Ulquiorra.
Aside from Starrk, he was the second Hollow here to have completed his Arrancar transformation entirely on his own, and he was the one who had stepped in to block Gin's sudden attack.
Not everyone appreciated the help.
"Bastard! I didn't need you interfering!"
The wolf-like Hollow immediately snarled when he saw Ulquiorra intercept his opponent.
The irritation in his voice couldn't have been more obvious.
Ulquiorra didn't even bother responding.
His eyes remained fixed on Ichimaru Gin in the distance.
That last strike had been dangerous.
Watching from his perch on a tree branch, Starrk instinctively covered his face with one hand.
If he had a choice, he genuinely didn't want to fight these Shinigami.
Unfortunately, Cyrus had dragged several of these Hollows here without warning.
Starrk barely knew them, much less had any chance of keeping them under control.
"Come on, Starrk."
Harribel landed beside him.
"Looks like we're not getting out of this without a fight."
"Keep your companions away from this."
Starrk glanced toward the Hollows that normally followed Harribel.
"This isn't a battle they can interfere in."
Then he looked toward the other Menos steadily converging on the area.
"As for the rest… I don't really care."
During their brief exchange, the battle below had already erupted.
Boom!
Another beast-like Hollow suddenly charged from the forest.
Its target was Byakuya again.
Perhaps Kuchiki Byakuya simply had the kind of face that made people want to attack him.
This time, the attacker was a panther-like Hollow—Grimmjow, who would one day become a member of the Espada.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
His savage claws were every bit as sharp as a Zanpakutō, tearing toward Byakuya in a relentless barrage.
At the same time, Ulquiorra vanished with Sonído and appeared directly in front of Gin, bringing his sword down toward the Shinigami's head.
Gin immediately leapt backward, deliberately pulling away from the rest of the expedition.
Aizen glanced toward Ulquiorra as he pursued Gin, but his expression didn't change.
Instead, he turned his attention back toward the forest.
Several more powerful Menos had emerged.
Almost all were at Vasto Lorde level. Some had not become Arrancar at all, while others had only partially completed the transformation.
A thoughtful look flickered through Aizen's eyes.
Then he turned toward the Shinigami entering battle and placed one hand on the hilt of his Zanpakutō.
At that exact moment, his fingers stopped.
A faint but unmistakable sense of danger had locked onto him.
It was subtle.
But familiar.
'Cyrus.'
Aizen understood immediately.
That man was watching him.
More importantly, Aizen could clearly feel that the moment he drew his sword, an attack would come directly for him.
After only an instant of consideration, he released the hilt and raised one hand instead.
"Hadō #90. Kurohitsugi."
There was no attempt to conceal the spell.
Two Menos that failed to evade in time were instantly enclosed inside the black coffin.
Unohana noticed.
Aizen had clearly been about to draw his Zanpakutō, only to change his mind at the last moment.
That small detail caught her attention.
But now was hardly the time to think about it.
Every Hollow in front of them had fought its way through the brutal environment of Hueco Mundo. Their combat experience was extensive, and their strength was equally formidable.
The battle had barely begun, yet several Shinigami were already wounded.
"I don't recommend continuing the mission."
Aizen suddenly spoke just as Unohana drew her sword and Soi Fon prepared to join the fight.
As far as he was concerned, this battle had lost its purpose.
Not because he particularly cared about completing the Gotei 13's mission, but because continuing to fight these Hollows offered him nothing useful.
If anything, it worked against his interests.
Aizen still intended to speak with Cyrus again later, and these Hollows would make excellent research subjects.
More importantly, if Cyrus appeared directly, Aizen would have little choice but to use Kyōka Suigetsu if he wanted to preserve his secrets.
If complete hypnosis worked on Cyrus, then fine.
But if it didn't, Aizen would have revealed one of his most important abilities for nothing.
He was confident in his own strength, but he disliked situations he couldn't control.
After briefly weighing the risks, he made his choice.
"I agree."
Unohana nodded.
They had been discovered before even entering the forest. From her perspective, the reconnaissance mission had already failed.
A failed mission called for withdrawal and a new plan.
"No."
Soi Fon rejected the idea immediately.
"Even if we can no longer complete the original mission, we still need to determine what exactly is happening here."
Her expression was grave.
According to the intelligence they had received, this forest had appeared only recently.
Yet an enormous number of powerful Menos had already gathered around it.
That alone was too dangerous to ignore.
If they withdrew without learning anything, Soul Society could be left facing a far greater threat later.
Soi Fon knew exactly what Seireitei feared.
A unified Hueco Mundo.
The Hollows of this realm had always been chaotic and divided.
If someone truly gathered these powerful Menos beneath a single banner, the result could become a catastrophe.
And if Soul Society waited until that force had fully formed before acting, the price of destroying it would be far greater.
So even if this operation suffered heavy casualties, they needed enough intelligence to understand what they were facing.
Then they could return with sufficient force to eliminate it.
Whoosh!
Before Aizen or Unohana could argue further, Soi Fon disappeared.
Only a faint afterimage remained.
Her Shikai was already released.
Using Suzumebachi's ability to kill an opponent by striking the same place twice, she entered the battlefield at full speed.
Within only a few exchanges, three Menos fell to her.
Boom!
A green blur suddenly charged straight toward her.
The speed and force were so great that even Soi Fon couldn't evade cleanly.
A massive lance slammed toward her.
Soi Fon raised an arm to block.
The impact launched her through the air with a sonic boom.
Nelliel, now in her centaur-like form, stared seriously at the opponent she had just sent flying.
Her gaze settled on the finger blade attached to Soi Fon's right hand.
That weapon had killed several Menos she herself would have considered troublesome with frightening ease.
'So that's a Shinigami's power.'
Soi Fon corrected herself in midair and landed, sliding backward across the sand.
Her brows knitted together.
Her entire right arm had gone numb from that single impact.
Before either woman could resume their fight—
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Explosions erupted one after another.
Starrk had begun firing Ceros.
Not one.
Not several.
A relentless barrage.
Even the shock waves from the blasts were enough to severely injure weaker Shinigami.
Anyone struck directly was immediately removed from the battle.
If Unohana hadn't intervened, the expedition would already have begun losing people.
Soi Fon's decision to enter the fight had clearly made Starrk take the situation more seriously.
He was no longer merely warning them away.
He was using lethal force.
But that didn't stop the battle.
If anything, once both sides began suffering losses, the fighting only became more intense.
Ulquiorra and Gin appeared evenly matched.
But Gin was clearly holding something back, waiting for a signal from Aizen rather than fighting at full strength.
Ulquiorra, for his part, was also not yet as powerful as he would become by the time he eventually fought Ichigo.
For now, the two exchanged blows without either gaining a decisive advantage.
Byakuya had his own problems.
He was fighting two beast-like Hollows at once while other Menos continued pressing in from the surrounding battlefield.
There was no longer any reason to conserve his strength.
Having reached that conclusion, Byakuya suddenly disengaged and retreated.
Then he inverted the Zanpakutō in his hand.
"Bankai."
The blade slipped from his fingers.
"Senbonzakura Kageyoshi."