Would Kess #3 run?
Before, the thought never crossed his mind. But now… now fear gnawed at him.
Barely a kilometer away, that monstrous Reiatsu blanketed the sky, smothering vision, rattling body and soul. Every breath burned stamina just to resist it.
His opponents looked worse off, but with Kess #2's death-memories flooding in, Kess #3 had only one thought: run. Run far. Don't be fooled by that kid's exhausted facade—don't get caught by him again.
He hated to admit it, but a shadow had already rooted itself in his heart. A shadow named Soma Kiryu.
"This Reiatsu…!"
If Kess could still stand, Ichigo and the others nearly collapsed outright, legs weak, sweat pouring, hands trembling.
"You've gotta be kidding me!"
They stared in shock toward the source of that eruption.
They knew that Reiatsu. They knew it as a comrade's—and that was what made it so overwhelming.
That invisible blade, the one that could cut away at life until nothing remained, was suddenly sheathed again.
The storm quieted. The Hollow's presence snuffed out.
Everyone exhaled in relief.
"That… that was Soma's Reiatsu just now?" Akari stammered, still pale.
"Yeah. If I had to guess, that was his Shikai," Ichigo said firmly, gripping Zangetsu tight. "No other explanation fits. Don't know what kind of ability it is, but his fight's over."
Kūkaku added quietly, "That brat won't have the strength to back us up now. Honestly, I hope he doesn't push himself anymore."
But…
She frowned at the gray, dog-headed Hollow in front of them. Its defense was absurd. Practically untouchable. Unless their teamwork was flawless, one slip and he'd crush them one by one.
"There's no such thing as perfect defense," Kūkaku muttered. "There's always a weak point. Soma probably knew it. But we don't have time to ask."
Her thoughts cut short—Kess #3 opened his jaws, charging a Cero.
"Ooohhhh!"
Ichigo roared, charging headlong to cut it off.
But Kess snatched his blade barehanded, spun him in circles, and hurled him like a ragdoll. Another Cero forced Kūkaku to throw up Bakudō #81, Dankū, shielding the group.
"Hey, kid, you alive?!"
Ōmaeda caught Ichigo midair, puffing up with smug pride—"Good thing I was here!"
Ichigo didn't even answer. He just shouted in panic: "Kūkaku-san! My sword—!"
"I saw it!"
Her eyes locked on Kess, teeth grinding. "That bastard's running!"
She didn't need to say it. Kess had already opened a Garganta.
Humiliated and battered, he'd had enough. He was cutting his losses. But not before ripping Zangetsu from Ichigo's hands as a parting shot.
"We'll meet again. Next time, I'll kill two of you to pay back what I've lost."
"Maybe tomorrow. Maybe in a month. I'll be watching, a curse at your back. Until then, live in fear!"
His vow rang with venom. And they all felt he meant every word.
"You come back, I'll knock you down again!" Akari snapped.
Atae said nothing, but his eyes promised violence.
"Hah! Ōmaeda isn't afraid of you either… worst case, I'll just stick by my captain every day," Ōmaeda muttered under his breath.
Kūkaku almost threw her own threat—but Ichigo cut her off, forcing himself to his feet, eyes blazing.
"You kill people, you do evil, and then just walk away? No way in hell! And I'm not letting you steal my sword—my power—without a fight!"
His Soul trembled, resonating with his will.
And suddenly, his vision warped. Towering, broken skyscrapers loomed. In the distance stood a man in a black cloak, glasses glinting, face carved from stone. He looked like someone who had walked through hellfire, too cold to pity the living, too scarred to mourn the dead.
Yet his eyes carried deep regret. His voice, low and heavy, echoed as if from far away, yet whispered right at Ichigo's ear, resounding in his chest, stirring something buried.
Yes, Ichigo… don't back down. Don't let regret chain you. I've felt that pain once—I won't watch you suffer it again. I won't let death rob you of what you love. That's why I won't refuse you my strength. Use it. Protect yourself. Protect what you cherish.
Your power is still immature. But there's more inside you. Call it forth. Cast aside fear. Step forward—and call my name.
"—Zangetsu!"
Ichigo's cry rang true. Two forces inside him snapped into unity.
Kess #3, half a step into the Garganta, looked down—and froze. The blade he'd stolen had shifted, its steel now burning red, a chain trailing from its hilt out through the Garganta.
And at the other end—
A bow.
A massive, jet-black bow gripped by that orange-haired brat, the chain wrapped around his other arm.
"This is—"
"Give it back!"
Ichigo yanked.
The chain flared crimson, and with a savage pull, he dragged the towering Hollow back out of the Garganta.
The light seared Kess's body like molten magma.
"Aaaahhh!"
His so-called indestructible defense crumbled under the blaze.
As he tried to shield his face, agony lanced his chest. A second crimson chain-blade pierced him clean through.
No regeneration. No escape.
Soma had crushed him with absolute numbers. Ichigo finished him with the arrow's mechanism—Quincy power fused with his blade.
"Lo… Lord Arturo… I… still haven't…!"
His last words, bitterer than tears, dissolved with his body.
Kess #3 shattered, gone for good.
This battle—one erased from history—ended.
"Haaah…"
Ichigo exhaled.
"Flashy Shikai you've got there," a voice teased.
The group stiffened—then relaxed. It was Soma.
"Flashy? More like badass and practical."
Ichigo shot back, then pouted. "Your Reiatsu, though—it spiked way past normal. Obvious you used something dangerous. Don't joke around. You should be lying down."
"You know me," Soma said casually. "I recover quick. A nap's enough."
His compound tonic, usable twice a day, would restore some Reiatsu and stamina. He'd never stay weak for long.
"Good."
Kūkaku clapped his shoulder, then smiled at Ichigo. "Didn't think you two would steal the spotlight. But you're both safe, and that's what matters."
"Man, I'm jealous you guys already unlocked Shikai," Akari grumbled at his Zanpakutō. "How long am I gonna wait? Useless sword, hurry it up!"
Ichigo chuckled awkwardly. "Don't stress it. Luck's a big part of it. Honestly, I don't even know what just happened myself. I just… went with it. Uh… how do I turn this off, anyway?"
"Idiot. You said it yourself—go with your gut," Ōmaeda snorted.
"Shut up! How'm I supposed to know, it's my first Shikai! So I just… do this, right—huh?"
He tried to revert Zangetsu. It changed—but not back to an Asauchi. Instead of the black bow, it reshaped into a massive cleaver, sharklike and taller than Ichigo himself.
He blinked, dumbfounded.
Everyone else gaped too. Even battle-hardened Kūkaku and Ōmaeda froze. Akari and Atae, with less experience, could only stare.
Only Soma seemed unsurprised.
"Looks like your Shikai has two forms. Because you awakened it so suddenly—and because of its nature—you'll have to master both before it returns to Asauchi form."
"Two interchangeable states…?" Kūkaku rubbed her chin. "Never seen that before. But a blade for close, a bow for long range? Oddly fitting. Shame they're not separate—you'd be the third dual-wielder in Soul Society."
Not dual-wielding. Soma knew that much.
Whatever Zangetsu was thinking, one thing was clear: something fundamental had changed.
Once, he'd suppressed Ichigo's raw, immature power to protect him. Now he was still suppressing it, but also lending him more—guiding him forward.
That was why Ichigo had two Shikai.
One embodied fractured Hollow-Shinigami power. The other, fractured Quincy-Shinigami power.
On the surface, it looked like "just an extra Shikai." But it meant more. Much more.
Because the Quincy were human. And Ichigo… was no longer human.
He'd live as a Shinigami in Soul Society.
Maybe that was why Zangetsu changed.
One path couldn't hold all his identities. But multiple powers could expand his road.
On that note—yes. Choosing his teacher had been right.
Because Soma's choice mirrored Aizen's. Only stronger, sharper, brighter.
Soma's eyes narrowed. If his Quincy power awakens this early… what will his Bankai look like? Two forms as well? Or…
His thought cut off.
Shhk! Shhk! Shhk!
Masked figures in black dropped into the clearing, surrounding them on all sides.
"Onmitsukidō," Kūkaku said at once, recognizing them.
"Captain? Captain!" Ōmaeda bawled the moment he spotted the small figure hovering above. "You have no idea what I went through—!"
"Shut up!"
Soi Fon's brows knotted, her glare full of disgust. She ignored him, her gaze sliding coldly over Soma, Ichigo, and the rest.
Her hand cut the air.
"All of them—including Ōmaeda—take them back for interrogation!"