"Woman, come with me. Lord Aizen is waiting for you. Even if you delay any longer, no one will come to save you!"
"I know, I know."
Walking across the boundless desert, Ulquiorra led the way, with Orihime with tears. The two strolled slowly towards Las Noches.
Ulquiorra was getting impatient because Orihime was walking too slowly, but he didn't want to resort to violence. He simply turned around and looked at Orihime. Orihime felt Ulquiorra's gaze, held back her tears, and after a soft sob, quickened her pace.
However, at that moment, Space Passage suddenly opened not far away, and Ichigo Kurosaki rushed out from it.
"Orihime! I've come to save you!"
"Ichigo!?"
"Ichigo Kurosaki?"
Both of them were surprised. Ulquiorra was surprised by the speed of the World of the Living's reaction. He had secretly taken Orihime away, and it was still nighttime, so why was Ichigo Kurosaki chasing after them?
But there's no time to worry about that now. We can't let Ichigo Kurosaki rescue Orihime Inoue under any circumstances. However, to be fair, Ichigo Kurosaki's power is simply insufficient to do so.
Ulquiorra vanished instantly, reappearing in front of Ichigo and thrusting his hand into Ichigo Kurosaki's chest—his usual method of killing, creating a hole in someone's chest just like his own.
Ichigo caught the attack steadily. Zangetsu Blade slashed down fiercely, and Ulquiorra, feeling Ichigo's Reiatsu, didn't have time to draw his own sword and could only catch it with his hands.
Zangetsu broke through Ulquiorra's protective Spiritual Power, and black blood flowed out. Ulquiorra was shocked, "Your power! It shouldn't be like this!"
"My power is beyond your comprehension! Give Orihime back to me!!" Ichigo suddenly unleashed a powerful burst of Spiritual Power, blasting Ulquiorra away.
Ulquiorra instantly appeared before Orihime, shielding her from Ichigo's Kongbu power. "I truly don't understand your power. I admit you had the potential to save her, but it was only a possibility."
"Women, don't resist."
Orihime didn't know why she obeyed Ulquiorra's orders, and without any resistance, she was sealed inside a sphere of Spiritual Power. Then, the two men's swords clashed outside, and in an instant, a tremendous force erupted, shattering the sand sea.
Orihime knew she was completely powerless against this force, but now she felt inexplicably at ease. "Is he protecting me? Why?"
"Release! Tensa Zangetsu!"
"Resurrección! Black-Winged Demon!"
"Ah!!" Ichigo Kurosaki immediately put on his Hollowfication Mask, completing the Hollowfication Mask Fusion, and surprisingly, he forced Ulquiorra into a retreating position.
Orihime couldn't believe that Ichigo could actually defeat an Arrancar, and that Hollowfication Mask gave her a terrifying feeling. Ichigo's current appearance was also terrifying; despite coming to save her, Ichigo Kurosaki filled her with immense fear.
"Segunda Etapa!!"
The battle quickly progressed to the Segunda Etapa, unleashing even more ferocious power. However, incredibly, Ulquiorra was still at a disadvantage; Ichigo Kurosaki's formidable strength was even more Kongbu Ulquiorra's.
The Spiritual Power emanating from their battle was even more Kongbu; the desert was being melted by the Spiritual Power, and the powerful force was altering the terrain. Suddenly, a crack appeared in the sphere of Spiritual Power beside Orihime.
Orihime was terrified. Watching the two locked in a desperate battle, her heart filled with fear. She knew that regardless of who won, she would die if the Spiritual Power sphere shattered. Of course, she still hoped Ichigo would win, but deep down she also prayed...
"Someone, someone please save me!"
The sound of a soft thud was right next to her. Orihime opened her eyes and saw Ulquiorra pierced through the abdomen by Tensa Zangetsu. Ulquiorra's hand was on the Spiritual Power orb; he was looking at her.
The next moment, Tensa Zangetsu cleaved Ulquiorra in two. Ulquiorra's High-Speed Regeneration was remarkable, but just as he was repairing himself down to only one arm, he was cleaved in two once more.
Ichigo Kurosaki roared, relentlessly slashing at Ulquiorra as he tried to repair his body. Ulquiorra had no choice but to be cut in half again and again. Finally, Ulquiorra's power was exhausted, and he was cut in two one last time, unable to repair himself any longer.
Orihime's heart clenched painfully. She saw Ulquiorra looking at her one last time, and the next moment, a black longsword pierced through Ulquiorra's head. Spiritual Power exploded, shattering his entire skull into pieces.
Ichigo Kurosaki reached the Spiritual Power orb, slashed it open with his Spiritual Power as it dissipated, grabbed Orihime's hand, and said with a smile, "Orihime! Let's go."
However, Orihime suddenly collapsed to the ground, her legs giving way beneath her, her whole body trembling. Ichigo, wearing Hollowfication Mask, was incredibly Kongbu. She wanted to speak, but couldn't utter a word.
She seemed to see Ichigo Kurosaki raising his sword, about to strike her.
"No!!" Orihime screamed.
Wake up! It's a dream!
Orihime felt someone grab her hand, and she jerked her eyes open. Before her was a dream, the one who should have died!?
"Was it a dream?" Orihime asked uncertainly. "How did you know I had a dream?"
"Because I had the same dream, and I left the dream the moment I was killed," Ulquiorra said calmly. "This dream is unusual; it couldn't have just happened suddenly. Clearly, someone used their power on us. It was..."
Ulquiorra looked in the direction of Chun. Chun smiled slightly, snapped her fingers, and canceled her disguise. This was Seven Laws' second ability: altering perception.
This ability prevents anyone within its range from recognizing someone they previously knew. However, like altering Reiatsu, it can be countered by having physical contact between the two individuals when the ability is activated.
Furthermore, once this ability is activated, it only makes you unrecognizable to people you know, but it won't interfere with conversations or change your location. Therefore, Golvi could hear Jun and Isuzu's conversation, so she could naturally use her ability on them.
"Haha, how did you figure it out?"
"It's not that I can sense it; I can't sense my father's abilities either. But the ability that I can't sense and resist requires extremely close range to activate, so..."
Chun chuckled and pinched Isuzu's cheek. "I told you not to get too close, see? You got caught!"
"Shimizu-san, Lady Shimizu, you..."
"I'm sure Inoue -sensei can understand if you're concerned about your children's love lives, right?"
"I"
What could Orihime say? Jun smiled and said, "Explain that ability one of you had just mentioned. That was Golvi's ability, called 'Shared Dreams'."
"This ability is a very perverse one. It works by releasing her Hallucinogenic Powder. Anyone surrounded by her powder and inhaling the same batch will be trapped in the same dream, and the composition of this dream depends on everyone trapped inside."
"You mean, after we were trapped in the dream, everything that happened in that dream was just our own imagination, right?"
"It's the common ground reflected in your memories and consciousness," Jun said, holding her tightly. "For example, Isuzu and I were the first to experience this ability. In our dreams, she was that cute young girl, and I was a composed middle-aged man. We spent a happy life in the dream and in the World of the Living. It's a pity we can't have the same dream again, otherwise I really want to do it again."
"Yes~", Isuzu kissed Jun's cheek tenderly, "It's such a pity, Vivi!"
Fortunately, Isuzu stopped her in time, otherwise Golvi would definitely have released the powder. At this moment, Golvi playfully stuck out her tongue and then licked her ice cream little by little. Actually, this girl is quite cunning.
"We won't ask what you dreamed about; that's your shared secret. Ulquiorra, since you call me father, I've done everything I could for you. Now it's all up to you."
"Hug~" Golvi said sweetly, and Chun picked up her daughter. The family of three left happily.
Ulquiorra and Orihime were left behind, looked at each other. Orihime's face flushed bright red instantly, while Ulquiorra remained as clueless as ever, the Visionary the things in his dream.
"In our dream, Ichigo Kurosaki appeared because both you and I knew he would definitely come to save you. But what happened next was completely different from reality. I protected you with a shield, which doesn't make sense in reality. At that point in time, I wouldn't have protected you at all."
"But in the dream, I prioritized protecting you, so we both assumed I would protect you, is that right?"
Orihime was practically burying her head in her chest. She wasn't stupid; the dream was there for all to see, and the principles had been explained. So, wasn't her impression of Ulquiorra very clear now?
"But why did I lose to Ichigo Kurosaki? Does it mean that in my own mind, I'm no longer a match for Ichigo Kurosaki? And you seem to agree with that?"
"That's true. Ichigo Kurosaki's talent and growth rate are too fast. I might soon find myself no match for him. That's definitely the case."
"But are you afraid of Ichigo Kurosaki? Why is that?"
"Stop talking!!" Orihime's mind was a complete mess. She realized she truly felt safe in Ulquiorra's presence. She was afraid of Ichigo Kurosaki, but she also liked the feeling of being near Ulquiorra —it was a sense of security.
"I understand, I'll continue the Visionary it myself."
"Stop!" Orihime grabbed Ulquiorra, her face flushed and tears welling in her eyes. "Can't you let me have a little bit of self-respect?"
"Pride? Where exactly did I hurt you? I... I'll change for you," Ulquiorra looked earnestly into Orihime's eyes, "I will protect you, that's what my heart tells me."
Orihime was both amused and exasperated. She realized she did indeed have feelings for Ulquiorra, but the current Ulquiorra was acting so strangely that she really didn't know how to respond.
"You're so cute! Really~"
"Cute? Me? Are you even using that as a word?"
Orihime covered his mouth with her hand, "Shut up, if you still want me to like you."
Ulquiorra looked at Orihime and nodded. Orihime finally breathed a sigh of relief and turned her back.
"From now on, if I tell you to shut up, you shut up, understand?!"
Ulquiorra nodded, Orihime, noticing the lack of response, turned to look at the bewildered Ulquiorra. "Say something!"
"Understand"
Why didn't you answer me before?
"You told me to shut up before."
"I give up."
No, you are not obeying me; I am obeying you.
"Shut up!" Orihime realized that Ulquiorra was truly an absolute gem. How could she possibly live with a boyfriend like that?