Nelliel was a bit shocked.
She hadn't actually met many Shinigami.
Because Hollows—especially Menos Grande—rarely ventured into the Human World.
And if they just stayed in Hueco Mundo, they almost never encountered Shinigami.
Although now and then Shinigami would enter Hueco Mundo to fight Hollows, they were rare.
So Nelliel didn't harbor deep hatred toward Shinigami.
But a Hollow is a Hollow, and a Shinigami is a Shinigami; by nature, they're opposed.
So Nelliel had never imagined a Shinigami would say to her face that he wanted to be friends…
"You…"
After a moment of silence, Nelliel said, "If your comrades find out you're with a Hollow, they might see you as a traitor, no?"
"It's fine." Yoshio smiled. "My captain is easygoing; his view of Shinigami and Hollows is about the same. He doesn't think there's any difference between them."
"A captain-class Shinigami could think that way?" Nelliel found it hard to imagine.
"Mm… I think you'll meet him sooner or later. Then you'll know."
Yoshio wasn't lying. In Aizen's eyes, there really wasn't much difference between Shinigami and Hollows—they were all just "lesser beings."
…
Nelliel watched Yoshio hop down from the Menos Grande's corpse and couldn't help glancing back.
"If you want to follow, then follow. I never said I'd be friends with a Shinigami."
With that, she continued across the reishi sands.
Yoshio smiled. That kind of tsundere talk didn't work on him; he could see people's favorability toward him.
At the moment, Nelliel's favorability had already reached thirty.
Not high, but for a Hollow and a Shinigami, thirty was quite good.
Yoshio himself wanted Nelliel's ["Size Alteration"] ability; now that he was in Hueco Mundo, he might as well collect as many as he could.
So he followed behind Nelliel, chatting freely.
For Nelliel, she rarely encountered beings she could converse with in Hueco Mundo—let alone a Shinigami.
Meeting Yoshio was an unusual stroke of fortune for her.
And she was curious about Shinigami civilization.
So she asked, "How did the Soul Society transition from a savage state to civilization?"
"Civilization?"
Yoshio thought for a bit, then shook his head. "Actually, there's no such thing as 'civilization' versus 'savagery.' Soul Society is the same as Hueco Mundo: the strong survive, the weak perish."
"The reason you think Soul Society is civilized is simple—compared to you Hollows, we Shinigami are better at using tools."
"Tools?"
"Yeah. For example, Zanpakuto." Yoshio drew his Zanpakuto. "A Zanpakuto is a tool."
Before Zanpakuto, Shinigami were a very weak race. They could only fight with the most basic Zanjutsu, Hakuda, Shunpo, and Kido.
"At that time, the high-ranking beings among your Menos Grande—the Vasto Lorde—could run rampant in the Soul Society."
"But with the advent of Zanpakuto, Shinigami power increased dramatically. Now even ordinary captain-class Shinigami have the strength to deal with Vasto Lorde."
"…That's merely an increase in military power," Nelliel countered.
"Martial strength implies rule. The stronger the force, the stronger the control over subordinates. The Soul Society's so-called civilization arose from that, and in essence it's no different from the rule of the King of Hueco Mundo."
"Civilization is the sum of the humanistic spirit and inventive creations accumulated over the long course of human history that benefit understanding and adapting to the objective world, accord with the human spiritual quest, and are acknowledged and accepted by the greatest number of people."
Yoshio added, "Do you think the vast majority in the Soul Society can even recognize what Seireitei calls 'civilization'?"
"...That…" Nelliel didn't know Soul Society too well, but she did know that most souls lived in Rukongai.
Would the people of Rukongai agree with the so-called civilization of Seireitei?
She wasn't sure; she hadn't visited many districts of Rukongai.
Shinigami found it hard to enter Hueco Mundo, but Hollows could easily enter the Soul Society.
From that perspective, it seemed a bit unfair. While Hollows suffered mental defects, they indeed possessed extraordinary innate physical talents.
Super High-Speed Regeneration, Lanza, Sonido—powerful gifts they were born with.
Especially Garganta—divine art among divine arts—allowing them to move freely among the Three Realms. Shinigami still needed a Senkaimon to travel to other worlds, and entering Hueco Mundo was quite difficult.
Any Menos Grande could use Garganta to come and go freely between the Human World, Soul Society, and Hueco Mundo.
"Put it this way: beyond District 50 in Rukongai… the lives of souls there are no different from Hueco Mundo."
Yoshio said coolly, "So I don't agree with Soul Society's supposed civilization. It's just a mob leveraging their own strength to enforce a system that benefits 'noble rule.'"
"Perhaps…"
He bowed his head slightly and murmured, "Even such order is built on deceit and betrayal."
"You…" Nelliel turned to look at Yoshio, lost in thought.
"You seem to know a lot. Are all Shinigami like you?"
"If they were all like me, Soul Society would be in chaos." Yoshio suddenly stopped, then said, "But at least now you've seen me—and my captain. We… are odd ones."
"Don't you agree, Captain Aizen?"
The space ahead rippled, and Aizen's figure emerged.
Seeing the captain's haori on Aizen, Nelliel instantly grew intensely wary.
"No need," Aizen said flatly. "You're Yoshio-kun's friend in Hueco Mundo. We don't need to fight."
He had just used a cloak manufactured by Kisuke Urahara that could conceal reiatsu, and he'd also used a Kido invisibility technique.
But Yoshio saw through him at a glance.
It didn't mean Yoshio had great power or ability—just that he could see the Souls Ability marker on Aizen.
It had to be said, that Souls Ability prompt was really handy against those who could turn invisible or create illusions. As long as he focused on Souls Abilities, he could tell where someone was.
"Captain Aizen, have you finished your business?"
Yoshio narrowed his eyes slightly, then smiled faintly. "We can go back now, right?"
"Of course," Aizen said.
Yoshio: "But can this Hollow young lady come with us? I'd like to invite the antelope lady to visit the Soul Society."