Bleach: Soul Society Domination Through Check-ins

After parting ways with Suì Fēng, Shigure continued deeper into the Land of Dead Mist.

He had already scouted most of the outer areas, where the spiritual particle concentration was thinner and unsuitable for hiding.

Thus, those rebels orchestrating the Hollow chaos could only be hiding in the depths.

Taking a deep breath, Shigure exhaled softly and closed his eyes, fully activating his Resonance Vision.

Within moments, two figures appeared at the edge of his vision.

They were wearing Shihakushō, but unlike the standard attire of the Thirteen Court Guard Squads, their robes bore a white stripe—a distinctive mark of the Near Abyss Squad.

"Well then... let's make this quick," Shigure murmured, a faint smile curling his lips.

The next moment, he vanished from his spot.

As the unfamiliar spiritual pressure approached, one of the figures, an older man, suddenly paled.

"Have we been discovered... Mitsuhashi?!" he exclaimed.

The younger man, called Mitsuhashi, remained calm, his expression indifferent. "Stay calm, Nakai."

Drawing his Zanpakutō slowly, a faint smile appeared on Mitsuhashi's face.

"Did you forget? During this Hollow outbreak, my Styx is invincible."

Hearing this, Nakai froze for a moment before nodding quickly.

Mitsuhashi was right.

His Zanpakutō, Styx, had the ability to designate any target as a "spiritual bait" and lock onto it.

Once the lock was complete, all the Hollows in the Land of Dead Mist would target that individual.

And the instinct of Hollows was to devour strong souls.

Until Mitsuhashi deactivated Styx, the Hollows would relentlessly pursue the target, fighting to the death.

This ability was practically useless under normal circumstances.

But in a place teeming with Hollows, it became a powerful tool of manipulation.

When Mitsuhashi was exiled, the Seireitei had no knowledge of his Zanpakutō's abilities.

Otherwise, they would never have sent him to such a place.

Meanwhile, Nakai's Zanpakutō, Heaven's Concealment, had the pure auxiliary ability to hide any target's spiritual pressure.

When combined with the Hollows guided by Mitsuhashi, it created an unpredictable and deadly combination.

"Still no contact with Kazuko?" Mitsuhashi suddenly asked.

Nakai shook his head. "She's too far away from us. I haven't been able to reach her yet."

"Well... I locked onto that captain with Styx from the very beginning. Even if she survived Kazuko's barrier, the Hollows will crush her."

"Now, I wonder who's coming to us this time..."

Mitsuhashi grinned, his expression gleaming with cruelty.

They had already noticed a spiritual pressure rapidly approaching them with high-speed Shunpo.

But just as they prepared themselves, the spiritual pressure suddenly appeared behind them!

Both Mitsuhashi and Nakai were startled, quickly turning around.

Mitsuhashi instinctively raised his blade, pointing it forward.

Through the thick mist, they saw a young Soul Reaper standing before them.

The insignia on his shoulder identified him clearly.

Thirteenth Division, Vice-Captain.

Mitsuhashi raised his blade, scanning the young man from head to toe before laughing aloud.

"Hey, hey... have the people of the Seireitei grown so arrogant?"

"They're sending someone as young as you, a Vice-Captain, to quell the Hollow chaos?"

Despite Mitsuhashi's taunts, Shigure remained calm, showing no intention of engaging in idle chatter.

Instead, his gaze shifted slightly, and an overwhelming spiritual pressure burst forth!

Boom!

The invisible force instantly crashed down on Mitsuhashi and Nakai.

In that moment, both of their faces twisted in horror!

The next second, they dropped to their knees, their bodies bending forward as their heads slammed into the ground.

Under the immense pressure, their breathing became labored, as if they were suffocating.

Every bone and inch of their skin felt as though it were being ripped apart.

The pain was so intense that they wanted to scream.

But they couldn't even make a sound.

Each heartbeat felt like a brush with death.

Mitsuhashi's forehead pressed against the ground, his expression contorted with fear.

What... What is this?!

Spiritual pressure? Impossible!!

How could such overwhelming spiritual pressure exist?!!

"Aaaaahhh!!!"

Mitsuhashi screamed, his voice filled with anguish as he lay on the ground.

Even as he endured the crushing force that felt like it would shatter his bones, his grip on his Zanpakutō remained firm.

"Don't underestimate me!!!" he roared.

In that instant, his Zanpakutō emitted a ghostly blue light.

"Devour him!!! Styx!!!!"

Whoosh!

The blue light shot toward Shigure.

Raising an eyebrow, Shigure extended his hand and caught the light effortlessly.

The blue glow seemed to merge into his body, vanishing completely.

The moment Shigure saw the blue light, he understood.

This was the force guiding the Hollows.

During his earlier use of Resonance Vision, he had noticed traces of this ghostly blue spiritual pressure lingering on Suì Fēng.

When Mitsuhashi caught sight of Shigure touching the blue light, a cruel smile appeared in his eyes.

"You've lost!!!" he shouted.

As his words fell, waves of powerful Hollow spiritual pressure erupted from all directions.

The sudden surge of energy created a storm, sweeping toward their location.

Even though Mitsuhashi knew that he and Nakai might be caught in the crossfire, he no longer cared.

Shigure's spiritual pressure was an insurmountable force.

Their only hope of victory lay in the overwhelming numbers of Hollows!

Feeling the countless Hollow spiritual pressures closing in, Shigure suddenly chuckled.

The primary goal of this Hollow suppression mission was to quell the chaos.

Originally, the biggest challenge was the sheer number of Hollows and their scattered locations.

Moreover, the high density of spiritual particles in the Land of Dead Mist made it ineffective to attract them by releasing spiritual energy.

But now, Mitsuhashi had done him a favor.

~~~~❃❃~~~~~~~~❃❃~~~~

Welcome to visit my Patreon, read the early chapters, and enjoy your reading!

 patreon.com/DarkGolds