Uryu Ishida

"Brother Biao, scoot over a little!" Shyarly came up to the sofa and nudged Wu Biao, who was engrossed in watching Saint Seiya, to one side.

Wu Biao nodded casually and shifted his butt over. Then, in a flash, he sprang to his feet and shouted, waving his arms around, "Go on, take him down, Seiya! Pegasus Meteor Fist!!!"

"Brother Biao, how old are you? Even Yuzu and I can't be bothered to watch this kind of anime!" Shyarly glanced at him, used to it by now, then lowered her head and continued reading her textbook.

Clearly, the whole family had gotten used to Brother Biao's intermittent bouts of madness!

"No, Shyarly, I watch it too!" Yuzu said wistfully from the kitchen.

Shyarly sighed and glanced at the clock on the wall. "It's already past seven. Why isn't Ichigo back yet?" Then she suddenly remembered a certain jerk at home and cursed angrily, "And that jerk! How can he be so carefree about leaving his two daughters home alone and going out for a stroll every night?"

"Ichigo should be back soon," Wu Biao interjected. "He's nearby, chopping things up. He'll be back when he's done!"

Chopping things up?

Shyarly furrowed her brows, suddenly remembering what she'd experienced a while ago. After hesitating for a moment, she asked, "Brother Biao, tell me the truth. What exactly does that monster we saw at the cemetery last time have to do with Ichigo?"

"Ichigo told me not to say..." Brother Biao replied without hesitation, then added, "Besides, even if Ichigo said I could, I wouldn't understand that Shinigami and Hollow stuff."

"..."

You've pretty much already told me, haven't you? Shyarly figured that even if she managed to get information out of Brother Biao's muddled brain, she still wouldn't be able to make sense of it.

Meanwhile, on the road home from school, Ichigo said, "Hey, Rukia, is your Denreishinki broken?" Dressed in a black kimono and carrying a massive sword on his back, he was in his Shinigami form. "This has happened three times today. It clearly gives a signal, but there's no sign of a Hollow."

"Quit whining," Rukia replied. "I'm just telling you what the Denreishinki says. Hurry up and get back into your body."

"Yeah, yeah, I know." Ichigo closed his eyes slightly and returned to his body. "Rukia, can't you take it in for repairs?"

"Yeah, yeah, it's my fault, all right?" Rukia replied, looking displeased.

"Did you two have a falling-out?" A voice suddenly rang out. Footsteps sounded in the darkness, and then someone emerged from the shadows.

The boy was dressed entirely in white robes. He pushed up his glasses slightly and said, "Good evening, Kurosaki-kun. Kuchiki-kun."

"Who are you? How do you know my name?" Ichigo asked, frowning as he looked at him.

But the other boy ignored him and turned to look to the left, angling his body slightly. "Another Hollow has appeared."

"What?"

Rukia and Ichigo were startled. Just then, the Denreishinki started beeping. She took it out and looked closely; a flicker of surprise crossed her eyes. "It's true. There's a signal."

Ichigo glanced at the boy strangely, then turned to Rukia. "Where is it?"

"Over there!" The boy—Uryu Ishida—pointed to the left, his face full of scorn. "You can't even sense a Hollow. Do you really call yourself a Shinigami?"

After speaking, Uryu let out a quiet laugh. The decorative cross on his right hand suddenly blazed with blue light, and in an instant, a blue energy bow appeared in his grasp.

Uryu glanced at the two somewhat dumbfounded figures beside him. Gripping the bowstring with his left hand, he pulled it back, drawing the energy bow into a full crescent. An energy arrow formed upon it.

"Fire!" Uryu released the string, and the energy arrow shot straight into the sky. Just then, a Hollow emerged from the void above—only to have its head pierced by the arrow and vanish into thin air.

"The signal's gone," Rukia said, looking at the Denreishinki in her hand.

"You... who are you?" Ichigo asked, frowning at Uryu. The boy in front of him was clearly human. Could he be some kind of human mutant, like Brother Biao?

"Uryu Ishida. Quincy." Uryu spat out the words coldly, then turned and glared at Ichigo. "I hate Shinigami." With that, Uryu left. Ichigo and Rukia watched him go without trying to stop him.

Quincy? Rukia had never heard of a name like that. A hint of curiosity rose in her, and she secretly decided to ask that swindler about it tomorrow.

After what had happened earlier, Ichigo clearly wasn't hungry when he got home. He ate a little, then carried Rukia's portion upstairs.

"What's wrong with Ichigo?"

"How should I know?" Wu Biao said, smoking as he sprawled across the sofa.

Shyarly rolled her eyes at Wu Biao and looked upstairs, worried.

The next day, Ichigo went to school by himself. As for Rukia, she'd gone somewhere early that morning.

He couldn't focus on class at all that day, because he'd discovered that the person named Uryu Ishida from the previous day was actually his classmate. It had to be said that Ichigo's social circle was tiny. Apart from a few people in his class, he didn't know anyone else.

Of course, his naturally blond hair was part of the reason. Ichigo was always frowning, looking fierce, almost like a delinquent. His classmates who weren't familiar with his personality kept their distance.

The day passed with Ichigo watching Uryu. Even after school, he couldn't resist his curiosity and quietly followed him.

"Are you planning to walk home with me?" Uryu suddenly stopped at the pedestrian overpass and said, "Kurosaki Ichigo."

"Damn, you noticed?" Ichigo said, unbothered, standing behind Uryu. "When did you figure it out?"

"When you and Inoue were watching me from the classroom doorway." Uryu pushed up his glasses. "You seem to lack the abilities someone with high spiritual power ought to have."

Ichigo furrowed his brows. Uryu's words left him with no way to argue. After all, he was only a Shinigami who'd come to it halfway through his life, so naturally there were plenty of techniques he didn't know.

"Let's settle this, Kurosaki Ichigo." Uryu didn't wait for him to speak and continued on his own. "I'll show you which of us is superior. I'll make you understand that this world has no need for Shinigami."

"Settle this?" Ichigo repeated, clicking his tongue. "How boring. Why do we have to do this? It's stupid. I don't know what you have against the Shinigami, but it has nothing to do with me!"

"I'm surprised. Are you going to run away?"

"I won't fall for your provocation, and I have no interest in settling this with you." With that, Ichigo turned and started to leave!

"Oh, right, I just remembered." Uryu looked at Ichigo with a hint of mockery. "You got your Shinigami powers from Kuchiki Rukia. In other words, you're just a substitute Shinigami. Without her permission, you can't even lift a finger, let alone use a Shinigami's power."

"What did you say?" Ichigo stopped, then slowly turned around. "Fine. I've got nothing else to do anyway. Let's settle this." Ichigo took off his backpack, opened it, and pulled out a lion-like plush toy.

"Hey, Ichigo! It may be your big sister's orders, but how dare you put the great me inside your backpack!" Kon immediately started nagging Ichigo as soon as he came out. Uryu frowned slightly, wondering how the plush toy in Ichigo's hands could talk—and why it seemed to have a soul.

"Time to switch!" Ignoring Kon's complaints, Ichigo shoved his hand into the plush toy's mouth, pulled out the Mod Soul Pill, and swallowed it. With a bang, Ichigo appeared in his Shinigami form.

"Kon, stay back and watch!"

Kon didn't hesitate. He picked up the plush toy and backpack, then ran off to one side.

Uryu reached into the pocket of his shirt and pulled out something shaped like a Capsule. "Let's use this to settle things. It's bait made specifically for Hollows. Crush it and scatter it, and the Hollows will come flocking."