Gikon Rukia whipped her head around, straight into Orihime Inoue's curious gaze.
Orihime Inoue tilted her head. "Did you come out to buy something?"
"How did you find me?"
"Hmm..." Orihime Inoue thought about it for a long while, then gave an embarrassed smile. "I don't really know. After you disappeared in class, I just had this vague feeling you'd be around here, so I came to check. I didn't expect you to actually be here."
Reiatsu sensing?!
To pinpoint her exact location through such faint spiritual pressure…
Gikon Rukia had to admit she'd underestimated this woman.
"Since you've found me, I guess I don't have much choice..." Gikon Rukia's eyes flickered as a massive Hollow suddenly emerged from around the street corner and lunged straight at them.
Unlike ordinary Gikon that could only pretend to be human inside a Gigai, Modified Souls possessed additional abilities, such as creating illusions.
This girl looked gentle and fragile. A simple scare should be enough to send her running in blind panic.
That way, Gikon Rukia could regain her freedom.
Sure enough, the instant the Hollow appeared, Gikon Rukia saw clear fear and panic spread across Orihime Inoue's face.
Then—
Orihime Inoue grabbed Gikon Rukia's hand and took off running.
"Huh?!"
Something... wasn't right.
"Don't worry," Orihime Inoue said as she kept an eye on the Hollow behind them, trying to reassure her. "Let's run somewhere with fewer people. Muten and Rukia will sense its Reiatsu and come back to save us."
Why aren't you just running on your own?!
Gikon Rukia could feel the nervous sweat in Orihime Inoue's palm and the trembling in her arm.
You're this scared, so why are you still dragging me along?!
And if Muten Natsu and Rukia Kuchiki showed up, Gikon Rukia would be captured for sure.
At that thought, an idea struck her. She deliberately stumbled and fell flat onto the ground.
Now you can finally run by yourself.
But then—
Orihime Inoue scooped Gikon Rukia up and kept running. "Are you okay?!"
What is wrong with this woman?!
"Let go of me!" Gikon Rukia struggled desperately. "If this keeps up, you'll die too! I'm just a pill. Why are you risking your life to save me?!"
"You can talk to me and understand what I'm saying. How could I possibly see you as just a pill?!" Orihime Inoue panted as she ran. "Even if you were a pill, you'd still want to live, wouldn't you?!"
The desire... to live.
Gikon Rukia stared blankly at Orihime Inoue's profile.
"Oh, right," Orihime Inoue suddenly said, as if struck by inspiration. "Can you spit yourself out? I feel like it'd be a lot easier to run while carrying a pill."
"So you're still treating me like a pill after all?" Gikon Rukia's fingers twitched as she dispelled the illusion. "It's not that simple!"
Orihime Inoue ran for quite a while longer before realizing the Hollow had vanished.
"Phew..." She carefully set Gikon Rukia down, exhausted. "Good thing Tatsuki-chan helped me train my stamina. Are you okay? How do you feel?"
Gikon Rukia avoided Orihime Inoue's gaze. "I... I'm fine."
"That's good. I wonder where that Hollow ran off to." Orihime Inoue took out her phone. "I'll call Muten—"
"Wait!" Gikon Rukia stopped her. "Don't... don't call..."
"Huh?"
"If they come..." Gikon Rukia hesitated before continuing. "I'll be destroyed."
"Destroyed?" Orihime Inoue asked in confusion. "Why?"
"Because I'm not a Gikon Pill. I'm... a Modified Soul."
"Huh... huh?" The confusion on Orihime Inoue's face only deepened.
"Soul Society once proposed something called the [Project Spearhead]. The idea was to implant combat-oriented souls into those who had lost their souls after death, turning them into spearheads against Hollows." Gikon Rukia didn't want to deceive Orihime Inoue a second time. "Back then, they developed virtual souls meant for combat. Depending on the soul's nature, they could be enhanced in different directions. That's what [Modified Soul] means."
"Enhanced..." Orihime Inoue looked her up and down. "Really? Where?"
"I can create illusions." Gikon Rukia avoided Orihime Inoue's gaze. "That Hollow you just saw was my doing."
"I see..." Orihime Inoue put her phone away. "That's great, then. If it wasn't a real Hollow, we don't have to worry about anyone getting hurt."
Gikon Rukia watched the smile bloom on Orihime Inoue's face, her expression complicated.
This woman was obviously the type who'd been protected well all her life. That was why she was so bright and open, why she'd risk her life to save a pill, and why she could still smile so radiantly even after realizing she'd been tricked.
That was exactly why Gikon Rukia didn't want to lie to her.
And compared to lying, telling her the truth should still get her what she wanted.
"Oh, right," Orihime Inoue pressed. "You said 'once'?"
"That's right. For certain reasons, the Project Spearhead was scrapped before it ever took shape. And Modified Souls like us that had already been created were destroyed one by one." Gikon Rukia folded her arms, remembering the helpless days spent waiting to die inside a pill. "I don't know why, but I was overlooked. If they find me, I'll be destroyed too."
...
"Heave-ho..." Kisuke Urahara hauled a huge, long object wrapped all over in paper talismans out of the cellar. "This should do it... probably..."
"Um... Kisuke-san..." Ururu's eyes brimmed with tears. "I'm really sorry... this is all my fault... you're mad... aren't you?"
Kisuke Urahara glanced aside, then set a hand on Ururu's head. "Of course not. Why would I blame you?" He smiled. "Ururu, you don't need to be this scared. We're friends."
Pulling her into his arms, Kisuke Urahara patted her little head. "Don't worry. I'll take care of it."
"K-Kisuke-san... sob... sob... waaahhh...!"
"There, there," Kisuke Urahara soothed. "Stop crying."
"Shopkeeper," Tessai Tsukabishi said, "everything is ready."
"Good..." Beneath the brim of his hat, Kisuke Urahara's gaze turned cold. "Let's go. We're retrieving the merchandise."
Jinta Hanakari grabbed a massive weapon. Ururu hoisted the long, unidentified object. Tessai Tsukabishi strapped on a huge backpack, and Kisuke Urahara joined them.
Everyone was mobilized!