Chapter 147: Soul Society.
asauchi are the katanas issued to lower-ranking Shinigami or students of the Soul Reaper Academy.
To put it simply, an asauchi is a nameless zanpakutō, forged by Nimaiya Ōetsu and used by the Shinigami.
Since it has no name, an asauchi is just an asauchi; failing to become a zanpakutō means it does not belong to anyone yet.
Even if an asauchi has yet to receive a name, it does not possess much autonomy.
Holding the asauchi in his hand, Naruto naturally felt the spirituality of the blade, as well as a slight resistance.
He reached out to stroke the blade; the material it was forged from could be described as excellent, but a sword is a weapon of murder—no matter how beautifully adorned, it remains a Sharp Weapon meant for taking lives.
The hunger in his stomach grew even more severe...
But Naruto, now in Soul form, also had a vague feeling: though he was currently a Soul, his strength was already no less than when he had a Physical Body in the Ninja World.
Bending his knees and waist, he stepped forward heavily with his left foot—a standard Hiten Mitsurugi-ryū starting stance.
The power spreading from the bend of his legs traveled through his waist and abdomen to his right arm, suddenly released like a fully drawn bowstring. This immense explosive force drove the asauchi in his hand, and a flash of brilliant white light suddenly appeared!
There was no Chakra, but the free-floating reishi in the surroundings became a substitute, resonating through the asauchi.
It was originally a pure physical Sword Qi, but because of the two aforementioned factors, it passively absorbed the surrounding reishi while in flight. As the Sword Qi gradually expanded, its power also skyrocketed!
When the ten-meter-long Sword Qi approached the Hollow, the Soul Reaper Academy student, who had fallen to the ground due to injury, was dumbfounded and rubbed his eyes in disbelief.
District 80 of Rukongai, Zaraki, is the most remote area. Resources here are scarce, and while there are Souls living here, most are quite weak newborn Souls.
Because the reishi density is very low, it is difficult for strong Souls to obtain enough reishi to sustain themselves here. The stronger a Soul is, the weaker it becomes when reishi is not replenished in time.
Furthermore, being on the outermost edge of the Soul Society, it not only has the worst public security but also sees occasional appearances of Hollows. Any newborn Soul with a bit of awareness would flee from here.
But the Naruto before him was clearly a newborn Soul, yet looking at the condensation of his Souland that fleeting, powerful Spiritual Pressure...
"Boom!"
The Sword Qi naturally shattered the Hollow's white-boned, long-nosed mask. It did not end with just one strike; the concentrated slash suddenly split into eight more Sword Qi, enveloping the Hollow's entire body from various tricky angles.
Since he did not know this monster was a Hollow from the bleach world, let alone its weaknesses, it was only natural for Naruto to use a powerful move right from the start.
The brain, abdomen, spine, and every other vital spot Naruto could think of were all visited by the Sword Qi. Clearly, after enduring multiple fatal blows, this Hollow was not far from death.
Naruto did not actually know that the Hollow's true fatal wound was the already shattered white-boned, long-nosed mask—the common weakness of Hollows and higher-level Hollows.
"Wait!"
Just as Naruto was forcing his swaying body forward to deliver the finishing blow, the injured Soul Reaper Academy student struggled to his feet and reached out for the asauchi Naruto had temporarily borrowed.
Naruto, who originally did not want to hand over the weapon, saw the determined look in the man's eyes. Remembering that the man had saved him after all, he finally steeled himself and handed the weapon back.
The moment he took the asauchi, the man who saved Naruto charged forward with the blade and leaped into the air as he approached the fallen, barely breathing Hollow.
The asauchi sank up to its hilt into the exact center of the shattered bone mask. The Hollow had no strength left to resist, while the Soul Reaper Academy student, hanging on with his hand on the hilt, was chanting something under his breath.
No matter how you looked at it, it seemed like he was performing a burial rite...
This strange thought flashed through Naruto's mind, but then he felt a wave of dizziness and knelt on one knee after stumbling a few steps.
Naruto felt like his body, composed of a Soul, was collapsing!
After purifying the Hollow, the Soul Reaper Academy student naturally noticed Naruto's abnormality. He jogged over to Naruto's side and took down the gourd hanging behind him.
Pulling out the stopper, he poured clear water composed entirely of high-density reishi into Naruto's mouth. The moment it hit his stomach, the reishi suddenly erupted, turning into a warm current that continuously nourished Naruto's entire body.
Although Naruto's Soul body stopped collapsing, this bit of water was just a drop in the bucket.
It was mainly because Naruto's Soul was too powerful. Having just arrived in this remote District 80 of Rukongai, he had not had time to replenish reishi before undergoing an intense battle...
Naruto's current state could only be described as exceptionally terrible.
"Shūi, that Spiritual Pressure just now..."
The Soul Reaper Academy student who just saved Naruto was named Kido Shūi. He hailed from District 79 of Rukongai, Kusajishi, and was only in District 80, Zaraki, for a routine patrol today.
Due to a lack of talent, he could only become a lower-ranking Shinigami upon graduation. To go further, he had to choose to carry out high-risk missions ahead of time to bolster his resume.
If his resume looked good enough, he might be scouted by one of the Gotei 13 and become a low-level member of a squad.
Although he would still be at the bottom, it was definitely much better than being a lower-ranking Shinigami who only performed menial tasks.
"It was emitted by this newborn Soul."
"I knew it, with your grades..." The newcomer only half-finished his sentence before reacting. "You are saying that Spiritual Pressure just now was erupted by this newborn Soul?! A newborn Soulthat arrived in District 80?!"
"Yes, it is him!"
...
Soul Society, the North Gate passage from Rukongai to the Seireitei.
The unconscious Naruto was carried on Kido Shūi's shoulder, followed by his classmate and friend, Ōshima Shūzō.
"Halt!"
The stalwart Danzōmaru, responsible for guarding the North Gate, raised his hand to stop them. Though he did not recognize Kido Shūi and the other, he could tell at a glance they were students of the Soul Reaper Academy.
But the person on Kido Shūi's back, Naruto, looked like an ordinary Soul from Rukongai no matter how you viewed him.
"Rukongai Souls who have not passed the examination are not permitted to enter the Seireitei."
"He is special, and his Soul has suffered a severe blow. The reishi in Rukongai simply isn't..."
"That is not my responsibility," Danzōmaruinterrupted Kido Shūi. "He cannot enter!"
"But..." Kido Shūi wanted to say more.
"Shūi, forget it." Ōshima Shūzō pulled on Kido Shūi's lapel. "Lord Danzōmaru is right. Besides, we are just unseated lower-ranking Shinigami; we don't have that authority at all."
"But we can't just let him die like this..."
"Let's arrange for him to stay in District 1, Junrinan. The reishi density there is decent, and I have an acquaintance in District 1."
"This..." Looking at the still unconscious Naruto on his shoulder, Kido Shūi hesitated for a moment before finally nodding.
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