A cold wind brushed against her face, sending a chill through Suì Fēng's entire body.
From the moment she was trapped in the barrier, she had considered this possibility.
But for various reasons, she had dismissed it.
Now, however, Shigure was directly stating it as a fact.
"If you've already been spotted, there's no point in hiding anymore, is there?"
Shigure suddenly called out loudly in the direction of the presence.
In truth, when he had used Shunpo to approach the barrier earlier, he had already noticed the figure holding a Zanpakutō.
However, rescuing Suì Fēng had been his priority, and since that person hadn't made any moves, Shigure had chosen to ignore them for the moment.
But when he touched the spiritual particles of the barrier, he suddenly understood everything.
The distinct spiritual essence of the barrier originated from the Zanpakutō in that exile's hand.
In other words, this barrier was the ability of their Zanpakutō.
With this realization, the situation became clear.
Shigure's voice echoed through the mist, but no response came.
Lowering her voice, Suì Fēng asked, "What's going on?"
Shigure chuckled softly, "Perhaps they think that by hiding in the spiritual mist, masking their presence and form, I wouldn't notice them..."
Hearing this, Suì Fēng immediately tensed up.
"This Hollow disturbance... it was reported by Kasahara Shinichi, the captain of the Near Abyss Squad..."
"But he once served as the Fourth Seat of the First Division for quite some time, earning the Head Captain's deep trust. By all logic... he shouldn't betray the Seireitei."
"So... does this mean there's a traitor within the Near Abyss Squad?!"
Grinding her teeth, Suì Fēng's eyes flashed with icy determination.
The thing she despised most was betrayal.
Seeing her expression, Shigure chuckled, "Relax a little, Captain Suì Fēng."
She was about to snap at him to shut up, but the words caught in her throat.
Instead, she changed the subject, "Where's Zaraki Kenpachi? Why didn't he come with you?"
"Oh, I almost forgot to mention," Shigure said casually. "It was your team members who noticed your spiritual pressure disappearing and reported it to us. That's how I found out and came here first."
Suì Fēng's eyes widened slightly. "You came alone?"
Shigure smiled and explained, "Captain Zaraki isn't exactly the fastest when it comes to footwork. Besides, bringing more people here would've been too dangerous."
Lowering her head slightly, Suì Fēng murmured, "Knowing I might have fallen in battle... you still came alone?"
Her voice was soft, almost swallowed by the thick mist around them.
Shigure smiled warmly and replied, "Not quite, Captain Suì Fēng."
"Hm?" She lifted her gaze.
"I came because I was certain you were still alive," Shigure said, his tone calm yet resolute.
?!
For a brief moment, Suì Fēng felt as though something had pierced her heart.
But the feeling was fleeting. She quickly raised her voice, "Don't think for a second that I'm going to thank you!"
A faint blush crept across her face as she turned sharply toward the northwest.
"Let's go! We're going to find that traitor!"
She spoke quickly, her tone brisk.
Shigure took a light step forward, following her lead. Smiling, he said, "Captain Suì Fēng, you really aren't great at hiding your emotions."
Hearing this, her face turned an even deeper shade of red.
"Sh-Shut up!"
Shigure chuckled but didn't press the matter further.
As they advanced, Shigure activated his Resonance Vision, keeping a close watch on their surroundings.
The figure... had begun to move.
In the dense mist, visibility was reduced to just two meters. Coupled with the deliberate suppression of spiritual pressure, Suì Fēng had no way of pinpointing their location.
"This way," Shigure said suddenly, adjusting their direction.
Suì Fēng's eyes flickered briefly before she followed him without hesitation.
After witnessing Shigure's incredible displays of power earlier, she had unknowingly developed a deep trust in him.
Though Shigure's eyes were open, he relied almost entirely on his Resonance Vision to navigate.
Meanwhile, the exile, though familiar with the geography of the misty terrain, lacked the broader perspective that Shigure had.
With ease and remarkable speed, the two of them intercepted the exile's path.
By the time the exile sensed the two sudden spiritual pressures ahead, it was already too late to escape.
Suì Fēng executed a Shunpo, appearing directly behind the exile, while Shigure blocked their path from the front.
Finally, Suì Fēng got a clear look at the exile's appearance.
To her surprise, it was a woman.
The woman's expression was one of utter shock. Staring at Shigure, her breath seemed to halt.
"No... no way! In the Land of Dead Mist... how could my concealment be seen through?!"
Shigure spoke calmly, "There's much you don't know."
As he said this, a faint smile appeared on his face. He raised his hand and pointed to the blade in the woman's hand.
"For instance, you probably didn't realize that your Zanpakutō... cracked the moment I destroyed the barrier."
?!
The woman's heart sank as she hurriedly raised her blade to inspect it.
But the moment she saw it, her entire body froze as if plunged into an icy abyss.
Her pale blade was now marred with web-like cracks.
"You're so surprised because your Zanpakutō's barrier has never been broken before, isn't that right?" Shigure said with a smile.
"No... impossible... impossible..." the woman muttered, her voice trembling with disbelief.
Then, as if losing all composure, she raised her head and screamed hysterically:
"Who... who the hell are you?! There's no one like you in the Thirteen Court Guard Squads! My Zanpakutō's barrier should be invincible once someone enters it!!"
Shigure remained silent, his smile unchanging.
The moment he had seen the barrier through Resonance Vision, he had understood everything.
The spiritual particle density of the barrier was far inferior to his own spiritual pressure.
And his Barrier Collapse ability allowed him to bypass any barrier's rules, shattering it instantly!
~~~~❃❃~~~~~~~~❃❃~~~~
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