Just as you guessed: I leaned against the wall to pee yesterday, and it fell down, so the updates stopped...

"Snrrrk..."

At the Kurosaki Clinic, Wu Biao lay sprawled across a hospital bed in nothing but a pair of oversized shorts. His snores were deafening—so loud they could hardly get any louder. No wonder the Kurosaki family had kicked him out and made him stay at the clinic.

The very next second, those deafening snores abruptly stopped. Wu Biao's tightly shut eyes snapped open, and he spoke in a voice cold enough to freeze the air. "This is... the scent of an opponent!"

Before the words had even left his mouth, Wu Biao kicked his legs up. A white lab coat flew off the floor, and as he sprang upright, it landed perfectly on his shoulders.

"Hahahaha! So you're challenging me, huh? This is interesting!" The cold look vanished in an instant. With a loud laugh, Wu Biao dashed out, radiating chuunibyou energy.

This time, I'll definitely get there before that bastard Ichigo!

The moment he rushed out of the clinic, Wu Biao sniffed the air and thought smugly. But the next moment, his triumphant grin froze. "I bought you a watch—why the hell are you going to Ichigo's room?!"

After sensing around, Wu Biao immediately realized that the monster had appeared in Kurosaki Ichigo's room.

Then why not come to my room? Does it look down on Brother Biao?

Meanwhile, a battle had already begun in Kurosaki Ichigo's room.

In his Shinigami form, Kurosaki Ichigo leaped to dodge the Hollow's lunge. As he sprang into the air, he drew his Zanpakuto and swung it at the Hollow—but he had clearly overestimated the height of the room.

Thud—

He had barely raised his sword over his head when it got stuck in the ceiling. The concrete ceiling was slashed open, but the blow lost much of its force. By the time the Zanpakuto struck the Hollow's mask...

Rukia's brows knitted together. Too shallow!

Just as Rukia had said, Kurosaki Ichigo's blade sank into the Hollow's mask. The snake-shaped Hollow, with a tail, reached out with both hands and clamped onto Ichigo's Zanpakuto.

"What?!"

Ichigo's expression darkened. He tried to pull his sword free, but the snake-like Hollow was incredibly strong, and for a moment, he couldn't budge it.

Crack!

Just then, the corner of the snake-like Hollow's mask, where Ichigo had struck it, shattered.

"Graaah—"

A shrill scream burst from the Hollow's mouth, and its grip on the Zanpakuto loosened.

But Kurosaki Ichigo didn't press the attack. His face was full of disbelief. Even though he could only see part of the face, he recognized it... It was his classmate Orihime Inoue's brother. Inoue's Brother had been taken to his family's clinic back then, so the face was still fresh in his memory.

Why?

How could this be?

He had a vague idea of what was happening, but Kurosaki Ichigo couldn't bring himself to believe it. He stood there, frozen.

Meanwhile, Inoue's Brother opened a black hole amid his screams and made to flee.

"Damn, you came right to my doorstep. You think I'm gonna let you get away?" Just then, an incredibly burly figure crashed through the window. He moved like a bolt of lightning, reaching the space beneath Inoue's Brother in the blink of an eye and grabbing the end of his enormous tail!

"Graaah—" The terrifying grip made Inoue's Brother let out a shrill roar.

"Trying to run? Did you ask Brother Biao first?" Wu Biao sneered. He yanked hard, forcibly dragging Inoue's Brother out of the black hole.

But as soon as he had pulled him out, Wu Biao stole a glance at the two people nearby, looking smug. "Heh, this opponent's mine!" With that, the guy dragged Inoue's Brother's massive body out the window, as if he were hauling a rag doll...

"..." Rukia stared at the scene, dumbfounded. No matter how many times she saw it, it still seemed terrifying!

"Brother Biao, don't!" Kurosaki Ichigo cried out in alarm. That was Orihime's brother!

Rukia looked puzzled. "What's wrong with you?"

"That face just now... It was Orihime's brother!" Kurosaki Ichigo explained, then urgently added, "Hurry, we have to chase after him. Brother Biao will definitely kill him!"

Meanwhile, Wu Biao swung Inoue's Brother around and slammed him onto the road. The crash and Inoue's Brother's scream echoed as spiderweb cracks spread across the concrete.

"Heh, I didn't get a good look the first time. The second time, Ichigo killed you, and I still didn't get a good look. Now that I'm looking closely, you creatures really do fit the image of villainous monsters!"

Wu Biao studied Inoue's Brother with keen interest, looking eager to fight.

Inoue's Brother writhed on the ground for a while before finally getting back up. Wu Biao's slam had clearly hit hard. A hint of fear appeared in those blood-red eyes.

Under normal circumstances, with his rock-bottom intelligence, he should never have felt fear.

But to Inoue's Brother, this tiny human somehow exerted an instinctive pressure, as if he were facing a Menos Grande of higher rank. And yet there wasn't the slightest trace of Hollow in Wu Biao.

"Brother Biao, don't attack yet! I know him!" Just then, Kurosaki Ichigo and Rukia rushed out. The moment they appeared, Ichigo hurriedly shouted to Wu Biao.

Know him?

Wu Biao blinked in confusion. "No way. Is this really your classmate? Is your whole school full of monsters like this?"

"..."

Kurosaki Ichigo had been rushing over in a panic, but at Wu Biao's words, he stumbled.

Classmate?

How could anyone possibly think he was a classmate?

And if a monster like this went to class, how big would the classroom have to be? How strong would the teacher's nerves have to be...

"Damn it, he's trying to run!"

While they were distracted, Inoue's Brother shot into the air and turned to flee.

Wu Biao started after him, but Kurosaki Ichigo caught up and grabbed him firmly by the shoulder. "Wait, Brother Biao! That face belongs to my classmate's brother!"

Taking advantage of the opening, Inoue's Brother slipped into the black hole once more. In the blink of an eye, he vanished, and even his presence could no longer be sensed.

"Are you sick or something?" Wu Biao snapped.

Kurosaki Ichigo didn't answer. Instead, he turned to Rukia, hoping she could explain why the face behind that monster's shattered mask... had been Orihime's brother's.

"You're saying that face belonged to Orihime Inoue's brother, the one we saw during the day?" Rukia asked, her brows furrowing.

"Yeah!"

Rukia spoke gravely. "There's no time to explain. Orihime Inoue is in danger. I'll explain while we go!"

"Hm?" Wu Biao blinked, then looked toward the Inoue family's home and grinned. "Haha, it's here! It's back again!" Before he had even finished speaking, he had already dashed off.

Wu Biao took off at a run, covering several meters with every stride. He kept accelerating, his rugged face—though not particularly handsome—filled with excitement.

Watching Wu Biao's back as he vanished in an instant, Rukia's face filled with astonishment. His speed was already incredible, comparable even to hers at full strength.

"Let's catch up!"