Chapter 247
Before the words were even finished, the Soul Reaper, shirtless, had silently Shunpo.
"??"
Miyano Fujimaru had just placed his hand on the hilt of the sword.
"Nothing."
The surprise in Haru Kusaka's eyes vanished in an instant.
He and his team returned quickly; the enemy had managed to shake off the Vasto Lorde so easily, even managing to Shunpo right next to him without him noticing.
"Haruto, you're really quick."
—This man is as dangerous as he imagined.
"That Vasto Lorde..."
"Resolved?"
Haru Kusaka, I need to confirm the information again.
Whether he can defeat Vasto Lorde will determine how quickly he can fulfill his "promise" after returning to Soul Society: even though he is not the head of the family, Haru Kusaka, as a direct descendant of a high-ranking noble family, is very clear about the difference between Second-Class Spiritual Pressure and Third-Class Reii.
If Captain-level Third-Class Reii rank is considered a once-in-a-century genius among the great nobles, then a "protagonist" of the Second-Class Spiritual Pressure level is someone who appears only once every few hundred years in the entire Soul Society.
"No..."
Haruto hesitated for a moment.
"They've followed us."
"???"
Haru Kusaka's face was filled with shock and confusion.
A... a golden-haired loli with a tail almost as long as her body, followed Haruto from behind.
She climbed onto his shoulder.
"This is?"
Haru Kusaka instinctively took two steps back.
Although he couldn't sense any Reiatsu —whether from Hollows or Soul Reaper —the Mini form he had only recently encountered was enough for him to judge the level of danger.
Let me introduce myself.
He completely contained his Reiatsu within his body to minimize energy expenditure.
This will cause Vasto Lorde's body to become an extremely petite loli-like figure, and even her personality will become somewhat childlike: the advantage is that it will be difficult for either Hollows or Soul Reaper to sense her presence, the disadvantage is that her power will temporarily decline to a lower level... It will take some time to be released again.
"Tia Tier Harribel."
Haruto raised his hand to indicate the miniature Vasto Lorde sitting cross-legged on his shoulder: it felt slightly larger than Nel, but not as Yachiru as Kenpachi's shoulder.
"She's not on the same side as the Hollows you fought before, so she's definitely not an ally, but there's no problem treating her as a temporary teammate with a common enemy."
Haruto completely ignored the astonished looks from the people around him.
Treating the most terrifying Gillian-class Menos Grande as teammates... what were they even doing in Hueco Mundo again?
I had already reviewed the Expeditionary Force's objectives before setting off.
"Thump!"
Haruto casually waved his hand.
A Gillian of Gillian Visored poured out from his makeshift spatial Bakudō "pocket" and instantly covered the entire land.
—The Kukai Box can't hold all this junk.
"These Gillian..."
The specified quantity is sufficient.
"..."
Bottom line?
Are you kidding me!
There were at least two or three hundred Gillian Visored present.
Forget about the bottom line, we're almost at our ideal goal... The Expeditionary Force could just head home right now!
Certainly.
Some people are worried that having so many Visored might be a smokescreen.
Miyano Matsuri knelt on one knee and casually picked up two Visored... The Reiatsu belonging to Gillian on them could not be faked.
"Um."
Miyano Matsuri nodded to Miyano Fujimaru.
To be honest, the main difficulty in taking down hundreds of Gillian was that there wasn't such a high density of Hollows in the Forest of Menos; if Haruto hadn't been teleported far enough, he would have wasted a lot more time.
Certainly.
There are actually quite a few Soul Reapers who can do that.
Kōga Kuchiki's Zanpakuto might not be very useful against Hollows, but it would be easy for him to eliminate hundreds of Gillians with his Kidō. The biggest obstacle preventing him from helping the Expeditionary Force achieve its goal sooner was actually the Expeditionary Force itself... There were just too many twists and turns involved, and quite a few Soul Reaper with ulterior motives.
"..."
Seeing that his sister's examination results were satisfactory, Miyano Fujimaru secretly breathed a sigh of relief. He carefully organized his thoughts and said:
"Haruto, I am very grateful for your help to the Expeditionary Force, but cooperating with the Menos Grande— "
Miyano Fujimaru is quite a charismatic captain.
If it were any other Soul Reaper, they would either have been scared to death by Haruto's audacity or would have already refuted him...
I retract my previous statement; the one who refuted him is now dead, having lost his head.
"Your boss Expeditionary Force?"
Haruto countered with a straightforward question.
"No..."
How do you usually decide whose advice to take?
While Miyano Fujimaru was stuck, Haruto turned his gaze to Haru Kusaka, who was trying to make his presence less noticeable.
"No, we won't make decisions; we'll each do our own thing."
Haru Kusaka replied sheepishly.
Upon hearing Haru Kusaka's words, Haruto nodded in complete agreement.
"A disorganized mess, right?"
Hueco Mundo Expeditionary Force.
Besides the bottom-line task of "maintaining the balance of the three realms" personally assigned by Shigekuni Yamamoto, it is also a means for the nobles of Soul Society to fight among themselves and seize higher positions within their clans through military achievements.
"Very good."
"Since I have the strongest fist and the highest noble status here, you will all now obey my commands—"
Haruto's gaze swept over the Captain-level in turn.
Who's in favor, and who's opposed?
"..."
This statement was so forceful and domineering, so different from the usual style of the nobles or the Gotei 13; that everyone was exchanging glances, trying to find a hero who could handle the situation.
"Your Haruto."
Haru Kusaka definitely wouldn't object; the only one who could stand up for him is Miyano Fujimaru.
What do you want to do?
Haruto's imposing presence was so overwhelming that even Miyano Fujimaru, the nominal superior of the Gotei 13, unconsciously began to use honorifics when speaking.
"Kill a Vasto Lorde."
"... The King of Hueco Mundo's general?"
It seems that Miyano Fujimaru has done his job as captain for a long time. He has learned a lot about the ecosystem and intricacies of Hueco Mundo.
"Right."
Haruto nodded readily.
"Your Haruto."
Miyano Fujimaru organized his thoughts and said:
"While Vasto Lorde certainly possesses the ability to command an army single-handedly, he is not the type to act alone. To fight him means simultaneously confronting the army of the King of Hueco Mundo."
"Neither Captain-Commander Yamamoto nor the Central 46 Chambers would agree to our reckless actions."
Miyano Fujimaru emphasized slightly:
"This will ruin everything—"
"I'll only take the Captain-level; the rest of the Expeditionary Force Soul Reaper on standby."
Haruto interrupted him directly.
"..."
The brief silence didn't even have time to spread.
"The honor of slaying Vasto Lorde is something only Kuruyashiki Kenpachi has achieved in the last five hundred years of Soul Society's history."
Haruto stated his thoughts very directly.
"Whether it's noble merit or fulfilling the duties of the Gotei 13."
"These..."
"Isn't this the very reason you came to Hueco Mundo?"
――――
Volume 1: 149. Follow me, and you'll be paid in gold; oppose me, and your funeral will be conducted according to custom.
Haruto's words.
That's definitely a very polite way of putting it.
The Hueco Mundo Expeditionary Force may appear to be acting out of noble principles, but behind the scenes, everyone is secretly mocking them, seeing it as a game of choosing scapegoats.
"..."
Haruto's words Miyano Fujimaru speechless.
If it were an ordinary Soul Reaper sending himself to his death, he could find a hundred excuses to refuse Haruto, even if the other party had the ability to take his life.
But if the captains were to take action themselves... at their level, it's already very difficult for them to suffer casualties in the Expeditionary Force. Someone like Kanmuri Yasu is a very small minority—this is also a special tacit understanding between the Gotei 13 and Las Noches.
Now.
The combat squad led by Kanmuri Yasu did not return.
"Reason?"
"Vasto Lorde of Las Noches framed Lieutenant Kanmuri Yasu... He was undoubtedly Captain-level."
Haruto seized this opportunity to launch an attack on Vasto Lorde of Las Noches...
The plan is feasible.
Even Miyano Fujimaru had to admit this:
They don't even need to convince themselves; they just need to be able to find a suitable excuse when questioned by their superiors.
"..."
Miyano Fujimaru glanced at his younger sister.
"Since Haruto has put it this way, my brother and I will naturally do our duty."