Slime Soul (Tensura x Bleach Crossover) (Patreon)

Chapter 29: Unmasked Loyalty

Stepping out of the portal, I let my wings unfold from my back and hovered silently in the air as I took in the first of Hell’s five levels.

The place was massive, an endless expanse of white blocks floating in midair, connected by blue pathways that stretched into the distance before abruptly ending.

Beyond the alien landscape, the spiritual pressure here felt… wrong. Twisted. I had no doubt it would drive a normal human insane just by being exposed to it.

“So this is Hell,” I muttered as I extended my senses, immediately picking up several weak presences below. “Those must be the Togabito.”

A moment later, my attention shifted as I spotted a massive Hollow-like creature moving on all fours. Its elongated, skull-like head and the eerie humming it emitted made it unmistakable.

“Kushanada, right?” I asked idly as it turned its focus toward me and began approaching.

“Correct. This is a good opportunity, Caius-sama. You should devour a few of them,” Astra replied from the back of my mind.

“Yeah, that was my plan.”

With a grin, I summoned my blade into my right hand, coating it in Battlewill until it glowed a bright blue.

In the next instant, I appeared in front of the creature and brought my sword down effortlessly, cleaving it in two. Before the halves could even fall, I devoured them with my left hand using Beelzebuth.

A new energy immediately settled within me.

Looking down, I watched as black chains briefly rose from my skin before fading as I dismissed them.

“Interesting… seems I’ve gained the same power Ichigo did during that Hell incident, the one that gave him that skull-like armor. Though it’s still weak… I’ll need to devour a few more Kushanada.”

As if responding to my thoughts, my gaze shifted, and I grinned.

About a dozen Kushanada were already heading in my direction, likely drawn by the death of their kin.

“Wahaha, looks like this trip is already paying off.”

I vanished once more.

Moments later—

“Now that’s more like it~” I grinned, flexing my hand as dozens of chains responded instead of just one.

“Caius-sama, I have good news~” Astra chimed in, her tone smug and pleased. “With our arrival here, I’ve finally figured out how to utilize Dark Magic—more specifically, Nihility Magic. It appears this Hell is somehow connected to the Hell of the Cardinal World like we had speculated, drawing a small fraction of energy from it.”

“Hoh… that is good news. Nice work, Astra~” I praised, earning a happy giggle in return.

Then I paused.

“…Wait.”

A thought clicked.

“If this Hell is connected to the Cardinal World… then can’t you trace that connection back to the source?” I asked, trying not to get my hopes up.

Astra’s mood dimmed almost instantly, and I already knew the answer before she even spoke.

“Unfortunately not, Caius-sama. Since the Netherworld appears to be more than likely connected to every Hell, we would still be guessing our trajectory. My apologies for getting your hopes up,” Astra muttered, sounding dejected.

Any disappointment I felt was immediately crushed ruthlessly.

Hearing her sound so depressed due to my careless words made me want to punch myself in the face a few times.

“It’s alright, Astra,” I said gently, mentally pulling her into a hug. “If anything, I should be the one apologizing. You just recreated a type of magic I’ve been wanting for a while, and I still managed to make you feel bad.”

“T-There’s no need to apologize, Caius-sama. I was merely doing my duty,” she replied quickly, her tone flustered as her sadness immediately evaporated to my relief.

Then, almost as if trying to change the subject—

“Oh! I also managed to learn how to cast Nuclear Magic, if you’re interested.”

That did the trick.

I blinked, then a grin returned to my face as all the possibilities ran through my mind.

“Wahahaha, you really never stop surprising me, do you, my lovely Astra? Alright, I’ve decided.”

Placing my hands on my hips, I nodded firmly.

“As soon as we get back, and once the Fullbringer situation is dealt with, we’re going on a date~ I’ve been curious about your human form ever since you evolved and this will also serve as a good opportunity to hang out with you in a physical body.”

“…A-A date!?” Astra stuttered, completely thrown off. “I-I would lov— I mean! A-Are you sure that’s a good idea with everything going on?”

“Of course I’m sure~” I replied without hesitation.

“There’s no one else I’d rather go on my first date with than the person who’s been supporting me and has been with me since the very beginning.”

I paused just long enough to grin.

“And besides, I can’t wait to see just how cute and beautiful your human form is~”

“C-Caius-sama has really gotten cheeky lately…” Astra muttered, pouting, though her embarrassment was obvious… and so was her happiness.

“That’s because I love Astra—and all the cute reactions she makes when she gets flustered,” I said, shamelessly confessing to her without an ounce of embarrassment.

Right on cue—

I could’ve sworn I heard a small, girlish squeal before Astra retreated deeper into my mind.

But not before leaving me with a few final words.

“…F-Fine. I accept.”

“Wuhuhu, my Astra is getting all dere dere,” I chuckled to myself, clearly pleased.

Spreading my wings, I flew toward the distant abyss, where the entrance to the Second Level of Hell was located.

I wonder if I’ll find any strong Togabito deeper down…

=====

Hueco Mundo—With Tier and Starrk

Upon arriving in Hueco Mundo, Tier immediately sensed that something was off.

Several spiritual pressures were clashing in the distance, with some of them disappearing shortly after close to Las Noches, causing her to frown slightly.

“…It seems the war has already begun. If the Quincy are here, they’re likely trying to recruit any powerful Arrancar that remained after Aizen’s defeat,” Tier muttered quietly, her voice only reaching the man beside her.

“Haah, troublesome,” Starrk sighed, hands in his pockets as he glanced at her. “But didn’t Caius-sama already say this was the most likely outcome? So, what do you want to do?”

Tier’s expression hardened. She pulled the black cloak tighter around herself, lowering the hood to obscure most of her face and body.

“We follow our orders. We observe and confirm whether any Sternritter are present, then report back to Caius-sama.”

“I was afraid you’d say that,” Starrk muttered wearing a similar cloak, only to wheeze as an elbow slammed into his side.

“…Ouch.”

“Stop complaining and follow me,” Tier said firmly before vanishing with Sonido.

“And here I thought I’d finally escaped this dreary place…” Starrk sighed under his breath before disappearing after her with a crackle of Sonido.

It didn’t take long for them to reach their destination.

They stopped a safe distance away, far enough to remain undetected, yet close enough to clearly observe the battlefield with their enhanced senses.

What they saw did not leave a good impression.

Hundreds of Quincy, clad in pristine white uniforms, marched forward in perfect formation.

Behind them trailed a path of corpses.

At the front stood two figures, distinct from the rest, not just in appearance, but in presence.

Their spiritual pressure alone set them apart.

One was a black-haired man wearing a white hat and round glasses, his demeanor composed and calculating.

The other was a massive, muscular man with dark skin and white hair styled in cornrows, radiating raw physical power.

“Hmm… from the descriptions Caius-sama gave us of each Sternritter, the man with glasses should be Quilge Opie, while the other is Jerome Guizbatt, if I’m not mistaken,” Tier muttered quietly.

“At least none of the more troublesome ones are here,” Starrk said, a hint of relief in his voice. “If I remember right, the glasses guy uses some kind of Reishi prison, and the other one has a powerful sonic scream.”

“That matches what I recall,” Tier nodded. “Come on, let’s move. They appear to be gathering all the Arrancar in one place. I want to see if there’s anyone who could be of use to Caius-sama.”

Starrk frowned slightly.

“I thought our job was just reconnaissance. You said that yourself just a moment ago.”

“Yes,” Tier replied calmly, “but we lose nothing by attempting to recruit any useful Arrancar for Caius-sama… though I doubt any strong ones remain.”

“Yeah, that’s because our terrifying new boss devoured most of them,” Starrk muttered under his breath, then quickly stepped back, raising a hand as Tier turned to him with a sharp glare.

“Easy. I don’t hold it against him,” Starrk added calmly. “We were at war after all. And after he revived us, I’m in no position to complain. I’m just saying… the guy is terrifyingly strong. What’s worse is that, according to him, he’s not even close to reaching his full power.”

Tier studied him for a moment, searching for any hint of insincerity. Finding none, she turned forward again.

“I heard Nelliel mention that Caius-sama has no limit to his growth,” Tier said quietly, a faint note of melancholy in her voice. “At this rate, it wouldn’t surprise me if he becomes so powerful that he’s incomprehensible to anyone beneath his level.”

“…Yeah. That does seem to be where he’s heading,” Starrk agreed softly before letting out a sigh. “And here I thought I was too strong once upon a time.”

“…We need to grow stronger as well,” Tier said, her aqua-green eyes sharpening with resolve. “I don’t want to keep relying on him for everything. I want to be someone that he can depend on so he doesn’t have to shoulder everything alone.”

Starrk didn’t respond, but the understanding in his expression was clear.

More than anyone, he knew the burden of overwhelming strength, and the isolation that came with it.

“…So, are we moving or not?” Starrk finally said, breaking the silence.

Tier gave a small nod.

Without another word, both of them vanished, trailing the Quincy forces while carefully remaining out of sight. Though the cloaks concealed their spiritual pressure, they could still be seen if they weren’t careful.

=====

Back in Karakura Town—Several Days Later

Walking home after another day of school, Ichigo once again found himself lost in thought about the future, and the war that was coming soon.

After speaking with Urahara, the man had promised to look into things and advised him to focus on the present rather than the looming Quincy threat.

That wasn’t something Ichigo could do.

Not after Caius had bluntly told him that, as he was now, he stood no chance against the Quincy King.

And while Caius had promised to help this time out of his own will, that didn’t mean Ichigo was willing to sit back and let him shoulder everything alone again.

His concern only grew when he told Uryu about the situation, leaving him in deep thought.

The glasses-wearing bastard had become distant afterward, barely speaking to anyone and leaving immediately after school every day. Not even Chad and Orihime had managed to get more than a few words from him.

Every attempt Ichigo made to question him was brushed off, which only irritated him further. Still, at Orihime and Chad’s request to give him some time, he let it go.

Another thing that bothered him—

Even after regaining his powers and informing Urahara about the coming war, there had been no sign of any Shinigami presence in Karakura Town. Even the one previously stationed here had disappeared for some reason.

That left him and his friends to deal with any Hollows that appeared.

At first, Ichigo had expected his Shinigami friends to show up at any moment, especially after Caius left, demanding answers about him. There was absolutely no way that they weren’t aware that he had regained his powers after all.

But days had passed.

Nothing.

He had at least thought Rukia or Renji would come check on him but it seems he was mistaken.

“Haah… they’re probably just busy with their duties.” Ichigo muttered under his breath, exhaling deeply as he tried to shake off the feeling.

Looking ahead, he suddenly blinked.

A punk had just snatched a bag from a middle-aged man with slick black hair, and was now running straight toward him.

Frowning, Ichigo stepped directly into the thief’s path.

The man scowled and immediately pulled out a switchblade, pointing it at him.

“Get out of the way!”

Unfazed, Ichigo sidestepped the swipe with ease, his hand snapping forward to grab the man’s wrist. With a slight increase in pressure, the blade clattered to the ground.

“Ghk!”

Holding back his strength, Ichigo followed up with a quick punch to the thug’s cheek, sending him crashing to the ground and dropping the stolen bag.

The thief shook his head, took one look at Ichigo—

—and bolted.

Ichigo sighed, bending down to pick up the bag before turning to its owner, only to find the man already standing in front of him, smiling.

“Thanks a lot, young man. Is there anything I can do to repay you?” the man asked politely as he took the bag back.

“Don’t worry about it,” Ichigo replied, already turning away.

“Please, let me repay you. We could grab some ramen or something,” the man insisted.

“No thanks. I don’t hang out with strangers,” Ichigo said casually, waving him off over his shoulder.

He kept walking calmly without looking back even once.

But internally, his thoughts were another matter.

That guy wasn’t normal…

Ichigo frowned slightly.

He felt… similar to Chad.

Then it clicked, as he remembered several warnings about it.

I see… so he’s part of that group Caius warned me about.

He paused for a split second before continuing.

For some reason, I keep forgetting some asshole Fullbringers are actively after me with everything else going on…

=====

A Few Days Later—Hueco Mundo

“Well, well… what do we have here?” Quilge Opie’s calm voice rang out as he observed the cloaked figures of Tier and Starrk standing protectively in front of a pair of Arrancar.

“I was under the impression that all of Sōsuke Aizen’s Espada had been eliminated during the war. It seems our Daten requires updating.”

The two remained silent.

Unbothered, Quilge tilted his head slightly, studying them more closely.

“How strange… Are you perhaps using some kind of Gigai? I don’t see any mask fragments on either of you,” he continued, his tone laced with condescension.

Still, no response.

Instead, both figures silently drew their blades.

“…Not very talkative, are we?” Quilge sighed lightly. “Very well, then I’ll continue to speak if you don’t mind.”

He straightened, a faint smile forming on his lips.

“You have been granted a great honor. A one-time opportunity to join His Majesty’s army in the coming war against the Shinigami.”

His smile widened.

“You will accept, won’t you?”

Beside him, Jerome stepped forward, his massive frame radiating aggression as he glared at the Arrancar.

“Choose, Arrancar!” he growled, his voice filled with impatience.

Tier stepped forward.

For a brief moment, Quilge’s smile sharpened, assuming compliance.

It vanished just as quickly.

Tier raised her sword and pointed it directly at him.

“We serve only one master, Quincy,” she said, her voice calm yet unwavering, carrying clearly across the battlefield.

Quilge’s brow lifted slightly in surprise.

“And one more thing…”

Tier reached up, gripping her cloak.

“Stop calling us Arrancar.”

With a sharp motion, she cast it aside.

Her unblemished face was revealed—smooth, flawless… completely free of any mask fragment.

“…Hoh.”

Quilge lowered his head slightly, the glare of his glasses obscuring his eyes.

“Well now… isn’t that interesting.”