He spread his arms, his sword in its sealed form, his shirt discarded for a day of training that was now thoroughly interrupted. What better interruption than a good fight, though? He had been a bit bored with training dummies and sparring partners anyway. There were very few in the division he could really have fun with. Most would die in the mere presence of his bankai. But a challenge for the position of Kenpachi? That had not happened for a long time. For that, he could fight all out without guilt.
The challenger, a strong and arrogant recruit who had mastered his shikai in near record time, waited skeptically for the powerful man to take the fight seriously and ready his sword. The captain of the eleventh just grinned widely, letting all his bloodlust and excitement spill through his face, making him look half mad.
"Take that sword and see if you can even cut me! If you can, then I'll fight you! If you can't, then you will have one opportunity to leave the division alive, or die here and now!" The Kenpachi shouted at the challenger. Off to the side, his Lieutenant stood watching, as always. The recruit who had been overflowing with confidence only moments before now looked uneasy as he faced one of the most fearsome men to ever hold the title.
Clenching his teeth and committing himself fully to the attack, the challenger raised his blade and charged, swinging his Zanpakuto with all his strength at the exposed shoulder of his captain. The weapon came to the man's skin and stopped as if it had hit a steel beam rather than flesh and blood. Despite the fear and doubt now flooding through him, he continued to press forward, forcing all of his spiritual pressure into the blade until a drop of blood became visible.
"Well, calling that a cut would be laughable, but you did draw blood, and I want an excuse to cut loose! I hope you're ready for what you've gotten yourself into!" The Kenpachi roared as his riatsu poured out across the division, knocking the majority of those assembled to their knees. The challenger stumbled back, weighing his chances of survival if he were to turn and run now. He would never be able to show his face in the eleventh again, but at least he might live. He had been a fool to challenge his captain so soon out of the academy.
The captain, swung his blade with lightning speed, getting a feel for how the challenger fought. When was the last time he really fought with everything he had? It had been only rarely that he resorted to his shikai. The last time he used his bankai... That was the day he had become the Kenpachi.
It had been the most painful thing he had ever witnessed. A Vasto Lorde, a rebel that refused to acknowledge the agreement between Hueco Mundo and Soul Society, had begun hunting in the Rukongai. It had decimated two districts before a response was called. A captain and two Lieutenants came to fight the creature. All three died.
Those three, Komamura, Iba, and Kusajishi, fought till their last breath. The Vasto Lorde, overflowing with power from the thousands of souls it had already devoured, had defeated the easily. It killed Iba first, luring his captain into attacking blindly. Komamura followed close behind his subordinate. Little Yachiru Kusajishi had not even been assigned to this task. She had gone on her own, hoping that a good fight might take her mind off her captain's distant behavior since the death of her namesake.
The Hollow's claws punctured her heart from behind as it plowed through her shikai's strike rather than trying to dodge. She died with a look of surprise and confusion still hanging on to her face. When word reached the Seireitei, no force could stop her captain from seeking revenge. Kenpachi Zaraki summoned his bankai one time, using it's unstoppable power to destroy the Hollow, then returning to his division to demand his own death.
It was decided that there was only one person in the division worthy of such an honor and duty. Ikkaku Madarame reluctantly stepped forward and unleashed the full power of his Zanpakuto. After the battle with the Vasto Lorde, Zaraki was in no shape to fight his third seat, but Ikkaku would not insult his hero by killing him with less than his very best.
Now, Kenpachi Ikkaku Madarame and his Lieutenant Yumichika Ayasegawa lead the eleventh division in the spirit of their fallen leader. Although the assembled had numbered less than 200, it was decided that Ikkaku's position would be allowed to stand. It was the tradition of the eleventh, and no one wanted to waste the time on paperwork or the life of a captain level shinigami to try and take the position from the bald man.