Ichigos eyes slowly opened to the sound of knocking on his door, the orange haired teen letting out a loud yawn as he sat up in the guest bed. Blinking the sleep out of his eyes, he rolled his eyes as the continued knocking on the door turned into pounding and rose his voice, "I'm up, I'm up! Give me a second and I'll be right there!" And so the pounding on his door ceased, the soul reaper sighing with a roll of his eyes and moving to put on his shihakusho. Once he was dressed he put Zangetsu on his back.

Though because he lacked his human body, that also meant the only outfit he had was his soul reaper uniform which, suffice to say, wasn't exactly suitable for every day life. He'd also have to get other supplies just to keep up basic hygiene, which he couldn't help but feel slightly annoyed with. He normally was okay with going shopping, but considering he would be shopping for himself in an entirely new world, he wasn't exactly thrilled.

Though there were a few things he would have to deal with before he could take care of his shopping needs that were a bit more important at the moment. He opened the door to a smirking Yang, the blond girl seemingly amused by waking him up, "Rise and shine carrot top. Dad wants to talk to ya and Ruby can't stop going on about that spar you promised her." If he didn't know better, he would think he saw a flash of red in the blond beauty's eyes, only for them to return to their lilac coloring.

"Suppose I shouldn't keep em waiting then blondie." He couldn't help but smirk a little at the way her right eye twitched in annoyance, "Maybe we can try your luck sometime and see just how well you do against me." A challenge, one that he was very well aware would be accepted. She almost seemed a little like Tatsuki, and if she was anything like his childhood friend her pride wouldn't allow her to back down.

He was proven right when the girl rose her hands, cracking her knuckles and her neck with a confident smile on her face, confirming his earlier suspicions as the red once more flashed across her eyes. He couldn't help but be reminded of the way his own eyes changed when the hollow took over, "You're on. Maybe we'll be seeing what's left of you after I'm done with you." With that, Yang turned away and went down the hall and down the stairs, leaving Ichigo be.

Well, at the very least Yang being around would make sure things stayed interesting while he stayed in Remnant. Shaking his head at the blond girls attitude with a small smile, he made his own way down the hall and stairway, finding Tai waiting for him in the living room, leaning back in his couch. The huntsman looked up at him and gave him a smile, waving at the young soul reaper with a twinkle in his eye, "Mornin Ichigo, or I guess I should say afternoon. Should've warned me you'd sleep the day away if given the chance!"

He couldn't help but blush a bit in embarrassment, putting a hand to the back of his head as he sighed, "Call it a habit I picked up on over the years." Though he had been without his powers for a long while, that didn't stop what had been ingrained into him. Sleeping for as long as he could in the morning in the case he was called away in the middle of the night to deal with a hollow, or the odd blue haired arrancar that wanted to try and kick his teeth in.

He had been momentarily worried upon his arrival on how Karakura town would fare without him there, though he had been quick to dismiss such thoughts. His friends had been more than capable of keeping their home safe while he had been powerless, and that was without the involvement of his father and the other captain class souls that lived in the town. If anything were to happen while he was away, he was confident everyone would be fine.

Even if the thought of something happening while he was gone was maddening.

Shaking off such thoughts, the older man shrugged at his little defense, "Its not a big deal, just gave me a bit more time to go ahead and make some calls. Though you may want to try and get a better sleep schedule." The man got up from his seat and went to the front door, gesturing for Ichigo to follow him as he did. The soul reaper did so, his eyes squinting for a moment as they adjusted to the bright light of the sun, which seemed perfectly normal in comparison to the shattered moon from the night before.

"Make some calls?" He asked, his head tilting his curiosity as his eyes narrowed in the slightest amount of suspicion, "Who'd ya call? And how much did you tell them about me?" Tai had been an exception, due to witnessing his abilities first hand and because Ichigo currently had no information about the world he was in whatsoever. Plus he was generally a fairly good judge of character, and he could tell after talking with him that Tai was a truthworthy enough individual. Not enough to tell his whole life story to and all the conflicts he had been in, but enough for him to know what he is and how his abilities work in depth, with a brief synopsis of the court guard and the afterlife as a whole.

The huntsman didn't seem all that bothered by his suspicion however as he spoke, leading him over to the forest so they could speak more privately, "I called up an old friend, he's actually the headmaster of Vales huntsman academy, Beacon. I didn't tell him too much, just that you were a bit of a special case and really strong." He turned to face Ichigo and crossed his arms, leaning back against a tree once he deemed they were far enough away from the house. He couldn't help that now there was a certain hardness in his eyes, yet he could feel it wasn't directed at himself. If he had to guess, he would wager it was directed at this "old friend" of Tai's, "Don't worry, I didn't tell him what you were or just how much you're capable of."

Filing away the undertone of anger in Tai's voice for later contemplation, Ichigo nodded his head and relaxed a bit, "Gotcha. Though why exactly are you calling up the headmaster of some school?" His face paled and he could feel dread bubble up within him as one of the more obvious possibilities came to mind, "Don't tell me you're trying to get me enrolled in an academy while I'm here!"

Tai snorted and shook his head at his incredulous response, waving his hand as if to dismiss his concerns, "You seem like a smart kid Ichigo, but I doubt even you can catch up on years of schooling for a world you've known nothing about your entire life. Wouldn't make much sense for me to throw you into a school system you're completely unfamiliar with. Ozpin will be able to help us figure something out for you. If there's anyone who can figure out the best way to put your powers to use, its him." Once more he couldn't help but notice the slight anger in his voice, the man looking down at the ground after he spoke.

"Do you have something against Ozpin?" Tai raised his head up to look at Ichigo, an uncharacteristic frown on his face. He continued, seeing as Tai didn't stop him there, "You speak like the guys done something to you personally, yet you still call him an old friend and trust him enough to help deal with my situation, instead of reaching out to anyone else that could help. What gives?"

For a few moments there was silence as the blond and orange haired man stared each other down, Tai pursing his lips and looking away after a while, "Ozpin knows what he's doing. He's a smart man, and more importantly, he's got more connections than I ever could have. I just have my own problems with the guy, that's all. Nothing more, nothing less." His tone was final, making it clear that he wasn't exactly willing to divulge more details on the subject.

Ichigo couldn't help but sigh, deciding he would leave well enough alone in this case. If Tai ever felt like sharing what was wrong, he would do it on his own time. He had no right to press the man, especially not with everything he was doing for him, "Alright, you say so. After I'm done sparring with Ruby, I gotta go take care of that thing I mentioned last night. I need to be left completely alone during this time." Cracking his neck, he began to turn away from Tai, intent on returning to the house to speak with Ruby about that spar only to turn back as Tai began to follow, "Oh, and if you wouldn't mind helping me shop for some stuff later, I'd really appreciate it."

"Sure, we can go once you've got what you needed to take care of handled. I've not got much to keep me busy today." Satisfied that he would get the help he needed, Ichigo turned away and began to make his way to the house, only for Tai to speak up again, "Yang generally has a good eye when it comes to fashion as well, and I haven't taken her shopping in a while. May as well bring her and Ruby along too."

A pit of dread opened up in his stomach as he thought of the hell that Yang would make sure to bring down upon him. Perhaps it wasn't the best of ideas to provoke her after all...


It didn't take too long to look for Ruby, the younger teen hanging around the back of the house as she cleaned her scythe, the soul reaper taking a second to remember that the name of the mechashift sniper scythe was Crescent Rose. Upon arriving the silver eyed girl looked up from her cleaning, her eyes lighting up when she saw him and letting out a singular loud "WHOOP!"

He couldn't help but give the girl a small smile, her good mood and happy personality being just the slightest bit infectious, "So, you wanted to have a spar with me?" He took note of Tai watching nearby, a smile on his face as his recent mood was seemingly forgotten, his arms crossed as he leaned against the back of the house. Nearby Ichigo saw Yang watching as well, a smirk on her face as she watched, though she seemed a little tense. If Ichigo had to guess, he would say she was worried, and ready to leap in just in case she felt things were going wrong. Despite the banter earlier, they were still strangers.

As far as she knew, he was a potential threat to her family.

'Like she could stop us if we really wanted to let loose.' He ignored the voice of his hollow, knowing better at this point than to let what he said get to him. Letting him get under his skin too easily would only make things that much easier if he wished to cause trouble for Ichigo later on.

"Yep!" She exclaimed, popping the 'p' as she did so, "Most of the other students at Signal can't really keep up that well anymore, and all I normally get to spar with are Yang and Dad, who insist on using their fists." She rolled her eyes fondly as she described how her family preferred to fight, making it clear she preferred using her scythe over her hands, "Usually I have to wait till Uncle Qrow comes around for a real spar!"

He'd have to ask about this uncle of hers at some point, considering he kept getting brought up in conversation, "I see. Well, you'll be happy to know I am more than capable of keeping up with you." As he said this he took Zangetsu off his back, the wraps coming undone from the silver and black blade, the sun glinting off the large sword. He laid the zanpakuto across his shoulders and stood at the ready, waiting for Ruby, "Your move."

Instead of charging right into battle, the silver eyed teen went ahead and tested the waters with Ichigo, keeping her weapon within a more compact form before firing a shot at Ichigo. The carrot topped soul reaper raised an eyebrow and raised Zangetsu in front of him, wielding the blade with a single hand as he blocked the incoming bullet. Ruby fired off four more shots he blocked with a relatively lazy ease, waiting as Ruby reloaded.

The next shot he blocked however turned out to be a bit of a surprise as a portion of Zangetsu's blade was frozen. With another two shots close behind the first he blocked them, not wanting to tip the two watching teens off to just how quick he could be yet, more of his blade being covered in ice. Impressive enough for a girl her age and power, considering how inexperienced she likely was still in battle.

"Well!" Ichigo made sure to be loud, catching Ruby's attention as she prepared to fire off another volley, "I suppose this means its my turn now. You wanted to see what Zangetsu could do." He drew Zangetsu back as he spoke as if he were about to fire off a getsuga, though he didn't charge his sword with an ounce of spirit energy. "Here's a taste." He swung his sword out, a blast as powerful as his former shikais getsuga being let loose. He knew better than to swing with as much force as when he fought against Ginjo though, considering he wanted to give the girl a chance to dodge.

His sight was greeted with a blur of red as she avoided the blast, no longer quite having a distinct form as she simply became what looked like a cloud of rose petals. He couldn't help but be reminded of Senbonsakura as she covered the distance between them, ending her semblance and swinging her scythe towards him. 'She changed it as she used her semblance. Smart.' He swung Zangetsu up to meet the scythe with one hand, his eyes widening as Ruby fired off another bullet.

She was no longer firing ice, yet the bullet was shrouded in darkness as it went by his head. She used the momentum from the shot to spin her scythe and flip backwards, firing off another shot at him as she spun, Ichigo having to block the bullet and narrowing his eyes at the increased amount of force behind the shot. "The hell?" He muttered, swinging his sword to the right and deflecting the bullet away from him. He was greeted with the sight of Ruby putting the end of her scythe behind her, before firing off again and sending her flying towards the soul reaper.

He had to block a spinning slash from the girl, the strike being impressive for someone of her size and age. Her spin kept going, more strikes landing against the flat of Zangetsu's blade. On the next spin though, the scythes reach was increased and the blade landed just inside his guard, hooking onto Zangetsu and forcing his blade down. He was faced with the muzzle of the scythe, Ruby taking the chance to fire a shot into his chest.

He rose his spirit energy in response to block the shot, using it as if he was using aura. Grunting at the impact of the bullet, he lifted Zangetsu up and forced Ruby and her scythe away. The redhead had expended what he guessed shouldn't have been much of her energy, yet she was already panting a little, even though she should've been able to go much further without showing much physical exertion.

Grabbing Zangetsu by the hilts chain, he started to spin the sword around him, gradually getting to a point where the massive sword appeared to be a blur as he spun it, the chain having extended suitably to give Ichigo enough room to effectively use the zanpakuto. He swung Zangetsu while Ruby caught her breath, forcing the redhead back on the move as his sword crashed into where she was, creating a small crater. Putting a second hand further down the chain, he swung the blade to the left where she ran. She took the chance to land on the flat of his blade, Ichigo using the opportunity to bring Zangetsu back to him and get her off balance.

Taking his chance to get at the girl, he grabbed her arm before she could regain her balance and counter, turning and throwing her into a tree trunk, a deep red aura coming to life around her at the impact. He threw Zangetsu again, the blade sinking through the trunk next to her head. The cloaked girl couldn't help but squeak and jump away from the sword, looking back at the smirking soul reaper, "Think I'm capable of handling my blade now?"

For a few moments she stared at him with wide silver eyes, before a grin began to slowly spread across her face as she raised her arms in the air, "That was so AWESOME!" Grabbing her scythe and turning it back into its compact sniper form, seemingly finished with the spar now, she ran up to him with an excited gleam in her eyes, "What was that huge energy blast? How exactly do the chains extend with your aura? Are they made from a reactive metal and stored within the hilt? Oh my god it was so cool!"

He couldn't help but deadpan just a little at her reaction to the fight, though he supposed he should've expected it from last night. He turned a little to have a quick look at Tai, only to see that the older huntsman was gone. A further inspection showed that he was standing in front of Yang, keeping an arm wrapped around her shoulder and having her hugged close to him, an obvious frown on her face and red eyes flashing with anger. Despite the setting being a spar, it seemed she hadn't taken the sight of her younger sister being kept so easily on the back-foot too well.

An older protective older sibling would NOT be fun to deal with. He should know.

"For that 'huge energy blast' as you put it, its called a getsuga, which means moon fang. I condense a large amount of aura within my swords blade and release it in a single strike." Not exactly a lie, even if what he did wasn't at all related to the getsuga in the slighest. "As for the chain, well, I can't give you every secret about my sword. Gotta keep you guessin." He felt no shame in giving such a blatant lie here.

"That's so cool!" She was bouncing around on the balls of her feet as she spoke, the gleam in her eye only growing that much brighter, "You were so strong too! We gotta spar again at some point!" He couldn't help the small smile that grew on his face, putting a hand on the top of her head and ruffling her hair. The bright and innocent look in her eyes reminded him a bit of his own younger sister Yuzu.

"I'm fine with having another sparring match at some point, as long as your dad approves." Looking over to the calm Tai and still slightly steamed Yang, the blond man gave a nod of approval with a smile, with Yang furiously shaking her head. Ichigo made a point to ignore her, as did Ruby it seems as she let out a small 'yes!', "Well, there you have it. We can spar again at some point, though not today. I got a few things to take care of."

The girl fist pumped the air with a cheer before she ran off, likely intending to go ahead and work on her weapon. Tai released Yang once the two were done talking so that she wouldn't interrupt or try to make her disapproval evident. Once she was released the blond marched her way over to him, her eyes alight with anger, though now they weren't an active inferno of rage.

She grabbed the front of his shihakusho, her eyes boring into his own as she glared at him. He was largely unbothered by her scarlet gaze, knowing he had done nothing wrong and that she was just trying to be a bit too overprotective. He was broken from his thoughts as her grip tightened on his shihakusho and she brought him closer to her, "If I ever see your sword get so close to impaling my sisters head like that again, you're going to regret it."

"I'm not some amateur still learning how to use his weapon." He rose a hand and grabbed her wrist with a frown on his face, having thought she may have been more upset over the beam from before, "If I wasn't confident I would avoid actually hurting her, I wouldn't have risked throwing Zangetsu like that. There was nothing to worry about in the first place, Yang." She pulled her hand out of his grip, the glare not leaving her face even as the red in her eyes finally began to drain away. "Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go and take care of something."

With that, Ichigo turned and walked back into the woods surrounding the house, slightly dreading the encounter that he was walking into.


Once he was deep within the forest and away from any spiritual presence he let go of any restraints he had on his spirit energy, focusing it down in the immediate area around him. He wouldn't be conscious of what happened around him, and he didn't want to have to be forced out to protect himself against a couple of grimm. So he let go of all his restraints, the weight of his spirit pressure capable of crushing the life out of any grimm that got too close.

Setting himself down on the forest floor with Zangetsu laid across his lap, he took a deep breath and closed his eyes, entering his inner world.

...Only to immediately raise Zangetsu in defense once he entered as a white version of Zangetsu landed against his blade, sending him flying across a gap into another building with a yell of surprise. Before he could properly react to what just happened he was attacked again, Ichigo using flash step to get out of the way and regain his bearings this time.

He noted with satisfaction that his inner world was dry, with only a few grey clouds to be seen on what would be called a mostly sunny day. Standing in front of him with a furious glare on his face was the very hollow he had come to confront, the spirit taking Zangetsu by the chain and throwing it his way. Dodging to the right, he was surprised When the spirit charged up a getsuga within its blade before swinging it by its blade, releasing the condensed spirit energy once it made contact with Ichigos Zangetsu.

He quickly charged up Zangetsu with his own getsuga before blocking the white blade, releasing his getsuga once he had nullified some of the power of the hollows attack, taking a page out of Grimmjows book as he released it at a single point to minimize the damage. Once it passed he only had a few small burns on his arms, the orange haired teen glaring at his all white and black counterpart in frustration, "Nice to see you, too. So, this gonna be our usual dance number?" He asked, preparing to charge up another getsuga within his own blade.

The response he got wasn't quite what he was expecting though, "YOU ARE SUCH AN INFURIATING BASTARD ICHIGO!" The substitute couldn't help but be shocked out of using his getsuga, letting the energy dissipate as the hollow began to go on a rant of all things, "You've had your powers back for over a month now, and not ONCE do you bother to come and check in! You just assume I'm gone, good riddance to the guy that SAVED YOUR ASS! Not even a thank you for being willing to go ahead with your hair brained fucking plan to use the final getsuga!"

The hollow launched himself at Ichigo again, the teen raising his blade and charging a getsuga again as he dashed forward to meet him, the hollow doing the same. Their getsuga infused zanpakuto collided with an explosion of violet, both of them discharging their attacks at the same time. The soul reaper and hollow were sent flying, only to flash step back into combat once more. The hollow charged a cero above his hand and went to slam it into Ichigo, only for him to grab his hand and redirect the doom blast.

"Why the hell would I check in with you?!" He was incredulous, taking the hollow by his arm now and throwing him into a building, "You've made it clear that if I ever give you the chance you'll take my body for yourself! You'll kill me! I'm supposed to be thankful because you did what you could to save yourself? Have you lost whatever semblance of sanity you had left?!" As they fought, he couldn't help but take note of the fact that Zangetsu was absent, though he could feel his presence nearby.

He was watching them, instead of intervening.

"Save myself?" The hollow actually seemed fairly dumbfounded at his retort, "Why would I ever even allow the use of an ability that would effectively destroy me if all I wanted to do was keep myself alive and take away my chance at your body?" He began to laugh, seemingly mocking Ichigo and in complete disbelief, "You still don't get it do you? After over a year to think on things, you still haven't figured it out? YOU IDIOT!"

He used his white Zangetsu to cut his palm, before aiming it at Ichigo with a glare. The soul reaper in question realized what he was doing as a white cero outlined in red began to form in his palm, charging it up before he snarled, "GRAN REY CERO!" The white and black doppelganger didn't hesitate to fire off the most powerful doom blast Ichigo had ever seen, the substitute being given no choice but to use flashstep to get away. The blast ripped through several skyscrapers before finally detonating far away, the cero having the force of a small nuke as shockwaves went through his inner world.

"What exactly am I supposed to figure out?! You're a hollow leaching off my powers that I need to subjugate if I want to survive!" The hollow stayed silent as he sonido'd in front of Ichigo, slowly beginning to advance on the carrot topped soul reaper, "You got in the way of my battle with Byakuya, in my fight with Yammy, you were always getting in my way until I forcefully pushed you out of the way!"

The hollow growled and leaped forward, discarding his blade as he went for close combat. Ichigo did the same, the hollow landing a fist in Ichigo's gut after he did so, "You needed to SUBJUGATE me because you were too weak to win without me getting in the way! You were losing against Byakuya, you needed me to save you from Kenpachi and that weak ass lieutenant! Every fight in the soul society I had to save your ass, with the only exceptions being with that third seat and the canon fodder!"

Ichigo had nothing to say to this and simply continued to fight, grabbing the insane spirit by his face and throwing him into one of his inner worlds skyscrapers, following it up with a flashstep and an attempted kick, only for the hollow to sonido out of the way and land a kick in his side. Ichigo wasn't quite sure what to say, very aware that if it wasn't for the outside interference of Zangetsu and the hollow that he would've been killed in the fights mentioned previously, or at the very least taken down for longer than he was.

"Then why?" He flashstepped away from the hollow, putting some distance between them to put a stop to the fighting, "Why help if it wasn't taking over you were really interested in? What the hell were you trying to accomplish by acting as if you were waiting to devour my soul?!" He finished off with a shout, his blade re-materializing within his grasp as his patience began to wear thin, a getsuga beginning to charge within the dark blade.

"BECAUSE I WILL NOT ACCEPT A WEAK WIELDER!" The exclamation was enough to shock Ichigo into dispelling his getsuga, watching as the hollow began to go on a rant of sorts, "The difference between the king and the horse is instinct, that's what I told you. You kept HESITATING! You were afraid and had no killer instinct! But beyond that, you were too weak of a king to properly wield me! If you're going to be weak, if you will hesitate, then why the hell should I submit to YOU?! It took you a damn long time to actually become an acceptable wielder, even with all my attempts at making you better and protecting you!"

Ichigo couldn't help but think of the last time they had battled, when he had claimed to be Zangetsu. He'd had his doubts for a while, those doubts being banished when he saw the hollow and Zangetsu standing side by side as separate entities. They proved capable of fusion, but they had been more than capable of being their own spirits. Yet the way he spoke...

"We are both, Zangetsu."


Yep, a cliffy. This has been finished for a long while, and I've been sitting on it partially because of the chapter length. I had kept on writing after this, but it felt wrong to add it to this chapter, so I eventually cut things off here. Gives me a bit of a headstart on chapter 3 at least. I'm sorry for the huge delay guys.

Before we go, I do have a reply for a guest reviewer. I will say this now, I will very rarely allow guest reviews, as I like to reply to people personally, and not within a chapter.

That said, first I will say the conflict with Yang, its not going to be exactly major, but they did get off on the wrong foot. So that's something they'll need to work around, and obviously there are people he's going to conflict with. (Jaune will not have a fun time with Ichigo.)

I felt odd having Ichigo reveal the truth to Tai as well, but I thought about who Ichigo was as a person as well as the circumstance I put him in. He's in a brand new world with no idea how it works, and he has no way to spin his lack of knowledge without seeming suspicious, and he did just let loose a getsuga in front of Tai. Keep in mind, this isn't his initial shikai getsuga. This is the same getsuga that vaporized a mansion and left not even ash left and turned a heavy overcast into a clear sky. There is no way I could say he has a semblance that allows him to pour his aura into a giant energy beam capable of such power. It would be fairly ludicrous, especially considering how effortless it is for him. Beyond that, Ichigo needs someone in his corner who knows the truth, and Tai has connections through Ozpin (Even if Ichigo doesn't know it yet) and plus Ichigo doesn't really seem to be a good liar or like lying. Any time he tries it comes off as horribly fake and he gets his shit called out immediately, when its serious at least. Beyond that, Ichigo isn't going to tell everyone his secret. Tai was an exception due to circumstance. (This will also be the reply for anyone else who may have an issue with this.)

Next, a little thing, that being my usage of italics and bold. No. My apologies, but I will not be halting the usage. Why? One, I despise reading a fic, only for it to then be cut off with ~Flashback~ ~Flashback End~ instead of a seamless transition. Italics makes it easier to catch, and most people at this point likely get the idea that italics on FF= Past event. And I can't just write using a normal font with Ichigo going "As he remembered what brought him here" with nothing to signify what's different except for, say, a line break. (I use them enough as is.) Bold will also not be going away, considering I, like many others, use them for my notes and will be using them to differentiate between the two Zangetsu, as already shown. In all the stories I've written (Let's only count Blood and Return, seeing as they're the only ones that have really gotten proper attention) this is the only complaint I've ever had about bold and italics, and it won't stop me now. If you do not wish to continue reading due to that, that is your choice. We both have our freedoms.

Truthfully in terms of description and dialogue, I would benefit from a beta or a co writer to assist, though I have one highly consistent issue. I do not update consistently, and I will not ask someone to wait for my nonsense. I'm a busy person, and I am also an exhausted one. I write when I muster the energy and brain power, or when I get the foolish idea to start up another story that won't leave me. I more than anyone am aware of my flaws when it comes to writing (Romance being among them as well as many others) But there comes a point where I stop sitting in an attempt to write and rewrite and I simply go, fuck it all, I'll send it out. If I were a more consistent writer, and were to get a consistent beta, or better yet a co-writer, I would leap at the chance because I have absolutely no doubt that my stories would only benefit from it.