Chapter 46: Journey to Hueco Mundo
"You should be gradually regaining your Shinigami strength by now. If you want to unleash your Zanpakutō, this isn't the best place to practice."
Because of this sentence, I accepted Urahara Kisuke's Gikonmaru.
The county tournament was held as scheduled over the weekend. It was also the first time I saw the Rikkai University tennis club compete against other schools' tennis teams.
In a nutshell, the other side has no chance of winning.
"I always feel like there's a huge gap," Dunjun, who was dragged to the weekend to watch the match, sighed to me from the sidelines. "Even an outsider like me can see that the two sides are not on the same level. Right, Kagami-chan?"
"Um."
"And how should I put it? They seemed to be playing very seriously, even though they knew there was a gap between them."
I glanced at the widening score gap and scratched my head. "The other team is also giving it their all. Wouldn't it be arrogant to hold back at this point?"
They also have the ambition to expand nationwide.
"Wow, they're a team that deserves to win the national championship."
"And it's only the county tournament now." I raised my head and looked at Atsushi, "I heard from Kirihara, a classmate of Kyoka and I, that there will be more tough opponents in the national tournament." How should I put it, after hearing him say that, I suddenly started to look forward to it.
"Sanada-senpai isn't going to play today?"
"Deputy Minister? He is playing alone." However, based on the current strength gap between the two sides, it is estimated that the deputy minister is unlikely to play?
"Is it the strict discipline committee chairman?"
I nodded and pointed to Sanada-san, who was sitting in the spectator seats. "Look, that's the tall guy wearing a hat."
"Huh?! I thought that was the teacher??"
"...Puff!" No, I can't laugh. It would be too disrespectful to the deputy minister.
But he really does look incredibly old, and I'm not the only one who's made that mistake. The scariest thing is, I saw photos of him from the first two years of the tennis club, and he didn't look this old last year!!!
"Sanada-senpai looks about the same age as Kunikida-san."
Damn! So insightful!
"Kyoka-chan, stop it. Homura too! Hold it in! Don't laugh! Oh, by the way, I heard that Ms. Niko was suddenly hospitalized with appendicitis. Is she okay now?"
His trick of changing the subject was quite successful: "Ah, he's been discharged from the hospital."
But when it comes to my aunt, I feel a little worried: "Although she has recovered well after the operation, she is really too busy and has started working from home." This is because Sanlang and I dragged her home together, and the editorial department also strongly requested her to rest for a few more days.
It seems that Sanlang received an errand task today and went out to deliver something to his mother at the company.
"Wow... I, I think I saw Mr. Kunikida."
"Me too."
Don’t mention it, several workaholics flashed through my mind, but my aunt is a human being!
And what really makes me nervous is...
"Good afternoon, Miss Jiu Jing. You are here earlier than scheduled."
I stood in front of Urahara's store and took a deep breath. "Yeah, because today's game ended early."
The battle was settled in the second singles match, with the Rikkai University Tennis Club emerging victorious.
"It seems that we have achieved good results, which is gratifying."
The striped hat profiteer is a true profiteer, and he's quick to offer polite remarks. But when it comes to getting down to business, he's not shy about it.
"Okay, do you still remember how to use the Gihun Pill?"
"I have amnesia, not dementia." I glared at someone, took out a pill that looked like candy, and swallowed it in one gulp.
The first thing I felt was a slight sense of weightlessness.
He subconsciously lowered his head, and all he saw was the black kimono he was wearing and the Zanpakutō hanging quietly at his waist.
"Oh, not bad."
Urahara Kisuke was standing in front with a smile on his face. Turning around, I saw another Jiu Jingyan in school uniform.
"Nice to meet you, meow! Gihunmaru No. 385 is at your service, meow!"
………………Meow?
Wait, is this what Gihunmaru looks like?
He turned around and glared at the profiteer. "Don't look at me like that, Miss Jiujing. These days, most ordinary Yihunwan are like this. They're said to be more humane." He poked me with his cane as I stood obediently. "There's definitely no problem communicating with people on a daily basis, don't worry."
Really? ?
Frankly, I'm just thankful that Honmaru has a new job, and most of the swords are deployed and no one is around. Otherwise, if she carries my body back home and suddenly says "meow" to the swords, they'll be scared to death!
I swallowed my complaints and followed Urahara Kisuke underground, where I saw a door that seemed to have been temporarily assembled.
"Okay, they've already gone, let's go too."
They? Besides Mr. Tessai, are there any other helpers today?
The moment I reached the exit after passing through the long tunnel, I felt a spiritual pressure that was completely different from what I remembered from both Soul Society and the real world.
The sky was black, the ground pale white, and the air thick with spirit particles, yet it was so quiet that not even a sound could be heard.
The world seems to be reduced to black and white.
Is this Hueco Mundo?
"Manager, you are here."
"Too slow, Homura."
Eh?
"Tou-Toushiro?!" I looked in shock at the boy wearing the 10th Squad haori standing next to Mr. Tessai. "Why are you here?"
"Captain Hitsugaya is here to help." Urahara Kisuke pulled out his usual folding fan from somewhere. "Considering the destructive power of Miss Kujo's Kagutsuchi, we need to be prepared. So, we contacted Captain Hitsugaya with the intention of giving it a try. I didn't expect him to actually come. He's been a real help."
But, but, "Aren't you very busy lately?" Yes, you told me a few days ago that because Sister Rangiku ran away, there were more documents and so on.
"During an internal meeting, some of the paperwork was transferred to the Fifth Division. It was originally their job."
"Uh, so..." I remember the vice-captain of the 5th Division was Hinamori. "Is Hinamori okay?"
"She was very happy, saying that she could finally give the captain more work. She agreed without hesitation." He crossed his arms. "Anything else?"
"there is none left."
Wow, the clerical tiger, you are worthy of being the clerical tiger, Hinamori!
We seemed to be in a remote corner of Hueco Mundo. Urahara Kisuke said that although there was a truce with the Arrancar, they each had their own territories and didn't bother to meddle. However, if we rashly unleashed our Zanpakutō, the noise would be too loud and attract those minions, which would be more trouble than good.
So he asked Mr. Tessai to set up a barrier around the training ground one day in advance to block the escaped spiritual pressure, and Toshiro was responsible for freezing the flames with Hyorinmaru when Kagutsuchi could no longer be restrained and began to expand outward.
"If my speculation is correct, Kagutsuchi's flames aren't just capable of physically destroying objects. However, I need to see it firsthand before I can draw any conclusions."
The man spoke, tapping the sand lightly with his cane. Simultaneously, Mr. Tessai beside him began his technique, and a new barrier rose from the ground, enveloping them.
"Please don't mind us and just do your best to free your Zanpakutō."
"You said so." I reached out and grasped the hilt. The touch in my palm was so familiar that I drew my sword without hesitation. "Wake up, Kagutsuchi."
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In an instant, light burst out from the black-clothed girl's body, followed by a sudden rise in temperature.
The raging flames rose up, illuminating the dark night and dyeing the pale sand an orange-red hue.
The girl was surrounded by flames, yet remained unharmed. Her red hair flew in the wind, and her eyes seemed to merge with the scorching red. At the same time, everyone noticed that the blade in her hand had turned black.
"Oh my, this is truly spectacular." Urahara Kisuke waved his fan across the barrier. "Captain Hitsugaya, have you ever seen Miss Kyujo officially unleash her Zanpakutō before?"
The young man looked at the space before him that was now filled with flames and clenched his fists: "I have seen it, but now her spiritual pressure is stronger than before."
Yes, although Yamamoto Homura was the holder of Kagutsuchi and the fourth seat of the Tenth Division, her spiritual pressure was not that strong.
It was so intense, so violent, so majestic and full of life. Even through the defensive barrier set up by the ghost masters, the heat continued to spread throughout his body, even showing signs of increasing.
"Manager, Captain Hitsugaya, look!"
As Tessai's voice echoed, everyone noticed that the sand, scorched by the flames, began to melt and dissipate. Simultaneously, the barrier erected in the sky to prevent the escape of spiritual pressure was also impacted by the flames.
Urahara Kisuke snapped his folding fan shut, his green eyes blazing with energy: "As expected."
Their guess was correct, Kagutsuchi's flames did have the effect of destroying the characteristics of spirit particles.
"Captain Hitsugaya, do you still remember why Miss Kyujou committed suicide?"
The boy next to him didn't reply. After a few seconds, he said "hmm" calmly.
"I've done some research, and Captain Kuroda's database also shows that the damage and contamination caused by being assimilated by Aizen's Transformed Hollow should be irreversible."
"…………so what?"
The spiritual pressure around him surged for a moment, but was silently suppressed by everyone. Urahara Kisuke looked at the small boy who had already shouldered the 10th Division, and his teasing thoughts faded.
"However, there was no trace of the void left in Jiu Jingyan's body, not even a trace."
Unlike Ichigo Kurosaki, who was born with the spiritual power of a Hollow because his mother was infected by it, and unlike Ichigo Kurosaki, who was born with the spiritual power of a Hollow because of Aizen's scheme, Jiu Jingyan's spiritual pressure is extremely pure. Apart from the strange growth rate, all other values are normal.
But sometimes, excessive normality is often a sign of abnormality.
"She doesn't possess the characteristics of the Jiujing family, descendants of demons. It's as if all the impurities and dirt that are not beneficial to the soul have been purified and eliminated."
The flames before my eyes looked like blazing red lotuses, or like the flowers of the other shore blooming on the shores of Hell Lake, so red that it was creepy.
"Don't you think it's a coincidence, Captain Hitsugaya?"
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The author has something to say: The work of the 5th Division is mainly to handle paperwork
The Dragon of Documents: Aizen, the Eagle of Documents: one of the top three, now teaching at Mao, the Tiger of Documents: Hinamori.
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