"Zanpakuto? I almost forgot—there's another conscious soul inside Rukia-san's consciousness space!"
Everyone suddenly remembered this, especially since their strength had increased so much. Although the Bankai of a Zanpakuto could multiply spiritual pressure by five to ten times, there was still an upper limit.
After all, Zanpakuto were created by Ōetsu Nimaiya. Their upper limit was high, but definitely nowhere near the power of the Soul King.
Even though sword spirits like Sode no Shirayuki were born from Rukia Kuchiki's soul, they were already at their peak the moment they were born. The power of these sword spirits was locked at an upper bound, only slowly guiding their wielders to develop and master this strength.
Once born, sword spirits were independent soul entities. The wielder's increasing strength wouldn't make the sword spirit stronger, nor would the sword spirit's power grow.
So, although they had all entered the world of death, no one thought of gaining a Zanpakuto except Rukia Kuchiki, whose Sode no Shirayuki already existed within her, impossible to remove.
"Sode no Shirayuki? Why did you suddenly pull me in?"
Upon entering the consciousness space, Rukia Kuchiki asked.
"There's a reason I pulled you in. You can use your Bankai, though it doesn't seem very useful to you right now!"
Sode no Shirayuki said with a hint of resentment, which made Rukia feel uncomfortable.
"Bankai? Just like this?"
Rukia was confused. She knew that besides reaching the standard to unlock Bankai, the Zanpakuto itself had to acknowledge the release. Otherwise, like Zaraki Kenpachi —who was strong but couldn't hear his Zanpakuto's voice—she wouldn't be able to release it.
The relationship with the Zanpakuto was vital. Captains in Soul Society improved their strength quickly but spent a lot of time mastering their Bankai, not because they lacked power but because building a bond with their Zanpakuto took time.
To Rukia, who had only recently learned the initial release, mastering Bankai properly still seemed far away. Though her sudden increase in power made Bankai almost useless now, the desire to master Bankai as a Shinigami never faded.
Back in the Shinō Academy of Spiritual Arts, Captains were greatly admired. Only a dozen captains existed in the entire Seireitei, and mastering Bankai was a key step toward that rank. How could a Shinigami not yearn for it?
"What? Wait decades like the others in Soul Society? With your current speed, it probably won't take that long. Honestly, the combined strength of all Soul Society Shinigami might not match yours."
"Even now, your Bankai barely enhances your power. It's useless to you. I can't help you at all."
As a soul born from Rukia's essence, Sode no Shirayuki served her wholeheartedly—like any Zanpakuto. But Zanpakuto were man-made and had flaws. That's why in the original story, Zanpakuto betrayed their owners and were taken away, almost becoming traitors.
Sode no Shirayuki wanted to help Rukia, but Rukia's rapid growth—especially her cell level surpassing 400 yesterday—instantly made the sword spirit powerless. Realizing she couldn't aid Rukia, Sode no Shirayuki reluctantly chose to teach her Bankai.
Just as Rukia was about to speak, the name of Sode no Shirayuki's Bankai appeared suddenly in her mind:
"Bankai: Hakka no Togame!"
Rukia snapped back to awareness and instinctively activated her Bankai.
Ice and snow began to spread, but Zed had anticipated this and suppressed Rukia's spiritual burst within a certain range. This prevented her Bankai from causing too much disturbance, but the spiritual pressure still exploded.
At this moment, Rukia looked very different. Her Zanpakuto was famed as the most beautiful in Soul Society. Its true form was revealed only during Bankai.
Her clothes transformed, resembling the elegant patterns of Sode no Shirayuki, and her black hair shifted to an icy blue with hints of pink. Her entire demeanor changed—Rukia looked incredibly charming.
However, her Bankai was dangerous. Once activated, it could freeze not only enemies but herself as well. In the original story, she had scars on her fingers from using her Bankai, almost breaking her body into pieces.
But with her current physical fitness, she completely resisted the freezing effects. Thanks to temperature magic perfectly suited to her, she warmed herself gradually while maintaining Bankai's appearance, able to move freely without fear of being frozen solid.
"Rukia, how did you suddenly achieve Bankai?"
Zed asked the question on everyone's mind. Rukia thought of Sode no Shirayuki's condition, surprised that her own rapid strength increase had caused damage to her Zanpakuto.
"..."
She explained the situation to everyone.
"After gaining the gourmet cells, your Zanpakuto's power inevitably can't keep up with your growth and becomes useless. It's not good for your Zanpakuto."
"But, Rukia, you can try something else. Let Sode no Shirayuki try to control the gourmet demon inside your body."
Zed paused before continuing.
"Let Sode no Shirayuki control the gourmet demon?"
Rukia and the others were stunned.
"Yes. The gourmet demons inside us are unconscious. The benefit is we can use their power at will, but the downside is our fighting spirit isn't as strong as theirs."
"If we let the gourmet demons fight, we must also control their bodies. Since Sode no Shirayuki was born from your soul, she's independent but shares your origin, so she might control the gourmet demon."
"If it works, Sode no Shirayuki will remain your strongest ally."
Zed's suggestion was a way to ease Sode no Shirayuki's Weakness—her inability to keep up. Anyone with food luck could control the gourmet demon's power, but Sode no Shirayuki had difficulty.
"I can try! It worked!"
Suddenly, a head condensed in Rukia's body—the gourmet demon's head, now controlled by Sode no Shirayuki.
"Sode no Shirayuki? You can really control this guy?"
Rukia was amazed.
"I tried. Because I was born from your soul, I can control him. No more nonsense—call me when you need to fight. I'm going back now; otherwise, you'll drain your calories and stamina."
"Also, thank you, Mr. Zed!"
With that, the gourmet demon's head disappeared.
"Hiss... That took so many calories just to speak. I feel exhausted!"
Rukia realized her condition.
"When the gourmet demon manifests outside, it's in its prime form, with peak combat power."
"But it consumes your calories to use that power. If you drain too much, your body collapses. Your current cell level, just over 400, can't sustain the demon for long."
"But just a quick burst of power is enough, unless the enemy is extremely strong."
The gourmet demon in Rukia's body wasn't as powerful as the blue ghost but still formidable. After just a few words, Rukia felt a clear energy drain.
Staying longer, even without fighting, burdened her body. Only as her fitness improved could the food demon remain longer outside.
"So this is why we were forbidden to use the food demon casually!"
Having experienced it herself, Rukia understood Zed's warning about not abusing the gourmet demon's power. It was a huge physical burden. Before level 100, their bodies would collapse instantly if the demon came out.
"True, but that was before. Now you can try. You need to understand the cost of using the gourmet demon's power, so you can better prepare for danger when I'm not around."
Zed said this with caution. Nothing was absolute. Everyone needed to have the power to protect themselves.
Using the gourmet demon's power directly was their unique advantage.
After all, gourmet demons in other hosts were self-aware. Many didn't get along with their hosts, sometimes hoping the host would die, abandoning any chance of resurrection. Such demons wouldn't help their hosts in danger.
"Shall we release the food demon now?"
When Mirajane and the others heard this, they hesitated, remembering Zed's past warnings. But now, their bodies were strong enough.
They began to release their gourmet demons. The demons spread outside their bodies but were quickly retracted.
The calorie consumption was horrifyingly fast, draining their stored energy within minutes.
"What a terrifying cost."
"Even a short release drains so much energy."
If they stayed outside for half a minute, their bodies might collapse. Mirajane quickly pulled her food demon back, and Erina and Hisako followed.
They had witnessed massive calorie loss firsthand.
As Zed said, though they could now use the food demon's power, it was best to use it in brief bursts and withdraw immediately. If the demon couldn't kill the enemy in one strike, survival chances were slim.
Everyone began calculating how long they could sustain the demon's release based on their calorie reserves to plan upcoming battles.
After this, Zed didn't rush to hunt for food. Instead, they stayed in the Hex Food World for several days.
Erina and Hisako went to learn cooking skills from Branch, while Zed sought out the Saiseiya Dinā and the Gourmet Hunter Nosshu.