The only player in the world of Bleach.

Chapter 335, Section 332: The Promised Day

When Liu Chequanxi stood up, a large group of people were lying haphazardly behind him.

If some veteran members of the Gotei 13 were present, they would probably be so shocked by the current situation that they would scream out.

Why?

Because the Grim Reapers, who had previously been declared to have all defected, had somehow gathered in this place.

These Visored Legion members who appeared in the original work were victims created because Aizen had some plans and attempts regarding Hollows, and were instead framed.

These individuals, including several vice-captains and captains, successfully reconciled with the Hollow power within their bodies with the help of Kisuke Urahara, and subsequently gained control of an ability known as Hollowfication.

Appearing in both the Espada arc of the original work, and positioned as both a former captain and a villain, does indeed have an unusual charm.

However, the level of performance was not satisfactory—especially Hirako Shinji as the leader, whose initial appearance easily led people to mistakenly believe that he was a revenge-oriented character comparable to Aizen.

Both the former captains of the fifth division and the types of Zanpakuto releases share striking similarities.

From any perspective, this is undoubtedly a character with unique features and development potential.

But when it came to actually fighting, it was a completely different story.

During the battle of Karakura Town, he was even treated like a foot soldier by Aizen—

Looking back now, there might be some logic to the initial plot arrangement. Because in the later Thousand-Year Blood War manga, the bartender made some changes.

The fact that the Masked Army, which had been collectively borrowed, received a slight buff suggests that the author's own interpretation of them was somewhat problematic.

It got to the point where it needed to be remedied afterwards.

However—while he did become stronger, in the world of Bleach, there was no fundamental difference between ants and termites.

To a giant, it was still a tiny, insignificant thing, too small to be observed.

"I'll go then!"

Kensei Rokusha rubbed his neck and took two steps with a serious expression.

He was then pulled to a stop by the person behind him.

"Wait, Kensei."

"It's Mako Hirako, who has short hair," she said loudly.

"You're almost at your limit, aren't you? You haven't even had two hours of rest—there's absolutely no way you'll recover much."

The latter looked silently into the distance, seemingly somewhat unwilling, to the point that his tone became hesitant and subtle.

"But the current situation is—aren't all the others more tired than me?"

Hirako Shinji wiped the wound from the corner of his mouth and glanced behind him discreetly.

Everyone made no attempt to hide their exhaustion. Hiyori tried to struggle a bit, but after barely managing to stand up, she stumbled and fell down again.

His knees were weak and he couldn't muster any strength in his body—for someone who likes to show off, being able to appear like this clearly meant he was on the verge of his limit.

It has burned out.

"Hiyori, just sit still. What's coming next is beyond the scope of a vice-captain's level."

Upon hearing this, Hiyori immediately began to argue with dissatisfaction.

"We're no longer part of the Gotei 13, so don't try to order me around with that old title!"

Everyone present fell into a subtle silence for a moment.

Seemingly realizing that her words had gone too far, Hiyori opened her mouth slightly and remained silent for a long while.

Then she turned her head away and added in a low voice.

"I—I didn't mean that—"

The atmosphere was somewhat awkward, but it didn't last long. A figure in the distance, having lost its initial imposing aura, was now jogging closer.

"What's wrong? Is there anything I can help you with?"

Everyone looked towards that person.

Ichigo Kurosaki.

To be honest, it's only been about five days since we met.

But the people present spoke in an extremely calm tone, as if they had known each other for a long time.

"No need—it's just that our men are tired. Please wait a little while; we'll be able to free up some people to spar with you soon."

Hearing these words, Ichigo Kurosaki's expression showed a slight hesitation.

To be honest, he wasn't familiar with these people.

The reason they were able to make contact was partly due to Kisuke Urahara's introduction, and partly due to Isshin Kurosaki's mediation.

Although they were from different eras, he was, after all, a former captain. After explaining the whole story, the Visoreds, being residents of the present world, were quite happy to help.

It's just that things have turned out somewhat unexpectedly.

Just how strong is this kid?

At first, he had only just begun to understand how to use weapons and various techniques related to death.

But as time went on, these things came together naturally—they were fully grasped and controlled in a fairly natural way.

Demonic arts, swordsmanship, and free fighting —

Such things are completely easy to learn. After just a few beatings, one can quickly get the hang of them and master the skills and abilities that were previously somewhat vague.

Their learning ability has been exaggerated to a degree that is truly remarkable.

Shinji Hirako watched as the innocent-looking Ichigo Kurosaki walked into the crowd, kindly asking Hiyori for help, only to be kicked away by the guy—

I couldn't help but sigh.

Ichigo Kurosaki's effortless and confident demeanor is truly admirable.

After all, among the people present were many captains, all of whom had cultivated their strength from the bottom up and gradually improved their abilities. Naturally, the sensitivity to these things varied among the people present.

"Ichigo, come here for a second."

Hirako waved at him with a grin.

The latter looked up slightly, gave a somewhat silly "oh," and jogged over.

"Mr. Hirako, what's wrong?"

"You must be a little tired by now, right? Take a short rest—come on, this is your seat."

"Uh—no, I'm not exaggerating that much, you're overthinking it."

"No, that's not it~ You're just a little younger, that's why you think that way. Actually, you should take a good rest now — otherwise, as you get older, all sorts of chronic diseases will gradually find you, and then it will be too late to cry."

"Is that so?"

"That's right, I'm an old friend of Isshin and Urahara, how could I possibly lie to you? Besides, regarding the previous Kido, there's still room for you to make further revisions—come, let's talk about it over here."

The clueless Ichigo was taken along without question.

While the tug-of-war continued, Kensei Muguruma returned to the crowd, revealing a tired expression on his face.

Call ~

Fengqiao Lou Shilang, who was standing nearby, looked at him with a smile.

"So you're exhausted too?"

"What a joke—how could you not feel any pressure fighting such a beast?!"

Kensei Rokusha rubbed his shoulder, grimacing, his face still showing signs of lingering fear.

"That guy—he's making great progress almost every day."

Wearing a tracksuit, Aikawa Raibu spoke in a calm tone.

"The vice-captain couldn't handle it before, but now even if several of us go up against him together, he can handle it with ease—it's less about helping him practice and more about us practicing coordinated combat."

This idea seemed to be very popular, and soon others began to echo it.

"Does that kid have no limits?"

"It's more accurate to say that he didn't use his full strength—after all, that level of spiritual pressure is no joke."

"I initially thought we could easily teach him a lesson based on our experience, but now I realize we were oversimplifying things."

o

in short.

In just a few days of training, Ichigo Kurosaki has grown to a level that they can no longer contend with.

Bang! ! !

As a loud bang came from above, almost everyone present looked up at the same time, peering upwards.

A square outline appeared to split open in the sky.

Then, a long, narrow ladder descended from it.

But Kisuke Urahara didn't use the ladder—he lightly jumped and landed on the ground, looking around with great interest.

His expression was as playful as ever, which, of course, seemed somewhat sarcastic to these people.

"Everyone, how's Ichigo Kurosaki's training going?"

"well enough----"

The one who answered him was Fengqiao Loujulang.

By smoothing his hair, he cleverly concealed his still somewhat disheveled appearance, instead revealing a disdainful and arrogant look.

"Although we've made great progress, we're still managing—hey, isn't everyone feeling the same way?"

"Uh—yes, that's right!"

Kisuke Urahara did not choose to expose this claim, but instead turned his head to look at the distance not far away.

Ichigo Kurosaki is jogging towards this side.

Compared to the last time, the boy now has a more obvious sharpness—he knows how to use his power and is learning to master it. For Kurosaki Ichigo now, this is his period of growth in strength.

"Manager Urahara!"

The young man's voice rose slightly, revealing his high spirits.

His excessive cheerfulness even gave people a feeling of being as bright as the sun.

The Shinigami armor he wore was something Kurosaki Isshin had prepared beforehand, as for the sword—

This is also an aspect he pays close attention to.

"He hasn't even received his first asabu yet, but he already owns a weapon of his own?"

It wasn't like this before, why?

"Ichigo, what's that weapon behind you?"

"Uh? Ah—you're asking about that?"

Kurosaki Ichigo took the "pig-slaughtering knife" off his back, his smile somewhat embarrassed.

"Because I saw that everyone had a knife when we fought before, I wanted one too—and just as I was thinking that, it suddenly appeared."

"————?"

Kisuke Urahara was clearly taken aback for a moment.

Hirako Shinji, who was standing nearby, smiled and said something.

"Right? That's just how weird this kid is—to be honest, I didn't quite understand it at first either, but after considering the context, I got the gist of it."

He subtly raised his chin, as if hinting, and then spoke softly.

"It's not our side's strength."

What did Mr. Hirako mean by that?

"It's nothing—you just don't understand it right now. Once you understand it yourself, you won't need to ask me anymore."

Why does it feel like I didn't listen at all?

Of course, this was only Ichigo Kurosaki's own opinion. In fact, Kisuke Urahara clearly knew some more in-depth information.

"It's the power of the Quincy, isn't it?!"

This thing is not public knowledge. Within the Soul Society, only a few people know about it and can understand the "contents" that can be described as sealed.

After all, the first Thousand-Year Blood War was something that the vast majority of Shinigami were completely unaware of.

Kisuke Urahara subtly lowered the brim of his hat, using this gesture to scrutinize the large sword in Ichigo Kurosaki's hand, a thoughtful expression on his face.

From the outside, they are completely indistinguishable—at most, their shape differs greatly from ordinary Zanpakuto. Is it because they also possess Shinigami spiritual power? If it's just a disguise, that's too exaggerated.

Also.

Kurosaki Ichigo's situation is completely different from Matsushita Hishika's. What exactly is the difference between the two?

The experimenter's curiosity began to smolder silently—

After a moment of silence, Kisuke Urahara finally gave a helpless smile.

"Seriously—even though you're only the second 'mixed-race' person I've met, there seem to be some differences between you two. This world is getting more and more incomprehensible."

Continuing to speak in incomprehensible words, Kisuke Urahara turned halfway around and smiled at Ichigo Kurosaki.

"By the way—what day is it today, Ichigo? Do you still remember?"

Although the question was somewhat abrupt, Ichigo Kurosaki quickly grasped its meaning and nodded in response.

"I remember! Today is the day Dad said he would take me to Soul Society, right?"

"That's right, that's right~ It's so great that you remember."

He opened his folding fan and waved it gently, a mischievous smile like that of a fox on his face.

Although he himself wasn't particularly entertaining, the thought of Soul Society welcoming its second hybrid filled him with anticipation for the events to come.

Although it differs from the original story, this swaggering visit is more likely to give some people a headache than an uninvited intrusion.

He looked Kurosaki Ichigo up and down, his expression growing increasingly satisfied.

A fish that can stir up a stagnant pool is certainly interesting, but above that—

The same applies to the two!