Unexpected Opponent

"So strong..." Lin Nan leaned on his Zanpakuto, bracing his injured left leg as a wave of intense dizziness surged into his brain, his consciousness rapidly blurring.

No matter what, I can't land a hit on her... My head is spinning... Is it because I've lost too much blood?

"Three strikes. I... I'm not dead yet. I won..." He forced himself to stand, speaking to Unohana in a weak voice.

Unohana watched him with cold eyes, remaining silent.

In that final strike just now, although she hadn't used her full strength, the force was still enough to sever the limbs of any resident in Rukongai. Yet, this white-haired youth had only sustained two wounds an inch deep?

Was his spiritual body really this strong?!

She felt a tinge of regret for not using her full power, but then found the thought ridiculous. As a Kenpachi, did she really need to use ten-tenths of her strength to cut down a Rukongai resident?

Behind Unohana, Nakata Ryunosuke looked at the swaying Lin Nan and shook his head gently.

It was rare for the Captain to be in such a playful mood, not immediately severing his limbs upon arrival. He hadn't expected the boy to be unable to satisfy the Captain after all.

Even if he had survived three strikes, what did it matter? With so many wounds inflicted by Kenpachi Unohana, it was unlikely he would survive the night.

Just as everyone, including Lin Nan himself, thought Unohana was about to deliver the finishing blow, a voice suddenly drifted in from outside the temporary barracks.

"Excuse me. Is Captain Unohana here? I am a seated officer of the Eighth Division. I heard that a Rukongai resident named Lin Nan was brought here." A refined-looking Shinigami walked into the barracks, speaking as he approached: "I am here under the Captain's orders to take—"

He stopped mid-sentence, only then seeing Unohana standing solemnly with her blade in the courtyard, and the blood-drenched Lin Nan. He was startled, stammering, "Ah? This..."

Unohana had not yet exited her combat state. With a few droplets of blood on her face, she looked toward the Shinigami with cold, indifferent eyes: "You are here to take him back? I'm afraid he is busy right now. But you will be able to carry him away soon enough."

The Eighth Division officer was terrified, his face full of hesitation: "But, Captain Unohana, I was ordered to bring him back alive..."

Unohana's face was like frost. She raised her long blade, pointing it at the man's face without a word.

A faint, lingering killing intent washed over him. The officer felt as if he had fallen into an ice cellar, his mouth opening, yet he didn't know what to say: "I... I..."

At that moment, a lazy, soft female voice drifted in from outside: "Honestly, Sister Unohana is bullying my subordinate again. You aren't planning on cutting down my people too, are you?"

A dainty figure walked into the temporary barracks, a golden Zanpakuto at her waist reflecting the bright sunlight.

Her snow-white haori was gently stirred by the breeze. Against the orange lining, her slim black kimono made her tall, curvaceous, and even somewhat voluptuous figure stand out all the more.

Her jet-black hair was neatly braided into a long plait, and her palm-sized face was framed by a pair of oversized black-rimmed glasses, making it impossible to ignore the beauty of her clear, watery eyes.

"Ca... Captain Katori?" Nakata struggled to control his gaze, which kept trying to drift toward her curves. "Why are you here?"

The first Captain of the Eighth Division, Katori Batsunsai. One of the only two female captains currently in the Gotei 13.

Katori's sparkling eyes swept over Nakata's face before turning to Unohana, feigning anger: "If I hadn't come personally, not only would the person I'm looking for be dead, but I fear my subordinate would have been 'repaired' by Sister Retsu as well..."

Her watery eyes were filled with grievance and innocence: "Sister Retsu, of the original three sisters, only you and I remain. I've come to ask for him personally; surely you wouldn't have the heart to cut me down too?"

Unohana looked at Katori, her expression softening slightly: "You are here to cause me trouble again. He is just a commoner; why are you looking for him?"

Before the other could answer, she preemptively teased: "Don't tell me you saw someone with a bit of good looks and wanted to sneak him back to your barracks to toy with him?"

Katori had just struck a pitiful pose, but upon hearing Unohana's words, she trembled with indignation. However, her eyes rolled, and she nodded like a chick pecking at grain: "Sister Retsu knows me so well, seeing right through me at a glance. Nothing can be hidden from you..."

Even though Unohana and Katori were as close as sisters, hearing the deliberately affected, cutesy tone, Unohana couldn't help but frown.

This brat was clearly doing this on purpose to annoy her so she could take the person away.

She gestured toward the pile of corpses nearby: "I hope you aren't too late. In case he's already been cut down by me, you can just pick up the pieces."

Katori looked at the corpses, her willow brows furrowing. With an exaggerated, dramatic pout, she cried out in dismay: "Ah? No way? I heard from the residents that he had just been brought here, so I rushed over immediately. Are you really that fast with your blade now, Sister Retsu..."

The increasingly cutesy voice gave Unohana goosebumps, and she barked sharply: "Speak properly!"

Katori immediately fell silent, pouting as she looked at Unohana's cold face: "Hmph! Then where is the person I'm looking for?"

"There is such a bloody person standing right in front of me. Can you not see him?"

Only then did Katori turn around with a look of feigned surprise, looking at the now-dazed Lin Nan behind her:

"Ah? Is it really him? That's too much, he actually managed to trade blows with Sister Retsu—wait? He's actually quite handsome—he's lost so much blood, he isn't going to die, is he?!—That's too much, Sister Retsu, you actually crossed blades with him!"

Unohana Retsu flicked her blade gently, shaking off the residual blood, and curled her lip: "Hard to say if he'll die, but he has already survived three strikes."

Katori Batsunsai made an exaggerated expression of pity: "Ah? A commoner surviving three strikes from you—doesn't that mean he's already as good as dead?"

As if to verify her words, Lin Nan swayed twice and collapsed to the ground.

Seeing this, Katori immediately turned her head, her pretty face wrinkling as she pretended to be fierce toward Unohana: "Hmph! You killed him after all! He was such a handsome guy, you owe me..."

Unohana held her blade and looked at the sky, saying flatly: "Saito used to take the beatings for you, but now it's just you left. Do as you please..."

"Sorry to bother you, Sister Retsu, farewell!"

Katori immediately turned around, preparing to snatch up the unconscious Lin Nan and drag her subordinate away.

While the farce continued, Lin Nan, who had collapsed on the ground, suddenly let out a deep sigh.

He was still some distance from everyone; he was still lying face down on the ground. Yet, that sigh seemed to ignore the constraints of distance, ringing in everyone's ears like a death-knell whisper.

"Heh..."

Before the sound had even faded, Lin Nan's entire body shuddered. His feet dug firmly into the ground, and he kicked off with a violent surge.

"Thud!"

With a muffled, explosive sound, he shot forward like a cannonball, his body parallel to the ground as he lunged toward Unohana, reaching her in an instant!

Unohana's pupils constricted sharply, and she hurriedly raised her blade to defend. Yet, facing Lin Nan's unfocused, blood-surging eyes, she felt as if she had plummeted into the deep sea; her arms felt so heavy that she could not even lift them!

Lin Nan's Zanpakuto was already swung high, crashing down with immense force, aimed directly at Unohana's forehead!

The blade cleaved the air in two, the sound of the strike drowning out all other noise.

"Whoosh!"

In that instant, Unohana was nearly dazed. Her blade only managed to reach her face; there was no time to mount a proper defense.

Is this the feeling of death? Am I about to die?

In the blink of an eye, another Zanpakuto suddenly appeared from the side, striking upward to intercept Lin Nan's blade!

Katori happened to be standing between the two, but she could not stop Lin Nan in time; she could only strike from the side with all her might to impede his momentum.

"Clang!"

The two blades crossed, finally slowing Lin Nan's strike and diverting it toward Unohana's shoulder.

Unohana felt the pressure on her arms suddenly lighten and hurriedly raised her blade to counter. But it was still too late...

Even with two captain-level blades blocking, they could not fully neutralize Lin Nan's momentum. The blade bit into her shoulder, and blood sprayed out!

All of this happened in a split second; apart from the two captains, no one else had clearly seen what occurred.

That single strike had sent Unohana and Katori's instincts into a frantic warning.

In that moment, Lin Nan no longer seemed like a resident of the Rukon District, but an extremely dangerous, utterly maddened beast!

What would he do next?

The two women gripped their longswords, focused entirely on guarding against Lin Nan's follow-up.

However, Lin Nan swayed twice before collapsing to the ground, having completely lost consciousness.

The surprise in Katori's eyes had not yet faded as she looked at Unohana with concern: "Sister Retsu, are you alright?"

Unohana let out a sigh of relief, staring at Lin Nan on the ground, and said in a low voice: "It is fine. You blocked most of the force, so it is only a superficial wound. Take him away..."

Katori checked Unohana's injury with concern, confirmed it was nothing serious, then nodded and, along with the squad members, carried the unconscious Lin Nan out of the temporary quarters.

Nakata, standing behind Unohana, hurried forward to ask: "Captain, are you alright? Are you really going to let Captain Katori take him away like this?"

Unohana shook her head; such superficial wounds were commonplace to her.

She smiled faintly, as if recalling a pleasant memory: "She is the only younger sister I have left, so let her have her way."

"But..."

"Nakata, put your sword away." Unohana interrupted Nakata, sheathing her blade with an extremely solemn expression.

She gazed in the direction Katori had left and said calmly: "A mere scratch is nothing. We agreed to decide the victor in three strikes; it was I who failed to do so."

Hearing this, Nakata sighed: "That kid is truly lucky. To be a defeated opponent and still be spared by the Captain..."

Unohana, with a few drops of blood on her fair face, curled the corners of her mouth and turned to leave: "I hope he lives until I see him next time... By the way, we have received orders from the Captain-Commander. Next month, we will leave Rust Face and move to other districts on our own. Pass the word down."

"Yes, Captain! May I ask what the destination is...?"

"I haven't decided yet; we shall see when the time comes."

"Yes!" Nakata picked up his sword from the ground and took his leave of the Captain.

Once the courtyard was empty, Unohana stopped in her tracks and muttered to herself: "He is a defeated opponent? That fellow Nakata understands nothing."

"Although I did not use my full strength to kill, this boy's power, reflexes, and spiritual pressure are already stronger than the vast majority of people!"

As she spoke, she looked down at the wound on her shoulder: "With this talent for the sword, given time, he might truly surpass me in swordsmanship!"

"What an unexpected opponent!" A bewitching smile appeared on Unohana's blood-spattered face: "If he himself possesses such potential, then the Kenpachi Zaraki he spoke of must be an even more formidable character..."

"In that case, next month, I shall go to the Zaraki District and take a look!"