But Byakuya made no promises; instead, he glanced at Zangetsu on his shoulder.
"Kid, how long do you plan to keep your sword on my shoulder?"
"Huh? Uh, sorry, I forgot…"
Ichigo awkwardly lowered his sword and hung it back on his back.
"Open the Senkaimon, Renji."
Byakuya turned, responding with action.
"Oh, oh!"
Renji's face lit up, but then he looked at his ruined Zanpakuto and his expression fell. He glared at Ichigo, then quickly ran to Byakuya's side, embedding his Zanpakuto into the void to activate the pre-adjusted Senkaimon.
"Rukia, hurry up and follow."
"…Understood."
Rukia's suspended heart finally settled, and she looked at Orihime with a complex expression, offering a warm smile.
"It's time to say goodbye. Take good care of yourself, and don't be reckless if you encounter a Hollow. That way… we might even meet again someday."
"Mhm, mhm…!"
Orihime nodded vigorously, tears streaming down her face.
Though she was incredibly worried about Rukia's situation and loathed to see another close person leave.
But there was no use saying anything now; in fact, the current outcome was already the best.
Just like with her brother.
The only thing she could do was to let Rukia leave with peace of mind.
Soon, the Senkaimon closed.
Rukia's figure completely disappeared from sight.
"…Didn't you say you were coming to support us? How did you just slip away on your own?"
Ichigo grumbled, as if to change the subject and alleviate the sad atmosphere.
"We're probably supposed to meet up with the others and then return through the original Senkaimon," Hachihara said, jumping down from the concrete pipe.
"So we should go too."
Shimiya Takeru made the decision on behalf of the four-person group.
"Ah."
Ichigo nodded slightly.
"Are Shimiya-kun and Kurosaki-kun also returning to Soul Society?"
"Yes, will you be okay going home alone?"
"Of course, I'll be fine! Don't forget, I'm a Substitute Shinigami. Whether it's Hollows or bad guys, there's nothing to be afraid of!"
Facing Orihime, who had wiped away her tears and tried to smile, Shimiya Takeru offered no comment.
"Idiot, he wasn't talking about that… Never mind, as long as you stay like this, there's really nothing to worry about. By the way, Inoue, I have a question for you."
"What?"
"Do you know a person named Sado Yasutora?"
"Ah? Uh, I have some impression."
"How has he been recently?"
Seeing Orihime so sad, Ichigo couldn't help but worry about his best friend's mental state.
"Sado?… He only came at the beginning of the school year, and then dropped out not long after."
"What? Dropped out?"
"Yes."
Orihime said with certainty.
"Tatsuki said he seemed to have joined some strange group and then disappeared."
"…I understand. Thank you for telling me this. If possible, please help me gather some information about him, and tell me next time I come to the Human World."
Ichigo took a deep breath and made his request.
"That's fine."
Orihime hesitated for a moment before agreeing, then said, "I also have a request."
"Are you asking us to help Kuchiki Rukia?"
Shimiya Takeru suddenly said.
Seeing Orihime lower her head in guilt, Ichigo knew he had hit the mark.
"Actually, even if you didn't ask, I'd be willing to help. But what we can do is limited. We can't just break into a prison and take someone out, can we?"
"Eh?! You don't have to go that far!"
Orihime was startled.
"Don't worry, Shimiya said," Ichigo said, patting Shimiya Takeru's shoulder.
"That guy probably won't die. I still trust Shimiya's judgment. Besides, he also said before he left that as long as you live well, you'll have a chance to meet again."
"It feels more convenient to reunite in Soul Society after death. Maybe that was her original intention."
Shimiya Takeru pondered.
"Hey!"
Ichigo caught a glimpse of Orihime seeming to be swayed, so he quickly brought up Arisawa Tatsuki to comfort her, ignoring his friend's taunt.
"Inoue, don't listen to this guy's nonsense. If you die, Tatsuki will definitely cry until she faints!"
"…"
The wavering expression on Orihime's face disappeared, replaced by deep disappointment.
But a little warmth also grew in her heart.
Yes, she still had her best friend; she wasn't alone.
"Alright, we should get going. Shihōin Clan is probably getting impatient. I promised him he could leave the team earlier… Sigh, it doesn't feel good to fool an idiot."
Ichigo, Hachihara, and Rindo Yu looked at Shimiya Takeru, who was shaking his head and sighing, with expressions of contempt.
He said that, yet showed no shame whatsoever.
"Goodbye, everyone!"
Amidst Orihime's enthusiastic waving, Shimiya Takeru and the other three dashed into the night sky.
Not far away, on a telephone pole, a black cat silently watched Orihime also leave the scene.
Tonight's farce had truly come to an end.
"But then again, those kids are really something, especially Shimiya Takeru. Not only is he cunning, but his strength is not to be underestimated. His Shunpo is far stronger than Byakuya's in his youth, and he also looks strangely familiar, with a bit of my old demeanor. It's too bizarre."
She couldn't figure it out, couldn't understand.
The elusive feeling was like encountering Aizen.
The black cat shook her head and got up to return to the Urahara Shop.
The farce was over.
But there were still too many perplexing aspects.
This was not her forte.
Karakura Town, Yumisawa, the initial landing site of the Spirit Arts Academy team.
An entire street was ravaged, looking like a battlefield in the Middle East.
On the rooftop, a group of medical personnel from the Fourth Division bustled back and forth, moving in and out of the Senkaimon.
In a dilapidated corner of the rooftop, stained with blackened blood, Ichigo felt quite heavy-hearted at the sight.
"Shimiya, I'm starting to agree with something you said when we first met."
"Which part are you referring to?"
Shimiya Takeru casually responded.
"It's… about how dying might not necessarily be a bad thing."
"I vaguely remember that. You strongly disagreed at the time, didn't you?"
Hachihara and Rindo Yu, curious about their past, looked over.
"Of course! I hadn't completely despaired of my life… That's what I said, but now that I look back,"
"To be able to become a Shinigami, to know the truth of the world, no longer relying on others to secretly protect my seemingly peaceful daily life, to be able to actively do something… I don't think that can be considered a bad thing at all."
Ichigo was filled with emotion.
Shimiya Takeru also sighed, "You've matured a bit after meeting your family… Is this your last will and testament to your family? If you plan to have it carved on your tombstone as an epitaph, I suggest making it shorter, like… 'We fear the unseen, and now you no longer fear it.' So philosophical. Even Aizen-sensei would be pleased to know."
"Sorry, my hearing isn't so good. What did you just say? What did I just say?"
"…It's not just your hearing, Ichigo," Hachihara said, exasperated.
"Then let's talk about something you can hear and remember… Look over there."
Shimiya Takeru's words made Ichigo, Hachihara, and Rindo Yu look in the direction he pointed.
Even after a large number of Hollows were lured away, a considerable number of Menos Grande remained, attacking the Soul Burial practice team.
Yūshirō alone, strong as he was, couldn't fight off all of them. He couldn't possibly intercept every single Hollow, even the weak ones.
These Hollows alone could put ordinary Shinigami into a tough fight, let alone first-year students.
After the battle, only a few died, and everyone being injured was a blessing in disguise.
This was also why the Fourth Division's medical team was so busy.
Among them, there were also some who were not so lucky.
Their injuries were particularly severe.
In the direction Shimiya Takeru pointed, there was a young-looking, cute girl, similar to Hinamori Momo, lying on the ground receiving emergency treatment, making it impossible to transport her back to Soul Society.
"Ruptured carotid artery, massive hemorrhage, plus organ damage, without immediate treatment… Normally, it would be beyond saving, even if Captain Unohana came, it wouldn't help. However, because we discovered that hot spring and sold it to the Fourth Division, the situation is completely different."
As Shimiya Takeru spoke, Ichigo and the others watched as a Fourth Division member pulled out a bottle of pale yellow liquid from their medical kit, and, combined with Kaido techniques, slowly sprinkled it on the wound. They then poured another bottle into her mouth. With both internal and external application, her injuries quickly stabilized.
Then, they swiftly bandaged her, lifted her onto a stretcher, and carried her away.
"Is that… hot spring water?"
Ichigo asked, confused.
"Captain Unohana must have gotten inspiration from my method and developed a new type of medicine. It's hard to say how effective it is compared to mine, but it's enough to save lives and get people back to soak in the hot spring in time."
"It seems we've changed the fates of quite a few people without realizing it."
"Yes, and we made a huge sum of money. I got five, you got three, Rindo got two. Our quality of life immediately improved. Even Hachihara, who didn't get any money, received a large order from us. Tell me… if you hadn't died, would you have encountered such good fortune?"
"…I haven't forgotten that you angered Miss Unohana and used me to draw fire!"
"From the results, your Kaido technique has made substantial progress, hasn't it?"
"That's why I didn't hold it against you."
As the two were talking, they suddenly felt a chill.