Ichigo had been battling with Ishida for a while. They killed Hollows, fought, killed more Hollows, fought again.
"Why are there so many?!" Ichigo slashed another Hollow that tried to jump at him.
"The bait worked, didn't it?" Ishida replied nonchalantly while aiming at one that came from his blind spot. His bow fired an arrow and pierced through its mask, making it turn to dust. "I will kill more Hollows than you."
"You-!"
Ichigo wanted to retort but then a Hollow jumped toward him, interrupting him.
"Ichigo, behind!" Rukia warned from behind a wall.
"Damn it!"
Ichigo turned around and swung Zangetsu downwards, cutting off its limbs in one go. But then another Hollow came from behind him again...
'Three of them?!'
"ICHIGO, DODGE!"
Ichigo turned to look at the direction of the shout.
He saw a Hollow with a large claw charging toward him at incredible speed.
The Quincy also saw it and pulled his bow, but his finger had long since bled from excessive usage. He couldn't move anymore, so all he could do was stare hopelessly.
"Damn it, move!" Ichigo tried to dodge but he couldn't. His sword was stuck and he couldn't pull it.
His body refused to listen, muscles stiffening involuntarily due to excessive use of power. Even if he tried to force his body, it would still fail to respond properly.
'If I don't move, then I'll die!'
Raising his claw, the Hollow cried loudly and slashed downward. It was about to pierce through Ichigo's back when...
Crash!
Something collided head-on with the Hollow's skull, sending it crashing onto ground below. Its body crumpled underneath the force applied, bones snapping loudly.
A black, spiraling arrow embedded deeply on the ground where the Hollow had stood seconds earlier. Everyone looked surprised.
But then, a voice pulled them out of their thoughts.
"Don't stand still and move, Ichigo!"
"Shirou?!"
"Brother..."
Ichigo looked up and saw his brother standing in the air, holding a bow made from material that reminded them of night. He looked down at the younger sibling with a stern expression.
"You, what are you-"
"Later! Move!"
Ichigo snapped back to reality and quickly evaded another Hollow. He swung Zangetsu and killed it.
Ishida stood behind, staring dumbfounded at everything transpiring right now. His eyes widened in disbelief as he watched Shirou jump from one spot to another.
"That's..." He muttered weakly. His mind raced trying desperately to process the information he witnessed just moments ago.
That was clearly Hirenkyaku, the technique of Quincy.
Ignoring Ishida's surprise, Shirou traced Caladbolg II and twisted its blade. The Noble Phantasm turned into an arrow that fit his bow, and then he shot it at another incoming Hollow.
The arrow flew faster than a bullet and exploded upon impact. The broken Noble Phantasm was deadly even as a ranged weapon.
Without stopping, he shot another few arrows at other Hollows and destroyed them easily. The area was cleared in less than ten seconds.
Once there were no more Hollows around, Shirou landed beside Ichigo and Rukia, followed by Ishida who limped to them.
"What are you doing here?" Ichigo questioned him.
"What are you?" Ishida asked at the same time.
Shirou looked at them both and sighed. "We have no time, Ichigo, you have to leave with Kuchiki. A Shinigami is coming here."
"What do you mean?"
Rukia was surprised to hear that, immediately knowing what the boy meant. She was the only one here who knew what was happening. And Shirou's next sentence confirmed it.
"A Captain from the Gotei 13. The Shinigami is coming for Kuchiki."
"H-How did you know?" Rukia asked shakily.
"I saw them coming out of a gate." He replied calmly, "They are coming here for Kuchiki, but they will not stop at that. They'll also kill you, Ichigo. So get away."
Ichigo's face paled slightly, eyes widening in surprise.
"What the-"
"But that doesn't make sense! How can you be here and why are you using a Quincy technique?! Aren't you Kurosaki's twin?" Ishida shouted angrily at him, demanding an explanation.
"Ah, you see... It's because-"
Before he could explain, a massive spiritual power suddenly overwhelmed them.
"Impossible!"
Rukia exclaimed in shock, looking at the direction of the spiritual pressure. The two boys also felt the overwhelming pressure, the pressure that belonged to someone strong, a monster.
Hollows gathered toward that direction, the sky cracked again. However, it was worse than before.
'Another invasion?'
The crack grew larger, and it didn't stop until half of the sky was filled with a gigantic Hollow standing more than 100 meters with a skull resembling a football helmet. Black liquid flowed out from its body.
"Damn, what the hell is that?" Ichigo cursed loudly.
"... That's... Menos Grande..." Rukia muttered with a horrified expression on her face. She had seen a few in the past but she never thought she would encounter one again.
Shirou narrowed his eyes at the monstrous creature in front of them.
Menos Grande, the hollows that had evolved beyond normal and turned into something more. A being far stronger than normal hollow, a monster.
"Don't worry about that." Shirou stepped forward, tracing another Caladbolg II in his right hand. "More importantly, find Urahara and seek shelter for now. Leave this to me. Go, hurry! You too, Ishida."
"B-But..."
Ishida stuttered and tried to protest, but Shirou glared at him sharply, causing him to flinch involuntarily. He then glanced over at Rukia and Ichigo before nodding his head reluctantly. "Alright."
They ran in different directions with Ishida going alone and Ichigo carrying Rukia.
Shirou looked around him and saw Hollows that gathered around Menos Grande, but none dared to move.
At that moment, the Menos moved. A long tongue stabbed all Hollows surrounding it, and it started to suck them all. Its mouth opened wide, swallowing them all.
"That thing..."
It was the evolution of Hollows, a being that would evolve by eating more of their own kind.
The monstrous Hollow stared at Shirou who was the only living thing around it, and it licked its lips with its long, disgusting tongue. It was salivating heavily, showing its sharp fang and its hunger.
"Grraaar!"
It roared loudly, causing the world to shake and tremble.
Spiritual power gathered and condensed in front of its open mouth, creating a sphere. A massive amount of reiatsu gathered in its maw as it opened wider.
Sensing the danger, Shirou immediately knocked the broken Noble Phantasm onto his bow, pulling the string with all of his strength.
"I am the bone of my sword."
Blue electricity surged in his arm and formed circuits, and the bow was covered in the same glow, strengthening itself with Reinforcement and pseudo Mana Burst.
"Steel is my body, and fire is my blood."
The Cero that Menos Grande shot was huge, bigger than his house and fast. It would obliterate everything in its path.
But Shirou had his counter.
He would fight against the monstrous Hollow.
"I have created over a thousand blades."
Shirou pulled the bowstring harder. He concentrated all the spiritual power he had left inside his body on the bow, his arm trembling from exertion. The ground gave up and cracked under his feet, unable to withstand his might.
The Cero was almost ready.
At the same time, the tip of Shirou's arrow glowed brightly. A huge spiritual power concentrated and swirled on his bow.
This time, unlike when he fought Hollows before, it didn't take the shape of an arrow. It didn't even resemble one. Instead, it took the form of something much bigger...
Something akin to a lance...
Something similar to a sword...
It glowed brightly, a beautiful yet deadly light.
And then, he released it.
Like a blue meteor, it split the air and left a spiraling trail across the sky, heading straight towards its target. It hit Cero and easily pierced through it.
But that's not all, the lance-shaped light didn't stop there and continued forward, piercing the Menos' mask cleanly. Then, explosions.
The light engulfed Menos Grande in the blue explosion and disintegrated everything in sphere-shaped range. Everything within a 50-meter radius of its impact disappeared.
'Caladbolg, the Spiral Sword, a miracle from God. The original was thrown from the ship of the Gods, which is said to be the Sun, to the earth, and the rainbow was created in the place where this holy spear was stuck in the earth. It's a Noble Phantasm that brings blessings to all.'
And alongside blessing, it also brought destruction.
Even Menos was unable to survive with half of his body missing. It disappeared without a trace.
With its demise, the sky once again returned to normal. No Hollows nor cracks in sight.
"..."
Shirou didn't say anything. He only looked around and sighed.
"I can't feel the Shinigami's spiritual power. They must have left or hid themselves. Now I need to make sure Ichigo is alright and go home..."
He dismissed his bow, turned around, and walked away.
***Chapter End***
Finally he's acting like a Quincy, using a bow! Or is that a bow? Isn't that just a sword!?
He's actually one-hit menos, pretty neat!
Has the shinigami left? Or were they hiding?
Find out more by giving me stones!
For those impatient, feel free to read advanced chapters in pat- reon / ShuviLily