Ichigo has been climbing for what feels like an eternity to the great Korin tower, even though it's only been over a day since he started climbing nearly non-stop. Every now and then he would pause to take a look down below to see how far he made it, and he's amazed at just how far the tower really is. He jokingly thought about how long it would take to build this tower, because he could understand why others gave up eventually reaching the place.
It's not as though it extends to outer space, even without his memories of watching the show, he knows that there's no point in reaching something that inevitably can't be reached, even with helicopters. If that's the case, then it'd be nearly impossible for others to make it through. Either way, the boy can see the finish line.
The Saiyan child takes one last look back to see how far he made it. He's surprised. If he somehow fell down, he wouldn't have the energy he did before, 'Come on, almost there,' Ichigo thinks as he continues to climb towards the end, to the gaping hole. He can feel the muscles in his arms aching to stop and get some rest, but that isn't possible. Either he continues or he doesn't, there is no in-between. He would have made it before the sun settled if it wasn't for the aching wound in his chest. The wound has only gotten worse without treatment.
Nevertheless, he finally makes it. Just a few more steps of climbing through the gaping hole and he finally makes it, "Gah!" Ichigo feels his body hit the ground, panting heavily as he holds his chest in pain. But he doesn't have time for that. He needs to get to work. The faster he makes it, the better, he isn't gonna complain. So with that, he gets up and tries to feel where Korin is, as he couldn't find him anywhere.
To his surprise, he can't sense his energy at all, no matter how hard he tries. He doesn't understand. The Hermit should be here, there's no way he shouldn't, 'Why can't I sense his energy? It's not like he's hiding himself, no. It's more like it doesn't exist,' Ichigo thinks, being confused.
Though that's when he gains an idea, looking around to see if the holy water is supposed to be here, 'I doubt a magical water would be hidden in a place like this,' The young Saiyan thinks as he walks outside and starts heading upstairs to where he can sense Korin.
"Well, you're right on that one! Come on in!" Korin exclaims, as though he heard what Ichigo was thinking.
Ichigo stops in his tracks, being shocked at the words his brain just processed, 'What?!' Ichigo thinks, 'He's here?! So he was just hiding! But how?! I couldn't sense him!'
"Come on! I promise I won't bite!"
Ichigo says nothing, rather he continues to walk. He remembers that Korin was friendly to Goku and the others, giving them beans that restored their power back. Actually, now that he thinks about it, he can really use a Senzu Bean right about now to heal the pain away. Ichigo makes it to the top, his legs feeling wobbly, but he makes it anyway.
In front of him he sees a catalyst being held upwards by a statue, and the white cat that Ichigo somewhat remembers how he looks like, "Oh dear, that's quite the wound you have. And yet you managed to climb all the way here without taking a break? For someone so young and skinny, that's quite impressive," Korin says.
"Hey! I'm not that skinny!" Ichigo rebukes, comically swinging his arms. Sure, in his previous life, he wasn't a bodybuilder or anything like that, but he had a well built physique.
"Could have fooled me," Korin chuckles in amusement.
"You don't even have your eyes open!"
"I don't need to open any eyes to see what I see."
"Look, you mind just giving me the holy water or whatever?" Ichigo says, stepping forward, "The one that'll increase my power? Or do I gotta do something to get that?" He asks, expecting the latter. Then again, it'd be foolish if he were to expect a God to hand something to a stranger and be on his way.
"Ah, the holy water…" Korin strokes his whiskers, "For what reason do you want to drink it?"
"Look, it's a bit of a long story," Ichigo scratches his spiky hair, "It's not that I want to, I have to do it. There's a boy down there called Oopa, and he just lost his dad to some lousy assassin and I—"
"Alright, alright, if it's as long as you say it is, we can make this go by faster if you stand still," Korin says.
"Huh?" Ichigo becomes confused, "What do you mean just—"
"And don't say a word either, it'll ruin my concentration," Korin replies as he stands still and seemingly only looks at Ichigo. The Saiyan child is confused, but he lets the deity do what he told him, trusting him to be the expert. After about a whole minute, tension breaks, "Well… this is interesting. Very interesting honestly. In all my years, never have I met anyone with history such as yours. You're actually a reincarnate? And you seem to know about us to some degree as well…"
"Wha—?" Ichigo is shocked to hear this, "How did you just—?!" He points his finger at the white cat. The only ability he's ever come close to reading everything about him was Yhwach's Almighty, but even then, for all its omnipotence, it could never read into the past.
"I'm a God, dunno how else I can explain it. If I couldn't read your mind, I wouldn't be called a Hermit now, would I?" Korin chuckles, as though reading Ichigo's entire life is an everyday experience for him, "You're an interesting fellow, and your intentions are interesting, even if they are messy. Still, I understand your pursuit for power, but if I were in your shoes..." The cat deity holds his long, wooden behind him, "I'd look for help rather than add more stress onto myself. It's rather unhealthy."
"What are you talking about?" Ichigo asks in confusion.
"Please, let's not pretend we don't know what's happening inside that head of yours," Korin answers, holding his wooden staff next to his side, "But besides that, let me ask you this, are you sure you should use the Dragon Balls to revive Oopa's father back to life?"
"Of course I should, what the hell do you mean by that?" Ichigo replies with annoyance, "If you know everything about me, then you should know why I'm here to begin with."
"That's not what I'm saying," Korin shakes his head, "Look, kid, you obviously mean well, and I can respect that, but you gotta let some things go. Using the Dragon Balls to bring one human back to life isn't exactly the wisest of choices."
Ichigo takes a moment to process this, "What…?" He whispers, his hands clenched into fists, "Are you telling me... I should let that kid suffer from losing his own dad?" He clenches his teeth at the mere suggestion of this, "How can you say that?!"
"Wow, easy there," Korin brings his cat hand in front, "Look, I feel bad for one of my guardians dying to defend my tower, I really do, but there's a natural order that has to be kept. I don't know what it was like in that ridiculous cartoon of us constantly bringing people back to life without consequences, but using it to bring back one human, and to find the answers you're looking for, is not the right use of the Dragon Balls."
"And how the hell would you know that?" Ichigo asks, taking a step forward.
"I'm acquaintanced with the big man upstairs," Korin points his head upwards, "I know how they work, but you gotta trust me, maybe that boy down there will grow to toughen up. It'll be hard for now, especially when he's still young, but he'll grow past the pain."
"If you really can read my mind…" Ichigo's hair shadows his eyes, "Then you know I can't let that happen. Not to anyone. Never again. That kid down there is going through the same pain I went through," He then glares at Korin, "He still needs his dad, so if the Dragon Balls can't be used to bring people back to life, then what the hell are they for humans to use anyway?!"
"For actual serious situations," Korin replies, "They're not just supposed to be tools. Keep in mind, hundreds of people die every day, are you just going to revive them if you meet them all of a sudden?" The Hermit asks.
"If that's what it comes to, then so be it…" Ichigo folds his arms, "If you really read my mind, then I'm going to protect everyone, I don't care who it is."
"You can't be serious…" Korin shakes his head, "That's just arrogance."
"Call it what you want," Ichigo refuses to back down, "But my point still stands. I'm going to use the Dragon Balls to bring Oopa's father back to life."
"I understand where you're coming from kid, I really do," Korin nods his head, "But you gotta understand there's natural laws that have to be obeyed. Just like how nature abhors a vacuum."
Ichigo suddenly comes up with an idea. This debate between them isn't gonna go anywhere, so there's only one way this can be settled, "How about we make a bet?" He asks.
Korin scratches his whiskers, "Really? What kind of bet?" He asks.
"Me getting that holy water," Ichigo points his finger to the container, and Korin turns around, "I know you're not just gonna give it to me. There's gotta be some condition for me to get it."
"Hohoho!" Korin chuckles, "I see then! Sure, we can play this game. And what does the winner get?"
"If I win, then I get to use the Dragon Balls how I see fit," Ichigo says.
"Quite a bold statement, but I accept," Korin replies, "And if I win… then you won't get to use the Dragon Balls and you will follow the natural order," He declares.
"Fine by me," Ichigo says.
The two remain still, as though observing each other. Ichigo quickly makes notes in his head, going as fast as he could in order to prevent Korin from reading his mind accurately. The faster he speeds up, the better. So with that said, Ichigo makes his move by leaping as fast as he could towards the jar, but as great as his speed is, Korin reacts with precision unknown to humankind as he leaps towards Ichigo, and smacks him aside with his wooden staff.
"Oof!" Ichigo hits the ground as he rolls over, but before he could get up, he flinches as his wound stirs, the bleeding not having stopped until now his mind had been so focused, "Nngh…" He holds his chest in pain.
"Hmm…" Korin looks at Ichigo, "Well, this won't do," He goes over to one of his hidden jars within his tower, and in there grabs a green bean and turns around to look at Ichigo, "Here, eat this, I'm sure you know what this is," Korin then flicks his thumb and passes it to Ichigo, who catches the bean with his hand.
'This is…' Ichigo thinks as he looks at the green bean before he looks back at Korin, "You know what I am… so you know I might end up being stronger, right?"
"Hey, I never said this shouldn't be fair. I'm not a sadist, so quit being honorable and take the bean," Korin says, "Besides, even if you do end up being a little bit stronger, you lack the finesse needed to take the holy water from me."
'We'll see about that,' Ichigo thinks before he looks at the bean, and he wonders what it'd taste like. He takes the bean into his mouth and chews on it before swallowing it. The boy widens his eyes, as in the next instant, the wound is gone completely, his hunger satisfied, and his power increases even more. Ichigo takes a moment to admire the magic of the Senzu Beans, as all the downsides his body felt became nonexistent, as though it were never there to begin with.
'I'm going to use this so much…' Ichigo thinks.
"Pretty good, huh," The white cat asks in amusement.
"Tastes like medicine," Ichigo replies with a wit.
"You complaining about the way I make my beans? Otherwise I might not give any to you anymore."
"Well I had to tell the truth," Ichigo bluntly says as his eyes become lines.
"It's medicine! The taste doesn't even matter when the effects kick in!" Korin exclaims, "And it's only for a few moments! And another thing, there were divine punishments for making remarks like that!"
"You punish people by talking about how these beans taste bitter?" Ichigo is confused, "That seems a little excessive," Nevertheless, Ichigo focuses on his task once more into getting the container, 'He can read my mind… so there's no point in making strategies in my head. I have to act without thinking, read his moves, study them, and find his weaknesses.'
The Saiyan child then rushes towards the jar, with Korin already stepping in front and about to hit Ichigo with his staff, only for the reincarnated child to leap out of the way before he approaches too close to Korin, and starts to leap and bounce around the environment.
'Well… it's not a horrible strategy,' Korin thinks, watching Ichigo bounce around, 'He's jumping from side to side, trying to confuse me so he can get the water,' It's then that Ichigo goes on the offensive to grab the container, only for Korin to turn his head and leap towards Ichigo, kicking him as the boy lands on the ground again, 'But he's definitely gotten faster since he healed from that Senzu Bean I gave him.'
Korin moves his staff as he catches the container, moving it as the water inside makes squishy noises, "Come on, it's over here," Korin mockingly shows it in front of Ichigo, "You can get it."
Ichigo scoffs at this before rushing forward. Thus the game between the Hermit Master and the inexperienced apprentice continues. They bounce from side to side, going at every angle imaginable as each time Ichigo gets close to taking the jar, Korin outmaneuvers him every step of the way.
This isn't like a battle to the death where Ichigo can analyze an opponent's abilities, Korin isn't using any besides his mind reading powers, which is incredibly difficult to find a counter to when Ichigo isn't even aware, especially when his mind is incredibly easy to read on. The reincarnated Saiyan even uses his tail as an extra limb to give him an advantage, but he forgets Korin is a cat, who also uses his tail as an advantage. It's only fair after all.
The two of them land on the ground, with Ichigo having made no progress in getting the jar, 'What the hell is going on?!' Ichigo thinks in frustration, 'I've been through worse than this, and I'm almost as fast as him, so why can't I get the damn water?! I'm reading his moves, but he's just toying with me!'
"I know we just started… but it might be better for you to give up," Korin says, looking at the Saiyan child.
"Don't be so sure about that…" Ichigo cracks his neck.
"No, I'm serious, with the way you're moving, you can spend your whole life attaining power, but you'll never use the skill that's necessary for you to need it," Korin tells him.
"Huh?" Ichigo is confused by this, "What are you talking about?"
"I'm not giving you help since we made a pretty serious deal, but all I'll tell you is that you're wasting your movements. Whatever you were taught by Kisuke Urahara, won't mean a thing here. You're not reading my movements properly, and you're not even recognizing your own. It's foolish," Korin replies. He sees Ichigo is still confused, "Don't you get it? I've been reading you like a book since we started this bet, and you're losing by a landslide."
Ichigo tries not to think, but if he doesn't, he knows by instinct that he can't come up with anything to get close to Korin, "Oh, sure, having power and speed at your age is quite impressive, I dare say you're almost as fast as I am, but that doesn't mean a thing if you don't use it properly. I can tell by the way you move, even Roshi couldn't help you very much," The Hermit cat adds.
"Roshi…?" Ichigo asks, "How do you know him?"
"Come on, kid, I just told you. But if you want an answer you want to hear, your previous Master once came to this same place, looking for the same thing 300 years ago."
"300…?" Ichigo stops at that thought, being puzzled by Korin's age, "How old are you two?"
"For me? I'd say about…" Korin hums, scratching his belly as if actually pondering his age, "Over 800 at this point."
"800?!" Ichigo is shocked to hear this, "How the hell is a cat older than a lot of Soul Reapers I know?!"
"Respect your elders, boy!" Korin rebukes, "I'll have you know you're talking to a God here!"
"Whatever, I can't really take you that seriously when you look like a house cat," Ichigo rolls his eyes over at this, and Korin shrieks like a cat that became wet, "Wait… if the old man came here that long ago… did he manage to take the water from you?"
Korin then reverts back to normal, "Well… it took quite a while, but eventually, he did," He answers him.
"How long did it take him?"
Korin lifts three of his cat fingers, showing them in front of the boy. Ichigo, being puzzled by this, decides to answer this, "Three? Three what? Did it take him three days to do this?" Korin shakes his head in response, "Weeks?" He asks.
"Years," Ichigo takes a sharp breath as he widens his eyes, "It took your master three years to get this water, and he was hundreds of times more experienced than you are," Korin tells him.
Ichigo doesn't say anything, rather he just stares at Korin, "Alright then," He nods his head, making a stance, "I'll do it in three days, that's the most I have before this bet is over."
"Hold on now, boy," Korin puts his hand in front, "You haven't even made your first step of catching this yet," He swings the jar, as water rolls against its containment, "I don't mind extending it for three years like I did with Roshi, because three days is just impossible."
"So what?" Ichigo stretches his wrist bands, "It takes about 10 years to learn Bankai, and I was able to learn it in three days during that time."
"That's completely different, you had help with that strange machine to manifest your Zanpakuto Spirit," Korin reminds him.
"And you remember what happened afterwards, right? I got the shit kicked out of me by Old Man Zangetsu during that whole time," Ichigo also reminds him, "Eventually, I learned to get Bankai. So the reason I haven't caught you yet…" The boy points his finger towards Korin, "Is because you're not being hard enough on me. The worse my conditions are, the better I get."
"I think you and I are referring to something completely different here," Korin says, "Sure, harsh training without receiving much guidance may have made you stronger back in your world, but that's not how it'd work here. You don't always have to put yourself to near death to be stronger."
"What are you talking about now?" Ichigo scoffs, "That's how I always got stronger. So stop playing games and take this seriously."
"Kid, that's not always the answer. Look, let's stop wasting time and just get back to what we were doing," Korin advises, "And besides, it's not like I have anything dangerous to throw at you anyways."
"Fine," Ichigo replies with a snark, 'Don't think I have much of a choice here anyways. Gotta use my other techniques, and it's a good thing I got more under my sleeve,' He thinks before distorted images of Ichigo appear, surrounding Korin as they all include their fighting stances.
'An Afterimage Technique?' Korin thinks as he looks at the messy images of Ichigo staring down at him, 'Well, it's a start at least. He knows he can't get to me by using speed alone, and the difference between our skills and experience is like night and day,' Korin then looks at one of the Ichigos, "Over here!" The cat exclaims before leaping towards Ichigo, going for a kick, but he instead misses, going through one of the images, 'Crap! He switched at the last second!'
"Close, but I'm over here!" Ichigo calls as he backflips to a pillar before he jumps towards Korin, who cannot move while mid-air, but to his surprise, he goes through an image of Korin instead, "Huh?!" Ichigo is surprised by this before he flips over and lands on the ground.
Korin twists his body before he lands as well, "Like that? I used the Afterimage Technique back at you. You didn't think you were the only one who could do that trick now, did you?" He looks back at the Saiyan, "You become overconfident when you think you have the advantage. That's a mistake that should never be made. You of all people should know that by now, you fought in a war for goodness sake."
Ichigo frowns as he reflects upon his split second decision he made just now, "You shouldn't have to be told this. Anything can happen in a decisive battle, regardless of the opponent," Korin advises him.
"You're right…" Ichigo says, not willing to make an excuse for himself, "That's something I won't make again."
They continue to do this for over a few hours, with Ichigo making some close attempts to catch the jar, but Korin still stays one step ahead of him. Mind reading, centuries of experience, and mastery of martial arts, this is what Ichigo lacks to catch the jar.
Ichigo gets on his knees, his breathing going rapid as he tries to gain as much breath as possible, whilst Korin stands without any problems, 'What's going on?' Ichigo thinks to himself, 'I don't feel that tired, but I'm so out of breath.'
"It's the air," Korin informs him, having read his mind. Ichigo looks in confusion, "We're at high altitude, so the air here is thin. It took you a full day to climb here, so that gives you good lung conditioning. It's amazing you were able to last as long as you did. I suppose climbing nearly nonstop must have helped your lung capacity. But you're still wasting too much movement as well."
"Too much movement? How? What am I doing wrong?" Ichigo wants to know.
"Ah, I can't give you the exact details since we have an agreement, I never said I must help my opponent now, did I?" Korin says before yawning, "Anyway, let's call it a day now. All this running around is making me quite sleepy. I imagine you want to clear your head of the troublesome thoughts you're having."
Originally, Korin wanted to throw something precious to Ichigo so he could test just how far the boy's speed and stamina has improved on the first day, and to help him adapt to the thin air, if what he's read about these Saiyans to be true. But right now, he's sleepy, so he'll wait until tomorrow to see how that goes.
'It's a shame that his head is such a mess. Not that I blame the poor lad,' Korin thinks as he walks towards the staircase, 'But I don't think he'll ever get over what happened, unless he seeks help for himself.'
"Just one question before you leave," Ichigo says.
"Hm?" Korin turns his head to look at the boy, "What is it?"
"You said I'm not reading your movements… but I don't get how. I was taught how to, and it helped me big time in my fights," Ichigo begins, "But with you I can't find a single opening. It's not like you can see the future, yet somehow you're reading all my moves when I make sure to cover all my defenses. So how the hell are you doing it?"
"I've lived for over 800 years, there's all sorts of methods that I know how to use against my opponents. One of the things that's useful to me… is learning how to read someone's breathing. That's how I'm able to know all your moves," Korin answers him.
Ichigo blinks as the last words are processed in his brain, "Come again…?"
Korin smiles in amusement at the priceless reaction from the boy. Sure, he shouldn't even be saying this, but with Ichigo's performance, there's no way for him to catch the holy water in three measly days. To Korin, that's barely worth a catnap.
"There's no possible way you're actually doing that… by breathing?" Ichigo gets on his knees, as the mere idea of people like him actually doing it is baffling, and that's without any special ability, "Tell me you're fucking with me…"
"I'll let you figure that out on your own," Korin chuckles before he descends down the stairs.
The second day goes interestingly, as Ichigo hasn't tried to take in much of the holy water, as he kept prancing around, going in to think, planning his next move. He kept thinking about what Korin told him, about how to read his opponents by their breathing alone.
Korin was interested, as instead of just mindlessly going in to take the holy water like Roshi tried to many centuries ago, he's thinking the best situation he can. If Ichigo had come to this world when he was younger, he wouldn't have thought about this and instead just mindlessly rush in to take it.
It's the first step that the young Saiyan is taking to get the holy water, but pouncing on thoughts alone wouldn't be enough, so Korin got an idea to make the bet between them as fair as it can. He put Ichigo through various trials in order to have him adapt to the thin air. Amazingly, it takes him a short amount of time to do so.
Half a day goes by relatively quickly, and Ichigo continues to ponder on what Korin said to him, about learning how to read his opponent's movements by their breathing. He meditates, trying to learn how to accomplish such a feat, 'Maybe I'm thinking too hard about this?' Ichigo thinks as he lies on the ground, putting his hands at the back of his head, putting one of his legs over the other, 'Or maybe the training isn't harsh enough, and that's why I'm not making much progress. Either way, he's able to read my mind, how the hell do I counter that?'
Suddenly, an old thought flashes to his mind, his last battle with Yhwach, remembering their brief conversation about Hope, and how his Almighty allows him to change fate itself to his bidding, but something else comes to the young Saiyan before that. The Quincy King was seemingly able to read his mind in the midst of battle as well, and even with help, the best he could do was tie with him before they "died".
Yhwach said something about Ichigo being able to change the future as well. What did he mean by that? Even though it was useless before The Almighty, Ichigo muses how he had the power to change the future as well in his own way. Was that how he won the battles he had no hope of winning against? Did he have that ability here? In this world? He doesn't know if he has his original powers, so he doesn't know that.
But suddenly a realization hits him, thinking back to Oopa, 'What the hell am I doing?' He gets up from the ground, 'Sitting around isn't exactly my strong suit. I made a promise and I won't fail. Never again,' Ichigo thinks as he turns around to see Korin walking upstairs.
"Ah, good," Korin says, seeing Ichigo look at him with a determined look, "I was just about to tell you to get off the ground, it's bad for your back like that," Ichigo doesn't say anything, rather he gives the Cat Hermit a hardened look, "Well now, the look in your eyes has changed. What came over you?"
"You'll know soon enough. Now let's get back to our bet," Ichigo makes a Turtle Hermit stance, "Right now."
"Hmph. Well, if you say—!" Korin leaps ahead as Ichigo leaped over to him, only to miss before Ichigo flips over the edge and leaps towards Korin, who still hasn't landed on the ground, "A little unfair in starting before I'm ready, don't you think?!"
"If you could dodge that, then you were more than ready!" Ichigo counters with a jab as he uses the Afterimage Technique to surround Korin, to which the master uses his staff to press it against the ground, bouncing in the air to gain momentum.
"Kids! Always gotta be smartasses about everything!" Korin exclaims.
The sun sets down as another half a day goes by, and Ichigo's progress becomes astonishing compared to yesterday, using strategies in the middle of battle right away, back-up plans, his techniques, and finally being able to read his opponent's movements by their breathing.
It's strange, as the way he's seeing it is somewhat similar to when he fought Byakuya before Rukia's execution, as though in his eyes, all of Korin's movements become visible and can see where his breath leads to, translating his opponent's movements. It's an instinctual response that Ichigo does.
Korin makes a backflip as he lands on a pillar before jumping towards Ichigo, "Your mind is still too easy to read!" Korin exclaims, right before Ichigo makes an Afterimage of himself, surprising Korin. Ichigo reveals himself from the left, leaping towards Korin as the two begin to engage in hand to hand combat, with Ichigo being on the offensive by throwing hooks and kicks relentlessly.
Korin is forced to go on the defensive, as despite having to hold the container with his staff, he could still block Ichigo's blows, "Meteor Fist!" The Saiyan exclaims as to Korin's view, he starts throwing hundreds of punches all at once, quite literally. Korin is shocked as he blocks the blows to the best of his ability, using his experience as a martial artist, before he phases out of sight to gain a moment's breath.
'To my right!' Ichigo thinks as he lands on the ground, quickly leaping towards Korin who appears again, getting behind the Cat Hermit. Ichigo performs a spin kick before Korin backflips out of the way, making a landing before he leaps in the air, with Ichigo following suit, "Meteor Fist!" Ichigo calls out the name of his attack yet again, throwing hundreds of punches all at once.
Korin barely turns around to block most of the attacks with his cat paws, but he notices the attack, unlike before, is weaker than before, and it isn't until too late he realizes why. The reincarnated Saiyan isn't aiming for him. He's aiming for the staff. Ichigo lands a blow hard enough against the staff that it's knocked out of Korin's hand, however, with how close they are to the edge, the staff with the holy water goes over the edge, "Oh no!" Korin cries out.
"No you won't!" Ichigo goes towards the staff as he leaps over the edge when landing on the ground.
"Are you crazy?!" Korin is shocked to see this, "Don't do it! Listen to—" The Cat Hermit is too late for Ichigo to listen to as he goes over the edge, "Boy! No!" Korin rushes over to the edge to see if he can save Ichigo, but to his surprise, he sees a brown tail grabbing towards the ledge just in time. Korin looks down, and to his surprise, he sees Ichigo holding his own whilst grabbing the staff.
"Little help before this thing goes out of the staff?!" Ichigo asks, using both of his hands to hold the staff and the jar.
Korin is speechless for a moment, before he chuckles, "Alright, lemme give ya a hand," He says.
And so, Korin manages to help Ichigo get back up, with the Saiyan using his own strength to lift himself up, "About time," Ichigo sighs as he holds the jar, "That took longer than I thought."
'Incredible… he doesn't even realize just how maddening it is to only take the jar in just two days!' Korin thinks, astounded by Ichigo's progress, 'His advanced growth is like nothing I've ever seen before! If this kid were to get over his issues about his past, he'd be unstoppable! Just how much would he grow then?!'
"Man, I'm thirsty," Ichigo mutters before he opens the jar, drinking all the water before it becomes empty. He doesn't hear Korin say anything, so he assumes it's fine for him to drink all of it. Ichigo puts the jar down, taking a good look at himself as he feels… nothing.
"Uh…?" Ichigo thinks it's strange. For some magical water, he'd think that there should be an immediate effect, "Did I do something wrong? I don't really feel any different," He says, as he opens and closes his fists, "Kinda tastes like regular water as well."
"That's because it is," Korin says, taking a step forward before Ichigo looks at him with confusion, "It is just your regular, everyday water. There was never anything special about the water."
It takes a minute for Ichigo to process those words, and when he does, his eyes twitch with annoyance, "Say what?!" Ichigo yells, "Then what the hell have I been doing this whole time?!"
"Exercising. Didn't you notice?" Korin points his staff to Ichigo, who looks confused, "The water was never what multiplies your strength, it was training under me that does all the work. Don't you get it? Climbing all the way to my tower and stealing the jar? Those were all exercises for you to increase your power and fighting skills."
"Wait… so you're saying you would have always trained me? Even without that bet on whether I should use the Dragon Balls or not?" Ichigo asks, pointing a finger to himself in confusion.
"Well, that part I didn't expect to happen, I was serious when I said you shouldn't use the Dragon Balls for your own uses. It disrupts the natural order. Either way, I was always going to train you, kid. I was just against your reasoning for it," Korin answers him, "But, a bet is a bet, and this was a serious one. Never in a million years did I expect someone as young as you to take the holy water in such a short amount of time. It's unthinkable."
"So this whole time this training is where someone is supposed to get stronger and not drink from that water?" Ichigo asks.
"That's the gist of it."
"So you scam people!" Ichigo points an accusing finger at the cat.
"...Huh?" Korin grows a dumbfounded look on his face.
"You say this water is supposed to get people stronger after climbing through that stupid tower, but they just have to work more! And if it took Roshi three years then how long would it take other fighters?! Do they even make it?!"
"Roshi was the only one who ever made it here! It's not a scam when it actually helps people!" Korin argues.
"Then where the hell did people get the idea that drinking the water would make them stronger?!" Ichigo argues back.
"This is the gratitude I get for making you stronger?!"
"I didn't even know you were supposed to help me! How do you help someone during a bet?!"
"When the gap is immensely huge!"
"Yet I still won!" Before Ichigo and Korin could continue their argument, Ichigo sighs, "Anyway, I'd rather not waste time with this. Thanks for the help you gave me," Ichigo looks at his hand before clenching it, "Yeah… I've gotten a lot stronger. There's no way that assassin is gonna win this time."
"I have to agree there," Korin nods his head, "You can now descend back to the world and show them what you've accomplished."
"Thanks. I will," Ichigo nods his head before he walks over to the edge.
"By the way, kid," Ichigo turns back to look at Korin, "I know you're still stressed on whether you should follow what your parody show says would happen, but you don't really have to do that," Ichigo looks at him with confusion, "Just stick with what you want to do, instead of just being afraid if something different would happen, it's not like your presence didn't change things already. You're not Son Goku, just be yourself."
Ichigo widens his eyes as he lets Korin's words sink into him, "Got it," He says, nodding his head, but before he's about to leap off the edge, he remembers something, "Oh yeah… you mind giving me a few Senzu Beans?" He asks.
"Hm? What for?" Korin is curious to know about this, "Surely you don't think you need it against this assassin, do you?"
"Not exactly, it's just what to expect afterwards, but either way, I can never be too sure on what I might need later. I'm not asking for much, just a few of them will be enough," Ichigo moves his hand out, expecting Korin to give him the beans.
"Well, if you say so," Korin shrugs, not really seeing why Ichigo would need them, but nevertheless complies as he goes over to his jar and throws a few Senzus, to which Ichigo catches them with his hand.
"Do you have a small bag to fit these in?" Korin goes over to see what he finds, and eventually finds a tiny bag that can easily fit the three Senzus, and Ichigo ties the bag to his belt, "Thanks for this, I mean it. It's nothing close to the original strength I once had, but this should be enough for me to beat that bastard assassin. I'll see you around!" Ichigo leaps backwards as he dives off the balcony edge.
The Cat Hermit strokes his whiskers as he watches Ichigo descending down below, 'What a strange lad. It's clear that his heart isn't pure, yet he clearly means well above all else. If only he weren't shackled by his past. The kid doesn't even realize how strong he'd really be if he simply moved on,' Korin thinks, 'Still... Kami is gonna have my head for this when he realizes what I let this boy do.'
'Alright, asshole!' Ichigo thinks to himself as he inches ever so closer to the ground, flipping and leaping through the Korin tower, thinking of Tao Pai Pai, 'It's time for round two!' It barely takes him an hour or less before he manages to go back all the way where he started as he lands on the ground.
It's still night, so Oopa is likely asleep, and Ichigo makes sure not to wake the boy up. Though he isn't sure how he should respond when Oopa does wake up, he will come back once he defeats Tao Pai Pai and bring him news that he avenged his father's death.
Ichigo goes ahead to bring his Dragon Radar out and presses it to find the remaining Dragon Balls, 'Judging by most of those balls, the closest one has to be where that assassin is,' Ichigo runs to where he'd be further away from Oopa, "Magic carpet!" He calls out the name of his carpet, and not long afterwards, the carpet comes to its master's aid, "Time to get to work," And with that, he flies off.
Tao Pai Pai has been staying in a rather small, conspicuous town, awaiting for his tailor to finish the outfit in three days time, despite the man protesting it'd take a week, Tao made sure the tailor would get a proper "motivation" to speed up the time needed to perfect the ruined outfit that was destroyed by Ichigo's Kamehameha.
As he couldn't go around walking nearly butt naked, Tao Pai Pai needed a decent set of clothes, something he more so "borrowed" from the tailor's shop, despite it not fitting his fashion style, it felt humiliating to him to wear such a ridiculous set of overgrown clothes. The worst part was that someone tried to assassinate him in public when he was taking a walk, but he made sure that was taken care of swiftly.
As the third day approaches, Tao Pai Pai strangely can't find the solace to sleep properly. He doesn't understand why. He currently stays in what is a five star hotel, and the bed itself is well made so that Tao would have no trouble with sleep. So he couldn't understand why. He made sure to check if anything was rigged on the bed, and there was nothing he couldn't find that was out of the ordinary.
So why couldn't he sleep?
It's then he figures out that his body is acting up. But why? Very rarely does Tao Pai Pai feel remotely tense, let alone threatened. So what could be causing this strange sensation? Perhaps taking a stroll will help him clear his mind. It is rather unusual for him to do it at this time, and losing one night's sleep will hardly affect his performance. If the tailor is to finish his original outfit, then losing one night worth of lousy sleep will have been worth it. If not, then he'll just have to kill the tailor.
As he's walking around the town, the uneasy feeling grows stronger with each passing minute, until eventually, Tao Pai Pai senses an incredibly powerful Ki signature coming towards him. The energy signature feels familiar, and for as long as he could remember, he feels chills coming down his spine, 'This Ki signature… it can't be!' Tao Pai Pai thinks in shock, and somewhere far in the distance, he sees Ichigo traveling with his carpet, giving a glare, 'No! My eyes must be playing tricks on me!' Tao Pai Pai leaves his mouth agape.
'There you are!' Ichigo thinks to himself as he manages to sense Tao Pai Pai's Ki, and the carpet goes faster as he soon sees a shocked Tao Pai Pai before he leaps from the carpet, performing acrobatics in mid air before landing on the ground, and the two enemies stare at each other face to face.
"How is this possible…?" Tao Pai Pai asks, his hands behind his back, "You should be dead. No-one just survives my Dodon Ray and lives to tell about it."
"The Ki aura that I unleashed a few days ago…" Ichigo remembers the white burst of aura that surrounded his body, acting as a shield, "It acted as a barrier against your attack. You were so sure that you killed me that you didn't bother to sense my energy."
"I see, well that just about explains it," Tao Pai Pai replies, "I successfully killed so many over the years that I never bothered to check whether you were alive. There was never a need to. But either way, you're a fool if you think you stand a chance against me. Instead of hiding like how you should have and lived the rest of your life in peace, you willingly chose to come back just to die? All for what? Revenge?"
"You're wrong about two things," The reincarnated Saiyan holds two of his fingers, "If you can read my Ki, you'll notice I'm not the same as I was before. And I did come back for revenge, but not for myself," Tao Pai Pai raises one of his eyebrows in confusion, "I came back because I wanted to avenge for you killing Oopa's father, the man you murdered a few days ago," Ichigo clenches his fist towards the assassin.
"A few days ago?" Tao Pai Pai remembers killing Bora, "Ah, you mean that overbound brute? Please, if you remember it so clearly, I distinctly remember telling him that he should not chase after his own death, but he willingly chose to die anyway when he tried fighting me. I swear, I cannot understand how you people function. I tell those who aren't involved in my hit list not to get involved, yet they do anyway."
"It's called having empathy. Ever heard of that?" Ichigo asks with a glare as he makes a fighting stance.
"Can't say I'm interested," Tao Pai Pai waves his head, moving his ponytail to the other side, "Either way, this is perfect. You saved me the trouble of hunting you down to get that last ball of yours or whatever it's called. Yet I'm curious, how did you find me? Surely you couldn't have sensed me all the way from where you were?"
"Like you'd care if I told you," Ichigo replies with a snark as he takes another step forward. He then makes a smirk, "By the way, nice outfit. I didn't know you liked this one so much more than the one I destroyed a few days ago."
Tao Pai Pai grows a tick mark on the side of his forehead as he makes a cruel smile, "Insolent little brat… I was going to give you a quick and swift death. But just for that, I'll make sure you die nice and slow!"
Tao Pai Pai charges forward as he makes a battle cry, with Ichigo being more than ready this time around. Tao Pai Pai hurls a fist towards Ichigo, and the boy looks at him in slow motion. Ichigo bends his back backwards, as Tao's fist misses him, making the older man widen his eyes in shock. Ichigo counters by putting his hands against the ground, and thrusts his legs to kick Tao Pai Pai against his stomach, sending him flying high in the air. Ichigo leaps against the ground and jumps as high as he can, and Tao Pai Pai, clenching his stomach in pain, looks over to see Ichigo sending a roundhouse kick at his back, "Ahhhhh!" Tao Pai Pai yells as he gets hurled all the back down on the ground towards a different angle before he crashes against the ground, forming a small crater in doing so.
Ichigo lands on the ground without issue as he stares at Tao Pai Pai, who struggles to get up as he vehemently glares at the young Saiyan, "You… you!" Tao Pai Pai ezclaims as he fully gets up.
"What was that you said about killing me?" Ichigo rhetorically asks, "Cause so far, you're not doing a great job at that."
"How?! Your movements are completely different! You were nothing like this days ago!" Tao Pai Pai exclaims.
"It's not just my moves, but my strength has increased a lot since the last time we fought," Ichigo remembers his beating from his first fight with Tao, "You might as well give up. You don't stand a chance of what I am now."
'But how?! The sun isn't even up yet! It's only been two and a half days since our last encounter! There's no way someone could get that strong in such a short time! He can't be human!' Tao Pai Pai thinks to himself, as he tries to figure out how Ichigo has become so strong and fights with such skill. It's then he remembers the environment they fought in, recalling Bora's words of the Land of Korin, 'No! It can't be! But in two days?!' He has no choice but to ask, "Boy! Did you by any chance climb all the way to the Korin Tower and drink something called the holy water?!"
Ichigo curls his eyebrows in confusion as to how Tao has come to that conclusion, "Well, no point in hiding it I guess. Yeah, I did do that," He says with a half lie. It's true that he did climb the tower and drink the water, it isn't anything special, so he makes sure to hide that.
'That explains it! That's how his powers are so much greater than before!' Tao Pai Pai thinks, 'I thought that nonsense was nothing more than an ancient myth! But it's actually true! When I get out of this…' It's clear to Tao that he shouldn't underestimate the boy like he did before. In order for him to win, he has to go all out. He can't remember the last time he was forced to fight under such circumstances, "Very well then. It's clear that I can't win the way I am now. I'll stop treating this as an exercise and take this seriously!"
"It doesn't matter," Ichigo tells him, "You can't win what I am now."
Tao Pai Pai clenches his teeth. Ichigo notices that there's people beginning to watch them as they open their windows, their fight likely causing them to wake up from their slumber and see what's happening. From the look on their faces, they're shocked, 'Didn't exactly want to draw a crowd here,' Ichigo thinks as he watches his opponent, 'Just hope none of them try to interfere.'
Tao Pai Pai charges at him, coming at him with speed several times greater than before. Ichigo raises his arms to block deadly knee blows coming towards his head, moving his arms accordingly as he blocks lethal kicks and knee blows towards his head. Tao Pai Pai then aims a punch to Ichigo, only for the boy to raise his knee to block the blow, and counters by jumping with his other leg, kicking Tao Pai Pai's jaw as he sends him flying backwards. The deadly assassin makes a backflip before landing on the ground.
The assassin can't believe what he's experiencing. His strongest blows, that could bring down mountains themselves with ease, are being stopped by a child who's every bone in his body isn't being broken, "How?!" Tao Pai Pai demands to know, "How are you doing this?!"
"Giving up already?" Ichigo asks, "It's not good when you're the one being pushed back, isn't it?"
"You little…!" Tao Pai Pai starts charging at ultra high speeds, going so fast that he disappears out of people's sights.
"Bring it!" Ichigo does the same thing Tao does as well, as he too disappears out of sight.
The battle goes on for the next few minutes, and it draws more attention from more and more people, even beginning to draw a crowd, something Ichigo doesn't want. However, one teenage girl wakes up by the sounds of battle and people chattering within, dresses herself accordingly and heads outside. She moves past the crowd, and is astonished by what she's seeing. She sees nothing but blurry lines of two people clashing into different directions, hopping around the rooftops of people's respective houses.
"What in the world?" The girl tips her cowgirl hat as she tilts her head back and forth, hopelessly trying to keep up with the two speedy figures. The girl has dark, black hair, reaching below her waist and is tied at the tips to form a dolphin-split hair. She has red eyes. She has an athletic build, with a slender but toned physique, with visible abdominals. She has a well built body despite her age, having a large set of breasts, waist and hips. She wears a short leather skirt and vest with pockets, a button-up corset, a white shirt that reveals her belly, a belt around her hips, cowboy boots, and a hat, "What's going on here?" She asks.
"No idea," One of the people commented back, not bothering to look at the young girl, "These guys just started fighting out of nowhere. Can't say it isn't entertaining."
"Who's fighting?" The girl asks.
"No clue," Another person says, "Apparently some kid and a guy named Tao Pai Pai."
"What?!" The girl widens her eyes in shock.
Ichigo and Tao Pai Pai jump in the air and continue their brawl there at throwing punches and kicks, appearing to be evenly matched, but if a decent fighter is to look closer, they'd see Ichigo is dominating the duel. Tao throws hooks and horizontal kicks, but Ichigo is blocking every single blow handed to him, and he responds with a roundhouse kick to Tao's head, and then throws a jab to his opponent's chin, afterwards spinning his body to hit Tao Pai Pai with an elbow.
Tao Pai Pai thrusts a kick to Ichigo, to which Ichigo grabs his leg, twists his body until he leaps in the air to perform a bicycle kick, "Ahhhhhhh!" Tao Pai Pai gets kicked to the back of his head and crashes against the ground, having been kicked so hard that half his body goes through it. Ichigo lands on the ground, making his fighting stance as he refuses to drop his guard.
Tao Pai Pai takes a few seconds, using his muscles to quickly get out, which in turn makes a visible hole. Ichigo looks at the state of his opponent, as the visible damage being done to Tao reflects on his clothing, having been tattered by now, "That is it!" Tao Pai Pai rips the upper part of his clothes, revealing his muscular physique, "I've had it with you, you little shit!" Tao Pai Pai yells in rage, but Ichigo remains impassive, "This is what happens when idiots like you get in my way! I'll take that Dragon Ball from you, if it's the last thing I do!" He then points his finger towards the boy.
Ichigo widens his eyes as he looks at the crowd that gathered before looking back at Tao Pai Pai, "No, you can't! There's too many people here!" Ichigo pleads for Tao to listen to reason, but looking at the man, he knows he's too consumed with rage to care, "Damn it! You people need to get out of here! He's gonna kill you all!"
"Dodon Ray!" Tao Pai Pai yells the name of his attack as he fires the yellow energy beam towards Ichigo.
"Ha!" Ichigo exclaims as he uses his Kamehameha beam to counter, but just barely. The two beams of energy clash yet again, just like how it happened days ago. There's a bit of a struggle as he gets pushed back on his feet due to the sudden energy burst, but nonetheless he stands his ground as he starts pushing back the Dodon Ray. Ichigo eyes the people who are still in awe as he grits his teeth, "What are you idiots staring at?! If I don't stop this, then you'll die!"
The scary spectacle of the energy beams at night is foreign to the citizens, and not wanting to get hit by it, they all start screaming and run away so they can hide, as the curiosity within them still wants to see the battle unfold. The girl hides as well, but she makes sure to stay close by, as the blue and yellow colors mixing together, in a way, would look beautiful to her, if it wasn't so scary. Ichigo continues to push back, until eventually, his beam overpowers Tao's, "Haaaa!" Ichigo yells as he pushes more power into his attack, and Tao gasps in fear as he gets hit directly by the Kamehameha.
"Nooooooo!" Tao Pai Pai yells in pain as he gets sent flying backwards by the sheer overwhelming power of Ichigo's Kamehameha. The Saiyan child makes sure that Tao Pai Pai suffers as much pain as he can, to be hurt just like how he hurt others over the years. He is here to deliver the victims of their vengeance, just like what the assassin did to Bora.
Eventually, the Kamehameha dies down as Ichigo drops the power, seeing he made a large pathway, "Phew," Ichigo sighs as he starts running over to where Tao Pai Pai was blasted at.
The cowgirl has been in awe at the sheer power Ichigo holds as he runs past her, her mouth left agape, "Holy shit…" She mutters. Curious to see where this will lead to, the girl gets up from her hiding spot and starts following Ichigo.
The orange haired boy stands over the defeated Tao Pai Pai, who groans in immense pain as his clothes are practically tattered, "Pretty good move, using your Ki like that to use it as a self defense, just like how I did, though not as verbally," Ichigo tells him.
If Tao Pai Pai could have any energy left, it would be to glare at Ichigo, "Why you…" Yet surprisingly, the man refuses to stand down as he starts getting up, "This isn't…" It's then he sees Ichigo put his hand out, making the assassin confused.
"The Dragon Balls. Hand them over," Ichigo says, "I know you have them."
This only makes Tao Pai Pai even more angry, "You little brat! You expect your enemy to just give you something when the battle isn't over yet!?"
"If I recall correctly, aren't you the one who demanded to have the Dragon Balls from me before the fight even started? So who are you to lecture me about treating an enemy?" Tao Pai Pai widens his eyes when Ichigo's words hit him, recalling that he did do that days ago, "And look at yourself, you can barely move. So unless you still wanna fight…" The pure blooded Saiyan makes a stance, "Then be my guest."
Tao Pai Pai thinks of his next move, 'This boy's power is the real problem here… what the hell can I do?! In a direct confrontation, I'll lose, and I'd be a laughing stock to those buffoons from the Red Ribbon!' His reputation would get dragged through the mud by them, and it'd be difficult for him to be hired again. Then, out of the corner of his eye, he sees the cowgirl hiding herself, holding a rock in her hand. The ruthless assassin gets an idea, 'That's it! I don't have to win! I just have to complete my mission! By whatever means necessary!'
Tao Pai Pai flips out of the way from Ichigo, and the boy is confused by what the older man is up to. Not wanting to do as he pleases, Ichigo goes after him, to which Tao Pai Pai sees a rock on the ground and kicks it, "I wouldn't follow if I were you!" Tao Pai Pai laughs, and the rock goes past Ichigo's head, confusing him entirely. Recalling how the citizens went into hiding, Ichigo widens his eyes as he realizes what Tao is up to.
Using his maximum speed, Ichigo's body lunges at the innocent man who doesn't perceive the speed of the rock that's been launched, "Get down!" Ichigo yells at the man, and his speed proves to be superior to the rock as he manages to get to the man in time as the Saiyan pushes him against the ground, and the rock hurls through the wall, making a hole in doing so.
Ichigo looks at the frightened man, who doesn't understand what just happened, "Are you alright?" The boy asks, and the man hurryingly nods his head.
"I win, boy!" Tao Pai Pai exclaims, and Ichigo, confused, turns around to see what the assassin is gloating about. The Saiyan gasps in shock as he sees the cowgirl being held by Tao Pai Pai, being taken hostage by the cruel man, "Now you hand me over the last Dragon Ball you have!"
Ichigo angrily stomps over to where the assassin is, but Tao Pai Pai has other plans in mind, "Not so fast! Stay right where you are!" The assassin demands, and Ichigo stops in his tracks, "Good! Unless you want this girl's death on your conscience, then stay right there! Make the slightest step and I'll snap her neck!"
"What the hell is wrong with you?!" Ichigo demands to know, fists clenched furiously, "That girl has nothing to do with this!"
"You're an idiot!" Tao Pai Pai yells back, "And only idiots care about if something is fair! This is a battle of life and death! Anything goes!"
"You bastard…" Ichigo grits his teeth, realizing that Tao has the advantage over him now, "Hiding behind a girl just so you can win? How low can you get?!"
"These are my conditions!" Tao Pai Pai exclaims, "You have ten seconds before you hand me over the last Dragon Ball! If you do that, I'll let the girl live! If not…" The cruel assassin presses tighter on the girl's throat, "Then she dies! And don't even think of trying to attack me! Those who know me know that I don't bluff when it comes to taking a life!"
"What kind of a shitty deal is that?! Just let her go and start fighting for real!" Ichigo demands.
"You have ten seconds now!" Tao Pai Pai starts laughing in a deranged manner, "I'd give up if I were you, boy!"
'This can't end like this!' Ichigo thinks in frustration, wanting to do nothing more to beat up Tao so badly, 'Come on… there's gotta be something I can do! I can't just surrender the Dragon Ball and let that be the end! Of all times I wish Uryu was here to help!'
"Well?!" Tao Pai Pai's tone becomes deranged the more desperate he grows, "What's it gonna be?!" It's then that the cowgirl suddenly bites Tao's bicep and starts scratching his eyes with her nails. This makes Tao more stressed, "Watch it girl! Do that again and your life will be taken faster than a thought can be processed in your—"
'There's the opening!' Ichigo thinks. He prays he makes it in time. He leaps towards Tao Pai Pai as fast as he can, using his full speed as he aims a kick to his face, not caring what happens afterwards as long as the girl is fine. From Ichigo's view, everything is moving in slow motion, and Tao Pai Pai looks over to see Ichigo charging at him. The assassin gasps, and before a millisecond passes where he could kill the girl right then and there, he gets kicked in the face, sending him flying through a dozen houses as they all get torn apart.
Ichigo pants from the enormous stress he felt at that moment, and sighs in relief, letting his guard drop at that moment. The cowgirl coughs as she's freed from her captor, holding her throat as she feels the air coming back to her, "Are you okay?" Ichigo asks, trying to comfort.
"Th... Thank you," The cowgirl coughs as she looks at Ichigo, "But… what's going on here? Why are you fighting that man?"
"It's a bit of a long story," Ichigo starts running towards Tao Pai Pai, "I'll explain a little when this is over! And don't follow me!" He tells her.
'After what just happened, I'd rather not,' The cowgirl thinks.
Ichigo manages to reach Tao Pai Pai, and this time he'll be careful to reach for the Dragon Balls as quickly as he can. With that kick he threw at him, the assassin shouldn't get back up anytime soon. To his surprise, however, Tao's determination to complete his mission drives him to stand up, but that's all it amounts to.
"I'm surprised you can get up from that blow I gave you, but it's clear from your Ki that you can't lift a finger on me anymore," Ichigo approaches him, and Tao gives ragged breathes as he glares at the boy with vehement hatred in his eyes, "Your breathing is ragged… that tells me you're done," He disappears out of sight from Tao's perception, surprising the man as Ichigo appears from behind, takes Tao's bag and appears in front of him again.
"Wha—?!" Tao Pai Pai looks down to see his bag of Dragon Balls have disappeared, and he didn't have time to perceive Ichigo's movements.
"I'll take those back," Ichigo tells him before he puts his fingers under his chin, "Though what do I do with you? You're way too dangerous to just be imprisoned…"
Tao Pai Pai gets an idea. This might be his only chance of getting out alive, as he's afraid of the boy killing him. Why he hasn't done so is beyond him, but he refuses to find out any more than he already has tonight. Yet, doing so would squander every ounce of pride he has in himself of killing people. But in order for him to live, so he could continue making profit, he has no choice, "Please…" He weakly gets on his knees, every bone and muscle fiber in his body aching, his head pounding, "Forgive me!"
"Huh?!" Ichigo is shocked to see this, widening his eyes as he doesn't understand the sudden change of atmosphere.
"Please! I-I'll never do anything bad, ever again!" Tao Pai Pai lies under his teeth, and the lie is so obvious that it makes Ichigo cringe, "I swear! Please, just let me live!"
"Hell no," Ichigo deadpans, and Tao Pai Pai starts sweating profusely out of fear. Ichigo believes that even his 15 year old self wouldn't buy this, "You literally killed people for money, and I didn't see you with an ounce of regret doing that. You expect me to just forgive you for what you did?"
"Please, I beg you!" Tao Pai Pai bows his head, "I-I'll do anything you want! I-I can even use the money I owned over the years to repair this place!"
'What do I do?' Ichigo still thinks about what to do with him. Despite promising what he said to Oopa, he can't bring himself to kill the man, the only times he killed people is when he had no choice. The only one he ever wanted to kill out of vengeance was Grand Fisher, but that was personal, along with Yhwach to some extent. But the orange haired boy is aware that he can't let the man roam free.
He makes his decision as Ichigo sighs, "Fine, you're coming with me, and you're going to tell all the folks this," He says.
"Th — Thank you!" Tao Pai Pai exclaims, making sure he gets up as he puts his hand behind his back, "You won't regret this!"
"For your sake, I better not," Ichigo scoffs as he starts walking towards the town people, "Now get moving," He orders.
"Yes… right away," Tao Pai Pai mutters, before he pulls out a bomb from underneath his hidden trousers, and silently takes off the safety belt.
Ichigo's ears perk up, "What was that?" The Saiyan child asks as he turns around, and to his surprise, he sees Tao Pai Pai throw the bomb at him with all his remaining might. He then jumps as far as he possibly can in his current state, "What the—?!"
"You really are naive, you brat!" Tao Pai Pai laughs, "That bomb packs enough force to wipe even you out! Now say goodbye!"
"You…" Ichigo's hair shadows his eyes before he moves his head upwards, his eyes glowing with yellow just like how it did days ago. He seethes with anger, "Damn bastard!" He kicks the bomb as high as he can, something that makes Tao Pai Pai's eyes bulge out of their sockets, as he never expected Ichigo to have such quick reactions.
The assassin then realizes what may be his last mistake. He's in mid air, and he can't do anything to stop the bomb coming at him. The best he can do is kick it back someplace else, but he's too late as the second the bomb reaches close to him, it detonates, and though the explosion doesn't reach far, it's enough to dwarf over Tao Pai Pai himself. The man screams in horror before they cease almost immediately as he gets blown to smithereens.
Ichigo watches with an impassive look as he turns around to walk away. There's nothing for him to regret. It was either his life or his, and he only defended himself. He gave him a chance even with a leash on him, and how was he paid back? By being stabbed in the back. Tao Pai Pai was rotten to the core. At least this way, he can tell Oopa he avenged his father, and he'll honor the deal by bringing Bora back to life.
Eventually, he makes it back to where the town people are at, and to his surprise, the cowgirl from earlier runs up to him once she's seen him, "What just happened?!" The cowgirl asks.
"You really shouldn't just run to where a big explosion happened in mid air," Ichigo tells her.
"I saw you walking back without that man, so I thought it'd be fine!" The cowgirl replies, "So, what happened?!"
"Your captor from earlier? He's dead," Ichigo tells her.
"Wha…?" The cowgirl is surprised to hear this, "Did you kill him?" She asks.
"Well… kind of," Ichigo scratches the back of his head, "He threw a bomb at me when he thought I had my guard down, and I threw it back at him when I was pissed, and the bomb got to him," He informs her. Though he tries not to look at the girl's chest and represses his Saiyan urges.
"Wow…" The cowgirl doesn't know what to say, "That's…"
"I know, sorry I gave you people such a hard time, but at least you can all go back to sleep without any issue," Ichigo tells her, "I'll leave you alone now."
"Hey, wait!" The cowgirl grabs Ichigo's arm, "Can you take me with you?!"
Ichigo's eyes become small as he processes the words that were now just spoken to him, "Come again?" He asks.
"I know we just met, but you know martial arts, don't you? And not like the regular stuff, but you were strong enough to even kick that man all the way there!" She points to the direction that Ichigo kicked Tao Pai Pai towards.
"Don't you have parents to go home to or something?" Ichigo asks.
"Well… no," The cowgirl shakes her head, "Not anymore. My mother died when I was a child, and my father passed away not long ago. I only have a distant family to take care of me."
"Then go home to them. I'm sure they're worried about you at this hour," Ichigo tells her.
"Listen to me, can you please just teach me some martial arts?" The cowgirl pleads, "I know this sounds crazy—"
"Because it is—"
"But I don't want to be defenseless like that ever again," The cowgirl says, "I know you're a lot younger than me—"
"I'm older than I look—"
"But can you at least tell me where you learned to fight like that? I'm not asking for anything crazy—"
"You're literally asking a stranger—"
"But I just wanna learn to defend myself. That's all."
"I…" Ichigo sighs, "Look, I don't have time for this. Maybe talk to your relatives about it and then I'll see what to do. I'm not a teacher or anything but there's an old guy who can teach you how to fight like how I do."
The cowgirl sighs as she lets go of Ichigo's arm, "Alright, I'll see what to do," Ichigo hurringly tells her, just so she can let go of him and he can go back to what he was doing before, "Hey, magic carpet! The work here is done!"
The cowgirl looks at the boy with confusion on her face, "Uh…?" She then widens her eyes in shock when she sees Ichigo's magical carpet being brought down before he lands on it, "What the hell?!"
"I know, takes getting used to," Ichigo says before he hops off the carpet.
"Wait!" The cowgirl exclaims, stopping Ichigo before he can leave, "I never caught your name! I wanna know who saved our town!"
"Don't spread it around, and I wouldn't call doing property damage as saving it," Ichigo says.
"Who cares?! We can repair it later, besides, Tao Pai Pai is one of the most dangerous men on the planet, he just walked in here and acted like he owns everything!" The cowgirl exclaims.
"Wait… Tao Pai Pai?" Ichigo barely manages to spell the name, "That's the guy that just died? What kind of a name is that?"
"So, what's yours then?" The cowgirl asks.
"It's Ichigo," He tells the girl.
"My name is Tifa," The girl tells the boy his name.
"Tifa…?" Ichigo mutters, as he clearly does not at all remember the name of that person in the series, and it's certainly different, "Well, it's a nice name," He tells her.
"Thank you," Tifa responds with a smile as she gently strokes her hair.
"I'll see you around, and take care," Ichigo tells her before he flies off with his carpet.
"Take care!" Tifa waves her arm in goodbye before she drops it, processing everything that happened. Yet one thing still boggles her mind, "He has a flying carpet… an actual flying carpet…" She mutters in disbelief.
Aaaand done. Sorry this took so long, but here it is for those who've been waiting at last for the new chapter of Shine of a New Miracle story. For those who've been demanding or asking for changes as they felt it was too similar to Canon DB, I did figure to go along with that notion while still carrying my plans, I'm basically just adapting the best I can while listening to what people want. I can't really please everyone at once so I'm just going with doing as much as I can.
To reply to The 13, I don't particularly remember many examples that come to mind where the aura was actually used in a defensive manner instead of just it being offensive or just for show/spectacle, the only one that comes to my mind is during the Tournament of Power when Vegeta as a Super Saiyan powered up and used the aura to push one of Bergamo's brothers away, or if you wanna count this, Goku and Vegeta using it against the poison in Tournament of Power.
To .torallba, I understand where you're coming from, but honestly I don't really agree with that notion. Using Quincy Blut or Fullbring just because Ichigo is in a physical body doesn't work like that, if I were to do something like that, I would have to explain why and how… and here's the problem… you can't. If you were to look at the date of the story, this took place during the Manga version of TYBW, not the Anime, to which we didn't know if Ichigo could actually use Blut consciously, because remember, he wasn't aware he even had that against Yhwach during his first fight with him, as for Fullbring, he needs something precious to him like an object he's proud of, which is impossible for Ichigo to find something like that here and due to his mentality. He's just filled with self hatred of his big failure, what could he be proud of in this? I don't really feel comfortable with the idea of doing my own original arcs in this (at least how I understood what you said) because for one, it wouldn't feel like Dragon Ball at that point, and two, I'm not that confident doing my own writing abilities like that. More likely than not it would fumble pretty fast. My vision and skills for that aren't that clear yet, but I'll see what I can do.
To Lukepace414, yep, you pretty much got that right. It is what it is. Glad someone picked that detail up.
I chose to reply to others in this manner because I usually reply to reviews in PM's, yes I do read all the reviews and I reply to all that are registered. For those who don't know (I doubt), authors aren't capable of replying to Guests because Fanfiction doesn't have that option unless it's to reply to them like this. My Co-Author figured it'd be better to show them, "Hey, why not make them show you actually pay attention to what people are saying?" And what better way to do that than do it like this.
Now onto the story and changes.
So Ichigo basically makes it to the Korin Tower and starts the training right away after the strawberry and the cat have their banter before and afterwards Ichigo catches the jar or whatever the hell that thing is. I basically just went with what the Japanese version of the Anime said, I checked the Manga as well and uh it's just called a flask… I don't really trust Viz's translation of DB that much since the translations are just really bad. I searched it up on Google and it didn't look anything like what was actually shown.
So with the changes I wanted to make when I got a comment on Ao3 is that Ichigo SHOULD have a monstrous amount of potential due to him being a Saiyan plus a Hybrid, even though he isn't one yet. One of the things that came to my mind when writing this and talking with my Co-Author about it, one of the things I wanted to show about Ichigo's potential in this is that he should be able to take the jar faster than what Goku did on his own, so he did it in two days. He couldn't take it on the first day because he lacks the fighting skills that a martial artist would have in the Dragon Ball world, so he needed to increase that.
I figured to also kill two birds with one stone in this, showing the training with Korin while also dealing with Tao Pai Pai, or Mercenary Tao as the English Dub watchers like to call him. It was a bit long but it's worth the results, making it easier that way in the long run. And yes, Ichigo WILL eventually regain his Soul Reaper powers in this story, and thankfully my Co-Author and I figured out how to do that, which, I'm not telling yet, it's fun to see others try to figure it out until it's eventually revealed. This Korin training is also important because I thought this would be a good time to reveal that Ichigo is not in a good state of mind at the moment. And somewhat giving an explanation as to why the story feels similar to Canon, it's cause Ichigo has been following it because he's afraid of changing things too much but he doesn't have to be afraid of that. And he's shown to be "weak" because he actually is incredibly strong, once he finally gets over that, he'll be stupidly strong.
If I remember right, I was also asked to possibly give power level estimations for Ichigo and the others. I'm honestly not sure if I should, because I plan on making Ichigo much stronger, and I'm not one of those "Power levels are bullshit" people, but it's more so in this case that power levels in universe just stop mattering after Namek Saga, so I'm really not sure if that's a good idea to do that when it'd be a waste later. But hey, if people really want it then I'll see what to do.
Now I did also hopefully make good changes such as Ichigo coming after Tao Pai Pai by using the Dragon Radar to locate him when Tao picked up all the Dragon Balls, since using the, "Oh the Dragon Ball protected Ichigo!" Would not at all work, it's way too convenient. I did also make some bits of changes to the fight so it wouldn't really just be a 1:1 copy paste, especially since Ichigo isn't as innocent as Goku was.
Now for the final thing to address, Tifa. For those who've been paying attention to the design and the name, this isn't an OC, this is Tifa Lockheart from Final Fantasy 7. Well, sort of. Let me explain. So basically, this Tifa in Dragon Ball has her cowgirl outfit from when she was younger, but the personality is a bit different in this. Now why is this the case? So basically, I really know nothing about Final Fantasy, so you're probably asking "Why are you even adding her if you don't know anything about the verse?" Well for one, I'm more so giving my input of her personality while trying to study the power system of Final Fantasy, how she fights, her abilities, and a bit of her original personality because I would get it horribly wrong if I went with the original. Now you're also asking "Then why do her design? Why not make an OC at that point?" I NEVER liked the idea of doing OC's, something about it just bugs me, and I'm not very good at coming up with original designs either, cause I have to be very meticulous on that and my vision isn't very good, while I'm more so confident what to do with this Tifa… I guess you could say she's more of an AU in this if that makes sense. Also cause her story would have been different regardless with how different of a setting DBZ Earth is from the planet of the FF7 of which I already forgot the name of, I'll look it up some other time.
Up next, genocide of the Red Ribbon Army. Ichigo is about to really show off he's a menace to the world and put an end to them.