On a street near the Kurosaki Clinic, Ichigo Kurosaki looked at the Hollow manipulating the image of his mother, held back his grief, and raised his Zanpakutō. "You damn bastard, go to hell!!"
The Hollow roared in panic, trying to make Ichigo's mother speak to stop his attack. But then it discovered with horror that it could no longer control her.
The woman it had devoured appeared beside Ichigo, her hand covering his as they gripped the sword together, and they slashed down at the Hollow.
"It's okay, Ichigo. Mom is always with you..."
Swish!
The blade sliced through. The evil Hollow before him was cut down.
But at the same instant, another blue beam of light shot out, striking the Hollow in the back.
Bang!
The Hollow dissolved into blue spirit particles and vanished.
Ichigo, still immersed in the sound of his mother's voice, did not notice any of this.
At the same time, on the roof of the Kurosaki Clinic, a man with silver hair, deep blue eyes, and glasses, dressed in a gray suit, slowly dissipated the blue spirit bow in his hand.
He quietly watched the Hollow disappear and, without turning around, asked coolly, "Having me come here to eliminate that Hollow should be a violation of Soul Society's regulations, correct?"
Beside him, Isshin Kurosaki, dressed in a black Shihakushō, stared at the spot where the Hollow vanished with an ice-cold gaze. "I know," he said in a frigid tone. "But that Hollow did not deserve to be purified. Complete annihilation is the best fate for it."
When a Hollow is slain by a Shinigami, it is purified and returns to the cycle of life, a key process in maintaining the balance of the three worlds. But when slain by a Quincy's spirit bow, a Hollow is utterly destroyed.
"At least you still remember Masaki," the Quincy man snorted. He glanced towards the direction Ye Yun had left in. "You should properly thank that human boy. If it weren't for him, who knows how many more years it would have taken you to find that Hollow."
Isshin Kurosaki nodded slightly. He would, of course, repay Ye Yun properly.
Looking at the Quincy man who was about to leave, a smile appeared on his face. "Thank you, Ryūken."
Ryūken Ishida gave a cold snort, and with a single step, he vanished from Isshin's sight.
Isshin was not surprised by this. Ryūken Ishida was one of the few remaining Quincy in the World of the Living, and his strength was formidable, no weaker than his own as a former Gotei 13 captain. Most importantly, he was his wife Masaki Kurosaki's former fiancé. However, Isshin had stolen Masaki's heart. After Masaki was killed by the Hollow, Ryūken had always resented him for failing to protect her and hadn't contacted him in decades.
After Ryūken left, Isshin silently watched Ichigo for a moment before heading to the Urahara Shop.
Kisuke Urahara was somewhat surprised. "Captain Kurosaki, this is the first time you've come to see me."
"I need your help with something," Isshin said directly.
"What is it?" Urahara had a bad feeling.
Isshin pointed in a certain direction. "Help me alter the memories of the humans over there. They saw the destruction caused by Ye Yun."
Kisuke Urahara extended his spiritual senses. He saw seven or eight streets in ruins, dozens of houses that had been blown apart, and over a thousand giant, crisscrossing sword gashes.
Inside Orihime Inoue's home, Rukia Kuchiki drew her Zanpakutō and pressed the hilt to Orihime's brother's forehead. In an instant, a white light burst forth.
Orihime's brother smiled and waved goodbye to them as his figure gradually vanished into the white light, heading for the Rukongai of the Soul Society.
"Ye Yun-kun..." Orihime threw herself into Ye Yun's arms.
Ye Yun gently stroked her hair and comforted her, "It's okay. Even though your brother has gone to the Soul Society, we will see him again in the future."
Rukia shook her head from the side, assuming these were just empty words of comfort from Ye Yun. The barrier between life and death was immense. Once a soul went to the Soul Society, it meant they could never meet again in this lifetime.
But Ye Yun had a different idea. When they eventually invaded the Soul Society, it might really be possible for the siblings to meet again.
Soon, Orihime packed her luggage, ready to move into Ye Yun's house. Her face was flushed, and she felt even more embarrassed looking at Ye Yun carrying her bags, big and small. "Ye Yun-kun, I'm really troubling you. You saved us, and now I'm making you do work for me."
"Don't be so polite. Aren't we classmates!?" Ye Yun said with a smile.
Orihime felt a little disappointed and silently followed Ye Yun, who was leading the way.
Seeing this, Rukia couldn't help but whisper to Ye Yun, "Ye Yun, don't you dare say you're letting her stay in the same bedroom as you."
"Of course not," Ye Yun said casually.
"But I saw your bedroom before. There was clearly only one bed," Rukia said.
"I was just boarding there. That's not my real home," Ye Yun said, giving Rukia a strange look.
Rukia was taken aback. "Then if you haven't been back for several years, wouldn't the house be in disrepair?"
"Not at all..."
"Welcome home, Master!"
Near the Kurosaki Clinic, at the entrance of a large two-story villa, two maids in uniform bowed to welcome the three of them.
Rukia's jaw dropped. She pointed at the luxurious villa in disbelief. "This... this is your house?"
"Yeah, I bought it five years ago," Ye Yun nodded, walking into the grand villa with practiced ease. But he soon noticed the two girls were standing frozen at the entrance. So, he took each by the hand and pulled them inside.
Rukia: "But... didn't you not have a house, which is why you were boarding at the Kurosaki Clinic?"
Orihime: "Ye Yun-kun, c-can I really live here?"
"Of course," Ye Yun answered Orihime first, then looked at Rukia with a surprised expression. "Why would you think I'm poor?"
Rukia was speechless. Why? Because you were boarding at someone else's house while going to school, obviously!
"But if you have such a luxurious villa, why were you staying at the Kurosaki Clinic?"
Hearing Rukia's question, a pained expression appeared on Ye Yun's face. He waved his hand, signaling her not to ask anymore. When he had first found the Kurosaki Clinic, he had originally planned to live nearby. But for three consecutive days, Hollows came to visit every single night. Not only was he on the verge of a breakdown, but his maids were too. That was why he had taken up residence at the clinic.
Seeing Ye Yun's sorrowful expression, Rukia and Orihime's imaginations concocted a grand drama of a wealthy family's turmoil. They both looked at him with eyes full of pity.
"I have a feeling you're thinking something rude about me..." Ye Yun muttered. He led Orihime to a luxurious room and said with a smile, "Inoue-san, you can stay here for now. If you're not satisfied with anything, you can tell the maids at any time, and they'll buy it for you."
Orihime stared blankly at the room before her. Hearing his words, she flusteredly shook her head. "No, no, no, I'm already very satisfied! I've never lived in such a luxurious room in my life. Ye Yun-kun, thank you."
The room before her looked like something out of a movie, with a huge white bed, a vanity, a luxurious wardrobe, floor-to-ceiling windows...
Rukia looked at the room with satisfaction and patted Ye Yun's shoulder. "I didn't expect your house to be so nice. Perfect. Arrange a room for me too. I'll be living here from now on."
Ye Yun was surprised and couldn't help but ask, "Don't you want to live with Ichigo Kurosaki?"
Rukia said with annoyance, "Why would I want to live with that guy?"
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