Haruki felt a bit nervous, but not entirely. In fact, he was almost amused.
"Alright… then I'll leave The Thousand-Year Blood War to you, Captain Aizen."
Haruki shrugged.
He roughly understood what Aizen was thinking.
Earlier, Haruki had interrupted the fight between White and Starrk, and Aizen was now giving him a bit of punishment.
Haruki wanted to stay in the Soul Society for "observation" and didn't want to come to Hueco Mundo, so Aizen had assigned him to Las Noches.
What Aizen didn't know, however, was that after seeing Starrk, Haruki had already switched sides to the Hueco Mundo faction.
The Shinigami of the Soul Society? Not really his people. Hueco Mundo was where it was at.
"You've already switched to a monthly release schedule, so take your time to conceptualize in Las Noches."
Aizen smiled. "I'm looking forward to your masterpiece."
"Especially some of the settings in The Thousand-Year Blood War. I'm quite interested."
Last year, Haruki had changed the release schedule from weekly to monthly, with a three-updates-one-break pattern, and even took breaks during holidays.
There was no helping it. Haruki needed time to figure out how to integrate the later plot into the Bleach worldview.
And…
he was also just plain lazy.
"Captain Aizen, you're not talking about 'Pluton,' are you?" Haruki said. "That's something I made up. There's no hidden meaning."
He had currently updated to the "Desert Kingdom" arc, where the ancient weapon Pluton was mentioned. But he hadn't tied it into the Bleach world at all.
He had no idea what Aizen was imagining.
Aizen didn't say anything more, simply opening a Garganta and leaving Las Noches.
Suddenly, Haruki was the only Shinigami left in Las Noches.
Left alone so abruptly, Haruki shrugged and smiled. "Well, even though I came with them, don't blame me for what they did to you. If you want revenge, go after the guy with glasses."
"Shinigami…!" Baraggan seemed to finally react. He was both furious and anxious. Having ruled Hueco Mundo for tens of thousands of years, he had now been humiliated by Shinigami.
They had killed his subordinates right in front of him and forced him to acknowledge a Shinigami as his king. This was an immense disgrace.
Although the bespectacled Shinigami had left, he had left behind a companion.
Baraggan looked at Haruki, his hollow eye sockets flickering with an inexplicable light.
"Need help?"
Starrk glanced at Haruki and asked indifferently.
He had sensed an unfathomable power from Aizen, which was why he had agreed to join them.
As for Haruki Murakami, although he had blocked the attacks from Starrk and White earlier, Starrk hadn't felt an overwhelmingly powerful spiritual pressure from him.
Moreover, Starrk hadn't been using his full strength at the time.
Facing the King of Hueco Mundo now, Haruki might not be able to handle it.
"While I'd like to say I need help, if I did, Captain Aizen would be disappointed in me. After all, he left me here to keep this guy in line."
Haruki drew his Zanpakutō.
Baraggan roared angrily, "You lowly Shinigami, how dare you—"
"Enough, 'King of Hueco Mundo.'"
Haruki said coldly. In the next instant, his body underwent a transformation.
From his original appearance, he turned into Aizen!
"?!"
The sudden change shocked everyone who saw it. It was as if, in an instant, Aizen had replaced Haruki.
Even White emitted an uneasy aura, seemingly confused about Haruki's whereabouts.
At this moment, Haruki activated "Resemblance," an ability similar to the Sternritter "Y."
Not only could he transform into the appearance of another, but he could also mimic their spiritual pressure and abilities.
Of course, he couldn't directly gain Aizen's power, but at this moment, Haruki only needed Kyōka Suigetsu.
Since Aizen had already hypnotized Baraggan earlier, Haruki could now directly apply the hypnosis Aizen had set up.
So, when Baraggan angrily launched an attack at him, Haruki twisted his sense of direction, causing his death aura to spread to Haruki's left.
"Destruction Beam."
Haruki pointed a finger, and in the next moment, a black beam half the thickness of an arm shot out from his fingertip.
In an instant, it pierced a hole through Baraggan's body!
"What?!"
Baraggan couldn't believe it. He clutched his chest, staring intently at "Haruki."
"How is this possible? My power is absolute. No attack can withstand my aging!"
He roared, "What did you do?!"
"I pointed at your chest, and your supposedly invincible death aura was pierced. That's all."
Haruki deactivated Kyōka Suigetsu. Only then did Baraggan realize Haruki's true position. By now, Haruki had returned to his original form, his tone almost pitying.
The "Destruction Beam" had a unique trait: it could penetrate any defense. This ability was incredibly powerful, which was why Haruki had worked so hard to raise Tanimoto's favorability and make it his second permanently obtained ability.
"Alright, there's no need for us to keep fighting."
Haruki sighed helplessly. "Don't spread your hatred for Captain Aizen to all Shinigami. As the King of Hueco Mundo, you should at least have some dignity."
Although he made it look easy, using "Resemblance" was actually quite taxing.
Mainly because Aizen's spiritual pressure was too strong, while Haruki's was too weak. Mimicking Aizen's power was a huge burden for him.
So, if he could avoid fighting Baraggan, he would. Why should two wage slaves fight each other? If Baraggan wanted to fight the boss, let him. Haruki was just a small employee. No need to drag himself into the fire.
"Let it go."
Starrk spoke up at this point. "It's already pathetic enough to vent your anger on a subordinate because you can't defeat the leader."
"As the 'King of Hueco Mundo,' at least show some dignity in front of Shinigami."
"And who are you?" Baraggan said coldly.
"Coyote Starrk," Starrk replied indifferently.
"A Hollow who serves as a dog to Shinigami?"
"Say what you want." Starrk glanced around. "Is there a place to rest? Arrange a room for me."
"Count me in too."
Haruki raised his hand. "I have no interest in the title of 'King of Hueco Mundo.' You can fight Captain Aizen for it. Just arrange a room for me and White, preferably next to Starrk's."
...
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