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"A Harribel… actually lost?"
Staring at the footage, Aizen's dark, perceptive eyes flickered as the massive ice sculpture filling the screen came into view. His expression tightened a shade.
As the ruler of Hueco Mundo, he knew every Espada's abilities inside out. Harribel in particular—her control over the scorching currents—had always seemed to him the perfect counter to Hyōrinmaru.
And in terms of raw spiritual pressure, a Vasto Lorde–class Arrancar should have been able to overwhelm Hitsugaya easily at this stage.
Yet somehow…
The battle ended like this.
The Tercera Espada, Harribel, was defeated by the youngest captain, Hitsugaya Tōshirō.
The result blindsided Aizen entirely.
A cold, heavy pressure settled over the underground base. Even Ichimaru Gin—who always had a quip ready—kept his mouth shut after seeing Aizen's mood darken. Behind them, Tōsen trembled at Aizen's back like a man watching a storm gather.
Both of them could sense it: after the Arrancars' consecutive defeats, Aizen was already reworking his plans.
The Human World
Abandoned warehouse, outskirts of Karakura Town
"Ahh… finally over!"
With a light hop, Hirako Shinji dropped neatly from the rafters to the floor. As the projection faded into darkness, he let out a heartfelt sigh.
"Hyōrinmaru… gotta admit, that's one hell of a Zanpakutō. Strongest ice type indeed. Controlling the weather itself? And it still looks like it can grow even stronger."
His expression gradually grew serious. Normally he acted lazy and unmotivated, but Hitsugaya versus Harribel had captured even his interest.
"Yeah, wasn't expecting this generation of captains to be this strong," Muguruma Kensei said from the corner, arms crossed. "I always figured they were all third-rate."
His disdain for the Gotei 13—and his own pride as a captain from a hundred years ago—meant he rarely gave the current captains any credit.
Back then, most of today's captains hadn't even risen yet. Compared to him in his prime, they were nobodies.
At least, that's what he thought… until this fight made him reconsider.
"Hold it right there, you two bald idiots! Cut it out already!"
A furious shout echoed across the warehouse. Hiyori Sarugaki stormed toward them, hands on her hips, practically shaking with rage as she jabbed two fingers at Shinji and Kensei.
"Shinji! Kensei! Stop acting like groupies. You're really out here boosting a Shinigami's ego?"
"That pint-sized captain only won because of his Zanpakutō's special ability. I don't think he's that great at all!"
Her voice was loud enough to blow the roof off. But no one missed the bitter jealousy buried in her words.
Hiyori had officially turned into a lemon.
Hitsugaya's performance had seriously stung her pride.
"Hiyori, chill. We're just talking. No need to explode," Shinji said helplessly, watching her flushed, twitching face.
Then he paused, thinking aloud. "But… you're not wrong. Being frozen doesn't necessarily mean death. There's a chance that female Espada is still alive."
He replayed the scene in his mind—hundreds of ice blossoms blooming and shattering at once, freezing Harribel in an instant. But as the camera zoomed out, the details blurred. Before the ice sculpture's interior could be seen clearly, the footage cut off.
Nobody could say with certainty whether Harribel survived. All they had was intuition.
"No matter what, our focus shouldn't just be the captains' strength," another deep voice said.
Hacchi, the former vice-chief of Kidō, walked over in his green robes, brow furrowed.
"The problem is the Espada themselves. Hueco Mundo has always been chaotic. Even if Hollows cannibalize each other constantly, very few evolve into Arrancar on their own."
He swallowed uneasily.
"But now? So many Arrancar appearing out of nowhere… even Vasto Lorde–class ones? It's far too strange."
What happened in the future?
How could Arrancar suddenly be produced in such numbers?
"Wait…" Shinji blinked. "You're thinking Aizen could be behind all of this?"
The room froze.
At the mention of that name, everyone felt their scalp tingle. A hundred years ago—that night of nightmares—resurfaced like a Pandora's box thrown open.
"If it is Aizen…" Shinji exhaled slowly. "Then yeah. It's possible."
Among them, he knew Aizen best. Before Aizen defected, Shinji had been his direct captain—and the first to sense that the man was hiding something.
"You're saying every Arrancar we saw… was created by Aizen?" Kuna Mashiro gasped. "That's terrifying!"
Faking innocence had been enough for Aizen to play the entire Gotei 13 in the palm of his hand.
If he'd also taken control of Hueco Mundo…
That would make him monstrous.
Silence swallowed the warehouse. The air grew tight and suffocating as they imagined the possibility.
Just when everyone was sinking into despair—
The blank screen flickered back to life.
A new title appeared.
[NO.12]
[The Dreamer — Gremmy Thoumeaux]
"…Huh? Another round already?"
Shinji turned toward the screen, eyebrows knitting in confusion.
"The Dreamer? Gremmy Thoumeaux… who the hell is this clown? Never heard of him."
"..."
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