Because of Gosuke Shigure's help with team affairs, the new Kenpachi seldom stayed inside the captain's office.
Behind that office lay a large training hall — the place where generations of Eleventh Division captains had honed their swordsmanship.
In the past, Kenpachi Kuruyashiki had spent countless hours here perfecting his zanjutsu technique.
His Bankai had been so destructive that Central 46 had explicitly forbidden him from releasing it within Seireitei's walls. Even stripped of that ultimate power, Kuruyashiki had never once complained. To him, his Shikai alone was enough to handle any foe.
And so, day after day, he refined a single style — pure cutting power, stripped of ornamentation.
Without using Kidō or Zanpakutō release, he could slay a Menos Grande with nothing but Zanjutsu and Hakuda.
Among Seireitei, that mastery earned him a title whispered with both awe and respect — "One Rider Against a Thousand".
Yet even such a man, who had once felled a Vasto Lorde-class Menos Grande alone, had met his end at the hands of Azashiro Soya, now the new Kenpachi.
Since assuming command, Azashiro had also spent most of his time in that same training hall.
Unlike Kuruyashiki, however, he did not train.
He simply sat upon the wooden floor, still and silent.
His Zanpakutō was nowhere to be seen.
No one knew what Kenpachi Azashiro did during those long hours — whether he meditated, brooded, or merely existed in the stillness between breaths.
…
When Gosuke Shigure arrived, Azashiro was there as always — sitting alone, eyes unfocused.
The faint echo of Shigure's footsteps stirred him. He lifted his gaze slightly, expression unreadable, tone flat.
"What is it?"
Shigure stopped a few paces away and spoke respectfully.
"The Twelfth Division detected a high-concentration reiatsu surge in the outskirts of East Rukongai, District 68. Several Menos Grandes have crossed over. Ordinary officers can't handle creatures of that size… let alone multiple."
Kenpachi Azashiro immediately understood.
His eyes remained calm, voice steady.
"I see. I'll go right away."
He rose to his feet with quiet purpose. Since becoming captain, he had never shied from duty. He understood well — to bear the title of Kenpachi was to confront hollows head-on.
As he turned to leave, Shigure's voice stopped him.
"Captain, I'll go with you."
Azashiro looked back, expression unchanged.
"It's too dangerous to face Menos Grandes alone." Shigure continued. "Especially while your injuries still haven't fully healed."
A few days earlier, Azashiro had fought Kenpachi Kuruyashiki to the death.
Though victorious, he had been gravely wounded. Even after treatment from the Fourth Division, his body had yet to completely recover.
For a moment, silence hung between them. Then, Azashiro replied with his usual indifference.
"…As you wish."
Shigure's eyes flickered. He gave a faint, knowing smile.
…
The two left Seireitei soon after — captain and vice-captain, side by side.
The moment they crossed the boundary into Rukongai, the contrast was overwhelming.
Seireitei and Rukongai were like two separate worlds — city and countryside, light and shadow.
Seireitei's inner districts gleamed with prosperity, its noble streets lined with shops and gardens.
But Rukongai was barren and broken. Dusty roads, tattered houses, and desperate souls fighting to survive.
In the outer districts, starvation and violence were common.
Even now, as they passed through District 68, Shigure saw two groups of souls quarreling over a single well, blades drawn, snarling like beasts.
Neither Shigure nor Azashiro intervened.
For Azashiro, indifference was natural. His childhood had stripped him of sentiment — his family slaughtered, his trust in others extinguished. He believed in one truth alone: the only strength worth relying on was one's own.
As for Gosuke Shigure, he had long since grown numb to such sights. He had seen far too many tragedies across both lives.
'A shinigami isn't a saint.' he thought quietly. 'We can't save everyone.'
And so, they passed through without a word.
…
Before long, the barren outskirts of East Rukongai's 68th District stretched before them — wide, empty fields under a dull sky.
When hollows invaded, the place where they emerged was unpredictable. Sometimes the Garganta tore open above remote wastelands like this, other times in the heart of populated districts.
The best scenario was a place like this — spacious and sparsely inhabited.
The worst was when hollows descended in Rukongai's inner sectors, where countless souls lived.
Even if the shinigami responded instantly, many innocents would die before they arrived.
Such losses weren't just tragic — they threatened the balance of souls between the worlds.
Few understood that balance in full, but everyone in Seireitei knew one thing: too many deaths in Rukongai meant trouble.
Hence, whenever a hollow appeared in Rukongai, it had to be exterminated swiftly.
As for why they never appeared in Seireitei — that was thanks to the massive spiritual barrier surrounding the city, a protective membrane that repelled the advance of any hollow.
…
Soon, the air thickened with pressure.
Ahead, towering silhouettes emerged from the haze — six colossal Gillians, their grotesque masks gleaming in the dim light. Each step they took made the ground tremble.
Shigure's eyes narrowed. "Six Gillians… ordinary giants," he muttered. Then, his gaze shifted. "No — behind them, there's an unclosed black cavity… and another Menos Grande, an Adjuchas."
At the mention of that name, a faint spark of interest flashed in Azashiro's eyes.
In Hueco Mundo, the Menos Grande were divided into three tiers — Gillian, Adjuchas, and Vasto Lorde.
The Vasto Lorde were the pinnacle, their power surpassing that of most captains. Even in Hueco Mundo, they were rare and feared.
But Adjuchas — though lesser — were still formidable adversaries.
A few days ago, a Vasto Lorde had led a group of Adjuchas and Gillians in an assault on Rukongai. That crisis had ended only after Kenpachi Kuruyashiki himself intervened.
And now, scarcely a week later, it was happening again.
'Hueco Mundo,' Shigure thought grimly, 'is restless again.'
Azashiro's gaze remained fixed ahead. "Stay back." he said quietly.
His tone carried no arrogance — only simple certainty. He intended to face them alone.
But Shigure took a step forward.
"The captain can take the Adjuchas." he said. "Leave the six Gillians to me."
Azashiro glanced at him, expression unreadable.
Shigure's calm eyes met his evenly, revealing no hint of hesitation.
"…As you wish."
The faintest nod. And then, Azashiro vanished.
*Swish*
The air cracked as his figure blurred into motion. In an instant, he reappeared above the Adjuchas tearing through the Garganta's remnants, his hand raised and glowing faintly crimson.
"Hadō #31 — Shakkahō!" (Red Cannon)
A sphere of scarlet energy erupted from his palm with a boom, streaking toward the monstrous hollow.
*****
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