The next day.
Living World, Karakura Town, at Ichigo and Orihime's school.
"Kurosaki called in sick? That's rare... Although he often skips class, this is the first time he's properly requested time off..."
"Hmm... Ishida and Chad also called in sick today... And Kuchiki as well... What's going on? Well, whatever, time's up. Let's start class..."
School rooftop.
Beep, beep, beep—
Toshiro was sitting on the ground, holding a flip-phone-like device and typing away continuously.
Suddenly, a pair of hands reached from behind Toshiro and covered his eyes. At the same time, Toshiro felt his head sink into something soft and ample.
"Guess who?" A clear voice sounded by Toshiro's ear.
"What are you doing, Rangiku?" Toshiro said impatiently.
"Oh my! Captain, you're amazing! You guessed it right away!" Rangiku said in a 'surprised' tone.
Toshiro was speechless at Rangiku's 'praise'. What 'amazing'? There was no need to guess. Ignoring the familiar voice and Reiatsu, just the ample bosom and soft touch… only Rangiku among the people he knew possessed those.
"By the way, Captain, what are you doing?" Rangiku let go of Toshiro's eyes and sat down beside him.
"I'm using the Command Console to send a report to Soul Society, explaining last night's Arrancar attack in detail."
Toshiro glanced at Rangiku beside him and continued typing. Today, Rangiku wore a white shirt and a grey skirt, still dressed like a school uniform. But even in a simple uniform, her voluptuous figure made it look sexy and alluring.
Unfortunately, Toshiro was long used to Rangiku's revealing style, so he didn't react, just glanced and continued his work.
Seeing Toshiro engrossed in work and ignoring her, Rangiku started trying to make conversation.
"Well... those Arrancars were really strong. If we hadn't released our limits, we couldn't have won easily. But... I won in the end, which means I'm pretty strong, right, Captain?"
Rangiku said, clenching her fist with a smug look.
Hearing Rangiku's smug words, Toshiro frowned and couldn't help but deflate her pride. "Those Arrancars from last night, except for Grimmjow, were all small fry. Not even Vasto Lorde-class Menos, probably not even Adjuchas-class. They were most likely converted from the lowest-class Gillian Menos."
"And just Gillian-class Arrancars already have Captain or Lieutenant-class combat ability. You only defeated a Lieutenant-class Arrancar. Compared to those monsters, you're still far off. What's there to be smug about?"
Hearing Toshiro's words, Rangiku's expression became serious. "Just Gillian-class Arrancars already have Captain or Lieutenant-class combat ability? How terrifying would Adjuchas and Vasto Lorde Arrancars be? Can our Gotei 13's Captains compare to them?"
"Don't worry too much, Rangiku. Vasto Lordes are too rare... Aizen would be hard-pressed to find many. His main forces should mostly be Adjuchas-class Arrancars. And while Adjuchas-class Arrancars are still strong, they haven't surpassed Captain-class. Our Gotei 13's Captains can handle them."
Toshiro reassured her.
"What about Vasto Lorde-class Arrancars? Even if they are few, they still exist. And I've heard that Vasto Lordes themselves possess strength surpassing Captains. If they become Arrancars and their power increases significantly... the Gotei 13's Captains might not be able to handle them, right?"
Rangiku pressed.
"Well, you're right. Vasto Lordes themselves possess power Beyond Captain-class... many Gotei 13 Captains are no match for them. But... you're overlooking one thing, Rangiku."
"Just as there's a huge gap between Adjuchas and Vasto Lorde Menos, the same goes for Captains. The strength between Captains also varies greatly. Take Captain-Commander Yamamoto. He's fundamentally a Captain, but he's called the strongest Shinigami in a thousand years. Is his strength the same as other Captains?"
Toshiro asked rhetorically.
"Captain, you mean... among the Gotei 13's Captains, there are those who can stand against Vasto Lordes?"
Rangiku asked curiously. Ordinary Shinigami don't understand the true strength of Captains at the top of the Shinigami pyramid.
They only know Yamamoto is called the strongest in a thousand years, and Toshiro is called the most prodigious Shinigami in Soul Society's history. Their strength has reached the Shinigami peak, unreachable by other Captains.
Aside from Yamamoto and Toshiro, the Captain other Shinigami see as strongest is probably Zaraki, because every generation's 'Kenpachi' is said to be the strongest Captain 'excluding the Captain-Commander'.
Apart from Yamamoto, Toshiro, and Zaraki, the other Captains seem roughly similar to ordinary Shinigami. Although Rangiku, as a Lieutenant, knows more than ordinary Shinigami, beyond the transcendent existences of Toshiro and Yamamoto, it's hard for her to distinguish the detailed strength gaps between other Captains.
"Although strength isn't absolutely determined by talent, none of the Gotei 13's Captains lack talent. When talent is similar, the main factor affecting strength becomes training time. So Captains like Shunsui, Jushiro, and Unohana, who have held their positions for over a century, with far more seniority than others, are significantly stronger than Captains like Sui-Feng, Byakuya, and Komamura, who haven't been Captains as long."
Toshiro said.
"Captain, you mean Captains like Captain Kyoraku can match Vasto Lorde-class Arrancars?"
Rangiku was very surprised. Kyoraku is always so unserious, Ukitake is sickly all day, and Unohana usually appears gentle and kind… none of them seem like they could be that formidable.
"Yes, so don't worry too much. The Espada will be handled by us Captains. Nevertheless, you can't be too lax. We'll handle the Espada... the small fry will be for you to clean up. So... don't be as lazy as before. Otherwise, when the final battle comes, I might not be able to protect you."
Toshiro advised seriously.
Seeing Toshiro's grave expression, Rangiku nodded seriously. "I understand, Captain!"
…
Urahara Shop.
"Oh my, isn't this Sado-kun? What brings you here?"
Kisuke looked at Chad, who had suddenly shown up.
"Urahara-san..."
Thud!
Chad knelt directly on the ground. "Please... train me too!!"
"Oh my, how surprising, Sado-kun..."
…
Karakura Town's outskirts, outside a warehouse in an abandoned factory.
Ichigo suddenly appeared here. After looking around to confirm the situation, he bent down and entered through the warehouse's shutter door.
"You actually found this place... Ichigo! It seems you've finally made up your mind... to join our Vizard group!"
As Ichigo entered the warehouse, Shinji's voice suddenly rang out.