On the third floor of the inn, inside Room 303, two stunning women were trying on new Western-style outfits they had just bought from the street.
Clothes they had never seen before.
"Rangiku, doesn't this seem too revealing on me?"
Kabu Masayako stood in front of the mirror, a little shy as she looked at herself wearing a white knee-length dress that exposed her snowy calves.
"Not at all! Masayako-san, you look amazing in that dress! Look at mine~"
Matsumoto Rangiku, now fully changed into a Western-style maid outfit, twirled on the spot with delight.
"How is it? The shopkeeper said this is a maid outfit—super trendy in the Western world right now!"
"Mmm~ It really suits you, Rangiku. Truly perfect for you!"
Masayako turned, looking at Matsumoto Rangiku with genuine admiration, nodding in approval.
"Really? Then I'll keep it on. When Shuuichi-sama returns later, I'll let him give his opinion~"
Rangiku took her spot before the mirror, admiring herself.
Compared to her previous shihakushō, and even Masayako's current dress, her own outfit might be a bit conservative—but apparently, men in the World of the Living really liked seeing their partners in this kind of outfit?
Just as Masayako was about to take off her dress to change back into her regular clothes, a loud knock thundered on the door.
"Kensei-kun, what is it?"
Without thinking, Masayako instinctively assumed it was Muguruma Kensei knocking.
After all, Nagasawa Satomi had just been dragged away by Kisaragi Shuusuke not long ago. The only one still around was Kensei.
But the urgent voice that followed confused her:
"Open up, you inside—Lord Ranbu demands to see you!"
Not Kensei?
Masayako immediately stepped back two paces from the bed and grabbed her Zanpakutō, Seyami Basha, which she had placed on the bed while changing. She locked eyes with Matsumoto Rangiku, who had also snapped to attention.
"We don't know anyone named Lord Ranbu. You've got the wrong room!"
Rangiku shouted, Zanpakutō now in hand.
Outside, the guard looked back at "Lord Ranbu," who merely sneered, then shoved the guard aside with brute force.
"Maybe you don't know me yet. But you're about to know me very, very well~"
"What do you mean by that?"
Rangiku's eyes narrowed.
Ranbu didn't waste words. With a thunderous BANG, the door to their room exploded inward, booted open with force.
"Ooh~ just my type~"
Ranbu's eyes locked onto Rangiku's chest and refused to budge.
Especially in that Western maid outfit—never had the man felt such a rush of novelty and desire.
"Be a good girl, obey, and serve me, Lord Ranbu. I promise to play with you... a lot~"
He lunged, hands twitching in mock-gropes, drooling.
But halfway through his leap, a sudden howling wind from behind made him flinch.
His instincts screamed. Ranbu dodged left just in time to avoid a lethal strike.
"Nice reflexes. Not bad, dodging that."
A silver-haired man rose from the strike, grinning confidently at the now-toppled Ranbu.
"Kensei-kun!"
Masayako exhaled in relief at the familiar sight.
"Relax! Shuuichi left you two in my care. I won't let anything happen to you!"
Kensei shot a thumbs-up at her.
"You bastard—do you even know who I am?!"
Ranbu climbed up with a snarl, glaring at Kensei.
"Does it matter?" Kensei scoffed. "In fact, I should be asking you—do you know who we are, barging in here like this?"
He examined Ranbu, unimpressed. The guy looked rough, but compared to the man in that sketch Shuuichi had shown him—the one labeled Yokozawa Tsuna—he didn't quite measure up.
"You're nothing but a plaything. Remember the name: Sugita Ranbu, the man who's sending you to Hell!"
Ranbu whipped a black Colt revolver from his waistband and fired.
The gunshot roared.
Blood burst. Kensei looked down at the hole torn clean through his right chest.
What was this... Zanjutsu?
He hadn't even seen the man attack.
And even though his body was encased in a Gigai, he was still made of reishi underneath. How had that shot actually hurt him?
"Captain Muguruma!"
Rangiku shouted, blade drawn.
To hell with stealth in Osaka. She lunged at Ranbu without hesitation.
"Aww, no no~ My sweet little maid—why not lie down and behave?"
Ranbu's eyes glinted. A woman who fights back? Even better.
Another gunshot rang out.
Even though the barrel still pointed at Kensei, it was Rangiku's right leg that got hit.
"Rangiku!"
Kensei cursed. He'd fallen for Ranbu's feint and used shunpo to evade too late.
Damn it! Even if it meant becoming a fugitive in the World of the Living—
"Hollowfication!"
The Gigai shattered. A mask formed.
White, pillar-like armor of the Hollow erupted from his back. Kensei's reiatsu, despite being restrained, blew half the room apart.
Rapid punches!
In a blink, he was in front of Ranbu, fists smashing with inhuman power.
Rangiku's injury proved one thing—this Ranbu wasn't an ordinary enemy.
Shuuichi or Kisaragi would've confirmed it instantly. Because Sugita Ranbu was one of the names whispered by the manager of Awarahara Corporation's main hall.
"A Hollow? No... a defected Soul Reaper?!"
Ranbu's excitement didn't wane. He stared down Kensei with feverish eyes.
"Been waiting for you, Soul Reaper!"
"What?!"
Kensei couldn't believe it.
Was Shuuichi right? Was this all a setup?
"Despair Revolver: Duel!"
Suddenly, Kensei found himself in a desert wasteland. Wooden walkways, dusty saloons, featureless silhouettes watching from balconies.
Ranbu stood opposite him.
Only the two of them on this endless Western street.
"Bastard! What did you do to me?!"
Kensei roared, noticing his Zanpakutō had vanished.
"You don't need to know. Just understand—only one of us walks away."
Ranbu chuckled darkly.
"And I've never had the pleasure of playing with a Soul Reaper. Say... those two women with you... are they Yoruichi Shihouin? Lisa Yadōmaru? Hiyori Sarugaki? Or perhaps Rangiku Matsumoto and that other one...?"
He licked his lips.
"Unforgivable!"
Kensei clenched his fists, trying to shunpo—but found it useless.
No sonído either.
But he could move normally, so he charged, fists flying.
Nothing worked. Ranbu didn't flinch under the assault.
"Finished, clown? The duel begins now~"
Ranbu walked to the center of the road, turned, and began a five-second countdown.
Five. Four. Three. Two—
Kensei was lost. Then he noticed the revolver in a pouch on his waist—identical to Ranbu's.
Am I supposed to duel him with this?
Before he could act, Ranbu spun.
"Goodbye, Soul Reaper."
Bang!
The bullet hit Kensei in the forehead.
Suddenly, he was back.
His body hadn't moved. No wound. It was as if nothing had happened.
And then—collapse.
His entire strength and reiatsu were gone. Speechless. Helpless.
Shuuichi was right. These Fullbringers were no joke.
"Forgive me... Shuuichi..."
As Ranbu stomped on his back, Kensei could only mutter his apology in silence.
"You're next, my sweet little treasure~"
Ranbu licked his lips at Rangiku, who still didn't understand what had happened.
She shed her Gigai, revealed her shihakushō, and drew her blade.
"Whisper, Haineko!"
"Despair Revolver: Duel!"
Too slow.
Rangiku crumpled. Just like Kensei. Useless.
Masayako clutched her Zanpakutō tightly.
She knew—this was it. No retreat.
"Only you left~ Let me guess—Lisa Yadōmaru? Hiyori Sarugaki?"
Ranbu stalked closer, lust flickering in his eyes.
Masayako murmured, "Shuuichi-kun..."
She began to draw Seyami Basha.
But before she could finish unsheathing it—a terrifying Cero ripped through the sky, obliterating walls and slamming straight into Ranbu.
"What?!"
Ranbu gasped, eyes wide.
A white figure appeared before Masayako. A warm hand covered hers. A soft voice spoke from behind the terrifying skull-like mask.
"I'm back~"
Click. Together, they slid the blade back into its sheath.
"Shuuichi..."
Masayako looked up, tears shining.
Higashi Shuuichi nodded once, turned to face Ranbu, who now lay smoldering in the dust, reiatsu still flickering.
"Damn you, Soul Reaper!"
Ranbu howled from the rubble.
So the gun was the Fullbring catalyst.
Shuuichi leveled his Zanpakutō. A full-power Cero, and the bastard still lived?
"Moon Severance."
A flash of light. Blade swept down.
Another gunshot rang.
Shuuichi felt a violent jolt on his blade. It deflected.
Then another shot—before the shell even hit the ground—thunk, a bullet embedded in his chest.
Impossible speed. Not even his spiritual perception saw the bullet.
Auto-hit?
He flared his reiatsu—bullet popped out.
If that was all, then—
Calm breath. Blade sheathed. Fingers around the hilt.
Draw Cut.
But instead of blood, yellow sand enveloped him.
"Despair Revolver: Duel!"
Six words echoed.
Shuuichi blinked. His Zanpakutō gone. Right hand empty.
Around him—dust, silhouettes, Western town.
Ranbu smirked from the distance.
"In here, your Zanpakutō means nothing. You fight with my weapon!"
He cackled.
"Your weapon? You mean this?"
Ranbu's smile froze.
Because Shuuichi wasn't holding a revolver.
He was holding a sleek, deadly UMP45 submachine gun.
"What—what is that?! Impossible! You've never seen a gun! You should only imagine my weapon!"
Ranbu panicked. His revolver had a safety only he knew how to disable.
There was no way to lose!
"You're playing an info game, huh?"
Shuuichi smirked. He knew now—getting shot pulled you into this fake dimension, where both sides were forced to use guns.
A normal Soul Reaper? Yeah, they'd only imagine the revolver.
But Shuuichi?
He wasn't a normal Soul Reaper.
In his past life, he played FPS games. And the UMP45 was his favorite.
Ranbu sweated bullets. He tried to keep his cool.
"Don't get cocky! The duel's about aim and speed! We walk to the center, turn, and fire at five!"
He strode forward.
Shuuichi just leveled the gun.
"Sure. But I'm gonna test the trigger first."
BRRRT.
Shells rained.
Ranbu collapsed in a pool of blood.
Two bullets hit, but it was enough.
If Ranbu hadn't panicked first, it might've gone another way.
As he died, Shuuichi snapped back to reality.
His slash landed—with force.
Ranbu's arm flew off. His body collapsed.
He couldn't even scream.
"Shuuichi-kun, he…?"
Masayako looked uncertain. But this time, Ranbu fell—speechless, powerless.
And the man before her—
So strong. So unshakably reliable.
"Don't worry, Masayako. It's over. But we need to move fast."
Shuuichi picked up the Colt revolver and glanced around.
His senses told him—more reiatsu was converging on their position. Fast.