Chapter 332: Hospitalization! Everyone, Get to the Hospital!
Eleventh Division Training Ground.
Two figures continuously clashed and separated on the field.
Each collision erupted with powerful Reiatsu.
The Eleventh Division squad members surrounding the training area roared with excitement.
"Go! Fifth Seat Madarame, take her down!!"
"Go for it! Sixth Seat Matsumoto, finish him off!!"
On the field, Madarame Ikkaku held his sword in one hand and the scabbard in the other, a mixture of excitement and ferocity on his face.
"Damn brat, you're really getting stronger..."
Rangiku landed lightly, curling up the corner of her mouth.
"You call this strong? The real strength hasn't even been shown to you yet."
"Heh... good, then let me see just how strong you are?!"
Veins bulged on Madarame Ikkaku's forehead, his smile growing increasingly villainous.
Under everyone's watchful eyes, he snapped the hilt and scabbard together—
"Extend, Hōzukimaru!!"
A storm of Reiatsu swirled as the katana transformed into a spear shape.
Gripping the wooden-shafted spear, Madarame Ikkaku let out a loud shout and leaped into the air, slashing down toward Rangiku.
Facing this powerful strike, Rangiku's expression didn't change in the slightest.
She raised her left hand and swept it across her Zanpakutō—
"Purr, Ashisogi Jizō!!"
Instantly, the entire blade disintegrated into countless fine metal particles that surged upward under Rangiku's command to meet Madarame Ikkaku.
Screeeeech!!!
Mid-air, Madarame Ikkaku's descending spear violently collided with Rangiku's iron-gray dust.
The moment his blade made contact with the iron sand, Madarame Ikkaku realized something was wrong.
The resistance from the iron sand had become much stronger compared to when he sparred with Matsumoto Rangiku two years ago!
Although the Reiatsu attached to it hadn't changed much, its defensive capability had improved by more than just a little.
The source of this change was undoubtedly the speed at which the iron sand flowed!
This girl's control over the iron sand has become stronger than before...
Madarame Ikkaku retracted his spear mid-air and performed a backflip, trying to return to the ground and find another opportunity to advance.
But before he could adjust his posture, two streams separated from the gray iron sand, closing in on him from two directions.
Damn!
Madarame Ikkaku's pupils contracted.
Under his "what the Komamura" gaze, the gray iron sand directly enveloped him.
Above, the iron sand sphere churned violently a few times before suddenly dispersing.
Madarame Ikkaku fell from mid-air, blood spraying from his entire body.
Just before he hit the ground, Rangiku hooked her finger, and several iron sand nets formed to catch Madarame Ikkaku.
Lying on the iron sand net, Madarame Ikkaku silently gazed at the sky, feeling as if he was questioning his life.
His injuries weren't serious—that little girl Rangiku had held back. Despite all the blood spraying out, they were actually just superficial wounds.
What was truly wounded was his young, fragile heart.
Since joining the Eleventh Division, he had to experience similar beatings about every dozen years or so.
These little monsters that Satoru picked up kept growing faster and faster.
Kaname Tōsen and Ichimaru Gin—both were complete novices when they first joined the division.
After a few decades, these two could already beat him effortlessly.
One of them had even become a captain.
The gap between them was truly frustrating.
As for Matsumoto Rangiku... when she was first picked up, she didn't have much desire to become stronger.
Typical "good enough is enough" attitude.
Until recent years, this girl had suddenly started training diligently for some unknown reason.
Madarame Ikkaku even suspected that this little girl might have secretly mastered Bankai.
As he was lost in thought, Ayasegawa Yumichika stepped onto the platform and announced Rangiku's victory.
Today's match wasn't merely a sparring session but a position-changing duel.
Rangiku's victory marked Madarame Ikkaku's abdication in favor of someone more capable.
The young woman was promoted to the fifth seat.
Once Komamura officially left the squad to become captain of the Tenth Division, she would advance further to become the fourth seat.
Sheathing her Zanpakutō, Rangiku left the training ground.
A young girl came running over.
"Matsumoto-senpai! You were so cool!"
The onion-haired girl clenched her fists before her chest, looking at Rangiku with sparkling, admiring eyes.
Rangiku chuckled proudly.
"This is just the beginning. There'll be even cooler moments later."
The onion-haired girl nodded vigorously, not doubting this in the slightest.
She pursed her lips, as if steeling her resolve about something.
"Matsumoto-senpai!"
"Hmm?"
"Please, can I learn from you how to become stronger?!"
The girl asked this question with great nervousness.
Looking at the girl beside her, Rangiku was slightly taken aback.
She had always been the little sister of the Eleventh Division. Even though she had grown up and was no longer that little girl, her status hadn't changed much.
Hearing someone call her senpai and wanting to learn from her made Rangiku unexpectedly happy.
"Not bad, Rukia. You've got good taste!"
Rangiku reached out and slapped her hand on Rukia's shoulder.
"Since you've asked me so sincerely, as your senpai, I naturally can't ignore your request."
"No time like the present. Starting today, you'll train with me!"
Hearing this, Rukia's eyes lit up, and she showed a happy smile.
"Yes!"
Leading Rukia into the dojo, Rangiku thought for a moment.
Then she clapped her hands and declared:
"Let's start with wrist strength training today!"
"With bamboo swords? I practice with them every day!" Rukia said eagerly.
Rangiku looked at her strangely.
"Bamboo swords? What use are those things... Wait here, I'll find something good for you!"
With that, she quickly ran to the storage room.
Soon after, under Rukia's astonished gaze, Rangiku returned carrying two "greatswords."
These "swords" had blades made from entire cylindrical stones.
The smaller one was about twenty-five centimeters in diameter and one meter long.
As for the larger one... it was nearly forty centimeters in diameter and about 1.2 meters long!
Just looking at them was enough to make one's pupils shake.
Rangiku held the thick one and handed the thinner one to Rukia.
"This is the one I used before. It's too light for me now and no longer useful, so I'll pass it to you."
"Don't let it down!"
Seeing how effortlessly Rangiku handled it, Rukia felt a surge of confidence.
Maybe it was made of special rock that looked heavy but was actually similar to a bamboo sword?
With curiosity, she reached out to take it—
BAM!!!
The onion-haired girl, along with the stone sword, was slammed into the floor.
...
...
In the living world, Karakura Town.
After filming a new commercial at Satoru Heaven, Satoru left satisfied.
Bringing Suì-Fēng with him, he arrived at Bambietta's residence.
Opening the door and seeing Satoru, Bambietta showed a happy expression.
But immediately after, seeing Suì-Fēng following behind Satoru, her face changed.
Memories of being trained by Suì-Fēng with various methods, pushed to the point of ecstatic oblivion, resurfaced vividly in his mind.
Noticing Bambietta's slight trembling, Suì-Fēng spoke up:
"Don't be afraid, I'm not here to…"
Before she could finish, the Quincy girl reached out and tugged at Satoru's sleeve.
"Are you two going to team up on me again? I'm not prepared yet… Wait here, I need to arrange my work and inform them I won't be going out for the next few days…"
With that, she turned and hurried back into the house.
Her brisk footsteps showed no trace of fear.
Satoru turned to look at Suì-Fēng.
He saw rare awe in the eyes of this interrogator, who had been trained in the Punishment Force since childhood.
Upon learning that Satoru and Suì-Fēng weren't there to discipline her, Bambietta's expression turned slightly disappointed.
But she quickly composed herself.
If these two had come to find her, there must be a reason.
If she performed well enough, couldn't she just request another reward later?
With this thought, Bambietta's anticipation returned.
She led Satoru and Suì-Fēng to the mansion's basement.
As a former Sternritter, her strength was beyond doubt.
The basement was spacious, its walls reinforced with Reishi to prevent any impact on the structures above ground.
After testing the basement's durability, Satoru nodded.
"Bambietta, next, I'll use some techniques."
"Use your judgment to evaluate whether I'm using them correctly and if there are any areas for improvement."
Upon hearing this, Bambietta felt somewhat puzzled.
Satoru's strength far surpassed her own, and he was a Shinigami—what ability did she have to assess his techniques?
Under her bewildered gaze, Satoru took a deep breath and raised one hand.
With his movement, a blue Reishi longbow appeared in his hand.
Bambietta: "?"
In his other hand, a blue Reishi arrow took shape, nocked and released with a whoosh.
Swish!!
The Reishi arrow struck the wall, leaving a scorched hole.
Then, Satoru raised one arm.
With a low grunt, blue patterns, resembling blood vessels, emerged from his arm.
Bambietta: "???"
If the Reishi bow and arrow could still be simulated using Shinigami abilities, this was truly beyond belief.
"Blut Vene?! How is that possible!"
She rushed to Satoru's side, grabbed his wrist, and lifted it to examine.
As hard as it was to believe, what had appeared on Satoru's body was indeed Blut Vene!
If it were merely special effects simulated with Reishi, she would have recognized it at a glance.
Being one of the youngest Sternritter was no joke!
Then, under Bambietta's incredulous stare, Satoru used several Quincy-exclusive skills.
This was no longer mere imitation of techniques.
Whether it was the Reiatsu fluctuations or the sensations these techniques evoked, they clearly required a genuine Quincy to achieve.
This was... utterly insane.
A Shinigami using Quincy techniques—had she gone mad, or had the world gone mad?
Seeing Bambietta's reaction, Satoru curled his lips into a smile.
Good. If he could shock Bambietta this much, it meant the power he simulated was flawless.
Originally, he had intended to ask Sōken Ishida to serve as an advisor.
However, considering it was best to keep this ability from outsiders, he ultimately chose to seek out Bambietta.
"How on earth did you do this?!"
Bambietta couldn't help but ask.
Satoru chuckled:
"For ordinary Shinigami and Quincy, their powers and techniques are entirely unrelated."
"But at my level, I can homogenize fundamentally different powers by comprehending their essence."
"So, little Bambietta, are you impressed?"
Bambietta nodded without hesitation.
To her knowledge, even Yhwach had never used Shinigami powers.
Regardless of how Satoru had achieved this, he had undoubtedly, to some extent, surpassed Yhwach.
Truly worthy of the man she followed!
After her astonishment subsided, she began earnestly helping Satoru study his new abilities.
Most of the Quincy skills Satoru used were learned from Soul Society's records.
The materials left by Saitō Furōfushi contained many techniques for using Quincy abilities.
Another portion came from what he had gleaned during his brief encounters with the Wandenreich.
As a result, many of his techniques were executed with a distinct sense of freedom.
They were related to the originals, but only loosely so.
With Bambietta's assistance, these half-baked skills were gradually perfected one by one.
After serving as Satoru's teacher for two full days straight, Bambietta made a small request.
She hoped Satoru and Suì-Fēng would blindfold her and do all sorts of things to her.
Thus, over the following days, Bambietta satisfied Satoru's demands during the daytime.
Every night, Satoru and Suì-Fēng together fulfilled her requests.
Unity and camaraderie flourished, creating a harmonious atmosphere.
...
...
After mastering all the fundamental Quincy skills, Satoru returned to his loyal Soul Society, thoroughly satisfied.
Entering the Eleventh Division barracks, he paused in surprise.
Beside his large fur-covered seat, another had appeared at some unknown time.
This new fur seat was smaller in size but perfectly matched the style of the larger one beside it.
Rangiku sat proudly upon the smaller fur seat, radiating confidence.
Satoru tilted his head.
What had happened here?
After questioning a squad member, he finally understood.
During his absence from Soul Society, Rangiku had defeated both Madarame Ikkaku and Kaname Tōsen—two seated officers—to become the Eleventh Division's third seat.
Since Kenpachi Zaraki rarely performed vice-captain duties, Rangiku as third seat had become the squad's de facto leader.
Though she appeared to be a high school girl, her unrestrained, bold leadership style reminiscent of "big brother," combined with power sufficient to intimidate everyone, had quickly earned her the squad members' respect.
Hearing this explanation, Satoru fell into deep thought.
Matsumoto Rangiku, squad management...
Connecting these two concepts felt somewhat strange.
As he pondered this, Rangiku stood up:
"Everyone!"
"Currently, Soul Society is filled with filth and chaos! With big brother absent and Kenpachi incompetent, now is precisely the time for us to solve big brother's problems!"
"Those with courage, follow me to show the other divisions the might of our Eleventh Division!"
"When big brother returns, we'll present him with an Eleventh Division several times stronger than before!"
Hearing Rangiku's words, the squad members erupted in excited cheers.
Yes! Exactly!
This was what everyone had been waiting for!
Among the crowd, only Satoru remained expressionless.
To the asylum, all of you to the asylum!