The lingering mist of the hot spring had not yet dispersed when the relaxed atmosphere among the group was abruptly shattered by an undisguised spiritual pressure.
"This spiritual pressure... it's Baraggan!"
Harribel immediately stood up, her gaze turning ice-cold.
Beside her, Rose, Apacci, and Sung-Sun also rose, faces filled with anger. The very culprit who had driven them to the brink of death was now willingly coming before them. Wasn't this the perfect chance for revenge?
Yoruichi rose from the pool's edge, water droplets sliding down the curves of her body. She narrowed her eyes, looking towards the source of the spiritual pressure. "Didn't expect that skeleton to show up so quickly."
Aizen had already dressed neatly. The moment she sensed Baraggan's spiritual pressure, heavy with the aura of decay, the pieces began connecting in her mind.
There was no way any survivors remained from the forces Baraggan had previously dispatched. For him to now pinpoint this base so accurately was no coincidence. No doubt Szayelaporro, through the modified Hollows he'd planted in Baraggan's ranks, had reverse-engineered the location and leaked it to Baraggan.
Aizen's mind worked at high speed. It seemed the Tsunayashiro experimental specimen had been picked up by Szayelaporro. Now, by leading Baraggan here, he likely planned to exploit the chaos for his own ends.
Drawing on what Kensei had told her before, Aizen began formulating the actions Szayelaporro might take.
"Sōsuke? Daydreaming?"
Kensei's voice interrupted Aizen's thoughts.
A faint smile of understanding touched Aizen's lips, her tone as usual. "Nothing. Just thought of something interesting."
She didn't voice her speculation about Szayelaporro, but in her mind, she had already arranged countermeasures against him.
On the sandy ground outside the basin, a black mass of Hollows gathered like a swarm of flies. At the forefront of the force stood Baraggan's capable subordinates: the pink-skinned Charlotte Chuhlhourne, the bird-type Hollow Abirama covered in red feathers, the whale-like giant Choe Neng Poww... but they were all just background characters, not worth detailed attention.
Abirama stepped forward and proclaimed in a loud voice: "Rejoice, you insects! The great King of Hueco Mundo, His Majesty Baraggan Louisenbairn, has arrived!"
As he spoke, the Hollow horde parted down the middle, kneeling. A dense, tangible black mist seeped forward from the rear along the path.
Within the mist, Baraggan, draped in a black robe and crowned, sat upon his personal throne. His bony hand propped up his jaw as he looked down imperiously at Kensei and the others below.
"A mere Shinigami dares to invade the territory I rule, openly opposing me." He spoke slowly, like a king passing judgment on his subjects. "Let your deaths reforge my authority."
"Someone actually dares to show off more than me?!"
Seeing Baraggan's over-the-top, stylish entrance, Kensei immediately felt irritated. He regretted not pulling some grand spectacle like "nine dragons pulling a coffin" to utterly awe this rural bumpkin king of Hueco Mundo. Too late now.
"Don't you dare imitate his outdated style."
Yoruichi picked at her ear, glancing at the black mist surrounding Baraggan. They'd already discussed potential threats in Hueco Mundo before coming, so she naturally knew Baraggan possessed the ability to age and decay things.
"That thing's a real pain."
Yoruichi frowned. For someone like her, whose main offensive methods relied on close-quarters combat, an ability that decayed anything approaching was indeed troublesome.
"I'll handle the ordinary mooks with Rose and the others."
Yoruichi clicked her tongue in annoyance. Lately, it felt like she rarely got a chance to truly cut loose against the enemies they faced.
Harribel's gaze locked onto Baraggan, her mind flashing back to the miserable experiences she and her companions had endured. Silently, she drew the blade from her back.
"Lord Kensei." Though Harribel's voice was steady, the fury contained within was palpable. "Please permit me to join the battle against Baraggan."
Kensei glanced at Aizen, who gave a slight nod.
"Alright." Kensei agreed to Harribel's request, a smile playing at his lips as he looked at Baraggan. "Didn't think 'thirty years' would pass so quickly. Time to take Baraggan's dog life."
Baraggan, angered by the dismissive attitude of the insect before him, slowly rose from his throne. "Arrogant! Beneath my deathly aura, all things decay! You don't even deserve to approach me."
As he spoke, his six direct subordinates made the first move, leading the Adjuchas forces behind them in a charge towards Kensei and the others.
"Annoying."
Yoruichi's figure flickered, instantly appearing on the battle's flank. In her Shunkō state, she was like lightning, directly appearing amidst the Hollow horde.
Almost simultaneously, Sung-Sun, Rose, and Apacci activated their Resurrección. Rather than entering the battle separately, they assumed a triangular formation, their spiritual pressures resonating and merging.
"Quimera Parca, Ayon!"
Kensei watched their "spirit fusion technique." Originally, this move required them to sever an arm to perform. It seemed it had been enhanced somewhat now.
Three surges of spiritual pressure shot skyward, finally intertwining into a colossal monster with a lion's body, a stag's head, and a serpent's tail.
"What?!" Before a Hollow covered in scorching flames could react, Ayon's palm came crashing down. No flashy technique names—only violence taken to the extreme, pure power crushing all.
When Ayon raised its hand again, nothing remained below but a pile of flattened Hollows.
The battle had barely begun, and Baraggan's forces had already suffered a heavy blow.
Ayon let out a silent roar, its giant frame charging into Baraggan's forces, activating "Warrior Orochi" mode. With each sweep of its hand, each swing of its serpent tail, even each step forward, several Menos lost their life force.
Baraggan had no interest in his worthless subordinates. His attention was fixed entirely on the three before him.
"Struggling of insects." Baraggan's jawbone clacked open and shut. Thick black mist poured from his mouth, rapidly spreading outward. "Respira."
"Sigh, this is what happens when you don't practice oral hygiene—halitosis attack."
Kensei drew Kūkon and made a slashing motion in the air before him. A spatial fault line like transparent glass instantly formed, firmly locking Baraggan's released death aura within space. Though the spatial cage was slowly being corroded, it was more than enough to counter Baraggan's ability.
"Strike her down, Tiburón!"
Leaping into the air, Harribel activated her Resurrección. Her shark-gill-patterned greatsword swung towards Baraggan, the blade's tip spewing forth a scalding, high-pressure water jet.
"Irá."
The cannonball-like stream of high-temperature water shot towards Baraggan at high speed. He merely raised a hand, condensing black mist before him. The water stream contacted the black mist and vanished rapidly.
"Foolish." Baraggan chuckled disdainfully. "You think such attacks can harm me?"
"Hadō #90: Kurohitsugi!"
A black coffin constructed of immense spiritual pressure spread from beneath Baraggan, instantly enveloping him. Though still weakened by Baraggan's aging ability, it was enough to affect him.
Harribel didn't miss this opportunity. Her figure continuously flickered, unleashing high-temperature water blade slashes from different angles. Her exceptional water-manipulation ability was on full display, pouring all her rage onto Baraggan.
Constantly harassed by these rats, the fury within Baraggan mounted.
He hadn't expected this Shinigami to possess such troublesome abilities, capable of blocking his Respira. Though it couldn't truly harm him, this situation was already a humiliation for a king like himself—especially watching his forces being wantonly trampled...
"Enough." Baraggan's voice thrummed with anger. "Let me show you my true power!"
A massive axe wrapped in chains appeared in Baraggan's hand. The black mist surrounding him began to boil like water reaching a boiling point. His already formidable spiritual pressure rose again.
Aizen observed Baraggan's state. Unobtrusively, she drew her own Zanpakutō, a flicker of mockery in her eyes.
If Szayelaporro wanted to watch, then let him get a really good look.
***
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