Chapter 566 - 566 Duel of Fate! Nelliel vs Nnoitra Gilga!

"Is this... Nel?" Rangiku muttered to herself in shock.

A moment ago, Rangiku had been faithfully carrying out Toshiro's order to hold the child, clutching Nel tightly in her arms. But in the blink of an eye, Nel had vanished from her arms, and beside her stood a beautiful woman whose chest could rival her own.

"You've finally returned to your original form... Nelliel!" Nnoitra's heart tightened, and his expression became serious.

Whoosh!

As soon as Nnoitra finished speaking, Nel's figure suddenly vanished.

Seeing this, Nnoitra hastily looked around nervously, searching for Nel's figure, terrified of a surprise attack.

Whoosh!

Nel didn't launch a sudden attack as Nnoitra had imagined. Instead, while he was nervously looking around, she suddenly appeared, grabbed Rangiku and Ashido with both hands, and with a flicker, retreated to a distant building.

"Nel? Are you really... Nel?" Rangiku couldn't help but ask again.

"Yes, thanks to Toshiro, I was able to become like this again." Nel said softly.

As soon as Nel spoke, Rangiku and Ashido were startled again. Despite her mature, big-sister appearance, her voice was that of an adorable little girl. This gap moe made both Rangiku and Ashido pause for a moment.

"Thanks to the Captain?" Snapping out of it, Rangiku asked again, puzzled.

"Yes, thanks to Toshiro for protecting me while I was small and bringing me here..." As Nel spoke, she couldn't help but look towards Toshiro, who was fighting Aizen, a warm light shining in her eyes.

"Now... Toshiro is fighting hard, so I can't just stand by and watch. I've relied on Toshiro and all of you during this journey, so I want to repay Toshiro and you all. Please rest well here for now. I'll handle Nnoitra." Nel said to Rangiku and Ashido.

Having said that, Nel turned around, ready to deal with Nnoitra, who had been eyeing them menacingly.

"Wait!" Rangiku suddenly shouted, "Fighting Nnoitra is too dangerous! Even Ashido was defeated by him. How could you possibly be a match for him?"

Ever since they met, Nel had always looked like a child. Although Nnoitra had previously mentioned that Nel was a 'former Espada', Rangiku didn't have a real sense of it. Subconsciously, she still thought of Nel as a child, incapable of defeating the Quinto Espada, Nnoitra.

Hearing Rangiku's words, Nel didn't bother to argue. She just turned her head, looked at Rangiku, and smiled gently: "It's okay. It'll be over soon."

"..."

A gentle breeze blew, lifting a corner of Nel's tattered top, revealing a prominent number '3' on her smooth back.

Seeing this, Rangiku's eyes flashed with shock.

Rangiku knew very well what the number 3 meant. It meant that Nel wasn't just an Espada, but one of the top three Espada.

Whoosh!

Nel's figure flickered, landing on the ground, and then charged towards the distant Nnoitra at high speed.

"Oh? Nelliel has returned to her original form? Come to think of it, I haven't even seen her original form many times myself." Aizen, while exchanging blows with Toshiro, said with a somewhat nostalgic tone.

When Nel was an Espada, Aizen hadn't yet betrayed Soul Society and rarely had the chance to visit Hueco Mundo. So he hadn't seen Nel many times. He only learned about Nel being attacked by Nnoitra and thrown out of Las Noches later. After finding out, Aizen didn't specifically try to retrieve Nel... he just had Harribel take over Nel's position.

"Hey, Hitsugaya-kun, who do you think will win between the 'former Tres Espada' and the 'current Quinto Espada'?" Aizen asked Toshiro with interest as they fought.

Toshiro snorted coldly: "Hmph! That goes without saying. In terms of strength, naturally Nel is stronger. However..."

At this point, Toshiro couldn't help but look worriedly at Nel, who was charging towards Nnoitra in the distance.

In terms of strength, Nel is naturally stronger. Nel is a Vasto Lorde-class Menos, possessing at least Beyond Captain-level strength. Coupled with being the former Tres Espada, her peak strength should be around the mid-Beyond Captain-level, naturally incomparable to Captain-class Nnoitra.

However, Nel is too kind-hearted and rarely deals a killing blow in battle. Additionally, although Nel has reverted to her adult form, her strength hasn't fully recovered to its peak, likely only able to exert early Beyond Captain-level power.

Although early Beyond Captain-level power is still something Nnoitra cannot contend with, what Toshiro worries about most is how long Nel can maintain her 'adult' form.

It must be known that in the original work, Nel only stayed in her original form for a short while before reverting to a child, ultimately failing to defeat Nnoitra.

So what Toshiro truly worries about is how long Nel can maintain her 'adult' form and whether she can defeat Nnoitra before turning back into a child.

'Nel, you absolutely cannot be soft-hearted this time. Otherwise, if you can't defeat Nnoitra before turning back into a child...'

Tap, tap, tap...

Her long legs pounded the ground, Nel's speed so fast she left behind afterimages.

Clang—!!

Upon getting close, Nel suddenly drew her sword and struck at Nnoitra, so fast that Nnoitra couldn't even react.

Slash—!!!

Nel and Nnoitra's figures crossed paths, then blood sprayed, and a long, narrow wound appeared on Nnoitra's chest.

"Damn it!" Nnoitra looked down at the wound on his body, furious.

"Cero!"

Nnoitra suddenly turned around and stuck out his tongue.

Golden Reiatsu condensed on the tip of his tongue, forming a dazzling ball of light.

Hum—!!!

The golden Cero, like a thunderous beam of light, blasted towards Nel.

"Nel-san! Watch out for his Cero!!" Ashido shouted a warning from afar.

Ashido had just fought Nnoitra, so he knew well the terror of Nnoitra's Cero. Not to mention, Nnoitra was releasing this Cero in his Resurrección state, making its power likely much greater than when he fought Ashido.

However, upon hearing Ashido's warning, Nel paid it no mind. She stood there calmly, then raised her left hand effortlessly, blocking Nnoitra's Cero.

"Ah..." Nel suddenly opened her mouth, and Nnoitra's Cero was directly sucked into her mouth.

"Oh no!" Seeing this, Nnoitra seemed to remember something and was extremely shocked.

Haaah—!!

After absorbing Nnoitra's Cero, Nel suddenly opened her mouth again and sprayed out a pink Cero towards Nnoitra.

Hum—!!

Nel's pink Cero was far superior to Nnoitra's in both power and momentum.

Boom!!!

An astonishing explosion sounded. Nel's Cero directly hit Nnoitra. A vast cloud of dust and sand enveloped the area where Nnoitra stood.