Eyes of the Killer

Did Silas mind that he had just slain two important Visoreds? By all means. Otherwise, he wouldn't have done it. What he cared about was knowing why he had to slay them.

The Visoreds played a crucial role within the story, choosing to reveal themselves after one hundred years of their downfall. If, by chance, Silas had traveled back in time and slew them, it would make sense that their presence was lacking. But this wouldn't be confirmed until after the deed was done.

As for why he had chosen to eradicate Hachigen and Love first, it was quite simple. He had become a lethal tactician since his arrival in this world. Eliminating the healer in a group was paramount. Assuming he was to go to war with all of the Visoreds attacking him at once, removing Hachigen from the picture would prevent them from recovering their wounds during battle.

Regarding Love, this Visored was never shown to have a Bankai. He was once a captain within the thirteen court guard squads. Every captain-level Soul Reaper was written to have a Bankai, but most of their Bankais were never revealed.

Silas wasn't willing to take the chance of fighting someone about whom he lacked knowledge on.

What intrigued him the most were the results of testing his newfound power. The sacred bow and the sacred arrows were awakened after subjugating the manifestation. And due to his already grand spiritual pressure, the spirit weapon's destructive force was amplified. What he needed to do was find practice targets.

Using the bow itself was simple. This was thanks to having practiced with Uryū Ishida some time ago.

In the realm of Bleach, Quincies had perfected harnessing spirit particles, channeling them into devastating weapons. Each one of them held something unique.

Jugram Haschwalth wielded an imposing shield with the golden Quincy symbol; Pernida Parnkgjas and Masaki Kurosaki could use a simple bow as small as their hands; Lille Barro carried a massive rifle swathed in dark green fur; Candice Catnipp's bow was made out of lightning bolts; and Äs Nödt used hovering thorns as his weapon of choice.

Then there was Yhwach, the unrivaled Quincy, who could manifest an immense bow from thin air. Its sacred arrows are so powerful, they could propel him back to areas in the Soul Society in a single shot. And if he needed to use them in close combat, the arrows could transform into a broadsword in his hands, making him a bigger threat.

What made Silas more unique than them all was that he could now use the powers of a Quincy, a Soul Reaper, and a Hollow!

• • •

Upon returning to the warehouse late at night, Shinji was surprised to see that Silas had returned alone. Silas was wearing his casual clothes, making things seem less suspicious.

"Was Love's singing as bad as Hiyori's that you flew back or something?" he asked. Hiyori threw a frying pan that bounced right off his head after hearing that comment.

Silas ignored the two's comical scene and walked in the middle of the room. He then clapped his hands together twice to form a large white barrier outside the warehouse. It was both long and wide enough to stretch over a quarter mile.

Kensei, who was sitting on the couch, questioned what he was doing. Shinji, however, had a blank expression now. Little had either of them known that Hachigen's barrier had deactivated after he had died.

Silas, who had spent a lot of time with the friendly giant, knew how to execute it. And though it wasn't perfect, it was stable enough to mimic the same effects.

"Yo, Ichigo," Shinji said in a more serious tone. "Where are Hachigen and the others?"

"Dead..."

"Hey... Quit joking around, Ichigo."

Silas, by no means, was joking. Before coming here, he slew Rose after the concert ended and disposed of his, Love's, and Hachigen's bodies. Lisa was left behind, unable to wake up after being knocked unconscious.

The atmosphere in the room shifted. An ominous aura plagued the air.

Silas looked at everyone in the room, his chin raised as he said, "Kensei, Shinji, Mashiro, and Hiyori... Don your masks before I lose interest."

Shinji's blank look turned to a smile as he begged Silas to stop being facetious. But when Silas hadn't responded, he grew even more anxious. Sweat began to cover his face. It was clear that he was in denial.

"Kensei, what did Ichigo mean by 'dead'?" Mashiro asked in concern.

Kensei arose from his seat and cracked his knuckles. He, of all the Visoreds, knew that when the tension was high, there was no turning back. No matter how long he'd known someone, if they showed signs of being an enemy, he wouldn't hesitate.

"Wait, Kensei!" Shinji shouted. "You can't seriously believe Ichigo's been lying to us this whole time, do you?"

"Wake up, Shinji... He just implied that he killed our friends."

Things still didn't want to fully register in Shinji's head. For instance, Silas answered that the others were dead. He never outright said that he was responsible for it.

In the kitchen was Hiyori. She had a look of unbelief, unwilling to accept the situation either. But when she stared at Silas's cold eyes, devoid of any warmth, she knew he was being serious about things.

Kensei began walking forward until Shinji got in front of him and stretched his arms out. In a desperate tone, Shinji pleaded, "Did you forget what he shared—that he fought Aizen and came here to help us?!"

"Quit being naïve!" Kensei yelled. "Look at his eyes and tell me they're the same eyes of a man wanting to help us!"

Shinji's own eyes darted behind him. He was nervous to look, knowing that Kensei was right. Slowly shifting himself to meet Silas's gaze, the truth turned his countenance into utter dread.

The room thrummed with a melancholic hum, a mournful orchestra conducted within Shinji's own mind. He stared into the widened eyes of a man poised to strike, a man without remorse or sentiment. In those eyes, Shinji saw his own dread, a portrait of a soul walking in darkness.