Level Three Menos Grande

The outermost reaches of the Rukon District.

This place was originally a desolate, uninhabited wasteland.

But now, it had transformed into a battlefield.

A massive Garganta tore open, and a swarm of dozens of Hollows descended upon the area. If they were allowed to invade the densely populated settlements of the Rukon District, the consequences would be unthinkable. Upon receiving the warning, Kuruyashiki Kenpachi personally led the charge, and the entire 11th Division mobilized, using Shunpo to arrive at the site of the incursion in short order.

"There sure are a lot of them!"

Seeing this, Kuruyashiki Kenpachi grinned.

Behind him, the many soldiers of the 11th Division revealed expressions of yearning, filled with anticipation for the coming battle. Without a moment's hesitation, all the Shinigamis moved in unison, charging toward the swarm of Hollows that towered over them.

Natsuki was mixed in among them. Even though he sensed the presence of a far more powerful Hollow within the unhealed Garganta, he didn't bother to meddle. After all, with Kuruyashiki Kenpachi and Lieutenant Gosu both present, there was no need for him to handle such a Menos Grande.

He swung his Zanpakuto, and with a flash of cold light, an ordinary Hollow was easily cut down.

This scene was witnessed by an ordinary soldier nearby, who couldn't help but praise him: "As expected of 9th Seat Natsuki, who just returned from the Expeditionary Force. That was truly clean and efficient."

Yes, Natsuki's current rank was 9th Seat.

Each division had roughly twenty seated officers; in some divisions, it was even common for two Shinigamis to share the same seat. Being a 9th Seat was a fairly high position among the officers.

One must know that Watanabe Yuji, decades ago, had only been the 5th Seat of the 11th Division. Of course, after decades of life in the Hueco Mundo expeditions, his current strength was certainly far beyond that of a mere 5th Seat.

However, the fact that Natsuki had become a 9th Seat only a month after joining the 11th Division still demonstrated his extraordinary talent.

At the very least, in the eyes of these ordinary 11th Division soldiers, Natsuki was a rising star.

"It was just an ordinary Hollow."

Natsuki explained casually to the soldier, showing no signs of self-satisfaction.

A 9th Seat might sound impressive.

But compared to the true geniuses in the original story, he was still far behind. People like Shiba Kaien and Ichimaru Gin had been appointed as 3rd Seats of their respective divisions shortly after graduation. Shiba Kaien, in particular, had possessed level-six spiritual power the moment he entered the Shino Academy.

Level-six spiritual power was already the level of a 3rd Seat, meaning he had possessed that level of strength from the very start.

The classification of spiritual power was determined by testing one's Rei-pressure using specialized instruments.

Rei-pressure, as the name suggests, is the pressure formed by the Reiatsu generated when one releases their spiritual power from their body. The stronger the pressure, the stronger the spiritual power.

Currently, in the Soul Society, Rei-pressure is divided into twenty levels.

Reaching the twentieth level meant that your spiritual power qualified you to become a Shinigami. While levels beyond twenty certainly existed, they were difficult to quantify, and there was no need to classify the souls with weak spiritual power.

The twenty levels of Rei-pressure covered the spiritual power range from ordinary Shinigamis to the captains of the Gotei 13.

Level-six Rei-pressure corresponded to a 3rd Seat, while levels four and five were at the lieutenant level, and the top three levels were reserved for captains.

Natsuki knew his current spiritual power wasn't weak, but he had never been tested and didn't know exactly what level his Rei-pressure had reached. Regardless, it was more than enough for him to serve as a seated officer.

With these thoughts, he used Shunpo and continued to slaughter the remaining Hollows.

Ordinary Hollows could be handled independently by seated officers like him, but for the average soldier, they remained extremely dangerous.

Not long into the battle, many soldiers had already been injured.

Just then, a powerful Reiatsu erupted from the unhealed Garganta, and a Hollow, significantly larger than the others, stepped out.

"A Menos Grande! A Menos Grande has appeared!"

A soldier cried out in alarm.

Their panic was justified; they usually dealt with ordinary Hollows and rarely encountered Menos Grande. In the textbooks of the Shino Academy, perhaps to emphasize the terror of Menos Grande and ensure Shinigamis took them seriously, it was heavily stressed that "a Menos Grande is an existence that only a captain can handle." This wasn't wrong, but the authors of the textbook had neglected to add that this only applied to the "highest-level Menos Grande."

Over time, many soldiers came to believe that even the lowest-level Menos Grande was a terrifying entity capable of rivaling a captain.

In reality, this was not the case.

Seeing the appearance of the Menos Grande, Kuruyashiki Kenpachi finally moved.

He used Shunpo, and before the Menos Grande could fully condense its Cero, he swung his Zanpakuto, which was still in its Asauchi state.

In one stroke, the body of the Menos Grande, along with its unformed Cero, was sliced in two.

Afterward, he passed through the rift and entered the Garganta behind it.

"My target isn't some low-level Menos Grande like that!"

"And of course, it isn't a mid-level one like you, either."

Inside the Garganta, Kuruyashiki Kenpachi encountered another Hollow. This one was smaller than the previous Menos Grande, but the Reiatsu it emitted was far more potent. Upon seeing Kuruyashiki, it launched an attack, only to be easily defeated by him.

However, Kuruyashiki did not kill it. During the fight, he realized this Hollow was merely a pathetic puppet being manipulated. What he truly cared about was the higher-level Menos Grande hiding further back.

"You, sending your underlings to their deaths while you hide away?"

The Garganta had remained open the entire time. Although Kuruyashiki Kenpachi looked rugged, he was actually a very meticulous man; he had keenly sensed that a more powerful Hollow existed behind the scenes.

"Since you won't come out, I'll just have to come and find you myself!"

Kuruyashiki Kenpachi said, and he actively ventured deeper into the Garganta.

There was no telling what he experienced inside.

A while later, he emerged from the Garganta.

The previously open Garganta sealed itself shut once more.

A faint look of disappointment lingered on Kuruyashiki Kenpachi's face. He turned back toward the swarm of Hollows, preparing to command the 11th Division soldiers to finish the fight, when he discovered an unexpected surprise.