Soul Reaper: So I Was a Quincy All Along

Miyako Amamiya arrived at the hospital director's office early to wait for Ryūken Ishida. He had come to tell Ishida about his current progress.

"It's you." When Ryūken Ishida arrived at his office, he found Miyako Amamiya waiting. "I thought you wouldn't be coming back."

Ryūken Ishida couldn't trust Miyako Amamiya completely either, but he had no choice but to rely on him to gather information in Soul Society.

"You must be joking, Mr. Ishida. How could I go back on something I promised? Although I have other important business in the World of the Living this time, I thought I'd also tell you about the leads I found in Soul Society."

"Then what did you find?" Ryūken Ishida asked calmly, though he felt a little hopeful.

"The most recent records about the Quincy in Soul Society are from two hundred years ago. You already know about those, Mr. Ishida, so I won't go into them," Miyako Amamiya said. "Soul Society's records also mention events from a thousand years ago, but most of them have been lost, and there are no clear accounts left."

"I see..." Ryūken Ishida said in disappointment. It was history from a thousand years ago, after all. Was it difficult even for Soul Society to preserve a complete record...?

"However..." Miyako Amamiya's words made Ryūken Ishida look at him again. "As I understand it, there are indeed some places in Soul Society that still preserve the history from a thousand years ago."

Ryūken Ishida frowned and stared at Miyako Amamiya without speaking. The emotion he revealed was plain enough that Miyako Amamiya hurriedly continued, "Soul Society has four of the oldest noble clans, whose histories are as old as Soul Society itself. They have preserved the history from a thousand years ago."

"And the Four Great Noble Clans were originally the Five Great Noble Clans. The clan that was stripped of its status should still have relevant information too. As it happens, I can get in touch with them to some extent, so I can look into it again when I go back."

"Noble clans..." Ryūken Ishida knew how difficult it was for Miyako Amamiya to gather information. "I understand. Then please continue your investigation."

It was the first time Miyako Amamiya had heard Ishida speak so politely, enough to show how much he cared about the matter.

"You're too kind, Mr. Ishida. This is an agreement between us, and I'll do my best," Miyako Amamiya said.

"Then I'll take my leave, Mr. Ishida. I have something important to do next."

Miyako Amamiya went to Karakura First High School. By now, Kisuke Urahara should have healed Ichigo Kurosaki. Miyako Amamiya was looking for Ichigo in the hope of learning from him about the series of events surrounding Rukia's transfer of her powers to him.

It was the last day before Ichigo Kurosaki's high school summer vacation began, but he wasn't in much of a mood to be happy about it.

Ever since he had heard about Rukia from that strange shopkeeper yesterday, he had resolved to go to Soul Society and rescue her.

Ichigo Kurosaki looked out the window, his mind full of thoughts. But the next moment, the person before him pulled him out of them.

"Yo, Ichigo." Miyako Amamiya stood on the window and greeted him, but at that moment, only Ichigo Kurosaki and a few of his friends could see him.

"It's you!" Ichigo Kurosaki shouted, jumping to his feet.

"Kurosaki-kun, is something wrong?" the teacher asked from the front of the room, unaware of what had happened.

"No, it's nothing." Ichigo Kurosaki sat back down.

"I have a name. Call me Amamiya or Miyako, either one is fine. But it looks like you haven't completely lost your spiritual power yet. You can actually still see me." Miyako Amamiya looked at him in surprise. He had thought Ichigo couldn't see him at all anymore.

"What do you want with me? Haven't you already dragged Rukia back?" Ichigo Kurosaki asked in a low voice, full of anger.

"I came to see you precisely because of Rukia, but you seem to be busy right now. I'll come find you after school." Miyako Amamiya said goodbye, intending to return later.

Watching Miyako Amamiya leave, Ichigo Kurosaki couldn't help looking utterly puzzled, unsure why he had come to see him.

After class, Orihime Inoue couldn't help asking Ichigo Kurosaki, "Kurosaki-kun, who was that person just now? And why has Kuchiki disappeared again? What on earth happened?"

"Inoue, you still remember everything?" Ichigo Kurosaki asked in surprise.

After school, Ichigo Kurosaki saw Miyako Amamiya again at the school gate.

"What do you want with me?" Ichigo Kurosaki looked at Miyako Amamiya with a hostile expression.

"I'm here to discuss rescuing Rukia." Miyako Amamiya didn't beat around the bush and told him directly.

"What?" Ichigo Kurosaki was surprised to hear that. "Isn't Soul Society taking Rukia away to execute her? Why would you..."

"I'll explain later. Don't rush. But first, answer my questions." Miyako Amamiya cut him off.

"Why did Rukia give you her powers? Did you ask her why?"

"Why...? I did ask her. She said she'd already purified a lot of Hollows in a row and was a little tired when she met me. That was why a Hollow was able to seriously injure her. And apparently there was something a little strange about that Hollow too, although I didn't notice anything."

"I see... Then, second question: who gave Rukia her Gigai before she started working with you?"

"Gigai? What's that?"

Miyako Amamiya explained what a Gigai did, but Ichigo Kurosaki still didn't know who Rukia had gotten hers from.

Miyako Amamiya recorded everything he had learned from his questions. Although he knew the full story himself, he still needed specific witness testimony to show Ukitake when the time came.

"That's all my questions. You can ask yours now," Miyako Amamiya told him.

"What did you mean just now about rescuing Rukia?" Ichigo Kurosaki was a little anxious to understand.

"That's simple. Not everyone in Soul Society wants Rukia executed. Besides, the circumstances of Rukia losing her powers in the World of the Living are too coincidental. It's hard not to suspect there might be a conspiracy behind it."

"A conspiracy?" Ichigo Kurosaki noticed the word.

"That's right, but it's all speculation for now. We can't prove that Rukia's actions were innocent."

"Then will Rukia really be executed after she returns to Soul Society?" Ichigo Kurosaki asked Miyako Amamiya to confirm.

"Giving a human a Soul Reaper's powers is a serious crime in Soul Society. Rukia's sentence will essentially be execution," Miyako Amamiya said calmly.

"Then what do we do? Didn't you say you wanted to rescue Rukia too? Are you just going to stand by and watch?" Ichigo Kurosaki was getting anxious.

"Rukia is a precious member of our Thirteenth Division. Of course we won't just sit and wait, but until the truth comes out, as members of Soul Society, we can't openly defy its rules. That's why I wanted to discuss this with you."

"Damn it..." Hearing that, Ichigo Kurosaki only wanted to hurry to Kisuke Urahara and regain his powers.

"You're going to see Kisuke Urahara, aren't you? Take me with you. I happen to have some business with him too," Miyako Amamiya said. At the very least, he needed to find Kisuke Urahara's hiding place, so he could hold a weakness over him.

"...All right." Ichigo Kurosaki suspected nothing and took him to the Urahara Shop.

"Shopkeeper, Mr. Kurosaki is here," Tessai Tsukabishi said to Kisuke Urahara.

"Oh, good, he's finally here." Kisuke Urahara had also been afraid that Ichigo Kurosaki would be so discouraged that he would give up on going to Soul Society to save Rukia.

"But he's accompanied by a Soul Reaper from Soul Society, Mr. Amamiya," Tessai Tsukabishi added.

"Uh..." Kisuke Urahara's expression immediately turned a little awkward. He still didn't know how to explain things to Miyako Amamiya, yet Miyako Amamiya had come to his door with Ichigo Kurosaki.

"Shall I put up a barrier?" Tessai Tsukabishi asked.

"Forget it. I was in the wrong to begin with. Perhaps he also..." Kisuke Urahara said dejectedly. "Please bring them both in."

Outside, Miyako Amamiya frowned at the place. It was completely ordinary, so how had it escaped so many attempts to detect it? It seemed former Grand Kidō Chief Tessai Tsukabishi and Kisuke Urahara had put quite a few protective measures in place here.

"Welcome, Mr. Kurosaki, young Mr. Amamiya," Kisuke Urahara said to them at the door.

"Mr. Kurosaki, how are your injuries?"

Ichigo Kurosaki pulled his clothes aside. Although he was only a high school student, there were already several prominent scars on his body.

"They've all healed." Ichigo Kurosaki said no more. The scars he revealed told Kisuke Urahara that he was ready for the next step.

"Excellent." Kisuke Urahara closed his fan. "Then please go inside first, Mr. Kurosaki. Mr. Tessai will take you where you need to go."

"As for me, young Mr. Amamiya here seems to have some business with me."

Ichigo Kurosaki said nothing. He glanced at Kisuke Urahara, then bowed ninety degrees to them. "I'm counting on you for everything."

Kisuke Urahara, Tessai Tsukabishi and the others were startled. They hadn't expected Ichigo Kurosaki to ask them so sincerely.

After a long while, Kisuke Urahara finally spoke softly. "I'm the one... who has to count on you."

Once Ichigo Kurosaki had entered the room, Miyako Amamiya spoke. "Don't you feel ashamed deceiving such a sincere young man, Mr. Urahara?"

Kisuke Urahara looked up at the sky. In the twilight, time seemed to freeze, and the atmosphere was so gloomy and dreary that all that remained was Kisuke Urahara's endless silence.

Miyako Amamiya knew he didn't intend to answer, so he changed the question. "You gave Rukia that strange Gigai, didn't you? It's probably already been sent to the Technology Development Bureau. You know what will happen, don't you?"

"I do," Kisuke Urahara said softly.

"Sooner or later, the people at the Technology Development Bureau will discover what's wrong with the Gigai. In other words, they'll discover it's your work sooner or later," Miyako Amamiya said. "You've been on the run in the World of the Living for so long, yet you deliberately exposed yourself. What are you after?"

"Because he couldn't hold back anymore..." Kisuke Urahara said helplessly. He knew Aizen was already desperate to get his hands on Urahara's Hōgyoku, so he had no choice but to resort to this desperate measure and sacrifice Rukia Kuchiki. But Rukia Kuchiki's abnormal condition had still been discovered. Now that she had returned to Soul Society, Aizen would find her sooner or later—or perhaps he already had.

"Is it Sōsuke Aizen?" The moment Miyako Amamiya said those words, Kisuke Urahara was too shocked to maintain his outward composure.

"How do you know?!" Kisuke Urahara asked in alarm, unable to understand how Miyako Amamiya had guessed the person he was thinking of.

"Just as I thought..." Miyako Amamiya had also thought long and hard before deciding to lay his cards on the table with Kisuke Urahara.

If Miyako Amamiya could intervene in Sōsuke Aizen's plan, then...

"Answer me! Why did you bring up that man's name?" Only now did Kisuke Urahara's gaze turn serious. He gripped the Zanpakuto disguised as a cane, ready to fight Miyako Amamiya at any moment.

"It's an ability of my Zanpakuto. Forgive me, but I can't tell you about it. However, it was through my Zanpakuto that I finally understood the true nature of Sōsuke Aizen's Kyōka Suigetsu."

"What did you say...?" Kisuke Urahara couldn't believe what he had heard. It wasn't that he was unaware of the ability of Aizen's Kyōka Suigetsu, but to this day, he still didn't know how to deal with it. What was more, Sōsuke Aizen's Zanpakuto ability was not only extremely bizarre; the man's own strength was unfathomable.

"I'll be direct. My Zanpakuto's ability can temporarily counter Kyōka Suigetsu's Complete Hypnosis. That's how I was able to notice that something was wrong with Sōsuke Aizen." Miyako Amamiya's words were a mixture of truth and lies. He really could counter Kyōka Suigetsu, but he hadn't relied on his Zanpakuto to notice that something was wrong with Aizen. He had known from the start.

Kisuke Urahara remained silent. He hadn't expected to hear such shocking news from Miyako Amamiya.

"Then Rukia's situation also has something to do with you and Aizen, doesn't it?" Miyako Amamiya continued questioning him, but Kisuke Urahara didn't answer and remained silent.

Kisuke Urahara was still considering whether to tell Miyako Amamiya the full scope of his plan, but he didn't know if this was a trap.

"Show me..." Kisuke Urahara looked up at Miyako Amamiya.

"What?"

"You say your Zanpakuto can counter Kyōka Suigetsu. Then show me. Prove that your Zanpakuto really has that ability." Kisuke Urahara needed to confirm whether Miyako Amamiya was telling the truth. A fight with him would be enough to find out.

"...All right. Then let's fight. I'll prove it to you." Miyako Amamiya gave him a long look. It seemed words alone couldn't convince Kisuke Urahara, so he would use his Zanpakuto's ability to show him that what he said was true.

"Follow me." Kisuke Urahara turned and walked into the shop, leading Miyako Amamiya to the underground training ground they had created.

Kisuke Urahara's mind was full of thoughts. He was in no mood to joke around as he introduced the place as he normally would. Right now, he only wanted to confirm whether Miyako Amamiya's words were true.

Down below, Ichigo Kurosaki, whose soul had not yet left his body, looked blankly at Kisuke Urahara and Miyako Amamiya, wondering what they had come down for.

"Hey, shopkeeper, Amamiya, are you done talking? My training's about to start."

"Sorry, Mr. Kurosaki. Could your training wait a little while? Right now, we have something more important to do..." Kisuke Urahara no longer spoke to Ichigo Kurosaki in that frivolous tone. Instead, he looked gravely at Miyako Amamiya.

"Huh? Are you kidding? Aren't we running out of time?" Ichigo Kurosaki said angrily to Kisuke Urahara.

"Sorry, Mr. Kurosaki. This concerns whether we can truly save Miss Kuchiki, so please wait a little while."

Hearing Kisuke Urahara's serious tone and what he said, Ichigo Kurosaki understood the gravity of the situation and said no more.

"Then let's begin." Miyako Amamiya drew the twin blades at his waist and said to Kisuke Urahara, "Because of the Limitation Seal, I can't use my full strength, but I can still give you a taste of it."

Ichigo Kurosaki was a little confused. From the looks of it, were they going to fight?

He asked Tessai Tsukabishi beside him, "Mr. Tessai, what's the shopkeeper doing?"

Tessai Tsukabishi shook his head with a solemn expression. He didn't know what was happening either.

"Mr. Urahara, please draw your Zanpakuto," Miyako Amamiya said to Kisuke Urahara. "And don't just draw it. Please use your Shikai right away."

Ichigo Kurosaki was momentarily stunned. A Zanpakuto? Wasn't that a Soul Reaper's weapon? Why was Amamiya asking the shopkeeper to use a Zanpakuto? And what was Shikai?

Ichigo Kurosaki hurriedly asked Tessai Tsukabishi, but Tessai Tsukabishi didn't answer him, much to his annoyance.

"Very well." Kisuke Urahara drew the sword from his cane. "Awaken, Benihime!"

The cane began to change, revealing her true form. Benihime had a slender blade and no handguard. There was a red cord knot where the handguard should have been, and the end of the hilt curved back.

Kisuke Urahara suppressed the spiritual pressure of his Shikai to keep it from affecting Ichigo Kurosaki, so the fluctuation from its release was not great.

"The Zanpakuto's... name?!" Ichigo Kurosaki stared in shock at the transformed blade in Kisuke Urahara's hand.

"Then I'll do the same..." Miyako Amamiya joined his twin blades together. "Separate, Divine Arrow: Severed Thought!"

"He called out his Zanpakuto's name too..." Ichigo Kurosaki looked at Miyako Amamiya. "But why is it a bow and arrow like Ishida's?"

"How is that possible?!" Kisuke Urahara cried out in surprise again. "A twin-bladed Zanpakuto turned into... a bow and arrow after Shikai?!"

"Mr. Urahara, please make sure you don't dodge my next attack. It would be best to block it with your Zanpakuto. Otherwise, you won't learn my Zanpakuto's true ability," Miyako Amamiya reminded him afterward.

Kisuke Urahara heard him from the field and tightened his grip on Benihime, ready to face Miyako Amamiya's attack at any moment.

Seeing that Kisuke Urahara was ready, Miyako Amamiya began to draw his bow, drawing on the spiritual power in his body.

As I will it, separate him, Jue Nian! Only then did Miyako Amamiya use his Zanpakuto's true ability in the World of the Living for the first time. Once the arrow formed, it sped toward Kisuke Urahara.