No Cheat in Bleach ? Watch me help Aizen then.-Chapter 124: Play Stupid Games, Win Stupid Prizes

The pale sands of Hueco Mundo stretched endlessly—bleached white and desolate. To Higashi Shuuichi, it all felt familiar... yet distant.

Ever since he'd begun working for the Kasumiōji family—and Kaname Tōsen had taken over his former position—he hadn't visited Hueco Mundo much. Maybe a few fleeting trips to Las Noches to consult Szayelaporro about research... but that was all.

Now, the barrenness greeted him like an old ghost.

He casually eliminated a few unlucky Hollows nearby. As the Garganta behind him closed, Unohana Retsu stepped through.

"So, your command over Hollow powers has matured quite a bit," she observed calmly as she landed.

"I wouldn't say 'matured.' Just... sufficient," Shuuichi replied, still cloaked in his Hollowfication.

He hadn't achieved Resurrección yet—far from mastery, by his own standards.

But to Unohana, that statement was sheer modesty.

"Is that so?" she murmured, an eyebrow rising. Somewhere during the descent, her braided hair had come undone.

The fight was inevitable.

This time, Unohana didn't wait for pleasantries or openings. She struck first.

In an instant, she was in front of him, Zanpakutō arcing upward.

CLANG.

Shuuichi had anticipated the ambush—no panic, no surprise. His blade met hers cleanly.

Then came her hidden short blade—a signature of her twin-sword style.

Clack.

Shuuichi countered with a fan-shaped Kidō barrier—Enkōsen—blocking the follow-up attack.

Dual wielding, the art Unohana had perfected, remained one of the few styles Shuuichi could never truly grasp.

Blades danced. Sparks scattered like stardust.

They exchanged dozens of blows in seconds, neither gaining the upper hand.

Their styles were too similar—most of Shuuichi's zanjutsu and close-quarters techniques came from Unohana. The rest, bits borrowed from Yamamoto and Zaraki Kenpachi, were already in her playbook.

Another clash. Shockwaves rippled across the sand.

Though he lacked Unohana's ability to attack with both hands simultaneously, Shuuichi's off-hand could still cast low-focus Kidō.

And of all incantations, Byakurai—Hadō #4—was king: fast, efficient, simple.

One bolt slipped through.

It grazed Unohana's skin—just enough to cause a flicker of paralysis.

"Cero!"

Shuuichi seized the opening. Reiryoku surged to his blade's tip and fired.

The blast devoured Unohana.

"Did it work?!"

The surprised voice didn't come from Shuuichi, but from someone drawn to the chaos: Tiruti Thunderwitch, one of the current Espada.

"Impossible, Tiruti! That captain's Reiatsu hasn't dropped one bit!" came a new voice—Dolodoni Alessandro del Socaccio, another Espada, just arriving.

Sure enough, the dust cleared... and Unohana stood, apparently unharmed, the ground behind her blown apart.

Shuuichi knew it wasn't because his attack failed—it was because she'd healed herself instantly with Kaidō.

Even so...

Unohana. The gap between us isn't infinite anymore.

He vanished.

Unohana frowned.

Not because she saw him move—but because she didn't.

This wasn't Shunpo.

It was Sonído.

The Hollow's movement technique, far beyond what step skills could match.

By the time she sensed him—

Fuzan.

The blade sliced down like judgment from heaven, splitting air, light, and presence itself.

"Damn, when did Hueco Mundo gain a beast like that?" Tiruti licked her lips, flushed with excitement. "Is he one of Aizen-sama's new pets?"

"I don't know," Dolodoni muttered. "But I do know you can't beat him."

He watched, astonished, as Unohana barely dodged the strike—then counterattacked from midair without missing a beat.

Of course, he thought. Only someone bold enough to chase Shuuichi into Hueco Mundo could parry that.

Dolodoni had known Shuuichi long ago—when he'd first evolved into an Adjuchas, Shuuichi was already a captain-level Soul Reaper. He'd seen the man fight Baraggan to a standstill more than once.

He remembered the day Shuuichi took on five captains and walked away.

He knew Shuuichi was on another level entirely.

Unfortunately, that was taboo knowledge now—Aizen's purges had seen to that. Of the Espada, only Baraggan (No. 2), Starrk (No. 1), Lilynette, and Szayelaporro (No. 0) still remembered who Shuuichi really was.

And then—

"Bankai: War Tactics—Hidden Blade in Laughter!"

Forced to drop Hollowfication, Shuuichi released his Zanpakutō.

His Reiatsu skyrocketed, but still...

Still not enough to force her Shikai.

Unohana's spiritual pressure was bottomless. A sponge that, when squeezed, just kept oozing power.

Hundreds of years of experience, monstrous talent—Shuuichi still hadn't caught up.

"Finally serious, Shuuichi?" Unohana smiled.

Her blade shot upward—Like a dragon piercing the sun.

"Wait... HE'S A SOUL REAPER?!"

Tiruti screamed. "They're fighting each other?! Dolodoni!"

"I see it, I see it, stop shouting—!"

But Tiruti was already flying toward the battlefield.

"No! I can't hold back anymore! I want in!"

"Dammit, Tiruti!" Dolodoni cursed. Do you even know what you're dealing with?!

But then a thought hit him.

Wait... isn't Shuuichi one of us? If Tiruti and I join in, we might take down that female captain.

Sounded like a plan.

"Cero!"

The blast split the battlefield.

Shuuichi and Unohana separated, each flanking in silence.

Tiruti hovered high above, euphoric.

"Hello, Soul Reapers! Let me introduce myself! I'm Espada No. 7—Tiruti Thunderwitch! And I'm going to kill you both~!"

Unaffected, Unohana's gaze turned to her.

"Do you know how rude it is to interrupt a duel?" she said, voice like winter frost.

Tiruti shivered, but—

"Oh yes~! That's the thrill I want!!"

She was soaking with excitement.

"This one's MINE!"

"Grind her down, Wheel-Iron Swallow!"

She released her Resurrección. Massive moth wings erupted behind her, antennae sprouting from her forehead. frёeωebɳovel.com

"Wing Sever—Scatter!"

Feathers shot out like razors, blotting the sky.

"Empty bravado."

Three slashes.

Unohana's blade carved the metallic snow into dust.

"Gotcha, Shinigami!"

Tiruti cackled. "Wing Sever—Detonate!"

The shredded feathers exploded into a storm of new blades.

"No matter how many pieces you chop them into—I control them all!"

"You Soul Reapers never learn!"

Unohana stood silent as the feather blades enveloped her.

Then Tiruti turned to Shuuichi, who stood still.

"You're next, handsome!"

Shuuichi only gave her a long, cold stare.

Play stupid games, win stupid prizes.

You really thought Unohana was going to fall for that?

The truth was simple.

Tiruti had just been watching a fight where he had needed Bankai—and Unohana hadn't even Shikai'd.

And she thought she stood a chance?

Shuuichi could only think:

"Tiruti... you just chose death."

Before she could attack again, her body froze.

A chill ran through her. Her muscles locked. Liquid ran down her legs.

She felt it: the pressure of death itself.

And she saw it—corpses piled high, oceans of blood.

At the center stood a woman.

"Tiruti!!"

Dolodoni screamed, finally arriving.

But it was too late.

Unohana sliced down.

One clean stroke—Tiruti split in two. Her Hollow core shattered.

The battle?

Over.

She came in loud.

She left in silence.

"Another one?" Unohana murmured, her eyes locking onto Dolodoni.

Death incarnate. He could barely breathe.

He knew he couldn't win. Not against that.

There was only one option.

"Reaper... enemy of my enemy is a friend! Let's team up!"

He looked desperately at Shuuichi, even using honorifics.

"...Sorry. What?"

Shuuichi tilted his head, feigning confusion.

"She's our comm—"

"Hadō #90: Kurohitsugi."

The black coffin consumed Dolodoni before he could finish.

Shuuichi was ready to finish the fool off—

—but then, in the sky above, a beam of light.

The distinctive pattern of a Senkaimon.

He looked up.

Kyōraku Shunsui had arrived. Alongside the new 3rd Division Captain, Ichimaru Gin, and Kenpachi Zaraki of the 11th.

"I knew opening a Garganta in Soul Society would be a damn headache," Shuuichi muttered, rubbing his temples.

From below, he watched those three white-clad figures descend.

Yeah.

This was going to get messy.