Shinji lay on top of the Matou manor, his hands clasped behind his head, staring up at the night sky. He sensed the various spiritual signatures throughout the city, each unique in its texture and presence.
To his discomfort, he felt a familiar presence approach him.
"How are you feeling, Shinji?" Sakura asked as he glanced away.
"Fine..." he replied, his voice hesitant and somewhat forced. He flexed his fingers. "I'm still getting used to this spiritual power... along with this sensing ability." He redirected his gaze toward the night sky. "How are you?"
Sakura smiled softly. "I'll manage..." She also gazed into the night. "Things have changed a lot for the two of us, haven't they?"
Shinji snorted in response. "Obviously... I still can't believe Grandfather would go this far to win this war."
Suddenly, he sensed a dark presence behind him, causing his expression to shift to one of disgust. Sakura lowered her head, closing her eyes in resignation.
"One must be willing to do anything to achieve one's goals, Shinji," the crackling voice of Zouken echoed as he walked beside the two siblings. "As a proper Magus of the Matou family, you should take that lesson to heart," he criticized his grandson.
Shinji let out an agitated huff. "Yeah, which is why you made us wait for that shinigami with the cherry petal blades to take out that sword-wielding assassin before having me and Sakura deal with the caster and her master."you still fearful of your own life Shinji?" the elder taunted. "Despite the power you have gained?"
Shinji's expression then darkens.
"You wanting that fake Assissan's corpse to summon your own Servent isn't the problem…" Shinji corrected as he looked to the sky.
Then a moment later hundreds of black dimensionial tears have spread across the sky. "That is…" Shinji pointed at them with his left thumb.
Then a moment later thousands of roaring restless wraiths poured out of them. With many taking the form of various from of beasts, insects, and horrific monsters. While each of the spirt had their face covered in deformed bone-white masks with each of them being unique and fearsome in design.
For they are souls of the dearly departed who lost their hearts upon being consumed by despair upon death and turn gain a hunger that can only be satisfied by devouring the souls of the living, the dead…and each other.
Hollows.
Zouken then let off low laughter upon witnessing the hoard of vile spirits. "Ah yes…to have my Menos summon such restless souls would no doubt endanger all the lives in this city and a deliberate violation of not just the terms set by the shinigami but even against the mage association itself"
Shinji then narrowed his eyes in distaste at Zouken. "But you did it anyway so long as you had your pet project act as your scapegoat…"
The ancient Magus then lowered his head and grinned at as grandson's comment. "It couldn't be helped…" he responded evenly and frowned. "The moment that Kirei informed me that arrogant Servent of his failed to kill that large blade-wielding soul reaper and Saber right when they were about to offer a ceasefire…we both knew that having the Shinigami and Servants wipe each other out was no longer a viable option" He then looked up at the invading Hollows with a crooked smile. "And so…more extreme measures have to be taken"
Shinji then snorted in agitation. "Yeah, he spat in a distasteful tone. "By having your pet project summon this Hoard of Hollows to both distract the Shinigmai by forcing them to save as many innocent lives as possible and force the rest of the Masters and Servants into hiding to protect themselves from getting overwhelmed" he then glared at his grandfather. "…all the while we gradually take out all out one by one during the chaos"
Zouken then snickered. "The Shinigami's blind devotion to protecting said innocents was a weakness I always planned to exploit the moment they interfered in this Holy War…" he mused. "And with them distracted we are one step closer to completing the Grail"
Sakura and Shinji looked at their grandfather sternly while at the same they both wonder how the rest of their friends, including Shirou would survive this. As both Servent and Shinigami sense the dimensional tears and the horde of Hollows.
In the forest upon sensing the threat Archer immediately disabled his reality marble and upon doing so his commrads along with the Shinigami were shock to see an entire hoard of Hollows cover the night sky until attacked both of the groups and forced them into a defense.
Meanwhile, Soi-fon now battered, burned, wounded and drain from launching and getting caught in the blast of her own Bankai slowly walked over to find Rider having detected her own weaken mana power and hoping to finish her off.
However when the captain finally found the wounded Servant who looked in far worse shape than Soi-fon, with her body covered in severe, burns, her black dress tattered, and breathing heavily with just one of her mystical eyes opening.
The Servent was suddenly engulfed in a Negation barrier conjured by one of the many Gillian from one of the many Dessor portals in the sky.
"What in the world…" Soifon stuttered in puzzlement, While Rider smirked at her foe before the ground rose beneath entered into the Dessor, and vanished from sight.
Back in the forest, Archer along with the Shinigami and their allies were interrupted when a hoard of Hollows attacked both groups and forced them to disperse, to everyone's shock.
"A-are these Hollows!?" Shirou asked nervously as he blocked an attack from one that had long extending claws, pale red skin, and a large white skull-like mask that resembled a demonic-like bo "Just where the heck did they come from!?" he shouted out before cutting down the mask spirit with Sakura in his right hand.
Rin was busy fiding them off with Gandr bullets due to her muscles being too strained to use her dagger anymore. "Will figure that out latter, just focus on staying alive and retreating back to base!" she ordered until she saw a green snake-like hollow with a human-like mask trying to bite down on her.
Only for Berserker to cleave it in half and causing the foul spirt disperse into the winds. While Illyasveil on his shoulder looked up see more Hollows from from the sky comming after them.
"Were going to get overrun at this rate!" she spoke in near panic and Rin upon following her gaze can't help but agree.
"Archer cover us!" Rin commanded and her servant nodded.
"On it" and immediately the Servent drew his bow and shot hundreds of arrows at the foul mask spirts. With each one piercing through bodies and killing them in an instant.
Yet regardless of how many fell many more took their place.
On the other side of the battlefield, Ichigo's friends and allies also have their hands full. Urahara had long since disabled his Bankai to reserve his remaining strength and proceeded to cut down several of them in half with his Shikai. Along with Sado punching them apart, Rukia froze them solid and shattered them with her Shikai, Renji rammed and bit them apart with his Bankai and Uryu mowed down entire hoards of them with his spirit arrows.
As they fought, they couldn't help but wonder what was going on.
"Hey, Urahara!" Renji shouted. "Why are all these Hollows appearing?"
Kisuke stood silent, cutting down another corrupted spirit. "If I had to guess, someone must have sent them to harass us, or they hope to take us down while we're weakened," he replied, glancing at the ominous, torn dimensional gates scattered throughout the city. "Given the sheer number of Hollows, it has to be someone exceptionally powerful."
Rukia quickly sliced a centipede-like Hollow in half before dispatching another one. "Well, regardless of the reason, the situation has escalated," she said, turning back to Urahara. "Have the research department made the final preparations?"
Urahara cut down another Hollow. "They will be deploying it soon… Hopefully."
Later, in a secluded alley within the city, Saber awoke on a mat. She was fully healed and surrounded by various Shinigami who were talking amongst themselves, much to her surprise.
Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed a woman captain with long black hair, braided at her chest.
For she was the Captain of the Fourth Division Retsu Unohana.
"Ah, so your wounds have healed," the captain said pleasantly. "That is a relief."
Saber looked at the captain nervously, then recalled that someone was missing. "What about that boy who was fighting Gilgamesh? Is he okay?" she demanded. The captain smiled gently at her concern.
"He recovered most of his injuries but is still severely weakened. Yours healed much quicker due to your natural healing ability," Unohana explained.
Saber's eyes widened in alarm. "Then where is he now?"
Unohana frowned. "I believe Ichigo went off to fight the horde of Hollows that has invaded the city alongside Yoruichi while preparations are being made."
The female knight gasped in shock at that revelation. "Hollows!?" she shouted, looking up at the sky. There, she saw hundreds of masked spirits battling several Shinigami, with Ichigo in his Shikai state and Yoruichi fighting alongside them.
"Just... who could command so many Hollows...?" she said, winded, as realization hit her. "One of the Menos?"
Unohana remained quiet as she observed Ichigo, Yoruichi, and the rest of her squadmates fighting off the corrupt souls. "I assume so, given that Captain Shunsui encountered an Adjuchas who seems to be serving one of the Masters in this war and is likely the one who summoned this horde." She then glanced at other parts of the city. "Even now, several squadrons from the other captains' respective divisions have been deployed to counter the Hollow threat."
Saber followed Unohana's gaze and saw several Shinigami fighting desperately against the army of Hollows, some activating their Shikai or casting Kidō spells in defense.
Meanwhile, Shirou and Archer noticed that other Shinigami had begun to engage the Hollows, indirectly aiding them, with Soifon, Toshiro, and Shunsui backed by their respective divisions.
"So..." Saber thought, feeling guilt wash over her. "The Shinigami have indeed changed from the past thousand years..." She looked back at Unohana.
"I appreciate your healing, but I must also do my part in protecting the innocent before they get devoured by these wraiths!"
Unohana smiled at Saber. "That won't be necessary, Saber..." She turned her gaze to the other side of the city. "Preparations are already in order."
The knightly servant looked at the captain in confusion. Suddenly, from behind her, she heard a rumbling sound. When she turned around, she saw a huge pillar rising from the ground. From other parts of the city, everyone else noticed three more pillars emerging in the distance.
Zouken narrowed his eyes at the rising structures. "What sort of trickery..." he muttered to himself in confusion.
Then, before his, Shinji's, and Sakura's eyes, the entire ground of the city glowed with a translucent yellow light before igniting in a blinding flash.
When the flash died down, the city of Fuyuki seemed to remain unchanged, much to the ancient magus's confusion. But then he noticed Shinji's speechless expression.
"Well, brat, what has happened?" Zouken demanded irritably.
"Everyone..." Shinji muttered.
"What!?" Zouken snapped in anger.
"Everyone... but the Magi, Servants, Hollows, and Shinigami are gone..." Shinji repeated slowly and uneasily. "It's as if... the entire population of Fuyuki has disappeared..."