Urahara Kisuke's Proposal

Shiba Kaien knew that there were many little spirits inside Aoto's Zanpakuto, each with a distinct personality.

Some loved to slaughter, some loved to play pranks, and others loved to fight...

Whenever Aoto had a need, he would release these spirits from his Zanpakuto to act as his clones... from their appearance to their Reiatsu, they were identical to Aoto.

However, Blue Oni was likely the only one among them who was this calm!

But as for Blue Oni... he seemed a bit too flashy when it came to combat!

Sure enough, the second "Aoto" entered the hospital, a beam of intense blue light scattered out from within.

Of course, this was a blue light that only souls or those with Reishi could perceive.

Simultaneous with the blue light came the shrill screams of numerous Hollows.

When the screams and the blue light vanished one after another, "Aoto" flew back out of the hospital.

After nodding to Shiba Kaien, "Aoto" vanished once more.

The other members of the 13th Division were marveling at how expected it was of an officer from the 11th Division; his speed in killing Hollows was simply too fast.

Shiba Kaien did not speak... in truth, he thought the same.

Otherwise, Aoto would never have been transferred to the 11th Division by the Central 46.

However, Shiba Kaien did the math; even he would not be able to kill so many Hollows so quickly!

A single spirit from Aoto's Zanpakuto could achieve this... just how vast had the gap between them become?

Shiba Kaien felt he needed to continue working harder!

Otherwise, he wouldn't even be able to see Aoto's shadow anymore.

But for now, Shiba Kaien had to handle the matter at hand.

Shiba Kaien looked toward the squad member responsible for the hospital—a young, sweat-drenched member—who would definitely be severely punished for allowing such a large group of Hollows to form without reporting it.

Urahara Kisuke was being given a sound beating by the Visored.

Hiyori, in particular, had planted a boot right on Urahara Kisuke's face.

This was because his proposal to Aoto had been to ask if he would consider undergoing Hollowfication.

On this point, Urahara Kisuke had already figured out the principles!

Although he could not turn a Hollowfied Shinigami back, he could enable a Shinigami to complete the process of Hollowfication.

However, to successfully complete Hollowfication without the soul collapsing required a Reiatsu of at least the fifth rank.

Aoto was perfectly suited for it.

But at such a suggestion, before Aoto even had to react, the members of the Visored were already having none of it.

Although they could now Hollowfy at will, they were also the ones who could least accept the process...

Had this not happened to them, their lives would certainly be different than they were now.

Unless absolutely necessary, they would never wish for other Shinigami to suffer the same agony of Hollowfication as they had.

Urahara Kisuke had truly touched a nerve!

Yet, even after being beaten quite badly, Urahara Kisuke still hoped Aoto would accept his proposal.

Moreover, the Hollowfication Urahara Kisuke spoke of was not entirely the same as the situation with Hiyori and the others.

It should be called "temporary Hollowfication."

By briefly containing the Reiatsu of a Hollow, one could temporarily gain the power of a Hollow.

"This would be extremely helpful for increasing your strength!" Urahara Kisuke took out a small black chip. "This is compressed Hollow Reiatsu! As long as you use..."

"I refuse!" Aoto's voice rang out, and he stood sideways to Urahara Kisuke. "Not thinking about the other party—that is exactly why I dislike you."

Having said that, Aoto vanished from the spot.

Urahara Kisuke gazed in the direction Aoto had departed, pulling out his folding fan to cover his face...

Urahara Kisuke knew what Aoto meant; he was saying that he hadn't considered his safety within the Soul Society.

But Urahara Kisuke believed that this was precisely how he was looking out for him.

Because as the number of times Aoto came to the human world increased, the probability of Aizen discovering his connection to the Visored would gradually rise.

Although Aizen might not necessarily come to hunt down the Visored, he could use means such as reporting them to the Central 46 to force the Seireitei, or even the rest of the Gotei 13, to take action.

And Aoto would become a stumbling block for Aizen.

Temporary Hollowfication would allow him to possess even greater power, increasing the possibility of escaping danger.

Furthermore, Urahara Kisuke had experimented on himself; after the temporary Hollowfication ended, there would be absolutely no residual Hollow Reiatsu left on the body.

It was a pity that Aoto's hostility toward him remained too great.

And Urahara Kisuke had no opportunity for prolonged contact with Aoto.

It was only during the time Hiyori had served as his lieutenant that she had forgiven him for changing the Twelfth Division.

Aoto, however, had yet to forgive him.

What a pity.

Furthermore, Urahara Kisuke was certain of one thing.

Even if Aizen had not discovered the connection between Aoto and the Visored, he still would have employed some means against Aoto.

After all, Aoto's Zanpakuto was a legacy left behind by that very person!

Two months later, when the patrol duties of the 13th Division came to an end and Aoto appeared before them once again, he seemed to have grown a size larger.

Shiba Kaien felt quite helpless.

Because Shiba Kaien was certain that beneath Aoto's Shihakusho, he was stuffed with items he had purchased from the World of the Living.

Good grief, was this smuggling not a bit too blatant?

Aoto did not dare to meet Shiba Kaien's eyes now... he couldn't just come to the World of the Living for nothing, could he!

The fact that his physique hadn't become as massive as Zaraki Kenpachi's was already giving Kaien plenty of face!

Although Shiba Kaien stared at Aoto for a long time, he still sighed and opened the Senkaimon.

Walking into the Senkaimon, Shiba Kaien, who was in the lead, began to complain to Aoto.

Over these two months, they had called for Aoto six times... in just a few short years, the Shinigami stationed in the World of the Living had allowed six groups of Hollows to emerge, leading Shiba Kaien to constantly lament that this generation of Shinigami was incompetent.

But Aoto did not think so.

"It must be because too many humans have died in the World of the Living over these past few decades! Even if the squad members kill them with all their might, the total number of Hollows rises in proportion to the increase in the number of ordinary people dying."

"Not to mention that your squad members also need to handle the Konso work for ordinary Pluses, making them even more stretched for time."

"So, Kaien, you really need to be more mindful! You have to look past the phenomena to see the essence."

Shiba Kaien crossed his arms behind his head and glanced sideways at Aoto. "Then, according to you, what should we do?"

"Recruit more squad members! If we shrink the area each squad member is stationed in within the World of the Living, wouldn't the work become much easier?"

"And this needs to be done quickly!" Aoto looked back at the World of the Living outside the Senkaimon. "The population in the World of the Living is currently undergoing a massive explosion. In another dozen years or so, a small village might have tens of thousands of people. By then, the number of Hollows will definitely rise accordingly."

"If the number of Shinigami cannot increase, then we might as well just wait for Hueco Mundo to occupy the World of the Living and then come to attack the Soul Society!"

Shiba Kaien's expression turned grim. "Is it really that serious?"

"It will only get worse!" Aoto looked at Shiba Kaien. "After all, Pluses that cannot be given Konso in time will also turn into Hollows!"