"Wow, I didn't think he'd actually use that bait... That stuff attracts Menos Grande."
Inside Urahara's shop, Urahara Kisuke acted surprised as he sensed the spiritual pressure (Reiatsu).
Standing nearby were Tessai Tsukabishi, Tsumugaya Yu, and Hanakari Jinta. The three of them stared at Urahara in silence, annoyed expressions on their faces.
"Manager," Tessai said flatly, "if I remember right, you were the one who sold him that bait."
"Really!?" Urahara exclaimed, hiding his face behind his folding fan with an exaggerated smile. "I sell so much stuff, I lose track sometimes."
"You're lying again…" Hanakari Jinta muttered with a pout.
"Still," Urahara continued, grinning as he turned to Tsumugaya Yu, "this bait alone won't be enough. Yu, go grab a few more from the warehouse. Let's make it a real show."
Yu hesitated. "But, Manager… If we use that many baits, we'll attract even more powerful Hollows..."
"It's fine, it's fine," Urahara said, his eyes flashing with a sharp gleam. "We've got a very strong human with us, remember?"
At that, everyone thought of Nanaya. Their eyes lit up with sudden understanding.
Yu stopped arguing and ran into the warehouse, coming back with a few more bait sticks. He handed them to Urahara, who crushed them in his hand.
The air filled with an even stronger pull—one sure to attract more Menos Grande.
After setting everything up, Urahara waved his fan playfully and said, "Alright, let's see how they handle this."
The group stepped outside the shop… then froze.
Silence.
"Shake my hand and say, 'I'm a good cat!'"
Nanaya crouched in front of the black cat Yoruichi, holding out his palm.
Yoruichi's eyes swirled in a daze from catnip. She reached out a paw, meowed softly, and said, "I'm a good cat."
"Good girl!" Nanaya smiled, patting Yoruichi on the head. "Now, let's try something harder…"
Just then, Urahara's voice cut in sharply. "Mr. Nanaya!"
His face was dark with annoyance. The others behind him were trying not to laugh too hard.
Nanaya, you madman, they all thought. You actually managed to get Yoruichi to act like this?!
Nanaya gave a nervous laugh, placing the black cat gently on his shoulder. "Nothing really, Manager… Miss Yoruichi's just way too cute. I couldn't help myself…"
"That's something you say to a dog, not a cat," Urahara said stiffly. He turned toward Yoruichi, looking disappointed. "Yoruichi… even though you're in cat form, you're still not a real cat. How could you act like this just from a little catnip!?"
"Meow?" Yoruichi looked back at him in confusion, then slumped limply on Nanaya's shoulder.
Urahara's mouth twitched, but he didn't say anything more. Instead, he pointed toward the sky, where black cracks had begun to appear.
"Mr. Nanaya," he said seriously, "are you just going to ignore that?"
Nanaya looked up—and his eyes widened.
"Whoa, what the hell? That many garganta cracks? Those two are going way overboard!"
The clear blue sky was now filled with endless black rips, eerie and deep, like the sky itself was being torn apart. The light from the sun was fading behind the dark voids.
From each crack, Hollows were spilling out—some alone, some in groups of seven or eight. And with so many cracks, the number of Hollows was insane… It was like a sea of monsters pouring into the world.
Even from hundreds of meters away, the collective roar of Menos Grande shook the air.
Nanaya's face changed. "Wait, no… This is way worse than the original story. There's no way Ishida Uryu did all of this."
He turned toward Urahara with narrowed eyes. "Manager Urahara… This mess doesn't have anything to do with you, does it?"
Urahara blinked, then fanned himself calmly with a smile. "Mr. Nanaya, you really love to joke. I'm just a humble shopkeeper. Why would I do something like that?"
Nanaya nodded slowly. "Yeah, yeah. Of course not. I'm sure it wasn't you, Manager Urahara. Probably just some other shameless bastard who did this…"
Urahara: "…"
Nanaya looked back to the sky. His eyes locked onto the massive horde of Menos Grande. He let out a breath—and his gaze turned ice-cold.
"Huang!!!"
A wave of dark red Reiatsu exploded from him.
It looked like Nanaya's entire body was engulfed in flames—dark, wild, and full of ominous energy.
Urahara Kisuke and the others were stunned. It was their first time seeing Nanaya release his spiritual pressure, and they hadn't expected it to be this overwhelming.
"I don't have time to explain," Nanaya said flatly. "Let me handle this first."
He stepped forward, then vanished with a few quick flashes of Shunpo, reappearing high above the street.
Looking up at the Menos Grande flooding the sky, he whispered two words:
"Amaterasu.""Flame Control."
His left eye activated Amaterasu, his right Flame Control. In an instant, black flames burst out and spread violently, covering the sky like a dark sea of endless fire.
It was like the sun had been swallowed. The entire sky was painted black.
From below, Urahara and the others could no longer see the sun—only an overwhelming mass of dark fire that blotted out everything.
Under Nanaya's control, the flames surged forward like a giant black dragon, swallowing thousands of Menos Grande in a single, sweeping wave.
Screams and howls echoed through the air.
The shrill cries of the Menos Grande filled the atmosphere, echoing like tortured souls in a nightmare. It was enough to make your skin crawl.
No matter how much they struggled, the Hollows couldn't escape the burning grip of the inextinguishable black flames.
"Unbelievable," Tessai muttered, staring at the sky with wide eyes. "He's human… but he just released spiritual pressure on the level of a top Vice-Captain. And it's dark red…"
Jinta gulped, pointing up at Nanaya. "Uncle Tessai… honestly, he looks scarier than the Menos Grande!"
Yu's face had gone pale. He unwrapped a bandaged weapon, holding it shakily in Nanaya's direction.
"Is… is he turning into a Hollow!?"
The term Hollow referred to souls that had fallen into darkness. They were evil, full of despair—and Nanaya's current energy felt even more terrifying than that.
Tessai's face hardened. "His Reiatsu… it feels almost unnatural. Is he really becoming a Hollow!?"
Urahara, however, narrowed his eyes as he analyzed the situation carefully. "No… he's not turning into a Hollow," he said slowly. "He's absorbing the power of the Hollows."
He stared up at the black inferno. "Still… these flames are far beyond what I expected."
The black flames weren't just fire—they were alive. They shaped themselves into all kinds of weapons: swords, spears, axes, even scythes. Anything to destroy the Hollows.
And every Hollow that was burned away by the fire didn't just vanish—their spiritual energy turned into dark mist and flowed into Nanaya.
As he absorbed it, his Reiatsu grew even darker, and the evil aura around him became stronger.
Seeing this, Yu and Jinta finally relaxed a little. They wiped the cold sweat from their faces.
"So… he's not turning into a Hollow after all."
"Still, he's way too scary to be just a human…"
They both sighed.
"Even if he hasn't become a Hollow," Urahara said seriously, "he's still dangerously close. After absorbing so much Hollow power, can he really stay in control? Or will the darkness take over?"
The other three turned to Nanaya again, worry in their eyes.
Nanaya didn't seem concerned.
"…My eyes are itching. Am I growing new ones or something?"
He casually rubbed his eyes, then turned his head to scan the horizon.
Wherever he looked, the flames moved with him—like a black tsunami crashing through the sky. As his gaze shifted, the fire followed, engulfing more and more of the heavens in its path.
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