Bleach: Reborn — Chapter 30 - Victory in Battle

WOOOOOOOAAAAAAARRRRR!

Wayne's encirclement tactic was crude, but the results spoke for themselves. From the moment the pocket closed, his side's Gillian losses had run noticeably lower than the enemy's, and as the fighting heated up, the opposing Gillians began collapsing across the entire front. If the enemy commander didn't adjust his approach soon, this battle would be over fast.

Finally, after wave upon wave of attrition, the enemy Adjuchas-class could no longer sit still. Dozens of bizarrely shaped Gillians burst from the rear ranks. Ceros in every color swept across Wayne's Gillian lines. The front row detonated on impact, wounds charred black, not a drop of blood, just the thick stench of scorched flesh. Combat capability: zero.

The Sandworm Menos lifted his head, gathering power for a Bala. Wayne stopped him.

"Hold, my lord. Let them burn through another round first."

"Why? Our Gillians are taking fire." The Sandworm Menos didn't understand. Tactical genius was not his gift, he saw damage, so he wanted to act.

"Cannon fodder." Wayne shook his head, voice flat. "They say: the first charge surges with spirit, the second falters, the third collapses. Let the enemy Adjuchas-class drain their Reiatsu over a few volleys. Then we hit them with Negación — break their morale. Strike while they're stunned. Catch them off guard. That's how you make it count."

"This king understood none of that. But it just means wait longer, yes?" The Sandworm Menos scratched his worm-like head with the tip of his tail, a strangely human gesture.

"Yes, my lord. Keep pressing our Gillians forward. We can afford the losses, and it lets us map their attack range. Our sixty-plus Negación barriers need clear targets."

"Fine. We do it your way." The Sandworm Menos didn't argue. He could see the encirclement was working. In all his sacred wars, he had never held such an overwhelming advantage. His trust in Wayne deepened another notch.

The battlefield shifted breath by breath. Adjuchas-class attacks lasted mere seconds. Three Cero volleys later, the front-line Gillians were nearly gone, only the middle ranks still pushed forward. Even as they fell, the dying Gillians fired back, causing no small trouble for the enemy Adjuchas-class.

"Big worm of the Northern Forest! Clever tricks!"

A coarse roar cut across the battlefield. After three volleys, the enemy commander had finally appeared at the front. An aberrant Hollow beyond easy description, a massive body twenty-five, maybe twenty-six meters tall, yet its head was no bigger than a washbasin. Tentacles covered its form, with six legs like electrified spikes underneath.

"I don't know how you suddenly grew a brain and formed your Gillians into that formation. But don't underestimate the Southern Forest!"

"Hmph. Ugly freak — still running your mouth? Surrender. Hand over your resources. This king might consider letting you live. Otherwise, you won't leave here in one piece."

"Boastful worm. Who wins and who loses is far from decided. Watch me blast every last one of your minions to dust!"

The Lord of the Southern Forest roared at the sky. Every Adjuchas-class and Gillian under his command surged their Reiatsu, preparing a massive wave of Ceros.

Wayne focused. The Southern Forest Lord's ranks were mostly aberrant-types too. That answered a question that had been nagging at him, the Forest of Menos really did have tribal divisions, rivalries based on affinity. He wondered, briefly, whether the Central Forest was populated entirely by humanoid Hollows.

But that was just a passing thought. He turned and signaled the Sandworm Menos: no breathing room. Send the Gillians to keep harassing. Prepare the Adjuchas-class to deploy Negación.

The Sandworm Menos roared. Dozens of Gillians spat crimson light at the enemy Adjuchas-class. Sensing the Reiatsu surge from the Northern side, the enemy Adjuchas-class abandoned their charge and fired back. Dark crimson Ceros tangled with every color imaginable, painting half the battlefield in strange, vivid hues.

"Now, my lord!"

The Lord of the Northern Forest reacted instantly, tilted his head back and fired a single Bala.

BOOM!

The dark crimson sphere shot skyward. An instant later, sixty-plus Negación barriers descended in perfect unison. To the Gillians standing before Wayne, it was a solid wall of golden light, every incoming Cero slamming harmlessly against it.

"Negación?!" The Lord of the Southern Forest stared in disbelief. His decades-old rival had suddenly abandoned rigid, predictable tactics, now wielding layered strategies that left him momentarily stunned. That single moment of distraction was all it took. Sixty-plus Adjuchas-class Ceros and over a hundred dark crimson Ceros answered the Northern Lord's command. The coordinated strike pushed the battlefield's Reiatsu to its absolute limit.

Strike where they're unprepared. Hit where they're soft. One of Wayne's preferred methods, seize the gap when the enemy's old strength is spent and new strength hasn't yet risen, then deliver a devastating blow. Yes, the enemy could use Negación to defend, but Negación only works on allies, never on oneself. And how many among the enemy's Adjuchas-class could truly be called allies?

In the chaos of a shifting battlefield, they barely had time to save themselves. Who would spare a thought for anyone else?

The aberrant Hollows, with the Southern Forest Lord at their center, were blasted apart. Survivors had their Reiatsu drained to critical levels. The only ones who preserved any real strength were the Southern Forest Lord and a handful of his most capable subordinates. In a single moment, victory was all but locked.

"KILL!"

Beneath his Hollow Mask, the Northern Lord's eyes flashed with savagery. He didn't even wait to hear the rest of Wayne's plan, just gave the order and charged. After the Ceros came close-quarters battle. But unlike before, the Northern Forest held an overwhelming advantage. The scales tipped decisively toward Wayne's side.

Over a hundred Adjuchas-class Menos Grande tore across the battlefield from both flanks. Wayne stepped back, concealing his Reiatsu and presence. As the architect of this escalation, he had zero interest in joining an Adjuchas-class brawl. That was far beyond what he could handle.

If he'd reached late-stage Gillian, maybe he could take a hit or two. But he'd only just evolved and hadn't even reached mid-stage yet. Resistance wasn't in the cards. His Reiatsu was higher than the average Gillian's, sure, but against a rank gap this wide, it meant nothing. A glancing Cero from an Adjuchas-class would cost him body parts. And Adjuchas-class had their own Reiryoku abilities, if one of those connected, he'd die on the spot.

He slipped out of the battle circle and watched. Adjuchas-class Menos Grande: their enhanced Reiryoku abilities didn't just hit harder. They fused with the wielder's unique traits into attacks that were entirely their own.

Some abilities overlapped, of course, like a single power split into large and small forms, one strong, one weak. Fire at magma intensity outclassed ordinary flames. Ice worked the same way: sub-zero temperatures could never compare to absolute zero. Hierarchies existed everywhere.

The subdivisions were nearly infinite. Broad categories were the only way to summarize. Which made intelligence a critical strategic objective, and Wayne's job right now was to observe every Adjuchas-class ability on the field, filing it away for future plans.

The Sandworm Menos's ability seemed to be corrosion. Dark green acid sprayed from his massive mandibles. Any Gillian it touched dissolved like snow in seconds. Even Adjuchas-class were left with permanent scars. The only one who could resist to any degree was the Southern Forest Lord himself, that grotesque aberrant Hollow.

The aberrant's ability seemed to be parasitism. Countless spores covered its monstrous body. Wherever a spore landed, it devoured the host, and once it had gorged itself on Reishi, it exploded, dealing damage both ways.

The counter was Hierro. Only Adjuchas-class possessed it, and it could endure the spores' gnawing. Insufficient Reiatsu still meant risk, of course. But with the Sandworm Menos keeping the enemy pinned, their side's Adjuchas-class hadn't been caught in the crossfire. Each simply found its own opponent and fought.

Those fights were ending fast. This was already a war of mismatched strength.

The battle had raged long enough. The Southern Forest's Adjuchas-class were scattered and broken, only the small circle around the Southern Forest Lord still held. Under the Sandworm Menos's assault, even that was only a matter of time.

"Hmph. Ugly thing — gone quiet, have you? Speak up!" The Sandworm Menos lashed his tail forward, taunting as he struck. "Lord of the Southern Forest? You're nothing but a stray dog!"

"Filthy worm. Don't get cocky." The Southern Forest Lord barely deflected the blow and retreated at full speed, only to be cut off by other Adjuchas-class Menos Grande before he'd gone more than a few steps. No escape. "I don't know how you commanded Negación like that, but if you think you can keep me here, you're delusional!"

"Keep you here? I'm not sure about that. But your subordinates..." A cold snort. The Northern Lord slammed his massive tail against the ground and lunged forward.

Sonído. A movement technique usable by any Adjuchas-class, regardless of size. The Southern Forest Lord stiffened his tentacles and met the attack head-on. The two locked into a fierce, inseparable struggle. Meanwhile, the other Adjuchas-class Menos Grande cut down the remaining enemy Adjuchas-class and swept up the Gillians. The battle was nearly over.

HUM!

The fighting continued. The Southern Forest Lord was driven back step by step. Just as he was about to collapse under the pressure, something changed, a beam of golden light split the two leader-class Menos Grande apart. One of the Southern Forest Lord's subordinates had used Negación on him.

"My lord, RUN!" the aberrant Hollow shouted. "We can lose this battle — but you cannot die! The Southern Forest still needs you!"

"Sadieen, you..." The Southern Forest Lord was stunned. He recognized the Reiatsu behind the barrier, his most loyal servant.

"Go now, my lord! I'll buy you time! May you prevail in every battle to come!"

With those words, the aberrant named Sadieen used Sonído and closed the distance instantly, unleashing a Cero charged with every last drop of his Reiatsu straight into the Northern Lord's face.

But the gap between mid-stage Adjuchas-class and peak Adjuchas-class wasn't something lower-tier Hollows could bridge. Sadieen's attack amounted to a minor inconvenience.

"Hmph. A firefly daring to rival the moon. Overestimating yourself." The Northern Lord dismissed the resistance with contempt.

"Foul worm! You will NOT harm my master!"

Knowing his all-out strike had achieved nothing, Sadieen's body began radiating enormous Reiatsu. Behind his Hollow Mask, his eyes blazed with absolute resolve.

In that moment, he chose self-destruction. Only this could deal even slight damage, and hold the Northern Lord in place long enough.

BOOM!

The explosion thundered across the battlefield. The Northern Lord had no choice but to pull back from the blast. He wasn't worried, though. Sadieen dead meant the Negación would vanish on its own.

What he hadn't expected: the Southern Forest Lord was just as decisive. By the time the smoke and Negación cleared, the Southern Forest Lord had already entered a Garganta. The gap had shrunk to just a few meters, far too late for pursuit.

"You damned worm. I'm keeping score. Next time, I will make you PAY!"

Those bitter words hung in the air. Then the Lord of the Southern Forest vanished.

Without their core, the abandoned Adjuchas-class and Gillians fell into chaos. The battlefield's Adjuchas-class cut them down to the last. The battle was over.

The Adjuchas-class howled in triumph. The Gillians dropped to the ground, tearing into the spoils of victory.

Only Wayne stood apart, gazing quietly at the spot where the Garganta had closed. His eyes were full of questions, his mind turning over something no one else could see.

➤ Next: Desperate Flight