chapter 288: built with pride

    kazuya’s brow furrowed slightly. the espada showed up in less than ten minutes — the response time was too perfect. either the espada had developed an insane monitoring system for garganta openings, or someone had informed espada beforehand about their arrival.

    ‘aizen.’

    {he must’ve gotten the news from his hidden informants. does he plan to kill you and soi fon here?}

    ‘he also knows about yoruichi.’

    {so three captain-level enemies down in one strike. three in one sounds like a deal to me!}

    something felt wrong in kazuya’s gut. aizen’s ego was almost as big as hueco mundo itself, and the man had always treated the captains not as enemies but as spectators to his ascension to godhood. even their last battle, humbling as it was, couldn’t have changed that fundamental aspect of his character. no, he would want all captains present for the culmination of his centuries-long plan.

    his mind raced through other possibilities. perhaps aizen was using the espada to train him, to have him rise as a rival. or worse, employing ulquiorra and yammy to stall him and soi fon, keeping them occupied while other plans worked elsewhere. with aizen, no trick was off the board.

    {i think he is starting the zanpakuto? rebellion.}

    ‘possible. very possible.’

    a sense of uneasiness wrapped around him. even with yoruichi and soi fon by his side, kazuya had doubts about quickly taking care of the arrancar duo, unless he used his hollow form. ulquiorra''s segunda etapa was that significant of a variable. and worse, their only way out depended on mayuri opening another rift in garganta for them.

    he could leave on his own but it’d put him in the wrong spotlight.

    {or you can put on my mask and sweep the two then sneak over to the soul society to confirm it with your own eyes.}

    ‘my mask.’

    the thought made his spiritual pressure fluctuate slightly. in theory, he could replicate the visored’s hollowification by merging with nami’s hollow form. but while the visored’s hollow came from their souls, whereas his would come from his zanpakuto?, which once shared a soul with him. complications would definitely be born with tsubasa added into the mix.

    a light pull at his sleeve brought him back from the depths of his mind. soi fon looked at him with a fierce gaze. “were they present in karakura town?”

    “only him. ulquiorra.” kazuya gestured towards the pale arrancar. “he’s the arrancar i fought in karakura town.”

    kazuya let out a sigh. soi fon’s challenge had driven the final nail into the coffin of his hopes for a violence-free morning. “what do you say, ulquiorra?”

    ulquiorra’s expression slightly shifted, the subtle crease between his brows revealing a hint of annoyance. “not interested. the only shinigami worthy of being above trash is you, kazuya.”

    soi fon cast away the kimono part of her shihakusho?, letting the fabric flutter away in the wind. every muscle in her body looked tense and ready for battle. she tightened black wrappings around her wrists, her eyes never leaving ulquiorra''s face. “trash, you said. let’s see you say the same when i’m done with you.”

    “wait—”

    kazuya’s warning came a bit too late. where soi fon had stood, only stillness remained – her shunpo so refined it left not even a sound in its wake.

    then she reappeared before ulquiorra.

    knowing the skill of her opponent, she held nothing back and unleashed a tempest of strikes. each blow was crushing and lethal as it should be when performed by one of the few bakudo? masters in the soul society.

    it was literally a storm of death.

    even yoruichi, the flash goddess, found herself narrowing her eyes to track her prote?ge?’s movements. “she’s going all out from the start. it’s not enough...”

    ulquiorra reacted instantaneously, each dodge so effortless it bordered on insult. his movements were minimal, precise — not a single motion wasted as he weaved between strikes that could blow through mountains.

    not a single attack breached his defense.

    soi fon realized the futility of her offense and executed a swift backstep, her shunpo leaving afterimages in her wake. she reappeared several meters away, hovering mid-air. her chest rose and fell, sweat gleamed on her brow, but her hawk-like remained locked on ulquiorra. “kazuya wasn’t lying. you’re extremely powerful for a hollow.”

    the dense spiritual pressure around him wasn’t an adequate display of his ability.

    ulquiorra’s emerald eyes met her praise with apathetic detachment. “and you’re indeed the trash i assumed you were.”

    soi fon’s jaw tightened, but she masked any trace of irritation. instead, she allowed his contempt to fuel the fire within her, choosing to let her actions show him the difference between a captain and an arrancar. “overconfidence led to the downfall of many in the past.” she pulled out her zanpakuto?: a wakizashi, japanese-style short sword, with a yellow hilt. “i’ll gladly put your name on that list... sting all enemies to death, suzumebachi!”

    “you owe me one for standing firm in the face of muramasa’s sweet talk,” her zanpakuto? spirit uttered a few vague words as brilliant white light engulfed her blade, which shrunk in size. as the radiance faded, a black and gold gauntlet had taken its place, a small gold chain linking the gauntlet to the stinger-like blade adoring her middle finger.