If Rukia were to meet Renji in her current state, it would indeed scare him out of his wits.
So, let the Hollow version of Rukia deal with the Hollow version of Shiba Kaien.
After saying this, Haruki rushed toward Renji's location.
Of course, he wouldn't let Renji see his face, so the moment he appeared, he donned a mask.
This time, he didn't use "Similar Appearance," as that ability had a cooldown period of three days, which was the case for most abilities.
Many of the soul abilities he had obtained had this three-day cooldown, though offensive abilities like "Destructive Death Beam" and "Fireball" didn't have such restrictions. Mainly, the cooldown applied to utility-based abilities.
The Hollow mask covered Haruki's face, and in the next instant, he appeared before Renji, who was hiding among the quartz trees.
Renji's pupils dilated in shock, and he immediately swung Zabimaru. However, Haruki's speed far surpassed his.
By the time Zabimaru was halfway through its swing, Haruki's finger had already touched Renji's forehead.
"Byakurai."
Haruki whispered, and in the next moment, a surge of spiritual energy rushed into Renji's body. A flash of light emanated from Haruki's hand, and Renji, who had been about to attack, lost consciousness and collapsed to the ground.
"Byakurai" was a special Kidō, a combination of Hadō and Bakudō, capable of putting someone into a deep sleep and even suppressing their spiritual pressure.
After doing this, the mask on Haruki's face disappeared. He looked down at the unconscious Renji and said, "This place really does temper people. His reaction was quite fast just now."
It had to be said that Renji and the others were geniuses. Even Rukia, whose talent was slightly inferior, had managed to achieve Shikai not long after graduating. Renji and Kira, being top students, were even more impressive.
The reason Rukia was still just a regular Shinigami and not even a low-ranking officer was because her brother, Kuchiki Byakuya, had specifically arranged it that way.
Becoming an officer meant taking on officer-level missions, which could be dangerous.
It had to be said that Byakuya, as an older brother, had done quite well behind the scenes. If only he could show some kindness to Rukia openly, it would be perfect.
Haruki shook his head, then picked up Renji and returned to where Rukia was.
At this moment, Rukia was fighting Aaroniero.
Aaroniero hadn't undergone Arrancarization yet. Although he had the ability of a Gluttonous Hollow, he was still just a Gillian at his core.
With his current strength, he was no match for Rukia.
Haruki looked over and saw Aaroniero's soul ability.
Gluttonous Hollow: Devour the souls of others to gain their abilities and memories.
Like Baraggan, his innate ability was also his soul ability.
Similarly, Haruki's attitude toward Aaroniero was the same as his attitude toward Baraggan.
Although he coveted this ability, there was no real need to raise his favorability.
First, it was incredibly difficult to raise the favorability of beings like Baraggan and Aaroniero. They were vicious, malevolent Hollows, unlike Stark and Nelliel, who could be reasoned with. They were beyond redemption!
Even after Arrancarization, they remained deeply entrenched in their Hollow nature.
Trying to befriend such Hollows was far too challenging.
Second, it wasn't cost-effective.
Even if he went through the trouble of raising their favorability, the ability he gained wouldn't be as game-changing as Aizen's "Ascension to Godhood."
Was the Gluttonous Hollow ability really that amazing? Didn't he already have the potential for infinite abilities? So why bother with Aaroniero?
Third, sometimes the dead were more useful than the living.
In the original story, Szayelaporro had been very interested in Aaroniero's abilities, especially the special liquid he used to sustain his life. However, due to Aizen's presence, Szayelaporro couldn't act against Aaroniero.
Regardless, Aaroniero, as an extremely unique Gluttonous Hollow, held significant research value. If he were to die, Haruki could salvage parts of his body and potentially sell them later.
Therefore, Haruki didn't care about Aaroniero's life or death. He was just a somewhat special Gillian, and such Hollows were a dime a dozen in Hueco Mundo.
At this moment, Rukia was fighting Aaroniero, who had transformed into Shiba Kaien.
"We really don't need to fight, do we?"
Aaroniero said with a grim expression. "I don't know what's going on, but you've become a Hollow now. We're both Hollows. Are you really going to avenge this Shinigami?!"
After transforming into Shiba Kaien, Aaroniero used Shikai, but it was clear that even with Shiba Kaien's abilities, he was no match for Rukia.
Rukia swung her massive scythe, pressing forward relentlessly. Once the scythe cut into his body, even a Hollow's rapid regeneration couldn't heal the wounds.
In a short time, Aaroniero's body was covered in wounds.
He had Shiba Kaien's memories, so he naturally knew the woman before him was Kuchiki Rukia.
But he had no idea what had happened to Kuchiki Rukia, why she had appeared as a Hollow, and how she had gained such immense power!
"I'm nothing like trash like you."
Rukia made a bloodthirsty expression and said, "And..."
"Seeing you like this really makes me sick."
Dark purple spiritual energy surged around Rukia's scythe. She swung it forward, releasing a crescent-shaped wave of energy.
Aaroniero quickly stirred the seawater with his trident, but the purple crescent slash cut through the water and instantly cleaved through Aaroniero's body!
Aaroniero's eyes widened. Fortunately, while this slash had the property of ignoring defenses, it didn't prevent wounds from healing. He quickly activated his rapid regeneration to reconnect his severed body.
But Rukia's body disintegrated, and in the next moment, she reformed behind Aaroniero. She swung her scythe down heavily, leaving a long gash on Aaroniero's body!
A horizontal dark purple slash, combined with a vertical scythe cut, formed a cross on Aaroniero's body. Blood gushed from the cross-shaped wound!
The blood splattered onto Rukia's face, making her already "dark gothic girl" appearance even more sinister and terrifying.
She looked down at the fallen "Shiba Kaien," at his disbelieving eyes, and at his rapidly transforming corpse, which was reverting to Aaroniero's original form. Rukia sheathed her scythe.
Haruki arrived, his eyes narrowing as he looked at Aaroniero's true form.
He took out several vials from his pocket and began collecting the liquid and tissue fragments from Aaroniero's body.