"Null!"
A violent gust of wind shot into the sky, raising wisps of dust from the street, and Ichigo Kurosaki and the others successfully passed through the Senkaimon and arrived in the World of the Living...
"Sigh~"
"Phew~"
Is this the World of the Living?
"This feeling is truly irresistible..."
Sōgo Shihoin opened his arms, feeling the clear blue sky, the warm sunshine, and the gentle breeze as soft as a young girl's caress. He smiled... This World of the Living is truly amazing!
"What to do?"
"If things go wrong, we could become the sinners of all humanity in Japan... no, we could become the sinners of this planet!"
Uryū Ishida communicated with Ichigo Kurosaki.
"There's no other way! No matter what means we use, we have to... first appease the most powerful man in the world."
Ichigo Kurosaki blinked repeatedly, as if transmitting information to Uryū Ishida in Morse code.
"It seems this is the only way..."
"Damn it..."
After deciphering Ichigo Kurosaki's thoughts, Uryū Ishida sighed helplessly. Faced with the invincible and unreasonable Sōgo Shihoin, even with his IQ of 130, he couldn't come up with any solution.
"That Sōgo Shihoin... Master?!"
Ichigo Kurosaki and Uryū Ishida quickly reached an agreement. The two turned around and respectfully greeted the man who wrote "Sōgo Shihoin," but was actually the strongest Gian in the world from ancient times to the present... However...
Where are they?
In the few seconds that Ichigo Kurosaki and Uryū Ishida were discussing, Sōgo Shihoin, who had arrived in the World of the Living, had already disappeared without a trace.
"Oh no! Oh no!"
The greatest crisis in human history has been born!
Ichigo Kurosaki clutched his head in a panic and cried out.
" Kurosaki-kun, are you asking about Sōgo?"
"He just ran in that direction!"
Orihime Inoue looked at the panicked Ichigo Kurosaki and Uryū Ishida, and pointed to the eastern sky.
"Thank you so much, Inoue, you've been a huge help!"
"If humanity hasn't been destroyed because of this, you must have played a part in it!"
Upon hearing Orihime Inoue's words, Ichigo Kurosaki Kurosaki's eyes lit up, and he flew off in the direction Orihime Inoue pointed.
"Um... this credit is a bit too much?!"
Orihime Inoue smiled slightly. She had only pointed out the way for Ichigo Kurosaki; to involve it in the life and death of humanity was a bit far-fetched.
" Inoue-san, I hope that if this situation occurs again in the future, you will not hide it and will notify me immediately."
Seeing that Uryū Ishida had already dashed off to chase after Sōgo Shihoin, Ichigo Kurosaki, who had instinctively intended to follow, forcibly stopped himself and gave Orihime Inoue, who was looking at him with the expression of a bystander, some instructions.
"Um... okay... okay..."
Looking at Orihime Inoue Uryū Ishida's serious and earnest expression, Inoue Orihime slowly nodded, indicating that she understood.
"Very good."
Seeing that Orihime Inoue had reflected on her mistakes, Uryū Ishida stopped nagging. He gently pushed up his glasses and followed Ichigo Kurosaki's figure, running away at full speed.
"That Yasutora Sado- kun."
Orihime Inoue looked around and found that apart from Yasutora Sado, there was no one else by her side.
"Um."
Yasutora Sado responded softly to Orihime Inoue's call.
"I'm planning to visit Manager Urahara, would you like to come along?"
Orihime Inoue explained what she planned to do and asked Yasutora Sado for his opinion.
Okay, together.
Yasutora Sado nodded, accepting Orihime Inoue's invitation...
On the other side...
"Damn it, where did Sōgo Shihoin go?"
Ichigo Kurosaki sped through the skies above Karakura Town Karakura Town incredible speed, reaching the very edge of the city. Yet, he still couldn't find Sōgo Shihoin Sōgo Shihoin, who seemed to have vanished into thin air. No matter how hard he searched, he found nothing.
" Kurosaki, have you found that fat... that Sōgo Shihoin?"
Just as Ichigo Kurosaki stood in the air, unsure of where to go, his eyes darting around, hesitant and uncertain, Uryū Ishida finally caught up.
"No! We couldn't find it at all..."
Upon hearing the sound, Ichigo Kurosaki turned around, looked at the panting Uryū Ishida, and shook his head.
"It's getting late, let's call it a day!"
Uryū Ishida looked up at the darkening sky and offered his words of advice.
"But..."
Ichigo Kurosaki frowned slightly. Although he knew Uryū Ishida was right, the thought of that monster who could so easily manipulate time wandering around his beloved city filled him with worry.
"That's Sōgo Shihoin! He's a monster from a completely different dimension than us!"
"If he doesn't intend to come out on his own, no matter how hard we search, we will never find him."
Uryū Ishida took out a clean white handkerchief from his pocket, gently wiped the sweat from his forehead, and offered his advice.
"Well..."
After hearing Uryū Ishida's words, Ichigo Kurosaki sighed. Just as the other party said, Sōgo Shihoin... that man who could defeat him with a single finger, was simply not on the same level as them. If the other party did not intend to come out on his own, no matter how hard he searched, he would never find him.
"Go back!"
After Ichigo Kurosaki figured it out, he turned into a blur and disappeared into the evening sky.
"???"
All that was left was Uryū Ishida stood there staring wide-eyed, his mind filled with questions.
night...
Ichigo Kurosaki skillfully pushed open the window of his second-floor bedroom and slipped into his room in his Soul Reaper form.
" Kurosaki..."
Soul, who was engrossed in reading a manga in his bedroom, was so surprised by Ichigo Kurosaki's sudden appearance that he almost cried out.
"Oh, I'm back."
Ichigo Kurosaki casually greeted Kon, then walked up to Kon and punched him in the stomach.
"Puff..."
In an instant, a Mod Soul Pill was spat out of Ichigo Kurosaki's mouth and landed inside a lion doll placed on the bedside table.
At the same time, Ichigo Kurosaki's soul returned to his body.
"Ah, I'm so tired. I haven't used this body in so long, it feels so heavy!"
Having regained control of his body, Ichigo Kurosaki, having grown accustomed to the lightness of his soul form, found it difficult to adjust to the weight of his physical body.
" Ichigo Kurosaki! How dare you treat me like this?!"
Do you know who's been keeping secrets for you while you're away?
Just as Ichigo Kurosaki was getting used to his long-unused body, the little lion doll placed on the bedside table suddenly came to life. It stood up and angrily accused Ichigo Kurosaki of his immoral behavior.
"Ah, I understand~"
Ichigo Kurosaki, listening to the constant noise around him, patted the little lion plushie hard.
"Damn it Kurosaki..."
"Phew... But I'm magnanimous, I won't hold it against you!"
" Ichigo Kurosaki, now that you've returned from Soul Society, that means you've successfully rescued Big Sister, right?"
Soul gently stroked his bulging body with his soft little hands. After calming his excited emotions, he looked at Ichigo Kurosaki with a serious and earnest gaze and asked.
"Yes! Rukia is safe now, don't worry!"
Ichigo Kurosaki was taken aback by Kon's words at first, then smiled and nodded.
"Phew! That puts my mind at ease!"
"Go down and reunite with your family!"
"You must miss them after all these days, right?"
After hearing Ichigo Kurosaki's words, Soul slowly breathed a sigh of relief and ran to the side to continue reading the manga he hadn't finished yet.
"Yes!"
"Father, Mother, Yuzu, Karin..."
Ichigo Kurosaki reminisced about his father, mother, and two adorable younger sisters, a slight smile played on his lips. Having been away from his loved ones for so long, he could hardly suppress his longing to see them again.
Ichigo Kurosaki pushed open his bedroom door, skillfully walked down the stairs, and arrived at the living room door. He looked at the bright light shining through the crack in the living room door and felt a little excited.
"Call!"
Finally, Ichigo Kurosaki suppressed his overwhelming excitement, pushed open the door in front of him, and stepped inside.
"Smack~"
Welcome back, Kurosaki-kun!
Congratulations, brother!!
"Son, we are so proud of you!"
When Ichigo Kurosaki pushed open the living room door, he was greeted by a brightly decorated party scene: a Sōgo Shihoin with people holding party sprayers... Masaki Kurosaki, Isshin Kurosaki, Yuzu Kurosaki, Karin Kurosaki...
"Strange, how did something weird get into my family's house? I must have opened the door wrong."
Ichigo Kurosaki, with eyes that seemed to have died long ago, looked at everything before him, took two steps back, and closed the door.
"Sigh~"
"Call..."
Ichigo Kurosaki stood outside the living room door, trying to regulate his breathing. He secretly regretted his immaturity; he had actually hallucinated because he was too excited and missed his family too much. This time... he wouldn't be so immature again; he would never allow himself to hallucinate again.
"Clatter~"
With that thought in mind, Ichigo Kurosaki pushed open the door leading to the living room once more.
"Yo~ Ichigo Kurosaki ~"
Then, Ichigo Kurosaki saw Sōgo Shihoin's cheerful smiling face.
"This is definitely not a hallucination!"
After repeatedly confirming that he wasn't seeing things, Ichigo Kurosaki knelt on the ground, clutching his head in his hands and screaming in terror.
"Brother, what's wrong?"
Seeing Yuzu Ichigo Kurosaki quickly squatted down and asked.
"This isn't real... this isn't real..."
"This isn't... real..."
Ichigo Kurosaki ignored Yuzu; he simply squatted on the ground, clutching his head, repeatedly muttering, "This isn't real."
"Brother, are you really okay?"
The Yuzu was very excited at this moment. As someone who doted on her brother, she was very worried to see him looking so dejected.
"Don't worry, Yuzu ~"
"Your brother is just a little too excited, he'll be fine in a bit."
Sōgo Shihoin pulled Yuzu Kurosaki up from the ground, smiled slightly, and comforted her.
Is it true?
Yuzu asked Sōgo Shihoin with some concern.
Of course!
I would never lie to a child.
"You said... am I right? Kurosaki-kun ~"
Sōgo Shihoin gently patted Yuzu Kurosaki's head, then smiled slightly at Ichigo Kurosaki, who was squatting on the ground.
"Forehead..."
"Of course!"
"I'm sorry, my Yuzu, I made you worry."
Upon hearing Sōgo Shihoin's words, Ichigo Kurosaki felt as if he had been electrocuted, his body tingling. He slowly stood up and nodded stiffly.
"It's alright, as long as you're alright, brother!"
Upon hearing Yuzu Ichigo Kurosaki's words, Yuuki's face immediately changed from worry to a sweet smile.
"Such a touching sibling relationship!"
Sōgo Shihoin gave a thumbs-up to the beautiful sibling relationship between Ichigo Kurosaki and Yuzu Kurosaki.
"Eh~"
Karin Kurosaki, who had been silently observing everyone, glanced back and forth between Sōgo Shihoin and Ichigo Kurosaki. Finally, as if she understood something, she quickly walked to Sōgo Shihoin's side.
"If you bully Ichigo, I won't let you get away with it."
The little girl, as if she were standing up for her brother, softly threatened the unassuming man before her, who in reality stood at the pinnacle of the world.
"What?!"
"Wow, you have two such enviable younger sisters!"
After hearing Karin's words, Sōgo Shihoin came to Ichigo Kurosaki's side, gave Ichigo two hard slaps on the chest, and said enviously.
"Don't worry, Little Karin, your brother and I are... friends. I wouldn't hurt him."
Sōgo Shihoin crouched down and smiled at Karin.
"Hmph~ I hope so..."
After hearing what Sōgo Shihoin, Little Karin raised her chin proudly.
Okay, okay~
"Everyone, let's cut the cake!"
Just as Sōgo Shihoin Sougo and the others were playfully bickering, Masaki Kurosaki, radiating maternal warmth, smiled and addressed everyone.
"Okay! Aunt Masaki!"
"Ah... could you please cut me a little more chocolate?"
When Sōgo Shihoin heard that it was time to cut the cake, he immediately went to Masaki Kurosaki's side, looking at the huge cake that was to celebrate Ichigo Kurosaki, eager to try it out.
"OK..."
"Who else wants the part with the most chocolate?"
With a smile, Masaki Kurosaki cut off the part of the cake with the most chocolate for Sōgo Shihoin, and then asked again.
"Me too! Me too!"
The Yuzu raised her hand high, indicating that she also wanted to eat the larger portion of chocolate.
"OK..."
After listening to Yuzu's words, Masaki Kurosaki skillfully cut the cake.
The scene was filled with laughter and joy.
"..."
Looking at the harmonious scene before him, Ichigo Kurosaki sighed. Perhaps he was overthinking it; it seemed that Sōgo Shihoin was actually a very honest person.
"Please give me less chocolate and less cream."
Having understood, Ichigo Kurosaki stepped forward and addressed Masaki Kurosaki.
"Okay, less chocolate, less cream..."
Masaki Kurosaki first cut off a large piece of cake, and then, under Ichigo Kurosaki's watchful eye, used a cake knife to scrape all the cream and chocolate clean.
"By the way... what exactly are you guys celebrating?"
Ichigo Kurosaki took the cake from Masaki Kurosaki and was about to take a big bite when he suddenly remembered something. He trembled and asked nervously, afraid that his past in Soul Society had been exposed. He... didn't really want his family to worry, even though they were hiding something from him...
"Speaking of which... Sōgo hasn't told us yet what we're celebrating~"
After hearing Ichigo Kurosaki's words, Masaki Kurosaki gently placed her fingers on her chin, recalling the scene that happened when she ran into Sōgo Shihoin on her way home from grocery shopping that afternoon. She suddenly realized that she didn't know what she was celebrating for Ichigo Kurosaki. She had only heard that her son had done something remarkable, something worth celebrating!
"So none of you knew what to celebrate for me, so you just prepared this banquet?"
Ichigo Kurosaki's eyelids twitched slightly. While this might seem a little strange in other families, it was perfectly normal in his. His family was just that eccentric.
"So, Sōgo- kun, what exactly are we celebrating for Ichigo Kurosaki?"
Masaki Kurosaki looked at Sōgo Shihoin and asked.
"Is that even a question?"
"Of course, we're celebrating Ichigo Kurosaki in breaking through Soul Society and successfully rescuing Ru..."
Sōgo Shihoin answered Masaki Kurosaki's question with a happy expression.
"Please wait a moment..."
Ichigo Kurosaki stepped forward, covered Sōgo Shihoin's mouth, and bravely pulled him out of the living Sōgo Shihoin and into the hallway.
"Please, I don't want my family to know what's going on over there. I... I don't want them to worry unnecessarily."
Ichigo Kurosaki entered the corridor, bowed deeply to Sōgo Shihoin, and asked him for a favor.
"I see, I understand now."
Sōgo Shihoin slightly; he understood Ichigo Kurosaki's feelings.
"Grateful!"
After hearing what Sōgo Shihoin, Ichigo Kurosaki slowly breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed that Sōgo Shihoin.
"Clatter~"
With a slightly heavy heart, Sōgo Shihoin pushed open the living room door. In order not to worry Ichigo Kurosaki's family, he decided to keep the truth from them.
"Here's what happened: Rukia Kuchiki is actually the daughter of a wealthy conglomerate... Her family prevented Rukia from meeting Ichigo Kurosaki and imprisoned Rukia. Ichigo Kurosaki didn't believe in fate; he firmly believed that birth wasn't everything. In the end, Ichigo won over Rukia Kuchiki's family through his own strength and conviction..."
Sōgo Shihoin, facing Ichigo Kurosaki's family with a serious and earnest expression, began his sermon.
"Huh?!"
When Ichigo Kurosaki heard Sōgo Shihoin mention that Rukia Kuchiki was the daughter of a wealthy conglomerate, he was completely taken aback. After Sōgo Shihoin finished telling the story, Ichigo Kurosaki was left speechless with embarrassment.
Don't worry, bro.
After finishing his story Sōgo Shihoin gently patted Ichigo Kurosaki on the shoulder and gave him a confident smile.
" Ichigo, make time for Rukia... I mean, for our daughter-in-law to come back and visit often."
Masaki Kurosaki gently wiped away the tears in her eyes and spoke softly to Ichigo Kurosaki.
"Brother! Quickly bring Rukia back to live with us!"
" Ichigo, we support you!"
Yuzu and Karin both expressed their opinions at the same time; in their hearts Rukia was already their sister-in-law.
"Look what you've done!!"
Ichigo Kurosaki to the side and looked at Sōgo Shihoin, who was smiling innocently. He knew he was wrong, terribly wrong. Sōgo Shihoin was a bombshell, a huge bombshell, who could take his life at any moment...
This chapter has 5,000 words.
(End of this chapter)