Fate in Bleach: Unlimited Blade Works! Chapter 263: Sōken Ishida

"Oh? Captain Kurotsuchi, who told you that I didn't have a Limiting Seal placed on when I ca to the World of the Living?" Ailin asked with amusent.

"Hmph, the spiritual pressure you just released, even within the Seireitei, few captains could match it. Are you telling that was just your suppressed spiritual pressure, Captain Ailin?"

Mayuri Kurotsuchi glared at Ailin. This was the man who had once effortlessly defeated him and who was now interfering with his plans, costing him a valuable test subject.

Clap, clap, clap...

"Captain Kurotsuchi, your eyesight is truly remarkable," Ailin said, clapping his hands in mock admiration. "You're the first person to recognize that I used a Limiting Seal."

With that, he casually lifted his shihakushō, revealing the black Eleventh Division insignia on his left chest. It was a black sawgrass, the Eleventh Division's emblem.

Seeing the insignia, Kurotsuchi's eyes nearly bulged from their sockets.

"This... This is impossible!"

The spiritual pressure Ailin had just unleashed could rival that of a captain in Bankai. And you're telling that was his suppressed spiritual pressure?

How strong was he without the Limiting Seal?

Seeing Kurotsuchi's astonished expression, Ailin smirked. "Why is it impossible, Captain Kurotsuchi? I am the 'Strongest Shinigami' of the Seireitei. Don't use your narrow perspective to judge . I stand at a height beyond your comprehension."

Ailin waved dismissively at Kurotsuchi, then turned his attention to Sōken Ishida, who now had a full head of white hair.

"Long ti no see, old friend. If I rember correctly, you're Sōken Ishida, aren't you?"

"Indeed, Captain Ailin. I am Sōken Ishida." Sōken stood before Ailin respectfully, just like over two hundred years ago.

However, back then, he had been a young boy, dreaming of restoring the Quincy's glory. After learning from Ailin the reason behind the Shinigami's extermination of the Quincy, he had abandoned that dream and, at Ailin's suggestion, had beco the Quincy representative, signing a peace treaty with the Shinigami.

Thus, he had beco, in the eyes of the Shinigami, the "last Quincy."

Though he had married and had a son, and other Quincy families had given birth to children with potential, he had kept them hidden from the Shinigami.

Since Sōken was intent on keeping them secret, Ailin saw no reason to expose them. He knew Uryu Ishida was watching from nearby, but he didn't acknowledge the boy's presence.

"Can you tell what happened here, Sōken?" he asked.

"Captain Ailin, it's like this. According to the agreent between the Quincy and the Shinigami, I, as a Quincy, cannot use my Quincy powers to eliminate Hollows when they appear in the World of the Living. However, I can stall for ti until the stationed Shinigami arrive to purify them.

But this ti, I was attacked by over a dozen Hollows. I resisted for nearly half an hour, but no Shinigami ca to purify them. Fearing that sothing had happened to the stationed Shinigami, I used the device you gave ."

While Ailin already knew what had happened, he listened patiently to Sōken's explanation. Once Sōken had finished, Ailin turned his gaze to Kurotsuchi.

"Captain Kurotsuchi, if I'm not mistaken, after the agreent between Quincy and Shinigami was signed, it was included in the Shin'ō Academy curriculum. Don't tell that none of you, over a dozen Twelfth Division Shinigami, knew about this agreent."

"Captain Ailin, what are you implying? Are you accusing my division of abandoning a Quincy in need?"

While his actions did indeed constitute abandonnt, Kurotsuchi refused to admit it. He believed that as long as Ailin didn't have concrete evidence, Head-Captain Yamamoto wouldn't punish him for the sake of a Quincy.

"If you have evidence that I violated the agreent, I urge you to report it to Head-Captain Yamamoto and let him punish , instead of making baseless accusations."

"Captain Kurotsuchi, it seems you've forgotten that I was the one who facilitated that agreent. Your decision to abandon a Quincy right before my eyes is not only a violation of the agreent between Shinigami and Quincy but also a betrayal of my trust. And Captain Kurotsuchi, have you perhaps misunderstood sothing? I, Ailin, do not answer to Head-Captain Yamamoto."

With those words, Ailin vanished in a flash of Shunpo, reappearing behind Kurotsuchi. He held a severed arm in his hand. Blood dripped from the wound.

"Argh!"

Kurotsuchi scread as everyone realized that his right arm had been severed at the shoulder.

He stared at Ailin in horror, drenched in cold sweat. He never imagined that Ailin would dare to attack him directly.

"Captain Kurotsuchi, this ti, I'm only giving you a warning because Sōken Ishida is unhard. But rember this. If anything like this happens again, I will hold you personally responsible. If you don't want to be hard again, pray that Sōken Ishida dies of old age."

"Now, get out of my sight."

"Damn it!"

Humiliated and enraged, Kurotsuchi glared at Ailin, then, drawing his Zanpakutō, opened a Senkaimon and led his trembling subordinates back to the Seireitei.

Undeniably, Kurotsuchi would beco a valuable asset during the Thousand-Year Blood War, even earning the title of MVP. But that was the future Kurotsuchi.

Before he learned his lesson from Uryu Ishida, or rather, before he developed a genuine affection for his creation, Nemu, Mayuri Kurotsuchi was a man who would stop at nothing to achieve his goals.

To ensure his subordinates' loyalty, he had even implanted spiritual bombs within their bodies. It wasn't until Nemu had shielded him from harm on multiple occasions, earning his recognition as his "daughter," that his thods beca less ruthless and he began to show so semblance of humanity.

Currently, it seed his experints had progressed to Nemu #6. He hadn't yet begun creating Nemu #7.

The mbers of the Twelfth Division, throughout history, all possessed a burning desire to create sothing new, as if their worth was asured by their ability to surpass their predecessors.

Kurotsuchi, eventually, would prove himself with Nemu #8, a miracle that surpassed even Kisuke Urahara's achievents. However, no matter how great his future accomplishnts might be, Ailin wouldn't tolerate anyone violating the agreent he had personally witnessed and facilitated.

After watching Kurotsuchi's departure, Ailin's hand ignited with azure flas. The flas swiftly consud the severed arm, leaving behind only a wisp of smoke. He then turned to Sōken Ishida.

"Captain Ailin, thank you. If it weren't for you, my Quincy lineage would have ended with ." Sōken bowed deeply, his humility startling even Uryu, who had never seen his grandfather act so submissively.

"Stop it, Sōken. You can use those words to fool the Shinigami, but you can't fool . I know there are other Quincy in the World of the Living. However, I don't care about their numbers. What I do care about is your health. It seems you only have three or four years left. If you have anything you want to pass on, do it quickly. Don't wait until you're on your deathbed to regret not teaching your disciples properly."

Sōken was stunned.

Ailin's claim that he didn't care about the number of Quincy in the World of the Living made him think of his son and grandson. If there were other Quincy, then it could only be those two, right?

As for Ailin's statent that he only had three or four years left to live, Sōken wasn't surprised. He had lived a long life. With his spiritual pressure, he had already surpassed his natural lifespan. It was ti for him to pass on.

What Sōken didn't realize was that Ailin's words weren't referring to his natural lifespan.

In three or four years, Yhwach, the progenitor of the Quincy, would regain consciousness and initiate "Auswählen," reclaiming his power over nine years.

Sōken, with his current strength, couldn't escape Auswählen.

"I understand, Captain Ailin."

Despite learning of his impending doom, Sōken accepted it calmly.

"Good. I'm glad you understand. While I've resolved this issue for you, that man won't give up so easily. Don't bother confronting the Hollows yourself anymore. Or rather, if you encounter any danger, use your Quincy powers to eliminate them. After all, Captain Kurotsuchi's actions practically nullified the agreent. Don't be constrained by it."