Matsukura Hospital—a derelict building and a well-known haunted spot in Karakura.
Thanks to that, there were almost no bystanders at this hour.
Inoue Orihime could fight with a clear conscience.
"Solitary Sky, Severing Shield!"
According to Rukia, Orihime didn't possess strong spiritual power—she couldn't even see spirits at first. But the moment she became a Soul Reaper, she somehow knew her sword's name and manifested a power equivalent to Shikai.
Her blade traced a glowing path, the same color as her hair.
Spoken like a charm, that path drove forward like a slash—
Defense did no good.
Because it severed space itself, cutting anything it touched from the world.
The Medusa-headed Hollow facing her would have been a serious foe for an ordinary Soul Reaper. Against Orihime, it had no answer.
Paper-thin—it fell apart.
"—Behind you!"
Raw power couldn't patch weak instincts. Orihime missed the snake-haired Hollow lurking at the window, its head spitting bullets.
Rukia dove, taking the hit.
The blow flung her down the hall into the wall.
"Kuchiki-san!"
"Don't come!"
Orihime moved to help but froze. Something was wrong with Rukia—dirt and scrapes were one thing, but the veins at her neck and limbs bulged under her skin. No doubt her torso was the same.
"Hee-hee… A shame I missed my main target, but this is more fun."
Too big to squeeze into the corridor, the sly Hollow clung to the outer wall like an octopus, licking them with its eyes.
"Mmm~ I love breaking tough, pretty girls."
"I can see it now—one of you crying through the pain as you beg your friend to finish you off because I've made your body my puppet; the other, too heartsick to do it, gets mauled to death while she watches her friend's despair."
"Mutual slaughter—how's that sound?"
The she-Hollow cackled.
The next heartbeat—
To her shock, Orihime swung without hesitation. The orange slash reappeared.
The Hollow knew how dangerous that was—hence the sneak attack.
She hadn't expected her "prey" to be this cold—cutting down her ally at a few taunts.
The orange arc struck Rukia.
It didn't bisect her.
It wrapped her in light.
"—Twin Heavens, Returning Shield!"
Orihime's words came after.
The effect doubled.
Rukia's injuries—her clothes, the dust—that all reversed as if time rewound.
"What?!"
The Hollow nearly fell from the wall.
A slash that could… change? And healing that fast?
"So your trick is seeds that seize control of bodies," Rukia said, now the one smirking. "Good thing I jumped in. Otherwise it might've been a pain—there's that saying, 'physician, heal thyself.' Thanks—you just gave me a brand-new tactic. Hurt a bit, though."
"How dare you hurt Kuchiki-san! I won't forgive you!"
"Die!"
Seeing Orihime ready another strike, the Hollow panicked and spat all her seeds at once.
This time Orihime was ready. She raised her blade.
A triangular orange barrier formed at the tip.
"Triple Formation Shield… I refuse!"
Every projectile thudded to a stop.
The Hollow raged—then panicked.
Too many tricks! Attack, heal, defend?
"Damn you pretty women!"
She howled with jealous malice—and turned to flee.
"Don't run!"
Rukia lifted a hand to bind her—
Then paused, blinking at something drifting in the air.
"Eh? What's… that?"
Thumb-sized—like a crystal bug or a tiny bird, or maybe a paper plane—with flitting wings. Adorable, even.
"So cute~"
Orihime's curiosity lit.
The Hollow stared, baffled and wary.
And then—
Boom!
Flame roared up the corridor; an entire floor vanished.
"Uwaaaaa!"
"—gh!"
Orihime's Triple Formation Shield soaked most of the blast, but the shockwave still blew them out of the building and slammed them onto the concrete.
"What the heck was that? Not cute at all!"
Rukia scowled—face literally blackened.
She looked up to see the Hollow—half her body gone—staggering away in terror. Even with high-speed regeneration, half a skull didn't regrow. Mask shattered, she screamed and begged some unknown savior as she crumbled to ash.
"…"
Rukia had no words.
"Kuchiki-san—look!"
Orihime, equally soot-smudged, pointed skyward.
A sky… red with heat.
The rumble and the wind hit a moment later.
Same as the blast just now—but on a staggering scale.
"Is this… Soul Society's reinforcements? Which captain got sent to the human world…? Even with this many Hollows, this is insane."
Rukia stared, slack-jawed.
Stripped of her powers, her sensing was weak. She couldn't read the reishi—but she could easily imagine the expressions on the "cleanup crew" sent later to rewrite Karakura's memories and smooth everything over: pure despair.
…
"Haah. Finally stopped multiplying."
At Kurosaki Clinic, Ichigo had been a "guardian god" for an hour—and lost count of how many Hollows he'd purified. The rate had at last gone down.
The signatures were thinning fast. A good chunk had fled from other districts—like refugees.
"That guy—mouth full of tactics, but when he fights it's just brute force—and he has the nerve to say I'm uncreative…"
He didn't need to guess who.
Still muttering, he slung his black bow and headed inside.
Despite never having met, he and Uryū had reached the same conclusion and used the same approach.
"Hey. You done faking it?"
Ichigo looked coldly at the old man sprawled on the floor and tried to stomp his head.
"Useless!"
Isshin rolled aside, sprang to his feet in a cool pose, and flashed a grin under his stubble.
"Only I get to ambush you!"
"…Bragging about something that stupid? You never change, old man."
"You either. Died for years and haven't grown at all. Maybe smear a little blood on your face—more manly. Like me."
"I already healed your wounds. That blood's just for show—what's there to brag about? And I'm the one who protected you in the end! Also I wasn't dead for years—it's been months. Months! Did your brain hit the floor when you fainted?"
"Hmph! If you hadn't come back, I would've sacrificed myself at the scariest moment for Karin and Yuzu—then made a stunning comeback! That way they'd realize how amazing their father is and leap into my loving arms… Damn you! Even in death you had to come back now and ruin my LOVE-LOVE parent-child masterplan! I'll settle this at your grave next year!"
"Ha?! Why next year—let's settle it now!"
Veins popped on Ichigo's forehead. He clenched his fists and strode up. The air crackled between them.
" Heh…"
Isshin suddenly chuckled.
"What."
"Nothing. Looking at you like this, I can't help remembering how you died."
"…I'm not falling for that today."
"Good. Means you're doing all right over there. Not obsessing over life before. Makes your old man proud."
"Quit getting all serious. It's creepy."
Ichigo looked away, pretending to be bored, eyes drifting over the familiar living room. His feelings knotted.
"Place hasn't changed."
"It has. But it's got nothing to do with you anymore."
Isshin flopped on the sofa, lit a cigarette.
"What's that supposed to mean?"
Ichigo scowled.
"If Karin or Yuzu are in danger, I'll come back. That's my job as big brother. Even dead, my soul will protect them."
"Hey! Forget someone?"
"You? You're old enough. You'll live. …But fine. If you die, Karin and Yuzu will have no one, so I'll include you. Happy?"
"Che. The brat got mouthy."
"Environment, y'know."
"That so."
Isshin exhaled a thread of smoke and went quiet.
"Aren't you going to ask anything? Your son shows up again after dying."
"No. In this family, seeing spirits isn't weird. And given my excellent parenting, nothing about how you turned out surprises me."
Ichigo clicked his tongue.
"So you could see ghosts. You were lying."
"No, that started after you died. Maybe handling your corpse rubbed me with your bad luck?"
"Bull."
Ichigo squinted at him.
"I always saw ghosts, so I never thought it strange. Only in the other world did I realize how weird we are."
"Me, Karin, Yuzu—we can all see spirits. What does that say about our parents? You and Mom can't be non-spiritual."
"And what will you do with that realization?"
Isshin looked up through the smoke. Ichigo rarely saw him smoke—felt a moment's distance—then shrugged.
"Nothing."
"…Huh?"
"Nothing to ask. Knowing it makes me feel better, that's all."
"What's that mean?"
"It means—even if I'm dead—I'm not cut off from you. I can still feel you. So what you said earlier—'not your concern'—doesn't count."
Ichigo grinned like he'd won.
Isshin blinked, then scratched his hair.
"You got me… That's not what I meant. I wanted you to relax—stop worrying about us. Take care of yourself. Right now I can't help you—same as when you died."
"…Right."
Ichigo realized he wasn't the only one carrying guilt.
"No need to tell me. Over there I'm doing great—friends, teachers, more people to meet. I'm swamped. So I might… not visit often."
"If you've got spiritual power, I'll prep some notes next time. See if you can learn a few things—enough to protect Karin and Yuzu until I get here."
Isshin arched a brow. "Didn't know you thought that far. …Forget it. I'm stronger than you think. Not joking."
"Who was the guy lying on the floor just now?"
"Knowing great people makes you great! Ever heard of connections?"
Ichigo eyed him, skeptical but confident Isshin wasn't reckless enough to gamble family safety on bluster.
"Fine. But if you screw up, I'll beat your soul to a pulp after you die. My punches hit hard now."
"Damn it. How great is that world, that you're this chipper?"
"Speaking of chipper, you too… Good. I'm out. Cover for me with Karin and Yuzu—I'm not brave enough to say goodbye. Headache."
Isshin watched him go—eyes lingering on the black bow in Ichigo's hand.
Only when he vanished did Isshin look away, turning to the big poster on the wall. He blew a ring of smoke at the beautiful woman there, smirking.
"See that, Masaki? The brat's bossing his old man. Is that what they mean by 'the dead have seniority'? But if he's that cocky, I'm relieved."
"After all… Soul Society's not a nice place. If he comes back crying to Dad, I'll have to repurpose my perfect surprise-resurrection plan for him."
"Ugh, my head hurts. Better go comfort our adorable daughters… Karin! Yuzu! Daddy's back from the dead!"
"Kyaaa! A blood-soaked ghost came for us—it's Dad!"
"Begone, evil spirit!"
"Wait—the wounds are alrea—Argh!"
Soon, Kurosaki Clinic was noisy again.
As if everything had gone back to the way it was.
-------
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