Chapter 11: Hollow exercise!

"Soo... I know what you are thinking. And yes, it sucked... But after all this time I can finally welcome you back to my story! That's right, you didn't misread that last part, I really did say welcome back.

So why don't we take a look at what has happened so far, hm? So first I died. Yep, hit by a car I know, so cliche, right? Anyway, after finding out I was dead, I got chased by a huge group of monsters called hollows! Like getting hit by a car and dying wasn't already a kick in the balls, eh?

Moving on... I then met two soul reapers, one of whom was called Gin and another guy with glasses, both seeming extremely strong as they saved me from the hollows.

My memory of what happened next is still completely blank until I woke up on a pile of hay for a bed that is.

It was here in that tiny, rickety, shithole of a hut that I discovered not only was I in the afterlife but that I was in the soul society of the Bleach anime! (/Manga.) With something called a system of all things.

I know right, just like a video game...

Anyway, this system explained to me what the fuck was going on after I was finally done freaking out, more times than I would have liked by the way...

After insulting me, this system went on to explain everything to me in detail, as well as helping me level up, show me quests, you know, pretty my help me in whatever I needed.

Not long after that, I ended up in a fight club... Of which we still are not allowed to talk about...

I beat some guys up, met what I'm pretty sure was a crime boss called Leach, got a cursed sword that was found on some dead soul reaper and asked to kill a Hollow.

I do hope I haven't lost you yet, I know, I know there is so much to tell and so little time. SO, I will make it quick.

After that, I went to fight the Hollow, and it killed my friends... But, I joined the soul reaper school! So that's a plus on that.

And after being shown all of the basics and making new friends, of which I seem to be stuck in the middle of some crazy love triangle between Izumi and Kimiko, found myself A rival, which I was not looking for by the way... His name is Jaku though, he's nice. Oh, and his big rock head friend, that's right, you guessed it, he's called Rocko! Who knew right?

It's been just under a year in the academy and the others finally got their swords, also called A Asauchi by the way.

(Last deep breath!)

And now we are being allowed to go on a field trip to the human world to kill some Hollows and I'm hoping that none of my new friends dies but I don't know what the hell is going to happen and I'm kind of worried but excited at the same time but have a bad feeling but also can't wait!

(Takes a huge breath...)

And I'm done... All caught up.

So please feel free to join me on my adventure in the world of Bleach! Happy reading."

The morning of the training exercise arrived, and Grayson felt excited that he would get to test his new skills against live Hollows.

"It's already been 8 months now... And I feel as if I've already come so far now." Grayson said to himself, lifting his hand above his face to look at it before making a fist.

Grayson slowly sat up and prompted his stat screen to open, taking a quick peek at where he was up to.

"Alright, let's see..."

Name: Grayson.

Level 20. (400/4800).

Class: Student of the Shinōreijutsuin.

Health: 205/205

Stamina: 205/205

Reiatsu: 205/205

Skills- Hadō 31 Shakkahō level 2/10.

Strength: 15/100 (1/10)

Speed: 05/100 (1/10)

Intelligence: 05/100 (1/10)

Enhanced skills -

Zanjutsu: 8/10 (0/10)

Hakuda: 5/10 (0/10)

Kidō: 3/10 (0/10)

Skill points available: 1.

Over the last 8 months, Grayson had levelled up by another ten levels, giving him access to ten skill points to play with. He had used three in Zanjutsu, three in Hakuda, two in Kidō, one on his speed stat and finally one to improve the level of his Shakkahō spell.

All of his other basic stats had increased as he levelled up, giving him no reason to increase them with his hard-earned skill points. After all, the exp had been hard to earn due to the fact that each day had been the same, meaning he had already completed most of the quests that the system had given him, meaning he had, had to train the old-fashioned way to gain exp, leaving him with only one skill point left after his most recent level up.

Grayson knew it was usually a good idea to save at least one skill point for a rainy day, just in case.

With that Grayson got up out of bed and splashed some water onto his face, helping him to wake up before he looked into the mirror.

"Time to kill some Hollows."

With that Grayson grabbed his sword and headed to the meeting point. Over the months he and the others had gotten to know their way around the academy quite well, meaning they knew all the shortcuts.

Grayson could see that he was the last to arrive, seeing that the others were already there waiting for him.

"Good morning, Grayson, did you sleep well?" Izumi asked, being the first to greet him.

"Morning Izumi, and yeah, great thanks." He said, flashing her a smile.

"Grayson!" Kimimko suddenly yelled as she grabbed his arm.

"I missed you! Why did you take so long to see me this morning?" She said, clearly playing around to get a bite out of Izumi.

"Morning man!" Jaku said as he held his head with his hands behind it, standing next to Rocko who simply nodded to him.

"Morning everyone," Grayson said, smiling as this had become the normal greeting, he got each morning.

"I couldn't sleep last night I'm so excited!" Jaku suddenly said, lowering his arms as he clenched his fists.

"This is exactly what I have been training for!" He said, gripping the hilt of his sword as he resisted the urge to draw it.

Izumi was still mad that Kimiko had the audacity to hold onto Grayson like that, but she let it slid as she too was excited for today.

"Yes, I am looking forwards to testing my training." She said, surprising the others with her conviction.

"Yeah, well me too! And I'm going to kill more Hollows than you!" Kimiko said as she let go of Grayson's arm, seeming to get another bite from Izumi, causing the others to laugh.

"Alright, you lot." The teacher's voice said from behind them, causing them all to quickly stand to attention and face him.

"Good morning sensei!" They each said, bowing in respect.

"Yes, morning it is... Good, it is not!" He suddenly said.

"I want each of you to know that this morning. I want each of you to know that this field trip, may although seem exciting, is in fact extremely dangerous and could result in you losing your life." He said, letting them know how real this was.

"It is not uncommon for young soul reapers in training like yourselves to die out there on these exercises. So, I need you each to perform at the top of your game today and do me proud!"

Grayson and the others gulped, understanding how serious this was.

"Yes sensei!" They said, refusing to back down, however.

"Very well..." He said, turning to another instructor that was with him.

"Let us be on our way then." He finally said, gripping the hilt of his sword as he turned towards the senkaimon that appeared before them.

Grayson and the others watched as the gates opened, revealing the bright light and hell butterflies that appeared out of it.

"Follow me then." The teacher said, taking a step into the gate as he led the way.

Grayson was the first to take a step forwards, with the others being too stunned as it was the first time, they had seen a senkaimon.

"H-Hey! Wait for me!" Jaku said, refusing to be left behind by him, quickly running after him with the others following.

The group travelled through the gate, quickly reaching their destination as another senkaimon opened the human world for them to enter.

"We are here." The teacher said, standing in the air with the use of his Reiatsu to stand on.

The others followed suit, having already been shown how to do this, watching and waiting to see what their teacher wanted to do.

"Ahh feel the night breeze..." The teacher said, looking up at the full moon.

Grayson couldn't tell where they were, only knowing that wherever it was, it seemed far away from civilization.

"Oh my, what a beautiful moon," Izumi said, brushing her hair out of her face as she said it, looking up into the sky.

"Who cares about the moon? I came here to fight Hollows!" Jaku said, placing his hands on his hips.

"Alright you lot, that's enough." The teacher said, feeling that they were becoming impatient.

"Take a look at this, do any of you know what it is?" The teacher suddenly asked as he held a small white tablet between his thumb and finger.

The group looked at the tablet before Izumi spoke.

"Yes sensei, that is hollow bait..." She spoke.

"Very good, Izumi. So, I take it you know what it is used for?" He then asked, looking at the others.

"So that thing will attract Hollows?" Jaku asked, seeming to grow more excited.

"That's right... Once I break this little piece of bait, it will attract low-level hollows to this area for up to 12 hours."

"12 hours?" Kimiko said, knowing that was a long time to fight for.

"Yes... 12 hours." The teacher said once more, letting it sink in.

"Your mission is simple. You and the other group from class B who is also here must survive and kill as many Hollows as you can in the 12 hours window. If for any reason you are hurt or cannot continue, shoot a blast of Kido into the air and you will be pulled out of the exercise by one of the instructors who will be monitoring you during the exercise. However, in doing so, you will forfeit your right to bear an Asauchi and be sent back to basic Zanpakutō training." The teacher said, being serious.

"No way..." Jaku said, holding the hilt of his sword tight.

The others also looked tense, and Grayson could understand why. After all, their stats were no way near as high as his own, and he knew that this exercise was meant to weed out the weak from the strong.

"Now, let the training exercise begin!" The teacher said, breaking the bait like a twig between his fingers, getting a shocked expression from Jaku and the others.

"Oh, and good luck." The teacher said before he and the others quickly disappeared, leaving Grayson and the others alone.

Not a moment later, the cry of a Hollow could be heard in the distance, causing the group to huddle together as they took in their environment.

"Alright everyone, let's get in position!" Grayson suddenly said, taking charge as no one else seemed to.

"H-Hey! Who said you were in char..." Jaku started.

-Hollow growling! -

"Look out!" Grayson suddenly shouted, cutting Jaku's words off as he dashed forwards and cut a small Hollow in half, stopping it from ripping Jaku's head off with its teeth.

Jaku and the others all watched in shock and amazement, not having realized that a Hollow had already gotten that close to them.

"What the hell!" Jaku shouted, drawing his sword as he turned around to see the Hollow's body disappear.

"Now isn't the time! We are surrounded!" Grayson suddenly yelled, sensing the sudden appearance of more Hollows coming from all around them.

The others drew their swords, following Grayson to the ground so that they could get a better footing while fighting.

"There as so many..." Jaku said, feeling his excitement turn to fear as the white masks around them seemed to grow more and more.

"Now isn't the time to get scared! We have to fight our way out of this if we want to live!" Grayson shouted, trying to snap the others out of it, knowing that none of them had been expecting so many Hollows to show up so quickly.

"How... So many already?" Izumi said, feeling confused.

"Snap out of it bitch, otherwise you are going to die!" Kimiko said as she placed her back against Izumi's, seeming to snap her out of it.

Grayson was also confused, knowing that there were way too many Hollows for a first-time training exercise.

"But it doesn't make sense... Sensei only used a small piece of bait." Izumi said, feeling her hands start to shake against the overwhelming odds.

Grayson was also confused and gripped his sword tight.

"System, give me something here!" He thought, waiting for a response.

"What should we do?" Kimiko also asked, waiting to see if anyone had an idea.

"We fight!" Jaku yelled, suddenly charging forwards holding his sword in both hands.

"Take this!" He cried, swinging his sword with all of his might at the first Hollow in front of him, cutting clean through it, surprising everyone and himself as he took it down with ease.

"I did it... Alright! I did it!" Jaku shouted, seeming to find his confidence again before he jumped towards another Hollow and attacked it, doing the same thing again.

"No way... He really killed it that easily..." Izumi said.

"If he can do it, then so can I!" Kimiko roared, not wanting to be left out as she also charged in on the attack, rushing in before she too took down a Hollow.

Rocko did the same thing, swinging his tiny sword with his large arms, taking out any Hollow that tried to get close to him, leaving only Grayson and Izumi together.

"They are doing it... They are really doing it." Izumi said, not wanting to feel left out as she gripped her sword, taking a deep breath before she also ran in to attack one of the Hollows, taking it down in a single swipe of her sword.

Grayson watched the group attack the Hollows, doing well to hold their own against so many of them.

"Come on system, give me something here, surely these things aren't that weak?" Grayson thought, watching as the others continued to have fun as they battled against the monsters.

-System finished scanning Hollows as requested. Answer: 98% of the Hollows are only between level one and level two. However, I am detecting some stronger Hollows hidden among the crowds. - The system said.

"What? How strong are they?" Grayson asked, feeling worried that this whole thing was a trap.

"Rocko!!!"

Grayson looked up, hearing the scream come from Jaku. Rocko had taken down another ten Hollows by himself, using his strength to his advantage before attacking another Hollow that was a little bigger than the others.

However, this Hollow was not cut from the same cloth as the others, and easily blocked Rocko's attack before it punched him through the air, causing him to crash into the ground like a rag doll.

"Shit!" Grayson said as he got a look at the Hollow, feeling that it was ten times stronger than the other Hollows at least.

Jaku and the others quickly dashed to his side, helping Rocko up to his feet.

"Rocko, are you alright?" Jaku said, taking a look at his friend before he looked at the Hollow that had hurt him.

"Y-Yeah... But watch out, that Hollow packs a punch." He said, slowly standing to his feet as he held his left arm.

The Hollow howled as it seemed to command the other Hollows to attack them, keeping itself behind them for the time being as it watched and waited.

"Guys! We need to be careful about charging in like that!" Grayson said as he joined the others, easily cutting down three Hollows before he landed by their side.

"Why, these things are weaker than they look! That big only took Rocko by surprise was all!" Jaku said, having let his overconfidence from killing weak Hollows go to his head.

"No, I can sense other Hollows among these that are much stronger!" Grayson said, trying to stress how dangerous it was.

"You mean they are hiding in the ranks of these weaker Hollows?" Kimiko asked, not understanding.

"That's right. And if we charge in blindly and attack, they will take us off guard and overwhelm us one by one." Grayson said, already knowing their plan.

"Darn it! I didn't know Hollows were so smart!" Jaku shouted as he blocked an attack from another weak Hollow before pushing it back and cutting its head off.

"If you guys take care of the weaker ones, I should be able to locate the stronger ones and take them out." Grayson then said, getting a surprised look from the others.

"But how can you tell which are the stronger Hollows?" Izumi asked.

"I can sense their Reiatsu and tell them apart once I focus hard enough," Grayson said, making it up on the spot.

"Darn it... I don't like to admit it, but If Grayson is the only one of us who can tell them apart, then we don't have a choice." Jaku said, speaking sense for once.

"Alright then, if it's a distraction you need, then leave it to us!" Kimiko said, holding her sword in both hands as she got fired up.

"Yeah... But first, I'll take that one out." Grayson said, targeting the one that had attacked Rocko.

"Ye lord! Mask of blood and flesh, all creation, flutter of wings, ye who bears the name of Man! Inferno and pandemonium, the sea barrier surges, march on to the south! Hadō 31, Shakkahō!" Grayson roared, letting a massive blast of red Kidō shoot from his hand, aiming it right at the large Hollow.

The Hollow roared as it watched the Kidō fly towards it, quickly raising its arms in an attempt to defend itself from the attack. However, it was no use as Grayson's attack smashed into the Hollow, exploding on contact and blasting it from the face of the Earth, leaving everyone stunned by how powerful his attack had been.

"Now, let's get to work," Grayson said, placing his sword over his shoulder before he turned back to look at the others.

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Alright! Thats the end of this chapter!

Thats right I'm back. I am sorry that it has been so long, I did have to place this story on hold due to work and other projects that took up too much of my time. However, that has changed and Its time to give them the attention that it deserves!

I hope you enjoyed the chapter, until next time!