The Alchemist in Bleach

Meanwhile, as the captains took action, the battle between Shiro and Ichigo Renji officially entered a fierce phase!

The three of them fought back and forth, making for quite a lively battle!

Although Shiro was fighting two opponents at once, his talent was undeniable, and after years of training, he received guidance from Captain-level Isshin and Kaien. His overall strength has now barely reached the Captain-level!

But not being at a disadvantage is only for now...

Ichigo's Bankai retains the characteristics of his Shikai: pure!

It has no fancy abilities, just faster speed, greater strength, and a sharper blade!

Ichigo, who is already very agile due to his mastery of three different movement techniques, has now taken it to another level, becoming even more agile!

Similarly, Renji's Bankai is an enhancement based on his Shikai, amplifying his original strengths, which is completely different from the bald man who is the third seat of the 11th Division.

Therefore, he is not at a disadvantage in a one-on-two situation yet, but defeat is only a matter of time. After all, he is a genius, and Ichigo and Renji are also geniuses.

The gap between them isn't actually that big. If this entanglement continues, only Ichigo and Renji will win.

Of course, this refers to the situation without external interference, such as the other thirteen team members...

But this is impossible!

They sensed that death was already on its way, and it was only a matter of time before the other captains arrived. Therefore, they had to act quickly!

Thinking it over, Ichigo and Renji exchanged a glance, confirming each other's thoughts.

Renji rushed forward to fight Toshiro, while Ichigo took the opportunity to jump out of the battlefield, his aura surging and a large amount of spiritual pressure beginning to gather!

Although Toshiro noticed this scene and wanted to stop it, he was powerless to do so. He simply couldn't keep up with Ichigo's speed, not to mention Renji's restraint.

"Crescent Moon Sky Slash!!!"

After a brief moment of charging, a massive, milky-white slash swept past Renji and headed straight for Toshiro!

Fortunately, although Renji's restraint prevented Toshiro from stopping Ichigo's charge-up, he could at least defend himself. Before the slash came, the Frost Dragon Wings behind him quickly closed and reinforced, enveloping him inside!

"boom!"

The powerful crescent-shaped, hard, and thick ice walls collided, producing a deafening roar, and ice shards flew wildly everywhere!

As the smoke cleared, Toshiro was revealed, now only possessing half a dragon wing. He stared at Ichigo in bewilderment, not because of the immense power of Getsuga Tenshou, but because of Getsuga Tenshou itself...

"Crescent Moon Sky Strike... How do you know that move?!"

"An opportunity!" Just as Toshiro was distracted and questioning Ichigo, Renji's eyes lit up, and he seized the opportunity to attack Toshiro!

"Secret Technique: Serpent Fang Iron Cannon!"

"Pfft!"

Renji's right-hand Zanpakuto slashed at the distracted Toshiro. In the face of this sudden change, Toshiro was unable to react in time and took a hard blow to the chest from Renji!

Large amounts of blood spurted out!

However, this is only the beginning. The serpent's slash has appeared, but the arquebus hasn't appeared yet...

After Renji struck Toshiro, a giant snake head appeared, then bit down and swallowed Toshiro whole. The next moment...

"boom!!!"

The deafening roar resounded once again!

Caught completely off guard, Toshiro was thrown to the ground like a doll after taking Renji's attack, landing unconscious with a "thud".

"Quickly retreat! This guy isn't using his full strength! He'll recover soon!" After knocking down Toshiro, Renji didn't feel smug. Instead, he anxiously turned to Ichigo and said.

Ichigo snapped out of his daze, nodded, and with a quick step, disappeared from the spot along with Renji.

"You just used Crescent Moon Strike? How do you know that move?"

In a secret passage in the Seireitei, Renji turned to Ichigo beside him and asked a question.

"It's an ability inherent to my Zanpakuto." Ichigo frowned. Was there something wrong with Getsuga Tenshou? "Why are you asking that?"

"Getsuga Tenshou is one of the Shiba family's secret techniques, a swordsmanship that Shiba Isshin, the former captain of the 10th Division, was skilled in. Logically speaking, outsiders shouldn't know it, and even within the Shiba family, there aren't many people who know this move. How could it become an ability that your Zanpakuto has? And the name is exactly the same, it's too strange."

"Shiba...Isshin?" Hearing Renji's words, Ichigo froze, recalling the suspicious attitude of the Shiba family head at the Shiba residence, the striking resemblance between the two men, the Getsuga Tenshou, and finally, the fact that his father's name was also Isshin, only the surname was different...

This series of coincidences... isn't it a bit too much of a coincidence?

"What's wrong?" Renji, who was walking ahead, turned around and asked with a frown when he saw Ichigo stop. "We don't have much time to waste right now."

"You just said that the former captain of the 10th Division was named Isshin Shiba?"

"Yes, is there a problem?"

"My father's name is Kurosaki Isshin... and I also possess the power of a Quincy. Rukia said that there is a pureblood Quincy named Kurosaki! So, my father is... a Shinigami?"

Upon hearing this, Renji was also stunned. Could it be such a coincidence? No, wait, this might make sense...

"Probably, almost certainly... As a human, your spiritual pressure is far beyond what is expected. But if you are of the Shiba family bloodline, then it's quite normal. The Shiba family was once a top-tier noble family in Seireitei, and its members are born with powerful spiritual pressure—all of them!" Renji said with a hint of envy. This feeling of being born into privilege was truly enviable!

"So, Father is a Shinigami? And a powerful Shinigami at that? Then he orchestrated all of this? Why?" Ichigo looked at Renji with a puzzled expression.

Renji: .......

You're asking me what your dad did?

Renji was somewhat speechless, but after thinking about it seriously for a moment, he stroked his chin and said, "If your mother was a Quincy, she should have passed away by now, right? I don't think you know many Quincy skills."

"Ah."

Seeing Ichigo nod, Renji rubbed his chin, and he roughly guessed what was going on.

"This is purely personal speculation, but your father is most likely seeking revenge—to avenge your mother!"

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

Chapter 363 High-end prey often appear in the form of hunters.

"revenge……?"

"Let's talk as we walk." Renji explained to Ichigo as he led him along the secret passage toward the execution ground, "You have the power of the Quincy, so you should know that a few years ago, there was a great extinction of the Quincy, right? All the mixed-blood Quincy were drained of their spiritual power and died overnight! I think your mother must have died around that time."

"..." Ichigo followed Renji, listening silently, the timing roughly matching...

"As for that incident, although we don't have any evidence, we can roughly deduce that it was the work of Yhwach, the progenitor of the Quincy! Because he had a similar ability a thousand years ago!"

"..." Ichigo paused for a moment, then glanced at Renji. "Why? Could it be one of you Shinigami? Quincy...you're your enemies, aren't you?"

"You're right. In fact, when I first heard this news, I also thought it was done by the Central 46. But, if I may be frank, the Shinigami nowadays don't need any plan to wipe out the Quincy. The GD series mechs can just sweep them away. Besides, only the hybrid Quincy died this time. None of the pure-blooded Quincy, who generally have high talent, died. Do you think we would leave this problem behind if we really wanted to take action?" Renji said calmly.

"Furthermore, if your father really is Shiba Isshin, then if it was truly us Shinigami who were behind this, he would have already returned to fight back. Although the Shiba family has declined, its foundation remains, and its influence is not insignificant."

Ichigo's question was within his expectations; to be fair, that was his first reaction upon hearing it. But equally to be fair, without Yhwach's leadership, the Quincy had no power to fight against the Shinigami.

Ichigo remained silent. He was... somewhat confused. Everyone's opinion seemed reasonable. He knew too little about the world, and most of what he knew came from the Shinigami. Even if he trusted Rukia completely, she wasn't entirely trustworthy.

However, one thing he was certain of was that he needed to become stronger!

Whether the killer is a Shinigami or Yhwach, the founder of the Quincy, his current power is absolutely insufficient. And most importantly, he can go back and ask his father about these things. If he doesn't tell him, he'll beat him until he does!

Anyway, if he doesn't have the power of death, he definitely can't beat him. You'll know once you try!

Thinking it over, Ichigo's slightly confused eyes hardened again. The most urgent thing was to save Rukia!

"Uh..." Renji was slightly taken aback when he saw Ichigo suddenly overtake him and run ahead with his head down. He then quickened his pace, walked in front of Ichigo, silently corrected his direction, and led him towards the execution ground.

Just as Renji and Ichigo were rushing to the execution ground, Toshiro, who had fallen to the ground like a broken bag, was slowly getting up while gasping for breath, as if he had been seriously injured.

"Whoosh whoosh whoosh~~"

Suddenly, the sound of air being cut through the air appeared, and several spirit arrows shot towards Toshiro and Ikkaku, who were lying on the ground!

"Ta-da!"

Just when the attackers thought they had completed their mission, Toshiro, who should have been seriously injured and lying on the ground, and Ikkaku, who should have been unconscious, suddenly sprang to their feet with agility, wielding their Zanpakuto and knocking down the spirit arrows one by one!

"So you've finally shown yourself, Quincy~" Toshiro held a sword in one hand, the ice wings behind him gradually completing, and looked at the middle-aged man not far away with a half-smile.

"Someone actually launched a sneak attack. That's quite something, Lieutenant Hitsugaya. He's so small, yet so capable." Ikkaku, carrying his Zanpakuto, casually walked up to Toshiro.

Toshiro glanced at the corner and kept those words in mind; now was not the time to settle scores.

Toshiro glanced at the middle-aged man in the black cloak, his eyes narrowing slightly. This attire...

Yhwabach?

Yhwach chuckled dismissively and said arrogantly, "Oh, you're not even a hundred years old yet, and you know me. It seems you've indeed taken quite a few precautions."

"Heh~" To everyone's surprise, Toshiro and Ikkaku both chuckled disdainfully upon hearing his words. Toshiro raised Hyōrinmaru, its blade aimed at "Yhwach." "Yhwach? You? Such a weak attack, you really don't know your own limitations~ If you really are Yhwach, how could we easily block your attack? Heh~ Arrogant fellow~"

Lloyd's face darkened. Sure enough, he should have listened to His Majesty and not been so careless. He had underestimated these guys. However, it was a minor issue and wouldn't have a significant impact.

Lloyd looked at Toshiro, who had already activated his Bankai, and smiled contemptuously before unleashing the Star Emblem on his chest!

"Bang~"

As the star on Lloyd's front lit up, the ice on Toshiro's body instantly shattered!

The ice wings, dragon tail, and dragon claws all vanished in an instant!

"Hahahaha~" Lloyd laughed wildly, "You damned Shinigami, your power is mine now! Oh right, your Zanpakuto is your partner, right? Well, sorry, it's mine now, hahahahaha!"

However, Lloyd, engrossed in his wild laughter, failed to notice that Toshiro, whose Bankai had been taken from him, showed no sign of panic. In fact, a corner of his body watching Lloyd's reaction even revealed a mocking smile, as if looking at a clown...

Just as Yhwach commented on them, the Sternritter, though powerful, were too arrogant and underestimated their enemies. They were fine in normal combat, but once they fell into someone else's trap, this weakness... became fatal!

"Hahaha, cough waah~" Just as he was laughing, Lloyd bent over and spat out a mouthful of blood. He knelt on the ground in agony, blood continuously flowing from his mouth. Looking at the blood on the ground, Lloyd was incredulous. "When...?"

"Hehehe~ Of course, it's when you're watching the show from the sidelines~ How ugly, Quincy~" After Lloyd fell to the ground, a pervert with a Zanpakuto tied to his waist slowly emerged from the shadows.

“…It was you who did this… Waaah~” Lloyd collapsed to the ground, his vision blurring. “The 12th Division Lieutenant… Mayuri Kurotsuchi…”

"Oh my~ Your Majesty the great 'Yhwach', hee hee hee hee~" Wearing a Shinigami outfit, Mayuri Kurotsuchi walked up to Lloyd with a grin, stepped on his head, and looked at Lloyd as he slowly returned to his original form, pouting in disappointment.

Although he had already guessed it, Mayuri Kurotsuchi was still somewhat disappointed to see that it was a disguise. If it were really Yhwach, it would definitely be of great research value!

Well, it's uncertain who will be researching whom at that point...

Mayuri possessed Lloyd and removed his badge, then kicked him to Nemu's feet. The badge was the most important thing; the rest was not so important.

"Vice-Captain Hitsugaya, should I return your 'Bankai' first?" Mayuri Kurotsuchi held up his badge and shook it at Toshiro.

"No need, it's just a mimicry Bankai. What I care about is, can it really be broken?"