Before long, Kasumioji Hoko arrived first at Kikyō Hill.
From afar, when she spotted the outline of the Senkaimon, she finally let out a breath of relief, thinking she had managed to make it in time after all.
But in the very next moment, a scene that made her scalp go numb appeared—
Several Shinigami were walking down from Kikyō Hill together, where the Senkaimon was located.
At the front of the group was none other than Kuchiki Rukia—
Tap… tap… tap…
Hoko's pace slowed to a halt. Her expression soured; she knew instantly that she had missed the farewell.
"Hoko, you came too?!"
Hinamori Momo called out happily, spotting her from a distance.
"..."
Hearing the voice, Kuchiki Rukia turned to look over.
She saw a beautiful female Shinigami dressed in a black shihakushō, a Vice-Captain's badge bound around her left arm, staring straight at her.
"Rukia. I'm Hoko—Kasumioji Hoko."
The blonde, blue-eyed Hoko gazed at Rukia for a long moment before finally stepping forward and extending her right hand, enunciating each word clearly.
"Huh? I... I am Rukia Kuchiki. It's a pleasure to meet you!"
Rukia felt somewhat bewildered.
For some reason, although Hoko was smiling, she sensed a chilling coldness beneath it—
as if… hostility?
But why…?
"Yes! I'm sure it will be!" Hoko replied heavily.
Just then, Tsunayashiro Tokio caught up as well.
Seeing the scene, he immediately realized that he too had failed to make it in time to see Fūjin Taichi off.
"Damn it…"
He cursed himself inwardly.
If he hadn't been so obsessed with saving face—
if he had reconciled with his "friend" earlier—
would it really have come to this?
Missing even the chance to see him one last time… was it really worth it?!
"Oh? So it's a noble young master,"
Abarai Renji said with mockery laced in his voice.
"What are you doing here?"
"Hmph…"
Tokio ignored him, glancing at the now-empty Senkaimon, unable to suppress a quiet sigh.
"Tokio, let's go back…"
Hoko cast a deep look at Kuchiki Rukia, then turned back and said to Tokio.
"Alright."
Tokio nodded, following Hoko as they left, soon disappearing from everyone's sight…
"Tch—cowards!"
Renji spat fiercely onto the ground at their retreating backs.
"..."
Rukia remained silent, lifting her head to look at the deep blue sky.
A brilliant sun hung high amid the clouds, its once-blinding light slowly dimming…
...
Naruki City was a mid-sized modern city in the Human World,
with a permanent population of less than one million and an area only half the size of the neighboring spiritually dense Karakura Town.
As such, the Seireitei had never paid much attention to Naruki City.
The entire city was divided into only three jurisdictions—
South · Enbā District
Central · Etsuhide District
North · Uzuhara District
Each district was guarded by a single Shinigami.
The area under Fūjin Taichi's responsibility was the Uzuhara District, located at the northern edge of Naruki City, bordering the Edogawa River.
Beyond that, further north, lay Karakura Town · Honchō District.
Because three stationed Shinigami had been killed in Naruki City over the past six months, the remaining two—Chishima Hidenori and Watanabe Junzō—lived in constant fear, afraid that they might be next…
Thus, upon meeting Fūjin Taichi for the first time,
the acting group leader Chishima Hidenori solemnly warned him:
"There are… no rules here.
As long as you stay alive, your mission is considered complete."
"Huh?"
Taichi, still unaware of the tragedies that had occurred in Naruki City, looked utterly confused after hearing this.
"And one more thing,"
Chishima continued gravely.
"If it starts raining, no matter what you're doing, abandon it immediately and… hide."
"Alright… but why?"
Taichi couldn't help but ask.
"There is no why!!"
Chishima shouted angrily.
"If you don't want to die, then engrave what I just said into your memory!"
"Yes, sir!"
Taichi nodded.
Seeing Chishima about to leave, he asked again,
"Then, Senior Chishima… what about Konso?"
"Idiot!"
Chishima stopped short, turning his large head slightly and glaring at Taichi with a gloomy expression.
"There's no need to throw your life away for three thousand kan.
Do you understand?!"
"..."
Taichi said nothing.
After watching Chishima disappear, he habitually shrugged, then hovered in midair, surveying the Uzuhara District below.
He tried to spot familiar figures—
Urahara Kisuke, or perhaps Hirako Shinji—among the bustling crowds beneath his feet.
But obviously… that was impossible.
"ROAR—!"
Just as Fūjin Taichi was wandering aimlessly through Uzuhara 2-Chome,
a shrill, chilling Hollow scream suddenly rang out from the direction of Yasutama Cemetery in the distance.
"Oh? Business already?"
Fūjin Taichi looked over with interest.
He saw a pretty female student holding a cup of milk tea stumbling out of the cemetery, screaming nonstop:
"Help me! Help me—!"
However, none of the pedestrians on the street reacted at all.
Naturally—because they were ordinary humans, unable to see Pluses, let alone fight a Hollow—
"Help me… please help me—!"
The milk-tea girl cried out desperately, but when she realized that the people right beside her were completely unmoved, boundless despair welled up in her large, watery eyes.
"Kehehehe… become my snack!"
A white-masked Hollow shaped like a gigantic platypus—several meters tall—leapt out from between the buildings, baring massive fangs as it lunged viciously toward her.
"Aaaaaah—!!"
The girl collapsed limply onto the ground, watching helplessly as the grotesque Hollow pounced straight at her—
"Bakudō #61: Rikujōkōrō!"
With a low incantation, six golden pillars of light shot down instantly, piercing through the Hollow's body and locking it firmly in place, rendering it completely immobile!
"What?! A Shinigami?!"
The Hollow spoke in human language, lifting its huge head to look into the air—
There, a young Shinigami dressed in a black shihakushō hovered calmly, a long and a short blades strapped to his back, leisurely blowing away wisps of green smoke curling from the fingers of his left hand.
"Huh… what is that…?"
It was the first time the milk-tea girl had ever seen a Shinigami. For a brief moment, she even forgot her own danger, staring blankly at Fūjin Taichi in midair.
"Sorry, Hollow. This is my turf—
and I won't let you run wild here."
Fūjin Taichi slowly drew his Zanpakutō, Kyūjūkyū (Ninety-Nine), and addressed the white-masked Hollow.
"Kehehehe! Shinigami!
You think this is enough to hold me?!"
The Hollow suddenly grabbed the six golden pillars with its short red claws and tore hard—
Crack!
The light shattered instantly into countless golden particles.
Damn it… casting a Bakudō above the sixties without incantation really is too reckless.
The power's barely one-fifth of normal…
Realizing he had overestimated himself, Taichi silently cursed his own showboating.
Seeing the Hollow break free, he immediately used Shunpō, flashed forward, scooped up the milk-tea girl with one arm, and vanished with a whoosh, covering several hundred meters in an instant.
"Kehehehe! Shinigami—trying to run?!"
The Hollow snarled, dropping low to the ground before charging on all fours like a ferocious beast, chasing after Taichi at full speed—
Tap tap tap
Tap tap tap
Tap tap tap
In just over ten seconds, the Hollow had covered hundreds of meters, closing the gap to less than ten meters—
Seven meters…
Three meters…
One meter…
"ROAR—!"
Seeing Taichi directly ahead, the Hollow raised one massive claw and slammed it toward his back with a shrill cry—
"Big brother—!!"
The milk-tea girl screamed in terror as the enormous claw descended.
"Hadō #31: Shakkahō!"
Without even turning around, Taichi fired a Kidō backward.
A burst of crimson flame struck the Hollow, erupting in a flash of fire.
"Shinigami—you've made me angry!!"
The Hollow only stalled for an instant before roaring furiously, leaping high into the air and smashing down toward Taichi—
"Big brother!!"
The girl screamed again.
"Shut it, Miss Milk Tea!!" Taichi snapped.
He kicked off the ground and activated Shunpō once more—
Whoosh!
His figure vanished instantly from the Hollow's sight.