Soul Society responded quickly to Ichigo and his group's request for assistance, and two hours later, a small group of thirteen people arrived.
The team was led by three captains: Kenpachi Zaraki, Tōshirō Hitsugaya, and the newly appointed Captain of the Ninth Division, Yuumi.
Of the remaining ten, familiar faces include Izuru Kira, Tetsuzaemon Iba, Shūhei Hisagi, Ichinose Maki Shūhei; the others are also a handful or a dozen skilled fighters.
Furthermore, all available personnel from the World of the Living have been assigned to this Hueco Mundo infiltration operation. Excluding the two who were seriously injured in the last battle, Soul Society has sent a total of four captains this time, along with twenty Vice-Captain level experts from the original work, six under Byakuya's command, and four from the academy.
Because Soul Society is not yet fully certain of Aizen's purpose, the Undead have only told Ichigo that Aizen's goal is Karakura Town, but not that it's to be used as the Oken. Therefore, Soul Society is also unclear about Aizen's true objective.
Now that Aizen has captured Orihime, it seems his target is Orihime. Therefore, the most important thing now is to prevent Aizen from completing the Hōgyoku test. If that's the case, Aizen's goal in the World of the Living will be achieved, and the Soul Society will no longer care about the World of the Living's problems.
Urahara was quite speechless at the Soul Society's attitude and perspective. Urahara and Yoruichi had originally planned to help, but now that so many powerful figures had left the World of the Living, they decided against it. In Urahara's eyes, Aizen's ambitions regarding the World of the Living clearly went beyond just Orihime.
The Soul Reaper had only one attitude: to fight. So Urahara activated the Kikai and completed Uryū's body -Reishi transformation, and the group burst into Hueco Mundo.
The four captains and Ichigo led the way, but as soon as they entered Hueco Mundo, they heard a voice.
"Oh my god! What is that? A pursuer from Soul Society? How dare you!"
Following the sound, a slightly thin man stood not far from the group.
"Arrancar!"
"Indeed! I am the Arrancar!" Grimmjow strolled leisurely towards the Space Passage where people were still emerging. "Oh my~ quite a few people, but most of them are just trash."
Kenpachi Zaraki burst into laughter, "You think you're that strong!? Let's have a fight!"
"Hahaha, fight you? You're not qualified," Grimmjow pointed at the four captains, "All four of you come at me together, otherwise I won't have much fun."
"You bastard! What nonsense are you spouting!"
Grimmjow's sudden provocation of the four captains greatly displeased the Soul Reaper who emerged from behind. However, as soon as he finished speaking, a storm erupted, and everyone immediately retreated.
"When!?"
Grimmjow tossed a head around, one after another—it was the same Soul Reaper who had spoken earlier. "This won't do. Stop talking nonsense, you useless lot. Your Soul Society has no manners at all; I have to teach you even this kind of thing."
"You guys go first!" Kenpachi Zaraki stepped forward from the crowd, brandishing Nozarashi greatsword twice, and laughed, "A strongman like you is more interesting! Haha, you're that so-called Espada, right?"
Grimmjow tossed the severed head aside, flicked the blood off his hands, and said, "Since you know I'm Espada, you still dare to face me alone?"
Kenpachi Zaraki laughed even harder, "Heh heh heh! In a battle between the strong, shouldn't the weak be made to step aside? It seems Hueco Mundo is nothing special after all!"
The two were locked in a tense standoff. Grimmjow narrowed his eyes, his gaze gradually turning dangerous as he looked at Zaraki as if he were looking at prey.
Kenpachi Zaraki, of course, wouldn't be careless. The Espada were exactly the kind of opponents he needed. There was no need to show mercy or consider life or death; this kind of battle was exactly what he wanted, and he became incredibly excited.
The Nozarashi and the Claw Claw collided violently. Grimmjow, from this timeline, was Arrancar born from the Endless Sea. When choosing their scaling weapons, this line of Arrancars didn't limit them to swords; many weren't even weapons. Grimmjow, at least, chose the Claw Claw, which was already a weapon with high attack power.
A true expert's skill is immediately apparent. Kenpachi Zaraki's strike wasn't a simple cut; it was a genuine smash. The sheer power and weight of the Nozarashi thrilled Grimmjow.
"Haha, your strength is lacking!!" Kenpachi Zaraki unleashed his Reiatsu, increasing his power once more, forcing Grimmjow to Luffy.
Grimmjow's symbol is the leopard. Among large cats, excluding jaguars (because jaguars belong to the lion genus), all normal leopards are among the weakest of the large cats.
The reason is that leopards need maximum speed, which is achieved through explosive power, as well as their lightweight and small size. Many of the leopard's body parts are designed to withstand explosive bursts of speed.
This ability is also very evident in Grimmjow. Grimmjow is not strong in any aspect. In terms of strength and Reiatsu, the two direct combat attributes, Grimmjow is not considered powerful, and his physical defense is surprisingly fragile. However, Grimmjow is still the Espada, and the reason lies in his explosive power.
"Hehe~ You're really strong," Grimmjow licked his lips.
"Oh~ So you're finally going to use your real skills? Come on!!" Kenpachi Zaraki raised his Reiatsu again, and the strength of this Reiatsu was rare. Even Arrancars rarely had such a level of Reiatsu, at least not Grimmjow.
But the blow struck the ground, the immense force carving a trench several kilometers deep, while Grimmjow had already retreated hundreds of meters to the side.
Kenpachi Zaraki was a man who wouldn't let his advantage rest on his laurels. He leaped up and pounced on Grimmjow, hoisting his Nozarashi behind his back, and when he slammed it down, it would carry a devastating force.
But the strike couldn't land. A Cero shot out from Grimmjow's hand. Kenpachi Zaraki could ignore this Cero; he could withstand it with Spiritual Power. However, right after the Cero was launched, Grimmjow vanished.
A bolt of lightning suddenly appeared in the sky, carrying immense speed and force as it slammed down from Kenpachi Zaraki's left. Kenpachi Zaraki the attack struck Nozarashi.
However, the blue lightning bolt bounced back off the plane of the Nozarashi, then drew a strange arc in the air before striking Kenpachi Zaraki's side again. This time, the speed of the attack was so fast that Zaraki didn't even have time to absorb the force of the previous blow.
While greater personal strength is always better for deflecting force, even Zaraki needs time to process it. Grimmjow's two attacks were almost instantaneous, faster than Zaraki's combo attacks.
The second attack from the side forced Zaraki to rely solely on his protective Spiritual Power to withstand it, causing a burning pain in his back. However, this was not the end. A third attack came from his side and rear, this time targeting the Zaraki spot on his left back where he had just been attacked. This spot had just been hit, and his protective Spiritual Power was now completely depleted.
"Release! Nozarashi Ashura King!"
A massive surge of demonic energy suddenly appeared, replacing the protective Spiritual Power. Grimmjow's attack consumed a portion of the demonic energy, and then he repeated the same tactic, launching a fourth attack.
However, this time Kenpachi Zaraki was able to react. In his Asura King form, his power was unparalleled. With just a single swing of his sword, a storm was unleashed. Grimmjow chose to avoid the attack and quickly disappeared into the sky.
Grimmjow is a leopard, and I don't know how Aizen trained him in the original work, but he actually likes to fight Ichigo -on. Despite having ridiculously low stats and only being able to unleash one burst of damage before being defeated, he insists on fighting Ichigo head-on.
When Jun was teaching the Arrancar Starrk, he explicitly pointed out that the Starrk symbol was the Wolf Pack. This enlightened Starrk and greatly enhanced his fighting ability.
Then Starrk learned a lot about animals from Pure. When training his new brethren, he would ask Pure about their symbols and then train Arrancar combat based on those symbols.
Although characters like Ulquiorra, Felix, Hellros, Grimmjow left one after another, they did so only after being trained in combat skills and humanity. When they were first created, they were just like Ge Ze Li, lacking much practical combat ability.
Therefore, Grimmjow in this timeline is not a reckless person. Being arrogant does not mean he will recklessly attack others. Knowing one's own strengths and weaknesses and making good use of them is true pride.
Kenpachi Zaraki had released his power, but he couldn't find the enemy. However, he knew the enemy was watching him from a distance, so he chased after the direction he sensed.
But it was clear he couldn't catch up. Grimmjow's speed was far beyond Kenpachi Zaraki could match. Grimmjow was panting heavily in the distance. His explosive power was extremely high, but he needed time to cool down, otherwise his body couldn't withstand it.
Even during the time it takes for his body to cool down, his speed is far superior to Kenpachi Zaraki's, even if the opponent is a...
Grimmjow is a leopard, the Pantera, Kenpachi Zaraki is now like a rhinoceros, possessing immense strength and an incredibly robust physique. But Grimmjow, this leopard, can tear through a rhinoceros's skin, so what follows is a test of endurance.
Leopards are among the most patient and formidable hunters of all species; they only strike when they have the perfect opportunity.
His body had cooled down completely, Grimmjow reappeared in Kenpachi Zaraki's field of vision as a blue lightning bolt. The red demon remained as furious as ever, swinging his broken sword forward, creating a massive storm that even destroyed space itself.
The blue lightning dodged the strike, but seeing an even more powerful storm about to be unleashed, it had no choice but to detour again, only to be met with yet another strike.
"Holy crap! What kind of power does this guy have?! Is he cheating?! Even the Arrancar don't have this much power!" Frustrated, Grimmjow could only retreat again. This time, he simply ran away, completely wasting his chance.
Seeing Grimmjow disappear again, Kenpachi Zaraki's rage was palpable.
"Ah~!" Kenpachi Zaraki roared in pain. He could no longer control himself. His consciousness was about to disappear, but he could not cancel it. The second Espada was indeed extraordinary. He could only fight it out in the Inner World. It was all or nothing!
Meanwhile, Grimmjow, waiting far away for his body to cool down, cursed aloud.
"Damn it! What kind of attack power does this guy have! Even Oka and Biersen aren't this strong! I can't even get close to him with my Resurrección. Impressive! Is he a captain of Soul Society, or is he exceptionally strong? By the way, what's this guy's name again?"