The Demon King, reborn in Japan as a monk

In just a few moments, Ishihara Akira finished the ramen in his bowl.

He then got up and took the bowl to the kitchen before returning to the living room, sitting back on the sofa, and continuing to watch the TV program that was playing.

"By the way, when did Inoue Hao start attacking Inoue Orihime?" Ishihara Sho thought back carefully and found that apart from the first attack when Inoue Orihime was at school, where he wanted to cause an accidental car accident to kill her, there was no specific information about how much time had passed before Inoue Hao directly attacked Orihime's house.

"But it will only be in the next day or two. If we pay a little more attention, we can stop Inoue Hao at his doorstep and completely eliminate any flaws in our lies."

A moment later, Orihime Inoue, having finished cleaning up the kitchen, returned to the living room and sat on the sofa to watch television.

Ishihara Yu glanced at her, then grabbed Inoue Orihime's leg, lifted it up, and placed her feet in his lap...

"Stop it, it tickles." Inoue Orihime leaned back on the sofa, curled her toes, and whispered.

Ishihara Akira still ignored her, as if he couldn't hear her, and fiddled with Inoue Orihime's toes, distracted by watching TV as he twirled prayer beads in a temple.

Until late at night.

"Hmm?" Ishihara Sho sensed an unusual spiritual energy, unsure if it was the void he knew about...

After all, he had never seen a real Hollow when he was in Soul Society, so he didn't know what the characteristics of a Hollow's aura were, but it was definitely different from the feeling he got from a Shinigami.

"Give me the room key, I'm going out for a bit," Ishihara Akira said, turning to Inoue Orihime beside him.

"It's over there in the entryway, wait a minute, I'll go get it for you." Inoue Orihime said as she got off the ground, quickly ran to the entryway, picked up a set of keys from the shoe cabinet next to the phone, and ran back.

"Give."

"Stay home and don't wander off. I'll be back soon," said Ishihara Akira, taking the keys and getting up.

"Oh."

Afterwards, Ishihara Akira left Inoue Orihime's house, jumped onto the roof, and released his senses to search for the whereabouts of the Hollow that Inoue Hao had transformed into.

Perhaps it was because Ishihara Sho's disguise was indeed very deceptive, preventing Inoue Hao from recognizing his identity as a Grim Reaper. Therefore, without hiding it, Ishihara Sho found Inoue Hao in a small alley between two buildings next to Inoue Orihime's house. Although he had a human head, he wore a mask made of bones on his head, and his body was no longer human, but a long, smooth body like a giant python!

Without hesitation, he used the Quincy's spirit particle weaving technique to create a spirit particle chain similar to the Vajra Lock of the Uzumaki clan in the Naruto world. Like a lasso, he wrapped it around Inoue Hao's neck and pulled hard, forcibly dragging Inoue Hao out of the alley.

Before Inoue Hao could retaliate or escape, she decisively appeared in front of Inoue Hao's skeletal skull with a Shunpo, drew her Zanpakuto, and cleaved Inoue Hao in two in an instant...

"Ow!"

"Orihime." A moment later, Inoue Hao's white bone mask fell off, his body began to collapse, but he gradually regained human consciousness. He looked at the house where Inoue Orihime was and murmured with longing in his eyes.

"I will take good care of her," Ishihara Sho said calmly as he landed on the ground and put away his knife.

"Please." Inoue Hiroshi said softly, seemingly understanding the meaning behind Ishihara Sho's words, as he was about to disappear completely.

Then, Inoue Hiroshi completely disappeared, and Ishihara Sho finished his lie, no longer needing to worry that Inoue Orihime would learn the truth about the lie because of Inoue Hiroshi.

Then Ishihara Akira returned to the house and, as if nothing had happened, started playing with Inoue Orihime's toes while watching TV...

……

What happened next was exactly as described in the original storyline.

Except for the absence of Orihime Inoue's part.

However, there weren't many changes. After all, at the beginning of the original work, before the Soul Society arc, Orihime Inoue didn't have much of a role or much plot. Therefore, her presence or absence didn't affect Ichigo Kurosaki's situation. It was only after entering Hueco Mundo that Orihime's importance was highlighted by Aizen's actions, and she even became the catalyst for Ichigo Kurosaki's journey into Hueco Mundo.

In other words, the real impact of Ishihara Akira's involvement is on the second phase of the story.

But it didn't have much of an impact. After all, even though Orihime Inoue was gone, there were still Chad and Uryu Ishida. If Aizen really wanted Ichigo Kurosaki to go to Hueco Mundo, he could use them as hostages to provoke Ichigo's actions.

If all else fails, there are still Ichigo Kurosaki's two younger sisters, aren't there?

Even if Ichigo Kurosaki isn't swayed by two men, wouldn't he be swayed by his own sister?

So the story will unfold when the time comes, but whether Ishihara Sho will participate, or even whether he will still be around, is another matter entirely.

Then that afternoon, Ishihara Sho came to Urahara Kisuke's general store again.

"It's you. What a rare guest. Is there any new need you want to purchase from me?" Upon seeing Ishihara Sho again, Urahara Kisuke opened the fan in his hand, covering his face with the sand, leaving only his eyes visible, and asked with a hint of amusement in his voice.

"There is indeed something I need to trouble you with, store manager," Ishihara Akira said with a smile.

"Oh?" Kisuke Urahara's gaze turned serious.

"When you take Ichigo Kurosaki and the others to Soul Society this time, can I hitch a ride with them?" Ishihara Akira asked directly.

Chapter 197 Transcendent Gate

"You want to go back to Soul Society?" Kisuke Urahara asked in surprise. "Isn't the human world good enough?"

"It's good, and it's indeed suitable for living in seclusion and retirement, but I don't think I'm old enough to need to think about retirement yet. Besides, I have some things to take care of when I return to Soul Society, so I can only temporarily give up my wonderful life and risk going back." Ishihara Akira spread his hands, looking helpless.

"What are you going back to do?" Kisuke Urahara pressed.

Or rather, they want to know whether Ishihara Akira's return this time was truly to handle his own affairs, or whether he was after the Hogyoku...

Although with his and Yoruichi's arrangements, it wouldn't matter if there was one more Ishihara Akane.

However, Ishihara Sho's ability is to foresee the future. If he were to become their adversary, their plans might not be effective.

Therefore, he had no choice but to ask more questions.

"Don't worry, I have no interest in the so-called Hogyoku." Knowing what Urahara Kisuke was worried about, Ishihara Sho said frankly, "I have two main things to do when I go back this time. First, I want to go back and see my friends who stayed there and have a get-together with them. Second, I got a Transcendental Body from you before, and I've successfully cultivated it. I want to find someone to test my strength. Since you guys are going to the Soul Society, I thought I might as well hitch a ride with you. Otherwise, I really can't find anyone other than you to be my opponent."

After all, he is not Kisuke Urahara; he doesn't know how to create a portal or open a way to Hueco Mundo.

It's more likely they'll try to take advantage of the situation and lead themselves away.

“If that’s the case, then that’s fine. We’ll probably set off in the morning three days from now. You can just come over then,” Kisuke Urahara said after thinking for a moment.

"Thank you very much then," Ishihara Akira said with a smile.

Without bothering Urahara Kisuke any further, she smiled and turned away from Urahara Kisuke's general store, returning to Inoue Orihime's home, which was now just like her own.

I'll continue staying home watching TV, messing around with Inoue Orihime, and learning everything about Mara from the sword spirit.

……

In the blink of an eye, three days passed peacefully.

"I'm leaving." Ishihara Sho leaned down and kissed Inoue Orihime, who was still half asleep and not very awake, then grabbed her big treasure and stood up.

"Be careful on the road," Inoue Orihime replied absentmindedly.

Then he turned over and went back to sleep.

Seeing this, Ishihara Sho smiled. Sure enough, with his intervention, Inoue Orihime was no longer able to participate in this matter and did not accompany Kurosaki Ichigo to Soul Society as one of the members.

Instead, like a lazy cat, she was left in the present world to enjoy the summer vacation she should have had.

Therefore, Ishihara Akira did not linger at Inoue Orihime's place. After taking his things, he decisively left Inoue Orihime's house and headed towards Urahara Kisuke's general store.

Because it was early morning, there were few pedestrians on the road, allowing Ishihara Sho to move freely. It didn't take him long to reach Urahara Kisuke's general store, where he was entertained by Kishinaki Tessai and taken to Urahara Kisuke's room. There, he sat down, drank tea, and waited for the others to arrive.

Of course, he didn't have to wait too long, only about an hour, before Ichigo Kurosaki, acting as a Shinigami, arrived.

Next up is Uryu Ishida and then Chado Yasutora.

With Yoruichi the Black Cat already there, the entire group of travelers was now complete.

"Now that everyone is here, let's go downstairs," Kisuke Urahara said, standing up.

"Aren't you going to introduce this person to us?" Ishida Uryu asked Ishihara Sho, who was dressed in modern clothes but had a Zanpakuto in his hand, with a slightly serious expression.

“He is Ishihara Akira. He has other business to attend to when he returns to Soul Society, so he is your companion. However, he will not be involved in your affairs, so you can just pretend he doesn’t exist,” Urahara Kisuke explained.

"Fellow travelers..." Ishida Uryu pushed up his glasses, but didn't ask any further questions. He stood up and, together with Kurosaki Ichigo and Chad, walked with Urahara Kisuke towards the underground space where Kurosaki Ichigo had regained his Shinigami powers.

In just a moment, a huge space that looked like a desolate desert came into view for Ishihara Sho and the others.

The sky is a natural sky, with white clouds drifting across it. The ground looks very real, with fine sand, sharp stones underfoot, and the surrounding yellowish-brown weathered rocks also look quite realistic.

Aside from the lack of wind, it's really hard to tell the difference between this place and the real wilderness.

However, Kisuke Urahara did not stop there, but led everyone to continue deeper into the space.

After a while, they stopped in front of a rectangular stone door that looked like it was made of countless pebbles glued together.

“The place you are going to is the Soul Society. It is not only where the Shinigami live, but also where all the living beings in the human world emerge after they ascend to heaven. In other words, it is a place that is completely suitable for spirits to live in, but not suitable for humans like you to enter. So, if you want to get there smoothly, you will need to undergo a transformation.” Kisuke Urahara, standing by the stone gate, explained to Uryu Ishida and Yasutora Chad.

"That's why you have this special gate that you see before you. Of course, this transformation is reversible, so you don't need to worry about never being able to turn back after entering Soul Society."

"Yoruichi, I'm leaving the rest to you." After saying that, Kisuke Urahara slapped the stone door frame next to him, activating the gate, and then looked at Yoruichi, the black cat standing to the side.

"Mm," Yoruichi replied.

"Kids, let's go." After saying that, without waiting for the others to react, he took the lead and plunged into the spiritual particle vortex that emitted a blue light.

Then came Ishihara Akira, followed by the decisive and resolute Kurosaki Ichigo, and Chad Yasutora who believed in Kurosaki Ichigo, plus Ishida Uryu who participated in this operation with a death wish.

Then, the light gate closed, and Kisuke Urahara pulled his hat off.

"I wish you all great success in your military endeavors."

……

At the same time, after passing through the interdimensional gate, everyone appeared in a pitch-black passage that resembled a mine tunnel.

"We can discuss any questions on the way. For now, get running!" Yoruichi shouted.

Then, everyone started running, following Yoruichi who had run ahead, heading towards the unknown distance that the passage led to...

Chapter 198 Plot

"Where is this place?" On the way, Kurosaki Ichigo looked at the strange surroundings and asked Yoruichi, who was leading the way.

“This is the interlayer between the human world and the Soul Society. You can call it the Boundary Cavity, or simply the Interlayer Space. It’s the place we have to pass through to enter the Soul Society, and it’s extremely dangerous,” Yoruichi replied.

"Danger?" Ishida Uryu asked doubtfully.

"Yes. Because there is a strange creature here called the Jutu. It acts like a scavenger, destroying and annihilating all creatures, souls, and obstacles that block its path. That's why I need you to run!"

"Because it is very possible that a riot could break out at any moment."

"Then I advise you not to say anything more. What if you turn out to be a crow? Wouldn't that be terrible for us?" Ishihara Akira reminded him.

Have you ever seen a crow that looks like me?