captured countless Hollows and Arrancar, even handing over her own Fracción to Ishikawa for dissection and study...
Killing an Espada would attract Aizen's attention.
But Arrancar below the Espada rank had never had much presence in Las Noches, even if these two had always followed Aizen, serving as his maids.
Cirucci's constant deference to the Espada was never out of fear of them. The only person in all of Las Noches who truly instilled fear in her was one...
That was Aizen!
Was she really going to kill herself??
As if in deliberate torment, Loly could clearly feel her life rapidly draining away. She wanted to escape, but the left hand resting on her shoulder felt like a colossal mountain... and a constantly vibrating one at that, severing the connection between her brain and every cell in her body.
And the most bizarre thing was...
The pain emanating from her body was infinitely magnified.
Terror, intense pain, torment... all negative emotions and sensations were infinitely amplified by that vibration, making Loly experience an unprecedented sense of dread!
Why... why was this useless person so strong?
What exactly had she done to her?
"Let... let go of Loly!"
Just then, Menoly, who was standing nearby, suddenly charged towards Cirucci. Although her face showed fear, seeing Loly's face gradually turn from purple to black, she still rushed at Cirucci.
But...
The next second, Menoly, who was charging at Cirucci, abruptly froze in mid-air.
"Ugh~"
Her entire body seemed to be gripped by a pair of invisible hands, gradually twisting and deforming. Blood continuously seeped from her pores, and her eyes bulged outwards.
Menoly opened her mouth, her features contorted in pain, but she couldn't scream. A sound like boiling water bubbling came from her throat, and with it, blood continuously flowed from her mouth.
This scene appeared extremely eerie and terrifying.
Even though both were on the verge of death, it was so eerily silent.
"Miss C... Cirucci..."
Just then, Orihime's voice suddenly came.
"Um... I'm fine, they..." Facing Cirucci's cold gaze, Orihime bravely suppressed her fear and said, "They didn't hurt me. You don't need to kill your companions for my sake."
Companions?
Cirucci looked at Orihime with a strange gaze. Was this person serious?
"You want me to let them go?"
Cirucci couldn't help but say, "The reason you're fine right now isn't because they didn't intend to hurt you, it's just because I happened to return."
At the end, Cirucci glanced at Loly and her companion, then continued:
"Besides, I'm not killing them because of you, but because they trespassed into my residence and offended me."
Orihime choked upon hearing this. In her interactions with Cirucci, she had always been extremely kind, just like an ordinary human girl, often discussing things like Human World fashion and cosmetics with her. This had led her to mistakenly believe that Cirucci was just an ordinary girl.
It wasn't until she saw the scene before her that she suddenly remembered...
The small girl who looked like a middle schooler before her was one of the top ten individuals in this world of Hueco Mundo!
"But..."
Orihime opened her mouth, her face showing unease, but more so, anxiety.
Cirucci looked at Orihime, her gaze growing stranger. To be honest... in all her life, she had never encountered someone like Orihime who would be anxious for 'enemies who were about to harm her'.
Is there really nothing wrong with this person's head?
She felt that that scoundrel Ishikawa had given her another troublesome task.
Suddenly, Cirucci frowned.
Then...
Thump, thump!
With two dull thuds, Loly and Menoly were simultaneously flung out, landing heavily in the corridor.
"Cough cough cough cough—"
Only then did the two, like people rescued from drowning, kneel on the ground with pale faces, coughing painfully.
This scene made Orihime breathe a slight sigh of relief.
"Cough... you... Lord Aizen..."
Loly looked up, about to scold without thinking, but seeing Cirucci's figure, the fear she had experienced just a moment ago instantly filled her entire body, causing her to involuntarily swallow the rest of her words.
Tap tap tap—
Just then, a crisp sound of footsteps approached.
Following the sound, a tall figure slowly walked from a distance. As she passed the two, she glanced at them, then walked straight into the room.
"Cirucci?"
Cirucci looked at the newcomer and asked with some confusion, "Is there something you need? Has Lord Aizen recovered?"
The newcomer was indeed No. 3, Cirucci.
Cirucci glanced at Orihime in the room, a quick scan, and already understood what had happened. She withdrew her gaze and said, "Lord Aizen has not yet left his room, but someone has invaded Las Noches. After you get ready, come to the meeting room for the Espada meeting."
"Someone invaded Las Noches?"
Cirucci was stunned.
Had Ishikawa recovered?
No, not right. Didn't Picaro just tell her that Ishikawa's spiritual pressure hadn't recovered yet?
Then who would invade Hueco Mundo at this time?
"It's the Substitute Soul Reaper who fought Grimmjow in the Human World previously."
Cirucci seemed to have seen Cirucci's confusion and explained, then walked outside.
As she passed Loly and Menoly, she gave them a cold glare.
Her gaze made Loly and Menoly instinctively shrink back.
Unlike Cirucci, Cirucci commanded great prestige among the Arrancar. Compared to Baraggan, the former king of Las Noches, Cirucci was more respected by the Arrancar.
Moreover...
As one of the few Espada who had evolved from a Vasto Lorde into an Arrancar, Cirucci inherently possessed a dimensional suppression over Arrancar who had evolved from Adjuchas.
"Get out!"
The cold voice made Loly and Menoly quickly help each other up from the ground and run quickly in the opposite direction.
Cirucci looked at Cirucci and couldn't help but shake her head inwardly.
She withdrew...
She suddenly remembered that this wasn't the first time she had seen someone like Orihime.
There were also two people in Las Noches who would pity those who wanted to kill them: one was Cirucci in front of her, and the other was Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck, who was formerly No. 3 alongside Cirucci.
"Roka."
Cirucci stretched, then smiled slightly at Roka, "Would you mind tidying up the room?"
"Yes, Lady Cirucci."
Roka, who had been observing with an indifferent expression from beginning to end, nodded and went to find tools to clean the room.
Cirucci didn't pay attention to Roka's reaction.
As an artificial Menos Grande, Roka lacked not only the instincts and desires of a Hollow but also had very incomplete emotions.
"The Substitute Soul Reaper... should be your companion, right?"
Cirucci turned to look at the stunned Orihime and smiled, "Although they're a bit late, your companions haven't given up on you. You must be feeling a bit better now..."
Orihime snapped out of it upon hearing this, her expression somewhat complex.
She knew very well that Kurosaki-kun coming to save her was an incredibly dangerous thing, but the moment she heard that Kurosaki-kun had arrived in Hueco Mundo, her heart couldn't help but feel happy.
"I..."
Orihime opened her mouth, but before she could finish, Cirucci's expression suddenly changed drastically.
"What is this...?"
"Huh?"
Orihime was slightly startled, seeing Cirucci's drastically changed expression, but then she also felt an incredibly terrifying aura instantly envelop the entire Las Noches.
This aura was incredibly bizarre...
Anyone who felt this aura didn't experience the oppressive feeling brought by spiritual pressure, but rather a primal fear originating from biological instinct.
As if the owner of this aura was a higher-level being on a biological level.
That was...
Aizen's aura!
...
Soul Society, West 38th District, Everything Store.
On the second floor of the tavern, Ishikawa sat behind his desk, looking at the two customers in front of him, his expression somewhat strange:
"Tsk tsk, you two really brought me a dangerous request."
"So dangerous that I'm not even confident I can complete it."
The two 'customers' in front of him couldn't help but look a little dejected upon hearing this.
"By the way, why did you think of coming to me?"
Ishikawa looked at the two in front of him with some curiosity. To be honest, it was somewhat beyond Ishikawa's expectation that these two would come to him for a request, especially since everyone in the Soul Society knew that he was not in a state to fight others at the moment.
The two in front of him were none other than Kuchiki Rukia and Abarai Renji, who had recently been forcibly brought back from the Human World by Kuchiki Byakuya and Zaraki.
Kuchiki Rukia hesitated upon hearing this: "It's..."
"Captain Kuchiki told us to come!"
Abarai Renji said, "He told us to find you, saying that perhaps you could provide us with some unexpected help."
Byakuya?
Ishikawa was slightly startled, then couldn't help but chuckle.
This guy looks cold and aloof, but he really cares about his sister.
Unexpected help, huh?
Ishikawa immediately understood that Byakuya was probably referring to Picaro, whom he had met in the Human World. Although he hadn't asked, he likely guessed that Ishikawa had people in Hueco Mundo, which was why he sent these two to make a request to him.
Thinking of this.
Ishikawa hesitated for a moment, then said to the two, "You two, extend your hands."
"Ah?"
The two were startled, but still placed their hands on the desk in front of Ishikawa.
Ishikawa didn't waste words. The Reiatsu Crest around him glowed faintly, and he lightly touched their palms with his index finger.
Buzz~
With a slight Reishi fluctuation, a spiritual crest resembling the Reiatsu Crest on Ishikawa's body immediately appeared on their palms: "I cannot go to Hueco Mundo with you, but if you encounter a critical situation, you can inject your spiritual pressure into the spiritual crest on your palm to activate it. Someone will then sense your location."
"But do not activate it unless absolutely necessary, and never use it in front of Aizen."
Ishikawa paused, then shook his head: "However, you probably won't encounter Aizen."
Upon hearing this, Rukia and Renji were both stunned.
It wasn't because of the spiritual crest on their palm; when Ishikawa called Picaro for help, Rukia was also nearby and knew that there were Arrancar in Hueco Mundo willing to help Ishikawa. Although... those five Arrancar who looked like human children seemed to have no combat power at all.
But they probably assumed there were others.
After all, according to Byakuya, Ishikawa had been to Hueco Mundo several times.
The reason for their reaction was entirely because they didn't understand why Ishikawa would say they wouldn't encounter Aizen.
Ishikawa didn't explain. Although things had changed greatly compared to his memories, Aizen's objective had remained unchanged from beginning to end, so the final battlefield would also not change.
— Karakura Town!
Karakura Town in the Human World would, by all means, become the battlefield for the decisive battle between the Human World and Hueco Mundo.
And he...
Before that, he had to find a way to restore his spiritual body.
After seeing Rukia and Renji off, Ishikawa didn't return to the Everything Store but entered the tavern.
Inside the tavern, many people had already gathered.
All the villains with Vice-Captain level combat power and above had gathered here without exception. Upon seeing Ishikawa arrive, they all turned their gaze towards him.
"Ishikawa-sama, the residents of West 38th District have been evacuated."
Nishijin Ori said, "I've arranged everyone properly as you instructed. The villains from all areas have also dispersed around the periphery of West 38th District, surrounding the entire West 38th District. Is there anything else you need us to do?"
"That's enough."
Ishikawa nodded and said, "Now you all go to the periphery as well. There might be a lot of commotion later, but no matter what happens, do not let anyone enter this area, and you yourselves should not approach."
"Yes."
Everyone responded in unison, without asking too many questions, and retreated out of the tavern.
In an instant, only Ishikawa was left in the entire tavern.
Looking at the deserted tavern, Ishikawa couldn't help but grin. Usually, this place was bustling with people.
Only now did Ishikawa realize...
Unconsciously, his tavern had become so spacious.
"It really has been..."
Ishikawa shook his head: "I've been here for a long time."
His gaze swept over every corner of the tavern, imprinting it all in his mind, then Ishikawa walked towards the tavern's backyard.
Although he already had an idea, Ishikawa couldn't be entirely sure if it would succeed.
After all...
With a creak, a door in the backyard leading underground was opened by Ishikawa. Following the stairs all the way down, the air grew colder the closer he got to the bottom.
When he reached the very bottom, what greeted his eyes was a spacious underground area like a cold storage.
And in this space, countless corpses were laid out densely!
What he was about to do, even Ishikawa himself found somewhat insane.
To reconstruct a spiritual body, one needed to analyze the spiritual body.
And what Ishikawa was about to do was precisely that.
"Hoo~"
With a deep breath, Ishikawa's right hand made a grasping motion in front of him.
Light gathered like stars in front of him, finally forming a long sword with a white hilt and a gray blade in Ishikawa's grasping right hand.
The Reiatsu Crest around Ishikawa glowed brightly at this instant, but just as the light reached its peak, it showed signs of dimming, even the patterns themselves faded, as if they could collapse at any moment.
This scene made Ishikawa frown.
Was Kōga Kuchiki's entire spiritual pressure not enough to sustain it?
Fortunately...
He had already prepared!
As the patterns on Ishikawa's body gradually collapsed, the Reishi of the entire 38th District suddenly surged towards the Everything Store. The immense Reishi fluctuation poured into the Everything Store like a leak.
Then, a light shout came from within:
"Bankai!"