Now You Feel Like Number None [Bleach Arrancar Quest]

Cirucci was once a member of the Espada, but following Aizen's acquisition of the Hyogokou she became irrelevant in the face of new-generation Arrancars. Demoted from her status, she was exiled to the outskirts of Las Noches, where she stands guard against non-existent intruders in her Pillar Palace. Thinking of herself as disowned nobility, there is nothing Cirucci wishes more than to take back her former status as one of the Espadas.

Nemo's first real interaction with Cirucci was being sent on a frivolous mission to obtain a new uniform for her. Very attached to etiquette and presentation, proper dress and manners are all-important to her, and she "rewarded" Nemo with lessons of etiquette. When Findorr attacked Nemo, she found refuge in Cirucci's fortress, and Cirucci chased Findorr away. For this, Nemo owed her a debt.

That debt was repaid and more when Nemo's aid allowed Cirucci to grow beyond her limits, challenge Yammy, and win. Following this victory, she was reintroduced into the Espada, and Nemo officially became her Fraccion. The two of them fell in love, and are in an ongoing relationship. Later, Cirucci would rescue Nemo from a captivity connected to Ruddborne's death, defeating Nnoitra Gilger in doing so and acceeding to the rank of Fifth Espada.

Cirucci gains most of her advantage in combat from her mobility and speed, her ability to navigate her environment, and the unorthodox shape and fighting style associated with her zanpakutou, a yo-yo-whip contraption that has Hierro-cutting properties. Her Resurreccion is one of the most powerful in existence, but at this time can only be sustained for less than a minute.

Skills:
Combat Arts: Champion (0/3200)
Sonido: Master (0/2400)
Hierro: Veteran (0/1600)
Cero: Veteran (0/1600)
Bala: Veteran (0/1600)
Reiatsu Control: Master (850/2400)
Reiatsu Perception: Veteran (0/1600)
Resurreccion: Legendary (-/-)

Advanced Skills
Dominio: Third Rain (0/2000)

One of the most recently-created Arrancars in Las Noches, Luppi is sneaky, ambitious and unnerving. His power is enough to warrant a spot among the Espada, but he has been denied this position following Yammy's demise. He entered a fragile alliance with Cirucci vowing to help her remove another of the current Espada so she could ascend beyond her rank and he could take her seat.

Luppi expects betrayal from everyone, and delights in pushing people to the brink until they fulfill his expectations by trying to backstab him in expectation of an imagined treachery. He has found Cirucci and Nemo to be frustrating challenges to his worldview, and after helping Cirucci rescue her Fraccion, has decided to tag along with them and study them, hopefully understanding them, and perhaps himself.

Luppi is an excellent hand-to-hand fighter, but is lacking in sword skills and ranged potential. His control of his reiatsu is outstanding, and he can generate an aura of distrust and doubt which helps him break apart groups of enemies. His Resurreccion allows him to grow powerful, regenerating tentacles, further emphasizing his role as someone designed to fight squads of weaker opponents. He is proficient in reading people and emulating their behavior or unique skills.

Skills:
Combat Arts: Master (0/2400)
Sonido: Master (0/2400)
Hierro: Master (0/2400)
Cero: Veteran (0/1600)
Bala: Veteran (1025/1600)
Reiatsu Control: Champion (0/3200)
Reiatsu Perception: Master (0/2400)
Resurreccion: Master (0/2400)

Mundane Skills:
Mimic: Master (0/1200)

Known Skills: Luppi has at least a Master rank in Reiatsu Control, allowing him to conceal his presence from most of Las Noches's residents. His Combat Arts and Reiatsu Perception are at least of Veteran rank, and though he has not shown high feats of burst speed his ability to effortlessly keep up with Nemo's running indicate a likely Master rank in Sonido. Specialized traits for his abilities include the ability to crawl on any surface at high speed and an utterly silent Sonido.

Luppi's unique Mundane Skill: Mimic makes him proficient in reading people and emulating their behavior. He picked up Nemo's gesture-speech in only a few interactions, and was able to pass as a Calavera with only minor observation and a good disguise.

A base Hollow turned Arrancar, Esmeralda was one of Aizen's early experiments in "customizing" the transformation process. He removed her ability to sense reiatsu and forged a "reiatsu caparace" around her to keep her from feeling the negative effects of spiritual pressure. Being able to operate smoothly around Espadas, Esmeralda became a medic. However, this work leaves her a lot of free time, and higher-ranked Arrancars have taken to using her as a go-to woman for finding Numeros to send on their many errands. This ends up occupying most of her day.

Esmeralda has an ambiguous relationship with Nemo, acting friendly and seeming to genuinely like her, but constantly intruding in her home and giving her more work. She first believed Nemo to be a base Hollow like herself, and felt betrayed to learn that Nemo was actually a more powerful Adjucha. Nemo feels like she wants to be her friend, but fears personal attachment and the possibility of loss.

Nemo shared the same fears. Although Esmeralda eventually reached out to her for friendship, Nemo didn't believe she would be safe as long as she stayed in Las Noches, and convinced her to escape into the living world. Esmeralda is now an Arrancar in hiding, and is building ties with the Fullbringers.

Known Skills: Esmeralda is effectively incapable of sensing spiritual energy, and is immune to all but the most potent spiritual pressures.

A base Hollow living in the desert beyond Las Noches, the many-legged spider (it probably has a name; you never asked) spends most of his time running around and eating smaller Hollows, usually autotrophs. With little to do in his life, he enjoys companionship and discussion, although he is sometimes teasing.

Nemo first encountered him getting back to Las Noches from a mission, and carried her a while. He's since then transported her a few times, seemingly enjoying her presence. When asked how she could find him again if she needed him, he simply said she should wish for him to be there.

Known Skills: Runs fast.

Although a mere Numero on paper, Alphonse holds an important position in Las Noches, for he is its tailors. All Arrancar uniforms are of his design and make, following suggestions by his superiors. Proud of his craft, Alphonse does not hesitate to go through dozens of iterations for a given model, and finds personal gratification in simply delivering good work. His care in his duties contrasts with his lack of self-care: his hair is unkept and his uniform sewn together from spare bits.

Nemo first encountered Alphonse on Cirucci's orders, to fetch her a better uniform. He convinced Nemo to illegally go into the living world for "research," and rewarded her by cutting her Gillian cloth into a conceiling scarf.

Known Skills: Alphonse's Resurreccion is at least of Veteran rank, and his reiatsu powerful enough that Nemo considers him far above her class. That said, his abilities do not seem to focus on combat.

A lesser Arrancar whose head is entirely covered in a mask like a jackal skull, this nameless henchman is a member of Las Noches's enforcement, but is usually found assigned to boring, solidary duties such as standing guard before the apartments of his better. It seems like they're trying to have him out of the way for some reason. He doesn't speak much... Or at all. Nemo and him communicate fine, though.

Jackelton began to develop a sense of individuality after Nemo first talked to him. This caused him to attend Zommari Leroux's sermons, and from there to further diverge from his Calavera brothers. This in turn caused deep worry to its master Ruddborne, leading to a series of dramatic incidents.

Following the death of Ruddborne and Nemo's crafting of a uniform awakening and honing Jackelton's potential, he has become the leader of the new Exequias, unofficially under the command of Gantenbainne Mosqueda. He has the ability to create dog-skulled Calaveras.

The former King of Hueco Mundo, Barragan follows Aizen only reluctantly. An arrogant ruler with a storied past and an infamous and terrifying power, he is prone to musings on the nature of power, time and kingship. Barragan is usually not as actively sadistic or malicious as some of its kind; rather, he is dismissive and disinterested in "ants" below him. Things and people which serve their purpose are good, although most of them are replaceable. Things and people which have unique value and gifts are precious, but ultimately all things die and are replaced.

Barragan sent Nemo into the desert to hunt down those who stole his old crown. Pleased by its return, he nonetheless explained that the crown was an ultimately empty symbol which represented the eternal and unaging nature of kingship, without holding value of its own. Aging the crown thousands of years, he then ordered Nemo to bury it in the sands where it would be forgotten.

Known Skills: Barragan possesses Advanced Skill: Senescencia, the power to bend time around him. Casual applications of this power allow him to slow time around him to effectively make himself faster, and to shatter bones and objects with a touch. His Resurreccion, the subject of many tales of woe in Hueco Mundo, is likely of Legendary rank.

Findorr is a prideful fighter and an utmost loyal servant to Barragan, Espada #2, whom he still considers the one true king of Hueco Mundo. He believes that "nobility" and through it power is in one's blood, and despises "upstarts" and those who seek to rise above their station. He considers it an infamy to have to use his full power against those beneath him, and as such deliberately resticts himself in battle.

Nemo encountered him when taking orders from Barragan. Findorr always assumed she would fail and die in her mission, and he took her success as a personal slight, then her survival from the King's Senescencia as a second outrage. Believing her to have stolen a piece of Barragan's crown, he holds a grudge against her, but must hide the fact that such a lowly Arrancar actually put him at a disadvantage in their first fight.

When rumors of their battle started to spread, Findor's wounded honor compelled him to challenge Nemo in single combat. They fought in the ruins of the Ten Masked Kings, and Nemo triumphed. Unable to bring herself to deal the killing blow, she allowed his fellow Royal Fraccion Ggio to take him into the sands, where he would live on as an outcast.

Known Skills: Combat Arts, Sonido, Hierro, Bala are all Skilled or above. Reiatsu Control and Reiatsu Perception are Veteran or above. With no outstanding fighting skill, Findorr's true strength lies in attrition fighting. His Advanced Skill: Affinar allows him to precisely control his spiritual energy, sacrificing higher power for better efficiency and making him all but indefatigable. His full power when his mask is entirely broken is unknown.

The lowest-rank of his Espada, Yammy's status hiding a dangerous power, Yammy is a dangerous man. Boisterous, fight-hungry, arrogant and easily bored, he is feared by those who have to serve his whims. He prizes raw power and dislike those who must rely on "tricks" to survive. He is closely monitored by Ulquiorra, Espada #4, and seems to be under orders to kill those who witness his Resurreccion.

Cirucci sent Nemo to follow Yammy in a bid to take his seat in the Espada. Nemo took him into the Forest of Menos with the promise of a fight, and there beheld his terrible power, suffering wounds that would have been crippling without Esmeralda's help. Cirucci was taken aback to learn his true power, but still intends to take his place.

After a week of the most intense training she had ever undergone, Cirucci finally challenged Yammy while he was still recovering from his forest battle. Nemo watched as titans fought, and Cirucci won against all odds. But before she could finish him, Yammy's sole companion Ulquiorra appeared and took his body.

There is no salvation for Yammy, however. He is now held in the terrifying laboratories of Szayel Apollo-Grantz, where his broken body is to be reforged at the cost of everything he is.

Known Skills: Yammy is a close-combat, unarmed fighter; his rank in Combat Arts is Master or above. He is prone to using powerful Balas, but rarely uses Cero outside his Resurreccion. His Sonido is so poor he does not even bother using it, relying on his Hierro for Defense. His true threat lies in his Resurreccion (Rank unknown), which manifests as a giant beast of terrible power; its power is so great his Espada ranking changes in his Resurreccion, but it takes him a lot of time to recover his strength, and so his true power fluctuates heavily.

The Masked Hunter of the Forest of Menos, Ashido was a shinigami who spent centuries trapped in Hueco Mundo, waging a one-man guerilla against Hollows. He was a man of cunning and an excellent user of traps, but his skills were ultimately no match for the sheer power of Yammy. He died amidst the phantoms of his fallen friends.

A tragedy.

The leader of the Exequias, Las Noches's inquisitorial police, Ruddborne was widely feared by all below his rank, and was a concern even for the Espada. He created, and commanded, a vast army of nameless skull-headed soldiers known as the Calaveras, and ruthlessly enforced the few laws of Aizen's army.

When Nemo and Luppi went to spy on Zommari Leroux, Ruddborne took notice of them and relentlessly pursued them throughout the corridors of Las Noches, using his army to surround them. In the end he confronted Nemo's released form, and though he had power enough to win, blindness and pride were his downfall.