The night had grown late.
Inside the temporary camp in the 7th Southern District of the Rukongai, the lights were gradually going out, leaving only a few emergency Kido lamps swaying gently in the night breeze.
Most of the wounded had been properly settled. The members of the Fourth Division took turns standing guard to ensure no one suffered any unexpected complications from their injuries.
Hasumi Ren walked out of the wounded's tent and let out a soft breath.
It was one thing after another.
The third batch of wounded for tonight had finally been treated.
He looked up toward the outside of the camp.
There, the traces of the recent battle had not yet completely dissipated. The scorched earth and cracks on the ground were exceptionally clear under the moonlight.
The remains of the Menos Grande had long since turned into Reishi and scattered, but the lingering aftermath of that battle still refused to fade from his mind.
It wasn't fear.
It was an indescribable thrumming in his veins.
He looked down at the Zanpakuto at his waist.
The blade was sheathed, resting quietly at his side.
Just moments ago, this very sword had slain several Gillian.
With every strike, he had cut into the Hollows' spiritual pressure nodes.
That was the most common technique used in Kaido treatments—finding the most fragile part of a spiritual body and making a precise incision.
It was equally effective against Hollows; in fact, it worked exceptionally well.
But Ren knew that this was not true swordsmanship.
It was merely swinging a sword without any real martial technique.
After those Hollows died, their fragments had scattered in clusters. Upon absorbing them, the experience of his Hollowfication ability had increased significantly.
Ren opened the system.
Spiritual Power: 6th Class (Experience: 5680/17000) Swordsmanship: Lv5 (Experience: 130/8000) Hakuda: Lv6 (Experience: 520/12000) Shunpo: Lv5 (Experience: 4210/8000) Kido: Lv6 (Experience: 1580/12000) Zanpakuto: Garenge (Shikai) Hollowfication: Lv3 (Experience: 2580/3000) Shunko: Beginner (3%) Double Incantation: Mastered (8%) Hogyoku (Awakening Rate: 0.05%)
Although his Hollowfication level had been steadily rising, Ren hadn't had the chance to use it yet.
He didn't know when he would be able to test it out.
But within the Seireitei, there likely wouldn't be an opportunity anytime soon.
Ren then looked at the Swordsmanship column.
As the basic skill with the lowest experience value, Lv5 was actually decent—roughly at the level of a weak Lieutenant.
Although it was quite a bit worse compared to his Lv6 in Kido and Hakuda, it was definitely more than passable within the Fourth Division.
At this moment, Ren recalled Unohana's soft evaluation from earlier.
*Clumsy.*
"She really is... completely merciless," Ren muttered softly to himself.
Then, he walked over to an open clearing and drew his Zanpakuto.
No spiritual pressure, no techniques—just the most basic sword-gripping stance.
He took a deep breath.
And swung down.
Under the moonlight, the blade carved a silver arc through the air.
Ren retracted the blade, adjusted his stance, and swung down again.
He didn't use any spiritual pressure; he simply repeated the most fundamental slashing motion.
Back in the Second Division, he could pick up Hakuda and Shunpo fragments. In the Fourth Division and the Kido Corps, there were Kido fragments to collect.
But as for Swordsmanship, he had never had the opportunity to improve it.
After being sharply critiqued by Unohana, Ren genuinely wanted to raise his Swordsmanship level a bit.
When it came to Swordsmanship fragments, the hack-and-slash Eleventh Division definitely had the most.
But right beside him, there was actually a shortcut to rapid improvement.
*Perhaps... I could try asking Captain Unohana directly for guidance?*
Ren pondered this as he continued to swing his sword.
His figure, continuously swinging a sword under the moonlight, fell into Unohana Retsu's line of sight.
She hadn't come here intentionally; after finishing with the wounded on her end, she was simply doing her habitual patrol around the camp.
And then she saw this scene.
The white-haired youth stood in the center of the clearing, swinging his sword over and over again.
His movements were standard, his force was applied correctly, and one could even say his form was perfectly textbook.
Yet it completely lacked any real technique.
Unohana Retsu gave her silent evaluation.
It wasn't that he was practicing poorly.
It was that his sword had no soul.
It was like a doctor wielding a scalpel—precise, standard, and methodical.
But a sword was not a scalpel.
A sword was meant for killing.
Unohana stood in the shadows, quietly watching Ren repeat the motion time and time again.
She had seen countless people practice swordsmanship.
Some pursued power, some pursued speed, and some pursued technique.
But to see someone like this youth, still practicing the sword with the most basic mindset...
*Could true swordsmanship ever be forged this way?*
*Heh.*
She turned and quietly walked away.
Without disturbing the figure still swinging his sword under the moonlight.
Before long, the camp became busy once again.
The wounded needed their bandages changed, their spiritual pressure restabilized, and evaluations on whether they were fit for transfer.
Ren shuttled between the various tents, his techniques practiced and his movements precise.
"F-Fourth Seat Ren!"
At that moment, Kotetsu Isane's voice rang out from behind him, carrying a trace of urgency.
Ren turned around.
Isane jogged over, her short silver-gray hair swaying slightly in the night.
"What's wrong?"
"Another batch of newly wounded has just been brought in."
Isane caught her breath.
"They're from the Eleventh Division. They were attacked by Hollows twenty miles outside the camp. Several of them are injured."
Ren nodded and followed her toward the tents.
Halfway there, a sudden commotion erupted in the distance.
Ren frowned and vanished from his spot with Shunpo.
The next moment, he appeared at the edge of the camp.
In the distance, several dark silhouettes were closing in—more Hollows.
But this time, there weren't many. There were only a few, and they were all just ordinary Hollows.
A few members of the Eleventh Division had already rushed to meet them. Amidst flashing blades, they quickly slew two of the beasts.
However, the third Hollow bypassed their defensive line and charged straight toward Ren's direction.
The Eleventh Division members were about to fall back to help, but upon seeing Ren standing there, they all stopped in their tracks.
If it was Fourth Seat Ren, there was no need for them to worry.
Ren rested his hand on his Zanpakuto, just about to strike.
A voice came from behind him.
"Fourth Seat Ren, let me handle this."
Ren stepped sideways and saw that Kotetsu Isane had already drawn her Zanpakuto. Her face was a bit pale, but her eyes were resolute.
"Isane?"
Ren raised an eyebrow.
"I... I want to try too..."
Isane bit her lip.
"I can't just keep hiding in the back forever."
Ren looked at her for two seconds.
Then he stepped aside, clearing the way.
"Go ahead."
Isane took a deep breath, gripped her Zanpakuto tightly, and charged at the Hollow.
Then, she was swatted away by a single claw, crashing to the ground in a sorry state.
Ren stared in silence.
Isane scrambled up from the dirt, her face smudged with dust and her eyes slightly red.
The Hollow was about to continue its pursuit, but Ren had already moved.
With a single slash, the Hollow dissipated into Reishi before it could even let out a scream.
Ren sheathed his sword and walked over to Isane.
"Are you alright?"
Isane kept her head down, remaining silent.
Ren crouched down to check her injuries. They were just superficial wounds; nothing serious.
Isane looked up, tears welling in her eyes.
"There, there. You just lack combat experience," he comforted.
He stood up and reached out a hand to pull her up.
"Go back and take care of the wounded. That's what you're meant to do."
Looking at his profile, Isane suddenly asked in a small voice.
"Fourth Seat Ren, your swordsmanship is so amazing. How did you train it?"
Ren paused in his steps.
*How did I train it?*
He thought for a moment and answered truthfully.
"Actually, I haven't really trained it much at all."
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