Naruto: Sasuke Uchiha Returns from Soul Society

"It seems our substitute Grim Reaper is in trouble."

He said casually, but his gaze subtly drifted towards Sasuke, "Miss Kuchiki has given all her power to him, so I'm afraid I can't be of much help now."

His tone shifted, revealing a worry that sounded clearly fake: "This is a real headache. If this substitute Shinigami can't even handle Hollows of this level, what if the commotion is too big and attracts the attention of the rest of Soul Society..."

Urahara Kisuke paused here, looking at Sasuke meaningfully.

"If some unrelated Shinigami come to Karakura Town to investigate, it might affect our research on traveling to another world, Sasuke-kun."

Sasuke put down his teacup; he had, of course, understood the unspoken meaning in Urahara Kisuke's words.

"......trouble."

He looked impatient, but still stood up from his chair.

Just as Kisuke Urahara had predicted, he could not allow anything to affect his plans to return.

Looking at the empty seats, Kisuke Urahara's smile finally became more genuine.

"What an unlovable child! He clearly cares a lot, but he says it all..."

"Meow~"

A soft meow interrupted his monologue.

Yoruichi had appeared at the dining table at some point, elegantly licking her paws.

"Is it really okay to let him handle it?"

Yoruichi spoke up, "Given that kid's style, aren't you afraid he'll make a big deal out of this?"

"Don't worry, Yoruichi-san."

Kisuke Urahara closed his fan, his smile fading. "Although he acts eccentrically, he knows what's important. Besides, Ichigo needs some real pressure to grow up as quickly as possible."

Yoruichi remained silent for a moment, seemingly accepting this explanation.

"Compared to that, Kisuke..."

Yoruichi's tone turned serious. "What we should really be worried about now is that girl from the Kuchiki family."

"Hmm," Kisuke Urahara responded, knowing what Yoruichi was going to say.

"Are you really going to just let her stay in this world like this?"

Yoruichi walked to the window, gazing at the distant sky, "That thing inside her..."

Kisuke Urahara slowly said, "There's nothing we can do about it. This is the only way to prevent that person from noticing."

"The artificial body will continue to decompose her spirit, gradually transforming her from a Shinigami into a mortal. At that time, the Hogyoku will completely merge with her soul, and even that man will not be able to separate the Hogyoku from her body."

"I understand your plan."

Yoruichi turned around, somewhat worried: "But we both know the rules of Seireitei. If a Shinigami doesn't return for so long without a reason, they will definitely send someone to investigate."

"If it's just a regular pursuit squad that comes, that's fine. But what if that man has noticed something and sent people..."

Yoruichi didn't say the name, but the two of them knew it.

Aizen Sousuke.

The man lurking in the shadows of Seireitei, coveting the power of the Hogyoku.

"Of course I know."

Kisuke Urahara sighed, resting his chin on his fan, his brows furrowed. "That's why we need even more time to complete the fusion process as quickly as possible before Soul Society can react."

Yoruichi continued, "But, Urahara, have you considered another question?"

"Ok?"

"Uchiha Sasuke."

Yoruichi's tone became more complicated, "He can see through the abnormality of the Gikai today, but he might discover something deeper tomorrow. If he reports these things to the Seireitei..."

Kisuke Urahara waved his fan and smiled: "Don't worry, although he is a registered Shinigami of Seireitei, judging from his appearance, he has no loyalty to Seireitei whatsoever."

"..."

Chapter 21 Erzhuzi, I'm good again!

Karakura Town, an abandoned garden rarely visited by humans.

The air still contained the spiritual particles that had dissipated after the purification.

Ichigo Kurosaki rested his massive Zanpakuto on the ground, while Rukia Kuchiki patiently gave him instructions in front of him.

"...That's right, that's exactly it."

Rukia looked at Ichigo Kurosaki with a serious expression, and said, "Gently tap the hilt of your Zanpakuto on his forehead."

"This ritual is called 'Soul Burial,' which can cleanse his attachment to the mortal world and allow him to go to the Soul Society in peace."

Kurosaki Ichigo nodded as if he understood, then looked at the soul of the little boy with a bewildered expression on his face.

He gently pressed the hilt of his Zanpakuto onto the boy's forehead.

"Om-"

A gentle magic circle lit up, and the boy's confusion instantly turned into a relieved smile. His body transformed into specks of light and slowly sank into the magic circle.

"Well done, Ichigo." Rukia finally showed a hint of approval on her face.

"Hehe, it's nothing!"

Kurosaki Ichigo scratched his head, a look of inquiry on his face. "Didn't you say before that you were powerless and couldn't return to Soul Society on your own? Can this 'Soul Burial' send you back?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Rukia's eyes widened in surprise.

"Boom!"

"it hurts!"

Kurosaki Ichigo covered his head, which had been hit hard, and turned around with tears in his eyes.

Rukia was seen standing in a fist-pumping stance, jumping up and down in anger.

"You idiot, what on earth are you thinking?!"

She pointed at herself, roaring furiously, "What do you think soul burial is? A public bus? You can't just get on whenever you want!!"

"I was just asking casually..." Ichigo protested softly, sounding aggrieved.

"You can't even ask casually!"

Rukia put her hands on her hips, but couldn't resist sticking out her finger and poking Ichigo's forehead hard.

"Listen carefully, Soul Burial is the duty of the Shinigami, a ritual to guide the lost 'Plus' to the Soul Society. It has no effect on Shinigami, understand?"

Just then, a cold voice came from not far away without warning, breaking the moment of warmth.

"It seems you're different from this fool who can get himself into a desperate situation by ordinary illusions."

"Who?!" Ichigo and Rukia were both startled and turned around abruptly.

They saw Uchiha Sasuke leaning against the trunk of a large tree, arms crossed, coldly watching them, having stood there for an unknown amount of time.

“It’s you.” Kurosaki Ichigo relaxed his furrowed brow.

Sasuke ignored him and instead focused his gaze on Rukia: "The duties of a Shinigami? Guiding lost souls? You seem to remember these boring rules very well."

“That’s only natural!” Rukia straightened her chest and retorted seriously, “Slaying Hollows and burying souls is our mission and rule as Shinigami!”

"You mean the rules?" Upon hearing Rukia's words, Sasuke seemed to have thought of something and couldn't help but laugh out loud.

Without saying anything more, he turned his gaze to Ichigo Kurosaki: "It seems you're not as bad as I thought."

This sudden praise stunned both Ichigo and Rukia.

They all thought that Sasuke would deliver another sarcastic and cutting remark, just like last time.

Ignoring their surprised expressions, Sasuke continued, "Since you've already mastered the basics of being a Shinigami, that's perfect."

He straightened up, a hint of impatience on his face.

"From now on, you'll be in charge of dealing with these small fry that appear in Karakura Town."

"Huh?!" Ichigo Kurosaki, as if he hadn't heard clearly, pointed at his own nose. "Me, handle this? What about you? Aren't you a Shinigami?!"

"I have more important things to do."

Sasuke answered bluntly, without any intention of explanation, "Don't compare me to a substitute Shinigami who handles miscellaneous tasks like you."

After saying that, he prepared to turn and leave.

Just as he was about to take a step, he paused slightly.

A strange feeling made him subconsciously turn his head, and his Sharingan locked onto Ichigo Kurosaki once again.

not right...

Sasuke's brow furrowed almost imperceptibly.

I didn't observe carefully last night, but now that I've calmed down, I realize that the spiritual pressure inside this orange-haired guy... seems a bit too immense.

That was far beyond what Rukia Wataru could achieve with the power she gave him.

This immense spiritual pressure immediately reminded him of the demon fox sealed behind a giant fence in Naruto's spiritual world.

Although their auras are completely different, the essence of "other powers existing within one body" is remarkably similar.

Are they the same kind of things?

It must be confirmed with one's own eyes.

To verify his guess, three jet-black tomoe quietly appeared in Sasuke's eyes and began to slowly rotate.

When he was in Konoha, Kakashi Hatake said that his Sharingan could copy most ninjutsu.

However, he was powerless against the Kido used by Sasuke, because the Sharingan could only copy the flow of chakra and hand seals, but could not analyze and imitate the Kido, which was composed of pure spiritual particles.

However, this posed no obstacle for Sasuke.

His Sharingan evolved in the Soul Society, an environment filled with spiritual particles, and had long since adapted to the existence of spiritual power.

For him, both the chakra of the ninja world, which is a combination of spiritual and physical energy, and the pure spiritual particles of the Bleach world, can be analyzed by his Sharingan.