Deep in the night, the house was quiet, save for the soft ticking of a clock on the wall and the distant hum of the city outside. The moonlight filtered in through the window, casting silver streaks across Ichigo's room. His eyes opened slowly, the orange hue of his irises glowing faintly in the dark. He stared at the ceiling for a moment, listening to the steady breathing of Nel, who lay sprawled across his face like a living pillow.
With a small grunt, he gently peeled her off, careful not to wake her, and placed her on the side of the bed. She murmured something incoherent in her sleep, shifting slightly before curling into a ball. Ichigo rose from bed silently, his steps light as a shadow as he walked barefoot through the hallway. The wooden floor creaked under his weight, but he didn't care.
He made his way to his father's room. The door was slightly ajar, and inside, Isshin lay spread out like a starfish, snoring softly, a trail of drool escaping his mouth.
'Sleeping like a damn baby after sucker-punching me,' Ichigo thought with a smirk. His expression hardened.
Without hesitation, he picked up Isshin—gently, surprisingly—and slung him over his shoulder like a sack of rice. The old man didn't stir, still caught up in whatever dreamland he'd stumbled into. Ichigo opened the window silently and stepped out into the night sky, his feet leaving the edge of the sill as he soared into the air, the cold wind brushing against his skin.
The world below was bathed in moonlight. He flew silently until he reached a secluded hill in the woods, a quiet place surrounded by trees and mist, with a narrow river winding below.
He hovered above it, standing still in midair with Isshin still snoring on his shoulder.
'This is what you get for punching me, old man,' he thought darkly, though there was an amused glint in his eyes.
With a simple flick of his fingers, Ichigo knocked Isshin clean out of his gigai.
"Wha–?!" Isshin's soul shot out like a ragdoll, his eyes opening just in time to see Ichigo's smug face staring down at him with satisfaction.
"Ichigo—!"
Splash!
Isshin landed face-first in the river below, sending water splashing in every direction.
By the time his soaked head emerged from the water, sputtering and coughing, Ichigo was already gone—vanished without a trace, leaving behind only the soft echo of the splash and the moonlit ripples in the river.
Back in his bed, Ichigo slid under the covers with a satisfied sigh, Nel unconsciously rolling over to cling to his arm.
'That felt good,' he thought, a small smirk tugging at his lips as sleep reclaimed him.
Down in the woods, Isshin sat up in the water, drenched and blinking under the moonlight. He wiped the water from his face and looked up at the sky with a grin.
"Now that's my son," he chuckled to himself, eyes gleaming with pride.
....
The next morning, the tranquility of Ichigo's room was shattered as his door was kicked open with a loud crash.
"ICHIGO!" Tatsuki barked.
Orihime and Rukia stormed in behind her—each of them wide-eyed and fuming. But the moment their eyes landed on the scene in front of them, their rage spiked to volcanic levels.
Adult Nel, in all her curvaceous glory, was sleeping peacefully on top of Ichigo, her long teal hair cascading over his chest like a silk curtain. She clung to him in her sleep, a soft hum escaping her lips.
In an instant, the trio's eyes flared with invisible fire. Flames of jealousy. Flames of betrayal. Flames of what-the-hell-is-this?!
Ichigo cracked an eye open, immediately feeling the burning weight of their glares boring into his soul. He slowly turned his head and saw the three girls—eyes narrowed, nostrils flaring, and fists clenched.
"Huh?" he muttered groggily, blinking once before he noticed Nel's form—and more importantly, which form it was.
'Fucken hell… I'm not in the mood for this,' he thought, letting his head fall back against the pillow with a heavy sigh.
"I've made it clear that I'll be dating multiple women," he said flatly, rubbing his face with one hand. "So I don't get why this surprises you."
"It's not about that!" Tatsuki snapped. "It's that we don't even know her! She just got here—like, literally—and she's already in bed with you?! How the hell did she get ahead of us?!"
Ichigo yawned, completely unfazed. "Oh. I guess that makes sense…"
He sat up lazily, stretching with a crack of his shoulders. "Well then, I'll sleep in each of your rooms this week to make it fair. Except Rukia—she already lives here, so technically she gets bonus time anyway."
"I see no problem with that," Orihime said innocently, fingers twiddling with her hair—but her eyes still flared with burning curiosity as she glanced back at Nel.
"Yep, I guess we have an agreement," Tatsuki muttered reluctantly, folding her arms. "But you better actually do it."
"I've done more than any of you girls already," Rukia added smugly, resting a hand on her hip with a smirk. "So how about sharing for once?"
The comment instantly earned her three glares of unified envy.
She only smiled in pride.
At that moment, Nel began to stir, her eyes fluttering open groggily. "Nnn… What is happening?" she asked, her voice low and husky as she rubbed her eyes and looked around in confusion.
Ichigo glanced at her and spoke softly, "I don't know, but Hime—could you do me a favor? Fix her mask. I'm actually happy you found her in this form."
Orihime blinked in surprise, then nodded. "Oh, okay. I'll try."
She stepped forward, her hands glowing with soft orange light as she channeled her Shun Shun Rikka. Placing her palms gently over Nel's head, she focused on the fragmented remains of the Hollow mask embedded into Nel's forehead.
A radiant green light burst forth, surrounding Nel in a gentle vortex of power.
Then—
BOOM.
A sudden, thunderous pulse of reiatsu erupted outward, shaking the walls of the room. Curtains fluttered wildly. The girls shielded their eyes. Rukia stumbled back. Even Ichigo braced himself.
When the light faded, Nel stood upright—taller, stronger, and radiating power.
"I… remember now," she whispered, flexing her fingers as her eyes welled with quiet emotion.
Ichigo grinned. "Great. Now…"
He clapped his hands together.
"Who's hungry?"
They all went downstairs and gathered around the table, the smell of warm rice, grilled fish, and fresh miso soup filling the air. Ichigo leaned back in his chair, arms folded behind his head, looking unusually satisfied as he chewed. The chaos of the past few days finally felt like it was behind him—for now.
Nel, now in her mature form, sat beside him with a regal air. Every movement was graceful, every bite refined. She ate like a noblewoman from another world, which in a way, she was. Her poise drew the eyes of everyone at the table—especially Rukia, who tried her best to mimic that elegance but ended up gripping her chopsticks awkwardly. She looked down at her bowl, cheeks puffed with effort, trying to chew daintily.
She failed miserably.
Meanwhile, Tatsuki sat across the table with her brow twitching. Her eyes scanned Nel's outfit—barely a scrap of fabric covering her curves, more suggestive than protective. She couldn't hold back anymore.
"Did you make her dress like that?" Tatsuki asked sharply, pointing her chopsticks at Ichigo.
Ichigo groaned, not even bothering to look up from his plate. "I know I'm a pervert, but seriously—do you really think I made a woman like her wear those clothes?"
"Yes," the three girls replied in perfect unison, their eyes narrowing suspiciously.
Ichigo blinked, then gave them a deadpan look. "Wow. That's wild. Even Mineta had more benefit of the doubt than this."
Nel covered her mouth and giggled softly. "Who's Mineta?"
Ichigo shrugged. "A tiny menace from another universe. Most hated character in his whole show. Even villains got more fan votes than him."
" Oh, yes that makes sense" Tatsuki said.
Despite the sarcasm and tension, laughter began to fill the room as breakfast continued. For a rare moment, peace settled in—awkward, chaotic, but undeniably warm.
TO BE CONTINUED