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Chapter 3: Exterminating the Hollow
"So many souls!"
"And no one in this world to fight me for them!"
"Although the quality of the souls here isn't high, it's enough to fill my stomach. I'm so lucky!"
That's right. This Hollow gliding through the sky was not native to this world.
It had arrived here by chance.
It flicked its long, thin tongue, licking its own white bone mask.
And inside the large mouth of the bone mask, there was another mouth.
"It's been so long since I've tasted a soul. Time to feast!"
"Hee hee hee!"
"Hee hee hee!"
The Hollow let out a strange laugh, but no one could hear it.
No one could see the monster in the sky, except for Kamiba Yuma, who was following it on his bicycle.
"Really, why am I chasing this thing?"
Kamiba Yuma released a trace of his spiritual power. The soul of a human with spiritual power was far more delicious than that of an ordinary human.
"What a fragrant smell!"
"Where is it? Where?"
The Hollow lowered its head and saw Kamiba Yuma, who was emitting spiritual power.
"Found it!"
"Found it!"
After seeing Kamiba Yuma, the Hollow couldn't hold back any longer!
It had been hungry for so long!
"Delicious soul, I'm coming!"
What an unpleasant voice.
Kamiba Yuma could hear the Hollow's voice. It was extremely grating.
Every Hollow transformed from a soul was a monster that knew only how to devour souls.
"Follow me, Hollow!"
Kamiba Yuma pumped the pedals of his bicycle, moving faster and faster.
It was clearly an ordinary bicycle, yet he rode it as fast as a motorcycle.
A person who had just woken up for a morning jog was startled by the bicycle that whistled past.
"Did a bicycle just go by?"
...
Kamiba Yuma rode his bicycle like lightning, turning into an abandoned industrial park.
Very few people ever passed through here.
This way, when he fought the Hollow, no one would see him and think he was a lunatic.
"You run fast!"
"When I catch you, I'll chew you up, piece by piece!"
The Hollow followed Kamiba Yuma into the industrial park. However, what greeted it was a blue arrow of Reishi.
"Sorry, did I scare you?"
"It's my first time shooting a moving target. I'm still not used to it."
"With the next arrow, I'll aim for a fatal blow. I won't let you feel any pain."
Kamiba Yuma, holding a blue longbow formed from Reishi, stood sideways, looking at the frightened Hollow.
"Kid, you're not a Shinigami. How dare you try to kill me!"
"You know about Shinigami. It seems you're not a monster from this world."
Another Reishi arrow condensed in Kamiba Yuma's hand.
"Tell me where you came from. Maybe if I'm in a good mood, I'll let you go."
Kamiba Yuma drew his bow, aimed at the Hollow that had landed on the ground, and nocked the arrow, all in one smooth motion.
"Kid, you're just food. How dare you be so arrogant!"
"Food should act like food!"
The Hollow spread its arms and leaped up, pouncing toward Kamiba Yuma.
However, to Kamiba Yuma, this was just a living target.
"What an idiot."
Kamiba Yuma was completely confident in this shot.
And just as Yuma expected, the Reishi arrow struck the Hollow's white bone mask.
The Hollow, its mask pierced by the arrow, let out a fearful shriek, then dissolved into pure spiritual energy and disappeared.
With the exception of Arrancars, the weak point of all other Hollows was the bone mask on their face, just like a human's heart.
As long as the mask was destroyed, the Hollow would die.
"It's not even a Gillian. And among Hollows, it must have been a very weak minion."
After eliminating a single Hollow, Kamiba Yuma felt no pride at all.
It was just a minion among minions.
He didn't know what his current strength level was. His system seemed nonexistent, not even providing a status panel.
"I should go back and get some proper sleep. School starts tomorrow."
To the current Kamiba Yuma, attending school was like a form of entertainment. He wasn't very interested in video games or other things.
He spent most of his time training his abilities. As for academics, he only needed to spend a little time to get excellent grades.
So, going to school and meeting different people would make his life a bit more colorful.
...
After returning home, Kamiba Yuma took a shower and lay down on his bed.
He closed his eyes and entered the System Space.
The layout inside was similar to the Shinigami's Central Spiritual Arts Academy, the place where they were trained.
Kamiba Yuma, who entered the System Space, was now in his soul state. His Shinigami powers were also unlocked.
He possessed his own Zanpakuto, but it was still in its most basic Asauchi state.
"Brother Blade, it's been five years."
"Even if you were made of iron, my warm embrace should have heated you up by now!"
"Come on, Brother Blade, say something! I'm so bored all by myself!"
Kamiba Yuma hugged his Zanpakuto as if he were holding a lover.
Acting coquettishly with his own Zanpakuto was probably something only Kamiba Yuma would do.
But as long as his Zanpakuto would respond to him, who cares about embarrassment!
Besides, no one would know!
Kamiba Yuma meditated while holding his Zanpakuto for a while, then released it and began practicing Kido.
Kido was divided into Hado (Way of Destruction), Bakudo (Way of Binding), and Kaido (Way of Healing).
Hado was for offense, Bakudo for restraining enemies, and Kaido for healing.
"Hado #1: Sho!"
"Hado #4: Byakurai!"
Sho released a small shockwave. Its power wasn't great.
Of course, that depended on the user. If used by a powerful individual, even the lowest-level Hado could have the effect of a bomb.
Kamiba Yuma could already cast low-level Hado without an incantation.
"O, Lord! Mask of flesh and blood, all creation, flap of wings, ye who bears the name of Man! Inferno and pandemonium, the sea barrier surges, march on to the south."
"Hado #31: Shakkaho!"
A ball of fire materialized in front of Kamiba Yuma, then struck the training target.
Shakkaho hit the bullseye.
"Perfect score!"
"Next, it's time to put moving target practice on the schedule."
The layout of the training room could be changed at Yuma's will. The speed of the moving targets increased from a walk, to a jog, to a full run.
Kamiba Yuma continuously fired Shakkaho. The moving targets were constantly blown up and then regenerated.
He only stopped training when his spiritual power was finally exhausted.
"Hah, I don't think I can go on. Time to sleep."
Kamiba Yuma had started training immediately after returning from outside and hadn't rested at all.
What Kamiba Yuma didn't know was that after he left, the Zanpakuto he had left in the training room began to tremble.
A woman with long, fiery red hair emerged from the blade.