Following the line of the longsword, its owner was a scrawny young man dressed in rags. A messy mane of hair, like withered grass, obscured most of his facial features. His face was covered in dark red grime—it was unclear whether it was blood, mud, or a mixture of both.
"I knew it. People who wear clothes like that aren't weak." The mouth beneath the long hair opened and closed, the voice deep and hoarse. "But you're much stronger than them. Not bad at all."
"Did you kill the Shinigami who were here before?" Kōe scrutinized the long-haired man before him. He had the typical look of a vagrant, but his skills suggested otherwise. Though his words were arrogant, they weren't empty boasts. If it had been an ordinary Shinigami, they really might have been cut down just now.
"Some were too weak. I skewered them before they could even react. A lot of others managed to block and played with me for a bit, but most of them weren't very satisfying." The man tilted his head up slightly, his tone filled with nostalgia and sheer enjoyment.
From his words, Kōe realized that the man didn't simply enjoy slaughter; what he truly relished was an evenly matched battle, a life-and-death struggle on the razor's edge. The man placed no value on life, whether his own or his enemy's. As long as it was fun, what did it matter if he threw his life away?
"You're different from those guys. I think I'll be able to enjoy myself this time!" As the man spoke, a fierce aura erupted from his body. He twisted the longsword in his hand and slashed upward at Kōe.
*'Lunatic!'* Kōe's temper flared. He raised his right foot and stomped down directly onto the blade's edge, while Kōki had already vanished from the scabbard in his left hand.
"Trample, Kōki!"
The black boot and the silver longsword clashed in mid-air, ringing out with a crisp snap. For a moment, neither side could advance an inch, locked in a tense stalemate.
"Yes! Just like that!" the long-haired man roared in excitement. "Changing shapes back and forth! Fighting you people is just too much fun!"
"Then let me show you something even more fun!"
Kōe shifted his ankle, deflecting the longsword beneath his foot, and thrust his empty right hand straight at his opponent's face. Kōki instantly reverted into a black short blade, materializing in his grasp and drawing a spray of blood. This time, the long-haired man took the hit.
If that thrust had landed solidly, the long-haired man's neck would have been pierced through, killing him on the spot. Strangely, however, he seemed to sense something at the very last second. He jerked his head in a bizarre evasion and immediately leaped backward. Kōki only managed to leave a gash across his face!
"Hahaha! Fun, this is too much fun!" The man laughed uproariously without a hint of panic, his grin stretching almost from ear to ear.
The man's sheer madness made even Kōe shudder inwardly. The person in front of him felt no fear from being injured; he was a genuine combat machine!
The only way to stop this combat machine was to destroy him! Realizing this, Kōe immediately closed the distance with Shunpo. Wasting breath on him was completely pointless!
Kōki's combat style relied on fluidity and unconstrained imagination. Blocking a sword barehanded, then instantly transitioning to a lethal strike with a short blade—such unimaginable maneuvers were made reality by Kōki's unique trait of having zero release time.
Thanks to this trait, Kōki's combat rhythm was entirely unorthodox. As Yamamoto had once described it, the entire battle was like being caught in a deep-sea undercurrent—seemingly chaotic and disordered, but in truth, every move was lethal and fraught with killing intent.
Taking the initiative, Kōe kept the rhythm of the battle firmly in his grasp. The man didn't back down either; in just a few breaths, the two had exchanged over a hundred blows.
This deep-sea undercurrent style of fighting made the long-haired man suffer immensely. By now, most of his clothes were soaked red with blood, turning him into a near-gory mess.
Yet, Kōe's mood was anything but relaxed. His opponent was indeed covered in blood, but only Kōe knew the truth: while he had been able to threaten the man's vitals at the start, he was now only occasionally leaving minor scratches on inconsequential areas.
The man before him was adapting to the battle at an astonishing speed, even showing signs of seizing back the initiative!
*Bang!* The man's longsword was once again caught on Kōe's shoulder by his gauntlet. Without hesitation, Kōe drove his empty right hand straight toward the man's throat. But this time, the man didn't dodge; he formed a fist with his left hand and met the strike head-on.
"Do you not want this arm anymore?" Kōe asked, his tone icy.
"Take it if you have the skill! Hahaha!"
The two fists collided forcefully, producing a dull thud. Immediately after, both exerted force simultaneously, loosening their footing to use the other's momentum to push back and create distance.
"Looks like you can't take this arm just yet, hehe!" the man laughed easily.
Kōe remained expressionless, seemingly unfazed, but his mind was already churning like a stormy sea. It looked like the opponent had figured out Kōki's weakness, but to what extent did he understand it?
"I was thinking, there should be two ways to deal with you. The first is to widen the attack distance!"
As the man spoke, white Reiryoku wrapped around his longsword. With a casual swing, the Reiryoku on the blade surged toward Kōe like a wave alongside the slash.
Kōe furrowed his brow slightly and clenched his right fist. White Reiryoku similarly coated Kōki's gauntlet as he threw a heavy punch directly into the oncoming Reiryoku slash.
With a deafening boom, fierce winds carrying dust and gravel ravaged the surroundings. When the dust settled, the area within a one-mile radius of the two had been reduced to barren earth.
"Is that your solution? It's certainly convenient for weeding," Kōe mocked verbally, though he felt far from relaxed internally.
Distance was indeed one of Kōki's weaknesses. Yoruichi had mentioned it six years ago, though it wasn't a fatal flaw. But since the man said there were two ways, could the second be the one he feared most?
"Of course, you wouldn't be someone I could brush off with a couple of casual swings," the man's voice rang out again. "If your blade transformed just a bit slower, I'd probably be dead right now!"
Before his voice even faded, the man raised his sword and slashed again. Kōe had no choice but to raise his left arm to block, recreating the exact same stance from before they separated.
"Neck or heart, pick wherever you like to stab! Let's see if you get sliced in half first, or if I get skewered first!" The man said, increasing the force in his hands. He grinned widely and laughed, "Or maybe we'll die at the same time? Who knows! Hahaha!"
Kōki's greatest weakness had been found! Kōe's face turned ashen. He turned his right hand into a palm, slapped the man's longsword away, and leaped backward, creating distance once more.
Kōe's combat strategy relied entirely on Kōki's zero-delay transformation speed. This was Kōki's greatest advantage; without it, Kōki was just an ordinary Zanpakutō.
But sometimes, the greatest advantage could also be the greatest flaw. Such was the case with Kōki. The rapid form-shifting seemed to offer both offense and defense, but in reality, all Kōki could do was switch between offense and defense—and in an extremely polarized manner.
How to explain it? Simply put, the blade and its other forms could only exist one at a time. You could launch a lethal attack in an instant, but at that exact moment, your defense would completely vanish!
Therefore, while Kōki excelled at trading blows in a life-for-a-life scenario, it was also most vulnerable to that exact same suicidal fighting style. That was why Kōe had always forcefully deflected the opponent's attacks before launching an offensive with his free hand—to avoid that momentary loss of defense.
But if an enemy stuck to him like glue, Kōe wouldn't dare transform Kōki. Just like the situation moments ago: if he had dared to revert Kōki back into a short blade, the first time he would have lost his left shoulder, and the second time he would have been cleaved clean in half! So back then, it wasn't that he didn't want the opponent's arm—it was that he didn't dare take it!
In times like this, he needed to employ a different strategy: abandoning the short blade transformation entirely and relying on Hakuda techniques, striking and disengaging instantly.
However, that would mean genuine hand-to-hand combat with absolutely no room for tricks. Furthermore, with Kōe's current half-baked Hakuda skills, using such a method was undoubtedly a death sentence.
Then perhaps he should expose his Kidō skills? Kōe believed that, given the man's recent performance, he was confident he could instantly kill him without giving him a chance to adapt!
Just then, Kōe sensed people approaching from behind. A fair number of them, about five or six. Kōe's lips curled up into a smile as he said, "People like me are coming. Do you still want to fight?"
"Will they interfere in our battle?"
"I imagine they will. Besides, attacking a Shinigami is a major crime."
The man curled his lip, looking thoroughly displeased. He hung his longsword directly at his waist, seemingly deciding to call it quits.
"What's your name? Where can I find you later?" the man asked, clearly still wanting a rematch with Kōe.
"Kōe Shihouin! As for where to find me?" Kōe smirked wickedly, pointing in the direction of the Seireitei. "That way, there's a place called the Seireitei. I'll be there in the future!"
"There? I know people who wear the same clothes as you all come from there. It'll definitely be a lot more fun!"
After saying that, the man turned and walked away. Watching his retreating back grow further and further away, Kōe couldn't help but feel a surge of secret satisfaction. *'Silly child, I hope to see you fighting bloody battles in the Seireitei! Wait, no, I might never have to see you again. This feels great!'*
"Oh right! Let me ask you something!" The man suddenly stopped in his tracks and turned his head to shout at Kōe.
"Uh... go ahead and ask!"
"Why aren't you named Kenpachi!"
*'This idiot kid actually knows about Kenpachi?'* Kōe was genuinely shocked. Strictly speaking, Kenpachi wasn't a name but a title—a title bestowed upon the strongest Shinigami in the Seireitei, passed down from generation to generation.
Of course, there was an element of exaggeration to it. Based on Kōe's knowledge from his past life, the true strongest Shinigami of any generation never actually held the title of Kenpachi—like Old Man Yama right now.
So to be precise, Kenpachi actually represented the Shinigami with the strongest swordsmanship. While it still sounded incredibly intimidating, the actual power it represented was heavily discounted.
"Because I'm not the strongest Shinigami in the Seireitei, so I can't be called Kenpachi!"
"There are stronger ones?" The man looked thoughtful, then shouted back, "Then tell the Seireitei Kenpachi that I'll come challenge him in the future!"
Kōe was highly amused hearing this. *'What the hell is a Seireitei Kenpachi? Who on earth told him that the strongest person in an area has to be named [Location] plus Kenpachi?'* But Kōe had no intention of correcting him. On the contrary, he planned to pass those exact words on to the "Seireitei Kenpachi." The resulting scene would definitely be explosive!
"Sure! But you have to tell me your name first!"
"Kenpachi! My name is also Kenpachi! But I'm the strongest in the Zaraki district, so..."
*'Kenpachi is the strongest person, and this idiot uses a [Location] plus Kenpachi naming format, so he's the Kenpachi of the Zaraki district...'*
*'Wait, that's not right!'* A specific name surfaced in Kōe's mind, but he couldn't possibly connect it to the ragged man standing before him. *'It couldn't be, right...'*
"So my name is Zaraki Kenpachi!" Kenpachi turned around, waving his hand as he continued, "Then I'll see you in the Seireitei later!"
*'I'm doomed! Absolutely, completely doomed!'* He never in a million years expected that the guy right in front of him was Zaraki Kenpachi!
Zaraki Kenpachi, the future Captain of Squad 11 in the Seireitei, a battle maniac, a guy who spent his days bored out of his mind, finding joy only in picking fights with people!
Thinking of this, Kōe couldn't help but gulp. By catching Zaraki Kenpachi's interest, he had just landed himself in massive trouble! And as for that "Seireitei Kenpachi," Kōe could only offer a silent apology in his heart. He had accidentally sent a ravenous wolf right to their doorstep—who could have possibly seen that coming?
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