A Sudden Change!

After being punched and kicked all the way there, Hu was finally driven to Sizhuzhai by Cilian and the Onmitsukidō.

A massive stone torii stood at the entrance to Sizhuzhai, with a plaque bearing the three large characters for "Sizhuzhai" hanging across it. Two Soul Reapers in shihakushō stood atop the torii. When they saw Cilian approaching with a squad of Onmitsukidō, they jumped down and came forward to report:

"A small Garganta suddenly opened here at noon today, and Hollows have been emerging from it from time to time. They aren't very strong, but the Garganta hasn't closed on its own, and the Hollows keep coming through. The two of us just can't clear them out fast enough.

"After we evacuated the souls, some of the Hollows began devouring each other. Dealing with those groups and keeping the Hollows from escaping Sizhuzhai is already all we can manage."

Cilian nodded and raised his hand slightly. The Onmitsukidō scattered and charged into Sizhuzhai. He glanced at Hu, who was still standing there rubbing his backside, and gave him another kick.

"You too. You have to take down at least one Hollow yourself today!"

After being kicked again, Hu had no choice but to follow the Onmitsukidō into Sizhuzhai.

Inside Sizhuzhai, all kinds of Hollows ran wild through the streets, fighting and devouring one another. The Onmitsukidō were swift and efficient, each stroke of a blade taking a Hollow's life.

Hu followed one of the Onmitsukidō all the way to the center of Sizhuzhai without getting a chance to touch a single Hollow.

"Hey, big brother, didn't you say you'd leave a few for me to fight?"

Hu called out to the Onmitsukidō officer ahead of him.

"I'd like to leave a few, but they're all too fragile. They're practically like ordinary souls, with hardly any fighting strength. They're no good for you to practice on."

As the officer harvested the lives of the Hollows along the way like he was cutting wheat, he wondered aloud:

"Why are the Hollows from Hueco Mundo so weak?" The officer glanced at the Garganta above Sizhuzhai.

"And the Garganta still hasn't closed. A Hollow capable of creating such a lasting, stable Garganta definitely wouldn't be a small fry like these. It's very likely some big one sent them out. We can't determine its exact purpose yet, but we need to stay alert."

Hearing the officer's analysis, Hu began observing the Hollows as well. The more he watched, the more he had a bad feeling.

Some Hollows turned entirely into Reishi when they died, while others left clothes behind. Most of the Hollows that left clothes behind still looked human and moved more slowly. Some even appeared to be in great pain.

The more he watched, the more wrong it seemed. Hu vaguely recalled seeing something similar in an anime in his previous life. The man in black-rimmed glasses flashed through his mind, and Hu felt a chill.

"Say, do normal Hollows leave clothes behind when they disappear?"

"Of course not. The parts of some Hollows that look like clothes are actually biological shells grown from their own bodies. They all return to Reishi when the Hollow dies..."

As the officer explained, he suddenly sensed something was wrong. He stopped and looked back the way they had come. Seeing the clothes in Hu's hands, he froze too. "How could clothes be left behind? How is that possible?" The officer picked up some clothes from the ground and turned them over. The shock was plain in his eyes. Hu came over too and saw the three characters for Sizhuzhai on the inside of the garment, indicating that its owner was very likely a resident of Sizhuzhai. And he remembered clearly that the one wearing it had been a Hollow...

The officer's hands began to tremble slightly as he clutched the garment. "We have to report this to our superiors. We'll pause the operation and report this to Mr. Cilian first."

The officer turned back and was speaking to Hu when Hu's eyes widened at a figure behind him. The figure was hunched over, one hand twisted into a crab claw and an octopus tentacle wrapped around one leg. But Hu had seen the dark blue kimono he wore and the golden bee-crest ornament hanging from his waist just that morning...

"Shimizu..."

In a trembling voice, Hu spoke the name of his first friend in Soul Society...