"Incomplete Hollows…?"
"The Hōgyoku…?"
Two unfamiliar terms hit Shiba Kaien one after another, leaving him visibly lost.
Urahara Kisuke looked mildly surprised.
"Captain Shimo—should we have Mr. Kaien step outside for this?"
Shimo shook his head.
"Doesn't matter. The Hōgyoku isn't exactly a secret in Seireitei anymore."
Urahara nodded, as if that settled it.
"Then I'll start explaining."
To be honest, even Shimo himself was curious about this "incomplete Hollow" concept.
"The Hōgyoku was originally my invention. It possesses… extraordinary power."
"But it's in Aizen's hands now."
"As for 'incomplete Hollows'—that's simply the name I'm giving to this new kind of Hollow disturbance in the Human World."
Urahara began working at the lab bench.
A moment later, the display screen lit up—showing the specimen Shimo had captured.
"This one was brought back by Captain Shimo."
"Compared to normal Hollows… their souls are missing half of themselves."
As Urahara adjusted the image, the creature's internal structure shifted and unfolded on the screen.
"A normal Hollow—under the Hōgyoku's influence—can be split into two."
"It reconstructs the Chain of Fate… and then severs it again."
With each sentence, Kaien's expression grew heavier.
As the Thirteenth Division's Lieutenant, stationed in the World of the Living, he understood better than anyone just how terrifying that was.
"Their combat power rises," Urahara said, tapping the screen with his cane,
"and at the same time… it creates an endless craving for souls."
"Of course, there's a drawback."
Kaien hurriedly asked, "What drawback?!"
Tap. Tap.
Urahara struck the Hollow-hole area twice and said solemnly:
"Lifespan.
Compared to normal Hollows, their lifespan is extremely short—sometimes not even one-tenth of the original."
Shimo frowned slightly.
He'd already guessed part of that.
Kaien looked confused. "Then… does that help us at all?"
Urahara glanced at him.
In appearance, Kaien resembled Kurosaki Ichigo—uncannily so.
And in personality… the same straightforward, head-first kind of thinking.
No wonder he's a Shiba, Urahara thought.
"Ahem." Urahara cleared his throat, voice turning serious.
"Accurately speaking—there's no benefit. Only harm."
"The soul's missing portion is what causes the shortened lifespan."
"And it also drives their demand for souls through the roof."
Shimo gave a blunt summary.
"Basically… they're high-quality suicide shock troops."
"Bingo!" Urahara smiled, genuinely impressed.
"Captain Shimo's mind works faster."
"Based on the data, we can confirm this is only the first wave of test products."
"Later, there may be more of these incomplete Hollows."
"And when that happens… they'll be stronger, more violent, and even hungrier for souls."
"This kind of creature—whether in the Human World or Soul Society—would be a disaster."
Shimo glanced at Kaien and sighed.
"Kaien… seriously. Start paying attention."
"In a sense, you're a candidate for captaincy in two divisions, you know."
Kaien—once hailed as a genius—was among the best of the lieutenants.
The Fifth Division and Ninth Division were still without captains.
Yamamoto had proposed promoting from the current lieutenants.
With Chōjirō Sasakibe and Yachiru Kusajishi excluded, Kaien was basically the top pick.
Kaien scratched his head helplessly.
"I still think the Thirteenth suits me best."
Shimo sighed and didn't argue.
When Yamamoto's order came down, it wouldn't be Kaien's choice anymore.
"Leave that for later," Shimo said.
"For now—go back to Soul Society and report everything to the First Division."
"As for countermeasures… leave that to the professionals."
Kaien's face tightened with worry.
"Then what about you?"
"You're not planning to fight Menos-level Hollows alone, are you?"
Shimo tilted his head, lips curving slightly.
"Relax. Those Menos aren't my opponents."
"No matter what—I'm a captain-class Shinigami."
Kaien still hesitated.
"But captain-level and lieutenant-level Shinigami get restricted when passing through the Senkaimon…"
That restriction was the reason he'd ended up so battered.
Without an official "release permit" from Soul Society, a Shinigami above seated-officer level would have their power suppressed to one-fifth.
The same should apply to Shimo—
But for him, that suppression was practically meaningless.
A casual flare of his overwhelming spiritual pressure would tear the restriction apart.
"…Fine. I understand."
Kaien wasn't the indecisive type. He made his choice quickly.
Soon after, he returned to Soul Society through the underground passage beneath Urahara shop.
"Another one sent off," Urahara said, waving him goodbye.
Then he turned to Shimo.
"Captain Shimo… what do you plan to do next?"
Shimo thought briefly.
"Handle the Menos in the World of the Living."
"Then wait for new stationed Shinigami reinforcements."
"As for anything else… no concrete plan yet."
Urahara's expression sharpened.
"Then about Aizen's plan… you've already figured it out, haven't you?"
Shimo nodded, brows tightly drawn.
"This wave of Hollows is just a test."
"What I'm worried about is Aizen using this technique on the Espada—splitting their souls."
"Even though Barragan and Nnoitra already died by my hand…"
"there are still eight Espada left in Hueco Mundo—never mind all the reserve Arrancar."
Urahara understood immediately.
If Aizen applied this technology to the Espada…
The disasters in Soul Society and the Human World would become reality.
An Adjuchas-class Arrancar could already match a captain.
A Vasto Lorde-class Arrancar could surpass ordinary captains outright.
If their strength advanced further…
Soul Society wouldn't have many who could stop them.
As for Yamamoto—he was strategic power, not something to deploy lightly.
If he moved recklessly, it could mean either the Human World collapsing… or Soul Society collapsing.
And Aizen would surely have contingencies against him.
"…If that's the case," Urahara slumped dramatically,
"then aren't we basically finished?"
Shimo looked at him with a strange expression.
Why was Urahara, one of the "Special War Powers," acting like this?
"I think you should check your emotional stability first."
"Oh my, oh my!" Urahara instantly perked up.
"Just a joke!"
"I mean, the atmosphere's so tense—"
Shimo lifted a hand, cutting him off.
"Kisuke. I know you're hiding a lot of secrets."
"I am too."
"But there's something you need to understand."
"Our objectives are the same."
Urahara paused.
Then he lowered the brim of his hat, hiding whatever shift crossed his face.
"…Yes."
"The same objective."
Shimo glanced toward the underground exit.
"I'm going to deal with the Hollow disturbances in the Human World."
"Nel, let's go."
Nel followed instantly, refusing to leave his side for even a moment.
Watching them go, Urahara's eyes flickered—meaningfully.
"Are our objectives… really the same, Captain Shimo?"
---
Back on the surface, Shimo took out the Denreishinki—the messenger device developed by the Research and Development Institute.
The Human World was vast. Searching by reiatsu alone was too inefficient.
But with the Institute's tracking, Hollow positions could be captured at any time.
Very soon, the screen marked the nearest Menos-level presence.
"Shiba City…? Another Menos already?"
Shimo's gaze sharpened with faint surprise.
He trusted the Institute's tracking.
A heartbeat later, he and Nel vanished into the sky.
---
Shiba City.
When Shimo returned to the city, he sensed the Menos immediately.
"North," he muttered.
Nel sniffed the air, expression odd.
"It smells the same as the incomplete Hollows from earlier."
"This should be a modified Menos."
To Nel, these things didn't truly count as Hollows anymore.
They felt more like… mutated offshoots.
At this point, Shiba City held no Shinigami reiatsu at all.
The incomplete Hollows were feasting on human souls, pushing the city toward ruin.
Shimo reached the Menos's location at once.
What he saw refreshed his understanding of how ugly a creature could be.
"To be honest…" Shimo muttered,
"I've never seen something this hideous."
Nel wrinkled her nose in disgust.
"They're more like mindless beasts."
"Driven purely by instinct."
This Menos stood several meters tall, massive and misshapen.
Its head looked like a twisted swamp of sludge, and its body seemed crudely stitched together from mismatched parts.
Meaningless, grating howls poured out of that "swamp."
Sensing Shimo, it charged at him in a frenzy.
The ground trembled. Dust billowed.
"Hadō #1: Shō!"
Shimo extended his index finger and pointed at the Menos.
BOOM—!
Overwhelming spiritual pressure erupted, swallowing it whole.
In the next instant, the Menos scattered into black spirit particles and vanished into the air.
But as it disappeared, Nel's expression changed sharply.
She snapped her mouth open—a pale crimson Cero blooming within.
A beam of destruction roared toward the empty space to Shimo's right.
BOOM!!
The blast tore the air apart, shockwaves rippling outward.
Shimo's expression shifted.
…So there really was a "familiar Hollow" nearby.
As the light faded, a figure stood where nothing had been.
"How rude."
The voice was calm—emotionless, mechanical.
The man wore a high-collared black outfit with white hakama-like trousers.
His skin was corpse-pale. Deep green tear-like markings ran down his cheeks.
His Hollow aura was faint, but a katana-like weapon hung at his waist.
The 4th Espada—Ulquiorra Cifer.
"Rude?" Shimo replied flatly, staring at him.
"Using that Menos's dense Hollow aura to mask your presence…"
"and hiding nearby—yet you call me rude?"
Ulquiorra's expression didn't change.
"No. I'm not speaking about you."
He looked toward Nel and continued:
"As fellow Espada, we should both be serving Lord Aizen—"
BOOM!
Before he could finish, a tremendous force slammed into his chest.
Ulquiorra shot downward like a meteor.
The ground collapsed—webbed cracks spreading outward into a crater.
Ulquiorra lay at its center, motionless—life and death unclear.
Shimo hovered above the crater, looking down without emotion.
"Trying to poach my people right in front of me?"
"Did Aizen give you the courage for that?"
CRUNCH—
Ulquiorra pushed the rubble off himself and rose into the air.
Even after being hit, his face remained unchanged.
"It seems Lord Aizen was correct to warn me about you."
"Third Division Captain… Kyōraku Shimo."
"PFFT—!"
Midair, Ulquiorra suddenly vomited blood, his condition collapsing.
He lowered his eyes to his chest.
A gaping hole—far larger than a Hollow hole—had been blasted through him.
"To overwhelm me with Hakuda alone…"
"I will report this intelligence to Lord Aizen."
Even as he spoke, his body began dissolving into spirit particles.
"We will meet again."
"Kyōraku Shimo."
--------------------------------///
Advance Chapters on Patreon!
p(a)treon(.)com/HudaLin
-Remove the parenthesis to access patreon normally
Thanks for the Support!