'Twenty Rank Burst All' Patros muttered as he saw Yuzu's brunt body falling to the ground. 'The ultimate move in my arsenal in which I fully release Gerifalte's full power in an all-consuming blast' he then walked down to the ground to where Yuzu crashed 'Originally I had to use my entire body to use that technique. But with the power of my Segunda Etapa. I can now do it with just a single individual part'

The young burnt girl then looked up to the Espada confused as she struggled to stay awake.

'Oh don't me that look. Did you honestly believe that I wouldn't have a contingency plan in place, did you think that you fully figured out all my abilities just because I revealed only a part of my hand?' Patros criticized as he walked toward his fallen enemy. 'You may be an exceptional Quincy even among the Sternritter. On that, I cannot deny it. But that does not in any way change that you are still an inexperienced child, a novice in the dealings of war. While I am a veteran who reveled in it for over a hundred of your lifetimes!'

The Tenth Espada then conjured another energy beam from his left hand. 'Regardless of all your tricks and planning the outcome of this battle was decided by that one fact alone

Yuzu could only squirt her eyes in defiance. Too injured and worn down to do anything else as she fell unconscious.

'War...' she thought as she remembered when she remembered the first time she saw a Quincy, a Soldat saluting her while having a confinement smile on his face 'For almost my entire life I was always aware of what war was like and how it affected everyone else'

She then saw the Soldat again...only for him to be on a stretcher and now missing an arm and eye. While screaming in pain as he underwent soul suicide.

'Which is why...I decided to help those who were wounded in war by becoming a nurse and helping them to the best of my ability Yuzu then remembered interviewing herself with Sosuke Aizen and later him accepting her as a nurse.

'However...in the end...it just made me realize just how powerless I was'

Yuzu was then crying uncontrollably at several quincies and fullbringers dying on her watch while Aizen did his best to comfort her.

'So...I decided to join the Holy Kingdom and become a star knight in hopes that I would become strong enough to prevent those from dying horribly...even when others looked down on me for it

'A Sternritter...really Yuzu?' Her brother Ichigo said dismissively. 'Didn't you becoming a nurse traumatized you enough?'

Yuzu then frowns. 'All it did was made me realize that I could do more by fighting and saving people on the front lines. Then just sitting down and waiting for the aftermath!'

Her brother then stared coldly at her. '...all you are doing is just setting yourself up for disappointment Yuzu. For as horrible as your experiences in the hospital are...the experience that is on the battlefield are much worse'

'Yet despite me becoming stronger...'

She then remembered fighting off her first hollow Invasion where dozens of huge hollows lie at her feet.

'My actions just as my brother said just led only led to more disappointment.

Along with the dozens of other Quinces and Fullbringers that didn't survive.

Then at my lowest, I wanted to disappear, to be away from all the violence, the death the constant failure to do anything to save anyone...until I meet him.

'Hey, why are you so gloom Yuzu?!' Shinji said with a smile but she refused to face him.

'Oh come on don't be so sad we managed to drive the hollows off and won the day it's a time of celebration!' He shouted out but Yuzu remain unresponsive.

'Yuzu?' Shinji asked again and then the young girl snapped.

'How!?' She shouted out.

'How can you be so happy after all the people we lost? How can you be so confident after nearly dying so many times?' she cried as she put both of her hands over her face. 'How...can you call this victory? When I failed to save so many people!?'

Shinji then remains quiet for a moment. Taking everything that Yuzu said and then smiled once more.

'Simple...I focus on what we have gained over those that we lost, be grateful that any of us survived at all...and those that you managed to save...including me'

Yuzu then looked touched at what the boy said but still looked on in denial. 'But even then...would the lives and people we saved be even worth it in the end...if so many people ended up dying anyway?'

Shinji then sighed. 'Yuzu...I cannot answer that, for as what determines the worth of something...is mostly up to the individual' he then pats his right hand on her head. 'But I do know that if it wasn't for you...me and so many others would have died several times over by now or even permanently crippled...and if that is not enough for you then...I can only say to try harder next time so that not so many people will die next time'

He then stands up above Yuzu. 'Because if you quit now and give up...then you won't be able to save anyone' Shinji then reached out to Yuzu's hand. 'So are you willing to give up...or continue to try your best regardless?' he then gave the young woman a heartwarming grin that made her blush. 'Because regardless of how much trauma and hardship you go through Yuzu remember...' he then stared at her with his deep brown eyes. 'You are never alone'

The young Kurosaki then flashbacks to the present and saw Patros ready to stab her with his saber and yet despite her impending doom she smiled in contentment. Much to Espada's curiosity.

'So you have decided to accept your defeat with humanity? A noble trait and fitting end for a Quincy such as you' he commented. But Yuze merely chucked.

'It is as you said Espada... despite all of my abilities and strength, I am still a novice in war compared to those who revel in it. So my defeat was always a likely outcome...however' she explained as a smirk crawled up her lips.

'Me beating you was never my only goal...'

Suddenly Patros sense something shooting at him at point blank range and while he was able to dodge his body enough to prevent the arrow from hitting something vital...it nonetheless pierced right through his chest armor and left him bleeding in agony.

Then with a pain grasped he turn to look at the one that shot him...Berenice Gabrielli the Sternritter that he had just stuck down.

'Quite a useful ability the young one has huh, Espada' the young man mocked while Patros growled in rage. 'During her little introduction, one of her orbs managed to land on me and heal my wounds. Then while she battled against you, Souken gave me one of her 100% piercing orbs and instructed me to strike you down on the chance that you managed to beat her

Patros then in furry pulled the arrow out from his chest and then charged up his saber.

'You...' he said menacingly. 'You honestly believe that such a trick would work against me! Even when you caught me off guard I still managed to survive your little ambush and nothing is stopping me from properly massacring all of you!'

Bernenice then smirked. 'Oh sure, you can do that as you are now...but I wonder He then placed his right finger on his lip. 'Will you be able to do that before the bomb that has been inserted into you goes off?'

The color on Patros face then went pale.

'...what?'

'Well considering that you are an Espada in your Segunda Epata form even an all-piercing arrow would have little chance in taking you down and so when I struck you with that arrow...I also planted a bomb that would go off the moment you exert yourself' Bernenice explained while barring a toothy grin. Much to Patros horror.

'But again given your enormous power it is possible that you could use your spiritual pressure to resist or survive the bomb or even kill us before it detonates...though I could be wrong...' He pondered and the Tenth Espada then went into a panic.

'Is he telling the truth? No, he has to be bluffing to invoke his power otherwise, the bomb would have denoted already...but then again he likely did plant a bomb anyway because he realized his powers don't work on me and didn't denote simply because I haven't pushed myself. But then I could subdue the bomb with my spiritual pressure, but is it enough to stop something that blows me apart from the inside out?! If goes out will I be able to take these quinces with me or would they survive and I die alone in vain? Do I even have the heart to do something like that ?!' Those questions and more began to flood Patro's mind endlessly to the point he lost his balance and collapsed to the ground. As confusion and panic began to overwhelm him and eventually it got to the point that the Espada began drooling and forming from his mouth. His eyes then rolled to the back of his head as the Arrancar's rationality and sanity were now completely eradicated. While blood continued to bleed out from his wound.

Berenice was now satisfied that his Schrift worked this time, then walked over to Yuzu and gently carried her off bridal style. Though he still looked overly annoyed.

'Ugh...I so hate the fact that have to be indebted to a halfbreed child' his face then softens as he now looks over the unconscious child. 'However...I will make an exception and allow myself to be grateful for being saved by you. If only because you gave me a chance to redeem myself

The Sternritter then turns to the drooling bleeding 10th Espada in dissatisfaction. 'It's quite ironic really...for while Yuzu is a novice in war and you were indeed a veteran...she at least was willing to lay her life in the line' he turns his back on his mentally fallen enemy. 'While you weren't'

Meanwhile within the academy

Vega then shot his eye up. 'Oh...it would seem that Patros has fallen' his eyes then narrowed. 'Bummer guess that means I have to pick up the slack and kill all of you myself'

A kick from Jacki was then launched on top of the head which he then blocked with his sword even as the ground was uprooted beneath his feet.

'Do not think you have already won this battle Espada'!Jackie shouted back. 'For you have yet to beaten me!'

Vega then smirked. 'So I haven't...' he then push Jackie off himself and then readied his zanpakuto.

'You know...originally I was going to become the 9th Espada by fighting and defeating Zommeri. Not in a contest of power but rather in a contest of speed' Ggio explained as he began to rise his spiritual pressure. 'For out of all the Espada, Zommeri was the one with the fastest Sondio out of all them. Even among the top four and as a man myself who specialized in speed. I train myself day in and day out to surpass him...' he then frowns to himself. 'And by the time I did...the idiot got himself killed'

Jackie then sneered. 'I fail to see how boasting yourself as the fastest Espada is supposed to unnerve me...' she spat dismissively before using bringer light to appear behind Vega's back and before the latter could react she kicked him in the head with her left heel and send him crashing into a nearby wall. 'Because if this is the best the fastest Espada can offer. Then you have brought nothing but shame to the title'

'Or maybe you don't understand the full weight of what such a title means?' Vega said casually from behind Jackie much to the latter's shock.

'What!? she questions in her head. 'I thought for sure I had kicked him into that wall...had he recovered that quickly?' The Director then took one long look at Vega. 'No...there is not a speck of dust on him or even bruise from where I hit him. He dodged my kick. So how-'

'How I was able to fool you into attacking a double?' The Arrancar asked for Jackie. 'Well it is quite simple..' his eyes then became sinister. 'That was my after-image'

A cold sweet then rains down the Director's face.

'You see when a person reaches a certain level of speed which the eye cannot follow. It creates an optical illusion of seeing a double and by merging one's spiritual pressure with said double one can make it as realistic as possible...even to the point of simulating bleeding' Vega said lowly and Jackie then nervously stepped back.

'Zommeri himself perfected this technique to its limits by creating practical dozens of them at once' His smile then grew into a grin. 'But as for my version...'

Jackie's eyes then widen in horror upon seeing that she was surrounded by hundreds of after-images that all stared down at her.

'Let's just say It doesn't even compare' he menacingly stated with a vicious smile before he and the rest of his clones rushed at the director in an all-out attack.