Naruto: Sasuke Uchiha Returns from Soul Society

At this moment, under the gaze of those slowly rotating Sharingan, the spiritual power within Kurosaki Ichigo's body surged forth, leaving him nowhere to hide.

Sasuke clearly saw a power completely different from that of the Grim Reaper.

It was distinct from that blue power of death, yet strangely intertwined with it.

“As expected…” Sasuke thought to himself, “Just like that idiot Naruto, this guy also has something else inside him.”

What exactly is this dark force?

With this question in mind, Sasuke pushed the Sharingan's perception to its limit, attempting to penetrate that black ocean and see its deepest essence.

Just then—

A sudden change has occurred!

The once calm black power seemed to sense the presence of the spy, and suddenly stirred up a raging storm.

"Well!"

Sasuke groaned, feeling a sharp pain in his eyes, as if countless steel needles were piercing them.

He abruptly closed his eyes, his body staggering backward uncontrollably, bright red blood slowly sliding down the corner of his tightly closed right eye.

His Sharingan vaguely caught a blurry afterimage deep within that black power.

A man wearing a black trench coat, semi-transparent sunglasses, and with a cold expression.

"Hey! What's wrong with you?!"

Kurosaki Ichigo was startled by this sudden turn of events. He saw Sasuke suddenly cover his eyes, with blood flowing from the corner of his eye, and he quickly stepped forward and asked anxiously.

Rukia also looked surprised and uncertain. She didn't understand what had just happened, only that Sasuke's aura had become extremely chaotic in an instant.

"……hateful."

Sasuke endured the excruciating pain and slowly opened his eyes.

He stared intently at Ichigo, who looked completely bewildered. Although that attack was brief, the sheer power it unleashed was something no so-called Substitute Shinigami could possess.

Chapter 22 Guidance

"......hateful."

Sasuke endured the excruciating pain in his right eye and slowly opened it.

His eyes were bloodshot, and bloodstains slid down his cheeks, adding to his menacing appearance.

He stared intently at the bewildered Ichigo Kurosaki, his inner peace ignited by a strange emotion.

Jealousy, and the humiliation of being betrayed.

First there was that idiot Naruto, who had a demon fox sealed within him that was comparable to a captain-level Grim Reaper. Now, there's this orange-haired guy in front of me, who also harbors a pure and terrifying unknown power within him.

Unforgivable.

This power, which he couldn't understand, made him feel instinctively irritated.

"Hey, what's wrong?" Kurosaki Ichigo was about to step forward to ask what was wrong, but he was forced to stop by the undisguised hostility in Sasuke's eyes.

"You bastard..."

Sasuke's voice was deep and hoarse as he slowly raised his Zanpakuto and pointed it at the bewildered Ichigo Kurosaki.

What was that just now?

"What is what?" Ichigo Kurosaki was completely baffled.

Stop pretending.

Sasuke smirked coldly. "Fine, since you won't tell me, I'll just beat it out myself."

He took a step forward, exuding a sharp and oppressive aura.

"Let me see what kind of 'capacity' you have, a half-baked novice who has just learned to hold a knife."

Before he could finish speaking, and before Ichigo could react, Sasuke had already vanished from the spot!

Instant Step!

"what?!"

Kurosaki Ichigo's pupils contracted sharply as he felt a gust of wind coming from his side.

He moved the massive Zanpakuto horizontally to his side entirely on instinct.

"Clang—!"

The clang of metal rang out, and sparks flew everywhere.

Sasuke's sword struck the massive blade with pinpoint accuracy, the force of which sent Ichigo Kurosaki staggering backward.

"The reaction was not bad," Sasuke commented calmly, but his offensive did not stop at all.

His figure moved like a ghost, rapidly circling around Ichigo Kurosaki, his Takemikazuchi sword transforming into deadly streaks of cold light, slashing at Ichigo's weaknesses from every angle.

"Damn it! What are you trying to do?!"

Kurosaki Ichigo was overwhelmed by the whirlwind of attacks and could only awkwardly swing his giant blade.

He couldn't see Sasuke's movements at all and could only defend by instinct.

"Just giving some guidance to the substitute Shinigami." Sasuke's voice came from the surroundings.

"I never said I wanted to be a Grim Reaper!" Kurosaki Ichigo roared during a break in the parry, completely bewildered by the sudden change in his opponent.

"Shut up!"

Sasuke's attacks intensified, his voice filled with impatience, "I'm just trying to confirm one thing: what makes someone like you possess such power!"

Another heavy slash cleaved the ground beneath Kurosaki Ichigo's feet, creating a deep crack. He could no longer hold on and collapsed to his knees.

Sasuke stopped attacking, looking down at him with cold eyes.

"Too weak, he just swings his sword randomly based on instinct."

He pointed the tip of his knife at Ichigo Kurosaki's throat, his tone full of sarcastic provocation: "Is that all you've got? You probably can't even protect your family like this."

"You bastard, what did you say?!"

These words were like a poisoned needle, piercing Ichigo Kurosaki's heart.

The inability to protect his family is his deepest fear.

Anger, along with the fear that his family might be harmed again, surged into Ichigo Kurosaki's heart in an instant.

boom!

An immense spiritual pressure erupted from Ichigo Kurosaki's body!

This spiritual pressure was not the calm, black power, but pure Shinigami spiritual pressure, yet it felt completely out of control.

"Ok?"

Sasuke noticed the change and his eyes narrowed.

It wasn't that black power? Or was it the power of death that had gone out of control?

He saw that Ichigo Kurosaki's eyes were starting to lose focus, and the spiritual pressure around him was becoming increasingly violent, showing a trend of developing towards the rampage that day when the Nine-Tailed Fox went berserk.

"Tch, what a troublesome guy."

Sasuke frowned. If he continued to provoke him, he feared that he would repeat the same mistake and make things even more difficult to handle.

This is not the outcome he wanted.

His goal was to force out that mysterious black power, not to see another out-of-control Nine-Tails.

That's the end of it.

Sasuke Uchiha instantly sheathed his sword and retreated.

In the instant he stepped back, he struck Kurosaki Ichigo on the back of the neck with the hilt of his sword.

"Well……"

Kurosaki Ichigo rolled his eyes, and the spiritual pressure that was about to go berserk subsided instantly. He collapsed to the ground and passed out.

"Sasuke! You..." Rukia looked at everything in shock, and was about to step forward to question him.

Uchiha Sasuke had already sheathed his sword, giving the unconscious Kurosaki Ichigo one last glance before reverting to his arrogant expression.

"As expected, he's just a half-baked amateur."

As soon as he finished speaking, his figure flickered slightly, and he completely disappeared from the spot using Instant Step.

Rukia was left speechless.

"What an annoying brat..."

……

Meanwhile, in the underground training grounds of Urahara Store.

Kisuke Urahara was holding a fan, watching the entire "guidance battle" with great interest in front of a huge screen.

"Oh dear..."

He rested his chin on his fan and let out a meaningful sigh, "What a simple and crude stimulation therapy, but it seems to be quite effective."

He could clearly feel that after Sasuke's outburst, the Shinigami spiritual pressure that had just been activated within Ichigo Kurosaki's body had become much more active.

"Although we failed to draw out the Quincy's power, it's still a pleasant surprise that his spiritual pressure has been activated to this extent," Kisuke Urahara muttered to himself with a smile.

The "teaching assistant" I picked up was surprisingly useful, despite his terrible personality.

Meanwhile, Sasuke had already quietly returned to Urahara's shop.

The stinging sensation in my right eye has subsided.

Without pausing for a moment, he leaped off the roof and headed straight for Urahara Kisaku's room.

The door was pushed open.

Kisuke Urahara was leisurely sipping his tea when he saw Sasuke return, and his signature smile immediately appeared on his face.

"Oh, Sasuke-kun is back. Have you finished taking care of everything? You've worked so hard."