Kurosaki Family.
"This is so boring. Big Brother Ichigo ran off as soon as summer vacation started, and I don't know where Brother Biao went either. Suddenly, home feels so dull!" Yuzu sighed as she set the dishes she had just made on the table.
"Brother Biao must've gone somewhere to pick a fight!" Shyarly said, looking up from the newspaper she was reading in a chair nearby. The obnoxious idiot had suddenly disappeared, and the house felt lonely without him.
Clearly, Wu Biao's departure had left Shyarly and Yuzu feeling as if there was a lot less fun around. Once Shyarly realized it, she couldn't help smiling wryly.
"Hey, why don't we all sleep in Dad's bed tonight?" Kurosaki Isshin suddenly popped up in front of Shyarly, his face full of anticipation.
Veins bulged on Shyarly's forehead. She rolled up the newspaper in her hand, shoved it into Isshin's mouth, and snapped, "Are you kidding? How would we all fit?"
"Yeah, even imagining it makes me uncomfortable," Yuzu agreed.
A hundred meters beneath the Urahara Shop.
The area around them was barren. Though they were underground, it was brightly lit, illuminated by an unknown source. Several figures of various sizes stood beside a hundred-meter-deep pit. Two figures were inside it: one had his arms bound, while the other sat nearby, forming an unfamiliar hand sign.
Urahara Kisuke walked forward, his expression grave. "Once you're at the bottom of the 'Pit of Despair,' you'll have only 72 hours—that is, three days—before the self-corruption is complete."
"Before that happens, you have to become a Shinigami and climb out of the pit. Otherwise, once you turn into a Hollow..." A hard glint flashed across Urahara Kisuke's face. His voice darkened as he continued, "I'll have no choice but to destroy you myself!"
Kurosaki Ichigo, his arms bound inside the pit, looked stunned. "You... You're going to kill me, Urahara Kisuke?"
"That's right. If you give up!"
On the way home from school.
"Chad Yasutora and Orihime Inoue, you're the two I'm looking for, right?" A deep male voice suddenly reached Orihime and Chad as they walked together.
"Who's there?" Chad looked around.
"Down here, big guy," the voice said again. "Look down and you'll see me."
Chad lowered his head slightly and saw only a black cat at his feet. He couldn't help feeling puzzled. Just then, the cat raised a paw and waved. "Hey there."
"A cat...!"
Chad blinked, then finally reacted. "The cat just talked?"
"Dummy. What's so surprising about a cat talking?" The black cat looked at him as if he were making a fuss over nothing.
"Well..." Chad looked at the cat. "It's hard to believe, but may I ask what you want with me, Mr. Cat?"
"Of course. And you're not the only one." The cat leaped onto a nearby railing and looked at Orihime beside him. "You, too. I have something to discuss with both of you."
"Something to discuss? With me and Inoue?" Chad stared at the cat, bewildered.
"How cute! The cat can talk!"
Orihime came around, then eagerly rushed over and hugged Yoruichi, rubbing her face against the cat's. If Yoruichi really were a man, as her voice suggested, she probably would've enjoyed it.
But Yoruichi clearly wasn't interested. With a little hop, she jumped out of Orihime's arms and looked at the two of them. "Ichigo has already told you about Kuchiki. You should know that Soul Society is the Shinigami's home base, and it's full of them. Ichigo needs companions. Would you be willing to go with him?"
"Of course we would! But..." Orihime looked at Yoruichi. "Chad's so strong, he can definitely help Ichigo. But what can I do to help him?"
"You seem to have forgotten about the power you possess," Yoruichi said, padding along with graceful little steps. "Orihime, the Shun Shun Rikka you used at school. And Chad, the power in your right arm. Have you forgotten about them?"
"I've tried using it before, but I can't do it again," Chad said. "No matter how hard I try."
Orihime nodded, too. "I've tried as well, but they haven't appeared again."
"That's exactly why I came here!"
Soul Society, 6th Division's temporary prison.
"How could this be? Captain Kuchiki... What... what did you just say?" Renji gripped the prison bars tightly, staring at Byakuya Kuchiki in disbelief. He couldn't believe what he had just heard.
"Exactly what you heard..." Byakuya Kuchiki tucked the order into his robes. His face remained as cold and merciless as ever. "For the highest-level crime, Kuchiki Rukia will be transferred to the Palace of Penitence as a death-row inmate. In twenty-five days, she will be executed at Sokyoku Hill. That is the final decision of Central 46."
Renji swallowed hard. Anger and regret filled his gaze as he looked at Byakuya Kuchiki. If he'd known Rukia would face such a severe punishment, he never would've chosen to capture her in the Human World and bring her back to Soul Society!
Rukia blinked faintly, her eyes lifeless. She wasn't surprised by this outcome, and she'd never thought that Big Brother Byakuya would try to get her sentence reduced.
In the forty years since she'd been adopted, the man before her had never once looked her in the eye.
"This should be the last time we speak." Byakuya Kuchiki turned and walked toward the exit of the temporary prison. His calm voice echoed through the cell. "Rukia, the next time we meet will be at Sokyoku Hill."
Somewhere in the mountains near Karakura Town.
The blue Reishi shone brilliantly, even in the daytime. Ishida Uryu stood in an open area and slowly lowered the Reishi Bow on his arm. Joy filled his handsome face.
"Great! It's done!"
He looked at the sleeve linked to the glove on his right arm, and a hint of nostalgia surfaced in his eyes. "Thank you... Master."
Somewhere in the world, in a desolate mountain range far from any city.
Even under the bright sunlight, the deep forest looked dark and gloomy. From a distance, it seemed like an abyss.
The soil here was a dark gray, like hardened ashes, and a pungent odor hung in the air. The trees had dark brown bark.
Their roots twisted around one another, their trunks resembled giant serpents, and their branches stretched out in crooked, contorted shapes. If ordinary trees seemed to stand upright, the trees in this forest seemed to be dancing wildly.
And they danced wildly without a breath of wind. No birds or animals called in the forest. There was only silence—a silence too profound to describe.
But anyone with spirit vision would see a different scene. Dark gray mist drifted through the forest, concealing everything within from those outside.
The once-silent forest would also be filled with mournful cries and strange, constant roars.
Far beyond the mountain range, a helicopter slowly approached. It didn't enter the forest, instead stopping high above the mountains. When the cabin door opened, two people stood at the entrance, gazing into the distance.
They were Kanonji and Wu Biao, who had traveled by helicopter for two days and two nights!
"This is the Ancient Mountain Range, known as the 'World's Most Terrifying Unsolved Danger Zone'—a completely fictional title!" Kanonji pointed to the mountains below, his expression grave. "Anyone who enters this range—or even flies over it—never... comes back!"
"Whoa, this place feels seriously awesome, Master Kanonji!" Wu Biao's face was alight with excitement. He sniffed and continued, "Just like you said, I can smell a lot of good stuff!"
"Heh-heh!" Kanonji grinned proudly. "I came here once before, but at the time, I didn't know Hollows existed. I only learned about them after meeting you all. So when you called and asked where there were lots of Hollows, this was the first place that came to mind!"
"It takes two days to get here, so you'll only have thirteen days to spend here. After thirteen days, we'll have to start the trip back!"
"Mm!" Wu Biao nodded firmly and turned to look back the way they'd come. His family was waiting for him to protect them. He had to... No, no matter what, he had to grow stronger over these thirteen days!
Strong enough to surpass anyone and protect all the family and friends he cherished!
"Remember, keeping yourself alive must be your top priority. You're the only heir to the Kanonji Style!" Kanonji told Wu Biao solemnly.
"Don't worry, Master Kanonji. I'll definitely come back!"
"Biao!"
"Master Kanonji, I'll prove it to you... I'll become stronger than anyone and defeat every enemy!"
"I believe you! From the first moment I saw you, my goal for the rest of my life changed. I'm going to train you into a great Spirit Detective. I... will pass on every secret technique of the Kanonji Style to you!"
"Master!" Wu Biao wept.
"Biao!" Kanonji wept.
The master and disciple embraced, weeping together. It was a deeply moving sight.
At least, everyone except the pair of them thought so. The helicopter's only pilot was crying...
MMP, what a pair of lunatics. Why the hell did I accept this flying job?!
"By the way, Master Kanonji, just call me Brother Biao. 'Biao' sounds awful!"
"It really does sound awful! Go on, Brother Biao!"
"Mm!"
The pilot beside them twitched at the corners of his mouth. Sure enough... these two really were abnormal. What kind of names were those?
Wu Biao and Kanonji had no idea how dangerous the mountains in the distance were.
This place could also be called a Heavy Spirit Ground, but it was completely different from the Heavy Spirit Ground in Karakura Town. This was entirely Hollow territory.
Because if you thought of Hueco Mundo and the Human World as two separate planes, you'd find that the part of Hueco Mundo corresponding to this mountain range was... the Forest of Menos!
That was why this place was shrouded in ominous spiritual energy. Fortunately, there were no cities nearby, so no one ever came here. And since everyone who entered had died, even explorers wouldn't choose to come here.
"I'm heading in now, Master Kanonji!"
"Go on. Once you've eaten all the food, come back out. I bought out the entire warehouse's worth of supplies, so you'll have more than enough!"
After saying goodbye, Wu Biao leaped straight down from the sky. The pilot beside him, who had witnessed it all, nearly died of fright. He hadn't seen a parachute on the kid!
Before he could think any further, he leaned out and looked down. His face filled with shock.
The lunatic who'd just jumped out was walking toward that terrifying danger zone as if out for a stroll, carrying a food-filled pack twice his height!
Kurosaki Ichigo, Chad Yasutora, Orihime Inoue, Ishida Uryu, Wu Biao, and the others weren't together, but they were all training hard to prepare for their assault on Soul Society.
Time always slipped away before anyone noticed. Seventeen days wasn't a short time, but it wasn't a long one either. In what seemed like the blink of an eye, the day of departure had arrived!
That day, the sun sank and night fell.
The lights in the Urahara Shop were brighter than usual...
Before you continue