Internship

Early the next morning, the Elite Class students of Shin'ō Academy assembled on the training ground at the appointed time. The air was filled with an unusual solemnity and a hint of excitement. Liu Hao and Renji Abarai stood in the crowd and exchanged a glance before heading to separate lines, as arranged the day before.

Soon, everyone had arrived. Their homeroom teacher, Nakamura Sōya, accompanied Fourth Division lieutenant Isane Kotetsu to the center of the training ground.

Lieutenant Isane Kotetsu stood straight, her silver hair giving her a particularly capable appearance in the morning light. Her gaze swept over the two distinct groups before her. The larger group looked expectant and nervous about combat, while the smaller group, which included Liu Hao, appeared mostly calm and focused.

She cleared her throat, and her voice reached everyone clearly. "Students who chose to intern with the Fourth Division, step forward now and follow me to the Fourth Division General Treatment Center. Over the coming days, you will work alongside full members of the Fourth Division, taking part in the actual treatment and care of patients. This is the first step in putting the theory you have studied for three years into practice. Observe carefully, think diligently, and obey the rules."

With that, she turned to Nakamura Sōya and gave a slight nod. "Nakamura-sensei, I'll take them there now."

Nakamura Sōya respectfully returned the gesture. "Sorry for the trouble, Lieutenant Kotetsu."

Isane Kotetsu said no more. She turned and strode steadily out of the training ground. Liu Hao and the few other students who had chosen the Fourth Division immediately fell into line behind her. Renji Abarai watched Liu Hao leave, pumped his fist, and mouthed, "Good luck." Liu Hao looked back and gave him a small nod.

After watching Isane Kotetsu leave with the interns, Nakamura Sōya turned to face the larger group that remained, his expression growing stern. "The rest of you will now follow me to the designated Hollow Hunting Training Ground.

"There, two outstanding senior students will serve as your temporary leaders and guide you through your first real combat training against Hollows.

"Remember, although the Hollows in the training ground were captured and placed there after being assessed as relatively controllable targets, Hollows are dangerous and chaotic by nature! Every combat exercise has a Death Quota! This is not a drill. It is a real battle!

"Stay on your highest alert, obey your leaders, and look after one another. Your first priority is your own safety; honing your skills comes second. Understood?!"

"Understood!!" the young students answered in unison, their voices a mixture of nervousness, excitement, and a barely perceptible trace of fear.

"Move out!" Nakamura Sōya ordered, leading the young "expedition force" in the opposite direction from the Fourth Division.

Fourth Division General Treatment Center

Liu Hao followed Lieutenant Isane Kotetsu through Seireitei's clean, broad streets to a complex of buildings predominantly white and pale green. It was quieter here than at Shin'ō Academy. The air carried a faint mixture of disinfectant, a Reishi purifier, and herbs. The Soul Reapers passing through all hurried along with composed expressions, a stark contrast to the wild, fierce atmosphere of the 11th Division.

They went straight to the entrance of the main building, the General Treatment Center. Before they could enter, hurried footsteps and the rattling of stretchers came from the side.

"Make way! Make way, now!"

Several Soul Reapers in black uniforms, blood staining their arms or chests, came rushing in from outside, carrying three or four stretchers. The people lying on them had varying injuries. Some were unconscious, their Reiatsu faint; others groaned in pain, their bodies marked by grayish-purple wounds that gave off an ominous aura: the effects of Hollow power.

Isane Kotetsu frowned and hurried forward, stopping the stretcher bearers. "What happened? Where did all these wounded come from?"

A Seated Officer at the front stopped and answered between heavy breaths. "Lieutenant Kotetsu! An abnormally powerful Hollow suddenly appeared in West Rukongai's District 79! Its attack patterns and Reiatsu were both strange. The 11th Division responded to the alert and went to eliminate it, but... they took quite a beating. Several of our men were killed or wounded.

"Luckily, Captain Zaraki arrived in person later and hacked that monster apart in no time. Otherwise, the losses would have been even worse! All of these men were injured by the Hollow's special ability. Ordinary Kaidō barely works on them, so they need emergency treatment!"

"West Rukongai again..." Isane Kotetsu murmured. A trace of concern flashed in her eyes, but she quickly regained her professional composure. "Quick! Take them to Emergency Rooms 1 and 2! Has Captain Unohana been notified?"

"Someone's already gone to report it!"

"Good. Hurry!" Isane Kotetsu directed the stretcher bearers into the treatment center, then looked back at the interns, who were somewhat stunned by the sudden scene. "Follow me," she said gravely. "Stay quiet and observe carefully."

She led Liu Hao and the others after the stretchers at a brisk pace to the emergency treatment area. She stopped outside a closed metal door marked "Emergency Room 1."

"Wait here. Keep order and don't make noise," Isane Kotetsu instructed, then pushed open the emergency room door and slipped inside. From within came clearer, though muffled, groans of pain, the clatter of instruments, and quick, low-voiced instructions.

Liu Hao and the other students stood quietly in the corridor outside. They could faintly sense several powerful waves of Kaidō Reiatsu being controlled with precision inside.

The scent of blood drifting through the air mixed with the corrupt stench of Hollow power. Several students with weaker nerves turned slightly pale, and some instinctively looked away.

After about ten minutes or so, the emergency room door opened again. Isane Kotetsu came out, her gloves flecked with pale golden points of Reishi light, traces left from dealing with the residual Hollow power. Her expression remained calm.

She beckoned to the students. "Come in now, all of you. Remember, stay absolutely quiet, watch carefully, and listen closely. This is a lesson in the real thing."

Holding their breath and concentrating, the students formed a single line and walked quietly into the emergency room.

The room was brightly but softly lit. Several Soul Reapers in white medical robes, masks, and gloves were busy at the operating tables. The air was thick with the stronger smell of disinfectant and a strange scent that mixed herbs with burning Reishi. The traces of Hollow power eroding the patients had been brought under preliminary control, but the gruesome wounds and broken bones were still a shocking sight.

Isane Kotetsu spoke quietly to one of the operating Soul Reapers. He nodded and continued working, his Reishi Scalpel precisely cutting away spiritual tissue that had been severely eroded, killed, and blackened. As he worked, he began explaining to the watching students in a steady voice, as though giving a lecture:

"Watch closely. When a Soul Reaper is injured, ordinary flesh wounds, fractures, and even some damage to internal organs can mostly be healed quickly with Kaidō and the recovery of their own Reiatsu. But once an injury involves deep erosion by Hollow power, things become far more complicated."

The Reishi blade in his hand glowed with pure white light as he carefully cut away a small piece of tissue that was constantly leaking a grayish-purple aura. "Hollow power is fundamentally incompatible with our Soul Reaper Reiryoku. It is highly corrosive, invasive, and parasitic.

"The Reishi structure of deeply eroded areas becomes contaminated and damaged, losing its vitality. It may even turn around and consume the patient's Reiatsu, worsening the injury and hindering Kaidō. In such cases, recovery-type Kaidō alone is not only minimally effective, but may also stimulate the Hollow power to spread further."

He placed the excised dead tissue into a special container beside him, its purification runes flashing. The container immediately gave a faint sizzle as it neutralized and purified the grayish-purple aura.

"Therefore, the standard procedure is as follows. First, stabilize the patient's vital signs and use a Powerful Purification Barrier to temporarily suppress the Hollow power and prevent it from spreading. Second, the crucial step—" He motioned for his assistant to pass him another Reishi Surgical Instrument, this one glowing with a pale green healing light. "Precise surgical excision.

"All eroded, contaminated, and necrotic spiritual tissue, whether visible to the naked eye or detected through Reishi perception, must be completely removed. The margins must be clean, with not the slightest trace left behind. This requires extremely precise Reiatsu control and a profound understanding of spiritual anatomy."

As he spoke, he skillfully excised tissue, stopped the bleeding, and cleaned the wound. His movements were smooth and steady, as though he were creating a delicate work of art.

"Once the excision is complete, the third step is to use high-purity Healing Kaidō, together with medicine that promotes spiritual tissue regeneration, to repair and heal the cleaned wound. Every stage of the process depends on the one before it. A mistake at any step could undo all the previous work or even endanger the patient's life."

The students listened intently, their eyes fixed on every detail at the operating table. Some felt sick at the bloody sight and the precision of the Reishi surgery. Sweat beaded on their foreheads as they fought the urge to look away. Others were deeply drawn to the rigorous, efficient medical procedure and its technical beauty.

Liu Hao stood a little behind the crowd, his face showing no particular expression. He looked neither afraid nor overly excited. His gaze swept calmly over the operating table, observing the Soul Reaper doctors' techniques, the details of their Reiatsu control, their changes of instruments, and the different treatments used for different injuries.

His mind worked like a precision instrument, rapidly recording and analyzing everything he saw, comparing it with and adding to the Kaidō theory he had learned over the past three years. Occasionally, a glimmer of understanding or thought would flash in his eyes.

Once the excision stage of several critical operations was complete and the surgeons moved on to detailed repairs, Isane Kotetsu signaled that the students could relax a little. She began personally instructing them, dividing them into groups to practice basic Kaidō on patients with relatively minor injuries who had already received preliminary treatment.

"Kaidō is never applied in exactly the same way every time," Isane Kotetsu said, her voice gentle and clear. "Each person's Reiatsu attributes, physical condition, and the cause and location of their injuries are different. For minor injuries, you should focus on guidance and assistance. Use gentle Reiatsu to help stabilize the injury and guide the patient's own Reiatsu to participate in the repair, accelerating the natural healing process.

"Pay attention to the flow of the patient's Reiatsu and resonate with it, rather than forcibly injecting your own Reiryoku. More serious injuries, or those caused by Hollow power like the ones you just saw, require more complex judgments and procedures performed in sequence. Those demand a great deal of experience and specialized knowledge. At your current stage, focus on observing and understanding."

Liu Hao was assigned an 11th Division member with a broken arm and a slight disturbance in his Reiatsu. He calmed himself and held out both hands, soft, pure green Kaidō light glowing in his palms. Rather than rushing to treat him, he first carefully sensed the man's Reiatsu. It was wild and volatile, but stable at its core. Only the flow around his arm was disordered and obstructed by the fracture.

He adjusted the frequency of his Reiatsu output and carefully brought it close to the wound. Like the gentlest stream of water, it slowly seeped in, not forcibly repairing the damage, but sorting and guiding. Bit by bit, he gathered the man's disordered Reiatsu, building a temporary, gentle support for the broken bones and damaged spiritual tissue. At the same time, he stimulated the man's own Reiatsu, allowing the healing process to unfold naturally.

Isane Kotetsu watched from the side. Seeing Liu Hao's skilled, precise, and empathetic Kaidō technique—his ability to resonate with the patient's Reiatsu—a barely perceptible trace of approval flashed in her eyes. The boy from Rukongai not only possessed a remarkable talent for combat, but also seemed to have an extraordinary aptitude for medicine, a field that demanded immense patience, attentiveness, and empathy.

Just as Liu Hao was immersed in his first experience of medical practice at the Fourth Division treatment center, feeling the power to protect that was so different from combat—

Hollow Hunting Training Ground (Mirror Space)

Following the main group under Nakamura Sōya's lead, Renji Abarai passed through a special Senkaimon into a Mirror Space called the Hollow Hunting Training Ground.

The environment simulated a desolate region of Rukongai. The sky was gray, the ground cracked, and twisted dead woods and ruined buildings lay in the distance. The air was filled with thin, chaotic Reishi and... residual Hollow Reiatsu that inspired instinctive revulsion.

The group was quickly divided in two. Renji Abarai's group was led by a tall, composed senior male student. The other was led by a capable-looking senior female student with a sharp gaze.

Both seniors were Provisional Soul Reapers who had completed their studies at Shin'ō and were waiting to be assigned to divisions. Their strength and experience far surpassed those of the students, who had yet to graduate.

"Stay close to me, keep alert, and watch for changes in Reiatsu and tracks on the ground," the male senior instructed in a lowered voice. He led the way deeper into the training ground. Renji Abarai and the other students followed closely, each gripping an Asauchi or an awakened Zanpakuto. Their hearts pounded with nervousness and a hint of excitement at entering battle for the first time.

They searched their way forward cautiously, hearing only the wind and one another's restrained breathing. The training ground was large and simulated several types of terrain. After about half an hour of searching—

"Roooar!!!"

A deep, hoarse roar, full of hunger and savagery, rumbled like distant thunder from deep within a stretch of ruins ahead! It echoed through the empty Mirror Space, making their scalps tingle.

"Did you hear that?" The male senior immediately stopped and raised a fist, signaling everyone to be on guard. "That's a Hollow! Everyone, close in around me and maintain a defensive formation. We'll approach the source of the sound slowly.

"Remember, never act alone, and watch above and below you! Every combat exercise here carries a real risk of death! I don't want a single name missing from the roster when we go back!"

The students' hearts leaped into their throats. They quickly gathered as instructed, standing back-to-back with their blades pointed outward as they slowly moved toward the roar. Everyone's eyes were wide, their senses fully extended, missing not the slightest movement.

However, when they reached the center of the ruins, which looked like an abandoned temple, the Hollow they expected was nowhere to be found. Only a jumble of huge claw marks and drag marks on the ground showed that a large creature had indeed been there not long ago.

"It's gone?" a student asked in a trembling voice.

The male senior frowned deeply, his expression growing unusually grave. "Something's wrong... Everyone, be careful! This Hollow might have some kind of concealment or spatial ability! It could be lurking right around us, or..."

Before he could finish—

"Crack!"

A faint but chilling sound, like glass breaking, rang out in the air less than three meters directly in front of Renji Abarai!

The space there split like a canvas torn by an invisible hand. A twisted black fissure appeared out of nowhere, grayish-purple electricity flashing along its edges! A moment later, a huge claw covered in deathly white bone, its fingertips sharp as sickles and wreathed in ominous Reiatsu, shot out of the fissure and struck down at the nearest student—the one who had just spoken!

"Ah!!" Terrified out of his wits, the student collapsed onto his backside and scrambled backward, narrowly avoiding the claw. Even so, the sharp wind from the strike left several bloody cuts across his face.

"Damn it! It's Spatial Rending! That's a characteristic only a Menos Grande could possess!" The male senior's pupils contracted, his face turning deathly pale. He spun around and roared hoarsely at the students, his voice distorted by terror. "Retreat! Head for the entrance now! Quick! That's no ordinary Hollow, it's a Menos Grande! We can't fight it!! Run!!"

Menos Grande! The words hit the students like a dousing of ice water, and their hearts sank. A Menos Grande was a threat that required multiple Seated Officers or even lieutenant-level Soul Reapers to handle safely! With leaders who were only Provisional Soul Reapers at best and most of the students unable even to use Shikai, they were nothing but lambs waiting for slaughter!

Renji Abarai reacted quickly. He hauled up the student sprawled on the ground and dragged him away at a dead run! The other students seemed to awaken from a dream. Screaming and crying, they scrambled after the male senior, fleeing for their lives the way they had come!

As he ran, the male senior fired his best binding and offensive Kidō behind him without looking back, targeting the enormous Hollow shadow that was pursuing them and gradually forcing its way out of the spatial fissure:

"Bakudō #61: Rikujōkōrō!"

"Hadō #33: Sōkatsui!"

Yet when the crimson fireball and golden rods of light struck the white, bony monster struggling out of the fissure, its body as large as a small hill, they produced only a few insignificant sparks of Reishi. They couldn't even slow it down! The Menos Grande let out a mocking roar, and more spatial fissures began to appear around it!

Misfortunes never came singly!

Renji Abarai and the others had fled less than a hundred meters when terrified screams and Hollow roars came from behind another stretch of broken walls ahead!

It was the other group of students! They too had been driven back!

The two groups of panicked students ran headlong into each other in the narrow passage through the ruins, instantly descending into chaos. More despairing still, two other points in space twisted and split open at their side and rear! Two more Menos Grande slowly revealed their monstrous forms, slightly different in shape but radiating the same suffocating Reiatsu and terrifying aura!

Four Menos Grande!

From four directions, they completely surrounded the two groups—nearly twenty Shin'ō students in all, along with their two senior leaders—trapping them in the open space at the center of the ruins like turtles in a jar!

Despair, like the coldest venom, instantly invaded every heart. The two seniors stood back-to-back, sheltering their injured and frightened juniors closer to the center, but their own sword hands trembled, and cold sweat streamed down their foreheads. Facing one Menos Grande would have been hopeless enough. Four... This was no training exercise. It was a massacre!

The Menos Grande did not seem in a hurry to kill their "prey." They made low, taunting rumbles and slowly tightened the circle with heavy steps.

From time to time, they smashed nearby walls with their claws or spat small Bala from their mouths, blasting the ground at the students' feet. Dust and rubble flew, drawing screams of terror. They were enjoying the process of creating fear, like cats playing with mice.

Renji Abarai leaned against a broken wall, gasping for breath. Zabimaru, still unreleased in his hand, trembled slightly, whether from fear or unwillingness to accept his fate. He looked at his classmates' pale faces and the despair in the seniors' eyes, then at the enormous creatures closing in as though toying with them. A bitter thought flashed through his mind. Thank goodness... Liu Hao didn't come. He went to the Fourth Division, so at least he's safe. I never thought... I'd lose my life here in my first real battle... Damn it, I can't accept this!

Fourth Division General Treatment Center

Liu Hao had just helped stabilize a patient's injured arm. He straightened up and was about to fetch a clipboard to write a treatment summary when, without warning, a violent palpitation made his heart clench, stabbing into the depths of his soul like an icy steel needle!

His hand shook, and the clipboard clattered to the floor.

"What's wrong, Liu Hao?" a nearby Fourth Division member who was instructing other students asked with concern.

Liu Hao's face was a little pale. He bent down and slowly picked up the clipboard, his fingers whitening slightly from the force of his grip. Suppressing the inexplicable unease and sudden panic, he shook his head. "N-nothing. I might just be a little tired."

He went to one side, leaned against the cold wall, and took several deep breaths, trying to calm his racing heart and the ominous premonition deep in his soul.

What's going on? This feeling... Liu Hao frowned deeply. Renji... Did something happen to Renji? Today's his first combat exercise...

His mind raced back through the plot of the original "Bleach." It seemed that Renji Abarai, Momo Hinamori, Izuru Kira, and the others in their class had indeed encountered an extremely dangerous accident during a combat exercise at Shin'ō. Menos Grande far beyond their ability to handle had been placed there, causing heavy casualties.

And Aizen seemed to have had a hand in it. Was it to test the Hōgyoku's catalytic effect on Hollows, or for some other secret purpose? The details had grown somewhat hazy because so much time had passed and because of the length of the story, but the key phrases "Menos Grande," "combat training tragedy," and "Aizen manipulating events behind the scenes" remained exceptionally clear.

Could it be... today? This exercise? Liu Hao's heart sank bit by bit. In the original story, Renji Abarai had been seriously injured, but seemed to have survived and grown as a result of the experience.

But... why had he felt such a violent palpitation? As though something vitally important were slipping into an unpredictable abyss? Was it a butterfly effect caused by his arrival? Or... had his extreme concern for his companion's safety simply triggered a warning through resonance on the level of his soul?

He couldn't be certain. But the bone-chilling unease clung to him like maggots on bone, growing clearer and clearer.

Just then, Lieutenant Isane Kotetsu seemed to receive an urgent communication. Her expression changed abruptly, and she hurried aside to exchange a few quiet words with the person on the other end. Liu Hao faintly caught fragments such as "...training ground... Menos Grande... emergency rescue... casualties unknown..."

Isane Kotetsu ended the communication and immediately summoned several Seated Officers and veteran members, rapidly giving them instructions in a low voice, her expression utterly grave.

Soon, an emergency medical rescue team made up of several elite Seated Officers had assembled, with the lieutenant herself leading it. Isane Kotetsu even put on a huge Reishi backpack filled with first-aid medicines and instruments.

"Liu Hao, and you few," Isane Kotetsu suddenly called out, looking over Liu Hao and several other interns who had shown the greatest composure and the strongest Kaidō fundamentals. "Go to the equipment room immediately and collect basic first-aid kits and protective charms. Follow the Third Group and prepare to depart for the Hollow Hunting Training Ground at any moment to provide on-site emergency medical support! There's been a serious training accident, and many students have been killed or injured! Hurry!"

"Yes!" Liu Hao and the others felt a chill in their hearts. They immediately acknowledged the order, turned, and ran toward the equipment room.

As Liu Hao ran, he clenched his fists. Something had happened at the training ground after all! And it was serious enough to require the Fourth Division lieutenant to lead a team personally and mobilize interns for support!

Renji... hold on! You have to hold on! he cried inwardly. Without realizing it, he ran faster, passing the other students. A mixture of worry, anxiety, and a powerful urge to do something drove him onward.

What he didn't know was that, at the very moment he felt the palpitation and Isane Kotetsu received the urgent notice—

At the Hollow Hunting Training Ground, amid a hopeless situation.

The four Menos Grande seemed to have finally lost patience with playing with their prey. Two of them let out deafening roars at once and raised their enormous foreclaws. With terrifying force capable of tearing space, they each launched a final, deadly blow at one of the two battered seniors, who were still standing firmly at the front!

The power behind those claws was enough to crush the two Provisional Soul Reapers and their swords into pulp in an instant!

"Senpai!!"

"No!!"

Amid the desperate cries, several figures rushed recklessly out of the protective circle behind the seniors, like moths to a flame!

It was Renji Abarai! Momo Hinamori! Izuru Kira! And two or three other students who had not lost their fighting spirit!

Roaring, they poured all their Reiatsu without reserve into the Asauchi or Zanpakuto in their hands. With their still-inexperienced bodies and weapons, they charged without hesitation to meet the deadly claws!

"Clang!!! Boom!!!"

The tremendous clash of metal mingled with the thunder of exploding Reiatsu!

Momo Hinamori's sword was knocked straight out of her hand. She spat out a mouthful of blood and flew backward. Cracks appeared in Izuru Kira's blade, and he fell to one knee, the skin between his thumb and forefinger split and bleeding. Several other students were knocked unconscious outright.

Renji Abarai, who had charged furthest ahead, bore the brunt of the impact! He gripped Zabimaru in both hands, violent red Reiatsu burning like flames as he collided with the grayish-white claw!

"Crack!" A chilling sound of something breaking—whether sword or bone, no one knew.

"Pfft!" Renji Abarai threw back his head and spat out a large mouthful of blood mixed with fragments of his internal organs. Like a battered puppet with its strings cut, he was hurled away by the irresistible force! He traced a tragic arc through the air and crashed into a pile of rubble dozens of meters away. He rolled several times and lay still. Blood quickly soaked the ground beneath him, and Zabimaru flew from his hand, embedding itself at an angle nearby, its blade dull and lusterless.

He did not get up again.

The two seniors were wild with anguish, but attacks from the other two Menos Grande left them struggling to protect themselves. They could only watch as their juniors fell trying to save them, and as the red-haired boy who was always so full of energy lay motionless in a pool of blood, his fate unknown.

At the center of the ruins, the stench of blood was overpowering. The survivors' sobs, the Hollows' triumphant roars, and the faint, urgent Reiatsu fluctuations of the rescue team in the distance intertwined into a cruel and despairing symphony of death.

Renji Abarai's consciousness was sinking rapidly into boundless darkness. His final thoughts might have been regret over a promise he had failed to fulfill, concern for his companions, or perhaps... only a hazy silhouette of himself standing beside someone in warm sunlight, making a promise about the future.