All of this was just to maintain his own existence and constantly make himself stronger!
It was precisely because of his experiences along this path that Mahiru adopted an attitude of wanton indulgence towards his desires.
Matsumoto Rangiku was a soul residing in Karakura District. As someone with the potential to become a Shinigami, the Reishi in the atmosphere couldn't satisfy her hunger. When she was on the verge of starvation, she encountered Aozaki Mahiru, who was collecting protection money on the street.
"Little kid, what's your name?" Mahiru felt a sense of déjà vu, as if he had seen this scene somewhere before.
"Matsumoto Rangiku..." A weak voice came from her small body.
Without overthinking, Mahiru decisively used the food he had scrounged to pull her back from the brink of death, gaining a future beautiful wife in return.
"Lord Aizen, are you interested in that person?"
Under the shade of a tree, a brown-skinned, blind man wearing goggles gazed at Mahiru, who was wreaking havoc on the street.
"Interested? No, that man is already mine. He's been quite helpful with my activities in District 62."
Aizen opened the document in his hand, which contained Mahiru's file.
Name: Aozaki Mahiru
Age: 20
Origin: Human World Soul
Responsible Area: Eastern Rukongai, District 62, Karakura
Reiryoku: Level 17 Reiryoku
Evaluation: Appears kind and easygoing, extremely indulgent, but in reality, he is ruthless and ambitious.
Note: He possesses Vice-Captain potential.
"Tosen, this is his final test."
After speaking, he picked up a pen and began to revise the document.
The Reiryoku column was changed to Level 16, and the Note column was revised to Captain potential.
"It seems you think highly of him. Do you want him to stand by our side?" Tosen Kaname couldn't see, but he discerned Aizen's attitude from his tone.
"Four years ago, when I first met him in Karakura, his Reiryoku wasn't even Level 20; he was considered an insignificant soul."
Aizen glanced at Mahiru's evaluation in the document and said in a calm tone:
"But four years have passed, and his Reiryoku has reached Level 16, which is already the level of a regular Squad members."
"The most crucial thing is that he is a Human World Soul, living in Rukongai. Such talent is too rare; he shouldn't remain here."
"So you're letting him enter the Central Spirit Arts Academy?"
Aizen wore a gentle smile, exuding a kindness that instantly made people feel good about him.
"That's right, his talent shouldn't be buried here. Seireitei is where he belongs."
Mahiru gripped a soul by the neck, lifting him up, and looked towards the distant big tree. He couldn't see anything, but he knew someone was standing there watching him.
He felt a bit excited, not because he was about to enter the Central Spirit Arts Academy, but because he was one step closer to the Hōgyoku.
After meeting Aizen in District 62 and being noticed by him.
He had been here, hunting souls with Shinigami potential for Aizen, stealing their spiritual power. Besides exchanging for resources, he wanted to get close to Aizen to see if he could find an opportunity to acquire the Hōgyoku.
After all, the time he was in was 1878!
The Hōgyoku experiment hadn't officially begun yet. It was a supreme treasure that could manifest one's inner desires and guide their potential to achieve evolution.
Aizen was still in the stage of collecting materials for the Hōgyoku's creation, still a hundred years away from fusing with it.
Genryusai Shigekuni Yamamoto was still the strongest Shinigami, still hale and hearty.
There were at most only three Arrancar: Starrk, Lilinette, and Ulquiorra. Yhwach hadn't yet invaded Soul Society, and Kurosaki ichigo hadn't even been born yet...
In this era, the war between Human World Shinigami and Quincy was still ongoing. The heirs of Soul Society's noble families constantly schemed for power and carried out assassinations. The Hollow in Hueco Mundo never gave up on filling the void in their hearts. The Three Realms were filled only with chaos and slaughter!
He didn't have that much ambition; he just wanted to acquire a Hōgyoku to enhance his strength. That's not too much to ask, is it?
Ignoring the blood-soaked ground.
Matsumoto Rangiku walked calmly to Aozaki Mahiru's side. She was already accustomed to such scenes of bloodshed.
Living in District 62 meant they couldn't avoid such occurrences.
" Mahiru, let's hurry! The Central Spirit Arts Academy selection is about to begin."
Drawing a little closer, Matsumoto Rangiku bounced and jumped, full of energy, shouting loudly.
Mahiru threw out the last enemy, hugged Matsumoto Rangiku as she pounced on him, and a smile curved his lips.
"How could I forget? I just wanted to earn some extra living expenses before leaving." Mahiru smiled and ruffled Matsumoto Rangiku's head.
Although she wasn't an older sister type yet, she was truly adorable.
"You say that as if we'll pass the test once we go..." Matsumoto Rangiku puffed out her cheeks, unhappily bumping Mahiru's chin with her head: "Don't touch my head, my hair will get messy! I spent a long time getting ready today."
Mahiru chuckled, hoisting Matsumoto Rangiku onto his shoulder: "Lads, strip them clean of their clothes! Don't leave them a single thing!"
"Yes, Boss Aozaki."
The subordinates were quick and skilled in their actions.
In less than a quarter of an hour, more than twenty souls from District 63 who had come to seize territory were stripped naked.
Mahiru only took the money, then walked towards Seireitei with Matsumoto Rangiku and Gin.
Passing through increasingly better-looking districts, looking up, one could see tall buildings, a luxury and grandeur completely unlike Rukongai.
Just then—
Boom!
Suddenly, dust billowed ahead, and a tall stone wall fell from the sky.
A tall, rugged figure with short black hair emerged, smiling brightly.
"Are you all here to enroll in the Central Spirit Arts Academy? I am Wei Wan, the guardian of Seireitei's East Gate, Seiryu. If you wish to enter, please wait here. Once you pass the test, you can bid farewell to this place."
Wei Wan, holding a giant sword, glanced at the crowd squeezed in front of the gate, smiled, and opened the stone gate. A squad of Shinigami in black uniforms emerged from it, presumably teachers from the Spiritual Arts Academy.
Mahiru seized the opportunity to squeeze out of the crowd and stealthily walked to Wei Wan's side, tugging his sleeve.
Wei Wan glanced at Mahiru's palm, put away the ring that appeared out of thin air, glanced left and right, and then stepped back.
"Mr. Mahiru, what brings you to District 1? Do you have another business deal this time?"
"I'm not here for business this time." Mahiru said with a smile, "I'm here to take the Central Spirit Arts Academy exam."
"So you've finally decided to become a Shinigami? With your Reiryoku, you could have taken the exam much earlier. I really don't know why you waited so long." Wei Wan looked regretful.
"But this means no more extra income for me, huh?"
"You, one of Seireitei's four great gate gods, are you really that short on money?"
"Don't even mention the 'four great gate gods'; I'm just a doorman. My monthly salary is just that much, and my wife always likes to compare herself with those noble ladies..."
Wei Wan shook his head as he spoke, rattling the coins in his hand.
"You never come unless you need something. This money must have another purpose."
"What are you talking about? We're brothers, aren't we?" Mahiru said, wrapping an arm around Wei Wan's shoulder, "Actually, I just wanted to confirm, the entrance exam this year should be no different from previous years, right?"
——
Reiryoku is the spiritual pressure level division in the original work, representing the concentration of spiritual pressure contained within Reishi.
In the original work, Reiryoku levels are divided into one to twenty. Above Level 3 is Captain-class, Levels 4 to 5 are Vice-Captain, and the remaining fifteen levels of Reiryoku are not detailed.
This book divides Levels 6 to 12 into Seat Officer-class, and below Level 12 are ordinary Squad members.