Ninth Division barracks.
On the training ground, the battle was intense.
A burly man and a bald man were engaged in close combat, accompanied by the continuous sound of metal clashing, creating a dazzling scene.
"Hozukimaru, have a taste my move, the Nine-headed Dragon Flash!"
Madarame roared with exhilaration. He resembled a madman, as he thrust his Zanpakuto fiercely forward.
A red Reiatsu enveloped his entire body, bursting into bright light and shadow.
With his Shunpo, Madarame instantly appeared in front of the red-haired burly man.
"You fool, don't forget, I know all your moves too!"
The red-haired burly man brandished his spear with a wild expression, as he swung downward, looking like a demon.
The point where the Hozukimaru spear fell happened to be Madarame's point of exhaustion.
If it landed, the outcome of the battle would be immediately decided.
"Ha!" A wild laughter echoed across the training ground as Madarame stepped forward. His wrist twisted, exerting another burst of strength. "You underestimate me too much."
"Your attacks are no longer effective on me!"
To the astonishment of the red-haired burly man, Madarame not only withstood the force of the Hozukimaru's strike, but also countered with a swift upward strike across his chest!
Splurt—
A gruesome wound spread from his lower abdomen to his right shoulder, flesh torn open, blood gushing out like a fountain.
"Impossible..."
The red-haired burly man muttered, suppressing his injuries, and immediately swung his spear again, intending to settle the fight with Madarame.
But before he could make his next move, a figure suddenly flashed in from outside the training ground, and a massive force hit on the red-haired burly man's head.
In the next moment, the towering figure was sent flying.
Boom!
The figure crashed onto the mountainside of the training ground, causing a collapse and sending rocks tumbling down, raising a cloud of dust.
"Cough, what just happened!?"
Madarame had not yet recovered from the battle when his opponent disappeared before his eyes.
"Third Seat Madarame."
Standing in place, Tokikaze glanced nonchalantly, shaking off the dust from his feet. "This is a disaster affecting the entire Soul Society. If you want to enjoy the battle, you should pick a better time."
Madarame's mouth twitched, and he had a complicated look on his face.
The scene just now reminded him instinctively of his first battle with Tokikaze.
The same level of overwhelming power and a terrifying posture.
This style of fighting was very similar to someone else.
"What are you still standing there for? Go get Hozukimaru!"
Tokikaze noticed that Madarame, who had served as an instructor for some time, seemed to be getting more slow-witted.
"Oh, okay."
After the red-haired burly man was dug out from the rubble, he had completely lost consciousness.
His burly body was covered in gruesome wounds, his head tilted, his mouth twisted, looking as if he had been beaten to a pulp.
Madarame looked at this noble figure and fell into deep suspicion for a moment.
After taking such a beating, could Hozukimaru still be used?
Tokikaze's powerful attack was something else. With nearly half of his Reiatsu, as well as exquisite Hakuda techniques and fast Shunpo speed, it packed quite a punch.
Let alone Hozukimaru, even Madarame, who had used Shikai, would be unable to resist.
The gap was too big, that it was not even close.
"So this is Hozukimaru's physical form?"
Coming late, Matsumoto Rangiku looked at it curiously. "It's really ugly."
"It doesn't look like you at all, Ikkaku!"
Madarame's eyes flashed ferociously, and his forehead veins bulged.
"Don't make random comments on other people's appearance, damn it!"
Hozukimaru lied on the ground, feeling as if his thick neck had been broken by a kick, intense pain tormenting his nerves.
There were buzzing sounds in his ears.
The joys and sorrows of Soul Reaper and Zanpakuto were not the same; he just felt that those two guys were very noisy.
Originally, he had heard the enticement of a strange voice by chance, inducing the dark side of his heart to grow stronger, and a strange force began to take over his soul.
When Hozukimaru came to his senses from the trance, he found himself completely free.
The first thing he did after materializing was to fiercely teach Madarame a lesson and show him who the boss was.
But things didn't go as planned.
Not only did he fail in close combat, he was almost kicked to death by someone.
The outside world was truly terrifying!
Hozukimaru now somewhat missed Ikkaku's Inner Realm. Although it was a bit dull, it was at least much safer.
As he felt bitter in his heart, a terrifying Reiatsu enveloped him.
"I ask, you answer."
That chilling voice sounded above him, and Hozukimaru trembled as he weakly opened his eyes, looking extremely weak.
"Who awakened you?"
"I don't know."
"What does the other person look like?"
"I don't know."
"..."
The interrogation suddenly came to a standstill and couldn't proceed any further.
Tokikaze rubbed his temples with a slight headache. He finally caught a materialized Zanpakuto, only to find it as useless cannon fodder.
Such a guy who knew nothing was probably just trying to wreak havoc in the Soul Society.
"Tsk, useless."
Tokikaze waved his hand, "Kill him. Keeping him alive is a waste of Reishi."
Hozukimaru widened his eyes in disbelief, exchanging bewildered glances with Madarame.
Wasn't this too fast?
"Cough, Captain Tokikaze." Madarame pleaded, "Although Hozukimaru is a bit ugly, a bit weak, and a bit hot-tempered, he still has some uses."
Hozukimaru kept his eyes tightly closed, as he remained silent with a face twisted in pain.
Although the words were a bit harsh, they were ultimately for his own good.
"At least he..."
Madarame pondered for a long time, then hammered his palm, suddenly realizing, "He's tough and can take a beating!"
"Recover some Reiatsu and go on patrol together."
Tokikaze sighed, "If you encounter other rebellious Zanpakuto, be sure to take them down immediately."
"Even if you can't win, keep them at bay."
"This is a disturbance affecting the entire Soul Society; there must be no room for mistake."
At these words, Madarame's expression became much more solemn.
If someone as strong as Tokikaze felt troubled, then someone with his level of strength was probably going to be used as cannon fodder.
But on second thought, where there was disturbance, there was also battle.
Madarame's eyes gradually lit up, a sense of excitement brewing within him.
Suddenly, he felt his blood boiling!