Witnessing this scene, combined with Kyoraku Shunsui's revelation, the Shinigami were even more shocked!
They had previously speculated about what Aizen might have implanted in Kurosaki Ichigo's body. But he had placed a Vasto Lorde—a king-level Hollow known as "White"?
This was genuinely terrifying.
In that case, calling Kurosaki Ichigo the "most perfect creation" wasn't nonsense at all. Such a powerful Hollow, instead of being used as Aizen's own subordinate, was directly placed inside Kurosaki Ichigo's body?
Wasn't Aizen being too generous? Did he want to train the Hollow or Ichigo Kurosaki?
Then Kurosaki Ichigo's power floor must at least exceed the strongest Espada, Coyote Starrk, right?
With this realization, everyone wanted to complain about the relationship between Aizen and Kurosaki Ichigo.
Aizen really does take exceptional care of Ichigo!
[Hitsugaya Toshiro]: Aizen, did you really put this thing inside Kurosaki Ichigo?
[Kuchiki Byakuya]: This is even more outrageous than placing the Hōgyoku inside Rukia.
[Aizen Sosuke]: Not bad. You're correct. The Hollow power within Kurosaki Ichigo should indeed come from White. It seems you Shinigami aren't slow to catch on. If you still couldn't see this after watching the projection for so long, it would be rather embarrassing.
[Ichimaru Gin]: You can't blame them. Hehe, they definitely wouldn't believe such an incredible thing if I just told them.
[Kurosaki Ichigo]: Really... really?
[Kuchiki Rukia]: Damn it, what will Ichigo become? This Hollow looks so evil—is Aizen trying to make Ichigo stronger, or harm him? Aizen is such a bastard!
[Ukitake Jushiro]: If Kurosaki Ichigo is truly devoured, it wouldn't be surprising. Hollows are meant to consume their hosts. This one must really hate the Shinigami power within Ichigo... or it hopes Ichigo will become a Hollow soon!
[Aizen Sosuke]: Rukia, is there any point in obsessing over good and evil? Whether this benefits or harms Kurosaki Ichigo depends entirely on him. Without me, could Kurosaki Ichigo have become so powerful?
[Kuchiki Rukia]: This... you definitely have malicious intentions!
[Abarai Renji]: Ichigo has to work harder. He absolutely cannot be devoured by that thing!
Seeing so many Shinigami worried about him, Ichigo barely pulled himself out of his collapsed state and felt deeply moved.
So this was really confirmed! The white version of himself inside his body was the so-called "White" created by Aizen, right?
Damn Aizen! I will never give in!
At this moment, the exhausted Ichigo didn't even ask Aizen why he'd done this.
First, Aizen was a riddler who might not answer anyway. Second, everything Aizen had done—creating Hollowfied Shinigami captains, manipulating Rukia, betraying Soul Society—had left a terrible impression in Ichigo's heart.
Such a major villain must be up to no good, right? Then whether for himself or for Soul Society, Aizen absolutely could not be allowed to succeed!
This so-called White had to be defeated, and the Hollow power had to be mastered!
Ichigo quickly thought of the Visored who had appeared before. Since they were all people who had mastered Hollowfication abilities and would fight alongside the Shinigami in the future, the Visored should still be trustworthy, right?
Good! I must find them when I get the chance!
Meanwhile, all the Shinigami harbored mixed feelings.
Not long ago, they were worried about Kurosaki Ichigo's Quincy power, and now they had to worry about his Hollow power!
After all, for a Shinigami, Ichigo shouldn't side with Yhwach and the Quincy, but he also shouldn't side with Aizen and the Hollows.
Therefore, the people in Soul Society were considering how to help Kurosaki Ichigo eliminate the Hollow's influence.
While everyone was contemplating this, the scene changed again!
The projection shifted to when Ulquiorra and Yammy were scouting the human world. After sensing their spiritual pressure, Kurosaki Ichigo rushed over immediately.
As soon as he arrived, Ichigo saw Yasutora Sado knocked to the ground and Inoue Orihime in danger.
Seeing these Arrancar about to attack his friends, Kurosaki Ichigo released his Zanpakutō to fight them:
"Bankai!"
Upon seeing him, Ulquiorra quickly realized who Kurosaki Ichigo was: "Long orange hair and a black coat. That's right—he's the target. Very good. Since he's the target, we can save ourselves the trouble of searching."
It seemed their purpose in coming here was to find Kurosaki Ichigo on Aizen's orders.
Not understanding why he was being targeted, Kurosaki Ichigo quickly began fighting these strange opponents.
Activating his Bankai, Ichigo didn't struggle much to sever one of Yammy's arms, making him grimace in pain and rage.
Ulquiorra commented on this: "This guy really is thick-skulled. I told him to learn how to gauge his opponent's strength."
"That said, it is indeed remarkable that someone who just mastered Bankai possesses such strong spiritual pressure."
"However, he shouldn't pose a threat to Aizen-sama at this moment!"
After being severely injured by Kurosaki Ichigo, the enraged Yammy prepared to release his Zanpakutō. Seeing that Yammy could still draw his sword, Ichigo was shocked.
They were so similar to him. This Hollow aura on their bodies... this familiar feeling... Could they be the same type of being as Hirako Shinji and himself?
Thinking this, Kurosaki Ichigo's heart immediately skipped a beat. He was so stunned he couldn't move his body.
At this moment, a familiar voice sounded again: "Haha, Kurosaki Ichigo, can you handle this? Let me take over! I can easily deal with this kind of trash."
White Ichigo was requesting a substitution!
Kurosaki Ichigo covered his face with his hands in anguish, as if trying to prevent the mask from appearing.
No, he would never allow that thing to emerge again. It was evil! If it controlled his body, he would lose consciousness and no longer be himself!
He had to rely on his own strength to fight! He absolutely couldn't cheat by asking for a substitute! I, Kurosaki Ichigo, will never cheat!
While he resisted White Ichigo, Yammy seized the opportunity and punched him several times, knocking him heavily to the ground.
Kurosaki Ichigo cursed at White Ichigo: "Damn it! Did you come here to interfere because I rejected you? You monster!"
Ulquiorra was also confused at this point: "What's wrong with this guy? His spiritual pressure suddenly became unstable. When it's strong, it's stronger than mine. But when it's weak, it's much weaker..."
Yammy didn't care what state Kurosaki Ichigo was in—he just wanted to teach him a lesson.
However, the arrival of Urahara Kisuke and Yoruichi stopped Yammy from finishing him off. Not wanting to fight them, Ulquiorra and the others departed quickly.
Only Kurosaki Ichigo was left, still questioning his existence.
This feeling of being unable to protect his companions truly made Ichigo feel miserable!
After witnessing this scene, the audience discussed it extensively:
[Yammy Llargo]: So that's how it was. Was it because of that thing in his head that this guy couldn't beat me? What a pathetic person.
[Kurosaki Ichigo]: Enough! You're just kicking someone while they're down. How can you be so proud of yourself? If I were in normal condition, killing a guy like you wouldn't be a problem!
[Shihouin Yoruichi]: It seems the Hollow power within Kurosaki Ichigo's body is indeed very troublesome. If he's not careful, he might be defeated in battle.
[Kuchiki Rukia]: Yes! Not just against this Arrancar—even against ordinary Hollows, Ichigo could barely win. At the time, I thought he was afraid of being unable to protect his companions and fearful of failure, which made him so weak.
[Kurosaki Isshin]: Son, you can't be afraid of that sort of thing. Come on, I believe you can overcome it.
[Aizen Sosuke]: Indeed! You cannot disappoint me, Kurosaki Ichigo—otherwise I would feel quite sorry for you.
[Kuchiki Rukia]: It's you again, Aizen!
[Hitsugaya Toshiro]: By the way, judging from the conversation between those two Arrancar, it seems Aizen sent them to the human world on a mission specifically to target Kurosaki Ichigo.
[Kuchiki Byakuya]: Are they planning to capture Kurosaki Ichigo? We need to protect him. We absolutely cannot let Aizen succeed.
In Soul Society, all the Shinigami reached a relatively unified conclusion!
Aizen had created so many Shinigami with Hollow powers, and he definitely wanted to make good use of Kurosaki Ichigo to achieve his own goals. In the future, perhaps Ichigo could be used to form an even stronger fighting force.
Additionally, because of the Three Realms Projection, future developments would inevitably become more treacherous! After seeing his own Arrancar fail repeatedly, Ichigo's importance in Aizen's heart might grow even greater.
By then, the Arrancar Aizen sent to the human world might be much stronger than before!
During the Shinigami's discussions, elsewhere, many people were equally concerned about Kurosaki Ichigo.
In Hueco Mundo, after witnessing Kurosaki Ichigo's condition, Aizen simply maintained the smile of a doting father.
It seemed Kurosaki Ichigo still needed to work harder! This small difficulty shouldn't significantly impact him.
After all, in the future, he would still be able to fight in his Hollowfied state. Though the future Ichigo was still far from sufficient to defeat Aizen himself, it was better than his current situation where he couldn't control his power properly and even suffered backlash.
If Kurosaki Ichigo failed directly in the process of growing stronger—was devoured by White or killed by Hollowfication—that would be truly boring.
Aizen hoped he could succeed in his power-ups without worry! Otherwise, he'd have to give him a push!
Additionally, Ulquiorra and other Hollows were officially introduced because of the Three Realms Projection.
So their respected Aizen-sama had buried such a powerful White Hollow within Kurosaki Ichigo's body! Then how much status did these Arrancar have left in Aizen's heart?
Thinking of the previous Arrancar's miserable defeats—even the top three Espada—they felt somewhat ashamed. Some Arrancar might be envious and jealous of Kurosaki Ichigo...
It was indeed reasonable to call Kurosaki Ichigo Aizen's most perfect creation!
Grimmjow, the battle maniac, was especially dissatisfied with Kurosaki Ichigo.
Was this guy qualified to be Aizen's most perfect creation? I could easily beat him, right?
If there's a chance, I must prove to Aizen and the others how powerful I am! I achieved Arrancar with Aizen's Hōgyoku's help, but I still can't beat this loser Kurosaki Ichigo? Unbearable!
Meanwhile, in the Wandenreich, Yhwach was also watching his "descendant" Kurosaki Ichigo with a smile:
"Just relying on these weak Hollows won't have much impact on my son!"
"He carries my blood after all—how could he be killed by such weaklings?"
"But then again, this Aizen is truly annoying."
"He keeps interfering with my son."
"Shinigami power is one thing."
"But even Hollow power has to be mixed into his body?"
"Kurosaki Ichigo, I hope you can quickly defeat these two powers! The noble power of the Quincy is most suitable for you."
"I wonder when the Quincy power I've hidden within his body will officially awaken?!"
Yhwach wasn't Kurosaki Ichigo, and he didn't have complete understanding of the Old Man Zangetsu within Ichigo's body. At least he couldn't determine the source of that power.
He also couldn't know how much power this Old Man Zangetsu possessed, or whether it was truly Quincy power. But this person looked so much like himself—there had to be an important connection.
He hoped Old Man Zangetsu could guide Kurosaki Ichigo more and generate Quincy power! Shinigami power wasn't worthy of him at all!
While these people contemplated, Urahara Kisuke, ever cunning, had his own plans.
It seemed Kurosaki Ichigo would indeed be the focus of many forces at this time. Of course, both the Shinigami and Aizen's forces were very interested in him.
Urahara couldn't help but mutter to himself: "It seems Mr. Kurosaki's importance has exceeded my imagination."
"Though there's no movement from the Quincy side, the calmer it is, the more turbulent the undercurrents..."
"Can these Quincy understand the relationship between Yhwach and Old Man Zangetsu?"
"Perhaps they also want to know what Mr. Kurosaki's stance is at this moment!"
"In the future, besides the Arrancar, the Quincy might also trouble Mr. Kurosaki!"
Urahara had been helping Kurosaki Ichigo like a master. After Ichigo's birth, the assistance he'd provided was no less than Aizen's!
Without his help to Ichigo's parents, there would be no later Kurosaki Ichigo. If he hadn't helped Ichigo recover his spiritual power, there wouldn't have been Ichigo's series of actions breaking into Soul Society.
It could even be said that Kurosaki Ichigo's growth process was the process of competition between Urahara Kisuke and Aizen.
But Urahara, who seemed very good to Kurosaki Ichigo, actually had his own unique purpose... Everything he did was based on maintaining the order of the three realms!
From this perspective, he might also resort to any means necessary! Therefore, Ichigo's subsequent growth process definitely wouldn't escape Urahara's influence.
While various forces contemplated, the scene switched again.
They had actually arrived in Hueco Mundo! Ulquiorra and Yammy walked through a dark palace.
Here, the audience once again saw Aizen after his escape from Soul Society!
Aizen looked at them with a smile, bearing the domineering presence of a king. He was like a leader strategizing from his tent, winning victories from thousands of miles away!
"Ulquiorra, Yammy! Excellent. What did you observe in the human world? Let us see it all!"
Ulquiorra respectfully removed his eyeball, crushed it, and transformed it into countless tiny points of light that merged into Aizen's body.
It truly was seeing through another's eyes!
Looking at Ulquiorra's experiences in the human world, Aizen seemed intoxicated. He saw Kurosaki Ichigo, whom he cared about most, and was very satisfied!
At this moment, viewer comments appeared:
"This is the real father. Aizen looked very satisfied when he saw Kurosaki Ichigo."
"Aizen looked intoxicated... He seems really excited. Is this an old father's care?"
"Real father: every move of his son is monitored through surveillance. Fake father: his son is doing great things, but he doesn't care at all!"
"Aizen thinking: Ichigo doesn't want to cheat, so parents have to give him a push!"
"White Ichigo is very aggrieved: I just want to help you fight, but you won't let me log in and got beaten up by rookie Yammy."
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