In another chamber, Uryū and Chad had encountered an Arrancar—Number 105, Sandarwicchi!
She, too, was a former Espada, one of the ten who had been forced out of their ranking.
If Grimmjōw hadn't had his arm healed by Orihime, maybe he would've ended up with a three-digit number too.
Of course, Pesche and Dondochakka also showed up in the room to assist Uryū and Chad.
As for the battle…
Let's just say it got a little too weird, so we won't show that part here…
Let's not risk getting banned…
Tatsuki, on the other hand, also faced an Arrancar above number 100. Fittingly, her opponent was a grizzled old man who specialized in close-quarters combat.
—
Back to Ichigo.
After easily defeating Dordoni, Ichigo continued deeper into Las Noches with Nel on his back.
As he entered a vast hall, he suddenly sensed a familiar spiritual pressure nearby.
Though it was familiar, that didn't mean it was friendly.
"This spiritual pressure… Ulquiorra?" Ichigo muttered, frowning.
But he didn't move to intercept it.
He knew very clearly—this mission wasn't about fighting. He was here for Orihime. Fighting was not the priority this time.
So even though Ulquiorra was nearby, Ichigo ignored him and pressed on. After all, he still didn't know Ulquiorra was the one who took Orihime.
Sensing Ichigo's energy moving away, Ulquiorra chose to intercept.
He appeared ahead of Ichigo, calmly blocking the way, and spoke:
"Kurosaki Ichigo. You're not even going to take a look?"
Ichigo said nothing, continuing toward the interior with Nel on his back.
Ulquiorra, unfazed, coldly provoked, "You probably don't know this yet… but it was I who brought Inoue Orihime to Hueco Mundo."
That did it.
Ichigo's rage exploded instantly.
He threw Nel to a safe spot behind him and, without a word, swung his zanpakutō straight at Ulquiorra's head!
Ulquiorra immediately sensed the overwhelming pressure and didn't dare take the hit lightly—he quickly drew his zanpakutō to block.
But he hadn't expected Ichigo's fury to carry so much power.
The blow sent Ulquiorra flying, crashing through the palace columns.
When the dust settled, Ulquiorra stood up—expression unchanged—but his clothes were coated in dust.
That single blow hadn't injured him much, but Ichigo's rage hadn't cooled in the slightest.
"You…!" Ichigo's fury was boiling over.
He drew Muramasa from his waist—now holding two blades—and pointed them at Ulquiorra.
Ulquiorra's eyes narrowed slightly. "Two swords? Kurosaki Ichigo, I recall you only having one…"
"Then ask your dear Lord Aizen," Ichigo replied coldly. "He knows how powerful I am with two blades."
But Ulquiorra—void of emotion—was unaffected by the sarcasm.
"Getsuga… Tenshō!"
Ichigo didn't wait for more small talk.
He swung both blades, sending a massive wave of blue energy crashing toward Ulquiorra.
At first, Ulquiorra tried to block it with just his right hand—but as the attack neared, he realized the pressure was far too great.
Even when he brought up his second hand, it was too late.
The blue Getsuga Tenshō slammed into him and blasted him through the walls.
Ichigo quickly scooped Nel back onto his back and gave chase.
As the Getsuga faded, Ulquiorra reappeared—his upper sleeves completely incinerated, and both his arms scorched as if burned by intense heat.
Yet he stood as if nothing had happened.
Without flinching, Ulquiorra severed his scorched arm, then instantly regenerated it. He did the same for the other.
This shocked Ichigo.
He knew high-level Hollows had the ability to regenerate—but most gave it up in pursuit of even greater power.
And yet, Ulquiorra had retained that ability and still held overwhelming strength.
Ulquiorra stepped forward, eyes cold. "You struck me once. Now I'll return the favor."
He raised his blade, and at its tip, condensed a green-and-black sphere of rotating spiritual energy.
A cero—but one like Ichigo had never seen before.
Even for someone as powerful as Ichigo, this cero was terrifying.
Had it hit someone else in his squad, they'd have been seriously injured—or worse.
But this was Ichigo.
"A cero, huh? Let's see if I can take it."
"Roar, Zangetsu!"
Blue energy erupted from Ichigo's body as the blast struck.
Green-black light clashed against his blue spiritual pressure, and for a moment, the entire palace rumbled.
But Ichigo stood his ground—his reiryoku alone fending off the blast.
Ulquiorra, for the first time, widened his eyes slightly.
He couldn't understand what he was feeling… but something about it startled him.
Ichigo rested Zangetsu on his shoulder and pointed Muramasa at Ulquiorra.
"Nice move," he smirked. "But it doesn't work on me."
Ulquiorra landed before him, staring.
"How did you do that?"
Ichigo laughed coldly. "How? I just decided to, and I did it."
Such arrogance didn't faze Ulquiorra—but strangely, he nodded… as if in approval.
Ichigo then asked, "With that power of yours… are you the strongest of the Espada? If I beat you, does that mean I can storm straight into the palace?"
Ulquiorra said nothing.
Instead, he silently opened his coat, revealing a number on his chest: 4.
Ichigo's heart sank. "Number four… that means… there are three more stronger than you."
He wasn't worried for himself. At his current strength, not even Aizen himself would have an easy time with him.
But the others…
Rukia and Senna could handle themselves—they had Bankai. They could stall for time.
But the rest… that was another story.
If it were Byakuya instead of Renji, Ichigo wouldn't be worried.
But it was Renji.
And Renji… well, let's just say, struggling with lower-ranked Arrancar was already a thing for him.
If he ran into a top Espada—he'd be toast.
(Renji: You really think that highly of me? Honestly, even a mid-tier Espada could probably wreck me…)
Not to mention Tatsuki, Uryū, or Chad…
Seeing Ichigo's face darken, Ulquiorra asked, "What's wrong? Surprised by my ranking? Or are you afraid you're not strong enough?"
That line nearly made Ichigo laugh. Ulquiorra had no concept of "comrades"—no wonder he couldn't understand.
—
Meanwhile, elsewhere in Las Noches.
BOOM!
The wall of Orihime's room exploded.
Grimmjōw's cocky voice rang through the dust. "Woman from the World of the Living—Inoue Orihime, right? Come with me. I've got a fight with Kurosaki Ichigo to settle!"
He stepped through the hole, surprisingly polite.
Say what you will, Grimmjōw was the type to repay favors.
Orihime had healed his arm—even if just to impress Aizen, it was still a debt he intended to honor.
Seeing him appear, Orihime froze for a second—but when she heard he was going to find Ichigo, she quickly nodded.
Deep down, she wanted Ichigo to save her, too.
(Note from the author: I cut parts from the manga and anime here. They were… gross. People always end up flaming Orihime after this part. If a scene needs to be "analyzed" just to be watchable—that's on the writer, not the audience. This is a shōnen manga, not a detective novel!)
—
Back to the fight.
As Ulquiorra was getting pushed back by Ichigo, Grimmjōw suddenly appeared, mocking:
"What's wrong, Ulquiorra? Getting your ass kicked by a Shinigami?"
Ulquiorra dodged Ichigo's next strike and sonído'd into the air.
"…Grimmjōw? What are you doing here?"
"Ichigo!!" Orihime cried out, running to him.
Ichigo instinctively caught her with one hand. "Are you okay, Inoue?"
Seeing that he wasn't injured, Orihime relaxed. But then—
Nel suddenly popped out from behind Ichigo and wedged herself between him and Orihime, staring Orihime down with hostility.
"You're one of Ichigo's important friends, huh?"
Orihime blinked at the little Arrancar, then looked back at Ichigo.
"My friend, Nel. She helped us get into Las Noches," Ichigo explained.
But clearly, Nel didn't like Orihime much… how a child this small could be that jealous was anyone's guess.
While Ichigo and Orihime caught up, tension was boiling between Ulquiorra and Grimmjōw.
"Grimmjōw, do you even know what you're doing? You've just brought someone Lord Aizen personally requested."
"Lord Aizen, Lord Aizen! When did you turn into that Shinigami's lapdog?" Grimmjōw sneered.
"We're Hollows. He's a Shinigami! Don't tell me you're just going to obey him forever."
"I know that Lord Aizen is more powerful. And he created the Espada."
Ulquiorra's words didn't move Grimmjōw one bit.
"Whatever," Grimmjōw scoffed. "I'm here to fight Kurosaki Ichigo. Orihime healed my arm—this is me repaying that debt."
"Oh? Then don't blame me for dragging you to Lord Aizen afterward," Ulquiorra said, now ready to attack him.
(Seems like someone's mad they couldn't beat Ichigo…)
"Hmph. Go ahead and try. Honestly, I've had enough of your face. Maybe I should be the Fourth Espada instead!"
With that, they clashed.
Ichigo and the others just stood there, dumbfounded.
"...Why are those two fighting each other now?" Ichigo muttered.
Orihime quickly explained, "Grimmjōw wants to fight you. I healed his arm before, so to return the favor… he brought me to you."
Ichigo blinked in confusion, but shrugged. "Well… at least the goal's accomplished."
"Then let's go," he said, "We'll regroup with the others and head back to the real world."
"Okay!" Orihime nodded eagerly. There was no way she'd say no to that.
But in just a few short moments, the battle between Grimmjōw and Ulquiorra had ended.
Well, not so much "ended" as… cheated.
Grimmjōw had sealed Ulquiorra away using Negación—a material created by Aizen from the Hōgyoku that could exile spirits to another dimension!
Ulquiorra hadn't expected Grimmjōw to cheese the fight like that.
To a normal Hollow, Negación was a forever prison.
But to an Espada, it could only hold them for a few hours at best.
Still—mission accomplished.
With Ulquiorra sealed, Grimmjōw landed in front of Ichigo and Orihime.
"No more interference, Kurosaki Ichigo!"
(End of Chapter)
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