Urahara Kisuke, watching from inside the general store, didn't look much better.
He rubbed his chin, his expression grim as he analyzed: "Judging solely from the spiritual pressure fluctuations, one of the two Arrancar in the video should be an Adjuchas-class Menos Grande! If a Menos Grande of this level invades the Human World, the Gotei 13 would detect it immediately, yet there are no Shinigami present in the video!"
Recalling the battle scene from moments ago, Urahara Kisuke's brows furrowed, no longer in an amused mood.
He analyzed it carefully and found that there were too many suspicious points in the video!
First and foremost was the issue of the Arrancar's appearance!
As everyone knows, Karakura Town is a heavily spiritual area, making it easy for spiritual entities to gather.
However, over the years, due to the presence of Shinigami stationed in the Human World, this populous city has rarely experienced safety incidents, at most, occasional cases of ordinary Hollows attacking humans.
Those Hollows were just ordinary Hollows.
Even a newly assigned Shinigami could perform a Soul Burial on them without breaking a sweat.
As for Menos Grande, they had never appeared.
Let alone an Adjuchas-class Arrancar!
Even more bizarre was that, despite the Human World facing a major threat, there was no sign of any Shinigami at the battle site.
This simply defied logic!
Listening to Urahara Kisuke's serious analysis and seeing his solemn demeanor, Tessai Tsukabishi was instantly bewildered and asked, half-believing, half-doubting, "Shopkeeper, is this video really not one of your pranks?"
"What do you think?"
Urahara Kisuke responded with a helpless look.
Although he usually played pranks, he truly couldn't joke around at this moment.
The appearance of the ranking video made Urahara Kisuke feel uneasy.
Especially the never-before-seen battle scenes in the video, which made him smell a hint of conspiracy!
"Come on, I know you, please don't keep acting."
Although Urahara Kisuke's expression was quite convincing, Tessai Tsukabishi's experiences of being fooled countless times by the shopkeeper's pranks over the past hundred years still made him suspicious. He subconsciously believed that this ranking video was just Urahara Kisuke's latest prank.
"..."
Urahara Kisuke was speechless.
Looking at the smile on the other person's lips, a smile that seemed to believe it had seen through the truth, he really didn't know how to explain it clearly.
And just then, the originally dark screen suddenly recovered.
The sudden change immediately drew both their gazes back!
"Huh... it changed! The scene has switched to another location!"
Tessai Tsukabishi stared intently at the light screen.
The scene reflected in his eyes was no longer the outskirts of Karakura Town, but a cluster of towering skyscrapers!
"Why does it still feel so familiar?"
Urahara Kisuke scrutinized it, then, after a moment of silence, suddenly exclaimed, "No wonder it's so familiar! Tessai, isn't this place Karakura Town's downtown area?"
"It is! It's exactly the same!" Tessai Tsukabishi finished, then looked at Urahara Kisuke with a teasing glint in his eye, playfully remarking, "Tsk tsk tsk, Shopkeeper, your sense of timing is quite good, isn't it? The scene switch was perfectly timed, directly whetting the audience's appetite. I'm really looking forward to what kind of scene will be presented next?"
Urahara Kisuke completely ignored his sarcastic tone.
Instead, he stared intently at the bottom right corner of the screen!
The next second, as the screen moved, two other figures appeared in that position!
"Holy cow!"
"This... am I seeing this right? Isn't that Isshin and Yoruichi?"
Before Urahara Kisuke could speak, Tessai Tsukabishi's exclamation reached his ears.
He was startled, leaning closer to the light screen, his mind completely blank as if a thunderclap had struck him, utterly stunned by the scene before his eyes!
Tessai Tsukabishi was shocked not just by the appearance of two old acquaintances, but by the clothes Yoruichi and Isshin were wearing: one in a tight battle suit, and the other in a Shinigami uniform!
It should be known that the most common characteristic of a Shinigami is their Shinigami uniform!
The Shinigami uniform is not only the Shinigami's work uniform but is also closely related to the Shinigami's spiritual pressure, representing their current spiritual power status and integrity.
In other words, once a Shinigami loses spiritual pressure, it is impossible for them to possess a Shinigami uniform.
This is a universally known fact.
But!
Shiba Isshin in the video actually had a Shinigami uniform on!
Even more unbelievable, at his waist, a Zanpakuto could be clearly seen.
That was clearly the Zangetsu that had once disappeared!
"Shopkeeper!"
Barely recovering from his shock, the muscles in Tessai Tsukabishi's cheeks twitched violently from emotional agitation. He grabbed Urahara Kisuke by the collar, spitting as he demanded, "You immediately explain this to me! What in the world is going on?! Why is Miss Yoruichi involved in the battle, and when did Shiba Isshin recover his Shinigami powers?"
Urahara Kisuke was startled.
His neck was tightly constricted by the collar, and he could barely breathe. He quickly motioned for the other person to calm down, saying, "Tessai, don't get agitated, calm down first!"
At this, Tessai Tsukabishi finally let go.
However, his mind was in a complete mess. His originally calm state had become utterly chaotic due to multiple unexpected events.
"Speak! What exactly is going on?"
"If I said none of these scenes could be explained, you probably wouldn't believe me either." Urahara Kisuke sighed helplessly, his face so grim it looked like water might drip from it.
Compared to Tessai Tsukabishi, his emotions were even more anxious and uneasy.
Shiba Isshin's Shinigami uniform had a huge impact on Urahara Kisuke's heart, even giving him a feeling of his hair standing on end.
Back then, Shiba Isshin, who was still the captain of the Tenth Division, willingly gave up his Shinigami powers to save Kurosaki Masaki's life.
This matter was orchestrated by Urahara Kisuke!
He personally witnessed Shiba Isshin lose his powers, devolving from a Shinigami captain into a human.
In the days that followed, Urahara Kisuke had not stopped his experimental research to help Shiba Isshin recover his powers, and not long ago, he had made groundbreaking progress, with the recovery potion about to be successfully developed.
Thinking of this, Urahara Kisuke broke out in a cold sweat.
The experiment hadn't even succeeded yet, but Shiba Isshin had already recovered his Shinigami powers?
This was the truly terrifying part upon closer thought!
"Could it be that none of this is really your prank?"
Tessai Tsukabishi finally wavered.
If the first scene, the battle with the Arrancar, could still be forcibly explained away with "computer special effects," then Shiba Isshin, who had recovered his Shinigami powers, offered no excuses.
Because the spiritual pressure fluctuations from Isshin were genuinely present!
Even through the transparent light screen, Tessai Tsukabishi could clearly sense them!
"Tessai, pay attention to the expressions on all three of our faces!"
Urahara Kisuke took a deep breath.
He was shocked to find that his own expression on the screen was exactly the same as Yoruichi's and Shiba Isshin's—all looking as if they were facing a formidable enemy.
This meant that... they seemed to be facing an incredibly powerful enemy!
PS: Is anyone watching? Please throw some flowers.
Chapter 06: Everyone Shocked!
"Tessai..."
"Look closely! My expression and Isshin's!"
Urahara Kisuke took a deep breath.
He was shocked to find that his expression on the screen was exactly the same as Yoruichi's and Shiba Isshin's—all displaying solemn expressions as if facing a formidable enemy.
And they were all looking in the same direction!
This meant that... at the point of their gaze, there seemed to be an unprecedentedly powerful adversary!
"It seems so... Shopkeeper, you are fighting an unknown powerful enemy!" Tessai Tsukabishi's forehead beaded with cold sweat, and he involuntarily swallowed.
Even through the light screen, he could still clearly feel the oppressive atmosphere on the battlefield.
Heavy, and suffocating!
He even felt a sense of being there himself!
You know, he was once the Great Daoist!
Even setting aside Kido, his spiritual pressure alone ranked high among Captain-level Shinigami.
Yet the heavy and oppressive feeling emanating from the light screen actually made Tessai Tsukabishi feel like he was "suffocating"!
One can imagine how powerful the opponent the Shopkeeper and his companions were facing at that moment must be!
"Too bizarre..."
"I have no memory whatsoever of these battle scenes! But the sense of reality conveyed in the video indicates that this battle truly existed!"
"What exactly is going on with all of this?!"
Urahara Kisuke's eyes were solemn. His highly intelligent brain was working furiously.
Inside the general store, the previously relaxed atmosphere also became heavy due to his silence!
——
On the other side, in Karakura Town's downtown area, at Kurosaki Clinic.
"No way?"
"This is... Zangetsu! Not just the Zanpakuto, but even the Shinigami uniform has appeared! Is this real or fake?" The exclamation almost blew the roof off the clinic.