High-Reishi Zone

A few days later

The Seireitei lay shrouded in a thin morning mist. Reishi particles drifted slowly through the air, refracting a faint glow.

Hurried footsteps echoed through the corridors of the First Division Barracks. Okiba Genshirō emerged from the document room with a file in hand and nodded to Ukai as he approached. They passed each other without 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 returned from every division each day. Sakaki was run ragged handling logistical dispatches. 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 him a muffled greeting. "Morning."

"Morning," Shuichi replied.

Endo was one of the most experienced field operatives, 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 vice-captain is looking for us. Said we've got a mission," Endo said after swallowing a mouthful of rice ball.

"How many?"

"You, me, Sakamoto, and the newcomer."

Shuichi nodded. Kujo Shūi, the female Soul Reaper who had joined the First Division not long ago. Shuichi did not know much about her, only that she handled field assignments, that her Zanpakutō had yet to achieve Shikai, and that she 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 crossed and a calm expression. He was also a veteran First Division field operative. 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 newcomer isn't here yet."

Just then, footsteps sounded at the far end of the corridor. Kujo Shūi approached briskly in a standard black uniform, the Asauchi at her waist swaying lightly with every step. There was little expression on her face. She looked neither nervous nor relaxed, merely calm in a way that was impossible to read.

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

"Let's go in."

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

Chojiro Sasakibe was already standing inside.

A map was spread across the long table before him, with several documents beside it. Their edges were slightly curled, clearly having been read many times. Sasakibe looked up, his gaze passing over each of their faces.

"Everyone's here."

Sasakibe spoke quietly, but clearly. "Then let's get straight to the mission."

He pointed to a spot 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, "It is not yet a major city, only a relatively prosperous town, but the density of Reishi gathering there has already drawn attention from multiple parties. Our intelligence indicates that the Quincy have established a Reishi Armed Forces stronghold there."

"How large is the stronghold?" Sakamoto asked.

"Intelligence is limited."

Sasakibe said, "We estimate that several dozen Reishi Armed Forces members are stationed there. Their exact deployment and equipment remain unclear. However, High-Reishi Zones are key Quincy defensive areas, so we cannot rule out the possibility that a captain-class Quincy is stationed there."

Endo gave a soft snort. "Captain-class? Another one like the Sternritter?"

"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 already approved the support plan. If you encounter a situation you cannot handle, request assistance immediately. Do not force yourselves."

Shuichi nodded.

Sasakibe continued, "Your mission is to infiltrate Karakura Town, scout the Quincy stronghold's precise location, scale, and deployment, then eliminate it. Prioritize destroying the Reishi Armed Forces' combat personnel. If you encounter a captain-class Quincy, prioritize your own survival and wait for Second Division support."

"Understood," Sakamoto said.

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

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

"Now."

Sasakibe looked at 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 faintly in the air. Fine Reishi particles constantly scattered from its edges before reforming. Members of the Kidō Corps maintaining the Senkaimon stood nearby, their hands held in seals, a thin sheen of sweat on their foreheads.

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

Sasakibe said, "You'll arrive in a forest. It is relatively concealed and unlikely to be noticed by the Quincy. Assess the situation on arrival and act according to plan."

Shuichi stood before the Senkaimon, feeling the Reishi aura spilling from the curtain of light. It was an unfamiliar sensation.

He gripped the Zanpakutō at his waist.

"Let's go," Shuichi said.

Sakamoto entered the Senkaimon first, his figure vanishing into the white light. Endo followed close behind, then Kujo Shūi.

Shuichi gave Chojiro Sasakibe one final look and nodded.

Sasakibe said nothing, merely dipping his head slightly.

Shuichi turned and stepped into the light.

White light swallowed him.

His vision first went blank, then quickly returned. The sensation beneath his feet changed from stone slabs to dirt. The distinctive Reishi scent of the Seireitei was replaced by another aura, denser, more chaotic, and more restless.

Shuichi opened his eyes.

They stood in a forest.

Sunlight filtered through gaps in the leaves, scattering mottled shadows across the ground. In the distance, they could see the outlines of houses and smoke rising from chimneys. The occasional birdsong drifted down from the canopy. Everything looked peaceful and ordinary.

Sakamoto crouched and pinched up a bit of soil. "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, silently surveying the surroundings with one hand resting on the Asauchi at her waist.

Shuichi looked around and slowly spread his Reiatsu, sensing the auras in the distance.

Karakura Town lay ahead.

The mission had begun.

Karakura Town was livelier than Shuichi had imagined.

The streets teemed with people. Vendors' cries, children's laughter, and the clatter of hooves against stone roads mingled into the bustling scene unique to the World of the Living.

The pedestrians were completely unaware of the high concentration of Reishi filling the air. They had no idea that, in this same world, another group was using bows and arrows to protect this land—or rather, occupy it.

Shuichi and the others hid atop the roof of a temple, observing the town from above. Kujo Shūi crouched at the edge of the eaves, her gaze fixed on a courtyard to the southeast. Dense Reishi signatures gathered there, with more than twenty Reiatsu signatures moving slowly within.

"That courtyard should be the stronghold."

Sakamoto spoke softly.

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

"Twenty-three," Kujo Shūi said, giving the exact number.

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

Shuichi was about to speak 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 black rift split open above the town. It was a Hollow's passage, but far larger than an ordinary one.

"Fall back!" Shuichi growled.

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

The passage tore wider. A massive claw reached out from the rift, followed by a bloated white body. It was a Large Hollow, far bigger than ordinary Hollows. Its mask had no features at all, only a huge mouth packed with sharp teeth as it released a deep roar toward the ground.

"A Large Hollow? Why would something of this level suddenly appear in the center of town?" Kujo Shūi sounded slightly puzzled.

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

"The higher the Reishi concentration, the easier it is to cross over. A Large Hollow does not need much time to tear through space."

Before the first Hollow had fully emerged, two more rifts opened in the sky. Three Large Hollows appeared almost at once, plunging from the air and crashing into the streets of Karakura Town.

Buildings collapsed, and dust billowed into the air.

Screams rose one after another from the pedestrians.

But Shuichi was not looking at the Hollows. His gaze was fixed on the Reishi Armed Forces stronghold.

The courtyard 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 Hollows' bodies. Reishi burst apart, white sparks flickering across their skin. Yet one Hollow merely shook its body, opened the enormous mouth in its mask, and let out a deafening roar.

The arrows had not pierced its skin at all.

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

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

They might have been enough against ordinary Hollows, but against Large Hollows with hides this tough, they were like toothpicks poking a bull.

The Hollows began to retaliate.

One Large Hollow swung its foreclaw, sweeping through 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 taking casualties.

But they did not retreat.

A man who looked like a captain shouted something, directing the remaining Quincy to change formation. More than a dozen standard bows aimed at the same Hollow at once, concentrating their fire on a single spot.

This time, it worked.

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

The Quincy's morale surged. Their arrow volleys grew denser until they finally tore a massive hole through the Hollow's body.

The Hollow gave one final wail, its body collapsing and dispersing into Reishi.

Shuichi saw that the Reishi did not scatter into the air. Instead, it was drawn upward by some force, slowly rising into the sky.

"It was purified. Looks like they really are Reishi armaments," Endo said flatly.

The remaining two Large Hollows seemed enraged by their companion's death and attacked together. The Quincy had just endured a hard battle, their spiritual power not yet fully recovered and their Reiatsu equally unstable. Faced with the pincer attack of two Hollows, their formation began to falter.

One man was struck by a Hollow's tail and sent flying into a wooden post by the roadside, snapping it in two. Another Quincy tried to retreat, but his foot slipped and he fell to the ground. The Hollow's enormous mouth was already closing in on him.

Then—

An arrow of light tore through the air.

Unlike any Reishi arrow before it, this light was denser and fiercer. Blue flames coiled around its shaft as it descended like a meteor.

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

The Hollow's body froze.

Then it began to collapse.

It did not disperse normally. Starting from the point where the arrow had struck, its body blackened as though burned through like paper, then turned to black ash. The Hollow let out a soundless scream, its body vanishing into nothingness within seconds.

Not even Reishi remained.

Holy Arrow.

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

But the second arrow of light was already coming. It pierced through the back of the Hollow's head and burst from the front of its mask. Its body likewise turned to black ash.

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

A man stood on a rooftop across the street.

He wore black samurai garments and a black haori, with dark gray hakama. A wakizashi hung at his waist, and straw sandals were on his feet.

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

The man appeared to be around forty. His face was lean, short stubble covered his chin, and his eyes were sharp. He put away his bow, leaped from the rooftop, and landed before the Quincy.

The captain of the Reishi Armed Forces immediately approached him and bowed deeply.

"Thank you, Lord Ishida."

The man called Ishida glanced over the injured and dead Quincy, his tone indifferent. "A few Large Hollows did this much damage to you?"

"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 someone for equipment," Ishida said.

"Yes."

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

On the temple rooftop, Shuichi slowly emerged from the shadows.

His gaze had remained on the man in samurai attire until the man disappeared behind the courtyard gates.

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