Rukia, imprisoned in her cell, also heard the piercing alarm.
"Could it be… Ichigo breaking into the Seireitei?"
Rukia shook her head, throwing that unrealistic thought out of her mind.
She knew very well how heavily guarded the Seireitei was.
Forget the possibility that Ichigo might already be dead—even if he had survived, there was no way he could break into Soul Society so easily.
Even so, a trace of expectation remained in her heart.
After all, what if it really was Ichigo?
Although Rukia did not know what was happening outside, the alarm meant that the Seireitei had been invaded.
As a prisoner, she began praying that the Seireitei would repel the enemy.
After all, she was still a Shinigami.
...
Inside the First Division meeting room, after Kenpachi Zaraki took the lead and left, Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto also felt that there was no longer any need to continue the meeting.
He decided not to pursue Gin Ichimaru's unauthorized action for the time being, and instead ordered the captains of each division to return to their posts first and ensure the safety of the Seireitei.
"Meeting dismissed!"
After Genryūsai Shigekuni Yamamoto gave the order, the captains left one after another.
Although they all seemed unconcerned about this invasion, as captains, they still had to stand guard over their divisions and ensure that the Seireitei was not violated by outsiders.
Before leaving, Aizen walked over to Tōshirō Hitsugaya and asked casually, "Captain Hitsugaya, what do you think of Gin Ichimaru?"
Tōshirō looked puzzled, but still answered, "He… is very capable."
Aizen smiled faintly and continued asking, "Then do you think he might betray Soul Society?"
Those words startled Tōshirō.
He thought of how Gin Ichimaru had earlier seemed to deliberately let the Ryoka invade the Seireitei, and he could not help frowning.
"That… I can't say."
Aizen gave him a meaningful look, then turned and left while saying, "Yes, it truly is difficult to judge…"
After hearing that, Gin Ichimaru revealed a faint, almost imperceptible smile.
Tōshirō, meanwhile, glanced at Gin's signature fox-like smile and fell into thought.
His suspicion of Gin deepened even further.
It had to be said, children really were easy to deceive. With just a few words, Aizen had led Tōshirō completely astray.
In the resting room, the lieutenants were discussing the recent events when they suddenly received orders to return to their respective divisions and maintain alert.
Everyone rose and left one after another, and the once-lively resting room instantly became empty.
...
In the Eleventh Division area, Ichigo and Ganju Shiba fell from the sky.
Ichigo crashed heavily onto the ground, grimacing in pain.
"Ow! My ass is about to split open!"
Ganju landed on a nearby rooftop. He patted his chest and said in relief, "Good thing I'm agile. Otherwise, I would've been flattened into a meat pancake."
At that moment, Ikkaku Madarame and Yumichika Ayasegawa arrived.
They had already seen Ichigo and Ganju falling into this area from far away, and joy flashed through their eyes.
Ikkaku said excitedly, "Haha, talk about finding something without even trying!"
Yumichika echoed him. "Exactly. These two actually delivered themselves right to us."
Ichigo and Ganju exchanged glances, both sensing that things were bad.
They quickly stood up, preparing to flee.
But Ikkaku and Yumichika did not give them that chance and swiftly blocked their path.
Ichigo gritted his teeth and said, "Damn it, why are we this unlucky?"
Ganju sighed helplessly.
"Looks like there's going to be another hard fight today."
As he spoke, he took a fighting stance.
However, what no one expected was that he immediately turned around and ran off at full speed, showing no intention of fighting whatsoever.
"I'll leave this one to you. I'm going after that coward."
Ikkaku and Yumichika were both stunned by this scene.
Before Ikkaku could react, Yumichika had already chased after Ganju first.
Ikkaku walked slowly toward Ichigo with a faint smile on his face.
"Kid, why aren't you running? Did fear freeze your legs?"
Ichigo looked at Ikkaku in confusion.
"Why would I run? If I meet an enemy, I just fight him. If I can win, why should I run? If I can't win, running won't help anyway."
Ikkaku drew his Zanpakutō.
"Good! You've got guts. Let me test whether your strength is worthy of that arrogance."
Ichigo instinctively wanted to draw Zangetsu and fight, but then he remembered his old father's earnest teachings.
'Ichigo! When you fight in the future, remember to announce your family first. Being able to fight means nothing! Out in the world, you need power! You need backing!'
"Wait!"
Ichigo suddenly spoke, stopping Ikkaku Madarame just as he was about to attack.
Hearing Ichigo's voice, Ikkaku paused. He turned to look at Ichigo with confusion.
"What is it, kid? Don't tell me you're scared now, like that other brat."
"Scared? I've never been scared of anyone."
Ichigo laughed disdainfully, then continued, "But before we fight, you need to tell me who you are."
Ikkaku froze for a moment.
Then he revealed a proud smile and said loudly, "Hmph, clean out your ears and listen carefully! I am Ikkaku Madarame, assistant to the lieutenant of the Eleventh Division! Well? Scared speechless now?"
Ichigo looked at Ikkaku's arrogant expression and could not help rolling his eyes.
In his heart, he secretly wondered if there was something wrong with this guy's brain.
Then he glanced at Ikkaku's bald head and thought this person really was strange.
Still, since the other party wanted to know who he was, Ichigo decided to introduce himself.
"Oh, so you're Ikkaku Madarame! Listen carefully, Baldy. My name is Ichigo Shiba! My dad is Isshin Shiba, the former captain of the Tenth Division!"
After saying that, Ichigo smiled proudly.
Ikkaku's hand loosened, and he nearly failed to hold onto his Zanpakutō.
What had this kid just said?
He said his father was Captain Shiba?
Was that a joke?
After hearing that, Ikkaku stood frozen in place for quite a while.
He carefully observed the yellow-haired kid in front of him and realized that he really did look a little like Captain Shiba.
Ikkaku widened his eyes and stared at Ichigo in disbelief, muttering inwardly, 'Could this kid really be Captain Shiba's son? Impossible. Didn't Captain Isshin Shiba die more than twenty years ago?'
Ikkaku struggled internally for a long while, but ultimately decided that he still had to fight Ichigo.
After all, he was the Third Seat of the Eleventh Division.
Even if this kid really was Captain Shiba's son, simply letting him go would be hard to justify.
At most, he would go easy on him during the fight.
Having made up his mind, Ikkaku shouted angrily, "I don't care whether you're Captain Shiba's son or not! Since you broke into the Seireitei, you're our enemy. Come on!"
As he spoke, he slashed toward Ichigo.
Ichigo dodged sideways, drawing Zangetsu as he prepared to fight.
'Tch! Dad's whole announcing-your-family thing didn't help at all.'
The two raised their Zanpakutō and began clashing blades.
The sharp clang of metal rang out endlessly, sparks flying everywhere.
After only a few exchanges, Ikkaku discovered that Ichigo's Zanjutsu was actually somewhat skilled, so he asked about his training.
"Kid, your Zanjutsu isn't bad. Who taught you?"
Ichigo answered without thinking much of it, "Kisuke Urahara guided me for a few days, but he doesn't really count as my teacher."
Originally, Ikkaku had only half-believed what Ichigo had said earlier, but now that he heard Kisuke's name, he was already convinced that what Ichigo said was probably true.
After all, that name was not something just any random nobody would know.
Kisuke was once a major figure in Soul Society, having served as the captain of the Twelfth Division and the founder of the Department of Research and Development.
An ordinary person would never know his identity.
---------
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