Ichigo didn't show any particular surprise—he knew very well that since he had decided to go to Soul Society, even if no one else joined, Tatsuki absolutely would.
Kisuke opened the underground gate and led Ichigo down.
"Waaah~ I never imagined there was such a huge space underneath the store!" Urahara laughed to himself in amusement.
Ichigo twitched at the corner of his mouth.
"I am surprised, but not that surprised."
In the massive underground clearing, there stood what looked like a large stone frame. Sitting nearby were a few familiar faces—people Ichigo knew well.
"Chad, Inoue... What are you doing here?" Ichigo looked at them in surprise.
As for Tatsuki? Ichigo wasn't surprised at all. That was already a given—nothing would change that.
That was the kind of bond they had.
"Ichigo, I know you're going to Soul Society to save someone. I'm going too." Chad spoke bluntly, like always.
"But..." Ichigo started to speak, but when he met Chad's resolute gaze, the words caught in his throat.
"I'm going too! I'm going to help save Kuchiki-san, Kurosaki-kun!" Orihime raised her hand eagerly.
"It's dangerous, Inoue-san," Ichigo tried to warn her.
"Don't worry! I've been training really hard—I can protect myself!" Orihime said with confidence.
Finally, there was Tatsuki.
She didn't say a word. She simply walked up to Ichigo's side.
Ichigo didn't say anything either. His expression softened, and he took her hand—no words were needed.
From his shoulder, Yoruichi, in her black cat form, watched this scene and felt oddly irritated.
"Is it really just these few?"
Her sudden voice startled all three of them.
"T-The cat... spoke?!" Orihime pointed at Yoruichi in shock.
"What a strange creature..." Tatsuki, standing beside Ichigo, leaned forward and stared curiously at the talking cat.
Chad didn't say anything, but the way his pupils contracted made it clear—this scene had startled even this tall, dark-skinned guy.
"You've already seen Hollows. A talking cat shouldn't be that surprising," Yoruichi said casually.
Ichigo heard her and muttered in his heart,
"Yeah, not surprising at all… my ass!"
Still, her words seemed oddly convincing to the three of them. They all nodded in slight confusion.
"So, how should we address you?" Tatsuki asked with curiosity.
"Just call me Yoruichi or Yoruichi-san," she replied calmly.
Since Yoruichi used a male voice in her cat form, none of them questioned it.
"Yoruichi-san, are you coming with us to Soul Society too?" Orihime asked.
"Yeah. Yoruichi... -san is going to be our guide. She'll help us rescue Rukia," Ichigo replied, catching himself mid-sentence.
"That's amazing!" Orihime exclaimed again in awe.
Yoruichi sighed and asked again, "So it's really just us?"
Orihime raised her hand. "Ishida-kun said he's coming too, but he hasn't arrived yet."
Tatsuki shook her head slightly.
"He's not that familiar with us. Who knows if he'll actually show."
Chad was more direct.
"We haven't interacted much before. And not everyone is willing to take this kind of risk. Maybe he's scared... or has other thoughts."
(These aren't my words—Chad literally talks about Ishida like this in the original...)
But before his words could even settle, Uryū Ishida appeared before them.
"Who said I wasn't coming?" His voice was calm—and he looked far more confident now.
It gave off the same vibe as some other anime character showing up like: "The skies have cleared, the rain has stopped, and Sasuke thinks he's got this."
"After all, we're going to another world. Gotta look the part!" Ishida said smugly, turning to show off the cloak draped over his back.
That move left everyone momentarily speechless—until Urahara broke the silence.
"Ohohoho~ Now that everyone's here, I've got a few little pieces of intel to share with you all!"
He snapped open his fan.
A few days earlier—
Soul Society. Seireitei. Thirteenth Division's prison.
Renji, after recovering from his injuries, rushed straight to the Thirteenth Division's prison.
Thanks to Captain Ukitake Jūshirō's persistent arguments, they had managed to arrange for Rukia's imprisonment to take place within the Thirteenth Division's own jail.
Rukia had already been separated from her gigai and now sat quietly, dressed in a white kimono, alone inside the cell.
There was no fear or bitterness on her face—just a serene calm.
A side of her completely different from usual.
Renji burst into the prison and shouted as soon as he saw her.
"Rukia!!"
She looked at him with indifference.
"You're here, Renji."
Her voice was so plain, it might as well have been spoken to a stranger.
Renji froze at her tone, clutching the bars.
"Rukia! The Central 46 has accused you of participating in Kisuke's Hollowfication experiments. They've sentenced you to execution!"
Even hearing that, Rukia didn't show a hint of panic. She just gazed silently at the flustered Renji.
"Rukia... did you really take part in those experiments?" Renji asked, disbelief in his eyes.
Rukia sighed inwardly. Childhood friend or not, why did Renji always come off so dim?
She had seen with her own eyes how much trust Ichigo and Tatsuki—also childhood friends—had in each other. That kind of mutual faith wasn't something just anyone could understand.
And now look at Renji—just a musclehead.
She felt tired.
"You already have your answer. So why are you even asking me?" she said calmly.
Hearing that, Renji lowered his head.
"I didn't want to believe it either... But... the Central 46 doesn't lie. Even Captain... he..."
He trailed off.
Rukia's despair only deepened.
No one believed her. Not even her own brother believed her more than the so-called "evidence" from the Central 46.
She wanted to go back to the human world—to the one idiot who believed her unconditionally.
After all, with just a few clumsy words, she had made him give up the fight and let her be taken back to Soul Society.
"I'm sorry, Ichigo. I lied to you..." she whispered, a sorrowful smile forming on her face.
It made Renji's chest ache—
He knew that smile wasn't meant for him.
(End of Chapter)
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