The Captain-Commander's Summons

The acrid, unmistakable smell of blood permeated the corridors of the 11th Division Barracks.

"Blood?!"

"Whose blood? Did the Captain… did he die?"

As the 'skull' of that Sternritter landed on the ground like a ball, the remaining Quincy's pupils trembled. They had only seen a flash of bright silver light streak past them, and then their leader was dead before their eyes.

"How is that possible? That was a Sternritter! One of the best among us!"

"How could he just die like that?!"

The Quincy seemed to find it hard to believe that a powerful Sternritter could meet such an abrupt end, falling before them in a manner that seemed slightly 'ridiculous' and 'absurd'!

The knight's face was even still beaming with a bright smile, clearly indicating that even in death, he was still immersed in the joy of having successfully found the Soul Reapers' "hospital for treating the wounded" and was about to go on a killing spree to earn merit for Yhwach!

"What exactly happened?"

"Why isn't it the Soul Reaper who died, but the Sternritter?"

Everything happened too quickly, so fast that the Quincy's brains briefly glitched. They didn't even have time to prepare, and the worst-case scenario was already laid out before them.

"Drip, drip, drip…"

It wasn't until a rhythmic 'dripping sound' reached the Quincy's ears that they suddenly realized the beautiful woman with her long hair tied back, who had always worn an 'amiable smile' towards everyone, had somehow risen from her seat. She now stood not far from them, holding a long Zanpakuto, and the dripping sound came from its blade. The blade was stained red and looked sticky, exceptionally… fresh!

"Oh no!"

With just one glance, the Quincy's expressions all changed. They frantically drew their bows, intending to shoot down the woman holding the sharp blade!

When the Quincy saw the blood dripping from the woman's blade, they finally understood. Their leader, the Sternritter, hadn't died from some unknown attack, but had been cut down by the woman before them with the blade in her hand!

And that bright silver light was merely the reflection of the room's lights off the woman's blade. It was just that the woman swung her sword too quickly, so fast that they only saw the light reflected by the blade.

Thud…

The moment the Quincy reacted and drew their bows, 'blood' once again filled the 11th Division Barracks. This time, what flew into the air were the hands these Quincy used to draw their bows.

"Ah! My hand!!"

Screams of agony echoed from the Quincy. With just one encounter with the woman, they couldn't even see how she attacked. The 'flesh,' 'bones,' and bows on their wrists were all severed. The bloody scene instantly stimulated their sensitive nerves, causing them immense pain.

"This is a hospital, please keep quiet everyone!"

Fortunately, in the next instant, their pain ceased! Another flash of silver light! This time, it wasn't arms that flew, but their 'heads'!

As their 'heads' soared into the air, they could still vaguely hear the woman's voice around them. Clearly, her blade was too fast, so fast that their 'brains' and 'ears' mistakenly believed they were still alive.

Splat~

After slaughtering the few small fries before her, Unohana Retsu flicked the blood from her blade, then gently sheathed her sword.

Thud, thud, thud…

As Unohana Retsu's sheath and blade collided, the 'headless' Quincy corpses, no longer able to maintain their posture, all fell to the ground with successive 'thuds.' And the 'heads' that had soared into the air also dropped, leaving behind pools of deep bloodstains.

"Excellent~ This way, all the talking trash in the room has been cleaned up~"

"Everyone, don't you agree with me?"

After doing all this, the chilling aura on Unohana Retsu's face vanished. She tried her best to use the 'amiable smile' she had repeatedly practiced in front of the mirror, smiling at the 11th Division members around her, as well as the members of other divisions who had just had life-saving surgery performed on them by the 11th Division members.

"Uh…"

"Yes, you are absolutely right!"

How could any of the squad members dare to contradict Unohana Retsu? Even though Unohana Retsu was smiling like a completely different person from the one who had just swung her sword, the squad members knew Unohana Retsu's true nature—she was a 'living Yama'! Faced with Unohana Retsu, who was decisive in killing and left no survivors, they could only nod repeatedly in agreement.

"Then you'll have to clean this place up for me~"

Unohana Retsu said, and then sat back down in her seat.

Her posture was graceful, and her appearance beautiful, but the corpses beneath her seat were quite an eyesore. This made everyone look at Unohana Retsu at that moment and think of a painting—a Rakshasa painting!

"Uh…"

The 11th Division members looked at the headless Quincy lying all over the floor around Unohana Retsu. First, they shook their heads, then began their cleanup work.

Fighting Quincy might not be their forte, but when it came to cleaning up, they were professionals. More professional than the 'police' in Kung Fu…

After all, though they were a combat division, their main duty was to assist Captain Unohana. They had been washing and scrubbing the 11th Division's floors for decades.

"Work, work!"

In an instant, the 11th Division members pulled out 'mops,' 'rags,' 'buckets,' and 'medicine' to remove the smell of blood, ready to get to work in the barracks.

"Hm?!"

However, just as everyone was busy, Unohana Retsu's expression suddenly changed. She seemed to have discovered something, and her body tensed as she stood up from her seat, her slender, snow-white hand gripping the Zanpakuto at her side.

"Enemy attack?!"

This scene terrified the 11th Division members. When those Quincy had invaded earlier, Captain Unohana hadn't been this tense, this 'on guard.' Now, her expression caused their previously relaxed nerves to tighten. One by one, they drew their Zanpakuto from their waists and maximized their senses.

"The Captain-Commander is summoning us…"

"I apologize, everyone. I'll leave this place to you for now!"

Before the 11th Division Soul Reapers could ponder it further, Unohana Retsu uttered those words and then vanished from the 11th Division Barracks, clearly having left using Shunpo.

"Huh?!"

"Not an enemy attack?"

"So the Captain-Commander ordered Captain Unohana to be summoned?"

Seeing this, the 11th Division Soul Reapers collectively breathed a sigh of relief.

But as soon as they saw Unohana Retsu leave, their hearts, which had just settled, immediately tensed up again…

"Ishikawa, Tanaka, Tsuchida…"

"The few of you, go out on patrol immediately. Make absolutely sure no enemies breach our defenses, understood?!"

After Unohana Retsu departed, the 11th Division was officially taken over by its highest-ranking Seated Officer, the Third Seat Officer of the 11th Division. He immediately analyzed the current situation and devised the optimal plan, then issued his orders.

Normally, with Unohana Retsu present, they wouldn't need to patrol or defend against anything, because Unohana Retsu herself was the greatest defense. No matter what kind of enemy came, they had enough confidence in their former Captain's strength. But now, they had no choice but to adapt.

"We obey!"

The Soul Reapers who received the Third Seat Officer's command immediately readied their weapons and headed outside.

"I hope everything goes smoothly!"

"Whether it's us, or Captain Unohana and Captain Araki, or even the Captain-Commander! May no more accidents occur! Because there are already enough Soul Reapers who have been 'injured' or 'died' in this war."

The Third Seat Officer watched the Soul Reapers in the distance, silently thinking to himself.