War!
The clash of blades and claws!
The exchange of Ceros and Kidō!
Countless clouds of dust were flung into the sky.
Kuruyashiki Kenpachi stood on the battlefield like a god of slaughter, freely unleashing the invincible power within his body.
"Why? Why aren't our attacks working?"
Countless Adjuchas-class Menos Grande stared at the Soul Reaper before them in bewilderment. Even as they died, they could not understand why their claws, which had never failed them, could not pierce this man's skin.
"It's because of his Spiritual Pressure!"
The Vasto Lorde watching Kuruyashiki Kenpachi slaughter them from a distance had already worked it out. A layer of immensely powerful Spiritual Pressure coated the man's body, forming armor that blocked every attack from the Menos Grande.
"But he's still only a Soul Reaper!"
The Vasto Lorde regarded Kuruyashiki Kenpachi with some disdain. Although he acknowledged that the man was strong, he was still far beneath him. At least, that was what he believed.
"Soul Reaper, come trade a few blows with me!"
The Vasto Lorde tore apart the few Gillians blocking his path and walked straight up to Kuruyashiki Kenpachi.
"Hey, hey, hey! You actually attacked your own comrades?"
Kuruyashiki Kenpachi frowned deeply at the Hollow before him, whose entire body radiated ominous Spiritual Pressure.
"Comrades? What are you joking about?!"
"My only comrade has always been His Majesty Baraggan Louisenbairn, the great King of Hueco Mundo."
"Soul Reaper! You should feel proud! Before you stands the strongest Hollow in Hueco Mundo, second only to His Majesty Baraggan!"
The Vasto Lorde unleashed his Spiritual Pressure without restraint. With that terrifying Spiritual Pressure surrounding him, he looked like a demon god who had emerged from the abyss.
"Oh?"
"Then I'm afraid I'm merely someone who doesn't even rank in the Seireitei. Just the captain of the 11th Division."
Kuruyashiki Kenpachi smiled modestly, then slashed at the Vasto Lorde before him.
Whoosh!
As Kuruyashiki Kenpachi raised his blade and brought it down, a splash of crimson sprayed into the sky.
"Slurp~" The Vasto Lorde gently licked his blood-covered palm and looked at Kuruyashiki Kenpachi with disdain. "I'm not like those small fry, you small fry!"
"Pfft..."
Kuruyashiki Kenpachi dropped to one knee. Blood flowed from his abdomen, where a distinct bloody handprint now marked his flesh.
"Captain!"
Seeing Kenpachi wounded, the members of the 11th Division immediately lost their composure.
"Hmph! Die here in disgrace, right before your own subordinates!"
The Vasto Lorde looked around at the Soul Reapers worried for Kuruyashiki Kenpachi's life. A vicious gleam flashed through his eyes as he turned and spoke to Kuruyashiki Kenpachi.
"Hahaha..."
Yet to the Vasto Lorde's surprise, faced with this hopeless situation, Kuruyashiki Kenpachi burst into laughter instead.
"Bastard! What's so funny?"
Feeling provoked, the Vasto Lorde turned and demanded an answer.
"Nothing. I just never expected Hueco Mundo to have someone as strong as you. This really makes me... so happy I can barely stand it!"
Kuruyashiki Kenpachi looked at the Vasto Lorde excitedly. He suddenly felt that his trip today had not been wasted. Meeting a monster like this was simply wonderful!
"Boys! Don't worry about me! Your captain is very happy right now!" With that, Kuruyashiki Kenpachi rose from the ground and raised his Zanpakuto. "Slaughter the auspicious and be born, honor the darkness and bid farewell to old age, Garōgairō!"
Roar!
In an instant, pitch-black light enveloped the entire battlefield. The Zanpakuto in Kuruyashiki Kenpachi's hand transformed into roughly thirty bizarre monsters! Each monster was a white sphere the size of a brown bear. They had no eyes, noses, ears, or limbs, only a gaping maw filled with enormous teeth!
"What are these things?"
The Vasto Lorde, a general under Baraggan, stared at the strange monsters before him, his forehead covered in sweat. Despite all his experience, he had never seen such bizarre creatures.
"Devour every last one of them!"
Kuruyashiki Kenpachi waved a hand at the monsters as he spoke.
Roar!
The monsters roared and launched themselves at the surrounding Menos Grande.
"What is this thing? It just won't die!"
An Adjuchas hoped to kill the monster before him, but he had miscalculated. The monster ignored his attacks entirely and bit down on his claws. In an instant, the claws he used to attack were rendered useless.
"Bastard, what have you done?"
The Vasto Lorde watched the scene before him in horror. They Hollows had always been the ones devouring others. This was his first time seeing them being devoured instead.
"Hahaha..."
"Actually, I didn't want to use this move. This is my Zanpakuto's Shikai. Doesn't it seem a little at odds with my style?"
Kuruyashiki Kenpachi smiled gently at the Vasto Lorde before him, looking apologetic.
"Bastard! Are you making a fool of me?"
"Die!"
Hearing Kuruyashiki Kenpachi's words, the Vasto Lorde felt he had been made a fool of. His eyelids twitched slightly as he charged at Kuruyashiki Kenpachi.
Yet just as his arm was about to reach Kuruyashiki Kenpachi's heart, his body was forced to a halt.
Four of the monsters Kuruyashiki Kenpachi had summoned had sunk their teeth into his limbs, pinning him in place.
"Why?"
The Vasto Lorde's eyes were filled with disbelief. He could not understand why a mere four monsters could pin him in place. Did that mean the strength of four monsters could match his own? What a joke!
"Sorry! Even I have trouble controlling my Zanpakuto. They attack anyone who intends to kill me without my control, so I generally don't release my Shikai."
Kuruyashiki Kenpachi swung the sword hilt in his hand, then slashed at the immobilized Vasto Lorde before him.
Whoosh!
Blood instantly sprayed into the sky.
"Your Majesty Baraggan!"
The Vasto Lorde slowly collapsed to the ground. Gazing into the endless night, he called out softly. Even as he lay dying, he continued to call Baraggan's name.
"Wipe them out completely!"
After dealing with the Vasto Lorde before him, Kuruyashiki Kenpachi shouted.
"Yeah!!"
"Kill!"
Their morale soaring, the Soul Reapers chased after the Menos Grande and attacked, every one of them as fired up as if they had been injected with chicken blood.
"Run! Even the general's been killed! We'd better run!"
The Adjuchas-class Menos Grande stared at the fallen Vasto Lorde, sweat covering their foreheads. They no longer had any desire to keep fighting. All they wanted was to escape from the clutches of this man who resembled a vicious demon.
"This is a victory for the 11th Division, a victory for the Soul Reapers!"
Watching the Menos Grande flee with their hands over their heads, Kuruyashiki Kenpachi nodded in great satisfaction.
(End of chapter)