The Shinigami Power Being Drawn Out

"Are you kidding me?! An attack like that can only be used once?" Rukia was about to lose her mind. How could someone who could casually unleash a super-powerful attack above Seated Officer level possibly only use it once?

"That's just how it is. Anyway, I can't explain it clearly to you!" Ichigo hurriedly condensed a black longbow and blocked a Hollow's attack, then called out, "Orihime, be careful."

"I know!" Orihime Inoue immediately put up the Three-Day Shield in front of the three of them. She glanced worriedly at the wound on Rukia's body. "Your injury..."

With Orihime Inoue's current ability, she still could not defend while using Soten Kisshun to heal someone. Right now, blocking the Hollows' attacks was obviously more important.

"I'm fine. You really can't use that attack again?" Rukia still asked, somewhat unwilling to give up.

"If I could, I would've used it already!" Ichigo could only use the black bow like a short staff and smash it into the Hollows, but the effect it had was barely better than nothing.

"Damn it!"

Rukia finally fired the Red Fire Cannon she had gathered. Perhaps because these Hollows had all gone berserk, this Red Fire Cannon did not produce a very good effect. It did not open an escape route at all, and the Hollows had already surrounded them.

Orihime Inoue's Tsubaki was already exhausted, yet still could not stop the Hollows from encircling them.

"Tsuna! Tsuna! Answer me!" Ichigo shouted anxiously. At a time like this, the only person he could think of was that mysterious childhood friend.

No matter how Ichigo called out, no sound came from the earpiece. It was not just Tsuna—no one answered him at all. At that moment, Ichigo understood. The three of them had already been isolated.

What should he do?

Ichigo was already somewhat at his wits' end. In front of him, Orihime Inoue was desperately resisting with the Four-Day Shield. Behind him, that unknown girl was using Kido and Zanjutsu. The wounds on that girl's body had grown more and more numerous, and Inoue's shield was also on the verge of collapse. It would not hold out for much longer.

Ichigo's heart was filled with anger. He could only cling to survival with the help of two girls. Power. He wanted power. He did not want to hide behind them anymore. He wanted the power to protect them!

Under Ichigo's intense craving for power, something within him awakened. A faint ring of blue light appeared in his pupils. Just then, a scream rang out behind Ichigo.

Ichigo turned back and saw a terrifying penetrating wound appear on Rukia's body. Her Zanpakuto also fell weakly beside her.

"Bastard!" Ichigo threw a punch with all his strength into the Hollow. This time, his attack worked. That Hollow was knocked back several steps in a row by Ichigo, crashing into the Hollows behind it as well and giving Rukia a little space.

"Orihime!"

Ichigo called out, and Orihime Inoue quickly turned around. Seeing Rukia badly injured, she could not care about anything else and hurriedly used Soten Kisshun to heal Rukia.

"No! I can hold on. Hurry and defend!"

The brief recovery let Rukia catch her breath. She hurriedly refused Inoue's treatment. At a time like this, defense was still a little more important.

The three of them curled up in a corner like that, relying only on Orihime Inoue's Three-Day Shield to maintain their final bit of safety. As for why it was not the Four-Day Shield, it was because Tsubaki was resting on Inoue's shoulder. He was already worn out.

Ichigo was still desperately tapping the Messenger Earpiece. In the end, he angrily threw the earpiece to the ground and cursed, "That profiteer really is unreliable. It doesn't work when it matters."

Beneath Ichigo's surface anger, his heart was full of worry. He knew that if they relied only on Orihime Inoue, they would not last much longer. If it really came to the final moment, he could only risk everything to let Orihime Inoue escape.

As for Rukia, Orihime Inoue could not even break out of the encirclement while taking an unharmed person like him along. Ichigo did not think Inoue could create any miracle while carrying an injured person.

"Hey, human, what's your name..." Rukia leaned against the wall, asking in a voice as faint as a thread.

"What for? Last words before we die? I'm Ichigo Kurosaki!" Ichigo said irritably. That bastard Tsuna really was unreliable. Before they ran into this girl, he and Orihime Inoue had still barely been able to flee for their lives. After meeting Rukia, they had been completely trapped by the swarm of Hollows.

"Ichigo Kurosaki, there's still one way. Are you willing to become a Soul Reaper?" Rukia asked.

"Soul Reaper?" Ichigo suddenly remembered that Tsuna seemed to have a kind of power called Soul Reaper as well, but Ichigo could no longer care about that much. "Whatever. What do you need me to do?"

"My name is Rukia Kuchiki. Please stake your life and fight!"

As she spoke, Rukia raised her Zanpakuto and stabbed it into Ichigo's chest. In that extremely small space, Ichigo had no possibility of dodging at all. He could only watch helplessly as Rukia pierced him through.

Sensing the abnormality behind her, Orihime Inoue turned her head. Seeing Ichigo pierced through, Orihime Inoue felt as if the sky were collapsing and cried out in shock, "Ichigo!"

The air wave raised by the violent Reiatsu covered Inoue's eyes. By the time Inoue's vision recovered, she saw Ichigo standing before her, dressed in a Kimono and carrying a huge Zanpakuto over his shoulder.

"Orihime, leave the rest to me."

Ichigo took a step forward and stood in front of Orihime Inoue. Orihime Inoue stared at him in a daze. She had never seen Ichigo like this before.

"Um, could you heal me a little?" Rukia said weakly. Judging from the Reiatsu bursting out of Ichigo, she knew there was no longer any need for Orihime Inoue to defend, which was why she made the request for treatment.

"Ah, sorry. Soten Kisshun." Inoue activated her ability, and a spindle-shaped barrier enveloped Rukia. Only then did she discover that Rukia, who had originally been wearing a black Kimono, had somehow changed into a pure white Kimono.

"Miss Rukia, what happened to you?" Orihime Inoue asked in confusion.

"My power was all absorbed by him..."

Rukia looked at that orange-haired boy holding the massive sword with a bitter smile. When her Zanpakuto pierced Ichigo's body, the Reiatsu inside her had poured continuously into Ichigo like water from a floodgate. She could not stop it no matter what she did. Only when all of her Reiatsu had entered Ichigo's body did Rukia's body turn into a soul state without any Reiatsu at all.

"So this is the power of a Soul Reaper?"

Ichigo looked at his palm and felt the power within him surging up endlessly. Without even looking, he swung his blade backward and cut the Hollow that had ambushed him in two.

"With this kind of power, I can do it!" Ichigo was full of confidence. He did not care about Zanjutsu or anything like that. In a swarm of Hollows this dense, casually swinging his blade twice could kill two Hollows.

It was just that simple and unadorned. Ichigo cut down one small fry with each slash, forcefully carving out a bloody path with Orihime Inoue and Rukia.

Strangely enough, under Ichigo's blade, the endless Hollows began to decrease in number. As his familiarity with the power increased, Ichigo stepped on Fullbring Light, intending to cut down every Hollow in this area.

Tsuna also sensed the abnormality on Ichigo's side. "So you became a Soul Reaper, Ichigo?"

"Uncle, Auntie, Ichigo's fate can't be stopped. With someone deliberately plotting, he was bound to step into this vortex eventually."

Tsuna recalled that when he had played at Ichigo's house, he had once asked Isshin and Masa in a roundabout way whether they wanted Ichigo to learn the powers of a Soul Reaper or a Quincy. The couple had held the same opinion: they only wanted Ichigo to grow up happily.

So it was not until Ichigo and Tatsuki took the initiative to seek out Tsuna to learn power that Tsuna taught Ichigo to use Fullbring.

The gears of fate ultimately turned as usual. Just like in the original plot, Ichigo absorbed Rukia's Reiatsu and became a Soul Reaper. Only this time, Ichigo, who possessed combat experience, erupted with even greater battle power. It would not be long before he cleared out the Hollows near them.

"How am I supposed to give your power back?" Ichigo asked when he returned to Rukia. He still understood the principle that if you borrowed something and returned it, borrowing again was easy. "Do I stab you?"

Ichigo held the huge Zanpakuto and gestured with it in front of Rukia, scaring her so badly she ran out of Soten Kisshun. Her body had basically recovered now, aside from her Reiatsu.

"Are you kidding me? If that thing stabs me, I'll be seriously injured even if I don't die!" Rukia protested vehemently.

"Ichigo, that's very rude," Orihime Inoue commented.

"All right, then. Your power?" Ichigo slung the Zanpakuto onto his back.

"Go ahead and use it. It's fine. My Reiatsu will recover after a while," Rukia said, folding her arms.

"That's perfect. You're a big help." Ichigo had been a little depressed after firing those three arrows, but now, having Bleach power for an extended period was just right for protecting his family.

"Hey? Ichigo, are things okay on your end?" Tsuna asked through the earpiece.

"Damn it, Tsuna, I already dealt with those Hollows that trapped us, and you're only just getting in touch?" Ichigo complained, then said cheerfully, "Tsuna, I've become a Bleach too. Just wait for me to catch up to you!"

"Sure, sure. I'll be waiting. By the way, are Aunt Masa and the others okay?" Tsuna dragged Ichigo's attention back to what mattered.

"Crap!" Only then did Ichigo remember. He had been so busy being happy that he had almost forgotten home. Without another word, he wrapped one arm around each girl and activated Fullbring Light, rushing toward his house.

Tsuna switched the communications channel to a private line. "Manager, you heard that, right? Ichigo has already become a Bleach."

"As expected, was this incident pushed along by Aizen?"

There was no expression visible on Urahara's face. From the moment he discovered those insects, Urahara had guessed that this incident was Aizen's handiwork. Those fragile insects were Surveillance Spirit Bugs, and Urahara himself had thrown more than a few bugs into Soul Society to keep track of its movements.

"Why Ichigo?" Urahara did not quite understand. He had placed the Hogyoku inside Rukia's body. Aizen only needed to target Rukia alone, so why did he have to drag Ichigo into this?

If he wanted Rukia to commit some enormous mistake, Aizen had ten thousand ways to do it. There was no need to use such an aggressive method. Summoning such a huge horde of Hollows in the World of the Living would expose them to Soul Society sooner or later.

"Maybe it was just convenient. Maybe he wanted to see how far the result he personally planted could grow," Tsuna said.

"Yes. In a certain sense, Aizen could be considered one of Mr. Ichigo's elders too. Controlling everything—that really is his style," Urahara sighed.

Aizen had created White, and White's attack had led to Isshin and Masa meeting, indirectly bringing about the birth of Ichigo Kurosaki, the biggest bug in the world of Bleach.

"Since his goal has already been achieved, it's about time this Hollow tide ended too." Tsuna looked up at the sky. The newly appearing Hollows were already gradually decreasing.

"That's right. Mr. Inoue has also already acted according to the plan. I hope everything goes smoothly," Urahara Kisuke said.