Archive of Our Own ^beta

People tend to think that the world can change a lot within a century. Ichigo, reaching the age of 93 years old at the time, would say differently. Sure, the world changes a lot physically, but for the most part or the important parts in his opinion, it stays relatively the same. The sun still shines too brightly in the morning, people talk about mundane events in their lives, Urahara-san still pokes and prod him like a new test subject, and dinner is always delicious.

So maybe one or two of those were specific to him, but Ichigo took it all in stride regardless.

In his life, he had fallen in love, fallen out of love, stayed happy on his own, and, in his own opinion, became a relatively good person in the end. After all this time, he thought that he probably deserved a peaceful rest.

As Ichigo rested on his bed, his last seconds on this Earth ticking by, he wondered if all old people thought that way. If they did, it was a pretty depressing way to think. After all they accomplished, the most they got out of it was some sleep? Ichigo could feel his heartbeat beginning to rise. He closed his eyes and hoped that the first thing he sees is himself back in that familiar black kimono and the missing parts of his soul back on his back. The last 70 or so years were nice, but Ichigo would be lying if he said he didn’t miss the chaos of it all.

Ichigo took a deep breath and sighed. He knew he was going to be regretting it all in a few days. He could almost smell the freshly printed ink on his desk, all awaiting his signature. He probably deserved a peaceful afterlife, but he knew that wasn’t going to happen. To be honest though, he couldn’t bring it to himself to care.

Ichigo had no regrets remaining in the world. He lived beyond the living lifespan of all his friends. He left his inheritance to his children. He made sure someone checked up on Urahara-san to make sure the man ate something at least once a week, and if he was being particularly annoying, to force him to go to sleep. He even told the girl around the corner that died recently that he’ll be back to take her soul to Soul Society the moment he had the chance. Sure, there might be a neighborhood punk waiting for a chance to pull something over the old man, but Ichigo figured he could wait a few years and find him again in the afterlife. He could afford to take a chance.

Naturally dying was strange: Ichigo has felt his soul chain beginning to degrade since he reached the age of 90 years old. He always thought that the reason he lived to be 93 was because Ishida was still alive, and there was no way in hell that he was going to lose to Ishida on healthy living. But as his last moments expired, the last chain link broke, and Ichigo felt his soul remove itself from his body.

He was ready to go back to Soul Society. He took a deep breath in. As he exhaled, he started to feel light.

Sun was blearing through his eyes, and Ichigo opened them lazily. Already he was feeling stronger and nimbler. Yuzu always worried when Ichigo complained of aching in his joints and nagged at him, blaming the number of fights Ichigo got into as a teen. Right now, Ichigo felt he could fight an army and not complain a single time about fatigue.

He reached through his soul and felt a tired response fire back. Ichigo frowned but figured it was an effect of his power staying so dormant for so many years. Stretching his limbs, he let out a yawn and prepared himself for the onslaught of orders that was surely going to be thrown his-

“GOOD MORNING ICHIGO!”

Ichigo immediately ducked and kicked his father through a wall.

“What the hell Goat Face? You could have killed me!”

“My son! You are getting stronger each day and making your father proud. Ah, how your mother would have loved to see this.”

“Mom? Why are you bringing her up… now?” Ichigo turned and scrunched up his eyes in confusion. Walking over to his father, he noted that his body was notably more gigai quality rather than organic flesh, or whatever souls were made out of. He picked him up by the knot of his ugly tie.

“What the hell is going on?”

“Ichigo! Have you forgotten you training? How in the world are you going to keep strong if I don’t keep you on your toes?” Well forget thinking his dad was going to be useful. It’s good to know that hasn’t change in all these years.

Ichigo took a deep breath and tried to tune out his father’s wails. He also forgot how irritating it was to talk to his father. Instead, he closed his eyes and focused to assess the situation. The room was not made from seki-seki or was an illusion. That meant that this, whatever this was, was real. He opened his eyes again and took in the sight of his father who looked remarkably younger than he had when he returned to Soul Society.

“Ichi-nii! Come down stairs! You’re going to be late for class!” Ichigo threw his thoughts out momentarily as he registered his sister’s voice. His nine-year-old sister’s voice to be exact. Mind you, his sister had not been nine years old for quite a while now. However, before he could wonder what his sister was doing as her nine-year-old self, the meaning in her words came crashing down.

He glanced at the school uniform laid neatly on his desk and backpack placed slightly to the side.

Oh, hell no. He wasn’t quite sure what hell reality he was thrown into right now, but there was absolutely no way that he was going through the horrors of high school again. He was a 93-year-old man, goddammit. There was no way he was going to be stuck with teenagers with their horrible attitude and needlepoint focus. The first experience was enough for thirty lifetimes.

“Ichi-nii!”

“Just a minute Yuzu!” Ichigo found himself yelling as he threw his father down the hole he made and got dressed. He was pretty sure that this was his uniform for the fall season. Karakura High School went through so many uniform changes from when he was in high school to when Kazui was in high school that he wasn’t even sure that they had a formal uniform policy anymore. As he dug through his closet for shoes, he almost laughed at his wardrobe: Kazui would have a fit if he saw half the stuff in here.

“Ichi-nii!” Yuzu called for the third time, impatience just barely trickling in.

“I’m here. I’m here,” Ichigo answered and sat down at the table. Before he knew it, he had his backpack in one hand, another one checking his planner for previous assignments, and thanking a particularly small Yuzu for the delicious breakfast.

Goddammit, he was going to high school again.

“Jeez Ichigo, I thought Yuzu was going to have an aneurysm if you were going to be another minute late,” a smaller Karin commented as she took a bite of toast. Ichigo glanced back at her and marveled.

Karin and Yuzu died when they were 85 and 82 respectively. Karin took the loss hard but was happy that Yuzu went to Soul Society first. They both knew that Karin would be hopeless living on her own for long. They both lived to become very successful business women: Karin taking the stock market by storm, and Yuzu featuring her own cooking shows with a line of cooking products under the Kurosaki name. Karin never married, claiming that romance was never for her. Yuzu officially married her wife the day it was legalized in Japan, but the Ichigo had always welcomed Kasumi as his beloved sister-in-law from the day Yuzu introduced her as her girlfriend.

Those were the sisters that Ichigo knew. Now faced with his sisters, both at the very young age of 11 years old, Ichigo didn’t know what to say.

“Hello? Earth to Ichigo!” Karin teased.

“Yeah, yeah Karin. How about you just eat your breakfast, and I won’t tell dad about your new crush in school,” he quickly responded and picked up an egg.

“What crush? You know I don’t have one.”

“Does it matter to Goat-face?” Ichigo smirked as Karin quieted down and ate her breakfast.
“What? Karin has a crush?” Yuzu asked as she finally sat down to eat as well.

“Yeah, I saw the two of them at the store the other day. He was kind of short, and he looked like a punk.”

Yuzu laughed. “That’s exactly the kind of guy that Karin would end up being with!”

“Shut up! Both of you! Don’t think I don’t see you making goo-goo eyes at Takeshi’s g-“ Karin glanced back at Ichigo, “g-guy friends!” she finished and then looked down to her plate. Yuzu, had immediately retreated back to the kitchen saying that she had left something on the stove. Ichigo raised an eyebrow at the scene and remembered that Yuzu was still in the closet at this age. He thought for a moment about his situation.

For one reason or another, he had been transported back to the past instead of dying like a normal person and going to soul society. Going from the date from his calendar he glanced at in his room, this was about a week before Rukia arrived and fucked his life up in a good way. There was a chance that doing anything to change the past would have huge consequences in the future. Ichigo glanced at Yuzu who was fidgeting with her hands as she returned from the kitchen, obviously uncomfortable with the fact that her love life was brought up.

He weighed his choices: possibly ruin the future or have his sister be uncomfortable in her own home for a few more years. He watched Karin give apologetic glances to his sister, and Yuzu slowly moving her eggs around the plate.

Screw it. He’ll deal with the consequences later.

“Oh, so Yuzu has a crush too?” Ichigo teased, his tone light and friendly.

“N-No!” Yuzu slammed her fork down on the table, and Ichigo just smiled. “Karin’s just lying! Stop smiling Ichi-nii!”

“Well, when you confess to them,” Ichigo began, careful to make sure to get the pronouns right, “make sure you let them know that if they break your heart, they’re going to expect a nice conversation from me.” Yuzu blushed, and he didn’t notice Karin staring at him with a confused look.

“Ichi-nii!” Yuzu whined.

“Oh, and just so you know, I treat everyone equally: boy, girl, and anyone in-between or beyond.” Ichigo finished and took the last bite of his toast and stood up to put his dishes in the sink. He patted his sister on the head and thanked her for the meal. He didn’t see Yuzu’s reaction, but judging from Karin’s approval and pride on her face, he did a good thing.

As Ichigo bid farewell to his sisters, he looked up in the sky. For one reason or another he was given a second chance at this life. A reasonable person would probably try and mitigate damages that would occur in the future. However, Ichigo had long made peace with what happened in his past. Now that he had a second chance, he figured it was finally time to enjoy what others called the peak of his lifetime.

High school was weird. While it took an extra two years, Ichigo managed to graduate high school will both honors and being one of the top students in his class. Ishida fought behind Ichigo’s back that the only reason why he was not the top student was prejudice against him due to his fighting history and hair color. While Ichigo would never admit it, he was touched.

However, with those two extra years, Ichigo was more than saturated with high school knowledge. As a doctor, the biology course he was currently taking simplified things to the point that it no longer made sense. Ichigo fought the urge to raise his hand and ask questions regarding the effects of increasing the pre-load volume of the heart as his teacher quickly summarized the cardiovascular system. Instead, he chose the place his head on his desk and watch the both familiar and unfamiliar Karakura Town live their days out through the window.

Simply put: Ichigo was bored out of his mind. He couldn’t help it that he fell asleep as a result.

“Dude, Ichigo! Wake up pal!”

“Go away Keigo. If I hibernate, I might be able to save my remaining brain cells,” Ichigo retorted, turning his head so that he faced his friend.

“What was that Kurosaki-san?”

Shit. Why was Keigo always the start for disaster?

“Nothing Tanada-sensei,” Ichigo replied as he sat up. As a teen, he probably would have shot his friend a dirty look before trying to be a good student. However, age has not only given him wisdom but also sharper wit. It only took one quick look at the board and before he knew it, his lips were moving. “Your calculations are off.”

He could almost see the blood vessel burst from his teacher’s brain, which was probably a bad thing considering her heart was probably racing as well. That increase in cardiac output cannot be good for her. If anything, she just need to take a few deep breaths to slow down her heart beat and lower her blood-

“Excuse me?”

Ichigo really should know better than to antagonize. He was trying really hard not to push his limits. He promised himself to really try and make this a better life and be a good student. Maybe graduate on time this time around!

Unfortunately, he was failing.

“Well, it just doesn’t make sense really. If you are talking about Stage 4 repolarization in the heart, shouldn’t it be going towards the equilibrium potential?” Ichigo explained, casually leaning back. He never liked this teacher, and now he was seeing why. The teacher was flustered, obviously embarrassed by his mistake. The students were talking amongst themselves, no doubt discussing when local rebel Kurosaki Ichigo become so good at biology, which Ichigo took offence. His father might be a quack doctor, but he was a doctor nonetheless. Of course he would be good at biology! Keigo gave Ichigo a hi-five and Mizuiro chuckled beside him as he listened to Ichigo’s complaints.

“Kurosaki-kun, out.”

Ichigo simply shrugged and walked out of the classroom. Sure he might be deducted a few points for class participation for this, and he’ll probably be more difficult when grading, but a correct answer is a correct answer. There’s no refuting that.

He figured that he wouldn’t be welcomed back in class anytime soon, so he mindfully picked up his lunch and walked up to the roof like he always did with his friends at this age. The smell of food from within the bento box made his stomach and heart ached. He missed Yuzu’s meals. If there was one disadvantage to living to end of your life out of spite, he would say it’s the fact that things are constantly taken away from you.

Once he made it on the roof, Ichigo took a few minutes to enjoy the peace and quiet he grew accustomed to in his later years. Ichigo supposed that his old man mindset was still in place because thirty minutes felt like five and before he knew it, his peace and quiet was replaced by Keigo.

“Ichigo! What the hell was that man?” Keigo asked, his face incredulous. Ichigo opened his eyes and waved at his friends. Mizuiro waved back.

“I don’t know Asano-san. I thought it was pretty cool. Not to mention, this might stop the student population from thinking Ichigo as some kind of punk.”

Keigo and Mizuiro were two friends that Ichigo regrettably fell out of contact with over the years. Karakura was a small town, and not everyone was expected to stay there post-graduation. Mizuiro was smart and probably landed a job in a major corporation. However, Ichigo knew better than to think he lived a quiet life. Keigo had initially stayed a few years working odd jobs here and there, but eventually realized that life was short and went over to Tokyo to find a life suited for him. On the rare occasions that he did hear from them, it was usually a social medial message congratulating him on an award or a birthday.

The last time Ichigo saw them was during their funerals. Ichigo, like he did with most of his friends, personally arranged their konsos with the help of Urahara. He hoped that they were enjoying a good life in Rukongai, or even in Seiretei if they got their acts together.

During high school, Ichigo couldn’t remember spending much time with them. Granted, much of his time was used in defeating super villains with ridiculous plans to make sure his friends were safe. However, if there was something he regretted in his past, it would be that. Relaxing and leaning along the fence, he shrugged in response to the question.

“Well, I tried this thing called studying, and it seemed to actually work,” Ichigo joked and smiled. His friends froze. When Ichigo realized that no one was joining in, he stopped as well and smiled sheepishly. He knew he had an odd sense of humor, but he didn’t think it was that bad.

“Ichigo, are you okay dude?” Keigo asked.

Ichigo scrunched his eyebrows in confusion. “What do you mean?”

“You just seem to be in a good mood is all,” Mizuiro explained as he opened his lunch box.

“What, is that a crime now?”

“No, it’s just different.” Mizuiro concluded.

The three of them stayed silent after that. It never occurred to Ichigo just how much of a hothead he was a teenager. It was just so tiring to keep being serious and angry all the time and hung up about the past. He much rather be like who he is now: calm and taking things on as they come.

Things were going to be different. Maybe not necessarily a good different, but hell if Ichigo was going to accept anything else.

“Hey, where’s Chad?” Keigo asked after of moment of peace. Ichigo wondered if silence just made Keigo uncomfortable.

“Dunno. Have you tried calling him?” Ichigo asked as he finished the last of his lunch.

“You know he never answers his phone! Come on Ichigo. Where’s that crazy sixth sense that you have?” Keigo urged.

“Why are you concerned about him anyways? Chad can handle himself,” Ichigo asked.

“It’s lunchtime though! Without us, who is Chad going to be eating with?”

“Are you worried Asano-san?”

“What the hell are you talking about? No one should eat alone!”

Ah, now that Ichigo thought about it, Keigo did have a really weird obsession with making sure that they all ate together. It was probably from the fact that Keigo’s family was a little less complete that Ichigo’s. Eating together was something Ichigo had always taken for granted, but for Keigo, he took every moment as precious. If he remembered right, Chad only came up to eat with them on the regular once the whole Shinigami business began, and that wouldn’t really do.

Taking a deep breath, Ichigo summoned various spirit ribbons around him. He noticed a few red ones before they quickly shifted to a more pinkish hue as if to hide from Ichigo’s eyes. Speaking of which, it would probably do Ichigo some good to go and visit Urahara-san once class was over. If there was anyone who could tell him if the world was going to implode on itself due to Ichigo, it was probably Urahara-san. However, he put that track of thought to the side and followed the ribbon that lead to his friend.

Chad, once everything was done and over with, joined the Peace Corps after retiring from his boxing career. Ichigo remembered receiving postcards once a month from him from the various places he was helping in. It was especially helpful for Urahara who could learn more about the Hollow culture in different areas as well. Chad ended up marrying Ramirez, a friend he made during his time with the Peace Corps, after a trip to Mexico a few years before he retired. The couple stayed true until the end of their days when they died only days between each other. Ramirez wasn’t apparently surprised that Ichigo had some apparently good connections in the afterlife, saying that there was always an air of death surrounding him but in a good way. Chad had just smiled and made him promise that Ichigo would take care of himself.

Ichigo liked to think Chad was happy in the end, but he knew his friend was pained with how limited he was during their adventures. He never missed those analyzing eyes when Ichigo complained how his joints ached or when he was forced to retire from teaching martials arts due to a torn ACL.

“He’s at the park. The idiot probably fell asleep there.” Ichigo stretched his leg and appreciated the lack of the usual ghostly pain. “The park?! Does Chad not have a house or something? Jeez, the guy could at least tell one of us. He could at least sleep in one of your hospital beds Ichigo,” Keigo exclaimed as he texted furiously on his phone.

“Just call him you dumbass. You know Chad only has limited messages,” Ichigo reminded as he lightly kicked him.

“Ah, right right. I forgot about that,” Keigo smiled as he dialed up the number instead. “God, we need to get that guy a new phone. What happens if he gets into some deep shit or something, you know? Or he’s at a yakuza hideout and he can only text us or something? Mizuiro, don’t you have a spare phone or something?”

“Me? I’ll have you know, I use all of my phones to keep in contact with all of my clients. They can’t know that I’m talking to all of them simultaneously.”

“It’s for Chad though! Come on, you can’t be so heartless!”

“Oi, there you are Ichigo. I thought I heard some idiots screaming on the roof.”

Ichigo stopped breathing at that moment.

Tatsuki Arisawa died at the tender age of 25 years old. While out of their group, Tatsuki was the one with the weakest spiritual sensitivity, it never stopped her from helping out with Hollows and other problems of the week. Everyone, including Ichigo, always saw Tatsuki as an unstoppable force. Someone who would always keep fighting even when there was no more hope.

Tatsuki Arisawa committed suicide at 25 years old. Ichigo was too in grief to be angry. They were all supposed to be happy. Aizen had died. The world was safer. Ywahch was gone. He protected everyone. His friends tried to tell him that this wasn’t his fault. Years have passed, and he understood the sentiment they were trying to tell him. He moved on, but what came shortly after her funeral would remain with Ichigo for as long as he could still breathe.

Souls tended to take a little longer to fully form in their spirit stage. Ichigo waited on baited breath day and night for news, determined to make sure she wouldn’t at least be alone before sending her off. It was the only time he cursed himself for sealing his spiritual powers. He wanted to make sure that she knew she had friends on this side and to make her promise to wait for the rest of them to catch up to her. It was the third day after the funeral that the search squard felt Tatsuki appear three miles from her grave.

As soon as he got the news, Ichigo rushed to the location, not realizing that the seal he had made was already breaking. He could still remember the terrified, tear-stained stare Tatsuki gave him as a Hollow devoured his friend.

Ichigo didn’t remember what happened afterwards. When he came too, his Hollow mask was shattering, and Orihime and Uryuu were behind him as he cried out in sorrow. Urahara made a stronger seal, and all of them had a second funeral.

They searched Rukongai for years without success. Mayrui had told them that souls eaten by Hollows are gone forever, which is why it is paramount that Shinigami are present in every town. They would disrupt the balance of souls, just like the Quincy did. Tatsuki was most likely lost to the universe, he had commented.

But in this universe, Tatsuki was still here. Ichigo would make sure of that.

“Oi! Ichigo! You okay there? You look like you’ve seen a ghost.” Keigo commented.

“Y-yeah,” Ichigo swallowed hard. He bit back tears not because he was ashamed of them but because it was too much to explain in too little time. If this was all some kind of cosmic prank, he demanded the world to stop now because this was too cruel. He blinked.

Tatsuki waved a hand in front of Ichigo.

“Dude, I haven’t seen you like this since you were a cry- well I guess you still are a crybaby. You sure you’re okay?” He wiped his eyes and tried to think quickly. It had been so many years since Tatsuki had crossed his thought as more than regret. Now there was hope, and he was not going to let it go.

“Huh. I wouldn’t think I’d be seeing crybaby Ichigo back anytime soon, especially since you’ve adopted that tough-guy persona,” Tatsuki joked, hoping that it would lift the mood. Ichigo scowled at the insult, taking the open door she was offering him.

“Whatever Tatsuki,” Ichigo said and took a sip out of juice box. His phone rang a chime and he quickly pulled it out to check it.

Tatsuki
You sure youre okay?

He looked over to her and gave a slight nod. She looked ready to punch something. Ichigo shook his head. Tatsuki gave Ichigo a hard look before nodding herself and shifting her weight on her other leg. Things were resolved for now.

“So what brings you over here Arisawa-san?” Mizuru asked, his smile just as friendly as ever. Tatsuki paid no attention to him.

“What kind of prank were you pulling today Ichigo? You know that kind of attitude will just get you into deeper shit than usual with the teachers,” Tatsuki commented. Ichigo shrugged.

“It’s not my fault if the teacher was wrong. My dad is a doctor, and even if I think he’s an idiot, I think I trust his medical books a little more than a teacher whose grading style is based on whether or not he likes me. You can’t fight facts on a test,” Ichigo retorted.

“Tch, that attitude isn’t going to get you-“

“Tatsuki! I found you!”

Ah, well, this was already an emotional lunch for Ichigo. Why not add more people he cared about to the pile?

Orihime climbed the stairs in a rush to meet her friend, but stopped as she noticed Ichigo in the group. She quickly glanced away but gave small glances and smiles towards him. Ichigo gave a small wave, and hoped that he was looking friendly. Orihime always did say he had the worst bitch face when he wasn’t paying attention to it.

He wasn’t really sure how he missed it in high school. When the two of them started dating, Ichigo always commented that it just felt natural, but that was because he just never noticed her pining over him for so long. Ichigo figured he should have seen that as the first warning sign, but he was young as he supposed in love. Now that he was back in high school, it was almost embarrassing at how clueless he was.

“Oh, Orihime-san!” Keigo cheered, and finally, she looked directly at all of them. Ichigo sucked in a breath. He hoped that Ishida was still being a piece of shit and didn’t come up either. He wasn’t sure he could take another blast through memory lane.

Ichigo was struck with how young she looked. She aged well over the years, far better than Ichigo could ever claim. She was as beautiful then as she was now. When she looked at him, her eyes faltered again, and Ichigo wondered at what point did she realize that she didn’t had to hide her feelings from him anymore.

Ichigo wished he had the heart right now to tell her to go looking for love elsewhere while there was plenty of time left. But they were still young, and there was always going to be more time. Ichigo will just be sure not to be the one to waste hers.

“Sorry Orihime. This idiot’s stunt today got me worried that something else was going on, so I had to go check on him and make sure he wasn’t going to do something else stupid,” Tatsuki explained. She glanced at Ichigo once more, and Ichigo just scowled. Tatsuki rolled her eyes and placed a hand on Orihime’s shoulder.

“Come on. You said you made something, uh, special for today?” Tatsuki asked sheepishly. Ichigo’s stomach groaned at the thought of Orihime’s cooking. He loved her with all his heart, but not his stomach, unfortunately.

Orihime smiled and bowed politely to Ichigo and his friends. “What you did today was really cool!” she complimented, gasped at how forward she was being, bowed a few more times before Tatsuki took the head and dragged her away.

Keigo whistled and waggled his eyebrows suggestively.

Ichigo threw his empty juice box at him.

Orihime, thought their time together was short, was a precious friend. Like he said, the two of them were young and supposedly in love. After all, how could you not fall under a relationship after saving the world a few time and under the impression that this was going to be your life? It was the natural sense of events.

His father had given his blessings. Tatsuki punched Ichigo in the stomach and made him promise that he was not going to pull a fast one over her best friend. His friends celebrated. It just seemed logical, and perhaps that was the problem.

They really didn’t share many interests, and the ones they grew to share didn’t last. They loved their son, but Ichigo couldn’t sustain anything he didn’t have any foundations in. Orihime tried to make it work. Ichigo just didn’t bother. It only made sense they’d separate.

He had custody over Kazui every other weekend. The two of them were still friends. Things weren’t strained. He didn’t even have any feelings for when Orihime remarried. Of course she asked him how he felt, and maybe it hurt when he said he didn’t really care, but he honestly didn’t, and he thought it would be worse for him to lie. His friends brought him to bars to help deal with the breakup pain he didn’t have. His sisters brought him food every few days even though he was more than able to cook. Orihime even came by to check up on him once or twice.

He went to their wedding alone. He brought gifts for the couples and a few things for Kazui. He left the wedding early.

He called Karin afterwards, asking if something was wrong with him. Karin was quiet for a long time. Then she asked, “Why do you think so?”

“People keep telling me I should be feeling something when I don’t.”

“Is this about the wedding?” Karin asked. “I thought you were okay with it.”

“I am.”

“Then what is this about?”

“I don’t know.”
“Think about it for a little.”

Ichigo sat in his car. Keys still in the ignition. Music from the wedding still blasting from the reception.

“I’m not happy that she found someone. I’m not sad either. I just don’t care. Does that make me messed up?”

She hummed. “I don’t think so then. If you don’t, you don’t. If you do, you do.”

“Shouldn’t I be heartbroken?”

“Maybe you knew that this was never in your heart to begin with,” Karin explained, and Ichigo wondered if that was true all along.

“Jeez Ichigo, have you thought about trying out for baseball or something?” Keigo asked as he rubbed his face.

Ichigo paused and remembered that he was no longer a ninety year old man. He still had time to figure something he would probably never figure out. He smiled quietly to himself.

“What, you want my throw to get even better?” Keigo paled and Ichigo laughed to himself.

He had years to think about all of this. He had years to forget too. However, he also had years to make something else of this life.

School passed with little events afterwards. Apparently word went around that Ichigo was serving a little extra punk behavior, and everyone should be on high alert. So he gave them something to be wary of and was on his best behavior. After all, he can’t make quips if he was asleep.

The school bell rang, and Ichigo parted ways with his friends. Chad didn’t make it to school, but Keigo decided to stop by his house to drop off homework. Ichigo waved him off, saying that he had to visit a friend on the other side of town. He noticed Mizuiro and Keigo’s look, but didn’t say anything afterwards.

“Oh, hey, guys, do you want to do something this weekend though?” Ichigo asked.

“What? You want to hang out?”

“What’s the occasion?”

Well, in a week, my entire life is going to be turned upside down and probably the timeline is going to be screwed up. But I never had the chance to try out that new karaoke bar that opened up right about now, and I would really like to before it closes down because a Hollow throws me into it in a few months and it never reopens – is what Ichigo would like to say. He doesn’t really think that is going to fly and simply responds, “I think things are going to be really hectic, and I want to make sure we get our fun in before exam season starts.”

Mizuiro nods. “Smart thinking Ichigo. I knew there was a reason why you’re the leader.”

Keigo agrees as well and says he’ll mention it to Chad when he drops by his house. Ichigo thanks him and walks towards the only candy store in Karakura Town. On the way there, Ichigo buys a box of mochi. He figured it was high time the kids were paid with something.

“Hey! You’re not supposed to be here! Jinta SMASH!”

“Relax. Here, I bought mochi,” Ichigo placated and tossed to box over to the hothead. The kid stopped and he stared back at Ichigo. Smiling, Ichigo flared his reiatsu, just enough to show the kid who’s boss but to also-

“Hello! And welcome to Urahara Shōten. How can I help you,” the shopkeeper dropped his stare, “my esteemed guest?”

“Getaboshi,” Ichigo smiled. “I was wondering if you could help me with a small problem.”

“Who, me? I am just a humble shopkeeper. Whatever teenage problems you have, your parents certainly will be a better-“

“You know Goat Face hasn’t been a teenager for what, over a hundred years?”

Urahara snapped his fan back.

“How?”

“Let’s go inside. It’s a long story.”

In his declining years, Ichigo always found solace in how few changes Urahara made to his shop. The world was ever-changing, but in this pocket of his home, he could pretend he was still fifteen in a simpler world. Even as he walked through the doors now, his mind found peace.

Jinta, who was now busy digging into the box of mochi and “deigning” to share a few with Ururu, had now deemed Ichigo as a “respectable underling” and paid him no attention. However, the shopkeepers have yet to lessen their reaitsu around him. As Ichigo took his seat around the table, he also flared his own to match the captains’ and then flared it again to show his higher strength.

“Tea?” Tessai asked, his voice straining to stay neutral under the pressure.

“Please,” Ichigo replied and let go of his control, allowing it to flow as it usually did. He did not miss the small breaths of relief from the shopkeepers and couldn’t help the small smile that graced his face. Tessai poured his classic brew into a small tea cup, and Ichigo made sure to wait for the kettle to be returned to the tray before even letting his hands move to grab it.

Both Tessai and Urahara chose to stay in Karakura Town after everything. In Ichigo’s later years, they were a great source of companionship. Rukia’s visits were far and few in-between with the duties of being captain as well as time becoming less meaningful to a spirit. His friends could also hardly come and visit even prior to becoming seated officers of the Gotei 13. All of them were probably uncomfortable with the fact that Ichigo had become so brittle in his later years.

Urahara and Tessai never doubted his strength. He appreciated that from them, if nothing else.

“So, Ichigo-san, tell me. In what ways have I’ve been remiss in trying to keep these secrets away from you until you were ready?” Urahara asked.

Ichigo finished his tea and exhaled. Tessai always did make the best teas.

“This is amazing,” he complimented, as he always did in his later years. Tessai nodded, his own way of showing bashfulness. Smiling, he then look at the shopkeeper. Despite residing in a gigai for as long as Urahara stayed in this world, Urahara’s eyes managed to age remarkably. This youthful man, wrought by despair as under his mistake, looked so much older than Ichigo was comfortable making him feel.

He tapped his fan on the table once.

Ichigo smiled. He knew he could still get under Urahara’s skin. It was difficult as the man got older, but this Urahara before him was a piece of cake.

“I am from the future.” Ichigo said simply and reached out to grab a cracker.

“Excuse me?”

“You’ll probably want proof, and I’m not sure how to provide that to you since we’re still a few days off from when the fun stuff starts happening. However, I know you have the Hogyoku somewhere in here and that you want to stuff it in a gigai because you’ve received word a Shinigami will be arriving in this town soon,” Ichigo finished his cracker and went to take another. “Don’t do that by the way. You’ve calculated the risks, and while you’re no Aizen, you should really know better. Especially now that I’m out of the equation.” Ichigo didn’t miss how Urahara’s hand tightened as he mentioned Aizen’s name.

“And why’s that?”

“Part of the reason you used Rukia is to hide that Hogyoku away. However, the other part is that you wanted me to awaken my powers the fastest way possible, so that when Aizen’s plans started, I would be right on track to stop him. Except, we don’t need that. That’s why I came here for.” Ichigo swallowed and looked at the shopkeeper dead in the face.

“I want an asuchi, but throw me down the Shattered Shaft. There are a few friends I’ve been missing, and I don’t really want to away from them for much longer.” Urahara dropped his fan. He gave Ichigo a hard look. Ichigo knew him long enough to see the gears turning as his mind raced through all sorts of possibilities, some even Ichigo would never think of. Ichigo returned the look right back at him.

When Urahara broke the stare, he turned to Tessai. “We’re closing up shop today. Get the preparations ready Tessai.” Tessai nodded and walked off to the basement. Urahara then turned his attention back to Ichigo. “We’ll have everything ready in three days. In the meantime, I suggest some strong meditation to control that reiatsu; though, I will admit you are performing a level of control I have not even seen in captains. If we cut the chain close enough, we might be able to get you to awaken within half a day.” Ichigo nodded, happy to know that things will at least start feeling right once he has received his powers.

“However,” Ichigo flinched. It was never a good idea when Urahara had extenuating circumstances. “In the meantime, I would like you to agree to allow me to perform a series of experiments.” When Ichigo glared at the mentioned of experiments, Urahara raised his hands. “Only one per day then. If you know me as well as you say, you must know that being a scientifically improbable being will only pique my interests and leave my curiosity unsatisfied.” He lowered his stare. “And I’m sure you must be well acquainted with my unsatisfied curiosity.”

“’Scientifically improbable’ he says,” Ichigo mutters. “You know my birth was all sorts of scientific improbability.”

“Ah, so you know of that as well,” Urahara hums. He brings out a notebook he was hiding within his sleeve and hands it to Ichigo. “In three days, I would like you to write down everything you can remember from your past life. We must do our best to preserve this time line as best as possible to keep any irregularities and diverging too much or else our advantage is lost. If possible, please associate dates to each specific event as close as possible and don’t-“

“Advantage? What are you talking about?”

“Well, it’s only reasonable that the reason why you came back was because you came from some kind of horrendous future. After all, it’s not like nature to send you back here without a purpose. While it would most likely be disastrous should I know the nature of this future as that will most definitely diverge this timeline, I-“

“Getaboshi, god I forgot you can talk so much,” Ichigo interrupted and rubbed his temples. While Urahara himself changed very little in his future, the man most certainly mellowed out as the years passed. Without that guilt feeding into his own mad scientist ego, Urahara was able to carry out more society-benefiting research and gave Ichigo light updates on his work. It had been a while since Ichigo was forced to witness Urahara’s true madness.

“Look, nothing bad happens in the future. Well, okay, a lot of bad things happen in the future, but that wasn’t the reason I was sent back. I was going to bed, and I had this feeling I guess? I was ninety-three years old at the time, so I guess you just kind of know when you’re about to kick the bucket when you’re that old. Anyways, I could pretty much feel my soul chain eroding away and losing connection to my real body, and I was just about ready to call for Rukia so I could go to Soul Society and finish up my captain initiation when I woke up in my room as a fifteen year old,” Ichigo explained as he scratched his head. Between waking up and the realization that all of his friends were young and fresh again, he really hadn’t had the time to think about how absurd all of this was. And here he was ready just to dive right back into it?

What if something did go wrong and he just wasn’t aware of it? Ichigo growled. He hated when things got complicated like this.

He looked up at Urahara who was looking at him with another curious look, but it wasn’t one that he usually wore when he was fascinated by something. This time, Urahara looked surprised.

“Ninety-three years old?” Urahara asked. It occurred to Ichigo that part of Urahara’s guilt had been dragging an innocent child into this madness due to this mistake. Understanding this, he understood why Urahara looked at Ichigo as if he was lying.

Ichigo nodded.

“Lived long enough to get married, divorce, raise a kid, raise a few grandkids, and even a few great grandkids. I even got my medical degree and everything, unlike goat-face.”

Urahara was silent at that.

Ichigo broke eye contact after a while, but Urahara never let his gaze drop. His mind wandered to all those years that the two of them shared as his friends moved on from the human world and into Soul Society. Urahara never allowed himself to go back, even as Tessai, Jinta, and Uryuu all eventually left. Ichigo never asked for his reasoning, but from the relieved expression he gave Ichigo when he visited, Ichigo knew it wasn’t because he loved Karakura so much.

Yoruichi, as she was building up her family’s legacy again, had asked Urahara to return to Soul Society and put the reigns on Mayuri’s own machinations. Urahara had always laughed in response and answered, “Who would watch over Kurosaki-kun and keep him company?”

Ichigo wondered if the Urahara he knew was still lamenting in his own regrets.

“We all turn out okay, you know,” Ichigo finally says. Urahara blinks. “I mean, we’re not completely fine, but we’re okay. Me, the vizeords, even the Shinigami you were going to use as bait to hide the Hogykou. You...” Ichigo struggles to finds the words he wants to say.

You did fine.

You did what you could.

You need to forgive yourself.

Ichigo’s simply stared at Urahara and hoped his expression could get across what he wanted to say.

Urahara finally broke eye contact and sighed. It was as if Atlas was final shrugging off the weight off his shoulder. He takes back the book and stands up.

“Be back in three days,” he says tiredly, but not out of resignation. His voice was tired, but it was an exhaustion one faces after saving the world a few times. Ichigo knew the feeling. “I will have to ask Yoruichi-san for an asuchi, but I will see to it that you get one. I’m sure that you know your Shinigami powers have already fused with the hollow, so I must ask, why you are asking for it?”

Ichigo pressed a hand to his chest. “Lucky me, I have a Quincy spirit as a guardian angel. Using an asuchi will force my powers to be balanced rather than doing whatever the Old Man wants to do, if he’s still in there.” Ichigo scratched his head and wondered if all parts of him followed him back.

Urahara nodded. “In that case, I will also ask Tessai to prepare a kido cage for you to defeat your hollow and –“

“Oh don’t worry about that. The two of us just need a nice talk, and if he travelled with me, we should be fine. If not, you might just have to tell Yuzu I’m going to be missing dinner on that day.”

Urahara chuckles at that.

“My, my Ichigo, if I had known that you were going to be this interesting, I would have had everything set up earlier,” Urahara smiles finally. Ichigo rolls his eyes, but gives a warm smile.

“Yeah, yeah, we’ll see. See you in three- hey, is that a mod soul?”

Kon. Kon. He wondered how he was carrying on now? Mod Souls didn’t die, not like how normal souls did. However, Kon was never truly accepted by Soul Society, and there was only so much you could do in the world. Last he heard from him was when he visited Ichigo at the hospital.

“Really Ichigo, you’re missing out,” Kon had said as he peeled another apple. He was wearing a different face than the one Ichigo had last seen him in. It was part of the plan really. Kon planned to live forever, but that wasn’t really how people worked. So every few years he switched bodies, photobomb pictures, and switch again. He was growing quite popular in the cryptid world, according to what Yuzu and Karin were telling him.

“You should really get out of this stuffy town. Have you ever been to America?” Ichigo thought back to the documentaries Kazui and him watched when it was his weekend with his son.

“Too many people,” Ichigo objected, his words forced out from disuse.
Kon laughed. “That’s right, even just three’s a crowd,” he paused. “But two’s company?”

Ichigo smiled and picked up a freshly peeled apple.

“Oh yes,” Urahara answered, “but I’m afraid that one is a bit defective. If you would like one, I can get Yoruichi-san to get some from Soul Society-“

“I’m going to take this as payment then. See you later Urahara-san,” Ichigo waved off.

“Payment?” Urahara-san asked but did not follow up. Ichigo smiled to himself and knew that the shopkeeper was mirroring it.

From the shop, Ichigo took the long way to home. It took him back to look at his old town sixty years ago. Karakura did not age well. The young people moved away either to international colleges or to find work in Tokyo. Businesses were being replaced by chain retailers and factories. Ichigo would always love his town, but seeing it die like it did broke his heart.

He took in the familiar restaurants and convenience stores that once littered his town and smiled to himself slightly. The town now seemed so full of life with students going to karaoke bars or restaurants now the cram school was over. It was so unlike the empty streets he got acquainted to in his later years. There were too many times than Ichigo was willing to admit that he had to stop himself from just waving at complete strangers. Seeing people out and about like this, Ichigo truly felt the age that he once was.

And perhaps Ichigo was walking a little slower than the speed of traffic as he was enjoying his town again. And perhaps maybe he stopped to admire the river that flowed through his town. And perhaps he stood there for a good minute reminiscing. However, none of that was a good reason for someone to completely plow him over in their mad rush.

“Hey! Watch where you’re going!” Ichigo yelled.

“Maybe you shouldn’t just stand there in the middle of traffic!” a woman answered back. Ichigo, not taking any of this crap, quickly got up and ran up to her.

“Now listen here lady, I might be okay, but what if some kid- Unagiya-san?”

She was younger than he remembered ever being. Perhaps it was because she always looked like a mother since he met her. Maybe a rash for a sensible parent, but Ichigo couldn’t complain. But looking at her now, she looked like she could pass as one of his classmates.

“Are you saying I’m that irresponsible? What kind of punk just stands in the middle of the-“ At that moment, a phone began ringing and Unagiya-san gasped. Quickly reaching into her backpack, she pulled out her phone and answered, “Hello dear?” in a tone Ichigo never recalled her ever having with anyone. Ichigo tensed his fist.

He remembered stories of Unagiya’s first husband. When his boss was kind enough to buy him a few drinks after a particularly hard day, she would share her some life stories Karou wasn’t old enough to hear yet. He remembered her talking about her husband being a particularly reckless drinker. He loved sports, and he love to bet on them, and everything seemed to multiply when he was drunk.

He particularly remembered the story when her husband had spent an entire week out of the house and forgetting to pick up Karou, the only responsibility he had in the household. He was out with friends, and when he did eventually remembered, Unagiya just pursed her lips.

“He didn’t take very well to missing his games,” she eventually said and downed another drink.

“No, I’m right there! Please don’t worry, I’ll be sure to get a nice tip for the family, and we can go on that family vacation Karou had been asking about,” Unagiya-san placated. Ichigo personally wanted to make sure this creep soul went to hell.

Thinking quickly, Ichigo grabbed the phone and to Unagiya-san’s horror, he spoke, “Ah, is this Unagiya’s boss? Let me be the first to say that the service was absolutely excellent. I’ll be sure to send a large tip. Happy doing business with you!” Hanging up, Ichigo gave Unagiya her phone back and the majority of cash in his wallet.

“Take this. Sorry, I didn’t mean to take away some of your income by bothering you like that. If it helps, I’ll go with you and explain the situation,” Ichigo shrugged. “No one is going to think twice if it was the ‘Karakura punk’ that got in your way.” Ichigo explained.

Unagiya stared in disbelief before she punched him in the gut. Bills went flying, and Ichigo could swear that would have been a fatal blow.

“What the hell were you thinking!” Ichigo took the punch but managed to stay upright. Considering his boss’s strength, he considered that quite the accomplishment.

“I don’t need your pity! Ugh, now I’m late for this delivery. Thanks a lot punk!” Unagiya shrieked, and she quickly went to her phone. Ichigo tried to grab it again, but Unagiya was expecting it this time and prepped herself for another punch.

Ichigo grabbed her hand and raised it up so the sleeve would fall down. He scowled at the bruises on her arm.

“Rough job?” he asked, his voice as sympathetic as possible.

Unagiya said nothing.

Ichigo shook his head and let go of her hand. Taking out a piece of paper, Ichigo quickly wrote down the number to his family’s clinic.

“It’s not much, but if you ever need somewhere to stay, you have a place here. Just call. My sister makes a killer curry. We’re the clinic just outside of town,” Ichigo offered and picked up his bag. “My name is Ichigo Kurosaki, and I didn’t like how that guy on the phone was talking to you. You deserve something better, you and I’m guessing Kaoru. Even if that something is nothing at all,” Ichigo finished. Taking a few steps back, Ichigo looked around and was relieved that the street was relatively empty at the moment.

“Is there anything I can do for you?” Ichigo asked. For a second, he thought he had did the wrong thing. Unagiya-san looked both horrified and stricken with his words. Ichgio’s inside froze up, wondering if what he said was the exact opposite of what he was supposed to say. However, when another fist landed in his gut and he crumpled to the ground, he didn’t think he did that bad.

“You idiot,” she scoffed, tears in her eyes, and she ran off. He took note that she had at least pocketed the paper.

Ichigo just wondered if she would hire him in a year and a half or so. He needed the money to buy Rukia that stupid Chappy doll eventually.

It took him an extra hour of walking, but Ichigo finally found what he was looking for. When he got home, he asked Yuzu on the best way to clean it.

“Ew, what is that?” she asked. Putting on a pair of globvs, she regretfully tossed it into a pillowcase and threw it into the washer, not even bothering with prewashing it. She glared at her brother for making her go through the whole ordeal.

“A new friend,” he answered vaguely. He pulled up a chair and watched as the stuffed lion tumbled around the washing machine and suds began to form. Yuzu scrunched up her face lightly patted her brother on the back.

“You’re like an old man now, Ichi-nii,” she huffed and walked away to finish up dinner. Ichigo laughed quietly to himself and pulled out the candy dispenser from his bag. “Looks like we’re both going to have to learn how to be Ichigo again, huh Kon?”

Needless to say, Kon wasn’t exactly the most excited about living the rest of his natural life (or until Ichigo could convince Urahara to make a gigai for Kon) as a lion. However, he was very excited about being able to go to high school in three days.

Those three days passed in a blur. Ichigo kept Kon in his backpack so that he learned how to be high school student and not to do anything Ichigo wouldn’t do, including being an all-around creep. On the second day, when Kon was obviously making some kind of devious plan to make a mad dash with Ichigo’s body, he took Kon to a nearby abandoned lot and showed Kon the repercussions of stupid ideas.

Kon was on much better behavior after that.

It was on the third day that Kon began to ask questions.

“So where are you going that you’re going need the amazing Kai for?” Ichigo rolled his eyes. He was still pushing for that name change apparently. In all honestly, Ichigo probably would have changed the name if he wasn’t already terrible with remembering them in the first place. It was better for him to keep names the same. Besides, it was way too similar to Kazui, kind of.

“I’m going to get my soul chain cut off, and hopefully get some Shinigami powers,” he answered off-handedly as he rubbed his eyes. However, as he pressed his palms into his eyes, he swore he could still see trig functions behind his eyelids. If only that would be true for the next week.

“Sh-Sh-Shinigami powers?” Kon gasped.

“Yup,” Ichigo answered and sighed and leafed through his notes. There had to be a better way to do this, right?

“And you’re going to cut off your soul chain? You know, the thing that makes Plus’s like us in Hollows?” Kon questioned, but really was just making sure Ichigo knew everything.

“Hopefully. Getaboshi does have a saying of ‘Try, Try, Again.’ Though, I’d like to keep those tries to a max of two,” Ichigo answered and sighed. He quickly checked the syllabus and wondered how many points would be taken off if he just didn’t do finish one question. This was getting ridiculous.

“Hey! Listen to me!” A plush leg kicked his forehead, and Ichigo watched as Kon fell onto his back.

“I am,” he responded amusedly.

“Look, I’m not sure how much a human like you knows about souls and Hollows, but you don’t want to mess with that stuff! Look at me! I’m stuck in a lion’s body: don’t waste a perfectly good body like that! Why the hell do you want to die?” Kon argued. Ichigo smiled. He always knew Kon cared from the beginning.

“But if I do die, you get to keep the body,” Ichigo offered. Kon shook his head, incredulous that Ichigo would even suggest that.

Kon leaps up and smacks Ichigo on the head. “You have a family man! Two sisters! Friends who love you! Don’t just offer your life like that!” Ichigo laughs and grabs Kon by the head. He turns off his light (because honestly, fuck calculus) and lays in his bed.

“Yeah, and that’s why I have to get stronger to protect them,” Ichigo replies. Kon stops struggling at that. A silence falls between them, and Ichigo asks, “Hey Kon, do you know what my name means? My mom named me because she thought it was incredibly important to the family.”

“Wait, I thought you guys were doctors, not strawberry farmers.”

When Yuzu asks why Ichigo’s new friend was found on the garden the next morning, Ichigo just answered that he had a nightmare and threw him out the window Goat Face made for him.

After school, Ichigo made a beeline for the shop. His heart raced at the implications of today. His hand twitched in anticipation. Urahara stood at the front of the store. The shade of his hat hid the bags under the man’s eyes. Ichigo gave a look at Tessai who flinched in regret. Ichigo should have known better to give him the responsibility to fight Urahara into sleep. If only he could have met Yoruichi-san a few days prior.

“Ichigo-san, and ah, the mod soul! How are you?” Urahara waved.

Kon didn’t answer and made a point to constantly be watching him from Ichigo’s shoulders. Ichigo waved him off.

“Is it complete?” Ichigo asked as he shrugged off his bag.

Tessai grunted to confirm.

Nodding, he dug around Kon to take out the Mod Soul pill and jumped down into the basement.

It was amazing to see the place so untouched by nearly 200 years of wear and tear of experiments. Ichigo always wondered how Urahara got the cliffs just right, but he figured that the man just made a machine for it. Taking in the artificial air, Ichigo smiled. The sun was shining, and there were only a few clouds in the artificial sky. Regardless, Ichigo could feel the static in the air.

It was like a battle was going to start. Every neuron was firing in anticipation. He couldn’t stop fidgeting. How could he? He was going to be reunited with someone very special.

Swallowing the pill, Ichigo relished in the sound of his soul being ejected. He internalized the feeling of his soul being free, his reiatsu spinning around him before coming together under his tight control. For a brief moment, he felt the tremors inside.

“Ichigo, are you sure about this?” Kon asked quietly.

Ichigo turned around and gave a soft smile. “More sure than I have been my entire life.”

“Well, well, it’s not like we hear that kind of determination every day. Better get a move on, Tessai-san,” Urahara clapped his hands, and Tessai appeared with a giant axe in his hands.

“Woah, woah, woah! Watch ou-!” Kon yelled but was stopped by Urahara. Using his other hand to channel the spell, Ichigo took a sharp intake of breath as he felt his chain split and unfamiliar reiatsu spin around him. He leaned back and began to fall. He look to his side to look at Kon looking absolutely stricken by the scene. He gave his best to smile as he descended into the Shatter Shaft behind him.

“Ichigo!” he called, but Ichigo could no longer see him. As he focused, he no longer noticed the darkness he was falling into. The last thing he saw before he closed his eyes was the blue sky above him.

For a moment, everything felt muted. Like the world had been destroyed, and nothing was left. Then there was a pulse, and Ichigo’s senses exploded.

The smell of grass and rain was not something Ichigo usually associated with his inner world. There was hardly ever a smell he could associate it, besides blood, but that was usually forgotten in favor of avoiding being stabbed. He took a deep breath and tried to place the smell to memory, and slowly, opened his eyes.

Ichigo was unable to revisit his inner world when he sealed his own powers. His other selves understood why he chose to, but they weren’t happy about it. Ichigo could still remember their arms wrapped around him tight as they tried to convinced him otherwise. It was the one feeling he held onto when he was in the hospital with no visitors scheduled to visit that day.

The sight in front of him was unfamiliar but at the same time, unsurprising. It was like reconnecting with old friends after they left for years – changed, but still recognizable. After a moment of taking in the scene, he walked forward and wadded through the water. The water didn’t soak his shoes like walking through a puddle. The water was refreshing and felt like the waves at the beach reaching up to nip at your toes.

Amazingly, the place was right-side up now, but the roads were flooded. Vegetation covered structures. Mosses, grass, and vines overtook the city, replacing the monochrome blue pallet with shades of green and yellow.

He traced a vine up one of his decrepit skyscrapers as it joined other vines before sinking into a crack through a building. All the buildings seemed to have been overrun by vines, some being broken in half by trees while others have already fallen and now being overtaken by grass and mushrooms and moss. To some, it might have looked like a disaster had come through and devastated the area. To Ichigo, the place was retaken and remade: the city was dead, but life had not left it.

The sun was high above him, but it was not humid. It was a nice day. He hoped the others appreciated the effort.

Some time passed before Ichigo stopped as he approached a large tree growing in the middle of his path. He smiled and looked fondly at the two resting peacefully in front of him. The tree was raised above the water on a large mound of grass. Two blades stood firmly in the soil, only piecing just enough remain standing tall. His hand twitched as he passed the blades, eager to rest his hands on the familiar weight.

He stops in front of the spirits but doesn’t make word. The pale spirit looks serene as he rests his head on the other. The Old Man, on his part, doesn’t look displease with the arrangement. Ichigo doesn’t comment, but he notices the Old Man’s cape draped around the two of them wasn’t just for his benefit. As he stops, the Old Man looks up, and his lips curve up.

“Ichigo,” the man greets and gestures for him to sit.

“Old Man,” Ichigo breathes a sigh of relief. The sound of his voice was something Ichigo worried he would one day forget.

“Is that the King I hear?” his reflection mocks as he stretches and yawns, as if waking from a nap. He notices the fabric laid in front of him with a raised eyebrow, but like Ichigo, he doesn’t comment. He pushes it briefly aside and rests his head on his hand as his arm rests on his knee. Ichigo takes a second to settle himself on the ground. Zangetsu smirks and leans back.

“So King,” Zangetsu begins. “Tell me.”

Ichigo smiles back. “Tell you what?”

“Everything.”

And so Ichigo does. He tells them about his wedding and how an orange color scheme was a disaster. He tells them about the divorce, and seeing Orihime sign her name in red probably should have meant something to him. He tells them about his son and how the kid was as much as a punk as Ichigo was, but he was just sneakier about it. He tells them about how Kazui graduated with three degrees even though it took him a few extra years to get the first one. He tells them about his old friends. He tells them about his new friends. He tells them about the friends who left. He tells them about the friends he left behind.

He talked about his fading strength. He talked about his fears. He talked about being lonely in those final years of life. He talked about how helpless he felt being constrained to a bed, but how eager he was to return to Soul Society. He talked about how eager he was to have power again. He talked about how happy he was to meet his friends again. He talked how happy he was to see the other half of his soul again.

Oh, and he also probably mentioned that he traveled through time at some point.

Zangetsu crackled. “Is that right? We get to do this shit again?”

The Old Man stiffened. “But, that must mean-“

“Don’t worry Old Man,” Ichigo waved off. Zangetsu smiled wider and stood up to stretch his arms. “After 70 years, I learned that if you want something done right, you should stop worrying about the variables and just do it.”

“Yeah, and this time, we don’t have some kind of inner feud going on. That makes our job twice as easy,” Zangetsu cracked his neck and picked up his blade. In his other hand, another blade formed. He looked at it thoughtfully.

“Huh,” Zangetsu lifted the blade to the sun and tilted his head. Without a word, he threw it over to Ichgio. Catching it without a second thought, Ichigo sliced the air around him. He looked over Zangetsu and matched his expression.

“Huh,” Ichigo repeated. The blade, unlike during his fight with Yhwach, no longer resonated with him. It felt different, as if its spirit was muted. It was not whole like when he and Zangetsu formed their first real bond.

“Right?” his zanpaktou asked with an excited smile.

The Old Man finally stood up and picked up his half of the blade. When the second copy materialized, the Old Man glanced at his left hand in curiosity. Also throwing the other blade to Ichigo, Ichigo looked at the two of them with curious glances. The second blade seemed to increase the strength, but they weren’t in phase each other. Instead, it felt more like the blades were in harmony: each having their own part but in support with each other.

“Zangetsu, Old Man?”

The two spirits looked at each other, before looking back to Ichigo.

“Shall we fight as one Ichigo, or together?” the Old Man asked.

The blades in Ichigo’s hands were resonating but differently to what Ichigo remembered when he fought Yhwach. They shook with great power, but as Ichigo pushed them together, the blades themselves seem to repel.

“That’s right,” Zangestu smiled. “You never actually achieved Bankai, did you?” Ichigo turned to faced his zanpaktou spirit.

“Excuse me?”

“Yeah, I remember. You did whatever the Old Man told you to do during those three days before the execution. Hmm, well, if you want that crummy Bankai, well, you’re free to use it. By the way, Old Man, do the terms bigger and badder sound familiar to you?” Zangetsu smirked and twirled his blade playfully, waiting for Ichigo’s answer. Suddenly, Ichigo wished he kept the spirits sealed. He was prepared for a lifetime of these two again.

“Hey, I heard that!” Fuck this shit.

“Ichigo,” the Old Man chided, and Ichigo sighed. Not only did he have a potentially unstable version of himself running around, but his own personal swear jar too.

“Do I at least get my Shikai? I already know your name,” Ichigo bargained.

“Sure but just cuz you cheated on that one,” Zangetsu shrugged. Jumping down from the mound of dirt, Zangetsu lowered himself and dipped his hand into the water. “Hmm, I thought I placed it here… Ah! Here it is!”

“What are you doing?” Ichigo asked. He got the response in the form of a piece of metal being thrown in his face.

“What the hell was that for?” Ichigo growled as he picked up whatever was thrown at him. It didn’t take long for him to start wanting his spirits to go back to sleep. Zangetsu cackled and jumped back to the mound.

“It’s your bankai test,” Zangetsu explained.
Ichigo looked at him with an unimpressed expression. “You know, back in my time, you were some kind of legend. Like, there were students who could only hope that their zanpaktou was as cool as you were. Rukia’s kid even asked me what my bankai test was when she was preparing for it. And this is the actual answer I’m going to give?” Ichigo asked as he dangled the “test” in front of his spirit. “A dumb IQ test?”

The spirit laughed. Ichigo thought that the since he apparently missed 70 or so years of Ichigo’s misfortune, he’s going to have to work hard to catch up. Once he got his fill of mirth, the spirit took Ichigo’s hand, placed it his palm, and curled Ichigo’s fingers around the toy.

“Don’t worry King. You might be dumb, but I have full hope you’ll be able to figure it out,” Zangetsu smiled and patted him on the back. “Once you figure that out, I’ll let you use my Bankai. Hey, you know what, for some added motivation, what about using that mask as well?”

Ichigo groaned.

“Hey, it’s Round 2,” Zangetsu chided. “You want to be better? You’re going to have to work for it.”

“You know, I thought I would miss you. I wish I could punch myself for even thinking that you’ll be any less of a dick after all that time.”

“Language,” the old man reprimanded.

Ichigo took that as his cue to leave.

It was always a weird experience coming out of the world. Usually it was because he would be coming out from an internal turmoil to a state of relative peace, and the juxtaposition would just freak him out. This time, it felt like he was waking up from a very long nap. For the first time in these last few days, Ichigo felt right in his body. His breathing took on an echo quality, a sound he thought he would never hear. He could feel his fingers twitching slightly and then go still as his control fully took over. He could almost taste the tension radiating from Urahara-san.

He took a deep breath and punched himself in the face. The bone mask shattered easily, but offered enough protection so that he didn’t injured himself. He pushed the remainder of the mask off, and he breathed a sigh of relief. Ichigo took a moment for his eyes to adjust to the light, and then another to enjoy the look of surprise of Urahara-san’s face. He waved and noticed that the IQ puzzle was still in his hand. Upon seeing it, he immediately scowled. Leave it to Zangetsu to figure out a way to annoy him outside of his world.

“That blade – have you always had such a large zanpaktou?” Urahara asked as he walked to greet Ichigo.

“Yup,” he answered as he started fiddling with the puzzle again, not bothering to look up. If he was younger, he might have been slightly concerned, but again, Zangetsu had a knack of getting under his skin. At this point, he was used to it. Not acknowledging other people’s reactions just became the norm.

Urahara silently observed for a moment before saying, “Kurosaki-san, I’m not sure to what measures my former self told you about this, but this method has an unfortunate side-effect of-“

“Hollowficaition, yeah, got that covered to – ah shit, that means I’m going to have go talk to those jerks again before they became tolerable,” Ichigo groaned as he tossed his puzzle. Predictably, he felt the weight fall back into his hand and laid down on the ground.

“This suddenly just got a lot more annoying,” Ichigo complained as he threw his arms over his eyes. He could have just stayed a normal high school student. He could have also just throw himself into a ditch. It would probably be the same outcome.

Urahara stayed silent again before asking, “Are you always this mad, Kurosaki-san?”

Ichigo lifted his arms and head and gave the best shit-eating grin he could muster. “Oh, you haven’t seen the half of it.”
“Ichigo!” Kon yelled as he threw himself at him.

“Whoa! Easy there Kon. I told you everything was fine,” Ichigo reassured. Ichigo once asked Urahara what age was Kon supposed to modeled after. After a few tests, Urahara had said that Kon was probably around 13 or 14 years old, which made a lot sense to Ichigo. Kon always acted like the younger brother Ichigo never wanted to admit that he wanted.

“That doesn’t make it okay! You can’t make Kon-sama worry about you like that! What kind of boss would I be if I let my lackey take the bullet just like that, huh? You’re really stupid Ichigo. And a jerk!”

“Hey, those better not be tears. I spent a long time drying those tear ducts,” Ichigo joked and patted his head, which was probably one of the stranger experiences in either lifetime. After a few more moments, Kon recovered and ran up back to the shop so that Ichigo could stop teasing him about crying so easily. Tessai followed after to make some celebratory tea, but to also secretly check up on the mod soul.

Urahara-san cleared his throat.

“Kurosaki-san,” he started. “While I’m sure that you have some kind of plan, and I asked you to restrict information from me, I have to know. What is your next step?” Ichigo tilted his head back and thought. If his memory was correct, then tomorrow should be the big day. He glanced back at the shopkeeper and then flash stepped towards him with a speed that Urahara could have never anticipated. He drew his blade and allowed the tip to almost nick the man’s throat.

“You even think about putting that goddamn hogykyuu in the next Shinigami that comes to town, I’ll know and you really won’t like me when I’m actually mad.”

“How did you-?”

“Anyways, I think Yuzu has dinner ready by now. You’re welcome to come if you want, Geta-boshi. I’m not sure if Goat Face would want you there, but Yuzu won’t turn you down. Let’s go Kon,” Ichigo commanded as he released Urahara and walked away. He gestured for Ururu to get his body to eject from the pill from his body and bring over Kon’s stuffed body, which she guarded fiercely.

Ichigo made a note to bring over one of Yuzu’s old toys the next time he came over.

Just as Ichigo was about to climb the ladder to get home, Urahara called out a final time.

“Ichigo! I know this might be a little late in asking, but at this point, I think it is important. Can we trust you?”

Ichigo glances at Kon, Tessai who stands above, Jinta and Ururu who stand to the side, and then finally back at Urahara who is behind Ichigo. He tighten his lips.

“You know what, Geta-Boshi, I have no idea what I’m doing. I guess that’s a fair point that you shouldn’t trust me. But at the same time, I’m the best shot you got,” Ichigo moved up the ladder and walked home.

This time, he was ready.

He heard Yuna screaming in the street and immediately ran towards her. Like before, the Hollow was there causing destruction in the streets. News media was already reporting the event, but probably not seeing how disgusting the Hollow actually was.

“Yuna!” he screamed for the girl and beckoned her over to him.

“Nii-san!” she cried. “What is that thing?” he hushed and consoled her like he would his sisters and watched as the Hollow got closer. Her reiatsu was still far away.

“It’s called a Hollow. You can tell because it has that ugly mask on. From now on, there’s going to be a lot of them around, so I want you to be really careful until you can pass on, okay?” Ichigo made her promised as the Hollow roar and sniffed the two of them out.

“I’m really scared nii-san. I just wanted to say hi to mom,” Yuna cried and he rubbed her back. He flared his own spiritual pressure to try and get her to come any faster. As the Hollowed crawled towards them, Yuna cried, “Shouldn’t we try to get away?”

“We’ll be safe,” he promised and waited. The Hollow seemed to smile and rushed forward. He waited a second more.

Hey King, you wanna do something or am going to have to come in? Zangetsu worriedly asked.

“She has this,” Ichigo muttered, and smiled as he felt the familiar presence finally appear and slice down.

The Hollow screamed in agony, and then it was quiet. Yuna stopped and stared at their savior.

Rukia looked back. Ichigo always thought souls never aged, but within a hundred years, he supposed they did. Rukia looked so much younger than he remembered from her last visit. Her eyes look fresh and new rather than worn and tired. She held an air of impassiveness but from a need for distance rather than of respect. This was a woman given the mantle of Kuchiki but did not believe worthy enough to wear it. This woman was so different than the woman who gave Ichigo so much.

It was finally time to repay the debt.

As Rukia assessed the two of them, no doubt thinking Yuna was a sister rather than a plus, she quickly turned to return to her station. Ichigo quickly grabbed her shoulder.

“Hey! Where do you think you’re going!”

Rukia gasped. “You can see me?” She glanced at the hand on her shoulder. “You can touch me?”

“Yeah, and she’s a plus! Aren’t you going to do something? Jeez, what are they teaching Shinigami nowadays?” Ichigo sighed.

Her zanpaktou was drawn. “How do you know about the Shinigami?” Rukia asked, her eyes narrowed and ready to attack. Ichigo was hurt by the unfamiliarity and almost missed the kick to the head he would normally get. Almost was the key word though.

“Is that really your priority right now? There’s a soul right now waiting to move on!” Yuna, who had started to hide behind Ichigo peeked out. Rukia’s eyes softened.

“Yes, of course,” she briskly said and walked over.

“I’m sorry. I thought this oaf was your brother. I didn’t notice your soul chain. Would you like to cross over now?” Rukia asked softly. Yuna looked back at Ichigo. The grasp she had on his leg tightened.

Ichgio pulled her arms away and he bent down. With a smile, he ruffled her hair. “It’s time for new adventures kid.” Yuna sighed but then smiled. She looked down the street where she walked, and then to the town she was too young to appreciate but young enough to love. He looked back at Ichigo.

“Do you think I could come back and visit?” Yuna asked.

“I’m sure you can kiddo. Just ask about me in a couple years, okay?” Ichigo smiled and looked back at Rukia, who was staring back with an odd look.

Yuna nodded and looked towards Rukia. “I’m ready now.”

Rukia placed her sword on Yuna’ head and a light enveloped her. Ichigo, due to his strength, was never really placed on Konso duty. He mostly handled the high danger Hollows, while he assumed other Shinigami handled to other duties. He watched in small awe as Yuna’s reiatsu gathered to form the black swallowtail butterfly and fly away. He was sad to see the small girl go away into Soul Society, but his conscious rest easier knowing that she was at least safe for the most part.

Ichigo didn’t get a chance to admire for long though, because Sode no Shirayuki was immediately placed to his neck.

“You have three seconds before I turn you into Soul Society. Explain now,” Rukia threatened. Threatened was a strong word though. It was like a rabbit was threatening him. He could never really take his friend all that seriously.

“Three,” Rukia counted.

“Okay, look, so I’m a little illegal,” Ichigo admitted, holding his hands up. “But that’s because I’m from the future, so I think I have little more leeway than most.”

“Two,” Rukia stared.

“You’re name is Rukia Kuchiki, adopted sister to Byakuya Kuchiki from the Kuchiki clan. You are a seated officer of the 13th division and currently working on your bankai to take up the lieutenant position of your division. I have an uncanny resemblance to your old lieutenant for reasons that I can explain later,” Ichigo recited and glared back. “Do you believe me now?”

“How-“

“Look, we can stand here all day, or I can start talking. You obviously are going to need some work if you want to stand up to the evil in the future because I’m from the future and I know these things. Basic line, I’m going to offer up my future knowledge to you, if you accept. This means training and studying and housing and food,” Ichigo explained. “And before you even ask, no I won’t say what in it for me, because that is future knowledge and something something about ruining the future or whatever. Look I don’t know, but if you stay with me, I can teach you things not even the academy could teach you.”

Rukia lowered her blade.

“Who are you?” she asked.

“My name is Ichigo Kurosaki. Pleasure to do business with you.”

And so the cycle finally begins anew.