"Haha! Kurosaki Ichigo, I told you I was just tired that day—take this!"
In the Shihōin family's secret training ground, Abarai Renji was sparring with Ichigo. But this time, for some reason, Renji had the upper hand.
With his Bankai, Hihiō Zabimaru, he kept Ichigo completely at bay, swinging the massive segmented blade around and toying with him. Even after activating Tensa Zangetsu, Ichigo couldn't close the distance. At best, he could occasionally fire off a Getsuga Tenshō, hoping for a lucky hit.
Naturally, Renji grew more confident, even slipping in a few mocking remarks.
Yet Ichigo showed no sign of firing back. He simply endured it in silence.
"Something's off with Ichigo… he's clearly distracted."
Tsunayoshi immediately noticed the problem. Turning to Orihime, he asked:
"Inoue, what was Ichigo like when he first woke up?"
Only Tsunayoshi and Inoue Orihime were present at the training ground. Yoruichi had taken Tatsuki and Soi Fon elsewhere to train Shunkō—both of them still had plenty of room for improvement.
"When Ichigo woke up, he stayed quiet the whole time… his mood was really low," Orihime said worriedly. "He only got a little better after you came back, Sawada-kun."
That wasn't much to go on. The real issue still lay with Ichigo himself.
This was his usual flaw—his emotions heavily affected his combat ability. Even in the original timeline, there were times when he clearly outclassed his opponents, yet still got beaten back repeatedly.
Just as Tsunayoshi was about to call him over, a communication signal came through.
"Mr. Yoruichi, I've reached the Shihōin estate. How do I get in?"
It was Ishida Uryū. After quite the effort avoiding patrols, he had finally made it here.
"Uryū? It's Tsunayoshi. Did you find Ganju?"
"That guy claimed he's from the Shiba Family, said the Seireitei wouldn't do anything to him. He decided to wander around and see how the Shinigami treat his older brother." Uryū sighed. "I finally found him, and that's the result."
"Let him cause trouble. Shiba Kūkaku will clean up after him."
Tsunayoshi could already picture Ganju running around causing chaos with fireworks.
"Oh—wait, Uryū, one more thing." Tsunayoshi suddenly smacked his forehead. "I forgot Chad at Squad 4. Could you pick him up? I can't leave right now."
Uryū's face darkened. He had just regrouped—and now he was being sent out again.
"Don't worry, Squad 11 has already been sent back to their barracks. You won't get mobbed," Tsunayoshi added. "Just say my name—no one in Squad 4 will give you trouble."
"What exactly did you do over there…?" Uryū muttered. He had felt Tsunayoshi's reiatsu erupt in that direction earlier. In fact, that very disturbance had helped him move around more freely.
"I'll explain when you get back. If you don't want to go, it's fine—letting Chad stay there a bit longer isn't a big deal."
"I'll go," Uryū replied calmly. He was already used to cleaning up after Tsunayoshi.
With that settled, it was time to deal with Ichigo.
"You two—take a break," Tsunayoshi called out.
Ichigo and Renji exchanged a glance, dismissed their Bankai, and walked over.
"Tsunayoshi, what is it? I was just about to show this redhead what I'm made of," Ichigo said.
"You? If I used Higa Zekkō, you'd already be down," Renji scoffed.
"Enough. Inoue, get them some water."
Renji gulped his down in one go.
Ichigo, however, just held his cup without drinking—his worries written all over his face.
"What are you thinking about?"
Thwack.
Ichigo suddenly yelped in pain—Tsunayoshi had tapped him on the head with his sheath.
"Tsuna! I'm gonna kill you!"
Ichigo lunged forward, but Tsunayoshi effortlessly flipped him over his shoulder and slammed him to the ground.
"Snap out of it. What's going on in that head of yours?"
Ichigo sat there, rubbing his head. He glanced at Orihime, hesitated, then said:
"I'm worried…"
"About what?"
"Every time I try to swing with full power… a white figure appears in my mind. He looks exactly like me…"
Renji and Orihime were completely confused by that vague explanation.
But Tsunayoshi understood instantly.
"You're worried about your Hollow power going out of control? No wonder you're not using your mask."
Even during the fight just now, Ichigo would rather fall behind than use Hollowfication to turn things around.
"…Yeah."
Ichigo fell silent again.
He was never good at putting his feelings into words. Fortunately, Tsunayoshi already knew exactly what he was struggling with.
"Inoue, take Renji and train over there. I'll talk to Ichigo."
"She? Fight me?" Renji looked doubtful.
Tsunayoshi ignored him and said to Orihime:
"Work on your Five-Heaven Shield."
"I understand, Sawada-kun."
She nodded, then led Renji away.
"Please, Vice-Captain Abarai."
Now only Tsunayoshi and Ichigo remained.
Tsunayoshi stood up, brushed off imaginary dust, and ran a hand across his face.
A Hollow mask formed instantly.
"Come on. Let's spar—use your Hollowfication."
"What's the point of that now?" Ichigo frowned. "Fighting with a mask won't fix this."
"You're afraid of losing control and hurting the people around you," Tsunayoshi said bluntly. "Especially Orihime."
Ichigo froze.
"And you still want me to use it?"
That one incident—when he became the Horned Hollow—had left a deep scar on him. Now, every time he used Hollowfication, he feared losing himself again.
That fear was dragging down his combat ability.
"You just haven't trained it enough. I'll help you."
"That's not the issue! I'll turn into a Hollow—there's even a Hollow hole in my chest!"
Tsunayoshi removed his mask and looked at him.
"So in the end… you're just afraid of the Hollow inside you, right?"
Ichigo didn't answer—but his silence said everything.
"Then how am I supposed to fix it if I don't meet that Hollow?"
After a long pause, Ichigo said quietly:
"…Alright. Be careful."
"Relax. Even when you fully transformed, I brought you back before. Hurry up—I want to rest."
Tsunayoshi put his mask back on.
Ichigo hesitated… then did the same.
"Relax your mind. Enter your inner world. Let that white Ichigo take over."
Following Tsunayoshi's guidance, Ichigo relinquished control.
His black sclera and golden irises sharpened—
A twisted laugh escaped his mouth.
Grabbing Zangetsu's bandages, he swung the massive blade wildly at Tsunayoshi.
Tsunayoshi stopped it effortlessly—pinching the blade between two fingers.
In the next instant, he used Sonído to appear in front of him and flicked the mask between the eyes.
"Quit acting crazy. Ichigo can't even see this. So—what should I call you? Hollow Ichigo? Or Zangetsu?"
The figure paused.
"…You know me?"
"Let's go with 'White.' I know your deal. What do you want? Maybe I can help."
"Help me?" White laughed maniacally. "What could you possibly do for me?"
Tsunayoshi slammed him face-first into the ground.
"You just want to protect Ichigo with your power, right? That's why every time you take over, you go all out—to make him acknowledge you."
White froze.
How did this guy understand him better than he understood himself?
Of course Tsunayoshi understood.
His own abilities were copied from Ichigo. Likewise, the existence of "White" was no different from the manifestation of Zangetsu—both existed to protect their host.
"You've never lied to Ichigo," Tsunayoshi continued. "He's just too easily misled. The way you act—like an attention-seeking kid—there's no way he'd trust you. Meanwhile, half-truths are much easier for him to believe."
White's throat trembled.
Finally… someone understood him.
Everything he had done—provoking Ichigo, forcing him into battle—was just to make him master Zangetsu's true power.
But Ichigo treated him like an enemy.
He even had to come up with that ridiculous "king and horse" speech just to get Ichigo to fight him.
It didn't have to be this complicated.
If Ichigo wanted power, he could've just asked.
"…You… can really help me?" White asked, his tone uncharacteristically hesitant.
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