Maki's words weren't merely meant to comfort the Shinigami named Yano.
Over the course of these dozen or so battles, Kyoya had done nothing more than swing his sword… yet the overwhelming force behind each strike had completely overwhelmed the seated officers of the 11th Division.
Well, this was also partly due to the 11th Division's combat philosophy.
As a battle-focused division, they advocated direct, head-on clashes, which meant most of their Zanpakuto were straightforward, attack-oriented types.
Such Zanpakuto allowed them to leverage superior combat skills and experience to defeat opponents of similar strength.
However, when facing an adversary whose raw power surpassed theirs, this became their weakness.
Even if their Reiatsu was a full rank higher than Kyoya's, the thirtyfold difference in physical strength made it impossible for them to withstand even a casual slash from him.
Perhaps a Kido-type Zanpakuto would have some advantage against Kyoya.
But unfortunately, Kido-type Zanpakuto were looked down upon in the 11th Division.
Therefore, under normal circumstances, Shinigami who possessed Kido-type Zanpakuto either refrained from using them or transferred to other divisions.
Of course, strength always spoke for itself.
Those who transferred were invariably the weaker ones.
Powerful Shinigami, even if their Zanpakuto were Kido-type, still held corresponding status and authority within the 11th Division.
Ichinose was one such example.
Even though his Zanpakuto was a light-type type, he remained the Lieutenant of the 11th Division.
…
"I am the Lieutenant of the 11th Division, Ichinose Maki."
"Please take care of me."
"Kyoya, 5th Seat of the 11th Division, please take care of me!"
Facing Ichinose, Kyoya didn't dare to be careless.
After all, Ichinose Maki is the vice-captain of the 11th Division, with a 5th-class Reiryoku… two full ranks above Kyoya's.
The higher the Reiryoku class, the more exponentially the gap between each rank grew.
In fact, beyond 3rd-class Reiryoku, the difference within the same rank could be more staggering than the gap between 20th and 3th-class.
Pushing aside his worries about the One Piece Achievement System's sudden inactivity, Kyoya raised his Zanpakuto and pointed it at Ichinose.
Whoosh-
In an instant, Kyoya appeared right in front of Ichinose, bringing his sword down in a fierce slash.
Clang!
The metallic clash rang out, but unlike the previous officers, Ichinose didn't collapse under Kyoya's strike.
That said, in terms of pure physical strength, Ichinose in his base state still couldn't match Kyoya.
Therefore, though he blocked Kyoya's attack, the force sent Ichinose skidding backward, his feet leaving shallow trails on the ground.
'What a powerful strength!'
Ichinose thought to himself, 'If my Reiatsu were on the same level as his, I'd likely be overwhelmed too...'
'But-'
Boom!
Ichinose's Reiatsu erupted, and as dense Reishi gathered around him, a white flame-like aura burst from his body.
Halting his retreat, Ichinose surged forward instead, turning into a blur as he launched his own assault.
Clang!
With the increase of his Reiatsu, Ichinose's speed and strength have been greatly increased.
The clash of their Zanpakuto sent a shockwave rippling outward, and the ground beneath their feet cracked under the force of their collision.
Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang! Clang!-
Kyoya and Ichinose Maki's Zanpakuto became streaks of afterimages, clashing repeatedly in a rapid, rhythmic exchange of strikes.
Is Ichinose strong?
Undoubtedly!
If he weren't, he wouldn't be the Lieutenant of the 11th Division.
But to Kyoya, this level of strength wasn't particularly overwhelming.
The speed of Ichinose's slashes was comparable to what Kyoya had faced months ago against Gin.
Back then, Kyoya had managed to escape unscathed from Gin's attacks thanks to his Observation Haki.
Now, with his strength increased thirtyfold compared to that time, he could easily track Ichinose's slashes even without relying on Haki… holding his ground effortlessly in their duel.
At this moment, Kyoya also realized just how much Gin had been holding back against him back then.
Specifically, Gin had suppressed the explosive boost in power from his Reiatsu.
Even though both have 5th-class Reiryoku, the difference in their amplification shouldn't have been as absurd as thirty times.
Though Gin was much younger than Ichinose, his Reiatsu and swordsmanship were in no way inferior.
In Kyoya's perception, the pressure Ichinose exerted now was nowhere near what Gin had imposed on him before.
'This guy-'
Seeing all his attacks being effortlessly blocked, even Ichinose couldn't help but feel Kyoya's threat level skyrocket.
At this rate, he wouldn't last.
Ichinose knew that much.
His current speed and strength came from forcibly amplifying his Reiatsu.
Kyoya, on the other hand, matched him with pure physical prowess alone.
Once his Reiatsu ran low, Kyoya would easily overpower him.
Even Ichinose felt helpless against such a sheer gap in physical ability.
But that was just how it was… sometimes, the difference between people was even greater than that between humans and dogs.
Talent in physique, Reiatsu, comprehension, the very essence of one's soul-
Individually, the gaps might seem small, but stacked together, they created the divide between 'talentless', 'mediocre', 'genius, and 'monster'.
'I've been a Shinigami for over twenty years, fought in thousands of battles, and never slacked in training.'
'I refuse to believe that twenty years of effort can't surpass a so-called genius who hasn't even trained for a full year!'
Ichinose's eyes darkened slightly.
From Kyoya's earlier fights, he already knew it was only a matter of time before Kyoya surpassed him.
'But it couldn't be now!'
With that thought, Ichinose abruptly shifted tactics. He's no longer engaging in direct clashes, instead, he began circling Kyoya with Shunpo, striking opportunistically.
'Shunpo, huh?'
Kyoya's eyes tracked Ichinose's movements.
Admittedly, against anyone else, this would've been the right move.
After all, Kyoya had only spent a year in the Shin'o Academy. Even if he mastered everything the instructors taught, he shouldn't have decades of honed skill like veteran Shinigami.