Inside the Gates of Hell, Kazuma curiously took in everything around him.
What stretched before his eyes was an endless expanse of white floating blocks, like a dreamscape suspended in emptiness.
Between those blocks, blue pathways wove and crossed, almost like passages leading toward some unknown world.
Hell was filled with endless miasma, a thick fog that blanketed the entire space.
The air felt suffocating and unpleasant.
Anyone with weak reiatsu would likely struggle just to survive here.
"This place really is desolate. It's even worse than Hueco Mundo," Kazuma sighed.
He could not help remembering Hueco Mundo, a place he had visited before.
It had been dangerous too, but at least it still had a desert. Here, there seemed to be nothing except death and emptiness.
Just then, Kazuma suddenly sensed a faint fluctuation behind him.
Alert, he turned around and saw a figure quietly appear behind him.
Looking more closely, he realized it was Rukia, who had followed him into the Gates of Hell.
"K-Kazuma Sensei!"
Rukia stared at the face before her, her heart filled with shock and joy.
Earlier, she had only felt that the figure seemed familiar, but she had not recognized him.
Now that she could clearly see his face, her excitement was impossible to hide.
But before she could finish speaking, Rukia suddenly began coughing violently.
A powerful sense of suffocation overtook her, as though the air around her had become heavy and oppressive.
Her reiatsu was already weakened to the extreme, and she had no way to resist Hell's miasma.
The miasma was like an invisible killer, eating away at her spiritual body and leaving her in agony.
Kazuma looked at Rukia, complicated emotions rising in his heart.
He felt both distressed and helpless.
'How did this foolish child end up following me into Hell?'
He had thought he would be the only one entering this place. He had not expected Rukia to follow him inside.
Thankfully, Ichigo had not come too, or things would have become even more troublesome.
Kazuma sighed helplessly, then drew his Zanpakutō, as if he had already made a decision.
Seeing him draw his blade, Rukia was startled and hurriedly backed away.
Fear filled her face.
She did not understand why Kazuma would do such a thing.
"Sensei? What are you doing?" Rukia asked in a trembling voice, fear flickering in her eyes.
She could not believe her teacher would point a blade at her.
Kazuma did not answer.
Instead, he gently pressed the blade against Rukia's body. His movements were soft and careful, as though he was afraid of hurting her.
As he moved, a stream of stellar power spread from the blade and wrapped around Rukia's body.
"Star's Protection."
Kazuma murmured softly.
As his words fell, Rukia felt a warm reiatsu flow into her body, instantly driving away the miasma clinging to her.
At the same time, her reiatsu began to recover little by little. It even became stronger than it had been at her peak.
Feeling the reiatsu filling her body, Rukia stared at Kazuma in surprise.
"Sensei… this is?"
Looking at everything happening before her, Rukia asked in confusion.
Kazuma smiled faintly, sheathed his sword, and gently patted Rukia's head.
"Have you forgotten? This is the ability of my Zanpakutō. I used it on you before, remember?"
Rukia blinked.
'Wasn't the power of the stars only supposed to restore reiatsu? How can it also raise my reiatsu?'
But at that moment, she realized there were more important things she needed to ask.
She hurriedly said, "Sensei! Didn't Soul Society's higher-ups say you betrayed Soul Society and were killed by Captain Aizen? Then why are you still alive? Did you really betray Soul Society?"
The corner of Kazuma's mouth lifted slightly, revealing an unreadable smile.
Then he softly answered, "Guess."
"Sensei, please don't joke around." Rukia's expression grew even more anxious. "What exactly happened back then? Please tell me!"
Kazuma withdrew his smile, and his expression turned serious.
He looked straight into Rukia's eyes and said in a deep voice, "Rukia, there are some things I still can't tell you. But you need to believe this—I would never betray Soul Society. As for why I didn't die, you'll naturally find out someday."
After saying that, he turned and walked forward, leaving Rukia standing there in thought.
Her heart was filled with questions, but at the same time, she felt a trace of relief.
At the very least, her teacher was still alive!
Rukia decided to set aside her doubts for now. She believed her teacher must have his own reasons.
"Wait for me, Sensei!"
Seeing Kazuma walking ahead, Rukia hurriedly called out and quickly followed after him.
Kazuma looked back at Rukia and shook his head helplessly.
"Rukia, you shouldn't have followed me through the Gates of Hell. The beings in here aren't something the current you can handle."
Rukia scratched her head awkwardly.
"My head just got hot, and I followed you in without thinking. I didn't expect it to be this dangerous…"
Kazuma was speechless.
This child really was impulsive!
But since she had already come in, they could only face it together.
They continued walking forward, and the atmosphere around them grew stranger and more oppressive.
Suddenly, a low roar came from ahead.
Rukia nervously tightened her grip around her Zanpakutō, ready to respond to whatever danger might appear.
Those roars came from the souls on the white blocks. They were furious, unwilling to sink forever in Hell, desperate to escape this world.
Kazuma calmly observed their surroundings, remaining inwardly vigilant.
He knew that in Hell, even the slightest carelessness could lead to fatal consequences.
Just then, a massive Hell guardian appeared.
The Kushanāda reached out, grabbed the roaring souls, and swallowed them whole.
After devouring those souls, the Kushanāda fixed its gaze on Kazuma and Rukia, then roared and charged toward them.
Rukia gripped her Zanpakutō while trembling.
The pressure radiating from the Kushanāda made her feel extremely uncomfortable.
Seeing this, Kazuma's figure flashed.
In an instant, he appeared in front of the Kushanāda.
With one slash, he cut it apart, reducing it to a molten, magma-like state while it waited to revive.
"Rukia, stay close to me. Dying in Hell wouldn't be very fun."
Kazuma said this casually, the Zanpakutō in his hand radiating a sharp aura.
Rukia tightened her grip on her sword and asked nervously, "Sensei, what are these monsters?"
Kazuma's mouth curved slightly as he explained, "These are Hell's guardians. They specialize in devouring souls burdened with terrible sins. But all living things in Hell revive after death. The only difference is how long that revival takes."
As he spoke, another guardian roared and charged at them.
Rukia steadied herself and swung her blade.
However, when her Zanpakutō struck the guardian's body, it produced the sound of metal clashing against metal. It did not injure the creature at all.
Rukia's eyes widened in shock as she stared at the guardian in disbelief.
At that moment, Kazuma quickly stepped forward.
With a casual swing of his sword, he effortlessly killed the guardian. Its body instantly turned into scorching magma and flowed across the ground.
Rukia panted, staring at the scene in astonishment.
Once again, she realized just how enormous the gap in strength between her and Kazuma truly was.
A strong feeling of helplessness rose in her heart.
Kazuma smiled and walked to Rukia's side, gently patting her shoulder.
"Don't lose heart, Rukia. As long as you keep training hard, one day you'll become as strong as me too."
His comfort was basically nonsense.
If hard work alone could make someone that strong, he might as well go lie to ghosts.
Rukia took a deep breath.
A strange light flickered in her eyes as she nodded and replied, "I'll definitely work hard, Sensei!"