CHAPTER 177: The Struggle (III)

Toshiro unwillingly released his Shikai and pointed his katana at Loly. An immense Reiatsu overflowed from his Zanpakutō as three chains of ice spiraled out of the base of the blade, condensing into a thick chain. The ice chain moved through the air, absorbing moisture from the environment to grow into a massive dragon with blazing crimson eyes. The frost dragon roared at the heavens before flying down towards Loly.

"Fuck." Loly hurriedly released Rangiku and slapped the ice dragon. Of course, with her higher Reiatsu, she easily shattered the ice dragon, but not without consequences. Her poison began to crystalize, the frost creeping along her limbs.

The ice forced her to expend Reiatsu in shattering the ice crystals. "A little brat has Shikai."

"I'm not a brat," he growled. "Rangiku-sensei, let's fight her together."

Rangiku's Shihakusho was half-melted and her skin singed by the poison. It was pure agony. But she didn't let her injuries slow her down. She had joined the Gotei 13 with the intention to get her childhood friend back, but she ended up becoming a responsible Shinigami.

Giving her life to duty wasn't something she frowned at.

"Okay, let's end this pathetic worm."

…

Nanao, meanwhile, aimed an arm at Loly, whispering a chant under her breath.

"It's getting boring for you, isn't it?" Ggio asked, yawning. "I'll join too. Miss Vice-Captain, I apologize for killing you."

Cold shiver went down Nanao's spine — Ggio was already behind her, his left leg raised over her head. In a fit of panic, Nanao raised her hand and whispered a chant under her breath.

"Seki."

Ggio smirked and brought his leg down, unbothered by the tiny orb of energy floating above Nanao's back of hand. As soon as his leg touched the orb, the counterforce of the spell sent him reeling back into a wall.

"Hahaha, impressive. You're very impressive."

"I don't feel happy with your praise…" Nanao whispered, feeling sweat cover her face. "What do Arrancars want from attacking students?"

"You'll know soon. In the meantime, enjoy your death at the hands of Ggio Vega, the #8 Espada."

Ggio once again vanished. Nanao didn't slow down this time and utilized Shunpo to stay away from him while muttering chants to a Kidō spell.

Whirling to face her opponent, she thrust her hand forward. "Hadō #31. Shakkahō!"

A blazing orb of crimson energy erupted from her palm, hurtling towards Ggio. Even a Hado spell in the thirties had highly destructive power in the hands of Nanao. Ggio could've easily dodged the flame projectile but he casually deflected the flame ball with his bare hands. The intense flames barely singed the back of his hand.

"Anything else you want to try, Vice-Captain?"

Nanao's heart pounded. Her repertoire of destructive Hadō spells was severely limited by the seal, and Shakkahō was her most efficient option. There was nothing else she could do to harm her opponent. She had only ever been in battles with Hollows far weaker than her. Fighting an opponent of such strength left her feeling overwhelmed.

"You're not amusing me anymore, Miss Vice-Captain. Well, I should end this now."

He rushed at Nanao with his peak speed. Nanao couldn't even register his movement as he arrived before her. He seized her throat and ruthlessly flung her into the wall. He continued his onslaught, relentlessly throwing, kicking, and punching her through the air. She crossed her arms in defense, which did nothing to stop him.

She was no match to a peak-Adjuchas Arrancar in her peak form, much less with a seal limiting her strength.

Meanwhile, Rangiku and Toshiro were engaged in a stalemate battle with Loly. Her enormous centipede arms swept in wide, venomous arcs, creating a hazardous barrier of poison. They couldn't approach her but she couldn't chase them either.

On the sidelines, Renji watched the brutal scene unfold, rooted to the spot in shock. His brush with death had left him momentarily incapacitated, his mind racing to find a way to intervene and save Nanao from Ggio's relentless attack.

He couldn't think of any way.

…

On the other side of the city.

Kazuya stared at Ulquiorra, whose Reiatsu was terrifyingly close in nature to his own Hollow Reiatsu. "Momo, go back to the flower shop. Tell them to send the masked reinforcements to the field trip site immediately."

He wouldn't be able to help Rangiku and others in time. After all, his Shikai wasn't offensive enough to destroy Ulquiorra, and revealing Nami's flames risked exposing his Hollow side. He wasn't sure that Aizen wouldn't sense Nami's Hollow origin through her flames.

Momo stared at him briefly before nodding her head, fully following her earlier vow of always obeying his command. "Kazuya-kun, don't get hurt…"

He couldn't help but smile. "Who do you think you are talking to?"

Momo giggled and made a beeline for Sung-Sun's flower shop, unaware of the true purpose behind her actions.

Ulquiorra trailed Momo with his gaze but didn't intervene. His objective was Kazuya, not Momo. "I do hope you put up a fight comparable to your confidence."

"I absolutely will, my Arrancar friend." Kazuya chuckled and drew his Zanpakutō. "Weave, Shinku-no-Tsubasa."

…

In a dimly lit room, Aizen sat before a bank of screens, each one displaying a different scene of the unfolding chaos.

"He wasn't lying about seizing Zanpakutō Spirits," Gin said. "A frightening Zanpakutō indeed."

"Hmmm." Aizen's gaze, however, was drawn not to the high-stakes duel between Kazuya and Ulquiorra, but to a more subtle, yet equally compelling confrontation. On one of the screens, a black cat tinkered with the barrier around the power plant zone as if she was a human. It reminded Aizen of a certain amusing fact about the Shihōin Clan's bloodline, which sounded rubbish at the time he read it.

"Shihōin's descendants can assume the form of an animal. It has only happened two times in the past." [1]

Gin pointed at the black cat on the screen. "Yoruichi Shihōin."

"Interesting…"

After a few moments, Yoruichi brought down the barrier setup by Tosen.

Aizen threw one leg over the other and smirked. "The final spectacle will start."

…

[#1: Kubo confirmed it in a Q&A.

Q: I want to know why Yoruichi can take the form of a black cat. One way of interpreting things is that it is some sort of binding that changes her from her humanoid form to that of a black cat, but it seems to be fundamentally different from Hado and Bakudo. Is it a power not related to Kido? Or does it have to do with Kisuke's technology?

A: It's due to the Shihouin bloodline. Sometimes the Shihouin clan breeds people that can assume the form of an animal.]

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