Chapter 206: Grimmjow's Challenge
"Ugh!!"
"Argh!!"
"Gah!!"
The Menos Grande closest to the impact point were sent flying backward as if hit head-on by a speeding dump truck, their massive bodies thrown through the air.
Those further away also lost their footing, tumbling wildly, struggling to get up.
From within the dust, a figure slowly emerged.
Through the billowing smoke, first visible was a pair of eyes reflecting moonlight with a faint cold gleam.
Then, tearing through the smoke, a humanoid figure walked out with a ferocious grin.
"Second-generation Spartan warrior, Satoru, here to pay respects!"
As he spoke, Satoru lowered his stance and charged toward one of the Menos Grande.
"Don't underestimate... AAAAAHHHH!!!!"
"Damn it! Don't let him..."
"Quick, Cero, use Cero!"
"AAAAAAHHHH!!!"
For a moment, Satoru's figure darted back and forth across the battlefield, like a perverted masked hero with underwear stretched over his shoulders, embodying pure invincibility.
Wherever he passed, the Menos Grande screamed and fled, yet ultimately could not escape the fate of being reduced to ashes.
Sung-Sun stared wide-eyed, unable to believe the scene before her.
This Shinigami... is incredibly strong!
Over a dozen Adjuchas-level Menos Grande—even Lady Harribel would need some effort to deal with them.
Yet before this Shinigami, they seemed as fragile and powerless as humans!
What immense power!
Harribel also revealed a look of astonishment.
The last time she saw Satoru, he was unconscious, so she had never witnessed him in action.
When she sought help from Satoru and Aizen, her plan was for them to cooperate with her, holding off a portion of the Menos Grande so she could swiftly eliminate them one by one.
Unexpectedly, there was no need for her to intervene at all now.
This young Shinigami, relying solely on his own strength, tore through the entire battlefield.
His overwhelming power was one thing, but even more striking was his domineering presence.
Merely facing Satoru in his combat state was a test of mental fortitude.
Even before the fight began, the Adjuchas had already lost three-tenths of the battle.
Aizen stood not far away, quietly observing Satoru in action.
Suddenly, he sensed something.
"Satoru, finish this quickly. The main force is coming."
As he spoke, Aizen raised his hand.
"Hadō #90, Kurohitsugi."
A massive black cube rose from the ground, enveloping a Menos Grande that was relatively far from Satoru.
When the cube dissipated, the Menos Grande inside was spurting blood from its body and collapsed weakly.
Sung-Sun couldn't help but swallow hard.
This Shinigami... is just as absurd.
At least Satoru was personally defeating his enemies with his own hands.
But this Shinigami didn't even move, just chanted a spell from a distance and took down an Adjuchas.
If a monster like this were to draw his Zanpakutō, wouldn't he be powerful beyond imagination?
Hearing Aizen's words, Satoru nodded.
He drew his Zanpakutō—
"Break, Risō Jakumetsu!"
A short sword wreathed in blue flames fell into his hands.
With a flick of his wrist, the short sword, trailing a long chain, flew toward two distant Hollows.
Thud!
Almost simultaneously, the two blades effortlessly pierced the bodies of the two Adjuchas.
"Haaah!!!"
The moment the blades struck, Satoru roared, channeling immense force through his arms as he yanked downward like pulling a battle rope.
The two long black chains surged with ferocious waves, crashing into the two Menos Grande.
The massive bodies of the Adjuchas were flung into the air like ragged cloth, then slammed heavily onto the ground.
At the same time, blue flames erupted from within their bodies, forming two dazzling rings of blue fire.
Satoru nodded in satisfaction.
This move was a little trick Yamamoto had taught him.
Using Risō Jakumetsu's armor-piercing effect, he infused the power of the flames into the enemy's body and then detonated it.
The destructive force was countless times greater than simply slashing with a flaming sword.
For some reason, though, after learning this technique, when Satoru wanted to test it on Yamamoto, he was outright refused and even got a beating.
What an unfortunate teacher.
Retracting the twin blades, Satoru shook his head and sighed.
With Aizen's cooperation, the two swiftly dealt with this batch of Adjuchas.
"Let's go!"
Satoru shouted, taking the lead as he sprinted into the distance.
Aizen followed without hesitation.
Sung-Sun looked toward Harribel, and seeing her nod, quickly followed as well.
Soon after, a swarm of Menos Grande flickered into existence, appearing on the battlefield.
Sensing the violent Reiatsu lingering in the air, the Menos Grande all revealed astonished expressions.
"This Reiatsu... it doesn't belong to that woman Tier Harribel."
"It's a Shinigami!"
"What? A Shinigami has come here?"
Then, one of the Menos Grande cried out in disbelief, "They're all dead! The entire advance team is dead!"
"How is this possible... from when the battle started until we arrived, it's only been a few minutes. How could they all be dead?!"
Among the hollows, a Shinigami frowned.
He was a second-generation disciple of the Tsunayashiro Clan. When Tsunayashiro Senzaemon left the Soul Society, he followed and escaped to Hueco Mundo.
Now, he held the position of a squad leader in Las Noches' extermination force, commanding five Adjuchas.
Unlike these Menos Grande around him who only knew how to scream wildly, he detected a familiar scent at the scene.
Although the Reishi fluctuations had been deliberately concealed, this violent fighting style—he only knew one Shinigami who would fight like this.
The prodigy of the Shin'ō Academy, Satoru Mikami!
That guy... is in Hueco Mundo right now?!
The moment the thought surfaced, cold sweat broke out on his back.
An Adjuchas bared its fangs:
"Who cares if he's a Shinigami or not? With so many of us, are we really afraid of him?"
"That's right! Capture Tier Harribel, then catch the Shinigami... Lord Baraggan will surely reward us!"
"Capture them, capture them!"
Amid the excited howls of the Adjuchas, the Shinigami from the Tsunayashiro Clan suddenly shouted angrily: "Shut up!"
The Adjuchas all looked at him in surprise.
The Shinigami frowned: "The enemy's identity is unknown, and Tier Harribel is a Vasto Lorde. How can we act recklessly?"
"The top priority is to return to Las Noches and report this matter to Lord Senzaemon and Lord Baraggan!"
An Adjuchas complained discontentedly: "Are you kidding? We've chased them all the way here. Are we just going to let them escape?"
The Shinigami cursed him ten thousand times in his heart.
You fool, if you want to seek death before Satoru, don't drag me along!
However, considering the current situation of the Tsunayashiro Clan, he patiently explained:
"No need to worry. We have Tier Harribel's subordinates in our hands. Given her personality, she won't abandon her subordinates and escape alone."
"Sooner or later, she'll come back on her own!"
Hearing this, the Adjuchas looked at each other.
Although very dissatisfied, considering that Lord Baraggan had specifically instructed them before departure to consult this Shinigami's opinion when encountering situations, they finally nodded.
Dozens of Menos Grande, one after another, stepped on Sonído and left the battlefield.
The Shinigami breathed a sigh of relief and hurriedly followed.
...
...
"They've turned back."
Aizen sensed the movements of the Menos Grande through the Reiatsu detector he had left at the scene.
"They turned back?"
Harribel was somewhat surprised.
She had been pursued by these Menos Grande for several days.
These maniacs were completely unreasonable.
Although more than ten of them had died, the enemy still had an overwhelming numerical advantage. Logically, they shouldn't have given up so decisively.
Satoru chuckled proudly:
"No need to be surprised. Presumably, there's someone sensible on the other side who guessed that I have descended."
"Facing an unbeatable strong enemy, choosing to retreat is a wise move."
Hearing this, Sung-Sun couldn't help but roll her eyes: "Thick-skinned."
"Hmph, regardless of how thick my skin is, we won, didn't we?"
"Hmm..."
Sung-Sun fell silent.
No matter how much she wanted to argue, she had to admit that this Shinigami had indeed helped them tremendously.
Harribel stopped.
"Both of you, thank you for your assistance."
"I have matters to attend to and must leave now."
"If we have the chance to meet again, I will properly repay you."
As she spoke, she looked at Satoru.
"Right here?"
"What?"
"Using my ○○."
Harribel raised her hand and gently placed it on her chest.
"May I ask, how exactly should it be done?"
"Should it be cut off?"
"?"
Satoru's eye twitched.
What kind of extreme content is this?
He realized Harribel was referring to the initial condition for requesting his help.
Looking at Harribel's perfect form, his eyes lit up.
Aizen felt somewhat speechless.
"I'll go check the surroundings."
With that, his figure flashed and disappeared from the spot.
Satoru took a deep breath and walked over to stand before Harribel.
A short while later, Aizen returned to the location.
He saw that Harribel and Sung-Sun were already gone.
Satoru, meanwhile, sat quietly on the sand, his face devoid of emotion as if he had lost all faith.
"Satoru?"
Aizen approached with a puzzled expression.
Satoru lifted his head and looked at his sworn brother.
"Sōsuke..."
"That bone armor... it's actually grown on her body..."
"I couldn't... reach inside at all..."
"This is wicked! Absolutely despicable!!"
Aizen: "..."
Watching Satoru gradually slump to the ground, pounding the sand while wailing bitterly, Aizen felt the urge to kick him.
He shook his head gently and raised a hand to massage his forehead.
After his blood pressure had somewhat subsided, he spoke:
"Enough, stop this madness."
"Rest for a while, then prepare to move out."
Satoru instantly looked up, his face completely dry despite his previous heart-wrenching sobs.
"Move out? Where to?"
"Las Noches."
Aizen's gaze remained calm as he looked toward the crescent moon in the distance.
"Two of Harribel's subordinates have been captured. Given her personality, she'll definitely attempt a rescue."
"A Vasto Lorde-level Menos Grande going all out will certainly cause significant turmoil in Las Noches."
"We'll hide in the shadows and take advantage of the chaos. If an opportunity arises, we'll strike at either Baraggan or Tsunayashiro Senzaemon."
Hearing this, Satoru was momentarily taken aback.
"Strike at those two? Neither is an easy opponent, and they're currently in an alliance."
"Unless we can kill them with one strike, any attempt would be futile."
"If they risk injury to hold us back and join forces, we'd be in serious danger."
Aizen chuckled and shook his head.
"There's no need to kill them."
"Satoru, you think too highly of these people."
"Not all alliances are as steadfast as ours."
"Baraggan and Senzaemon are ultimately just using each other."
"As long as both preserve their strength, this alliance can continue."
"But... if either shows a weakness, the other will devour them."
"Our goal is simple: inflict serious injury on one of them if possible."
"If we succeed, Las Noches won't be far from changing its ruler."
Satoru's eyes lit up.
"What a brilliant plan!"
"Sōsuke, truly my master strategist! Such cunning schemes come to you so effortlessly!"
"?"
Aizen took a deep breath and added another entry to Satoru's grudge notebook.
Just as he was about to speak, he noticed Satoru turning to look elsewhere.
Seeing Satoru's movement, Aizen immediately began gathering Reishi within his body, preparing to unleash Kidō.
Under their watchful eyes, a figure appeared atop a nearby dune in a flash of Sonído.
A Hollow.
Satoru raised an eyebrow.
This Hollow resembled a snow-white leopard with fine black cracks covering its body.
Judging by its Reiatsu, it was likely an Adjuchas-level.
Moreover, it was a top-tier Adjuchas, one that had slumbered for a century... ahem.
Its Reiatsu intensity approached the limits of what an Adjuchas could achieve.
Theoretically, an Adjuchas of such strength should have already evolved into a Vasto Lorde.
It seemed this Hollow lacked the potential, having accumulated enough power but failing to take that final step.
Aizen's eyes gleamed.
A perfect test subject!
Satoru, however, found the Hollow somewhat familiar.
As he pondered, the leopard-like Hollow flashed again, closing the distance between them.
The large leopard warily watched the two, appearing both eager to approach yet deeply guarded.
After a few seconds of silence, it spoke:
"Shinigami."
"You are a Shinigami, correct."
Its eyes remained fixed intently on Satoru.
"Indeed, a genuine Shinigami through and through."
Satoru grinned and took a few steps forward.
"Big kitty, looking for me?"
"Could it be your neck itches and you want someone to scratch it?"
The white leopard showed no reaction to Satoru's teasing.
Staring at Satoru, it took a deep breath and said, "Shinigami, I want to challenge you."
"I saw your battle just now."
"You're strong. I'm no match for you."
"That's why I want to challenge you."
Hearing this, Satoru found it somewhat amusing.
"If you know you can't beat me, why still challenge me?"
"Because I want to become stronger."
The white leopard answered without hesitation.
"If I can defeat you, I'll definitely advance to a new stage."
"I'm a Hollow, and the meaning of my existence is to continuously evolve."
"If I can't evolve to a new stage, I might as well die!"
Nearby, Aizen gave an almost imperceptible nod.
These words were correct, and he approved of them.
If all Hollows could have such resolve, that would be ideal.
His experimental materials would likely increase a hundredfold.
As for Satoru, he was feeling an increasing sense of déjà vu.
He recognized this Hollow.
He rubbed his chin. "What's your name?"
"Grimmjow," the white leopard instantly replied. "Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez!"
Oh ho.
Hearing this name, Satoru was delighted.
So it's you, big kitty!