Chapter 18: Sword and Bow, the Changed Zangetsu
If you asked whether Ckes Number Three wanted to run,
the answer would have been no.
At least, not at first.
But now… he was very clearly beginning to panic.
Less than a kilometer away, that terrifying spiritual pressure had descended like a falling star. It washed over him, blackening his vision as his body and mind trembled uncontrollably. In order to resist that external pressure, he could feel his stamina burning away at an alarming rate.
Even so, as pathetic as his opponent's spiritual condition felt in comparison, the memories of Number Two's final moments had already reached him.
Now, Number Three had only one thought in his mind.
Escape.
Escape far away.
And absolutely do not be tricked by that brat's seemingly exhausted appearance.
He had to admit it.
He had developed a deep psychological trauma where Takeru was concerned.
"This spiritual pressure…!"
If Number Three could still barely endure it, Ichigo and the others almost dropped to their knees on the spot. Cold sweat poured down their backs, their hands and feet trembling.
"You have got to be kidding…"
They stared, dumbfounded, in the direction where that spiritual pressure had exploded.
There was no way they could mistake their comrade's spiritual pressure.
And precisely because of that, their shock was so great.
That invisible blade, capable of slowly wearing down and killing a man just by existing, was now quietly being returned to its sheath.
In their perception, the storm faded away.
Everything returned to stillness.
Another Hollow's spiritual presence went out like a candle.
Ichigo and the others could not help exhaling in relief.
"Th that spiritual pressure just now was Takeru's…?"
Hachihara stammered, her face still pale with lingering terror.
"Yeah."
Ichigo forced himself to calm down, his voice steadying as his fingers tightened around his sword hilt.
"If I am not wrong, that was his Shikai. I can't think of any other explanation. I have no idea what kind of ability it is, but at least things on his side are settled."
Kukaku also murmured,
"I doubt that brat has the strength to come support us now. Honestly, I hope he doesn't try to force it."
Even so…
Her brows furrowed as she stared at the gray blue dog headed Menos Grande in front of them. The sight gave her a headache.
Its defense was too strong.
With that kind of defensive power, it was almost inherently invincible in a straightforward fight. Their side could only fight it by relying on tight cooperation and coordinated attacks. One lapse, even a small one, and they would be crushed one by one.
"There is no such thing as absolute defense. There has to be a weakness we do not know yet. That brat might already have figured it out, but there is no chance to ask him now."
Just as Kukaku was trying to come up with a plan, Ckes Number Three suddenly began charging a Cero in his mouth.
"Oooooooooh!"
Ichigo roared in response, surging forward with all his fighting spirit to interrupt it.
To his surprise, Number Three simply caught the blade with his bare hand.
He twisted his wrist, spun several times, and flung Ichigo away like a rag doll. Then he fired the charged Cero at the others, forcing Kukaku to immediately raise Bakudo 81: Danku to shield the group.
"Hey, kid, are you alright?!"
Omaeda dove in and caught the flying Ichigo with surprising agility, striking a proud pose as if to say, Good thing I was here.
Ichigo did not spare him even half a thank you.
Instead he shouted anxiously, "Miss Kukaku! My sword!"
"I see it!"
Kukaku's gaze locked onto Number Three. She grit her teeth.
"This bastard is trying to run."
The warning was basically unnecessary.
Because Number Three had already begun opening a Garganta right in front of their eyes.
After suffering such heavy losses, he obviously had no desire to continue the fight. He was trying to cut his losses and retreat. As a parting shot, he had chosen to rip away Ichigo's Zanpakuto.
"We will meet again," Number Three declared. "When we do, I will take the lives of two of you to balance my losses."
"Maybe tomorrow. Maybe a month from now. I will be watching you from the dark, like a curse that never fades, like a shadow that never leaves. Until then, live in fear."
Anyone could tell he meant every word.
"If you dare come back, I will dare beat you again."
Hachihara snorted.
Rindo Yu said nothing, but his dark eyes held a knifelike chill.
"Who is scared of you? Omaeda sama is nothing to sneeze at either… At worst I will just stick to the Captain like glue every day."
Omaeda muttered under his breath.
Kukaku had originally wanted to throw a few cutting remarks in as well.
But before she could speak, Ichigo, who had been frantic a moment ago, suddenly pushed himself to his feet and stared at Number Three with a seriousness that seemed to carve the night open.
"You kill people, cause trouble, and then just want to leave?"
"How can there be something that cheap in this world?"
"And… how could I let you just walk away with my sword… with my power?"
Ichigo's soul trembled, responding to his will.
A powerful force washed over his vision, blurring reality. Amid those twisted, impossibly angled skyscrapers, a man in a black cloak stood quietly.
He wore stylish glasses.
His face was cold, as if he had walked through seas of blades and mountains of corpses until nothing in the living world could move him, and no death was left he could still mourn.
Even so, the eyes behind those glasses held a deep, quiet guilt when they rested on Ichigo.
His low voice seemed to echo from somewhere very far away, yet it rang clearly in Ichigo's ears, reverberating in his chest and awakening a hidden strength that began to stir.
"That is right, Ichigo."
"Do not back down. Do not choose a path that leaves you with regret."
"I have already made that mistake once. I do not want to see you hurt again, do not want to see you grieving over another death."
"So this time, I will not refuse to lend you power. Power to protect yourself, and power to protect what you cherish."
"Your strength still has a long way to go before it matures. There is a great deal of power left in you."
"All you need to do is cast aside your fear, step forward… and call my name."
"Zangetsu."
Ichigo's shout made the two forces within him lock together in perfect unison for the first time.
Number Three, who had already stepped halfway into the Garganta, suddenly felt something wrong.
He looked down and saw that the blade in his hand had changed.
The sword had become a vermilion weapon, a chain extending from the end of its hilt, stretching out of the Garganta and back toward the world outside.
"This is…"
He instinctively followed the length of the chain with his eyes.
At its far end, the orange haired brat stood on solid ground, a pitch black bow in one hand, the chain wrapped firmly around his other.
"Give it back!"
Ichigo yanked the chain with all his might.
Despite the enormous difference in size, he dragged the three meter tall Hollow out of the Garganta by sheer force.
Then the chain burst into glaring red light.
It burned Ckes Number Three like molten lava.
"Aaaaaargh!"
The body he had built for defense and endurance suddenly felt paper thin in that crimson glow.
As he flailed an arm up to protect his face, he felt a sudden, stabbing pain in his chest.
He lowered his gaze and saw another crimson weapon, a chained blade, buried in his torso.
His hard body might as well not have existed at all in front of this attack, just like when he faced Takeru.
The difference was that Takeru had crushed him with absolute numerical superiority.
Ichigo had used the Quincy Hollow "arrow" mechanism.
"Arturo sama… I have not…"
Words more bitter than tears became his final will.
Number Three's body broke apart where the arrow had struck and vanished completely.
A battle that never existed in the original history thus came to a clean end.
"Haa…"
Ichigo exhaled heavily.
"What a flashy Shikai."
Before anyone could offer their praises, a voice cut in.
Their tension only lasted a heartbeat.
The newcomer was Takeru.
"What are you talking about? It is practical and looks cool."
Ichigo shot back immediately, refusing to accept the critique. Then he pouted.
"Your spiritual pressure is what's abnormal here. Anyone can tell at a glance you used something really dangerous. And you still have the energy to joke? You should be lying down quietly right now."
"You know me. My recovery has always been strong. After sleeping for a night, this level of injury will not matter."
Shimiya Takeru spoke lightly.
The Compound Potion could be used twice a day to restore a small amount of spiritual pressure and stamina. With that, there was no way he would remain in a weakened state for long.
"As long as you are fine."
Kukaku clapped him on the shoulder, then turned to look at Ichigo, her expression openly satisfied.
"I did not expect you two to steal the whole show this time. But as long as you all come back alive, that is more important than anything."
"I really envy you guys who have already reached Shikai."
Hachihara groaned, glaring at her own Zanpakuto.
"I have no idea how long I still have to wait. Come on, get it together already, will you!"
Ichigo could only laugh and cry at the same time watching her complain to her sword.
"Do not rush it."
He scratched his cheek, a little embarrassed.
"This kind of thing really depends on timing. Honestly, I am completely lost myself. I do not really understand what just happened. I just went with my gut and… Oh, right. How do I turn this off?"
"Idiot. Did you not just say it yourself? Go with your feelings."
Omaeda could not help snapping back.
"Shut up. This is my first Shikai, how am I supposed to know all the details? So I just… do it like this, right? Huh?"
Ichigo tried to return his Zanpakuto to its sealed state.
It did change, but instead of reverting to an Asauchi, the pitch black bow transformed into a massive cleaver like greatsword, almost as tall as he was.
He froze on the spot.
He could not understand at all why that had happened.
He was not the only one.
Even battle hardened veterans like Kukaku and Omaeda were left speechless.
Hachihara and Rindo Yu, with their limited experience, could only stare with wide eyes.
Among everyone present, only Takeru understood what was going on.
"It seems your Shikai has another sword form," he said calmly.
"Because you awakened it in such a rush, and thanks to the special nature of your Shikai, you probably have to get used to handling both forms before you can turn it back into an Asauchi."
"Two forms. A Shikai you can switch between." Kukaku stroked her chin in fascination. "This is the first time I have seen that type. But one sword and one bow, close range and long range, they do match surprisingly well. It is just a pity they are not fully separate. Otherwise they would be the third proper dual wield set in the Soul Society."
Of course it could not count as a true dual blade format.
Takeru shook his head inwardly.
He did not know exactly what Zangetsu was thinking.
But one thing was obvious.
Some invisible changes had already taken place.
Once, Zangetsu had actively suppressed Ichigo's immature power to keep him from being dragged into battle and wounded.
Now, that suppression of immature power was still there, but it existed to prevent it from going out of control while he actively granted Ichigo greater strength.
Because of that, Ichigo now held two completely different Shikai.
One representing fragmented Hollow and Shinigami power.
The other representing fragmented Quincy and Shinigami power.
Compared to the original timeline, it was "only" one additional Shikai. But the meaning behind that was anything but simple.
Quincy were humans.
Ichigo was no longer human.
He would live in the Soul Society as a Shinigami.
Perhaps that was also one of the reasons Zangetsu himself had changed.
A single path could not contain multiple identities forever.
But it could be widened with multiple powers, turning a narrow road into a broad one.
From that perspective, choosing his master had been the right answer.
Because it mirrored Aizen's choice.
And it was even more of a case of blue surpassing indigo.
A thought flickered through Takeru's mind.
"Now that your Quincy power has awakened, I wonder what your Bankai will look like. Will there be two different Bankai forms? Or will it be…"
Before he could reach a conclusion, the situation suddenly shifted.
Whoosh. Whoosh. Whoosh.
With a flurry of rushing air, dozens of masked figures in black appeared around them, completely encircling Shimiya Takeru and the others.
"Onmitsukido?"
Kukaku recognized them at first glance.
"Captain! Captain! You are finally here!"
Omaeda, however, immediately spotted the petite figure floating in midair. He burst into sobs on the spot, tears and snot flying.
"You have no idea how miserable I have been…!"
"Shut up."
Soi Fon's brows knitted in displeasure.
She shot him a look full of disdain, then shifted her gaze to Shimiya Takeru and the others.
Her hand flicked in a sharp gesture.
"Everyone, including Omaeda," she ordered coldly. "Take them all back for interrogation."
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