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Moyu didn't even have time to respond before a blinding green light exploded before his eyes and a violent impact struck his chest with enough force to collapse his breath, crush his ribs, and eject him from the ground in a blur that left nothing but shattered air behind. His body slammed through the air, crashing backward into the space behind him like a cannonball, completely helpless to the overwhelming power behind the blow.
A thunderous roar followed an instant later, shaking the structure to its foundation as the entire warehouse exploded outward in a storm of flying debris. Steel beams crumpled like paper, walls split open, and the sky turned gray with ash and dust as half the district collapsed under the blast. In the span of seconds, Moyu's temporary safe house was obliterated—razed down to smoking rubble—all because of the girl who, only moments ago, had joyfully embraced him.
Nilu, having fully regained her Espada-level power, had completely lost awareness of how terrifying her destructive capability now was. She had simply wanted to share her happiness, her gratitude for regaining her memories, but in that single reckless tackle, she had nearly sent Moyu to the next life. Her full-speed, full-weight, full-power collision had hit him with the same force as an Arrancar's all-out blow—and it nearly caved his entire chest in.
The first thing Moyu felt was the dull, sickening crack of ribs shattering under the pressure; the second was the ache deep in his lungs from the internal damage. There was no question—it was the worst single strike he had taken in recent memory. From the sidelines, Sui-Feng's eyes locked onto the impact site, her pupils narrowing sharply at the destructive wave. Without waiting to analyze it further, she immediately assumed an enemy attack and vanished into Shunpo.
"Moyu!"
Her voice echoed out as she bolted through the smoke, aiming toward the scattered trace of his spiritual pressure. When she arrived, she barely caught the moment a bruised arm pushed out from beneath a pile of stone, fingers trembling as they moved a chunk of collapsed rubble aside.
Coughing roughly through grit and blood, Moyu slowly pulled himself up from beneath the debris, his face pale and strained but still calm enough to offer a dry complaint.
"Nilu... let go. If you'd hugged me any harder, I'd have been giving instructions to hell butterflies right now."
What shocked him even more than the pain was the system's mechanical voice chiming clearly in his head, as if this near-death moment was a training opportunity.
[Your body feels fragile due to the heavy blow. Triggering adaptive reinforcement. Strengthening begins.]
He blinked through the pain, stunned not by his injuries but by the sensation underneath—his body was healing itself. Not through Kaidō. Not through any external technique. It was slow, almost imperceptible, but the pain was already receding. A Shinigami's body—his body—was changing, evolving toward something more durable, more Hollow-like.
This wasn't supposed to happen. Shinigami lacked the regenerative ability of Hollows; even the most durable captains required Kaidō to recover from significant damage. But now, Moyu could feel the slow crawl of muscle repairing, organs shifting back into place, bones beginning to reset. Subtle, but very real. Like cracks being smoothed over from within.
If this continued to accumulate over time—if every devastating blow forced him to grow stronger—then perhaps even a Shinigami like him could acquire traits like Hierro or High-Speed Regeneration, maybe even the enhanced reflexes that made Espada combat so dangerous. For once, he wasn't sure if he should laugh or be alarmed.
Maybe it wasn't a total loss after all.
Before he could entertain the thought further, a soft voice pulled him back.
"Thanks to Moyu... I was able to return."
Nilu, despite having reverted to her younger form, remained deeply attached to his presence. She leaned forward, cheek brushing against his chest as if to listen to his heartbeat, the corners of her lips tugging upward in a rare and quiet smile.
"Back in the Forest of Menos... it was your spiritual pressure that kept me safe. You brought me here. You protected me... and now I want to repay that."
With sudden resolve, she stood upright.
But with her transformation unstable, her body had grown while her clothing had not. The long blue robe that once covered her now hung like a tattered sash, barely shielding her body from view. Her sudden rise revealed pale skin beneath damaged fabric, an accidental display that left Moyu's eyes momentarily dazzled by more than just the sunlight.
Before he could speak, Nilu had already stepped in front of him protectively, her small Zanpakutō drawn and pointed toward Sui-Feng with childlike determination.
"You cruel woman. I won't let you hurt Moyu."
Sui-Feng blinked in confusion. Her stance faltered. She had prepared for a threat, but what stood before her was a girl... protecting him?
And more importantly—why was she being called the cruel one?
Even Moyu was caught off guard. But before he could call her back, Nilu turned and smiled sweetly at him. A second later, she vanished again.
The short sword slashed downward with explosive force.
Clang—!
Sui-Feng barely had time to react, her palm raised just in time for Suzumebachi to absorb the strike. The ground cracked beneath her feet as the force of the impact hurled her backward like a ragdoll, plowing a trench in the earth until she finally came to a skidding halt hundreds of meters away.
The shock was clear in her eyes. That level of power—compressed in one hit—had completely overwhelmed her. One clash, and she had already lost the advantage. Even if she activated Shunkō now, she wasn't confident she'd walk away from a full exchange.
But just as Nilu charged forward again, Moyu's voice rang out with calm authority.
"Stop, Neliel."
Nilu's body halted mid-air as if struck by Kido, and with a graceful spin she dropped to one knee, posture flawless, blade lowered in restraint.
"Sui-Feng isn't an enemy."
Moyu hovered forward, descending from the sky as green Kaidō light emanated from his palm. Though his body had begun healing on its own, it would still take time. Kaidō was still faster.
He floated down between them, calmly dissipating the hostility in the air.
"It was just a misunderstanding."
Seeing his calm figure emerge from the wreckage, Sui-Feng relaxed instinctively. She hadn't realized it until now, but in his presence, her battle stance had slowly lowered on its own. Somehow, she trusted him. Without thinking. Without proof.
Moyu looked between the two women and sighed.
"This is getting ridiculous. Let's sit down."
He glanced behind him. The warehouse was gone. Flattened. A crater remained in its place.
Well, that ended the conversation venue.
He led them to a nearby rooftop, its view wide and wind-exposed.
He took Nilu's hand, ready to formally introduce her, but a puff of smoke rose from her body, and a moment later, her height shrank, her eyes widened in surprise, and she glanced at her hands.
"Nilu changed back again."
Moyu studied her spiritual pressure carefully. It was as he suspected—unstable. Her recent growth had been forced, and now the overfilled energy was causing her form to flicker between child and adult.
"Don't worry," he said, brushing her green hair. "When your Reiatsu stabilizes, you'll be able to shift forms freely."
Nilu snuggled into his side, smiling with pure contentment.
"Nilu likes it better this way. I can stay in Moyu's arms."
Something about the way she said it made Sui-Feng's gaze sharpen ever so slightly. Jealousy crept in before she could understand why.
Moyu glanced toward her, voice low but steady.
"Her name is Nilu. I brought her back from Hueco Mundo. You've probably seen the recent surge of Hollow activity. Karakura Town's purification numbers are high, but something deeper is going on. I went to investigate the source... and I found her. She was being hunted. I couldn't leave her."
He didn't explain everything. Some truths were too dangerous to speak aloud—especially to someone like Sui-Feng. She was a captain, yes, but also the head of stealth, interrogation, and assassination. She could read a heartbeat, a blink, a moment of hesitation like an open book.
Her eyes narrowed, watching every shift in his body.
But to her surprise, no lie came out.
After a beat of silence, she nodded and said coldly:
"I understand. Nilu is outside my current orders."
She hesitated, then added more quietly:
"And I won't interfere... with you and Rangiku."
Moyu nearly choked.
"What are you even talking about? There's nothing between me and that sake-soaked big-chested mess!"
But Sui-Feng wasn't done.
"Then tell me... where is Shihōin Yoruichi?"
Moyu froze.
Sui-Feng leaned in, her tone sharpening.
"Not long ago, I found a few black cat hairs in the warehouse. I know they were hers."
He stared at her in shock. She could track a person by cat hair?
She stepped closer, practically pressing into Nilu to get to him. Her nose twitched slightly. Her expression darkened.
"I knew it. You reek of women... but Yoruichi's scent is unmistakable."
Moyu couldn't believe it. This woman was a living detector.
"Okay, that's enough," he said, gently pushing her back. "You and Nilu together are too much."
Embarrassed, Sui-Feng backed off immediately.
Moyu sighed, then said calmly:
"She's not hiding because of me. Yoruichi has her own mission, something far more important than any personal reunion. Her actions concern the safety of the Soul Society—and the Three Realms. I can't reveal her location."
Sui-Feng's gaze lingered on him, her sharp intuition parsing every inflection, every breath, every subtle shift in his expression, searching for even the smallest inconsistency that might betray a lie—but no matter how deeply she looked, there was nothing to grasp, nothing false to expose, only the steady weight of truth pressing back against her scrutiny. Yet despite that clarity, a shadow passed through her eyes, the silent ache of someone who had hoped for a different answer and was already mourning its absence.
"I want to help," she said at last, her voice low and stripped of its usual authority, a quiet plea leaking through the cracks of pride and discipline that had held firm until now.
Moyu didn't hesitate, and the chill in his voice sliced through the air with the finality of a drawn blade, his words sharp and merciless in their precision as he stepped toward her without softening his tone or gaze.
"You failed to withstand even a single strike from Nilu, and yet you speak of helping Yoruichi as if good intentions could bridge the abyss that separates you from the battlefield she walks."
Her body tensed, but her spirit faltered; the fire in her eyes flickered and dimmed beneath the weight of what she already knew but had refused to name.
"Weakness," Moyu continued, his tone calm yet crushing in its certainty, "is the original sin that cannot be forgiven by sentiment or memory."
"She didn't vanish simply because duty called her elsewhere; she disappeared because remaining by your side would have painted a target on your back, because dragging you into her war would have meant your death, not her safety."
"And for someone like her, whose resolve is forged in solitude and silence, that risk was unacceptable."
His gaze remained locked on hers, steady and unflinching, leaving no space for denial to grow.
"So tell me, Sui-Feng—do you understand now why she left you behind?"
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