"Hello." The two greeted in unison. "You look pretty solid."

"Not bad." Yasutora Sado glanced at the masks on their faces. "Those masks you're wearing... are they Hollow masks?"

"Oh, that." Love Aikawa wiped a hand across the face, and the mask dissolved into scattered spirit particles that faded into the air. "It's just like a superhero thing, only five minutes. Five minutes."

"This is Hollowfication for Soul Reapers." Ichigo explained. "Every soul has its limits. Just like how an ordinary soul can never become a Soul Reaper no matter how hard it tries, Soul Reapers are the same. An ordinary Soul Reaper, no matter how hard they push, cannot break through that ceiling, cannot master Bankai and reach captain level."

"...Breaking through that ceiling — that's what Hollowfication is for?"

"More or less. A Soul Reaper's Hollowfication, a Hollow's Soul Reaper-ification, both are ways to break through the limits of your species." Ichigo scratched the back of his head. "But there are two problems with that approach. First, it's dangerous. Whether you're a Soul Reaper or a Hollow, the process causes spiritual body collapse."

"Second, looking at the successful cases, the road you open up by breaking species limits this way is actually pretty short, just like them. The Hollowfication window isn't long, and the power gains are fairly limited on top of that."

"Is that so..." Sado nodded slowly. For just a moment, the thought had crossed his mind, whether someone like himself, a human, could use something similar to push strength further.

"Gaining power through external means like that is actually pointless." Ichigo said, drawing the Zanpakuto from his back and hip. "They didn't even master Hollowfication by their own choice."

"That puppet master behind it all... Sosuke Aizen..."

"Oh, so that bastard Urahara filled you all in." Ichigo rolled his shoulders, loosening up, then called out to the assembled Visored: "Hey! Let's get going already!"

"Tch!" Shinji Hirako clicked the tongue. "Again? You're serious?"

"What? Scared?" Ichigo taunted. "You were all captains and vice-captains a hundred years ago. Don't tell me you're going to chicken out."

"You bastard, Ichigo!" Hiyori Sarugaki, golden hair blazing, leapt forward with a look of pure aggression. "Who said anything about scared?!"

"Then let's go!"

No more words. Long blade in the right hand, short blade in the left, Ichigo drove hard off the ground and shot forward like an arrow off a bowstring.

"Come on then, bastard! Cut him down — Kubikiri Orochi!"

A hand swept across the forehead and a white horned mask locked into place on Hiyori's face. The Zanpakuto came out in the same motion, and as the release command rang out, the blade transformed into a massive serrated edge. It came swinging in with a savage, howling aura.

CLANG,

"Too weak!"

The instant the two blades met, Hiyori's body shot backward like a cannonball. A crack had already split the mask, a clear measure of the force behind the hit.

WHOOSH!

Slicing air from behind. Ichigo twisted, left hand bringing the short blade up to intercept as Shinji, wearing a samurai-style mask, came chopping down with a sword.

The blades clashed. Immediately, a long spear came in from the side. The long blade in the right hand swung to drive Shinji back, then the short blade swung again and caught the flanking attack.

"Your reactions are getting a little slow, Ichigo!"

No time to answer. A golden whip cracked in from above. Rojuro Otoribashi, Western-style clothes, beak-nosed mask, attacking from high above.

"Tch!"

Golden light flared and condensed along the long blade. With a broad, sweeping arc, the blade carved across the spear's owner, Lisa Yadomaru, sailor uniform and cross-shaped mask, then continued upward toward Rojuro, still airborne.

BOOM!

A massive golden slash detonated. Lisa was already clear in the first instant. The golden whip had no time to pull back, and after a brief, futile resistance, both whip and wielder were swallowed by the blast.

"Not done yet!"

Mask freshly repaired, Hiyori gripped the serrated blade in both hands and dropped from above, a mountain coming down, aiming to bury the opponent under sheer weight.

"Super Kick!"

At the same instant, Mashiro Kuna, green hair, insect-style mask, hit from behind. Not the most gifted with Zanpakuto power, but in Hollowfied form that kick landed at nearly captain level.

"I said it already... you're all too slow."

The words weren't even finished. The long blade in the right hand swung again, same as the opening, and Hiyori was sent flying. When Hiyori hit the ground this time, both hands gripping the large blade were shaking, and it took a good while to recover.

The next instant, Ichigo spun and threw a side kick, catching Mashiro first. The blow shattered half of the mask Mashiro was so proud of.

CRACKLE,

Right in that moment, several orange cubic shapes materialized in front of Ichigo. Hachigen Ushoda, wearing a Native American-style mask, entered the battle, having spent the last few moments on the sideline quietly laying down dozens of barrier layers to keep the spiritual pressure from bleeding out.

BOOM!

No time to react. The cubes expanded at tremendous speed and detonated, throwing up billows of white smoke.

"What a monster..." Shinji didn't move rashly. Cold sweat slid down the side of the face. "Somehow it feels like getting stronger than before."

"Here's another possibility." Golden spiritual pressure erupted upward, tearing through the smoke. Ichigo stood there without a scratch and said, mildly: "Maybe you all got weaker."

"Tch!"

"Don't you dare underestimate us, bastard!"

The spear drove straight in again. Lisa's furious thrust was caught by the short blade and deflected with a light flick. Ichigo stepped forward and brought the right-hand blade crashing down.

"Waaah—!"

The voice came before the weapon did. A massive spiked club dropped from overhead. Ichigo stopped the attack, right hand raising the long blade horizontally to meet it. But the short blade in the left hand was already moving, golden light flashed, and another slash streaked out toward Lisa.

BOOM!

Long blade and spiked club collided with a thunderous crash. Dust erupted from the ground. But Ichigo's knees didn't bend once. That downward strike from above was absorbed through sheer, unbroken force.

"So... so strong..."

Sado and Orihime stared. The whole exchange had only lasted a few seconds. In those few seconds, both of them privately knew, if it had been either of them out there, they would have died a dozen times over.

"But..."

"Why isn't he using Bankai, that's what you're about to ask, right?"

Kensei Muguruma walked past them. Kensei hadn't joined the fighting just now, not out of unwillingness, but because there had been something to set up first, away from the chaos.

"Yes... that's it." Orihime nodded. "Everyone in the Visored has spiritual pressure at roughly the captain level. Some of them must know Bankai too. So why haven't they..."

"Bankai is the supreme secret art of the Soul Reaper, naturally the most powerful technique available."

"But that power is exactly the problem. Even its masters struggle to keep that force contained within a tight range. Most of our bankai aren't built for this kind of group fight, too easy to catch an ally in the blast." Kensei's spiritual pressure began rising, climbing steadily toward its ceiling. "As it happens, my Bankai is suited for exactly this situation. It won't take long."

"Bankai, Tekken Tachikaze!"

➤ Next: Still Not Pure Enough