Chapter #27 - Resurrección...

In the cold and vast palace of Las Noches, Starrk glanced around sleepily. "So... you're saying we should go to Kizuna's mansion," he said with a yawn. He first glanced at Lilynette, then at Kizuna. Although Kizuna's strange posture caught his attention for a moment, he simply shrugged it off. Turning to Lilynette, he began, "You know..."

Lilynette interrupted by waving her hand. "I know, I know, you big sleepyhead! Relax. The pervert here says it'll be a noisy but decent place."

Starrk raised an eyebrow, eyeing Lilynette's attitude. For some reason, it was clear that Kizuna had irritated her, but on the other hand... things seemed unnecessarily complicated and tiresome. His will to bother disappeared within five seconds.

Lilynette would tell him if there was a real problem, after all. He shrugged again and looked at Kizuna with disinterest.

"Alright..."

Starrk gave Kizuna a bored look before reluctantly standing up and saying, "Alright..." Kizuna was inwardly surprised that Starrk accepted so easily but also relieved. If he had refused, he wouldn't have known what to do.

Kizuna sighed softly. Lilynette's earlier outburst still made his balls ache, but he decided to ignore it and shake his head. After all, this could be considered a victory. But at the cost of his children...

By now, the trio had already left the monotonous palace of Las Noches and started walking on the silver sands that shone brightly under the artificial sky. Kizuna led the way, with Lilynette in the middle and Starrk at the rear. Starrk was trying hard to focus on his surroundings to distract himself.

Lilynette, on the other hand, was speaking in an unexpectedly vulnerable tone.

"If what he said is true... I thought it might be worth giving it a shot, Starrk. He may look like a perverted fool, but he seems sincere in his words."

Starrk nodded slightly and patted her head. He could somewhat guess what she meant. This Las Noches was far from the "Unity" they wanted. His gaze briefly fell on Kizuna as he spoke:

"No problem. I trust you."

Starrk honestly felt something different about Kizuna. He had overheard their entire conversation; after all, they were talking right next to his room. Along with the sincerity of his words, Kizuna gave off a familiar yet distant feeling. As if he could destroy everyone around him if he wanted to, but he wasn't doing it... Familiar.

Starrk shook his head. He let out a small sigh before returning to his usual carefree attitude and murmuring:

"How ridiculous."

...

While heading towards the mansion, they began to sense a growing danger surrounding them. Starrk casually glanced around, "Hm? Are these your people?" he asked. Kizuna shrugged and replied, "Not at all."

As Lilynette cautiously looked around, reiatsu sources began to reveal themselves. Normally, so many Numeros wouldn't be allowed this deep inside... There were really a lot of them. Lilynette felt a shiver down her spine in the face of this sudden surge of energy sources. Her heart started pounding, and every muscle in her body went on alert. Despite Starrk's indifferent demeanor, she struggled to suppress the anger building up inside her.

Suddenly, the Numeros surrounded them. Kizuna, unsheathing his claws, grinned and said, "Seems like I'm the target."

Even so, Kizuna had to admit he hadn't expected this level of hostility. All he did was gather beautiful women around himself. How did he end up provoking so many Numeros?

Something was off. They might feel bad impressions, jealousy, and anger, but this kind of gathering required a ringleader. A puppeteer pulling the strings. As he looked around, he searched for that puppeteer. Meanwhile, the Numeros just stood there without attacking.

Lilynette, unable to suppress her anger any longer, exploded and shouted, "You muscleheads! What do you think you're doing surrounding us like this?"

As soon as she asked, the trio sensed something pass through the Numeros. It was targeting Starrk!

Starrk casually flicked away the incoming object, but it clung to his arm. The thing clinging to him was a small Hollow. A simple Hollow that he could kill with a breath was stuck to his arm. As Starrk wondered about its purpose, he tossed the Hollow to the ground. But the cold and calculated voice he heard behind him brought him back to reality immediately:

"Primera Espada, I'd kindly ask you to rest for a while."

When Starrk saw that small, trembling box being drawn towards his hollow hole, he understood what was happening. He sighed softly. "I hate palace intrigues," he muttered, rolling his eyes. Just before he was swallowed by the strange, shaky Caja Negacion, he glanced at Kizuna. Lilynette's eyes widened in panic. Starrk, still yawning, turned to her and said in a weary voice, "Lilynette, be careful. I'll break this and be back," before he disappeared.

Lilynette was stunned for a moment but quickly turned in fury towards the culprit. Her whole body trembled with anger, every cell burning with the pain of betrayal. At that moment, Kizuna also turned in anger and saw the guilty party who had approached them, Szayelaporro Granz. Szayelaporro adjusted his glasses with a smug expression and sneered.

"Well... You ruined my plan twice, but this time you won't. As usual, my perfect plan," he boasted. Meanwhile, the other Numeros closed in.

Lilynette was enraged by Starrk's imprisonment, but at that moment, Kizuna pulled her close, and she swallowed the words she was about to say. She then noticed the pink-haired freak was looking at Kizuna. As a result, she punched Kizuna on the shoulder. Kizuna looked at her, seemingly hurt.

"Hey! What can I do? He's gone mad on his own," he said, though he had a rough idea of what was happening. He didn't know about the first plan he ruined, but the other was likely related to Nnoitra. He sighed lightly.

Lilynette got even angrier and punched him again, grumbling, "Then take responsibility, you idiot. Starrk's going to die of boredom there."

Kizuna sighed softly. "Okay, okay."

As they were talking, Szayelaporro Granz frowned and then signaled the others to attack. The Numeros rushed at them, and Kizuna held his claws in an 'X' formation as he looked at Szayelaporro.

Today, he had been provoked enough by Lilynette. With a handful of freaks he could finally unleash his pent-up anger on, he wasn't going to hold back. As the Numeros leaped at them, preparing their various attacks, Kizuna spoke in anger:

"You know? I'm angrier than I've ever been today. So... Consider yourself lucky to witness this. You're the first person to see my Resurrección."

Ignoring all the other Numeros, he plunged his claws into the ground and raised his head.

"Resurrección: Sabueso Aullador!" (Howling Hound)

At that moment, all of Las Noches shook violently. As a massive earthquake erupted from beneath the ground, the Numeros leaping at them exploded like balloons, scattering blood and flesh everywhere.

Amidst the chaotic scene, two silver werewolf arms suddenly emerged from the cloud of dust. The sheer force of the arms tore through the air around them. As the dust cloud slowly dissipated, Kizuna emerged.

When the smoke cleared completely, what stood before them was, at the very least, a terrifying four-armed werewolf. The two arms at his back stood ready and alert for battle, while the front two assumed a more relaxed stance. His sharp claws resembled a predator ready to strike at any moment.

His silver fur gleamed like armor in the light, and his eyes burned with a white-yellow glow. The golden fur around his neck waving like a mane in the wind. His mouth quivered slightly as it opened in four directions, and a terrifying roar echoed.

Las Noches rang with the echoes of this immense power, and everyone's eyes were locked onto this fearsome creature. This was no longer a battle. This was a hunt, and everyone opposing him was Kizuna's prey.