After the sun sank into pitch-black, the houses sank into the earth, and the distant ocean became nothing more than a wavy-line backdrop.
The entire world turned gray—dim, colorless, silent.
"Oh~ Looks like an interesting ability. Is this a space you created?" Entetsu Kumoi bared his teeth in a grin.
He showed not the slightest tension or surprise at being dragged into an unfamiliar space by Yushima Ōko.
"Your ability—I've already figured it out," Yushima Ōko said as he appeared between Entetsu Kumoi and Kisaragi Shūsuke, Sumitsukigasa in hand. "You activate it through those 'markers' whose shapes you call out, right?
"And from what I've observed, you can't start by calling out a marker that's too close to an opponent's body. There has to be a step-by-step process."
"Tsk tsk tsk, sharp eyes, young Shinigami~" Entetsu Kumoi praised, lightly tapping the short-mace-shaped Zanpakutō against his left palm.
"As expected. In the Hirugetsu Class that Lord Ranpo founded, my observation score was always top-tier!" Even with an enemy in front of him, Yushima Ōko couldn't help but boast.
"But just being observant doesn't earn you a prize, young Shinigami!
Nagabō (Long Rod)!"
Entetsu Kumoi had seen all kinds of people—Ōko's behavior didn't surprise him at all. With a flick of his left hand and a snap of his fingers, long-rod-shaped markers formed out of pure reiatsu around Yushima Ōko and Kisaragi Shūsuke.
"Be careful, Ōko—don't touch any of those!" Kisaragi Shūsuke warned loudly, unable to hold himself back even though he knew Ōko should already understand Entetsu Kumoi's Zanpakutō ability after what had just happened.
"Yeah, yeah. You think I'm you?"
Ōko replied, then shouted:
"Taikō Shigure (Receding Crimson Drizzle)!"
Ōko understood Shūsuke's mindset. No matter how much they bickered day to day, when facing a common enemy, they had to be perfectly in sync against the outside.
Of course, Ōko would never admit that with his mouth.
At most, he'd let his body be a bit more honest!
The moment his voice fell, the markers Entetsu Kumoi had just shaped with reiatsu were instantly shredded and swallowed by the spinning Sumitsukigasa, torn apart until nothing remained.
Reiatsu absorption—this was the ultimate nemesis of Entetsu Kumoi's ability!
Right then, Yushima Ōko really wished Shuuichi-sama were beside him, watching this. Kisaragi Shūsuke's garbage ability? It didn't even compare to him, not even a little!
"Oh? You can absorb reiatsu?" Entetsu Kumoi rubbed his chin, a curious smile tugging at his lips. "What a shame—you were born too late. If you'd been born a few hundred years earlier, I'd have made you my Lieutenant no matter what. That ability of yours is just too useful for dealing with prisoners~"
"Even if I'd been born a few hundred years earlier, it wouldn't matter. I have zero interest in following a guy like you!" Ōko said, glaring with open disdain.
Peh. Trying to poach him just like that?
Did Entetsu Kumoi even know who Yushima Ōko was?
The bond between him and Shuuichi-sama wasn't something a trash Captain with a trash face and trash strength could tear apart!
If anything, Kisaragi Shūsuke might've been easier!
Ōko only regretted that Shuuichi-sama wasn't nearby. If Shuuichi-sama could see this and hear what he just said, wouldn't he be so moved that he'd say something like—
"Ōko, I never knew you were this loyal. Shūsuke can't compare to you. From now on, my position as senior disciple is yours!"
Ah—just imagining it made Ōko's heart flutter.
But that excitement didn't last long.
Because Entetsu Kumoi's thoroughly unlikable face suddenly appeared right in front of him.
"Is that so? Then why do I feel like you two are looking down on me, a First Generation Captain?
"Don't you dare compare me to that worthless Sakahone Saizō. Let me tell you a little secret~
"Even among Captains… there are gaps."
Entetsu Kumoi spoke fast—so fast Ōko could barely make out the words.
But Entetsu Kumoi's movement was even faster. Ōko only felt a blur in front of him, and then his body took a devastating hit. That short-mace-like Zanpakutō swung at a speed Ōko couldn't even comprehend—nearly paralyzing half his body.
"Ōko!" Shūsuke shouted.
Because with just one strike, Entetsu Kumoi blasted Yushima Ōko straight into the darkness of this world.
"Maybe your current Captains are a bit lopsided—normal enough. You've been protected too well by that guy. Your blades rusted. Dulled. That's only natural.
"But don't measure us First Generation Captains by your current standards.
"Zanpakutō abilities are the least worth mentioning part of our strength~"
After sending Ōko flying, Entetsu Kumoi instantly appeared in front of Kisaragi Shūsuke.
A speed Shūsuke hadn't felt before.
Meaning: the Entetsu Kumoi who'd been fighting Shūsuke earlier hadn't even been going all out.
This pressure—Shūsuke had only felt it from a handful of people.
Aizen Sōsuke on that night.
Shuuichi-sama.
And Captain-Commander Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni.
No… Shūsuke even felt Entetsu Kumoi's pressure was stronger—because within Entetsu Kumoi's reiatsu was an endless killing intent.
A horror that could only be born after personally creating countless corpses.
How many unjust souls had died beneath this First Generation Captain's hand?
Just as Shūsuke was about to throw everything away and fight Entetsu Kumoi to the death—
A dark green Zanpakutō blocked Entetsu Kumoi's descending strike.
"Sh-Shuuichi-sama?!" Shūsuke cried out in delighted disbelief.
The figure that appeared before him was none other than Higashino Shuuichi.
"Oh? The main act finally arrives? But you… don't seem to be a Captain either?" Entetsu Kumoi showed no surprise at Higashino Shuuichi's sudden appearance.
In fact, from the moment he snapped his fingers earlier, Entetsu Kumoi had already prepared himself to be attacked at any time.
For him, this kind of life was exactly the life he craved—especially now that the body he was using had performance far beyond his original.
"What?" Higashino Shuuichi held his Zanpakutō horizontally before his chest, speaking calmly. "So the way the First Generation Ninth Division Captain recognizes the Thirteen Court Guard Squads' Captains has devolved into nothing but 'judging by the clothes'?
"That's a lot more disappointing than I expected."
"Hahaha—so you're saying you're a Captain?" Entetsu Kumoi laughed three times.
This new Shinigami was more interesting than the previous two.
"Does it matter whether I'm a Captain?" Higashino Shuuichi replied unhurriedly. "Winning against you is enough. Isn't it?"
Entetsu Kumoi felt strange to him. At first, Higashino Shuuichi had thought he was here just like Sakahone Saizō—specifically to cause trouble for Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni.
But now, it didn't seem like that.
Entetsu Kumoi felt more like a self-willed, independent individual.
Yet that didn't make sense either. Higashino Shuuichi asked himself—would he go through immense effort to create trump-card weapons, only for those weapons to refuse to follow his command?
Not to mention the Tsunayashiro clan's people, whose goals were sharp and singular.
But thinking about that now didn't matter.
This fight would continue either way.
And this round, Entetsu Kumoi took the initiative.
No Kidō. No Zanpakutō ability.
Just a simple burst forward into a straight thrust.
The impact from the uniquely shaped tip of his Zanpakutō alone knocked Higashino Shuuichi back more than a hundred meters.
Born from a great evil—someone like that couldn't survive in a chaotic era without real skill in his hands.
Higashino Shuuichi wasn't surprised by Entetsu Kumoi's capability at all.
This was normal.
In that case—
Higashino Shuuichi steadied himself and discovered a foothold had formed beneath his feet out of nowhere. No need to think—Yushima Ōko had probably forced himself back up, just enough to help.
To Higashino Shuuichi, that foothold was barely useful.
But it was still his disciple's goodwill.
He accepted it.
One slash.
Entetsu Kumoi's pupils finally contracted sharply.
Then, beneath that terrifying cutting stroke that looked like it could split the entire space in two, Entetsu Kumoi burst into unrestrained laughter.
"Nadegiri… I've met several of Yamamoto's closed-door disciples. You're definitely not among them.
"So you're a disciple he took in later!"
Entetsu Kumoi didn't even try to dodge Higashino Shuuichi's slash. He let it pass straight through his body, cutting him cleanly in half.
Kisaragi Shūsuke stared, his face full of huge question marks—because on Entetsu Kumoi's face, there was even an expression of enjoyment.
"What kind of ultimate masochist is this?
"No, seriously—he's completely different from just now, okay?
"Hey! Did someone secretly swap accounts?!"
Shūsuke still had a lot of filthy words he'd learned in the Living World that he didn't dare say out loud.
But seeing this, Higashino Shuuichi looked thoughtful, as if he'd grasped something.
"Actually… no. My teacher is someone else—an old acquaintance you should know very well."
"Who?" Entetsu Kumoi demanded.
"The First Kenpachi… Unohana Yachiru." Higashino Shuuichi said evenly.
This was the first time he'd ever publicly declared one of his teachers like this.
"Unohana Yachiru, huh?
"Hahahaha—so it's her?
"Yeah, if it's her, that's not strange at all. She's the type who would master Nadegiri.
"But she's still not dead?
"Has she become as decrepit as Yamamoto Genryūsai Shigekuni?!" Entetsu Kumoi asked, strangely excited.
As he spoke, his body—split completely in two—was already nearly rejoining and healing.
But Entetsu Kumoi didn't realize that those two casual questions alone had already answered many of the doubts that had been bothering Higashino Shuuichi.
Of course, when one problem gets solved, new ones form.
But there was one thing Higashino Shuuichi could now basically confirm:
The First Generation Ninth Division Captain Entetsu Kumoi in front of him likely wasn't his enemy.
Or rather—
He didn't have to become Higashino Shuuichi's enemy.
"If you're asking me that," Higashino Shuuichi said with a smile, lowering the Zanpakutō he'd held before his chest, "then my advice is: don't ask Unohana-taichō the same question to her face.
"Or you might get beaten to death on the spot."
"You're weird!" Entetsu Kumoi snapped. "What's that supposed to mean?
"You're not going to fight me?"
As a First Generation Captain, Entetsu Kumoi's eyes were razor-sharp. He immediately noticed the change in Higashino Shuuichi's wording—and the change in his posture.
"Our fight can happen anytime," Higashino Shuuichi replied. "Like I said earlier, as a student of one First Generation Captain, sparring with another First Generation Captain is perfectly normal.
"But I think, Entetsu Kumoi-taichō, what we should do right now is sit down and talk about the real business. Isn't that right?
"At the very least, you came back into the East Administration's territory for a reason of your own, didn't you?
"Oh, and by the way—throughout the entire Tōkyōdō region, I set up a reiatsu-shielding barrier in advance. The Thirteenth Division surveillance Shinigami inside have also been controlled by me through special means.
"So whatever outcome you originally wanted here… you're definitely not getting it."
His words carried both tact—and a hard-edged threat.
Entetsu Kumoi understood perfectly.
But he didn't buy it.
"Do you think I can't leave?" he said, already charging with his blade raised.
He moved fast—so fast that in the blink of an eye, his Zanpakutō and Higashino Shuuichi's Zanpakutō were colliding in midair, silver light and green light crossing and flashing.
"I absolutely believe you can," Higashino Shuuichi said calmly. "But if you're leaving, it's to rendezvous with the one who stole the soulless Reigai of the other First Generation Captain, Sakahone Saizō, from Soul Society…
"Shihōin Yoruichi—am I right?"
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