C10 Nine Bamboo Spirit Pressure?

"Captain Zaraki, this has nothing to do with Shiba Taku..." Lucia blurted out anxiously.

"You're suggesting that this incident is unrelated to Shiba Taku?" Zaraki Kenpachi asked, sheathing Renji's Soul-Cutter Sword and flashing a menacing grin.

"How could it be unrelated? If not for him, who else could have taken down over a hundred prisoners? Yet, managing to do so before even becoming a Shinigami is no small feat for an ordinary person."

"As for the Black Prison, I had already intended to discard it. Its disappearance now simply leaves me with less to worry about."

"Today is the Spring enrollment day for Shinoreijutsuin. You'd better hurry and take him there. Missing it means waiting another year."

Lucia's anxiety persisted through the first part of the conversation, but upon realizing that Zaraki Kenpachi wasn't looking to delve deeper, she breathed a sigh of relief.

Still, faced with the vanishing Black Prison and the defeat of hundreds of prisoners without consequence, Lucia couldn't resist probing further.

"Captain Zaraki, I need to know—your repeated interventions on Shiba Taku's behalf, are they because of a connection to Vice Captain Kaien?"

"If so, I'd like to extend Vice Captain Kaien's thanks in advance."

The thought of Kaien Shiba's past lifesaving grace filled Lucia with such remorse that she felt compelled to defend Taku to the very end, as if she were his personal guardian.

"The Thirteenth Division's vice captain, the one who seems fragile as a reed?" Zaraki Kenpachi scratched at his spiky hair, his cruel laugh echoing. "I have no interest in weaklings like that."

"Besides, I'm not advocating for him out of pity. He's simply proven himself worthy of my blade, and I'd like to keep some interesting toys around in the Court of Pure Souls."

'Fragile as a reed?'

Lucia was taken aback.

Kaien Shiba was the Shinigami she held in the highest regard, her admiration for him a secret she guarded closely.

Under normal circumstances, she would have defended his honor without hesitation.

But standing before Zaraki Kenpachi's imposing, tower-like stature, she found herself at a loss for words.

Kaien Shiba truly seemed fragile in comparison.

"Captain Zaraki, to deem a drunkard worthy of your blade seems like an overestimation, don't you think?" Abarai Renji couldn't contain his impatience.

"If the merit lies in his ability to obliterate a mutated evil spirit with a single punch, then sure, he's earned Captain Zaraki's high regard. But I'm afraid that might set you up for disappointment."

"Take a look at the spiritual pressure detector bracelet he's wearing. It displays the level of spiritual pressure."

Abarai Renji graduated from Shinoreijutsuin with flying colors and was handpicked by Aizen for the Fifth Division.

He had hoped for a swift rise through the ranks to close the gap between himself and Lucia, a noble's foster daughter.

Unexpectedly, due to a clash of ideals, Aizen's transfer sent him to the Eleventh Division.

For a newcomer, such a transfer often came with the stigma of being inadequate.

Thus, upon joining the Eleventh Division, Renji redoubled his efforts to enhance his strength, even training in Bankai under Madarame Ikkaku's tutelage.

Despite his rigorous training, Renji never made it onto Zaraki Kenpachi's list of worthy adversaries.

Now, Shiba Taku had been on the scene for merely half a day and had already caught Zaraki's attention.

This was far from what Renji had hoped for.

"Three Bamboo Spirit Pressure? Renji, are you sure you're seeing that right?"

"I'm telling you, the number on the spiritual pressure detection bracelet is nine. I was just as shocked when I first saw it. I never imagined we'd have such an extraordinary talent among us." Ikkaku removed the electronic bracelet from Taku's wrist.

Seeing the crimson number nine, both Lucia and Abarai Renji were dumbfounded.

Having graduated from Shinoreijutsuin, they knew exactly what Nine Bamboo Spirit Pressure signified, unlike those Shinigami who were directly recruited from the streets of Rukongai.

Toushirou, hailed as the most gifted student in the academy, had only managed an Eight Bamboo Spirit Pressure at his entrance exam.

It was only after three years of study and the awakening of his Shikai that he achieved Nine Bamboo Spirit Pressure at the final assessment, earning the title of the most promising Shinigami.

However, Shiba Taku hadn't even enrolled in the Shinoreijutsuin, yet he already possessed the Nine Bamboo Spirit Pressure. Could this mean that even the unparalleled prodigy, Toushirou, was outclassed?

"No, it can't be. I personally tested his Spirit Pressure when he was brought in. It was only at three bamboo, and Sanba Taku can vouch for that," Abarai Renji hastily interjected.

"Three bamboo?"

Madarame Ikkaku's eyebrows shot up as he rubbed his bald head, wondering, "Could the Spiritual Pressure Detector have been damaged in the recent battle?"

"If it's truly just three bamboo, that would indeed be disappointing."

In the Eleventh Division, where the law of the jungle reigns supreme, the level of one's Spirit Pressure is a critical benchmark of strength. And in Madarame Ikkaku's eyes, Zaraki Kenpachi's Spirit Pressure was a formidable force to reckon with.

"Heh, if you're curious about the accuracy of that number, there's a simple way to find out—take a swing and see for yourself," Zaraki Kenpachi chuckled, his face twisted with a cruel anticipation that sent an ominous shiver through Madarame Ikkaku and the others.

But before they could process the threat, Zaraki Kenpachi had already seized the hilt of his Soul-Cutter Sword.

Zheng!

The blade sang out as Zaraki Kenpachi drew it, unleashing the pent-up violent spiritual pressure within. The resulting wave of energy roared like a hurricane, forcing Lucia and the others back several paces.

As Zaraki Kenpachi held the Soul-Cutter Sword aloft, ready to bring it crashing down, Lucia's face turned ashen, and she cried out in desperation, "Stop!"

Boom!

The tempest of spiritual pressure exploded forth, but Zaraki Kenpachi's jagged blade halted just short of Taku's forehead. Taku continued to snore, undisturbed by the chaos around him, leaving the onlookers dumbfounded.

"With such a violent spiritual pressure and yet no resonance within him to awaken, could it really be just three bamboo?" Madarame Ikkaku wiped the sweat from his brow, secretly relieved.

After all, this was the individual Ukitake had taken under his wing, and he certainly didn't want to see him cut down by Zaraki Kenpachi's blade.

"I've said it before, he's only got the strength of Three Bamboos. Otherwise, with that surge of spiritual pressure washing over him, even in a drunken state, the intense spiritual pressure within would have resonated and roused him," Abarai Renji quickly chimed in with support.

One could say that after Zaraki Kenpachi's wild experiment, he finally breathed a sigh of relief.

"Nonsense. I am the Grand General of the Spirit King; how could I be frightened by such a superficial attack, devoid of any real killing intent? It's only the likes of you, the common folk, who would be startled out of their wits like a bird at the twang of a bowstring."