The next morning, in a simple wooden house in Rukongai's Junrinan District.
"Tōshirō and Grandma, come eat watermelon."
Hinamori Momo, wearing a white Shinigami student uniform, walked in holding a watermelon, and smiled as she patted Tōshirō's head.
"You annoying bed-wetter Momo, don't call me Tōshirō, and don't touch my head!"
Tōshirō, who was only 130cm tall, said discontentedly. Feeling treated like a child, he immediately slapped away Hinamori Momo's hand.
"Hehe, when you attend the same school as me, I'll call you by your name."
Hinamori Momo, with two pigtails, said with a smile.
"Are you kidding? Who wants to go to a Shinigami school!"
Tōshirō crossed his arms over his chest. He only wanted to live with his grandmother and had no desire to go to school.
Hinamori Momo frowned, looking at the unmotivated Tōshirō. "Tōshirō, you don't know, I learned a lot there. And after graduating, you can become a Shinigami. As a Shinigami, you can eat delicious food every day."
"I know… I know… You bed-wetter Momo, you're so annoying!"
Tōshirō put on a dead-fish eye expression, completely ignoring Hinamori Momo's words.
…
"Oh no, I'm going to be late."
After eating half a slice of watermelon, Hinamori Momo suddenly remembered that the school was organizing a Soul Burial internship in the Human World for their fourth-year students today. The girl immediately waved her hand, bidding farewell to the two inside the house.
By the time Hinamori Momo ran breathlessly to the Spiritual Arts Academy.
A Shinigami student with a fierce gaze and a '69' tattoo on his face, carrying a Zanpakuto, walked out.
"First, let me introduce myself—Shūhei Hisagi, sixth-year student."
"I am Crab Ze…"
"I am Aoluo…"
The man and woman behind Sasaki also introduced themselves.
These three sixth-year students would act as guides, taking these student Shinigami to the Human World for their Soul Burial internship.
"Sasaki?!"
"It's actually Sasaki-senpai."
After the three of them finished their introductions, it was as if a bombshell had exploded among the fourth-year students, causing a commotion.
Renji, with his red ponytail and dead-fish eyes, poked the blond-haired Kira Izuru beside him and quietly asked, "Is that Sasaki guy famous?"
"What, you don't recognize him?" Kira rolled his eyes, mocking Abarai Renji.
"He's a genius who hasn't appeared for several years. He was allowed to join the Gotei 13 before graduation, and he's even guaranteed to become a seated officer in the future…"
Just as Kira Izuru was rattling off Sasaki's achievements, he immediately put on a lecherous expression when he saw the cute Hinamori Momo walking over.
"Ahem… However, he failed the entrance exam for this academy twice… So, speaking of which, my talent as the top student might be superior to his," Kira Izuru immediately changed his tune.
Sasaki looked at the whispering students below, clapped his hands, and reminded them to pay attention: "When you go to the Human World later, you must work in groups of three and not be alone. Each of you, bring your Hell Butterflies and cross through the Dangai."
As Sasaki opened a sliding door, in an instant, the students surged in. Guided by the Hell Butterflies, everyone crossed the Dangai and finally arrived in front of an old factory gate.
This was their Soul Burial practice area. The surroundings had been set up with a barrier by Soul Reapers, driving away nearby humans and Hollows. Each student had to find at least two Plus souls here and send them to the Soul Society using the hilt of their Zanpakuto.
After the thirty students drew lots and were divided into groups, they began the Soul Burial ritual.
Kira Izuru, Abarai Renji, and Hinamori Momo happened to be in one group.
"It hurts so much… it hurts so much!"
"No, I don't want to leave yet!"
Plus souls of various sizes were forcibly sent to the Soul Society by the students, unwillingly. These souls had strong obsessions with things from their lives; if left unchecked, they would quickly degenerate into Hollows.
However, before turning into Hollows, these Plus souls, confined within the barrier, had no ability to resist whatsoever.
Soon, the Plus souls in the barrier were completely cleared out by the fourth-year students.
"Tch, I sent off 5 of them. It was no challenge at all."
Abarai Renji yawned. Facing souls that couldn't fight back was too boring. He had thought he could slay Hollows in the Human World.
"You're right, I sent off seven," Kira Izuru said, preening in front of Hinamori Momo as he brushed his bangs.
In truth, to show off in front of the young girl, he had put all his effort into clearing the Plus souls.
Kira Izuru, who now appeared calm and composed, secretly yearned to hear words of praise from Hinamori Momo.
However, Xiao Tao Zi just chuckled, unimpressed by Kira Izuru's achievement.
Just as Sasaki was counting down the time, preparing to end today's practical training and take everyone back, a sudden anomaly occurred.
Suddenly, a giant foot over a meter long descended from the sky, trampling a Soul Reaper student into a bloody mess.
"What… What is that?!"
Abarai Renji, who had been so relaxed moments ago, turned pale as he looked at the student who had been turned into a pulp.
"There shouldn't be any Hollows here!"
Kira Izuru also turned pale with fright, his legs went weak, and he nearly collapsed to the ground.
Crab Ze, a sixth-year student, bravely suppressed his fear and swung his sword at the nine-meter-tall Hollow.
The Hollow swung its massive palm at Crab Ze, crushing him into a puddle of flesh as easily as squashing an ant.
"Damn it, how did I not sense this Hollow's spiritual pressure?"
Upon seeing this giant Hollow, Sasaki immediately pressed his communication device and called for backup from the Seireitei.
The fourth-year students were too terrified to think by the bloody scene and stood frozen in place.
"Run… All of you, run as far as you can!"
At Sasaki's angry roar, the fourth-year students immediately scattered and fled.
"Damn it, how can there be such a big Hollow here?!"
Abarai Renji's face turned grim as he ran outside. A Hollow that could instantly kill a sixth-year student was not something rookies like them could handle.
"Why is everyone running? Aren't Soul Reapers supposed to deal with Hollows?" Hinamori Momo looked blankly at the fleeing Abarai Renji, Kira Izuru, and other classmates.
"What nonsense are you talking about? The senior told us to run! We must absolutely obey the orders of the practical training instructor!" Kira Izuru shouted, annoyed.
"This kind of Hollow is not something we can handle. Don't even think about doing anything foolish," Abarai Renji said in a matter-of-fact tone.
However, Hinamori Momo frowned. Seeing Shuhei knocked to the ground by the Hollow, even though the young girl was terrified and pale, she rushed forward with unwavering determination.
Seeing this, Abarai Renji and Kira Izuru clicked their tongues, drew their Zanpakuto, and immediately rushed forward, ready to help Hinamori Momo.
But at this moment, two more giant Hollows, ten meters tall, jumped down from the sky, separating them.
The petite Hinamori Momo rushed between the Hollow and Sasaki Shuhei, drawing the Zanpakuto from her waist.
"A rookie Soul Reaper like you wants to fight me? Don't make me laugh." The Hollow looked at the young girl with bloodthirsty eyes, opening its gaping maw to swallow her.
Hinamori Momo fearfully raised her hands and began chanting. She was more skilled in Kidō than with her Zanpakuto.
"Hadō #31: Shakkahō!"
A fireball shot from Hinamori Momo's hand and exploded in the Hollow's mouth. However, as the smoke cleared…
"How can this be? My Kidō attack had no effect at all?" Hinamori Momo looked at the Hollow in terror, realizing that something was terribly wrong, and her small body couldn't stop trembling.
"Haha, I'm going to crush your bones." The Hollow opened its mouth, revealing a hundred sharp fangs to Hinamori Momo.
"No… No… How can I die in a place like this?" Hinamori Momo's eyes were filled with unwillingness. She hadn't even become a Soul Reaper yet, her new life hadn't even begun, and she was going to die here?
"I'm truly sorry, I had a slight delay on the way."
A chilling cold wind burst through the factory, causing the three Hollows to shiver. They immediately turned their bodies to find the source of the anomaly.
Lin Feng, clad in a captain's white haori, stood before Hinamori Momo, gently rubbing her head with his right hand, comforting the trembling young girl.
Originally, the rescue mission should have been handled by the 5th Division, which meant Aizen Sōsuke and Ichimaru Gin. But Lin Feng had arrived here first.
Because Lin Feng, who knew the plot, remembered that Hinamori Momo encountered a synthetic Hollow during her Soul Burial internship and only became his little fangirl after Aizen Sōsuke saved her.
So, how could Lin Feng, bursting with a sense of justice, allow such a cute girl to jump into a pit of fire?
"What kind of Shinigami are you? I'm going to eat you!"
The Hollow glared fiercely at Lin Feng. Because Lin Feng had concealed his spiritual pressure, in the Hollow's eyes, he was just an ordinary Shinigami.
"Ugh…ugh…"
The Hollow swung its palm, about to smash the tiny Shinigami in front of it.
"Ah, it actually attacked proactively. Can't it even see its own strength?"
Lin Feng flicked his finger lightly, creating an incredibly powerful air bullet.
The Hollow had no time to react. Its nine-meter-tall massive body was directly pulverized by the air bullet. Then Lin Feng flicked his fingers twice more, casually taking care of the other Hollows.
Meanwhile, Abarai Renji and Kira Izuru were knocked to the ground by those two Hollows, covered in blood and looking utterly disheveled.
Lin Feng, whose spiritual pressure was 80% sealed after coming to the Living World, could take down a large Hollow with a single flick of his finger. What terrifying strength!
If he unsealed it, Lin Feng in his second stage of Bankai could crush these ordinary Hollows just by glaring at them with his spiritual pressure.
"Amazing! Captain Lin can kill a Hollow with just a flick of his finger!"
Dazzling light shimmered in Hinamori Momo's beautiful eyes as she gazed at Lin Feng, her tone filled with deep admiration.
"What… Is he Captain Lin Feng?"
Sasaki propped up his scarred body and said in surprise. It was his first time encountering a Captain-level Shinigami, and he couldn't help but feel reverence.
"Alright, alright, from now on, you must act within your limits. Don't do anything foolish again."
Lin Feng gently stroked Xiao Tao Zi's back.
The young girl seemed to feel Lin Feng's warm and comforting large hand, and her terrified little heart gradually calmed down.
A few seconds later, Aizen Sōsuke arrived belatedly.
"This was originally the responsibility of our 5th Division. Did we cause you trouble?"
Aizen Sōsuke watched as his Hollows were slaughtered by Lin Feng, but he still walked forward with a smile.
"Not at all. I'm happy to get some exercise."
Lin Feng said with a relaxed expression after letting go of Hinamori Momo.
"We meet again, Captain Aizen."
Hinamori Momo greeted Aizen Sōsuke.
"Mhm, mhm, I'm relieved to see you all are fine."
In front of outsiders, Aizen Sōsuke always maintained the image of a kind and warm man, and this time was no exception.
"Yes, it's all thanks to Captain Lin Feng's timely arrival."
Hinamori Momo said happily, her gaze involuntarily drifting towards Lin Feng's handsome face.
Aizen Sōsuke narrowed his eyes upon noticing Hinamori Momo's gaze, and a cold glint flashed through them. His experiment was not only to test the combat power of artificial Hollows but also to control simple girls like Hinamori Momo through a hero-saves-the-damsel scenario.
After all, Ichimaru Gin would soon be promoted to Captain of the 3rd Division, creating a vacancy for the Lieutenant position beside Aizen Sōsuke. Although he could forcibly hypnotize the new Lieutenant with Kyoka Suigetsu, if a simple girl like Hinamori Momo became his Lieutenant, Aizen Sōsuke himself could save a lot of trouble.
"Haha… I've never seen Captain Lin Feng use his Zanpakuto before. If we have a chance, let's spar a bit with our sword techniques. I'm truly looking forward to experiencing Captain Lin Feng's expertise."
Aizen Sōsuke smiled as he proposed a perfectly normal sparring match to Lin Feng.
"Oh, so Captain Aizen hasn't seen Captain Lin Feng draw his sword either."
The somewhat naive Hinamori Momo didn't notice the coldness in Aizen Sōsuke's words at all. Listening to his conversation, she truly believed that Aizen Sōsuke only wanted to spar with Lin Feng.
"Is that so? But I'm sorry. I don't like sparring with men."
Lin Feng shrugged.
"That's truly a pity." Seeing that the other party didn't take the bait, a killing intent flashed in Aizen Sōsuke's brows, but lacking full confidence in taking down Lin Feng, he instantly returned to normal.
"The situation here has been resolved. You can return to Soul Society for treatment first."
Aizen Sōsuke smiled as he glanced at the scarred Abarai Renji and the others.
Hinamori Momo's group of three expressed their gratitude to Lin Feng and Aizen Sōsuke, then headed towards the Senkaimon.
"You guys didn't see it, but when Captain Lin Feng dealt with the Hollows, he just waved his hand, and it was super cool!"
Xiao Tao Zi vividly recounted the recent battle to Abarai Renji and Kira Izuru.
"Shinigami who can become Captains are all monsters. It's normal for them to do something like that."
Abarai Renji said stubbornly, striking a dead-fish-eye pose with Kira Izuru. They had just fought desperately, but Hinamori Momo's words were all about Lin Feng, which immediately made them explode with frustration.
"Captain Lin Feng is from the Eleventh Division, right? I must become a Shinigami and then join the Eleventh Division."
This time, she not only saw Lin Feng's powerful side but also experienced his gentleness. At this moment, Hinamori Momo's eyes held determination.