“Onion Head?” Ichigo froze.
He immediately realized who Ren was talking about and looked sharply at the seat beside him.
There sat Rukia Kuchiki in the previously empty seat.
And as expected, she sat with perfect posture, but her delicate fists were already clenched, and the veins on her forehead were subtly throbbing.
She felt like she had the worst luck.
She had only come to the living world on a routine assignment.
Not only had she lost her Shinigami power, but she had also run into this rude jerk Ren.
Why couldn’t he learn his lesson?
He was so good-looking, but…
Wait, she was getting off track.
She took a deep breath, trying to regulate her emotions.
She kept telling herself to maintain the dignity of a noble and not do anything improper in public.
Once she had calmed down, she looked at Ren and Ichigo.
She hadn’t expected to run into Ren here again, but that was fine.
She had something to discuss with him anyway.
“Ren, Ichigo.
Come with me.
I need to talk to you both.” Ichigo frowned.
Instinctively, he felt that nothing good would come from Rukia calling him over, so he wanted to refuse.
But before he could, Ren casually pulled him out of the classroom and said, “Let’s go.
The Onion Head probably has something important to tell us.” Without waiting for Ichigo’s response, he pulled him out of the classroom.
Their friends, who knew Ichigo well, watched in surprise.
Since when did Ichigo become so agreeable?
At the bicycle parking lot beside the school building.
No students were around now.
Rukia dropped all pretense of restraint and explained her situation and her purpose.
“…That’s the situation.” “I’ve lost my Shinigami power now, so I need you to take over my mission.” Rukia looked at Ichigo.
Ichigo’s brow furrowed.
Now he understood why everyone could see Rukia, she was using something called a Gigai.
But taking over her mission, actively protecting this area, and actively hunting Hollows?
That was impossible.
Last night, he had only dared to face the Hollow because he wanted to save his family.
If he had a choice, he didn’t want to fight Hollows at all.
In his mind, Hollows were monsters, and in his mind, they truly were monsters.
Ichigo didn’t think he was as strong as Ren, who could fearlessly and effortlessly kill Hollows.
So Ichigo refused without hesitation and explained his reasoning.
Rukia frowned.
She hadn’t expected Ichigo to back down.
That wouldn’t do.
If her mission went unfulfilled, the soul balance in this area would be disrupted, and many innocent souls would be devoured by Hollows.
Fortunately, she still had another plan.
She turned to Ren.
“What about you?
What do you think?” Ren had originally just been quietly watching the show.
Seeing the original scene play out before his eyes felt surreal.
Just when he thought Rukia would use coercive pressure on Ichigo and force him to become a Shinigami, she unexpectedly asked for his thoughts.
He blinked.
“I could go kill Hollows, but the problem is my powers are visible to ordinary people too.” “That might cause a lot of unnecessary trouble.
Even government officials might come knocking.” “And I really hate trouble.” Rukia breathed a sigh of relief.
Even though she didn’t have a high opinion of Ren, she had to admit that in her mind, he was more reliable than the delinquent Ichigo.
“Don’t worry about that,” she assured him.
“Just do your part.
I’ll handle the rest.
I guarantee no trouble will come to you.” Ren didn’t doubt her.
He remembered that in the original story, Rukia had a device that could alter people’s memories.
Seeing Ren agree, Rukia made the decision.
“Alright then.
From now on, Ren will handle the Hollow extermination, and Ichigo, you will be responsible for performing Konsō on souls.” Not giving Ichigo a chance to refuse, she continued, “Right now, you’re the only one who can perform Konsō on souls.” “Don’t you want those souls to pass on?” Ichigo was kind at heart.
Hearing that, the refusal died on his lips.
What he didn’t know was that Rukia had another plan in mind.
Her real intention was to train Ichigo.
Ren could kill Hollows, but she had no idea what his power really was.
In her understanding, only Hollows killed by a Shinigami could revert to souls and enter Soul Society – this was a crucial factor in maintaining the soul balance of the three worlds.
So having Ren do the killing was fine for the short term.
But she didn’t know what consequences might arise if it continued long term.
Three days later.
Ren stood on a streetlamp, opened the King’s Treasury, and rained down E-Rank Noble Phantasms, effortlessly killing another Hollow.
No matter how many times they saw it, the scene left Ichigo and Rukia in awe.
Ren’s ability was ridiculously overpowered.
Infinite projectiles, devastating power, and on top of that, it had a built-in retrieval function.
They both wished they had such an ability.
Ichigo shook his head, pulling himself back to reality.
He walked up and skillfully performed Konsō on the soul.
After three days of working together, the cooperation between Ren, Ichigo, and Rukia had become very smooth.
Rukia was extremely satisfied with Ren.
Except, of course, for the fact that he kept calling her “Onion Head.” Just then, the system notification sounded in Ren’s mind.
[Level EXP +40] [Ding, the Gilgamesh Character Template has reached Level 10.
Unlocked Ability: Sha Naqba Imuru (E)!] Just as Ren was inspecting his new ability, an excited voice called out from nearby.
“Oh, Kurosaki!
Kuchiki!” Ichigo, who had just returned to his body, and Rukia looked over and saw the radiant Orihime Inoue waving at them.
She hadn’t noticed Ren, who was still on the streetlamp.
Ren also turned his gaze toward Orihime.
The moment he did, his eyes narrowed slightly.
He saw a bruise on her ankle, something like a handprint.
At the same time, fragments of memories flashed through his mind.
Ren knew – Orihime’s story was beginning.