Chapter 162: Encounter in Rukongai
"Thank you, thank you for saving Yin."

The girl was not stupid. When she saw her companions being rescued, she quickly thanked Xia Mu.

"Nothing, just something I did casually." Xia Mu acted very casually and asked the girl, "Do you live nearby?"

The girl was stunned, not understanding why the Grim Reaper in front of her would ask such a question.

Although the clothes the other person was wearing were a little different from the clothes of the Grim Reaper that he had occasionally seen before, there was no doubt that he was the Grim Reaper.

After being stunned for a while, the girl still answered Xia Mu's question: "Yes."

“We live nearby.”

"Can we really survive in a place like this?"

Xia Mu glanced around and saw a barren land with bare ground. Even dry trees were rarely seen.

That's why he lamented that the world was unfair.

Although it is true that the world was created by the five great noble ancestors, they have enjoyed glory for more than a million years, and it is almost time for them to stop.

The nobles have had no worries about food and clothing since they were born, yet they are still not satisfied and want to further enjoy the preferential treatment of this world. The common people living in Rukongai not only suffer from the attacks of the Hollows at all times and lead a precarious life, they cannot even choose the place where they are born. There are many kind people in the back areas, but it turns out that these people even have problems with daily drinking water.

You know, for an ordinary soul without spiritual power, the requirements for survival are really not high.

Of course, the two people in front of us are not ordinary souls without spiritual power.

Xia Mu recognized these two people at the first moment.

Rangiku Matsumoto, Gin Ichimaru.

Originally, he came to the back area of ​​Rukongai to relax, wanting to see if he could find the whereabouts of Kenpachi Zaraki. However, Kenpachi Zaraki didn't expect to meet these two people here. It can be said that he gained something in another sense while losing something in the evening.

An ordinary soul can survive on clean water.

Souls with spiritual power need to consume even more food.

Can these two really survive in this kind of area?
The questions that Xia Mu asked to Matsumoto Rangiku were the real feelings in his heart.

But then again, perhaps it is precisely because they live in such a desolate place that Gin Ichimaru and Rangiku Matsumoto are able to barely survive without having to worry about being attacked by the villains in Rukongai, but they are ultimately unable to avoid the attacks of the Hollows.

On the contrary, because of their spiritual powers, they are more likely to be attacked by hollows.

Matsumoto Rangiku didn't know how to answer Natsuki's question.

She has been living in Rukongai since she appeared in this area. She once fainted from hunger, but it was Gin who saved her and fed her with his special dried persimmons. Since then, she has lived here with Gin. Even though life is difficult, they can barely survive with the support of each other.

"Forget it, it doesn't seem like the time to say these things."

Xia Mu didn't continue to talk about this issue for too long.

After all, it is because of the flaws in the world itself, coupled with the flaws in the world's system, that such an extremely unfair and seemingly pathological world has been created.

"You may consider my previous proposal."

"In my opinion, both you and the man on the ground have the qualifications to become powerful gods of death."

In today's era when Aizen has already left, Natsuki is looking forward to how far Ichimaru Gin and Matsumoto Rangiku can go.

In the original work, the Soul King's fingertips in Matsumoto Rangiku's body were taken away by Aizen, and it was Ichimaru Gin who used his own soul to fill the vacancy in Matsumoto Rangiku's soul. Although it allowed her to survive, the incompleteness of her soul was an irreversible fact. Even so, he still became the vice-captain.

Gin Ichimaru is even more amazing. After taking out a part of his own soul to repair the missing soul of Rangiku Matsumoto, he still reached the level of super captain. If it weren't for the fact that the Hogyoku was too strange, he would have almost killed Aizen completely.

"Apply to the Shinō Spiritual Arts Academy and become a Shinigami?"

Matsumoto Rangiku thought so.

On the ground, Gin Ichimaru, who had woken up at some point, also heard what Natsuki and Rangiku Matsumoto said, and made a decision in his heart.

Although the past days were difficult, we were able to survive with mutual support.

Until today, after encountering Xu.

Only then did Gin Ichimaru realize his own weakness and powerlessness.

He couldn't protect Rangiku.

He didn't want to experience something like this again.

This time I was lucky to be rescued, but what if next time, if no one saves me and I don’t have enough strength?
……

Natsuki did not bring Gin Ichimaru and Rangiku Matsumoto directly to the Soul Society.

He believed that he had given the two of them a suggestion and that they would make a decision soon.

I'm afraid it won't be long before we hear the name of the genius Gin Ichimaru in Soul Society.

What did it mean for Kuchiki Hibiki to graduate from the Maou Academy in two years? In the original novel, Ichimaru Gin graduated from the Maou Academy in just one year, and soon after graduation, he became the third seat of the squad.

The reason why Kuchiki Hibiki was able to graduate in two years was that he had been secretly trained by the Kuchiki family before entering school.

In this regard, he cannot compare to Gin Ichimaru.

Of course, it’s not to say that Kuchiki Hibiki is not talented enough. After all, he mastered Bankai during his academy years. Even if it has something to do with his Zanpakutō being a bootlicker, it is still a remarkable thing.

Continue walking through Rukongai.

Xia Mu was not in a hurry to return to the Soul Society. He had already informed Lisa in advance. The 11th Division did not have too many things for him to deal with. He did not mind wandering around Rukongai. Rukongai was not all deserted like the area where Ichimaru Gin lived.

Even in the most desolate and remote areas, there are villages.

After all, people like Gin Ichimaru who live in seclusion are rare.

Natsuki was wearing his Zanpakuto and the captain's haori as he walked through the village. Occasionally, some residents of Rukongai would see Natsuki and show a look of fear. They would choose to avoid him and not dare to approach him.

Although it was right for the Grim Reaper to choose to fight against the Hollow in order to protect these civilians.

But there are always two different classes between civilians and the god of death. Civilians fear power and the strong, so it is naturally impossible for them to get close to the god of death and choose to greet him. Not all strong people have a good temper.

The more civilians live in the rear areas, the more they know how to seek benefits and avoid harm.

Xia Mu also noticed this.

But he did not deliberately hide his existence.

It is not a big deal to activate Bankai to hide one's existence just because civilians are afraid of him.

Came to a street.

The place is crowded and lively.

Xia Mu took a quick look and found that there was nothing exciting to see here, but rather that the tradition of the back area of ​​Rukongai was going on here, with fights and water grabbing going on.

However, it was different from the previous battles for water.

The way of grabbing water in this area is particularly elegant.

It is through one-on-one combat to obtain water.

A group of people gathered around, watching a bald man fighting with a strong man in the middle.

Not far from the bald man, there was a man wearing flowery clothes and with medium-length black hair standing quietly next to a water truck.

The bald man looked fierce, with red eye shadow in the corners of his eyes and narrow eyes. He didn't look like a good guy, but his strength was not bad. The person he was fighting with was obviously a strong man who was much taller than him, but he was knocked down by him.

After knocking the other person down, I thought he would bully him, but unexpectedly, I saw a black-haired man not far away.

The black-haired man immediately understood, filled a pot of water with a bamboo tube and handed it to the defeated man.

The defeated man took the bamboo tube and drank all the water in it. At the end, he licked the water stains at the corner of his mouth.

"Who else is coming?"

After the burly man left, the bald man looked at the rest of the onlookers.

The onlookers looked at the water truck guarded by the black-haired man and coveted the drinking water, but when they thought of the bald man's strength, they were afraid of being beaten.

But no matter where you are, there is no shortage of warriors.

Soon, someone else stood up and fought with the bald man.

Xia Mu mingled at the back of the crowd and after watching for a while, he finally figured out the reason.

The bald man and the black-haired man are the bullies of this area, and the only drinking water has been monopolized by them.

After occupying the drinking water, the other party did not enjoy it alone.

Instead, he used drinking water as a bargaining chip to lure people in Rukongai to fight him.

If you can beat him, all the drinking water and the water truck will be given to you.

On the contrary, even if you lose, as long as you can make the bald guy enjoy the fight, you can get a pot of water to drink.

"It's not bad to make people fight with me in this way. It not only satisfies others' pursuit of drinking water, but also satisfies my desire to fight. It is undoubtedly much better than other areas fighting for drinking water at any time."

Xia Mu's eyes flickered as he looked at the bald man in front of him who had won another victory.

Suddenly he asked, "With such strength, why don't you become a god of death? Instead, you choose to hide in Rukongai and bully the weak?"

Hearing this, the bald man in front and many people subconsciously looked towards the place where the voice came from.

When the civilians in Rukongai saw the speaker's appearance clearly, there was another uproar.

They dispersed and talked in low voices.

"It's the God of Death..."

"Why is the Grim Reaper here?"

"Who knows."

The bald man also recognized Xia Mu's identity.

"grim Reaper?"

However, he did not show any fear. On the contrary, a strong fighting spirit appeared on his face. "You are right. There is no point in always fighting with these weaklings. You are the god of death, so you should be very powerful."

"So, fight me. If you win, this truckload of water will be yours."

He looked at Xia Mu with burning eyes and spoke loudly.

(End of this chapter)