"Who exactly are you?" Sōya Azashiro sensed the power of the Kaido, while remaining wary of Chun.
"This question," Chun looked troubled. "Giving you a satisfactory answer would require a lot of talking. Let's talk while we eat."
"First, let me explain the current situation. Your duel with Kenpachi is over. As the referee and the sole witness, I declare that Sōya Azashiro has won. Is that alright?"
"No problem~", Kuruyashiki Kenpachi was different. He was already eating and drinking, praising, "Wow~ Oh! This food is really good, delicious! The sake is even better!!"
"Hey! You bastard~!" Sōya Azashiro felt that Kuruyashiki Kenpachi was incredibly carefree; he could still eat and drink happily in this situation was admirable.
"Haha~ Eating and drinking well is the most important thing~", Kuruyashiki Kenpachi laughed, "Otherwise, we won't have the strength to fight later, and it's always better to die well-fed, right?"
Sōya Azashiro gave a soft hum and started eating. Chun was utterly speechless at their actions.
Why must one die?
"It's hard to understand someone like you who hangs out with Genji, isn't it? Jun Shimizu ~ I think I misjudged you," Kuruyashiki Kenpachi, his face unusually cold.
"Is that so? Actually, it's not that I'm hanging out with Xu, but rather, in terms of our master-disciple relationship, they are all my disciples."
Upon hearing this, Jun received two bewildered looks from Kuruyashiki Kenpachi and Sōya Azashiro. Then Jun continued...
"You seem to have misunderstood our relationship. Between them, I am the one giving orders, and they are the ones carrying them out. So it's not that I'm mixed up with Xu; it's that Xu, under my tutelage, has become mixed up with me. This relationship cannot be reversed."
"But no matter what you say, they're Hollows, aren't they? And you're a Soul Reaper!"
"That's true, but the question is, why are Soul Reaper and Hollows enemies?"
Kuruyashiki Kenpachi frowned. "What do you mean by that question? Soul Reaper and Hollowborn?"
"Born enemies?" Chun Ti said, uttering the second half of the sentence. "That's an interesting statement. First, let's clarify this relationship."
"To the Dead Souls, Hollows are predators, right? That's why they're hostile."
"From the perspective of Soul Reaper, our antagonistic relationship with Hollows has two aspects. The first is that we need to guide Dead Souls to the Soul Society, while Hollows consume Dead Souls, hence the antagonism. The second is that Hollows also want to consume Soul Reaper, hence the antagonism."
"Is this alright?"
This time, it was Sōya Azashiro spoke up, "What do you want to say?"
The two of them taking turns speaking to Jun was probably to give the other more time to think, but Jun didn't seem to care.
"What I'm trying to say is, from the perspective of Soul Reaper, this is one viewpoint. Now let's switch to the Hollow's perspective. You might not like to hear this, but you'd better listen carefully."
"A beast is a wild animal, so isn't it natural for wild animals to eat? Wild animals only become hostile to humans when they eat humans, or when humans want to use wild animals as food. These are two reasons."
"But Soul Reaper don't eat Hollows, so there's no other reason. Let's continue from the Hollows' perspective. Once Hollows reach the Adjuchas level, they gain some intelligence, though some are still beasts."
"So those that retain their wild animal instincts are the same as those we saw before, but what about those that have intelligence? They're intelligent wild animals, right?"
"So, after arriving at the Vasto Lorde class, like that Emperor Baraggan we faced before—oh, right, you two don't know yet that Baraggan is just a Vasto Lorde, but he really is just a Vasto Lorde, and in terms of combat strength, he's no match for anyone here."
"But we can see that Vasto Lorde has already acquired a high level of intelligence, so in this case, what exactly is the reason for the antagonism between Hollows and Soul Reaper?"
"Because the reason for the hostility at this point is no longer about eating and being eaten. For example, the Soul Society's Expeditions all along. Why the Expeditions? Because Hollows are the enemies. Why are Hollows the enemies? Because Hollows eat Soul Reaper. But how many people have actually seen Vasto Lorde eat Soul Reaper? Hmm?"
The two listened intently, and now Sōya Azashiro asked again, "What exactly are you trying to say? Are you trying to say that Hollows and Soul Reaper aren't actually enemies?"
"Hmm~ more or less. What I'm trying to say is that once Hollows reach the level of Adjuchas and Vasto Lorde, the reason they become enemies with Soul Reaper is no longer because Hollows want to eat Soul Reaper, but because Soul Reaper are afraid that Hollows will eat Soul Reaper, so they want to kill Hollows. Do you understand this logic?"
Kuruyashiki Kenpachi nodded. "I understand what you mean. It's because we Soul Reaper are afraid, that's fine. So aren't you afraid those Arrancar around you will eat you?"
Jun glanced at the Arrancar and shook his head. "I'm not afraid. Because if that day really comes, I'll be killed, not eaten. Just like Soul Reaper don't eat Hollows, Arrancars won't eat Soul Reaper. Because in terms of form, it's very difficult for humanoid beings to break through this perception and eat humanoid beings. That's why living people rarely eat monkeys, Gorillas, Baboons, or Apes."
"Haha~ That's right," Oka laughed. "Don't worry, even if we were to kill you two, we wouldn't eat you. It's really disgusting. To be honest, our strength hasn't increased since the Vasto Lorde era. After a battle, our losses and damage might not be replenished by eating the opponent, so it's not worth it."
"So, during the Vasto Lorde era, there were very few battles between Vasto Lorde, and the Vasto Lorde rarely killed Adjuchas. If we were to eat, we would eat Gillian."
"If we look at this antagonistic relationship according to the Dialectics that Teacher Chun taught us, we have already transcended the concept of beasts; we don't eat people, thank you."
At this point in the conversation, Kuruyashiki Kenpachi and Sōya Azashiro didn't understand Jun's meaning, but their guard had relaxed somewhat. With a wave of Junichi's hand, the leftovers Kuruyashiki Kenpachi had finished eating were replaced with new dishes and wine.
"I've already explained it clearly. The Arrancar won't be hostile to you unless you attack them. Now, let me tell you what I want to do to you two."
The two instantly tensed up, becoming even more focused, and Kuruyashiki Kenpachi slowed down his eating.
"Since I have already judged your battle, the winner will return to Soul Society to inherit Kenpachi Title and the position of 11th Division Captain, while the loser will remain in Hueco Mundo and return with the Arrancars."
"Going back to where?" This was the question asked by Sōya Azashiro.
"You dare let him return to Soul Society?" This was Kuruyashiki Kenpachi's question.
Neither of them intended to sabotage each other at this moment. In fact, after their fight, their relationship could be described as "becoming friends through conflict." Therefore, their current questions stemmed from mutual concern for each other.
"Let's answer Azashiro- san's question first. Kuruyashiki- san will be taken back to the Arrancar Settlement, which is another Plane of Hueco Mundo called the Endless Sea. It's a non-dead Upper Hueco Mundo connected to the Forest of Menos."
"There are other places in Hueco Mundo!?"
"This is a huge problem in Hueco Mundo. The Soul Society 'Soul Society perspective is short-sighted because it's weak; it's more like a cradle created to protect infants. Only those with a broader perspective, like me, truly understand Hueco Mundo. Only those who interact with the Hollows will realize that Hueco Mundo is far from being a cage like the Soul Society."
The two began to think, and Chun continued...
"Then I will continue to answer your question, Kuruyashiki. I am not afraid of Azashiro. Azajo returning to Soul Society, because I believe that this conversation can make you two my companions, or at least my allies."
Sōya Azashiro narrowed his eyes. "What if I don't agree?!"
"You'll say yes," Chun scratched his cheek, looking completely innocent.
"Do you think I'll die here if you don't agree?"
"No, I'll make you agree."
"You!"
"So you're already thinking of agreeing, right? And you're thinking of reporting me when you get back to Soul Society? Actually, I'm not afraid, because I've made sure you won't do that."
Sōya Azashiro's expression twisted, "What makes you think that?"
Pure fingers circle, "because of them"
Purely smiling happily
"First, you need to know that in the beginning, the only person I knew was Starrk, that lazy guy. Then I mentored him and helped him with his experiments, and that's how he developed so many of his kind, and he's still developing even more. This is to tell you that there will be more and more Arrancar."
"Then, because of my existence, I facilitated the existence of the Arrancar race. They respect me greatly, and I became their teacher of knowledge. In this process, my thoughts permeated their minds. I love peace, and I love all intelligent beings, whether they are Arrancars or Soul Reaper."
"This teaching is also the philosophy they follow now, so they love peace like me and won't kill without reason. They like to approach me and are curious, wanting to peacefully approach my fellow beings, the Soul Reapers, but unfortunately, most of the Soul Reapers are stubborn and inflexible."
"So, under this premise, if I die, if I am killed by the Soul Reaper, then it proves that the Soul Reaper is different from me, and also different from the Arrancar I trained! The Soul Reaper is a stubborn race that cannot accept peace; they must use violence to make the Soul Reaper accept them or disappear."
Jun pointed to his heart and said gently but undeniably, "I am the conduit for peace between Soul Reaper and Arrancar! And the spark that ignites the war between Soul Reaper and Arrancar! This is me! Jun Shimizu!"
"Now, let me ask you, Azashiro- san, what shouldn't you say when you return to Soul Society?"
Sōya Azashiro's face was covered in sweat. He looked at Jun with the eyes of someone looking at a madman, yet also with great fear and something else he couldn't quite explain. Just then, a pair of hands patted his shoulders, helping him to calm down.
"Azashiro! You need to be strong. There's no need to be afraid. You can go back to Soul Society, but I'm going to be taken away. What am I supposed to do if you're so scared?"
"I"
Kuruyashiki Kenpachi didn't say anything, but patted Sōya Azashiro's shoulder twice more forcefully, then stood up and said to Jun, "Jun Shimizu, you're a madman!"
"People call those who behave differently from the prevailing social norms 'madmen.' The xenophobia and arrogance of Soul Society have led you to believe I'm a madman. However, to me, there are far more madmen in Soul Society."
"You can accept dying at the hands of the wicked, you can accept dying at the hands of your own people, you can accept Endless oppression, you can accept a bunch of pigs living high above, you can accept groups of your comrades dying in meaningless wars, you can accept so-called power without pursuing true power—I cannot accept any of this."
"What do you mean?"
He simply tossed over a small booklet, saying, "That's the gist of it."
After opening the booklet, their expressions grew increasingly grim. The booklet Chun had thrown out contained everything Chun knew, including information about the Undead Incident both of them were from that era.
Kuruyashiki Kenpachi extremely shocked. "You actually knew about what happened back then and even went to unite that group?"
"Yes, I now call them the Undead, and they like that name themselves. They also adhere to my principles: once I die, they will become complete enemies of the Soul Society."
Kuruyashiki Kenpachi let out a long sigh. "How much power do you have left?"
"Come out," Junichi commanded, and Seven Knives stepped forward.
"What's this?"
"My seven Shikai," Jun laughed, "Come and greet the two captains. It's a pity that Clear Rain is on my waist, so I can't meet you two. Also, the power of Non-Aggression isn't attached to the sword, so I can't come out to meet people. I haven't been able to get Non-Aggression a sword yet, since once it's attached to a sword, it can only be activated with the sword."
The two were completely dumbfounded.