"You're obviously the one pulling the strings here, what does this have to do with Dead-Fish Eyes!"
"Hey! Give me some face here!" Urahara looked at the black cat on his shoulder that was glaring daggers at him. Yoruichi's favoritism toward Kōe really was absolute.
"If you hadn't erased the commotion of that Hollow rising up, how could Rukia possibly have failed to notice it?" Yoruichi didn't think she was playing favorites. Could a setup orchestrated by Urahara Kisuke really be unraveled by a Shinigami of Rukia's caliber? It wouldn't matter who taught her.
"Even taking my interference out of the equation, turning her back on the enemy is just asking for death."
"There's also a tactic called showing weakness to the enemy to lure them in deep!"
"Alright, alright, alright!" Urahara raised his hands in surrender. If they kept arguing, it would absolutely never end. He had just casually evaluated a junior from the Seireitei, why was she taking it so seriously?
"But your setup doesn't seem all that great either. That little guy already noticed the unnatural parts of it. Arrogance in the face of the enemy is also a major taboo, Urahara." Yoruichi continued to mock him verbally. She had no intention of letting Urahara off easily. Without Dead-Fish Eyes around, life was far too boring; she rarely even had the chance to bicker.
Urahara didn't argue, nodding in agreement. "Indeed, it is rather unnatural that this Hollow isn't inside the house."
"So, Dead-Fish Eyes did teach her a thing or two. You almost lost to his student, you know."
When it came to being unforgiving with words, Yoruichi was becoming more and more like Kōe.
Urahara smiled bitterly and didn't respond immediately. His gaze quietly shifted from Rukia to Ichigo, who was just about to stand up. His layout was actually quite perfect—if it weren't for this little guy.
A Hollow's actions have a clear purpose. When they detect a soul with a higher spiritual density, they will make a beeline straight for it. It was impossible for it to ignore Ichigo upstairs and grab Yuzu out on the street. That point was highly illogical.
But the premise of this illogical situation was that Ichigo had broken the Kidō on his body through his own sheer strength, making it completely impossible to conceal his own spiritual aptitude.
If this accident hadn't occurred, Ichigo logically wouldn't have been the Hollow's sole target. He would have remained bound on the second floor, and the true target would have actually been Kurosaki Yuzu.
By the time Rukia came downstairs, she would have seen the Hollow on the street along with the captured Kurosaki Yuzu. Running outside to chase its prey—it was a perfectly reasonable arrangement.
However, after Ichigo pulled off that astonishing stunt, this arrangement reeked of inconsistencies at every turn. Urahara had the chance to remedy it, but Isshin's request was to keep his family out of danger. If he let the Hollow enter the house, Isshin probably wouldn't have been able to resist jumping up and taking action himself.
Of course, these were incredibly minor details. An ordinary Shinigami wouldn't overthink it, so letting things play out naturally wasn't a big issue.
From this perspective, being able to notice the anomalies during a crisis meant Rukia's performance had exceeded his expectations. But to attribute all of this to Kōe? That was a bit too shameless.
Urahara glanced at Yoruichi, who was happily swishing the tip of her tail back and forth. Based on feline habits, that should be an expression of joy, right? If being shameless could save him some trouble... "That's right, I almost lost to him. A crisis, a massive crisis!"
Then he would just be shameless.
While the two on the roof chatted and laughed, down on the street, Rukia felt like she was about to pass out. It wasn't because she couldn't handle the beating, but entirely because she was infuriated by that orange-haired brat!
"Fine! Then let's go one-on-one, don't drag anyone else into this! Come kill me if you have the guts!!"
Hearing this imposing declaration of war, Rukia's head buzzed. What kind of bizarre demand was this? Even if he wanted to save himself and his family, couldn't he just run?! Taking ten thousand steps back, she was a dignified Shinigami—did she really need a teenage brat to save her? Who was he looking down on!
This kind of behavior could only be described with one word: "Idiot!"
Rukia's angry scolding was completely drowned out by the Hollow's excited roar. Ichigo clenched his fists, standing ready as the creature's gaping maw closed in on him. Even knowing there was a high probability he couldn't hurt this massive monster, he still had to throw a punch. He had to protect his family, including the Shinigami who had been injured because of him. This was a man's responsibility!
However, that punch was never thrown. That familiar back once again shielded him, but unlike last time, it was accompanied by a spray of scattering blood.
*'Crap.'* Although she had stabbed her blade into the Hollow's upper jaw, her abdomen had also been pierced by its teeth. Even so, she still hadn't managed to kill it. What despair-inducing, tenacious vitality.
Rukia gritted her teeth, using all her strength to push the massive head away. Her legs gave out, and she collapsed straight to the ground. Just breathing brought unbearable pain, and even if she endured it, it seemed she wouldn't be able to stand up anytime soon.
"Idiot, didn't you already know you were no match for it? Did you really think everything would be fine if you just gave it your soul?" Ichigo was about to explain, but Rukia didn't give him the chance. "Regardless, you're a massive idiot."
"I'm sorry, I just..." Ichigo suddenly paused. He had wanted to protect his family, but just now, he had also harbored thoughts of giving up. Having Rukia pierce right through his inner thoughts made him feel guilty all over again. In the end, it was still his fault.
Rukia sighed softly. This brat's face looked far too much like Lord Kaien's. Especially this self-blaming expression—it was almost identical to the last time she had seen Kaien.
"Self-blame is the most useless thing. If you have the time to blame yourself, you're better off thinking of ways to prevent the tragedy from happening."
These were words Big Bro Chōzuka had said. Rukia knew very well that she currently had no ability to fight. She hadn't found Lord Kaien yet, and she absolutely did not want to die so carelessly.
*'What other options are there right now?'* She remembered Captain Ukitake once saying that humans with outstanding spiritual aptitude possessed the potential to become Shinigami, and there was also a method to let them rapidly acquire spiritual power...
"Aren't you going to step in yet, Kisuke? Uncle Isshin couldn't resist sneaking a peek."
The dangerous situation downstairs made Yoruichi turn slightly serious. That brat named Rukia had already lost her combat ability; it was time for them to step in and clean up the mess.
"Wait a little longer." Urahara held a different view, because there was still fighting spirit in Rukia's eyes, and she was acting very calmly.
Yoruichi didn't rush him. Even if this Hollow's teeth were already touching the people downstairs, she could still save them all—this was the confidence of the Goddess of Flash! Besides, if Urahara wanted to wait, perhaps something interesting was about to happen.
"Hmm? This is?"
By piercing the Zanpakutō into the center of the chest and transferring half of a Shinigami's power into the body, one could temporarily possess the power of a Shinigami and fight against a Hollow.
Only humans with high spiritual aptitude had a chance of succeeding. It wasn't guaranteed, and if it failed, death was certain...
Ichigo looked at the gleaming katana in Rukia's hand. What she had just said was easy to understand, but was he really supposed to thrust this thing into his own chest? Could he really do it?
"Ichi-nii, where are you?" Yuzu's voice suddenly rang out. Ichigo looked back, only to find that she hadn't even opened her eyes. She seemed to be sleep-talking. "Don't come closer, it's dangerous... Hurry and run, Ichi-nii..."
Yuzu's words pierced his heart like a sharp thorn. Ichigo clenched his fists. *'My two little sisters, who I should be protecting, are both risking their lives to protect me. Yet here I am, worrying and being scared all by myself. I really am completely useless.'*
"Stab me, Shinigami!" Ichigo walked toward Rukia, his eyes full of resolve. Even the Shinigami in front of him had been harmed because of him. It was time to shoulder the responsibility of protecting them.
"I am not just 'Shinigami'. My name is Kuchiki Rukia." Rukia smiled as she spoke. He was finally acting like a man. Sure enough, this kind of gaze looked the most handsome on Lord Kaien's face.
"My name is Kurosaki Ichigo." Ichigo slowly wrapped his hands around the tsuba, pressing the tip of the blade against his chest. "I hope this isn't the last time we introduce ourselves."
The cold blade pierced his chest, but the fire of hope for survival was reignited, unsealing the courage and responsibility that had long been frozen. This was a bond unique to Rukia and Ichigo, quietly taking shape just like this.
"I didn't expect Mr. Ukitake to tell her about this kind of thing." Urahara smiled, sighing to himself. "Trust forged beneath a blade... it really brings back memories. It's even more romantic than our time, Yoruichi."
"More like the brats nowadays are incredibly bold."
"I actually think it's just that we were never that innocent. What a beautiful scene." For once, Yoruichi didn't contradict Urahara, and Urahara knew that this was an eternal regret for the three of them.
"Kōe has protected her very well. I mean it this time."