Both start in hell: but their talents are multiplied a hundredfold.

Just for this brief moment.

Yoruichi Shihouin, carrying Ichigo Kurosaki, transformed into a black lightning bolt, cleaving through the midday heat.

Her Instant Step was so fast that even her shadow couldn't keep up. In just a few breaths, the white walls of the Spirit Purification Tower were left far behind.

Kuchiki Byakuya stood still and did not give chase.

The countless fragments of the Thousand Cherry Blossoms hovered in the air for a long time, like a cherry blossom rain that had forgotten the season.

Then they moved, like a flock of birds returning to their nests, gathering one by one, returning to the shape of the blade.

The moment the blade solidified, it emitted a clear, resonant hum, like a sigh of resentment.

Kuchiki Byakuya sheathed his sword and turned to leave.

The patriarch of the Kuchiki family stood straight as a sword, his haori motionless in the hot wind.

Jushiro Ukitake watched his figure disappear behind the Purification Tower gate, then looked down at the half-dead Shiba Ganju on his shoulder, and then at Rukia Kuchiki being escorted by two members of the Execution Army behind him.

"What a mess," he said softly.

The eagle was still muttering something incoherently, probably a combination of "let me go" and "big sister".

Ukitake sighed good-naturedly and nodded to Rukia.

"Let's go back to the tower," Ukitake said, his tone as gentle as if inviting someone into his house for tea.

Rukia was silently taken away.

Ganju was also carried onto a stretcher by the Fourth Division members who rushed over after hearing the news. Ukitake gave him some special instructions, and then looked at the empty courtyard. Suddenly, he felt a little dizzy from the midday sun.

He gently pressed his chest and decided to go back and rest.

On the other side, Yoruichi led Ichigo Kurosaki through the skies above the Seireitei and finally landed in an unnamed courtyard.

Overgrown with weeds and covered with spiderwebs on the eaves, it was clear that no one had lived there for a long time.

She put Ichigo down on the ground and let out a long breath.

"Phew! By now, Brother Shen Jue shouldn't be able to catch up."

Before she could finish speaking, a hand landed on her shoulder.

"Who?!" Yoruichi's hair stood on end.

"It's me," Shen Jue's voice came from behind.

The courtyard was quiet for three seconds.

"Brother Shen Jue," Yoruichi said, her voice trembling with intense emotion, "you're hundreds of years old, and you're still so childish?"

"Oh dear, Yoruichi, you used to be so cute, how come you're so fierce now?" Shen Jue said with a regretful tone.

"Then let me go first."

"If you won't let go, you'll hold on tight."

"Childish devil!"

"Better than criminals."

As soon as Ichigo Kurosaki got up from the ground, he heard Shen Jue and Yoruichi's conversation, which was almost like a couple's playful fight, and it almost made Ichigo Kurosaki fall back down.

"No, that's not right." Yoruichi finally turned around and stared at him. "You've been following me from the very beginning?"

"Hmm." Shen Jue raised his right hand, a trace of lingering electricity still remaining at his fingertips.

"About ten years ago when we met, I used demonic arts to leave a tracking mark on you. It was about the size of a palm, didn't hurt or itch, and should last for a while..."

"You already used the Kido runes on me?" Something began to burn in Yoruichi's eyes.

Shen Jue took half a step back. He began to feel that the midday sun was indeed quite intense.

"Yoruichi, let me explain..."

"Bang!!"

A violent spiritual pressure exploded outwards from Yoruichi, instantly flattening the withered grass in the courtyard and reducing the spiderwebs on the eaves to ashes.

Kurosaki Ichigo flew backward like a kite with a broken string, his back hitting a dead tree. As he slid down, he was still thinking about what he had done wrong that day.

Shen Jue caught Yoruichi's elbow strike with one hand, easily blocking her attack.

Shen Jue raised his other hand above his head, his expression somewhere between sincere and cowardly.

"Stop, stop! I'm not here to arrest you!"

"Then what are you here for?!" Yoruichi's arm was still pressed against Shen Jue's palm, the pressure undiminished.

Shen Jue hesitated for a second.

In that instant, he thought of dozens of excuses, but in the end, he chose the one he shouldn't have chosen.

If the Spirit King could give Shen Jue another chance, he would never have said those words to Yoruichi.

"The ghost runes I left behind have listening and monitoring functions," Shen Jue said.

"The outfit that Kisuke Urahara gave you to use to lure me away from the battlefield."

"It doesn't actually suit my aesthetic."

That's right, before arriving in Soul Society, Kisuke Urahara and Yoruichi were discussing combat tactics.

The situation of Shen Jue returning to Soul Society from Hueco Mundo was taken into account.

Kisuke Urahara then proposed a decoy operation plan: to have Yoruichi wear a sexy combat suit designed by Kisuke Urahara to lure Shen Jue away from the battlefield.

After giving Kisuke Urahara a beating, Yoruichi reluctantly agreed to the operation plan.

Yoruichi's fist, which was about to be thrown, stopped in mid-air.

That doesn't mean Yoruichi gave up the attack.

Instead, his brain briefly went blank after he heard Shen Jue reveal information that he should never have known that night.

"You...you!" Yoruichi's voice was extremely low.

The color returned to her face at a visible speed.

Her ears were the first to turn red, then her whole face, and finally even her neck turned a suspicious pink.

"Damn it!" Yoruichi withdrew her hand, not because she was calm, but because she needed to cover her burning face.

"What exactly did you do?!"

Shen Jue lowered his head, his face buried in the shadows.

"Yoruichi, you are not safe in the human world either."

"Something is secretly plotting an evil scheme; this is to protect you."

Yoruichi was skeptical; for the first time, she felt that her brother Shen Jue had really gone too far.

Ichigo Kurosaki scrambled to his feet from under the withered tree, covered in dust and utterly bewildered. Despite the pain coursing through his body, he let out a defiant roar befitting a fifteen-year-old boy: "What the hell are you talking about?! Rukia hasn't been rescued yet!! And it really hurts!!"

Shen Jue and Ye Yi turned to look at him at the same time.

The boy stood there, supporting himself with Zhan Yue, veins bulging on his forehead, his whole body trembling, looking like a wild cat that had been soaked and kicked.

Shen Jue looked at him for two seconds, then suddenly smiled.

He withdrew his hand, walked up to Ichigo, and said, "To save Rukia Kuchiki, you must first learn Bankai."

"Otherwise, you won't even be able to touch Kuchiki Byakuya's sword."

"Young man, let's embark on a journey to save the world together."