Chapter Seventeen: The Grim Reaper...

Chapter Seventeen: The Grim Reaper…

“Bang! What are you—” Ichigo burst through the door, fearing something was wrong, only to see something soft that one would only encounter during sleep… a pillow?

“Hey! What are you doing…” Ichigo questioned the source of the ‘hidden weapon,’ only to find a girl lying on the bed, one hand raised as if ready to throw, the other gently pressing her abdomen, from which a gentle green light emanated. She gazed at him calmly… Faced with this strange scene, Ichigo instinctively fell silent.

“Hey! It’s not right to just barge into a girl’s room, young man! Didn’t your elders teach you that?” Lolita, lying on the bed, lowered her throwing hand, tidied her hair with the other, and said.

“Uh! Sorry…” Ichigo whispered, looking at the girl before him. Then he suddenly realized and grabbed the pillow, shouting, “Hey! Isn’t this my room? Why do I need your permission to enter my own room? Is this how you treat your savior?!”

Facing the fierce ‘intimidation’ from this orange-haired delinquent, Lolita glanced at the wound on her abdomen and said, “Don’t worry, I won’t stay here long. Once I can move, I’ll leave…”

“Uh, I’m not trying to kick you out, that’s not what I meant…” Hearing Lolita’s words, Ichigo awkwardly placed the pillow back on the bed and curiously asked, “What is that?”

“Medical Kido… thanks to it, my wounds healed so quickly…” Combining Urahara’s medical Kidō and medical ninjutsu, the healing ability is even stronger. Those who forget to dispose of the tools, go face the wall…

“Medical Kidō?” To Ichigo, who had yet to come into contact with the power of the Soul Reapers, this unfamiliar term sounded foreign. Without thinking much, he looked at Lolita and the body he had carried back, which was already much better, and smiled faintly. “So, you’re okay now? The wounds have healed…”

“The external injuries are indeed healed, but the spiritual pressure…” Seeing Ichigo’s puzzled expression again, Lolita shook her head. “Forget it, you wouldn’t understand even if I explained.”

“What? It sounds like you’re calling me an idiot…” Seeing Lolita’s ‘you just don’t get it’ expression, Ichigo twitched and complained, “By the way! Why did you come through that door? Why did the sky suddenly turn red? What kind of door was that? And who exactly are you? Are you…”

“Stop!” Lolita interrupted Ichigo’s questions and stood up. “You’re asking too many questions. I’ll answer them one by one… You asked why I came out through that door—that’s because I was inside it to begin with; the sky turned red because it was affected by the aura inside that door. As for what kind of aura it is, you wouldn’t understand even if I told you. What that door is, I don’t want to answer, and you don’t need to know. Even if I explained, you wouldn’t believe it or comprehend it; it would be a waste of time…”

“In short… you still haven’t explained any of my questions, and your answers just make me feel like you think I’m an idiot,” Ichigo said with a twitch at the corner of his mouth.

“Ah, but even if I explained, you wouldn’t understand. It’s a matter of two completely different realms.” Lolita tidied her messy hair and said.

Ichigo scratched his head and asked, “Then who are you? Well, I guess you probably won’t answer that either?”

“My name is Rukia Kuchiki…”

“You answered!?” ⊙o⊙!

“I’m not human!” Ignoring Ichigo’s exaggerated and somewhat comical expression, Lolita continued, “I’m a Soul Reaper…”

“Soul Reaper? That?” (⊙_⊙?) Ichigo blinked and pulled out a poster depicting a skull, scythe, and robe, the classic image of a Soul Reaper…

“Slap!” (+﹏+)

He was met with a pillow thrown at supersonic speed…

During the girl’s explanation:

“So? You’re saying you’re a Soul Reaper, who came all the way from the Soul Society to fight these evil creatures called Hollows, purging evil spirits and protecting the world as a righteous warrior?”

“Yes, you could put it that way…”

“Pft!”

“What are you laughing at?”

Seeing Ichigo’s trembling with suppressed laughter, Lolita frowned with a hint of warmth and anger.

“No, it’s nothing… It’s just… pfft, righteous warrior… You… sorry, let me laugh a bit more… hehe… Why don’t you say you’re a magical girl? Do you think this is some kind of children’s show? Come on, show me… your magic wand to defeat enemies, and… where’s your familiar? Don’t magical girls always have a cute contracted pet? Magical girls, you know.”

“I’m not a magical girl. I’m a Soul Reaper! Don’t confuse me with those who get their heads bitten off all the time… Don’t be fooled by my appearance; I’m at least ten times older than you…”

“Uh-huh… not a magical girl… so maybe a magical granny? Damn, wow! Pfft! Hahahahaha!”

“…” Facing Ichigo, who was lying on her bed rolling with laughter and no sense of decency, Lolita considered whether to burn two holes in him with the heavenly spark.

After a bout of suppressed laughter, Ichigo wiped tears from the corner of his eyes, sat up, and said, “Then, what exactly is the Hollow you fight? Some kind of tentacle monster?”

“Have you been reading too much hentai, boy?”

“W-wait! I get it! I was wrong!”

Seeing Lolita pick up a pillow again, Ichigo hurriedly raised both hands to defend and apologized.

“The so-called Hollows are souls transformed after death… Well, to help you understand, I’ll explain in detail…” Seeing Ichigo had stopped laughing and was listening seriously, Lolita nodded and smoothed back her side hair. “You know, there are two kinds of souls in this world. One is called the normal soul, like the ghosts you usually see… Don’t look at me like that. Since you can see and touch me, your spiritual power is higher than ordinary people, so seeing ghosts isn’t strange.”

After seeing Ichigo nod, Lolita continued: “The other kind is what I call Hollows… They attack both the living and the dead and devour their souls—that’s what you living people call evil spirits. Any more questions?”

“Uh, I understand…” Ichigo shook his head seriously, then puffed up his cheeks, suppressing a smile as he pointed to the illustration in Lolita’s hand. “Pfft! Why did you pull out that picture halfway through? And what is that thing? A cat demon in armor? Pfft!”

“…Don’t insult Lord Woomeow.”

“Swish!” A pillow accurately struck Ichigo’s face.

“Lord Woomeow? That does look like a princely princess…” Hmm? That sounds contradictory…

Rising from the bed, brushing off her tattered Death God uniform, Lolita walked slowly to the door and said, “You saved me; I will definitely repay this debt…”

“Wait! You’re still injured. Where do you think you’re going? If I said something wrong earlier, I apologize!” Ichigo reached out to pull her back, but Lolita dodged.

“Staying here is dangerous for you. Karakura Town is a spiritual hotspot—it’s the perfect hunting ground for Hollows. Because I’m injured, my strength has dropped significantly. Although I’ve concealed my spiritual pressure, Hollows have keen senses. If they detect my injury, they’ll follow me. Staying here might put you in danger… Not just you, but your family might be at risk as well.” Lolita looked at Ichigo, who still wanted her to stay, and spoke calmly.

Seeing the hesitation on Ichigo’s face, Lolita smiled faintly, “Don’t worry. If I encounter Hollows, I can still escape alone… But you… be careful. Your spiritual pressure is already very high. If you spot a Hollow, run immediately. If you get targeted, it’ll be trouble…” Saying this, she turned and left, leaving Ichigo with a complicated expression.

A minute passed.

“Boom!”

“Damn! I didn’t expect it to be so soon…” Due to her previous injury at the Hell Gate damaging her energy core, Lolita’s current strength was less than ten percent of her usual.

Still, she quickly ran toward Ichigo’s home. Her rapid movements left traces of bright red blood on the ground… Even as her wounds began to burst open, she did not stop. Lolita’s thought was clear: if Ichigo died because of this, she would never find peace in her life.

“Let go of Shari! You—” Seeing his sister held by a monster, Ichigo angrily grabbed a small folding stool and charged at the Hollow, which was several times larger than himself. “You bastard!!!”

Although Ichigo was physically strong and a formidable fighter among ordinary people—usually capable of taking on ten opponents single-handedly—this was not a mere petty thug he could defeat with ease. This was a monster he had never encountered before, whose name he only learned today…

Hollows were not something Ichigo, still an ordinary human, could handle. Even if this Hollow was weaker than a Begirian…

“Ah!” In his fury, Ichigo barely touched the monster before it punched him away. He flew as if hit by a speeding truck, skidding and rolling dozens of meters before stopping.

“Roar!” Raising his head, Ichigo saw the Hollow charging toward him and closed his eyes in despair…

“Are you okay, kid? Pfft!” After waiting anxiously for an attack that never came, a familiar voice greeted him.

Raising his eyes, Ichigo saw Lolita standing there, her body dripping with blood as she blocked the Hollow’s massive fist with her sword…

P.S.: Lolita has been corrupted by Jingchen, feeling frustrated…