"Any damage caused during the squad's battles will be paid for out of the Captain's own pocket," Tōshirō Hitsugaya said. "It won't burden the squad."
"Hmm..." Rangiku Matsumoto thought for a moment. "Does Captain Zaraki even have pockets?"
Tōshirō Hitsugaya: "..."
"Well... I don't know whether Captain Zaraki has pockets, but my Captain's are definitely full." Rangiku Matsumoto broke into a cheerful smile. "Having a responsible Captain really is wonderful. Now I can go all out without worrying about a thing!"
"You're the exception!" A vein bulged on Tōshirō Hitsugaya's forehead. "Any damage you cause gets deducted from your pay!"
"Ehh..." Rangiku Matsumoto pouted unhappily.
Bang!
The skull on the armrest of the Skeleton Throne shattered, and Baraggan rose to his feet.
All four people he had sent out had actually been defeated, and not a single pillar had been destroyed...
"We sincerely apologize, Baraggan-sama!" The two Arrancar bowed. "We'll go eliminate them at once. Please sit back and wait."
"Who exactly do you think you're going to eliminate?" Suì-Fēng's voice was ice-cold. "You speak so casually about something you can't do. I assume you're prepared to pay for that with your life."
With a sharp clang, Suì-Fēng's short blade met the Arrancar's Zanpakutō. In that instant, everyone on both sides moved at once, each seeking out their opponent.
"At last... the battle truly begins." Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto struck the air with his staff, unleashing a thunderous roar. "We will stake everything to annihilate the enemy here. Even if our bodies are smashed to pieces, we will turn our very bones into an iron wall. We will not allow them to set foot on the soil of Soul Society, not even by a single step!"
As the battle in the World of the Living officially began, Rukia Kuchiki was reaching out to examine the wall of Las Noches.
"It isn't Sekkiseki."
"Then this is simple." Spiritual ink seeped from Muten Natsu's palm, corroding the wall.
Perhaps because it was an outer wall, it was extraordinarily thick.
The Hell's Eye on Muten Natsu's forehead opened. After confirming there were no enemies on the other side, he ignited the spiritual ink that had seeped into the wall with Hellfire.
Cold black flames raged, and a passage opened before them.
Taking Orihime Inoue and Rukia Kuchiki by the hands, Muten Natsu activated Shadow Stealth and passed through the passage in an instant, emerging into a vast space. Around them stood five enormous doorways, likely made for larger Hollows.
Muten Natsu scanned the area with the Hell's Eye on his forehead. Combined with the map Kaien Shiba had given him, he quickly pinpointed the location of the 9th Espada's palace.
The figure they had once seen in the Forest of Menos was now sitting formally inside the palace.
At last... the time had come for the answer to be revealed.
Rukia Kuchiki tightened her hand slightly, as if trying to pass the warmth of her palm to Muten Natsu.
"Muten, let's go."
"...Mm."
Spiritual ink churned beneath their feet, carrying them all as they sped toward their destination.
"Muten!"
Nell arrived late, catching only the traces of ink that had not yet fully vanished. She sniffed.
"Chōkasoku!"
Spiritual light burst from the eye sockets of the mask on her head, and Nell accelerated, chasing after the fading ink trail.
By the time Pesche and Dondochakka, who had been chasing her, arrived, there was nothing left to see.
"Nell..." Pesche's gaze darted between the doorways. "Which one did she go through?"
"These aren't even doors. They're just door frames," Dondochakka said, scratching his head. "If there were doors, we could at least tell which one was open..."
"Wait!" Pesche looked in one direction. "This is... Shinigami Reiatsu! This way!"
The two Arrancar picked up speed and rushed through another doorway.
...
"Howl, Zabimaru!"
Renji Abarai's Zanpakutō changed shape, splitting into seven segments. Sharp protrusions extended from each section of the blade, and as he swung, the strange sword separated piece by piece, linked by silver cables. Its attack range stretched out to a terrifying distance in an instant.
"A Shinigami's Zanpakutō is fascinating no matter how many times I see one." The Arrancar with orange, spiky hair had a mask shaped almost like goggles, with a blue star-shaped mark in the center. He dodged Zabimaru's attack with a quick movement. "But... that's only Shikai, isn't it?"
"Against an Arrancar who isn't even an Espada..." Renji Abarai's first strike missed, and he swung Zabimaru in a sweeping arc. "Shikai is more than enough!"
"It seems you know very little about Arrancar..." The orange-haired man stepped back slightly, letting Zabimaru sweep past right in front of him. "I am Arrancar No. 107, Gantenbainne Mosqueda. A three-digit number means... I was once one of the Espada!"
Gantenbainne gripped the horn-shaped short blade fastened to his wrist and swung his fist, knocking away the pursuing Zabimaru.
Renji Abarai flicked his arm, and Zabimaru shortened section by section, rejoining into a sword.
"Then why aren't you still an Espada? Because you didn't like it?"
"When I saw your tattoos, I thought you were a decent guy." Lightning burst from Gantenbainne's horn-shaped blade. "Looks like I was wrong!"
"Huh?" Renji Abarai touched the tattoos on his body. "You really think so? You're a good guy! Your mask is pretty distinctive too. Decorative and practical. That star in particular is the perfect finishing touch. I feel like it could become popular!"
"I knew I wasn't wrong about you! Personally, I prefer the part over the lower teeth. It has a wild charm." Gantenbainne pushed his mask up to his forehead. "Doesn't this look even cooler?"
"Uh..." Renji Abarai stared at Gantenbainne's thick eyebrows. "I think you looked better with your face covered."
Gantenbainne's eyes flared with anger.
"I knew I was wrong about you after all! The tattoo on your neck is great, but the eyebrow tattoos on your forehead are awful!"
"What did you say!?" Renji Abarai roared. "Do you have any idea how long I spent designing these?"
"You should've spent that time protecting your own eyebrows." Gantenbainne pointed a thumb at his own thick eyebrows. "Natural growth is the best design."
"Why do you think I designed them in the first place?" Renji Abarai tightened his grip on Zabimaru. "If they could grow back, would I need to tattoo them on?"
"They won't grow back precisely because you did something unnecessary." Gantenbainne smoothed back his thick, spiky hair. "If you hadn't tattooed your eyebrows, your hairline wouldn't have receded into an M-shape either!"
"I went bald first..." Renji Abarai roared, swinging Zabimaru as he charged at Gantenbainne. "Then I got the tattoos!"
"Then why didn't you tattoo them before you went bald?" Gantenbainne clenched both fists. "Because you didn't like them?"