The Alchemist in Bleach

"Even if they don't explicitly explain, countless people will still come to help me. Things that are obviously hellish will inexplicably become easy, and then I will be carefree."

Ichigo: "..."

Why does it suddenly feel like my mouth is stuffed with dozens of lemons?

Ichigo was too hasty. He initially thought Rukia was carefree because of her good attitude, but it turns out it's because of her privileged background. His edges have been smoothed out...

I can't learn this...

"Phew~ I finally beat it! Reality is such an incredibly difficult and terrible game!!"

"...I don't think you, a player who cheats and spends money on in-game purchases, have the right to say that."

"So you're qualified? It's only been a few weeks, and your spiritual pressure has already reached the captain level..." Rukia rolled her eyes. "Alright, the game is over. Sit down, I have some things to tell you."

Ichigo looked at himself sitting on the ground and nodded: "I'm all set."

"Ahem~" Rukia loosely clenched her right hand, brought it to her lips, and coughed lightly twice. "Did you make a deal with the guy inside you during the day?"

At this point, Ichigo's expression turned serious. He nodded and said, "Yes, he took care of that big guy and helped me twice afterward. But it was up to him to decide when to help and when not to. After those two times, I had to fight him in a battle between a king and his mount. What is a battle between a king and his mount?"

"...You don't even know what this is, yet you dared to agree?"

"Isn't there no other way? Besides, if it's a battle, wouldn't it be better to just win?" the nurse said matter-of-factly.

“That’s true.” Rukia rubbed her forehead. Although she felt something was off, Ichigo was right. Since it was a battle, winning was all that mattered.

Rukia straightened up and continued, "That's precisely why there are some things you need to know."

Ichigo nodded seriously, then replied with a less serious remark: "Just don't use diagrams to explain."

"..." Rukia, who was about to take out a pen and paper, suddenly froze, coughed lightly, and forcibly moved her arm. "First of all, before you understand Hollowfication, you must know a concept. In Soul Society, there is a view that the power of Shinigami has a limit... Combining the power of Hollows to break the limits of Shinigami is Hollowfication. Similarly, the ultimate Hollow is also Shinigami transformation, which is the form of the middle-aged man that Inoue mentioned. Although he is my teacher, such Hollows do exist."

"Hollows transformed from Shinigami? Then they have reason, can't they communicate? Why do they still... kill like this..."

Seeing Ichigo's confusion, Rukia sighed and said, "Ichigo, can you... skip eating?"

Ichigo was taken aback, then fell silent. Yes, humans and Hollows had this kind of ecological relationship...

Only a very small number of Arrancar might want to coexist peacefully with humans, but that wouldn't alleviate the situation at all...

"Let's put the Arrancar aside for now and continue talking about the King and the mount. The Shinigami and the Hollow within you are in a competitive relationship. In the early stages, the Shinigami will occasionally lose control, with the Hollow's consciousness taking over the body, which is your current situation. When the time is right, the battle between the King and the mount will take place. The winner will become the King, and the loser will only be the mount, becoming a part of the King's power."

"A part... In other words, if I lose, I will completely become a Hollow, right?"

“Yes.” Rukia nodded. “And most importantly, you must understand that in a battle between a Shinigami and a Hollow, the Hollow generally has the upper hand!”

"Why?" Ichigo frowned. Although he knew that White Ichigo was stronger, wasn't this an isolated case?

"Because of instinct!"

"instinct?"

"Yes, you know the theory, right? Our strength is actually limited. Normally we can only exert 30% of our strength. With training, we might be able to increase it a little, but it's still only around 40%."

"This seems fake, right? At least there's no proof yet. Besides, are Grim Reapers the same as humans?"

"The data may be wrong, but the principle is the same. So whether it's Death or humans, it's the same. In our daily lives, we subconsciously limit our own strength because once we go all out, our bodies will be severely overloaded. I think you've experienced this."

Ichigo paused, then nodded: "Is it that...?"

"But that's just our situation. It's different for Hollows. Hollows have the ability to regenerate at supersonic speeds. Their recovery ability is very strong, and because they don't have much rationality in the early stages, they mostly rely on instinct to fight. This is something etched deep in the souls of all Hollows. By relying on instinct, they can maximize their power! Therefore, in the battle between the king and his mount, the Shinigami usually comes out on the defensive."

"Then, is there no possibility of victory?"

"Of course there is! Keep moving forward! Hollows and Zanpakuto are different. In a battle with a Zanpakuto, the Zanpakuto spirit's power increases as your power increases, so you can only gain its approval and defeat it mentally! But Hollows are different. Hollows don't have that special connection with us. Even if we become stronger, it might not. And that's your chance!"

"Keep moving forward? Must I be stronger every second than I was a second ago? This is... difficult~" Ichigo sighed, then asked, "Can you do it?"

“I don’t want this power. My teacher said it’s too dangerous. The battle between the king and his mount is not something that can be won in one fell swoop. In the future, if the king makes any mistake, the mount will immediately back down. So my teacher didn’t let me master such a dangerous power, and I don’t need it either.” Rukia shrugged.

Indeed, the purpose of Hollowfication research is actually to break the limits of Shinigami and complete a dimensional leap, but Rukia is far from reaching her limit, so there is no need for her to risk mastering this power.

"Tsk~ What an enviable guy~"

"Envious? I envy you guys more. You have clear goals and can get what you want through your own efforts, unlike me~ Sigh, everything has been arranged for me by my elder brother and teacher. Power, wealth, status, even my cultivation has been completely paved for me, without a single storm. People as fortunate as you would never understand me~ Sigh~"

"..." Ichigo admitted that he did indeed have the idea of ​​killing Rukia now!

However, after considering the two's combat strength, he abandoned this tempting idea, picked up the PS, and got up to walk out the door.

Hey! What are you doing?!

"Let's go eat."

"Then why did you photoshop me?"

"You PS..." Ichigo, who had reached the door, turned around and glanced at Rukia, who had a perfectly reasonable expression on her face. His lips twitched. How could this girl be so shameless?

"First, let me correct you, this is my Photoshop! Second, didn't you say your life has been smooth sailing, without a single storm? Well~" Ichigo waved the Photoshop in his hand, "I'll create some storms for you. Tonight, you won't be running into it again!!!"

After saying that, he walked straight out, leaving Rukia completely bewildered...

Did I... say something wrong?

.......

Time passed slowly, and before they knew it, the weekend had arrived again. Ichigo and Rukia resumed their hunting mode, but this time, they had Inoue as their companion.

Since Inoue is determined to help Ichigo, he cannot stand still!

Therefore, she offered to take Ichigo and the others with her during training, but...

Imagination is beautiful, but reality is cruel...

When Inoue actually arrived at the scene and saw the hideous Hollow, his legs went weak with fear, even though he was just an ordinary person a few days ago!

My calves were trembling uncontrollably, and I dared not move an inch.

Seeing this, Ichigo and Rukia exchanged a helpless smile. However, they could understand it, because even Ichigo had felt fear when he first faced Hollows. If he felt that way, then Inoue would certainly feel the same way.

"Inoue, why don't we wait..." Just as Ichigo was about to persuade Inoue to observe first, Inoue shook his head.

"No, Kurosaki-kun, if I give up now, I'll give up later anyway. If I keep giving up like this, when will I ever grow?" Inoue's eyes gradually hardened, and the fear in them slowly faded. Although his body was still trembling, at least his mind had begun to change.

What Shunshun Rikka values ​​most is precisely the power of the heart!

After taking a long, deep breath, Inoue looked at the Hollow rushing towards them, took off his hairpin, and said softly, "Lone Heaven Shield - I refuse!"

"call out!"

In an instant, one corner of the hairpin turned into spiritual particles that scattered and condensed into a cool little sprite, which then transformed into a sharp slash and flew towards the void!

Ichigo and Rukia looked on expectantly, while Nicholas, hidden in the shadows, gradually curled his lips into a smile. After a few days apart, things had progressed...

"Pfft~"

Everyone: "..."

Amidst the expectant gazes of the crowd, the unyielding Lone Sky Shield didn't even break through the Hollow's skin...

This caused the expectant expressions on everyone's faces to freeze instantly...

What am I... expecting?

With a sigh, Ichigo drew his Zanpakuto from behind him and finished him off with a single strike. These kinds of weak Hollows were now easy for Ichigo to handle.

"I'm sorry, Kurosaki-kun..." After losing the first battle, Inoue put his hands in front of him and said with his head down in disappointment.

"It's alright, these things take time. Cultivation requires taking one step at a time; you can't take shortcuts." Ichigo patted Inoue on the shoulder, acting like a senior.

"Kurosaki-kun..."

Unlike Inoue's emotional reaction, Rukia, who clearly knew Ichigo's entire growth process, rolled her eyes.

"You are the least qualified person to say that. How many shortcuts have you taken? Do you dare to say it again with your hand on your heart?"

Faced with Rukia's taunts, Ichigo was speechless for a moment. After thinking for a while, he forced himself to say, "Well, I'm really sorry, I have no conscience."

"Heh~ I get it, it got eaten by a dog, right?"

"Yeah, you ate it."

"Um?!"

"Ok!"

"Pfft~" Seeing the two of them locked in a fierce argument, Inoue suddenly burst out laughing, all the tension and unease in his heart vanishing. Inoue said with a smile, "Do you two usually bicker like this?"

"Well, it's mainly because he made me angry."

"Huh? Do you have the right to talk to me like that? Who's the one who flaunts their background in front of me every day?"

"That's showing off? Are you sure you didn't mishear?"

"Isn't that so?"

"You two, don't fight!"

Although it was noisy, the atmosphere among the three was noticeably more joyful and harmonious than before, and they seemed more like a team, except this team...

.......

At the same time, while Rukia and her two friends were arguing and searching for Hollows, a cool and handsome guy emerged from an alley near Karakura First Middle School with a red-haired girl.

"It really is Rukia's aura, and she's been here for a long time. It seems she's encountered some trouble, otherwise she wouldn't have stopped contacting us. But her Shinigami power seems to be... Captain, what should we do?"

"Let's go check out the situation first."

The newcomers were Byakuya and Renji. After the Twelfth Division reported the anomaly in Karakura Town, and remembering that Rukia had come here on a mission before, the two of them came to the human world directly through the Kuchiki family's portal without waiting for orders from above.

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Chapter 334 Ichigo's Death?!

"Let's go check out the situation first."

Renji nodded, and together with Byakuya, they changed into their artificial bodies and headed towards the school. In Karakura Town, they did not sense Rukia's spiritual pressure, but they did sense the presence of several unfamiliar Shinigami.

However, they wouldn't go to those places unless they really couldn't find them. They knew some information about Karakura Town; the city was home to many Soul Society fugitives, and it was best to avoid contact unless absolutely necessary.

So they decided to first go and check out the school where Rukia's presence was most prominent.

……

"Hello, sir... um, classmate, is there a girl named Rukia at your school?" Upon arriving at the school gate, Renji saw two girls walking out chatting and laughing, and he quickly went up to them and asked.