Quincies possessed the ability to absorb Reishi from their surrounding environment—or at least, Vohtz and his group did. Therefore, their most proficient offensive method was firing Reishi arrows enhanced by their spiritual power from their spirit bows.
However, this didn't mean Quincies lacked close-quarters combat methods. While they couldn't compare to Shinigami, who primarily relied on melee combat, they could still hold their own in short-term engagements. At the very least, Kōe was currently being annoyed to no end by the ten Quincies surrounding him, who would strike and immediately retreat, or retreat even before making contact!
After a period of offense and defense, Vohtz felt that the Shinigami atop the bell was truly bizarre. Even if he had to guard the Senkaimon, there was no need to remain completely stationary, right? Furthermore, there were two instances where their arrows were aimed directly at him. Using Shunpo to evade would have clearly saved more energy, yet he chose to take the hits head-on.
*'Could it be that he can't leave the top of the bell?'* This thought naturally surfaced in Vohtz's mind. He immediately adjusted his tactics, ordering ten squad members to continue their long-range harassment while he led the remaining nine Quincies in a close-quarters assault. They had only one target: the Shinigami on the bell!
Facts proved that pairing a warrior with a marksman was indeed a classic combination. Although Kōe wasn't losing ground, splitting his focus any further was proving difficult.
He debated whether to use high-level Kidō to wipe out the guys in front of him first, but the enemy was cautious, sending up a maximum of three people at a time. They also didn't linger in combat; under the cover of arrows, they would land a single strike and retreat, allowing the people behind them to seamlessly continue the assault.
It was an obvious war of attrition. Kōe had even deliberately exposed a flaw or two, but unfortunately, the enemy didn't take the bait. They made it clear: if you don't get hurt, I won't risk my life. Let's see who exhausts who first!
"[Bakudō #30・Shitotsu Sansen!]"
Three beak-like beams of light materialized out of thin air in front of Kōe, shooting toward Vohtz in mid-air. The Quincy didn't even try to dodge; he took the Bakudō head-on, his body flying backward until he was firmly pinned to the ground.
If Kōe were to use Shunpo right now to follow up with a sword strike, or chase it with a Hadō spell above the 60s, it would be certain death for Vohtz.
There had been many such opportunities, but Kōe acted as if he hadn't noticed them at all, allowing the other Quincies to break the Bakudō and let Vohtz rejoin the fray.
"Trying to trade your life to severely injure me, how ruthless!" Kōe muttered, his feelings rather complicated as he watched Vohtz charge forward time and time again. Although he had known early on that Vohtz wasn't as simple and honest as he appeared, he hadn't expected the man to be this utterly ruthless.
In truth, Kōe had no right to call Vohtz ruthless. He hadn't drawn the Zanpakutō at his waist to slaughter the enemy, and it certainly wasn't out of nostalgia for their past acquaintance. He was simply waiting for an opportunity to wipe out all these Quincies in one fell swoop! If anyone was ruthless, Shihouin Kōe was far worse!
While Kōe waited for his chance in the plaza, Yoruichi, who was being kited outside the plaza, was also waiting for hers. Yes, the reason Yoruichi hadn't been able to land a hit on Rein was entirely because she was being kited.
If Kōe was merely annoyed by having his energy drained, Yoruichi was starting to get genuinely furious at being played for a fool!
This Quincy brat named Rein might not be as fast as her, and his destructive power wasn't even on the same level as her Bankai state. But there was just one thing: Rein launched his attacks faster than she did! Just this one point left Yoruichi unable to bring her full strength to bear!
"Boom!" The long staff collided with a blue arrow, resulting in another massive explosion. Yoruichi twirled the staff in her hands, sweeping a path through the bursting crimson flames. Unaffected by the blast, she hurriedly gave chase. However, Rein, who had originally been within ten meters, used this brief window to retreat over five hundred meters away.
Rein's archery speed was incredibly fast. Crucially, even while moving, his firing rate barely slowed down. Because of this, the speed gap between him and Yoruichi was practically dragged to an even playing field. Even on the rare occasions Yoruichi managed to rush right up to his face, the incoming arrows would force her to trigger an explosion, and Rein would naturally use the resulting blast wave to widen the distance once again.
It was like this every single time! Yoruichi gritted her teeth, sweeping aside the arrows in front of her, her temples throbbing slightly. This feeling of a mouse teasing a cat was absolute torture for a feline. It was a humiliating disgrace!
However, Rein felt no sense of accomplishment from teasing the cat. If someone had x-ray vision right now, they would discover that the bones inside his body were connected by a dense network of fine blue threads.
These fine threads were known as Ransō Tengai. It was a technique where Quincies turned Reishi into thin strings to stitch together paralyzed or broken body parts, forcing their bodies to move like manipulated puppets. After all, he was facing Yoruichi's Bankai; even if he was using the blast waves to hitch a ride, it was impossible not to snap a few bones as the price of admission.
Any Shinigami who had fought Quincies in the past would definitely know of the existence of Ransō Tengai. That was why Kōe's initial order had been to knock Rein unconscious. He wasn't joking—to capture him alive, they really had to knock him out. Simply breaking his legs wouldn't do a damn thing.
But at this moment, Yoruichi had long since thrown the words "capture alive" to the back of her mind. She just wanted to roast this jumpy little mouse alive! To do that, she needed to utilize the Enshindō in her hands much more efficiently.
Yoruichi's Bankai, Jippō Kumetsu Enshindō, possessed four abilities, each corresponding to the four fire crests on the stone sections of the staff.
Right now, facing Rein's direction, the fire crest resembling a blooming flame flower could use her own spiritual power to destroy the structural integrity of whatever it touched, forcing its Reishi to go berserk. The physical manifestation of this was an explosion.
The second fire crest, composed of contracting lines resembling a whirlpool, would absorb and store the berserk Reishi laced with her spiritual power. She had just used this ability when sweeping aside the crimson flames.
The corresponding sword-shaped fire crest would then release the stored berserk Reishi, triggering an explosion out of thin air without needing to touch an object.
Finally, opposite the flower fire crest was a round, shield-shaped fire crest. Its function was the exact opposite of the flower crest: as long as the berserk Reishi was mixed with her own spiritual power, it could perfectly isolate it. Yoruichi's ability to use the blast waves for movement without shattering her own bones relied entirely on this.
*'Should I try blasting him into the dirt from a distance?'* After several clashes with Rein, Yoruichi had absorbed and stored quite a bit of berserk Reishi. If she unleashed it all at once, it might just threaten Rein from afar.
*'No, I can't just threaten him right now. It has to be a one-hit kill!'*
Yoruichi bit her lip, forcing herself to calm down a little. Right now, the enemy was still unaware that she had these trump cards, meaning he might still expose a flaw. If she failed to succeed on the first try, this little mouse would definitely become even more cautious.
Endure! No matter how furious she was, she absolutely had to endure it right now!
In reality, it was highly unlikely for Rein to expose a flaw anymore. His broken bones hadn't broken for nothing. He knew very well that threatening the life of the female Shinigami before him was practically impossible.
Even with Ransō Tengai, who in their right mind enjoyed losing arms and legs for fun? He couldn't afford to provoke the old hag in front of him! Rein was thoroughly intimidated by Yoruichi, but he figured: *'If I can't beat you, can't I at least annoy you?'*
A new game began, and the name of the game was—Hide and Seek!
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