Ren, who was sitting cross-legged in the cave, suddenly felt his spiritual pressure drop rapidly, falling to only half of its original level.
At the same time, in the Soul Society's 11th Division, Makoto Ito, the fourth seat of the division, sat cross-legged in his private dormitory. Suddenly, his eyes snapped open as the spiritual pressure around him surged!
In just a few breaths, he broke through from a powerful vice-captain level to third-class captain-level spiritual power!
In the 11th Division's meeting room, Kenpachi Zaraki noticed the sudden fluctuation in spiritual pressure. A smirk formed on his lips as he muttered:
"Getting stronger again, Ito?"
After a while, as Ren's aura began to rise again in Hueco Mundo, Makoto Ito's spiritual pressure gradually fell back to its original vice-captain level.
Ren's eyes slowly opened, his mask-covered face showing a hint of surprise. This was the newly awakened ability he had gained upon reaching the Adjuchas stage—Spiritual Pressure Sharing!
Ren could freely transfer spiritual pressure between himself and his Soul Society clone. The clone could draw from Ren's reserves, and Ren could likewise borrow power from the clone, temporarily boosting his own strength.
Even more impressively, the shared spiritual pressure would automatically convert into the appropriate form, eliminating the usual conflicts between Hollow reiatsu and Shinigami reiatsu.
After several experiments, Ren discovered that he could transfer up to 50% of his total spiritual pressure, but Makoto Ito, far away in the Soul Society, could only receive about 30%.
"Is it because of the distance?" Ren speculated. Perhaps the vast gap between Hueco Mundo and the Soul Society caused a loss in transmission.
Yet, even at 30%, Makoto Ito could momentarily step into the ranks of a captain. On the other hand, 30% of a vice-captain's power did little to enhance Ren's already formidable strength. Perhaps this ability would reach its full potential once his clone in the Soul Society grew stronger.
"Still, this is enough. If the clone can exhibit captain-level strength, then it's time to set my plan into motion."
"Aizen has just entered Hueco Mundo and will soon begin his large-scale Hollowfication experiments. With Las Noches in chaos and the power balance shifting, this is the perfect time to recruit more subordinates. Ideally, I should gather all of the future Espada under my command."
"According to my Soul Society clone's latest intel, a new batch of expeditionary forces has arrived in Hueco Mundo."
Ren murmured to himself in the cave.
Soul Society, 11th Division Barracks, Makoto Ito's Dormitory.
"Am I a cheat?"
Makoto Ito chuckled to himself at the thought.
"No, it's just a small increase in spiritual pressure—not nearly enough to be considered cheating. If anything, I'm at a disadvantage!"
As he thought about a certain blonde-haired idiot, Makoto Ito couldn't help but feel envious.
"Hey, Ito! You're getting stronger again! Come fight me!"
Before he could finish his thoughts, Kenpachi Zaraki stormed to his dormitory door, kicked it open without ceremony, and demanded an immediate sparring match.
"Oh, hello, Little Ito," Yachiru Kusajishi greeted cheerfully from Zaraki's shoulder.
Makoto Ito sighed helplessly. "Captain, didn't we just fight two days ago? My injuries haven't even healed yet! Why not go find a senior officer to spar with instead?"
It had been three years since he joined the 11th Division, and in that time, he had dueled countless times with Ikkaku Madarame and Kenpachi Zaraki himself. Although he still held the fourth seat, he had surpassed Ikkaku two years ago, able to defeat him effortlessly in combat. If not for his refusal to accept a promotion, he would have likely claimed the division's third seat by now.
But ever since then, he had become Kenpachi's favorite sparring partner. No matter how many times he got beaten to a pulp, Kenpachi would always come back for more the moment he sensed any increase in Makoto Ito's power.
"Tsk, Ikkaku's off training. Says he wants to master Bankai. If you ask me, that's pointless!"
"Better to test your strength in real combat!"
Zaraki declared nonchalantly.
Makoto Ito's mouth twitched. He glanced at Yachiru, perched comfortably on Zaraki's shoulder, then decided not to argue.
Ten minutes later, at the 11th Division's training grounds, Makoto Ito and Kenpachi Zaraki stood face to face.
He had tried to refuse, but there was no escaping a fight with Zaraki. If not for his insistence on moving to the training grounds, the two of them would have already wrecked his dormitory.
"Go, Ken-chan! Go, Little Ito!" Yachiru cheered from the sidelines, pumping her tiny fists excitedly.
Makoto Ito took a deep breath and bowed slightly. "Captain, please go easy on me."
"Tch, enough with the formalities! Just fight!"
Zaraki grinned savagely, raising his blade with one hand before charging straight at Makoto Ito.
Ren's wild slash, full of openings, came down recklessly, aiming at Makoto Ito without any precision or technique.
"Whoosh!"
Makoto Ito hastily used Shunpo to evade.
"Every time, you dodge like a slippery loach! Why don't you stand still and fight me head-on?!"
Seeing his attack miss, Kenpachi Zaraki clicked his tongue in annoyance. Without hesitation, he unleashed an even faster barrage of slashes. Makoto Ito, unable to dodge in time, had no choice but to grip his sword tightly with both hands and block the incoming strike.
"Clang!"
The clash of weapons echoed across the training ground. The sheer force of Kenpachi's attack traveled down Ito's blade and into his hands, causing his grip to falter. His palms split open from the impact, a thin trickle of blood dripping from his fingers.
In that moment, Makoto Ito fully grasped the immense gap between them. Kenpachi's attacks had no finesse—only raw, overwhelming power. It was like being struck by a falling mountain.
Taking a deep breath to steady himself, Makoto Ito fought to keep his trembling hands firm. He took a few cautious steps back before activating his Shikai.
"The spirits of the wicked roam freely, the divine and the sacred are reduced to dust—Annihilation God!"
In an instant, Makoto Ito's Asauchi transformed into a slender, pale-white bone blade.
"First Form of Annihilation—Shock!"
A powerful oscillating force surged from the bone blade. At the same time, Kenpachi felt a strange sensation—like his internal organs were being forcefully pulled. However, he barely flinched, merely slowing for a brief moment before grinning.
"Hah! You've used this trick so many times—I've already memorized the frequency of your oscillations!"
With a sneer, Kenpachi raised his sword and charged forward once more.
"How can someone get used to something like this?!"
Makoto Ito groaned internally, realizing just how troublesome Kenpachi was. He mustered all his spiritual pressure and met his opponent head-on. By expertly using the shockwave's force to offset some of Kenpachi's raw strength, he barely managed to hold his ground.
"Second Form of Annihilation—Split Ban!"
With a sharp movement, Makoto Ito swung his bone blade in a circular motion, releasing a gray mist from its tip. The mist spiraled toward Kenpachi, who, instead of dodging, took the attack head-on with his chest.
"Boom!"
The gray mist exploded upon impact, releasing a shockwave that cracked the blue stone flooring of the training ground. Spiderweb-like fissures spread outward from the point of contact.
"Gah!"
Kenpachi spat out a mouthful of blood but merely shook his head, grinning.
"Ito, you're holding back, aren't you? As your captain, I order you—fight me with everything you've got!"
Makoto Ito sighed helplessly, realizing there was no way out of this battle.
Meanwhile, far away in Hueco Mundo, Ren smirked beneath his mask.
"Do you need more power? Let me help you."
As he spoke, Ren's spiritual pressure began to plummet, dropping to half its original strength.
At the same time, in the Soul Society, Makoto Ito's reiatsu surged. The sudden boost pushed him past the limits of a vice-captain, elevating him into the ranks of third-class captain-level spiritual power!
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