"Eh? Eh?" Rukia Kuchiki looked genuinely puzzled. "Couldn't it just be that the operator this time made a mistake? That it was purely a coincidence? Is your whole family suffering from some kind of persecution complex?"

"...Are you an idiot?" Ichigo Kurosaki looked at her like she was a fool. "This world doesn't run on that many coincidences. When it comes down to it, even you being sent to Karakura Town might have been arranged."

"...?"

"The old man gave me a rundown on the Soul Society's noble clan system before," Ichigo said flatly. "The Kuchiki Clan is one of the few great noble houses standing at the very top. As a member of that clan, your identity is already extremely sensitive. If you were to discover something, or if something were to happen, it would be completely different from an ordinary Soul Reaper."

"That's..."

"And Karakura Town is a Jureichi. The vast majority of Soul Reapers don't know about that kind of thing, but certain people hiding behind the scenes know exactly what kind of people are in Karakura Town."

"...You have the nerve to talk about your father like that." Rukia narrowed her eyes. If it weren't for the overwhelming gap in strength, she would have slapped him too. "You're not making any sense."

"It's not that I'm not making sense. I simply don't know," Ichigo said with a shrug. "I just know there's a mastermind behind the scenes. The fact that my old man has stayed in the World of the Living all this time, and some of the things involving my mom, were all done by this mastermind. Those adults know, but they refuse to tell me no matter what."

"Is that so..." Rukia turned her gaze to the two adults. "Do the two of you know anything about this so-called mastermind? Is there any evidence?"

"Don't bother, Kuchiki girl."

"If we had evidence, how could we be willing to live in exile in the World of the Living?" Isshin Shiba shook his head. "And don't go thinking about investigating it, either. If it were something you could casually investigate, that guy would have died countless times already."

"That's true..."

Rukia didn't fully believe what the Kurosaki family said, but she didn't disbelieve it either. She was no naive fool. Although these people showed no hostility, whether it was the former Soul Reaper father or the human who had already gained immense power in his teens and could transform into a Soul Reaper, they were all quite suspicious. That included the gentle-looking head of the household as well. How could a Soul Reaper possibly be together with an ordinary human?

"Well then, let's call it a day." Isshin glanced at the time and saw that it was already quite late. "The kids have school tomorrow, so get some rest early."

"Okay—"

The two daughters answered as they stood up. In the end, they looked Rukia over twice as if she were some rare animal, then went back to their room together.

"Then I'll take my leave as well."

Rukia rose and gave a polite bow. Everything that had happened today was very strange, and she needed to properly sort out her thoughts.

"Alright. Goodbye, young Kuchiki lady."

The two adults nodded at Rukia warmly. Right now, they didn't want too much contact with Soul Reapers. They just wanted to quietly live their own small lives. If it weren't for certain matters that would affect their daily lives, they would keep living on as ordinary people like this.

"If anything comes up, you can come to me for help, Kuchiki... Rukia."

...

"This is a transfer student, Rukia Kuchiki." In the classroom, the homeroom teacher stood at the podium and introduced her. "Rukia came to our Karakura Town because of her parents' work. I hope everyone gets along well with her."

"Yes—"

The students responded enthusiastically. The girl at the podium stood tall and graceful, a bright smile on her face. Her looks were outstanding. Although her figure was a bit lacking, for certain people that was a bonus.

"What the hell..."

Staring blankly at Rukia on the podium, after a brief moment of shock, Ichigo couldn't help but press his right hand to his forehead and let out a speechless sigh.

"Ichigo, Ichigo!" Beside him, his friend with short coffee-brown hair, Keigo Asano, whispered, "What's up? Got your eye on the new transfer student?"

"Oh, come on! What kind of taste do you have? Isn't our Orihime good enough? This kind of small, pfft!"

Without any mercy, an elbow strike landed on Keigo Asano's stomach with lightning speed. Ichigo moved so fast that even the teacher at the podium, who had a full view of the class, didn't see it.

"Shut up." Ichigo rolled his eyes. "Don't talk nonsense, Keigo. I just happened to meet her yesterday."

"Ugh, " Groaning in pain while clutching his stomach, Keigo still gave Ichigo a thumbs-up. "So you already hooked up with her yesterday. You really move fast... Stop, stop, stop! I won't say any more!"

Watching Ichigo look like he was about to strike again, Keigo wisely shut up. He knew this freak was very precise with his force. There would be no external injuries or serious wounds, but every hit hurt to the bone.

"Is it... something from that side?" From the seat in front, his friend with black hair and a cute-looking appearance, Mizuiro Kojima, said softly. "Is it something from the world of souls?"

"..."

"..."

The two who had been roughhousing both fell silent. Ichigo's mouth twitched. "Mizuiro, how did you figure that out?"

"It's simple." Mizuiro shrugged. "If she were really just someone you knew normally, you wouldn't have reacted so strongly."

"...Your observation skills are really sharp." Ichigo didn't bother hiding it. "She's... a person from the world of souls? I don't know how to describe it, either. Anyway, don't be fooled by how young she looks. She's actually an old ha, who knows how long she's lived..."

SWISH,

A snow-white piece of chalk flew over. Ichigo turned his head and dodged it, then heard the teacher's roar.

"You down there! Don't go too far! Class is about to start!" The shout steadied the room. The teacher turned back and said gently, "Kuchiki, please sit behind Kurosaki... that orange-haired guy. Although he looks like a delinquent, his grades are actually pretty decent."

"Yes, teacher," Rukia said with a sweet smile.

"Please take care of me— Kurosaki."

"...Sure, Rukia... Kuchiki!"

Ding-dong,

The bell rang for the end of class. The morning classes were over. The students left the classroom in twos and threes, some going to eat their boxed lunches, some going to buy bread, and some going to the cafeteria to eat.

"Kurosaki, could you show me around the school?"

Before Ichigo could make a move, a soft voice came from behind him. He turned around and saw Rukia wearing what could only be called a perfect smile, staring straight at him.

"You..."

Narrowing his eyes, Ichigo didn't say anything more. He stood up and walked toward the door.

"Please slow down a little."

Saying that, Rukia followed Ichigo's pace and walked out as well. The two left one after the other, drawing the sideways glances of quite a few classmates, who began whispering among themselves. A boy with a bit of a delinquent air and a girl who looked like a proper young lady, it could easily be written into a romantic love story.

"I want to ask you to help me carry out the duties of a Soul Reaper!"

➤ Next: The Tsundere (Not) Ichigo