"You've mastered it."
Ulquiorra's remaining eye regained focus.
Across from him, Sombravida opened his own eyes slowly.
The structure of Cero Oscuras had settled in his consciousness.
"You may leave."
Sombravida lifted his hand.
Black reiryoku condensed — dense, layered, silent.
Unlike Ulquiorra's earlier blast, Sombravida did not fire it downward.
He aimed at the sky.
A compressed sphere detonated upward.
BOOM.
The reishi turbulence lingering from their battle was dispersed instantly.
The shattered clouds parted.
Hueco Mundo's eternal moon shone once more over the gray forest basin.
Ulquiorra observed silently.
Sombravida lowered his arm.
"I understand why you remain here," he said calmly. "Solitude is simpler than disappointment."
Ulquiorra did not respond.
Sombravida removed a small carved insignia from his sash — a spatially imprinted sigil.
"If one day you choose to step beyond this forest, bring this to the western territories. Show it to any Hollow bearing my mark."
Ulquiorra caught it without looking.
"I will not seek you."
"Perhaps," Sombravida replied evenly.
He turned.
Barragan had already begun to walk away.
"Your Majesty," Sombravida said lightly, "I apologize for the detour. If we encounter a suitable Vasto Lorde during the central campaign, my portion is yours."
Barragan's skull flame flickered.
"You gained something of value. That suffices."
Sombravida paused briefly.
"Ulquiorra… be cautious of—"
He stopped.
Aizen's name almost left his mouth.
But the future was unstable.
Interference could collapse opportunities.
He finished simply:
"—those who promise purpose."
Ulquiorra's expression did not change.
Sombravida left.
The Illusory Forest returned to stillness.
Ulquiorra stood alone beneath the moon.
"Ace… Sombravida."
He vanished into Sonído and returned to the pale hollow at the forest's heart.
Sombravida and Barragan returned to the southern stronghold.
Tiber bowed deeply as they passed.
Barragan spoke without looking at him.
"None of your tribe will enter the forest's core."
"Yes, Your Majesty."
Tiber did not dare question why a Vasto Lorde was left alive.
He valued his existence.
Recruitment was never considered.
Sombravida's spatial travel could not efficiently transport large numbers repeatedly.
Barragan's forces were heavy infantry by nature.
Logistics mattered.
After inscribing return coordinates, Sombravida and his group returned to the central expedition camp.
Barragan separated to his own command zone.
Sombravida, Nel, Harribel, and Bawabawa returned to their forward encampment.
Later, alone—
Nel finally asked.
"Master… you didn't defeat him?"
Sombravida shook his head.
"Defeating him would have required overcommitment. He is an Arrancar. His reiryoku density and regeneration are exceptional."
He briefly explained Cero Oscuras.
Nel listened quietly.
"So you became stronger again."
Sombravida smiled faintly.
"Stronger… but not yet enough."
He turned to Nel.
"Your abilities. Besides Cero and your absorption, what else?"
Nel tilted her head.
"I can accelerate. Absorb reishi. Heal external injuries."
Sombravida studied her carefully.
Nel's healing was not High-Speed Regeneration.
It was restorative reishi manipulation.
That difference mattered.
"You must devour Hollows with regenerative traits," Sombravida said. "And those with high-speed movement characteristics."
"Yes, Master."
Bawabawa lifted its head.
"Bawa?"
Nel squinted playfully at it.
"Speaking of devouring…"
The mudskipper trembled.
Σ( ° △ °|||)
It immediately rubbed against her legs in surrender.
Sombravida chuckled.
Harribel stood nearby, silent.
"Tia."
She looked up.
"Yes, my lord."
"You're troubled."
A pause.
"Yes."
"Ulquiorra's strength?"
Harribel nodded faintly.
"He is Vasto Lorde. Yet I could not even approach."
Sombravida shook his head.
"He is an Arrancar Vasto Lorde. That difference is significant. And your abilities are direct-flow water type. He specializes in compression and aerial superiority. Matchup matters."
Harribel's eyes lowered.
"I was ineffective."
"No," Sombravida said calmly. "You retreated when ordered. That preserved combat balance."
He continued:
"We will hunt water-aligned Hollows. When the time comes, you will decide whether to devour them."
Harribel stiffened slightly.
He was not forcing her.
He was offering agency.
"…Understood."
She bowed and left for watch duty.
Sombravida watched her go.
Harribel valued principle over growth.
That tension would define her path.
The night passed quietly.
Nel slept beside Sombravida.
Bawabawa curled near her.
Harribel kept silent watch beneath the pale moon.
Peace.
Temporary.
The next day—
Sombravida and Nel headed toward Barragan's main camp.
They intentionally maintained distance between forces.
Barragan's subordinates had not forgotten past conflicts with Harribel.
Ten minutes by spatial stepping.
Halfway there—
Sombravida stopped.
Reiatsu.
Chaotic.
Violent.
Multiple Vasto Lorde signatures.
Three.
And dozens of Adjuchas-level fluctuations.
Barragan's own signature flared intensely—
Engaged.
"Tia."
Harribel instantly tensed.
"Move."
Sombravida ordered Bawabawa to shrink.
He and Nel spatial-stepped ahead.
Harribel followed through conventional high-speed movement to avoid layered ambush risk.
They appeared above the outskirts of Barragan's camp.
Battle was already underway.
Three Vasto Lordes hovered in triangular formation.
Dozens of Adjuchas-level Hollows assaulted from flanks.
Barragan stood at the center.
Respira expanded in controlled arcs, forcing spacing.
His massive axe cleaved through incoming attacks.
The camp perimeter was damaged but not collapsed.
Roughly ten of Barragan's subordinates had fallen.
The ambush had begun recently.
Sombravida's eyes sharpened.
Central Hueco Mundo coalition forces.
Predatory opportunists.
He stepped forward.
The Sky-Splitting Greatsword materialized.
Without announcement—
He slashed upward toward one of the airborne Vasto Lordes.
Space warped.
The enemy barely avoided decapitation.
Barragan used the opening.
Respira surged, separating two attackers.
The formation broke.
Barragan appeared beside Sombravida.
"They multiplied," Barragan growled. "Intelligence was incomplete."
One of the enemy Vasto Lordes turned.
"Another Vasto Lorde—"
Sombravida cut him off casually.
"Don't ask. Just answer 'your father.'"
Visit patreon.com/ShiroTL to gain access to 40+ chapters