After everything that had happened, Ichigo returned to the Human World, leaving Orihime in the care of the Shinigami Captains—who themselves needed medical treatment after defeating Yammy.
The war had descended into utter chaos. Aizen was already nearly completely merged with the Hōgyoku, and the fight was brutal.
Aizen used his intellect to unsettle Ichigo. He claimed he had known of Ichigo's existence since the day he was born, and made a cruel, mocking remark about Ichigo's brother—lamenting his death, and adding that it should have been Misaki who died instead.
He was about to say more, but Isshin appeared and struck him, cutting him off. In that moment, Ichigo learned the truth: his father was a Shinigami.
Things only grew more difficult. Aizen had become nearly impossible to defeat. Until at last, Isshin decided to teach Ichigo a secret technique.
But he was reluctant—deeply reluctant—to teach it.
"I already lost your brother, Ichigo. I don't want to lose you too," were his words. Ichigo insisted, and finally, he spoke.
"Father… I have something to tell you." He paused, then continued. "In Hueco Mundo… I lost control. And a Hollow saved me. His Hollow form was almost exactly like mine. He knew my name… and he showed me his face. It was Ryu."
Isshin's eyes went wide. Shock gave way to white-hot rage.
"Damn Aizen," he snarled, clenching his fists until his knuckles turned white. "How could he do this to my son?"
Every fiber of his being wanted to charge after Aizen right then—but he knew he was not strong enough to defeat the monster. So instead, he looked his son in the eye.
"Son… please. Don't tell your mother or your sisters." His voice was heavy with grief. "I don't know what Aizen did to our boy… but if they find out, they'll try to go after him. And I cannot lose another child."
Ichigo made the promise. His father did not deserve more pain. And besides… it sounded as though his brother was still alive, still out there.
Ichigo pushed the thought aside and charged toward Aizen, ready to kill the bastard.
(—)
Every minute that passed, the longing to go home grew stronger.
But instead, he found himself babysitting a wounded Arrancar and a child Arrancar.
The Shinigami Captains tried to pick a fight with him at first—but seeing no reason to fight, he simply stepped aside and kept his distance.
Ryu had no idea what was going on. He learned about Aizen from Grimmjow and Nel, who was now sitting on his lap, playing like the child she was in this form.
He had no stake in the fight against Aizen. But the longing to return home warred with a terrible truth: even when he suppressed it, his spiritual pressure was so immense it would kill ordinary humans just by being near them.
It was nothing short of a miracle that Nel was unaffected. He would never put his mother, his sisters, or his father in danger. His idiot brother had managed to gain both Shinigami and Hollow powers—but Ryu was the way he was.
At least, that was how Ryu saw it. And time passed.
Eventually, word came: the war was over. And Ichigo had lost his powers.
As the strongest Hollow alive, Ryu felt an obligation to step up and rule Hueco Mundo. In the end, it was decided that Harribel would become Queen, and he slowly stepped back from any position of authority. She was the Third Espada, respected and feared among Hollows—they would follow her far more easily than they would ever follow him, no matter how much stronger he was. And that was fine by him. He never wanted to be King.
He only wanted to go home. So he took Nel with him, and together they traveled across the endless white sands of Hueco Mundo.
(—)
Then the news came: Hueco Mundo was under attack.
Ryu returned as fast as he could. He found Harribel defeated, struggling beneath the foot of a man who radiated terrifying power.
"Get your hands off her!" Ryu roared, and his spiritual pressure erupted outward.
The weakest of the enemy army died instantly the moment his power was unleashed.
"Ah, Kurosaki Ryu," the Quincy King declared, looking straight at him. "Sixth on my list of dangerous beings. You came to me all on your own—saving me the trouble of hunting you down."
"My Lord," Jugram stepped forward. "Allow me to deal with this Hollow."
"No." The Quincy King smiled, cold and satisfied. "It is inevitable that I fight him myself."
Jugram bowed and stepped back.
"Rise, Ryujin!" Ryu shouted. His spiritual pressure exploded, and his true Hollow form descended. The weight of it was so crushing that even the strongest of the Quincy forces—and all Hollows below the rank of Vasto Lorde—perished where they stood. Even Harribel, already wounded, groaned under the sheer pressure.
Only Nel remained unharmed. For whatever reason, she was immune to his aura.
He lunged at the Quincy King. The fight was so fast it was visible only as flashes of light and shockwaves. They vanished and reappeared, trading blow after devastating blow. Ryu fired Ceros as if they were bullets from a machine gun—yet Yhwach blocked and dodged with effortless ease.
"You are strong, there is no doubt," Yhwach said, slipping past another strike. "One of the most powerful I have ever faced. But you are no match for me."
"Shut up!" Ryu roared, gathering immense energy between his horns. "Gran Rey Cero!"
"A terrifying power, indeed," Yhwach said calmly. "But I cannot allow you to use it against me."
In one hand, Yhwach held one of Ryu's horns. In the other, he held the second.
Ryu fell to his knees. His Hollow form began to shatter and crumble away.
The Quincy King raised his sword, preparing the final blow.
"RYUUUU!" Nel screamed. She threw herself at him, opening a Garganta just in time to shield him from the strike and drag him through to safety.
"Shall we pursue them?" Jugram asked, already ready to move.
"No. It would be pointless." Yhwach lowered his sword. "Besides… everything is proceeding exactly as planned."
(—)
Ichigo sat at the dinner table with his family. Misaki Kurosaki had prepared the meal, and everyone was gathered together.
It was then that Ichigo and Isshin decided it was finally time to tell Misaki the truth about Ryu.
"Mom… there's something I need to tell you," Ichigo said, looking her in the eye.
"What is it, sweetheart?" Misaki asked with a gentle smile.
Isshin swallowed hard. His wife had suffered so much already—he hated to break her heart all over again. But before Ichigo could speak—
"Ichigoooo!"
The voice rang out, and a dark portal tore open in the air.
Everyone froze. Even Yuzu and Karin—who had developed enough spiritual power to see such things—stared. Misaki, too, whose spiritual power had partially returned, saw it clearly.
Isshin and Ichigo prepared to leap into action, transforming into their Shinigami forms—until something tumbled out of the portal: Nel, clinging desperately to the body of a young man.
Ichigo's eyes went wide. It was the same face as his own—only younger. The face he had worn when he first became a Substitute Shinigami.
The name fell from his lips. "Ryu."
Everyone stared in shock—especially Misaki and Isshin. Misaki went pale. It was the same face. The same face her dead son should have had. A little younger than he would be now… but she knew it. She knew it.
"No… that can't be…" She stumbled backward, shaking her head in disbelief, until she fell to the floor. "It can't be. What is this? What is this?"
"Misaki!" Isshin shouted, rushing to her side.
"Ichigo… you have to help Ryu," Nel sobbed, kneeling over him. "Hueco Mundo was attacked. There was a man… so strong. He beat Ryu. He beat Harribel. Please… help… Hueco Mundo…"
"Damn it." Ichigo dropped to his knees beside his brother, checking for a pulse. He was still alive.
"Ichi-nii… who is he?" Yuzu asked, trembling. "Why does he look like you?"
"He's our brother," Ichigo said, forcing himself to speak the truth.
"How?" Misaki whispered, tears spilling over. "How?"
Isshin and Ichigo told them everything. Misaki was furious—not at them, but at the fact that they had kept it from her all this time. She demanded to know why he had never come home.
Nel explained: Ryu's spiritual pressure was so immense it would kill anything near him—even when he tried to suppress it. He had always wanted to come home. He had tried again and again to find a way to control his power… but it never worked. He always ended up hurting everything around him.
"No…" Misaki pressed a hand to her mouth and wept. "My son… you suffered so much."
She reached out and stroked his hair. Isshin suggested they move him somewhere else, somewhere safer—but Misaki refused. She was not letting her son go again.
In the end, they agreed. They called Urahara to the house, hoping he could do something to help Ryu.
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