NOTAKING
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Chapter 23
🕑 Added 2025-04-07 05:11:27 +0000 UTCThe low hum of the television filled the room as Ichigo and Rukia sat side by side on his bed. The blue glow from the screen cast faint shadows across their faces, and for a moment, everything felt oddly peaceful.
Then—
Beep! Beep! Beep!
Rukia’s phone blared with urgency, its shrill beeping cutting through the quiet. She grabbed it, scanning the screen.
"Ichigo, there's a Hollow coming right now!"
Ichigo immediately tensed, his body instinctively preparing for action. Without hesitation, he stood, already expecting what came next.
Rukia reached for her glove, and before he could say anything, she pressed it against his chest.
Woosh!
His soul was forcefully ejected from his body, his physical form collapsing onto the bed with a dull thud. But just as he was about to grab his sword—
CRACK!
The wooden floor beneath them shattered as a grotesque, clawed hand burst through from below, lunging straight for him.
Ichigo reacted instantly, flipping backward to avoid its grasp. The Hollow’s elongated fingers swiped through empty air, missing him by mere inches.
He landed with a light skid, gripping Zangetsu’s hilt tightly. But before he could strike, the creature’s arm shot toward Rukia.
Her eyes widened—
SWOOSH!
Ichigo intercepted in a flash, his massive blade cleaving down in a single arc, severing the Hollow’s attack and slashing across its mask. But—
SHING!
The cut was shallow. The wound barely ran across the Hollow’s mask, failing to kill it.
It let out a monstrous screech and immediately turned to retreat, vanishing into the night.
Ichigo cursed under his breath, gripping his sword tighter. "Tch—It ran away!"
Rukia narrowed her eyes. "We need to chase it. It might not have gone far."
'I'll let this happen exactly like the Manga. It's needed for Orihime to awaken her powers in the series. And I don't plan on disrupting that 'he thought.
Ichigo didn’t answer immediately. His grip loosened slightly, his mind processing something. Then his expression darkened.
"...I knew it looked familiar."
Rukia turned to him. "What?"
He clenched his teeth. "That was Orihime’s older brother."
Rukia’s eyes widened in realization, but her face quickly hardened. "Ichigo… sneaking up on a Hollow and killing it in one hit is fundamental. It's not just about avoiding injury or getting caught off guard—it’s to ensure you never recognize them."
She took a step forward, her tone grave.
"Because all Hollows… were once human."
He acted surprised, as if he didn’t know.
" I thought that they were just ugly monsters " He said in shock.
"Yes, you're right. They're monsters, and they need to be defeated," Rukia said, her voice sharp with the weight of the truth. Ichigo was still in disbelief, struggling to process the gravity of what he'd just learned. His mind raced as he tried to understand what it meant for Orihime’s brother to be a Hollow.
Ichigo stood still for a moment, completely dumbfounded, but then quickly snapped back to reality. His eyes hardened with determination. "They're no longer human," he muttered, almost as if convincing himself. "And they can't be helped."
Rukia gave him a long look, but before she could speak, Ichigo gritted his teeth. "There's no time to waste. If we don't hurry, Orihime will die."
Orihime’s House
Tatsuki’s voice echoed through the room. "ARE YOU STUPID?!" she shouted, her hands gesturing wildly in frustration.
Orihime, taken aback, huffed. "How rude! I'm not stupid!"
"You're clearly wasting an opportunity," Tatsuki snapped, a hint of mischief in her eyes.
"How?" Orihime blinked, confused.
Tatsuki leaned in, her voice dropping to a conspiratorial whisper. "Listen here and listen closely: At times like that, you just gotta go for it."
"Go...?" Orihime furrowed her brow.
"Yes! When he says, 'Should I take you home?' you say, 'Sure!' Then, use the pain in your leg as an excuse to lean on him. After he walks you home and there's no one around, take him to a dark place and TAKE HIM DOWNNN!"
Orihime stared at Tatsuki in disbelief. She wasn’t sure whether to be embarrassed or confused. Tatsuki was clearly trying to push them together, but the method was... questionable at best.
Before Orihime could respond, she noticed a faint howl, echoing from the distance. Her gaze flickered down, and her eyes widened.
"Wait—my teddy bear..."
She bent down to pick it up, only to freeze as blood dripped from its plush body.
WHAM!
A cold hand shot through her chest, and in an instant, her body slumped. Orihime gasped as her soul ripped free from her body.
Tatsuki called out in panic, "Hey, what's wrong, Orihime?!" But Orihime couldn’t answer. She felt herself drifting away, watching in horror as her body remained motionless.
Meanwhile...
Ichigo stood still, his expression grim as Rukia explained, "Hollows don’t just eat people for hunger. They eat souls to ease their pain and suffering."
Ichigo frowned, processing the new information.
"Hollows are fallen souls," Rukia continued, her tone steady. "Souls that weren't brought to the Soul Society, souls that escaped, or ones that were unprotected from other Hollows. They degenerate and lose their hearts, becoming Hollows. And when a soul becomes a Hollow, it seeks out the ones it loved most in its past life."
Ichigo stared at her in silence, the weight of her words hanging in the air. He clenched his fists, his jaw tightening.
"Alright, let’s hurry up then and save Orihime," Ichigo finally said, his voice resolute. Without another word, he scooped Rukia onto his back, and with a powerful leap, they soared through the sky toward Orihime’s house.
Orihime’s House
Tatsuki had been knocked aside by the Hollow's attack. She stared at the wound on her shoulder in disbelief.
"What... What is this? Why am I bleeding?" she stammered, confusion mixing with fear.
Orihime, her eyes wide with panic, rushed to her side. "Tatsuki! Are you okay? Stand up! We need to run!"
But no matter how loudly Orihime shouted, Tatsuki didn’t respond.
"IT’S USELESS, ORIHIME," a chilling voice called from behind her.
Orihime turned to face the Hollow, her heart pounding.
"You can’t hear us... You can’t see us..." the Hollow taunted, its monstrous grin widening. "Why do you even bother? You’ve forgotten me, haven’t you?"
Orihime’s mind spun in confusion. "Why do you know my name?"
The Hollow's mocking voice echoed in the night. "You even forgot my voice... HOW SAD, ORIHIME."
Orihime trembled in fear as the Hollow's clawed hand lunged toward her, but just before it could strike—
CRASH!
Ichigo’s massive sword blocked the attack. The force of his strike pushed the Hollow back, its claws scraping against Zangetsu’s edge.
"Ichigo?!" Orihime gasped, her eyes wide in surprise.
"..." Ichigo stared at the Hollow, his eyes burning with fury. "You interfere," the Hollow growled.
Ichigo’s voice was cold and filled with determination. "That’s my job, you dumb fuck." He narrowed his eyes. "I won’t let you harm Orihime or Tatsuki any longer."
Orihime, seeing him so close, smiled in relief. But then, her eyes widened as she noticed the chain connecting her soul to her body.
"Are you okay?" Ichigo asked, his voice soft but urgent.
Before Orihime could respond, she saw the Hollow’s hand coming toward Ichigo again.
"BEHIND YOU!" Orihime shouted, but Ichigo was already moving.
With a fluid motion, Ichigo dodged the Hollow’s strike, his body moving effortlessly. Without missing a beat, he swung Zangetsu again, this time severing the Hollow’s tail.
THWACK!
Ichigo looked at the severed tail in his hand and then at the Hollow with disdain. "What kind of brother tries to hurt his sibling?" His voice dropped to a cold growl. "A brother who tells his little sister he’ll kill her... You never say something like that."
Ichigo lifted his sword, the weight of his words hanging in the air. "I’ll make sure you never harm anyone again."
The Hollow screamed in fury. "WHY DO YOU INTERFERE, KUROSAKI ICHIGO?!?"
TO BE CONTINUED
[A/N: Don’t worry, this won't going in for long. After this arc he'll be aura farming again. He's just trying to impress the huzz]
