"Oh my gosh~, that was a very skillful injury!"
Aijima and Tier Harribel came together to treat Ichigo, but while they said they were there for treatment, neither of them Kaido. The one who could truly heal was the second of the Seven Undead Fusion Warriors present, Shinsō Sōdō. It was this person who spoke.
Ichigo Kurosaki was speechless. "What do you mean by 'the injury was very skillful'?"
"Guangyu, heal him," Shinsō Sōdō summoned his Dolls, a small angel, which flew to Ichigo and began healing him. Shinso smiled at Ichigo, "What I meant was, the person who injured you showed you considerable mercy, and their technique was extremely advanced."
How tall?
"A reckless fool like you will never have that ability in your lifetime."
Ichigo was speechless, his face darkening with exasperation. Mingmo, having brought Orihime, Sado, and Uryū over, said, "It's clear now. It was Byakuya Kuchiki, the current captain of the Sixth Division, who personally intervened. Ichigo's Ichigo; he defeated two dozen Soul Reaper!"
"Being able to injure Menos Grande is already at the level of a few," Tier Harribel praised Ichigo with a smile, "What a talented child."
Shark Sister is really quite different from the original character. Ever since she gained Jun's approval, Shark Sister's become much more cheerful and quite gentle in her daily life. Of course, when she fights, she's still a fierce shark—after all, she's a shark.
Mingmo then asked, "So, Ichigo, what are you going to do?"
"What do you mean, how do you do it?"
"Rukia, what are you going to do?"
"Is she really going to be Execution? Is she really going to die?"
"Lie down!"
The words "Shinso" pushed Ichigo down on the hospital bed, but Ichigo's mind was entirely on Mingmo at the moment. Mingmo nodded, "According to the rules of Soul Society, Rukia will definitely die."
"Because the guy you met before, Rukia Kūgo Ginjō, was your former Substitute Soul Reaper. Unfortunately, he defected after serving as Substitute Soul Reaper for a little over a year. Therefore, Soul Society no longer trusts humans with Spiritual Power, and any Soul Reaper who gives their power to a living person is committing a grave crime!"
"Is that so?"
Mingmo shrugged. "Of course not necessarily. The Kuchiki Clan is the head of the Four Great Noble Clans in Soul Society. Great noble families can operate outside the rules, as long as they are powerful enough. So they need a reason, a reason to save Rukia."
Ichigo's eyes flashed, and a smirk appeared on his lips. "To what extent?"
"I don't know about that, but you should understand one thing: not everyone in Soul Society is an enemy."
"Because there's only one case like Kūgo Ginjō's, many people in Soul Society don't actually agree with the establishment of this great crime. That's one aspect. Secondly, Soul Society is Soul Society, and the World of the Living is the World of the Living. As long as the operation of Soul Society isn't interfered with, what difference does it make if there are a few Soul Reaper in the World of the Living?"
"That's what most Soul Reaper think, so Rukia is someone they know, while you're just a stranger. Because a stranger is executing someone they know, and because of this kind of law that doesn't convince the public, many people will help you."
"But they need a reason. If they don't rebel against Soul Society, they can't take the initiative to rebel, do you understand?"
Ichigo's face was contorted with excitement; his dissatisfaction with Soul Society had reached its peak. "So you're just letting me wreak havoc in Soul Society, right!?"
"Hey~ That's exactly right!"
"That's awesome!!" Ichigo shouted, raising his arms in celebration.
"Put your hands down!" With just one sentence from Shinso, Ichigo immediately wilted again.
Having said that, the others understood as well. Orihime was the first to speak up, "I want to go too! I want to save Kuchiki! The rules of Soul Society are wrong!"
Sado also said, "Kuchiki -kun shouldn't be executed for something like this. Wrong things should be stopped!"
"Are you all idiots?" Uryū was truly exhausted. "Do you even know what Soul Society is? That guy who instantly killed Kurosaki-kun, there are twelve more of him in Soul Society!"
Orihime pouted, "But they wouldn't lower themselves to fight us, would they? Besides, Sister Mingmo said they're not on the same page."
"Please spare me!"
"If you don't want to go, that's fine, Ishida -kun."
"What nonsense are you talking about? If I don't go, you guys in Soul Society really are a bunch of clueless fools."
"Ishida -kun!" Orihime exclaimed happily, grabbing Uryū's hand excitedly and saying, "I knew you wouldn't leave me like this! Ishida -Ishida kun, you're a good person!"
"Well, it's alright," Uryū blushed, feeling shy. He had always liked Orihime, but Orihime didn't know and kept giving him friend cards. Poor Uryū Ishida...
Just then, another person entered. The Shopkeeper opened his fan and exclaimed with a smile, "Oh dear, have I stumbled upon a pep rally?"
"We've been waiting for you, Shopkeeper!"
"Not at all, Miss Mingmo, you're too kind. Training these little ones requires our joint efforts."
Mingmo nodded and said, "Of course, but you are currently the best mentor in the World of the Living. We will provide you with any resources you need."
"Wow, this job is a real steal!"
Meanwhile, in Soul Society, while everyone was focused on Rukia Kuchiki's capture, news suddenly broke that the 11th Division would be holding another Kenpachi challenge. The challenger was Zaraki, who had been the King of Rukongai for a long time and was currently the Third Seat the 11th Division.
However, everyone knows that Zaraki, the Third Seat, is the strongest fighter in the 11th Division besides the captain. After all, the Vice-Captain Gosuke, was left behind Kuruyashiki the former Kenpachi, and his strength is quite poor. Recently, even his physical condition has started to decline, and he seems to be nearing the end of his life.
Then, over a decade ago, Zaraki completed his Shikai, which was truly unbelievable. That was just his Shikai, yet it was more powerful than most people's Shikai. It only made everyone marvel at how worthy he was of being the monster of the 11th Division and the King of Rukongai.
The reason for Kenpachi's challenge again this time is that Sōya Azashiro's fighting power requires the manipulation of objects on a large scale, which makes it impossible for him to unleash his full potential in Soul Society. Therefore, just like the previous Kenpachi challenge, the Tenth Division Captain Jun Shimizu, who has done the same thing before, will act as witness.
Jun was drinking with Sōya Azashiro at that moment, thinking, "I really didn't expect that kid Zaraki would choose to challenge me at this time."
"It's said he's already mastered it," Sōya Azashiro smiled slightly, "That seems to be true, otherwise I don't know what gives him the confidence to challenge me."
Chun smiled slightly, "If you feel you've lost to him, then you can take the opportunity to escape."
Suddenly, Sōya Azashiro's expression turned serious. "Jun~ I can agree to anything else, but not this one."
Jun was somewhat surprised, then shook his head and chuckled, "Sōya ~, so you've finally become a real member of the 11th Division! Haha~ I thought you always looked down on this team."
Speaking of this, Sōya Azashiro was quite melancholy. He got up, went to the window, and sighed, "Ah~, people~ change. This 11th Division is my life's work, and now that I have to let go, I suddenly feel a little reluctant."
"This is for a better future."
Can it really be better?
"No matter what, it can't be worse than it is now. What did Rukia do wrong? Can Kūgo Ginjō represent all living people in the World of the Living? Which idiot made these laws? On what grounds?"
Sōya Azashiro chuckled, sat back down at the table, and shook his head with a wry smile. "Indeed, it can't get any worse than it is now. The noble class of Soul Society needs to disappear. Admittedly, new nobles will appear, but they will always be a little bit better than the current ones. Change is the essence of life. Soul Society cannot remain stagnant."
Well said, I salute you!
"Haha, isn't that exactly what you say? Cheers!"
"What if you win?"
"Even if I win, I'm leaving. I'll leave this team to Zaraki, haha," Sōya Azashiro chuckled mischievously. "Didn't you think highly of him? Well, this kid's a troublemaker, so I'll let him hate me a bit. With that hatred for me, he'll grow faster, right?"
"That must have been really hard on you."
"It's alright. After so many years in the 11th Division, I've come to realize more and more that I don't really dislike these single-minded idiots. Really, hmph~ hahaha, idiots pfft."
"Alright~ I'll go set up the battlefield now, see you later!"
See you later
This is the place where Kenpachi challenged his opponent back then. The trees here are all lying there in a mess, with branches and twigs connected to the roots. It's about half the height of other places in the Forest of Menos.
"Are you ready, you two?"
Zaraki, carrying his massive axe, Nozarashi, his laughter always so sinister, "I'm always ready for battle!! Hehehe~ Hahaha"
Sōya Azashiro drew his invisible sword, Rain Dew Pomegranate, and coldly snorted, "Come on, you attack first."
"Then, let the battle begin!" Jun began to retreat before his words even finished, though he was much closer than when he fought Kuruyashiki and Azashiro. After all, his strength was no joke now; neither of those two could beat him when they got serious.
As soon as the words were spoken, Zaraki, unable to contain his urge to attack, charged forward, his axe-sword Nozarashi aimed at Sōya Azashiro.
With that single strike, Sōya Azashiro was cleaved in two, but it was merely an afterimage. Sōya Azashiro's true form had already merged into the trunk of the giant tree where the two stood. But then, a sudden attack came...
Zaraki's Nozarashi continued its strike on the tree trunk, and then, from the point of impact, the trunk, stretching for nearly a kilometer forward, was cleaved into fragments of wood, exploding violently in all directions.
"Ah~!" Zaraki roared, excited by his strike, and then he saw a huge tree branch fall from the sky.
"Good!!" Zaraki charged towards the tree branch, while Nozarashi unleashed a powerful slash, chopping the massive branch into firewood.
But this was just the beginning. One huge branch after another came crashing down on Zaraki, but none of this bothered Zaraki. He was laughing, laughing like a child.
"Again! Again!! Again~! Again~!"
In the midst of the Nozarashi slashing, the branches were completely destroyed. Chun watched this violent scene from a distance, with Oka and Nel standing beside him.
"How about this guy?"
Oka smiled somewhat helplessly, "I think Biersen and he have something in common."
"I second that," Nel expressionlessly, "They're all complete brutes."
Nel's true nature is very indifferent, which even Jun sometimes finds hard to accept. The little girl from the original work is much more interesting. Should we remove her Hollowfication Mask and give her amnesia?
Of course, it's just a joke; Chun is just sighing right now.
"Is this still not the ultimate?! This is not his ultimate! He is the embodiment of violence! The ultimate violence!! Saga~ Zaraki! Let me witness your even more ferocious power!"