Help! I am bound to Aizen! - Chapter 398
Chapter 398
2-in-1 chapter:
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âSenior brother, how do you feel?â
Ukitake smiled warmly.
âItâs wonderful⊠better than anything Iâve ever experienced.â
âKaelith, thank you. I truly donât know how to express the joy and gratitude I feel toward you right now!â
âHaha, think nothing of it⊠just handle all the documents Sensei dumped on me, and weâll call it even.â
ââŠ?â
Ukitakeâs smile slowly faded.
He looked at his little junior, falling into deep thought.
Could it be possible that curing his illness was just a side goal, and the real aim⊠was to turn him into a glorified tool?
Ukitake couldnât help but sigh.
Their teacher had truly found a treasure.
Ukitake JĆ«shirĆâs recovery shook the entire Gotei 13.
The captain who had been frail for nearly a thousand years had become almost symbolic within the Gotei 13.
Among the many, Yamamoto and KyĆraku were especially pleased.
As Ukitakeâs closest sect-family, seeing his recovery made them even happier than if their own bodies had healed.
The old man, in rare form, gathered the entire sect and held a celebration in the First Division with sake.
Kaelith raised his hand:
âSensei, youâre still recoveringâyou canât drink. Just enjoy the smell from the side.â
That day, the temperature in Seireitei rose by ten degrees for unknown reasons.
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Player Kaelith has entered the map: âFifth Division Barracks.â
He engages in dialogue with key NPC: SĆsuke Aizen and presents the item âSealed Right Arm of the Soul King.â
SĆsuke Aizenâs favorability increased significantly!
Current favorability: (Encrypted Content)
SĆsuke Aizen, pleased, crosses out five entries from his personal Kaelith Grudge Log.
Current number of grudge logs: (Data Overflow)
Holding the sealed jar containing the Soul Kingâs right arm, Aizen was unable to put it down.
The huskyâs grown upâitâs bringing home money now. How touching.
Just as he was about to offer praise, Kaelith flashed that all-too-familiar smile.
Seeing that look, Aizen knew instantlyâthis guy was about to drag him into something again.
Sure enough, under his gaze, Kaelith rubbed his hands together and grinned:
âSĆsuke, the old man gave me a taskâhe wants me to organize a training drill for the Gotei 13.â
âMy original plan was simple: Iâd be the final boss, and theyâd all take me on. Iâd knock them down one by one.â
âBut Sensei wants to instill some real urgency, so he suggested we use unfamiliar opponents.â
âWhat do you think we should do?â
Aizen chuckled and shook his head.
Such a minor task didnât warrant his involvement.
Kisuke Urahara would be more than enough to handle this.
Just pull a few people from Hueco Mundo, stage an invasion eventâproblem solved.
But just as he was about to say that, something occurred to him.
Rightâthis was a perfect opportunity.
He gestured Kaelith over. Kaelithâs eyes lit up and he leaned in.
Aizen quickly explained his planâŠ
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Human World, Karakura Town.
Three years passed in the blink of an eye.
The once nine-year-old Ichigo was now twelveâon the cusp of adolescence.
Having advanced from elementary to middle school, though his appearance was still youthful, his aura had matured.
The experience of battling Hollows had given him an edge absent in ordinary people.
While most couldnât sense it, individuals familiar with dangerâlike yakuza bossesâwould instinctively think: âThis kidâs future is limitless.â
Normally, students like thisâthose who stood out so starklyâwould struggle to integrate into Japanese school life.
But Ichigo was never alone.
Not to mention his childhood friends Mizuiro and Tatsuki.
Even Uryƫ Ishida, the Quincy, attended the same middle school.
Though Uryƫ always looked reluctant, he still frequently teamed up with him.
In addition, there were those Ichigo had once helped: Orihime Inoue and Yasutora Sadoâthey stayed close afterwards as well.
This groupâexcluding the obviously dangerous (Orihime Inoue)âwas seen by others as the delinquent clique, and classmates kept their distance.
Ichigo didnât care.
A life already rich with experience, a spiritual world already fullâpeople like that donât bother with the opinions of ordinary peers.
Even after Kaelith left the Human World without explanation, Ichigo kept training.
His own parents became his teachers.
Under the guidance of Isshin Shiba and Masaki Kurosaki, Ichigoâs strength kept growing rapidly.
His dad once said that Ichigoâs current strength wouldâve been enough to qualify as a captain in the previous generation.
Ichigo didnât know what that meant, and his father had just laughed it off.
On this day, Ichigo was home aloneâhis parents off on another trip.
Theyâd taken Karin and Yuzu but left him behind.
Ichigo pondered deeply.
âAm I really their biological son?â
Wearing a little apron, he went to the open kitchen, made dinner, and set the table.
Just as he was about to eat, he frowned slightly.
Crack!
Ichigoâs spirit form split from his body and leapt out the window to the street outside.
There, he saw a Senkaimon opening at his doorstep.
From within, a figure burst out.
Seeing who it was, Ichigo smiled.
Kaelith!
But the smile quickly vanished.
Something was wrong.
Kaelith didnât look as pristine as usual.
His white haori was stained with red blood.
His ShihakushĆ was torn in several places.
Clutching his ZanpakutĆ tightly, Kaelith wore a grim expression, running fast while glancing back toward the portal.
Whoosh! Whoosh!
Two figures followed close behind.
Their faces were covered by black cloth, leaving only their eyes exposed.
They wore cloaks designed to suppress spiritual pressure, making it hard to read their reiatsu.
As soon as they emerged, the two pursued Kaelith.
Clang! Clang! Clang!
The moment they caught up, they unsheathed their ZanpakutĆ and launched over a dozen strikes.
Kaelith barely blocked most but was still hit a few times.
Blood sprayed from his shoulder.
The two attackers seized the opening, stabbing him through both clavicles from front and backâpinning him in place.
Kaelith struggled briefly, then lost strength.
Ichigoâs pupils shrank.
âBastardsâget away from him!!!â
He roared, drew his ZanpakutĆ, and chargedâ
âGetsuga! TenshĆ!!â
Ichigo swung down hard, a wave of blue spiritual energy tearing forward.
This time, he channeled his Blut Arterie into the blow, far surpassing normal output.
He wouldnât normally use this level of force on an enemy.
But against these twoâhe held nothing back.
The two figures showed a flicker of surprise.
But they did not panic.
They withdrew their blades from Kaelith and dodged to the sides.
Only Kaelith remained in the blast path.
Ichigoâs heart dropped.
He flashed forward using Hirenkyaku, placing himself between Kaelith and the incoming Getsuga just in time.
He raised his blade to intercept his own strikeâ
*BOOM!!!!*
A massive burst of spiritual pressure exploded above Kurosaki Clinic!
In the smoke, Ichigo swung his blade, clearing his vision.
He stood protectively in front of Kaelith, like an enraged beast, his spiritual pressure flaring toward the two Reapers ahead.
âWho are you?!â
âWhy are you attacking Mr. Kaelith?!â
One of them replied in a low voice:
âCriminal Kaelith, for violating Soul Society law by granting Shinigami powers to humans.â
âThe Central 46 has issued an orderâKaelith is to be arrested and executed.â
âWhaâŠâ
Ichigoâs eyes went wide.
Kaelith⊠gave Shinigami powers to a humanâ
Wasnât that referring to himself?
And for something like that, they wanted to execute Kaelith?
What kind of logic was that?!
While he was still stunned, the other masked man turned to his companion:
âHey, what are you doing? How can you just leak classified information like this?!â
Masked Man A chuckled:
âThis isnât just some random person.â
âLook closely⊠thatâs Kurosaki Ichigo. According to the records, heâs the human Kaelith granted Shinigami powers to!â
âWhat?!â
Hearing this, Masked Man B was shocked and turned to Ichigo.
âHmph⊠so thatâs how it is. Then thereâs nothing more to say. Perfectâletâs take this kid out too.â
With that, he drew his ZanpakutĆ and pointed it at Ichigo.
Listening to the two talk, Ichigo let out a cold snort.
âWhoâs taking out whoâweâll see about that.â
He swung Zangetsu and charged straight at the two of them.
The masked men didnât respond at all to Ichigoâs assault.
Not until he got within range did one of them finally speak:
âBankai.â
âSuzumushi Tsuishiki.â
As the words were spoken, an invisible barrier instantly spread out.
Ichigoâs vision went completely black.
Momentarily surprised, he quickly calmed down.
A power that deprives him of vision, huh?
Annoying, but still within manageable limits.
Heâd just use his spiritual pressure to senseâ
Hm? His spiritual pressure sensing was gone too?
Very quickly, Ichigo realizedâit wasnât just his sight or Reiryoku perception.
His sense of touch, smell, hearingâŠ
All of his senses had been sealed.
Damnâhow was he supposed to fight like this?
His first reaction was to swing Zangetsu, sending a dozen Getsuga TenshĆ slashes in all directions to block any possible approach.
These Getsuga didnât fly out like normal, but transformed into sharp slicing lines, wrapping around the air around him.
It was a special technique he developed by combining a Quincyâs control over Reishi with Shinigami power.
Unless the enemy could shrink down to the size of a figurine and slip through the gaps, it would be nearly impossible to reach him in a short time.
With that buffer, heâd have time to find an opening.
Either outlast the technique, or find a flaw in its mechanicsâŠ
Shk!!
While Ichigo was rapidly analyzing, his Reiryoku suddenly fed a signal to his brain.
A blade had pierced his shoulder.
With all senses blocked, he didnât even feel the pain.
But Ichigo knewâheâd taken a serious hit.
Damn it⊠he had sealed the space around him. How had the enemy gotten in?
He swung Zangetsu again, slashing around himself.
Shk!!
This time, the shoulder on his sword arm was also pierced.
Ichigo was furious.
Were these guys toying with him?
Why werenât they going for a fatal blow?!
Furious, he released a massive burst of spiritual pressure!
Outside the black barrier, Gin Ichimaru retracted Shinso, clicking his tongue in admiration:
âWell now⊠back in the day, even I was called a genius, a monster by the academy.â
âBut compared to this kid, I was downright mediocre.â
âNo wonder Lord Kaelith stayed in the World of the Living with him for over half a year, never returning to Seireitei.â
TĆsen glanced at him:
âCaptain Ichimaru, we are simply executing Lord Kaelithâs orders. Donât let your personal feelings interfere.â
âHmph⊠thatâs easier said than done.â
Gin Ichimaru smiled.
But the smile was hidden beneath a cloth mask, invisible to the eye.
Under Ichigoâs impact, the barrier of Suzumushi Tsuishiki finally couldnât hold out any longer and shattered.
Bathed in light once again, pain surged through Ichigoâs shoulders and straight into his brain.
The intense pain made him suck in a sharp breath.
He gripped Zangetsu tightly, ready to go all out against the two of them.
But just then, a wave of dizziness suddenly overwhelmed his mind.
Ichigo staggered, barely able to stay balanced in mid-air, then slipped and fell from the sky, crashing to the ground.
Above, the two masked figures looked down at him.
âShall we finish him off?â
âHmph, no need⊠when I stabbed him just now, my blade was laced with Captain Mayuriâs special poison. Heâs as good as dead.â
âYou really are a devious one.â
âHehehe, Iâll take that as a compliment.â
As they spoke, the two of them grabbed the unconscious Kaelith nearby and headed toward the Senkaimon.
âKaelith⊠sirâŠâ
Ichigo lay on the ground, staring with blurred vision as he reached out his hand toward Kaelith.
Kaelith looked back at him and smiled.
His voice echoed in Ichigoâs ears:
âDonât come looking for me, Ichigo.â
âSeireitei is too dangerousâif you go now, itâll only mean death.â
âForget about me. Live onâŠâ
Ichigo could no longer hear the rest.
Driven by Mayuriâs specially formulated drug, he fell into a deep sleep.
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