Bleach: Awakened — Chapter 114 - Welcome to My Karakura Town

Soul Society. Karakura Town.

"Oh?"

Seated cross-legged on the ground, eyes closed in quiet meditation, Ichigo suddenly opened them and looked toward the distance.

"So they all came."

He rose to his feet. The black robes billowed in the wind. Ichigo tightened his grip on the black blade and let the killing intent spread.

"Ichigo..."

Orihime called out softly, raising a hand as if to touch him, then pulled it back. Those familiar features were right there, and yet somehow they felt just slightly out of reach.

"It's fine." He flashed a smile, but the killing intent radiating off him showed no sign of stopping. "Don't worry. I won't go too far."

In the distance, the figures of Soul Reapers came into view. Captains and Vice-Captains, every one of them, and with the exception of the Captain-Commander and one particular oddity, each was covered in wounds of varying size, looking thoroughly worn down.

Toshiro Hitsugaya of Squad 10 had it worst. Frostbite injuries that still hadn't healed, a pronounced limp, cutting a deeply disheveled figure.

"Was it you who dealt with Muramasa, Ichigo Kurosaki?"

At the edge of Karakura Town, on the dusty yellow earth, the Soul Reaper Captains came to a stop. Genryusai Shigekuni Yamamoto, standing at the front, spoke first.

"Yeah, yeah, no need to thank me." Ichigo tugged at the corner of his mouth. "It was all for the Three Realms."

"...Is that so." Yamamoto was visibly taken aback for a moment. Then, slowly: "Then that is more than satisfactory."

"In that case, we will stand here alongside you to face—?!"

WHOOSH,

A flash of blue-gold light erupted beneath his feet, threaded with faint hints of black. Ichigo's figure vanished from everyone's sight.

"How is that possible?!"

Eyes that had been narrowed snapped wide open, filled with disbelief. Yamamoto realized with alarm that the footwork Ichigo had used was so fast he couldn't even track it.

TEAR,

"AAAAAAAHHHH!"

The sound of tearing flesh and a scream of agony rang out nearly at the same instant. Everyone looked over, and what they saw was nothing short of horrifying.

The right half of Squad 12 Captain Mayuri Kurotsuchi's body, from the right ear downward, had separated from the torso. The entire arm. The greater part of the right leg. A portion of the internal organs. All of it had fallen to the ground.

And the one responsible was Ichigo, standing directly in front of Mayuri Kurotsuchi with a look of complete indifference. A casual swing of the blade in the open air, and the sword pressure alone sent a chill through everyone present.

"Mayuri-sama!"

Squad 12 Vice-Captain Nemu Kurotsuchi rushed forward immediately, blue light blazing to life across that frame. Wide eyes, usually so composed, were now locked onto Ichigo with undisguised fury.

"Nemu!" Mayuri Kurotsuchi called out, voice weak but steady. "Do not act rashly. This outcome is acceptable."

"Should I be thanking you for showing mercy, Ichigo Kurosaki?"

"Just this once." Ichigo glanced at Nemu Kurotsuchi and said flatly, "I told you, if you dared to scheme against me, I would cut you down."

"This time was only a lesson. If there's a next time, I guarantee you won't survive it. Doesn't matter who shows up."

"Ha... I suppose I should be grateful for that."

Still trembling, Mayuri Kurotsuchi drew a green syringe from somewhere on that body and plunged it in. As the green liquid flowed through, the color began returning to Mayuri Kurotsuchi's face.

"No need." Ichigo spoke evenly, walking slowly toward Yamamoto. "Old man, if you have subordinates you can't keep in line, tell me. I'll handle it for you."

"As it happens, I've grown considerably stronger recently—for certain reasons—and I'm at just the right point where I need someone to practice on. A Captain would be even better."

A brief silence. Then Yamamoto replied slowly, "I understand. There will not be a next time."

"Good." A faint smile settled at the corner of Ichigo's mouth. No warmth behind it whatsoever. "Next time, I won't be this easy to talk to."

The Soul Reapers fell silent. What had just happened left everyone shaken. In that single instant, not one of them had been able to track Ichigo's movements.

Which meant that, with the exception of Yamamoto, Ichigo could have killed any one of those Captains. That level of strength was comparable to, possibly beyond, Yamamoto in Bankai.

And every Soul Reaper there could see it plainly: even so, Ichigo hadn't used the power of a Transcendent.

"Hey!" Kenpachi Zaraki bared his teeth in a savage grin. "So you can do this when you want to, I thought all you knew was how to fight, Ichigo, but you're pretty good at cutting people down too, aren't you!"

Battle and slaughter were two different things. The former was closer to a peaceful exchange of blows; the latter was a fight to the death. Under the leadership of each successive Kenpachi, every member of Squad 11 favored slaughter over battle.

Ichigo glanced at Kenpachi Zaraki. "Focus on yourself. You're a bit stronger than last time, but it's still not enough."

"Ha!" Kenpachi leveled his sword forward. "I will be. Once I catch up to you, let's have a proper slaughter!"

"I look forward to you not ending up the same way as last time." Ichigo walked back into Karakura Town, then turned and looked over the battered Soul Reapers. "You all should go. Stay well away from here."

"When Aizen shows up, if you get caught in it, I can't look out for you."

"Does this old man need you to look out for him?" Yamamoto said evenly. "That is a bit too little regard for this old man."

"It's not a matter of regard." Ichigo shook his head. "Your destructive power is formidable enough to be terrifying, an evolving Transcendent might very well die at your hands."

"Even so. It still isn't enough."

"...You're that certain?"

"Of course." Ichigo said slowly. "Aizen has slipped away from right under my nose twice already. He's not the type to charge in blind, he won't fight a battle he has no confidence in winning."

"The fact that he's chosen to come face me proves he has more than enough confidence he can go toe-to-toe with me. Old man, do you honestly think you have that kind of strength?"

"So all of you, go." Ichigo sat back down cross-legged. "If you get caught in the crossfire, I won't be coming for you."

"...Understood."

Led by Yamamoto, the Soul Reapers turned and withdrew the way they had come, moving away from this stretch of land where a world-shaking battle was about to unfold, able only to watch from a distance.

At last, Yamamoto glanced back at Ichigo, sitting with his eyes closed and perfectly still. A wave of feeling swelled up in that chest. Once upon a time, it had been Yamamoto himself, the one who told others to stand clear of the battlefield and faced the enemy alone.

"Nearly there."

Inside the Dangai, Sosuke Aizen walked at an unhurried pace. Koryu surged up around him and was immediately crushed back down by the sheer weight of his spiritual pressure.

"What tremendous power!"

Feeling the overflowing spiritual pressure surging within, Aizen gave a slight nod. The Hogyoku's power had surpassed even his imagination, elevating his strength to a stage of extraordinary terror, and it was still rising.

"Soul King..." he murmured to himself as he stepped out of the Dangai. "After Ichigo Kurosaki makes me evolve once more."

"I will come for your life. And set you free."

The scenery shifted. What came into view was a cityscape indistinguishable from the replica Karakura Town. Aizen understood, this was the real one. The Jureichi. The land that could be forged into the key to the Soul King Palace.

"So you've come."

The cross-legged Ichigo slowly opened his eyes.

"Welcome to my Karakura Town."

➤ Next: The Power of a Quincy