Chapter 62: Confrontation

Chapter 62 - 62: Confrontation Katori Nanatsuki drew his Zanpakutō, and the shadows around the Menos Grande vanished swiftly. The Menos's Reiatsu was powerful—maintaining control over their shadows consumed a significant amount of energy. After everything he had just done, Nanatsuki already felt slightly fatigued. Both Menos Grandes had massive holes blasted through their bodies by Cero. "Raaagh!!!" One of the Menos howled in agony. Though the wounds were severe, they weren't fatal—the true weak point of a Hollow was its mask. Caught off guard, Nanatsuki hadn't been able to adjust their position in time to aim precisely for the masks. Besides, doing so might have caused the two Ceros to collide. The furious Menos raised its massive foot and stomped toward Nanatsuki. But with both Hollows gravely injured, they were far easier to deal with. Their speed could no longer keep up with Nanatsuki's movements. The heavy foot slammed into the ground, kicking up a thick cloud of dust. But Nanatsuki had already used Shunpo to appear behind its head. He bent into a forward stance, gripping the sword with both hands—his left hand bracing the spine of the blade—and infused Reiatsu into it. With a sudden step forward, he thrust the blade at incredible speed! "Katori-ryu: Shun Strike!" His Shun Strike had already reached mastery level—he completed the charge in a single breath! The blade tore through the air, launching a devastating shockwave straight toward the Menos's head. Boom! The impact generated by the mastered Shun Strike—compressed Reiatsu—was even more terrifying. Before the blade even touched it, the Menos's skull erupted with a bloody hole. Its mask shattered, and combined with its earlier injuries, it could no longer hold on. With a deafening crash, it fell to the ground. Nanatsuki looked up—the other Menos had already raised its giant skeletal claw. But it wasn't trying to ambush him. Instead, the claw seemed to grasp the sky itself. Like drawing back a curtain, the sky above peeled open. The white bone claw clutched the veil of the heavens, slowly pulling it over its body. It was retreating. Menos Grandes weren't mindless—they were sentient beings. After watching Nanatsuki effortlessly kill three of its kind in a row, it had lost the will to fight. Fear had taken root, and it attempted to flee back to Hueco Mundo. Suddenly, a spiritual arrow streaked in from the distance. "Raaagh!!!" The Menos's skeletal claw was pierced clean through by the arrow, forcing it to release the curtain of sky it had grabbed. The veil dispersed slowly, revealing its exposed form once more. Nanatsuki seized the opportunity. Again, he stepped into a forward stance, charged his blade instantly, and dashed forward. "Katori-ryu: Shun Strike!" Boom! The blade tore through the air once more, the impact launching the Menos's head into the air. Boom— The massive body collapsed to the ground. Nanatsuki slowly exhaled but didn't lower his guard. That spiritual arrow that had disrupted the Menos's retreat—it had been absurdly fast. By the time he sensed it, the arrow had already hit. Which meant... if the arrow had been aimed at him, he likely would've been severely injured. Nanatsuki turned his focus toward the direction the arrow had come from. On a rooftop not far away stood a young woman holding a spiritual bow. Her long wavy orange hair reached her waist. She wore a white dress, with long white gloves that extended past her elbows and knee-high white boots wrapped around her legs. Looking down, Nanatsuki saw black-clad Shinigami lying unconscious at her feet—members of the Onmitsukidō, without a doubt. They had been assigned to secretly protect Shihōin-san, but after detecting Quincy activity, not all of them had been sent to handle the threat—some remained behind to guard her. Clearly, they hadn't realized there were three Quincy in Karakura Town. This contingent of Onmitsukidō had been defeated by that young woman, leaving Shihōin-san to face the Menos alone. But Nanatsuki noticed something else at her feet—a baby. The child lay motionless on the ground, seemingly lifeless. Whoosh whoosh— Two white-clad figures appeared beside the young woman. Nanatsuki's heart sank. The worst-case scenario had arrived. These two Quincy were the same ones he'd encountered earlier outside Karakura Town. Kuratani Yūjirō had been defeated. Judging by their injuries, the battle hadn't been easy. Even so, they still had most of their combat power—both were clearly seated-officer level threats. The Quincy holding the bow asked, "Did you find the source of the spiritual signal?" The young woman answered briefly, "It was the 'bait'." "Tch, definitely not something we planted," the black-haired man sneered. "Shame so many innocents got dragged in—would've been fun to watch them tear each other apart." He sensed spiritual fluctuations from afar, raised his hand to his forehead, and peered into the distance. But it was too far—he couldn't see anything. He turned back to the woman. "Kurosaki, why are those brats still alive?" She replied, "They're not Shinigami. There's no need to add pointless bloodshed." The man snapped, "What are you thinking?! Maybe they're not Shinigami now—but they will be someday! And then their blades will turn on us!" "And don't think I didn't notice—none of these Shinigami are dead!" The young woman looked troubled. "I just... don't want the hatred to keep spreading." The Quincy holding the bow interrupted them, "Enough. Let's go. Soul Society reinforcements will arrive soon. If we don't leave now, we won't get the chance." The black-haired man shot Nanatsuki a taunting glare before vanishing with his companions. Nanatsuki understood—they hadn't fled immediately because they knew reinforcements were close. He had already sent a request for backup to Seireitei during his first encounter with the Quincy. Seireitei took Quincy threats seriously. A captain-level Shinigami would soon arrive with a squad. After the Quincies left, Nanatsuki moved to inspect the fallen Onmitsukidō agents. Just as the black-haired Quincy had said—none of them were dead. "Amazing... Even holding back, she defeated this many Onmitsukidō agents. And she barely looks injured," Nanatsuki thought. His earlier estimation of the Quincy woman's strength had likely been too low. She was at least vice-captain level. Aside from the squad leader, most Onmitsukidō members weren't seated officers. A lone Onmitsukidō agent wasn't dangerous—but they excelled at coordination. In numbers, they could even kill high-seated officers. Nanatsuki then moved to check on the lifeless baby. Judging by the umbilical cord and its appearance, it had just been born. "Its soul has collapsed..." he murmured. Within the baby's body, he found lingering clusters of Reishi—soul fragments yet to dissipate after soul collapse. Among them, he detected a strange kind of Reishi. It felt like Hollow Reishi—but wasn't. At first glance, it gave the impression of being Hollow in nature, but upon closer examination, it wasn't truly Hollow. It must've been Reishi infused with traces of Hollow essence through some unknown method.