Uehara Shiroha was genuinely worried about Fasius's safety, but he couldn't take any action just yet. He had to wait for Fasius's signal to begin the coordinated attack.
Soon, however, Uehara Shiroha realized that something was seriously wrong with their plan. Fasius was courageously dealing with the massive Black Spirit all by himself, while the blonde man was just standing nearby with his weapon in his trembling hands, not daring to step forward and help at all.
If Fasius hadn't specifically assigned the blonde man his responsibilities beforehand, Uehara Shiroha would have really liked to go over and punch him a few times for his cowardice.
Although Fasius proved to be quite agile and skilled, the Black Spirit's speed increased dramatically after being enraged by the attacks, and it managed to grab Fasius in its enormous hand while the captain wasn't paying close enough attention.
Seeing this dire situation unfolding, Uehara Shiroha immediately abandoned the plan and ran forward with his Zanpakuto drawn, leaping through the air and slashing down at the Black Spirit's massive body.
Uehara Shiroha wanted to make the Black Spirit feel enough pain that it would release its grip on Fasius.
The attack did have a certain effect. The Black Spirit let out a bone-chilling scream of pain, but it did not let go of Fasius as hoped.
Fasius's entire body was trapped within the Black Spirit's huge black hand, and his weapon had fallen uselessly to the ground. He no longer had the strength or leverage to resist the crushing grip.
Uehara Shiroha immediately shouted desperately to the blonde man standing frozen nearby.
"What are you just standing there for? Get up there and cut off its hand!"
The blonde man seemed to have been completely terrified by the horrific scene unfolding in front of him. He just stood there in a catatonic state. After hearing Uehara Shiroha's urgent call, it took him a long time to slowly turn his head and look at Shiroha with vacant, fear-filled eyes.
Seeing that the blonde man was too paralyzed with fear to act, Uehara Shiroha could no longer stand by and watch. He prepared to rush forward and attempt to sever the Black Spirit's hand himself.
Just as Uehara Shiroha was about to charge into the fray, Chiying called out to him urgently from behind.
"Don't be impulsive! Fasius specifically told us before we came here that everyone should maintain their assigned positions and not move out of formation without orders."
"Last time, the team suffered serious casualties specifically because someone didn't follow the tactical orders. We absolutely must learn from that painful lesson and never let something like this happen again."
Uehara Shiroha gripped his Zanpakuto tightly in one hand and clenched his other hand into a frustrated fist, then responded with obvious anger.
"We can't just stand here and watch our leader die! Someone needs to go up there and cut off that thing's hand to make it release Fasius!"
Whether the blonde man heard what Uehara Shiroha was desperately shouting or not, he didn't respond at all and continued to stand there in a complete daze.
Large beads of sweat the size of soybeans kept rolling down the blonde man's forehead, and it was painfully obvious that he was absolutely terrified beyond rational thought.
The blonde man's legs were shaking uncontrollably, and he seemed to lack the strength or courage to take even a single step forward toward the danger.
Everyone was anxiously waiting for the blonde man to finally take action and help their leader. At that moment, a horrifying scream rang out across the battlefield, and the terrible scene that unfolded completely stunned Uehara Shiroha.
Fasius had been crushed by the Black Spirit's overwhelming grip, and blood was now flowing freely from between the creature's massive fingers.
The blonde man seemed unable to bear witnessing this gruesome sight any longer. He let out a panicked shout, dropped his weapon to the ground, and began crawling frantically back in the direction they had originally come from.
Although Uehara Shiroha felt deep sadness and rage at the loss of their brave leader, the most important thing at this critical moment was to ensure the safety of the remaining team members.
If these surviving companions were lost as well, this dimensional crack would probably never be repaired, and the situation would become catastrophic.
The other team members were also completely stunned by the brutal turn of events. It was Uehara Shiroha who finally turned his head and shouted to everyone.
"The plan has completely fallen apart! Everyone retreat immediately!"
"There's no one left up front to attract the Black Spirit's attention anymore!"
Uehara Shiroha took the lead and began running toward safety, but after just a few steps, he heard Chiying cry out behind him.
Looking back in alarm, he saw that the Black Spirit was raising its massive hand to crush Chiying, but she was still lying on the ground where she had fallen and hadn't managed to get back up.
Without hesitation, Uehara Shiroha knew he had to make a choice between following the tactical retreat and saving his teammate's life.