"Sigh… what a miserable sight. To think you were pushed this far by a Gillian. You don't have even a hint of my old style."
Along with that sigh, a black-clad figure quietly appeared on the battlefield after the fierce battle had ended.
"Hadō #33: Sōkatsui."
Following the man's low murmur, a burst of blue reiatsu shot out like lightning, striking the Gillian's enormous body with perfect accuracy.
With a shrill scream, the rampaging Gillian was instantly reduced to ash beneath that overwhelming force.
Kazuma then moved with incredible speed, scooping up Rukia from the ruins.
An eerie glow appeared around his hand as he reached straight into her chest without hesitation.
The gem hidden inside her body, flickering with a blue-black radiance, was easily pulled out by him.
Then, as if playing a prank, he stuffed a small bead with an aura almost identical to the Hōgyoku back into her body.
"So this is the so-called Hōgyoku, huh? I really don't know what Kisuke was thinking, creating something like this."
Kazuma's voice carried a trace of complexity, as though he understood the mysterious object far more deeply than he let on.
He gripped the Hōgyoku tightly, his gaze filled with complicated emotions, as if he was thinking about something important.
After finishing everything, Kazuma swiftly withdrew the barrier surrounding the area.
In the blink of an eye, he vanished into the deep night, as though he had never appeared at all.
A soft groan quietly broke the silence.
After a long while, Rukia finally woke from unconsciousness.
She struggled to open her heavy eyes and stared blankly at the ruined surroundings.
"I… actually didn't die…"
She looked around with difficulty and was shocked to discover that the Gillian was gone.
She shook her head, trying to clear the dizziness from her mind, and struggled to recall what had happened before she passed out.
But her memories were completely blank, leaving her unable to find an answer.
"Looks like something incredible happened while I was unconscious. Who saved me?"
...
Not far away, Kisuke was silently watching Rukia as she stood amid the ruins, but he did not act rashly.
Ever since Rukia came to the World of the Living, he had been closely monitoring her movements.
However, tonight's incident had happened far too suddenly. By the time he arrived at the scene, all he saw was an unconscious Rukia.
Kisuke did not know what had happened, nor did he know who had killed that Gillian.
Therefore, he chose to wait quietly until she woke up.
He sensed the residual reiatsu at the scene, trying to search for clues from those faint traces.
He quickly compared them in his mind with people who might match, but he still could not determine who it was.
He even specifically compared Kazuma's reiatsu with the remaining traces on the battlefield, yet still found no lead.
That left him deeply puzzled.
After that, Kisuke used a special method to sense the Hōgyoku's aura inside Rukia.
Once he confirmed that the Hōgyoku was still safely within her body, he let out a long breath of relief.
He knew that the Hōgyoku was of vital importance to the entire world.
If anything happened to it, the consequences would be unimaginable.
Since the Hōgyoku was fine, Urahara had no intention of lingering.
He understood that staying here too long would only invite unnecessary trouble.
Thus, he quickly left the scene and disappeared into the darkness, leaving Rukia alone in the ruins to calmly sort through what had happened.
Rukia checked her own condition and gave a bitter expression.
"My reiatsu is badly overdrawn. I hope I don't run into another Hollow, or I really won't be able to handle it."
After saying that, she leapt onto the only remaining utility pole in the ruins and observed the surroundings.
Unfortunately, she soon detected another Hollow.
At least there was only one.
She did not dare delay and immediately rushed in the Hollow's direction.
Before long, she burst into Ichigo's bedroom and began looking around.
Ichigo had already sensed the battle earlier, but he had been powerless to do anything.
All he could do was bury his head beneath the blanket and force himself to sleep.
Rukia's sudden intrusion left him completely confused.
He stared blankly at the girl in his room, who was wearing the same style of clothing as his mother had worn that night, and watched her walk around as if she owned the place.
For some reason, he instinctively gave Rukia a hard flick on the head.
"Who the hell are you? Don't you know breaking into someone else's house is illegal?!" Ichigo loudly scolded her.
"Ow! Ow, ow, ow!"
Rukia clutched her head with both hands, pain written across her face.
Then she immediately realized something very wrong.
The boy in front of her could not only see her, but he could also physically hurt her.
Even more terrifying was that his face looked almost eighty percent similar to the late Lieutenant Kaien Shiba.
The only difference was his hair color.
Rukia's eyes widened. She could hardly believe what was happening!
She carefully studied Ichigo, her heart filled with doubt and shock.
"Who exactly are you? Why can you see me? And why do you look so much like Lieutenant Kaien Shiba?"
Rukia fired off a string of questions in rapid succession.
Ichigo was made dizzy by her barrage.
He scratched his hair and said helplessly, "My name is Ichigo Kurosaki. I'm just an ordinary high school student. As for why I can see you… how would I know?"
Rukia still did not believe him, so she decided to test him.
She reached out and lightly tapped Ichigo's forehead, releasing a trace of spiritual power.
Yet Ichigo felt nothing at all.
That made Rukia even more surprised.
After being randomly poked in the forehead, Ichigo prepared to give Rukia another punch.
Seeing his movement, Rukia immediately said, "Bakudō #1: Sai."
Ichigo instantly felt an unknown force bind his arms and legs.
Losing his balance, he fell straight onto the floor.
"You don't have spiritual power?"
After checking him, Rukia cried out in shock.
Ichigo looked utterly confused. He had no idea what Rukia was talking about.
Just then, a low growl came from outside the window. The Hollow from earlier had appeared in the street.
Rukia's heart tightened, and she immediately turned to go out and fight.
"Hey! What did you do to me? Don't just leave!"
Ichigo twisted around on the floor and shouted at Rukia.
Rukia glanced back at him and said, "Don't move around. I'll undo it when I come back."
With that, she quickly rushed out of the room and began fighting the Hollow.
Ichigo struggled up from the floor.
Looking at Rukia outside the window, a strange feeling surged in his heart.
He decided to help, even though he had no idea whether he could do anything.
He desperately broke free from the binding, ran outside, picked up a wooden stick, and charged at the Hollow.
Seeing Ichigo's actions, Rukia shouted in surprise, "Get away! You can't beat it!"
But Ichigo did not retreat. He swung the wooden stick with all his strength and smashed it toward the Hollow.
The Hollow easily dodged his attack and let out a roar.
Just as the Hollow was about to strike, Rukia stepped in front of Ichigo and used Kidō, forcing the Hollow back several steps.
She then rushed at the Hollow with her Zanpakutō. However, because her reiatsu was badly exhausted, several of her slashes failed to cause any real damage.
In her current state, she could no longer even handle this ordinary Hollow.
Ichigo froze.
Looking at Rukia's exhausted figure, his heart filled with gratitude and admiration.
"Why did you save me?" he asked.
Rukia panted and gave a faint smile.
"I'm only carrying out my duty… protecting ordinary humans from Hollows."
At that moment, the Hollow lunged at Rukia once again.
Without hesitation, Ichigo rushed forward and used the wooden stick to block the Hollow's attack.
"Run!" Rukia shouted.
But Ichigo shook his head and said firmly, "I'm not leaving you behind!"
Rukia's heart fell into an intense struggle.
Her gaze shifted back and forth between Ichigo Kurosaki and the Hollow before them.
At last, she made a decision that would run through the entire story.
"Hollows aren't something ordinary humans like you can handle. If you truly want to defeat it, there is only one method left," Rukia said firmly.
"What method?" Ichigo widened his eyes and asked urgently.
"I turn you into a real Shinigami!" Rukia answered without hesitation.
"Then do it! Remember this—my name is Ichigo Kurosaki!"
A resolute light flashed in Ichigo's eyes as he tightly gripped Rukia's hand.
At that moment, Rukia suddenly raised the Zanpakutō in her hand and thrust it into Ichigo's body.
Ichigo's eyes widened as he stared at the scene in disbelief.
But he did not back away. Instead, he kept holding tightly onto Rukia's hand.
In an instant, a powerful force erupted inside Ichigo's body. He felt as though he had been enveloped by a mysterious power.
Ichigo's body gradually released a strange light.
His clothing began to change, becoming a standard shihakushō like a Shinigami's, and in his hand appeared an enormous Zanpakutō.
Rukia stared at Ichigo in shock.
She had only intended to give him half of her remaining reiatsu. Instead, the spiritual power inside her had gone completely out of control and was drained clean.
On top of that, the exaggerated shape of Ichigo's Zanpakutō left her dumbfounded.
As the light gradually faded, Ichigo Kurosaki opened his eyes.
He felt his body brimming with strength.
"Feel your new power, Ichigo," Rukia said while panting heavily.
Ichigo tightened his grip on the oversized blade and swung it forward.
A sharp, violent force burst out instantly, sending the Hollow flying.
"It worked…" Rukia whispered, joy flashing in her eyes.
At that moment, Ichigo officially became a Shinigami!
Excited, he waved the huge blade in his hand and shouted, "I'm gonna cut you down, you monster!"
With that, he charged toward the Hollow.
When the Hollow lunged at him, Ichigo did not flinch. He swung his sword, and the overwhelming force instantly cut the Hollow in half, reducing it to ash.
After finishing everything, Ichigo turned around proudly, ready to show off his heroic performance to the female Shinigami.
But he discovered that she had already vanished without a trace!
...
The next morning, sunlight spilled through the windows into the Kurosaki family's living room.
Isshin looked at the enormous hole in the wall and smiled as he said to Yuzu, Karin, and Ichigo, "A large bus crashed into our house last night. Luckily, no one was hurt."
Hearing that, Ichigo could not help twitching his mouth.
He secretly sighed over how thorough the Shinigami cleanup work was.
What should have been a Hollow attack had somehow been made to look, in ordinary people's minds, like a huge hole caused by a vehicle crashing into the house.
Even the ruins in the distance from the previous night had subconsciously been interpreted by people as the result of demolition work.
But who would carry out demolition in the middle of the night?
Thinking of that, Ichigo could not help laughing.
Seeing Ichigo grinning stupidly, Isshin could not resist scolding him with a laugh.
"Ichigo, what are you smiling about like an idiot? Hurry up and go to school, or you'll be late!"
Ichigo snapped back to reality and realized it was already getting late.
He hurriedly grabbed a few pieces of bread, stuffed them into his mouth, snatched up his schoolbag, and ran outside.
"Good thing I made it!"
Panting heavily, Ichigo rushed out of the house and saw that the school bus was just about to close its doors.
He dashed onto the bus, found his seat, and sat down, beginning to think back on what had happened last night.
When he walked into the classroom, however, his face looked as if he had seen a ghost, and his mouth fell open.
Because he saw the female Shinigami he had met the night before.
"You…!"
Orihime looked at Ichigo's shocked expression and asked in confusion, "Kurosaki-kun, what's wrong? This is our new transfer student, Rukia Kuchiki-san. Did you two know each other before?"
Ichigo was just about to explain everything clearly to Orihime and Chad when Rukia suddenly took out a slip of paper and handed it to him.
On it were the words:
If you dare say anything, I'll kill you.
Ichigo wisely shut his mouth, inwardly sighing over how ridiculous Shinigami abilities were.
They could even influence ordinary people's awareness.
He anxiously took the note and looked at Rukia, only to see her staring back at him expressionlessly.
Just then, the school bell rang, and the teacher entered the classroom.
"Everyone, we have a new classmate joining us today. Please welcome her," the teacher said.
The students began clapping.
Ichigo also clapped along, though his gaze remained fixed on Rukia the entire time.
'Why did this Shinigami come to school? Is she here to watch me? Or does she have some other mission?'
The teacher looked around and saw the only empty seat in the classroom.
Then he turned to Rukia.
"Kuchiki-san, you can sit in the empty seat beside Kurosaki-kun."
Rukia nodded and walked over to sit down.
Ichigo looked at Rukia curiously and asked, "Didn't we already destroy that Hollow? Why haven't you gone back?"
Rukia looked up at Ichigo.
"You mean back to Soul Society?"
Ichigo frowned in confusion.
"Soul Society? What kind of place is that?"
Rukia sighed lightly and explained, "Soul Society is the world where Shinigami live. I originally planned to return, but last night, my spiritual power was completely absorbed by you. Right now, I don't have the ability to open a Senkaimon and go back. I can only stay in the World of the Living for a while and recover my reiatsu."
Ichigo nodded to show he understood, then immediately asked, "Then why did you show up here? Do Shinigami always come to the World of the Living?"
Rukia answered, "Sometimes we come to the World of the Living to carry out missions, such as purifying Hollows and protecting humans. But under normal circumstances, we don't interfere with life here. We only appear when necessary. This time, I came to the World of the Living for a routine stationing assignment."
Ichigo continued curiously, "What exactly are Hollows?"
Rukia patiently explained, "Hollows are evil spiritual beings that survive by devouring other souls. If they aren't eliminated in time, they become a threat to humans. That is why one of the duties of Shinigami is to protect humans from Hollows."
After listening, Ichigo nodded thoughtfully.
Then, as if remembering something, he asked, "Then can you teach me how to use spiritual power? Since I already have this power, I want to learn how to control it. And I have some other questions I want to ask you too."
Rukia smiled and said, "Of course, as long as you're willing to learn. But it will take time and effort. Also, since I've lost my powers for now, the task of eliminating Hollows during this period will have to fall to you."
Just then, the teacher suddenly tapped the blackboard and said sternly, "Class is in session. The students below should stop talking!"
The two immediately closed their mouths and stopped speaking.