"All right, I'm used to it already." Back in the World of the Living, Muten Natsu sighed. "Laugh if you want."
"Pfft!" Tatsuki Arisawa immediately burst out laughing. "You... hahaha... what even happened to you?"
"Aftereffects of Bankai." Muten Natsu gave a brief explanation. "I'll be back to normal in another month."
The corners of Tatsuki Arisawa's mouth lifted as she gestured at his height. "Call me big sis!"
"Not a chance."
"A month..." Tatsuki Arisawa clicked her tongue and did a quick count. "That's practically the closing ceremony already."
Muten Natsu spread his hands. "Nothing I can do. Looking like this, even if I went to class, people would probably think I was my own little brother or something."
"Here are the latest notes." Tatsuki Arisawa took a notebook from her schoolbag. "Look them over. Try not to let your grades get too awful."
"Ah!" Orihime Inoue finally remembered. "I haven't been to class in so long. Tatsuki-chan, thank goodness for you!"
"It's only because it's Ochi-sensei. If it were anyone else, you two would have a hard time even graduating." Tatsuki Arisawa, now being hugged by Orihime Inoue, thought back to what had happened in Soul Society. "Oh, right. About everything with you guys, I told everyone what I knew, and Manager Urahara filled in some of the rest."
At this point, there was no longer any need to hide it.
Muten Natsu's eyes shifted slightly. "Getting all of you dragged into this..."
"That had nothing to do with you. Besides, if it weren't for you, I wouldn't even be standing here talking to you right now." Tatsuki Arisawa shot Muten Natsu a sideways look. "And that's not just what I think. That's what everyone thinks."
"Oh, right. These are sweets everyone in Soul Society gave me and Muten." Orihime Inoue took out a huge pile of desserts. "I'll bring them to school later so everyone can eat them together! This is your share, and there's still lots more."
"These taste really good." Tatsuki Arisawa tried a little, then rubbed Orihime Inoue's head. "Looks like you made plenty of friends over there too. That's great."
"Hehe." Orihime Inoue smiled happily.
"While we were gone," Muten Natsu asked, "how was the World of the Living?"
Tatsuki Arisawa thought for a moment. "Lately, Ishida-kun has been the one taking care of Hollows. He said it was a request from Manager Urahara."
"Mm. Quincy methods for eliminating Hollows are a bit too thorough, but as long as it's not on a large scale, it should be fine." Muten Natsu nodded. The balance of the Three Worlds would not collapse that easily.
"Sado is the same as always..." Tatsuki Arisawa frowned slightly. "But Ichigo doesn't seem to be doing too well."
Muten Natsu raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean by not doing well?"
"He lost his Reiryoku." Tatsuki Arisawa explained what had happened.
At first, it had only been his power fading, and Ichigo Kurosaki thought it was simply the disappearance of his Quincy power.
After all, long before he attacked Sōsuke Aizen, Uryū Ishida had warned him many times that using power beyond his ability to control would cause his Quincy power to disappear.
Ichigo Kurosaki had already prepared himself for that. Later, Isshin Kurosaki's appearance also made Ichigo Kurosaki realize that besides Quincy power, he also had Shinigami power inside him.
That meant even if his Quincy power vanished, he could still rely on his Shinigami power to keep fighting.
But... his Reiryoku was disappearing too.
Now he could no longer see souls.
"Something like that actually happened..." Muten Natsu took out his phone. "I'll go take a look."
After setting a place to meet, Muten Natsu found Ichigo Kurosaki.
Seeing Muten Natsu's obviously shrunken body, Ichigo Kurosaki stared blankly for quite a while. "What happened to you...?"
Having no idea how many times he had already explained it, Muten Natsu gave a brief answer, then went straight to the point. "How is your Reiryoku?"
"Ah... it's already gone." Ichigo Kurosaki smiled. "If you weren't in a Gigai, I probably wouldn't be able to see you right now."
"Didn't you ask Urahara?"
"Urahara-san said the situation is a little complicated." Ichigo Kurosaki snapped off a twig and drew three lines on the ground. "The lowest one is the Hollow power that makes me lose control. The middle one is the Shinigami power I inherited from my dad. The top one is the Quincy power I got from my mom."
The actual situation was more complicated, but this simple division made it easier to understand.
Among the three powers, Quincy power and Hollow power were in conflict with each other.
So the Quincy power sealed the Hollow power by suppressing the Shinigami power.
The remaining power was released through the Quincy Cross and, under the influence of the Shinigami power, became Zangetsu.
It had a form similar to a Zanpakutō, but the way its power was used belonged to a Quincy.
When Ichigo Kurosaki suffered a powerful attack that kept his Quincy power from functioning properly, the Hollow power would break free of the seal and appear.
That was what had happened during his earlier battle with Shawlong.
In that fight, Ichigo Kurosaki lost control, but he did not lose his Reiryoku afterward.
This time was different.
Ichigo Kurosaki had first attacked with all his strength, causing his Quincy power to dissipate.
Then, during his battle with Sōsuke Aizen, he underwent complete Hollowfication, damaging his Shinigami power.
If the battle with Shawlong had been the Hollow power punching a hole through the seal formed by Quincy power and Shinigami power together, then Ichigo Kurosaki's complete Hollowfication had completely torn that seal apart.
"I don't know whether it was my body's instinct, or... whether the Quincy power was protecting my mind from collapsing, but the Quincy power and Shinigami power gathered again and sealed the Hollow power at the last moment." Ichigo Kurosaki put down the twig. "Aside from that, there was no power left for me to use. So my Reiryoku completely disappeared inside that self-seal."
Muten Natsu quickly understood the situation. Based on Myōki's analysis, he offered his own thought. "Since Quincy power and Hollow power conflict with each other, strengthening your Shinigami power should let you keep using Reiryoku."
"Urahara-san thought the same thing." Ichigo Kurosaki smiled. "With his help, Dad transferred part of his Shinigami power into me, but it only temporarily slowed the disappearance of my Reiryoku. As for the result now... you already know."
Muten Natsu frowned slightly and kept thinking through other possibilities. "If they could be fused..."
"Urahara-san thought of that too." Ichigo Kurosaki set down the branch in his hand. "The best-case scenario would be using Shinigami power as a medium to fuse Quincy power and Hollow power into one. But that's only a theory..."
The reality was that the three powers were acting as seals on one another and canceling each other out.
"Don't look so troubled. This isn't your fault. It was my own choice." Ichigo Kurosaki patted Muten Natsu on the shoulder. "Besides, I have to thank you for avenging my dad."
"Avenging him?"
"My dad told me about what happened before." Ichigo Kurosaki recounted it to Muten Natsu.
About twenty years earlier, Isshin Kurosaki had still been the Captain of the 10th Division, known then as Isshin Shiba.
Tōshirō Hitsugaya, who was the 3rd Seat at the time, reported to him that Shinigami stationed in Naruki City in the World of the Living had been attacked and killed by an unknown target one after another.
Because of the high danger involved in the mission, Isshin Shiba decided to go to the World of the Living alone to investigate.
In truth, the incident was part of Sōsuke Aizen's Hollowfication experiments.
During the battle against the Hollow, Isshin Shiba was ambushed by Sōsuke Aizen and badly injured.
The one who saved him in that critical moment was Ichigo Kurosaki's mother, the Quincy Masaki Kurosaki.
Later, after being attacked by the Hollow, Masaki Kurosaki began to undergo Hollowfication, which was fatal to a Quincy.
To save Masaki Kurosaki's life, Isshin Shiba chose to enter a special Gigai made by Kisuke, sacrificing his Shinigami power to suppress the Hollow power inside Masaki Kurosaki.
The price was that he could no longer use his Shinigami power. He left Soul Society and remained in the World of the Living.
After that, he changed his name to Isshin Kurosaki and opened the Kurosaki Clinic.
Then Ichigo Kurosaki was born.
Once Ichigo Kurosaki grew to the point where he could use his own Quincy power and Shinigami power to suppress the Hollow power, Isshin Kurosaki regained his Shinigami power and recovered his original strength.
Ichigo Kurosaki told it simply, but Muten Natsu could still sense the danger behind it. "No wonder he suddenly left Soul Society back then. I guessed there had to be more to it, but I didn't expect it to be this complicated."
"I didn't know any of this before, but you defeating Sōsuke Aizen really did help my dad get even." Ichigo Kurosaki looked at Muten Natsu gratefully. "Thank you."
"I only did what I should have done." Muten Natsu shook his head. "As for your Reiryoku, I'll keep thinking of a way."
"No need to put yourself through that. For a long time, I wanted to stop being able to see souls, and now that day has finally come." Ichigo Kurosaki stood up and stretched. "I hope this ordinary life can last until the day I die."
Ichigo Kurosaki waved goodbye and left with an easy air.
As for what he truly felt, Muten Natsu had no way of knowing.
"I should go buy groceries." Muten Natsu headed toward the supermarket.
The refrigerator at home had long since been emptied, so he needed to restock it as soon as possible.
Ding-dong.
The Denreishinki let out a soft chime. Muten Natsu flipped open the phone and opened the electronic message.
In practice, it was something similar to email.
He opened the newly received electronic message, and its contents left Muten Natsu with complicated feelings for a moment.
[Our company sells all kinds of books from the World of the Living. We guarantee no information leaks and discreet home delivery. Bulk orders receive discounts, and we also accept orders for items other than books. Orders can be placed by Jigokuchō or electronic message. Interested parties may reply directly to this message, and we will provide detailed instructions. YDM Book Sales]
YDM Book Sales?
Muten Natsu stared at the electronic message and thought for quite a while before remembering that YDM was shorthand for Yadōmaru.
Then Yadōmaru Books would be...
Muten Natsu remembered his time practicing Hollowfication at the Visored headquarters, and all kinds of Lisa Yadōmaru's distinctive books, always in her hands, came to mind. Books full of heart-pounding heat, surging waves, and splashing water.
No wonder Lisa Yadōmaru had not returned to the 8th Division. She had changed careers and become a purchasing agent.
That business sense...
...
"So..." As soon as Muten Natsu left, Tatsuki Arisawa could not wait to ask Orihime Inoue, "How's it going?"
"Ah... huh?" Orihime, who had been happily eating a sweet, froze for a moment. Then she immediately put it down, wiped her fingers, and picked up Tatsuki Arisawa's notebook. "I'll start reading right now."
"I'm not talking about studying." Tatsuki Arisawa snatched the notebook away and set it aside. "I mean you. You spent so long with Muten in Soul Society. Didn't you do anything?"
"I healed a lot of injured Shinigami." Orihime Inoue proudly showed off the huge pile of sweets in front of her. "Everyone gave these to me. I kept saying it was enough, but they still brought more again and again. And Unohana-san and Isane-san both took really good care of me..."
"And then?"
"And then I came back." Orihime Inoue blinked her big eyes. "What's wrong?"
"No, that's not what I mean." Tatsuki Arisawa was close to losing it. "I mean the progress between you and Muten."
"Me and Muten... what progress?"
"Romantic progress!" Tatsuki Arisawa could not understand it. Orihime had clearly liked Muten Natsu so early on, so how was she still this slow about these things?
"Ah... romantic progress! Romantic progress..." Orihime Inoue's face flushed faintly. "Our relationship is really good. He didn't say it, but I know he came back to the World of the Living for me."
The current Muten Natsu was the hero who had saved Soul Society.
If he stayed in Soul Society, he could gain higher status and better prospects than in the World of the Living.
But he had still come back to the World of the Living.
Because Orihime Inoue had to return to the World of the Living and continue her life.
"Are you sure he came back for you?" Tatsuki Arisawa was not saying Orihime Inoue was lying. She just did not fully trust this girl's muddled little head.
"He doesn't have any other reason to come back... He doesn't need high school knowledge, and in Soul Society there are Unohana-san and Rukia. He likes sleeping with them so much. If it wasn't for me, why would he leave them and come back to the World of the Living?"
"So that's how it is... Wait!" Tatsuki Arisawa noticed something was wrong. "Sleeping with them?"
Sleeping. With them?
"Yeah. Muten slept with Unohana-san when he was really little." Orihime Inoue gestured with her hands. "According to Unohana-san, Muten was only this tall back then."
Oh... then that was fine.
Tatsuki Arisawa realized that Unohana-san was probably something like an elder to Muten Natsu, but... "What about Rukia? Do they sleep together too?"
"They grew up together. There's nothing strange about sleeping together."
"That was when they were kids... It's not okay now, is it?"
Orihime Inoue tilted her head. "What's wrong with it? I sleep with Muten too."
"You sleep with Muten too... Wait." Tatsuki Arisawa's head was starting to spin. "You and Rukia both sleep with Muten?"
***
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