Fate in Bleach: Unlimited Blade Works!

"Sigh..." looking at Isshin Shiba's receding back, Toshiro Hitsugaya shook his head

"When will Captain Shiba ever learn to control his impulsiveness?"

"Hahaha..."

Rangiku Matsumoto burst into laughter while watching Toshiro's dramatic display.

"Toshiro, do you really think Captain Shiba is impulsive? He just doesn't want to deal with paperwork. He'd rather go on a dangerous mission than stay in his office."

Seeing Rangiku's carefree attitude, veins bulged on Toshiro's forehead.

"Matsumoto, before you talk about Captain Shiba, why don't you focus on finishing the paperwork?"

As the Seireitei's primary security division, the Tenth Division handled the most paperwork among the thirteen divisions.

However, the previous captains had all been rather lax about it, simply glancing at the reports before tossing them aside. Even Isshin Shiba was no different.

But ever since Toshiro had become the third seat, he had taken a meticulous approach to paperwork. He carefully reviewed every report, adding his own notes and recommendations.

Thanks to his diligence, many Tenth Division members had successfully resolved tricky security issues based on his guidance.

Having earned the praise of his subordinates, Toshiro had become the Tenth Division's paperwork expert.

Whenever they shared an office, even Isshin, the captain, felt pressured to focus on his duties.

Thus, when a dangerous mission presented itself, an opportunity for Isshin to escape his office, he seized it with gusto.

While Isshin could use a dangerous mission as an excuse to flee, Rangiku Matsumoto, now demoted to third seat, had nowhere to run from Vice-Captain Toshiro's watchful gaze.

…

"Is this the area where our members keep getting hurt?"

While Isshin had indeed chosen to leave his office to avoid paperwork, he was also genuinely concerned about the recent incidents. He wanted to resolve the issue and ensure the safety of his subordinates.

He wandered around the area, discovering only traces of battle damage, no clues to the culprit's identity.

But Isshin wasn't discouraged. Finding the one responsible for harming his subordinates was no easy task.

For seven days, he found nothing.

Isshin was prepared for a long, drawn-out investigation. Moreover, he believed that simply preventing further casualties was a victory in itself. This also reinforced his belief that the culprit was indeed lurking within this area.

One evening, Isshin was patrolling as usual. To enhance his perception and increase his chances of spotting anything unusual, he took to the skies, observing the area from above.

Suddenly, his expression shifted. He sensed a flicker of spatial distortion. He quickly locked onto the source. A black spatial portal opened below him.

"A Garganta!"

"A Hollow has opened a Garganta to the Seireitei?"

The moment he saw the black portal, Isshin was stunned. This was the Seireitei, home to the Gotei 13, the heart of the Soul Society! How could a Hollow have opened a Garganta here?

As the Hollow emerged from the portal, Isshin drew his Zanpakutō and leaped from the sky, aiming a strike at the intruder.

Clang!

To his surprise, his attack was blocked. The Hollow raised its arms, their ends resembling the forelegs of a mantis—two bladed appendages. Those blades had deflected his strike.

"A black Hollow?"

Having failed to kill the Hollow in a single blow, Isshin was surprised. What puzzled him even more was the Hollow's appearance. Aside from its white mask, its entire body was black.

In his experience, only mindless Gillian-class Hollows were entirely black, with only their masks white. But those Gillians were colossal creatures, exceeding fifty meters in length.

Those who awakened self-awareness, those who had embarked on the path to Adjuchas, could control their spiritual pressure.

Just as Shinigami could condense their vast spiritual pressure into a small Zanpakutō, these evolving Gillians could compress their spiritual pressure, taking on a more humanoid form.

In other words, this humanoid Hollow was a Gillian?

No, not just a Gillian!

It was an Adjuchas!

After a few exchanges, Isshin's assessment of the Hollow's strength solidified.

If it were a typical Gillian, he could have effortlessly killed it even without releasing his Zanpakutō. But he had been on the defensive during their brief clash!

Clang!

Having forced Isshin back, the Hollow, sensing it couldn't defeat him quickly, opened another Garganta and retreated into the void.

"Don't even think about escaping!"

But Isshin was enraged. He, the captain of the Tenth Division, had been suppressed by a Hollow?

How embarrassing!

He hadn't even used his trump card yet!

With that in mind, without hesitation, he charged into the Garganta after the Hollow.

Unbeknownst to Isshin, three figures, cloaked in black, had been watching the battle from the sky.

"My, my, as expected of the captain of the Tenth Division. To think he could fight that Hollow to a standstill without even releasing his Zanpakutō..."

Gin Ichimaru narrowed his eyes. Whether he was praising Isshin Shiba or the Hollow, no one could tell.

"Indeed. That is why Captain Aizen chose him as a test subject for that Hollow's potential," Kaname Tōsen added.

Unlike Ichimaru, Tōsen was completely devoted to Sōsuke Aizen, addressing him as "Captain Aizen."

Ichimaru, on the other hand, though seemingly one of Aizen's subordinates, never used that title.

He often addressed Aizen with a mocking "Captain Aizen."

To Tōsen, this was disrespectful.

However, Ichimaru, as a disciple of "that individual," possessed unfathomable strength.

Even if Tōsen despised Ichimaru's behavior, he wouldn't risk jeopardizing Aizen's plans.

"Alright, Captain Shiba has been lured to the World of the Living. Let's follow him. We have finally achieved some results. If Captain Shiba destroys the test product, it will not be easy to cultivate it again." Sōsuke Aizen chuckled, casually opened a Garganta with a flick of his wrist, then the three of them entered.

Aizen knew that the Seireitei closely monitored all Senkaimon. Therefore, he always used Hollow-created Garganta to travel to and from the Soul Society.

This way, despite his frequent trips, he had never been detected.

…

"What? Captain Shiba is missing?"

Toshiro Hitsugaya, working on paperwork in the Tenth Division captain's office, looked up in shock as a Shinigami reported the news.

"Yes," the Shinigami confirmed. "Vice-Captain Hitsugaya, due to the recent casualties in that area, Captain Shiba instructed us to patrol elsewhere. He took over that area personally.

For the past week, with Captain Shiba handling the patrols, there haven't been any incidents. But tonight, while patrolling, I heard sounds of battle coming from that area. I rushed over, but by the time I arrived, Captain Shiba was gone."

"Matsumoto, let's go!"

Hearing the report, Toshiro grabbed his Zanpakutō and, after calling out to Rangiku Matsumoto, used Shunpo to rush to the location where Isshin had disappeared.

A few minutes later, they arrived at the scene of the battle.

"This is… Hollow reiatsu?"

Sensing the lingering spiritual pressure, Toshiro's heart sank.

A Hollow's reiatsu within the Seireitei was a serious matter.

He remembered the last time such an incident had occurred. Head-Captain Yamamoto had dispatched three captains—Soi Fon of the Second Division, Shunsui Kyōraku of the Eighth Division, and Ailin of the Eleventh Division—to investigate.

While the investigation had revealed that the Hollow had infiltrated the Soul Society through Rukongai, it had highlighted the Seireitei's concern about Hollows appearing within their territory.

Based on the damage to the surroundings and the clash of spiritual pressure, it seemed that Captain Shiba hadn't fared well.

As for why both Isshin's and the Hollow's spiritual pressure had vanished, it was beyond Toshiro's understanding.

Remembering the Seireitei's response to the previous incident, he decided to report the situation.

He took Rangiku to the Eighth Division barracks, the closest to the Tenth.

"Oh? What a rare sight, Miss Rangiku."

As Kyōraku's drinking buddy, Rangiku didn't require an appointment. Seeing her appear in his office, he wasn't surprised.

"What brings you here, Miss Rangiku? Finally escaped Vice-Captain Hitsugaya's clutches? Come, come, join me for a drink."