The Forgotten Presence
The further they traveled into Hueco Mundo, the heavier the air became. Harry couldn’t shake the feeling that something—or someone—was watching them. He wasn’t alone in sensing it. Renji kept glancing over his shoulder, and even Ichigo’s usual confidence had shifted into silent focus.
Something was wrong.
As they approached the remains of Las Noches, the massive fortress that had once been Aizen’s stronghold, the air grew thick with spiritual pressure. Harry clenched his jaw. This wasn’t just Hollow energy. It felt… different. Twisted.
Renji frowned. “This place should be abandoned. So why does it feel like something’s still lurking here?”
Ichigo didn’t respond immediately, his fingers tightening around his sword’s hilt. “Because something is.”
They moved cautiously through the ruins, the sand beneath them crunching softly. The massive white walls of Las Noches had crumbled in some areas, leaving jagged gaps that led into endless darkness. The oppressive silence only made it worse.
Then—
A low, guttural laugh echoed through the ruins.
Harry’s entire body tensed. The sound was ancient, dripping with something that made his stomach turn.
Renji’s hand shot to Zabimaru. “Who’s there?!”
The shadows ahead of them shifted, forming into a shape—tall, imposing, yet somehow familiar. As it stepped into the dim light, Harry’s breath caught.
The figure wore tattered black robes, its face obscured by an eerie, cracked mask. Its presence was suffocating, radiating an energy that sent a deep, primal warning through Harry’s mind.
But it wasn’t just the Reiatsu that unsettled him.
It was the way it felt—like a presence he had known once before.
The masked figure tilted its head slightly, as if studying them. Then, in a voice like rusted steel scraping together, it spoke.
“I wondered when you would come… Potter.”
Harry’s blood ran cold.
The way it said his name—so deliberately, so knowing—sent a shiver down his spine. He tightened his grip on his scythe, heart hammering in his chest.
Ichigo stepped forward, his blade raised. “Who the hell are you?”
The masked figure let out another laugh, slow and deep. “I am what should have been forgotten.”
A pulse of dark energy exploded from its form, sending a shockwave through the ruins. Harry gritted his teeth as the spiritual pressure crashed over him.
Renji cursed. “What is this guy?”
Harry didn’t know.
But somehow, deep in his soul—he felt like he had met this presence before.
And that terrified him.