Hyōsube: I'm curious if Araki's abilities are also effective on Lord Reio?

"Chōjirō Sasakibe! And… Araki!"

"It's been a thousand years… are you two doing well?"

"I've been stewing in hatred for you two! Sleeping for a thousand years!"

"I won't forget what you did to me a thousand years ago! This time, you two will be my first sacrifices!"

In a world shrouded in darkness, Yhwach, his face 'ancient,' 'profound, and malevolent,' with a thick beard, sat on a throne made of reishi, looking down on Araki and Sasakibe from above. His words were filled with rage toward these two thousand-year-old men!

Then, Araki woke up.

"Tsk."

Araki slowly opened his eyes and casually pulled the towel off his face. What greeted him was an unfamiliar ceiling and mist everywhere.

"Ah, what a thousand-year-long nightmare!"

Araki lay there, neck craned, muttering to himself as he stared at the strange ceiling.

Dreaming about a man was bad enough, but dreaming about a man with whom he had a 'grudge' and who 'coveted his body'—that was truly awful!

"Araki, you're awake?!"

Just as Araki woke up, a hoarse, weathered voice came from in front of him.

"Hmm?!"

Araki looked up at the sound. And then he saw a truly eye-watering sight…

Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni, on the verge of baldness, was sitting 'naked' in a cross-legged position under a hot spring waterfall not far from Araki, meditating. At this moment, he was watching Araki with one eye open and one eye closed.

"So that's it, my nightmare hasn't fully ended yet?!"

Araki continued to mutter to himself as he watched his teacher training under the hot spring waterfall.

"Captain Araki, you should accept reality as soon as possible! Whether you believe it or not, you're already awake!"

Before Araki could think further, a man who looked like a 'corpse,' floating on the hot spring with a common foxtail grass blade in his mouth and an incredibly pale face, spoke to Araki in a half-dead voice, advising him.

"Are you Shijima Tomokiri, the Captain of the 4th Division?"

Araki looked at the 'corpse' in front of him, asking uncertainly.

"Oh my! To be called by name by the famous Captain Araki, it truly is an honor for me, Shijima Tomokiri!"

Although Shijima Tomokiri said this, combined with his half-dead voice, Araki couldn't detect an ounce of honor in his words.

"Araki, you're amazing!"

"You actually managed to beat that 'King' of the Quincy, the one called Yhwach, into that state! With that strength, you could probably be called the 'Seireitei's strongest' after Genryūsai-sama?!"

"How about we spar sometime?"

At this moment, Obana Danjirō familiarized himself with Araki and invited him to a match.

"Haha, honestly, I'd like to fight you too, Araki! Just one match!"

Sanjōji Yuhō, the Captain of the 12th Division, also approached Araki after hearing Obana Danjirō's words.

"Idiot! I was the one who suggested it first! To test my strength by fighting Captain Araki and see how big the gap is between me and that 'King' of the Quincy! So even if someone were to fight Araki, it should be me first!"

At this point, Shigyō Nobutsuna, the Captain of the 7th Division, approached, displeased.

"Oh! So it was you who suggested it…"

Araki silently noted Shigyō Nobutsuna's 'words and desires' from earlier. He would 'retaliate' someday.

"Haha, I want to fight Araki too!"

Hisame Enjō, the Captain of the 9th Division, also joined in.

Suddenly, these oddly shaped Captains of the original Gotei 13 surrounded Araki.

"Um, actually, I want to fight Araki too!"

"Can you make some room for me?"

"Hey! You heard me, right?"

"You're not trying to exclude me, are you?"

"Haha, I know you wouldn't do that, I'm just kidding!"

"Seriously, please, someone acknowledge me?"

And Ōtokawa Uki, the Captain of the 10th Division, perhaps because his appearance didn't fit in with the original Gotei 13, was squatting alone behind all the Captains, muttering to himself.

Hmm, looking at him, he's also a complete weirdo…

"Araki should fight me first!"

"I was here first!"

"Araki, if you're a man, fight me!"

At this point, all the Captains started loudly arguing, each wanting to be the first to fight Araki and not wanting to be last in line.

"These guys are so noisy. They can't actually think I'm going to fight them, can they? Don't be ridiculous!" Araki listened to the continuous 'noise' and once again lay back on the edge of the hot spring, neck craned, pulling the towel he'd taken off his face back over it. At the same time, Araki thought to himself, This is so annoying! I really want to go to the women's side of the hot spring! This place is hell for me.

At the same time...

In the women's bath, separated from the men's by just one wall, Captain Katori Bakuunsai of the 8th Division, former Captain Unohana Retsu of the 11th Division, and Captain Saito Furofushi of the 6th Division were quietly soaking in the pool.

The men's and women's baths were the same size, but because there were only three of them, the women's pool seemed vast. Compared to the noisy men's bath, the women's side was much more harmonious. Even Saito Furofushi, who was usually loud and boisterous, was remarkably quiet while soaking in the hot spring.

As for the reason...

"So big!"

Saito's pupils trembled as she stared at Katori Bakuunsai's chest, which was too large to be fully covered by her bath towel, forming perfect curves.

"Katori is so thin everywhere else, so why is that part so huge? It completely defies nutritional science!"

Saito Furofushi glared fiercely at Katori Bakuunsai. She wished she could go over and bite off those wicked things with her sharp canines, just to stop Katori from always flaunting them in front of her.

"Ah, this feels so good~"

"After a battle, it really is best to have a good soak..."

Beside Saito Furofushi was Unohana Retsu, who had just entered the bath. Unohana Retsu gently stretched her waist in the water, and the exposed, dazzling white skin made Saito's pupils tremble violently.

"Damn it! Hers is big too! Dammit, why can they all get so big?!"

Seeing this, Saito Furofushi huddled herself in the hot spring and blew bubbles into the water. She had so much bitterness in her heart that she couldn't express it!

"Oh my~"

"Saito, aren't you tired like that?"

Unohana Retsu seemed to notice something. She looked at the huddled Saito Furofushi, a gentle smile playing on her lips, and asked softly.

"None of your business! Just enjoy your own bath!"

Hearing this, Saito huddled her body even tighter.

"Hehe~"

Unohana Retsu let out a light chuckle. She hadn't taken Saito seriously the entire time; the two of them were simply not on the same level from the start. In Unohana Retsu's opinion, Katori posed a greater threat than the "harmless" Saito...

"I want to go back and read my 'spicy' books!"

As for Katori, her mind was elsewhere at the moment. She only wished she could return to the Captain's Office soon to continue her studies of "literary" knowledge. Katori had no other virtues, except her love for learning.

Several tens of minutes later...

"Ah..."

Feeling all his fatigue dissipate, Araki removed the towel from his forehead and stood up from the hot spring water.

"Araki, where are you going?"

As Araki stood up, Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni, who had been meditating under the hot spring waterfall, suddenly opened his eyes. He looked at Araki's back and asked.

"Ah..." Araki yawned upon hearing him, then, without turning around, he said to the Old Man Yama behind him, "Where else would I go? Back to the barracks, of course! There are still quite a few people in the 11th Division waiting for me to save them!"

"Is that so?!"

"Go ahead and do that!"

"As for the rest... actually, I have something very important to tell you!"

Just as Araki was about to leave on his own, Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni's words stopped him.

"Hm?!"

Araki paused his steps and turned to look at Yamamoto, his eyes showing a hint of inquiry.

"Someone from above will be arriving soon! You'll come with me then..."

Yamamoto spoke to Araki in a commanding tone.

"No!"

Araki answered without hesitation. As for the "above" that Yamamoto Genryusai mentioned, if the Captain-Commander of the Gotei 13 referred to them as "above," it could only be the Royal Guard—Division 0!

Araki maintained a respectful distance from anything to do with Division 0. He had no intention of getting involved with them. Neither Oetsu Nimaiya, the "Sword God," nor Hyosube Ichibei, the "Eyeball Monk" or "Manako Osho," were easy to deal with.

Staying away from those who harbored great "secrets" about the "Soul King" had always been Araki's guiding principle! He already knew more than enough, anyway.

"Araki, this time is different from before. This time, it is said that the Soul King himself has specifically requested to see you!"

Just as Araki turned around, intending to leave, Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni's voice sounded again from behind him.

"Huh? The Soul King wants to see me?"

Araki froze on the spot. The Soul King, who had been broken into pieces by the ancestors of the Five Great Noble Clans, wanted to see him?! Don't joke around! Was it that "Eyeball Monk" again, using the Soul King's name to trick people?!

"We'll see then!"

Araki said, a hint of hesitation in his eyes, as he left the hot spring used for recovery.

"Thanks for your patronage~ Please come again!"

Before he left, the owner of the recovery hot spring—a guy with a pompadour he thought was cool, looking like a biker gang member from the 70s or 80s—greeted Araki with a cheerful smile.

"Oh, okay~"

Araki replied to him, but in his mind, he silently thought, So this guy hasn't gone to Division 0 yet?! Well, the effects of this hot spring are still far from the "resurrection" effect it had during the Thousand-Year Blood War arc in the original story! So, that means Division 0 only has the "Sword God" and "Manako Osho" right now, doesn't it?! I wonder if Senjumaru Shutara, the creator of the Shinigami Robes, has gone to Division 0 yet. No matter how I think about it, it all feels so troublesome!

After a moment's thought, Araki vanished from the spot.

Time flew by, and several days later.

"All right! Your leg's reattached!"

As Araki's "ROOM" slowly contracted, the last injured Division Member was successfully healed by Araki.

"It really fully recovered! It's like I was never injured at all!"

The Division Member excitedly jumped up from the ground, then landed heavily, a look of 'happiness' beaming on his face. Sometimes, only those who have lost something truly understand its value when they had it, and cherish everything they still possess even more.

"No matter how serious the injury, or how severe the body's mutilation! You can put back together the parts they've lost? That's truly an amazing ability!"

Just as Araki finished healing the last injured Division Member and was about to take a well-deserved rest, a slightly gruff voice suddenly spoke up from behind him.

"Hm?!"

Hearing this, Araki immediately drew the Zanpakuto from his waist and slashed behind him.

"Whoa, whoa, whoa! Don't be so rough! I'm not your enemy!"

As Araki's cold blade flashed, the person behind him repeatedly retreated, then raised both hands above his head in a gesture of surrender, smiling kindly at Araki.

"Tsk~"

At this moment, Araki clearly saw the person behind him. The person had a bald, shiny head, bright, piercing eyes, and a beard so thick it looked like an afro. The moment Araki saw his figure, he immediately knew his identity.

"You are?"

Despite this, Araki still feigned ignorance and asked.

"My name is Hyosube Ichibei! I'm a member of Division 0!"

This man, who wore a string of glowing red prayer beads around his neck and looked like a 'great Monk' no matter how you viewed him, smiled warmly at Araki and cheerfully introduced himself.

"Ah~ So it's a big shot from Division 0! I wonder what a big shot from Division 0 wants with me?!"

Araki continued to play dumb. Having lived in the Soul Society for so long, he was quite adept at it.

"Actually, it's not that I have something for you, but rather that the Soul King wants to see you!"

Hyosube Ichibei crossed his arms in front of him and continued to speak to Araki with a cheerful smile.

"The Soul King wants to see me? I'm just an ordinary mortal, how could the Soul King summon me?"

Araki feigned surprise, acting as if he was completely unworthy of being summoned by the Soul King.

"Well, actually, I'm quite curious about your ability too... I wonder, with your ability, if you could put the Soul King back together again?!"

Just as Araki continued his 'playing dumb' game with Hyosube Ichibei, Hyosube suddenly changed the subject, looking at Araki and asking with a cheerful smile.

Finally finished this chapter! Getting ready to start the main plot! By the way, dear readers, seeing how hard I'm working, how about another round of votes?