Starrk gazed up at the sky, his eyes filled with confusion.
For him and Lilynette… did it really matter where they were?
So he simply said to her, "Wherever is fine."
Lilynette looked at him and understood exactly what he meant.
"Let's go together," Starrk said softly.
As long as they had each other, it didn't matter where they went or what they did.
And so, the two set off on a new journey once again.
But this time… neither of them would be alone.
Even though Starrk had suppressed some of his own power, he was still far too strong.
So strong, in fact, that even sitting still could cause nearby Hollows to die from spiritual pressure alone.
That's when a voice suddenly spoke from behind him.
"Incredible. Did you two kill all these Hollows?"
As he said that, Aizen Sōsuke stepped forward, approaching Starrk and Lilynette.
"No, they died on their own," Starrk replied, turning to look at Aizen—someone who appeared just as calm and composed as he was, yet hadn't perished from their spiritual pressure.
"You seem powerful," Starrk commented.
"Me?" Aizen smiled mysteriously and said, "I'm just looking for companions."
That one line brought joy to both Starrk and Lilynette, though they kept their cool outwardly.
"We're also searching for strong companions," they replied.
Companions strong enough to survive the spiritual pressure radiating from them—
And it was that unspoken understanding that made Starrk and Lilynette join Aizen's cause.
For them, things like justice, victory or defeat, even life and death—none of it mattered.
All they wanted… was a comrade.
—Back to the present.
Starrk's chest had been pierced by Kyoraku Shunsui's life-risking attack.
He slowly began to fall from the sky.
In his final moments, he looked toward Aizen in the distance.
"Sorry, Aizen. I lost. Looks like I won't be able to repay the favor after all. But… thank you, for giving me someone to be with," Starrk whispered.
In his heart—Aizen truly had been a companion.
But Aizen didn't even glance back at Starrk. He simply hovered above the battlefield, completely indifferent.
Kyoraku looked at Starrk's fallen body and respectfully closed his eyes.
"The moment a war begins, everyone becomes guilty. We all destroy the dreams and bonds of others to protect our own," Kyoraku said, sorrow thick in his gaze.
But he quickly snapped back to clarity.
The war… wasn't over yet.
Now that Starrk had fallen, only Halibel and Wonderweiss remained among the Espada.
Halibel was currently being pressured by a three-way assault from Hitsugaya Tōshirō, Lisa Yadōmaru, and Hiyori Sarugaki!
But Halibel was far luckier than Starrk.
Lisa and Hiyori, while close to captain-level in spiritual pressure, were still only lieutenants without Bankai.
Even as they wore their Hollow masks, they couldn't match the rapidly weakening Hitsugaya—so Halibel was still holding her own with ease.
Aizen, however, was already fed up with this one-sided battle.
Watching Gin fight Shinji, he coldly said:
"That's enough, Gin. Let's end this."
Gin smirked, knocking Shinji back before glancing toward his master.
Shinji knew Aizen was strong, but he didn't believe Aizen could end this whole war by himself.
He was wrong.
Aizen used Shunpo to instantly appear behind Halibel.
Before she could even react—Aizen drew his Zanpakutō and cleaved her in half at the waist.
Even Halibel was dumbfounded.
Hitsugaya, Lisa, and Hiyori could only stare in shock.
No one expected Aizen to strike down his own subordinate!
"This has gone on long enough. There's no point in dragging it out," Aizen said flatly, wiping his blade clean.
"I never expected that the Espada I put so much effort into creating would be weaker than me alone."
Those words ignited fury in the mortally wounded Halibel.
Clutching her bleeding abdomen, she hurled herself at Aizen.
"Bastard! Aizen!!"
She raised her massive sword and swung—
Only to realize she'd stabbed an illusion.
The real Aizen was already behind her, calmly plunging his blade through her back.
Halibel collapsed, helpless before Aizen's overwhelming power.
In her final thoughts, she reflected:
"A world without sacrifice doesn't exist. Haven't you realized yet? The world we've built with rivers of blood… is nothing more than a hell in disguise."
Now, Aizen's forces had dwindled to just the original traitors from Soul Society and the last Espada: Wonderweiss.
On the surface, with the aid of the Vizards, Soul Society had a clear advantage.
But Aizen remained unfazed.
Meanwhile—Wonderweiss was being absolutely thrashed by Mashiro Kuna!
Still mad about her pet's death, Wonderweiss had completely lost it.
He charged at Mashiro wildly.
But for the first Vizard to fully master Hollowfication—this was a joke.
Mashiro grabbed Wonderweiss's face with one hand and slammed him into the ground.
Classic Ichigo-style!
Of course, unlike the others, the mask on Mashiro's face wasn't real—it was a disguise.
She had already become a true Hollowified being—practically indistinguishable from an Arrancar!
The mask was just to keep up appearances for Soul Society.
Even so, Wonderweiss was still a special Espada engineered by Aizen.
Despite being battered like a sandbag, he kept getting up, unfazed.
Mashiro frowned. "Ugh, so annoying! Where's Ichigo? He still hasn't come back? I miss him already!"
She dodged another reckless charge and rolled her eyes.
Watching this, Kensei Muguruma didn't know what to say. This lovestruck girl was still thinking about Ichigo in the middle of battle.
Then Wonderweiss opened his mouth and fired a purple Cero!
Mashiro just scoffed.
"White Cero!"
She swung her leg like a cannon, launching a green beam of her own!
A perfect mimic of true Hollow abilities!
Her Cero obliterated Wonderweiss's and sent him flying with a flying kick.
"Ugh, I'm done. He won't die. So boring!" she muttered.
Then she used Sonído to appear behind Kensei, squatting down.
"Where's Ichigo? I'm not here for revenge—I'm here to—"
"Alright, alright. You wait here for Ichigo. I'll take care of this guy," Kensei sighed.
Mashiro was done. But someone still had to deal with Wonderweiss.
Kensei Shunpoed to Wonderweiss and caught his punch with one hand.
"Sorry, switching out," he said—then used his other hand to blast Wonderweiss through a skyscraper.
But Wonderweiss didn't even flinch.
With a dumb smile, he launched himself again—
This time, Kensei struck him with a hard right hook—but Wonderweiss didn't budge.
He just stood there grinning.
Kensei frowned. Then spun and smashed Wonderweiss away with a powerful kick.
Then he pulled out a dagger-like Zanpakutō.
The Time-Type Zanpakutō—
Just kidding. It was Tachikaze!
"Bankai! Tekken Tachikaze!"
No holding back.
Kensei's arms were wrapped in banded chains, connected behind him.
His appearance resembled his Hollow form, but now with metallic armor on his back.
"Let's go!"
He charged at Wonderweiss, the two clashing head-on!
—Meanwhile, in Hueco Mundo.
Ichigo had defeated Ulquiorra.
Under the sky dome, Rukia, Senna, Renji, Chad, and Tatsuki were fighting Rudobone, who could endlessly regenerate skeletal soldiers.
Just as they finished off Rudobone—
Yammy suddenly reappeared in front of them.
His body had grown even larger—he crushed Rudobone with a single punch!
"Ulquiorra's down? Really?" Yammy murmured in disbelief, sensing the energy above.
Furious, he smashed a wall nearby.
"I was going to clean up down here and then go help him… and you die before I can even show up?!"
Now towering before them, Yammy unleashed his Resurrección.
"Rage, Ira!"
A crimson wave of spiritual pressure swept over them, shocking everyone!
Not only that—the number '10' on Yammy's left arm began to change!
As the '1' faded—he became a giant with twelve legs and a massive tail!
And on his left arm, the number had changed to 0.
"Surprised?" he laughed. "The Espada are ranked from zero to nine—not one to ten!"
"I'm the only one whose number changes after Resurrección! Why else do you think I was Ulquiorra's friend?"
"I'm the real strongest Espada. Grimmjow? Szayel? All trash!"
With that, Yammy raised his massive fist and slammed it toward them!
Despite his size, he was frighteningly fast!
His power came from rage.
He stored energy through long sleep and meals, then released it when angry.
His punch carved a crater into Las Noches!
But Rukia and the others weren't pushovers.
Even Chad, the weakest among them, was close to captain-level!
Yammy's punch did nothing.
Renji burst through the dust, flying upward, swinging Zabimaru—
But Yammy was faster.
Before it landed, he countered with his left hand—
(End of Chapter)
[Check Out My Patreon For +20 Extra Chapters On All My Fanfics!!][www.p@treon.com/zaelum]
[+500 Power Stones = +1 Extra Chapter]
[Thank You For Your Support!]