The Team Shinigami was in the Precipice World when the mysterious light from the rift enveloped them completely.
In the next instant, they felt the ground beneath them disappear and they began to feel as if they were no longer standing on anything solid and a current of air swept through them all.
Ichigo was the first of them to pull his arms away from his face to see what was happening.
"Are we… FALLING?" asked Ichigo.
Everyone was shocked to see that they were falling from the sky.
Quickly, they all concentrated and rejoined, causing them to be able to stand in mid-air, as if they were stepping on an invisible ground.
"Where are we?" asked Rukia looking down to see that they were above a forest.
"Ikkaku, you piece of dumbass! What the hell did you do?" asked Renji.
"Hey, in my defense, I didn't know this would happen." said Ikkaku.
"Well you should have thought better of it. Did the lice go from your bald head to your brain?" asked Ichigo.
"What did you say?! Do you want to die?" asked Ikkaku with his hand on his zanpakuto.
"Enough!" exclaimed Toshiro preventing any fight. "It is true that Ikkaku's move was very reckless. Nevertheless, we achieved our goal of traveling to the world the hollows went to."
"Are you sure it's this one? I don't sense their presence anywhere." said Rangiku.
"It has to be. This is the place where the hole they made in the Precipice World has taken us. They may have hidden their presence or are far from our current location." said Retsu.
"Uh… I'm afraid there's a bit of a problem." said Renji.
"Which one?" asked Toshiro.
"Captain Kurotsuchi said that the hole the hollows used to come here would be in the same place, right?" asked Renji.
"He said it was a possibility. Why?" asked Toshiro.
"Because I'm afraid that possibility doesn't exist." said Renji pointing upwards.
They all quickly looked up towards the place where they originally emerged, only to see the sky with some clouds, but no hole.
"Great. Now we're stuck in another world. Great job, Captain Kurotsuchi!" exclaimed Rangiku grumbling.
"It may be a problem that there is no way back, but I'm sure Captain Kurotsuchi will find a way to create one to get us back." said Retsu.
"She's right. I highly doubt they will leave us stranded in this world for long." said Ikkaku.
"In that case, until that happens, we should concentrate on the mission we were given." said Toshiro.
"So what do we do now? Scout the terrain until we find those runaway hollows?" asked Ichigo.
"Even if it sounds like a good idea, we're in uncharted territory right now. We need information about the world we're in and its governing structure." said Toshiro.
"In fact, I can sense something in the surroundings. Something very different from the reiatsu." said Rukia.
"Yes, I feel it too. Could it be a thing of this world?" asked Rangiku.
"It's possible, although I can feel a small hint of reiryoku." said Retsu.
"Really? Where?" asked Renji.
"Right there." began Retsu pointing to an area in the forest. "It looks like it's coming from one person and it's not alone."
"Yes, I feel it too. I also feel that those people accompanying her possess that strange energy of the environment." said Toshiro.
"Since Toshiro has suggested about gathering information, I think we should start with that." said Ichigo, much to the captain's annoyance, since he didn't name him properly.
"Good idea. I just hope the people of this world aren't hostile." said Rukia.
With all said and done, the team set off to discover the source of the small speck of spiritual energy, hoping that it would help them learn about that world.
Meanwhile, not far from there, a group of people could be seen walking through the forest.
It was Team Natsu, one of the strongest teams of the mage guild known as Fairy Tail.
The team consisted of Natsu Dragneel, the fire dragon slayer; his exceed partner, Happy; Lucy Heartfilia, the celestial mage; Gray Fullbuster, the ice mage; Erza Scarlet, the re-equip mage; Wendy Marvel, the sky dragon slayer; and her exceed partner, Charle.
"Argh. Finally back home after a mission well done." said Natsu.
"Not 'well done' at all. You almost destroyed the city with your attacks." said Lucy.
"But if I hadn't, those thieves would have escaped." said Natsu.
"Aye, sir." said Happy.
"You don't back him up, Happy." said Charle.
"Anyway, we were lucky we didn't cause too much havoc or we wouldn't have had a reward." said Erza.
"Yeah, so watch where you're aiming, arsonist." said Gray.
"What did you call me, you nudist piece of shit?" asked Natsu looking at the ice mage with a frown.
"Who are you calling a nudist?" asked Gray.
"Uh… You, Gray." said Wendy pointing her finger at him.
Gray looked down at himself and was shocked to see that he was in his underwear.
Again.
"Damn it. Why didn't you warn me sooner?" asked Gray leaving to retrieve his clothes.
"You've been stripping so fast lately that it's almost impossible to warn you in time." said Lucy with a bead of sweat.
Soon after, Natsu stopped immediately, followed by Wendy and the others.
"What's wrong Natsu?" asked Happy.
"I can smell several people approaching us." said Natsu.
"Yeah, I smell it too." said Wendy.
"Not only that. I feel a strange energy coming from those people." said Erza.
"A strange energy?" asked Lucy.
"Yes, and it seems that some of them possess a greater amount than the others." said Gray.
"Who would those be…?" asked Charle before suddenly the shinigami team used shunpo to land on the ground in front of them.
Team Natsu became alert at the sight of strange people in black kimonos, two of them wearing another white kimono on top.
It was then that Ichigo focused his gaze on Lucy.
He may not have been an expert at detecting reiatsu like the others, but he knew enough to be able to sense it.
"Is that her?" asked Ichigo to Retsu as he pointed at the celestial mage.
"Yes, that's her." Retsu said.
That alone made Lucy nervous at the thought that she might be their target.
"Hey. What do you want from our friend? Are you from some dark guild?" asked Natsu.
"Dark guild? What the hell are you talking about, pink boy?" asked Ikkaku.
"What did you call me, billiard ball?" asked Natsu.
"Billiard ball?! You asked for it! You're going to die!" said Ikkaku about to draw his sword.
"You want a fight? As you wish." said Natsu wrapping his fists in fire.
"Enough!" started Erza getting in the way to stop them.
"She's right. We didn't come here to fight." said Toshiro.
"He started it!" said Ikkaku pointing at the fire dragon slayer.
"No way. You're the one who started it, baldy." said Natsu.
"Call me that again and it'll be the last thing you ever say in your life." said Ikkaku trying to restrain himself from lunging and killing him.
"Which one of you is in charge?" asked Erza.
Toshiro stood in front of the others as did the red-haired mage.
"I am the leader." said Toshiro.
That made the mages look confused.
"Really this kid is your leader?" asked Gray.
Toshiro gritted his teeth in frustration as Ichigo and Rangiku tried to contain their laughter by covering their mouths with their hands.
"In that case, allow me to introduce myself. I'm Erza Scarlet, a mage of Fairy Tail." said Erza taking Toshiro's occupation seriously.
"What's this Fairy Tail thing?" asked Renji.
"You don't know what it is?" asked Wendy in surprise, as her guild was well known throughout the continent.
"I'm afraid not." said Retsu.
"Where exactly did you come from?" asked Charle.
"We are shinigami sent here on a mission from the Soul Society." said Rukia.
"The Soul Society? I never heard anything like that." said Happy.
"Given our situation it's understandable." said Ichigo.
"What does that mean?" asked Natsu.
"It's a long story." said Rangiku with a shrug.
"First of all, if you say you're from… Fairy Tail, it means there's someone occupying the highest position, right?" asked Toshiro.
"That's right. It's about our guild master." said Erza.
"In that case, I'd like to have an audience with him. That way, we can explain everything." said Toshiro.
Erza looked at the team with slight suspicion.
She didn't know anything about them or this Soul Society they came from. Was it a new guild that had just formed and they were in the middle of a mission? If so, why does he want to see the master? Maybe they want some information that could help them with their mission.
However, she couldn't help but suspect there was more to it.
What if it was an enemy group of some sort? She couldn't be sure about that, but as she looked into the captain's eyes, she could see that it wasn't that different from her own or the master's despite their age or appearance.
They may not have known what they were capable of, but she did know that the moment they thought to attack them from behind, they would suffer the wrath of the entire guild.
"All right. Follow me and we'll take you to the master." said Erza.
"Sounds good to me." said Toshiro.
"One last question." began Renji, drawing the attention of the others. "Why is your friend naked?"
It was then that Gray realized he was in his underwear again.
"Damn." said Gray.
"Put some clothes on, pervert!" exclaimed Rukia throwing a notebook at him, which she pulled out of nowhere, which hit him in the head.
And so, the two teams set off, though Team Natsu was in front of Team Shinigami with a small gap between them.
That way, they were able to talk to each other without any problem.
"Captain, do you think they'll be able to help us?" asked Rangiku.
"It's our best asset at the moment. It is possible that that master of yours will provide us with information about this world and its rules." said Toshiro.
"It wouldn't be a bad idea to have their help either. Maybe one of them has seen or heard of hollows or something like that." said Retsu.
"She's right. Though there's something I keep thinking about." said Ichigo.
"What is it about?" asked Toshiro.
"That Erza said she was a mage of Fairy Tail and we're going to see the guild master." said Ichigo.
"Do you know anything about those things?" asked Rukia.
"A little. It's a common thing in the human world. Mages are those who can perform various attacks. They are like kido techniques, but they use magic instead of reiryoku like you." said Ichigo.
"That would explain the strange energy we keep feeling around." said Renji.
"So what's this about a guild?" asked Rangiku.
"Guilds are organizations where adventurers request quests. Those quests usually vary from questing, stopping bandits or even fighting monsters." said Ichigo.
"And that master is the one who grants the quests?" asked Ikkaku.
"No. They are quests that people post so that people from any guild can fulfill it in exchange for a reward. The master is usually the one who is in charge of whether or not the one who wishes to do it can do it." said Ichigo.
"How come you know all that?" asked Rangiku.
"One of my friends usually plays video games a lot and some of them are about those particular subjects." said Ichigo with a shrug.
"Interesting. So the structure of this world might be similar to Soul Society." said Retsu.
"Still, we should talk to that master. Just because this world follows rules similar to the ones Ichigo mentioned, doesn't mean they are exactly the same." said Toshiro.
"I think so too." said Ichigo.
"What if in the end they don't want to help us and see us as the enemy?" asked Rangiku.
"Ha. Do you have to ask? With me, Ichigo, three vice-captains and two captains, those guys wouldn't stand a chance against all of us." said Ikkaku with a cocky grin.
"Looks can be deceiving, Ikkaku. They may not look like it, but they may be stronger than we can imagine. After all, it was the same with Ichigo when he came to Soul Society the first time." said Retsu with a grin.
"Grrr. Touché." said Ikkaku.
"Ha. There he got you." said Ichigo with a smile.
While the shinigami were conversing, the mages were also having their own conversation.
"Are you sure about this?" asked Gray to Erza.
"He said he wanted to talk to the master. That way, we can find out who they are and what they want." said Erza.
"I say we fight them and beat the answers out of them." said Natsu pounding his fist with his palm.
"No way. You're not going to provoke a fight." said Charle.
"She's right. Besides, in case you haven't felt it, they all carry a lot of that unknown energy we felt before. They're clearly not weak or anything." said Erza.
"Well they seem like nice people to me." said Wendy.
"Yeah, did you see that girl that was with them? She had breasts as big as Lucy's." said Happy.
"That has nothing to do with it, you stupid cat!" said Lucy.
"Anyway, we'll show kindness by taking them to see the master, but if at any point they show signs of aggression and meanness, we'll attack with everything we've got." said Erza.
"Good point. With all of us there, I don't think they stand a chance." said Gray.
"Let them come at us if they want to. We'll kick their asses." said Natsu with a toothy grin.
"Aye, sir." said Happy.
"Come to think of it, there's something that caught my eye about them." said Lucy.
"What's that about?" asked Charle.
"Well, when they introduced themselves to us, I could sense that that energy they all carried seemed a little familiar." said Lucy.
"Familiar in what way?" asked Natsu with an arched eyebrow.
"I don't know how to explain it, but it reminded me a bit of my spirits." said Lucy.
"You mean they're spirits?" asked Wendy in surprise.
"I'm not sure. Loki or someone else would have told me about a group of spirits that dress like that." said Lucy.
"I guess we'll have to wait to find out." said Erza as they all continued on their way to the guild without having noticed the other team's conversation.
Team Natsu continued to lead the Team Shinigami to the city of Magnolia, where the Fairy Tail mage guild was located.
To the shinigami, the city didn't look that different from Karakura City, where they were during the events related to the arrancar.
Besides that they noticed that the surroundings looked less modern than Ichigo's hometown.
They also noticed that the people around them were giving them some curious and confused looks, which must mean that, unlike the human world, there people could see them naturally.
Although some of them, Rangiku in particular, were eager to explore the place, they had something important to do and that was to get information about that world.
Finally, they arrived at the building was used as a base for the guild.
Needless to say, some were impressed by the design of the building which was similar to that of a castle.
They walked through the doors and immediately, the shinigami received stares from everyone there.
Everyone in the guild began to mentally wonder who they were and why Erza and the others had brought them to the guild.
Ignoring all the stares, the Team Natsu led the shinigami to the bar counter, where an old man of short stature with a mustache and beard could be seen.
This was Makarov, the guild master, who, as soon as he saw them enter, knew that this could be an important matter, so he didn't look away from them at any time.
"Master." said Erza.
"Erza. I see you and the others have brought guests." said Makarov.
"That's right. We met them on our way to the city. They said they were on a mission and asked to speak with you." said Erza.
"I see. In that case, I'll listen to them." said Makarov.
With a nod, Erza and the others stepped aside, allowing the shinigami to stand in front of the guild master.
" That's the master? He's very different from the old one." thought Ichigo.
"Very well. Tell me, what is this mission you are on about and what do you want to talk to me about?" asked Makarov.
"Allow me to explain, sir. We are a force of shinigami sent from the Soul Society." said Toshiro.
"I have never in my life heard of such a place. Is it perhaps a new guild?" asked Makarov.
"No, sir." said Toshiro.
"You can call me Makarov." said Makarov.
"As you wish. I know this may sound strange, but the Soul Society is in another world away from this one." said Toshiro.
"Another world? He mean something like Edolas?" asked Wendy quietly.
"It's possible." said Gray.
"Honestly, it doesn't seem that strange to me. The moment you entered, I could sense a strange energy inside you. I bet it's not magical power, is it?" asked Makarov.
"You are right, Makarov. What we have is reiryoku. Better known as spiritual energy." said Renji.
" Spiritual energy? No wonder it was so familiar." thought Lucy.
"Shinigamis are a force that is sometimes in charge of purifying hollows, which are basically spirits that turned evil and wild, making them a danger to humans and spirits, so we shinigamis take care of them so they don't harm anyone." said Rukia as she acted out the explanation through drawings of her own.
"Again with the weird little drawings." said Ichigo.
In the next instant, Rukia lunged towards him with murderous intentions, but Renji grabbed her in time, even though she tried to break free by shaking herself like a wild animal.
"Those hollows seem to be a serious threat if it takes a whole organization to deal with them." said Charle.
"Bah. They sure are nothing in front of me." said Natsu arrogantly.
"Aye, sir." said Happy.
"Anyway, recently, we detected hollows in the Precipice World." said Rangiku.
"Precipice World?" asked Erza.
"It's the space between the human world and the Soul Society. It's usually impenetrable to the hollows, but they managed to get in somehow." said Ikkaku.
"According to the information we received, the hollows managed to create a hole that took them to another world. We didn't know what they were planning, but we couldn't let them loose on that other world either." said Retsu.
"So we went to the Precipice World and after an 'accident', we went through the same hole as them, which led us to this world." said Ichigo.
"In other words, you were sent here to hunt down those hollows that have escaped to this world, right?" asked Makarov.
"That's right. That's why I suggested talking to you. We need as much information as possible about this world." said Toshiro.
"Well, for starters, in this world we have magic. Most mages form guilds like the one you are in and there they receive missions approved by the council that they go about accomplishing in exchange for rewards. Of course, not everyone follows that rule, which creates obscure guilds that accept quests of all kinds even if some are against the law." said Makarov.
"Ha. You were right in the end." said Ikkaku to Ichigo.
"I understand. Thank you for the information. Lastly, have you heard any sightings of hollows or anything like that lately?" asked Toshiro.
"Can't you just locate them?" asked Gray.
"I'm afraid not. Not sensing their reiatsu, we cannot determine where they are." said Retsu.
"Mmm. Unfortunately, I haven't heard anything regarding those creatures you're looking for. However, I would like to propose something that might benefit you." said Makarov.
"What kind of proposal?" asked Toshiro.
"Why don't you stay in the guild?" asked Makarov.
"Huh?" they all asked at the same time.
"Master, are you sure?" asked Lucy.
"Yes, why would you want us to stay?" asked Renji.
"If you stay here, you can keep a closer eye out for any news about those hollows. You might even be able to go on some mission that can provide you with what you're looking for. It's much better than wandering the world without knowing where to go." said Makarov with a smile.
Toshiro couldn't deny that it was a tempting offer, but he wasn't entirely sure.
"I say we accept. You make very good points about it." said Retsu with a smile.
"Yes, captain. Besides, how many chances do we have to be on another world?" asked Rangiku.
"We're still in the middle of our mission." said Rukia.
"Bah. I can be on a mission and enjoy myself at the same time." said Rangiku.
"Being you, that's for sure." said Renji.
"Besides, all those guys look strong. I'd like to fight at least one or two of them." said Ikkaku.
"If it helps us with the mission, I say fine." said Ichigo with a shrug.
Seeing that they were fine with the offer, Toshiro nodded to them before looking towards the master.
"Alright, we agree to stay, but only until we accomplish our mission." said Toshiro.
"That's fine with me. We'll help you in any way we can." said Makarov extending his hand for him and Toshiro to shake hands.