An endless desert. Standing there was a figure covered in a white exoskeleton. A large, hollow hole pierced through his chest, and a white mask concealed his face, hiding his true visage from the world.
After crawling out of the sand, Ren Kurogane looked around to find not a single living soul in his vicinity. Feeling the gnawing hunger in his stomach, he let out a frustrated sigh.
"I should have prepared more food."
Walking across the dunes, Ren's eyes were cold and indifferent as he searched for his next prey.
When he was first reborn as a Hollow, he had been filled with despair. After all, in this world, the position of a Hollow was incredibly awkward. Most of the time, they were mere playthings in the hands of Shinigami and Quincies. When figures like Aizen or Yhwach decided to take a stroll, the top-tier combatants of Hueco Mundo would suffer devastating casualties—they were essentially chess pieces kicked off the board of the Three Realms.
In any future Great War, Hueco Mundo was destined to be treated like a stress ball, easily squeezed and manipulated by the Gotei 13.
Thus, once he adapted to the laws of devouring and evolution in Hueco Mundo, Ren spent every day hunting to grow stronger. He intended to escape the fate of being a pawn—perhaps even by eventually siding with Aizen to use the Hogyoku to reach a higher state of existence.
Of course, the safest bet was always to get on the good side of the protagonist, Ichigo Kurosaki! As long as he clung to the protagonist's thigh, he might not achieve instant greatness, but staying alive would at least be guaranteed.
Unfortunately, he had no idea what the current year was. He didn't even know how long he had spent in the Menos Forest of the lower levels. If the plot had already ended, or if it wouldn't start for another few hundred years, neither scenario was good news for him.
Suddenly, a sense of crisis washed over him—an instinct forged through years of slaughter at the bottom. It never lied!
Whish—!
Ren's body vanished instantly, reappearing high in the air. A split second later, a massive tentacle over ten meters long erupted from the sand where he had just been standing. Had he been a second slower, he would have been skewered, ending his pathetic second life.
"An octopus? Looks tasty." Ren's expression turned predatory. He dove down, tearing a chunk of flesh from the tentacle in a single bite!
Munch, munch...
The sound of chewing echoed in the silence. Moments later, Ren let out a satisfied grunt. "As expected of an upper-level Hollow. The taste is divine!"
It was common knowledge that evolution for a Hollow was brutal. If any part of one's body was eaten, rendering the form "incomplete," the path to further evolution was permanently severed.
For instance, Ren had already transcended the Gillian class and reached the Adjuchas class. However, if a piece of his mask were bitten off by another Hollow, even if he survived, he would never be able to reach the Vasto Lorde class. He would be doomed to spend eternity living a life of cautious fear.
Therefore, during his evolutionary process, Ren focused his core development on High-Speed Regeneration and Hierro (Steel Skin). These were life-saving skills; as long as he wasn't obliterated instantly, he could recover.
As for offense, he had Cero. He had practiced until he could manipulate the energy into various forms.
"Rasengan Cero!"
Red energy gathered in Ren's palm. Unlike a standard, unstable, and violent Cero, his version was a highly stable, high-speed rotating structure!
The Rasengan Cero slammed into the tentacle, the terrifying shredding force pulverizing it instantly!
BOOM!
With an explosion, the tentacle was shredded, and the "Octopus" Hollow finally fully emerged from the sand! It was a gargantuan squid-like monster, its small eyes staring at Ren with pure malice. A shrill, screeching voice rang out: "You bastard! You actually ate a piece of my body!"
"Heh, I didn't just eat a piece. I plan on swallowing you whole!" Ren sneered. He vanished using Sonido, appearing behind the giant squid and tearing away another massive slab of meat.
Crunch, crunch... gulp.
Taking another bite, Ren felt fantastic!
The giant squid was beyond furious, nearly turning itself into grilled calamari with rage. "You mongrel! I'll kill you!"
Thwack! Thwack! Thwack!
Dozens of tentacles lashed out, but Ren moved through the air with the grace of a phantom, evading every strike. Finding his opening, a Big Ball Rasengan Cero ten meters in diameter manifested in his hand. The blood-red sphere radiated an oppressive pressure.
The sphere struck the squid's head dead-center. The power erupted like a high-velocity warhead, vaporizing the upper half of the monster's body.
Looking at the remains, Ren leisurely began his feast. In Hueco Mundo, squid was a rare and exquisite delicacy!
While he enjoyed his meal, similar battles were occurring across the upper reaches of Hueco Mundo. It was a cycle of devouring and being devoured; the law was cruel and heartless. Hollows grew stronger for one simple reason: to ensure they didn't become someone else's lunch.
Time blurred as days or weeks passed. Ren eventually pulverized another Adjuchas of his own level. As he finished his meal, a Hollow that looked remarkably like him—clad in white but possessing a pair of black wings—appeared before him.
"You?" Ren raised an eyebrow, assuming this was another challenger.
If he had retained all his memories of the series perfectly, he would have recognized this popular figure immediately: Ulquiorra Cifer.
Although he had not yet become an Arrancar, the pre-transformation Ulquiorra was highly recognizable. Unlike the rest of his demonic, pitch-black clan, he was born entirely white. Furthermore, he possessed only eyes; he had no ears, nose, or mouth. For him, the only way to experience the world was to "see."
Ren looked at the strange winged figure. He was currently holding a leg of some bull-like Hollow—a precious, "normal" piece of meat he didn't want to drop. But the white guy with wings looked dangerous; Ren was already considering a strategic retreat.
Ulquiorra didn't respond. He couldn't respond; he had no mouth.
The two stared at each other for a long moment. In the other's eyes, Ren saw coldness and, surprisingly, rationality.
Rationality? Have I finally gone mad? Thinking a Hollow has reason? Ren laughed at himself and went back to eating. Since the guy hadn't attacked immediately, he probably wouldn't.