"...You're a girl now~"
The shady merchant Urahara looked at Kurosaki Ichigo before him and spoke with a beaming smile.
"What kind of joke is that?!"
Kurosaki Ichigo's expression changed drastically at those words. He instinctively reached down to feel the most important part of his body. Fortunately, his little brother was still there.
"Phew..."
Once Kurosaki Ichigo confirmed that his little brother was safe and sound, he slowly let out a breath.
"Ahahaha..."
"Sorry about that, Ichigo~ I misspoke just now."
"To be precise, you're an ordinary human now~"
After teasing Kurosaki Ichigo for a while, Urahara finally said with a smile.
"You damn shady merchant!"
Kurosaki Ichigo naturally realized that Urahara had been messing with him. His eyelid twitched slightly before he angrily snapped at Urahara Kisuke.
"Phew..."
After cursing Urahara, Kurosaki Ichigo suddenly remembered something, and his expression abruptly changed. "Where's Rukia? Where did Rukia go?"
"Rukia was taken away by her brother~"
"With her brother there, you needn't worry about her safety!"
After hearing Kurosaki Ichigo's words, Urahara Kisuke replied with a smile.
"Is that so?"
Kurosaki Ichigo frowned deeply, his eyes carrying a hint of unease.
If Rukia was truly safe, then why had she left that letter behind for him?! So her brother, along with that red-haired, tattooed punk, had come all the way from Soul Society, so far from the Human World, to Karakura Town just to take Rukia back?!
Kurosaki Ichigo felt that things were not so simple.
"I'm going to find Rukia and get answers!"
As Kurosaki Ichigo spoke, he tried to get out of bed.
"With your current strength, what could you do even if you went to Soul Society?"
"Even if you went, you wouldn't be able to change anything..."
Urahara Kisuke looked at Kurosaki Ichigo and smiled.
"Being