XX-level Hokage

The night breeze swirled cherry blossoms past my nose, mingling with the distant roar of fire trucks.

When he looked up again, all that remained beside him was a piece of black cloth that had fallen to the ground, stained with ice crystals and blood.

Chapter 53: The Ghost Festival

The cicadas' chirping in Karakura City, mingling with the July heat, created distorted waves of heat on the asphalt roads.

Kurosaki Ichigo slung his schoolbag over his shoulder with one hand, the collar of his school uniform shirt brushing against his sweaty neck. With his other hand, he impatiently slapped away Asano Keigo's arm that tried to reach out to him: "I've already told you, I'm not interested in paranormal shows!"

"Don't be so cold, Ichigo!" Orihime pulled four bottles of soda from the convenience store freezer. Water droplets clung to the glass bottles, casting shadows on her palm. "Mr. Kannonji's livestream is the number one show in all of Japan! Tetsumu even brought a camera..."

"I've heard of that too, it really is amazing," Mashiro said with a smile.

"You..." Looking at Mashiro, Ichigo was momentarily speechless. This was a Shinigami even more powerful than Rukia. Chad nodded silently, his backpack bulging with snacks.

Ichigo's lips twitched as he saw the pumpkin lantern decoration peeking out of the bag: "Are you going on a picnic or an exorcism?"

"Of course, it's for scientific research!" Kojima Mizusaki pushed up his glasses, the lenses reflecting the setting sun. "To verify whether paranormal phenomena exist—"

"Ring!" The sudden ringtone interrupted the conversation. Ichigo pulled out his phone, and a crying emoticon from Yuzu popped up on the screen: "If brother doesn't come back soon, Dad's going to turn Miru-soup into witch's potion!!"

He sighed, and as he turned, he saw a blond man's exaggerated smile on the street corner advertising screen—Tang Guanyin Temple striking an Ultraman-like pose, with flames erupting behind him as special effects, and the subtitles exploding: "Expressive Spirit Site Assault! Tonight at 8 PM, the abandoned hospital in Karakura City reveals the true face of the vengeful spirit!"

The night was as dark as ink, seeping into the exterior walls of the abandoned hospital, and the rusty iron gates creaked and swayed in the night wind.

The searchlights erected by Guanyin and her team sliced ​​the building into fragments of light and shadow. The host in front of the camera swung his crystal-studded cloak and held a diamond-encrusted microphone to his lips: "Dear viewers! We are standing in a dangerous place with an off-the-charts spiritual pressure index! Look at this peeling paint on the wall—" He slammed his palm against the brick wall. "These are the claw marks of an evil spirit struggling!"

"It's clearly been in disrepair for years." Ichigo leaned against a tree trunk outside the police line, arms crossed.

The boy, perched on his back, excitedly swung his legs, the tip of his braid brushing against his ear: "Will that uncle summon real ghosts? How is that possible?" he muttered, but out of the corner of his eye, he caught a glimpse of a pale white figure flashing through a broken window on the second floor.

Suddenly, Guanyin Temple raised a golden cross and rushed towards the building. The cameraman ran after it, shouting, "Now, let me purify it with holy light—Mingwa!" He slipped and fell into the half-collapsed entrance hall, coughing amidst the dust: "Cough cough... That was the first wave of attack from the evil spirits!"

The crowd roared with laughter, but Ichigo's back tensed. A stench of rotting flesh seeped in the wind, and the sharp sound of fingernails scraping against glass echoed deep in his ears. He looked up and saw a distorted human face pressed against the second-floor window—eye sockets hollowed out and bleeding, a mouth torn to the roots of the ears.

"Yuuki, take your dad over there to buy some fried noodles." He shoved his younger sister into the hands of Kurosaki Isshin, who was munching on takoyaki, while his fingers stealthily reached for the Zanpakuto hidden at his waist. "Hehe. Finally, someone's here..." A hoarse, neither-male-nor-female voice echoed down the corridor.

Guanyin Temple stood frozen in place, the camera faithfully recording his twitching lips: "Guan, viewers! This is the true form of the hundred-year-old vengeful spirit!" He pointed tremblingly to the shadowy corner, where a semi-transparent old woman was curled up, her white hair disheveled like withered grass, her ankles locked with rusty iron chains.

"Please," the old woman pleaded, extending her festering fingers, "help me find it."

"Evil spirits, begone!" Guanyin Temple suddenly splashed holy water at her. The moment the liquid passed through the spirit and splashed onto the wall, the iron chains tightened abruptly.

The old woman let out a shrill scream, her cracked skin revealing clenched, red muscles: "Why...why won't you listen to me!" The entire building began to tremble, and rubble rained down.

As Ichigo rushed through the rickety doorframe, he saw the Earthbound Spirit swell into a three-meter-tall monster—pale bone spikes piercing its back, and iron chains transforming into python-like tentacles sweeping towards the terrified cameraman.

"Binding Spell #4: This Rope!" The golden rope wrapped around the monster's ankle, but instantly shattered. Ichigo let out a shout, and the silver light of his drawn Zanpakuto sliced ​​through the dust: "Back off! This guy is going to Hollowfication!"

"Who are you, young man?!" Guanyin and the others covered their heads and huddled behind the broken wall, the diamond-encrusted microphone rolling to the ground.

The intangible earthbound spirit's tentacles slashed down, and Ichigo blocked them with his sword. The sound of metal clashing made Kannonji's eardrums ache: "Did the TV station pay a lot of insurance, uncle? If not, I suggest you call now."

In the instant the blade of the Moon-Slaying Blade swelled, Ichigo caught a glimpse of the old woman's face remaining on the monster's chest.

He abruptly changed his stance, flipped over and leaped onto the tentacle for leverage, then slammed the back of his blade into the void's head: "Wake up!"

The monster ran backward, the chains rattling loudly.

Fragmented memories flooded Ichigo's mind—the war-torn Showa era, a girl whose legs had been blown off crawled through the ruins, clinging tightly to her younger brother's arm until her last breath.

"Is this what you're looking for?" Chad's voice came from deep within the ruins.

He held up a half-burnt photo frame, with a yellowed photograph embedded in the cracked glass: a girl in a school uniform holding a baby and smiling. His groan abruptly stopped.

It knelt on the ground, its bone spurs softened and fell off, transforming back into the spirit of the old woman, covered in wounds. Guanyin Temple's Zhanzhan and Shushu leaned closer to the camera: "Dear viewers!"

This is the power of love!

"Shut up." Ichigo flicked the sticky liquid off his sword and placed the photo frame in the old woman's trembling palm. The chains snapped inch by inch, and before she dissipated into particles of light, she bowed deeply to the crowd.

"The ratings are off the charts!" The director waved the data sheet in the broadcast van. "Especially the part where the silver-haired guy was slaying monsters! Viewers left comments asking if it was special effects! Guanyin and others were grinning at the zero new users on their mobile banking app when suddenly someone grabbed their collar."

Ichigo's black hair gleamed coldly in the moonlight: "If you dare to use methods that provoke spirits to make programs again—" His Zanpakuto grazed his ear and embedded itself in the wall, "Next time I'll chop off your head."

Under the eaves of the convenience store, Orihime stuffed a hot cocoa into Ichigo's hand: "The light from when that old woman attained Buddhahood was like stars falling into the sea." He gazed at the fading spiritual trajectory in the night sky and silently drank the sweet liquid.

Behind him came the cheers of a child holding a jack-o'-lantern with a grimoire face: "Brother looked so handsome on TV! It's just that the editor cut out all the knife-wielding scenes..."

“That’s even better.” He ruffled his sister’s hair. The advertising screen on the street corner was still looping the victory pose of the Guanyin Temple, with the subtitles flashing: “Next Special! The Deep Dive into the True Identity of the Silver-Haired Exorcist!”

The cicadas began to sing again; the summer night was still long.

Chapter 54: The Fire Master

The setting sun dyed Karakura Town a blood red. Kurosaki Ichigo, with one hand in his pocket, strolled leisurely home.

The wind ruffled his short orange hair and lifted the hem of his school uniform, but it couldn't dispel the trace of irritation between his brows—the classroom window had suddenly...

It shattered without warning, and only he heard the piercing scream.

"Another illusion..." he muttered to himself, as the sunlight swept across the eerie black shadows writhing in the corner of the street.

Since meeting Rukia, the world in his eyes has no longer been peaceful. Monsters that ordinary people cannot see are like sharks that have smelled blood, constantly approaching him.

Suddenly, a piercing scream shattered the twilight. Ichigo whirled around and saw a little girl in a white dress sitting on the ground at the alley entrance. Behind her, a huge, pale claw appeared—it was a Hollow! Beneath its distorted mask, a gaping maw dripped slime and emitted a grotesque, gurgling laugh.

"Run!" Ichigo instinctively rushed forward, but was forced back by the claws that were swung out at him.

He cursed under his breath, his hand reaching for his chest—where Rukia's Substitute Shinigami badge should have been hanging, but it was empty. "Damn... I forgot to bring it today!"

The phantom's claws fell again, and the girl's pupils constricted in fear.

At the critical moment, a silver light pierced the air and precisely penetrated the Hollow's wrist. Ichigo stood frozen in place, the lingering sound of a bowstring echoing in his ears. He looked in the direction of the sound and saw a tall figure standing on the rooftop at the end of the alley. The person was wearing a pure white robe, and his gaze behind silver-rimmed glasses was as cold as ice. In his hand, a silver bow formed from spiritual particles was gleaming with a ghostly blue light.

"Queenslayer?" Hollow roared as he retreated, black smoke rising from his wounds. "How dare you interfere with me—"

"Noisy." The white-robed youth flicked his finger, and a second arrow pierced the air, instantly shattering the illusory mask. The monster dissipated into spiritual particles, leaving only the mocking sound of the youth's robes fluttering as he sheathed his bow.

"Hey! You bastard—" Ichigo quickly caught up with the boy who was about to turn and leave, but was frozen in place by a cold glare from the other.

"Ichigo Kurosaki." The boy pushed up his glasses, his voice so calm it was infuriating. "You're clearly a half-baked Shinigami, don't you even have the self-awareness to carry your Substitute ID with you?"

"You know me?" Ichigo squinted. "And... what is a Quincy?"

"Ishida Uryu." The boy introduced himself, his fingertips tracing the bowstring. "Our clan's mission is to purify Hollows, to utterly annihilate them with spirit arrows—unlike Shinigami, who only send Hollows to the cycle of reincarnation, leaving behind hidden dangers." He turned and approached Ichigo, the reflection in his glasses obscuring the sharpness in his eyes: "And you, clearly human, yet willingly becoming a Shinigami—it's utterly laughable."

"Huh? I was just filling in for Rukia!" Ichigo's fists cracked as he clenched them.

Yulong suddenly chuckled and pulled out a silver pendant engraved with a pentagram from his pocket: "Then prove it to me. Tomorrow night at midnight, I will release three hundred Hollows in the old school building. If you can purify them all with your Soul-Refining Blade," he said, tightening his fingers, the silver pendant turning into dust that fell through his fingers, "then I will admit that the existence of the Shinigami has meaning."

The empty high school was deathly silent under the cover of night.

Ichigo gripped Zangetsu tightly, the blade trailing tiny sparks on the ground. The moment he pushed open the iron gate of the old school building, a chilling wind carrying countless shrieks rushed towards him—in the corridors, classrooms, and stairwells, countless Hollows swarmed like maggots, their crimson pupils rising and falling in the darkness.

"This guy's gone mad!" Ichigo gritted his teeth and swung his sword, the crescent-shaped spiritual pressure tearing apart the first wave of Hollows that rushed at him.

But more monsters swarmed in from all directions, their claws drawing blood from his arms. Sweat soaked his back as he heard a mocking laugh from above. Yulong leaned against the broken window frame, toying with the spirit arrow between his fingers: "Twenty minutes have passed, and you've only extinguished seventy-six. Need help?"

Substitute Grim Reaper?

"Saloxazine!" Ichigo cleaved open a Hollow's skull, panting as he looked up. "What exactly are you trying to prove?"

This proves that Quincy are more efficient than Shinigami. "Suddenly, Uryu leaped down, unleashing a torrential downpour of arrows. Amidst the exploding spiritual light, swarms of Hollows were annihilated."

Standing suspended in mid-air atop the spiritual energy staircase, his long robes fluttering in the fierce wind, he declared: "Look closely, this is the true purification—"

Before the words were even finished, the entire school building suddenly trembled violently, a huge crack appeared in the ground, and a gigantic phantom, as tall as a three-story building, emerged, its spiritual pressure...

The air was distorted, and the ordinary projectiles that crashed into the armor-like surface were all deflected!

"How could this be…" Yu Long revealed a look of utter astonishment for the first time.

"Idiot! The Hollows you attracted are devouring each other!" Ichigo's Zangetsu was driven deep into the ground, barely stabilizing his body. The giant Hollow's claws swept across, and the two of them jumped up at the same time. The place where they had been standing had been blasted into a deep pit.

"Listen!" Ichigo ripped open his blood-stained school uniform, and Zangetsu unleashed a brilliant blue spiritual pressure. "I'll attack from the front, you find the weak points and shoot!" Uryu frowned: "Why should I take orders from you?"

"You can't even pierce that guy's shell right now!" Ichigo roared as he charged toward the Hollow's head. The moment his blade clashed with the claws, sparks illuminated the Hollow's struggling expression: "Damn it, break through!"

The radiance of Crescent Moon Strike temporarily repelled the Void's attack, allowing Rain Dragon to leap to a high place.

His eyes, behind the glasses, scanned rapidly, finally locking onto a purple-glowing scale on the back of Xu's neck. "That's it!" He drew back the bowstring taut, and the arrow, formed from condensed spiritual energy, began to show blood-red patterns.

Sensing danger, the Hollow swung its head and sprayed corrosive liquid at Uryu. Ichigo saw this and hurled Zangetsu, the blade spinning to block the acid, but he was whipped away by the Hollow's tail and crashed heavily into the wall.

"Kurosaki!" Uryu's fingertips trembled, and the arrow deviated by half an inch, only shattering the right corner of the Hollow. The monster went completely berserk, and the spiritual pressure storm swept the ruins of the school building into the sky.

Amidst the flying rubble, Ichigo struggled to his feet, spitting out blood and froth from his mouth: "Keep firing! I can hold on—"

Yulong remained silent for a moment, then suddenly ripped off the silver chain from his sleeve. A pentagram array appeared beneath his feet, and spiritual energy surged into the arrows like a torrent: "Don't command me... this arrow is for the glory of the Quincy!"

As the crimson arrow pierced the Hollow's weak point, Ichigo's Zangetsu also pierced its forehead.

The explosion of dual spiritual pressure turned the night sky into daylight. When the dust settled, only two people remained, slumped back-to-back amidst the ruins, panting heavily. "Two hundred and ninety-nine…" Uryu wiped his cracked glasses. "The last one, it's a tie."

Ichigo laughed out loud, but then pulled at his wound and winced in pain: "You're the one who messed up, you bookworm."

“However,” Uryu suddenly stood up and tossed a talisman at Ichigo, “I admit your sword is somewhat impressive.” The talisman transformed the moment it touched Ichigo.

As the light faded, the wound on his arm began to heal.

"What is this? A reconciliation gift?"

“I just don’t want to owe the Grim Reaper a favor.” Uryu walked towards the street where the morning light was just beginning to break, the bloodstains on his white robe already dried to a dark red. “When we meet again, I will still prove that Quincy is the right way to exist.”

Ichigo watched his retreating figure, a provocative smile playing on his lips: "I'm always ready—provided you don't create another mess like this."

A morning breeze swept through Karakura Town, carrying the remnants of Hollows and lingering fighting spirit, quietly seeping into the city's shadows. On a nearby high-rise, Mashiro silently watched this scene.

"Mashiro-sama really cares about Ichigo, doesn't she? She observes him almost every spare moment." At that moment, a black cat suddenly appeared and said, "Didn't you notice? He's too strong! If Rukia's training methods weren't completely wrong, he'd probably have become a captain-level fighter by now."

Bai said with a light smile.

"Are you kidding me?!" Yoruichi said in disbelief. Mashiro didn't reply.

Chapter 55: Rikka

"Didn't you notice? Not only Ichigo, but the people around him are also extraordinary. Shinigami, Fullbringers, Quincy, and so on. Moreover," Mashiro didn't continue, seemingly remembering something.

"It seems you know far more than I do," Yoruichi said with considerable apprehension.

"More than you? Not quite, it's just that I have a god's-eye view," Mashiro said with a smile. Hearing this, Yoruichi was stunned for a moment, and she suddenly remembered something that Captain-Commander Yamamoto had said before.

I don't understand what she's thinking. Her eyes seem to connect, it's not just about soul-slaying power... Rain falls like a curtain, enveloping the streets of Karakura Town.

Kurosaki Ichigo, holding an umbrella, strolled leisurely on his way home.

The sound of raindrops hitting the umbrella was monotonous and somber, yet it couldn't mask the restlessness in his heart—ever since that absurd contest with Shi Youyulong, he had always felt that there were undercurrents surging in the city, as if some greater crisis was approaching.