Ichigo leaves and takes up residence in Soul Society!

"Maybe tomorrow, maybe a month from now, I'll be watching you all, like a curse that follows you like a shadow! Until then, you can live in fear and trembling!"

Number Three made a vicious oath.

Anyone could tell he was serious.

"If you dare come, I'll beat you up!"

Ba Ba Yuan disdained it.

Lun Tang remained silent, but his dark gaze was filled with coldness.

"Who's afraid of you? Grandpa Ōmaeda isn't someone to be trifled with... At worst, I'll just follow the captain around every day."

"Ohmaeda muttered to himself."

Shiba Kukaku originally wanted to say a few harsh words, but Ichigo, who was in a hurry, suddenly stood up and stared at Number Three with extreme seriousness.

"You think you can just walk away after doing something bad and killing someone? There's no such thing as a free lunch! Besides... I won't let you just take my knife... my power away like that!"

Ichigo's soul was throbbing, echoing his will.

Then a powerful force blurred the vision, and among those unreal, crooked skyscrapers, the figure of a man draped in a black cloak stood silently.

He wore fashionable glasses and had a cold expression, as if he had experienced countless trials and tribulations, unable to be moved by the living or mourn the dead.

Even so, the man's gaze toward Ichigo was filled with deep guilt. His deep voice seemed to come from a distant place, as if it were ringing in Ichigo's ears, echoing in his heart, stimulating some kind of hidden power to gradually awaken.

[That's right, Ichigo... Don't back down, don't let yourself regret it. I've already experienced that once, and I don't want to see you get hurt again, to see you grieve because of death. So I won't refuse to give you the power to protect yourself, to protect what you cherish.]

Although your power is far from mature, you still possess a great deal of strength. All you need to do is cast aside your fear, move forward, and call out as you go...

"—Slay the Moon!"

Ichigo's sudden, inspired cry caused the two powers within him to achieve a perfect unity at that moment.

As Number Three stepped into the dark cavity, he suddenly sensed something and looked down to find that the knife in his hand had turned into a vermilion blade with a chain at the end that extended out of the dark cavity.

"This is……"

He instinctively looked in the direction of the chains and saw a jet-black bow in the hand of the orange-haired imp at the end, with the chains wrapped around his other hand.

"Come back!"

Ichigo pulled hard on the lock, unexpectedly pulling out an enemy more than three times his size from the black cavity.

Then the lock burst forth with a blinding red light, scorching Number Three like magma.

"Ahhhh!"

The body, with its specialized defensive capabilities, appeared exceptionally vulnerable under this light.

Just as Number Three raised his hand to cover his face, he suddenly felt a pain in his chest, and saw another crimson chain sword blade plunge into his chest.

The hard body was as useless as it had been against the Four Palaces Lord before.

The difference is that the Four Palaces Lord relies on absolute numerical superiority.

Ichigo, on the other hand, utilized the mechanism of the "arrow" that destroys Hollows.

"Ah... Lord Arturo... I haven't...!"

Words more poignant than tears became her final testament.

Body number three collapsed and dissipated from the point of impact with the arrow.

Thus, this battle, which should not exist in history, came to an end.

"call--"

Ichigo let out a sigh of relief.

"What a fancy and elaborate Shikai!"

Before anyone could even gasp in surprise, a voice suddenly rang out.

The vigilance lasted only a brief moment.

The visitor is the Four Palaces Venerable.

"What are you saying? It looks so practical and cool."

Ichigo retorted defiantly, then sneered, "It's your spiritual pressure that's increasing abnormally. It's obvious you used some dangerous technique. You still have the leisure to joke around. You should just lie down properly."

"You know me, I've always had a strong ability to recover. This little bit of damage will be fine after a good night's sleep."

The four palaces lords spoke casually.

The "compound potion" can be used twice a day to restore a small amount of spiritual pressure and physical strength. With this, it is impossible for him to remain weak for a long time.

"It's okay!"

Shiba Kuzuru patted Shinomiya-sensei on the shoulder, then looked at Ichigo with satisfaction.

"I didn't expect you two to steal the spotlight this time, but being safe and sound is better than anything else."

"I really envy you guys who have already mastered Shikai. I don't know how long I'll have to wait. Damn it, can't you be a little more proactive?!"

Ichigo was both amused and exasperated as he watched Hachiyahara muttering to himself about his Zanpakuto.

"Well, don't worry, these things are more about luck. To be honest, I'm completely clueless myself. I don't understand what happened at all; I just used it based on my gut feeling... By the way, how do I undo this?"

"Idiot, didn't you say yourself that you go by your gut feeling?"

"Ohmaeda complained."

"Nonsense! This is my first time using Shikai, how could I possibly understand so much? Uh, anyway, that's how it is, right... Huh?"

Ichigo tried to restore his Zanpakuto to its original form, but it did change. Instead of returning to Asauchi, it transformed from a black longbow into a shark-shaped sword nearly as tall as a person.

He was dumbfounded.

I don't understand why this is happening at all.

Not to mention Ichigo, who didn't understand, even the well-informed Kukaku Shiba and Omaeda were stunned.

Hachihara and Rindo had little experience and could only be surprised.

Of everyone present, only the Fourth Palace Master knew the truth.

"It seems that your Shikai has another sword form. Due to the rushed mastery of it, and the special nature of Shikai, you need to master both forms before you can revert to Asauchi."

"Two states, a Shikai that can switch between each other? This is the first time I've seen this type. But the sword and the bow, one close and one far, are strangely a good match. It's a pity they're not separate, otherwise it would be the third pair in Soul Society."

Shiba Kukaku stroked his chin and commented.

It certainly couldn't be "double-edged swords".

The Four Palace Masters secretly shook their heads.

Although I don't know what "Zhan Yue" was thinking.

But there is no doubt that some unknown changes have been made.

From actively suppressing Ichigo's immature power to prevent him from being drawn into battle and getting hurt, to now suppressing his immature power to prevent it from getting out of control while actively giving him more power.

Therefore, Ichigo has two completely different Shikai.

One represents the fragmented power of Hollows and Shinigami, and the other represents the fragmented power of Quincy and Shinigami.

Compared to the original timeline, it seems to have only one additional initial interpretation, but it contains profound implications.

After all, Quincy are human, but Ichigo is no longer human.

He will live on in Soul Society as a Shinigami (death god).

Perhaps this is one of the reasons why "Zangetsu" made changes.

A single path cannot accommodate multiple identities, but it can bear multiple powers and expand its own path.

From this perspective, choosing a master was definitely the right decision.

Because it was exactly the same choice as Aizen's.

And they should strive to "surpass their teachers."

The four palaces elders reconsidered.

"He's awakened the Quincy power now, I wonder what his Bankai will be like. Will it be two different forms of Bankai? Or..."

Before he could reach a conclusion, something unexpected happened.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh—!

With a whooshing sound, dozens of masked men in black appeared and surrounded the Four Palace Masters and the others.

"Covered maneuver?"

Shiba Kukaku recognized the person at a glance.

"Captain? Captain! You've finally arrived! You have no idea how miserable I've been...!"

Ōmaeda spotted the petite figure standing in mid-air at a glance and immediately burst into tears.

"Shut up!"

Soi Fon raised her eyebrows and glared at him with disdain in her eyes. Then she looked away, stared at Shinomiya-san and the others, and waved her hand to give an order.

"Take everyone, including Ōmaeda, back for interrogation!"

Chapter Nineteen: The Machine Soul is Overjoyed, The Sage's Sword

Second Division, the barracks are secure.

The four princes, who had been secretly escorted here, calmly pulled up a chair and sat down.

Look around.

The spacious and clean room doesn't quite fit the word "prison cell"; it's more like a solitary confinement cell.

He was not wearing any restraints that restricted his movement.

"We've achieved our goal of returning to Seireitei before dawn. It would be even better if we could have a soft, comfortable bed."

Unfortunately, there was no bed.

The Four Palaces Lord is not sleepy for the time being.

The first real-world combat experience where life was at stake left the cerebral cortex in a state of excitement.

From another perspective, it is indeed something to be happy about.

A month later, the familiar ink-wash calligraphy reappeared before my eyes.

[Thank God, you led a bunch of rookies to victory in a rookie battle that wasn't even appropriate for your level. The mental effort you used is enough to conceive a classic amateur debut story...]

"???"

[You murdered a lackey who attempted to inherit the will of a loser, and you also deprived the raging beast that would one day submit to another loser of the chance to forever encounter its best friend. Such a cold-blooded display of the power of the Fourth Calamity delights the Machine Soul!]

[You have mastered the sword of a saint from another world who yearns to protect his comrades—]

[Seven Flashes Have Been Learned]

[Learning "Weishian"...]

The Four Palaces Venerable's body suddenly trembled.

Even though I am now a spirit, I still feel a mysterious power flowing into the depths of my soul.

My brain was buzzing, as if it were being baptized by a storm.

Perhaps it was a storm of inspiration, a sudden realization that came to mind in a daze.

He instinctively reached for the hilt of the knife, but found nothing at his waist.

When I entered, my Zanpakuto was taken away by the gatekeeper.

Otherwise... this room might have already been completely destroyed.

After a moment, the Four Palaces Lord slowly relaxed his body, and his eyes regained their clarity.

"As I expected, the bigger the waves, the more expensive the fish."

Having fought a real battle against a mid-level Hollow less than half a year after entering the Spirit Arts Academy, it is undoubtedly a rather "special" achievement and event, and there is no reason for [Machine Soul] to remain silent.

Now that the results have come, it proves that the Four Palaces Master's approach was correct.