"What… is this? My house?"
Kurosaki Ichigo's vision suddenly changed.
He found himself standing at the entrance of his home.
Bright sunlight shone overhead. Ichigo pushed open the door and walked inside. The layout of the house was exactly the same as the one he currently lived in.
"Mom? Dad? Yuzu? Karin?"
Ichigo called out cautiously.
There was no response.
The house felt completely empty.
When he stepped into the living room, Ichigo noticed that the walls were covered with photographs.
Family portraits.
Photos of him with his sisters.
Pictures with his parents.
There were also photos with Tsuna, Tatsuki, and Orihime.
Ichigo frowned.
He clearly remembered never taking these pictures.
And yet, every single one captured moments that were deeply etched into his memory.
He even saw a photo from when he first met Chad, and another from the time he and Uryū fought Hollows together.
Every photo on the wall was tied to his life.
Ichigo ran his fingers gently across the pictures.
Something stirred in his heart.
He turned toward the direction of his room.
At that moment, the lights throughout the house dimmed, leaving only a faint path leading toward his bedroom door.
With nervous anticipation, Ichigo opened the door.
Nothing seemed strange.
The bed.
The desk.
Everything looked exactly like the room he used every day.
A cool breeze suddenly brushed past him.
Ichigo realized the window in his room was open.
When he walked over to close it, he noticed a dark silhouette above him.
He leaned out the window and looked up.
It looked like a person standing on the roof.
"Hey! Who are you?!"
Ichigo shouted.
The figure didn't respond.
Ichigo panicked.
After finally encountering someone here, he couldn't let them disappear.
Without hesitation, he climbed out the window.
Using the frame and roof edge, he pulled himself up onto the rooftop.
Panting slightly, Ichigo finally saw the figure clearly.
A man stood there quietly.
He wore a long black coat, his hair long and dark, and black sunglasses covered his eyes.
From his stubble and tall frame, he looked like a middle-aged man.
"Kurosaki Ichigo… why have you come here?"
"Of course I came to find my power!"
Ichigo clenched his fists.
"As you wish."
Suddenly—
The world flipped upside down.
The bright sky turned into dark storm clouds beneath Ichigo's feet.
With no place to stand, he began falling into the sky.
At the same time, countless small squares rushed after him.
When Ichigo looked closer, he realized—
They were photographs.
Thousands of photos poured out from the inverted house above him.
The man stood upside down on the roof like a silent watcher.
Soon Ichigo was swallowed by a storm of memories.
These photos were far more numerous than the ones he had seen in the living room.
How could he possibly find the key to his power among so many memories?
Even so, he tried desperately.
Ichigo swam through the endless rain of photographs.
Every picture showed a moment of his life—from infancy to his current high school days.
Which one was the key?
He didn't know.
All he knew was that every one of them was precious to him.
But there was no time to slowly revisit the past.
He had to find the right one—quickly.
Ichigo continued falling.
Gradually, he approached the thick clouds below.
He had a strange feeling.
If he fell into those clouds—
He would fail completely.
And the consequence of failure…
Ichigo vaguely remembered Tsuna's warning.
He would become a Hollow.
If that happened, what meaning would these memories still have?
"No…!"
"I won't allow that!"
The Real World
A white Hollow matter began seeping from the diagonal wound across Ichigo's chest.
A terrifying Hollow Reiatsu erupted from his body.
"Oh ho ho… it's starting."
Urahara Kisuke sat cross-legged on a rock, watching with amusement.
"Tsuna, I'll leave this one to you."
Back when Tsuna first learned Hollowfication, Urahara had suffered quite a bit.
Now it was finally his turn to enjoy the show.
"Relax. This isn't a big deal."
Tsuna replied calmly.
By now Ichigo's body had been completely wrapped in white Hollow matter.
He had already entered a frenzied Hollow state.
"Sawada-kun… please be careful!"
Orihime called out nervously.
Tsuna knew she wasn't worried about him.
She was asking him to go easy on Ichigo.
Tsuna didn't bother replying.
The partially Hollowfied Ichigo had already lunged at him with savage claws.
Tsuna casually raised a hand and blocked the attack.
At the same time, his voice changed.
"Ichigo… if you think Hollowfication alone can surpass me—"
"You're still far too early."
Tsuna placed a half Hollow mask over his face.
Using his own Hollow power, he met Ichigo's rampaging transformation head-on.
The two quickly clashed.
Ichigo attacked like a wild beast, unleashing relentless strikes.
Tsuna, however, retreated while fighting.
He never tried to suppress Ichigo completely.
Instead, he acted like a training dummy, letting Ichigo release his power freely.
As long as he didn't fully overpower him, Ichigo wouldn't be forced deeper into his Hollow instincts.
This bought Ichigo more time.
Tsuna wasn't worried at all.
Ichigo's inner power was fundamentally meant to protect him.
Even if things reached the final moment—
The old man inside Ichigo would eventually lend him his strength.
Inner World
Ichigo struggled violently.
Suddenly—
He noticed something strange.
One photo was different.
There was no Ichigo in it.
He swam toward it through the rain of memories.
Finally, he grabbed the photo he had been searching for.
But when he looked carefully—
Ichigo realized he was actually there.
He was just hidden behind someone else.
The person standing in front of him was his mother—
Kurosaki Masaki.
Masaki had spread her arms wide, standing directly in front of a Hollow.
Behind her lay Ichigo himself—unconscious.
But that wasn't all.
In another corner of the picture, Ichigo noticed a red bow, firing three arrows at the Hollow.
Tsuna's Fullbring weapon.
Ichigo recognized it instantly.
So Tsuna had possessed power even back then.
No wonder he knew about his parents' secrets.
As for Ichigo—
He had no memory of this moment at all.
Now he understood the meaning of the photograph.
If Tsuna hadn't been there that day—
His life might have turned out completely differently.
Without power, Masaki would have been forced to block that Hollow with her own body.
This photograph represented the moment fate changed.
Ichigo gently touched the photo.
It shattered instantly.
A surge of black Reiatsu wrapped around him.
The familiar Shihakushō appeared on his body.
His Shinigami power had returned.
But he was still falling.
He looked up at the man in black again.
The man spoke calmly.
"Congratulations."
"It is time for you to leave."
"Wait!"
Ichigo suddenly understood.
This stranger—
Was his Zanpakutō.
"Tell me your name!"
The man's lips moved slightly.
Ichigo barely caught the sound.
The Real World
"ZANGETSU!"
Ichigo roared.
A massive surge of Reiatsu erupted, filling the entire underground training area.
When the energy settled—
Ichigo stood there wearing his Shihakushō, a massive cleaver-like Zanpakutō resting on his shoulder.
A Hollow mask fragment hung loosely across his forehead.
Even before the Reiatsu explosion faded, Ichigo had already regained control of his body.
He immediately recognized the masked figure standing before him.
It was Tsuna.
A mischievous smile appeared on Ichigo's face.
Using the lingering shockwave as cover—
Ichigo suddenly slashed at him.
He condensed his Reiatsu into the blade and launched it outward.
A powerful Reiatsu slash shot toward Tsuna.
Tsuna immediately drew a white short blade.
A red arc clashed against Ichigo's attack.
The slash shattered and transformed into a crimson crescent flying far into the distance.
This was another way to use Cero-like energy slashes.
When fully utilizing Hollow power, Tsuna could easily unleash attacks equivalent to Cero.
"Looks like you're in good shape, Ichigo."
Tsuna removed his mask.
"Yeah… but what a shame."
Ichigo clicked his tongue.
He was still annoyed that Tsuna had hidden so many secrets from him.
If everyone around him weren't so cryptic all the time, he wouldn't feel like the only idiot who knew nothing.
"No need to feel bad."
Tsuna shrugged.
"Now that you've mastered your Shikai, training starts tomorrow."
"Shikai? You mean Zangetsu?"
Ichigo casually swung his oversized blade.
The new sword felt surprisingly natural in his hands.
Zangetsu.
In the end, the power within him had chosen that name.
"Alright, go share the good news with Orihime."
"I'll go find your training instructor."
Tsuna returned to his normal clothes and waved as he prepared to leave.
"Training instructor?"
Ichigo looked puzzled.
"Who? Aren't you strong enough to train me?"
Logically, Tsuna was more than capable of training him.
So why bring in someone else?
"Some powers are meant to be passed down."
"There's someone far more suitable than anyone here."
Tsuna walked toward the spectators.
"Who is it? Do I know them?"
Ichigo followed behind.
"Oh, you definitely know him."
Tsuna answered casually.
"Kurosaki Uncle."
"Who else?"
"My dad?!"
Ichigo stopped dead in his tracks.
The father who spent his days joking and wrestling with him—
Was that man really so powerful?
Ichigo glanced at his own right foot.
He had kicked Kurosaki Isshin across the room more than once.
…Was his dad going to use this chance for revenge?
No way.
He had to get some information from Tsuna before that happened.
"Tsuna, wait! What kind of fighter is my dad—?!"
Ichigo hurried after him.
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