Bleach: No Longer A Substitute

by Nanto99

One year has passed since Ichigo Kurosaki, former Substitute Soul Reaper defeated Aizen at the cost of his Soul Reaper powers. It seemed that his life would have continued just like that of any other normal human. Yet, in its unpredictability, fate will play its cards again, truths hidden for decades will come out and Ichigo will finally become what he was destined to be.

2. Chapter 2

And here's the second chapter of the story!

Now you might be thinking to yourselves: wait, hang on a minute, that's not how Isshin's past was. The reason i wrote it like this is that for now he has no reason to tell him that his mother was a Quincy and the relationship she had with Uryu's family. So for now, Ichigo will remain oblivious to that.

Either way, i hope you enjoy the chapter and please, let me know if it has issues so that i may improve it.

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Chapter 2: Everything But The Rain

After a few more dozen seconds of just standing there, after screaming in horror and disbelief, Ichigo finally managed to calm down after remembering that while his physical body had died, he still existed as a soul.

"That's just fucking great. Of all the stupid ways i could have gotten myself killed it just had to be by getting run over by a car driven by a dumbass of a driver to save an even dumber kid who thought it was a good idea to play here." he snorted in his mind while looking at said driver trying to excuse himself to the policemen and failing miserably, while his own body was being carried into the ambulance.

"Wait… If i did get myself run over by a car, why is it that my body doesn't even have so much as a scratch?" he asked to himself as soon as he noticed that detail.

He got his answer when Orihime reached out for him with a hand, behind him. As soon as he heard her hesitantly call out "Ichigo?" he turned towards her and with a serious look on his face, he asked her "Orihime…. Why is my body intact? Did you heal it?" earning a nod from her.

"I….. I did. But…" she replied weakly, her eyes already blurring with tears. Ichigo just looked at her with sadness and put his hands on her shoulders and asked her "But what? Why am i still dead?" not understanding why it didn't work on him, given that she had told him that her Soten Kisshun could even bring back the dead.

For a while Orihime was so broken by what she had discovered in trying to bring back Ichigo that she coudn't find the strength to tell him. But the orange haired strawberry got his answer when another feminine voice answered "Because in spite of how powerful its ability to reject reality is, there is a limit to our Soten Kisshun. It can only bring back souls from the dead. It cannot bring a living human's soul back into its former living body, no matter how intact or broken said body is." Ichigo and Orihime then turned towards the orange long haired girl's right shoulder and saw that standing there was one of the spirits who made her Shun Shun Rikka, Shun'o the blonde fairy with light green bat like wings and legs that wore a chinese style red dress with many yellow outlines on its edges. Her eyes were closed but in spite of that, a look of clear dejection was present on her otherwise always cheerful face.

(OST: "Nothing Can Be Explained")

"Shun'o…" called out Orihime, her voice already beginning to crack. And while Ichigo was at first confused by this spirit he had never seen before and then guessing that it was part of Orihime's Shun Shun Rikka, the strawberry'ss brown eyes immediately widened in dismaying shock at the revelation and his face turned pale. This meant….. that he could no longer return back to his living body….. to his life as a human being….

"A….. are you sure?" was all Ichigo could ask the spirit, now clearly visible to him given that he now was a Plus and thus, a spirit as well, his voice becoming dry and weak, while Orihime's tears finally began to fall from her eyes. At the same time, dark clouds had begun to form all around the sky, covering it and preventing the light of the sun from shining through.

Shun'o simply nodded in sadness and answered "It can be said that humans mostly live by destroying. In the midst of all that, you could say that Orihime's power is kinder than anything else." she then paused, looking downwards with even more sadness making its way on her face before she finally declared "But once a human dies….. no, once any type of living being leaves its former living body, it will never be able to return to it, for it now belongs to a new existence, one that is no longer bound by the natural forces of the World Of The Living. And no power in the universe will ever be able to turn an astral being back to a living being. I'm sorry Ichigo….."

As Shun'o faded away back into part of Orihime's hairpin, the orange haired girl coudn't take it anymore. She buried her head on his chest and broke down in tears, while uttering the name of the teen she had developed feelings for, her voice having cracked completely "Ichigo…."

The orange haired strawberry shuddered and also began to cry, having finally realised that there was no turning back. He will never be a living human anymore. He would have never graduated after school, find a job and a home all for himself, marry a woman and have children. His life as a human had come to an end.

As his tears could no longer be kept back, he hugged Orihime back as the long haired girl weakly managed through cries "I'm so sorry….. after everything we have been through….. after all we shared…..it's… IT'S NOT FAIR!" she screamed in grief, her voice utterly broken. She was overcome by joy when she brought him back from death after Ulquiorra blasted a hole in his chest with his Cero Oscuras. And now a single car had managed to do what arguably the most powerful of all the Espadas had almost accomplished, were it not for Orihime's powers to reject reality.

"No, Orihime….. You have nothing to be sorry for….. It was my fault… All of it… If i hadn't jumped in to save that kid, i…" weakly muttered Ichigo as he held the beautiful teenage girl in his arms, ignoring the stares of all the people around them as most, if not all of them coudn't see him and simply dismissed Orihime as expressing her grief. The same self-loathing he felt when his mother died and he blamed himself for it for six whole years before he found out that the Hollow Grand Fisher was the one responsible, had now returned. Because of him, his friends would have never seen him again, including her. All because he had given away his life to save a little kid. But how coudn't he? Ever since his mother died on that fateful day, Ichigo vowed that he would protect anyone. And it was through that desire that he became a Soul Reaper, faced all of the Soul Society to save Rukia and journeyed through Hueco Mundo and into Aizen's fortress, Las Noches to save Orihime. He coudn't stand aside and let that kid's life be abrubtly cut short just when it was about to begin. However this time, by doing so, he had given away his life.

"No….. It can't end like this…. Not after everything we did to make sure Rukia, Orihime and all of Karakura Town would be safe….." sorrowfully mused in his mind Ichigo, hearbroken that this time, he will be the one who will leave his friends and his alone….

Wait. Since he was now a soul, no longer bound by his mortal body and thus he could see other spirits clearly…..

"It means i can finally become a Soul Reaper again…." he realised, recalling how he regained his powers after Byakuya sealed the powers Rukia had given him when she stabbed him with her own Zampakuto, by cutting his chain of fate during their first encounter. How after regaining his spirit energy after fighting with that young girl Ururu which was anything but harmless, his chain was cut by Tessai and he was dropped into a 60 meter tall hole in the center of Kisuke's training field, his arms bound by a Bakudo spell and forced through an accelerated 72 hour long version of the Encroachment, the inevitable process of losing the chain and thus becoming a Hollow when a Plus lingers in the World of the Living for too long or gives into despair. Luckily, Ichigo managed to awaken in his Inner World, meet the spirit of his Zampakuto, Zangetsu and acquire his true Soul Reaper powers that always lied dormant within him, powers that for some unknown reason, he always possessed.

And now he could get them back by going through that process again. But before he could do that, there was one thing he needed to do. One conversation he had to have with his father before he would proceed with his quest to regain his powers. A conversation that had to be postponed after Aizen would be defeated.

Having finally decided, he pulled himself out of Orihime's arms, put his hands on her shoulders and with a determined look, he spoke "Orihime, i know what i have to do. But first we have to go to my house and talk with my dad. I promised to have an important conversation with him as soon as the right time would come. Well, that time is now."

Orihime at first didn't understand what Ichigo meant. Nonetheless, she nodded and replied "Alright then. Let's go before it gets dark….." she paused, knowing full well the vulnerable position the recently deceased teenager was in "And before some Hollows come…."

And with one last nod from Ichigo, the two began to make their way to the orange spiky haired strawberry's house. But unfortunately, something was already watching them….

It didn't take long for Ichigo's family to find out what had happened.

Karin was hanging out with her friends when the sky suddenly became covered with clouds and some sounds of thunder began to arrive. Thus, she was reluctantly forced to return home before the first droplets of the rain would come down.

And as soon as she opened the door of her home…..

"NOOOOO! ICHIGOOOOO!"

Came a pained scream of grief and sorrow from her older sister. Alerted, Karin immediately rushed to the living room…..

…. and promptly saw Yuzu with many tears freely falling out of her closed eyes, incromprehensible cries being the only sounds that left her mouth. Her father, Isshin, cradled her in his arms with a solemn and equally saddened look as they both lied on their knees on the floor.

Not understanding at first what was going on, Karin asked hesitantly "Dad? Yuzu? What happened?"

Isshin looked at her in the eyes and for the first time in who knows how long, she saw a look so serious and solemn that it caused her eyes to widen and her lips to part in surprise. She found it hard to believe that her own dad, possibly the goofiest person she had ever known was the one giving it. He then simply said "See for yourself." while pointing his head to the TV.

After a few seconds, Ichigo's younger sister managed to take a look at the screen. And the moment she did, she froze.

On the screen, a live broadcast was shown of a car having crashed on the left sidewalk of the road into a wall. It was covered by many people, including an ambulance and its crew, several policemen, who had put a yellow tape around the site of the crash, while two of them fined the owners of the car that were responsible for the accident. And most importantly on the bottom of the TV screen, the News Report read:

"DRAMATIC CAR CRASH IN THE HIROHYAKU AVENUE.

17 YEAR OLD TEENAGER CONFIRMED DEAD."

And the reporter, a man in its late thirties in a suit with short black hair and brown eyes, stated "As can be confirmed in the varios reports of the witnesses, the orange haired teenager, selflessly jumped in the middle of the street to push a five-year old kid away before the car that can be seen behind me could run him over. Mere words are not enough to express this selfless act of heroism. Our hearts go to this young man who gave up his life without a bit of hesitation to save another one, twelve years younger than his. May he rest in peace."

And as the reporter was finishing his speech, she saw the lifeless body of her older brother being carried away by the ambulance's crews. Then a photo of him was shown in the broadcast.

And with that, the world around Karin began to fall apart all at once.

"N-no… It…. It can't be true…" she weakly muttered, while falling on her knees, the rest of her body limp from the shock and horror. She refused to believe it. She refused to believe that her brother had died. But no matter how much she tried to deny it, it was exactly what had happened. But before she could scream her grief, she remembered.

"Wait a moment…. When people die, they turn into ghosts. That means….." she thought, her eyes widening upon realising that her brother was not completely gone "That now Ichigo exists as a soul!"

She had to find him. She had to find him before Hollows would come and eat him.

With a resoluted look forming on her face, she spoke "Dad." earning Isshin's attention along with her younger sister's "I'm going out. Ichigo is still alive somewhere. I….. I have to find him!"

But while Yuzu coudn't understand what her younger sister meant, as Karin began to run past her father, who was still comforting her crying older sister in his arms, Isshin suddenly ordered sharply "That's out of the question, Karin!" while letting go of Yuzu, getting up and grabbing Karin by her left arm, stopping her in her tracks "Look, i know you're grief-stricken due to how sudden all of this happened, but there's nothing we can do! Ichigo's gone and we have to accept it!" he declared, his voice filled with nothing but dejection and his face filled with so much seriosness that Yuzu coudn't believe that her own dad was saying it.

Karin screamed in grief "LET ME GO! I HAVE TO FIND HIM! He….." she paused, for the first time ever since she somehow received the memories of that kid Yuichi Shibata, trapped in the body of a parakeet and begged her brother to end his pain, on the verge of crying. The pain and grief of when her mother died returned all at once. And now Ichigo had died too. But she wasn't going to abbandon him, even if he was now nothing more than a spirit.

(Soundtrack Ends)

The sound of the doorbell ringing, prevented her from continuing to plead to her dad to let her go. After a few seconds of silence that seemed like an eternity, Karin seized the distraction to free herself from her dad's grip, immediately scrambled to ther door….

And as soon as she opened it, a lighting suddenly struck nearby, illuminating what stood in front of Karin and her heart sank. In front of her stood her older brother, now a ghost. Besides him was his friend from highschool, Orihime. She thought her eyes were deceiving her, that this was nothing more than a cruel joke.

But she was in for one massive reality check and her jaw dropped as soon as her brother, with a faint smile, greeted "Hi, Karin…." before looking towards Isshin and adding with melancholy "Dad…..Yuzu….."

Karin coudn't find the strength to speak. Instead, with her face still contorted in shock, she called out "I…. Ichigo?" and as the spirit of her brother, only hours from having died, smiled tenderly at her, the raven haired girl coudn't take it anymore. Tears of joy and sadness began to leave her eyes for the first time in ages and then she screamed "ICHIGO!" and promptly hugged her deceased older brother, burying her head into his abdomen. Ichigo immediately wrapped his arms around his younger sister while Orihime looked on with a kind smile at the display of affection being shared by the two siblings. Given how much the orange haired teenager acted so tough most of the time, she was positively surprised to see just how truly sweet and affectionate he could be to his family. It also made her even more sad that she would have never been able to see him like this…..

But then…..

"Ichigo….." called out Isshin, disbelief and surprise present all over his face. Yuzu immediately got up and with a puzzled expression on her face asked "Dad? Wh…. What's going on?"

However her bewilderment was nothing compared to the look of pure shock that made its way on Karin's face as she gasped, turned towards her dad, and weakly managed to stammer "D-Dad….. You…. You can see him too?!" not believing what was happening, while even Orihime's face filled with great surprise at the reveal that Ichigo's dad could also see ghosts.

Just as Isshin was about to reply, his son beat him to it "Dad, remember that conversation i told you about? The one we agreed to have when the time would be right?" he asked him, causing his father's face to turn pale upon recalling that day, a year ago when his son agreed to have him tell him his whole story and why he kept what he truly was from him all this time for another day. They had agreed to have that conversation once Aizen would be defeated.

"Well that time is now." finally declared Ichigo, his voice serious and earnest. A calm and solemn look formed on Isshin's face, one he hadn't shown ever since their climatic battle against Aizen. Ever since that fateful day, 17 years earlier, he tried to keep his family out of the world of Hollows and Soul Reapers. For all those years he tried to keep them safe. But he knew far too well that this moment was destined to come. And that even Karin was involved in it.

Thus, a reluctant Isshin nodded and replied "Alright then, my son. I think the time has come for you and your sisters to know the truth. All of it." earning a concerned look from Yuzu and one of contemplation and understanding from Karin. At the same time it finally began to rain all around the city.

And so the entirety of the Kurosaki family, plus Orihime, gathered in the living room. Ichigo, his sisters and Orihime all sat on the couch while Isshin grabbed a nearby chair and put it down in front of said couch. After a few moments of silence, he cleared out his throat and began "I guess i can start by showing you this….."

Orihime and Karin's eyes widened and their jaws dropped as Isshin's body briefly became enveloped in an orange colored aura before, with an ethereal sound, his soul left his living body, briefly connected by four tendrils of white energy which soon gave away. His living body fell on the chair and right in front of them, Ichigo's father now stood tall and proud, noticeably more muscular than in his living body, wearing the standard black uniform of the Soul Reapers called Shihakusho along with a tattered white coat worn like a sash and fastened over his left shoulder. On his left side, carried on a string wrapped around his belt in an iaido style, was what looked like an ordinary tachi with a red handle and hexagonal tsuba, in reality his Zampakuto, Engetsu.

"M-Mister Kurosaki….." was all Orihime could manage, not believing that even Ichigo's dad was a Soul Reaper just like him.

"Dad… All this time…..You….. You were…" stammered Karin, even more shocked than Orihime was. Her brother's serious expression on the other hand, didn't change in the slightest for he had already seen his father like that. Yuzu on the other hand wasn't understanding what happened as to her eyes her father appeared to have suddenly passed out.

However Isshin, upon noticing the confusion on his older daughter and realising that he might as well go along with it, said "I might as well as do this, given that at this point, there's no turning back." and simply released his spiritual pressure, which was surprisingly immense yet at the same time soothing and warm. Nonetheless it was so immense that Orihime, Karin and for a moment, even Ichigo felt…. overwhelmed by it. Ichigo tensed up for a while, realising that this Spiritual Pressure was just as powerful as those of Kenpachi and Byakuya. Could it be….

Before he could come up with the explanation for this, Yuzu felt something soothing and radiant pass through her body. It felt nice, like the warm water of a hot spring. She then gasped in surprise, blinked twice and called out hesitantly "D…. Dad?" now seeing him perfectly as a Soul Reaper due to having come in contact with his powerful Spiritual Pressure. Ichigo, Orihime and Karin all turned towards the strawberry's older sister who was looking in awe at her dad, now more muscular and clad in the standard Soul Reaper uniform.

"Yuzu….. You can see him?" asked hesitantly Karin, stupefied that her older sister now could clearly see souls just like her. Yuzu slowly nodded, turned towards her younger sister and replied "I think so…. I think it has to do with what he did just now…." only to stop upon seeing that between her and Orihime, there was the ghost of her big brother.

With a joyful smile, she called out "Ichigo….. My brother….." with unbridled affection and happiness. She was overjoyed to see him again. He wasn't gone. He still existed as a soul.

Ichigo smiled softly at her sister finally having aquired the ability to see spirits, thanks to what her father just did. Isshin then confirmed Yuzu's theory by stating "By coming in contact with my spiritual energy, you've now become spiritually aware, Yuzu, just like your brother and sister. That means you can now see souls." causing his son and daughters along with Orihime to all turn back towards him, a solemn and serious look returning on Ichigo's face.

Yuzu, still in awe at her father's appearance, hesitantly asked "Dad…. What are you?"

Without saying a word, Isshin took his living body from the chair, laid it on the ground and took his seat on it. With his hands clasped together, he replied "Guess i'll start from the beginning." finally beginning his speech while all of his children and Orihime listened.

"You may know me as your father, Isshin Kurosaki, local surgeon of the Kurosaki Clinic, formerly married to your mother, Masaki Kurosaki, but i was never born in this world." he stated, causing Karin and Yuzu's eyes to widen slightly while Ichigo and Orihime simply listened, their expression not changing at all.

"I was born in a place called the Soul Society. Long story short, it's the plane of the afterlife in which all souls come after they have died in the World of the Living and where they live for the rest of their existence until they eventually die and are reincarnated back in the World of the Living as people with no past memories of their previous life. The flow of souls in and out of the Soul Society is instrumental in mainting the balance of the world and it is the duty of us, Soul Reapers to protect those souls and by extension, that balance, by allowing them to pass unharmed to the Soul Society."

To Ichigo, Orihime and to a lesser extent, Karin all of that was nothing new. Even Karin had eventually learned about the nature of Soul Reapers given that she had in fact met none other than the Captain of Squad Ten, Toshiro Hitsugaya. Yuzu, on the other hand was extremely fascinated at the reveal that their world was interconnected to an astral one where all people would eventually go upon dying and turning into souls. With so many questions pounding her head, she asked her father "So…. You've always been a Soul Reaper, dad?"

Isshin simply nodded and continued "Yeah. Because i was born in one of the noble families as the first born of a new generation, i was bound by duty to become one. So i…."

"Wait a moment….." interrupted Ichigo, his face suddenly filling with surprise "You're telling me that all this time, you were of noble blood just like Byakuya?" causing Karin and Yuzu to look at their father in puzzlement.

Isshin, bracing himself for what was about to come, inhaled slightly before replying "You mean, Captain Kuchiki, right?" earning a nod from Ichigo, who was in for quite the surprise when Isshin continued "Yeah. As a matter of fact, Kurosaki was never my real surname. It was one i adopted when i left the Soul Society. I was born as Isshin Shiba and at the time i was the head of the Shiba Clan."

The look of pure shock on Ichigo and Orihime's faces had to be seen to be believed. They knew that surname very well. It belonged to the ones who helped them infiltrate the Seiretei when they went to the Soul Society to rescue Rukia.

"D-Dad….. You mean….." was all Ichigo could manage, his mouth agape and his eyes shaking in disbelief.

"That Ganju… And Kukaku…" finished Orihime, just as thunderstruck as the orange haired strawberry, remembering all too well the hot-tempered but loyal and courageous man who fought at their side against the many Soul Reapers to save Rukia and his more temperamental but ultimately easygoing and beaming sister who propelled them towards the Seiretei with her cannon of hers that she used mostly for fireworks.

With a smile briefly crossing his lips, Isshin confirmed what little doubts they had by chuckling and saying "Hehehe…. You've met them too, have you? Yeah, Ganju and Kukaku are my younger brother and sister. I also had another brother named Kaien, but unfortunately he died when a powerful Hollow named Metastacia wrought havoc on the Thirteenth Squad, the one of which he was its Lieutenant." his smile leaving his lips upon recalling the death of his brother and how he coudn't do anything to prevent it, due to him not being present in the Soul Society at the time, instead fulfilling several duties in the World of the Living.

An even more shocked Ichigo, then interjected, nearly exclaiming "The Thirteenth Squad? You mean, the one Rukia is assigned to?" and nearly getting up from the couch.

Isshin, with another nod, replied "Yeah. Back then, 20 years ago, there weren't just Four Great Noble Families. There were five and the Shiba Clan was one of them before it fell from grace due to both the death of my brother Kaien and my dissappearance happening at the same time." surprising Ichigo by just how…. Somber he sounded. It dawned on him that it must have been very hard for him to just return from his duties in the World of the Living only to learn that he had just lost his brother.

Karin and Yuzu were left utterly speechless. All this time, their father had been a high ranking noble, on top of being a Soul Reaper. Not only that but they had an uncle and an aunt all along.

"So…. All this time, we had an uncle and an aunt and you never told us?" dumbfoundedly asked Karin. He father gave her a smile and replied "They would have loved to have met you. You and Kukaku in particular are almost two peas in a pod. You would be surprised to see just how aggressive she can be." while chuckling as many fond memories of his time spent with his family returned.

"Then why did you leave them, dad? You did love them with all of your heart didn't you?" suddenly asked Ichigo with his usual stern face, wanting to know what could have possibly have motivated his dad to leave something as important as his own family.

With much guilt returning for his fateful decision 20 years ago, Isshin looked down towards the floor and replied "I did. They meant everything to me. But due to some unfortunate and unforseen circumstances i was forced to make a choice. And by doing so, i sacrificed my very own existence as a Soul Reaper." his voice becoming somber. Everyone else in the room looked at him in great surprise and puzzlement in a silence that seemed to last for an hour.

Eventually, Ichigo broke it "Dad, what happened?" he asked, wanting to know the the whole story.

Never in his whole life had Isshin expected that it would hurt so much to recall his past once more, to reveal to all of his children that he had lied to them his entire life. But that time had come and there was nothing more he could have done to keep all of this away from his family anymore.

Resolving to finally tell his son and daughters everything, Isshin looked Ichigo straight in his brown eyes, that he inherited from his mother and replied "There is one more thing you need to know, Ichigo. I wasn't just any ordinary Soul Reaper." he paused while taking his white Haori off his shoulder and showing it to his son "I used to be a Captain. More precisely, i used to be the Captain of Squad Ten, all those years ago."

Ichigo's face went pale at the revelation and his jaw dropped in bewilderment. Just when he thought nothing would have shocked him more than the reveal that all this time, he was of noble blood, just like Byakuya. And all at once, he remembered a certain white haired boy and a certain orange haired beautiful woman renowned among the entirety of the Seiretei for her pretty big breasts…..

"T-Then….. Toshiro….. and Rangiku…" was all he could manage, his eyes shaking in disbelief and his mouth hanging wide open. Karin looked first at her brother and then at her father in shock, quickly connecting the dots while an equally surprised Orihime's eyes widened upon realising that Ichigo's father knew Rangiku, the female Soul Reaper that had been so nice to her, to the point that she even enjoyed the food she made.

"Dad….. You know Toshiro?" asked Karin, just as dumbstruck as her brother. She did in fact meet the young captain of Squad Ten when he was stationed in Karakura Town in charge of a small group of high ranking Soul Reapers to deal with any immediate Arrancar threat. She was actually quick to befriend him, even managing to convince him to play in her soccer team against a group of older teenagers whom they had challenged to play in their usual soccer field after they stole it from them. He even revealed himself as a Soul Reaper before her own eyes and defended her from a Hollow that attacked her and her friends after said game had been won by them, thanks to the young Captain's help.

Ichigo, immediately turned towards his younger sister and asked her in surprise "You've met him?" earning a nod from Karin who then replied with a smile "Y… Yeah. He was so nice to me and my friends in spite of his tough-guy attitude. We even played soccer together and he even protected me and my friends from a Hollow."

The orange haired teenager was even more amased. This was something that he would have never guessed would have happened. His sister actually befriending a Captain from the Soul Society. Not only that but she was speaking very highly of him, thinking of him back as a friend. All of a sudden, his appreciation for the young Captain had grown even more. He definetely owned the white haired young Captain some thanks for what he did for his sister.

"Yeah. At the time he was the Third Seat of the Squad and Rangiku was my Lieutenant. He was like a son to me. He always had this sense of loyalty and devotion to his comrades and he was always willing to do others's work without a second thought." confirmed Isshin with a smile, recalling the fond memories of the time he spent with him and happy to know that after all this years he had become such a caring and selfless young man "I always knew that he had what it takes to be a captain. And i'm glad that….."

He was abrubtly interrupted when Ichigo suddenly stood up, to Orihime and his sisters's surprise, rounded his eyes on his father's and demanded "Then why did you leave them? They were your comrades. You cared about them the same way you cared about your family. How could you just….."

Only for Isshin to rise back on his feet, look at him in his eyes with an even more serious look and interject "Because i had no choice." raising his voice a little "To this day, i still carry many regrets for what happened all those years ago. Look, allow me to explain everything, then you're free to yell at me as much as you want, okay?" he asked his son, who after a few moments of silence, nodded.

(OST: "Never Meant To Belong" Original 2004 Version)

Isshin then finally began again "It all started one day 20 years ago. At the time, many members of my Squad had begun to dissappear in the area they were in charge in, Naruki City, which lies not far from here. Against the wishes of Rangiku and Toshiro i went there to investigate on my own. And it wasn't too long before i found out who the culprit was: a Hollow, a very unusual one named White, who….."

"Ehmmm…. What's a Hollow?" asked Yuzu, interrupting her dad mid speech. Seeing the confusion in the girl's face, Orihime was quick to answer her "See, it works like this: when people die they become spirits but not all of them are lucky enough to be found and sent to the Soul Society. If a person's ghost remains in the human world for too long or loses its heart to despair or regret they inevitably turn into monstrous creatures driven only by the desire to eat other souls. My brother unfortunately suffered this fate….." she explained, her voice eventually filling with sadness upon recalling what happened to her brother.

Yuzu, Karin, Ichigo and even Isshin looked at Orihime with much sadness and pity. They coudn't even imagine how she must have felt, seeing her own brother turning into a monster. Ichigo's orange haired sister was appalled by that reveal: she suddenly felt much empathy for the orange haired teenage girl. So she put one of her petite hands on top of Orihime's right one and hesitantly said "I'm sorry to hear that, Orihime…. I can't imagine how it must have been for you, to watch your own brother turning into a monster…."

Orihime merely wrapped her left arm around Yuzu's shoulders and pulled her close while smiling sweetly at her "It's okay. He's in the Soul Society now. Ichigo was the one who sent him there." causing both Yuzu and Karin to look at him first in surprise and then in awe and admiration, realising that since he became a Soul Reaper he had helped many people.

But before they could ask him more of his time as a Soul Reaper, Ichigo spoke up "Yeah, and we can talk more about all the things i did as a Soul Reaper later." he paused, turning his gaze back to his father "Right now, there's more important things we need to know. Sorry for the interruption dad, were where you left at?"

Inside, Isshin was happy to see how much more polite his son had become. He guessed it was due to all the battles he went through and all the friends he made, which taught him to be more humble. Nonetheless he began where he left after saying "Thanks Ichigo. As i was saying, the one behind all those dissappearances was a Hollow named White, a very powerful one, easily of the Vasto Lorde Class. But it was no ordinary Hollow. It was one Aizen created."

And in a repeat of what happened with the reveal that Isshin was the brother of Ganju and Kukaku and the reveal that he was the Captain of Squad Ten, Ichigo and Orihime's faces filled with shock as they had hoped to never hear that name again while Yuzu and Karin simply listened.

"As it turned out, Aizen created that Hollow from the souls of several Soul Reapers by using his Hogyoku and promptly unleashed it on the Soul Reapers guarding Naruki City to see how powerful it was. Eventually, i was able to defeat it after a gruelling battle but in the process i had been critically injured and because of those injuries, to this day, i still can't use my Bankai without putting severe stress on my body." continued Isshin, while exposing his right shoulder and revealing a scar that ran throught his whole shoulder from front to back and onto his chest, causing Yuzu and Karin to gasp in shock. They, along with Ichigo and Orihime had no idea that their own father had been through such a violent ordeal.

"I would have died for certain that day, had it not been for a young, spiritually aware woman that saw me, mere moments away from being obliterated by that Hollow's Cero. Without a second thought, this woman, having no other powers aside from her ability to see spirits, put herself in between and shoved that Hollow away before it could fire the blast that would have ended my life. She was injured in the process, but the distraction she gave me was all i needed to finish the Hollow off."

Ichigo and his sisters's eyes and lips widened in disbelief, not believing what they were hearing. But their suspicions were proven correct when Isshin finally declared "That woman was Masaki, your mother."

And with that, all at once, Ichigo, Yuzu and Karin stopped breathing for a few seconds. You could have heard a fly buzzling in the next room: such was the silence that settled in as all three of Isshin's children and to a lesser extent, Orihime, let all of what their father revealed sink in.

"Dad….." was all Ichigo could manage, not managing to breathe normally for a few seconds due to how much of a bombshell this last reveal was.

"That's how, you…. And Mom met?" hesitantly asked Yuzu while Karin had been so shocked that she coudn't even speak.

A soothing smile made its way on the former Captain of Squad Ten as he replied "Yeah. She even took me to her house, healed my wounds and allowed me to rest there for a night. Masaki was such a kind and brave woman in spite of being no more than a spiritually aware human. Even though she had never met me, without a second thought, she latched onto that Hollow, pushing it away and giving me the chance to finish it off. That day is one i will forever cherish for the rest of my life."

Awe and admiration filled every inch of Ichigo, Yuzu, Karin and Orihime's faces. They had no idea of what a brave and selfless woman their mother was.

"I guess that's where i got my desire to protect everyone if mom did that for someone she didn't even know…." mused in his mind, Ichigo, now even more happy to have had her as his mother and more regretful that she could never see the young man he had become now.

He was pulled out of his thoughts by Isshin stating "The next day i returned to the Soul Society but as it turned out, it wasn't the end of it. Some days later, i decided to return to the World of The Living without authorisation to see your mother again, as i had taken a great liking to her after everything she did for me. I was completely unprepared for what i would be faced with." he then paused, looking towards the floor again, remaining silent for a few seconds before finally mustering the strength to continue "I discovered that the Hollow i faced several days ago not only was capable of transmitting a venom that induced Hollowfication in its victims but was also capable of entering the souls of other individuals and fusing with them, due to it being composed by the souls of Soul Reapers. And as it turned out, Masaki had been infected by its venom. So i took her to Kisuke's shop and…."

"What? Our mother, knew that merchant?" suddenly asked Karin, taken completely by surprise by what her father said and to a lesser extent, even Ichigo was surprised to learn that his mother was acquainted with the same man who taught him how to fight.

Isshin nodded and answered his younger daughter's question "Yeah, we both were acquainted with Mister Urahara. He actually used to be a Soul Reaper Captain before he was exiled in the World of the Living after being unjustly framed for crimes he didn't actually commit by Aizen. But that's a story for another day…." causing a look of great surprise to form on Karin and Yuzu and to a lesser extent, on Ichigo and Orihime's faces. The former Substitute Soul Reaper had in fact been told by Yoruichi that Kisuke used to be the Captain of Squad Twelve but she never told him why he was exiled. Unless….

"Shinji and the Vizards….Could it be?" he mused in his mind, recalling how the group of former Soul Reapers with Hollow Powers first taught him to master his Hollowfication and then intervened in the battle against Aizen and his Espadas. It was there that he learned of their grudge against Aizen. Perhaps they were exactly the reason why Kisuke ended up being exiled….

He put his thoughts aside for the moment as right now there were more important things to learn. So he remained silent as his father continued to recall what happened "As i was saying, Masaki had been infected by White's venom and she was undergoing Hollowfication, an uncontrollable process in which the soul of a Hollow is poured into a normal soul, thus destroying the boundary that normally exists between them. The final outcome of Hollowfication is the death of the original soul as it destroys itself in what is called "Soul Suicide". In other words, if that had been left unchecked, your mother would have turned into a Hollow, into nothing more than a monster without any sense of reason."

Karin and Yuzu could only look at their father with horror in their eyes and their lips apart, not believing that their own mother came close to turning into one of those monstrous creatures that feed off other people's souls. Even Orihime and Ichigo shuddered slightly at what Isshin said. The former could only imagine how painful such a process must have been. It would have been no different from the ordeal her brother, Sora went through.

"The only way to counter Hollowfication, as Urahara found out, was to pour something into the infected soul that would have countered the process, something much stronger than a normal human soul. A strong conflicting power that would have always remained to her side had to be used and by doing so, she would have remained human until the day she would have died. In this case, my Soul Reaper powers….." continued to explain Isshin, causing Ichigo and Orihime's eyes to widen even more as soon as he spoke the last phrase.

"Dad….. You mean…" began Ichigo, his voice trembling as he began to realise what had happened. His doubts were confirmed when his father, with a solemn look, declared "Yes, Ichigo. I sacrificed my Soul Reaper powers, pouring them into Masaki's soul and by doing so, i was able to stop her Hollowfication and link White's soul to that of your mother. As a result, my soul became enclosed in a special Gigai that Kisuke made for me, essentially transforming me into a human. Thanks to him and Masaki's help, i eventually settled in the World of the Living, opened up my clinic and the rest is history."

For what seemed like hours, Ichigo and his sisters just stared at his father in a mix of complete shock, disbelief and awe. He coudn't believe that he had done something so selfless to save a woman that he had never met before. But in doing so…..

Suddenly his awe gave awar to anger and, with a scowl, he suddenly stood up, to the surprise of everyone else present and began "Dad….." his voice far from happy as he walked towards Isshin and suddenly picked him up by his black Kosode and exclaimed "How could you do such a thing?!" causing Orihime, Karin and Yuzu to gasp in surprise at his reaction.

"Ichigo….." called out Orihime, worried and saddened at the same time by what was probably going on in his mind at all this information being revealed to him.

"You had a brother and a sister! You had people who followed you, who believed in you! And you just abbandoned them without even saying goodbye?! Toshiro and Rangiku were one thing, but how could you do this to Kukaku and Ganju after they had just lost their other brother?!" he yelled at him, feeling betrayed by the revelation that by staying with the woman he had fallen in love with, his father had abbandoned the ones who knew him ever since he was little. Ganju may have been an idiot and Kukaku had a fiery temper to be sure, but in the end they were good people and they didn't deserve to be suddenly abbandoned by their older brother.

Yuzu and Karin both got up from the couch as Isshin at first averted his gaze from Ichigo's eyes and replied with a saddened tone "Yes, i don't deny that it was very hard for me to leave the people i used to call family behind after all the good things i shared with them." he then paused, looking his son in his eyes and asking him one important question "But let me ask you this, Ichigo: why is it that you faced all of the Soul Society with just your friends to save Rukia?" causing Ichigo's eyes to widen along with his lips. So taken aback was he with that question that he let his father go and lowered his head downwards, his eyes staring on the floor. He knew. He knew that he would have gone to the Soul Society to rescue her the night before, when he gave him that lucky charm.

Finally managing to muster the strength to reply, he spoke "Because….. Because i owed her everything…. She gave me the strength to protect the ones i loved…. If not for her, Karin….. and Yuzu would have….."

Ichigo's younger sisters, gasped, their eyes widening in realisation. All this time….. both on that night and when they went to visit their mother's grave more than a year ago….

"Ichigo….. It was you….." spoke Yuzu in awe as she walked towards her older brother, stopping on his left. Ichigo with a tender smile, nodded and thus, an overjoyed Yuzu hugged him deeply, heartwarmed that he was the one who protected them on both occasions.

"So that's how you became a Soul Reaper….. She gave you that powers…." remarked Karin as he came close to her sister who was still hugging Ichigo.

At the same time, as Orihime had also stood up, Isshin interjected "It's more complicated than that. A lot more complicated than that." earning Ichigo and the others's attention "Rukia did transfer her powers to you when you pierced your heart with her Zampakuto but those were never your own powers. You inherited your true Soul Reaper powers from me but because of the seal i had placed on Masaki, they never awoke even after she died. But they were not the only ones that laid dormant within you ever since you were born…."

A puzzled look made its way on Ichigo's face as Orihime went to his side and he asked his father in perplexity "What do you m-" only to gasp in shock as he realised what his Isshin was talking about. Looking at him in the eyes once more, Ichigo barely managed to utter "No, you can't possibly mean…." while his sisters and the orange haired teenage girl looked at him in concern.

Only for Isshin to nod, a serious and solemn look forming on his face "Yes, my son. When i sealed off White, we thought it was the end of it but as it turned out as soon as your mother became pregnant with you, the Hollow continued with its drive to infect others, so it was transferred from her soul to yours. Luckily, since at the time you were a newborn, your soul was malleable and thus it was able to accept any type of foreign Spiritual Energy without the risk of Soul Suicide. That and the seal i placed on Masaki was transferred along with it so you were never at risk of turning into a Hollow. That was until Captain Kuchiki severed your Chain of Fate during your first battle with him and as a result when you aquired your true Soul Reaper powers, the Hollow inside you was released. In other words you never acquired your Hollow powers by accident. You were born with them." he explained, causing Ichigo, Orihime and his sisters's eyes to widen in pure horror and incredulity. The former two realised that when Ulquiorra had almost killed Ichigo and Orihime tried as much as she could to heal him….. it was at that time, that he completely lost control of himself and fully turned into a Hollow.

"Then that means…. That when i tried to heal him after Ulquiorra blasted a hole in the chest….. I unwillingly fully turned him into a Hollow? Into nothing more than a mindless beast?" she mused to herself in her mind, the full reveal of what she had done that day, sinking in fully. Because of that, Ichigo nearly killed Uryu that day after he mortally wounded Ulquiorra. She was now grateful that the Fourth Espada had actually managed to break his mask before such a thing could happen.

Karin and Yuzu were gaping wide at what they heard. It made them shiver that their older brother had nearly turned into one of those monstrous creatures. They were relieved to know that his willpower and the love for his friends was enough for him to overcome that dark influence on his soul.

She was pulled out of her thoughts when Isshin finally concluded "And once the seal was broken, my powers slowly began to return. You know how things went after that."

Ichigo looked towards the ground for a few moments as he finally came to grips with all his father said ever since this conversation began. Orihime simply looked at him in concern before gently placing her soft left hand on his shoulder.

"Oh, Ichigo….." she mused to herself in dejection. She coudn't blame him for reacting like that, given that his father had kept all of this hidden from him, for his entire life.

"Why, dad?" asked Karin, looking at her father with a look of both hurt and sorrow, pulling Ichigo and Orihime out of their thoughts while Yuzu looked at her younger sister with an equally dejected face "Why have you never told us all of this? Why did you try to convince us that seeing ghosts was just our imagination?"

In response, an equally saddened and remorseful Isshin looked at his youngest child and replied "Because kids should never see the battlefield. They should be playing and making friends with others, discover the world, know nothing but happiness and love before they grow up." his brown eyes beginning to shake as the memories of his childhood began to come back "I was taught how to fight ever since i was younger than both you and your sister. Such was the tradition for the Noble Families of the Soul Society. Their firstborns would be trained at a young age to master all of the fighting styles of the Soul Reapers and join one of the Thirteen Court Guard Squads and soon be sent off to fight Hollows and risk their lives on a daily basis." his face hardened as he recalled "I hated being a noble. Always surrounded by smug-ass, arrogant dickheads who acted like they owned everything around them including other people, who would lead their entire lives to serve them. People who looked down on others who didn't have their luxury, always referring to them as "Lowly Commoners" simply because everything was handed to them on a silver plate ever since they were born." causing Ichigo's eyes to fill with pity towards his father along with those of Karin and Yuzu at the resentment that radiated from his words. Unlike him, he never got the choice to choose to fight for what he believed in. No, his father had been forced to fight ever since he was younger than him by the rules of his Clan and by extention, by the rules of the Soul Society.

As he then looked at his daughters, shaking as the grief of Masaki's death came back with full force, Isshin declared "Surely, you can understand why i wanted to keep you out of that world, do you? It was your mother's wish. She wanted you to live a happy and peaceful life. " his eyes beginning to shake, blurring with tears "I have no regrets for what i did for her all those 20 years ago. I owed Masaki my life and there was no way in hell, i would have allowed anything to happen to her because she just so happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time on that night. The only thing i've always regretted….." he finally declared as he closed his eyes, his tears finally flowing freely "Is not being able to save Masaki that night, seven years ago…."

And with those words, Ichigo's heart finally sank as he understood everything. He coudn't do anything, to prevent his mother's death. His father blamed himself for Masaki's death the same way Ichigo did for all those six years.

Yuzu coudn't take it anymore. The sight of her father tearing up and the realisation that he had done everything in his power to protect them all those years warmed and broke her heart at the same time. Thus, she immediately rushed towards him and embraced him. Likewise, Karin, almost brought to tears by her father's words and by the same realisation that her father coudn't do anything to stop her mother's death, soon joined Yuzu in her embrace, burying her head on her father's abdomen just like her.

Isshin quivered as Karin, immediately after hugging him, spoke "Dad…. I'm sorry….. I…. didn't know….." and began to cry, the truth of what her father had been truth from start to finish now clear to her.

"Thank you…..Dad…..For everything…. " also spoke Yuzu, her voice filled with nothing but affection and gratitude for everything he did for her and her sister and Ichigo.

And all at once, Isshin's sadness dissappeared replaced by joy as he hugged his daughters back, now shedding tears of happiness before declaring "I'm so proud of you… And i love you with all of my heart…..Yuzu….. Karin….." his voice just as affectionate and loving as that of his daughters.

Heartwarmed, Orihime looked at Isshin embracing his daughters with a smile as Ichigo, with a look of pity and compassion walked towards him, stopping just a few inches before him. Yuzu and Karin pulled themselves out of the embrace as Isshin looked at his son and called out "Ichigo….." his voice still filled with dejection…..

Which then turned into great surprise as hi son immediately hugged him while Yuzu and Karin watched with a warming smile. Ichigo then closed his eyes as he embraced his father and spoke "Dad….. I'm sorry….. I didn't know that you had to go through so much….. And please….. Forgive me…. If only i hadn't thrown myself in the middle of the street to save that kid, i….." his voice beginning to crack down in grief as he had realised after recalling that Isshin said that Masaki would have never forgiven him if he had died before his father. He coudn't even imagine the sorrow and grief that now haunted his dad's soul.

For a moment, Isshin remained still, his breath taken away as his son, instead of decking him in the face, embraced him tenderly and immediately forgave him for lying to him his entire life. Smiling joyously, he hugged his son back, despite now being nothing more than a soul and replied, without hesitation, no longer crying "No, Ichigo….. Forgive me…. For having lied to you all this time…. Only now have i realised that by doing so, i was only delaying the inevitable. You and your sisters were inevitably going to be thrown into the mix no matter what i did."

(Soundtrack Ends)

Yuzu and Karin looked at their father with a look of understanding and compassion, knowing full well that their father did the best he could have possibly done to keep them safe all these years while Orihime was nearly moved to tears by the heartwarming embrace shared by Ichigo and his father. It was now clear to her just how much they loved each other, in spite of the tough guy exterior that Ichigo would often project most of the time.

"What you did today for that kid can't be expressed by words alone." declared Isshin as he removed himself from the embrace, smiled at Ichigo and placed a hand on his son's left shoulder "I'm so proud of you my son. And your mother would feel the same way. If only she could see what a kind and mature young man you've become, Ichigo."

The orange haired teenager, returned the smile and declared, with the same love and affection "And i'm proud to have had you as my dad." his face then took on an irked expression as he stated "Although you were kinda of a prick, always waking me up by jumping on me like that. Though i guess you did that in order to keep my skill on check, so thanks for that too." earning an amused laugh from Yuzu and Karin while Orihime giggled cutely.

"Yeah, i know. I just wanted to….." replied Isshin….

…. Only for his eyes to widen in shock upon sensing two spiritual presences nearby that were not those of any normal souls. A concerned look formed on all of the teenagers's faces and Yuzu asked "D… Dad… What's going on?" before Orihime, Ichigo and Karin realised that two Hollows were nearby.

"ICHIGO! TAKE YOUR SISTERS AND GET AWAY!" Cried out Orihime before she went towards the door of the Kurosaki House, swiftly opened it and to her surprise the two Hollows were standing right in front of her, a few meters away. One of them , which stood on all fours, resembled a wingless dragon, with a white skull-like mask equipped with a wide mouth full of sharp teeth, two horns that extended from the back of its skull and glowing yellow eyes. It had a pitch black skinned, lean and muscular body with five sharp claws coming out of its five fingered hands and feet and a white skeletal lashing tail. The other one resembled a massive, four meter tall ape, with green fur all over its body except its chest and abdomen, which was black, as well as its mask.

As Orihime went outside under the rain and rounded her eyes on both Hollows in defiance and resolution, the Hollow that resembled a dragon spoke "Well, well, what do we have here? Apparently this human girl can see us." his reverberating and snake-like voice sending chills on Orihime's spine.

"How interesting. That spiky haired boy looked so delicious but she will make for one equally interesting meal." remarked the ape-like Hollow, his voice even deeper than the draconic one as he cracked the fingers of his massive hands in preparation of his next meal.

(OST: "Destiny Awaits" normal version )

These Hollows of course had no idea of who they were up against. Even if she was nowhere near as powerful as her friends, she had demonstrated to be perfectly capable of handling such basic Hollows as that female Jellyfish one found out the hard way when she went for Tatsuki and Chizuru's souls. And she'll die before she'll let one of this freaks eat Ichigo.

Thus, with a look of pure determination and not a hint of fear, she declared "Over my dead body!" before extending both of her arms towards them, joining her hands together and beginning to chant "Koten Zansh-"

"That won't be necessary, young lady." interrupted Isshin, while gently placing a hand on her left arm. Orihime looked at Ichigo's father, who gave her a kind look before ordering "Get back to the others and look after them, i'll make this quick" while glancing at Ichigo and his sisters who were peeking through the door to see what was going on, instead of running away.

As Orihime did as she was told, Isshin's turned towards the two Hollows and after narrowing his eyes towards them in contempt, remarked casually "You know, it's not nice to interrupt people who are in the middle of a conversation. Didn't your parents ever teach that to you?" while folding his arms over his chest.

Amused, the two Hollows looked at Isshin with their glowing yellow eyes, immediately recognising him as a Soul Reaper. The draconic one then spoke up "HA! Look, a lone Soul Reaper! This just keeps getting better and better!" while unfurling its long black tongue and licking its teeth, overjoyed to have found an even more enticing meal and eagerly looking forward to sink his teeth in Isshin flesh.

"You can have him. I'll go for the girl and the boy." commanded the green furred ape one. But as soon as the Hollow spoke those words, Isshin grabbed the hilt of his Zampakuto with his right hand while gripping his sheath with his right one, startling both of them.

"You know, i've never really hated you Hollows. After all, you do what you do because just as we eat food you eat souls. Problem is….." he began, while drawing his Zampakuto from his sheath and pointing it at both of them "That soul behind me just so happens to be the one of my son. So unless you two have a death wish, i would suggest you crawl back to whatever shithole you came from before i cut you in half." Orihime, Yuzu and Karin looked in awe as Ichigo's father faced the two Hollows on his own without a tiny shread of fear and doubt, acting the same way a man would act when faced with two ants.

As Isshin predicted, the two Hollows roared monstrously with their signature before charging towards him, intending to consume him instead. What happened next left all four teenagers in awe and astonishment as Isshin simply grabbed the hilt of his Zampakuto with his other hand, now dual wielding it before raising it up before bringing it back down and declaring "Burn, Engetsu!"

Ichigo, Orihime, Karin and Yuzu watched with their mouths agape as blazing flames covered Isshin's Zampakuto which engulfed even its tassels, creating long trailing streams and at the same time, a blazing orange aura of fire covered Isshin and the ground beneath him. And as the Hollows beared down on him, Ichigo's father simply brought his Zampakuto back on his right side and, faster than Yuzu and Karin could see, slashed the two Hollows in half with a quick diagonal slash, releasing the flames that had gathered around his sword at the same time. The two Hollows were literally consumed by the flames which completely erased them from existence.

"Amazing.. He's got the same power as the Head Captain…." remarked Ichigo, utterly blown away. While it wasn't quite as powerful as Yamamoto's Ryujin Jakka, he didn't expect his father's Zampakuto to also be capable of manipulating fire.

"Wow…. He didn't even need to use it but he did it nonetheless to show us how strong he really is…." remarked an even more astounded Orihime, having figured out that if he wanted to, Isshin could have easily taken out these two Hollows with just a single swing of his released Zampakuto.

"Dad.. I have to take it back. You're possibly the coolest person i've ever known. That was so badass." mused Karin to herself while Yuzu had been so blown away by what she had seen, that she coudn't even speak. Both of them had to rethink their entire image of him. All this time he was this goofy and hopeless middle-aged man that always behaved like a child, much to her chagrin. She had no idea that he was actually this powerful. And now she had understood why he had acted like this for most of their life. It was actually his way of protecting them from these creatures.

"Ichigo….." suddenly called out Isshin, pulling all three of his children, plus Orihime out of their trance of amazement as the flames faded away from his Zampakuto "I've noticed how ever since you lost your Soul Reaper powers, you've been even more unhappy than you were before you became a Soul Reaper more than a year ago."

Ichigo's eyes widened. He knew. His dad had in fact taken notice of his depression. Once again he was surprised by how deceivingly observant his father was, in spite of how childish he acted most of the time. Then again, he is a former captain so naturally it would make sense that he would be this analytical.

"Well, now that you've died and are nothing more than a soul, you can get them back the same way you did before you and your friends went to the Soul Society. But not today. You must already be quite shocked by everything i've told you earlier." declared Isshin, confirming his theory and restoring his son's resolve while sheating his sword back in its holster.

(Soundtrack Ends)

He then turned towards him and said "Of course, the choice will ultimately remain yours and yours alone. But you should rest for now. It's been a long and tiring day already for all of us." while walking towards him and the girls.

As he went back inside, an ecstatic Yuzu squealed "Dad, that was so cool! I didn't know you had a sword that you could light up on fire at will!" while the others, including Isshin smiled. After all, in spite of having been forced to grow up at an earlier age than most other girls, due to her mother's death, she was still a girl and thus she looked so adorable when she acted like that.

Isshin petted her daughter in the head before he went back into his living body that still lied on the floor, got up and declared "Alright, now that all of that is out of the way, let's have some dinner! But before that….." he paused, looking at Orihime, whose clothes were all wet due to having gone out while it was still raining and stating "I think we should get this girl some new clothes…."

Orihime gasped and then after looking at herself, finally realised how wet all of her clothes were. She then squealed in embarrassment as her voluptous figure could be clearly seen through her drenched clothes, which hung tightly on her body, especially on her big breasts, causing Yuzu and even Karin to blush upon seeing just how beautiful her body was. Both of them coudn't believe that it would only be a few years before their body would become like that.

And so, after giving Orihime new clothes, she joined Ichigo and his family at dinner, and was blown away by how good Yuzu's cooking was. She felt so happy being for once in the company of a caring and loving family, one she never had. She laughed, joked and talked about many of the fond memories and past experiences that Ichigo's family shared and the many experiences Orihime had at school and with her friends. Yuzu and Karin were equally happy to have the company of someone as joyful and radiant as Orihime: truth be told, she reminded them of their mother due to not only how kind and cheerful she was, but also due to how similar the color of her hair was to that of Masaki.

Ichigo did his best to smile and chuckle as he spent what he was sure to be his last dinner with his family. Fortunately, in spite of being no more than a soul, he could still eat and thus got the chance to enjoy Yuzu's wonderful food for what he was sure would be the last time.

Later on, as dinner was over, he said goodnight to his father and sisters and went to his bedroom, followed by Orihime, who decided to keep him company on what would probably have been the last day of his life in the World of the Living.

As he lied on his bed with his back, he looked at Orihime, who sat on the edge of his bed close to him and told her "I hoped you enjoyed Yuzu's food. She really knows how to cook."

The orange haired teenage girl replied with a smile "Yes….. it was some of the best food i ever had….." but her voice, filled with melancholy made it clear, that what happened had saddened her. She was fully aware that he would have never been with her and his family again.

He then sat on his bed and looked at her with sadness before saying "Orihime…. I'm sorry…. I shoudn't have…."

Only for the girl to hug him tightly and reply "No, it's okay….. You saved that kid's life. It was the right thing to do. And besides…." she paused, while looking him in the eyes and giving him the sweetest smile one could think of "I know that you will be happy with your powers back. And that is enough for me."

Heartwarmed, Ichigo smiled back at her and returned the hug, his heart now at peace that no matter what, Orihime will be happy that once he would get his powers back, he will finally become happy again.

And with that both of them went to bed, with Ichigo sharing his bed with the girl he had saved from the clutches of Aizen. And soon, sleep overtook them.