Chapter 202: Visitors from Hueco Mundo
After the prolonged wait, Ichigo had never felt time stretch so interminably. Curled beneath the tree trunk with his head buried between his knees, Ichigo endured the torment consuming his heart. Occasionally, he would contemplate a certain question: if the price of gaining power meant inevitably losing that strength, would he still choose today's outcome as he had chosen back then?
The answer remained... unknown.
At this moment, Kurosaki Ichigo couldn't perceive what thoughts truly resided within his heart. Perhaps the instant he entertained such doubts, the answer had already revealed itself.
Ten minutes later, footsteps echoed across the gravel path throughout the empty park. Hearing the sound, Ichigo immediately raised his head toward the source. He witnessed Kurosaki Karin emerging slowly from the woods with her arms folded across her chest. Having descended from the large tree, Kurosaki Ichigo approached as Karin quickly wiped her dirt-smudged face with her hands before trotting toward her brother.
" I'm back!"
Observing his sister's cheeks growing increasingly dirty with each attempt to clean them, Ichigo used his sleeve to wipe away the grime from Karin's face. Looking down at his sister—who stood half a head shorter than himself—Ichigo felt his heart ache.
"Has it been resolved?"
"Mm-hmm! Although it proved somewhat troublesome, it remained within my capabilities to handle!" Karin nodded and addressed Ichigo.
"Do Yuzu and Dad know about this?"
"I... I haven't told them. Besides, Yuzu and Dad can't perceive spirits anyway, so I was afraid they'd worry..."
As she spoke, Karin turned her head guiltily, scratching at her face with immature fingers. After all, having her secret discovered by family members created feelings that were genuinely difficult to articulate.
"Hah..."
After releasing a sigh, Ichigo extended his hand and ruffled Karin's hair affectionately. "Are you heading to school now?"
"Looking like this? I need to wash my school uniform before Dad notices, or I'll be in serious trouble!"
As she spoke, Karin lowered her head to examine the new uniform she wore. Seeing the dirt stains covering it, she frowned instantly. At that moment, at Karin's throat, a black mark resembling a Hollow's void had appeared. It emitted an ominous black radiance and was gradually expanding.
"Karin..."
Ichigo's sharp eyes immediately detected something wrong with Karin's condition. His pupils dilated instantly, and a tremor entered his voice.
"What's wrong, Ichigo?"
Karin felt deeply puzzled seeing her older brother staring at her with such alarm. Just as she prepared to speak, a sensation of dizziness struck her consciousness. Then her legs began shaking uncontrollably.
Karin covered her head and spoke in a weakened tone: "What is... what's happening..."
"Why... I feel like I can't exert any strength. Ichigo, help me..."
After uttering these words, Karin lost consciousness. Her body pitched forward.
"Karin!"
Ichigo hastily caught his younger sister, checking her condition immediately. At this moment, Karin appeared absolutely wretched—her eyes closed, her face deathly pale. A black line spread across her forehead. Her entire body seemed to have fallen into an ice cellar, trembling ceaselessly.
"Karin, answer me! Karin!"
"What happened to you? What's wrong?!"
Bloodshot vessels filled Ichigo's eyes instantaneously. He bit down hard on his molars and roared with fury: "Why?! Why can't even my own family be spared?!"
At this moment, an extraordinarily malevolent red light emanated from Ichigo's body. The crimson radiance permeated throughout the park. Numerous plants lost their vitality instantly upon contact with the red illumination. Leaves withered to yellow. The vibrant grass drooped all at once, becoming extraordinarily desiccated.
"That's right—find Manager Urahara! He'll definitely be able to help me. He can—"
Just as he lifted Karin intending to rush toward the Urahara Shop's location, Ichigo suddenly froze and halted his movement.
At this instant, Ichigo began contemplating: why did he rely so heavily upon Urahara Kisuke? Why did he always seek him out whenever difficulties arose? What reason compelled him to behave this way?
Had it begun when he'd traveled to Soul Society to rescue Rukia? In order to regain his Shinigami power, Urahara Kisuke had conducted special training for him. To defeat Byakuya Kuchiki, he'd practiced Bankai with Shihōin Yoruichi's assistance. The timeframe had been brief, yet it seemed he'd remained inseparable from these people's aid.
Within mere months, he'd obtained Shinigami power and become a Substitute Shinigami. Eventually, he'd learned the Final Getsuga Tenshō before losing that power entirely. All of this resembled a dream.
Like flowers reflected in a mirror or the moon's reflection on water—which version represented his true self? Which world constituted genuine existence?
At this moment, subtle footsteps reached Ichigo's ears. The sound of footfalls fluctuated—sometimes distant, sometimes near—intangible and invisible. He could hear them distinctly, yet couldn't perceive anything visually.
Suddenly, white mist flooded throughout the park. Ichigo felt an instantaneous tingling sensation within his eyes. After experiencing brief darkness, when Ichigo opened his eyes once more, he witnessed a palm so pale it appeared colorless positioned directly before him.
"Well, it seems you can perceive us now."
The familiar voice made Ichigo alert immediately. Still holding Karin, Ichigo retreated violently. He observed the figure before him with extreme vigilance, swallowing reflexively as cold sweat broke across his forehead. "You... why are you here?"
Hearing Ichigo's hoarse voice, the visitor appeared momentarily disappointed before speaking with indifference: "It's been quite some time, Kurosaki Ichigo!"
"I didn't anticipate that you—who defeated Captain Aizen—would appear like this now. It's truly disheartening."
Seeing Ulquiorra wearing human-world clothing standing before him, Kurosaki Ichigo experienced a profoundly strange intuition. He glanced around his surroundings, discovering that the entire park had become blanketed by white mist. After calming himself, his expression regained composure. "Why can I perceive you now?"
Standing before Ichigo at this moment wasn't solely Ulquiorra. Nelliel—who had returned to her adult form—was present as well.
"Hey! I've finally met you! Actually, I've always wanted to visit the human world to see you!"
Nelliel, wearing a white coat, rushed toward Ichigo and embraced him against her ample chest. At that instant, Kurosaki Ichigo felt his vision darken as suffocation filled his consciousness.
"Let go! Let go! Let go!"
After these greetings concluded, Ichigo carefully observed the woman before him. After confirming she was indeed the Nel who'd fought alongside him in the Menos Grande forest, Kurosaki Ichigo released his vigilance. "I... I didn't expect Nel had grown bigger. No—this is your true appearance, isn't it?"
Ichigo sat cross-legged on the ground, gazing with distress at Karin cradled in his arms.
"Well, it was because Nnoitra attacked me and damaged my mask. To maintain my life, I had no choice but to make my body smaller. Simultaneously, I lost my previous memories as well."
"Thanks to Fiander, I managed to survive Hueco Mundo's harsh environment."
"When we departed, Grimmjow wanted to accompany us, but I took his place. Otherwise, you might have had another fight upon meeting!"
Hearing what Nelliel explained, Kurosaki Ichigo recalled Grimmjow—who existed as both friend and foe—and couldn't help smiling slightly. "Grimmjow? Is he doing well?"
"Of course! Since being defeated by you, he's been training diligently!"
"What about... Inoue? Have you seen her?"
After a moment's hesitation, Kurosaki Ichigo still wanted to inquire about Inoue's whereabouts from the Arrancar. After all, she remained the person he'd constantly worried about.
"Orihime? Although she's been seen accompanying Fiander occasionally, most of the time she remains alone in her quarters."
Hearing Nelliel confirm that Inoue Orihime remained safe, Ichigo finally released a breath of relief. His entire being seemed to relax considerably. "Hah... Inoue's still alive. That's truly... wonderful..."
Seeing that Kurosaki Ichigo appeared to have released the burden weighing upon his heart, Nelliel continued with a smile: "By the way, the reason you can perceive us now is because we covered your eyes with a special spirit particle retina. It enables you to clearly observe objects where spirit particles congregate. Incidentally, is this your sister? What happened to her?"
Speaking thus, Nelliel displayed a cheerful smile upon her face. Then she examined Karin—who appeared strange cradled within Ichigo's arms—observing the black void at the girl's throat. She called toward Ulquiorra behind her: "Her condition isn't right! Her soul seems to be gradually shifting toward another location. Ulquiorra, come examine her!"
"How many times must I repeat this? I'm not your subordinate. Don't issue me commands!"
Although clearly reluctant, Ulquiorra still stepped forward to assess Kurosaki Karin's condition. When Ulquiorra approached Kurosaki Ichigo's position, he knelt slowly and regarded Kurosaki Karin directly.
"This situation is problematic..."
"Assimilation? Does this phenomenon occur with humans?"
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