Before Aizen's reign, the Hueco Mundo was, in name, ruled by a king—but that was purely nominal. In reality, chaos reigned supreme; when two Hollows met, they fought without mercy, devouring one another.
It wasn't until Aizen appeared and, with the Hōgyoku, began transforming Hollows into Arrancar—and established the Hueco Palace—that some semblance of order was achieved in Hueco Mundo. It was under these conditions that Starrk first came into contact with Aizen.
Starrk himself was so overwhelmingly powerful that ordinary Hollows couldn't even survive near him. His immense reiatsu, even when unintentionally emitted, would crush lesser Hollows. As a result, he led a very solitary existence—so solitary, in fact, that he eventually split his soul to create a companion to keep him company.
Then Aizen arrived and established the Hueco Palace, bringing forth countless Arrancar. Once Hollows transformed into Arrancar, they no longer needed to devour each other, and that laid the foundation for order in Hueco Mundo.
Under those circumstances, Starrk naturally executed Aizen's orders without question. As long as Aizen had not abandoned him, Starrk would never betray him.
"Tier, take them back immediately—leave this to me."
Facing a counterattack, Starrk promptly ordered Tier to withdraw their forces back to Hueco Mundo. The loss of some Arrancar was regrettable, but Tier must not be lost; as the head of the Thirty-division, she not only carried Aizen's orders but also enjoyed Starrk's support—especially since Aizen had scarcely visited Hueco Mundo before.
Of all the Ten Divisions, Starrk prized Tier the most. Among them, she was the only one who treated Arrancar and Hollows as kin and comrades. From the moment she became self-aware, she never resorted to devouring any Great Hollow—instead, she evolved solely on her own, eventually ascending to Vasto Lorde status.
Her experience proves that Hollows need not only grow stronger by devouring each other, though that path is harsh.
Later, Tier rose to become the queen of Hueco Mundo. This was due not only to the fact that many of the Ten Divisions perished in battle, but also because her own strict moral code was a critical factor.
"Alright."
Tier wasted no time. She immediately signaled for the non–Ten Division Arrancar to retreat. (Note that Tier had no authority over the Ten; the Ten Divisions have no power to command one another.) The Ten Divisions are ordered by Aizen according to their reiatsu levels—but that ordering is not a hierarchy of rank, much like the captains of the Gotei 13. You couldn't say that the captain of the Second Division outranks that of the Third Division.
The Shinigami on this side made no effort to stop the Arrancar from leaving. With trouble erupting at the Soul King's Palace, the Shinigami were more than willing to let the Arrancar depart, eager to end the battle.
Yet not everyone ceased fighting. Some battle fiends cared little for why others stopped—they simply continued their own duels. There were single combat clashes—multiple Shinigami attacking one Arrancar, and vice versa. Grimmjow dueled Ichigo, Kenpachi clashed with Yamin, and Nechieli fought against Sar Apollo; even Byakuya Kuchiki went head-to-head with Aronilo. In these cases, their compatibility with one another was notable. For instance, Nechieli and Sar Apollo were both scientists, basing their combat on scientific research. Morewood Kenpachi pursued Yamin solely because his reiatsu was extraordinarily overwhelming. As for Byakuya and Aronilo—Byakuya, ever the devoted older brother, sought vengeance for his sister; Aronilo's technique, modeled after Shiba Kaiyan's form, infuriated Rukia to no end. When he couldn't overcome his opponent, Byakuya's fury grew.
"Shall we call a truce? After all, Aizen is merely using you as pawns."
Seeing that the non–Ten Arrancar had all withdrawn, Hirako smiled and said to Starrk, "Perhaps… but even disregarding them, you Shinigami and we Hollows are natural enemies."
Starrk replied, "Perhaps. But if you're going to be our enemy, then I'm prepared to attack again." He then unleashed another volley of his infinite barrage of beams.
That response left Hirako extremely frustrated. His Zanpakutō was formidable—but it had its weaknesses. Its greatest fear was an enemy like Starrk, capable of launching mass-scale attacks.
Even if the world were turned upside down, I could simply cover every target with my attack. That is why Starrk insisted on having Tier lead the retreat; with her present, he couldn't fully unleash his technique. In a reversed world, one risks injuring one's own allies—but if there are no allies, then there's no worry.
"Oh dear, what a troublesome enemy."
"Just how did Aizen manage to infiltrate the Soul King's Palace?"
While Hirako led his masked army against Starrk, Urahara's brow furrowed deeply. He couldn't fathom how Aizen had entered the Soul King's Palace without a Royal Key. According to Urahara's original plan, Aizen and I were meant to outmaneuver each other—I knew you planned to fabricate a Royal Key using Karakura Town, so the Soul Society created a fake Karakura Town. Aizen, aware of Urahara's scheme, seized the opportunity to eliminate Captain Yamamoto so that he wouldn't interfere with his entry into the Soul King's Palace. In essence, both sides were playing chess—and it all came down to who held the upper hand. But now, halfway through the game, Aizen suddenly flipped the board and refused to play.
"Right now, we shouldn't be concerned with how he entered the Soul King's Palace; we must stop him at all costs. If an SOS signal is sent from above, it will prove they can no longer hold him off."
Although it was hard to believe—after all, the Zero Division, even if it consisted of only five members, possessed strength comparable to the entire Gotei 13—it is astonishing that they couldn't defeat Aizen. Yet, that is the undeniable reality.
"Very well, Captain Yamamoto—now that you know the situation, we must give it our all to stop Aizen."
Captain Yamamoto said no more than that, and immediately ordered his men to open the interdimensional gate and rush toward the Soul Society.
"Spiritual vitality and differentiation… these fools dare to toy with souls. But perhaps such experimentation is only possible in this extraordinary world."
From what I gleaned from Captain Kirio and Lieutenant Tenjirō, I soon acquired the insights I desired. Their understanding of soul differentiation was invaluable. For example, regarding the soul split of Espada Number Ten, Ko Yatai Starrk—his deputy was merely a division of his soul. I held a certain fondness for Starrk, not only because of his personality but also because of his very name.
It was for that reason that I confided in him about certain matters. I explained that once Aizen jumped out of this world, the management of Hueco Mundo would be left solely to the Arrancar. This faux battle between Shinigami and Arrancar in the World of the Living, in a way, cleared out several dangerous Arrancar.
Besides Starrk, among the Ten Divisions there was another individual who possessed a split soul—Eighty Divisions' Sar Apollo. He was among the original Ten, occupying position Zero (which is now Yamin's slot).
He later became known as Number Eight because he split himself. His motive for splitting was quite different from Starrk's—it was for research. He was, in many ways, a scientific maniac. Even if his power diminished, he still split himself.
At his peak, in a fight against Nechieli, it was hard to say who would win. From the perspective of scientific research, he was indeed worthy of respect.
"Come to think of it, a Zanpakutō, in some ways, is also a manifestation of a split soul."
Starrk's own split of his deputy, and Morewood Kenpachi's splitting off a vice-captain—although most Zanpakutō manifest as blades, many can take on human forms. In the Zanpakutō Anecdotes, such cases are well-documented.
Those whose Zanpakutō take on human form and share their gender with their wielder are common enough—but some are of the opposite gender. That is, indeed, quite fascinating.
"Soon, the Zero Division will cease to exist. You'd better start planning your next move."
With that, I left the heads of two individuals behind in Buta Hall and quickly scavenged the hall, gathering a trove of priceless provisions.
"Blue… Aizen's reiatsu has dissipated. Does that mean the outcome has already been decided? It's been quite some time—perhaps it's time to end this, before Urahara and the others arrive."
I have tremendous faith in Urahara's ingenuity. Even if it takes him seventy-two barriers to resolve things, I'm sure he will find a way to fix it and eventually reach the Soul King's Palace.
I must admit, the Soul King's Palace sounds formidable—its defenses are so tight that it's not a matter of whether people come, but whether they even want to.
"Looks like you lost, Aizen."
In the plaza before the Soul King's Palace—now scarred with craters from the battle between Aizen and Ichibee Hyosube—the buildings had been nearly obliterated. No wonder the monk had used "Hidden" to conceal the Soul King's Palace earlier; he must have feared that the clash would spill over.
"This sense of powerlessness—who would have thought I'd get another chance to feel it?"
Aizen, lying on the ground, showed no hint of despair. Instead, he appeared almost nostalgic, as though reminiscing about his youth. His origins were not unlike those of Rukia, Renji, or Morewood Kenpachi—they were all born on the streets of the Soul Society. Like Morewood Kenpachi, Aizen had inadvertently come into possession of a lightly struck Zanpakutō, and from that moment, he became unstoppable.
"Black Ant,"
Even as Aizen lay defeated, two dark, ominous characters—black characters—glimmered on his body. "Black Ant"—it was this word that signaled Aizen's ultimate collapse, a power derived from the rules of Ichibee Hyosube's domain. Even in the original story, when Yhwach faced that power, he suffered greatly—only by virtue of his omniscience and omnipotence was he able to turn the tide at last.
"Time's nearly up. It's time to finish you, Black Ant."
Ichibee Hyosube, upon noticing my arrival, showed no surprise. With a swift swing of his Zanpakutō, he activated his Bankai—no, as the monk would say, his "true form."
"Indeed, time's nearly up."
Ichibee Hyosube wished to end things quickly. I, too, was eager for a swift conclusion. The moment I saw him move, my right hand produced the Shen Nong Tripod, which I immediately used to block the monk's Bankai.
To counter the monk's Bankai, there were two options. One was to have reiatsu far surpassing his—if your reiatsu is high enough, nothing can withstand it. But achieving that against Ichibee Hyosube was nearly impossible.
The only other option was to counter rule with rule—much like how I had countered Aizen's Mirror Flower, Water Moon. In my case, I had a method: by using the Rinnegan. In illusion arts, resistance is key. Is that why Hirako sensed something off about Aizen? His Zanpakutō, also of the illusion type, possessed a certain resistance to Mirror Flower, Water Moon. While it couldn't free him from its influence, it could at least detect irregularities.
Yhwach, on the other hand, countered the monk's Bankai with his all-seeing, omniscient eye. I may not have that ability, but I do have the Shen Nong Tripod. In terms of inherent stature, the monk's Bankai was no match for the Shen Nong Tripod.
"What's your identity?"
Initially, the monk had no interest in me, thinking I was just one of Aizen's lackeys in the Ichibee Hyosube Corps. But after his Bankai failed to affect me, his expression changed.
"Your slayer," I declared, immediately forming a seal. In an instant, dozens of my shadow clones—my Ekken Form—emerged from behind me. When facing the monk, I unleashed everything.
"Room: Slaughterhouse!"
Dissatisfied with my clones, I then activated my Surgical Fruit's spatial transposition ability, swapping the positions of the monk and the fallen Aizen. Simultaneously, each of my clones manifested red energy in both hands; countless deep-red chains descended from above. In a blink, the monk was encircled by chains—the Setorak Crimson Shackles.
They say a single impressive move can rule the world. Naruto once conquered battles with a single Rasengan; Ichigo wielded the Heavenly Lock of the Moon. As for me, I combined the magic of the Kamataiji with my Surgical Fruit's spatial transposition.
The spatial transposition ability of the Surgical Fruit is the perfect means of evasion when one isn't entirely sure—Trafalgar Law once used it to escape or break through enemy lines. Truly, the best application of it is like Sasuke's Chidori: redirecting your enemy to a predetermined spot.
That said, perhaps it is also because I lacked my shadow clones' backup that I haven't fully developed its potential.
When I saw Ichibee Hyosube bound by chains, I immediately hoisted the Shen Nong Tripod and leapt into midair, then brought it down heavily from above.
Boom!
The sheer force of that cauldron shook the entire Soul King's Palace. As for the monk, the blow rendered him a blood-soaked, mangled mess. Frankly, his power was exactly as expected; had anyone else received such a blow, they'd have been reduced to scattered bones.
Yet the monk was incredibly resilient—even after that strike, he let out no anguished cry.
"I know you fear no death. Within the Soul King's Palace, even if you die, you can be revived. But if you don't truly die, then you cannot be revived."
In truth, if that strike had killed the monk outright, I could have called his name to resurrect him. A revived monk would be in a weakened state, making him easier to defeat. But since he survived, that left me even more curious.
I wanted to see if, outside the confines of the Soul King's Palace—or in another world—if I could kill the monk, would I still be able to revive him by calling his name?
Boom.
Just as I was about to strike again, the Soul King's Palace began to tremble violently—a tremor much greater than before, as if someone were attacking the palace from the outside.
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