Bleach: I Love Making Friends

"I'm going too!"

Seeing Kaien Shiba rush back into battle, Rukia Kuchiki tried to follow suit. But she hadn't even taken a step in Shunpo before Haruki pressed her down.

"Calm down," Haruki said softly. "With your current strength, you'd only get in the way."

"But I…" Rukia was anxious. Yet when she saw the look on Haruki's face, she fell silent.

If it hadn't been for Haruki just now, she would have been killed by that Hollow.

Once Rukia calmed down, Haruki narrowed his eyes.

White…

Why did it suddenly attack Rukia?

It was as though something was drawing it toward her, giving White a particular craving for her.

"Don't move from here. I'm going to check on the situation up top."

Just then, Haruki's pupils dilated, and he spoke again. He had sensed Captain Jūshirō Ukitake's spiritual pressure above them plummet dramatically.

That sickly guy… He must have had another bout of illness during the fight with White. Hopefully it's not so severe that he gets killed outright.

Good thing I healed Kaien. With him backing up Ukitake, it's unlikely the captain will be taken out.

"Captain Ukitake!"

Rukia, too, sensed Ukitake's spiritual pressure weakening drastically and grew agitated again.

Haruki frowned. "Don't move. I'll go look."

He leapt upward and used another burst of Shunpo, arriving at the top of the hill.

Once there, he found Kaien locked in combat with White once again. Ukitake was off to the side, clutching his chest. A gaping, bloody wound marred the spot as though White had punched a hole right through him.

Even after this seemingly endless cycle of battles, White showed no sign of fatigue—if anything, it seemed to be getting stronger with each clash.

"!"

White swatted Kaien aside and began gathering spiritual pressure at the horns on its head—a mass of crimson energy formed.

Cero!

Boom!

The Cero crashed against Kaien, detonating with a tremendous explosion. Kaien was blasted backward, his body covered in wounds.

"Hah… hah…"

Kaien panted raggedly as he glared at White. He never imagined it would be so overwhelmingly powerful.

"Raaagh!"

White let out a roar and charged at Kaien again. Kaien shut his eyes—he was prepared to die.

But once again, White abandoned him as a target. Instead, it rushed straight down toward—

Rukia!

Haruki watched all of this unfold. This time, he didn't intervene. Because he'd noticed that something was very off about White's behavior.

When facing Kaien and Ukitake, White had clear killing intent. And yet, whenever it went for Rukia—who it had already targeted more than once—there was no true killing intent behind it.

Haruki drew his Zanpakutō. In that moment, he released it.

"San yū mu anraku, kodoku jigoku chū…"

("Three existences, no peace—solitary beings in the hell of loneliness…")

But Haruki did not attack White or any of the Shinigami. Instead, he slowly stabbed his Zanpakutō into the ground.

In an instant, the entire world seemed to change.

Ukitake and Kaien felt as though they were suddenly the only people left; the others seemed to shrink into the distance and vanish. But a moment later, it was as if everyone was back again—like their isolation had been a mere illusion.

Solitary Hell does not cease to exist just because there are many people. Centuries ago, five hundred bhikkhus still experienced that hell of loneliness together. Few people or many, in Solitary Hell, it makes no difference.

Right now, Haruki used that technique on Ukitake and Kaien—to prevent them from witnessing what would happen next between White and Rukia.

In that instant, White bit into Rukia's neck, while Rukia, enduring the pain, drove her sword clean through White's body.

Even though Kaien and Ukitake together couldn't bring White down, Rukia managed to pierce its body just like that?

"This is…"

Haruki watched, stunned.

White's body began to swell, and then—boom—it self-destructed!

BOOM!

The massive explosion took place right next to Rukia, yet she suffered no physical injury. She merely collapsed to the ground.

Haruki stared at the scene in shock.

This—

Isn't this exactly what was supposed to happen to Masaki Kurosaki, Ichigo's mother?!

According to the original storyline, Isshin Shiba traveled to the World of the Living to deal with White, but was ambushed by Aizen and unable to defeat it. Then Masaki arrived to help and White completed Aizen's "final phase" of the experiment by transferring itself into Masaki's body.

And now it's exactly what's happening to Rukia… identical in every detail!

Everything's messed up.

All messed up!

What was originally meant to be transferred to Masaki—then later on to Ichigo—has now entered Rukia's body.

So… what's going to happen to Ichigo?

Haruki subconsciously glanced at the sky, sensing Aizen's godlike aura. Even though he couldn't see Aizen, he imagined their reactions were the same.

No—Aizen might be even more excited than I am.

His carefully laid plans have taken an unexpected turn, and for someone like him—a scientist at heart—this kind of unforeseen development might be more thrilling than if everything had gone as expected.

White…

It has transferred into Rukia Kuchiki's body!

What will happen to her now?

Will she undergo Hollowfication?

"… …"

Haruki pulled his Zanpakutō out of the ground and returned it to its scabbard.

At this moment, Ukitake lost consciousness from his illness. Kaien, battered by intense combat, the earlier Cero, and Haruki's "Solitary Hell," also passed out.

Rukia collapsed as well—she likely had no idea what had just taken place.

Only Haruki remained standing.

He slowly walked over to the unconscious Rukia. "Interesting…" he murmured.

"What does the future hold now…?"

Haruki crouched down, placing a hand on Rukia's chest. Closing his eyes, he sent his spirit energy into her body to examine it.

No trace of a Hollow's spiritual pressure…

Meaning White's transfer was nearly perfect. Just like with Ichigo Kurosaki, unless Rukia is forced into Hollowfication, she won't manifest the Hollow's power or go down the same path the Visored did due to an inability to suppress it.