“…Damn it.”
Sasuke endured the sharp pain in his right eye, slowly opening his eyes.
His eyes were bloodshot, and blood trickled down his cheek, making him appear even more menacing.
He stared intently at the bewildered Kurosaki ichigo, his inner calm ignited by an inexplicable emotion.
Jealousy, and the humiliation of being backlashed.
First, there was Naruto, that idiot, with a fox demon sealed inside him comparable to a Captain-level Shinigami.
Now, this Orange-head in front of him also harbored a pure, awe-inspiring unknown power within his body.
Unforgivable.
This power, which he couldn’t comprehend, filled him with an instinctive irritation.
“Hey, what’s wrong with you?” Kurosaki ichigo was about to step forward to express concern, but the undisguised hostility in Sasuke’s eyes forced him to stop.
“You… bastard.”
Sasuke’s voice was low and hoarse.
He slowly raised his Zanpakuto and pointed it menacingly at the confused Kurosaki ichigo.
“What was that just now?”
“What was what?” Kurosaki ichigo was completely clueless.
“Stop playing dumb.”
Sasuke curled his lip into a cold sneer.
“Fine, if you won’t say, then I’ll beat it out of you myself.”
He took a step forward, radiating a sharp, oppressive aura.
“Let me see, you half-baked novice who just learned to wield a blade, what kind of ‘capacity’ you truly possess.”
Before his words finished, and before Kurosaki ichigo could react, Sasuke’s figure had already vanished from his spot!
Shunpo!
“What?!”
Kurosaki ichigo’s pupils constricted.
He felt a gust of wind assault him from the side.
He instinctively brought his massive Zanpakuto across his body.
“Clang—!”
Metal clashed, and sparks flew.
Sasuke’s blade struck precisely against the large blade, and the immense force sent Kurosaki ichigo staggering backward.
“Your reaction isn’t bad,” Sasuke commented flatly, but his assault didn’t cease for a moment.
His figure moved like a ghost, circling Kurosaki ichigo at high speed, his takemikazuchi transforming into arcs of deadly cold light, striking at Kurosaki ichigo’s openings from every angle.
“Damn it!
You bastard, what exactly do you want?!”
Kurosaki ichigo was overwhelmed by the whirlwind of attacks, forced to clumsily swing his giant blade.
He couldn’t see Sasuke’s movements at all, only relying on instinct to defend.
“Just giving some guidance to a substitute Shinigami,” Sasuke’s voice came from all around him.
“I never said I wanted to be a Shinigami!” Kurosaki ichigo roared during a momentary block, completely unable to understand why the other party had suddenly changed so much.
“Shut up!”
Sasuke’s attacks intensified, his voice filled with impatience.
“I’m just confirming one thing: how can someone like you possess such power?!”
With another heavy slash, the ground beneath Kurosaki ichigo’s feet split with a deep crack.
He could no longer support himself and knelt on one knee.
Sasuke stopped his attack, looking down at him with icy eyes.
“Too weak.
You just swing your blade wildly based on instinct.”
He pointed the tip of his blade at Kurosaki ichigo’s throat, his tone full of sharp provocation: “Is this all you’ve got?
At this rate, you probably can’t even protect your family.”
“You bastard, what did you say?!”
These words were like a poisoned needle, piercing deeply into Kurosaki ichigo’s heart.
Being unable to protect his family—that was his deepest, most painful fear.
Anger, and the fear that his family might be harmed again, all these emotions surged through Kurosaki ichigo in an instant.
Bang!
A massive Spiritual Pressure erupted from Kurosaki ichigo’s body!
This Spiritual Pressure was not the calm black power, but pure Shinigami Spiritual Pressure, yet it was filled with a sense of being out of control.
“Hmm?”
Sasuke noticed this change, his eyes narrowing.
Not that black power?
Instead, his Shinigami power was out of control?
He saw Kurosaki ichigo’s eyes begin to lose focus, and the Spiritual Pressure around him grew increasingly violent, subtly trending towards the kind of rampage the Nine-Tailed had on that day.
“Tch, troublesome fellow.”
Sasuke’s brow furrowed.
If he provoked him further, he feared it would repeat the past and make things even more unmanageable.
This was not the outcome he wanted.
His goal was to force out that mysterious black power, not to see another out-of-control Nine-Tailed.
“That’s enough.”
Uchiha Sasuke instantly sheathed his blade and retreated.
As he withdrew, he lightly tapped the back of Kurosaki ichigo’s neck with the hilt of his blade.
“Ugh…”
Kurosaki ichigo’s eyes rolled back.
The Spiritual Pressure that was about to rampage instantly subsided, and he collapsed to the ground, unconscious.
“Sasuke!
You…” Rukia watched all of this, still shaken, and was about to question him.
However, Uchiha Sasuke had already sheathed his blade.
He cast one last glance at the unconscious Kurosaki ichigo, his face once again resuming its arrogant expression.
“He’s just a half-baked novice after all.”
As his words fell, his figure flickered slightly, and he completely vanished from the spot using Shunpo.
Leaving only the dumbfounded Rukia behind.
“What a hateful brat…”
…Meanwhile, at the Urahara Shop’s underground training ground.
Kisuke Urahara was holding a fan, watching the entire “guidance battle” on a large screen with keen interest.
“Oh dear…”
He rested his fan against his chin, letting out a profound sigh.
“What a simple and crude stimulation therapy, but it seems to have worked quite well.”
He could clearly feel that, after Sasuke’s little commotion, the newly activated Shinigami Spiritual Pressure within Kurosaki ichigo had become much more active.
“Although it didn’t manage to draw out that Quincy power, getting his Spiritual Pressure to this level of activation is an unexpected bonus,” Kisuke Urahara muttered to himself with a smile.
This “assistant instructor” he’d picked up, though a bit unpleasant in personality, was unexpectedly effective.
On the other side, Sasuke had already silently returned to the Urahara Shop.
The stinging sensation in his right eye had subsided.
Without a moment’s delay, he leaped down from the rooftop and walked directly towards Kisuke Urahara’s room.
The door was pushed open.
Kisuke Urahara was leisurely sipping tea.
Seeing Sasuke’s return, his face immediately adopted his signature smile.
“Oh my, Sasuke-kun is back.
Have you finished everything?
You’ve worked so hard.”
Sasuke ignored his pleasantries.
He walked directly opposite him, sat cross-legged, and looked directly at Kisuke Urahara.
“There’s another power within that substitute Shinigami.”
He cut straight to the chase.
“A power completely different from that of a Shinigami, yet possessing an astonishingly oppressive presence.”
Sasuke deliberately concealed the fact that he had been backlashed.
Kisuke Urahara’s fanning motion paused slightly, and a hint of imperceptible approval flashed in his eyes.
Such keen perception.
In such a short time, had he already grasped Ichigo’s true nature to this extent?
“Another power?”
Kisuke Urahara’s face showed curiosity.
“Can Sasuke-kun elaborate?
What did it feel like?”
Sasuke succinctly described his perception, but did not mention the blurry afterimage of the masked man.