Grimmjow still didn't know he was being praised by three strangers he had never met—three Shinigami who stood in direct opposition to Hollows like him. Of course, he never cared about how others viewed him; admiration and hostility were all the same to him.
Right now, he only wanted to find Ichigo as quickly as possible. Not to eliminate him like Abraham had suggested, but to destroy everything he relied on piece by piece, to force him into a corner step by step, and to see if he truly didn't even know how to fight for his life—to see if he really was just a piece of trash with the eyes of a king.
*But which one is it?* Grimmjow kept his eyes tightly shut, trying over and over to filter out Ichigo's Reiatsu using his Pesquisa.
*Is he deliberately hiding among those faint Reiatsu signatures?*
*Or is he one of those powerful Reiatsu signatures that, for some reason, fail to pique my interest? If that's really the case, what a letdown. Having my Fracción deal with them would be making a mountain out of a molehill.*
*Could Lord Aizen have misjudged him?* Even though Abraham's attitude toward Lord Aizen bordered on fanatical worship, Grimmjow had to admit that Aizen was a formidable man. His judgment rarely erred, a fact that Ulquiorra had already verified.
"So, where exactly are you hiding, coward? These Shinigami can't protect your precious comrades. Or did you learn to give up after just one day?"
In the darkness adorned by scattered, solitary stars, a cluster of white flames suddenly flared up in an inconspicuous corner. Though it couldn't illuminate the boundless dark, the master of the darkness felt it was the only treasure radiating true light.
Grimmjow's eyes snapped open. For the first time since arriving in Karakura Town, a smile crept onto his previously stern face. The Reiatsu signatures clashing all around him might as well have not existed; at this moment, his eyes were solely fixed on the Reiatsu that had just appeared—insignificant, yet dazzling enough.
*Finally, I found you...*
On the other side, Rukia was also hurrying toward Chad's house. She hadn't shed her Gigai, meaning her movements hadn't been exposed yet.
Although her lack of experience prevented her from realizing the true threat Grimmjow posed, she managed to perform a basic analysis of the battlefield.
Including Ichigo, there were currently ten Shinigami in Karakura Town. Even excluding Kōe's trio, there were still seven—outnumbering the six Arrancars who had already revealed their positions.
This meant that even if Kōe and the other two continued to observe from the sidelines, their side would still have one "free agent" among the combatants currently deployed to the battlefield.
Having such a person was an excellent tactical advantage, whether they were used to coordinate with allies to quickly tear open an enemy's defense or to plug any gaps that might appear in their own lines.
Originally, Ichigo should have taken on this role. Not just because he was stronger than Rukia, but because Rukia knew that the current Ichigo was extremely unstable. This was an objective fact. Even if Ichigo had the resolve to overcome the instability within him, he still lacked the time to actually conquer it.
Therefore, even though Ichigo had rushed off without listening to the rest of her words, it had minimal impact on the free agent strategy—at least, that was what Rukia believed.
Following Ichigo, the most unstable variable, was the logical next step. Rukia had contacted Kaien regarding this, and his orders perfectly aligned with her own thoughts.
Of course, in this situation, she really should have contacted Kōe, the overall commander of their squad. Rukia had tried, but he hadn't responded at all. She had no idea what that older brother of hers was plotting this time!
The Reiatsu representing Ichigo and the Reiatsu of an Arrancar seemed to have finally clashed. Sensing this, Rukia quickened her pace.
Just as she turned the corner, she nearly collided with a man running in from the left. Looking closely, she realized it was Chad.
"Chad, are you alright?"
Chad acted as if he hadn't heard her. No, it was as if he hadn't even seen her. He didn't spare a single glance at Rukia's concern and just kept running away.
He didn't look injured, but this wasn't like Sado Yasutora. She couldn't say she knew him deeply, but in Rukia's impression, Chad was a man of few words who would never give a comrade the cold shoulder.
Was he running away right now? Abandoning Ichigo to flee? That wasn't Chad's style either. His strength might not be enough to survive against an Arrancar, but he never lacked the courage to fight alongside his friends.
A bad feeling suddenly welled up in Rukia's chest. Thinking about it carefully, was the decision—made by both herself and Kaien—to allocate combat power to follow Ichigo really just because his strength was unstable? Was it really that simple?
She couldn't be sure yet, but it was undoubtedly a thorn in her heart. After rushing to Ichigo's side, she temporarily ignored the Arrancar facing off against him and asked in a low voice, "I ran into Chad on the way here. What did you say to him?"
Ichigo looked somewhat tense. Keeping his eyes locked on the Arrancar in front of him to guard against a sudden attack, he replied, "I just told him to leave this to me, and then... I told him to go on ahead."
Her premonition had come true. If those words had been spoken by Kōe or Urahara, Rukia wouldn't have found it strange at all. But coming from Ichigo, it was far too bizarre.
It wasn't that Ichigo had never told his comrades to leave first. Back in the Seireitei, when he first faced Zaraki Kenpachi, he had told Ganju to go on ahead.
But back then, he wasn't just telling Ganju to run for his life. By staying behind to hold off the overwhelmingly powerful Zaraki Kenpachi, he was giving Ganju the chance to rescue Rukia. At that time, he might not have had absolute confidence in defeating Kenpachi, but he had the confidence to protect his friends.
Rukia still remembered something Kōe had once said: "In battle, there is always a goal that must be achieved. Some people are good at hiding this goal, so while they appear to be running, their true intent is to kill. Similarly, if your only thought from the very beginning is to run away, then no matter how many times you swing your blade, you won't be able to kill anyone."
The current Ichigo was exactly that kind of person—someone who couldn't kill anyone no matter how he swung his blade. He might have found a way to conquer the Hollow inside him, but he cowardly believed that, at this very moment, he couldn't defeat his opponent.
Yes, Rukia once again thought of the word *cowardice*. An Ichigo who was too timid to even protect his comrades because he couldn't control his own power was a coward. Lacking the courage to conquer oneself was also a form of cowardice.
Telling Chad to leave was an act of daring to protect a comrade, but at the same time, it was his subconscious admission that he couldn't defeat the enemy. How could someone like that, even if they stubbornly swung their sword, ever manage to kill their opponent?
Rukia finally understood. Whether it was her subconscious decision to follow Ichigo, or Kaien ordering her to do so, it wasn't entirely because Ichigo's power was unstable.
More importantly, it was his heart, which was already riddled with holes. It was his shattered confidence—the same confidence that had supported her in the Seireitei and allowed him to tear the mask off his face, but now left him covering his face, praying the Hollow wouldn't appear, too terrified to even put up a fight.
Rukia also realized she might have been wrong before. She had originally thought Ichigo lost his sense of self due to the backlash of his power. Now, it seemed he might be suffering the backlash of his power because he had lost his sense of self.
A rust-eaten cage could never imprison a patient beast.