Chapter 89

Rukia slowly walked toward Sode no Shirayuki, quietly chanting a kidō spell under her breath.

Her cold and resolute demeanor made Sode no Shirayuki suddenly feel… afraid.

In panic, she pointed her zanpakutō at Rukia. A massive white orb of ice condensed at the tip of her blade and launched straight at her.

But Rukia didn't dodge. Holding her zanpakutō firmly, she advanced step by step—each one full of determination.

She walked straight into the oncoming ice.

"Carriage of thunder, bridge of a spinning wheel. With light, divide this into six! Bakudō #61: Rikujōkōrō!"

This time, her Rikujōkōrō was completely different—it worked.

Sode no Shirayuki panicked.

Rukia, ignoring the surrounding ice crystals between her and Sode no Shirayuki, stared at her.

"Sode no Shirayuki… I've decided to let you go. Not just that—I'm giving up the power of a Shinigami you gave me. Everything that happened in the past… I'm letting it all go. Because for both of us, it's a heavy burden."

"I'm returning true freedom to you!"

She placed both hands in front of Sode no Shirayuki and began chanting again:

"O sovereign! Mask of flesh and bone, all things of the universe, fluttering wings, crowned with humanity's name! The wall of flame, carved with twin lotus—waits in the distant heavens! Hadō #73: Sōren Sōkatsui!"

A massive wave of blue spiritual pressure surged from Rukia's palms.

"Stop!!" Sode no Shirayuki screamed in terror.

Ichigo watched from a distance, stunned by Rukia's self-sacrificial move.

"Rukia!"

He flash-stepped in as she was blasted out by the explosion.

Sode no Shirayuki was stunned. Rukia was willing to hurt herself just to set her free?

But before she could reach Rukia, Muramasa appeared.

He grabbed Sode no Shirayuki and pulled her out from the blast radius.

Ichigo caught Rukia mid-air and immediately used Kaidō to heal her.

Rukia looked up at him and smiled faintly. "Sorry, Ichigo… for being so selfish and making you worry."

Ichigo said nothing, just held her tightly and focused on treating her wounds.

Muramasa, meanwhile, glanced at Sode no Shirayuki and said nothing. He had underestimated the bond between Shinigami and their zanpakutō.

"Sode no Shirayuki, fall back for now," he ordered cautiously.

"Yes, Muramasa-sama." She nodded and vanished with a flash step.

Muramasa landed alone in the massive crater left by Sōren Sōkatsui.

Facing Ichigo and Rukia, he smiled.

"Who are you?" Ichigo asked, narrowing his eyes. He could sense multiple spiritual energies from Muramasa—it felt like he was facing someone like himself.

"Me? I'm Muramasa. The one who set all zanpakutō free. The reason they're rebelling is because of me."

He then looked at Rukia. "Truth is, I let you and the other girl return to the World of the Living on purpose. That way, you'd definitely bring Kurosaki Ichigo back to Soul Society. He's been my target all along."

Rukia's eyes widened.

Ichigo raised a brow. "Why me?"

"Your zanpakutō is special. If I don't face it myself, I won't be able to release it. That's why I needed you to come to Soul Society—so I could free your zanpakutō."

A straightforward villain. Ichigo had never met someone who just spelled out their goals like this.

"Rukia, take a rest. I'll finish this quickly," Ichigo said softly.

"…Okay. I believe in you, Ichigo." Rukia smiled and closed her eyes.

Ichigo flash-stepped her to a safe location and turned back. "Let's fight."

Muramasa followed without objection.

"Alright, Kurosaki Ichigo. Are you done stalling?" Once far enough from Rukia, Muramasa asked.

"Yeah. This place'll do."

Ichigo smirked. "Actually, I'm really curious what shape my zanpakutō would take if you could manifest it. Go on—let's see it!"

Muramasa was momentarily confused.

Why was Ichigo more eager to see his zanpakutō's form than he was?

Still, without hesitation, he reached toward Ichigo, gripping the air—and pulled.

Inside Ichigo's inner world…

Old Man Zangetsu looked awkwardly at Hollow Ichigo. "Should I go?"

Hollow Ichigo shrugged. "Does it matter who goes? Technically, it should be me… but how would you even explain that to Ichigo? Tell him the truth?"

"I did try," Old Man Zangetsu muttered. "But Ichigo couldn't even hear my name…"

Hollow Ichigo rolled his eyes. "That's because your name was blotted out by the Monk."

Zangetsu nodded. "Still, thanks for giving me a name. I wouldn't know how to explain things to Ichigo otherwise."

"Enough talk. Get out there. That Muramasa guy's waiting." Hollow Ichigo grinned. "Oh, and be careful. Don't give anything away."

"Relax. I won't slip up," Zangetsu nodded and stepped through the vortex.

In front of Ichigo, Old Man Zangetsu emerged like a captain-class Shinigami, walking calmly from his inner world—his zanpakutō in hand.

Muramasa gave a satisfied nod. "That's it."

Zangetsu gave him a look—if he didn't need to keep up the act, he'd have fired a spiritual arrow through Muramasa's head already.

But for now, he played along and charged Ichigo with his blade raised.

Ichigo blinked. "Zangetsu?"

Hollow Ichigo's voice suddenly echoed in his mind. "Hey, Ichigo. Mind if I handle this?"

"You're still around?" Ichigo asked.

"It's complicated. But trust me, we won't hurt you. Me and the old man—we're two sides of the same coin. When the time comes, we'll tell you everything."

"…Alright. I trust you, Zangetsu."

"So what do I do?" Ichigo asked.

"Simple. Relax your mind. And watch."

Ichigo nodded, closing his eyes. The Hollow mask appeared on his face.

When he opened them again—it was Hollow Ichigo who stood in his place.

"Ahahahaha! You've no idea how long I've waited for this!" Hollow Ichigo didn't even glance at Muramasa. He pointed Zangetsu straight at Old Man Zangetsu.

Zangetsu's face darkened. So this was the real reason Hollow Ichigo came out—to fight him.

"Come on! I've waited forever for this!" Hollow Ichigo charged forward.

Zangetsu calmly raised his blade—his stance refined, almost like Yhwach wielding the Holy Sword.

Their zanpakutōs clashed in a blast of spiritual pressure that tore up the ground beneath them.

Hollow Ichigo grabbed Zangetsu's head and hurled him through a stone wall.

Zangetsu stood up calmly and readied his stance.

"Getsuga Tenshō!"

Two crescent waves—one white, one black—clashed and exploded through the corridor.

The two continued fighting through the Seireitei's inner sanctum, blades crashing again and again.

"Hey, don't go overboard," Zangetsu whispered to Hollow Ichigo while they fought.

"Relax. I'm just showing you what a true Hollow Shinigami looks like. This is what… Resurrection is, right?" Hollow Ichigo smirked.

Zangetsu was shocked. "Resurrección?! That's way too soon for Ichigo!"

"No, it's not! You've suppressed him too much. My power grows faster than yours. If you keep holding him back, he'll lose control eventually. Let him adapt to me—because you know what he'll eventually have to face."

"…Fine. But don't mess this up," Zangetsu warned.

"Don't worry. I won't."

Muramasa finally arrived.

Zangetsu flung Hollow Ichigo aside, then turned and charged at Muramasa.

Slash!

A deep wound opened across Hollow Ichigo's chest.

But it healed almost instantly—High-Speed Regeneration.

In less than a second, he was back on his feet.

Zangetsu narrowed his eyes. "Then I'll make sure you don't have time to regenerate."

He vanished—and reappeared above, slashing down.

Hollow Ichigo didn't even see the move coming.

He was knocked to the ground, Zangetsu towering over him.

Still—High-Speed Regeneration.

Hollow Ichigo rose again, spinning Zangetsu in his hand.

Muramasa watched in silence, fascinated.

So… Ichigo was like him.

His body housed multiple kinds of power.

"What a troublesome guy…" Zangetsu muttered.

He was using Quincy powers. In theory, they should've been toxic to Hollows.

But Hollow Ichigo had taken multiple hits—and acted like nothing happened.

A perfect fusion of Shinigami and Hollow.

Even someone as experienced as Zangetsu found it hard to handle.

"I'll slice you to pieces!" Zangetsu shouted, charging again—but his blade was slower this time.

Hollow Ichigo laughed wildly, fully masked now. With his black Shihakushō, he didn't even look like a Shinigami anymore—more like a Hollow pretending to be one.

"Getsuga Tenshō!"

A black crescent wave surged forward.

"Hmph. Petty trick." Zangetsu countered with a white Getsuga.

The two clashed—white overcoming black—and smashed into Hollow Ichigo.

BOOM!

Dust and debris exploded everywhere.

Muramasa thought it was over. He turned to Zangetsu—only to see him shake his head slightly.

"No. He's not done."

Sure enough, Hollow Ichigo emerged from the smoke, completely unharmed.

"Ahahaha! That all you got? Guess I'll have to get serious now!"

He raised his zanpakutō high.

(End of Chapter)

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