BLEACH: Soul Infiltration — The Color Between Black and White - Forbidden Boundary Severance — Unreachable Voice and Pale Blue Flame

White. That was the first thing he perceived. White sand stretched endlessly. There was no sky. An eternal night covered everything like a lid. No wind. No sound. Only white sand and black darkness continued without end. He understood where he was immediately. Hueco Mundo—the dark otherworld where Hollows dwelled—at its very edge. Souga tried to sit up. His body wouldn't move. His arms were bound by something. Not spiritual rope. Something heavier. It felt like his entire body was crushed under stone. "You've awakened," A voice came from above. A man with long silver hair tied back was looking down at him. His left eye was red, his right eye silver. A mask hung from his neck, and a line-shaped scar marked his left eye. A cold smile was plastered across his face. The man grabbed Souga's arm. In that instant—— Thud!! His entire body burned. The sound of bones grinding filled his ears. Fire raced through his blood vessels, spreading to the tips of his toes in an instant. Souga screamed. His voice was swallowed by the desert. "Forced infusion of spiritual pressure. Pain is the fastest method," A monotone voice. Emotionless. Simply stating facts. "I'll tear out the power inside you by force," Spiritual pressure flooded in again. Thump!! His bones ground once more. His vision warped. His consciousness faded, then returned. Each time it returned, pain spread through his entire body. There was nowhere to escape. No strength to fight. Screaming didn't stop it. The desert was silent. No one came. Something began to seep into Souga's mind. (If I disappear, it all ends.) Words like that surfaced and vanished. Then pain came again, and his consciousness wavered. At the edge of that abyss——an image came. —————— A night road. An old man lay collapsed. Souga ran toward him. The old man's hand gripped Souga's hand. The old man's eyes glowed. A pale blue. "Protect." Only those words came through clearly. The old man's face was still obscured. Mist covered it. But his voice was clear. A voice with power. Protect. —————— Souga's consciousness returned. The desert. Eternal night. The man's hand gripping his arm. A tear fell onto the sand. He was told to protect. Wasn't this power something I have to protect others? Not to destroy the world. Not to be used by someone. Power to protect someone. Something ignited deep in his chest. His hand began to glow. It was different from before. Not a rampage. Not the light that overflowed when emotion lost control. Quietly, but certainly, he felt power gathering by his own will. The man's expression changed for the first time. His confident smile wavered, just for a moment. "……How presumptuous," "Shut up," Light exploded!! Crack!! The restraints binding his arms shattered and flew away. The man stepped back. Just one step. But he definitely retreated. Souga stood up. His legs were trembling. His entire body was battered. But he stood. The man was watching Souga. His left red eye narrowed. The two stood facing each other in the desert. ＊ Karakura Town was bathed in morning light. Rukia was running. The bandage on her shoulder was seeping. Yesterday's wound hadn't fully healed yet. But her hands didn't stop. She continued operating the Denreishinki—a device like an old-model cell phone that Soul Reapers used in the living world, capable of detecting Hollows and communicating with Soul Society—while running. "The signal pattern has changed," "What do you mean," Ichigo shouted while running beside her. With his black zanpakuto—Zangetsu—strapped to his back, he ran half a step ahead of Rukia. He'd been doing that the whole time. They'd run through the shopping district, checked the riverbed, and covered the north side of town. Searching everywhere for some trace of Souga. "I was able to partially break through the communication jamming," Ichigo's feet stopped. Rukia stopped as well. "I detected Souga's unique spiritual pressure wavelength—the pattern of that pale blue light—from a faint echo transmitted through the Dangai," "He's alive," His voice dropped. Not anger. Something else mixed in. "……Yes. He's near the boundary of Hueco Mundo," Ichigo didn't hesitate for even a second. "We're going," Rukia gripped the Denreishinki tighter. "Unauthorized entry into the Dangai is a serious violation under Soul Reaper law. If we cross the Dangai without a hell butterfly, there's danger of being sucked into the Koutotsu—the spiritual current that flows through the Dangai. Do you understand that," "I understand," "I'm coming too," Their eyes met. A confirmation shorter than words. They understood the cost of breaking the law, the possibility of death—all of it. But they wouldn't abandon Souga. That alone was enough. "I'll create a protective barrier with binding spells. Locally stopping the Koutotsu flow—a substitute for the safe passage that a normal hell butterfly opens. It won't last long. Run," "Leave it to me," ＊ The Dangai—the dimensional corridor that spread between the living world and Hueco Mundo—writhed. The Koutotsu. A black viscous current covered the entire wall of the passage. Touch it and you'd be sucked in. Once pulled in, there was no coming back. Rukia continued deploying binding spells while running. She thrust protective barriers forward, pushing back the Koutotsu as she advanced. Her injured right shoulder screamed. The area under the bandage was hot. But her expression didn't change. Ichigo ran at the front. Spiritual pressure bore down from ahead. He drew Zangetsu. He pushed through with brute force. The walls groaned. The sound of the Koutotsu writhing outside the barrier echoed. "Almost there!" Running. Keep running. The edge of the protective barrier trembled. Rukia stumbled. "——" Ichigo turned back. Reflexively, he caught her with one arm. While running, supporting her body, the two of them burst through the exit of the Dangai—into the entrance of Hueco Mundo. The last of the crumbling protective barrier shattered behind them. The two landed on white sand. Ichigo confirmed Rukia could stand, then released his arm. He said nothing. Rukia said nothing either. But her expression seemed to change just slightly. ＊ There were three Gillians—Gillian-class Menos Grande, massive species formed from the fusion of hundreds of Hollows. Black giants nearly fifty meters long. White masks with pointed noses. Cero—virtual flash—light was gathering in their mouths. If that was released, the ground itself would be blown away. "Stop their movement. I'll use binding spells," "I'll crack their masks. Time it with me," Rukia deployed the incantation. Black rope entangled all three simultaneously—Bakudō #61, Rikujōkōrō—binding spells with higher numbers had greater power, but deploying it on three targets simultaneously meant pouring all of Rukia's spiritual energy into it. The Gillians' feet were sewn to the ground. Their movement stopped!! "Now!!" Zangetsu tore through the air. Crack!! The first mask shattered. A death cry echoed across the desert, and the black giant dispersed into mist. The second one. Rukia's binding spell wavered for a moment—her injured shoulder couldn't put in the strength. The Gillian raised its arm. Ichigo moved on pure instinct. He compensated for the binding spell's reach with Zangetsu's speed. He stepped in and drove Zangetsu into the side of the mask. Crack!! Fragments of the shattered mask scattered across the sand. The second one dispersed as well. The third Gillian's Cero was released. Boom!!! A torrent of light gouged the ground. Sand swirled upward. The two jumped left and right to evade. It was hot. The air was burning. Rukia redeployed her binding spell. This time firmly, pinning both arms of the third Gillian to the ground. Ichigo stepped in from the front. The moment his knee touched the ground, he swung Zangetsu upward—and smashed the center of the mask head-on!! Crack!!! The third Gillian collapsed. Boom!! The desert trembled with the impact. The sand dust cleared. Rukia pressed her shoulder and whispered softly. "……You've improved," Ichigo lowered Zangetsu and looked forward. "……Souga," A figure stood in the dissipating dust. Wrapped in pale blue light, standing there. Facing the white-haired man, battered but standing. The figure turned around. His face looked like he might cry. Souga saw their faces, and his lips trembled. He tried to say something, but the words wouldn't come. Ichigo was about to shout. Then——the white-haired man laughed quietly. "……This is becoming interesting," His left red eye swept across all three in turn. Coldly. Calculatingly. The man's spiritual pressure began to spread slowly. Heavy. On a different scale. Even with Ichigo's full spiritual power and Zangetsu, even with all of Rukia's binding spells—if they clashed head-on with this man, what would happen? All three felt the same thing. Silence returned to the desert. Only the white sand wavered slightly, despite the absence of wind.

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Episode 6

Name: BLEACH: Soul Infiltration — The Color Between Black and White
Author: Novelia

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