"Nothing beat a good, honest fistfight."
Beneath the night sky over Seireitei, a strange cry shattered the silence, followed by a scream.
"Where are Rukia and the pretty boy?"
Another strange cry, followed by another scream...
If Ichigo and the others had been here, they would probably have covered their faces and hurried away. Sure enough... they'd known Brother Biao would shout something like that.
Wu Biao was excited.
Very excited!
Coming to this place called Seireitei had been the best decision he'd ever made. There were countless powerful fighters here, mysterious Kidō, and Shunpo that let people move at incredible speed.
And Zanpakuto that could change in countless ways.
The intense sense of danger, the countless desperate breakouts and counterattacks, the enemies surging toward him without pause like a tide— all of it...
Made Wu Biao more excited with every fight. When else had he ever fought someone so freely, so wholeheartedly?
When else had he ever fought someone like this, throwing off all the constraints of ordinary life?
But now, watching the Shinigami he'd knocked down in wave after wave return without the slightest fear to surround him, Wu Biao felt the blood in his body boiling.
Punch after punch, he kept swinging. Wu Biao was like a man on a shot of adrenaline.
There had been a time when he'd even held back in a brawl, never daring to use his full strength.
There had been a time when his opponents were nothing but petty thugs who picked on honest people.
When had he ever experienced a fight where either his opponent went down or he died?
His fists flew without any pattern, raining down without pause.
Jidanbo Ikkanzaka, the 7th Division Fourth Seat leading the patrol, was about to lose his mind!
This made no sense... none at all!
Though he'd tried to prepare for the Ryoka's strength, only when he led his squad into contact with this Ryoka did he realize... he'd still vastly underestimated the man before him.
His bare-handed fighting style was clearly chaotic and unadorned, yet in his hands, it was terrifyingly powerful.
And combined with the Ryoka's godlike reflexes, this style of hand-to-hand combat was far more terrifying than the Hakuda they had learned.
It left them awkward and helpless, unable to figure out how to defend themselves! They'd fought countless battles, both at Shino Academy and after becoming Shinigami.
But none had left them so battered, so awkward, so helpless.
"Everybody, get him! He's only one man. Even if we can't beat him, we can wear him down!"
Jidanbo Ikkanzaka's roar rang across the battlefield. The Shinigami around him wore fierce expressions and charged as one.
Wu Biao had gone completely wild.
After a night of fighting, his clothes had been reduced to strips of rags, and one leg of his pants was gone. His exposed skin was covered in all kinds of wounds, some already scabbed over, others still bleeding.
The air around Wu Biao reeked of blood, but his expression held nothing but fighting spirit. After fighting nonstop, his fighting spirit had reached its peak.
His nerves were taut, and his terrifying reflexes and animal instincts were on full display. Even when several Zanpakuto slashed at him from behind at once, he could react immediately!
"Gentlemen! I love war!!!"
Wu Biao let out a mighty roar. He bent his body and leaped into the air like a great bird, landing among the Shinigami charging toward him like a surging tide.
Was this guy... had he gone mad?
Jidanbo Ikkanzaka stared at Wu Biao in shock. But what happened next made his face change.
Wu Biao charged through them like a tiger among sheep, unstoppable. He roared again and again, leaving people sprawled everywhere he went. His body was utterly exhausted, and the constant fighting had left his mind so hazy he could barely stay awake.
Yet his eyes and face were consumed by fervent fighting spirit.
This was Wu Biao: a man who valued fighting more than his own life, a born lunatic!
Though ten thousand stood in his way, he would charge ahead... or, more accurately, a madman who'd beat up even himself once he got going!
His fists drove forward, swung around, hooked, and lashed out!
His legs kicked, whipped, struck, swept, swung, and hooked!
Wu Biao wielded his kickboxing techniques to perfection, with almost supernatural skill. Wherever he went, screams rang out!
With his whole body moving as one, each strike landed perfectly, combining power and speed. Under his relentless combinations, no one could withstand even a single exchange!
Mixed in were all kinds of strange variations he couldn't even remember himself: judo, boxing, jujitsu, taekwondo... He incorporated one style after another into his kickboxing. His attacks were unpredictable and lacked any set pattern, yet they followed their own fixed paths. No one could stand against him.
Though there were many enemies before him, Wu Biao's momentum didn't falter in the slightest. It only grew.
How could a human be so fearless...?
That was what every Shinigami fighting Wu Biao thought. Though they were on opposing sides, they couldn't help admiring this Ryoka, who had never once tried to dodge and had charged straight ahead through it all.
The 11th Division, famous for its ferocious fighting spirit, admired him most of all. This was the kind of man they wanted to be. This was the goal they pursued.
But very few people could be as single-minded as Wu Biao. In the entire 11th Division, there was only one.
That was Kenpachi, the strongest Kenpachi—Zaraki!
Many in the 11th Division had even begun looking forward to seeing this Ryoka clash with Captain Zaraki.
Admiration was one thing, but the fight still had to go on. It was their duty to stop the Ryoka's invasion. In fact, without realizing it, Wu Biao had inspired them, driving every one of these Shinigami to fight even more fiercely!
The ferocious Shinigami charged at him without fear, only to be knocked unconscious by Wu Biao, who was so excited he'd gone mad. Before long, Shinigami were strewn across the ground behind him.
No matter how many there were, they would eventually run out. By the time Wu Biao reached Jidanbo Ikkanzaka, the 7th Division Fourth Seat, the Shinigami behind him were lying in a heap. Wu Biao looked weak, and his steps faltered as he walked.
But Jidanbo Ikkanzaka couldn't move to meet him. It was as if those tigerlike eyes, blazing with fighting spirit, held some unknown power that pinned his feet firmly to the spot!
Only when the man before him grabbed his face and slammed him straight into the ground did Jidanbo Ikkanzaka react—but he couldn't mount an effective counterattack. The outcome was already decided!
"Huff, huff, huff—"
His chest heaved, and his breathing came in ragged gasps. Wu Biao spent nearly a minute recovering where he stood before finally walking back to where he'd started. His backpack was there, already more than half empty.
Wu Biao was hungry, very hungry, and sleepy—more exhausted than ever!
But it wasn't time to rest yet.
He had to... had to clear the obstacles for Ichigo and the others and make sure their rescue mission went as smoothly as possible!
"I'm still okay... I've still got enough strength to take down one more group. I'll rest after I beat them!"
The backpack's straps had snapped during the fight, so Wu Biao didn't put it on. He staggered toward the distance. In that direction, another patrol of thirty was waiting!
He kept going straight ahead. In less than ten minutes, he ran into the group of Shinigami heading toward the place where he'd fought earlier.
No one understood... why this man, covered in wounds and after fighting for nearly ten hours straight, still wanted to fight them despite his exhaustion.
Why... he was still so strong!
Even when all thirty of them were lying on the ground, none of them had figured it out.
Beneath the moonlight, Wu Biao's staggering figure slowly disappeared into the darkness.
He needed to rest!
It wasn't because he feared death. He was preparing for the even tougher battles ahead.
In an empty squad barracks, Wu Biao stuffed the rest of the food in his backpack into his stomach, then fell backward. Before he even hit the ground, he was already snoring.
In the silent night, inside the empty barracks, the blood-soaked madman fell asleep...
No one knew how long had passed when footsteps sounded outside the barracks. A silver-haired man with a foxlike face walked into the room. When he saw the sleeping madman, a flicker of surprise passed through the narrow slits of his eyes.
He clearly hadn't expected to run into this man in an abandoned 3rd Division barracks!
But then he turned and left the abandoned barracks, raising a hand to erase the bloodstains that had led him there.
Why?
Perhaps it was just for a vague hope—for a seed of resistance that might grow in the future. Though that seed couldn't possibly stand against that man right now.
But who could say what the future held?
I'm off the new-book ranking list... Please vote for me! I want to try to make the weekly recommendation ranking, so I hope everyone will support me.
(End of Chapter)
Before you continue