Chapter 182

"Splash."

As Haruto's palm grew brighter, Sōken Ishida seemed to faintly hear the sound of the ocean churning.

Immediately afterwards.

The clones, whose features were now fully clear, began to peel off their skin like old plaster; the Reishi that had been gathering towards the Vollständig of Schubert began to surge uncontrollably into Haruto's palm.

"What!?"

Despite not showing any signs of Japanese ancestry Schubert has suddenly started generating a lot of buzz.

"Are you sure this isn't Sklaverei?"

Sōken Ishida stared at Haruto with an incredulous look on his face.

"I already said..."

Haruto was about to explain, abandoned his original plan:

"If you don't understand it, you can think of it as a Sklaverei."

Without Sōken Ishida, Schubert's Army of Gods had already been annihilated.

Not only that.

Because Schubert had collected a large amount of Reishi in advance, Haruto's aura was even stronger than when he had just fought Seirin Tsunayashiro.

Although these Reishi dissipate very quickly, not having enough time to be converted into Reiatsu, they are still sufficient for use in skirmishes.

Haruto right now...

Every part of his body was glowing.

You owe me a debt of gratitude.

Haruto said to Sōken Ishida beside him.

"... OK."

Sōken Ishida needs to change his glasses; he's been adjusting them a little too often today.

"Then what about us?"

"Superior!"

In a one-on-one situation, even without the ability to use his Vollständig, Schubert is capable of fighting Sōken Ishida.

Not to mention that the latter is currently seriously injured.

But.

If Haruto were on the other side... that Soul Reaper who can Bankai would be even stronger than Schubert.

Even so, Haruto still managed to kill her.

As one side gains and the other loses...

"Call out!"

Adjuchas was instantly killed.

Since Schubert couldn't retreat through the special Reishi space that resembled Garganta, he could only rely on the speed of his Hirenkyaku to escape the battlefield.

However, in terms of pure speed...

"Where do you think you're going!"

"Boom!!"

Schubert's body lay on the ground.

To be precise, his fragile bones, so fragile they would shatter at the slightest touch, were scattered on the ground... If Haruto hadn't protected them with his Kidō, they would probably have already drifted away in the wind.

"This is..."

"Auswählen."

There are two kinds of Auswählen.

First, Yhwach initiated the attack; second, when the Quincy died, their power and soul were absorbed by Yhwach.

Schubert's case falls into the latter category.

Certainly.

The Quincy were killed by Haruto during his Konsō training will also have their soul power returned to Yhwach. However, Haruto's actions at the time were quite dramatic and didn't seem as shocking as this scene.

The Schubert was able to leave with a "complete corpse" was actually because Sōken Ishida wanted to prove to Haruto that what he said was true.

"Ishida- kun."

Haruto glanced at the other three people lying on the ground.

Hiyori and Kanmuri Yasu were only unconscious—the former due to injuries and the latter due to Reiatsu —but Isumi Ishida's condition was rather bad... Hollow power is no different from poison to Quincy. Although her symptoms were not as exaggerated as when Masaki encountered White (after all, she hadn't been modified by Aizen), she couldn't withstand it on her own.

They've been able to hold on until now thanks to the power of pure blood... but now even that bloodline is being gradually corrupted.

"You say."

Sōken Ishida also dropped his cool demeanor at this point.

"Your wife isn't doing very well. If you don't mind... the Soul Society can provide ample assistance."

Haruto suggested.

"Don't refuse. Your condition isn't good enough to treat her either, and this house call isn't an official one."

"... Can this only be considered a private consultation?"

Haruto wanted to break the slightly heavy atmosphere.

"Then I owe you two favors."

"No problem."

--

Haruto raised a finger towards his shoulder.

The Hell Butterfly appeared from the void, flapping its wings.

"Go to the Kuchiki Clan and give this letter to Byakuya for me."

The information was recorded by a miniature version of the Tenteikūra, then compressed into tiny runes, which quickly merged into the wings of the Hell Butterfly.

--

The Hell Butterfly's speed when it left was no slower than when it came.

Today's events involve the Tsunayashiro Clan, and specifically the Seirin Tsunayashiro, whose reputation rivals that of Kōga. Reporting this to the Gotei 13 will only make the situation more complicated.

It's clearly more efficient to have the Kuchiki Clan solve the problem.

If Ginrei Kuchiki knew, he'd probably be so happy his beard would bristle.

No.

Byakuya was even faster than Haruto had anticipated: less than two minutes after the Hell Butterfly disappeared, the Kuchiki Clan's pure white-framed Senkaimon appeared not far from Haruto, following the reappearance of the Hell Butterfly.

"Click."

The door opened.

Familiar faces, unseen for several months, emerged from the Senkaimon.

Byakuya didn't show any joy at the long-awaited reunion—the messages delivered by the Hell Butterflies were limited, and Haruto hadn't explained things clearly in order to save time; moreover, a Captain-level Quincy was standing right next to him, so Byakuya had no choice but to act cautiously:

If Haruto didn't speak soon, he was about to draw his sword Shikai attack.

"These are friendly forces."

Haruto explained succinctly.

"How did the Quincy become allies?"

Byakuya remained vigilant, as Haruto could potentially be taken hostage or have his mind controlled.

"Do you believe me or do you believe you're not Dad's biological son?"

"... All right."

Byakuya pursed his lips and loosened his grip on the hilt of the Senbonzakura sword.

His speech is so vulgar and obnoxious... such a shameless soul must be Haruto himself.

"Where's the rescue?"

The Senkaimon had not yet disappeared, Byakuya had obviously arrived first as a guard.

"They're in the back."

Byakuya pointed behind him over his shoulder, and after the second Senkaimon opened... it turned out to be an unexpected acquaintance.

"Isane?"

"... Ah, A-Qing."

Isane greeted him somewhat timidly.

Haruto had assumed Byakuya would bring someone directly from the Kuchiki Clan, but to his surprise, he brought Isane from the Fourth Division instead—not on purpose, since he had no idea what had happened between Haruto Isane.

But this scene...

"The Kuchiki Clan is worried that it won't be convenient for you to use."

"After all, you might have some little secrets, so I specifically went to the Fourth Division to call Isane here."

Byakuya's smug expression was quite annoying, but his considerations were indeed very thorough, and Haruto had nothing to complain about.

How should you respond when a girl is shy?

"It's so good that you could come."

Haruto rushed over and grabbed Isane's hands—being awkward would only make the atmosphere worse, and some topics could only be discussed at night... In these situations, it was enough to shift the focus to the right things.

"Their injuries..."

Haruto moved aside to avoid being seen.

"If Captain Unohana and Lieutenant Yamada aren't coming, then we'll have to rely on you, Isane, for getting Kaidō!"

"Okay... okay!"

Isane naturally noticed the condition of the two vice-captains, and knowing her own responsibilities, she rushed over without hesitation.

At the same time, as Haruto made a horizontal slash with his fingertip, three layers of Mountain- Tōzanshō enveloped the three lying on the ground; although Haruto often used the seventy-odd Tōzanshō as a lower-level substitute for the Void Dankū, the original purpose of this move was Kaidō reinforce the barrier.

For Haruto and Isane, this level of understanding was simply a matter of course.

Sōken Ishida, who had been standing silently beside his wife, bowed deeply and stepped aside after seeing Isane begin treatment: his injuries, though not minor, were far from fatal.

Sōken Ishida can heal himself using Quincy techniques.

Haruto quietly placed his hand on Isane's shoulder after Isane began treatment: Kaidō on three Vice-Captain-level at the same time consumes an enormous amount of Reiatsu, especially since there's also Kiyōnosuke Yamada, who hasn't been Kanmuri Yasu healed by Yamada Seinosuke.

Haruto used up sixty to seventy percent of his Reiatsu with his two strikes.

However, the remaining portion, plus the residual Reishi forcibly extracted from the Sklaverei Schubert, was still quite sufficient for Isane.

It has to be said.

Isane's progress in the past two months in the Fourth Division has been phenomenal—the reason for such hard work is truly baffling—although her Reiatsu is still at Sixth Class, her proficiency in techniques has greatly increased (the biggest credit comes from the Hueco Mundo Expeditionary Force). Coupled with her already outstanding talent for Kaidō the Dao, Haruto feels that she is no less capable than Hanatarō Yamada two hundred years later.

The situation is being brought under control.

"What about Seirin Tsunayashiro?"

"He died without a complete corpse."

Being hit by Reishi tsunami of that magnitude would shatter even the Heavenly Bestowed Armaments into nothingness.

"Well done... But why do I always feel there's a strange smugness about you when you say those four words?"

"It's not an illusion."

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