V 1.0
March 27th, 2001
"Thank you for taking care of me, Sensei." Goichi Daniel, now out of his patient gown & fully dressed in his clothes, bowed before the balding surgeon who, as he was told, saved his life in the operation room.
"Don't mention it boy, it's what I'm here for. Don't forget to thank Kurosaki-sensei as well, he's the one who paid for your treatment here."
That bit of information came as a surprise to Goichi since he didn't recall Ichigo telling him anything about that. Meaning he either didn't know that his father paid the bills or didn't want to mention that to him.
Might be why Ichigo said to him yesterday to visit his dad & sisters whenever he feels better. 50 000 yen for the surgery alone, not to mention the costs of hospital stay, isn't exactly a small amount & the least he could do is to pop up & say hi.
"Will do. His clinic is close to the hospital, right?"
"Sort-of. It's in the north-east section of Minamikawase area. I don't remember the name of the street, but I do believe it should be a 10-minute walk from here to there – just look for a house with a big sign that says "Kurosaki Family Clinic". Explained the surgeon.
"House with a big clinic sign, got it. Anything else I should know?" Daniel asked.
"A couple more things." The doctor quickly cleared his throat with a single cough, "Now, I know school is around the corner but please do delay joining any sports clubs. Even with how that wound of yours healed miraculously quickly in these few days, I'd advise you steer clear of any sports that require you to jolt your head around and potentially aggravate the neck for at least a week."
Daniel nodded though he knew he was going to shorten that to a few days, mostly because Ichigo told him that Tatsuki (remembering how Ichigo rolled his eyes when he asked him if he was referring to the cute dark-haired tomboy) wanted him to step in the local dojo, teach him a few moves. Considering she's a black belt he knew that she could definitely teach him a thing or two.
"If you don't feel any pain as you say you don't, then there would be no reason to take any medicine whatsoever. But I would highly recommend you moisturize the scar with a neutral gel, it will help reduce the scarring."
The doctor paused for a moment, and then asked:
"Do you feel any pain in your chest or in your back, perhaps…?"
"If you're asking me because of the scar," Dan interrupted the doctor abruptly, "then no, I have no issues. It's an old wound with a…messy history behind it Sensei, so I'd rather not talk about it."
"Alright, alright. I see it's a sensitive issue. But if something does happen, pain or something, then come here, okay?"
He nodded in return before asking:
"Was there something else or can I go now?"
"No, that's it. Before you leave, do check in with the nurse at the counter and write down the name & number of your…guardian in the emergency contact form."
"Hm." Dan nodded again, knowing why the doctor sounded iffy when he mentioned him. He told the police who visited a day after Ichigo, about the incident at the park. He was also asked why Daniel refused to let the hospital know who his guardian was & not contact him, Daniel mentioned that he's busy & didn't want to disturb him with news like this.
That and the fact that the police didn't press harder on any questions once he said who his guardian really was, more specifically – who his boss was. They knew better than to push further.
Besides, it wasn't even in their jurisdiction to begin with considering he was still back in Sotenbori.
"Anyway, if you ever get hurt come pay me a visit. But try to not get stabbed anymore."
"I'll try, Sensei." 'But I can't promise anything' was left unsaid.
The journey back home was uneventful, though Daniel did stop by the supermarket to buy the groceries again with the money that was left in his wallet. Bought the same exact things like the last time but now he's just going to beeline to the toolshed on the roof.
He wasn't in any particular hurry, as it was still morning when he got discharged from the hospital. But he did plan on visiting the Kurosakis in the afternoon, which meant his little exploration of Karakura would have to wait.
"Then again, I could just ask Ichigo to show me the town…" he told himself as he climbed the stairs to the rooftop of the building he was living on top of it.
"Oh…"
Upon hearing the sigh Daniel stopped in his tracks, right before his hand reached the doorknob of the rooftop access. Several scenarios went through his head – worst case scenario would be the jackasses from the park somehow found out where he lived, which…would be pretty unlikely, now that he second-guessed it. Maybe not unlikely for someone else, but for those assholes? Probably not.
Best case, and the most probable, was either a cleaning guy or a building tenant just having a smoke on the rooftop.
Still, he slowly turned the doorknob and pushed bit by bit until he saw who, or…what was that.
It was a person starring in the distance. A man to be precise, wearing a cheap suit and having an unfortunate case of a balding head. Looked like he wore glasses as well.
But the one thing that really stood out to him was the fact that the guy in front of him was transparent. As in Goichi could see the guard railing and everything beyond through the dude.
"Who are you?" asked Goichi, but got no response. Just further sighing.
"Yo, can you hear me? I asked who are you?"
This time the suit in front of him jumped a bit, looking like he was completely caught off guard.
"Y-You…you can see me?!"
The confused spirit turned towards Goichi with a confused look on his face. And upon turning towards him, Goichi noticed a quite out-of-place thing on the guy's torso. That being a broken chain link protruding from his chest, more specifically from the area where his heart was.
"Yeah, I can see you. Now that I see that thing from your chest, I don't know if I should ask who or what are you."
"Oh, well…" the suit scratched the back of his neck, "Who I am, well – my name is Hiroyuki Mishima and I'm just… well, a simple salaryman. As to what I am, well…no easy way to say this, but about a month ago I was doing my 15th in a row overtime day and, well…I guess I just fell asleep and never woke up. I've been like this ever since."
"…A ghost? You're telling me you're…a ghost?" Daniel asked, now completely unsure on how he should deal with something that he'd frankly never expected to deal with in his life.
"Well, yes…I guess? I mean, I did attend my own funeral, at which were just two of my co-workers whom I…well, I really wasn't close to. Now that I think about it," the ghost pinched his own chin, "those two almost never showed up for work & always had an excuse for their absences. Guess being at my funeral was just one of them on their long list…" stated the meek Hiroyuki.
"Wait, seriously? No girlfriend, family or even a friend? Really?!" a flabbergasted Goichi asked.
"Ah, well…" Hiroyuki scratched the back of his neck again, "I was bullied a lot at school, so no one really wanted to hang out with me, much less go out on a date. Then my parents died in a fishing boat accident just as I graduated from high school. They didn't leave me much so I went & found a job that...well, had above average working hours, so I had no time for either friends or a date. And now, well, here I am with this chain in my chest."
Safe to say that, out of all things that Goichi Daniel could expect to find on the roof, an overworked loner ghost was possibly the last thing on the list. Perhaps he wouldn't even be on the list at all.
"Was the job you died at the first job you took after your parents died?" Daniel questioned.
"Uh, yes? Why do you ask?"
"Oh man, no easy way to say this - you really, REALLY had some shit luck, landing into a black company right after high school with no one to go back to."
"A black company? I've, well, I've heard stories about them but I thought they were just an urban legend or something…" Mishima began to ponder but was cut short by Daniel's incoming question.
"Did you work overtime several days in a row just to meet a 'quota'?" Daniel wiggled his fingers on the last word.
"Uh, yes?" the ghost answered.
"Did you had to cover all the time for colleagues who always had an excuse for their absences?"
"Y-yes?"
"Did you get vague answers from your boss or manager whenever you asked for your overtime pay?"
"Yes?"
"Did you get shamed by your boss & others when you asked when you could use a vacation?"
"I, well, I guess so…"
"Did you ever thought once that your pay was kind off small in comparison with the work you've been doing?"
"Yes…" Hiroyuki murmured, now looking like a completely and utterly defeated man.
"Sorry man, but you died working for a black company."
Upon hearing Daniel's statement, Hiroyuki fell to his knees and looked down in complete resignation.
"My god, I've been a fool…Wasted my life in that… blasted company, and I didn't even see it until it was far too late…"
After saying that, Hiroyuki wrapped his arms around his head, buried his face in the floor and slowly began to cry.
Meanwhile Goichi was slowly becoming more & more annoyed at the situation at hand. He really wanted to get on with his day and actually meet the Kurosakis, but he also knew that he'd feel bad about himself for the rest of the day if he left this clueless idiot to wail in solitude.
That and there's really no guarantee if Hiroyuki would leave the rooftop by the time Daniel returned – a dead salaryman who realized he wasted away his life is the last thing he wanted to deal with. Moreso, considering he had some shrink-wrapped magazines that he brought over from Sotenbori that he's eager to go through tonight, and while he dealt with various amounts of background noises whenever he went to do his 'research', Goichi was pretty sure that the muffled bawling of a ghost would be an effective mood killer.
"Alright, look man…" he sighed, "it sucks what happened to you. Some things were out of your control while with some you absolutely fumbled dealing with them. You can't bring it back anymore, no matter how much tears you shed. I guess the only thing you can do is wait until you pass into the afterlife, I guess."
The ghost slowly raised his head, revealing a tear-stained face with snot coming out of his nose.
"B-but there is so much to do here. So many things that I've missed! So many things I wanted to do but I n-never got a chance!" Hiroyuki whined, which annoyed Daniel even more than before.
"What can I say dude – should've woke up earlier. Life isn't fair and all that. Now, if you'll excuse me…"
The moment Daniel was about to enter his toolshed of an apartment, the ghost yelled out:
"Wait! Wait, please!"
"What is it now?" Daniel turned around to face the ghost again, fully expecting the ghost to beg for some company – misery tends to like that, after all.
"Please, can…can I possess you?"
A question like that, however, was something Daniel was not expecting at all.
"Excuse me?"
"I-I was thinking, well…if I'm a ghost, then that means I can possess things, right? People too! So please, can I-"
"Not happening." Daniel cut him off.
"What? Why?!" asked the shocked ghost.
"One – neither you or I know how this possession thing works and I don't want to play the guinea pig to test it out. Two – I don't have the time to fulfill your post-mortem bucket list, so do me a favor and go or fly or whatever you do as a ghost and stop bugging me."
Whatever guilt he might've felt in his attempt to ditch the depressed ghost was completely gone upon said ghost's proposition to possess him. And whatever awe & wonder he felt upon seeing a genuine ghost for the first time in his life quickly became annoyance once he realised it was really not much different than the laments of salarymen who expected to be given everything on the silver platter for following the rules & doing absolutely nothing else.
So, he backed off of Hiroyuki & began going for the door of the toolshed…
"What gives you the right…?"
Before stopping when he heard Hiroyuki's voice, now growling & sounding slightly enraged.
"Tell me, what gives you the right to be so CRUEL?!"
"Huh?"
"Who do you think YOU ARE, acting like a know-it-all! You're just a…just a stupid kid with no experience in life!" Hiroyuki raged.
"And who was the one who got you to learn that you killed yourself working for a black company?" countered Daniel, but his words fell on deaf ears as the ghost continued with his temper tantrum.
"SHUT UP! I should be the one giving the lectures!"
Hiroyuki, with his arms extended in front of him, began angrily stomping towards Daniel and added:
"Now stand still and let me possess you!"
In the heat of the moment Daniel dropped the groceries on the floor and instinctively went for a slap – a slap that ended up being more of a open palm haymaker that aimed towards the ghost.
The details didn't really matter because the hand connected to the ghost's face and he fell on the floor ass first.
"Ow, ow…" Hiroyuki caressed his now reddened cheek while Daniel looked at his own hand, wondering if it was normal that not only he managed to physically touch & feel a ghost but also deal damage to it as well.
"Damn it…"
Daniel then looked at Hiroyuki, on the floor still clenching his cheek & looking like he's on verge of tears. After quickly checking if his groceries were still there where he dropped them, the boy approached the ghost and kneeled beside him. Then he grabbed him by his tie and yanked towards himself.
"Listen, you sad sack," Daniel growled, "Just because you had bad luck in life doesn't mean you get the right to pull this kind of shit. You call me cruel for not wanting to deal with your shit & wanting to move on with my day – tell me then, what does your attempt to take over my body make you, huh?"
"I…I…" Hiroyuki stuttered, unable to give a coherent answer.
"Just because you missed your chances in life doesn't mean I nor anyone should be the one to pay for your mistakes. Go to your former boss & colleagues for that – they're the ones who screwed you over, after all."
Daniel abruptly let go of the tie and went to pick up his groceries.
"Now here's your first & final warning – don't let me see your mug here again. Otherwise, that slap is going to feel like a love tap compared to what I'll do to you next time." Daniel starred down at the now terrified ghost, "Are we clear?"
"AH! C-clear! Crystal clear!" Hiroyuki jumped to his feet and ran towards the roof exit.
After a few moments Daniel hung the groceries over his shoulder before going towards the toolshed door, & and simply sighed.
"Some people…"
Just 5 more days until first grade of high school would start and Ichigo still didn't know what he'd do besides simply going to school & getting good grades.
Tatsuki still tries to get him to re-join the dojo & would probably try to convince him to join the karate club, but to no avail – can't really convince a guy who simply lost any interest in martial arts whatsoever.
Regarding other school clubs, he couldn't really think much about it since he has no idea what kind of clubs the school will have, other than the usual sports & music ones. The music club might be of slight interest considering he does have a guitar in his room, one that he didn't touch in a very long time but it was something to think about.
Earning a certain reputation & maintaining it was the first thing that came to his mind, the implication of vanity not being lost on him but ultimately too meaningless to him to care about. As long as it backs off anyone who would think to either be a kiss-ass or a shallow fair-weather friend, then it's fine enough for him.
"How is he?"
Ichigo's train of thought stopped when Chad, who was sitting beside him at the riverbank, bluntly asked him an odd question seemingly out of the blue.
Which wasn't exactly odd when it came to someone like Chad, he presumed.
"How is who?" Ichigo asked back.
"The guy. The one who got stabbed a week ago."
"Oh, you mean Daniel?"
"If that is his name, then yes. Is he still in the hospital?" Chad inquired further.
"Yeah, yeah – he's fine. The doctor told me he'd recover in a few days, say that Daniel is a fast healer or something. Guess he should be out either today or tomorrow." Ichigo explained, putting his hands behind his head as he layed on the grass.
"Hm."
Ichigo looked upwards to the sky – it was a spring noon, with the skies cloud-free and blue. The sun was behind them both, shinning but not radiating too much heat.
"Talk about bad luck. First day in Karakura & he gets jumped by idiots, all because he helped someone out."
The orange-haired teen got into a sitting position & began starring at the running river.
"Who knows what would've happened if we weren't there. The whole thing just pisses me off."
"But we stopped it. And he's alive. Isn't that what matters?"
Ichigo looked at Chad, his eyes covered by the mess of his brown hair.
"Guess you're right. No point in mulling over it-"
The ringing in his pocket stopped Ichigo in whatever he was about to say next. He swiftly reached in and pulled out the flip phone, which showed that an unknown number was calling him.
He flipped it up & brought it to his ear, already expecting either a prank call or some kind of service offer that somehow got ahold of his phone number.
"Hello? Who's this?"
"Hey, it's me. Daniel Goichi. Remember?"
"'Course I do," Ichigo snorted, "How're you doing?"
"Good enough, got dispatched from the hospital this morning & now I'm at my place. Called you because I want to take your offer and visit your house now. Or later, whenever." said Daniel.
"Sure man, I'll call my old man right now. You know how to get there?" asked Ichigo.
"Eh, got some pointers from the hospital but I think I'll manage."
"Alright, see you later."
"Bye then."
With that Ichigo cut the line and turned to Chad.
"Sorry, but the old man & my sisters want to meet him & he's going at my place. Have to bail now but I'll call you, alright?" Ichigo said, slowly turning towards the direction to his home.
"No problem." Chad responded, but then added, "One thing."
"Yeah?" Ichigo stopped for a moment.
"Is Daniel his first or last name?"
"Last. First is Goichi."
"…Goichi?" Ichigo could see Chad's eyebrow rising when he mentioned Daniel's first name & sighed in response.
"Don't even go there. Old man is enough of a pain with his wild theories of 'destined encounters' & other bullshit."
Chad simply responded with a short chuckle.
It took him a dozen or so minutes less than he expected considering it was his first time in the Minamikawase area, but Goichi Daniel managed to find the Kurosaki household without walking in circles or turning around for taking wrong turns.
The house had a big & relatively cheap sign that had 'Kurosaki Family Clinic' written on it. Overall, the entire house looked very ordinary, with no distinctive features to separate it from the rest of the houses in the neighbourhood.
As soon as he got near the door, he pressed the buzzer next to it. It didn't take long to get a response.
"Oh! Who is it?"
It was a voice of a young girl – most likely a sister of Ichigo, as far as Daniel could guess.
"It's Daniel. Goichi Daniel. Ichigo told me you're expecting me." he responded softly.
"Daniel? As in THAT Daniel?"
Now that voice sounded like it belonged to a jovial man, who probably was-
"Ah, so you finally decided to visit! Welcome, welcome!"
The man in the doctor's coat who almost unnaturally swiftly opened the door was-
"Come in, come in! No need to stand around!"
After being dragged, literally, through the door & managing to get over at how overwhelming this man was, he managed to ask:
"You are Ichigo's father, right?"
"One & only Isshin Kurosaki! Now stand still – examination time! Doctor's orders!"
Daniel now found himself standing still while Isshin quickly and cartoonishly looked at him in every angle that was humanely possible, but he did notice that most of the attention was given to the scar on his neck and his left arm that was now exposed due to Isshin rolling up his hoodie sleeve, something that Daniel never noticed the man did.
"It's not necessary sir, I'm sure that the doctors from the hospital already-"
"Nah, don't give me that! Everyone makes mistakes, that's why you always have a second pair of eyes to look for them!"
"Geez, dad! That is no way to treat a guest!"
Daniel turned at the source of the familiar voice and saw a young, adorable-looking brown-haired girl with mild concern written on her face.
"She's right – now quit pestering him, old man! You're obviously weirding him out."
The second feminine voice also belonged to another young girl, though this one looked like the complete opposite of the first, with her black hair & a scowl on her face. The scowl couldn't hide the cuteness – Daniel would say that it even enhanced it somewhat.
"Ah, I guess so." Isshin sheepishly spoke, "Very sorry about that – as a medical professional it's natural to have some concerns, even after being discharged with a clean bill of health. Now come in & make yourself comfortable."
Which he did as he (after taking his shoes off of course) went towards the couch where the grumpy black-haired girl was sitting on.
"Nice to meet you. You must be Ichigo's sister, right?"
"Yup. Name's Karin, over there in the kitchen is my sister Yuzu."
"Hello! Nice to meet you too!" Yuzu jovially waved at the mention of her name, currently busy around the stove & cooking, judging by the slightly spicy yet pleasant smell emanating from the kitchen.
"You're the guy that my big bro saved a week ago?" Karin asked.
"That's right. Wouldn't be standing here if he didn't, so no matter how much he denies it, I do owe him a lot."
Karin let out a dry chuckle at that.
"Yeah, you're alright enough. Take a seat at the table, Yuzu is making curry & there is enough portions for all of us & plus some."
"Hmm…" Daniel pinched his chin & nodded in thought, "So if I didn't pass the test, I would've missed out on the curry, correct?"
Daniel knew he got Karin right where he wanted when she acted visibly surprised at his answer.
"Uh, what test? No, wait-"
All of a sudden, a wild Isshin appears with an obviously faux-disappointed face.
"Karin, my dear daughter…you tell me not to pester our guest, and here you are – pulling psychological traps to try & deny him our amazing curry!" the dramatic emphasis was on the last few words, which now visibly annoyed Isshin's daughter.
"Stay out of this old man! Now look, I-uh," Karin stuttered as she tried to find the appropriate words, "I wasn't doing anything like that! I-I was just-"
"Ha ha!" Daniel laughed, "Relax! I just wanted to mess with you a little bit, that's all. No need to apologize."
"…tch, I knew you were messing with me." Karin looked away in attempt to hide her visible embarrassment.
"Heh, sure you did. Anyway, I can't wait to try curry. Never ate it before."
"Then prepare to be blown away so much that any other curry will be inferior compared to Yuzu's!" Isshin proudly exclaimed.
"Dad, the curry is not really THAT good." Yuzu answered, to which Isshin began to cry a bit.
"So humble…" he said as a single tear of joy slid down his face.
It didn't take long for Yuzu to finish cooking & as soon as she put the entire pot on the table, the already pleasant smell of fresh hot food was now kicked up a notch, and Daniel's beginning indifference towards eating dinner at Kurosakis has now turned into a hungry need to try out the dish.
But before the curry could be shared, Daniel somehow managed to feel a presence at the front door of the household & stopped himself mid-seating on the chair.
"I'm home."
Daniel breathed out, finding himself pretty silly for being paranoid. It was just…
"I-CHIGOOO!"
And all of a sudden, a wild Isshin appears again. This time in a flying kick position that was aimed directly at Ichigo's head. Luckily for Ichigo, he managed to dodge it in the nick of time, which resulted in Isshin crashing directly into the nearby wall racks.
The result was the Kurosaki patriarch hanging from the racks by his doctor's coat, one pissed off Ichigo Kurosaki and a slack-jawed Goichi Daniel who couldn't believe the cartoonish-level violence happening between father & son.
"Dammit Goat Chin, you seriously pulling this crap when we're expecting guests?!" shouted an irritated Ichigo at his father.
"He's already here, in fact." Isshin pointed towards him.
"THAT'S MAKES THIS EVEN WORSE!" Ichigo turned towards Daniel, "Look, I apologize for the antics of this man-child. It's definitely not what-"
"Dude, dude, it's fine!" Daniel interrupted, "True, I wasn't exactly expecting this but…not gonna lie, I actually like that. Definitely brought the atmosphere up."
"Aha! You see, my son! People actually appreciate this kind of hospitality!" said Isshin, who felt absolutely vindicated.
"Yeah, Goat Chin. One in a million people, you just got lucky you found one." Ichigo remarked as he went towards the table where Daniel & Karin were sitting.
"Uh, little help? Pretty please?" Isshin asked, still hanging from the coat rack.
The dinner was good, as usual – it's no secret that Yuzu's cooking, although simple, was leagues above whatever Ichigo, dad or Karin herself could ever make.
Karin could see it in Daniel too, as he politely asked for an another serving.
Upon looking closer, she had to admit that, from what little time she spent with the guest, both Daniel & Ichigo looked and acted almost like polar opposites.
Her brother had spiky but tidy orange hair, Daniel had his hair pulled in a ponytail but not fully with a few strands hanging in front of his face. Ichigo always dressed in tight, skinny clothes while Daniel wore a loose tracksuit & a sports hoodie. Ichigo sat upright while Daniel was a tad bit slouched.
Above all the physical differences was the way how they behaved – her brother put up a tough & no-nonsense persona while Daniel was relaxed yet whimsical, always ready to crack a joke.
She never did this kind of thing, that being analyzing the behavior of people, and personally never cared about acting like some sort of wannabee-psychologist but when they sat right next to each other the differences between them were pretty glaring. So much so that she couldn't help but dig for more things to observe & compare between them.
Karin shivered at that thought – for she knew that was the kind of thing that know-it-all housewives would do. She was way, way too young to think like that.
"Well, I'm not sure what curry should taste like but this was amazing. My compliments to the talented chef."
Karin noticed Yuzu blush – no matter how much she denies it, she knows her sister had a weak spot for compliments. Especially coming from smooth talkers like Daniel.
"Ah, well it's…thank you! I did my best!"
As dinner was coming to an end, with all the plates being cleaned off curry, Karin decided to ask some questions regarding their guest:
"So Daniel, Ichigo told me you're from Sotenbori, right?"
"I am, but I'm not born there – hence the lack of accent. I was actually born in Los Angeles, California."
"Oh, really? Is that where Hollywood is?" Yuzu excitedly asked.
"Yep – the land of the movies. Ties in with my parents, you see. Mom is American & she comes from a rich family where most members have jobs in Hollywood. Not actors, but production – people behind the cameras, the ones that make movie magic." Daniel said.
"And what about your dad?" Isshin chimed in.
Karin noticed that Daniel's expression both became happier…and sadder at the same time.
"My dad…was Japanese. A lot of things just didn't work out between my mom & I so my dad helped me move in Japan when I was 10. He…died a year ago."
Both Ichigo, Yuzu & Karin choked a bit with Isshin being noticeably surprised at the statement.
"I'm very sorry. My condolences." Isshin said.
"It's fine – had time to move on. I just don't think about it too much."
Karin knew that Daniel was, in a very nice way, saying to not ask him further about it. She knew and, most of all, she understood. It's been 7 years and while they did manage to keep themselves together as a family, the hole that was made when their mother died will always be there.
They just don't think about it too much. And move on – that's all what they can do.
"Anyway, can you tell me who is that woman on the poster over there?" Daniel asked, pointing at the piece of paper that had a portrait of an all too familiar smiling woman.
"That, Daniel my boy, is my beautiful wife Masaki. She was the light of my life, the sunshine after the clouds & the ray of light that pierced said clouds."
Daniel turned towards Ichigo, for explanation most likely.
"Mom passed away almost 7 years ago. Been keeping that poster ever since." Her brother stated as he took a glass of water.
"And even then, I still remember her smile like it was just yesterday." Her dad slouched in an overly dramatic fashion, with his hand on his chest," I think…no, I am sure that there will be no other woman for me that will even come close to Masaki's greatness."
"Well, I definitely can't blame you – she's really hot."
Those words made Ichigo choke on his water, left Yuzu confused and completely dumbfounded Karin as to who would ever say something like that-
"I know, RIGHT?! Finally, someone in this world who could see it!"
In the end, Karin could not help herself but laugh a little bit – mostly at how fast the mood went from surprisingly dour to the initial goofy that her dad started with. Didn't take much for dad to continue on with his shenanigans while Yuzu began happily cleaning the dishes.
"Can't believe I've found another just like him." Ichigo sighed to himself.
For Karin on the other hand, she's glad that there was finally someone that not only could keep up with her dad's antics, but also play along with them.
As long as it doesn't affect either her or Yuzu or Ichigo, she's fine with whatever.
Apologies for the extremely late chapter. Life got in the way & lot of things happened.
Do hope that the content of the chapter will justify the wait for you.
Next chapter is the beginning of actual canon & will definitely not take 2 months. Action coming in very soon!
Sincerely hope you enjoyed this one!
Attlich