XX-level Hokage

Kyougo Ginjo was the first to break the silence. He strode up to Ichigo, his sharp eyes scrutinizing the still-fluctuating spiritual pressure around the boy.

"Your state just now..." Ginjo's voice was filled with barely suppressed urgency, "How did you manage to fuse those powers like that?" Ichigo looked down at his palm, where the skin seemed to still be shimmering with the light of four intertwined powers.

I don't know. "He told the truth, "At the time, I just felt... I could no longer be bound by his rules, and I should decide the outcome of my own battle."

Liluka, holding her doll, leaned closer, her purple eyes full of curiosity: "Hey, Orange Head, you looked pretty cool just now! Black on the left, white on the right, and your chest even glowed!"

Jieqi frowned, keenly sensing something amiss: "But Ichigo, your spiritual pressure feels different than before. Although it's much more stable, it feels like... something's missing."

Only after she reminded them did everyone take a closer look.

Indeed, while Ichigo's spiritual pressure was powerful and harmonious at the moment, it had lost its unique "edge"—a quality that belonged to Kurosaki Ichigo himself and could not be replicated.

Ichigo realized this as well. He tried to summon Zangetsu. The familiar black spiritual pressure arrived as expected, but it was as if there was a thin veil between them. He could no longer find that sense of connection with his bloodline.

"What's going on?" he muttered to himself. Just then, hurried footsteps came from afar.

Everyone turned around alertly and saw Inoue Orihime running towards them, panting. She was wearing pajamas with a coat casually draped over her shoulders, clearly having rushed over from home.

"Kurosaki-san! Everyone!" Inoue's face was filled with panic. "I just... had a terrible dream. In the dream, Tsukishima-san was holding a book and writing something in it, and then I felt... felt like I was about to forget something important!"

She ran up to Ichigo and grabbed his arm tightly with both hands: "Kurosaki-kun, do you remember the first time we met? On the school rooftop, you helped me chase away that Hollow who was bullying me."

Ichigo was stunned. He tried hard to recall, but found that the memory had become blurry.

He remembered Inoue Orihime, remembered that she was an important companion, but the specific details—her expression at the time, the words she said, and even the appearance of that Hollow—were all shrouded in a thick fog.

Ichigo opened his mouth, but found that he could not accurately describe that memory.

Bing Shang's eyes instantly reddened: "As expected... Mr. Tsukishima, he altered our past?"

Yincheng's face turned extremely ugly: "It's not just about alteration. The power of the 'Book of the End' is far more terrifying than we imagined—it can shake the very foundation of things."

"Ichigo, you just forcibly overwrote the ending Tsukishima wrote for you, which may have caused a crack in your very existence."

As if to confirm Ginjo's words, Ichigo felt a wave of dizziness, and the scene before his eyes began to sway. He grabbed the half-collapsed wall beside him, cold sweat beading on his forehead.

“It’s not just memories,” he said in a hoarse voice, “I feel that my connection with the present world is also weakening.”

Yukio rapidly operated the learning machine, the data on the screen jumping wildly: "Detected that Ichigo's spiritual particle composition is becoming unstable! His anchor in the human world..."

The dots are disappearing one by one!

“Anchor point?” Chadu asked in a deep voice.

“It’s those people and things that connect him to this world,” Ginjo explained solemnly. “Family, friends, important memories... these form the foundation of a person’s existence in the world. Tsukishima’s power is erasing Ichigo’s connection to these anchors from the very root.”

Kiriko gripped the pocket watch tightly, its hands spinning wildly: "What will happen if all the anchors disappear?"

Yincheng remained silent for a moment before slowly uttering a chilling answer: "Then Kurosaki Ichigo will be completely erased from the memories of everyone who knew him. Not dead, but as if he never existed."

The ruins were deathly silent.

This truth is more terrifying than death—not the end of life, but the erasure of existence itself.

Orihime Inoue's tears finally fell: "No...this is too cruel...I'll go find Mashiro, she'll definitely have a way." "No need, Orihime."

Ichigo leaned against the wall, panting heavily. He could clearly feel his connection to the world gradually severing.

Memories of his father blurred, the smiles of Yuuki and Karin faded, and even the scene of his first encounter with Rukia began to fade... "Damn it." He clenched his fist, his nails digging deep into his palm. "Is this Tsukishima's true purpose? Not to kill me, but to make me 'never exist'?"

Ginjo suddenly remembered something and looked sharply at Ichigo: "Kurosaki, you just said that Tsukishima mentioned the Book of the Beginning before he left?" Ichigo barely managed to concentrate: "He said... when I faced that true Book of the Beginning..."

“I see.” A look of understanding flashed in Ginjo’s eyes. “The Book of the End in Tsukishima Hidekuro’s hands is probably just a replica, or rather, a chapter of the ‘Book of the Primordial.’ His purpose is not just to erase you, but to force out the real ‘Book of the Primordial’ through this method!”

Liluka asked, puzzled, "What's so good about that tattered book? Is it worth all this trouble?"

"A book that can write the laws of the end of all things." Yincheng's tone was filled with deep apprehension. "Whoever masters it will have the power to redefine the world."

What Tsukishima wants is probably not just revenge, but something far more terrifying.

Just then, Ichigo suddenly felt a sharp headache. He knelt down on one knee, and the scene before him began to shatter and recombine. He saw another version of the past—in that version, he did not obtain the power of a Shinigami from Rukia, did not enter Soul Society, and did not experience the battles of Hueco Mundo... He was an ordinary high school student who could never see Hollows.

"Is this... the ending Tsukishima prepared for me?" Ichigo gritted his teeth, resisting the erosion of memories. "A Kurosaki Ichigo who lived an ordinary life..." "Ichigo, hold on!" Chad leaned down, his heavy hand pressing on Ichigo's shoulder. "Don't forget who you are! You are Kurosaki Ichigo, the one who dared to stand against the entire world to protect your comrades!"

Inoue wiped away her tears and clasped her hands together: "The rejection of all things! I refuse Kurosaki-kun's forgotten future!" The golden shield Shun Rikka bloomed in her hair, trying to stabilize Ichigo's existence.

However, Tsukishima changed the more fundamental "rules," and his abilities had little effect. Ichigo raised his head, his dark golden pupils burning with an indomitable flame.

Although memories are fading, and connections with the world are weakening, one thing remains unshaken—I will not simply disappear.

He struggled to straighten his body, and the four forces once again flowed through his body.

This time, however, they no longer pursue perfect fusion, but exist in a more primitive and essential way—just like him, perhaps not perfect, but real and strong.

"Shukurou Tsukishima wants to erase my existence using the 'Book of the End'..." Ichigo's voice sounded exceptionally firm in the night wind, "Then I will use my own way to..."

A new chapter is written that belongs to my present!

He looked at the distant night sky, in the direction where Moon Island had disappeared.

"Whether I face the Book of the End or the Book of the Beginning, I will prove that Ichigo Kurosaki's existence cannot be defined by any book!"

Under the moonlight, the boy's figure swayed slightly, yet he was like a pine tree rooted to the earth, unyielding to the raging storm. This war, concerning existence itself, had only just entered its most dangerous phase.

Chapter 294: The Altered Daily Life

The morning sunlight streamed through the window and fell on Ichigo Kurosaki's face. He opened his eyes and stared blankly at the familiar ceiling, feeling that something was amiss.

"Ichigo! Get up, you're going to be late!" Kurosaki Yuuko's voice came from downstairs, as energetic as ever. Ichigo sat up and rubbed his temples.

My memory of last night is a bit hazy. It seems like I had a very long dream, and something important happened in it, but I can't remember the specific details.

He walked down the stairs. His father, Isshin Kurosaki, was reading a newspaper and drinking coffee, while his two younger sisters were busy in the kitchen. Everything seemed the same as usual, but Ichigo felt that something was missing from the scene.

"Dad," Ichigo said hesitantly as he sat down at the table, "don't you feel... like someone's missing from the house?"

Kurosaki Isshin looked up from behind the newspaper, puzzled. "Who's missing? Are you still half asleep? Come on, eat your food. Isn't today your final exam?"

Final exams? Ichigo paused for a moment, then remembered that today was indeed the day of final exams. He quickly finished his breakfast, slung his backpack over his shoulder, and headed out the door. As he walked to school, the sense of unease in Ichigo's heart grew stronger.

The scenery along the street was as usual, pedestrians hurried by, and everything seemed so normal. But why did he feel so uneasy?

At the school gate, he met Keigo Asano and Mizuiro Kojima.

"Hey, Ichigo! Are you ready for the exam today?" Keigo shouted as always. Mizuiro pushed up her glasses: "Judging from your expression, you haven't been playing games all night, have you?"

Ichigo forced a smile, but his gaze unconsciously swept around. What was he looking for? Or rather, who was he hoping to see? In the classroom, the students were all preparing for their exams.

Ichigo sat down in his seat and subconsciously glanced at the empty seat next to him. Whose seat was that? Why was it empty?

Inoue-kun is absent today. "Class representative Tatsuki said as he walked over, 'She seemed to have a fever last night.'"

Inoue... Orihime? An image of a girl with long orange hair appeared in Ichigo's mind, but the image was blurry, as if seen through a layer of frosted glass. He remembered that she was a classmate, cheerful, and often brought strange homemade dishes to school.

But apart from that, his memories of her are all hazy. The exam begins, and Ichigo tries his best to concentrate on answering the questions.

But those questions seemed unusually simple to him, unsettlingly so. He should have been an average student, so why were these questions so easy for him?

During his lunch break, Ichigo went to the rooftop alone. He needed quiet time to think.

Since this morning, the world has given him a false feeling, like an elaborately staged drama where everyone is playing their part, and only he vaguely senses that something is wrong.

"Hey, just standing here all by yourself?"

Ichigo whirled around and saw a silver-haired boy in a school uniform leaning against the doorway. A playful smile played on his lips, and his eyes held a hint of amusement.

"You are..." Ichigo frowned, he didn't remember having such a student at the school.

“Shukurou Tsukishima,” the silver-haired boy introduced himself, walking naturally to Ichigo’s side. “A transfer student, just arrived today.” Tsukishima… The name made Ichigo’s heart skip a beat, but he couldn’t remember where he had heard it before.

"You look so troubled," Tsukishima said, leaning against the railing and gazing at the distant city. "Are you questioning the reality of this world?" Ichigo looked at him warily. "What do you mean?"

Tsukishima chuckled and pulled a brown book from his pocket: "It's nothing, I just thought you might be interested in this book."

The book looked ordinary, but Ichigo's gaze was firmly drawn to it. He had a strong intuition that the book was related to the unease he felt inside.

"What is this?" Ichigo asked.

Ichigo's breath hitched. The orange-haired boy who could see ghosts... wasn't that him? "Let me see." Ichigo reached out to take the book.

But Tsukishima suddenly closed the book and took a step back: "Not now. Come find me when you really want to know the truth." With that, he turned and left, leaving Ichigo full of questions.

During the afternoon exam, Ichigo was not focused; his thoughts were completely occupied by Tsukishima and that book.

After school, he decided to go find Orihime, hoping that seeing her might help him sort out his confused memories. Following the address he remembered, Ichigo arrived at the Inoue family's house. He rang the doorbell, and a moment later, the door opened.

Orihime stood in the doorway, her face somewhat pale, but she didn't appear to be ill. "Kurosaki-san?" Inoue seemed surprised. "What brings you here?"

Ichigo was momentarily speechless. What should he say? Should he say that he felt something was wrong with this world and wanted to check if her memories were normal? "I... I heard you were sick, so I came to see you." Ichigo finally chose a more plausible excuse.

She smiled and said, "It was just a slight cold, I'm all better now, thank you for your concern." She invited Ichigo into the house.

Inoue's house was as tidy as Ichigo remembered, but something felt missing. Ichigo's gaze swept across the room, finally settling on a framed photo on the coffee table. The photo showed Inoue with several strangers, but Tatsuki Arisawa, whom he recognized, was not among them.

“Those are my cousins.” Inoue noticed Ichigo’s gaze and explained, “They moved abroad a long time ago.”

Tatsuki Arisawa was Namikaze's best friend, so why wasn't she in the photo? Ichigo's unease grew stronger. "Namikage," Ichigo hesitated before speaking, "do you remember how we met?"

Inoue tilted his head and thought for a moment: "The day of the entrance ceremony, right? You picked up the handkerchief that fell on the ground for me."

Ichigo was stunned. He didn't remember it like that. He remembered Inoue being attacked by a Hollow on the school rooftop, and him saving her.

But that memory is now very blurry, while the version Inoue described is unusually clear. "What's wrong, Kurosaki-kun?" Inoue asked with concern. "You don't look well." Ichigo shook his head: "It's nothing, I'm probably just too tired lately."

He got into both cars and drove home, his inner turmoil reaching its peak.

If Inoue's memories were also altered, how many people would still remember the true past?

At the street corner, he encountered Chad. The tall boy was as silent as ever, and upon seeing Ichigo, he simply nodded. "Chad," Ichigo called out to him, "do you remember the first time we met?"

Chad thought for a moment: "On the elementary school playground, you were being bullied by some older students, and I helped you." No, that's not right at all.

Ichigo remembers Chad being attacked by a Hollow and how he came to Chad's rescue.

The conflicting memories between the two versions of the story gave him a splitting headache. "Are you alright?" Chad noticed Ichigo's pained expression.

"I'm going back now," Ichigo said reluctantly, and quickly left.

As night fell, Ichigo lay in bed, unable to sleep. His memories were like a jigsaw puzzle, a mixture of reality and illusion.

Hidekuro Tsukishima, the brown book, the altered memories—all of these point to a terrifying truth: the world he knows is being rewritten.

Just then, his phone rang. It was a text message from an unknown number:

"If you want to know the truth, come to the old school building after school tomorrow. —Shukuro Tsukishima"

Ichigo stared at the text message, a mix of unease and curiosity swirling within him. He knew it might be a trap, but he couldn't resist the allure of the truth.