Naruto: Sasuke Uchiha Returns from Soul Society

Where is this place? Why can't any communication techniques be used?

"You must be quite surprised to be here for the first time." Madara Uchiha sat cross-legged on a protruding boulder, his eyes slightly closed. "But give up the idea of ​​contacting the outside world. You can't do it here without my permission."

Dou's fingers stiffened for a moment, then he casually spread his hands, revealing a slightly innocent smile on his face.

"I was just marveling at the wonder of this space. Lord Madara, you're making it sound like I would betray you."

Dou raised his head, his gaze once again wandering across the gray space.

"However, I'm really curious, where exactly is this place?"

Madara Uchiha said softly, "This place is the gap between life and death."

"A crevice? That's a strange way to put it." Dou raised an eyebrow, then changed the subject, "But compared to the significance of this space..."

"What I'm more concerned about are the materials you promised before."

"After all, ordinary White Zetsu are far from enough to bring down the legendary 'God of Shinobi' in his prime."

"Where exactly are those specially formulated White Zetsu you mentioned?"

Ban gave him a cold glance and clapped his hands in the darkness.

Soon, several eerie figures slowly emerged from the darkness.

That's a White Zetsu.

But it is completely different from ordinary White Zetsu.

Their heads are spiral-shaped, leaving a dark, empty space.

"This is?!"

"This is a White Zetsu that I specially cultivated using the life force of the Gedo Mazo and Hashirama's cells."

Madara's voice was calm, "Their body structure is closer to Hashirama's Sage Body than that of ordinary White Zetsu, and they can even autonomously absorb and store small amounts of natural energy."

"Use them as sacrifices, plus your so-called 'improved' Impure World Reincarnation..."

Madara looked at Kabuto, his eyes cold.

"That should be enough for Hashirama to unleash power close to what he had in life, right?"

Kabuto strode forward, his fingers trembling as he stroked White Zetsu's skin, chakra flowing into it.

"This cellular activity, this affinity for natural energy..."

"Lord Madara, you've given me a truly wonderful surprise! With these materials, coupled with my research on the Impure World Reincarnation..."

"I am confident that I can restore the First Hokage's power to more than 90%!"

"Ninety percent...?"

Ban repeated the number in a low voice, and finally nodded.

"It's barely enough."

"Listen up, Dou."

"I don't care what method you use, or what kind of experiment you're going to do."

Ban held up three fingers, his voice cold and sharp.

"I'm only giving you three days."

"If it fails..."

A terrifying pressure of chakra erupted from Madara's body.

"You should be well aware of the consequences."

The pharmacist nodded, a smile playing on his lips: "Of course."

...........

Above the boundless white sea of ​​sand, a spatial vortex twisted, and Sasuke stepped out from it.

His long, silvery-white hair fluttered slightly in the cold wind as he casually glanced around.

"So we're back in Hueco Mundo...?"

Sasuke muttered to himself, briefly determined his direction, and then disappeared from the spot with a slight sway.

A moment later, Sasuke appeared outside Hueco Mundo, but did not sense Aizen's spiritual pressure.

"Isn't he here?" He frowned slightly, closed his eyes, and expanded his perception range.

Soon, several familiar spiritual pressures appeared in his sensory network.

On a secluded terrace, Stark leaned against the railing, gazing lazily at the sky.

Lilyne was lying on the stone steps next to her, idly drawing circles with her finger.

"Hey, long time no see," Stark yawned.

"Where is Aizen?" Sasuke had no interest in small talk.

"left."

"Soul Society?" Sasuke's eyes narrowed.

“Ah, I guess so.” Stark nodded. “He said he was going to establish some kind of ‘new order,’ but I didn’t ask for details. You know I’m not interested in that kind of trouble.”

Sasuke understood.

"The results of it?"

"It failed."

Sasuke's pupils contracted slightly. Aizen had actually failed?

With his strength, this shouldn't be the case.

"Was it the Zero Division that made the move?" Sasuke wondered to himself.

If it's that monk...

That's certainly possible.

"Didn't he take you with him?" Sasuke asked Stark, somewhat puzzled.

Since the goal is to challenge the entire Soul Society, why not bring along these carefully trained Espada?

“No.” Stark shook his head. “He only took Tosen Kaname and Ichimaru Gin with him.”

"They said there was no need for any extra burdens."

Is it cumbersome?

That's definitely that man's style.

"And then what?" Sasuke continued, "Any specific news?"

“Not really,” Stark shrugged. “All I know is that he was defeated and then imprisoned in Avici Hell for 20,000 years.”

"Twenty thousand years..."

Sasuke repeated the number in a low voice, feeling a sense of感慨 (gan3kai3, a feeling of mixed emotions, often including nostalgia or regret).

For Death, who has a near-infinite lifespan, this is also a long sentence.

"How long ago did this happen?" Sasuke suddenly asked.

"how long?"

Stark thought for a moment, then said somewhat uncertainly, "It's been about... a year and a half, hasn't it?"

"A year and a half?!"

Sasuke's expression changed. He had only been in the ninja world for less than a month at most.

A year and a half has already passed here?

How could the flow of time in the two worlds become so chaotic?

Sasuke suppressed his surprise and looked at Stark again.

"Has nothing happened at Hueco Mundo in the past year and a half?"

"What else could it be?"

Stark yawned. "With Aizen gone, this place is left unattended."

"That Barragan guy is quite excited, constantly shouting that he wants to reclaim the throne of Hueco Mundo and wants us to submit to him."

At this point, a hint of helplessness appeared on Stark's face.

"However, he didn't dare to actually make a move, since neither Haribel nor I paid any attention to him."

“Hribel…” Sasuke thought of the blonde woman, “Where is she now?”

She is...

"Sasuke-sama!"

Before Stark could finish speaking, Halibel's voice came from the other side of the terrace.

Behind her, the three Apaches followed excitedly.

"You're finally back!" Harribel walked up to Sasuke with a respectful posture.

"You've heard about Aizen's defeat, haven't you?" Sasuke asked.

"Your subordinate is incompetent." Harribel's expression turned somewhat gloomy.

Although she wasn't particularly loyal to Aizen, with Aizen defeated, Sasuke missing, and Hueco Mundo without anyone to protect it, she still felt somewhat lost.

"Among the Espada, isn't there anyone who's thought about saving him?" Sasuke glanced at the two of them.

“Yes, there is,” Stark continued. “Ulquiorra suggested breaking into Soul Society prison before.”

"But I stopped it."

"Why?" Sasuke raised an eyebrow.

“Because that would be suicide.” Stark’s voice was calm. “Even Aizen lost. It would be pointless for the few of us to go.”

Sasuke nodded and turned to leave.