"Hehehe, Zanpakutō and Hollow mask together… I'm someone who stepped from the realm of Shinigami into the realm of Hollows. Come with me, Kurosaki Ichigo. We—the Visored—are just like you!"
Shinji looked confidently at Ichigo.
"Haven't I already told you we should get along?"
Meanwhile, the release of spiritual pressure from Shinji attracted many Hollows to Karakura Town.
One of them happened to find Ishida Uryū—who had lost all combat ability!
Just as the Hollow's tongue reached out to strike—
Whoosh!
An arrow of spirit energy flew in and sliced it clean off!
The one who arrived wasn't anyone else—it was Ishida Ryūken!
"What… Ryūken?!"
Uryū stared in shock at his father, who now stood wielding a spirit bow. He couldn't believe this man—who had always belittled the Quincy—had such overwhelming power!
Under his son's stunned gaze, Ryūken easily killed two Menos-class Hollows with only two shots.
"Impossible! You've always hated the Quincy! Why do you have such strength?!"
Uryū turned and shouted at his father.
"Why not? I lack interest. You, however, lack talent," Ryūken replied coldly.
Ouch. That was harsh—even for a Quincy who inherited a rare and inverted ability from his mother. Ryūken's arrogance was a bit much… (Thanks to the 1998 anime for that jab—it really made Uryū look incompetent…)
Still, he wasn't entirely wrong.
Ryūken then took out a Quincy cross from his coat, and Uryū's eyes widened.
"What? You've lost your Quincy powers? I can help you regain them—but you must promise me one thing: never associate with Shinigami again."
"If you can agree to that, come find me."
With that, Ryūken turned and left.
Uryū said nothing. After all, in his mind, being friends with Ichigo doesn't count as associating with Shinigami!
Ichigo is human, not a Shinigami. Logic bypass complete!
But Ryūken wasn't the only one active now—Kurosaki Isshin had moved too.
While Kon was out, he encountered Grand Fisher, the Hollow Ichigo had once fought.
But Grand Fisher had changed—his body had become enormous, human-like arms had grown, and even his face could be seen beneath the mask.
He even carried a massive sword on his back.
In that critical moment, a figure wearing a shredded white haori slowly walked forward.
It was none other than Kurosaki Isshin.
Seeing Grand Fisher, Isshin sighed softly. He seemed to recall the woman from his past…
But instead of fleeing, Grand Fisher rushed at him with wild glee!
"Hahaha! I've obtained Shinigami powers! See my Zanpakutō? Its size proves my power! My spiritual pressure far exceeds yours!"
Still unaware of his impending doom, Grand Fisher ran his mouth in front of a captain-level Shinigami.
Isshin closed his eyes, pained.
His wife had died to this creature. It was truly pathetic.
One slash!
Grand Fisher was cut clean in two.
Isshin muttered, "Captain-class Shinigami can control the size of their Zanpakutō. Otherwise, we'd all be walking around with skyscrapers strapped to our backs. Size means nothing."
And with that, Grand Fisher disintegrated into ash.
Isshin felt no thrill of revenge—only relief.
He knew Grand Fisher was just the killer's tool. The true culprit… was someone else.
At that moment, Urahara Kisuke appeared.
"Congratulations, Captain Isshin. Looks like your spiritual power is slowly returning. Does revenge bring peace of mind?"
Isshin shook his head.
"I never hated that Hollow. What I hate… is myself—for being unable to save Masaki."
Urahara also knew who the real mastermind was, so he simply nodded and said nothing more.
Instead, he looked at the remains of Grand Fisher.
"It seems this was a test subject created using the Hōgyoku by Aizen."
Isshin frowned. "That fast?"
Urahara shook his head.
"No, this isn't the work of my Hōgyoku. This was Aizen's own creation—still rough and not very powerful."
Isshin nodded. The two then sensed Ichigo's spiritual pressure approaching.
"Kon, don't tell Ichigo anything. I'll be off."
Kon quickly nodded—he had realized he'd latched onto one heck of a big shot!
When Ichigo arrived, Urahara had already cleaned up the scene and left. Nothing remained.
Ichigo was baffled.
But he didn't dwell on it. Whoever took out the Hollow did good—Karakura Town had too many secrets hidden already.
The next day—at school.
Seeing Hirako Shinji still attending class made Ichigo a bit confused. He thought the guy would vanish after getting rejected.
Between classes—
Ichigo found Shinji in a quiet spot and asked bluntly:
"Why are you still here? Didn't I already say I wouldn't join your Visored group?"
Shinji smiled.
"Didn't you realize… your inner Hollow is slowly consuming you? I bet during battles, it sometimes takes over, right?"
"…???"
Ichigo stared at him.
What the hell is he talking about?
Did I travel to another world or something?!
"I don't understand a word you're saying."
Shinji explained further:
"Hollow powers clash with Shinigami powers. When your Shinigami powers are depleted, you can't suppress the Hollow anymore. It'll slowly consume you during battle—until you lose control and destroy everything."
That might apply to others who gained Hollow powers unnaturally…
But Ichigo's Hollow power was innate!
He had wielded a giant blade made of Hollow energy against Amagai Shūsuke in Soul Society!
Ichigo knew exactly where his Hollow power came from—White Ichigo.
And that guy had never once tried to take over.
So to Ichigo, Shinji sounded like a complete fool.
But Shinji was still brimming with confidence.
"I can help you control that power. Come with me!"
Ichigo: "…You're really annoying."
After school—
Uryū arrived at Ryūken's office.
"I agree. I won't interact with Shinigami anymore. Now restore my powers!"
Ichigo's home.
He lay on his bed, thinking about Shinji's nonsense.
Then he entered his inner world to have a "meeting" with his three spirits.
"Zangetsu-ossan, Zangetsu, Muramasa!"
He paused when he saw them standing in a triangle.
"What's going on?"
Zangetsu-ossan shook his head.
"Nothing. We're just running some tests."
"Tests?" Ichigo frowned.
"We're testing the compatibility between Muramasa and Hollow powers," White Ichigo explained.
"And the result?"
Muramasa sighed. "It's still not stable."
"What's the problem?"
"No real issue, but… to balance my power with the Hollow side, we'd need to release tremendous spiritual pressure—and help from others."
With Muramasa's addition, Ichigo's Shinigami power had grown too dominant.
They had to restore balance between the Shinigami, Hollow, and Quincy powers inside him.
Rapidly boosting the Hollow and Quincy sides was a tall order. But fusion was possible.
Especially since White Ichigo naturally embodied that balance, and Muramasa had experience with Hollowfication.
So the trio was trying to fuse powers.
But as the fusion progressed, Zangetsu-ossan was struggling to suppress the energy.
Any more and it would destroy the surrounding area!
So the experiment was halted before it truly began.
Ichigo, however, had a new idea.
Didn't Shinji say he could help control Hollow powers?
Then he could be used to help Muramasa and White Ichigo fuse!
"I'll take care of it," Ichigo said. "I'll find the right time and place."
Muramasa and White Ichigo nodded.
Zangetsu-ossan, however, frowned. His suppression was weakening… Perhaps he, too, needed to grow stronger.
If not… he might have to fuse as well!
Back in the real world.
Ichigo was just about to head downstairs when—
Knock knock!
"Are you in there, Ichigo-nii?" Karin called from outside.
Ichigo opened the door naturally.
Karin stepped in—and shut the door behind her. Her expression was serious.
"What's wrong, Karin? Something happen?"
Karin shook her head.
"I saw it, Ichigo-nii."
"…Saw what?"
"I saw Rukia-san and Senna-san… in their Shinigami forms."
She blurted everything out.
"I even saw you bringing home a little girl dressed like a Shinigami—around my age!"
Ichigo was stunned. Karin could see that much?
Being able to see spirits was one thing—but seeing Shinigami and Hollows was another level entirely!
"You left home to visit Rukia-san's world, right? Are Rukia and Senna… in that world now?"
Ichigo didn't want to drag his sister into this… but with her spiritual strength growing, hiding the truth could be dangerous if she encountered a Hollow alone.
"Alright, Karin. Since you already saw—"
But before he could explain, two massive spiritual pressures slammed down from the sky!
Without suppression—pure, overwhelming, malevolent reiatsu.
Ichigo immediately recognized it.
Hollows!
"Karin, I know you have a lot of questions—but I can't explain right now. You feel that pressure, right? Stay home and don't go outside. I'll explain everything once I return!"
Ichigo entered his Shinigami form and leapt out the window.
Karin reached out but he was already gone. She saw the two Zanpakutō at his waist—and fell silent.
"Are those Ichigo-nii's enemies? Does he face that kind of pressure every day…?"
All she could do now was silently pray for her brother's safe return.
On the other side, the two Arrancar sent by Aizen had arrived.
Tall and short—emerging from the fading dust.
(End of Chapter)
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