Plot Twist

"Tsunayoshi, what's with that look? Ever since we started high school, your eyes have been weird." Ichigo looked at Tsunayoshi with an unfriendly expression and asked.

"Oh, I was just wondering if you'd secretly hidden some girl who fell from the sky in your wardrobe or something?" Tsunayoshi leaned in by Ichigo's ear and asked, though he did not deliberately lower his voice, so the little group around them could hear him clearly.

"Ichigo, did you really hide a girl? I-I won't tell Aunt Masa..." The more Orihime Inoue spoke, the dizzier her head got, until she did not even know what she was saying.

"Don't listen to his nonsense, Orihime. The two little sisters at home are already annoying enough. How could there be another girl?" Ichigo hooked an arm around Tsunayoshi's neck and leaned in front of Inoue as he spoke.

"Heh. Watch out for a fire in your own backyard. Don't blame me for not warning you when the time comes." Tsunayoshi struggled free from Ichigo's hold and said with his nose in the air.

"Tatsuki, do something about your family's bastard. Uncle Sawada and Auntie aren't in Japan right now, so you're the only one who can manage him." Ichigo dragged Tatsuki in as an ally without the slightest hesitation.

As for Sawada Tsunayoshi's parents, Tsunayoshi's father's business had grown bigger and bigger, and now he had actually landed an overseas project. The two of them had gone to England together to work on it. Tsunayoshi approved of his parents leaving. Japan would be in constant turmoil for the next while, and if they left this muddy pit earlier, Tsunayoshi could also act with fewer restraints.

"Hmph, hmph. Tsunayoshi never shoots without a target. Orihime, you'd better pay a little attention." Tatsuki ignored Ichigo and instead reminded Orihime Inoue.

Orihime Inoue accepted Tatsuki's warning very solemnly, her eyes fixed hard on Ichigo, as if Ichigo might bring a girl home at any moment.

"Sawada, did you notice something?" Uryū walked over and asked. All these years, he had kept pace with Tsunayoshi and had never slacked off for even a single day, because he had guessed that Tsunayoshi was preparing for a certain battle.

"The sky's gloomy. Everyone should go home early." Tsunayoshi looked at the view outside the window as he spoke. Just now, he had sensed an unfamiliar Reiatsu appear out of nowhere in Karakura Town. The long-vacant stationed Bleach of Karakura Town had finally arrived.

"Oh no, I need to hurry and tell Aunt Masa to bring in the laundry." Inoue turned around to make a call.

By this time, most of the students had already left. Tsunayoshi's group was the last to linger at school. They walked out of the school gates side by side, and all of a sudden, chaotic Reiatsu enveloped the entire Karakura Town!

It was Hollow Reiatsu. None of the people present were unfamiliar with it, but what was with this chaotic number?

Everyone looked up at the sky. Dense and countless, black holes appeared one after another in the sky, and monsters wearing masks crawled out from within. Hollows. But there were far too many of them, weren't there? The whole sky was full of them!

Tsunayoshi had just taken out his phone when Urahara's call already came through. "Mr. Tsunayoshi, someone has used a large amount of Hollow Bait in Karakura Town..."

There was no need to say the rest. All these Hollows had been lured over by Hollow Bait.

"Shopkeeper, contact Hirako. I'll get Ginjo." Tsunayoshi quickly hung up the phone, muttering under his breath as Bakudo #77: Tenteikūra flew toward Naruki City.

[Ginjo, Karakura Town is under attack by a large number of Hollows. Have your people put on their Messenger Earpieces and provide support.]

The Messenger Earpiece was the result of Urahara improving the Gigai Communicator. It hung on the ear in the form of a Bluetooth earpiece, and while it would not interfere with combat, it allowed squad communication on different channels.

After notifying Kugo Ginjo, Ichigo and the others had also put on their Messenger Earpieces, and Tsunayoshi immediately issued emergency orders.

"Ichigo, you and Inoue go home first and protect your families."

At a time like this, humans with high spiritual power were in greater danger, and Ichigo's whole family was exactly like that. Ichigo and Inoue both had limited offensive ability, so sending them home was the best choice.

Ichigo did not put on airs either. He grabbed Orihime Inoue's hand, burst out with Reiatsu, and rushed toward home.

"Uryū, find an open high point and use Hirenkyaku to take out those weaklings."

Ever since obtaining Ginrei Kojaku, Uryū had developed the habit of opening with Hirenkyaku. Twelve hundred Reishi arrows firing in succession like raindrops—this sort of attack was basically useless against opponents with even a little strength, but against these lower-level Hollows, it was the best move.

"Tatsuki, you and Chad coordinate with each other. Fight back-to-back. There are too many Hollows. Don't give them a chance to ambush you."

Tatsuki and Chad nodded together. Both of them were close-combat fighters who mainly used fists and kicks, with the occasional mid-range attack. With this fighting style, charging into a swarm of enemies was very dangerous, so fighting back-to-back was much more stable.

"Guard the school. If anything happens, call for support immediately."

Tsunayoshi assigned Tatsuki and Chad's combat position. The school and home were the two places Tsunayoshi and Ichigo stayed at most often, and also the places that emitted the most Reiatsu. There was no one at Tsunayoshi's house, so that did not need attention. Ichigo had already run home, so Tatsuki and Chad only needed to guard the school.

"Hello, hello. What do you need us to do?" Hirako's voice entered the channel. Urahara Kisuke had already informed them of the situation.

"Hirako, have the other three captains and the Vice-Captain-level fighters spread out across Karakura Town. Their targets are the Hollows that are slightly stronger and can't be cleared in one hit." Tsunayoshi immediately replied.

By now, Uryū had already begun taking position. His Hirenkyaku swept back and forth through Karakura Town like a windshield wiper, but there were too many Hollows. It was impossible for Uryū alone to clear them all out.

"Hirako, I'll leave the west side of Karakura Town to you. Use Sakanade to reverse all those Hollows upward. Don't let them hurt the residents of Karakura Town. Have Uncle Hachigen help you."

Sakanade's ability activated through the scent it released. With the push from Hachigen Ushōda's barrier Kido, Hirako's ability could quickly cover a large area. Dealing with Hollows of this level would not be a problem at all.

"I understand. What about the other directions?" Hirako asked.

"Uryū will hold the center and use Hirenkyaku to clear the small fry. The shopkeeper is in the east, so he'll handle that. The Ishida Residence is in the south. I'll leave that to Uncle Ishida."

"Mm, no problem."

At the Ishida Residence, a calm male voice appeared on the rooftop. Ishida Ryuuken stood there just like that, holding a short bow in one hand and keeping the other in his pocket, looking aloof and cold.

"It's cold. Put on something." After Hae Katagiri added a layer of clothing onto Ishida Ryuuken, she quietly stayed by his side, with no intention of leaving.

"You can go rest."

Hae gently shook her head and refused. "I've rested long enough already. Beside you, nothing will happen to me."

Ishida Ryuuken drew Hae into his arms with a gentle expression and pointed Spirit Bow and Arrows toward the sky. "With me here, nothing can happen."

At the Urahara Shop, Urahara Kisuke was busy directing the people in the shop to install all kinds of strange equipment around the store. They looked like various kinds of gun barrels.

"Kisuke, don't we need to go help?" Yoruichi kicked a device into its designated position.

"Trust Mr. Tsunayoshi. The one behind the scenes did this to muddy the waters. Mr. Tsunayoshi didn't mention you because he also hopes we'll guard our own place and not show ourselves." Urahara and Tsunayoshi both knew perfectly well that, at present, only Aizen could create such an exaggerated Hollow invasion.

"Ginjo, take the people from Xcution and spread out around Karakura Town's perimeter. Prevent any fish that slip through the net from escaping." Tsunayoshi's voice continued to come through the channel.

"I understand. Do we not need to go to the north side of Karakura Town?" Ginjo asked. Tsunayoshi had not made any arrangements for the north.

"No problem. Leave the north of Karakura Town to me!"

At some point, a silver earring had appeared on Tsunayoshi's left earlobe. The earring consisted of three spike-shaped pendants. It was the Bankai of the Mist attribute: Mist Earring Ver. X.

A thin mist silently shrouded the houses around Tsuna. In the blink of an eye, looking down from high above, nothing could be seen beneath Tsuna's feet except fog. Tsuna had used his mist-like Reiatsu to protect the entire space below him.

If Tsuna had enough time, it would not have been impossible for the mist to cover all of Karakura Town. But now there was no longer any time for Tsuna to set it up. The Hollows had already charged down from the sky.

The pupil of Tsuna's right eye turned red, with a large "one" inside it. That was the power of the Six Paths of Reincarnation originating from Reborn!'s Rokudo Mukuro, the power corresponding to Illusion's First Path—the Hell Realm.

The mist beneath Tsuna's feet suddenly turned into flowing red lava. Pillars of fire shot into the sky, blasting the swarm of Hollows to pieces. Immediately after, venomous snakes streaked straight upward, their targets the scattered Hollows. The serpents tangled with the Hollows in a vicious melee, and as long as Tsuna had enough Reiatsu, the snakes created by the Illusion could be endless.

In reality, the Hollows charging down at Tsuna all died with the masks on their heads exploding apart. Tsuna paid no attention to these foot soldiers. His eyes stayed fixed in one direction, where a newly appeared Bleach's Reiatsu had emerged. That Bleach's Reiatsu rose and fell erratically, stirring Tsuna's curiosity.

Should he go witness it? That fated plotline.

Tsuna hesitated a little. He could sense that Ichigo's Reiatsu was moving toward that new Reiatsu. If nothing unexpected happened, this encounter had been deliberately guided by someone.

Tsuna raised his head to look at the sky. For lower-class Hollows of this level, he could deal with them just by keeping the Mist Earring on. Sure enough, he still wanted to go take a look. Tsuna had just lifted his foot when a series of even more terrifying Reiatsu appeared in the sky above Karakura Town.

Jagged cracks appeared in the sky. The cracks slowly opened like teeth, revealing a profound darkness within. Two pale claws braced themselves against the upper and lower edges of the rift, then wrenched it open with a burst of strength. A terrifying long-nosed mask squeezed out from the crack. It was an enormous Hollow, covered entirely in a black robe except for its white mask and claws.

A Gillian, a Gillan.

Yet it was not the only Gillan to appear. More and more jagged cracks opened across the sky. Those were passages between Hueco Mundo and the other two worlds, and more and more Gillan emerged from within them.

Uryū could not help feeling a trace of pressure. This many Gillan were not something his Hirenkyaku could take down easily. Should he switch techniques?

But once he switched to another technique, there would be no way to deal with those lower-class Hollows. What should he do?

A drop of sweat slid down Uryū's forehead. Just as he was about to ask Tsuna, several familiar Reiatsu suddenly appeared beside him.

"Leave these Gillan to us, Ishida Uryū! Keep up your suppressive attacks!"

Gillian slayers, the Visored, had arrived!