The Alchemist in Bleach

But when it arrived, I realized it wasn't that simple...

The color of the spiritual veins can only be seen by careful perception. For example, the white spiritual veins he sees now are not their true form. Only by perceiving them can he determine whether they are white or red. It's quite difficult...

Despite the great difficulty, Ichigo did not give up. It is normal for things to be difficult. If one could easily obtain great power, it would only mean that the power itself is problematic.

The rewards are not necessarily proportional to the effort, but there is definitely something wrong with the rewards without any effort!

Ichigo focused intently on sensing the spiritual energy channels. As time passed, Ichigo inevitably felt some anxiety. According to Rukia, he had to gain enough power in a very short time!

Only in this way can we resist those behind-the-scenes conspirators and break free from their control!

Although Rukia didn't say it outright, Ichigo understood that those who were pulling the strings behind the scenes definitely included her teacher!

Rukia telling him all this was undoubtedly going against her teacher, and Rukia had also saved his family's lives. Faced with such repeated kindness, even a stone would be moved, let alone a human being.

Even if his opponent is one of the top combatants in Soul Society, he can't afford to be afraid to act!

We must act!

only.........

The more passionate you are, the harsher reality will be...

Besides more sorrow, nothing was gained...

Just as Ichigo was about to give up temporarily and go back to prepare, an unexpected event occurred...

"Hahahaha~ You piece of trash! Just behave yourself as a human, and then be devoured by me! Hahahaha!"

Ichigo's expression changed instantly!

Ichigo was extremely wary of this sinister voice, so he was on high alert. However, perhaps due to his current state, although the voice still exuded a strong malevolent aura, it seemed to have no effect on him...

Before Ichigo could even ponder the reason, the surrounding spiritual energy suddenly began to throb wildly, and a blood-red spiritual energy suddenly emerged!

Ichigo's expression changed drastically. He abandoned all other thoughts and his consciousness appeared directly in front of the spirit network, grabbing it in his hand.

The moment Ichigo grabbed the red spiritual vein, he felt his "body" sink and his whole body plummeted downwards!

Suddenly, everything went black.

When his vision returned, he found that his surroundings had changed completely. There were towering skyscrapers everywhere, and the sky was cloudless and a clear blue, which looked exceptionally beautiful. He himself was now standing on the rooftop of one of the skyscrapers.

"Where is this..." Ichigo looked around in surprise. Suddenly, a middle-aged man wearing a black trench coat appeared in his line of sight. He had only one hand and was standing straight on the rooftop railing.

"You are... my Zanpakuto?"

“You could say that.” Zhan Yue nodded noncommittally, then gave a faint smile. “You’ve finally arrived, I’ve been waiting for you for a long time.”

"Are you waiting for me?"

"Yes, every Zanpakuto is waiting for its master, but many never find one. I'm lucky to have found you."

"So, you're willing to tell me your name?"

"Since you've managed to get here, you'll hear my name. Remember it, my name..."

.......

In the real world, Ichigo, standing on an open ground, suddenly opened his eyes, drew his Zanpakuto from behind his back, held it upright in front of him, and shouted: "Forget that fear, look ahead; move forward, don't stop; retreat only leads to aging, cowardice will surely bring death. Shout, Zangetsu!"

"boom!"

Before Rukia's horrified eyes, an exceptionally powerful spiritual pressure surged from Ichigo's body!

This level of spiritual pressure is already comparable to that of an average captain!

Keep in mind, this is only the initial release; if you learn the bankai...

"Whoo~"

Gradually, the spiritual pressure emanating from Ichigo dissipated. Although a continuous stream of spiritual energy was still leaking from Ichigo's body, its power was no longer as terrifying as before.

A gust of wind swept by, carrying away all the dust and revealing Ichigo carrying a large cleaver.

"I'm done."

"Congratulations," Urahara replied casually, then looked at Rukia with Ichigo.

"What... happened to you?"

Seeing the knowing look in Urahara's eyes and Ichigo's surprised expression, Rukia was a little confused. What was so special about her...? Wait a minute!

Rukia's expression changed; she knew what the problem was!

"Rukia, why haven't you regained your power?" Sure enough, Ichigo asked in surprise the next moment.

Yes, Rukia's Shinigami powers have not been restored.

Logically speaking, after Ichigo obtained his own Shinigami power, her power should have been restored. After all, the reason why her Shinigami power flowed continuously to Ichigo was to enable him to possess the power of a Shinigami, or to better stimulate the Quincy and Hollow powers within him.

Now that Ichigo has obtained his own Shinigami power, Rukia's Shinigami power should have been restored, but... it hasn't...

The channel that previously flowed to Ichigo had closed, and her Shinigami power no longer flowed to him. However, the newly generated Shinigami power also failed to remain in her body; instead, it dissipated completely, as if...

She doesn't deserve ordinary things...

It was actually rejected by its own power...

She should be considered to have made history in the Soul Society...

Rukia thought so.

"Do you know why?" Rukia frowned as she looked at Urahara, who was smiling to the side.

"I know a little bit. You used the gloves Ichiro gave you, right?"

"Of course, the teacher told me to master it as soon as possible... Wait, you mean, the teacher made this?"

"Yes and no." Urahara fanned himself with his fan, keeping everyone in suspense.

Meanwhile, Ichigo had calmed down. Since he was Rukia's teacher, there shouldn't be any problems, probably...

Thinking about Rukia's mention of sword training, Ichigo felt a little insecure again. Wait, sword training? Wasn't Rukia's teacher not good at swordsmanship?

Ichigo frowned, having discovered some illogical points again. Just as he was about to ponder them, Urahara's voice rang out, completely disrupting his thoughts, and he put the matter out of his mind once more.

"First of all, I think you already know why Ichiro gave you these gloves, right?"

"Hmm, improving my cold resistance will allow me to better control my Shikai and Bankai. Could it be that my Shinigami powers haven't recovered because of this?"

“That’s right. I estimate that your Shinigami powers won’t be restored until you’ve fully mastered the Complete Manifestation Technique: Sode no Shirayuki.”

"If it's 'yes,' then why say 'no'?" Ichigo asked, puzzled.

"It was Ichiro who designed this method for you to completely master your Zanpakuto, but he's not the one who caused this situation. Do you think Ichiro would help you in such a gentle way? Let you slowly master it? What are you thinking? That guy had some reservations a few years ago, but now that he's used the resurrection technique so much, he's long since become unrestrained. His bottom line has long since dropped to an unknown level. If it were him, he would only let you fully comprehend it in the cycle of life and death, or beat you to pieces and slowly let your body adapt to the power of your Zanpakuto."

"So what made you who you are now is mostly the world."

"Gulp~" Ichigo couldn't help but swallow, looking at Rukia with a questioning gaze, somewhat fearful. "It's probably... unlikely, isn't it?"

Rukia didn't speak, but nodded, her face pale. Given her teacher's style, she certainly was capable of doing it...

After all, even her most beloved grandmaster had "accidentally" killed her several times during her training...

If they treat her like this, then it goes without saying how they treat Ichiro...

Similarly, Ichiro would only be good to Rukia's disciples, not to Rukia in this respect. Ichiro once said that this is called "grandparental affection"...

"Are all you Grim Reapers this terrifying?"

"It's not us, it's just them. I don't know Unohana-senpai's training methods, but Ichiro also grew up in this kind of environment. The one that impressed me the most was shortly after we graduated from the Shinigami Academy. He and Unohana-senpai had a training camp. At that time, he was on the verge of death dozens of times a day! Back then, Ichiro hadn't invented the resurrection technique yet."

Ichigo: "........"

Ichigo paused for a moment, then looked at Rukia warily, his expression incredibly serious: "Promise me, Rukia! No matter what! You must not treat me as your disciple! Don't even try to train me! If you really want to have some fun, I'll lend you my child to play with... no, I mean, let him be your disciple!"

Urahara, Isshin, Rukia: "........"

The three of them stared at Ichigo speechlessly. This guy is really messing with his son!

"Clap clap~" Startled by Ichigo's words, Urahara shook his head, clapped his hands, and drew everyone's attention back. "Now that you've completed your Shikai, let's call it a day. Starting tomorrow, you two will both come to my place whenever you have time, and I'll help you with your training, how about that?"

"What about those Hollows?" Ichigo frowned.

"It's alright. We'll handle any issues that arise. You can focus on your training."

Rukia frowned as she looked at Urahara, somewhat displeased, but she did not reject his suggestion. Just as she had told Ichigo before, the weak have no right to resist and can only go with the flow. So-called fairness is nothing more than the pity of the strong for the weak.

Therefore, even though she knew Urahara was definitely plotting something behind the scenes, the reason she still agreed to train was because she was too weak and had no right to refuse...

Rukia had no objections, and Ichigo naturally had no objections either. However, he still noticed something in Rukia's expression, so he didn't tell Urahara the information he had learned from Zangetsu.

........

Ichigo's spiritual world

"I say, since we've already helped that guy get here, why not just give him all our power?" A white Ichigo slowly materialized and said to Zangetsu, who was silently watching the city.

"Are you a Zanpakuto or a Hollow now?"

"Well, who knows?" White Ichigo revealed a mysterious smile, which slowly dissipated. "I'll let it go this time, Quincy. If you dare to interfere with Ichigo's growth again, watch out, I'll kill you!"

"Kill me? It seems the Zanpakuto has the upper hand now... That's good news, but what will they do?" Zangetsu looked up at the clear blue sky, and murmured, "Ichigo, get stronger quickly. You're strong enough to handle any power now! He's here. Your time is running out..."

------------

Chapter 327 The Justice of Actions

Another week passed in the blink of an eye. On this day, Ichigo and Rukia went straight to Urahara Store after school as usual.

At the school gate, Tatsuki Arisawa and Orihime Inoue stood together, watching their departing figures. Tatsuki frowned and said to Inoue beside him, "Lately, it seems like they've been going back together all the time."

"Yes, they're siblings, isn't that normal?"

Ryuki glanced at Inoue's chest, then at her head, and rolled her eyes.

"Are you brainless? Do you really think they're siblings?"

"Isn't that right? They both have the surname Kurosaki." Inoue looked at Ryuki with a puzzled expression.

"...Rukia said she was Ichigo's cousin that day, right?"

"correct."

Do your cousins ​​share your last name?