Bidding farewell to Yamamoto, he left his nominal senior brother, Kyōraku Shunsui, alone to suffer in Squad 1's barracks.
Yamamoto was very satisfied with Naraku Sora's performance during this trip to the Wandenreich.
Even when facing countless arrogant Quincies, he did not show the slightest bit of cowardice. Instead, he met the challenge head-on, displaying the true elegance of a Soul Reaper.
Very good. He didn't lose face.
On the other hand, his other disciple, the dignified Captain of Squad 8, Kyōraku Shunsui, was so incompetent it was infuriating; he couldn't even maintain a stable portal.
Initially, when Yamamoto called Kyōraku Shunsui to Squad 1, he had intended for him to construct a permanent portal.
When the time came, he would assemble the Gotei 13 and catch the Quincies completely off guard.
But in the end, he only managed to swing his sword once.
*I have never taken in such an embarrassing disciple!*
For the sake of their future grand offensive, Yamamoto decided to ruthlessly drill Kyōraku Shunsui first.
During this time, his official duties would be handed over to his Lieutenant, Yadōmaru Lisa.
Naraku Sora led his two "Pals" back to the Shino Prison. Along the way, he didn't forget to describe the scenery of the Wandenreich to them.
"It's not as good as the Seireitei. It's too desolate."
"However, my teacher is kind-hearted and couldn't bear to see them like that, so he set a fire for the Quincies to liven things up."
Urahara Kisuke and Kurotsuchi Mayuri were left utterly speechless.
Did "set a fire" mean the kind of scorching heat they could feel all the way back in the Seireitei?
Moreover, even though they were only guarding the vicinity of the shadow portal, they could still hear Yamamoto's voice clearly.
That phrase, "All things in the universe, turn to ashes," was definitely the old man's release command, right?
Neither of them dared to agree with his twisted description of events.
"Kisuke, Mayuri, can you guys construct a shadow dimension similar to the Quincies' ability?"
Naraku Sora, walking in front, suddenly turned his head and asked.
Urahara Kisuke paused for a moment, then pondered, "Given that everything in the Soul Society is composed of Reishi, it should be possible."
"But there are a few difficulties that need to be overcome. It might take quite a bit of time."
Carrying the completely unconscious Quilge Opie on his shoulder, Kurotsuchi Mayuri nodded and added,
"Analyzing the shadows is still quite troublesome."
"Furthermore, after this incident, the Quincies will be on their guard. If we want to open a portal again, it will probably take a lot of effort."
Hearing this, Naraku Sora breathed a sigh of relief. If even the two top scientists in the Soul Society said so, then there was nothing to worry about.
He was actually a little afraid that Yamamoto would suddenly get hot-headed and insist on fighting Yhwach to the death.
After all, the current Yhwach and the Yhwach from hundreds of years ago were not the same concept.
This could be seen from the performance of those Sternritter members.
The Ennetsu Jigoku, which was enough to instantly kill an ordinary Captain, was actually extinguished by their combined efforts.
This point alone proved that Yhwach had already regained a large portion of his power.
If he was awakened early and initiated an indiscriminate Auswählen, he would be a Transcendent-level monster at the very least.
Not to mention he possessed the cheat-like ability of The Almighty.
Although it wasn't clear how much time was left until his true awakening, there was definitely plenty of time.
As long as he worked hard to grow during this period, it wasn't impossible for him to become an existence capable of facing Yhwach head-on.
*Therefore, justice, add points!*
His Sin Value was a bit low, but it was still within expectations.
After all, the Wandenreich's location was rather awkward. The Quincies were almost in a completely closed-off state, so it was normal that they didn't have the chance to accumulate much sin.
However, the rewards were somewhat unusual.
Naraku Sora looked at the text rippling like ink and fell deep into thought.
Ever since he obtained Hollow power from suppressing his first Adjuchas, he had guessed whether he would obtain Quincy power if he dealt with sinners related to Quincies in the future.
Facts proved that his guess was correct.
Five percent of Quincy power wouldn't bring about much change, but it symbolized that Naraku Sora had taken a massive step toward becoming an ultimate hybrid.
Also, the ability of Reishi Gathering was quite interesting.
It was one of the most basic abilities of a Quincy.
Simply put, through manipulation, one could forcefully gather the Reishi in the atmosphere and, through the control of one's own Reiatsu, fix it into a certain form.
It could also destroy something composed of Reishi, gradually decomposing it into Reishi, and then gathering it onto a weapon.
Just like right now.
Naraku Sora looked at a pebble beneath his feet. With a thought, Reishi Gathering was instantly activated.
Accompanied by an imperceptible cracking sound, the pebble seemed to weather away, turning into countless tiny Reishi particles that blended into the atmosphere of the Soul Society.
It seemed simple, and in reality, it wasn't difficult.
Even just by releasing Reiatsu, one could easily achieve this level of destruction.
But the meaning of the two was different. The former dismantled the structure of the pebble, while the latter was brute-force destruction.
To give an example, one was like Aizen, and the other was like Naraku Sora.
Right now, because his Quincy power wasn't abundant enough, he couldn't use it in actual combat, but it was still a good start.
He would have the chance to max it out in the future.
"There's no rush regarding the portal for now. Let's leave them hanging for a few decades or a century. Once the Quincies let their guard down, we'll take the opportunity to catch them off guard."
Kurotsuchi Mayuri nodded in deep agreement.
This was what a person with a brain should do, rather than rushing in to throw their life away like a reckless brute.
Although this kid looked quite impulsive, he wasn't that kind of brainless person.
Urahara Kisuke shot him a sidelong glance, sighing and shaking his head.
Mayuri's understanding of a certain someone was still too shallow. After spending a bit more time together, this guy would definitely show him what "world-shocking" wisdom truly meant.
"By the way, you guys just need to keep a little bit of Quilge's tissue. I still have a use for the rest of him, so it's best not to leave him mutilated."
"?"
Kurotsuchi Mayuri practically had a question mark pop up over his head.
Even Urahara Kisuke couldn't help but glance at the half-dead Quilge, his composure slipping slightly.
Falling into Mayuri's hands was one thing, but once he was snatched away by Naraku Sora, there was no telling what would happen.
"Lord Naraku, with your level of academic knowledge, you shouldn't have any use for a material of this caliber, right?"
At the thought of the hard-won material being taken away, Mayuri couldn't hold back and immediately began to argue his case.
"What are you saying?! What are you saying?!" Naraku Sora's eyes widened, feeling insulted. He declared loudly, "Are you underestimating my world-shocking wisdom?"
Hearing this, Mayuri sneered disdainfully. "Then please recite the Third Law of Spirit Waves."
The street fell into a deathly silence.
Looking at the bulging veins on a certain someone's forehead, the scientific duo grinned, feeling quite pleased with themselves.
The joys and sorrows of humans are not connected; Naraku Sora only found them noisy.
Despite his fierce resistance, upon arriving at the laboratory, Mayuri still had to submit to Naraku Sora's despotic power.
After collecting only some useless epidermal tissue, he handed Quilge over to him.
For now, it was better to focus his energy on modifying his Zanpakutō.
Initially, Mayuri hadn't felt much about his Bankai being destroyed.
But after witnessing a sliver of Yamamoto's leaked power, he felt it was best to resolve the issue with Konjiki Ashisogi Jizō first.
Just in case something unexpected happened, he would at least have the strength to deal with it.
After acquiring Quilge, Naraku Sora first went to the underground prison, went through the process, and obtained another 5% of Quincy power.
His proficiency in Reishi Gathering naturally increased by a margin.
He could now decompose slightly larger pebbles.
Along the way, he also comprehended an ability called Reishi Light Arrow. It was an inferior substitute for Heilig Pfeil; its power was average, its visual effects were average, and its damage wasn't even as high as his basic attacks.
*Heh, mediocre trash.*
That night, the moonlight flowed like water.
The candlelight in the office emitted a warm glow, dispelling the slight chill brought by the evening breeze.
At his desk, Aizen Sōsuke calmly flipped through some official scrolls and documents, occasionally taking out a brush to make annotations.
However, experimental parameters and conclusions flashed through his mind from time to time.
Ever since he stuffed Umino Unpei into a jar, he had taken advantage of his free time to study him thoroughly. Although he hadn't yet discovered the secret of his Hollowfication.
He still made considerable gains.
It had a great driving effect on some of the projects he was currently researching.
At this rate, it wouldn't be long before those projects were completed. When the time came, he could use the corresponding conclusions to develop some results.
For example, how to break through the soul limit of a Soul Reaper.
However, just as Aizen was envisioning a beautiful future, a rapid knocking sound suddenly came from outside the door.
It sounded as if someone was demanding his life.
Aizen glanced at the time on the clock. Very well, it was exactly midnight. He then listened to the rhythm of the knocking.
It couldn't be anyone else.
Expressionless, he walked to the door and pulled it open, and a familiar face came into view.
"What are you doing at Squad 5 in the middle of the night instead of sleeping?"
Naraku Sora grinned.
"Of course I have business. I was originally going to wait until tomorrow, but then I thought, since I haven't slept, and you haven't slept either, I might as well come over."
Aizen was left speechless.
"Come with me, I have a surprise for you," Naraku Sora waved his hand, gesturing for him to follow.
Seeing the mysterious look on a certain someone's face, Aizen pondered for a moment before simply closing the doors and windows and following him.
The two avoided the night patrol Soul Reaper squads and made their way to the secret base at Mount Koifushi.
Naraku Sora skillfully stepped forward to open the door.
Because he came over so often, Aizen had specifically taught him the Kidō used to open the door, just in case the door was cleaved open with a sword one day.
Walking into the laboratory, everything was as usual. There didn't seem to be anything different.
However, when his gaze drifted to the corner, Aizen suddenly discovered that, at some unknown point, a new set of life-support equipment had been added to the lab.
Green liquid symbolizing vitality filled the tank, and an unfamiliar figure floated within it.
Before Aizen could ask, the corners of Naraku Sora's mouth curled up, and he said smugly,
"This is the surprise I prepared for you. A pure-blooded Quincy from the Wandenreich, the combat instructor of the Sternritter, a top-tier material—"
"Quilge Opie!"
Immediately after, he gave a detailed description of what had happened at Squad 1, heavily emphasizing his own crucial role in the events.
A hint of realization appeared on Aizen's face.
No wonder the Reiatsu coming from the direction of Squad 1 was completely different from the Reiatsu usually used to beat up Naraku Sora. It turned out that Head Captain Yamamoto had encountered Quincies.
Then everything made sense.
"Considering that you don't have any Quincies among your test subjects yet, I just brought him straight over."
"How about it, Sōsuke? Are you touched?"
Naraku Sora grinned. "There's no need for words of gratitude. If you really feel bad about it, just call me 'Godfather'."
Looking at a certain someone's face, Aizen chuckled and shook his head. It was truly as ugly as ever...