When Azashiro Sōya first announced his challenge, the members of the 11th Division were all in high spirits. During the time that Kuruyashiki was the Captain, countless people had come to challenge him, but Kuruyashiki had always been the victor.
After that, no matter how the other Captains and Vice-Captains changed, the Captain of the 11th Division was always Kuruyashiki. Even though the position of Vice-Captain of the 11th Division changed several times, Kuruyashiki Kenpachi remained in office.
But who could have imagined that a powerful figure from Rukongai would kill Kuruyashiki Kenpachi on the spot and become Kenpachi himself?
According to Kyōraku's account, he dissuaded Azashiro from taking on the challenge and suggested that Azashiro could be promoted to Captain through other means.
Just then, the Captain of the Ninth Division was tragically killed by Zero, and Zero was temporarily absent when there was a vacancy. If Azashiro has the ability, he will most likely be able to become the Captain.
But Azashiro insists on becoming Kenpachi for one reason only: Kenpachi can absolve him of all the sins he has ever committed!
This implies that Azashiro himself is not a good person and may have committed serious crimes. As if to confirm Kyōraku's guess, Azashiro's identity was soon exposed.
Decades ago, he was a fallen nobleman. For reasons unknown, he was to be executed. After witnessing his sister's gruesome death, he indiscriminately slaughtered those who watched the execution...
"So, Yama-jii is short-handed right now and won't let me challenge him? Then why did he allow me to kill Hideaki Tsunayashiro before?"
Zero understood Kyōraku's meaning, and he then asked another question.
"This matter... oh dear! It's hard to say! We're out of wine..."
After some hesitation, Kyōraku finally revealed the truth under the bribe of five jugs of wine. The main reason was that Hideaki Tsunayashiro was not very strong, but he was too arrogant.
The Tsunayashiro Clan acted with impunity, to the point that even Yama-jii couldn't stand it anymore and had to use Hideaki Tsunayashiro's life as a warning to them.
"You most likely can't challenge him. Let me tell you something else: there are a few people who meet the strength requirements to become Captains, but the Central 46 are wary of you, so it's highly unlikely you'll be the Captain of the Ninth Division..."
Kyōraku's words made Zero's forehead veins throb again. Those old geezers, he would definitely use Yanis's 'Homologous Reconstruction' to secretly stab them in the back when he got the chance.
This kind of political infighting is the most troublesome; if you choose one side, the other side will definitely not give you a friendly reception...
From Yama-jii's perspective, the Quincy are the main enemy. The best solution is to suppress internal conflicts and let them leak out through the Quincy.
The defeat of Kuruyashiki was an unexpected accident. To be honest, most Captains would fall victim to a sneak attack by Captain Captain-level Bankai Zanpakuto hadn't yet released its Zanpakuto.
Look at my blind brother in the original timeline, he Bankai out a group of Captains and Vice-Captains with a single Bankai. Could he really defeat half of the Gotei 13 at full power? The answer is naturally no.
When you're attacked and killed before you can even free yourself, you can't blame others for lacking sportsmanship; there's no room for 'waiting' on the battlefield...
With Kyōraku's help, Zero has come to a clear understanding of the situation and concluded that in order to challenge Azashiro, at least Yama-jii to give his approval and handle this so-called order.
Zero was still in a hurry, and returned to the Eleventh Division Barracks in a few long-distance Shunpo.
He needed to register his return to the team and also observe what kind of person Kenpachi Azashiro was; the challenge would be postponed.
"Nangong... Vice-Captain!"
"Um!"
"Lord Nangong!"
"Um!"
On the Road, some people recognized Ling and called out the Vice-Captain's name with difficulty, while others did not force themselves but simply addressed him with respect.
No matter what, Zero was the undisputed strongest Vice-Captain before he disappeared, having even defeated the Captain; many people firmly believed he was not dead, and sure enough, he returned after Captain Kuruyashiki died.
"Lord Nangong is back!"
"Is he going to Captain Azashiro's office? Is he going to challenge Captain Azashiro?"
"I heard he's very close to Captain Kuruyashiki. Captain Kuruyashiki once saved him; maybe he wants revenge."
"Heh, a bunch of ignorant fools. Lord Nangong has long been forbidden from challenging Captain-level."
After Zero walked away, everyone discussed his purpose for returning. Even though two years had passed, the die-hard fans of Kuruyashiki still wanted someone to avenge Kuruyashiki.
Of those who have a chance of doing this, only Nangong Ling in the 11th Division is currently around, but unfortunately, he was missing for a while; now that he's back, some die-hard fans of the Kuruyashiki are ecstatic.
Zero arrived outside the Captain's office and sensed the Reiatsu inside. It was similar to his own after he broke the seal, but definitely not as strong as his Shikai plus Hollowfication state.
Gosuke is also here, and he now handles most of the team affairs. Azashiro doesn't care at all, and is even more laissez-faire than Kuruyashiki. What he does every day is research and think about various efficient ways to destroy the Void.
"Nangong?"
The Gosuke, who were working diligently, immediately sensed Zero's Reiatsu and saw that Zero had already entered the office.
"Captain Azashiro, excuse me."
Zero's voice reached his ears, and Azashiro's phoenix eyes narrowed slightly. His first impression after turning around was that this man was very strong.
"Nangong Ling?"
'Wow, so he's the guy who killed the Bankai Captain with his Shikai? So cool! Hello, handsome guy!'
Azashiro instantly recognized Zero's identity. Beside him, a woman unseen by others was giggling and talking a lot, but unfortunately, Zero was destined not to see her.
Azashiro sized up Zero. His tall and handsome appearance, coupled with the powerful Reiatsu within him, and his red robe that added a touch of flamboyance, made him stand out. He carried a huge Zanpakuto on his back, and there was a faint killing intent emanating from his body.
"It is I who have come to submit my application to rejoin the team!"
As the other person sized him up, Zero was also sizing them up. Azashiro's attire resembled that of an old Daoist priest from a previous life, with a ponytail and calm, unreadable eyes, except for his decent Reiatsu.
What Zero didn't know was that this was already Azashiro's strongest state, a permanent Bankai, which was why the Reiatsu he released seemed quite strong.
"No need to say more, since you're willing to come back, then continue as the Vice-Captain!"
Azashiro disliked idle chatter and turned back to his drawing and data processing; it was unclear what kind of research he was going to conduct.
If you watch Soul Reaper closely, you'll find that the scientists in it are all incredibly talented... Aizen, Pu Yuan, Kagerōza Inaba, Mayuri Kurotsuchi, and so on... and Azashiro also has a research-oriented mindset.
"But... I don't really want to be the Vice-Captain. I want to be the Captain. Is that alright?"
Zero revealed a cold smile; he couldn't help himself, finding Azashiro's demeanor somewhat unacceptable.
Gosuke, who was standing next to him, felt a jolt, and upon hearing Zero's reply, Azashiro turned around to face Zero directly.
"Are you challenging me? Then find some good people to witness it!"
In fact, Azashiro also disliked Ling. He didn't know why, but from the moment he sensed Ling's Reiatsu, he felt that there was an ominous meaning in Nangong Ling's Reiatsu, just like with Xu.
Indeed, the ominous feeling that Azashiro sensed came from Yanis; as a man who utterly despised Hollows, he could not tolerate their existence and was constantly trying to find ways to exterminate them.
It could be said that Azashiro wanted to exterminate Hollows even more than the Quincy, because his beloved sister was killed by a Hollow.
"Let's fight tomorrow! I'm under a ban imposed by the Captain-Commander that I can't challenge any Captain for a hundred years. I need to settle that first."
After saying that, Zero disappeared into thin air; he could travel a great distance in a Shunpo.
"A disgusting feeling!"
'Do you hate him? I actually like him quite a bit, hehe!'
Azashiro continued his research, determined that as long as they dueled within the Seireitei, he, Kenpachi Azashiro, would not be defeated.
In the First Division office, just as Zero was about to pay his respects to Yama-jii, he was told by Chōjirō Sasakibe that Yama-jii was not there; only after Zero pleaded repeatedly did Sasakibe tell him that the Captain-Commander was training.
After finding out where the training ground was, Zero was about to excitedly run over when Kyōraku appeared with a smile, saying he wanted to accompany her to see Yama-jii. Actually, he was there to watch the show...
The First Division's underground training grounds are not only crisscrossed with ravines and have a large internal space, but also have their Reiatsu isolated by the Kidō. If one releases their full Reiatsu here, the Seireitei above cannot sense it at all.
This is also Yama-jii's exclusive training ground. He was stopped by the guards when he first entered, and was finally allowed in by using Kyōraku's facial recognition.
The bald, shirtless Yama-jii was punching a rectangular Sekki-seki. With each punch, the stone flew away, and he Shunpo behind it to deliver another punch, repeating this process over and over.
Zero stared wide-eyed; being hit by those fists must have been awful!
Yama-jii only uses Reiryoku for the Shunpo, not for punching, because it's useless anyway, as the Sekki-seki can neutralize attacks from Reishi and Reiatsu.
A few minutes later, Yama-jii finally finished work, came to the two of them, took a sip of water, and asked, "Is there something you need?"
"I'm fine, I just came to visit you, teacher. I'm relieved to see you still in such good spirits."
"I can easily live for several hundred more years. If you're so free, you can go and take care of the Ninth Division's affairs as well."
Please spare me!
Kyōraku smiled and immediately expressed his filial piety, but unfortunately the Captain-Commander didn't appreciate it. He couldn't stand Kyōraku's lazy attitude despite his talent.
"And you?"
After the greetings between master and apprentice ended, Yama-jii's sharp gaze turned to Zero.
"Please lift the restriction order, Captain-Commander! I want to challenge Captain Azashiro and take the Kenpachi title!"
Ling looked directly into Yama-jii's eyes, showing no sign of backing down.
"Heh, take the title of 'Kenpachi'? Fine... but only if you can still stand up after taking ten of my punches!"
Seeing the eerie smile on Yama-jii's lips, Zero knew things weren't simple. The subsequent conditions also made him slightly fearful. He exchanged blows with Yama-jii, who had unleashed that kind of punch...
"Take ten punches from you? I could retaliate, right? What if I kill you... what about the Captain-Commander's position...?"
Zero also kept a calm mindset. How would he know it wouldn't work if he didn't try? He made no attempt to hide his eagerness.
He fought Grimmjow bare-handed many times in Hueco Mundo. Hueco Mundo then, the purpose of keeping Grimmjow by his side was to train his Hakuda skills and reflexes. He never expected to be able to test the results so soon.
"Haha, not hiding it at all? Ambitious brat, you joined the Gotei 13 just so you could become the Captain-Commander and do whatever you want, right? Fine, I'll see if you can beat me to death with your Hakuda."
Yama-jii hadn't been this happy in a long time. Today, he was amused by Ling's naiveté. Did she really think she could defeat him? It had been years since he'd heard such boastful talk...
"Hehe, Nangong is really interesting! Someone, quickly go and fetch Captain Unohana, prepare for first aid..."
"Yes!"
Kyōraku cheerfully arranged for Zero's first aid; that's why he came along—he knew there would be some fun to see.
However, the last person who dared to exchange punches with Yama-jii is now buried under a mountain of weeds...
Yama-jii definitely wouldn't kill Zero, but he would certainly be bedridden for a while. He was guessing how many punches Zero could take.
Setting down the Blood Drink Greatsword, Zero tensed his aura, the seal on his wrist was broken, and Reiatsu filled the entire space.
"Oh? That's Kidō on your wrist! I thought it was just two small tattoos. The fact that it can remain Shikai means your Reiryoku is very strong. Logically speaking, your Reiatsu shouldn't be weaker than before. So it was hidden Reiatsu!"
Seeing Zero's Reiatsu double and increase dramatically, Yama-jii- Ya thought it was reasonable. He also began to increase his Reiatsu release and gradually began to suppress Zero in terms of aura.
Zero knew there was no point in continuing the contest of momentum, so he took the initiative and launched an attack, using Shunpo followed by a hook punch, which came down from above Yama-jii's head. Just as it was about to hit Yama-jii disappeared.
The missed punch created a large crater in the ground, and the resulting dust cloud obscured everything.
Bang!
"Good reaction! You must have fought quite a few Menos Grande, right?"
After Yama-jii blocked Ling's punch with his crossed arms, he couldn't help but exclaim in admiration. Ling's arms were still numb, so he didn't reply at all.
He finally managed to steady himself from the enormous impact, and when he looked up, he saw that his feet had plowed two small troughs into the ground.
Click, click!
Before Yama-jii could give chase, Ling, who had just moved his right hand a couple of times, was completely stunned. The cracking sounds from the muscle contractions indicated that his right forearm was broken.
Looking up at Yama-jii, Zero seemed to understand something: 'He's broken? The power of one punch is terrifying? He could probably kill Captain-level officer with his bare fist! Is this why the Captain-Commander has never been replaced?'
How strong are Yama-jii's fists?
In the original timeline, Wonderweiss was tricked by Aizen into undergoing a second modification, which changed his sealing ability to only seal flames. As a result, his language and intelligence were forcibly stripped away.
He is not part of the Espada. When he first appeared, the Soul Reaper's "Research and Development Institute" detected his Reiatsu level as the highest level, red. Wonderweiss is equivalent to Espada without a number.
But even this Wonderweiss, after releasing his Resurrección to seal Yama-jii's Zanpakuto, was beaten to death with three punches.
If it were any other Espada who wasn't Vasto Lorde, they would have been killed with a single punch. Even Wonderweiss, with his High-Speed Regeneration, ultimately met a tragic end at the hands of the old man's Shaolin martial art, "Double Dragons Emerging from the Sea"...
"One punch, and nine more punches to go!"
With Yama-jii's kind reminder, Zero realized that he would need to take nine more punches to kill the Captain.
'No, I have to dodge and knock him down before he hits me!'
Zero made a quick judgment: at this rate, he could only withstand a maximum of three more punches.