The next day after the attack on the Western capital.
We see Guerra sitting in the old throne room of Sylvian.
He was coronated as the king of both Southern and the Western kingdoms, attended by none other than his loyal soldiers, Gillians, sargento, teniente and commandantes.
Guerra shouts proudly towards his comrades.
"From here on forth, our empire shall be called. Gran Imperio Forestal!"
The crowd of soldiers cheer incredibly loud.
Former Western towns people are skeptical, but have no choice but to bow down.
Later that day, he formed the Technology development lab, aiming to be technologically advanced and gain advantages in times of conflicts.
Guerra needed test subjects and some men to help him.
The day after the coronation, Guerra visits the Southern capital with a hundred of his men behind him.
He sees that it's completely guarded by thousands of hollows.
Guerra yells
"I want to speak to your officer!!"
The 2 hollows confronted, seeing no other choice alerted the officer.
He comes out.
The officer can already tell what has happened yesterday.
"I see..... Sylvian is no longer?"
Guerra speaks.
"Yes...."
The officer responded with a tone
"I know you are not here just to alert me what happened. Why are you here?"
Guerra seeing the opportunity.
"I want you all to join my army."
The officer, already expecting the answer, replied
"We plan to establish a society of our own here and live peacefully after finally being freed from Sylvian's chains. We don't plan to join your tyrannical warmongering empire."
Guerra, dissatisfied with the response.
"You leave me no choice...."
A cero was shot at the officer, turning him into ashes.
Guerra walks through the entrance unleashing his full spiritual pressure for intimidation and says menacingly.
"Do any of you want to meet the same fate?"
The hollows, crumbling to their knees because of the pressure, surrendered and exited the fortress then marched in a single line to follow Guerra to the Western capital with their minds fearing for what might Guerra do to their lives.
They arrived and were asked if they wanted to join Guerra's cause.
Most bowed down, while others refused and were turned into test subjects for Guerra's lab.
We cut to a military base built on the North.
A close advisor of Shiba comes to his room.
He sees him distrought, placing his hands at the edges of the table with his head lowered.
The advisor worrying says.
"Sir!..... Are you.... Alright?"
Shiba speaks with sadness.
"Reports say.... A new empire has took over most of the East, all of the South and all of the Western territories.... And replaced Sylvian with a brutal leader.... We are completely surrounded... We have no hope of beating him... That damned hollow that lives in the middle of the forest just goes and leaves for the surface and just..... leaves us to DIE!!!"
The advisor nervously asks.
"Well... How about..... We negotiate with the empire?"
Shiba, seeing no other way, nods his head.
We cut to the outskirts of the Western Capital.
A group of hollows emerged from the forest.
A guard screamed.
"STOP!!"
They obey and halted their advances.
The guard shouts.
"Why are y'all here?!"
One of the hollows from the group says.
"Shiba..... Our leader of the north has proposed to discuss.... Things."
The guard scoffs and afterwards speaks.
"You think our leader would fall for such-"
Guerra touches the shoulder of the guard.
"I'll take care of it.
Where will the meeting be held?"
The hollow tosses a large stone tablet, with it a map engraved, pinpointing in the very center, the fort where the shadowy figure lives.
Guerra responds.
"Very well."
Guerra and his thousands of hollows marched to the desired meeting spot of Shiba.
Outside of the fortress are hundreds of hollows from the North.
In the entrance, Shiba awaits.
Guerra arives and approaches Shiba.
Shiba notices that Guerra is taller and larger than he expected.
Shiba says while masking his nervousness.
"Ah! You must be the new emperor!"
Guerra stares him down but he ultimately speaks.
"Yes. You must be Shiba."
Happy to get a positive response. Shiba became less pressured and invites Guerra inside.
They arrive at the meeting room.
Both leading parties sat down at the opposite side of the table.
"What are your aims Shiba? Why invite me here?"
Shiba speaks.
"We want... To form an alliance with each other, it would be great for both parties!"
Guerra, with no intention to agree at all, states.
"I am not interested in an alliance."
Seeing that Gyerra is not interested, he falls back to alternatives.
"How about a defensive pact?"
"No."
"A-A how about we-"
Guerra slams his side of the table, breaking it.
Guerra, seeing the options being given to him are not of his interests, he proposes a different offer.
"How about this. Both nations will form as a Union."
Shiba is shocked of such proposal, but relieved.
Guerra continues.
"But.... I will have all the power to myself and you will be a governer of your Northern territory."
Shiba, seeing that the deal doesn't benefit him, objects.
"This is not an option! I cannot simply hand you all the power and dominate the forest!"
Guerra, disappointed, argues.
"I am are here to improve the lives of the hollows here-"
"That is not true! Your aim is to claim all of the forest to yourself and build an army for your violent conquests!"
Guerra sighs and speaks.
"Is that not what all of you do? All of you kill each other for land and you, Shiba, is not an exception. You have no right to decide if my goals are wrong or not."
Shiba keeps quiet as his hypocrisy was caught.
Guerra continues.
"I will bring glory to my newly reformed empire through conquest if I must. I am the beacon of light of the empire."
Shiba, left with no other choice, cignals an order by releasing all of his spiritual pressure.
The Northern troops began to attack the Empire's hollows.
Guerra hears the fighting outside and then speaks.
"Your spiritual pressure is admirable, Shiba. But do you really want to stay in this path?"
Shiba, staying firm in his decison, speaks.
"Yes."
Shiba breaks a part from his side of the table and throws it at Guerra.
Guerra catches it with his right hand and crushes it.
Shiba speaks.
"Just because you lead a larger nation, doesn't mean that you are the strongest around these forests!"
Shiba uses his sonido and readies uo his fist.
At the last second, Guerra was able to dodge the punch by lowering his body, but the punch was so strong it was able to break the floors and walls around them.
Guerra thinks to himself.
"Dammit.... His punches are way stronger than mine, one punch and I'm no longer going to evolve, or even worse, dead."
Guerra goes for an uppercut to the face, but Shiba takes it without flinching.
Shiba smirks and replies afterwards.
"Hehe.... You see.... I've mastered my physical capabilities, hierro, punching and my sonido, while I ignored Cero.... Pesquisa, all of those useless techniques for better things."
Shiba clenches his fists and raised his left arm and continues his speech.
"Making it easier to do THIS!"
Shiba was ready to swing his arm at full force towards Guerra.
Guerra couldn't dodge as the fist was too fast for him.
He resorted to just blocking the attacking. Sending him flying through the door, into the hallway while his surroundings were also being destroyed due to the force of the punch.
Guerra lays at the ground, hurt from the attack.
He gets up and realized that he's just outside the entrance.
He observes the chaos that's unfolding. Hollows fighting each other to the death, dust filling up the battlefield, Gillian destroying the place and adjuchas from both sides killing each other.
Shiba slowly walks at the shattered hallway, he arrived at the entrance and stared down Guerra.