Rukia's arrest

Ichigo Kurosaki was sound asleep.

Lately, he had been attending classes during the day and clearing out Hollows at night. Occasionally, Rukia would even kick him out of bed. He had long since reached his mental limit.

Then a series of thuds came from the bathroom.

Bang!

Ichigo's eyes snapped open. He grabbed the bedside lamp and pushed open the bathroom door.

"Mmph! Mmph! Mmph!"

Kon's mouth had been taped shut, and his limbs were tightly bound. All he could do was squirm back and forth across the floor.

Ichigo froze for a moment.

"What are you playing at?"

Kon's eyes widened. He nearly died of anger on the spot.

Once the tape was peeled off, he hurriedly shouted, "People from the Soul Society took Rukia!"

The drowsiness vanished from Ichigo's face.

He grabbed Kon and thrust his hand straight into the stuffed toy's mouth.

"Wait, wash your hands first..."

The Mod Soul pill was pulled out.

Ichigo swallowed the pill, and his soul immediately separated from his body. He grabbed his Zanpakuto, then took out his phone and called Yoriichi.

"Yoriichi, Rukia's gone."

There was half a second of silence on the other end.

"Understood."

"Her Reiatsu is moving. Head south."

Ichigo hung up and jumped straight out the window.

Southern Karakura Town.

Several blue-white arrows streaked across the street toward Renji from different directions.

Holding his sword in one hand, Renji slashed repeatedly, shattering every Reishi arrow.

"A mere Quincy dares interfere with Sixth Division business?"

Uryū Ishida did not answer. He drew his Spirit Bow again.

But the next moment, Renji had vanished from where he stood.

Uryū's pupils contracted. He was just about to turn when the back of the blade slammed into his chest.

Bang!

Uryū flew backward and crashed into a wall, his glasses falling to one side. He struggled to get up, but his body had already lost its strength.

"Ishida!"

A black figure leaped down from a rooftop.

Ichigo landed in front of Uryū, placing his Zanpakuto between Renji and Rukia.

Yoriichi Tsugikuni followed close behind, landing quietly beside Rukia. He glanced at Uryū and confirmed that his life was not in danger before looking up at the battlefield.

Renji sized Ichigo up, and a sneer soon crossed his face.

"So you're the human brat who took Rukia's Soul Reaper powers."

"So what if I am?"

"You don't even know your Zanpakuto's name, and you think you're worthy of wielding a Soul Reaper's blade?"

Renji rested his sword on his shoulder, his voice dripping with disdain.

"Even if you trained for another two hundred years, you still wouldn't be qualified to fight me."

Ichigo gripped his Zanpakuto with both hands.

"I won't let you take Rukia."

"If you want to arrest her, you'll have to get past me first."

They charged at the same time. Their blades collided head-on, and the resulting gust swept the dust on the ground to either side.

Renji's swordsmanship was steady and controlled. A horizontal slash immediately became a diagonal cut, and every step cut off Ichigo's retreat.

Ichigo was the complete opposite.

He was powerful, but his moves had no structure at all. He put all his strength into every swing, and whenever an attack missed, he left an obvious opening.

Within just a few exchanges, several wounds had appeared on Ichigo's shoulder and side.

"That's the difference between us."

Renji knocked the Zanpakuto aside with one slash, then kicked Ichigo back.

"Your sword is just big. You don't understand how to use Reiatsu at all."

"Ichigo, stop!"

Rukia finally could not hold back her shout. "You're no match for him! Get out of here! This is my crime alone. You don't need to bear it for me!"

Ichigo did not look back.

He charged at Renji again, only to take a slash across the chest and drop to his knees. His Zanpakuto flew from his hand and embedded itself in the ground several meters away.

Renji approached slowly and raised his Zanpakuto.

Rukia rushed forward and clung tightly to his right arm.

"If you're going to kill someone, kill me! Don't hurt him!"

"Rukia!"

Renji gritted his teeth. In the end, he did not swing his sword, only blasting her back with his Reiatsu.

"How long are you going to keep protecting this human?"

"You were sentenced to death precisely because he took your powers!"

Rukia's face was pale, but Ichigo stood up again.

Renji watched him, a vein twitching faintly on his forehead.

"If you refuse to give up, I'll make you see reality for what it is."

He held his Zanpakuto horizontally, and his Reiatsu erupted.

"Roar, Zabimaru!"

The blade instantly split into multiple sections connected by chains. Renji swung hard, and Zabimaru immediately extended, wrapping around Ichigo's wrists and ankles.

The sharp blades kept slicing across his limbs, leaving more and more wounds on his body.

"Do you understand now?"

Renji pulled the chains taut and said coldly, "Stop resisting, and I'll spare your life."

With his head lowered, Ichigo reached out and grabbed his Zanpakuto's hilt.

The next moment, powerful Reiatsu erupted from his body. The surrounding ground shook, and the swirling gust forced Zabimaru apart.

Renji's expression changed.

Ichigo violently tore free of his restraints and appeared before him in an instant.

His Zanpakuto came down. Renji hastily blocked, but the impact sent him staggering back several steps.

Yoriichi watched the scene.

Ichigo was gradually beginning to adapt to battles between Soul Reapers.

Every time Zabimaru extended, its blade had to retract before it could build up power again. Ichigo had clearly noticed this too. He no longer attacked wildly, instead watching closely for the instant the blade retracted.

Renji swung Zabimaru again.

Ichigo sidestepped it and severed one of the chain links in the same motion. Then he pressed forward relentlessly, giving Renji no chance to put distance between them again.

In that moment, offense and defense completely reversed.

"This guy's Reiatsu... how is this possible?"

Renji's hands were numb, and for the first time, shock appeared in his eyes.

"I don't know why this power keeps pouring out, either."

Ichigo raised his Zanpakuto high, concentrating all his Reiatsu in its blade.

"All I know is that I can't let Rukia be taken back and executed!"

The enormous blade came crashing down.

It was already too late for Renji to dodge.

Just as the Zanpakuto was about to strike him, two figures appeared at once.

Byakuya Kuchiki raised two fingers and caught Ichigo's Zanpakuto between them.

Yoriichi Tsugikuni stood between them, his Zanpakuto still sheathed.

But he had pressed its sheath against Byakuya's throat.