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Although Kurosaki Ichigo's potential was undeniable, his present strength remained far too weak. He hadn't even learned Bankai yet.
"Little Shiraha, why are you doing this?" Yoruichi's voice carried quiet confusion from within his arms.
"Miss Yoruichi, Ichigo's current strength is still too fragile," Shiraha replied calmly. "If he continued to fight Zaraki Kenpachi, both would suffer needlessly. He can't win like this."
Though Ichigo had been struck down by Raikōhō, his body hadn't taken fatal damage. Most of his wounds were shallow, more blood than true injury, but his combat power was spent.
"Xiao Yu, don't do this again," Yachiru Kusajishi appeared suddenly before him, her small fists clenched and her expression uncharacteristically serious. "Or I'll be very angry."
Her arrival meant one thing—Kira Izuru had already been defeated.
Yachiru had just checked Zaraki's injuries herself. He had collapsed only from blood loss and had merely lost consciousness.
"By the way, Shiraha," Yachiru added, "Kira is fine. I only knocked him out."
"I understand. Now hurry and take Captain Zaraki to treatment." Shiraha reached down and lightly ruffled her hair, smiling.
He knew perfectly well Kira could never stand against Yachiru. When she grew serious, even many captains would falter before her monstrous strength. For Kira Izuru, resistance was impossible.
"Thank you," Yachiru said suddenly, bowing toward the fallen Ichigo. "Thanks to you, Ken-chan had the most exciting fight he's had in years. I'm truly grateful."
Ichigo lay half-conscious on the ground, blood still running down his battered frame. His eyes, broken with exhaustion, tried to respond, but no words came.
Yachiru didn't care. Smiling brightly, she lifted Zaraki's massive body onto her small shoulders with ease. "Ichigo, hold on and don't die. If you can, come play with Ken-chan again someday."
With that, she leapt away in bursts of shunpo, carrying Zaraki across the walls of the Repentance Palace.
Ichigo's gaze drifted weakly toward Shiraha before his eyelids closed, and darkness claimed him.
System prompt: Task complete. Sign-in successful.
Reward: Gojo Satoru template progress +10%.
First template: Fujitora Issho, 100% complete.
Abilities: fully unlocked.
Second template: Gojo Satoru, 90% complete.
Abilities: Six Eyes (perfect), Limitless techniques: Cursed Technique Lapse: Blue (perfect), Cursed Technique Reversal: Red (perfect), Hollow Purple (perfect).
Exclusive Ability: Domain Expansion—Infinite Void (advanced).
At the instant Ichigo fell unconscious, Shiraha felt the system's words echo within him. His abilities sharpened instantly, his reiatsu swelling to new heights.
At his waist, his staff-blade trembled, and a faint, androgynous voice whispered within his mind: "Master Shiraha, call me… my name is—"
Shiraha froze, then allowed a smile to tug at his lips. "Finally… my own Zanpakutō."
There was no doubt. That voice was real. When the Gojo template reached completion and the third template opened, his Zanpakutō would fully awaken.
Yet, even now, Infinite Void had not ascended beyond the advanced stage. Its range had expanded, stretching from seventy thousand to eighty thousand meters, but perfection remained just out of reach. Perhaps one more completed task would push it over the edge.
"Brother Shiraha, Ichigo has lost too much blood and passed out. We should treat him immediately," Yoruichi urged.
"Are you taking him to the Fourth Division?" Shiraha asked.
"No." Yoruichi shook her head firmly. "I have a hidden place nearby, with supplies and healing springs. If we send him to the Fourth, he'll never be allowed out."
She gave him the location, and Shiraha cast Ao, his teleportation spell, vanishing with Yoruichi and Ichigo.
Meanwhile, back upon the wall, Zaraki stirred. His single eye cracked open, and Yachiru leapt in joy. "Ken-chan, you're awake!"
"What about that guy… Kuchiki Shiraha?" Zaraki rasped.
"I already called Unohana. She'll be here soon. As for Shiraha, I don't know. Maybe he's gone." Yachiru squatted at his side.
"Kuchiki Shiraha," Zaraki muttered bitterly, staring up at the sky. "I lost to you again."
Though Shiraha had interfered in his duel with Ichigo, robbing him of satisfaction, Zaraki couldn't deny it. With a single Hadō, Shiraha had crushed him. His strength had grown terrifyingly beyond what it was ten years ago.
"Stupid, don't make that face." Zaraki forced a grin at Yachiru's worried eyes.
"Ken-chan didn't lose. You only fell because Shiraha barged into the fight. That's all," Yachiru said sharply.
Zaraki laughed, the sound ragged, until Yachiru pressed her small hand against his cheek. His body, already weakened by blood loss, slipped back into unconsciousness under her touch.
"Ken-chan!" Yachiru cried, shaking him gently.
Far away, in the hidden cave Yoruichi had prepared outside Seireitei, Shiraha appeared in a shimmer of light with his companions.
The cavern was filled with supplies: jars, healing potions, and a steaming hot spring at the back.
Shiraha set Ichigo down roughly on the ground, his body striking the stone with a dull thud, forcing a faint groan from his unconscious throat.
"Miss Yoruichi, so this is your hidden retreat," Shiraha said lightly, surveying the chamber with Observation Haki. "Not bad at all."
White mist filled the cave as Yoruichi leapt from his arms. Her black cat form dissolved, her body shifting back into her true shape, the fog curling around her curves as she stepped out in human form once more.
Even veiled in mist, Shiraha's sharpened perception saw everything clearly.
He reached over, plucked a set of folded clothes from a nearby hanger, and tossed them to her with a faint smile.
"Yoruichi—put your clothes on. And never do this in front of others. Do you understand?"
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