Slime Soul (Tensura x Bleach Crossover) (Patreon)

Chapter 25: False Blade

“I mean that the ‘Zanpakutō’ you’ve been using was nothing more than a weapon made out of reishi, just like the weapons used by Quincies.” I continued calmly, watching confusion spread across his face as his gaze dropped to the Asauchi in my hand.

“W-What the hell are you talking about!? Zangetsu not being a real Zanpakutō? What kind of crap are you spewing!?” Ichigo snapped. “If my sword wasn’t a Zanpakutō, then how the hell did I use Bankai!?”

“And what do Quincies even have to do with this!?” he added, frustration clear in his voice.

“You already know, deep down, don’t you?” I asked calmly.

He narrowed his eyes at me, but I could see the doubt creeping in.

“But fine, I’ll spell it out for you.” I continued, pointing a finger at his chest.

“Either your Zanpakutō has been keeping things from you… or it’s been lying to you this whole time. But that’s something you’ll have to sort out yourself once you get your powers back.”

A complicated expression crossed his face as I lowered my hand.

“As for your other question, why you were able to pass that thing off as a Zanpakutō?” I continued with a slight smirk. “That’s because you’re a damn mutt made up of practically every race in this world.”

“Tsk, asshole.” Ichigo muttered under his breath, which only made my smirk widen.

“And the Quincy part?” he pressed.

My expression flattened as I considered my answer.

In the end… it wasn’t my place to reveal that kind of secret.

“That’s not my place to tell.” I said calmly. “If you really want to know, ask your father.”

He frowned at that, clearly unsettled.

I didn’t give him time to dwell on it.

“Now,” I said, extending my hand toward him, “are you ready to get your powers back?”

Ichigo hesitated, no doubt thinking about what I said about his father, before letting out a breath and looking up at me with resolve.

“I’ve got a lot of questions… but that can wait.” He said, grabbing my hand firmly as he stood. “Yeah. I’m ready.”

A grin spread across my face.

“Great. Then hold still for a moment.” I said, my tone turning teasing. “This might feel a little weird.”

He blinked—

—and the next second, I absorbed him into my Imaginary Space.

The last thing I saw was his panicked expression.

“Wahaha! Did you see his face?” I laughed, turning to the others.

Most of them either rolled their eyes fondly or shook their heads.

“You really do love messing with him, huh?” Nelliel said with a soft smile. “Honestly… it’s kind of cute. Like an older sibling teasing their younger one.”

Her words made Tier pause before she nodded slightly. “Now that you mention it… I can see it.”

“Tsk, as if.” I scoffed dramatically, dropping back into my seat beside Riruka, who immediately latched onto my side with a pleading look.

I gently shook my head, denying her request to turn back into a slime for now, earning a cute pout in response.

‘How are we doing, Astra? Is healing Ichigo giving you any trouble?’ I asked internally.

“Hmph, of course not, Caius-sama.” Astra replied with a small huff, sounding slightly offended. “I just took the opportunity to run a full analysis on him while we had the chance.”

A brief pause.

“I’m done, by the way.” she added, her tone turning smug.

‘Couldn’t help yourself, huh? Just had to see if there was anything more you could learn from the kid.’ I teased, poking fun at Astra’s slight obsession with acquiring new skills, earning me another cute huff.

“Caius-sama is just imagining it.” She replied with her usual line whenever she was trying to deflect or be sneaky.

Chuckling internally at her obvious response, I waited a moment before raising an eyebrow.

‘Well? Did you learn something?’ I asked expectantly.

There was a brief pause before Astra finally answered, her tone turning incredibly smug, like she had just discovered something amazing.

“Yes, Caius-sama. However, this skill will have to remain locked for now until your soul becomes stronger.” she said mysteriously, barely able to hide the excitement in her voice.

Now genuinely curious, I tried to pry further, but got nothing in return. Astra just repeating herself that I had to be patient.

‘…It must be something big for her to act like this.’ I thought before letting it go.

I trusted Astra completely, she was literally my other half after all. If she said it had to wait, then it had to wait.

Smiling at the faint flustered noises still coming from my cute Manas, I extended my hand, ignoring the curious looks from the others, and released Ichigo from my Imaginary Space.

I watched in amusement as he dropped face-first onto the ground with a dull thud, letting out a small groan.

A few giggles followed from the others.

Ichigo twitched for a second before suddenly pushing himself up and spinning around, shooting me the fiercest glare yet.

“You did that on purpose, didn’t you?” he asked flatly.

I just grinned.

“I don’t know what you’re talking about~”

Shifting back into my slime form, I was immediately scooped up into Riruka’s arms as she squealed happily. From my new position, I threw Ichigo a smug look.

That only made him mutter curses under his breath before taking a deep breath to calm himself.

After a moment, he stood still in the center of the room, quietly inspecting his body, clenching and unclenching his fist.

“…It worked.” he muttered in awe, clearly feeling his power had returned.

“Catch.”

Extending part of my slime body, I grabbed the Asauchi resting against the sofa and tossed it toward him.

“D-Don’t just throw things at me, you asshole!” Ichigo snapped as he fumbled for a moment before finally catching it.

He tightened his grip on the blade and shot me an irritated look.

“From now on, until you sort things out with your Zanpakutō, you’ll carry that Asauchi with you as much as possible, especially when you sleep.” I said calmly, enjoying being cuddled by Riruka. “It’s only temporary though. Once you settle things with your Zanpakutō, it should transform into a form that suits you naturally.”

Ichigo lost his scowl and looked down at the Asauchi before nodding seriously, tightening his grip on it.

“Got it.”

“Oh, and starting tomorrow, I’ll be picking you up after school and bringing you here so you can train your powers.” I continued casually.

That earned me a confused look.

“What do you mean? I already got my powers back, I can feel them. So why do I need to train?” he asked, looking genuinely puzzled.

“True, you got your powers back,” I said, waving my slime hand lazily, “but you won’t be training your Shinigami or Hollow powers.”

I paused for effect.

“You’ll be learning how to use your Fullbringer abilities.”

That only made Ichigo look even more confused.

“…What? My Fullbringer powers? I don’t have Fullbringer powers.”

“Of course you do.” I bobbed slightly before glancing up at the smiling Riruka. “Which is why, starting tomorrow, Riruka here will help you unlock them. So you might want to thank her in advance.”

That finally pulled Riruka out of her little world. She blinked, looked down at me, and instantly caved.

“I-I guess I don’t mind…” she muttered shyly, turning her head away.

“Thanks, Riruka. I really appreciate you doing this~” I said cheerfully.

She immediately started squirming happily, her face turning red as her grip on me tightened.

“H-Hmph, fine… but only because you’re the one asking, Mr. Slime.” she mumbled, still blushing as she went back to snuggling me.

“There you have it, Strawberry. Any questions?” I asked, turning back to Ichigo.

He just stared at us blankly, looking, in my opinion, just a little jealous at having a cute girl hugging me.

Riruka while not having breasts as big as Tier or Nelliel, still had some rather nice ones. I was personally experiencing how soft they were as they pressed into my body.

“Yeah. How the hell do I have Fullbringer powers!?” Ichigo finally snapped, his eyebrow twitching. “As far as I know, my mother was never attacked by a Hollow!”

“…Are you sure about that?” I asked, my tone suddenly turning serious.

Ichigo opened his mouth to answer—

—and stopped.

A complicated expression crossed his face.

“That’s what I thought.” I said after a moment of silence.

Then I shrugged, letting the tension fade.

“Anyway, last chance, any more questions before I take you home? That kitty cat is probably losing her mind trying to find you by now.” I added with a teasing tone, referring to Yoruichi and how easily I had given her the slip.

I saw Ichigo about to shake his head before he paused and looked at me seriously, his gaze briefly sweeping over everyone in the room.

“Yeah, I’ve got one last question for you… though it might be a bit personal.” Ichigo said with a small nod.

Raising an eyebrow curiously, I shrugged a moment later, slipped free of Riruka’s hold after giving her a small look, and shifted back into my human form.

“Very well. You can ask me on the way.” I said with a nod before glancing at everyone. “I’ll be back in a bit, girls.”

“Bye, Ichigo~ It was nice seeing you again. See you tomorrow~” Nelliel said cheerfully, waving at him.

Ichigo nodded back.

“It was… nice meeting you, Kurosaki Ichigo.” Tier added with a small nod.

“See ya later, Uryu!” Pesche said happily, earning an immediate response.

“It’s Ichigo!”

“Take care, don’t cha know.” Dondochakka added.

“Bye, Strawberry. Next time, I want to play a match against you~” Lilynette said, pausing her game just long enough to wave.

Ichigo’s eyebrow twitched.

“Hmph, just leave already.” Apacci huffed, crossing her arms.

“I suppose he’s not too bad… for a Shinigami.” Mila Rose added.

“Take care, Mr. Shinigami.” Sung-Sun said calmly, not even turning his way.

Ichigo took it all in with a small nod, though he shot Lilynette another small glare, before turning back to me.

I stepped forward, placed a hand on his shoulder—

—and in the next instant, we were gone.

A moment later, we reappeared in the middle of his bedroom. I glanced around briefly, noting the closed door, before turning back to him.

“So, what’s your question? Make it quick.” I said calmly, slipping my hands into my pockets. “I’m pretty sure you’re about to have visitors now that we’re out of my barrier.”

Ichigo dropped his school bag on the floor before turning to me with a serious expression.

“What did you mean back then? When you took the Hōgyoku from Aizen… about needing it for something?”

Blinking at the question, I relaxed slightly. I had expected something else, like asking me why I knew so much about him, but this?

‘I guess he’s just gotten used to about everyone knowing about him that it stopped bothering him.’ I thought silently before I let a soft smile grow on my lips.

“I did it for someone who’s been with me since the moment I arrived in this world.” I said softly. “You could call them my other half.”

“I don’t regret it. Not even a little. I’d do it again in a heartbeat if given the chance.”

In the back of my mind, I felt Astra stir and started making flustered noises.

“…Thank you, Master. I feel the same.”

Her response made my smile widen. I truly was the luckiest son of a bitch to have someone like Astra in my life.

Ichigo blinked as he thought about my response, then suddenly looked away, scratching the back of his head, his face faintly red.

The idiot probably thought I was talking about Nelliel.

I wasn’t going to correct him.

“I-I see… Sorry if I asked something too personal.” Ichigo muttered awkwardly.

I just laughed and walked up to him, giving his back a playful slap on the back making him stumble a bit.

“Wahaha, why are you so flustered, Strawberry? No need to be jealous of my luck with women.” I teased with a big grin. “Just man up and ask Orihime out already, problem solved.”

“…You’re an asshole, you know that?” Ichigo muttered with a small growl, clearly more embarrassed now as his blush grew to cover his whole face.

My gaze flicked to the side as I sensed a familiar presence approaching.

I let out a small sigh and slapped his back again.

“Looks like the kitty’s on her way.” I said casually. “I’ll see you tomorrow, and don’t forget what I told you.”

I glanced meaningfully at the Asauchi in his hand.

“Right.” Ichigo nodded seriously.

The next instant—

I was gone.

=====

Ichigo’s POV

As Caius left, Ichigo lingered for a moment, glancing toward the window to see if Yoruichi would reveal herself.

He waited.

…And waited.

After what felt like several minutes, nothing happened.

Ichigo shrugged as he faintly felt her presence move away and shifted his focus to more pressing matters.

Too much had happened today for him to dwell on anything else.

Looking down at the Asauchi in his hands, a small frown formed on his face.

A moment later, he was pulled from his thoughts by the sound of his door opening.

“Onii-chan! There you are. I didn’t see you come in. Are you hungry? Dinner is ready.” Yuzu said with a bright smile as she peeked into the room.

Ichigo gave her a small smile, one that made her blink in surprise.

“No thanks, Yuzu. I already ate while I was out.” he replied, grateful she couldn’t see the Asauchi in his hands.

Yuzu blinked again before her expression softened slightly as she studied him.

“…Okay. Good night then, Onii-chan.” she said gently.

“Yeah. Good night.” Ichigo nodded.

A moment later, he was alone again.

Sitting down at his desk, his gaze returned to the Asauchi in his hands, his frown deepening as Caius’s words echoed in his mind.

“Either your Zanpakutō has been keeping things from you… or it’s been lying to you this whole time.”

“…Old Man… what did Caius mean by that?” Ichigo muttered quietly, a pit forming in his stomach.

Shaking his head, his expression hardened with resolve.

He stood, made sure the curtains were drawn, and sat down cross-legged on his bed, the Asauchi resting between his hands.

Closing his eyes, Ichigo focused inward.

When he opened them again—

He stood within his Inner World.

The familiar sight of tilted skyscrapers stretching endlessly greeted him.

A presence stirred in front of him.

Ichigo turned—

—and saw him.

Old Man Zangetsu stood there, calm as ever, his weathered face unreadable.

Ichigo walked forward, stopping just a few steps away.

For a moment, neither spoke.

“…Old Man,” Ichigo finally said, his voice quieter than usual. “Was everything Caius said… true?”

Deep down, he already knew the answer.

Too many things hadn’t added up over time.

Still… he needed to hear it.

Zangetsu remained silent for a moment before letting out a quiet sigh. Slowly, he raised a hand and removed his dark shades, meeting Ichigo’s gaze directly.

“…Yes.” he said with a small nod. “Everything the being known as Caius told you is correct.”

Ichigo swallowed, his throat dry, but he didn’t back down.

“Why?”

Once again, silence lingered between them.

Then—

Zangetsu smiled faintly.

“…Very well. With how fast you are growing… and with the being known as Caius Aurelius now involved…” he began calmly, “I believe you are finally ready to learn the truth.”

“The truth about your origins… and why I have been restricting your power.”

Ichigo stood still, listening to the one he had trusted for so long.

“I held your power back…” Zangetsu continued, his tone turning serious—

“…because I did not want to be forced to kill you with my own hands.”

“…Wha—?”