Northwest Seireitei

[Frea]

As she jumped around on buildings getting closer towards her division, the twelfth, she felt another presence, this time much larger, which came directly from the thirteenth division, which was close to the twelfth. Another invader halted her tracks towards the twelfth; she decided to head towards the thirteenth division. There she kept her distance however, she caught a glimpse of a powerful cero destroying the majority of the thirteenth and shinigami long with it.

Nanami caught a glimpse of the Arrancar who was responsible for the damage, a woman with light blue hair trickling down her back, a bone across her face. It looks things she was a powerful opponent. She crinkled her nose up and said to herself.

"Urgh...I knew something smelled fishy here..."

In terms of smell? That didn't exist. It was Nanami's words on her initiation with the abnormality of the spiritual pressure that was foreign to the lands. She looked down at her feet and saw a shinigami clinging to life, she picked her up and looked towards the unharmed shinigami of the thirteenth, she shouldn't be controlling the division she isn't involved with; however t it was a dire need to command. She whistled towards them and started to demand that to pick up their fallen mates, to which they all scrambled to pick the half-dead ones up and followed the purple-haired woman. Nanami began to take them towards the twelfth division, trusting the seated officers of the division to fight against the enemy, meanwhile, she and a few underlings were hurried to safety.

Once she got back to the twelfth, she noticed the iron dome was down due to what she presumed her underlings had done so which let her lieutenant and the tenth captain out so they could fight. She placed down the shinigami onto the sofa in the big scientific room the twelfth had, and immediately her lower seats flocked to her, asking what they should do. Nanami looked them up and down, and she clapped her hands to get their attention She began to yell out instructions.

"WE NEED TO TRY AND HEAL THESE INJURED SOULS, THERE IS AN INVASION GOING ON AND WE NEED ONE HALF TO TRY AND HEAL THESE HEAVILY INJURED FOLKS."

She took a deep breath before carrying out her other instructions.

"THE OTHER HALF GET TO YOUR STATIONS AND RESEARCH ABOUT THESE ARRANCARS INVADING, TO SEE IF YOU CAN FIND THEIR WEAKNESSES. CONTACT EVERY SHINIGAMI IN EXISTENCE, TO GET BACK UP. CREATE THINGS THAT CAN BE SUPPORTED, LET GO!"

Then she heard his voice, her lieutenant also contacting the whole of Seireitei, declaring war by the Arrancar's that Espada level. From what she can gather, if the targeted divisions...it must be the human-world controlled ones, like the tenth and thirteenth, it made sense since they were the divisions that destroyed the hollows in the human world. As she watched the screens of cameras from everywhere in the Seireitei, the cameras were on little robot bugs, including underground, and they sensed the enemy as well, even with their reiatsu down. Nanami raised her left arm and pointed at at least around now 4 - 5 arrancar. She decided to draw on her arms as well as focus her reiatsu into her palms creating a spell to communicate with the people she needed to let folks know about the discovery, and she only focused the message towards the shinigami. She began to speak out about the incantation.

"Bakudō #77. Tenteikūra"

"Everyone, this is Third Seat, Nanami Teishi of the twelfth. If you see any gravely injured shinigami, please bring them towards the Twelfth and Fourth. Please be careful. We have so far detected 4 - 5 Espada level Arrancar, please do be wary"

After the announcement she went onto to check the status of the shinigami. Luckily some of the underlings know basic healing kido while others was getting towels, bandages, bedding some rushed to get drinkable water. While some gravely injured was in tanks that could heal the body with technology, it was a bravely new so she hoped that they was working.​

 

[Elk]

His breathing had slowed down as he stood on top of the barrier. In that moment, Michiya’s spirit came charging at him before disappearing. There, his eyes locked onto the strange creature standing near him and Captain Izanagi. A slight twitch in his finger followed as he turned to see the area locking down for a moment. He exhaled before closing his eyes, as another finger began to twitch.

His eyes shifted over to the newcomer—dark skin, golden eyes, and purple hair—more than likely a Shihōin. Then the message came out, prompting his head to lift ever so slightly as both hands slid into his pockets, one lightly rubbing against the surface.
A grating sound came from his mouth as his gaze moved over to Michiya.

It was then that the strange creature handed Captain Izanagi a case and told him to use his Bankai. Elk’s eyes only narrowed in response before the Captain vanished, returning to his division.Once the walls came down, Elk caught sight of a pink explosion—followed quickly by another, one erupting from the Tenth Division’s location, and the other from the Thirteenth.


“Well now… they’re bringing the big guns.”

“Michiya!”


One hand pulled out a small USB drive before he tossed it in his general direction.


“I’m sorry in advance… but Twelfth will have to clean up after my mess if I am to use Bankai. That USB holds data and footage of my Bankai. I got permission to use it, along with forbidden spells. I’m off to go meet the enemy!”


In an instant, he would disappear from sight.

---

To the unknown

​

---

 

[Kami Shia]

As he stood front and center alongside lieutenant Kuchiki, Ren, and Captain Kasu who just so happen to arrive just before he did, it was safe to say that the young Senko had more than audience to display his prowess.

“ Stand fast!,” Captain Kasu commanded them.

However, the young Senko found himself ill-prepared for the attack to come, he could sense that something was off and he wasn't sure his bankai would be enough to stop what was coming next; assuming the captain's barrier could buy them just enough time to get out of the way, had his timing been off for even a split second this could mean the end of Keniro Senko and whoever else to be caught in the blast. Had the gran ray cero broke through the barrier the young Senko prepped himself to flash step as soon as the barrier had shattered escaping the thirteenth division barracks entirely with enough speed safely retreat unscathed. He noticed the enemy retreating after launching the attack, were they afraid or do they believe that it would be that easy to just wipe out their target just like that.

Pfftt...

This all was so sudden and the enemy escaping after unleashing such a devastating attack, the young Senko contemplated the enemies end game; he was surprised that the enemy was willing to bring the war to their front doorstep speculating that this wasn't your ordinary arrancar. This bold creature was willing to face an army of shinigami head on, it was very admirable as well as it was foolish. Assuming his enemy was confident in their abilities this attack could prove to be more devastating than Keniro had ever witnessed. Still, he remained alert and gauging the outcome of the situation from a distance. He hoped to see the others avoid getting obliterated. As he waited for the gran ray cero to make contact with barrier the area had been ingulfed in a blue and green light the attack itself was pure energy being launched at them. As the shining bright light from the opponent's attack illuminated the battlefield, Keniro felt a bit distressed his mind focused preparing for the worst-case scenario; his eyes fixated on the gran ray cero he was as much impressed as he was afraid. To see so much power projected from a singular entity, it was a sight to behold.

"If only you could return to sender..."

"Or are you to scared" - Gamu Ten'no chuckles lightly-

Taunted by his own zanpakuto Keniro faced Gamu Ten'no hinting at a possible defensive maneuver. The idea that came to mind and would be flashy but now wasn't time to be wild and reckless, for now he would put his faith in Captain Shinka hoping she had a plan to deal with the enemy.​

 

[dem0nzlust]

After Ximena's arrival, she brought about countless bloodshed, but now, taking the time to look around, examining where she is, it didn't take her long to realize that exiting out of the Garganta Valiosa designated for them all a bit too early. Looking around at what came about, her destruction reigned over these unexpected individuals, she could feel the temperature continuing to drop with her breath becoming visible, as well as the corpses soon becoming frozen decorations riddling this division. Her eyes scanned the area before spotting the source of this abnormal weather, and her pequista outstretched, pinging the sources of multiple readings, and this shinigami a distance away seemed to be quite strong. Something felt different compared to the other shinigami, along with sensing the spiritual energy of two comrades who had already gone ahead, releasing their Resurreccion. They were given one clear objective for this invasion plan: to take out as many of the high-powered shinigami as possible, and either kill or badly maim the Captains. Reaching behind her lower back, she removed the tonfa tucked away in her lower back. Twirling it freely in her hand, she took in Oyuki's demeanor and took in his words.
​

“I certainly hope you have more to offer than your compatriot…”​

"So my speculation about you was the one Grimaldi faced is correct...Conquisar, Hormiga Reina~"

In a violent eruption of spiritual energy, Ximena released her true form as her body soon got engulfed in the destructive energy, shattering the ice in the nearby vicinity and dealing heavy damage to the nearby division barracks. Before the energy was fully dissipated, the armored hand figure reached out, touching a part of the Division barracks, and within the blink of an eye seemed to be disintegrated and disappear completely. The red patterns that were originally on the sides of her coat extend down the entirety of her ribs and legs. Two ant antennae are seen on her, but most noticeably, she gains an armor exoskeleton on her body and on her arms, which only augments the strength of her physical attacks exponentially. Unlike her time in Karakura Town, she was told not to show her full strength, although this time was different, but she also possessed a small bit of intelligence on him, shared from Grimaldi's encounter.

With her senses sharpened, and Ressureccion only augmented Ximena's fighting prowess to a whole other degree. Welcoming Oyuki's resolve with a hardened drive, she slightly shifted in her posture, performing a bullet punch imperceptible to the naked eye as she sent a bala the size of a marble breaking the sound barrier traveling twice the speed of the ones she released prior, with a single one causing a massive crater upon impact from her compressing it into smaller form making it much more lethal. However, this was simply just a small flex of her strength, warming up. Seconds after, the ground beneath her feet began to rumble, and she was lifted off the ground by a massive creature made of stone and sand, rivaling the size of a Menos Grande. Immediately following came the duo's true assault upon Oyuki, first starting with stone spikes protruding out of the ground from multiple angles, attempting to severely skewer him. In this same instance, she fired off a cero that expanded into a large sweeping blast of mass destruction in front of her right after. The moment it detonated, the cero's deadliest aspect laid complete waste to everything with a kill radius of 50 meters as if an artillery shell had detonated in the Seireitei, muffling out a crackling static noise. With a cero-charged fist, Ximena watched her destruction safely with the sand guardian just at the edge of the explosion, waiting to see how well Oyuki fared against her attack.

 

[dem0nzlust]

After all the people who flocked to the 12th division had taken their leave soon after he soon made the broadcast, watching them scatter. What an interesting turn of events, despite the dire situation, he remained curious about how it all would turn out. He took in everything that was said to him by Elk about his Bankai catching the drive tossed to him, and immediately exchanged it with another division member in return for a much more secure case with a bio metric locking mechanism, and interior protective lining made out of Sekiseki stone to keep the item of interest and any energy it may contain from leaking out. The scientist rushed, stumbling a little bit over his feet, making it quite obvious this was the closest thing he got to seeing combat in any form. As soon as Michiya confirmed the data of Elk's Bankai was being relayed over to his wrist link, it was time for him to make his move to try to flip the tides of war. On his way out, he managed to swipe a few of the stickers from the mod souls.

"I am heading out to aid others where I can, and no matter what, don't stop gathering information even if it's your last dying breath. We give our lives for science and information!"

Taking into account what Captain Jushiro said, he began to spread out his spiritual awareness like roots extending out throughout the Soul Society, and spiritual ribbons of the significant players at work on the battlefield, mapping them out. Josho soon began to fade away into mist before receding into the Zanpakuto's inner world to spectate and observe unless called upon by Michiya for any special reason. Knowing the typical protocol, he was confident that reinforcements would be sent to help the members of the 12th Division. Setting his course to the 11th division meant he needed to pass through certain ongoing battles, moving with absolute awareness of everything going on around him at all times. On his way to his destination, he happened to catch the broadcast of third seat Nanami, then Akemi from the 4th division, and not long after, he sensed the first detrimental casualty of the war, Lt. Kazuki. He wondered how Captain Izanagi would handle the loss, but he knew his 3rd seat had close ties to him as well. With the Bakudo link still active, instead of broadcasting to everyone, he sent one directly to Nanami.

"Nanami, this is a crucial time, don't act irrationally, and keep your emotions in check. Study what you can about the enemy, and don't be afraid to direct them if you feel confident in a plan. Cohesion and harmony are the course of victory."

The next message he broadcast solely to the third seat, Hyoroshi.

"Lt. Michiya, of the 12th division speaking. Lt. Gekka has engaged with the female-arrancar who appeared in Karakura Town in the quadrant between the 5th and the 10th. Please help redirect support units to find a safer route to not getting caught in his Zanpakuto's crossfire."

Continuing onward with the package for Taro, he let the shinigami already engaged in battle fight and handle things. The 11th Division is clear in his sights, ignoring any other commotions and with a strategy proposition for Taro Date that could make a difference in this war.

---

Traveling to the 11th division​

---

 

[LucianRedgrave]

A flex of her strength and a detriment to her well being, ice shattered and winter carried on. Ximena had gone so far as to strut her stuff but clearly Grimaldi had not given her the reality check she so desperately desired. When she shattered the ice beneath her form and subsequently the walls that surrounded her two things happened. She had indeed laid waste to her surroundings but in exchange she had merely given birth to another weapon for Oyuki. The wall in question had indeed gone up in a puff of nothingness and yet rather than violence and turmoil in exchange for this woman's power the sound that was intended to follow was non-existent like a flame snuffed out by a vacuum. Her voice followed suit when the words she uttered about Grimaldi were on stale air. The vibrations of her voice were unable to move on the frozen air waves as if she had just stepped into the vacuum of space all the same. Even with baited breath and steam filled air the woman could find herself standing amidst something far more devastating than her own reiatsu. Where she hoped to have removed the aforementioned ice the only thing she had done was seal her fate. The ice had gone into the air and Oyuki’s demeanor hadn’t changed in the least he seemed to still be mourning his enemy despite the power they so inherently possessed. In exchange what she could find the ice was sent asunder was that it carried a life of its own. In the time it ascended it had come back to form in the shape of Oyuki himself as well as the destruction of the wall she had reached out and touched revealing the presence of a hefty mist. It was as if this woman had stepped into the cloudy moonlit sky. The surrounding area revealed to be an icy mirror for her to reflect on her transgressions as a beast of sin and more over her acts of folly. Just as the ice had gon airborne a blade came down like a guillotine. An eerie wraith of Oyuki’s own form bringing the blade clean across Ximena’s cranium aiming to bifurcate in its entirety. The blade would come just as swiftly as she had shattered the ice in the same motion.

What Ximena could find in exchange for her bravado was devastating lethality. She had already been playing in the depths of Oyuki’s wrath with a sense of lackadaisical care for the matter at hand. The temperature hadn’t just dropped, the very life in the surroundings area had been sucked from the very air she breathed. The sound of death was nothing but silence and silence was what she would find. The destructive nature of her new found form was surely a sight to behold but in the eyes of the fifth division lieutenant it was nothing more than a cross to bear. Strength wasn’t for playing it was for executing those that stood in your way. Laying waste to enemies, bringing the inevitable reality that death was the only thing guaranteed for those that stood in his way. The wall she destroyed was nothing more than an icy monument for her body to inevitably be displayed on. He let one arrancar get away in the human world there wouldn’t be a second. Had Ximena been paying close attention to the circumstances of her situation she could find that just the same as the lack of vibrations in the air the stillness that had been bestowed upon the flow of blood from the bodies she had claimed and just the same the bala she had unleashed. The energy had been completely drained from them leaving them as nothing more than empty husks to decorate the battlefield. She would find beyond simply her motions being drained of their spiritual essence that just the same followed for everything around her. Her essence of destruction brought to a snail's pace and soon nothing at all as reality set in. Those cold breaths were the sign of her demise in its entirety, a two pronged attack unseen by many and the fall of all. The wall she reached out and touched hadn’t disintegrated or even crumbled completely. It had gone some half step between the two as even the dust was reduced to being frozen in time or so it appeared. Ximena could find even her motions had been brought to a crawl alongside the rest of the world.

This icy wraith of Oyuki’s form had it gone unimpeded would only continue its hidden agenda amidst the stillness that came with Ximena’s new reality. The first strike aiming to bifurcate her skull at the jaw line would extend resulting in a fluidity like thought impossible by such a rigid form such as ice and yet it came with frightening speed as well. The blade coming from left right and center from an unseen locale within Ximena’s purview resulting in devastating lethality. Had she by some miracle of the sense managed to defend herself even the cero she’d hoped to fire into the earth would be reduced to a crawl by the comparison of her intent as she was now playing in Oyuki’s domain as opposed to simply being able to frolic in the seireitei’s chaotic infrastructure. Oyuki wasn’t his captain’s blade for no reason, he was effectively her judge, jury and executioner.

​

 

[Kasu Shinka]

Such bolstering defenses, answering in kind to the monstrous Gran Rey Cero. What came of their efforts mattered little, the Cero’s destructive power was enough to shift space itself. Especially when it is discharged by a high ranking Espada, however, though her own barrier is destroyed the foe would find that Kasu’s wall is not so easily vanquished. A Shikai that is one of the most versatile amongst all Zanpakuto. Any information that they likely had on Kasu they likely collected only a small transcript. In comparison to what she could truly do.

Ravaged, the area, the meeting hall stood no chance. Such things could be replaced, unlike the lives that were lost. Her Shunpo took her to both Keniro and then the air, should she have been able to grab hold of his clothing to snatch the young Senko from his position. Upon exiting her Shunpo, falling in the air at an outstanding distance from her now ruined barracks, her brush had suddenly disappeared. Layers upon layers of paint spill from both her hands.

“ Ban-Kai.”

She calls to the final stage, a power worth analyzing, worth taking heed to. The Young Senko who had bolstered his own final release would need centuries of training to be on par with such displays of both power and otherworldly control. It is evident in the solid platform that she creates with her paint beneath her soles and of the soles of her own comrades should they be in the air alongside her at this point. However, this creation was gravely minuscule to the one that fell upon the environment…

In moments of destruction, the Espada retreated temporarily behind the veil of darkness that consumed the space between realms. While she possibly believed that she would return to ruins, she’d return to the recreation of the barracks? Both the training area, the meeting hall, walls and trees. All would be reformed, as if her most powerful Cero had not just been discharged. The ground beneath would not respond to her advances of withdrawing beneath the stones. Any erosion or damages were no longer apparent. Perhaps whatever she had planned remained as an idea…

This is the power that is her Bankai. The ability to create and control whatever is constructed. To shift, re-shape, and reimagine. To give feeling, and realism to her art. The layers and layers of paint that spilled from her hands rushed towards the destroyed barracks covering every inch of it in seconds. Where the Espada had hoped to stand triumph in her destruction, looking down upon her work, it is instead Kasu and her comrades that look down upon her. Such status would be the least of Espada's worries. She had no time to realize that her work had been undone so easily. No time to assess that the pathway she hoped to retreat to did not work at this moment. She simply had no time. Blades explode from the area beneath her, as if they had spawned out of nowhere. Too many to count, too many to address, too fast to register beyond a blink.

Through her feet, through her legs, torso, shoulders, arms, neck, head, back, spine, etc. thousands of blades aiming to penetrate her body leave her skewered beyond recognition. The simple movements of her hand could be the instrument of her demise.

“ Stay back and use Kido,” she spoke to only her comrades that she had hoped had followed her to the air at this point in time.​

 

[Nobody]

Time stood still

Or at least that's how it seemed. The light of the Arrancar's attack shot from the enemy. It passed through the air, enveloping the shinigami who was unfortunate in entering the meeting hall at that moment. It presses against the surface of Tōzanshō, splintering and shattering the barrier as it continues along its path. Gyōja is turned towards Ren who has, despite his words cast a spell of her own, hand extended towards her.

The Gran Rey Cero meets the translucent barrier of Dankū, and like with Tōzanshō it too finds its surface splintered as it is shattered and punched through. Debris, and bodies are suspended in the air, along with blood and tattered clothes. Many of the bodies warped, distorted as they lingered there. By now, the Kuchiki's extended hand is seen gripping Ren's shoulder, a single foot slightly off the ground as his mouth was opened, perhaps agape from surprise and fear, perhaps shouting something; to Ren, the Captain, the others or...even himself.

The enemy's attack has now met the Captain's Kidō encased wall, constructed by her shikai. The area is consumed in the violent glow of the destructive space warping Cero. Then time, resumed.

KRRRRSSCHHHHHHHOOOOOM!!!!!!

Like a thunderclap, everything from the meeting hall, the courtyard, and training grounds reduced to nothing, the surrounding area of the the Thirteenth Barracks in ruins, somewhat spared from being out of the focus of the attack. Ground Zero at the Thirteenth was a sight to behold, though one that could hardly be viewed given the heavy cloud of dust and debris from the wanton destruction. As it began to settle, the fates of those stronger souls who had been in the center of it all remained unknown, obscured by the blinding flash of the Gran Rey Cero. Kasu Shinka was a Captain, surely she'd be aware of the strength of the Arrancar's strongest Cero, and be capable of extracting herself and the foolhardy Keniro, but what of Ren and Gyōja?

The ground they all once stood on crumbled and began to cave in, the debris, torn and tattered clothing, and the bodies of the brave men and women of the Thirteenth began to fall in, and at a distance, atop one of the surviving structures on the outer reaches of the Thirteenth, away from the training grounds was a heavy veil of mist that crept out, swallowing the area.

"Ren, listen closely. We're going to need to rely on Kidō here. I hate to say it but, I don't have a bankai to help us, and I know you don't have one either. Tell me about your zanpakutō, as quickly as possible."

It was Gyōja, and at his side was Ren wielding her Shikai. After having cast his barrier, rather listen to him in an effort to assist Ren cast one of her own. She was his responsibility, he promised to help her, to protect her. Her interference might have spared them even a instant, but more importantly, her actions forced the Kuchiki to grab her, stepping into a shunpo as she was releasing her Zanpakutō. His mouth agape was to utter a single word as he moved.

Prowl

The two propelled from the training grounds in a single instant as the training grounds and the space between is ravaged, across the way towards the outer reaches of the Thirteenth; Gyōja uses his shikai to create a smoke screen to hide them, buying time as they strategize. The enemy would undoubtedly notice something awry, what she is able to spiritually perceive becoming distorted the moment her senses reach the mist. For now, he needed to know what her Shikai was capable of to form a way to deal with this threat. This arrancar was no simple foe, and from the distance he had been able to tell that things were collapsing towards the ground, both figuratively and literally. Something else was up. It wouldn't be long until it reached them, they needed to limit the enemy to one area so not as to endanger any other Divisions.

He also scanned the area for the Captain and Keniro. The Captain's bankai was what they needed, with no Bankai of his own he'd have to be inventive to face an enemy of this scale. On the day he was promoted, it seems his worth would be tested to prove rather or not he was truly worthy of the role he was entrusted with.

 

[Hyoroshi Iwamura]

​

---

<HOURS EARLIER>

"I know what it is you want right now, mutt."

Hyoroshi's expanse of a chest lifted and lowered with deep anticipatory breaths. He hugged the wall at a fork in the road, his ears and nose at capacity with sensory data gushing into his skull from across the Seireitei. The Group was not far behind; some brought up his rear, others crouched on nearby rooftops. Still all present, including Hyoroshi, kept the bottle-caps on their Reiatsu screwed tight. He felt the cartoonish sunflower sticker on his chest, just below the left breast, concealed by his Shihakusho.

Scouting, surveying and support had been the name of the game for the Group. A few Shinigami rescued from rubble and carnage left behind, a few notes of critical information passed along. Their testimonies were grim--and worse, substantiated by Hyoroshi's observance of the state of play. The Arrancar present were simply on another level from anything in Hueco Mundo, he had ascertained; even a team of this size would see most of its members culled, if not entirely wiped out.

"You wanted all of this to happen. You wanted your men killed, you wanted your cherished Seireitei raided, and right now you want only one thing--the opportunity to glorify your name, to hand-wave the failures, the animalism away. A morsel of you wants to accept my offer. A morsel that wasn't there before."

Iwamura's lips pulled back in a silent growl. His face was white-hot. Every crease of Yoake no Taii's wretched smile outright begged for the coming retort.

"You DARE speak of--"

"Lt. Michiya, of the 12th division speaking. Lt. Gekka has engaged with the female-arrancar who appeared in Karakura Town in the quadrant between the 5th and the 10th. Please help redirect support units to find a safer route to not getting caught in his Zanpakuto's crossfire."

Hyoroshi visibly recoiled. How Michiya Senko had been able to reach him he couldn't quite compute, yet in the same instant he deemed it pointless to figure. He released a quiet exhale and glanced at the Group behind him.

He paused.

He was going to relay the order and move with the Group to Oyuki's position. The words were impatient on his tongue. The follow-through was simple, pedantic even; an action that should have been taken by now instead of not, instead of remaining as a statue, seized by a need undeniable.

Yoake no Taii's howling laughter was heard by no one but Iwamura.

"Lieutenant Michiya of the Twelfth just contacted me. He needs units to cordon off Lieutenant Oyuki's position so support units aren't caught in the ice. All of you, get over there. I will be providing support elsewhere."

Everyone within immediate view stared at him. Iwamura knew immediately several understood there was something else to the command. Nevertheless:

"Yes, sir!"

---

<PRESENT>

Iwamura was kneeling upon a shingled roof behind its apex, covering all but his head from the ravaged Thirteenth Division that lay a couple hundred yards away. With concrete details relatively lean but sensory data abundant, between the several battles taking place, instinct had led him here, the site with the greatest chances of the greatest victory: the answering of all the Seireitei's questions about the Hollows' motives.

Multiple signatures he discerned, one unmistakably Hollow in the depths of the Thirteenth, one Shinigami with an unleashed Bankai--very likely Captain Shinka, he figured--and a few other Shinigami. Two in particular were particularly close, and as the mist dissipated around them, Iwamura laid eyes upon them on a rooftop of their own.

Hyoroshi drew his Zanpakuto. The Spirit within had long stopped laughing, but he could sense the sneering of his blade as he executed multiple short-distance Shunpo. A wave of recognition washed over Iwamura as he drew near; at last, he uncorked his own Reiatsu and allowed it to flow.

"Gyoja Kuchiki," Hyoroshi called out immediately upon phasing onto their perch, "and accomplice," he nodded to Ren.

He came to stand a few steps away, speaking as he stared in revulsion at the destruction below. "The rest of the Fifth is scattered across the Seireitei helping with battles where it can, and I'd like to lend a hand here. What's the situation right now?"​

---

 

[Elk]

Footsteps echoed across the clay tiles of the Seireitei, each one tapping against the surface before his body disappeared—until he reappeared atop a nearby compound roof. His eyes scanned around as the reiatsu began to surge outward. Thankfully, he was away from the initial release, but with each step closer, his breath began to ice in front of him. That was until the snow began to fall.


“Only one man I know of that has this much of an effect on the weather to make it snow here.”

“Lieutenant Gekka.”

“Pummel them, Shinken Hazan!”


Both hands reached down to grip the hilts of his Zanpakutō, pulling them out as quickly as he could before they began to materialize around his fingers and knuckles, taking the shape of brass knuckles. His hands then smashed together.

Yet just before he could make another step forward, the sound of ice shattering had him stop. His eyes narrowed for a moment as he reached down to grab his Denreishinki, looking at it for a moment before putting it away.


“Hmmm… I think it would be wiser to observe the situation and make my move before I join in…”


Several members of the 5th Division could be seen pushing other Shinigami, speaking of cutting the area off so that no one would be able to enter the zone where he and the Espada were fighting. His hand moved over his chin before he appeared not too far from the ice field that had just been created—and shattered.


“These Arrancar are strange… You would think they would arrive with an army...”

“Espada are strong… but… I would have expected an army by now… What makes them so conf—”


His eyebrows scrunched as he looked around for a moment before looking back at both Lieutenant Oyuki and the female Espada. His finger twitched, then another came, as he waited to see what was going to happen.


“They wouldn’t have those… would they?”