There was no need to guess. Even though he now wore the garb of an Arrancar, Inoue Orihime recognized him at once. Su Li. At any time, no matter the place, whenever people called his name, the boy would always respond.
"Su Li-san…" Her tears blurred the world, yet her heart steadied. She knew she would live. As long as he stood nearby, all dangers would be swept aside with ease. That was the security Su Li gave everyone.
"Nilu, take her away." His voice was calm, almost casual. Then the hand gripping Ichigo's horn tightened.
A sharp crack echoed—Kurosaki Ichigo became a streak of black light hurled into the sky. Su Li bent his knees, then leapt. The ground shattered, stone breaking apart as his figure shot upward in pursuit.
"Let's move! To somewhere safe!" Nilu shouted, pulling Orihime with urgency.
"Y-Yes!" Orihime wiped her tears, forcing herself to rise with Nilu's support. She glanced at the little Arrancar peeking over Nilu's head, blinking in surprise. "You… are you Su Li-san's partner?"
"Of course!" Nilu puffed her chest proudly. "We are Su Li-jian's most trustworthy companions!" Pesche and Dondochakka nodded vigorously, eyes gleaming with pride.
"The most trustworthy partner…" Orihime repeated in a whisper. Her eyes drifted upward to the dark figure battling in the sky. That used to be Ichigo, the one she trusted most. Yet just now, that same person had tried to kill her. Confusion and sorrow tangled inside her chest, but she forced them down.
"Stop dawdling!" Nilu urged.
Orihime nodded. "Yes!" She glanced at Ishida Uryū lying nearby. "Wait—my companion—"
"Leave it to us!" Pesche and Dondochakka thumped their chests and promptly lifted Uryū by his arms and legs like an injured athlete carried off the field.
"Hey! Must you carry me in such an undignified way?!" Uryū flushed with shame, wriggling helplessly.
"Be grateful, Four-Eyes!" Pesche barked.
A thunderous explosion erupted above, the shockwave bending the sand and forcing them to duck. Su Li and Ichigo had already clashed.
"Move! We'll be caught in it!" Nilu's warning spurred them forward, her small frame brimming with urgency. Orihime clenched her fists tighter, stealing one last glance at Ulquiorra.
He lay broken upon the ground, staring only at the sky where flames of reiatsu burned. For the first time, starlight flickered in his cold eyes as the blasts reflected within them.
Orihime bit her lip and turned away, running with the others.
Elsewhere, in the Sixth Palace, Grimmjow also lay wounded, his gaze locked on the violent fireworks above. His eyes reflected the same unwilling light. "Damn it… I want to see it…!" Injured beyond standing, he could only watch from the edge of the battlefield. He knew that reiatsu all too well—it was Kurosaki Ichigo, stronger now than when they fought. Strong enough to send even him a shiver of fear. And the one facing it could only be that boy. "I don't know which of them will win…" Grimmjow's voice was low, eyes filled with frustration and regret.
Far away, Yammy, Kenpachi, and Byakuya also paused mid-battle, their attention drawn upward. Yammy's face twisted in rage as he realized Ulquiorra's defeat. "Little Ulquiorra…" His voice broke with disbelief.
Kenpachi's single eye gleamed. "Heh… that brat again."
"Leave it to him." Byakuya's words were faint, but carried weight. They all felt Ichigo's skyrocketing reiatsu, wild and unstable, soaked in Hollow madness. Kisuke had warned them of his Hollow power, yet this exceeded even those warnings. Ichigo's rampage released a pressure so oppressive even Byakuya felt a cold dread.
But the boy was there. That was enough.
"Don't be distracted," Byakuya said evenly. "Our duty is to hold this one here." Cherry blossoms stirred at his side, blades of death blooming once more.
"Tch." Kenpachi grinned savagely. "Fine. Just don't get in my way." He raised his sword with anticipation.
"You bastards—don't look down on me!" Yammy roared, fury exploding as he threw himself back into the fight. Their clash shook the earth anew.
High above, Su Li and Ichigo's silhouettes collided again and again. The air trembled with each blow, a hundred strikes exchanged in moments. Ichigo's chest bore fist marks deep and shallow, but the pain never reached him—his eyes glowed with nothing but madness. His arms warped into whips of bone and blade, striking relentlessly at Su Li.
Su Li blocked, his own fists slamming into Ichigo's chest with crushing force. At one exchange, Ichigo's whip cracked down toward his skull; Su Li crossed his arms just in time, the impact numbing them both and sending their bodies flying apart, twin beams of light tearing across the sky.
Ichigo landed panting, yet unyielding, eyes wild with bloodlust, as though his body no longer registered damage. Su Li shook out his arm, veins burning red from the shock. His eyes sharpened.
This Kurosaki Ichigo was far beyond the White Ichigo of before. His strength, speed, reiatsu, and endurance had reached a monstrous peak, consumed by the Hollow within. No sanity, no emotion, nothing but violence. He had become pure instinct and destruction.
And to Su Li, this Niutou Ichigo was the strongest opponent he had ever faced—stronger even than Aizen at that time.
The sky roared as Ichigo's reiatsu surged once more. Without pause, the bull-headed Hollow charged, a comet of destruction.
Su Li exhaled, feeling the numbness fade from his arms. His fists tightened. No hesitation.
They collided again, two blinding streams smashing together, tearing Hueco Mundo's heavens apart.
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