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"So this is the enemy they're up against?"
The vast palace had fallen into absolute silence.
Only the sound of people sucking in cold breaths remained.
Espada or subordinates, every Arrancar wore the same uneasy expression.
The cocoon man's overwhelming entrance hit them like a mass silence spell.
In an instant, every Arrancar shut up.
The air grew suffocating.
That almost dimension-breaking spiritual pressure clung to their hearts like a nightmare, forcing an instinctive, existential submission.
Among them, the one with the worst expression was the skeletal emperor.
As one of Hueco Mundo's oldest Hollows—born at the top of the food chain, a former king who had spent centuries looking down on everything—he had only ever been on the receiving end of worship.
Yet now he actually felt the urge to kneel.
The impulse made Barragan furious.
But he had absolutely no way to shake off that crushing pressure.
If even the skeletal emperor was like this, the others didn't stand a chance.
Some shut down in terror.
Some trembled to their core.
Some curled up where they stood.
And the weaker ones? A few of them practically lost control of their bodies on the spot, bones nearly giving out.
The meeting that had gathered every Arrancar instantly fell into chaos.
"Hey… think about it…"
The heavy silence was finally broken by Harribel. "Isn't it possible that we were wrong? That this mysterious cocoon guy is the real Kisuke Urahara?"
Her tone carried a rare hint of uncertainty.
"Oh—"
"That makes sense!"
"Lady Harribel is right!"
"Just casually leaking spiritual pressure at that level… way beyond a Vasto Lorde. Cocoon guy's strength could easily rank in the top fifteen of the Shinigami world!"
"Yeah, that's gotta be it!"
One by one, the Arrancar blinked, then their faces lit up with sudden revelation.
Yes.
Of course.
Cocoon man had to be Urahara.
That fisherman-hat guy they'd doubted earlier? Just some trash Shinigami.
"I knew it. A laid-back slacker like that hat-and-clogs guy has no business on the list. He's not worthy," Nnoitra scoffed.
Shinigami and Hollows were natural enemies.
Ever since he saw the blade Benihime, his blood pressure had skyrocketed. He'd been itching to slice the projection screen in half.
Besides, in both the first scene and the standoff with the cocoon man, Urahara had shown nothing except overpowering Yammy.
Add Harribel's words to the mix, and Nnoitra naturally concluded:
Kisuke Urahara—and Yoruichi and Isshin next to him—were only there as props to highlight cocoon guy's insane power.
"Tch…"
"I don't like admitting it, but if that's Urahara, I can accept it," Grimmjow muttered, eyes locked on the Hōgyoku-infused Aizen.
One hand slipped unwillingly into his pocket.
For someone as competitive as Grimmjow, admitting another guy's strength was basically impossible.
But this?
Even his pride couldn't overlook that spiritual pressure.
And it wasn't just the two of them. The rest of the Espada were reacting the same way.
One by one, their gazes fell on the cocoon man with genuine recognition.
Clearly, they thought the ranking made perfect sense.
Cocoon-form Urahara definitely deserved a top-fifteen spot.
However…
As the video continued playing, what happened next left all of them completely stunned.
"Too bad…"
Encased in white bone-like armor, Aizen—now in his first fusion form, voice warped by the Hōgyoku—spoke with an otherworldly calm.
"By sealing your spiritual pressure nodes, you forced the energy to burn inside your body. If your opponent were anyone else, you probably would've succeeded just now…"
"Right?"
"Kisuke Urahara."
"..."
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