Chapter 90
After saying that, Aizen rose from his throne and walked towards the laboratory, saying, "Alright, I need to continue my research. I'll leave the security here to you for now."
Upon hearing this, Kaname Tōsen nodded and disappeared into the darkness.
When Aizen arrived at the laboratory, Aizen tore open his clothes and looked at his chest. The white color of the area that should have been modified by the Hōgyoku was gradually fading back to normal skin, and even the light on the Hōgyoku was gradually weakening.
Aizen a deep breath and thought to himself:
[As expected, as expected, suppressing this power's transformation will be difficult. But it's worth it, after all, only the perfect is worthy of me, so don't keep me waiting too long, Kūgo Ginjō.]
Chapter 90
After watching Xuanxin Ichigo the others leave, Genshin took the documents given to him by Kisuke Urahara and went directly to the First Division.
Captain-Commander Yamamoto looked at Xuanxin had suddenly appeared before him, with curiosity in his eyes. He then took a sip of hot tea and said:
"Speak, what is it this time?"
Upon hearing this, Xuanxin did not speak, but instead placed the documents directly on Old Man Yamamoto's desk.
Looking at the mysterious Xuanxin, the old man picked up the documents and began to read them with a puzzled expression.
However, his expression grew increasingly serious. After reviewing the documents, the Captain-Commander closed the file and said to the Vice-Captain Sasakibe standing beside him:
"Sasakibe, go and call Kyōraku over here."
"Yes, Captain-Commander." After saying that, Vice-Captain Sasakibe quickly headed towards the Eighth Division's base.
At this moment, only Xuanxin and Captain-Commander Yamamoto remained in the room.
The Captain-Commander looked at Xuanxin and asked, "What do you think of this report?"
"Master, I think what this report says is very likely. Just as Kisuke Urahara said, Aizen has just suffered a great defeat and naturally won't make a move against Soul Society in the short term. Therefore, the World of the Living is very likely to become his target."
"Furthermore, that Kūgo Ginjō might very well be stationed in the World of the Living for an extended period. Therefore, I think we should be prepared for battles to break out in the World of the Living at any time."
Upon hearing this, Old Man Yamamoto pondered for a moment without speaking, then nodded and said, "Then let's wait for Kyōraku to arrive and discuss it further."
After speaking, Xuanxin nodded, and then the room fell silent once again.
Although neither Old Man Yamamoto nor Xuanxin spoke, they were both lost in thought, staring at their teacups. The master and disciple were enjoying a moment of peace, as neither of them were good at expressing themselves.
This tranquility was eventually shattered by the arrival of Shunsui Kyōraku.
The old man then handed the information to Shunsui Kyōraku, who soon reached the same conclusion as Xuanxin.
Seeing that his two disciples, whom he was about to entrust with important responsibilities, shared the same opinion, the old man then said:
"In that case, let's proceed according to Xuanxin's plan. In the World of the Living, Xuanxin and Ukitake will establish World of the Living base, while Shunsui will continue to handle logistics and support."
Upon hearing this, the two nodded and left the office, heading towards Jūshirō Ukitake's Thirteenth Division. After all, among all the captains, Ukitake was probably the most familiar with the World of the Living besides Yoruichi, so he was the only one who could handle the task of establishing a base in the World of the Living this time.
However, unlike Xuanxin's plans, Yoruichi's "war" was significantly easier.
Contrary to Yoruichi's expectations, in her plan, Rangiku would have more work after becoming a squad leader, leaving her no free time to run into Xuanxin.
Unfortunately, she underestimated Rangiku's determination and ability to slack off, and after becoming the captain, Rangiku became even more confident.
In Rangiku's own words, "Everyone is a captain. Captain Unohana, then why can't I?"
However, most of Rangiku's "attacks" were blocked by Sister Hana and Yoruichi working together in perfect harmony.
Meanwhile, Xuanxin was also busily planning his schemes in the World of the Living world.
In Xuanxin's vision, if the future battlefield were to shift to the World of the Living, then the Shinigami familiar with Karakura Town, along with Ichigo and the others, would be indispensable.
Therefore, Rukia was also selected into Xuanxin's World of the Living team, which made Rukia, who always liked to belittle herself, feel somewhat flattered.
Even when Rukia looked at the captains around her during meetings, she felt somewhat dazed, and in her daze Rukia would always think of the friends who had come to rescue her.
However, Rukia didn't know was that her friends were now in some predicaments themselves.
In the World of the Living, Karakura Town.
Although it was late at night, Ichigo's room was still brightly lit, and this had been the case for several days.
Ichigo was hunched over his desk, frantically trying to finish his holiday homework, muttering things like, "I can't finish! I can't finish!"
The same scene played out at Orihime and Uryū's house. Clearly, their time in Soul Society had made them forget that there was an enemy called "Holiday Homework" waiting for them to conquer.
After Ichigo finished writing an entire workbook, he wanted to take a breather and rest, but when he saw the still towering pile of homework next to him, he ultimately gave up the idea.
"Why?! I've been studying hard all holiday! Why do I have to do these tests here?! I'm not happy about this...!"
Finally, after several days and nights of tireless effort, Ichigo and his friends managed to finish their holiday homework before sunrise on the first day of school.
When Ichigo arrived at the classroom with his schoolbag, he saw Orihime and the others, who had also burned out. The group exchanged glances and gave each other a wry smile of sympathy.
Fortunately, the days that followed returned to the peaceful life that a high school student should have.
However, after learning about his parents' past, Ichigo realized that such a peaceful life was rare, and his own life would not remain peaceful forever.
So, every day after school or in the early morning, Ichigo would set aside time for kendo training.
"Bang, bang, bang"
Just as Ichigo was swinging his wooden sword at the grass stump with all his might, a loud, boisterous voice suddenly appeared Ichigo.
"No, no! Your power application is still wrong! And who taught you this training method?! Who trains like this?! It seems the person who taught you is a novice!"
Upon hearing his father's loud, boisterous voice, Ichigo's face fell, and he turned away irritably.
But when he turned around, the first thing he saw was Isshin standing there, wearing those big floral shorts and slippers, looking at him arrogantly.
Seeing his father dressed like this, Ichigo was even more speechless, and then said:
"This is the training method that Captain Xuanxin taught me, and I've seen him train like this every day. Does our Captain Isshin have any other brilliant ideas?"
Upon hearing Xuanxin's name, Isshin touched his nose and said, "Ahem... Did Captain Xuanxin teach you? Then you must have been practicing incorrectly. You must have changed your training movements yourself."
Upon hearing this, Ichigo nodded and then told Isshin about how Xuanxin had instructed him on how to exert force and how to slash.
Upon hearing his son's words, Isshin's face showed a knowing expression, and then he walked over and continued:
"That's right, Ichigo. You have to understand that ordinary people and geniuses are different. Their training methods may not be suitable for us, which is why Captain Xuanxin didn't guide you on how to train. Perhaps this is the generation gap between geniuses and us."
Seeing his father's wistful expression, Ichigo knew that his father had heard plenty of Xuanxin's stories.
"Then tell me, what should I do? That guy escaped, so he'll definitely come back. I can't just sit here and wait to die; I have to protect everyone."
Looking into his son's resolute eyes, Isshin felt a deep sense of pride for him, and then he said:
"In that case, I'll reluctantly make time to teach you."
After saying that, he patted Ichigo on the shoulder.
As Ichigo stood up, before he could even react, Isshin's shoe soles began to magnify in Ichigo vision, and Ichigo was then kicked against the wall.
The first lesson: Always stay vigilant.
"Ah, you bastard!" Ichigo then covered his face and got up from the ground again, and then attacked Isshin. And this "heartwarming" time between father and son began to play out in Ichigo's backyard every evening from that day on.
As night falls, Ichigo sometimes uses his Substitute Badge to become a spirit and patrol the streets, or find some lone Hollows to practice against.
However, Ichigo recently noticed that there were fewer and fewer Hollows around him. Not knowing if this was normal, Ichigo went to Kisuke Urahara's shop over the weekend and told the shopkeeper about it.
Upon hearing Ichigo's discovery, Kisuke Urahara nodded and said that he had also noticed the unusual number of Hollows.
He also reported this matter to the Soul Society, which is currently monitoring the Hollow data in Soul Society Karakura Town.
Just then, the two suddenly sensed a peculiar Reiatsu emanating from the nearby streets. After exchanging a glance, they headed together towards the area they had sensed.
As the two drew closer, Kisuke Urahara's gaze grew increasingly serious.
[This isn't normal Hollow Reiatsu. Has Aizen come up with something new again?]
When the two arrived at the scene, they were shocked by what they saw.
Several strangely shaped Hollows, their bodies covered in bony plates, were tearing at a Hollow that appeared to have just died.
Seeing this, Ichigo and Kisuke Urahara quickly drew their Zanpakuto and aimed them at the monsters in front of them.
The moment the Zanpakuto was drawn, all the Hollows stopped biting, their eyes flashing with bloodthirsty red light as they stared intently at the two.
The larger Hollow raised its neck and roared into the sky, after which all the Hollows pounced on the two of them.
The two exchanged a glance and then saw that they were fighting with several illusory creatures. However, when they slashed down with their swords, the feeling was as if they had struck a rock.
"Clang~"
"Manager! Something's wrong with these guys, they're so hard!" Ichigo shouted to Kisuke Urahara while banging on the "drum".
However, Ichigo was met with the exact same drumming sound coming from Kisuke Urahara's side. And as the battle began, more and more Hollows joined the fray.
From the very beginning Kisuke Urahara faced the same problem as Ichigo: he couldn't cut through them, he simply couldn't cut through them! Seeing this, Kisuke Urahara resorted to Kidō to create distance.
But at that moment, Kisuke Urahara discovered that those Kidō could actually harm these guys.
Upon seeing this, Kisuke Urahara knew that these Hollow Hierro were probably specially prepared by Aizen for the Shinigami, and were Hierro specially modified for Zanpakuto.
After discovering this, Kisuke Urahara quickly told Ichigo about his deduction, and then Kisuke Urahara immediately put away his Zanpakuto and began to use Kidō as his main means of attack.
Kisuke Urahara's problem was solved, but Ichigo was in trouble. He was a latecomer to the art and knew nothing about Kidō.
Seeing Ichigo still struggling, Kisuke Urahara suggested that Ichigo try using Bankai.
Upon hearing Kisuke Urahara's words, Ichigo, seeing the increasing number of Hollows around him and his own right hand trembling slightly, immediately activated his Bankai.
Fortunately, the drumming problem was greatly alleviated after Bankai; although it had hardened, it could at least be cut.
On a distant high-rise building, Kūgo Ginjō stood on its edge, his gaze fixed on the Substitute Badge on Ichigo's left arm.
"Is this another trick of that scoundrel Ukitake? How pathetic. But, kid, I'll avenge you after you die."
After saying that, Kūgo Ginjō turned around and disappeared into the darkness.
At this moment, the battle between Ichigo and Kisuke Urahara had reached a stalemate, Ichigo was gradually feeling somewhat tired.
But those Hollows seemed tireless, maintaining an extremely high level of aggression towards Death, even abandoning their own desire to devour in order to attack Death.
Kisuke Urahara knew at a glance that this was Aizen's doing!
Just as the two were racking their brains for a way to break the deadlock...
Suddenly, a barrage of Reishi energy arrows flew out from behind Ichigo, striking the Hollows directly in front of him.
The Hierro on those phantoms seemed to vanish at that moment, easily pierced by the arrows.
Ichigo turned around and saw Isshin, dressed in a Shinigami uniform, and Ryūken Ishida, dressed in a white suit, standing behind him.
"Ichigo, it seems your dad hasn't trained you enough. Maybe you should leave the task of saving the world to the older generation."
After saying that, the two immediately joined the battle, and then the same "drumming" sound came from Isshin's side.
"Wow! Is my erection this hard now? Or am I just getting old?" Isshin muttered to himself, shaking his wrist.
With the support of their fathers, or more precisely, with the support of Ryūken Ishida, these Hollows were quickly eliminated.
Upon returning to Urahara Shop, Kisuke Urahara quickly relayed the news back to Soul Society, and this time Soul Society responded just as quickly: