"Phew…"
The dust slowly settled, and the full moon once again cast its light upon Hueco Mundo. Moonlight filtered through the gaps in the quartz tree leaves, illuminating Aozaki's blood-stained robe.
Drip, drip…
Blood continued to drip from his clothes. The blood-soaked Aozaki hung his head, his fists fiercely shattering the body of the deer-headed, snake-tailed monster, and a pool of blood was rapidly spreading.
There was nothing more to say. After seeing Big Sister defeated, the trio of Deer, Snake, and Lion eagerly initiated a challenge.
Unsurprisingly, they were at a disadvantage from the very beginning.
Then, in their panic, they hastily summoned Ayon and launched a fierce attack.
Wherever it passed, tall quartz trees fell one after another.
However, the challenged king did not approach easily. Instead, he used high-level Hado from a distance to directly knock the three unconscious.
After all, Aozaki was a pure summoner. He naturally wouldn't let himself fall into a predicament of being ganged up on.
Summoning Ayon required each of the three to sacrifice an arm, which would severely reduce their own strength.
Once these summoners were successfully knocked out, lying on the ground with their mouths open and eyes closed, resting.
Aozaki immediately pounced, unleashing round after round of violent attacks on the irrational monster.
Under his iron fists, the monster soon wailed incessantly, exploding and dying.
Swish!!
He suddenly swung his hand, and a line of blood drew a graceful arc in the air.
Aozaki bent down and carried the three women, striding towards Las Noches like a bandit chief who had just robbed virtuous women.
Every step he took exuded a sense of boldness and confidence, as if the entire world was beneath his feet.
"My spine almost broke."
Nelliel said, bending her arm to rub her lower back.
Her injuries had already recovered, but it had been somewhat painful when she was injured.
When she looked up again, her gaze met Aozaki's concerned eyes.
Aozaki was carrying three helpless women.
They were all sleeping soundly and didn't seem like they would wake up anytime soon.
One of them was even snoring, a silly smile on her face, making who knew what kind of beautiful dream.
It proved that Aozaki had indeed held back.
If they had truly fought to the death, how could these three have been so relaxed?
"You…"
Aozaki blinked apologetically, sighing inwardly:
"I think I hit a bit too hard."
He had no intention of harming them.
However, facing such a situation, he also felt a bit helpless.
Although he could suppress his strength, the combat abilities of the Deer, Snake, and Lion trio were a world apart from Nelliel's.
In a battle with strong opponents, it was difficult to maintain complete control.
"Reiji-sama, I'm fine."
As a qualified knight, Nelliel clearly knew what Aozaki wanted to say, but there was no need.
She didn't want Aozaki to worry about her.
Moreover, after fusing with the Hōgyoku, her recovery ability had greatly improved, even faster than her previous ultra-fast regeneration!
Those minor injuries from before had already healed!
However, even though the injuries had healed, an apology and compensation were unavoidable.
Verbal apologies were unnecessary. Arrancar were practical people and preferred tangible compensation.
Aozaki understood Nelliel's meaning and nodded with a smile.
For the next half month or so, Aozaki stayed in the emperor's bedchamber, paying the diligent knights.
He felt that since he had become emperor, he should bear the corresponding responsibilities.
He wanted these loyal subordinates to feel that their value was recognized, and also to feel his care and affection.
Only in this way could he truly win their hearts and make them willing to serve him.
Wanting the horse to run but not eat grass, how could that work?
Aozaki understood this principle deeply, so he would never do anything like deducting his Squad members' wages.
On the contrary, for those who performed exceptionally well, he would try his best to meet their demands to ignite their work enthusiasm and initiative.
Aozaki still remembered that old man had said there would be a Captains' meeting at the end of the month, so he didn't indulge in the joy of being emperor.
Having experienced similar bitter battles too many times, Aozaki had long grown accustomed to them. He was now able to skillfully control his emotions.
Besides, life was still long. He didn't even know if this life would end, and he would have plenty of time in the future.
Therefore, he understood that there was no need to rush. After doing what needed to be done, he returned to Soul Society.
"Hmm, with the wondrous power of Reiatsu, work efficiency has indeed increased significantly."
"If I dragged all these guys to the Human World to move bricks, I could definitely earn a lot."
"But why are their gazes so strange? Have I become more handsome without realizing it?"
Aozaki slowly walked along the pristine floor, pondering in his mind.
Around him, Squad members walked hurriedly, busy repairing the damaged streets.
However, Aozaki chose to be lazy, his mind constantly replaying the bloody storm of Hueco Mundo.
It was just that the gazes from the surrounding people were too intense, making him a little uncomfortable.
Previously, only female Squad members would look at him with such fervent eyes, but now even male Squad members had begun to emulate them, like crazy fans seeing a celebrity in the Human World.
This made even his thick skin feel a bit awkward, and he was even too embarrassed to walk around daydreaming on the street.
He helplessly muttered to himself:
"Ah, I'm just too popular, it's a real headache."
"If old man doesn't find a chance to show off properly in front of everyone soon, maybe the Captain-Commander position will be snatched by me."
Although the Captain-Commander was said to serve the nobles, he indeed held an extremely high status and power.
However, Aozaki didn't care about these things.
If he wanted to become Captain-Commander, whether through legitimate means or covert methods, he had many ways to achieve this goal.
But the problem was that old man probably wouldn't approve of such an approach.
Unconsciously, Aozaki arrived at the Central District, his steps suddenly halting as his gaze shifted to the side.
He saw an old man standing by the broken wall, none other than old man Kuchiki Ginrei, directing the repair work in the Central District.
This taciturn elder, a month ago, his family's three generations had all been lying in the hospital together.
Now, he and his grandson had recovered and been discharged, but his son was still lying in the hospital bed.
That guy was truly an idiot. If his strength wasn't enough, he shouldn't act tough. He always did some worrying and foolish things.
However, if he didn't do that, he wouldn't be the Soujun-sensei that he knew.
Aozaki couldn't help but shake his head.
At this moment, a teasing voice came from beside him:
"Don't be sad, my brother Sōjun is out of danger and should recover completely after another month of recuperation."
Aozaki turned his head and saw the flower-clad swordsman take off his straw hat, stride over, put an arm around his shoulder, and stare at him with burning eyes.
Such an unscrupulous gaze…
Aozaki couldn't help but shiver.
Could it be that this senior brother had been single for too long and had finally become a complete pervert?
Looking at Shunsui's eyes, Aozaki felt completely uncomfortable, even getting goosebumps.
If you really have that kind of fetish, I can introduce you to a good one if there's an opportunity in the future.
But, please excuse this junior brother, I'm really not into that!