The official report Higashi Shuuichi had filed with the Gotei 13 only detailed a fraction of Heisha's true capabilities. According to that sanitized version, his spirit-puppet constructs could provide emergency reishi supplies to other Shinigami, and replicate about 80% of his own Hakuda and Shunpo techniques.
What he didn't report—what he made sure stayed buried—was that they could also replicate his full power in Kidō.
Not easily, of course. High-level Kidō was a massive drain. If one of his puppets tried anything above #90, the spell might succeed, but the puppet would burn out completely.
Still, it was a devastating ace in the hole.
And Shihōin Yoruichi? She had no idea.
Under normal circumstances, she might have sensed the puppets he sent creeping into other districts. Her spiritual perception was leagues above most captains. But today's battlefield was a blur of chaos—swarming Hollows, incoming Gillians, and four Adjuchas-level threats. Not to mention the seventeen "decoy" puppets Shuuichi had sent openly charging across the front lines.
She was too busy keeping up to notice the real play.
Meanwhile, Shuuichi's true goal was simple: locate and identify the coordinates of key upper-class nobles, then transmit those to the real strike team Aizen had hidden in the wings—led by none other than one of Hueco Mundo's most dangerous Espada: Coyote Starrk.
"Tenchō."
Shuuichi's whisper was calm as he appeared in front of a Gillian.
His left hand shot forward—two fingers extended.
CRACK.
The Hollow's hierro ruptured as a spiraling hole punched clean through its chest. Its arms spasmed and fell limp, the body crashing to the ground like a broken puppet.
Even as he landed atop its shoulder, using the momentum to vault forward toward his next target, Shuuichi's expression remained relaxed.
You picked the wrong time to spawn.
"That Hakuda..." Yoruichi watched from the flank, brow slightly furrowed.
His movements were seamless—clean, aggressive, merciless. Not a single wasted step. No hesitation, no flourish. Just death, delivered with surgical precision.
He fights like a natural-born assassin, she thought, obliterating an Adjuchas with a single Kidō blast.
His Shunpo's behind mine, but still elite. And if his Kidō matches his Hakuda… he might be capable of learning it.
She meant Shunkō—her secret technique.
But before she could consider further, an unexpected figure wandered into the warzone.
Shuuichi, still moving effortlessly through waves of Hollows, was coordinating puppet surveillance across the other districts. The first wave had mostly been a distraction. The real threat—Starrk, the disobedient Baraggan, and their armada—waited for his signal.
All he needed was the confirmed locations of the true high-ranking nobles. Most of them, predictably, had been evacuated the moment the black Garganta opened.
His mission was a race to find them before they slipped away into Seireitei.
One puppet returned with a confirmed coordinate.
He prepped to relay the data to Starrk, channeling it through a specialized spiritual code—
Then another puppet sent back a… very strange image.
A young noble girl. Tiny. Barely older than ten.
She held a toy wooden sword—more stick than weapon—and had crept into a hidden angle behind a Hollow, thrusting it forward with every ounce of her tiny, trembling strength.
"She trying to die?"
He froze, caught between confusion and disbelief.
Then he recognized her.
"…Sui-Fēng."
Yes. The future head of the Fēng family. Currently: a suicidal little girl with more guts than sense.
To be fair, her positioning was excellent. The angle, the timing—all perfect.
She just… didn't have the strength. Or the tool. A wooden stick wasn't going to pierce Hollow flesh.
The next image confirmed that.
The Hollow turned, slow and furious, and reared up to fire a Cero point-blank.
"…Does Sui-Fēng matter in the grand timeline?""…If I don't save her, does it affect Kurosaki Ichigo's birth?""…Would her death change Yoruichi's future?"
Questions blitzed through Shuuichi's brain.
But then he remembered Yoruichi's form bathed in lightning, beast-like, unstoppable. The ultimate fusion of Hakuda, Kidō, and Shunpo.
If I save her… I might get a foot in the door with Yoruichi. Maybe learn her secret technique.
Decision made.
"Save her."
Even if the odds were small—it was a small cost for a potentially massive gain.
"The strategist commands the field—Bakudō #73: Raiden Sankakushō!"
His Zanpakutō hummed as he pointed toward her.
A streak of blue lightning split the air, crossing most of the battlefield in an instant—just as the Hollow's Cero detonated.
The bolt became a crystalline prism, triangular and blazing with azure light, encasing Sui-Fēng completely.
The Cero struck.
Exploded.
And did nothing.
When the smoke cleared, the prism remained untouched. Not a scratch.
A beat later, Shuuichi flash-stepped forward—materializing directly in front of the stunned Hollow. It barely had time to register his face.
"Count yourself lucky," he said coldly. "My Zanpakutō's abilities don't get much screentime. You get to see one."
He placed his left hand on the Hollow's abdomen.
"Tenchō."
The Hollow convulsed, a sharp cone-shaped crater forming in its torso.
Shuuichi wasn't done.
"Tessan."
He launched the Hollow into the air with one hand, then jumped after it—his foot slamming down with crushing force.
By the time the body hit the ground, the soul had already begun to dissolve.
And Shuuichi stood tall, eyes already scanning the battlefield for his next opportunity.
Game on.