The war

The war between the Shinigami and the Quincy began without warning in a town recently ravaged by a giant Hollow.

The exhausted Shinigami had just used a skilled formation, losing one and severely injuring another, to slay the giant Hollow that far surpassed their squad's strength.

Suddenly, a flashing rain of light illuminated the sky.

"Enemy attack—!"

The Shinigami officer leading the squad, a veteran who had survived the Seireitei battle, reacted swiftly.

But the rain of light, sweeping across the sky, was faster and more precise than he imagined.

"Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh!"

Tiny spirit particle arrows pierced the clouds, targeting each exhausted Shinigami, swiftly penetrating their torsos, necks, and limbs.

In an instant, the remaining six members of the squad were completely wiped out.

Yet, the Quincy unit did not stop, leading their soldiers on scythe-like footwear toward a predetermined direction.

There lay their path to the Soul Society.

Meanwhile, almost simultaneously, in the Rukongai's 13th District near Seireitei, the Shinigami detected the Quincy's spirit particle traces.

The Kidō Corps stabilized the spatial barriers, and a large number of well-prepared Shinigami awaited orders.

Leading the first wave was the combat-specialized 11th Division, headed by Unohana Retsu.

Unohana gazed at the dark, torn dimension gateway gradually opened by the Kidō Corps and sighed:

"If only Makoto were here with me."

"Just watching him fight would bring me joy..."

"Huh—?!"

Perhaps hearing Unohana's muttering, Saitō Riruka walked over, annoyed, and shouted:

"Can't my fighting stance inspire your desire to challenge me?!"

Riruka looked up at Unohana.

Standing beside her, the girl even tiptoed slightly to appear more imposing.

Unohana merely glanced at her and gave a subtle 'hmpf.'

This only made Riruka more annoyed!

"Unohana?!"

Riruka shouted.

However, as they bickered, the Kidō Corps at the front detected a surge of spirit particles from deeper within the torn dimension.

"They're here!"

Saitō and Unohana both looked up.

Since Fujimiya Makoto had fully described the strange abilities of the so-called 'Sternritter' member he encountered, all the captains present had become curious about the Quincy's powers.

After all, they had witnessed how even the crude use of the Soul King's power by Kagamiya Shigetoshi had forced Yama-jii to release his Bankai.

The destroyed world from that battle remained deeply etched in their memories.

As the culmination of that fight, the Soul King's power would not be underestimated.

Not even by these original Gotei 13 captains!

After all...

Unohana Retsu looked at the dark torn dimension, her lips curling involuntarily.

Such opponents were rare, seen only once in a millennium!

Almost as soon as this thought crossed her mind:

"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—!"

A series of piercing sounds suddenly filled the air.

A flash of light streaked through the Shinigami surrounding the torn dimension, leaving a trail of blood.

At the same time, a harsh, raspy voice echoed:

"Speed!!!"

"Boom—!"

The explosion followed half a beat later, and the figure that had rushed into the crowd became clear.

It was a small, slender figure with blade-like extensions on both hands, knees, and forehead, with golden hair, wrinkled skin, and deep blue eyes reflecting a noticeable blood-red hue.

The Shinigami squad members he swept past were cut into pieces.

His five blades were drenched in blood.

The holy letter 'S'—Sneak.

"Come on, come on."

"Let me taste the blood of the Shinigami!"

His hoarse voice sounded, and his gaze fixed on each person like prey.

Unohana Retsu looked at his clown-like taunting demeanor and glanced disdainfully at the five fixed blades. Her initially excited expression instantly flattened.

"I'll leave it to you."

"Don't use that commanding tone with me, you jerk!"

Though she said that, Saitō still stepped forward, casually trampling on the red blood beneath her feet.

The girl unconsciously stuck out her tongue, licking her lips with a sinister air, as if savoring the faint blood scent in the air, and said unabashedly:

"Someone like you, I'll finish in a minute!"

Sneak also extended his blades, his eyes widening.

"Heh—!!"

...

The war between the Shinigami and the Quincy unfolded across five major battlefields: the Soul Society, the Human World, and the Dimensional Portals.

Smaller battlefields were countless.

Each major battlefield's entrance was guarded by at least two captains.

Only Squads 1, 4, and 8 remained in Seireitei.

In truth, if it were just for defense, leaving only Yamamoto Genryūsai would suffice for the entire Gotei 13.

The reason so many remained was due to a new proposal by Fujimiya Makoto.

"Based on my findings, the Soul King's power itself is meant to eliminate Hollows."

"But in a relationship of mutual restraint, the power of Hollows can also counteract it."

"To protect more Shinigami lives, we could try using Hollow powers to create poisons or weapons that can be infused into Kidō or Zanpakutō."

Shūmulā Kantsūmaru repeated Makoto's request and glanced at the two beside him: "And you dare say that, kid."

Fujimiya Makoto and Katorī Bakunsai stood beside him.

Makoto said seriously: "I'm here on official business this time, with the approval of the Captain-Commander."

"Is that so?"

Shūmulā glanced at the 'innocent' Katorī, smiling faintly: "I was going to tell you, 'that' is ready."

"That?"

Katorī looked at him instinctively.

Before she could ask, a small figure dashed past Shūmulā, dragging two nearly floating long socks, going 'biubiubiu.'

Shūmulā's eyebrows twitched:

"Kirisaki!!!"

"Cough! Shūmulā... the battle is urgent!"

Makoto turned his head somewhat guiltily, pretending not to see.

Katorī looked at Shūmulā, then at Makoto, her eyes curving into a subtle arc.

You really have a wide range of interests, Makoto-kun.