Hirako arrived by car, which was parked at the street corner. Ichigo followed and saw Maserati.
"Wow, so rich?"
"Well, normal income, get on board."
Urahara watched the two get into the car and disappear in a flash, wanting to say something but not knowing what to say, finally letting out a sigh.
Yoruichi scratched the Shopkeeper's face with her paw, "Just say what you want to say."
"Tsk~ I don't know what to say, you know about what happened three years ago."
"Well, those people really went too far, didn't they?"
"Sigh~, that's what I'm sighing about. Sometimes I even think that Soul Society is beyond saving. The more I think about it, the more I feel that way. Oh well, never mind."
The Shopkeeper brought Yoruichi back to the shop, and soon two Mod Soul came out to tend to the shop, doing things like sweeping the floor. Meanwhile, the two brats from the original work Jinta Hanakari and Ururu, are now in the Fullbring Organization.
Meanwhile, Hirako sped all the way to the Seaside Villa, an incredibly cool four-story building with a swimming pool, garden, detached garage, and even a chapel.
"What exactly do you people do?"
"Well, to be frank, we're Exorcists, professionals."
"Exorcist?" Ichigo was completely baffled. What kind of nonsense is a Soul Reaper Exorcist? Of course, it's a perfect fit—no one is better at exorcising spirits than Soul Reaper —but why does it feel so out of place?
As soon as I entered, I saw a man with long, curly blond hair wearing baggy shorts sunbathing by the pool. Hearing the sound, he turned around and raised his sunglasses.
"This is Ichigo Kurosaki?"
Who is this?
"Rōjūrō Ōtoribashi, ignore him. This guy isn't going to teach you anything. Come here."
Ichigo followed Hirako into the villa. A fat man dressed as a priest walked out from the side corridor and said to him with a smile, "I am Hachigen Ushōda, nice to meet you."
Hello, nice to meet you.
Ichigo continued walking uphill with Hirako, and after looking around, asked, "Are there only three of you living here?"
"Huh? Of course not, there are eleven people living here."
"Hiss~", Ichigo a sharp pain in his tooth. This four-story villa, with dozens, almost a hundred, rooms, only housed eleven people—it was truly unbelievable.
Upon reaching the third floor, Hirako pointed to the left and said, "Choose a room to stay in while you train here."
"Well"
"Don't worry about bedding or anything like that, we have everything. We also have toiletries. As for clothes, just tell me your size, or you can order them online yourself. The money will go directly into the villa's account. Do whatever you want."
"Oh oh"
Seeing that Ichigo didn't move, Hirako turned around and said, "Then you can continue with me. We can choose a room later."
The two arrived on the fourth floor. The fourth floor was smaller than the three floors below, and it only had one separate room. After Ichigo entered, he discovered that it was a completely different world; it turned out to be a Training Ground similar to the underground Training Ground of the research institute.
"Wow! Wait Ichigo scratched his head, "How could this Training Ground possibly fit into one room?"
"Huh? Of course it can't fit," Hirako grinned. "The other Training Grounds you've used also couldn't fit it. I mean, in terms of actual floor space. These things all utilize Space Kidō technology. If we were to actually build Training Ground that big, the protective enhancements would exhaust even the Soul Reaper."
"Oh," Ichigo didn't understand, but it sounded really impressive.
"Come train, don't forget why you're here," Hirako said, swallowing the Mod Soul.
Ichigo nodded and swallowed the Mod Soul. Two Mod Soul Pills appeared, Hirako said, "You two go and do what we discussed earlier. Ichigo, you don't mind if your Mod Soul help you choose a room, do you?"
"No problem, I don't mind."
After the two Mod Soul departed, Hirako immediately summoned his Hollowfication Mask and beckoned, "I heard you defeated Byakuya Kuchiki? Come on, let me see what you're made of. Go all out, I'm much stronger than that kid Byakuya."
"Then I won't hold back!" Ichigo abruptly dropped his Hollowfication Mask, and this time he discovered that White wasn't trying to take control from him. Before he could even feel happy, Hirako swung his sword, Ichigo panic, was sent flying.
"Hey kid, you dare to get distracted while fighting me? Are you tired of living? Or do you think you can look down on the captain just because you beat one?"
"You're the captain too?"
Hirako gave a mocking laugh, "Isn't he just Aizen's former captain? It's a pity he framed me. This attitude is all thanks to him."
Is that so?
"Yeah~", Hirako Shunpo used Shunpo and slashed with his sword. Ichigo was prepared this time, and the two clashed. Hirako seemed a little agitated. "That's why I get really angry every time I use this power! You know that!?"
Before Ichigo could speak, Hirako's power suddenly increased, Ichigo couldn't block it at all, being cleaved away by another sword strike. This wasn't because Ichigo was careless; it was simply due to his inferior strength.
Ichigo was stunned by the attack. He stood up and paused for a second before realizing what had happened. He raised Zangetsu and charged it up, but Hirako suddenly appeared in front of Ichigo and thrust his sword at him. Ichigo could only block and was sent flying again.
Hirako immediately followed up, his swordsmanship and Shunpo speed far exceeding Ichigo's, unleashing a fierce beating that left Ichigo in considerable pain. However, just as Ichigo was about to unleash his Release, a voice suddenly appeared in Ichigo mind.
"Useless! What else do you have besides understanding? If one day your solutions become useless, will you kneel down and beg the enemy not to kill you? Useless!"
Ichigo suddenly stopped. Although he was immediately knocked away by Hirako again, Ichigo suddenly didn't want to use his release technique. However, at that moment, White's voice appeared again.
"Useless! You think my words can change your mind? What's the point of your brain then? Where are your own thoughts?"
Ichigo felt a surge of anger, yet suddenly wanted to use the release technique. However, White's words earlier were also true; Ichigo's mind was in complete turmoil. Then he realized he had lost control of his body.
Suddenly, everything shifted to a third-person perspective, and he saw Shinji Hirako being sent flying by his Zangetsu sword strike—a powerful double-handed smash. At that moment, Ichigo suddenly panicked.
"Give me back my body!!"
However, there was no response. Ichigo was frantic and helpless. He didn't know how to regain his body, or what to do now. His mind was filled with panic and helplessness, followed by a fit of rage.
"Get out of here!!" Ichigo roared, feeling he could chase after him. Wasn't this a third-person perspective? He tried his best to close the distance between them, and doing so did indeed bring him closer, and he seemed to regain a sense of connection with his body.
On the battlefield, Hirako noticed that Ichigo's fighting style had completely changed. He had gone from wielding his large sword with one hand to wielding it with both hands, his strength had more than doubled, and his reaction speed and Reiatsu had also increased significantly.
Who are you?
White grinned, "I'm exactly the person you're thinking of."
"It's actually conscious?"
"Hehehe, don't compare me to the trash in your bodies! Hehehe, if you want to help that good-for-nothing, you'll have to send the real deal, not your fake stuff."
"The real deal? Is it Jun Shimizu?" Hirako smiled slightly. "He has things to do in Hueco Mundo right now and doesn't have much time to deal with that good-for-nothing you're talking about, which is why he sent us."
"Hehehe~ Is that so? Even the real deal thinks he's trash? Hehehehe."
When Ichigo heard those words, his heart sank, and he immediately switched back to a third-person perspective, far away from his own body. At that moment, he heard White's voice again.
"That piece of trash, do you know what he did? He couldn't beat you, so he just laughed it off, like he was laughing at Byakuya Kuchiki."
Ichigo felt a pang of shame upon hearing this, yet he didn't believe he was wrong. Then, he suddenly wanted to hear what White had to say. Once he regained his composure, he zoomed in again.
White continued, "When that guy fought Byakuya Kuchiki, he was completely outmatched. He had no idea where his strengths lay, nor where his weaknesses lay, and he had no idea where his enemy's strengths and weaknesses lay. Hahaha, if it weren't for me helping him, he would have been beaten to a pulp by Byakuya Kuchiki, without even being able to touch him."
Ichigo was extremely unwilling, but putting aside this timeline, even in the original work, when Ichigo fought Byakuya, aside from those two initial show-off moves, if White hadn't suddenly appeared, Ichigo would have been dead, a sure death, without any chance whatsoever.
What makes Zangetsu and Tensa Zangetsu so strong? What makes Ichigo's abilities so powerful? It's his Reiatsu and Spiritual Flow! So where does this strength lie? Reiatsu means high offense and defense, and strong Spiritual Flow means short attack cooldowns.
So the real purpose of Zangetsu and Tensa Zangetsu is actually very simple: single-point breakthrough! It's not used like Ichigo does! Ranjiro Shunpo Ranjiro Getsuga Tenshō, then find an opportunity to go in and deliver a slash, looks pretty cool, so cool it's freaking awesome!
The real way to use it is that no matter how strong your defense is, you can use Shunpo to restrain them in the early stages, and then, once you find an opportunity, just charge in! Charge straight at that one point! Charge relentlessly! If your Reiatsu and Spiritual Flow are stronger than theirs, your single-point breakthrough will surely kill them! They will never be able to patch up the gaps in their defense; this is a difference in raw power.
That's how Hollow Hakuda fought Byakuya, completely overwhelming Byakuya. Ichigo entered the fray, it was a back-and-forth battle. However, in reality, Ichigo and White were using roughly the same amount of power.
"He doesn't understand!! That piece of trash has absolutely no idea who he is!?" White laughed wildly, "You think you're really my match? You're not qualified! Heh ha ha, but that piece of trash can still lose, he's a piece of trash!!"
Ichigo clenched his fists, his teeth clenched, filled with resentment. White, however, hoisted Zangetsu onto his shoulder. "He's so useless he can't even learn! He's so useless he thinks he can suppress me! He's so useless that even though the real one told him I'm a part of him, he's still guarding against his own part! That's the kind of trash he is, heh heh heh!"
"Unbelievable what's going on in his head? I, the great one, came out to fight you, and he watched, but instead of watching, he was thinking about getting his body back. Heh ha ha ha, I'm done playing. Let's see what you can teach him! Let's see what you can teach a piece of trash! Heh ha ha~"
Ichigo suddenly found himself back in his body, with complete control. He exchanged a glance with Hirako her head and said, "Go take a break. I don't think you're in top form right now. Should we rest or keep fighting?"
Ichigo Zangetsu tightly, his gaze resolute, "Keep fighting!"
The battle resumed, but after only two rounds, Hirako easily sent Ichigo flying, then sheathed his sword, saying, "Forget it, let's go rest for a while."
After saying Hirako left the Training Ground, leaving Ichigo bewildered and helpless as he got up from the ground.
Why? Why am I weaker than him?