The wind lifted Grimmjow's shirt, revealing the black tattoo of the number "6" on his back. The mark was etched just above the hollow hole in his abdomen.
Dang!
The next instant, Kurosaki Ichigo swung Zangetsu down toward Grimmjow.
Grimmjow raised his arm casually and met the blade with his hierro, letting the sword clash against his skin.
For any normal opponent, Ichigo's strike would have sliced straight through flesh and bone. Yet when the edge of Zangetsu met Grimmjow's body, it failed to cut through at all.
Ichigo's eyes widened.
Grimmjow smirked as a sudden flare of reiatsu burst from his arm, throwing Ichigo back through the air. Ichigo skidded several meters before steadying himself midair.
"Before I fight seriously, hurry up and release your Bankai," Grimmjow said, slipping one hand into his pocket with a cruel grin curving across his face. "Otherwise, the next strike will kill you."
Ichigo's expression hardened. Ever since attaining Bankai, he had believed himself far stronger than before, yet Grimmjow had blocked him without effort.
He tightened his grip on Zangetsu with both hands and raised the blade in front of him.
For an instant, his thoughts drifted.
--Spin "zero zero zero."
"Good morning."
Poof!
Kurosaki Isshin's foot connected with Ichigo's face in a rough kick.
His little sister, Kurosaki Yuzu, wearing a pink apron, called from the kitchen, "Brother, breakfast is already ready."
The clear blue sky stretched overhead as Keigo Asano chatted rapidly beside him at school.
"Did you see it? The newest series that's out?"
"What's that?" Ichigo muttered back distractedly.
"Are you blind? Haven't you watched the DVD version? It's amazing-"
"I forgot."
"What?! Unbelievable!" Keigo exaggerated, throwing his arms up.
Kojima Mizuiro calmly corrected him from the other side, "Yes, I enjoy it a lot."
"Nobody asked you!" Keigo snapped, before the two slipped into a debate about the series-the actors, the storyline, and who might die in the next episode.
Ichigo sat in his seat quietly, resting his chin in his hand. Peace like this felt distant yet steady.
--The world is always shifting.
--Each cycle of sun and moon brings change.
At another table, Chizuru leaned toward Orihime Inoue with a mischievous grin. "Orihime, do you like shrimp?"
"Yes," Orihime answered cheerfully.
"Then you must like sausages too, right?"
"Ah, I do."
Qianhe suddenly slammed a hand on the table, eyes shining with excitement. "It's fate! We're perfectly matched!"
Arisawa Tatsuki kicked Qianhe away in irritation. "Who even asked you to come here?"
"What? Got a problem?" Qianhe snapped back, glaring until they squared off.
Orihime noticed Ichigo standing up quietly. "Kurosaki…are you heading home?"
"Yeah… I'll head back early today," Ichigo answered with a small wave and walked off.
From his seat, Ishida Uryū leaned against his desk, holding a textbook idly. His sharp gaze followed Ichigo's departing figure over the rim of his glasses.
--If there is one constant, it is the weight of my own powerlessness.
Later that night, Ichigo passed beneath a streetlight where a pool of blood stained the ground, glinting in his eyes.
"You came, little brother. I'm sorry…the child is gone."
The voice came from behind-an old soul speaking heavily.
"Yes," Ichigo said quietly and knelt to pick up a toy plane nearby. "This plane… it was wasted here anyway. I'll leave it with you."
Seeing souls and speaking with them was normal for him, but watching them vanish without knowing why always left him unsettled. Often only bloodstains and grief remained.
No matter how hard he tried, he couldn't protect everyone.
"Uncle, I'll leave this with you."
"I don't want it."
"Then… just let it stay here."
--The gears of fate keep turning.
"I understand. I'll come again tomorrow."
Nearby, a little girl with blood on her face cried softly, tears mingled with crimson. "Thank you… big brother."
Ichigo placed a hand on her head gently. "Don't cry anymore, okay?"
Her small hand waved farewell, and he lifted his in return.
At the corner, Chad stood waiting. Ichigo clenched his fist inwardly. If stretching out an empty hand could not protect them, then he wished for strength in the form of a blade-power capable of cutting through fate itself.
From the darkness overhead, beneath the crescent moon, he called out:
"Bankai!"
"Tensa Zangetsu!"
Ichigo gripped the pitch-black blade with both hands. A torrent of reiatsu erupted from him, surging upward and churning the air violently. Chains rattled as the release reshaped his weapon, and the weight of his power split the night sky.
Click.
The fate before him shattered beneath the swing of his blade.
...
Elsewhere, Nakeem, bulky with a round head resembling a melon, swung his Zanpakutō with surprising speed for his size. He clashed with Matsumoto Rangiku fiercely, but the longer they fought, the more alarmed he became.
How could a lieutenant possess such overwhelming strength?
After all, he was Arrancar No. 14. Even though numbers after eleven did not necessarily represent rank by power, he still bore high expectations for himself.
Just as he raised his weapon to release his Resurrección, Rangiku's Haineko slipped past him. With a single swipe, his body burst apart in blood, and he collapsed.
Rangiku herself looked stunned at the outcome. Even without intentionally releasing her limit seal, her power seemed to have grown substantially. Lower-ranked Arrancar were nothing before her strikes.
With Hōgyoku's influence, her reiatsu was rapidly increasing, and she felt Haineko resonating differently-as though it was evolving toward a truer form.
She glanced at Yuta briefly, affection in her eyes.
At that moment, a message reached them from Soul Society:
"Approval granted. The restriction on reiatsu limiters is lifted."
Hitsugaya Tōshirō and Abarai Renji both reacted quickly.
"The order's here. Finally…" Hitsugaya muttered.
"I couldn't wait any longer," Renji said eagerly, Zanpakutō already in hand. "Restriction lifted!"
Their reiatsu erupted outward fiercely, shaking the battlefield.
Xiao Long stared in disbelief. "Restriction lifted? What is that supposed to mean?"
Hitsugaya replied evenly, "When Gotei 13 members are dispatched to the Human World, our powers are suppressed to protect the balance. Reiatsu is limited to one-fifth of our full capacity."
"In other words," Renji added firmly, "when the limiters are lifted, our power increases fivefold."
Zabimaru roared forward with newfound strength, smashing Arrancar Ilforte back step by step.
Ilforte cried out in shock. "Impossible! You were fighting me with only twenty percent of your power?"
Before his words finished, Renji unleashed another strike.
"Baboon Bone Cannon!"
The blast tore through Ilforte's arm and sent him crashing down.
...
Nearby, Hitsugaya raised Hyōrinmaru.
"Sit upon the frozen heavens, Hyōrinmaru."
"This can't be happening," Shawlong muttered as he tried to retreat.
"You think you can escape?" Hitsugaya's tone was cold as his blade pierced forward, ice spreading instantly across the battlefield.
Shawlong froze in place, trapped in a massive cross of ice. His consciousness faded as his body shattered into countless fragments of spirit particles.
Even as Renji defeated Ilforte, his own limbs faltered. Zangetsu shattered into segmented pieces across the ground. He scowled softly while falling back.
"Damn it… It worked out because he was caught off guard when my limiter was released. If he had gone all-out, I don't know how that would've ended…"
His gaze hardened as he thought of Ichigo.
"If those Arrancar were that strong… what about the Sexta Espada, Grimmjow? Be careful, Ichigo."
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