After a while, a purple-haired man in a domineering black robe, exuding a menacing aura, appeared at the end of the ruined street. His tall figure was imposing, and he held a gleaming Zanpakutō in his grip, his eyes locked onto Ren.
But this time, Ren did not retreat. Instead, he charged forward without hesitation, his movements swift as the wind.
"Swish!"
In a blur, Ren's figure vanished, reappearing behind "Itokai" in an instant. Without pause, he thrust his blade forward, aiming for a lethal strike.
"Itokai" reacted with lightning speed, raising his sword just in time to parry Ren's attack. With a quick counter, he swung his weapon in a deadly arc, slashing toward Ren's face.
Ren twisted his waist and abdomen, bending backward to narrowly evade the attack. Using his momentum, he executed a powerful kick, sending "Itokai" staggering backward.
Not letting up, Ren extended his left hand, channeling his energy rapidly. Dozens of black and red energy spheres materialized and launched forward, obliterating the surrounding structures. The explosions roared like thunder, turning the low earthen houses into dust.
It was a Cero barrage!
Caught in the storm of destruction, "Itokai" blurred in and out of visibility, his form nearly reduced to a flickering afterimage as he dodged at the last second. The next moment, the devastated buildings reverted to their original state.
After all, this was "Itokai's" inner world, not the real Soul Society.
"Hadō 4: Byakurai!"
"Itokai" extended his finger, unleashing a white lightning bolt aimed directly at Ren. In response, Ren fired another Cero to counter it. The two attacks collided midair, creating a crackling explosion of energy.
"Who said the 11th Division doesn't use Kidō? This Byakurai is not bad!" Ren thought to himself, slightly amused by the irony.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
Steel met steel in a relentless exchange of slashes, each impact sending shockwaves through the battlefield. Wounds began to appear on both fighters, but there was a key difference—while "Itokai"'s injuries accumulated, Ren's wounds healed almost instantly, thanks to his rapid regeneration.
Realizing that pure swordplay would not be enough to defeat Ren, "Itokai" leaped back, raising his Zanpakutō high above his head and shouting:
"Let's fight to the death, Kamikazemaru!"
In an instant, the blade in his hands transformed into a black spear enveloped in a raging windstorm. Without wasting another second, he lunged at Ren once more.
"Hahaha! Now this is more like it!" Ren laughed, excitement gleaming in his eyes.
Lightning crackled along his blade as he met the incoming attack head-on. The air vibrated with the sheer force of their clash, as the roaring wind of Kamikazemaru met the destructive power of lightning.
"The Kamikazemaru First Form – Seven Blade Wind Kill!"
"Itokai" thrust his spear seven times in rapid succession, each strike unleashing a hurricane-like whirlwind. The spinning gales cut through the air, roaring toward Ren like a relentless storm of destruction.
But Ren did not waver.
He raised his blade, channeling an immense surge of power before roaring:
"Thunder Slash!"
A massive arc of golden lightning surged forward, colliding with the oncoming whirlwinds. The sheer force of his attack ripped through all seven hurricanes, dispersing them into nothingness.
"Slash!"
The ferocious energy left a deep, bone-revealing wound on "Itokai," carving from his left shoulder down to his waist. The wound was severe, yet "Itokai" fought on, ignoring his injuries as he pressed forward.
However, Ren had already noticed it—his opponent's speed was slowing.
"Even within an inner world, injuries still take their toll."
"The Kamikaze Second Form – Roaring Gale Dragon!"
Spinning his spear wildly, "Itokai" summoned a massive dragon of wind, its form twisting violently as it roared toward Ren. The attack was his ultimate technique, a force of nature itself.
Ren narrowed his eyes.
He lifted his blade horizontally, dark golden lightning crackling at its edge. A swirling sphere of black, red, and gold spiritual energy formed at its tip, growing denser by the second.
"Gran Rey Cero!"
The immense energy ball surged forward, the force so overwhelming that it shattered the very fabric of the inner world as it clashed against the wind dragon. The powerful blast annihilated the stormy beast in an instant, rendering it into nothingness.
Caught in the devastating explosion, "Itokai" and Kamikazemaru were both engulfed in the blast, their forms vanishing without a trace.
As the battle concluded, Ren felt his vision blur, and in the next moment, he returned to reality.
He exhaled sharply, assessing his condition. The fight had been intense, but it had granted him a deeper understanding of his own strength.
"My spiritual pressure now far surpasses that of a vice-captain, but my combat skills are still lacking compared to 'Itokai,'" Ren mused.
Despite his overwhelming power, his technique was still inferior. His swordsmanship was based mostly on instinct and borrowed knowledge. In his past life, he had been an ordinary man—a mere cog in the machine of society. His combat skills were self-taught after his transformation, supplemented by glimpses of Itokai's memories.
"If only I could train in the Soul Society..." Ren thought wistfully. But he knew better. As a Hollow, stepping foot into the Seireitei would be akin to painting a target on his back.
Yet, just as he pondered this dilemma, an idea struck him—a way to infiltrate the Soul Society without immediately being hunted down!
Half a month later, deep within the Forest of Void.
A centaur-like Adjuchas trembled before Ren, eyes filled with despair.
"Y-you... A dignified Vasto Lorde... Instead of challenging Beligang in Las Noches, you choose to torment an Adjuchas like me?!"
The fear in his voice was unmistakable.
Ren stood in place, momentarily caught off guard by the centaur Adjuchas' reaction.
"I'm... being mistaken for a Vasto lorde again?" he muttered to himself, half amused, half intrigued.
But it wasn't entirely unreasonable. Who could blame the centaur for such an assumption? After all, how many beings could annihilate an Adjuchas with a single strike? The sheer force Ren had displayed was enough to shake even the most seasoned warriors of Hueco Mundo.
Rather than responding, Ren simply offered a knowing smile. With one smooth motion, he swung his blade again, slicing cleanly through the centaur Adjuchas, leaving it no chance to react. A brief moment later, the creature let out a final, agonized screech before its body disintegrated into nothingness.
As the last remnants of his foe disappeared into the darkness of the Great Void Forest, Ren wasted no time. He immediately activated his ghoul soul technique, efficiently absorbing every ounce of spiritual energy the fallen Adjuchas had to offer. It was a process he had honed to perfection—a necessary step in his continuous path toward power.
Just as the energy settled within him, something unexpected happened. The centipede-like armor that extended from his mask twitched, then suddenly split, shedding a small portion of itself. The severed piece landed with a dull thud on the sand, writhing unnaturally before beginning to expand at an alarming rate. Within moments, the fragment transformed into a colossal, ten-meter-long centipede, its body adorned with an eerie white mask that concealed the maw beneath.
Ren narrowed his eyes, intrigued.
"So this is the clone ability I acquired upon reaching the rank of Gillian…" he murmured, fascinated by the manifestation of his new power.
Though he had possessed this ability for some time, his previous battles had been too demanding to risk experimenting with it. Now, however, he had both the time and an undeniable curiosity to explore its full potential.
His gaze met that of his clone—a perfect extension of himself. The two stared at one another, sharing the same consciousness, their thoughts perfectly synchronized. It was an uncanny experience, seeing oneself from an outside perspective.
"Incredible... watching yourself like this is truly something else," Ren remarked, his lips curling into a smirk.
As he carefully examined his duplicate, Ren quickly deduced that its spiritual pressure matched that of the Adjuchas he had just absorbed. By his estimation, the clone possessed roughly twenty percent of his own current spiritual energy—a significant sum, considering that it surpassed the total spiritual pressure he himself had before his recent evolution.
However, there was a catch. When crafting the clone, Ren had deliberately avoided bestowing it with any of his signature abilities, such as his thunder-infused slashes or his unique spiritual breathing technique. He had chosen not to fragment his core powers, ensuring that his original self remained the dominant force.
As a result, the clone lacked any personalized abilities. It was a blank slate, possessing only the standard skills of an Adjuchas—high-speed regeneration, Cero, and Sonído. Even so, it was more than enough for the purpose Ren had in mind.
With a final glance at his doppelgänger, Ren raised his right hand and slashed through the air. The fabric of space itself trembled at his command, splitting open to reveal an irregular rift. Within the darkness of the newly-formed void, a swirling black cavity took shape—the unmistakable entrance to a Garganta.
The clone didn't hesitate. With a powerful leap, it launched itself into the abyss, disappearing into the world beyond. A moment later, the black cavity snapped shut, sealing the passage as though it had never existed.
Ren exhaled slowly, a glimmer of satisfaction in his eyes.
"Now, let's see how far I can take this…" he mused, already considering his next move.
With his clone on its way to the human world, Ren knew he had set something significant into motion. This was only the beginning.