Bleach [122-123] (Patreon)

Chapter 122: Will His Soul Ability Change?

Angra was quite satisfied with Kisuke Urahara's muscle performance, or rather, his brainpower performance.

Because this was beneficial to him!

Yoshio wasn't an unreasonable person; if you gave him benefits, he'd get things done for you—very reasonable!

Not to mention, he might even be able to piggyback on your Soul Ability.

He strongly supported it!

If a Shinigami used Tenshintai, it could last at most three days; that was the duration Kisuke Urahara himself had used.

Kisuke Urahara didn't know what would happen after this time—perhaps it would lead to soul collapse?

But now, the one using it wasn't a Shinigami, but an Arrancar—this was something new, so he really didn't know how long an Arrancar could withstand Tenshintai.

However, with him around, he could completely stop it before Angra Mainyu's soul reached its limit, so he decided to test the limits of Tenshintai.

As expected, an Arrancar's soul was different from a Shinigami's. After seven consecutive days of battle, Kisuke Urahara finally stopped the Tenshintai.

In these seven days of fighting, Angra still hadn't comprehended Segunda Etapa, but his understanding of Segunda Etapa had greatly improved.

As Kisuke Urahara said, due to the special nature of Arrancars, there were two paths to Segunda Etapa.

As a Hollow that had Shinigamified, after revealing its essence through Resurrection, one could choose to deepen the Shinigami side's enhancement, advancing toward a Shinigamified Segunda Etapa, or continue deepening the Hollow side's enhancement, advancing toward a Hollowfied Segunda Etapa.

In the original work, Ulquiorra and the current Starrk were both strengthening themselves by deepening Shinigami power, which meant pursuing their inner hearts.

But if one didn't want to continue searching for a lost heart and just wanted to get stronger, they would develop toward the Hollow's instincts.

But from Kisuke Urahara's perspective, these two types of Segunda Etapa didn't seem to conflict.

Could one both pursue the heart and strengthen instincts?!

At that point, those two Segunda Etapas would become a third-stage Resurrection.

If he could really achieve that, it would be truly remarkable.

But realizing this was extremely difficult; it was just a theoretical possibility, and what Kisuke Urahara wanted was to turn this theory into reality.

If third-stage Resurrection became possible, then Angra Mainyu would become the strongest Arrancar, perhaps even an existence surpassing Shinigami and Hollows, transcending past soul limits!

Yoshio was still looking forward to Kisuke Urahara's arranjewelents, but this definitely wasn't something that could be completed in a short time.

Angra Mainyu would stay with Kisuke Urahara for now, after all, there were still several decades.

At this time, Yoshio had already returned to Soul Society.

All the captains had returned, and they held a week-long meeting with Central 46, ultimately deciding to increase the punishment for Kisuke Urahara's group's criminal activities and permanently dispatch squad members to investigate their whereabouts.

Tokyo, especially Karakura Town, would be monitored; if Kisuke Urahara and others' whereabouts were discovered, they must be reported immediately, and the Gotei 13 would treat the Kisuke Urahara incident with a wartime attitude.

Even though some captains felt something was off, like why there were two groups of Visoreds.

But due to the existence of Tenshintai, Central 46 hastily claimed that Kisuke Urahara had used Tenshintai on evil Visoreds to expand his forces, then used the imaginary bodies born from Tenshintai as combat power against the Gotei 13.

As for why the imaginary bodies would help the Gotei 13, it was because Kisuke Urahara's initial experiments hadn't fully controlled them.

Anyway, just like Aizen thought, Central 46 wouldn't think too much about these things; for them, Kisuke Urahara's rebellion was already set in stone, nailed down!

Especially since the Tsunayashiro Clan had almost been wiped out, with only three surviving members who weren't at the family estate at the time, leaving a total of three Tsunayashiro clansmen.

Among these three, one was a girl, who naturally harbored hatred toward Kisuke Urahara.

Even though the Tsunayashiro Clan's influence had greatly diminished, their inherent status still existed; as the head of the founding noble Five Great Noble Families, the Tsunayashiro Clan naturally possessed noble bloodline with legitimate authority over Soul Society families.

Therefore, although the Tsunayashiro Clan might not be able to maintain their leadership position, they still counted as one of the Five Great Noble Families.

Compared to the Shiba Clan, the Tsunayashiro Clan's power was still greater; even so, they could preserve their great house status.

However, for Yoshio, none of this mattered.

Because the Tsunayashiro Clan's power had greatly reduced, Yoshio no longer needed to be their subordinate. Originally, by convention, Yoshio would have to find a new superior in the Five Great Noble Families, but he didn't care much about noble status and just ignored it.

Anyway, he didn't plan to manage his own house; it was just him alone. If he had time and energy to manage the house, it was better to study Kisuke Urahara and Mayuri Kurotsuchi's academics.

However, no matter what the higher-ups did, Yoshio could finally return to his original life.

To be honest, he didn't really want to cause trouble; previously transforming into Yoruichi's appearance was just for fun, to put a little pressure on Kisuke Urahara and get them moving.

He didn't expect them to actually fight, and even the Wandenreich revealed their true face.

If a fight broke out, it would be hard for him to gain others' favor.

Peace is good.

Yoshio sighed, then followed Tōshirō Hitsugaya toward the Thirteenth Division.

That's right, today was also the day Tōshirō Hitsugaya officially transferred to the Thirteenth Division and became Lieutenant.

Obviously, Jūshirō Ukitake was already considering retirement.

He had originally planned to hand the Thirteenth Division to Kaien, but Kaien died, so he had to reluctantly continue.

Now with a genius like Tōshirō Hitsugaya, he could relax a bit.

As long as he observed a little more and confirmed Tōshirō Hitsugaya was suitable, he would resign as captain without hesitation.

"Perhaps, in the future, I'll have to call you Captain Hitsugaya, haha."

Yoshio said with a smile beside Toshiro.

Toshiro, who had been a bit tense, relaxed a little upon hearing Yoshio's words and said faintly, "Then I hope you really call me that."

"That's too heartless, isn't it? I was your former superior; do you really have to make me call you captain?"

Yoshio reached out to ruffle Toshiro's hair again, but this time he reacted quickly and dodged before Yoshio's demonic claws could touch him.

"Welcome, Toshiro."

At this point, they had entered the Thirteenth Division, and Jūshirō Ukitake seemed to be waiting for Hitsugaya.

There was no one else beside him.

"Yoshio, you're here too." Ukitake also saw Yoshio and greeted him.

"Captain Ukitake."

Both spoke respectfully; after all, he was a Captain-class figure, and surface etiquette still had to be observed.

"No need to be so formal." Ukitake smiled gently, "Welcome to the Thirteenth Division, Toshiro."

"Please continue to guide me in the future, Captain Ukitake." Hitsugaya also bowed his head in salute.

Yoshio joked from the side, "Alright, now you're part of the Thirteenth Division. I'm here to send you off. If you're unhappy in the Thirteenth Division, don't forget to come home and vent; Captain Aizen and I will help you."

"Why do you make it sound like I'm here to seize power?" Hitsugaya glared at Yoshio.

Ukitake smiled and said, "Speaking of which, Yoshio, I'm also very interested in your recent novel."

"Are you talking about 'Thousand-Year Blood War'? Because of the tasks from the previous period, I plan to pause publication this month."

"No, I'm thinking that as Lieutenant, your books should be mindful of their influence; don't portray Shinigami and the government too negatively."

Yoshio couldn't help but laugh and said, "Sigh, I don't want to either, but people are mostly rebellious and like reading that kind of stuff."

"They haven't been betrayed by friends, yet they say friendship is fake; they haven't been pressured by Shinigami, yet they insist on viewing us with contempt; they don't understand Shinigami justice, yet they say the Gotei 13 is hypocritical, and darkness is the eternal truth."

"I'm just choosing content that everyone wants to read. Writing novels, following the readers is the right way; after all, I write to make a living, not to create some philosophical masterpiece."

Jūshirō Ukitake shook his head and said, "I've read your book, and in terms of content, it's absolutely an excellent work. As long as you reduce some depictions related to Central 46, I believe this book will go more smoothly."

"Actually, I've thought about this issue too." Yoshio and Ukitake were both novel writers, and their conversation suddenly became endless for a while. Hitsugaya watched their discussion, somewhat stunned.

What the hell? Weren't these two supposed to be one sending me to my new post and the other receiving me? How did they just toss me aside and start chatting with each other?

Ukitake also noticed this and stopped the conversation, saying, "It's rare to discuss novel writing with Yoshio-kun; after retirement, I'll definitely come to you often for discussions."

"Captain Ukitake, are you really planning to retire?"

"Sigh, my physical condition is no longer sufficient to continue as captain. The future... belongs to the young people."

He looked at Hitsugaya, then at Yoshio, and said, "Would you like to come sit in the Thirteenth Division?"

"No, I'm just here to send Toshiro. I'll head back first. Let's chat next time we meet."

Yoshio waved his hand and left the Thirteenth Division.

If nothing unexpected happened, within ten years, Tōshirō Hitsugaya would become the captain of the Thirteenth Division.

This was another historical change he had single-handedly caused. If Shiba Isshin still went to the Human World later, who would become the captain of the Tenth Division? Would it really have to be him?

Yoshio shook his head, but he didn't return to the Fifth Division; instead, he headed to the Second Division.

After the Human World mission ended, Ōmaeda was preparing to find him for the next step in business cooperation.

Yoshio, as the image ambassador for the Ōmaeda family's jewelry industry, mainly wanted to obtain Ōmaeda's Soul Ability.

After all, his Soul Ability was too outrageous; it was the most special Soul Ability Yoshio had ever seen.

Upon arriving at the Second Division, he told the Shinigami squad members he was looking for Ōmaeda. Seeing his Lieutenant armband, they led him to Ōmaeda's office.

Ōmaeda saw Yoshio come in and was very excited; he greeted Yoshio: "Yoshio, you're finally here!"

For Ōmaeda, Yoshio was his money tree; how could he not love him?!

Yoshio checked Ōmaeda's favorability toward him; it had reached 57, just a little short of 60.

Although 60 favorability would only let Yoshio temporarily obtain a one-time use of the 'Special Combat Force' Soul Ability, this time he could see the specific use of this ability.

After all...

The description of the 'Special Combat Force' Soul Ability was still a bit abstract.

If he didn't try it specifically, he really wouldn't know what kind of effect it would have.

Yoshio sat opposite Ōmaeda and noticed the table was full of snacks. No wonder this Second Division Shinigami was a fatty; he obviously couldn't resist snacks.

After sitting down, Yoshio said, "Ōmaeda, what exactly did you mean earlier?"

"I'm thinking, Yoshio, could you specially create a work related to jewels? That way, our products will definitely sell better!" Ōmaeda excitedly proposed his idea to Yoshio:

"Yoshio, I really admire your talent! You can write such an excellent work as 'Thousand-Year Blood War'; it's unbelievable! I believe you can definitely write something more suitable for our jewelry."

"Jewels, huh..." Yoshio looked around thoughtfully and said, "This kind of thing can't be thought up in a day or two."

Actually, he did have some ideas. For example, didn't Kars use the Aja Stone to evolve into a perfect being?

That could be a good jewel promotion plan.

Of course, the content inside would definitely need to be changed.

Vampires and Ripple warriors could be changed to Hollows and appropriate Shinigami.

To win Ōmaeda's favorability, putting in a little effort was fine.

"Of course I know!" Ōmaeda laughed, "As long as you agree!"

"Ōmaeda!"

Suddenly, a cold female voice came from outside the door, and Suì-Fēng walked in with a face full of killing intent.

"What are you shouting about? I could hear it from next door; it's disgusting!"

"Captain Suì-Fēng!" Ōmaeda quickly stood up, nervously saying, "Captain, I didn't mean to!"

Yoshio also stood up.

"You are..."

Suì-Fēng looked at Yoshio, seeming to recognize him, then said, "Aizen's Lieutenant? What are you doing in the Second Division?"

The Gotei 13 generally didn't have much interaction; even visits were usually due to injuries and going to the Fourth Division.

A special forces squad like the Second Division, bound to the Onmitsukidō, was even less likely to have people from other squads visiting.

Therefore, when she saw the Fifth Division's Lieutenant in the Second Division, she thought Aizen had business.

"Yes," Yoshio said. "Lieutenant Ōmaeda invited me here to discuss business cooperation."

Suì-Fēng glared at Ōmaeda, as if saying, who allowed you to discuss private matters during work hours?

But what Yoshio didn't expect was that perhaps because he, an outsider, was present, Suì-Fēng actually saved Ōmaeda some face; although she glared at him fiercely, she said nothing.

Ōmaeda himself found it somewhat unbelievable; after Suì-Fēng left, he collapsed into his chair like he was exhausted.

"The captain is a bit strange today."

Yoshio glanced at Ōmaeda and couldn't help saying, "What's wrong? Captain Suì-Fēng isn't a demon; you shouldn't be so afraid."

"What do you know?" Ōmaeda retorted, "But, Captain Suì-Fēng not scolding me feels a bit unusual."

What a masochist.

Yoshio secretly complained.

But he also thought Suì-Fēng would scold Ōmaeda.

It was Suì-Fēng...

Had she matured?

Yoshio thought about it and felt that Suì-Fēng's mind was probably a bit chaotic right now.

After all, she had inexplicably been ambushed by an imaginary body, then replaced, and according to later intelligence, this imaginary body had met with Kisuke Urahara and Yoruichi Shihouin, even erupting in battle.

While her own real body got nothing.

Moreover, Yoruichi Shihouin and Kisuke Urahara had completely severed ties with Soul Society and were now in opposition. Her inner world must be somewhat chaotic now, at least too busy to care what Ōmaeda was doing.

In fact, the entire Gotei 13's atmosphere was quite strange now, especially those old soldiers who had been here since the Hollowfication incident.

Many of these people were old acquaintances of the former Visoreds, and seeing old friends completely turn into enemies still made them uncomfortable.

People like Yoshio and Ōmaeda, who were carefree, were quite rare.

Of course, they had their own words: They were the new generation; what did the old generation's affairs have to do with them?

After chatting with Ōmaeda a little more, Yoshio left the Second Division.

This time, he returned to the Fifth Division and didn't go out again.

…

Back in the office, Yoshio sighed.

Then, he paused.

Because at that moment, he discovered he had suddenly gained a new Soul Ability.

And this Soul Ability was quite powerful...

[Wish Fulfillment: Turn your ideas into reality. The more complex and difficult the matter, the more spiritual pressure and mental energy it requires.]

This wasn't a permanent ability, but a temporary one, usable only once.

Even if it could only be used once, this ability was too strong, right?

And from the nature and name of this ability, how could it be so similar...

Gremmy Thoumeaux's ability from the Wandenreich's Sternritter?!

Plus, he had suddenly obtained this Soul Ability; he wanted to know...

Could Gremmy Thoumeaux's favorability toward him have reached sixty?

What on earth happened?!

He inexplicably gained Gremmy's favorability?

Yoshio was stunned.

What happened?

And this Soul Ability was too amazing!

Oh my god, Wish Fulfillment!

To be honest, this Soul Ability wasn't inferior to Yhwach's Almighty, right?

This was absolutely a superpower on the same level as 'Apotheosis' and 'Universal Countermeasure'!

And unlike Aizen and Kisuke Urahara, this guy had so easily given him the chance to temporarily obtain the ability!

Was Gremmy that easy to get along with?!

Sixty favorability was already friend level.

He had worked so hard for so long, and Ōmaeda's favorability was only 57!

However, this ability also had a restriction: it required spiritual pressure.

'Apotheosis' and 'Universal Countermeasure' had broad ability descriptions, while 'Wish Fulfillment' explicitly mentioned requirements for spiritual pressure and mental power.

This meant that the upper limits of Apotheosis and Universal Countermeasure might be higher, or perhaps their effects wouldn't vary based on the strength of spiritual pressure.

But even if it required spiritual pressure, it was still an extremely powerful ability.

At least the Soul Ability 'Wish Fulfillment' should be stronger than Gremmy's own 'The Visionary'.

Yoshio's heart churned.

He had to go to the Quincy side again and increase Gremmy's favorability!

I'm already eager to wear the Sternritter uniform. As for Aizen and Kisuke Urahara, I wish them all the best in Soul Society and Hueco Mundo.

However, bringing his talents to the Wandenreich wasn't a simple matter; he still didn't know how to enter the Wandenreich.

He had just obtained one use of Wish Fulfillment; how should he use it?

Yoshio sat at his desk, deep in thought.

What does Wish Fulfillment mean? Whatever you think, it becomes reality!

If my spiritual pressure is sufficient, if I wish to be the Soul King, then I become the Soul King!

If I wish Yamamoto to become Aizen, then Yamamoto must become Aizen!

If I wish Aizen to be loyal to the country, then Aizen must become Soul Society's most loyal subject!

Unfortunately, he didn't have that much spiritual pressure right now.

He could imagine his spiritual pressure and mental power increasing by double out of thin air; that was achievable.

The mechanism of this skill was a bit strange; activation required spiritual pressure, but activating the skill could increase spiritual pressure.

Wasn't this a bug?!

If he permanently obtained this ability, wouldn't he be invincible?

Imagine his spiritual pressure doubling, then use the doubled spiritual pressure to imagine it doubling again, and so on...

Then he would be invincible.

Now, he absolutely had to bring his talents to the Wandenreich!

After a brief excitement, Yoshio gradually calmed down.

He had only read the description so far and couldn't fully understand the ability's limitations.

What if the consumed spiritual pressure and mental power were permanently lost?

If he imagined gaining spiritual pressure and mental power, but then permanently lost an equal amount, wouldn't his ability be wasted?

The chance for Wish Fulfillment was only once; he had to be cautious...

Be careful!

I'm already eager to obtain the permanent Wish Fulfillment ability!

Yoshio tried triggering the ability once and found that if he converted his identity to Quincy, the required spiritual pressure and mental power were too great. Although he already possessed some Quincy abilities, fundamentally changing his identity consumed far more spiritual pressure than he currently had.

Then...

What about making a blank identity person become a Quincy?

Yoshio decided to try it; rather than using this brief one-time opportunity to enhance himself, why not try to obtain over twenty Soul Abilities from the Wandenreich, and even have a chance to permanently obtain Gremmy's Soul Ability!

If he just simply made himself stronger, even imagining directly mastering Bankai would just be a Bankai-level enhancement.

But infiltrating the Wandenreich would give him a chance to obtain over twenty Sternritter Soul Abilities.

Yeah, I'm going!

I'll try it after work!

Yoshio suppressed his inner excitement and quickly checked the files on his desk.

Although the Fifth Division had fully withdrawn, Hinamori Momo was still stationed in the Human World, and Tōshirō Hitsugaya had gone to the Thirteenth Division; there was no one left to help him with work.

Although most of the work was still done by Aizen, he didn't want to do the remaining part.

Even if he didn't want to, he had no choice. Now there was no one to share his burden.

Yoshio sighed and lamented, "Momo, come back soon~"

"I can't handle it alone~"

"Come back soon Life is wonderful because of you"

"Come back soon Bring back my thoughts"

"Ah!"

As he was singing, he heard Hinamori Momo's voice from outside the door. Hinamori Momo pushed the door open with a flushed face, glaring at Yoshio: "Lieutenant Yoshio! What song are you singing!!"

"Hinamori!" Yoshio's eyes lit up, exclaiming, "You really came back?! Did I activate Wish Fulfillment?!"

"You're daydreaming! Where would you find Wish Fulfillment?" Hinamori Momo said irritably, "Captain Aizen said the Human World is dangerous now, so he transferred me back. As a Lieutenant, how could you not know about this?!"

"Also, Lieutenant Yoshio, please don't sing such misleading songs! What if other squad members hear?!"

Hinamori Momo's face was still red, which made Yoshio smile and say, "Now you really look like Momo."

"Lieutenant! Do your own work!" Hinamori Momo stomped her foot and ran off again.

"Sigh! Such a good girl, how could she fall for Aizen? Her fate is already set." Yoshio shook his head, looking at the open door, and couldn't help saying, "Momo, close the door for me!"

But Hinamori had probably already gone to Aizen's office next door to report, so he had to close it himself. As he walked to the door, he noticed a familiar face in the hallway.

"Renji?"

Seeing Renji walking toward him, Yoshio said somewhat surprised, "Why are you here?"

Renji saw Yoshio suddenly appear at the door and was also a bit surprised, but he quickly ran over and suddenly bowed: "Lieutenant Yoshio!"

"What's up?" Yoshio brought Renji into the office and asked, "You went to the Eleventh Division, yet you're acting like a stranger now?"

Renji hurriedly said, "It's not like that, it's just..."

Yoshio sat back in his seat and poured himself a cup of hot water.

Others liked tea, but he preferred plain boiled water.

"I just want to ask Lieutenant Yoshio for a favor!"

Renji felt his earlier bow wasn't enough and suddenly knelt down!

Yoshio raised an eyebrow and said, "Stand up; a man's knees are gold, kneeling at every turn—what kind of behavior is this!"

However, obviously, Soul Society didn't have the saying "A man has tears but doesn't shed them lightly."

Although Renji was puzzled, he didn't think much and continued kneeling on the ground, saying, "Lieutenant Yoshio, please teach me Bankai!"

Teach you Bankai?!

I don't even know it myself!

Yoshio thought, wasn't Renji's Bankai taught by Ikkaku?

Why did he come to me after going to the Eleventh Division?

Oh, I taught them before.

But I never said I know Bankai!

Thinking of this, Yoshio couldn't help teasing, "Renji, what do you think my current position is?"

Renji looked up puzzled and said, "Fifth Division... Lieutenant?"

"Right, I'm just a Lieutenant! How would I know Bankai!" Yoshio sighed, "If I knew Bankai, would I still be a Lieutenant?"

"No!" Renji said excitedly, "Senior Yoshio, you must know Bankai! Please, you have to teach me!"

"I really..."

Yoshio originally wanted to refuse, mainly because he had no time, but just as he was about to refuse, he noticed a fluctuation in Renji's Soul Ability!

In Yoshio's eyes, a line of text floated above everyone's head, which was their Soul Ability and a description, like NPCs in a game.

Because everyone had text above their heads, it gave Yoshio the illusion of playing a virtual online game.

But now, Yoshio saw something he had never seen before.

The text above Renji's head suddenly moved!

Yoshio couldn't help squinting, carefully looking at the words "Star Chaser" above Renji's head.

What, is this a rebellion?

He had never seen this phenomenon; a person's Soul Ability fluctuating? What did this mean?

A person's Soul Ability was their ability, derived from their past, present, future, even breaking the fourth wall with audience evaluations and impressions of them.

Overall, this Soul Ability was absolutely fixed!

Because your past, present, future, even the higher-dimensional perspective had already determined what kind of person you are; all your actions were already encompassed in your Soul Ability, so what could change?!

But now, something had indeed changed; although Star Chaser was still Star Chaser, Yoshio couldn't ignore that fluctuation, and he couldn't think it was his hallucination!

He suddenly thought of something.

In this work, the protagonists indeed all have Soul Abilities, and under normal circumstances, this Soul Ability indeed wouldn't change.

But now...

Is it normal?

In the originally destined timeline, his existence had been added!

Yoshio was an anomaly, an anomaly that brought change. When he changed a person's present and future, then the Soul Ability...

Would it change too?

Although he hadn't figured out the pattern of this change yet, he felt his guess should be correct.

In other words, every protagonist in this world should have two abilities.

One is the Soul Ability they had in the original world line, and the other is the Soul Ability generated after his interference.

Of course, he couldn't just casually interfere to update the other's Soul Ability; this interference had to be major!

For example, under his interference, Renji went to Hueco Mundo, which was a relatively big change.

Also, under his interference, Toshiro directly went to the Thirteenth Division, which was also a relatively big change.

However, Toshiro's Soul Ability hadn't changed yet; could it be refined further, defining this interference as interfering with the core of the other's original Soul Ability?

Using Renji as an example again, Renji's Soul Ability fluctuated because Yoshio's interference involved Rukia!

After all, he went to Hueco Mundo for Rukia, and in Hueco Mundo, he was saved by Dark Rukia; this kind of event that tugged at the essence of the other's original Soul Ability, wasn't it shaking the foundation of the Soul Ability?

Yoshio's mind was a bit chaotic now, unsure if his thoughts were correct.

And Renji, seeing Yoshio staring blankly at him, was puzzled, touched his face, thinking there was something dirty on it.

Finding nothing, he sincerely said again, "Lieutenant Yoshio, you have to help me!"

"Renji." Yoshio finally came back to his senses; he frowned at Renji and sighed helplessly, "Alright, since you've said that, I have no choice but to help you. Just like old times, come to my house every Sunday night."

"I'll do my best to teach you."

Although he himself hadn't achieved Bankai yet, it didn't matter; he knew what kind of training was needed to achieve Bankai.

After all, he had read so much material; even if he couldn't do it himself, he could become a theoretical expert.

Moreover, Gengorō Ōunabara's favorability was almost at eighty; once he permanently obtained the "Strict Teacher Produces Outstanding Students" ability, teaching Renji would be a piece of cake, right?

It was precisely because the 'Strict Teacher Produces Outstanding Students' ability was so useful, allowing Renji to grow rapidly during that time, that he thought of him this time, right?

Hearing Yoshio's answer, Renji's eyes lit up, and he immediately kowtowed again, "Thank you, Lieutenant Yoshio! In the future, whatever you ask me to do, I definitely won't refuse!"

Yoshio sighed, "How could I abandon you?"

"Senior Yoshio, can I treat you to dinner tonight?"

"Forget it, kid; how much is your salary now? Save it up, don't become henpecked later due to financial issues."

Renji's face instantly turned red, almost steaming; he couldn't help saying, "I... I..."

"Alright, alright, who doesn't know what you're thinking?" Yoshio laughed, "Not tonight; I have something to do. Next time."

"Yes!"

Renji finally breathed a sigh of relief; Yoshio was too good to him, he really didn't know how to repay him.

Even just treating him to a meal would be good.

"Then I won't disturb you!" Renji then stood up from the ground and said respectfully, "I'll go now."

"Mm." Yoshio nodded.

Renji left like that. Of course, he remembered to close the door.

After he left, Yoshio curiously tapped his fingers on the desk.

After a while, Hinamori knocked curiously on the door.

"Is Lieutenant Yoshio here?"

"Come in."

Hinamori came in and said strangely, "Lieutenant Yoshio, earlier... did Abarai come?"

"Yeah." Yoshio sighed helplessly, "That kid..."

"What?!" Hinamori seemed a bit indignant, "He came all the way to the Fifth Division and didn't even say hello to me!"

"Oh, right, Lieutenant, why did Abarai come here?"

Yoshio thought for a moment and said, "He wants to learn Bankai."

Bankai!

Hinamori's small mouth opened in surprise; she covered it with her right hand and exclaimed, "Abarai actually wants to learn Bankai? That's way too early?!"

Compared to most Shinigami, learning Bankai at this time was indeed too early.

You know, everyone who learns Bankai can leave their name in Soul Society's million-year history!

"I say, Hinamori... I'm going to teach Renji Bankai, and you don't seem surprised at all?"

Yoshio was a bit puzzled. Why aren't you surprised that I know Bankai?

"We all know Lieutenant Yoshio is so amazing; you must know Bankai, right?" Hinamori said naturally, "Toshiro said so!"

"What?" Yoshio said dejectedly, "How does he know I know Bankai?"

I don't even know that I know Bankai!

That kid Toshiro, how does he know?!

"Toshiro is 3rd Seat, and 3rd Seats know Bankai; how could you, a Lieutenant, not know?" Hinamori said righteously.

"What kind of absurd logic is this?" Yoshio knocked on the desk, "That kid..."

At this moment, Hinamori said again, "Right, Lieutenant Yoshio, can I join Abarai?"

"Hm?" Yoshio raised an eyebrow, puzzled, "You don't want to learn Bankai too, do you?"

"I also want to help Captain Aizen!" Hinamori perked up and said, "If I learn Bankai, Captain Aizen will definitely value me more!"

She's hopeless!

But wait!

If you, Hinamori Momo, really learn Bankai, then your utility value in Aizen's eyes would indeed be higher, and with your loyalty, Aizen might really take you as a subordinate, right?

Wait...

Isn't this changing a person's life trajectory?!

If that's the case, would Hinamori's Soul Ability change?!

Yoshio's gaze became strange; he scrutinized Hinamori, making her feel uncomfortable.

"Lieutenant Yoshio?" Hinamori looked at Yoshio puzzled.

Yoshio suddenly slapped his thigh and said, "Good! Just like that!"

Yoshio planned to use Hinamori as an experiment to see if twisting the fate trajectory of a Soul Ability would change her destiny!

Test subjects could only be chosen from those whose abilities he had permanently obtained, because even if their Soul Ability changed, he had already gained their ability, and he could try to obtain their new one!

He wanted to know how he would obtain it if "Star Chaser" really changed?

If the other party already had 80 favorability, would he directly permanently obtain it?

Or would the conditions become stricter, requiring favorability to keep increasing?

To ninety?

Impossible...

One hundred, right?!

Chapter 123: Permanently Obtaining Strict Teacher Produces Outstanding Students, Completing Szayelaporro's Evolution

Evening.

Yoshio went home.

Because everyone's mood had been low lately, aside from Rangiku occasionally coming out for meals, others rarely appeared.

There was no activity tonight; Yoshio ate something at the Fifth Division cafeteria and went home.

Although he said he would teach Renji and Hinamori Bankai, it wasn't today.

Today was Friday; tomorrow he planned to go to Shin'ō Academy to see Gengorō Ōunabara. That guy's favorability had been hard to raise, but it should be close.

And tonight, he planned to increase Starrk's favorability.

His idea was to split a clone from the Quincy part of his soul ability like Angra Mainyu, then use the ability of mind over matter to arrange this clone into a Wandenreich Quincy.

However...

Doing this still had problems, and there was an issue from the start.

That was, Starrk's favorability hadn't reached 80 yet; he could only use soul splitting once, and the last opportunity had been used to split Angra Mainyu.

Now...

He had to go to Las Noches tonight to check.

He got up from the bed, entered Hollowfication state, opened Garganta, and stepped into Las Noches.

He had previously left a backdoor in Seireitei's Barrier Membrane, allowing him to use Garganta at a specific Barrier Membrane frequency.

However, after Mayuri Kurotsuchi returned, this backdoor was fixed.

But Yoshio hadn't studied technology for so long for nothing; since the old vulnerability was plugged, why not create a new one?

Yoshio's technical strength could be said to improve significantly from time to time.

Because he had Tōshirō Hitsugaya's 'Child of Kirin' skill; Tōshirō Hitsugaya himself was a genius, a Shinigami genius who learned Bankai in just a few years, a miracle in Soul Society.

But his Child of Kirin was limited to training.

The soul ability Yoshio obtained was different.

Although this soul skill had a one-day cooldown, making it seem like a low-tier Tōshirō Hitsugaya, its Child of Kirin coverage was much broader than Hitsugaya's talent.

It could be said that with this ability, Yoshio could become an all-rounder!

When Yoshio designated Child of Kirin for learning ability in the scientific field, Yoshio's talent wouldn't be inferior to scientists like Kisuke Urahara and Mayuri Kurotsuchi!

What Yoshio lacked was just accumulation of knowledge, which couldn't be helped; he could only make up for it by reading books frequently.

However, reading was usually boring, and Yoshio always felt it was best to use force.

But that's off-topic. In short, Yoshio left another backdoor in the Barrier Membrane.

He could conveniently enter and exit Las Noches regularly.

He appeared directly in his room, glanced at the laboratory directly connected to his room, and then walked out.

Las Noches was quite peaceful; after all, after the incident, Aizen had already issued a 'gag order' to Las Noches.

That is, even activities to go out and find powerful Menos Grande were suspended.

However, this period also gave opportunities for subsequent Espada selections; if anyone had objections to the Espada, or if Espada themselves were dissatisfied with their position numbers, they could challenge.

If this period passed, even if there was dissatisfaction later, no changes could be made.

Unless a 'position swap blood battle' was approved by Espada leader Yoshio or King of Hueco Mundo Aizen.

And besides Baraggan, no one should challenge Starrk, so Starrk was quite idle.

When he saw Starrk again, he was with Lilynette.

Lilynette was sitting bored at the table, fiddling with her fingers, while Starrk lay on the bed, seemingly resting.

After Yoshio came in, he glanced at Starrk's favorability toward him and found it had reached 69.

This number was already high for a Hollow—no, it could even be said to be the highest!

According to Kisuke Urahara's theory, Starrk should be considered on the path of Shinigami transformation for Segunda Etapa, closer to Shinigami. Compared to other Hollows and Arrancars, Starrk's favorability was absolutely the easiest to raise.

Moreover, Starrk's inherent death aspect was 'loneliness'; if he underwent Shinigamification in Segunda Etapa, he should move further from this 'loneliness' attribute.

This way, raising favorability became even easier.

"Yoshio!"

Seeing Yoshio return, Lilynette was very happy; she immediately got up from the chair and said excitedly, "Did you bring a new story for me this time?!"

"Why does it sound like coaxing a child to sleep?" Yoshio said with a bitter smile.

"Isn't it coaxing a child?" Starrk turned over and said, "Please, hurry and coax her; she's so noisy I can't sleep."

"You idiot!"

Lilynette immediately walked to the bed and kicked Starrk hard.

Starrk immediately sat up and said, "What are you doing! A subordinate hitting an Espada—you want to rebel!"

Although he said that, Yoshio could tell he seemed happy when speaking.

"Who told you to call me a child!" Lilynette angrily straddled Starrk.

"Enough..." Yoshio sighed, slapped his forehead, and lamented.

He sat down where Lilynette had been sitting and took out paper and pen.

Lilynette immediately came over: "Are you going to write a novel?!"

"Yes, my business partner in Soul Society just asked me to write a novel about diamonds."

"Oh, so how are you going to write it?"

"Let me think. The story is set in modern times. On a rainy night, a carriage speeds down from the mountain and crashes. Falling out of the carriage, besides two nobles and their heirs, there's a briefcase containing an stone mask."

"Stone mask? What's that?" Lilynette pulled over a chair, sat next to Yoshio, and asked curiously.

"A tool that can make people Hollowfy. Lately, Hollowfication is very popular in Seireitei; people really hate Hollowfied Shinigami."

"Why is that?" Lilynette said puzzled, "For us Hollows, gaining Shinigami power is something very exciting; all Hollows want to become Arrancars!"

"Hmm..." Yoshio smiled, "In Soul Society's eyes, Hollows are ultimately evil. Using evil power, for the big shots, that's blasphemy."

Starrk walked behind the two at this time and said faintly, "Hollows represent chaos and instability; a regime hates instability the most."

"Smart, Starrk." Yoshio praised, "Starrk is absolutely right; a regime hates unstable things the most."

"Hollowfication can make Shinigami go on a rampage. Even if they successfully master powerful abilities afterward, after mixing in a Hollow's soul, will Shinigami become like Hollows? For the old folks in Central 46, they don't want trouble during their rule."

"So troublesome." Lilynette pouted, "We Hollows are better."

"Yoshio, you definitely won't be unreasonable like other Shinigami, right?!"

Yoshio smiled bitterly, "You, a Hollow, actually say Shinigami are unreasonable?"

"Yeah! Can't I?!" Lilynette said righteously.

"Of course you can." Yoshio said, "You're right; Shinigami are actually quite unreasonable."

"Shinigami killing people, okay!"

"Hollows killing people, not okay!"

"Our Seireitei is so righteous!"

"Your tone is so sarcastic."

"Yoshio..." At this time, Starrk said, "Speaking of which, I saw a very special Arrancar before."

"I know; didn't you mention this earlier?" Yoshio knew he was actually talking about Angra Mainyu. He had originally thought of letting Angra Mainyu get a free Hōgyoku enhancement item from Aizen.

But later he found it better to follow Kisuke Urahara, so he gave up on that idea.

However, Starrk seemed to care about Angra; after all, Angra was like him, a Hollow who became an Arrancar without Aizen's Hōgyoku.

He thought perhaps he could find some common ground with Angra.

But afterward, there was no trace of Angra Mainyu.

"Yeah." Starrk said, "So I want to go out and find him."

Oh, because of that.

Yoshio thought, Starrk couldn't leave now; if Starrk left, how would he raise his favorability?

So he waved his hand and said, "Forget it; leave this to me. You better not leave Las Noches for now."

"You?" Starrk was a bit surprised.

"Yeah, don't underestimate my intelligence network." Yoshio smiled, "Wait until tomorrow; I'll give you a reply as soon as possible."

Angra Mainyu was his clone; didn't he know where he was?

Exposing his whereabouts to raise others' favorability—that was the most cost-effective!

And in this short time, Starrk's favorability had risen to 70; at this rate, breaking 80 was imminent.

As soon as he finished speaking, Yoshio saw Starrk's favorability surge again.

It went straight from 70 to 71, so he added, "But I have to mention this to Captain Aizen; after all, the gag order 38 was issued by him."

Starrk nodded, "Mm, I'm not in a hurry."

"Two old fogeys." Lilynette pouted, "Alright, Yoshio, ignore Starrk! Come on, continue the stone mask story!"

"Okay!"

Yoshio started writing again; he planned to give the manuscript to Ōmaeda tomorrow or the day after. Ōmaeda's favorability was almost at 60; then he could see what Special Combat Force really was.

…

The next day, Yoshio walked out of his room.

He had stayed up late last night until midnight to receive update news.

Lilynette got more excited as she read. Yoshio had planned to sleep early, but Lilynette bothered him until late at night!

Then he returned home from Las Noches and finally slept.

He only slept for two or three hours before waking up; looks like today would be another listless, lazy day.

Yoshio yawned and groggily arrived at his workstation.

Hinamori arrived earlier than Yoshio; after Hitsugaya transferred to the Thirteenth Division, she had potential to become the new 3rd Seat.

Hinamori saw Yoshio's listless appearance and asked puzzled, "Lieutenant Yoshio... are you...?"

"Don't ask; I was rushing a manuscript last night, almost died from lack of sleep." Yoshio yawned again.

"Rushing a manuscript?" Hinamori suddenly realized, "Oh, is it 'Thousand-Year Blood War'?"

"No, a new manuscript." Yoshio waved his hand, "Momo, help me with the morning work later; I'm really too sleepy and need to rest a bit."

"Lieutenant Yoshio, you're slacking off again!" Hinamori muttered.

"Please~!"

Yoshio returned to the office, preparing to take a short nap.

He was quite busy today; he had to go to Ōmaeda and to Shin'ō Academy to find the teacher.

After resting in the office for about an hour, Yoshio sneaked out.

He brought the manuscript he wrote last night and went to the Second Division again.

When he handed the manuscript to Ōmaeda, Ōmaeda was thrilled and couldn't help saying, "Yoshio, your efficiency is too fast! I knew cooperating with you was the right decision!"

"You read it first; I'll sleep a bit more."

Yoshio yawned again, leaned back in the chair, and closed his eyes.

Although Ōmaeda didn't understand literary works, he wasn't so bad that he couldn't read an interesting novel. He took the manuscript and started reading.

After reading, he said somewhat puzzled, "This is indeed an excellent novel, but... it doesn't have the elements I want! Or rather, the elements I want aren't the main elements of the work! Isn't this centered around a mask?"

Yoshio opened his eyes and said, "That's how I thought..."

"Although the stone mask can make people Hollowfy, to evolve them into perfect beings, there's still one last thing missing."

"Perfect existence?" Ōmaeda asked curiously, "What is a perfect existence?"

"An existence with everyone's abilities is a perfect existence!" Yoshio said, "And to become a perfect existence, you need to embed a precious jewel called the Aja Red Stone into the core of the stone mask, then wear it. That way, you can become a perfect existence transcending everything!"

"Eh?!" Ōmaeda was stunned, then excited, "Makes sense! This way, the Aja Red Stone series jewels will definitely sell well!"

"Yes." Yoshio smiled.

"Just..." Ōmaeda was very excited inside, but soon thought, "Involving Hollowfication, isn't the topic a bit risky? What if it doesn't pass review?"

"What are you afraid of? Money; with money, are you afraid the higher-ups won't agree?"

"But..." Ōmaeda was a bit conflicted; he hadn't even started making money yet, and he had to start losing money?

"Moreover, it might not pass review. Don't forget, Hollowfied beings are villains that need to be defeated. What we're promoting is the main theme!"

"Makes sense, then let's do it!" Ōmaeda nodded; at this point, he said excitedly, "If this book becomes popular! I'll definitely treat you to a big meal!"

Yoshio's eyes lit up, not because of the big meal, but because he saw Ōmaeda's favorability toward him fluctuate and finally reach sixty!

Sixty!

Sixty was good. He knew how to use this ability!

So Yoshio stood up, bid farewell to Ōmaeda, and prepared to leave.

After leaving Ōmaeda's office, he saw Suì-Fēng again. At this time, Suì-Fēng had just come out of her room.

"Captain Suì-Fēng."

Yoshio bowed, then quickly walked past Suì-Fēng.

Suì-Fēng glanced at Yoshio, thinking, is the Fifth Division's work too easy? Why is Aizen's Lieutenant running around all day?

After leaving, Yoshio found a quiet place and began observing his temporary ability 'Special Combat Force'.

Although the name of this skill was a bit strange, the effect was quite unique.

However, when Yoshio tried to activate it, he found himself seemingly in a dark world, a dark world with nothing...

Yoshio was stunned, then some information emerged in his mind.

This was the higher-dimensional comment section, but there wasn't even a single comment here.

Without comments, he naturally couldn't select and realize them!

What the hell?!

Is this a useless ability?!

Yoshio fell into thought; he felt this ability definitely wasn't trash.

But why was this happening?

Wait, could it be because Kurosaki Ichigo hasn't been born yet?

If you view this world as a manga, he was a character in the manga, and this world had the protagonist Kurosaki Ichigo.

Before Kurosaki Ichigo appeared, before the plot started, this world didn't even exist from a higher-dimensional perspective!

That is, only after Kurosaki Ichigo appeared would there be so-called 'plot', and with 'plot', there would be people's higher-dimensional 'comments'!

If that's the case, then Kurosaki Ichigo must be born!

There's another issue: After Kurosaki Ichigo is born, how will the plot unfold?

Does Rukia still need to do it?

Yoshio walked out of the higher-dimensional comment space, thinking as he headed toward Shin'ō Academy.

Special Combat Force...

This ability is too weird!

So he's just a side character, and he has to wait for Kurosaki Ichigo to appear to use this ability?

No, I'm the protagonist!

Yoshio muttered inwardly, but after thinking, he let it go.

Kurosaki Ichigo is indispensable; Yoshio is replaceable.

Any supporting character following Kurosaki Ichigo can blow up enemies. Kurosaki Ichigo can fight alone without even needing teammates. He just treats teammates as slightly advanced pawns, like playing solo.

Anyway, if something really goes wrong, Kurosaki Ichigo can solve it; he could just slack off in the back. Thinking this way, Yoshio's mood improved a lot.

He even hummed a tune until he reached Shin'ō Academy, when his heart calmed down.

He first went to Gengorō Ōunabara's office, but since it was class time, Yoshio wandered around the school.

Upon careful thought, from now on, Shin'ō Academy wouldn't produce any more powerful Shinigami.

So he searched for a long time but didn't see anyone with a Soul Ability.

It wasn't until class ended that Yoshio went to Gengorō Ōunabara's office again.

His office door wasn't closed, so Yoshio walked straight in.

"Yoshio-kun?"

Seeing Yoshio, Gengorō Ōunabara was still a bit surprised.

"Long time no see, teacher." Yoshio greeted Ōunabara, "I came to visit you."

He was also carrying a bag of fruit.

Gengorō Ōunabara felt warm inside. Yoshio really thought of him often. Among all the students who came from under him, none were like Yoshio.

Unfortunately, strictly speaking, Yoshio wasn't taught by him; he just occasionally came for guidance.

Gengorō Ōunabara said, "You came; why bring these things? You're a Lieutenant now."

"Whether Lieutenant or captain, didn't we all learn from you? It can be said, without you, teacher, there would be no me today."

Saying nice words wouldn't make him lose weight and could increase the other's favorability; naturally, say whatever sounds good.

Yoshio sat opposite Gengorō Ōunabara and asked, "Has the school had any good seedlings lately?"

"Sigh." Gengorō Ōunabara shook his head, "Much worse than your batch; this batch is the worst I've ever taught."

Yoshio's mouth twitched. Why did this sound so familiar?

Did he hear this when he was in school?

But what he said was indeed true; their batch produced two, him and Shūhei; indeed not comparable to ordinary students.

So Yoshio said, "Teacher, you've worked hard."

Gengorō Ōunabara smiled and shook his head, then as if suddenly remembering something, tentatively said, "Oh, Yoshio-kun, since you're here, actually, I have something I'd like to ask for your help with."

Seeing this, Yoshio curiously asked, "What is it?"

He was just one step away from permanently obtaining Gengorō Ōunabara's Soul Ability; he had to find an opportunity to take this final step.

Gengorō Ōunabara was still a bit nervous, tentatively asking, "Like this, could you... ask Captain Aizen? Have Captain Aizen come to our class as a substitute teacher for a few days?"

"I just thought, Captain Aizen has strong teaching abilities and has even made great contributions to textbook compilation; if he could come teach once, I think the students would benefit greatly."

"When they graduate, I think they'll be more inclined to go to the Fifth Division!"

"Oh, that's good news; don't worry, I'll discuss it with Captain Aizen when I get back. I believe Captain Aizen will definitely agree!"

A smile also appeared on Gengorō Ōunabara's face, and he said, "Then I thank you on behalf of the students!"

Ding!

Under Yoshio's excited gaze, Gengorō Ōunabara's favorability rose another level, directly reaching eighty!

Success!

At this moment, Yoshio permanently obtained his Soul Ability, "Strict Teacher Produces Outstanding Students." With this ability, Yoshio was more confident in teaching Renji and Hinamori to complete Bankai tomorrow night.

Originally, he thought if the favorability didn't reach eighty this time, he would use Child of Kirin tonight to add talent to his teaching.

Child of Kirin could not only make him a learning genius but also a teaching genius!

But now, it seemed not that troublesome; with this ability, he could even extend the teaching time.

One Sunday was too short; better to include Sunday, Monday, Tuesday—three consecutive days. The duration of "Strict Teacher Produces Outstanding Students" was also three days.

This way, Yoshio was confident in letting Hinamori comprehend Bankai too.

Renji comprehended Bankai in the original work, so with his guidance, there shouldn't be a problem.

However, in the original work, Hinamori showed no signs of comprehending Bankai; even with Strict Teacher Produces Outstanding Students, if the time was too short, it probably wouldn't be enough for her to comprehend Bankai.

Hinamori was his important experimental subject; she must comprehend Bankai!

"Alright, I'll go back now to find Captain Aizen."

At this time, Yoshio thought since he had already obtained the Soul Ability, there was no need to waste time at the school, so he got up and bid farewell to Gengorō Ōunabara.

Gengorō Ōunabara also knew Lieutenants were usually busy, and he was looking forward to Aizen's response, so he saw Yoshio off from Shin'ō Academy.

So Yoshio returned to the Fifth Division. Sure enough, Aizen was very interested in becoming a lecturer at Shin'ō Academy and accepted Gengorō Ōunabara's invitation.

During the meeting, Yoshio casually mentioned the matter with Starrk.

Aizen said with interest, "That Arrancar, like Starrk, destroyed the Tsunayashiro Clan and stole what the Tsunayashiro Clan had collected."

"Strangely, he could enter Seireitei directly through Garganta."

Yoshio squinted and smiled, "Perhaps it's related to his ability? Or maybe his Garganta is too strong, able to pass through the Barrier Membrane. Really annoying; we have to be careful in the future."

Aizen smiled at Yoshio and said, "However, according to Captain Kurotsuchi's tests, during that time, someone modified the Barrier Membrane's structure."

"It must be Kisuke Urahara; Kisuke Urahara is truly despicable!" Yoshio said angrily.

"The Captain-Commander thinks so too." Aizen said.

?

Why do I feel like you're scolding me?

Yoshio knew Aizen must have realized he was pulling strings behind the scenes, but he probably couldn't imagine that he and Angra Mainyu were the same person.

So he said, "Oh, the Tsunayashiro Clan's disappearance is a good thing."

"This family does nothing but cause trouble."

He focused on the Tsunayashiro Clan, believing Aizen could understand his meaning.

In Aizen's perception, he should have some connection to the Soul King, so hating the Tsunayashiro Clan was normal.

Using this opportunity to destroy the Tsunayashiro Clan with Hollow power wasn't hard to understand.

Moreover, Aizen himself wasn't very interested in this matter.

The Tsunayashiro Clan was the head of Soul Society's Five Great Noble Families—so what? Aizen didn't care about the Five Great Noble Families at all; he even dared to rebel against the Soul King, so why care about the Tsunayashiro Clan?

It was just because Yoshio brought up Angra that Aizen mentioned it casually.

Seeing Aizen had no interest in the matter, Yoshio naturally didn't say more and withdrew.

…

In the evening, Yoshio headed to Las Noches again.

This time, Starrk wasn't in his room, and Lilynette wasn't either, so Yoshio wandered around Las Noches.

However, he hadn't walked far when he saw a familiar face.

"Eh...?" Yoshio looked at the appearing Szayelaporro and said somewhat surprised, "You finally came out?"

The current Szayelaporro had changed greatly compared to before, and the biggest change was...

He had become an Arrancar!

Like Starrk, he had completed the Arrancar transformation without Hōgyoku.

However, although he didn't use Hōgyoku's power, he used Yoshio's The Animals.

After becoming an Arrancar, Szayelaporro's appearance was very similar to the manga Szayelaporro: golden eyes, wearing glasses, pink hair, appearing elegant and gentle.

Szayelaporro looked very excited, but he suppressed the surging emotions with reason.

He said, "I must thank you; without you, I would never have reached this step!"

Yoshio looked at Szayelaporro somewhat surprised, because he found Szayelaporro was completely different from before.

The current Szayelaporro showed no signs of madness; instead, he appeared very rational, not at all like a Hollow.

It seemed he had taken the same path as Starrk, evolving toward a Shinigami-like state.

Starrk's death aspect was loneliness; Szayelaporro's death aspect was 'madness'.

But where was the madness in the current Szayelaporro?

He had embarked on a path away from madness.

In the original work, he separated his brother representing wildness, but even after separation, that madness was still engraved in his most primal soul.

Even if the exterior seemed rational, deep down it was ultimately mad; rather than escaping madness, it was escaping the instinct for battle.

And now, through The Animals completing a key step, using his own technology to become a perfect life form, he seemed to have truly gained 'reason' detached from madness.

Interesting...

How could the previous Szayelaporro thank him?

"Thank me for what? It was just a transaction," Yoshio said casually, "I should congratulate you on becoming a perfect life form."

"The more I evolve, the more I realize that so-called perfection doesn't exist," Szayelaporro shook his head, "Perfect life? Incorporating death into the life cycle makes it perfect life?"

He seemed to have achieved enlightenment, like a Buddha.

"Indeed, having such realization means you're truly heading toward perfection," Yoshio clapped in agreement, "Recognizing that perfection doesn't exist in this world is the first step toward perfection."

"Keep working; I look forward to the day you achieve perfection."

Szayelaporro calmly said, "This is my research data."

He tossed a USB-like device to Yoshio; Yoshio caught it, then Szayelaporro asked, "Where is Aizen-sama?"

"He won't come to Las Noches for now," Yoshio said with interest, eyeing Szayelaporro, "Do you need to see him?"

"I know he used Hōgyoku to turn Hollows into Arrancars; I'd like to see what kind of power that is," Szayelaporro said, "Since he's not here, I'll wait; the future is infinite anyway."

"No problem." Yoshio said, then as if remembering something, added, "Right, are you interested in becoming an Espada?"

"Although I'm not interested in fighting, becoming an Espada should reduce some troubles," Szayelaporro thought and said, "Then I'll move a bit."

Yoshio asked with interest, "Which Espada do you plan to become?"

With Szayelaporro's strength, among the current Espada, only Starrk and Baraggan could threaten him.

But with Szayelaporro's current personality, he probably wouldn't do such troublesome things.

Not to mention whether he could win; even if he won, there would be endless troubles.

If he chose to become Starrk's zero Espada, Baraggan would monitor him.

If he chose to become Baraggan's head Espada, Baraggan would still pay attention to him.

"I'll become the second Espada."

Szayelaporro said faintly, "The second Espada is Nelliel Tu Odelschwanck; if I defeat her, what happens to her?"

"Either she demotes to third Espada, or she completely leaves Espada and becomes 'Three-Digit'."

"Three-Digit?"

"It's an organization screened from Espada," Yoshio explained, "If you challenge Espada and fail but have outstanding combat power, you can also enter Three-Digit."

"Three-Digit's status isn't as high as Espada, but higher than Espada's fractions."

"How will she choose?"

"You really have confidence; you haven't even started fighting and you're guessing Nel's fate," Yoshio chuckled, "I don't know how Nel will choose; probably Three-Digit."

This world is truly cruel; originally, Nel was ambushed by Szayelaporro and Nnoitra and expelled from Espada.

I thought this time Szayelaporro and Nnoitra wouldn't team up, but now the ultimate evolved Szayelaporro has set his sights on her position.

However, Nelliel herself probably doesn't care much about that position.

Szayelaporro nodded upon hearing this and left, probably to find Nelliel.

Speaking of which, if Nelliel becomes small, wouldn't it be easier to get her Soul Ability?

The ability to change size is also very interesting.

"Did you see? As long as you're with the strong, your group will grow more and more."

After Szayelaporro left, Yoshio looked at Starrk not far away.

While he was talking with Szayelaporro, Starrk had returned but didn't speak.

After Szayelaporro left, Starrk came over.

Hearing Yoshio's words, Starrk also said with some emotion, "I still have to thank you, Yoshio; if not for you, I might never meet so many kindred spirits."

The kindred spirits he mentioned weren't ordinary Arrancars, but 'self-Arrancars' like Angra Mainyu and Szayelaporro.

"You should thank yourself, thank your own power," Yoshio said. "In Hueco Mundo, the weak don't deserve friends; only the strong qualify, only the strong deserve friends."

Starrk neither agreed nor disagreed with this statement and just asked, "About last night..."

"Don't worry, I won't mess it up," Yoshio said casually, "That Arrancar is called Angra Mainyu; he's not in Hueco Mundo now, but in the Human World."

"Human World..."

Starrk frowned.

For Menos Grande, especially top-tier Menos Grande like them, the Human World wasn't a good place.

The reishi concentration in the Human World was too thin; souls condensed with high-concentration reishi would even have breathing difficulties in the Human World, making Hollows uncomfortable.

He found it hard to understand why a powerful Arrancar like Angra Mainyu would go to the Human World.

"He's with Kisuke Urahara," seeing Starrk's puzzled expression, Yoshio said solemnly, "Now... you understand, right?"

Starrk fell silent. Kisuke Urahara was Aizen's enemy, which meant he was their enemy too. Unexpectedly, the kindred spirit he was looking for wasn't a friend, but an enemy.

"Not all kindred spirits can become friends," Yoshio said softly. "Just like Captain Aizen and Kisuke Urahara; aren't they both Shinigami? They are kindred spirits, yet enemies."

Starrk naturally understood this; he didn't need Yoshio to explain that not everyone was suitable as a friend.

Even a lone wolf striving to escape loneliness wouldn't be indiscriminate.

"But anyway, thanks for your help," Starrk said, "If we meet on the battlefield later, I definitely won't hold back."

Yoshio patted Starrk's shoulder and said, "Don't think too much; just go with the flow. Who can say for sure about the future?"

Yoshio's lips curled into a smile, adding, "In this world, there are no eternal enemies, nor eternal friends."

Starrk said nothing; Yoshio took the files and left.

He had said what needed to be said tonight; Starrk's favorability had increased a bit, and the rest depended on time.

Moreover, today he received a big gift from Szayelaporro; shouldn't he study it properly?

When people get busy, time passes especially quickly.

Before long, it was already late; Yoshio returned to his room again.

This day, Sunday, Yoshio submitted the manuscript of his new book "Stone Mask" to Shuhei, asking him to serialize it in the next issue of "Seireitei Bulletin."

Then, evening arrived.

Yoshio went home with Hinamori; when they arrived, Renji was already waiting at the door.

Renji was a bit surprised to see Hinamori, while Hinamori smiled and said, "Abarai, don't think you're the only one who wants to get stronger."

"For Hinamori, I can extend the time to three days," Yoshio led the two into the room and announced, "From now on, come every Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday night!"