Soi Fon immediately reported the sudden appearance of the mysterious man.
The Department of Research and Development stated that they would continue to monitor the situation. Meanwhile, Captain Kenpachi Zaraki of the 11th Division expressed great interest in the stranger and wanted to head to the World of the Living himself, but Captain-Commander Yamamoto stopped him.
Kaito had no idea that his alias had already drawn the attention of the Soul Society's upper echelons. He had already returned to the Kurosaki Clinic, shed his disguise, and shifted from Uchiha Madara back to Kaito Shiba.
"Tonight's battle shows that my strength is now comparable to a captain's."
Back in his room, Kaito found Ichigo lying on his bed, fast asleep. The kid must have drifted off before he got back.
This little guy.
He always claimed to dislike Kaito, but he was actually quite attached to him. A smile touched Kaito's lips. He laid out a futon on the floor and began to review the night's battle.
"Still, everyone makes mistakes. Right now, I can only activate my defense manually. I'll need to master the Reverse Cursed Technique before I can keep it running passively twenty-four hours a day."
"Only then will I truly be fearless, able to fight recklessly without worrying about injuries."
In the original story, Gojo Satoru only became the strongest because he mastered the Reverse Cursed Technique at the brink of death, healing his fatal wounds. In other words, once he mastered it, he could perfectly heal himself no matter how severe the damage.
This was completely different from a Hollow's High-Speed Regeneration. High-Speed Regeneration consumed a massive amount of Spiritual Pressure; if a Hollow's energy ran low, they couldn't regenerate at all. The Reverse Cursed Technique, however, used a minimal amount of energy to repair the body.
Mastering it could be summarized in a single word: invincibility.
The night passed quickly, and the sun rose in the east.
Kaito woke up to a terrible smell. Looking down, he saw that Ichigo had somehow rolled off the bed and was sleeping on the floor right next to him. Worse, the kid had stuck his foot directly under Kaito's nose.
Kaito mischievously wrapped Ichigo tightly in a blanket, leaving only a small opening near his face. Then he pointed his butt toward the opening and let out a fart he had been holding in all night.
"Kaito!"
Ichigo woke up furious. What on earth had this guy eaten last night?
Amid Ichigo's coughing and cursing, Kaito burst into laughter and bolted from the room.
"Good morning, Mrs. Kurosaki," Kaito said as he ran downstairs and saw Masaki Kurosaki busy in the kitchen.
"Good morning, Kaito. Breakfast is ready on the table."
Though Masaki smiled and looked healthy, Kaito's Six Eyes could see that her spiritual energy was steadily draining. Her rosy complexion was likely just the result of careful makeup.
"Thank you."
Kaito sat down to eat, his mind racing. I need to hurry up. I can only cure her once I master the Reverse Cursed Technique.
Beep beep!
His phone buzzed. Kaito flipped it open.
"A Hollow has appeared in Kabukicho, Sector 13!"
Kaito recalled that the Kabukicho district he visited yesterday was indeed in Sector 13. What a coincidence. After finishing his breakfast, Kaito said goodbye to Masaki and hurried out.
On the way, Kaito wondered if the powerful Hollow hiding in Kabukicho had finally made its move. If it really was that Vasto Lorde, even Soi Fon would struggle, which would likely draw more captain-level Shinigami to the scene. If that happened, stealing the kill would be difficult.
Kaito lowered his head, calculating his chances. But as he drew closer to Kabukicho, he realized he was completely mistaken.
Judging by the spiritual pressure in the air, the creature wasn't a Vasto Lorde at all. It was just a weak, ordinary Hollow. It wasn't even a Gillian.
"I was overthinking it," Kaito sighed.
His interest evaporated, and he slowed his pace.
While Kaito relaxed, Kiyone was pushed to her absolute limit. She was facing a Hollow whose strength was dangerously close to a Gillian's. Kiyone wasn't a combat-focused Shinigami, and fighting a Hollow far stronger than herself was a nightmare.
She had already sent out a distress signal, and Captain Soi Fon was on her way, but she wouldn't make it in time. A bustling district lay just behind them. If this Hollow broke through, it would cause massive casualties in minutes.
As a Shinigami, she couldn't retreat. Steeling her resolve for death, she stood firmly against the gorilla-like Hollow.
Unbeknownst to her, a beautiful woman was watching the entire battle unfold from a nearby building in Kabukicho. When her coworkers followed her gaze, they saw nothing but empty air.
Kana's beautifully made-up face remained entirely expressionless.
Watching her from a distance with his Six Eyes, Kaito felt a bit helpless. He had wanted to see if this was a trap set by the hidden Hollow, but it seemed she had no intention of intervening.
Seeing that Kiyone was completely exhausted and about to die with no rescue in sight, Kaito decided to step in.
"I really don't know if a Hollow of your level hiding in the human world is a good thing or a bad thing."
Muttering to himself, Kaito vanished and reappeared right in front of Kiyone just as the Hollow swung its massive fist.
"Bakudo #81, Danku!"
A transparent wall of energy materialized. The Hollow's fist slammed into it, leaving only a faint crack.
"Hado #63, Raikoho!"
Kaito raised a finger, and a massive blast of lightning erupted forward, tearing right through the Hollow's head. It was an instant kill.
The Hollow dissolved into spirit particles and scattered into the air.
Ding! Hollow eliminated. Fusion progress increased by 0.5%!
Kiyone stared blankly at Kaito. Wasn't this the trainee from the Shinigami Academy? He had defeated a Hollow that powerful without even drawing his Zanpakuto, relying entirely on high-level Kido. It seemed the rumors about these trainees were true.
"Kiyone, aren't you assigned to logistics? Why are you on the front lines?" Kaito asked.
The three trainees assigned to the human world had clear roles. Kiyone was supposed to handle logistics and medical support, while Kaito and Shino Madarame handled the fighting.
"This area was closer to me," Kiyone explained, catching her breath. "Shino was temporarily reassigned by Captain Soi Fon to lead the other trainees."
What a lazy captain, Kaito thought.
He didn't realize that after last night's battle, Soi Fon was too preoccupied with finding the man named Uchiha Madara to care about supervising student field trips.
Suddenly, Kaito sensed a familiar spiritual pressure approaching from the distance.
He smirked. "Well, since it's taken care of, I'm leaving. Captain Soi Fon will be here any second, so you can report to her."
"Don't run off so fast," Kiyone said quickly. "What if she wants to ask you something?"
Kaito shrugged. "Just tell her what happened. It's the same thing either way."
He had to leave. He and Soi Fon just didn't get along right now.
Kaito used Shunpo to vanish. After covering some distance, the system's voice echoed in his mind.
Mission: Please go to Kabukicho within twenty minutes and stay there for two hours!
Looking back at Kabukicho in the distance, Kaito smiled. "Talk about perfect timing."
He could go back and see what kind of face that hidden Hollow was making after watching one of her kind get obliterated.
Meanwhile, Soi Fon arrived at the scene. After listening to Kiyone's brief report, an inexplicable wave of irritation washed over her when she heard Kaito was the one who saved the day.
Why did this guy always seem to be everywhere?