XX-level Hokage

Rescuing Chad had a fixed target location, but the retreat didn't need to follow a set pattern. There was no pre-prepared retreat route, nor were there teammates waiting to meet them at the retreat point.

They are free; as long as they aren't discovered, and as long as they can make a hole, they can go anywhere in the world. "But it feels like things are going a little too smoothly."

The transfer was successfully completed, and what Inoue Orihime uttered were words that were, in a sense, taboo. They were curses that should never be spoken.

However, Shiba Ganju didn't sense anything amiss and stated it quite matter-of-factly.

"That's natural, because the Fourth Division's main business is medical rescue and supply. Although all members are skilled in healing, they are also skilled in combat."

Their skill level is lower than other teams. In other words, they're a bunch of guys who know absolutely nothing about combat.

Sasha—

It sounded like the wind blowing through the leaves.

Chad stopped abruptly and looked around warily.

"Using them as opponents is, in a way, like bullying laymen." But Shiba Ganju didn't notice this; he was still explaining to Namikaze Orihime.

"If they find out, we're really doomed. That means we won't be able to fight against the other squads at all." Sasha—

Something is getting closer.

"Wait, wait a minute, there's something ahead!!"

"Violating the rules of stealth," Chad shouted. Finally, neither Inoue Orihime nor Shiba Ganju were careless, either due to ignorance of the situation or excessive knowledge, until danger was imminent.

Something was coming from somewhere ahead, from beyond the green bushes. It was moving very fast, a streak of silver light.

Everything that blocked their way, whether it was a branch or a leaf, or a small animal or insect that lived in the forest, was cut in two in an instant before the eyes could even catch their breath!

A terrifying monster lurked in the dark thicket; something resembling a sickle-weasel, its movements causing the air to vibrate and creak, was drawing near.

By the time I noticed, it was already right in front of me!

Shiba Ganju's long-term training had made his instincts faster than his consciousness; before he could react, he had already rolled awkwardly to the side. "Three days to form a shield! I refuse!!"

Orihime Inoue stretched out her hand, and three streaks of light flew forward, instantly forming an orange-yellow triangular shield in front of her. Then, it collided with the incoming white light!

The scene, resembling a tsunami crashing against a rock-climbing structure, did not unfold.

Ignoring Inoue Orihime's defenses, the extremely precise piercing strike easily penetrated the Three-Day Barrier. Then...

Without any mercy, he stabbed at Inoue Orihime's chest!

Orihime Inoue's eyes widened suddenly, not even realizing what had happened, but instinctively looking at the streak of light piercing her chest.

In an instant, the light vanished, and a gentle voice followed. "This outfit is beautiful, Orihime-chan."

A huge and heavy cleaver... no, a large kitchen knife, clashed with the willow-leaf blade at the tip of a spear.

In terms of sheer size, the two blades were not even comparable; one emphasized slashing power and destructive force, while the other prioritized agility. Yet, the two blades clashed repeatedly, sparks flying, as the two men constantly shifted and changed positions atop the several-meter-high wall.

He then repeatedly swung the blade in his hand at his opponent.

"Hey, you're Madarame Ikkaku, right!"

Another collision occurred, and the two men retreated backward.

On a straight line, which is by no means a wide wall, they walked as if on flat ground.

Wearing straw sandals, Ichigo knocked down the tiles on the wall, which fell to the ground below with a series of shattering sounds. He stopped and looked at Madarame Ikkaku, who had also stopped and assumed an attack stance, with a confident smile on his lips, and called out his name.

"You keep saying the real show is just starting, but it's no different from before. Did you not put in any effort?" "Ichigo Kurosaki, is it?"

A carefree smile also appeared on Ban's face, the initial anger at being called bald completely gone. The smile on his face now was the satisfaction of meeting a worthy opponent.

"All you're good for is your mouth, huh? Save that for after you defeat me! Although that's impossible, anyway. That being said, the fight was definitely exhilarating."

After all, Ikkaku Madarame hasn't experienced a battle like this in a long time. Ultimately, shouldn't the Eleventh Division be considered a "cleaver squad"? When it comes to a real fight, it should be a real battle with real weapons, right?!

It's like fighting in Rukongai. When people bump into each other on the street, they can dislike each other with just a glance, exchange a few words, and start fighting right away. That's what the Eleventh Division is like, right?

However, it's hard to say what kind of Madarame Ikkaku the current Eleventh Division is.

Chapter 90: Puzzled

One or two of them are violent at heart, but they insist on playing the role of suited thugs, acting all civilized, yet they're all quite friendly when they actually fight.

When politely asking the other party to make the first move, one should also kindly remind them that if they make the move, they will either be killed or maimed.

They train so hard in private, each one more skilled at killing than the last, but in actual combat they just don't use it, they just hold back that one trick.

They have to let their opponent defeat their Kido or Hakuda before saying something like, "You are indeed very strong. You defeated my least favorite Kido (Hakuda). Now I'm going to get serious."

Bullshit! You guys secretly practice Kido, and it's just as fucking terrifying as Hakuda, you know that?

Instead of using the skills you've painstakingly honed in battle to their fullest potential, you're holding back. Don't you feel guilty?

Can you even call yourselves a combat squad?

Looking around, everyone was like that, which made the originally confident Madarame Ikkaku lose confidence. What's worse, the captain Zaraki Kenpachi, who was just like him, didn't care at all and only cared about his own enjoyment.

Now, the battle with Ichigo has awakened the passion in Madara's heart.

Yes, that's how it should be. A real battle should be a clash of swords, a brute force to overpower the opponent. There are no fancy or flashy demonic arts; there is only the clash of swords to the extreme!

However, what Ikkaku Madarame was unaware of was...

It wasn't that Ichigo didn't want to use flashy and beautiful Kido techniques... it's that he simply didn't know how to do them. "How can you know if you don't try?!"

Ichigo stomped heavily on the wall, shattering it. He spun the massive Zangetsu above his head, then raised it high and charged straight toward Madarame Ikkaku.

Ultimately, when the battleground is a wall, there are no other options besides launching a frontal attack.

Madarame Ikkaku's eyes widened as he stared directly at Ichigo, who was lunging at him. A powerful spiritual pressure surged around Ichigo.

Ichigo mocked him, saying he was just exaggerating, making it sound harsh but not actually doing anything. That's because Ichigo didn't know what Madarame Ikkaku had actually seen.

In terms of combat experience and skills alone, Ichigo doesn't have many redeeming qualities; he's just incredibly strong and can throw bricks. But it's precisely this strength that has allowed him to fight Ikkaku Madarame to this point.

All of this was because, in the constant battles, Ichigo's spiritual pressure was increasing and climbing at a visible rate.

It was less of a battle and more of a training exercise. Through continuous battles, he steadily improved until he was able to fight Madarame Ikkaku to a point where even if Madarame Ikkaku released his Zanpakuto, he could still hold his own and even slightly outmatch him.

Ichigo's Zangetsu came flying with all his might.

Madarame Ikkaku showed no intention of dodging; on the contrary, a hint of shrewdness crept into his smile. "Kid, don't really think you can do everything just by using your power!"

With a sudden burst of strength, the spear in his hand instantly flipped, not to thrust out, but to whip.

It wasn't a slash, but rather the side of the blade that struck the side of Ichigo's incoming Crescent Moon slash. A resounding clang, like a great bell, followed, and the angle of Zangetsu's descent became slightly off.

But that was enough. Madarame Ikkaku slightly turned to the opposite side, and Zangetsu slashed down from a point just inches away from him, without touching anything.

"You still have a lot to learn about combat! Split up, Hozukimaru!!"

By deflecting Ichigo's Moon Tremor, Madarame Ikkaku simultaneously flicked his wrists, causing the spear in his hands to suddenly disintegrate. It transformed from a long spear into a three-section spear resembling a crossbow.

His right hand retreated, grasping only the tail end of Hozukimaru. His body twisted and turned, and the three sections of Hozukimaru spun around him.

As Ikkaku Madarame extended his hand, Hozukimaru, like a deadly scorpion, transformed the sharp tip of his willow-leaf spear into a deadly scorpion's tail, stabbing at Ichigo from an angle from which he could not possibly defend.

Ichigo, who had missed his attack and was still unable to retrieve his Rinnegan or even control his body in a brief state of stiffness, could only watch helplessly as the willow-leaf blade pierced his body.

Red liquid splashed into the sky.

Not only that, Ichigo was hung on the gun head like a tattered piece of trash, and Madara swung him off the wall and onto the ground with a forceful flick from one corner.

In this battle fought on the walls, Ichigo, who only possessed the strength to throw bricks, was thus ousted from the "stage" by Madarame Ikkaku, who used skill to overcome strength. "Ah—!! *

Ichigo, who had been thrown to the ground, let out a suppressed cry of pain.

Hozukimaru's spearhead, sharp as a willow leaf blade, easily pierced Ichigo's body. However, due to the relatively small size of the blade, it was unlikely to have slit Ichigo's neck, or even hit his head or heart directly—a fatal blow.

What remained was only a penetrating wound, not a massive bleeding injury that left the patient unable to move.

Therefore, even though blood kept oozing from the wound, mixing with the death knight's robe to become an even darker blackish-red, he still endured it.

He clenched his teeth so tightly they seemed to grind them to pieces, and using Zangetsu as support, he stood up again. He raised his head and looked at Madarame Ichika, who was still on the wall, and pointed Zangetsu at him.

Even though they were kicked off the stage, there was no agreement between them that whoever was knocked off the stage would simply admit defeat. "I heard that things seem to have changed in your modern world, right?"

Instead of launching another attack, Madarame Ikkaku transformed Hozukimaru back into his spear mode, leaned against the wall with the spear on his back, and looked down at Ichigo, who was pointing a sword at him.

"I heard that we're living in what's called a peaceful era? Or maybe it's the Heisei era of otaku? Anyway, I've heard Captain Shihouin mention it."

What do you mean by this?

Ichigo didn't understand what Madarame Ikkaku meant by saying this.

In other words, what I'm trying to say is that before this, before you met Rukia Kuchiki, you lived a life completely devoid of combat, right? I can sense that you're used to fighting, but it's at best child's play. You have absolutely no experience in life-or-death battles, where a single breath or moment of hesitation could mean certain death. The constant physical damage, the continuous loss of blood and life force, and yet you still dragged that kind of body into battle—this is probably the first time you've experienced that, isn't it?

Ban Zi's eyes, painted with red eyeshadow, narrowed slightly, revealing a deeper look in them.

"So, why are you raising your knife against me now? Why are you continuing to fight? Fighting may be pleasurable, but it must hurt a lot."

"Ouch, yes, it really hurts."

Ichigo twitched the corner of his mouth, speaking half-jokingly and half-seriously.

“Even my father never hit me like that. You bunch of guys living in the samurai era, you’re all really ruthless.” Madarame Ikkaku squeezed out the sound from his nose, whether with pride or self-mockery.

"If I could, I wouldn't want to fight either, but I guess that's just wishful thinking. In other words, if I want to achieve anything, I can only rely on myself. If I want to save Rukia, then I have no choice but to fight you."

"What a stubborn fellow."

Madarame Ikkaku shook his head with a snort.

If you live in a chaotic world, you can't survive without being fierce and ruthless; there's nothing more to say about that.

If you yearn for battle and can taste joy and victory in it, then there's nothing more to say about being addicted to battle and death.

But he had lived a life untouched by real combat, living in a time of peace, and never aspired to victory or joy from battle; he only wielded his sword to protect someone.

I don't quite understand Madarame Ikkaku.

Ichigo gave him the feeling of a child playing a hero game, shouting about love and justice.

Chapter 91: Swing!

"But... I don't hate you. I have my own principles too, and I've stood in front of you to protect you. However, out of respect, I'll spare your life and defeat you right here and now with all my might!!"

With a roar that seemed to echo from the heavens, Madara swooped down from the wall, attacking Ichigo once more like a predator. However, while Yuuto was powerful, his hunting techniques were limited to a few moves, and Madara was far more terrifying than Yuuto.

As if determined to overcome force with skill, Hozukimaru flexibly switched between his two states, launching continuous and fluid attacks on Ichigo.

Just as Ichigo was about to get used to one of his attack patterns, he would immediately switch to another, keeping Ichigo constantly on the defensive. Ultimately, techniques are something that exists to compensate for an insurmountable gap in strength.