High-Reishi Zone

A few days later

The Seireitei lay beneath a thin veil of morning mist, Reishi particles drifting slowly through the air and refracting a faint glow.

Hurried footsteps echoed through the corridors of the First Division Barracks. Okiba Genshirō emerged from the records office with a document in hand and nodded at Ukai, who was approaching from the other direction. They passed each other without exchanging a word.

Ever since the Quincy extermination order had been issued, the atmosphere in the First Division had changed.

Shimura and Okabe had to process vast amounts of intelligence sent back from every division each day. Sakaki was run ragged coordinating logistics. Even Ukai, the clerk responsible for consolidating intelligence, had begun personally delivering documents.

Endo leaned against the wall in the corridor, chewing on a rice ball. When he saw Shuichi, he gave a muffled greeting. "Morning."

"Morning," Shuichi replied.

Endo was one of the most experienced field agents and considerably older than Shuichi. He had no Zanpakutō and made his living through Kidō and Shunpo. It was said that before joining the First Division, he had been the captain of a guard unit in some district of Rukongai.

"The lieutenant is looking for us. Says we've got a mission," Endo said after swallowing a mouthful of rice ball.

"How many?"

"You, me, Sakamoto, and the new one."

Shuichi nodded. Kujo Shūi—the female Soul Reaper who had joined the First Division not long ago. Shuichi did not know much about her. He only knew she handled field assignments, had yet to achieve Shikai with her Zanpakutō, and had excelled at the Genji School.

The two crossed the corridor and arrived outside the meeting room. Sakamoto was already there, waiting by the door with his arms folded and an indifferent expression. He was also a veteran First Division field agent. Like Endo, he had no Zanpakutō, but his Hakuda and Shunpo ranked among the best in the division.

"You're here?" Sakamoto glanced at Shuichi.

"Yeah."

"The new one isn't here yet."

As soon as he spoke, footsteps sounded from the far end of the corridor. Kujo Shūi approached briskly, dressed in the standard black uniform. The Asauchi at her waist swayed lightly with her steps. Her face showed little expression. She did not look nervous or relaxed—only calm in a way that made her hard to read.

"Everyone's here." Sakamoto pushed open the door.

"Go in."

The four entered the meeting room and stopped before the long table.

Chojiro Sasakibe was already inside.

A map was spread across the table before him, with several documents beside it. The edges of the papers were slightly curled, clearly having been read many times. Sasakibe raised his head and swept his gaze across the four of them.

"Everyone's here."

Sasakibe spoke softly, but clearly. "Then I'll get straight to the mission."

He reached out and tapped a location on the map.

"Karakura Town."

Shuichi looked at the map. It was a town in the World of the Living, marked with the words "High-Reishi Zone."

"Karakura Town is currently one of the areas with the highest Reishi concentration in the World of the Living."

Sasakibe continued, "Although it is not yet a major city, merely a relatively prosperous town, its Reishi density has already drawn the attention of multiple parties. Our intelligence indicates that the Quincy have established a Reishi Armed Forces base there."

"How large is the base?" Sakamoto asked.

"Intelligence is limited."

Sasakibe said, "We estimate that several dozen Reishi Armed Forces members are stationed there. Their precise deployment and equipment remain unclear. However, High-Reishi Zones are key Quincy defense areas. We cannot rule out the possibility of a Captain-Class Quincy being stationed there."

Endo gave a quiet snort. "Captain-Class? Another Sternritter type?"

"It is only a possibility."

Sasakibe's tone remained calm. "That is why the Second Division will remain on standby."

He paused and looked at Shuichi. "Captain Shihōin has approved the support plan. If you encounter a situation you cannot handle, request assistance immediately. Do not try to prove yourselves."

Shuichi nodded.

Sasakibe continued, "Your mission is to infiltrate Karakura Town, investigate the precise location, size, and deployment of the Quincy base, then eliminate it. Prioritize destroying the Reishi Armed Forces' active personnel. If you encounter a Captain-Class Quincy, prioritize your own survival and wait for support from the Second Division."

"Understood," Sakamoto said.

"The Senkaimon is ready. You can depart at any time," Chojiro Sasakibe said.

Kujo Shūi spoke for the first time. "When do we leave?"

"Now."

Sasakibe looked over the four of them, his gaze finally settling on Shuichi.

The four followed Sasakibe out of the meeting room, through the corridors, and into the rear courtyard of the First Division Barracks.

The Senkaimon was already waiting there.

A white curtain of Reishi light swayed gently in the air. Fine Reishi particles continuously scattered from its edges before reforming. The Kidō Corps members maintaining the Senkaimon stood nearby, their hands held in seals, a thin layer of sweat beading on their foreheads.

"The Senkaimon will send you directly to the outskirts of Karakura Town."

Sasakibe said, "You will arrive in a forest. It is relatively concealed and unlikely to be noticed by the Quincy. Assess the situation after arrival and proceed according to plan."

Shuichi stood before the Senkaimon and felt the Reishi aura spilling from the light curtain. It was an unfamiliar sensation.

He gripped the Zanpakutō at his waist.

"Let's go," Shuichi said.

Sakamoto was the first to step into the Senkaimon, his figure vanishing into the white light. Endo followed right after him, then Kujo Shūi.

Shuichi looked at Chojiro Sasakibe one last time and nodded.

Sasakibe said nothing, merely returning the gesture with a slight nod.

Shuichi turned and stepped into the light curtain.

White light swallowed him.

His vision first turned blank, then swiftly returned. The feel beneath his feet changed from stone slabs to soil. The distinct Reishi scent of the Seireitei was replaced by another presence—denser, more chaotic, more restless.

Shuichi opened his eyes.

They stood in a forest.

Sunlight filtered through gaps in the leaves, casting mottled shadows across the ground. In the distance, the outlines of houses and rising cooking smoke could be seen. The occasional birdsong drifted down from the canopy. Everything appeared peaceful and ordinary.

Sakamoto crouched down and pinched up a bit of dirt. "The Reishi concentration really is high. Hollows would appear frequently in a place like this. It's no surprise the Quincy have their eyes on it."

Kujo Shūi said nothing, merely surveying the surroundings in silence, one hand resting on the Asauchi at her waist.

Shuichi looked around and slowly spread out his Reiatsu, sensing the distant presences.

Karakura Town lay ahead.

The mission had begun.

Karakura Town was livelier than Shuichi had imagined.

People filled the streets. Vendors shouted their wares, children laughed and played, and the clatter of hooves against stone roads mixed together into a bustling scene unique to the World of the Living.

Those pedestrians were completely unaware of the high concentration of Reishi filling the air. They did not know that, in the same world, another group of people guarded this land with bows and arrows—or rather, occupied it.

Shuichi and the others concealed themselves atop a temple roof, observing the town from above. Kujo Shūi crouched at the edge of the eaves, her gaze fixed on a compound to the southeast. Reishi signatures were densely clustered there, with more than twenty Reiatsu presences moving slowly inside.

"That courtyard should be the base," Sakamoto said quietly.

"The Reishi Armed Forces are more numerous than the intelligence suggested."

"Twenty-three," Kujo Shūi said, reporting the number precisely.

Endo clicked his tongue. "Do we hit them directly?"

Shuichi was about to answer when he suddenly sensed something.

The sky darkened.

It was not clouds blocking the sun. Reiatsu was gathering overhead, pressing down like an invisible giant hand. Shuichi abruptly looked up and saw a pitch-black rift split open above the town—a Hollow's passage, but far larger than normal.

"Fall back!" Shuichi barked.

The four retreated at once, slipping into the temple's shadows.

The passage tore wider. A massive claw reached from the rift, followed by a bloated white body. It was a Large Hollow, far bigger than an Ordinary Hollow. Its mask had no distinct features, only a giant maw filled with sharp teeth that loosed a low roar toward the ground.

"A Large Hollow? How did something like this suddenly appear in the middle of town?" Kujo Shūi asked, slightly puzzled.

"This is what High-Reishi Zones are like." Sakamoto's voice was calm.

"The higher the Reishi concentration, the easier it is to cross dimensions. A Large Hollow does not need much time to rip open space."

The first Hollow had not even fully emerged when two more rifts opened in the sky. Three Large Hollows appeared almost simultaneously, plunging from the air and crashing into Karakura Town's streets.

Houses collapsed, and dust billowed into the air.

The screams of pedestrians rose one after another.

But Shuichi did not look at the Hollows. His eyes remained fixed on the Reishi Armed Forces base.

The compound gates burst open, and Quincy clad in white Reishi armor rushed out. Holding white longbows, they swiftly formed ranks in the street, their arrows aimed at the rampaging Hollows.

"They're making their move," Endo said.

Shuichi watched the battlefield.

The first volley of arrows flew.

Dozens of Reishi arrows struck the Hollow's body. Reishi burst apart, white points of light flickering against its skin. Yet the Hollow merely swayed, opened the enormous mouth on its mask, and released an earth-shaking roar.

The arrows had not even pierced its skin.

Sakamoto narrowed his eyes. "They can't hurt it. Those Quincy are probably using standard Reishi armaments, and their individual Reiatsu isn't particularly strong."

Shuichi noticed it as well. The arrows fired by the Reishi Armed Forces were merely ordinary condensed Reishi constructs, limited in both power and lethality.

They might have been enough against Ordinary Hollows, but against a Large Hollow with such tough hide, they were like toothpicks poking a bull.

The Hollows began their counterattack.

One Large Hollow swung its foreclaw, sweeping across the Quincy formation.

Three people were sent flying, smashing into the wall behind them. Their Reishi armor shattered, blood spilling from the corners of their mouths. Another Quincy failed to dodge in time and was pierced through the chest by the Hollow's claw. He hung from it like a rag before being flung away.

The Reishi Armed Forces began to suffer casualties.

Yet they did not retreat.

A captain-like figure shouted something, directing the remaining Quincy to change formations. More than a dozen standard bows aimed at the same Hollow and concentrated their fire on one point.

This time, it worked.

Cracks appeared in the Hollow's skin under the continuous assault, black Reishi seeping from the wound.

The Quincy's morale surged. The arrowstorm intensified, finally tearing a massive hole through the Hollow's body.

The Hollow let out one final wail. Its body collapsed and dispersed into Reishi.

Shuichi saw that the Reishi did not scatter into the air. Instead, some force drew it upward, slowly pulling it into the sky.

"It was purified. Looks like it really is Reishi armament," Endo said flatly.

The remaining two Large Hollows seemed enraged by their companion's death and attacked at once. The Quincy had just endured a fierce battle, their spiritual power not yet fully restored and their Reiatsu equally unstable. Caught between the two Hollows, their formation began to falter.

One man was struck by a Hollow's tail and sent flying, snapping a wooden post by the roadside. Another Quincy tried to retreat, but his feet slipped and he fell to the ground. The Hollow's giant maw was already descending upon him.

Then—

A light arrow tore through the air.

Unlike any Reishi arrow fired before, that light was denser and more blazing. Blue flames curled around its shaft as it fell like a meteor from the sky.

The arrow struck the Large Hollow's mask with perfect precision.

The Hollow's body froze.

Then it began to crumble.

It was not ordinary dissipation. Starting from where the arrow had struck, the Hollow's body blackened all over like paper burned through by fire before turning into black ash. The Hollow gave a soundless scream, its body vanishing within seconds.

Not even Reishi remained.

Holy Arrow.

On the battlefield, the remaining Hollow seemed to sense the danger and turned to flee.

But a second light arrow had already arrived, piercing through the back of the Hollow's head and flying out from the front of its mask. Its body likewise turned into black ash.

Every gaze turned toward the direction from which the arrows had come.

A man stood atop a roof across the street.

He wore a black samurai outfit and black haori, dark gray hakama, a wakizashi at his waist, and straw sandals on his feet.

Most striking of all was the bow in his hand. It was a black Japanese longbow wrapped in silver-white patterns, its string still trembling faintly.

The man appeared to be around forty. His face was lean, his chin covered in short stubble, and his eyes were sharp. He lowered his bow, jumped down from the roof, and landed before the Quincy.

The captain of the Reishi Armed Forces immediately stepped forward and bowed deeply.

"Thank you, Lord Ishida."

The man known as Ishida glanced at the injured and dead Quincy, his tone indifferent. "A few Large Hollows reduced you to this?"

"My deepest apologies."

The captain lowered his head even further. "Our Reishi armaments have not yet been fully upgraded. We truly struggle against Large Hollows."

"Go ask for equipment," Ishida said.

"Yes."

Ishida said no more and turned toward the compound. The Quincy began clearing the battlefield, carrying the wounded into the courtyard and cleaning up the damaged street.

On the temple roof, Shuichi slowly leaned out from the shadows.

His gaze followed the samurai-clad man until he disappeared beyond the compound gates.

"A Quincy—and one with no small status," Sakamoto said.