"Hadō No. 63 - Raikōhō!"
The crackling of thunder rang out as a blast of lightning hurtled through the air toward Tsunayashiro Tokinada. Tokinada's expression shifted subtly. Without delay, he swung the blade in his hand.
With a single slash, several phantasmal figures emerged from the mist of crimson reiatsu and collided with the incoming Raikōhō. The spell and the apparitions neutralized each other, both dissipating completely.
Behind the Kido spell, a figure launched forward, fast enough to leave afterimages. In a blink, she appeared in front of Tsunayashiro Tokinada.
Before Tokinada could lift his sword, her fist struck his face, sending him flying.
Bang!!
Tokinada crashed into the trunk of one of the massive white trees that had survived Nelliel's earlier Cero. The surface of the tree cracked, revealing a stone-like texture beneath the bark.
Indeed, the trees of Hueco Mundo were not made of organic matter, but of some hardened mineral-like substance.
Yoruichi didn't let up. Using Shunpo, she appeared before Tokinada and continued her relentless assault.
Her speed and Hakuda (hand-to-hand combat) techniques were sharp and ruthless. In mere moments, she landed a flurry of strikes. Tokinada's internal organs suffered severe trauma, and blood sprayed from his mouth—yet his grip remained firm.
He swung his blade.
So long as he could move that cursed sword, he still had a chance.
A mist of blood surged again, and more distorted apparitions took form, lunging at Yoruichi simultaneously.
From her distance, Yoruichi got a better look. These were Hollow-like phantoms—yet clearly different.
"What… are these things?"
She struck with another punch. Her blow hit only partially—some illusions dispersed under impact, others remained, unscathed. They were too many. Even her swift fists couldn't eliminate all of them.
Then another strike of spiritual pressure swept toward her—a wave of reiatsu-charged sword energy.
Yoruichi reacted instinctively, retreating quickly.
From behind the shadows, Tokinada's voice rang out.
"Little girl of the Shihōin Clan—where do you think you're going?"
He had recognized her.
As the head of a noble branch family himself, of course he would know Yoruichi Shihōin. Her rise in recent years had made waves even within the Four Great Noble Houses. Compared to his fallen branch, Yoruichi's prominence was far greater.
He had expected the Kuchiki family to pursue him for the Tsunayashiro massacre. As the leading noble house of the current Soul Society, it would've been their responsibility.
But surprisingly, it was the Shihōin who acted first.
Perhaps Byakuya Kuchiki was too passive.
Perhaps… both clans were involved.
No matter. Tokinada felt no fear. Even if Yoruichi herself stood before him, he would kill her.
What would happen to Soul Society if the heir to the Shihōin family were killed here?
He slashed again—but this time, it was no ordinary strike. It was Kidō.
"Hadō No. 78 - Zangerin no Hana! (Slaying Flower Wheel!)"
A sharp arc of energy manifested from his Zanpakutō, forged through Kidō and Reiatsu. The attack roared toward Yoruichi, its edge emitting a howl as it tore the air.
Yoruichi's instincts screamed.
She had seen this technique before.
Her mentor, Gosuke Shigure, had used this spell. Zangerin no Hana wasn't just a Kidō spell—it required the conduit of a Zanpakutō to manifest. It was a fusion of blade and spell.
Back then, Shigure used it only on inanimate objects.
Now, Tokinada used it to kill her.
"I have to dodge!" she thought.
But as she moved, she felt resistance at her ankles.
Two of those Hollow-like phantoms had silently wrapped around her legs.
Too late.
Yoruichi's eyes widened. She was trapped.
Just as Tokinada's Zangerin no Hana approached, another arc of energy appeared—colliding with it head-on.
Bang!!
The clash sent shockwaves through the forest. Reishi swirled violently, forming a howling tempest.
The phantom figures clinging to Yoruichi were crushed under the Reiatsu. Yoruichi herself was flung backward.
She landed—in someone's arms.
Gosuke Shigure had arrived.
Holding her with one arm and his blade in the other, he asked gently, "Are you alright?"
Yoruichi, still young and less composed than her future self, blushed. The closeness, the warmth of his reiatsu, and the steady presence threw her momentarily off-balance.
"I'm fine, sensei," she replied quickly.
Shigure nodded. In a flicker, he moved her to safety at the forest's edge.
He turned, blade in hand, and faced the storm. His captain's haori fluttered, the word "eleven" bold on the back, striking even in this bleak realm.
The mysterious Shinigami who had fought beside Nelliel noticed the number.
His eyes widened.
"That… that's the Eleventh Division's haori. He's Kenpachi?!"
He knew that title well.
He had once served under the Eleventh Division. Only Kenpachi could wear that haori.
But this man wasn't Kenpachi Zaraki.
He wasn't Yachiru Unohana either.
The man standing now
Was Gosuke Shigure.
A Kenpachi he had never met.