The timeline slowly returned to Ichigo's side.
Ever since Rukia disappeared, he had been stuck in a state of having absolutely nothing to do.
Why?
Because he could not enter his Shinigami form by himself.
For Ichigo, this period had been so quiet that it almost made him panic.
It felt as though everything that had happened before—slaying Hollows, purifying Pluses—had all been nothing more than a dream.
"I wonder how Rukia's doing now. She's been in Hell for so many days, so why isn't she back yet? Don't tell me she really died in Hell…"
Just as Ichigo was muttering to himself, a sharp pain suddenly struck the top of his head.
Someone had flicked him hard.
"Ichigo, what are you mumbling about over here?"
Hearing that familiar voice, Ichigo's eyes widened at once.
When he saw that the person before him was Rukia, surprise and relief surged through his heart.
"You finally came back! I thought you'd died in Hell."
"You wanted me to die in Hell that badly?" Rukia folded her arms and glared at Ichigo with wide eyes.
"That's not what I meant. Weren't you the one who said Hell was extremely dangerous? I was just worried about you. Speaking of which, what is Hell like? And who exactly was that person you chased into Hell despite the danger?"
Ichigo scratched his head as he spoke.
"Don't even mention it. I followed him in and didn't find anything! Hell was completely barren, with nothing there at all. After I went in, I just stayed near the entrance the whole time."
Rukia shook her head helplessly.
"Then how did you come back?" Ichigo asked curiously.
"I don't know either. I thought I was going to be trapped in Hell until I died. Then the Gates of Hell suddenly opened, so I quickly came out."
Rukia frowned, as though recalling the scene from that time.
"Really?"
Ichigo looked Rukia up and down with suspicion, his eyes full of doubt and distrust.
He found it hard to believe what she was saying and could not help secretly guessing at the truth.
Seeing him act like that, Rukia immediately grew angry.
Without saying another word, she raised her hand and struck Ichigo hard on the head again.
"Obviously! Do you think someone with my strength could freely open the Gates of Hell? If I had that kind of ability, would these Hollows have made me so miserable that I needed you to carry out my duties for me?"
She puffed out her cheeks, her face clearly showing her displeasure.
"How have your missions been going lately?"
Rukia immediately changed the subject.
"Do you think I can carry out missions in my current state?" Ichigo rolled his eyes at her irritably.
"Uh… you should be able to deal with ordinary Hollows, right?" Rukia scratched her head, sounding a little uncertain.
"Hmph! I can't even leave my body by myself and enter Shinigami form right now, so how am I supposed to carry out missions?!"
Ichigo shouted angrily, his voice full of dissatisfaction.
"Ah, right! I almost forgot. You don't have a Substitute Shinigami Badge, so you really can't transform into a Shinigami by yourself. That was my mistake."
Rukia suddenly realized the problem and slapped her forehead, looking embarrassed.
"But it's fine. I can think of a way for you."
She looked at Ichigo with determination.
Ichigo asked doubtfully, "What way?"
Rukia smiled faintly and said mysteriously, "As long as we go to Urahara Shop, he'll definitely have a way to solve your problem."
"Urahara Shop? What kind of place is that?"
Ichigo searched his memory for the name.
"I don't think I've ever heard of it."
"The owner of the Urahara Shop, Kisuke Urahara, is a merchant who can smuggle Shinigami items from Soul Society. He has all sorts of strange things there, so he definitely has something that can let you turn into a Shinigami on your own."
Rukia gave Ichigo a brief explanation.
"Then let's go find him right now!" Ichigo said impatiently.
...
"Is Urahara not here?"
When Rukia brought Ichigo to the Urahara Shop, they only saw Ururu and Jinta sweeping the yard.
Kisuke was nowhere to be seen.
"The shopkeeper is sleeping. He hasn't gotten up yet," Jinta said with a curl of his lip.
"Huh? He's still sleeping at this hour? Does he not run a business?" Rukia asked in confusion.
"The shopkeeper's cat went missing, so he's been gloomy all day and doesn't have the mood to do business. Customer, if you want to buy something, just tell me." Jinta answered casually.
"His cat went missing? Is the shop owner some kind of cat slave?"
Ichigo could not help laughing.
Rukia, who knew the truth, covered her forehead with one hand.
Yoruichi had been taken away by Chika Shihōin, so of course she would not be coming back here.
But Rukia certainly would not tell Kisuke Urahara that.
"Do you still sell Soul Candy here?" Rukia asked.
"Soul Candy? We still have a batch. Wait here, I'll go get it for you."
After saying that, Jinta tossed aside the broom in his hand and ran into the storage room to rummage around.
Jinta looked at the Soul Candy piled up in the storeroom.
One batch had a label clearly marking it as defective.
Suddenly, a bold idea appeared in his mind.
He immediately tore off the defective label and replaced it with a "special product" label, planning to sell this fake as a high-priced special item.
What a little business genius.
"Customer, this is a newly developed special Soul Candy. It's much more expensive than the usual kind."
As Jinta spoke, he took out a small bottle. Inside was a single Soul Candy pill that looked completely ordinary.
He smiled and handed it to Rukia, a sly expression appearing on his face.
Rukia took the so-called "special product" Soul Candy from Jinta, and a trace of suspicion rose in her heart.
However, she did not say anything. She simply paid the high price in silence.
After all, she needed to recover her Shinigami powers as soon as possible so she could continue carrying out her duties.
After Rukia brought Ichigo back home from the Urahara Shop, Ichigo impatiently swallowed the Soul Candy.
In an instant, his spirit body was immediately forced out of his physical body, as though he had been reborn.
"Rukia, this thing is amazing! It's way better than that glove of yours, and it doesn't hurt at all."
Ichigo twisted his spirit body excitedly, feeling the long-lost power of a Shinigami.
He already seemed ready to go slash some Hollows again.
"Let's go, Rukia. We should patrol! It's been so long since I killed a Hollow."
As Ichigo spoke, he carefully moved his body onto the bed.
Then he left the room together with Rukia.
However, not long after Rukia and Ichigo had left, Ichigo's body, which should have been lying on the bed, suddenly opened its eyes.
First, it curiously touched its own body, feeling the strange yet familiar sensation.
Then an excited expression appeared on its face.
Without hesitation, it jumped off the bed and ran out of the room.
"Brother, it's time to eat! Are you still going out?"
Yuzu watched Ichigo dash out like a gust of wind and shouted after him from behind.