Reborn as The Hollow God

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[PREVIOUSLY]

"And that concludes the search report." In the throne room, Baraggan described the events of his search to Aizen and his court, gathered with the rest of the Espadas.

"Hmm... interesting..." Aizen murmured, mentally replaying the described events, searching for a way to incorporate them into his analyses and plans.

His eyes swept across the Primera Espada and then the two Espadas who had gone on the mission. Nnoitra seemed frustrated, his pride wounded, while the Pikaro wore expressions of reprimanded children. 'Hmm... this might work... perhaps even an opportunity to gauge the enhancements made to the Arrancar and gather data for when I fully acquire the Hogyoku in the future...' With a plan forming in his mind, Aizen rose from his throne, his gaze traveling across each Espada in the room.

"My Espadas, I believe the time has come to test how far you've progressed and to prove your functionality as a unit... Your new mission is... to subdue the Hollow Guardian of the Forest of Menos: IKOMIKIDOMOE!"

With these words, the Espadas' voices echoed through the room as Aizen turned and walked away.

"Do you think this is prudent, Lord Aizen? Some Espadas might die, and we would lose strength," Tōsen, the first of Aizen's lieutenants, spoke as they left the room, soon followed by the silver-haired one at his side.

"Araa, Lord Aizen, are you planning to punish some of our dear Espadas?" asked Gin slyly, a broad grin on his face.

Aizen simply smiled at their questions as he continued to walk away.

"Tōsen, Gin, all I intend is to assess the strength of my army. Moreover, if they succeed, a new massive force will be at our disposal."

With this response, Aizen departed with his lieutenants in tow.

---

[CURRENTLY]

In the Forest of Menos, Ashido—still recovering—tried to reconcile the fact that HOLLOWS were protecting him.

He still didn't understand WHY the old Hollow he had attacked earlier had protected him, or more importantly, HOW that Hollow even knew BARAGGAN, the infamous king of Hueco Mundo!

"Ask, Shinigami brat."

"Why did you protect me?" Seeing the opportunity, Ashido couldn't help but ask.

At the question, Ikomike seemed to contemplate something before muttering low to himself and turning to walk away.

"I just wanted to annoy old Baraggan and show that I'm not some pawn to bow to his 'master.'" The ancient Hollow departed again to his "home," with Wonderweiss following closely behind, leaving the Shinigami collapsed on the spot.

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[LAS NOCHES]

In an outdoor hall, Nelliel, the current 4th Espada, sat across from Roka, a Fracción of Szayel.

"Why don't you have a Zanpakutō, even though you're an Arrancar?" the Espada asked the emotionless Arrancar before her.

"Szayel-sama told me that no Zanpakutō materialized when Aizen turned me into an Arrancar," Roka explained, almost unconsciously running her hand over her Hollow mask.

At her response, Nelliel looked at the Arrancar with a sad expression before smiling slightly.

"I see... Roka, come have dinner with me and the others sometime." At such a kind request, Roka seemed surprised, a faint smile appearing on her face until a new voice interrupted.

"Nelliel." The current Espada 0, Szayel, interrupted. "Don't monopolize others' tools."

Hearing Szayel's words, Nelliel frowned.

"Szayel, you have no right to call Roka a tool; she's an Arrancar," Nell said, causing Szayel to frown.

"Don't lecture me, Nelliel! I'm not one of your Fracción or Nnoitra! Besides, I created Roka, so I can treat her however I like!" the pink-haired Arrancar growled, glaring at Nelliel.

Both Vasto Lorde Arrancars raised their Reiatsu in their dispute, making Roka fear that a confrontation would destroy all of Las Noches.

The standoff continued until Nelliel ended it.

"Szayel, leave!" she commanded, turning away from him. After muttering "Tsk," Szayel stormed off in fury.

She then turned to Pesche and Dondochakka.

"Should I ask Aizen to make Roka my Fracción?"

To her question, they agreed happily, talking about their potential new companion and friend. Nelliel smiled calmly at the scene.

Unbeknownst to them, Roka, who was leaving with her enraged master, overheard the conversation through her web. It made her happy (though guilty for eavesdropping).

Later, far from Nelliel's palace, Roka felt herself slammed against a wall and strangled.

"Are you thinking of abandoning me? I gave you life, Roka! I CAN TAKE IT AWAY! YOU ARE MY TOOL!" Szayel's grip tightened as Roka sobbed and gasped, trying to speak. As her vision darkened, Szayel released her.

Falling to the ground, the Arrancar struggled to recover, only to be grabbed by her hair and dragged as she resisted.

"Let's see how brave you are when I dissect you again! It's been a while since we've played 'doctor,' hasn't it, Roka? Let's see how many of your organs I can rip out while you're awake! You agree, don't you, Roka? You're forcing me to do this, AREN'T YOU?" Szayel sneered as he dragged her toward his lab, threatening her.

Resigned to her fate as Szayelaporro Granz's "tool," Roka could only nod in submission.

---

[SOUL KING'S PALACE, PHOENIX]

In the main palace, the "Number One Zanpakutō Creator" was enjoying the view until called by his companion.

"Nimaiya."

"Yo! How's it going, buddy Ichibei?!" Nimaiya shouted cheerfully, bouncing on his toes to face the monk.

"Why did you do it?" Ichibei Hyōsube questioned, approaching the god of Zanpakutō.

"Why did I do what?~" Nimaiya responded innocently, a big toothy grin on his face.

"Ikomikidomoe… why did you… without my permission?"

What was he talking about?

Simple! He had felt a change in **Ikomikidomoe's** "name."

Long ago, when he erased the Hollow's name, it had been too "dense" to delete without risking balance. Instead, Ichibei split **Ikomikidomoe** into two entities:

1. The soul (personality, memories, and raw power), which was placed in a Zanpakutō created by Nimaiya.

2. The "body" (instincts and the old "shell" of Ikomikidomoe), sealed in the palace under its name.

Without his permission, Ichibei discovered that Nimaiya had sent the second half to Hueco Mundo.

At the question, Nimaiya sighed, removing his glasses.

"Well, aside from the fact that the mass of energy was collapsing—"

"Hmm? Collapsing, you say?" At Nimaiya's response, Ichibei stroked his beard, glancing at his Ichimonji. "Perhaps I underestimated the little fish…"

Nimaiya scoffed, putting his glasses back on. "Yo, yo! Yes, baby! Besides, I felt the Reiatsu of that shell erupting. I think one of the souls within that Hollow mass subdued the others and took over the body. To prevent it from exploding here, I sent it to Hueco Mundo. Look! It hasn't done anything yet! Plus, the original chaotic personality is still sealed. The current one isn't as dangerous. Besides, you can erase its name again, right?"

After his analysis, Nimaiya turned to his friend, only to find him scowling at a scroll in his hands.

"I think we have a problem, Ōetsu," Ichibei said, turning the scroll toward him. Nimaiya read it and jumped back in shock.

"I-is that…?"

At the question, Ichibei grimly nodded.

"Yes… this soul… whoever it is… altered its own name… on its own."

On the scroll, where the name "Ikomikidomoe" should have been written, the name was simply struck through.