Disrupting the Kenpachi Duel / Kenpachi Saki

The guy from Rukongai obviously had no Zanpakuto, so he couldn't use Shikai, much less Kidō.

Although Acting Captain Yamanaka's Rei'i Grade was currently only five.

He had a Zanpakuto, and once he released it, he should be able to fight his opponent, or even kill him instantly.

Kiganjō, Kiganjō...

Tokoyo Misao searched his memory for information about that name.

Then he suddenly remembered—Kenpachi Kiganjō.

The man before him really had been Kenpachi.

But in Tokoyo Misao's eyes, Acting Captain Yamanaka had over a seventy percent chance of winning and no reason to lose.

Had he underestimated his opponent?

With a clatter, the office door opened.

Acting Captain Yamanaka walked out.

Tokoyo Misao thought for a moment, then went up to stand beside him and said quietly:

"This guy who slipped in doesn't even have a Zanpakuto. Acting Captain Yamanaka, if you release yours right at the start, you can catch him off guard and kill him instantly."

Acting Captain Yamanaka's expression was cold as he replied in a somewhat reproachful tone:

"The Kenpachi Duel is a matter of honor. If my opponent doesn't have a Zanpakuto, then I won't use mine either."

With that, he strode toward Kiganjō.

Tokoyo Misao's brow twitched.

Without Shikai, the odds of winning this fight were fifty-fifty.

Chapter 57: Disrupting the Kenpachi Duel

Acting Captain Kiyoyuki Yamanaka stepped forward and said coldly:

"I'm currently the acting captain of the 11th Division. Are you the one who wants a Kenpachi Duel with me?"

Kiganjō looked Kiyoyuki Yamanaka up and down, then dug a finger into his ear and said:

"Don't Soul Reaper captains all wear white haori? If I beat you, do I get one?"

"Of course," Kiyoyuki Yamanaka said with a nod.

"That's more like it. I came here to get a white haori and become a captain."

Kiganjō threw his mouth wide and laughed, then carried his hammer to the center of the training ground and stopped.

Kiyoyuki Yamanaka waved his hand, and the Soul Reapers around them all dispersed to the edge of the field.

"One of the rules is that a Kenpachi Duel must be held in front of members of the 11th Division."

He stopped five meters in front of Kiganjō and explained quietly.

"No problem. I'm used to being watched," Kiganjō replied indifferently.

Kiyoyuki Yamanaka drew the Zanpakuto at his waist and continued:

"Rule two: only one person can survive a Kenpachi Duel."

"The winner inherits everything the Kenpachi has."

Kiganjō's eyes lit up at once. "Get on with it. I've wanted to live in the Seireitei for ages."

Kiyoyuki Yamanaka gripped his Zanpakuto in both hands and narrowed his eyes.

The next moment, he used Shunpo and vanished, appearing behind Kiganjō in an instant.

A flash of silver-white steel, trailing a fierce gust, slashed toward Kiganjō's neck.

Kiganjō spun around and blocked the attack with the hammer he had been carrying on his shoulder.

The Zanpakuto struck the hammer with a sharp clang.

Then Kiganjō roared, "Get back!"

Veins bulged on his thick arms as he swung his hammer with all his might, sending Kiyoyuki Yamanaka flying.

Kiyoyuki Yamanaka tumbled several times through the air.

At the same time, Kiganjō broke into a run. Each step landed on the training ground with a thud, stamping deep footprints straight into the floor.

He intended to reach Kiyoyuki Yamanaka's landing spot first and continue his attack, but after two steps he realized something was wrong. He hurriedly looked up and saw Kiyoyuki Yamanaka standing in the sky, with no sign of coming down.

"You Soul Reapers sure know a lot of fancy tricks!" he roared through clenched teeth, somewhat resentful, pointing a thick finger at the training ground.

"This is a duel. What are you doing hiding up in the sky?"

Kiyoyuki Yamanaka stamped both feet hard against the air, producing an explosive sound.

The air formed a blast that propelled him forward, and his whole body became a sharp sword as he charged at Kiganjō on the ground.

The slash carried not only his own strength, but also the technique of Shunpo and the added force of his descent.

A peerlessly fierce silver-white blade of light crashed toward Kiganjō like a falling meteor.

"Hmph." Two streams of hot air burst from Kiganjō's nostrils.

Faced with the attack, he had no intention of dodging. Instead, he swung his hammer up and smashed it into the ground.

With a thunderous boom, he punched a hole straight into the ground, sending a blast of air surging skyward.

With his hammer buried in the earth, he gripped its handle in both hands and roared. Every muscle in his body tensed as he used the hammer like a shovel, scooping up a huge mass of earth and stone and flinging it into the sky.

Thud, thud.

The fierce wind carried the dirt and broken stones into Kiyoyuki Yamanaka, striking him again and again.

Some grains of sand got in his eyes, making him close them instinctively.

But Soul Reapers primarily used spiritual perception to sense their surroundings.

His blade remained locked firmly on Kiganjō.

The blade flashed past.

Kiyoyuki Yamanaka landed, and a great spray of blood spurted from the shoulder of Kiganjō, who stood in the pit.

His right arm instantly went numb, and his hand loosened involuntarily, dropping the hammer into the pit.

"Ah, it hurts! It hurts like hell!"

Kiganjō shouted and screamed where he stood, clutching the wound on his shoulder to stop the bleeding, but it did no good at all.

Kiyoyuki Yamanaka flicked his right hand sharply, sending the blood on his blade splattering onto the ground.

He turned toward Kiganjō and raised his right hand high, a cold light flashing from his Zanpakuto.

"W-wait!" Kiganjō shouted, backing away when he saw the calm, indifferent look on Kiyoyuki Yamanaka's face.

"I only came to challenge you because of something I heard in Rukongai. I'm not even a Soul Reaper."

"Your rules don't apply to me. I give up the challenge, so don't kill me."

He kept backing away as he spoke. The wound on his shoulder hurt so much that tears welled up and ran down his cheeks.

The sight made Kiyoyuki Yamanaka frown.

But the 11th Division often carried out missions in Rukongai, and its members had seen plenty of these so-called great villains. They were all the sort to bully the weak and fear the strong.

"Get lost."

Kiyoyuki Yamanaka sheathed his Zanpakuto at his waist and spoke coldly.

Faced with the clownish Kiganjō, he had no intention of finishing him off. He turned around, ready to go back to his division duties.

The instant Kiyoyuki Yamanaka turned, everyone watching widened their eyes.

Kiganjō, who had been tearfully begging for mercy, gripped his iron hammer again and swung it sharply.

The hammer actually had a mechanism. Its round, spiked head flew free of the iron shaft, linked to it by a thin iron chain, transforming it into a meteor hammer.

The huge spiked iron head hurtled toward the center of Kiyoyuki Yamanaka's back.

The division members had no time to react.

No, it wasn't that they had no time. They had reacted, but had no intention of stepping in to help.

That included Iba, who stood beside Tokoyo Misao.

His hand had already gone to his Zanpakuto when Kiganjō reached for the hammer, but he took no action either.

Kiganjō laughed. "The one who survives is the winner, you idiot!"

Living in Rukongai, he wouldn't have any such duels.

As long as he survived and became the winner, that was everything.

This Soul Reaper was far too naive!

Kiyoyuki Yamanaka sensed the fierce wind coming from behind him, but it was already too late to react.

He could only reach instinctively for the Zanpakuto at his waist.

But he could already feel the pain of the iron ball's spikes piercing the center of his back.

"Hahaha, die!" Kiganjō roared with laughter.

His eyes were fixed on Kiyoyuki Yamanaka's back, and he was already planning to become Kenpachi after winning and have a proper feast here.

Huh? What's going on?

Kiganjō suddenly realized something was wrong with his body. His view was moving toward the ground, getting lower and lower.

After the world spun around him,

all he could see was a pair of feet. Then his vision gradually darkened until he could see nothing at all.

Chapter 58: Kenpachi Saki

A gentle breeze blew across the 11th Division's training ground, making Kiganjō's huge head tremble a few times.

"Y-you bastard, you broke the rules!"

"Wasn't the Kenpachi Duel supposed to be one-on-one?"

"These are the so-called Soul Reapers? You're worse than thugs!"

The four Rukongai thugs Kiganjō had brought with him howled in unison.

They weren't wrong. At the very start of the duel, Acting Captain Yamanaka had explained the rules very clearly.

Moreover, the Kenpachi Duel was something the 11th Division had to defend with their lives.

So even though the division members and Iba had seen Kiganjō attack again after begging for mercy, they had neither spoken up nor intervened.

Because letting his opponent go was Acting Captain Yamanaka's own mistake, and he had to bear the consequences himself.

But now things were different. An 11th Division member had actually interfered in a Kenpachi Duel. If word got out, even the Captain-Commander might personally look into it.

"You Soul Reapers just wait! I'll go out and—"

The thugs were all shouting threats when a figure suddenly appeared behind them.

The next moment, their necks flew into the air, and bright red blood splattered all over the ground.

Iba flicked the Zanpakuto in his hand, splashing blood from its blade across the ground.

After returning his Zanpakuto to its sheath, he stood silently in place, the headless bodies of the Rukongai thugs lying before him.

The Soul Reaper who had brought them in immediately put his hand on the hilt of his Zanpakuto and looked nervously around. Beads of sweat the size of beans seeped from his forehead and dripped down his cheeks.

Members of the other divisions naturally knew about the Kenpachi Duel, and this Soul Reaper understood it particularly well.

The reason patrol members like him brought great villains and thugs into the Seireitei and to the 11th Division in the first place was the rules of the Kenpachi Duel.

As the Gotei 13's strongest fighting force, they feared no challenge.

But now, he was very likely to be silenced by these division members. Otherwise, if word of today's events got out, how could the 11th Division save face?