#ankotual

Beads of sweat dribbled from her slightly throbbing temples to the ground. The adrenaline coursing through her veins caused her palpitations to increase. Rin furrowed her eyebrows at the sight of the three-eyed humanoid she had to fight, which reverted into a conventional zanpakuto upon its defeat. 

What the hell was happening in the Seireitei?  

Fingers running through her damp locks, she scrutinised her surroundings. A myriad of zanpakutos were scattered around her. Were they also the same kind of creatures she recently encountered before they returned to their original form? She pursed her lips in contemplation. The situation was more atrocious than she presumed. Considering that the majority of Shinigami wield a zanpakuto, there is no telling how many more apparitions were present. At that moment, Rin felt that her inability to imprint on her Asauchi back then was a blessing in disguise. She could not fathom the difficulty of fighting a fragment of her soul if it rebelled against her. 

A sharp ping resonated from her phone; it was the alert signal for emergencies in the Soul Society. 

“Emergency: Zanpakuto spirits roaming around. Engage upon sight or contact.” 

Sheathing her phone back into her coat pocket, Rin paced in the direction of the 3rd Division. She had to make sure Kira was okay. Fortunately enough, the pathway was clear of imminent danger. At least that was what she thought until she discerned a loud yelp. Halting in her tracks, her sight alternated between the empty path and the direction of the concerning sound. Irrefutably, there was someone in need of help. She gritted her teeth. Such inconvenient timing. Without volition, her feet carried her away from her initial destination. 

“Sorry Kira, I’ll leave it to you for now,” she mumbled. Upon reaching the source of said sound, her cerulean eyes trembled at the sight of a Zanpakuto spirit seconds away from landing a finishing blow on a Shinigami. Rin aimed her hand in the spirit’s direction and solidified her gaze. Streams of pale blue flames emanated from her palm, which hurled it toward a building.