Trample Ants Without Harming Them!

Seireitei.

The Gotei 13, 11th Division barracks—the fighting division.

In the wooden-floored kendo dojo, a group of Soul Reapers in Shinigami Robes continuously swung their wooden swords, chanting, "Heave-ho! Heave-ho!"

As the division most skilled in combat among the Gotei 13, the Gotei 13, 11th Division's members spent every day either training in the dojo or fighting!

As the 11th Division members themselves would say, from the moment they woke up from their sleep each day, opening their tired eyes, they were already prepared for battle with an enemy.

And the captain leading such a division, full of killing machines, was naturally no ordinary person!

The woman who held the position of Captain of the Gotei 13, 11th Division was none other than Unohana Yachiru, known as 'Kenpachi,' said to be the strongest Soul Reaper in the Gotei 13 apart from Captain-Commander Yamamoto.

At this moment, this woman, who had subdued all sword styles in the Soul Society with just a single blade in her hand, expressionlessly watched the 11th Division members' drills in the dojo.

Her face was cold, devoid of joy or sorrow. The drills of the 11th Division members couldn't stir even a ripple in the cold, strong heart of this woman who yearned for 'battle' and 'slaughter.'

However, just as this woman, who stood at the pinnacle of sword arts in the Soul Society, believed her utterly uninteresting life would continue forever, an uninvited guest arrived outside the Gotei 13, 11th Division barracks.

"This must be the 11th Division, right?"

The newcomer was naturally Araki. He stood outside the Gotei 13, 11th Division barracks, a faint smile on his face as he looked at the building, which appeared somewhat simpler compared to the barracks of other divisions.

"Just standing outside the barracks, I can feel the immensely powerful Spiritual Pressure of that 'Kenpachi' inside the building~"

"Is this the first Kenpachi, Unohana Yachiru? How terrifying~"

Araki didn't hold any prejudice against the Gotei 13, 11th Division because of the simplicity of the building.

After all, a mountain isn't famous for its height but for the immortals it houses; water isn't deep for its depth but for the dragons it contains…

Araki hadn't come to the Gotei 13, 11th Division to inspect the building; he had come for the person inside, for Unohana Yachiru, the 'boss' of the Gotei 13, 11th Division.

"Hm?"

At the same time, Unohana Yachiru, standing in the dojo with her hands on her Zanpakuto, supervising the members' training, seemed to sense something. She subtly raised her chin, her eyes narrowing as she thoughtfully looked in the direction outside the 11th Division barracks.

"Very strong!"

After a long moment, Unohana Yachiru's lips curved slightly upward, and she softly uttered two words. Simple as they were, their significance was immense! After all, there were very few people in the entire Gotei 13 whom this woman would call "very strong"...

Meanwhile...

Araki, who had been standing outside the barracks, now swaggered 'unashamedly' into the Gotei 13, 11th Division barracks.

Today, Araki was here to stir up trouble, to show off his strength to the big shots of the Soul Society, and also to inform his master, who would soon be bald, that Araki, as a 'Genryū: Menkyo Kaiden,' had returned.

Therefore, there was no reason to conceal his presence; naturally, he wanted to stir up the waters and make as big a commotion as possible~

He wanted the entire Seireitei to know that the 'owner' of the Gotei 13, 11th Division had changed today.

"Hey! Who are you? How dare you trespass into the Gotei 13, 11th Division barracks?"

Because Araki had no intention of concealing himself, he was naturally noticed by the 11th Division members 'patrolling' the barracks. Immediately, black-clad members in Shinigami Robes, holding their Zanpakuto, surrounded Araki.

"Who I am isn't important. As for why I've come to your Gotei 13, 11th Division barracks?"

"My hands are itching today, so I've come specifically to experience Unohana Yachiru's blade."

"I hear her blade is fast. I wonder if it's as fast as mine?"

Araki made no attempt to hide his intentions, openly telling the black-clad members who surrounded him.

"How impudent! Who gave you permission to address Captain Unohana by name?"

"You insignificant nobody, how dare you say you want to experience Captain Unohana's blade? That's utterly ridiculous! Shameless! Nonsensical!"

"Nameless nobody, don't boast here! Do you know who Captain Unohana is?"

"Captain Unohana is the strongest swordswoman in the Soul Society today! How could someone like you challenge her so casually?"

"If you want to challenge Captain Unohana, you'll have to get past us first! If you can't even defeat us, you're not worthy of meeting Captain Unohana!"

As Araki's words fell, they immediately caused an uproar among the Gotei 13, 11th Division members! They couldn't accept this unknown youngster calling their revered Captain Unohana by name, nor could they accept this nobody's arrogant claim of wanting to experience Unohana's sword art.

"The strongest swordswoman? I beg to differ..."

Araki heard the 11th Division members' description of Unohana Yachiru and gently shook his head.

"Ha?! You bastard, don't keep trying to show off here! Captain Unohana's title as the strongest swordswoman in the Seireitei is even acknowledged by Captain-Commander Yamamoto! Why aren't you, a nameless person, convinced?"

The Gotei 13, 11th Division members were furious after hearing Araki's words. They had never seen such a shameless person.

"Heh heh..."

Araki couldn't help but chuckle as he listened to the words of the members in front of him, who were bringing up his master 'Genryusai's' name.

"Is everything old man Yamamoto says necessarily correct? I don't think so..."

"As for Unohana Yachiru's title as the strongest swordswoman in the Soul Society, if she hasn't experienced my sword, how can she claim to be the strongest?"

Araki spoke calmly to the members, his tone incredibly composed. It seemed Araki wasn't spouting arrogant nonsense! He seemed to be merely stating a fact to the people before him.

"Arrogant! He doesn't even respect Captain-Commander Yamamoto!"

"Everyone, let's not waste words with this madman. I think he's probably here to cause trouble. Let's subdue him and send him to the Prison Squad, so he can pay for his wild words!"

"Alright!!"

As Araki's words landed, the members of the Gotei 13, 11th Division were greatly astonished. They had never seen anyone as arrogant as Araki, daring to question Captain-Commander Yamamoto's words!

As Araki's increasingly wild remarks spilled from his mouth, the members of the Gotei 13, 11th Division finally couldn't bear it. They drew their Zanpakuto from their waists, intending to teach Araki a lesson he'd never forget.

"Stop!"

Araki sighed helplessly, looking at the sheathed blades.

"So now you're finally scared? Too late!"

A hint of excitement finally appeared on the faces of the Soul Reaper squad members when they heard Araki's words.

"You've misunderstood. It's just that even for me, trying to step over an ant without harming it—that level of control is hard to master..."

Beneath Araki's expressionless face, a hint of emotion finally emerged.

At first, I didn't understand the meaning of the words, but suddenly, they had already come out of his mouth.

"..."

Silence! As Araki's voice faded, the entire Gotei 13, 11th Division barracks became exceptionally quiet.

"You scoundrel! It's come to this, and you're still spouting nonsense!"

Someone suddenly roared, finally breaking the silence.

This was followed by a drastic change in the expressions of the squad members. At this moment, the members of the Gotei 13, 11th Division were finally enraged. They intended to use their blades to make Araki feel the fury in their hearts.

"Die! You despicable lunatic!"

Someone was the first to swing their blade. Under the glint of that leading person's blade, one silver sword light after another slashed towards Araki.

Whoosh!

For a moment, sword light filled the air like snow, permeating this space.

However, when the countless sword lights fell, Araki remained unharmed, standing calmly in the very center of the crowd surrounding him.

"How is that possible?!"

As for the Soul Reaper squad members standing around Araki, their eyes were now filled only with confusion and despair.

Clatter...

One by one, the Soul Reaper squad members encircling Araki, as they drew their Zanpakuto from their waists and aimed at Araki, preparing to launch their attacks, their blades shattered like snowflakes and drifted to the ground with the wind.

At the same time, a brilliantly vibrant "blood-red rose" bloomed on the chest of each squad member.

Thud, thud, thud...

As the sounds of bodies hitting the ground rang out, in mere moments, only Araki remained standing in the vast courtyard of the Gotei 13, 11th Division barracks.

At this moment, Araki's expression was calm, still maintaining the same posture as when he first entered the 11th Division barracks. His white robes were as pristine as snow, unstained by a single speck of dust.

"I told you, trying to step over an ant without harming it—that level of control is hard to master."

Araki gazed indifferently at the fallen squad members scattered across the ground, muttering to himself.

Click!

It was then that the door to the Gotei 13, 11th Division's swordsmanship dojo suddenly opened. A dense crowd of Gotei 13, 11th Division members, who had just finished their daily training, poured out of the dojo, glaring menacingly at Araki.

And behind the stream of exiting squad members stood a woman also dressed in white, with long, ink-black hair! However, the white garment on the woman was the white Haori, symbolizing a Gotei 13 captain...

At this moment, this captain, respected by countless members of the Gotei 13, 11th Division, was gazing from afar at Araki, who stood alone in the Gotei 13, 11th Division courtyard, where "every blade of grass was an enemy."

"I've finally found an opponent worthy of a fight!"

"I hope you can thoroughly satisfy my craving for battle!"

The woman sniffed the scent of blood in the courtyard, gently licking her pale red lips. Then, she showed a somewhat twisted and sickly smile towards Araki.