At this moment, deeply staring at Yumichika, Ichigo was thinking inwardly.
But his outward words didn't stop.
"I'm going to save Kuchiki Rukia!" Ichigo replied.
"Hah?" Hearing Ichigo's words, even before Yumichika could say anything, Ikkaku let out a loud sound of disbelief.
"You guy, do you really know what you're saying?"
"Kuchiki Rukia is a criminal convicted of a first-class felony. She gave her Shinigami powers to a human. Saving Kuchiki Rukia means opposing the entire Gotei 13!"
"I admit you're strong, but can you really smash your way through Seireitei?"
"Smashing through Seireitei, why not?" Ichigo smiled faintly, a strong confidence radiating from him.
In fact, he indeed had reason to be confident.
Having mastered Bankai and Hollowfication, Ichigo's current strength within Seireitei should be directly equal to, or even surpass, Byakuya's, placing him in a mid-to-upper tier.
"Tch!" Ikkaku was momentarily stunned by Ichigo's confidence, then he understood, "Could it be that you are the one to whom Kuchiki Rukia gave her Shinigami powers in the real world!!?"
"Wait, if that's the case, how many days has it been since you obtained Shinigami powers?"
"Counting roughly, it's been about a month and a half!" Ichigo answered.
Hearing his words, before Ikkaku could even respond, Yumichika suddenly shuddered all over.
'A month and a half… wasn't that exactly when they had entered?'
Opening the total player points ranking list, Yumichika looked at the top ranking.
177,777.
Calculating it, this power span was exactly Captain-level!
'Could this Ryoka before me be...' Sister Mei realized something.
"In that case, I... " Sister Mei pondered what she could do.
Meanwhile, Ikkaku beside her had fallen into shock, and fervor.
"One and a half months, to become a Shinigami and reach this level of strength!"
"Without a doubt, Kurosaki Ichigo, you can be called the number one genius in the Soul Society since ancient times!"
"However, if I could die in battle against someone like you, that wouldn't be bad either!"
"Extend, Hozukimaru!"
Ikkaku combined the hilt and sheath, then the two merged together.
A long spear appeared in Ikkaku's hand.
"Haa!" With full Reiatsu released, Ikkaku charged at Ichigo.
The spear point arrived first, then the spear shot out like a dragon.
Flexibly shaking the spear tip into a storm of attacks, Ikkaku continuously aimed thrusts at Ichigo's head.
Holding the large Zangetsu, Ichigo dodged left and right, only occasionally blocking with his sword, his body constantly retreating.
Seeing Ichigo's evasive posture, Ikkaku shouted: "What's wrong? Fight back! Don't you have Captain-level strength?"
"Then let me see it! How is a Captain like you different from my Captain?"
Saying this, Ikkaku again incanted: "Split, Hozukimaru!"
As he spoke, the long spear Hozukimaru changed mid-swing.
It broke at two points in the middle, turning into a three-section staff, making Hozukimaru's attack trajectory harder to predict.
After one thrust, Hozukimaru suddenly swept horizontally. Pulled by the chain, the spear's tip came at Ichigo from the side.
After blocking with Zangetsu, facing the sword tip sweeping towards the other side of his face, Ichigo found himself completely unable to block.
But since he couldn't block, he wouldn't.
Reishi infused into his blood pressure, and Blut Vene was activated again.
The blue patterns on Ichigo's face lit up. Hozukimaru's spear tip struck his face, actually producing a crisp sound like clashing steel!
Ikkaku's Hozukimaru in Shikai couldn't even break Ichigo's skin!
This was the reason Ichigo wasn't fighting back. His current strength far exceeded Ikkaku's.
Since breaking through the Captain-level barrier, his power had been continuously growing. Now, even if Ichigo stood still, his opponent couldn't break his defense.
So once he fought back, it would be an instant kill. Ikkaku simply couldn't handle Ichigo.
Ichigo could actually just play out the act of stepping over an ant without killing it.
However, Ikkaku was a special person. Ichigo had another use for him, but he needed to guide him a bit first.
Seeing Hozukimaru bounce off Ichigo's skin, Ikkaku instinctively retracted his hand, leaping back several times to create distance.
"Not even a scratch!!? How is that possible?" Looking at Ichigo's face, Ikkaku was shocked.
Hearing this, Ichigo explained: "It's entirely possible. Hollows can also use powerful Reiatsu to reinforce their skin, forming Hierro, right? My principle is similar."
"So that's it, just like Captain?" Ikkaku understood.
He tightly gripped Hozukimaru, thinking about how to deal with Ichigo.
But then, Ichigo finally stated his purpose: "Use Bankai, Madarame Ikkaku! You should understand that with just Shikai, you cannot deal with me!"
"!!!" Hearing Ichigo's words, Ikkaku was shocked.
He forced a laugh: "Hahaha, Bankai... that's a powerful technique only Captains possess. How could a small fry like me know it?"
"Heh..." Ichigo shook his head helplessly, 'Ikkaku's thinking was really problematic.'
'Wanting to die in battle under Zaraki Kenpachi's command, so he doesn't use Bankai, and doesn't want others to know he has Bankai… what kind of logic is that?'
'That isn't wanting to die in battle under Zaraki Kenpachi, that is seeking death under Zaraki Kenpachi.'
"Don't try to hide it from me. I can sense that you have that power!"
Ichigo questioned, "I don't understand. This is a battlefield, we are enemies. Having power but not using it, are you seeking death?"
Hearing Ichigo's words, Ikkaku indeed reacted: "Hahaha, you say I'm seeking death?"
"What else?"
Ichigo looked at him strangely and directly began verbal provocation:
"If I were willing, killing you would only take two slashes! Hiding your strength when facing such an enemy, if this isn't seeking death, then what is?"
"Bastard, I just want to die in battle under that man's command!" Ikkaku roared and charged forward again.
But this time, Ichigo didn't indulge him.
"Getsuga... Tensho!"
Boom-"
Blasted heavily backwards by the Getsuga Tensho, even with Yumichika jumping to catch him, Ikkaku still flew from one end of the alley to the other.
Pushing aside the bricks and stones covering him, Ikkaku struggled to get up and anxiously looked behind him: "Yumichika! Yumichika! Are you okay?"
"Cough, I'm fine, Ikkaku!" Sister Mei got up, also advising Ikkaku: "Use it, Ikkaku. I think what he says makes sense!"
"Damn it!" Ikkaku punched the ground hard.
He didn't want to use Bankai…
But the problem was, feeling the wound on his chest, he knew that Ichigo saying it would take two slashes to kill him was an exaggeration!
Just that one Getsuga Tensho earlier, if Ichigo hadn't held back, would have left him severely wounded and on the ground!
Ikkaku began to think.
At the same time, Ichigo walked over and delivered the final blow:
"You say you want to die in battle under that man's command, that's your wish?"
"Captains of Gotei 13 must know Bankai to hold the position. Are you afraid of being transferred to become a Captain?"
"Honestly, you don't need to worry about that. Captains do need Bankai to serve, but strength is also a standard for measurement. Your Reiatsu is too weak!" Ikkaku's Reiatsu was only at a normal Lieutenant-level, and his raw strength simply didn't meet the standard. So even after Bankai with Ryumon Hozukimaru, his strength only reached that of an average Captain.
So Ichigo concluded:
"Even with Bankai, your strength is only slightly stronger than a normal Captain's Shikai! It's simply not enough to be a Captain! If I were Captain-Commander Yamamoto, I wouldn't consider you either."
And being told to his face that he was weak, Ikkaku, instead of being disheartened, actually became happy.
"So that's how it is! So my worries were completely unnecessary!"
"In that case, then I don't need to hide my Bankai either!"