As a Vasto Lorde, Starrk was incredibly powerful.
His greatest strength was how quickly he absorbed the Reishi around him... He was already absorbing it almost as fast as a Hollow could devour it.
As a result, even an Adjuchas would quickly die from Reishi collapse if it stayed near Starrk.
"Loneliness" was both Starrk's power and his curse.
So when he became an Arrancar on his own to reduce his consumption, he also created a companion for himself: Lilynette.
And to win Starrk over, the King of Hueco Mundo handed over the Picaros he had been raising to Starrk.
The many Picaros were remarkably effective at healing Starrk's loneliness.
After becoming an Arrancar, Starrk had his Reishi absorption under control. And since the Picaros could transfer Reishi among themselves, they could stay by his side indefinitely—as long as Starrk couldn't absorb the Reishi of more than three hundred Adjuchas all at once.
By using "innocence" to heal "loneliness," the King of Hueco Mundo had bound this self-made Arrancar Vasto Lorde to his cause.
After giving every Picaro a present, the King of Hueco Mundo watched them play for a while before speaking with Starrk.
"Any trouble on the front lines?"
"No trouble!" Starrk turned his gaze away from the Picaros. "This latest raid successfully claimed another part of Hell. With Grimmjow keeping watch, even if the Ogres counterattack, he'll be able to drive them back."
"After a few more battles, Grimmjow should be able to evolve into a Vasto Lorde!"
"Oh, right. That guy Inotra charged too deep into Hell and was killed once already. Though he came back to life thanks to your ability, his chances of evolving into a Vasto Lorde have dropped significantly!"
"Got it!" The King of Hueco Mundo's skull showed no change in expression. "Looks like not all battle maniacs are alike."
A battle maniac should enjoy fighting, not fight to the death.
Fighting with your head on your shoulders was the best way to survive longer.
"Let's see how the Soul Society reacts this time." Starrk looked in a certain direction. "Since you began your offensive in Hell, Hueco Mundo has grown by half over the past few thousand years. If the balance of the three realms is to be maintained, the Soul Society should make corresponding adjustments..."
"They won't do that!" The King of Hueco Mundo waved a hand. "They want to preserve their existing rule. That lofty bastard's mind has grown rigid; it can't take in anything new."
"Back in the Soul King Palace, I pushed those guys so hard to change, but they didn't react. No matter how many times I cut them down, they came back to life. Unless I kill every Soul Reaper in the Soul Society and make everyone forget about the Soul King and Squad Zero, those guys will keep coming back."
"But if I really did kill all the Soul Reapers, the three realms would collapse! I have no desire to become the lynchpin and hold up a new set of three realms."
"Only changes within the Soul Society itself could alter the situation. Aizen is our greatest opportunity!"
"If possible, the best choice would be to have Aizen join Squad Zero. Bringing down an organization from within is by far the easiest way. But his pride made him reject the proposal."
"To overturn the whole world because it's unjust... It really does feel like overcorrecting."
Starrk was the only Menos Grande with whom the King of Hueco Mundo could share these secrets.
The King of Hueco Mundo's frankness made the lonely Starrk feel like he'd found a close friend.
Still, Starrk felt the King of Hueco Mundo was even lonelier than he was. Otherwise, he wouldn't have split off a part of himself, just as Starrk had.
His own other half, Lilynette, was still a Hollow and could stay by his side.
But the King of Hueco Mundo's other half had become a Soul Reaper.
Speaking of Soul Reapers, Starrk looked at the King of Hueco Mundo. "Aren't you going to become an Arrancar? You should've been able to a long time ago, right?"
"Of course I can! But I refuse!" The King of Hueco Mundo looked at Starrk. "As the King of Hueco Mundo, why should I become like a Soul Reaper?"
"Besides, becoming an Arrancar wouldn't make me stronger. It would weaken me while giving me a huge vulnerability."
A Hollow that hadn't become an Arrancar was, compared to a Soul Reaper, essentially always in Bankai.
Because of the Hollow Hole, Hollows were constantly falling apart. That was why they always felt hungry and needed other souls to replenish themselves.
Becoming an Arrancar reduced that consumption to a minimum.
But it also reduced their actual power.
Take Starrk, for example. Compared to before he became an Arrancar, his current strength was compressed to around 70% of what it had been.
Of course, once he released his Zanpakuto again, his strength would double to 140%, then gradually return to 100% as time passed.
Becoming an Arrancar was a form of self-sealing for Hollows.
But the King of Hueco Mundo didn't need to become an Arrancar to maintain his strongest state at 200% whenever he wanted... After all, he could use "Past Reenactment" to keep himself at his absolute peak forever.
"Don't treat becoming an Arrancar like some sacred thing. It's just one way to get stronger." The King of Hueco Mundo rubbed his chin. "But for the Adjuchas, becoming an Arrancar minimizes their hunger. That could give Hueco Mundo another possibility."
If they could live indefinitely without devouring other Menos Grande, Hueco Mundo would have the foundation for order.
The Adjuchas no longer needed to devour one another anyway, since the King of Hueco Mundo provided them with an inexhaustible supply of food containing third-class spiritual pressure. Still, he had to consider the possibility that the food supply might one day disappear—and that Hueco Mundo's current order might then collapse completely.
Starrk was a strong advocate for all Menos Grande becoming Arrancar, so he would probably have plenty in common with Aizen in the future.
After all, it was thanks to Starrk's efforts that the Picaros could become Arrancar.
The King of Hueco Mundo could be fairly certain that Starrk also had a number of Soul King Fragments within him.
He didn't know exactly how many, but there were definitely more than the Soul King's fingernail in Rangiku Matsumoto.
Thinking of his Los Lobos... Could the fragment he possessed be the Soul King's fang?
Although Starrk advocated for all Menos Grande to become Arrancar, he couldn't force the King of Hueco Mundo if he wasn't willing.
Still, Starrk felt the King of Hueco Mundo hadn't said everything.
A drop in strength to 70% hardly seemed like a vulnerability, did it?
If the King of Hueco Mundo had known what Starrk was thinking, he would surely have explained... If he really became an Arrancar, the truth—that he had no eyeballs—would be exposed.
And the most important thing was that if he chose to become an Arrancar, his spiritual pressure might completely surpass the first class...
At that point, the three realms might no longer be able to contain him!