Five more years passed, Soul Society had given up on finding Zero, instead turning its attention back to the Quincy, but this time it was unsuccessful.
The Wandenreich, the Ice Palace.
"Report: The technical team, in cooperation with His Excellency Wenlai, has successfully thwarted the Soul Society's invasion for the fifth time."
"Okay, go down!"
Jugram Haschwalth stood beside the throne, listening to his subordinates' reports. He had indeed made the right choice in promoting someone; this Wenlai Jelsen's use of the Schrift 'J' was even better than that of Cang Du back then.
With the cooperation of a group of Holy Soldiers, Wenlai was able to create a cage that locked up the entire Wandenreich, distorting and blocking any probes that tried to enter.
Jugram Haschwalth, who could borrow Yhwach's power, could not possibly be unable to foresee Soul Reaper's actions, so he had already made many arrangements in advance.
Mayuri Kurotsuchi had already discovered the existence of the Shadow World, but had been unable to enter. An irresistible force seemed to be deliberately preventing his intrusion...
Soon after, the Shadow World completely disappeared... It wasn't just the Soul Society that was progressing; the Quincy were also progressing.
In the World of the Living, Zero's five-year-old clone, Ryūsaki, the second son of the Ishida Family, has begun to receive education. This education is not ordinary schooling, but Quincy education, which is called 'Holy Training'.
Ryūgen, Ryūken's older brother, is the eldest son and four years older than Ryūsaki. His mother was very strict with his upbringing, which allowed him to create his own unique bow at the age of nine... Of course, it was only a very basic bow, and its strength was not yet enough to shoot the 'Heilig Pfeil'.
On the other hand, no matter how hard Ryūsaki tried, he was unable to use Reishi to construct his own Spirit Bow, and he even had difficulty making arrows when he picked up a bow that resembled Spirit Weapon.
Compared to Ryūken when he was five years old, the difference is enormous. If there's any reason to dispel doubts about whether the two are brothers, it's that they look very similar, both with white hair.
The only difference is that Ryūsaki doesn't wear glasses or need glasses, and her hairstyle is a more masculine buzz cut...
It was time for kindergarten to let out again, Ryūsaki was taken directly to the third training ground by the servants. This place was owned by the Ishida Family; on the surface it was a forest, but in reality there was a hidden Reishi space.
Even though Ryūsaki came with the memories of her original self, she still didn't quite understand why Pure-Blood Quincy still existed in the World of the Living. Logically, they should have remained in the Wandenreich...
"Father."
Ryūsaki spoke without any awkwardness. I don't know what her original self is like, but at least this clone of Ryūsaki's biological father is Sōken Ishida.
If he were acting strangely or overly unusually, he would have been recognized as abnormal long ago; therefore, Ryūsaki has given him everything that children like.
For example, Ultraman, and various children's toys...
"Okay, you may leave now!"
Sōken, who had been waiting there, dismissed his Servants and then smiled at Ryūsaki, saying, "Ryūsaki! Come on, let me introduce you to a new companion today."
"OK!"
Ryūsaki happily followed, assuming this was a maid arranged for him. With his adult mindset, he was excited: his older brother had a maid Katagiri Hae, so he should have one too.
Raising a loli? Wait, what if she's a boy...?
After passing through the forest that concealed the surface of the practice field, Sōken had already led Ryūsaki into a Reishi space.
At the edge of the space, three children—one boy and two girls—were competing to see whose Reishi Arrows were more accurate; Ryūken and Katagiri recognized them, as did the Ryūsaki little girl, who was presumably the new companion that Sōken had mentioned.
As soon as the two of them passed by, the three of them abandoned their target practice and came over to greet them.
"My name is Masaki Kurosaki. I'll be staying at your house from now on. Nice to meet you."
My name is Ryūsaki!
After a brief introduction, Ryūsaki learned that the girl, who was three years older than him, was not a maid or Servants, but was temporarily staying at the Ishida Family because her parents had died in the battle against the Hollows.
Moreover, and most importantly, this girl was already engaged to Ryūken, and the two were only one year apart in age... Any plans to groom her instantly fell apart.
The original body's memories of the past had long faded, so Ryūsaki didn't know that this girl was the biological mother of the protagonist from the original timeline...
When Masaki Kurosaki first arrived at the Ishida Family, sadness still occasionally showed in her eyes. After all, her loved ones had just passed away, and it was impossible for her to get over the grief so quickly.
She witnessed her parents being killed by a Hollow with strange abilities, and their souls being devoured.
Five more years passed, and Ryūsaki's pressure grew heavier and heavier. Now ten years old, he still couldn't conjure an arrow, and every time he returned from Holy Training, he was scolded by his mother, like this time...
"I told you not to watch so much anime. That stuff only wastes your time. After the Kurosaki Family fell, our family is the Pure-Blood Quincy left in the World of the Living."
"Look at your brother Ryūken, he's much more obedient than you, and he's never given me any trouble."
"And look at you, either you're playing arcade games or hiding at home watching anime, which has led to the current state of 'Holy Training' being a complete mess; you can't even fire the most basic arrow."
"Even Katagiri, who is of mixed race, is far superior to you. If you continue like this, you will become a disgrace to the Ishida Family..."
As his mother was spewing spittle, Sōken, who was drinking tea, couldn't stand it any longer and chimed in, "Perhaps Ryūsaki doesn't want to become Quincy; we should respect his choice."
"As a pure-blooded Quincy descendant, are you just going to condone him just because he doesn't want to become Quincy? Sōken, you're only letting the Quincy bloodline continue to decline."
"It's not about indulging them, but respecting my sons' choices. Even if Ryūsaki isn't Quincy, he's still my son..."
Hearing his father's confession, Ryūsaki felt a little touched; a large part of the reason he had been able to integrate well into this family was due to Sōken's tolerance.
Ryūsaki also knew that her parents had argued several times because of her situation, and each argument was followed by a cold war.
But he couldn't start showing off his power over such trivial matters, for fear of attracting unnecessary trouble and being targeted by the Soul Society or the Wandenreich before he had even reached his peak.
Ryūsaki always kept her goal in mind: to grow to the peak and do everything possible to liberate her true form.
"You guys keep discussing it. Anyway, it's the weekend tomorrow, I'm going out for a walk to clear my head!"
Unable to reveal his power and unwilling to debate, Zero resorted to his usual tactic of escapism, not forgetting to reprimand his servants as he left, telling them not to follow him...
Over the past few years, Ryūken, bound by his tutoring, has gradually become expressionless, forming a stark contrast with Masaki, who often suddenly bursts into silly laughter.
Compared to the expressionless Ryūken, Ryūsaki likes her younger cousin Masaki more because Ryūsaki, like her, is often scolded. Not only by the Holy Training, but also by various Quincy, Ryūsaki is just as bad as her.
Because Ryūsaki couldn't shoot arrows even with the help of his Spirit Weapon, he was never assigned to actual combat... Even when there were feints attacking Ryūsaki, they were instantly dealt with by his Servants. He was always defined as someone who needed protection, simply because he was Pure-Blood Quincy.
Masaki gets out of school late, learns that her cousin has run away from home and immediately wants to go out and find him... In contrast, Ryūken has no intention of going out.
Katagiri Hae saw Ryūken standing by the window in a daze and said softly, "Miss Masaki and Young Master Ryūsaki's relationship is getting better and better. Young Master, don't you plan to do something about it?"
Upon hearing this, Ryūken slowly turned and left. "If they are more suitable, then I won't force them. After all, it's just about continuing the bloodline..."
Katagiri sensed the obvious melancholy in Ryūken's tone. She thought to herself, 'Young Master loves Ryūsaki very much, but he can't give up what should belong to him just because of that, even though he's clearly more outstanding than Ryūsaki.'
Ryūsaki didn't care about anything else. He had already achieved a seven-game winning streak in the arcade. Iori Yagami on the arcade screen was Ryūsaki's signature move and a nightmare that Qunqing could hardly achieve.
"Anyone else who disagrees? Hurry up... huh?"
Just as Ryūsaki was feeling happy, a loud bang interrupted his boasting, causing the delinquents in the arcade to look up in surprise.
A large hole was smashed in the back wall of the arcade, but no one could see what had caused the impact.
Only Ryūsaki noticed a person dressed in Shihakusho, muttering to himself as he stood up, "What is that thing? It has a slightly ethereal Reiatsu, yet it's mixed with a strange one, and its strength is so formidable."
He got up and left instantly. This was not unfamiliar to Ryūsaki; it was the unique footwork of the Soul Reaper — Shunpo!
Judging from the intensity of his Reiatsu, this person is quite skilled, yet he was forced into such a sorry state by a strange Hollow.
Ryūsaki darted out of the arcade in a few flashes and jumped to a place with a wide view. He saw two dark figures fighting on a rooftop, the sound of metal clashing against metal ringing out incessantly.
The Soul Reaper just now seemed to have already Shikai. He was wielding a Cross Greatsword, the blade of which was hollowed out near the hilt, radiating a powerful Reiatsu.
His opponent was even more bizarre; judging by the mask, he was an illusion, yet his entire body, except for the mask, was wrapped in a black robe, making the Hollow Hole invisible.
It has three hands and one foot, but its wrists are all tightly Chains together. However, it looks very strange, as the Chains have no broken points; they are simply connected to some unseen space.
As Soul Reaper swung his Greatsword, Hollow suddenly jerked his wrist, and Chains appeared from the void and extended, blocking Soul Reaper's strike.