"Die? Hahahaha! You think just because you figured out this ability of mine, you've got me beat?"
Szayelaporro was still laughing wildly, though now he looked somewhat like a paper tiger, fierce on the outside but weak within.
He sprayed a large volume of black liquid from his back, which rained down upon Shin and the other two. A barrier of flame appeared in front of Shin, shielding both him and Nemu.
Mayuri, however, merely watched the liquid fall onto him, not bothering to dodge at all. Then, a clone almost identical to Mayuri crawled out of the black liquid adhering to his body.
Mayuri tilted his head, observing the "Mayuri" standing before him. Aside from the pure white mask on its head, everything else was an exact replica of him.
"My apologies, your mask was too hideous, so I altered it according to my own aesthetic standards."
Szayelaporro was quite pleased to see Mayuri taking the threat so lightly.
"Oh?"
Mayuri drew the Zanpakuto he held before him.
"Bankai!"
"Konjiki Ashisogi Jizo!"
However, the clone opposite him also activated its Bankai, resulting in two identical giant caterpillars appearing on the battlefield.
The two then collided. The replica burst open with a loud roar, and Konjiki Ashisogi Jizo immediately swallowed the "Mayuri" clone whole.
"It seems a copy is nothing more than a copy—far too weak."
With the roles reversed, Mayuri now poured all his effort into mocking Szayelaporro.
Following this, Konjiki Ashisogi Jizo exhaled a purple gas from its mouth, engulfing Szayelaporro.
"What is this?"
Before Szayelaporro could even react, the poison took effect. His entire body slowly began turning purple, and he found himself unable to counteract the toxin.
Several Fracción, seeing this, rushed over from behind, hopping and skipping, desperate to save Szayelaporro.
Boom!
Amidst the explosion, flames consumed them, instantly extinguishing Szayelaporro's final hope.
These Fracción were artificial Arrancar he had created. Their bodies were structured as healing agents, allowing him to recover by consuming them.
"Damn it!"
Szayelaporro collapsed to the ground in defeat, glaring at Shin with venomous eyes.
Mayuri grinned, pulled out a small blue vial, and approached Szayelaporro. He finally had a chance to test his new drug.
"What is that? Get away from me!" Szayelaporro shook his head wildly, refusing to drink the strange liquid.
"This is extremely precious, I won't allow you to waste it."
Mayuri pinched his face and forcibly poured the drug down his throat, incidentally also giving him a few gulps of the poison antidote.
"Cough, cough!"
Szayelaporro felt the toxins vanish from his body, but the unknown potion he had just consumed filled him with terror.
"What did you bastard force me to drink?"
Mayuri ignored his curses. "It's the Superhuman Drug. It speeds up a person's senses so much that one second feels like a century. Like this."
As he spoke, Mayuri stabbed Szayelaporro straight through with his Zanpakuto. But to Szayelaporro, Mayuri was pulling his sword out agonizingly slowly.
"Do I seem slow? Never mind. It will take you ages to even register what I'm saying now. There's no point talking to you anymore."
Szayelaporro was completely trapped in a state of stagnant immobility.
"As expected of Captain Kurotsuchi. You put on quite a show, twisting the enemy around your finger."
Seeing the battle conclude, Shin walked over.
"In that case, Nohara-san, perhaps you'd like to pay a viewing fee—say, by contributing to my research?"
The samples Mayuri had acquired last time were insufficient. He had reached the same conclusion as Kisuke: he likely needed the entirety of Shin.
Shin's lips twitched.
This guy was obsessed with him.
Mayuri didn't press the issue, glancing into the distance. "It seems all their battles have concluded as well."
He turned back to Nemu. "Nemu, come. We're going to search for this Hueco Mundo scientist's experimental materials."
As a fellow scientist, Szayelaporro's stored experimental materials held an immense attraction for him.
With that, Mayuri took Nemu and Szayelaporro and departed for the temporary base camp.
Just as Mayuri had said, all the battles had concluded.
Unohana and Isane led their teams to bring the combatants back to the base camp for treatment.
Ichigo fought against Grimmjow. Although his Hollowfication time was extended, he was still slightly outmatched by Grimmjow in his Resurrección state, constantly being pushed back. He finally defeated him by unleashing a burst of pure willpower to cleave through Desgarron."
His Hollowfication underwent a qualitative improvement during this fight.
Zaraki and Nnoitra's battle was simple and brutal. Nnoitra in his Resurrección state inflicted wounds all over Zaraki, but Zaraki completely disregarded his injuries, growing stronger and fiercer the longer the fight lasted.
Nnoitra ultimately could not defeat Zaraki. Even after being spared, Nnoitra refused to give up and was finally cut down by Zaraki's blade.
Ikkaku used his Bankai to defeat No. 11 Shawlong, but he sustained severe injuries in the process, and his Bankai was damaged.
Yumichika engaged in a fierce battle with No. 13 Edrad Liones. He was initially at a disadvantage, but then used his true Shikai, "Ruri'iro Kujaku," to catch Edrad off guard and finally dispatch him.
Uryū, having recovered his Quincy powers, acquired the new bow "Ginrei Kojaku." Combined with his new weapon, the "Seele Schneider," he heavily wounded No. 14 Nakeem.
Chad was defeated by No. 15 Yylfordt Granz, but thanks to the defensive shield form of his right arm, he avoided serious injury.
He eventually awakened the Left Arm of the Devil during the fight and used "La Muerte" to utterly crush his opponent.
Thus, of the six Espada who engaged in battle, only Grimmjow survived.
Shin glanced around and noticed that everyone had sustained considerable injuries, making it unlikely they could continue fighting immediately.
Therefore, he spoke, "Everyone focus on treating your wounds first. We will halt our offensive for now."
Renji voiced his concern, "Will Aizen send reinforcements to attack us?"
"What's there to be afraid of? If they dare show up, we'll just cut them down."
This was Zaraki, who was currently having his wounds bandaged.
Shin replied, "It's fine. If they decide to attack, I can hold them off."
...
After handing the remaining medical duties over to Isane and the others, Unohana sought out Shin.
"Nohara-san, do you possess healing abilities?"
"When Abarai arrived here, his injuries were mostly healed. He said that you were the one who saved him."
"That's correct, I do possess some healing techniques."
Shin paused, then continued with a meaningful expression, "After all, only by being able to heal can one truly enjoy the pleasure of combat and slaughter to the fullest."
Upon hearing this, Unohana's heart stirred. This philosophy perfectly matched her original reason for learning Kaido.