"Do not make the mistake of thinking that we have entered this battle prepared to die. We fight that we may live." — Soi Fon.
°
°
°
°°°°°°°
Baraggan's death sent a ripple of shock that could be felt throughout the battlefield, a result that brought determined smiles upon the faces of the Shinigami and Visored, and grim shock to the faces of the Espada.
For the first time, the Espada looked unsure as they crossed blades with the Shinigami, something the Shinigami noticed and weren't shy in calling them out.
The cause of this shift, Shunsui, drew a lazy eye over the battlefield and then finally rested on Aizen, who gave him an inviting smile.
He disappeared from his position causing Aizen's brows to quirk in amusement as he appeared behind Harribel, who was pushing Sajin to his last steps near death.
Harribel however had been able to dodge at the last second, having kept her eyes out for any developments after Baraggan's death.
"You would resort to an ambush even when you have the advantage?"
Shunsui cocked his head to the side, his confusion teased with amusement. "Young lady, we aren't exactly showcasing our chivalry. If you decide not to fight at all, maybe then we'll be having a different conversation."
Harribel parried his blade and escaped the other one with Sonído, looking at Shunsui with a particular glare in her eyes.
"I doubt that." She said, her posturing radiating her seriousness as she faced Shunsui. "You'd kill me either way, just for me being a Hollow. I can see it in your eyes."
Shunsui gave a low chuckle. "You're getting it wrong, young lady. It's not about you being a Hollow. You could be a Shinigami, Quincy, or even a random soul. What matters is that you came with the enemy. Now tell me, what does that say about you?"
Harribel frowned, her eyes taking a subtle glance at her comrades—
"You truly are a vile man." She sneered as she narrowly dodged Shunsui's blade that was aimed at her neck the moment her focus faltered.
She couldn't underestimate him in any way. He was the Captain that defeated Baraggan with just a Shikai Release even while the latter resorted to their Resurrección. Formidable wasn't cutting it when it came to the man before her.
Unlike Sajin who she could feel was clearly weaker than her, or Itachi who made himself feel equal to her, she couldn't get any read on the man before her. The regretful smile on his face wasn't fooling her in the slightest.
And unlike when she faced Sajin, or the stalling dance Itachi led her through, she wouldn't underestimate this Captain in any way.
If she wanted to live long enough to protect her girls and maybe get an answer after all this was over, she had to give it her all.
"Destroy, Tiburón." A wave of water covered her, one that split apart as she emerged from the cocoon in her complete state.
While the evolution to Arrancar boosted their strengths and modified their appearances, their Resurrección was them reverting back to their old form, the resurrection of their old selves, with their strength magnified and more solidified.
Most of her clothes were gone except a short bone skirt, little coverings over her chest, bone spaulders on her shoulders, a spine-like contusion that ran from her neck to her stomach. Her legs were completely covered, as was both of her arms. As for her Zanpakutō, it took the form of a giant shark tooth, reminiscent of Harribel's natural form as a Hollow.
Seeing the transformation, Shunsui couldn't help but whistle in appreciation.
"Now, I'm feeling a bit bad that we have to fight. Wouldn't you mind a drink first, young lady? I have a rather sophisticated brew."
Harribel sneered. "I would be inclined if I didn't think you would poison it or take my head off in the middle of me taking a sip."
"Ah, a real shame." He said with a regretful tone, ignoring the last bit she said.
"Stupid old man! Stop flirting with the Hollow!" Lisa shouted from where she and Rangiku were weaving around three equally infuriated Arrancars.
"Smelly old bastard, stop getting cozy with Lady Harribel!" Sung-Sun, Apacci and Mila Rose shouted at the same time.
Shunsui's smile turned rigid at the awkward interruption. "Sheesh, Lisa's got me on a scope– oops!"
His blades were crossed as they desperately held on to push back Harribel's giant sword.
"Ola Azul."
Harribel's Tiburón charged with yellow Reiryoku that no sooner shot Shunsui towards the ground with great force before he could dodge.
-!!!
CLANG!
"Heh? Nice reflexes there, young lady. Although, I'm a bit peeved you blocked it." Shunsui said, visibly slumped that his surprise attack hadn't done damage like he hoped it would.
"You Shinigami are a slippery bunch so I always have to keep an eye on my back." She said through gritted teeth. Here she was exerting effort to push him back while he remained flippant.
"Ah, seems like Itachi got you there. Even I can't fault you after that."
Tracing a circle with Tiburón, Harribel summoned churning waters that formed into a shark's maw that tried to bite Shunsui, only for the nimble Captain to evade the offending teeth at every turn.
"Hadō #73: Sōren Sōkatsui."
Twin wave of blue fiery Reiryoku tore through the watery maw mercilessly and continued on towards Harribel who looked shocked at the power of Kidō but was quick enough to bring her blade forward and used it to shield herself from the blast.
Neither of them wasted a second as they disappeared from their spot, utilizing their own movement techniques, aiming to wrestle the advantage from the other, one with false relaxation and the other with grim determination.
....
Soi Fon ducked under Tōsen's wide swing and used her nearer hand to thrust her tanto into his exposed stomach.
"Hadō #31: Shakkahō."
A ball of crimson energy formed at the tip of her blade, as it was mere centimeters from Tōsen's skin, and was pushed into Tōsen's body before he could react, the result which was him being engulfed in extremely condensed high-temperature flames.
Tōsen jumped out of the engulfment, major parts of his body covered simmering burnt wounds—
Hadō #9: Hōrin.
A gleaming rope wrapped around Tōsen before he could go far, surprising the blind man who hastily formed a Cero and shot it towards where the rope came from, only for the shifting wind to catch his attention as Soi Fon's heel dug deep into the back of his head and sent him hurtling towards the ground like falling lightning.
She barely remained in one spot for more than a second, making Tōsen having a hard time sensing her until she was a few paces from him. And sometimes he noticed her too late and fell to her attacks more often. His only saving grace was that he always made sure to know the position of her right hand to defend against Suzumebachi's sting.
But even with that precaution, he was hardly holding her back as she instantly settled for Kidō and Hakuda and pelted him with unrelenting strikes.
"Damn you." He cursed as he struggled to pull himself up, pains flashing across his nerves. He could feel the numerous cracks on his Hierro and few of them bleeding before slowly healing close.
"It seems I underestimated you." He said with labored breath.
Soi Fon scoffed. "And you realize that just now?"
Sensing his Reiatsu slowly peaking and growing more dense, Soi Fon smirked coldly. "Go on, I'll wait for you to use Bankai."
Tōsen however sneered. "Bankai? You think I'll resort to something so weak? I HAVE TRANSCENDED BANKAI! LOOK ON, BEHOLD! MY NEW POWER!"
His Reiatsu climbed even higher, Tainted by something dark and grim, expunging a plume of darkness that shredded his human form, and like the breaking of a cocoon, something came out. Something that wasn't Tōsen.
"TŌSEN! WHAT HAVE YOU DONE!" Somewhere on the battlefield, someone shouted in despair.
What stared Soi Fon down wasn't Tōsen, not in any way.
A humanoid insectoid furry Hollow with four arms, a tail, two pairs of membranous wings and a pair of large bulbous eyes sat on his head.
Soi Fon stared up at it with complete disappointment and dead eyes. There was no longer anything in them that regarded the one once known as Tōsen in any way. No disdain, no mockery. Only complete apathy.
"Suzumebachi, sorry for keeping you waiting."
Two green Ceros formed in front of Tōsen's eyes. "Away with you Shinigami." The Cero formed into a larger one and barely a second later, the wave of Cero washed everything away in wanton destruction that no doubt would have either killed her straight off, or left her critically injured… had she been hit.
There was no need to speculate.
As it were, the thing in front of her was stronger, and likely faster, than her in every way. She could never hope to produce such levels of destruction unless she resorted to her limited-use Bankai. As an opponent, it completely overshadowed her in every aspect, so why wasn't she worried?
"First sting." There in front of him was Soi Fon. Her sting piercing true on his skin, dead on his chest, bare inches above the hole it wore as a mockery of everything it had once been.
"Kugh!" Spittle flew out of Soi Fon's mouth as its tail whipped around and slammed against her stomach in fierce retaliation.
She skied to a stop a good distance away from it and wiped the spit and blood on her lips.
"You think this changes anything?!" The creature roared in defiance and bridling arrogance. "I'll show you real power! Greater than the Shinigami! TRUE JUSTICE!"
His fingers traced green circles in the air that thrummed ominously, causing Soi Fon's eyes to widen in alarm.
"Los Nueve Aspectos!"
It sounded like the beating of a war drum. Highly condensed massive bursts of high-pitched concussive force tore through everything in its path. It's power rivaling, and maybe even surpassing, the destructive capabilities of a Captain's Bankai.
The three barriers she had hastily pulled off were destroyed, and she herself was reduced to a bloody and limb-mangled mess.
"You think I'll fall for this charade?!" The creature turned around with dark amusement in its eyes as its tail wrapped around Soi Fon who had tried sneaking up on it. A Cero already forming before its eyes. "A futile attempt."
Soi Fon spat out blood as the tail pierced through her abdomen. Her teeth clattered against each other as she tried speaking but barely managed a whisper.
"S…cond... st…ng."
The creature looked confused by her words and when it realized what she said it froze up and looked at the mark on its sternum, its dark ink a dreading hue. Its head snapped back to Soi Fon, creeping horror in its bulbous eyes. A log was pierced by its tail.
"I hold no pity for you." Soi Fon's voice echoed in its ears just as it started losing its senses as its Reiatsu vents and pathways started collapsing.
He was the stronger one, no one doubted that. Except he had forgotten that she was an assassin. The more he looked, the less he saw. It had all been a leading act – from when they first stood across each other to the first strike they made. Slowly and surely she led his focus away from her true objective, fooling him into more exploitable actions by attacking him head on.
… And it wasn't as if she was weak. It was a Captain-level Hollow at the end, and so was she. If she could hide successfully from Itachi and Junpei then she had the confidence to hide from almost anyone.
––––––
Patreøn*com/QuackVader
––––––