Silas gripped his sword's hilt. Responding to his will, the blade's length pulsed with a malevolent hunger. And with a fluid flick of his wrist, he released its dormant power. Zangetsu's true form erupted—no longer a giant cleaver but a lengthy katana ready to slaughter. Sunlight gleaned across its jagged edge, delivering promises of carnage.
"You must have a death wish, releasing your Zanpakutō in front of three lieutenants," Shūhei said, pulling out his sword. The other two followed suit.
"A Soul Reaper released his weapon, yet you three still believe you can face me with those?" Silas said, staring them down.
They each gave the same expression. In their hearts, they were all asking themselves just who was this guy? Was he the ryoka talked about in the report? Was he a member of the Seireitei? They simply couldn't tell since Silas was holding back his spiritual pressure.
The air suddenly cracked with tension as he ran forward. Momo quickly released her weapon, "Snap, Tobiume!" The sword produced prongs on the side of the blade. Silas crashed his weapon into it and slashed horizontally to effortlessly push her back.
"Momo!" Izuru yelled. Raising his hand toward Silas, he cast a kidō spell: "Hadō #31. Shakkahō!" A red, flaming orb discharged from his palm. Silas placed Zangetsu behind him to defend. The spell made contact, creating an explosion and debris to form.
Shūhei, thinking he saw an opening, ran into the fray. He swiped vertically at Silas, but Silas walked back to avoid it. He swiped again, but he continued to walk back. Another swipe, and another, yet Silas avoided all of them by walking backwards, not at all being fazed by Shūhei's attempts.
'Getsuga tenshō...' With a single swipe, he formed a thin, linear light to slice right through Momo's attack, shocking the lieutenants. The light then faded moments before it could hit her. Silas knew better than anyone that a fully charged getsuga tenshō would have sent her to the hospital. Yet he showed no desire for bloodshed. His aim was to subdue, not to destroy.
'Getsuga tenshō...' With a single swipe, he formed a thin, linear light to slice right through Momo's attack, shocking the lieutenants. The light then faded moments before it could hit her. Silas knew better than anyone that a fully charged getsuga tenshō would have sent her to the hospital. Yet he showed no desire for bloodshed. His aim was to subdue, not to destroy.
Izuru finally released his sword, Wabisuke, turning the edge of the blade into a rectangular tsuba. Shūhei and him rushed at Silas, intent on striking him down at all costs. Silas countered their every move with efficiency, disarming Shūhei and not once letting Izuru's weapon touch him. Momo stood there, marveling at how a Soul Reaper could move with such elegance. To her, it was like he was dancing amidst a knife and a machete.
Using getsuga tenshō to create a controlled blast, he sent Izuru flying harmlessly backwards. The spiritual pressure caused Shūhei to stumble, allowing Silas to carve a wound in his chest. Frantic, the lieutenants got some space from him. Silas swiped his hilt, splattering the blood from his blade to the floor.
"It's over," he said, unimpressed by their performance. "You've lost."
But Momo wouldn't yield. Her voice, though trembling, found the resolve to continue. "We have a sworn duty as lieutenants!"
In that moment of pause, the clouds covered the sun, casting a gentle shadow on the battlefield. It was a sight of unexpected darkness, a stark reminder of the world Silas sought to create.
"You're only half as good as that title you so carelessly flaunt." Sprinting toward her, he stopped mid-run, planted his feet, and leapt upward. Any second later, he would have been captured by Izuru's technique, Sajō Sabaku, a spell that created a rope made of yellow light to bind their target. "You call that kidō? Bakudō #61. Rikujōkōrō."
The three lieutenants thought his target was Izuru, but his aim was really at Shūhei, who had jumped just as Silas had. The Soul Reaper was caught in the air by six thin, wide beams of light that slammed into his midsection, holding him in place.
Silas landed, pointing his sword directly at Izuru. Momo immediately ran toward her partner's, ready to defend him.
Their act of being tough ended when a red light began quaking from Zangetsu, paralyzing them. They hadn't moved because there was something holding them in place; they were fearful upon sensing that Silas had been holding back until now!
Suddenly, he lowered his weapon and disappeared from the scene using flash step. The spell holding Shūhei in the air ceased, allowing him to safely land on the ground. Wondering why Silas had abruptly stopped, they each began to hear multiple footsteps approaching fast. It was their backup.
Almost one hundred Soul Reapers gathered around the lieutenants. Accompanying them was none other than Kenpachi Zaraki. "You three look like you were having a lot of fun," the captain commented. Fun was hardly what anyone would call what they went through. They were all battered and covered in sweat, and Shūhei had a large wound on his chest.
"I wouldn't call that fun," Izuru explained, straightening himself.
"No surprise there!" Zaraki laughed. "The ryoka's spiritual pressure vanished. How could you three let the enemy get away?"
Momo wanted to correct Zaraki. The report never stated whether the ryoka were enemies or not. Yet Silas wasn't the only one who had terrified her. The captain of squad eleven was just as fearsome. So she kept quiet, secretly wishing for Aizen, her captain, to be present.
"I think he went that way, Kenny!" a little girl with pink hair announced, appearing suddenly behind Zaraki's back. This girl might have seemed cute, but she was truly the current lieutenant behind Zaraki, having a large amount of spiritual powers. Her name was Yachiru Kusajishi, and she was the only person permitted to treat Zaraki as her guardian.
"Are you positive?" Zaraki asked, unsure of himself. Yachiru nodded her head repeatedly with a sincere smile on her face. This also put a smile filled with bloodlust on Zaraki. He wasted no time trying to hear what events unfolded here, leaving the three lieutenants. His men begged for their captain to wait, but Zaraki was too enthralled at the idea of fighting someone who could take on three lieutenants.
Momo and Izuru were both on one knee as Shūhei just stood there. They knew Zaraki wouldn't bother helping them, let alone hearing them out; they were more stunned at the idea a person like Zaraki existed. That person was Silas Wren.