A young man with a scar on the corner of his mouth was the first to notice Aizen. He Aizen, then gave him a meaningful look, while Aizen simply nodded in response.
Then, Gin, the then -Vice-Captain of Aizen, arrived, leading a group of Squad Member from the Fifth Division, and everyone joined the battle...
"Reinforcements have arrived."
"Great, it's Captain Lord Aizen of the Fifth Division Captain."
"And also Vice-Captain Gin Ichimaru."
Many of the members of this Expeditionary Force were young people who had come later in life; only about ten of them had been fighting for a long time. The young people naturally recognized Aizen, who had only recently become the Captain.
Aizen his sword, splitting a Giant Hollow in two, and with a single "Raikōhō," instantly killed more than a dozen Ragged Hollows.
A long Zanpakuto flew in, piercing through a Giant Hollow that was attempting to ambush Kifune Ri. Then, with a horizontal slash, it instantly killed more than a dozen Hollows. Gin Ichimaru's speed in Troop-Clearing was also very fast.
With Aizen leading over a hundred Squad Members of the Fifth Division into the battle, the tide of the war turned in an instant. The original Ragged Hollows only managed to maintain their attack for a dozen minutes before being forced to retreat back into their Garganta...
"Nice to meet you. I am Sōsuke Aizen, the current Fifth Division Captain. Please take care of me."
With his gentle and refined face and simple, unpretentious opening remarks, Aizen gave Amagai the impression of a scholar.
"I'm Amagai Shūsuke, the leader of the Expeditionary Force. I should be the one asking Captain Aizen for guidance, haha..."
In front of the official Captain, Amagai didn't dare to call himself Captain and even pretended to be a bit naive.
'I'll guide you,' Aizen thought to himself before continuing, 'Captain Amagai, what are your plans next?'
He pretended not to know about Amagai's feigned naiveté; if it weren't for the undercover agent, he might have been fooled by this guy.
"Please don't address me as Captain! It's so embarrassing. I'm just a Detachment Captain at most. Captain Aizen, you can just call me by my first name." Amagai waved his hands, indicating that it was not appropriate.
After a moment's thought, he glanced at the Expeditionary Force, which had suffered a dozen or so casualties, and said, "We've decided to go back and rest. This time, the losses have been heavy."
"The new members are fine, but the veteran members haven't been back for over ten years. We've explored these districts behind Rukongai like the back of our hand."
Previously, they had been fighting in cycles, constantly eliminating the Void units in these last few areas. When they suffered heavy casualties, they would fight and report back while waiting for new recruits to arrive and replace them.
"Then let's both teams return together! The Fifth Division doesn't have anything urgent to attend to right now."
"Okay, thank you so much this time."
Aizen immediately offered to go, Amagai also expressed his gratitude; whether the Expeditionary Force could rest or not was entirely up to Amagai, as this was the authority given to him by Yama-jii, and he could also grant leave to the team members.
"Great, we're finally done!"
"Amagai Captain Tempeh!"
"It's been over a year since I left home!"
Some members of the Expeditionary Force had been watching this side. Upon hearing Captain Amagai's decision, their nerves, which had been stretched to the limit, finally relaxed a little, and joy spread to everyone.
They deliberately avoided mentioning the bloody battle they had just fought or their fallen comrades, so that their hearts would not be blinded by excessive grief.
The deceased are gone; the living can only move forward.
The Seireitei's Level Two Support has been withdrawn, and the Fifth Division is traveling together with the Expeditionary Force. Because of Aizen's approachable nature, ordinary Squad Members often seek his help, and Aizen generously demonstrates his Shikai to everyone... It's really not his fault.
The group's return to the city was slow, and without the Kidō Corps to teleport them, it would take at least two more months to return to Seireitei if they traveled at a leisurely pace... At night, Aizen found Amagai huddled alone outside the Amagai.
"I've heard from the Squad Members that Mr. Amagai is very strong. He often kills Gillian, and he even has a record of defeating Adjuchas. Moreover, he has learned Bankai. With such strength, why doesn't he become Captain?" Aizen slowly walked over and stated the information he had heard.
"Haha, I only defeated him, I didn't kill him... As for being the Captain, I've only learned Bankai, I'm not quite proficient yet." Amagai scratched his head, feigning ignorance.
Aizen smiled gently and said, "The Hueco Mundo Nangong Ling, has a mutated Menos Grande known as Arrancar under his command. He's very strong. Don't you think the Seireitei needs Captain-level combatants right now? I can recommend you for the position of Captain of the Third Division!"
"Nangong Ling?"
Upon hearing Zero's name, Amagai murmured something but didn't reply immediately... This was the man who killed his father; it had taken him a long time in the First Division to find out who had killed his father.
When Amagai first joined the First Division, he disguised himself as a young man who had received favors from his father, Kisaragi Shingō, and struck up a conversation with a Seated Officer with a good personality, casually mentioning his father.
Old Seated Officer clearly knew something and told Amagai that Kisaragi Shingō had been sent on a mission but died at the hands of Nangong Ling. He believed that the Captain-Commander had known about Nangong Ling's evil intentions and wanted to eliminate him in secret...
... That's all the intelligence we have. Old Seated Officer only knows a little bit of the inside story, most of it is just his speculation, and he doesn't even know about the Bakōtō...
Upon learning the so-called truth, Amagai was instantly filled with rage. The only person capable of sending his father was indeed Captain-Commander Yamamoto... but after his father's death, Nangong Ling served Captain for a long time. How could that be?
Amagai eventually guessed that his father might have been used as a pawn, sacrificed, and died under mysterious circumstances... From then on, Amagai regarded Yama-jii and Ling as enemies.
'Damn it, I can now use Bankai skillfully, which makes me more than qualified to fight other Captains, but compared to Nangong Ling, who single-handedly defeated several Captains working together, I probably wouldn't reach that level even after hundreds of years of training. Damn it, damn it, damn it!'
Amagai the Roar inwardly. It wasn't that he didn't want to be the Captain, but rather that he knew the abilities of his two enemies, which was why he chose to lead the Expeditionary Force and hone his own skills.
But at this speed, it's unknown how long it will take to catch up with those monstrous figures.
"What's wrong? Mr. Amagai seems to have a grudge against Nangong Ling. Could you tell me about it? Perhaps I can help you in some way."
Aizen, who had used words to plunge Amagai into memories of hatred, finally spoke up to interrupt Amagai's recollection.
He was doing it intentionally. Since he had his eye on this subordinate, he would definitely do his homework thoroughly, especially regarding the past that led to the subordinate's continued disobedience even after joining the Gotei 13...
"It's nothing, thank you for your concern, Captain Aizen. I'm a little tired tonight, let's talk again tomorrow! I'm going to rest now."
Amagai didn't want to continue the conversation. The thought of his two enemies, Captain-Commander and Nangong Ling, made his Reiatsu surge.
At the same time, he also secretly hated his own incompetence, unable to take revenge on the enemy right in front of him.
"If Captain Amagai has a grudge against Nangong Ling and wants to become stronger, you can come to me. I can give you some pretty good power!"
As Aizen and Amagai passed each other, Aizen left behind a seemingly unrelated sentence...
But just that one sentence instantly cleared Amagai's mind of confusion. He watched Aizen leave first, then fell into deep thought again:
'Assuming he knew my past, and also knew my hatred and motives, why didn't he treat me as a dangerous individual, secretly report me to higher-ups, and then get rid of me?'
'From beginning to end, this guy has been deliberately trying to get close to me, as has his adjutant, who seems to have been keeping a close eye on the Kibune... The implication in his words is clear: he wants to recruit me. What exactly is his purpose?'
Amagai realized that he had already exposed his past identity, but Aizen, who knew the truth, did not expose him. Instead, Aizen had a different goal... Amagai felt that he should indeed talk to Aizen.
The next day at noon, after the group rested in a small town, Amagai arranged to Aizen, and the two met in a Mountain Valley...
"Captain Aizen, what exactly is your purpose?"
Amagai's face contorted with murderous intent as he cut straight to the point. If Aizen didn't give him a suitable answer, he wouldn't mind killing Aizen and then claiming that he was attacked by Arrancar.
Anyway, the emperor is far away, Hueco Mundo has those Arrancar with really strong fighting power; he can just push them over there...
"Don't be so wary. I just want to help you. You just need power, right? To avenge your dead father..." Aizen with a smile that suggested he controlled everything.
"Captain Aizen, knowing too much about certain things isn't good for you!" Amagai asked in a deep voice, his killing intent intensifying.
Aizen's smile remained unchanged, "Knowing too much is bad? I can't agree with that. If a person remains ignorant, they will never be able to see their own place in the world."
"So... has Captain Aizen figured out his own position?"
As soon as Amagai finished speaking, he Shunpo to approach Aizen, suddenly drawing his Aizen and slashing at him. He sneered, "So what if Captain? Anyone who dares to get in my way..."
Bite!
A crisp collision sound rang out, and Amagai's face was filled with shock. His full-force attack had actually been caught by Aizen with his bare hands, and with his index and middle fingers together.
"So you agree with my point of view, right? The ignorant will never recognize their own position..."
At this moment, Aizen's smile seemed to Amagai like a monster looking at him... Aizen pressed down with his finger, and a powerful Reiatsu emanated from his body, a terrifying sense of oppression descending upon Amagai.
One second, two seconds... until the seventh second, Amagai finally couldn't hold on any longer and collapsed to his knees. Only then did Aizen withdraw his Reiatsu.
'No, impossible! According to that instrument's measurements, my Reiatsu level before I Shikai form was already 1.8, placing me in the Mid-Level Captain Tier. How could he render me helpless with just my Reiatsu...'
Amagai, who was originally full of confidence, collapsed. He even gave up the desire to use Bankai. With this gap, he couldn't beat his opponent even with Bankai.
"If you think you can get revenge on Nangong Ling your abilities, I advise you not to go. The Reiatsu I released just now was at most half of his Shikai state."
Aizen had already turned and left, saying as he went, "Also, I'll forget about saying 'I just wanted to help you.' At your level, I can't help you. Just focus on being the Captain of your Expeditionary Force!"
Amagai was stunned. ' Nangong Ling's Reiatsu? Then if he goes all out, even if I use Bankai, I wouldn't be able to touch him, right? Damn it...'
Before Aizen had gone far, Amagai struggled to his feet and shouted in a hoarse voice, "Wait... give me enough power."
'Ha, finally they've taken the bait.' Aizen sighed inwardly. Finding someone useful is no easy feat.
He wouldn't have bothered recruiting subordinates if he didn't need help with many things.