Into the Rider-Verse: Karakura’s Survivor Chapter 01 (Early Preview)

Summary:

If you don't fight, you don't survive. Ichigo learned to follow this motto before he found himself as the last one standing in the Rider War. So much death and destruction over one wish. After a certain Soul Reaper jumps through his window, he’s introduced to another war altogether.

Chapter 01: Return of the Dragon

Night

The engine of Ichigo's red motor scooter puttered to a stop as he pulled up to the Kurosaki Clinic. Not exactly the Rideshooter he'd grown used to during the War, but it did the job. He kicked down the stand and hopped off. Ichigo ran his hand over the handlebars. The scooter was a gift from his dad since he was still too young for a real motorcycle license. He pocketed the keys and headed for the front door, glancing cautiously at his reflection in the glass. Old habits die hard.

Ichigo opened the door to his house and called out, "I'm home." Unfortunately, he was immediately kicked in the face by his dad.

"You let your guard down! Always stay alert when you enter a room, and you're late for dinner again!" Isshin Kurosaki said, hands on his hips as he glared down at Ichigo.

Ichigo growled and spun around, "Come on! Is that any way to welcome your own son after he just risked his life to help a spirit find peace?"

"Oh, so it's the ghost's fault now. I suppose it was ghosts that left your room a mess. When are you going to show some discipline! Just because you see ghosts and I don't doesn't make you a guest in this household!" They launched into their usual exchange of punches and kicks, each blocking the other's attacks

"You've been so moody and broody lately," Isshin complained while attempting to land a kick. "What happened to my boy?"

"Nothing happened." Ichigo blocked the kick and countered with a punch. "I just grew up."

Ichigo's sisters sat at the table. Karin ignored them and continued eating, while Yuzu looked at them worriedly.

"Hey, stop the fighting, you two, and come eat your dinner," Yuzu called out.

Karin looked at her twin and sighed, "Let them fight. More rice for me." She held out her empty rice bowl for emphasis.

"That's not very nice, Karin," Yuzu frowned at the black-haired girl.

"Ichigo's just being a stereotypical teenager," Karin said with a shrug. "Shouldn’t the angst and attitude be normal for his age?"

Ichigo punched Isshin away, causing the man to roll and hit a wall.

"I gotta tell you Dad, for a totally healthy high-school kid, a 7 o'clock curfew is not cool!" He yelled, pointing a finger at the fallen man. He was so busy focusing on his idiotic father that he didn't notice the spirit appearing behind him.

Ichigo sighed internally. He fought life and limb to protect those around him during the Rider War. He could take his family's verbal jabs.

"Ichigo, speaking of uncool, you have a new one," Karin stated with her eyes closed as she continued eating her rice.

Ichigo blinked and looked over his shoulder at the middle-aged spirit, "Hey, how long have you been there? Take a hike, would you! Damn pest!" He growled, swatting at the ghost, who kept dodging. Ichigo growled in frustration at it.

Karin sighed and set down her bowl, "I'm done." She turned to watch her brother, "Poor Ichigo, dad or ghosts, it's always something."

Yuzu smiled at her, "I think he's kind of lucky to be able to see ghosts! I sort of sense their presence sometimes, but that's about it." She tilted her head.

Karin rolled her eyes and looked back at her twin, "I don't see what the big deal is. I don't even believe in them."

Yuzu gasped, "Karin, I don't know how you can say that! I thought you had the power to see spirits, too?"

Karin gave her a blank look, "I'm in permanent denial. Seeing them doesn't make me believe in them." She deadpanned, causing the spirit to shiver from the cold comment.

"That's really cold," the spirit said.

"Like my dinner," Ichigo muttered. Isshin took the chance to knock Ichigo's feet from under him.

"You dropped your guard again!" Isshin shouted. Ichigo cried out, falling to the floor and grunted when Isshin jumped him, locking an arm around his head. Ichigo quickly threw him off and punched him in the face as Isshin's own fist hit him in the chin.

"Gotcha," Isshin groaned, falling to the floor, "No charge for the lesson."

Ichigo scowled and wiped the pain away, "Never mind dinner. I'm going to my room." He turned and walked away.

Yuzu frowned, "Wait Ichigo-" She started, only to be interrupted by Karin looking at their father, "Wow, you sure have a way with kids, don't you?" She stated flatly.

Isshin jumped off the floor, crying out a dramatic, "Me? What did I do?"

#

Ichigo sighed as he threw his bag on his bed, listening to his family talk about him below.

"Ichigo is kind of having a rough time right now," Yuzu said sympathetically.

"Yeah, he said he's seeing more spirits lately than ever before," Karin stated.

"Have you noticed how different he's been since summer vacation?" Yuzu asked quietly.

"You mean how he zones out sometimes?" Karin replied. "I mean, it’s not surprising considering he was in the middle of that hostage situation with that serial killer." 

Ichigo listened. They had no idea what he had endured. The battles. The betrayals. The deaths. He had to steel his emotions just to make it through each day of the war. Those habits were hard to break even now.

#

Ichigo Kurosaki opened his eyes, stretched, and rose from his bed to start his routine. After pulling on his school uniform, he slung his backpack over his shoulder and headed downstairs. The TV grew louder as he entered the kitchen.

"The incident occurred outside Kotakura Station just after 7:30 a.m. as the morning commute was getting into full swing," the news anchor reported seriously. "Witnesses reported hearing a loud crash and feeling the ground shake beneath their feet. The entire area has been cordoned off. Further details are sketchy..."

"Hey," Ichigo said as he entered the kitchen.

Yuzu looked up from the stove. "Good morning, Ichigo!" she said brightly. Ichigo returned a small smile, causing his sister's eyes to widen in surprise.

"Morning," he replied. Ichigo glanced around the kitchen. "Where's Dad?" It was weird not getting tackled by his dad first thing in the morning.

Karin took a sip from her teacup, not looking up from the table. "At a meeting. He said he'll be late tonight too."

Ichigo took a bite of toast. "Again, huh?"

The news anchor continued, "...explosives experts are reportedly on the scene. And we will of course pass along further details..."

Something about the footage made his stomach tighten. He’d seen reports like this before, right before the Rider War began.

"Did something bad happen?" Yuzu noticed her brother's intense focus on the television.

“No…” Ichigo frowned and watched the footage. "But that's near here." He told himself it was nothing. "I'm heading out," he called, waving goodbye to his sisters before stepping out into the morning air.

His walk to school took him past the taped-off alley mentioned in the news report. Yellow police tape and officers milled around the scene. Ichigo slowed his pace, studying the damage. He bought fresh flowers from a nearby shop, tucked them in his bag, and headed for the corner where the ghost girl waited.

When he arrived at the familiar spot, something felt wrong. The girl was nowhere to be seen.

"Hello?" he called, looking around with growing concern. No one was there.

A scream and a thunderous roar made his blood run cold. Ichigo dropped his bag and sprinted down the street, his face hardening with determination.

Before he could reach the source, another crash echoed through the air, followed by another terrified scream. He didn’t stop to think. He just ran.

#

The morning hum of engines filled the air. Commuters weaved between cars, eyes fixed on phones. Then, the rhythm of the street faltered. A few heads turned.

"Listen. Do you hear that sound?" a woman asked her companion, tilting her head.

The man beside her frowned, looking around. "What sound? I don't hear anything except the usual-"

A thunderous boom interrupted his words, followed by screams and the sound of crumbling concrete. The crowd broke apart in every direction.

Ichigo pushed through the panicked crowd. He slowed his pace as another roar came. The dust began to clear enough for him to make out a massive shape.

When Ichigo first sees the monstrous entity, he doesn't recognize it as any Mirror Monster he has fought before. On instinct, he reached for his Advent Deck, only to remember that his Advent Deck had disappeared since he ended the Rider War. He also hasn't seen Dragreder or other mirror monsters since. Ichigo didn't know if there were other effects after making his wish.

"What the hell is that?" he muttered, eyes widening at the sight of the gigantic masked creature towering before him.

His thoughts were interrupted when the ghost girl emerged from the dust cloud, terror evident on her transparent face. "Help me!" she cried, rushing toward him.

"Run. Hurry!" Ichigo shouted, gesturing for her to move away from the monster.

The girl looked back at the creature in horror. "What is that thing?"

"I don't know," Ichigo admitted, his mind racing for solutions without his Rider powers.

The ghost girl stumbled and fell to the ground with a startled, "Oh!"

"Come on! We've gotta move," Ichigo urged, preparing to help her up. The monster roared again, closing in on them.

Something dark crossed his vision. A black butterfly. In a blur of motion, the butterfly transformed into a woman dressed in a black gi. She lunged toward the monster.

The woman slashed horizontally across the creature's mask. The blade cut deep but failed to destroy it completely. She flipped backward, landing protectively in front of Ichigo and the ghost girl. Without hesitation, she readied her sword again and leapt into the air. This time she brought her blade down in a powerful vertical slice, grunting with the effort.

The sword cleaved through the monster's mask. The creature dissolved into particles of light that scattered and disappeared.

She touched down lightly, wiped her sword on her sleeve, and slid it back into its sheath. She remained facing away from Ichigo, who let out an amazed breath.

"Whoa," he said softly, staring at the mysterious warrior.

She turned slightly, peering at him from the corner of her eye. Without a word, she vanished, leaving Ichigo calling after her.

Around them, people began cautiously returning to the scene.

"Look at that," a woman said, pointing at the damaged street.

"Did you see it go? Hey, hold on!" a man called out, perhaps noticing Ichigo standing alone in the destruction.

"What was that?" another onlooker questioned.

"Look at that," someone else murmured.

A man gestured toward the scorched ground. "The sidewalk's burned. There must have been another explosion."

Sirens wailed as emergency vehicles approached.

#

That Night

Ichigo lay on his bed and stared at the ceiling. The fight from that morning kept looping in his head.

"Who was she? I can't make any sense of what happened out there today," he muttered to himself.

A black butterfly drifted through the open window, breaking his train of thought. Ichigo recognized it instantly as a Hell Butterfly.

"Huh?"

He sat up quickly. The same girl who had occupied his thoughts all day walked through his wall and stood on his desk. She wore the same black uniform as before and carried her sword at her side.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Ichigo demanded.

The intruder paid him no attention. Her hand slid to the hilt.

Ichigo's eyes widened. "Ah! Put that thing away! You're not slicing me up!"

She stepped off the desk and touched down.

"Hey," Ichigo called out.

The girl remained focused elsewhere. "It's getting closer. I feel it."

Ichigo growled. He was tired of being ignored. He got off his bed and delivered a light kick to the girl's back. The impact sent her flying forward.

"Who are you, and what do you want?" he asked as she crashed into his wall. "If you think you're a burglar, you're not a very good one. For starters, you shouldn't talk to yourself."

The girl turned around. Her eyes widened and blinked in shock. "You kicked me. But I can't be seen by ordinary humans. Are you saying you can see me?"

"Well, considering that was my foot I just planted in your behind, you tell me," Ichigo replied.

Recognition dawned on her face. "You were the one I saw in town earlier. I remember."

Ichigo scoffed. "Nothing gets by you, does it?" Sarcasm filled his voice, and the girl flinched slightly at his tone.

"How very strange," she said. She gave him a long look. “You seem normal, but something about you must be defective.”

"I'll show you defective," Ichigo lunged forward with another kick. The girl reacted swiftly. She sprang onto his leg, vaulted clean over his head. Ichigo lost his balance and tumbled to the floor.

He sat up and glared at her. "Who are you?"

"You want to know? Then I'll tell you," she stated. She looked down at him with authority in her eyes. "I'm a Soul Reaper."

#

Outside, the spirit of the girl that Ichigo saved earlier ran desperately through the darkened streets. A Hollow pursued her relentlessly. She glanced back over her shoulder. Her transparent form moved swiftly, but the monster kept pace with her.

Tears streamed down her face as she ducked behind a concrete pillar. She pressed her back against it and tried to catch her breath. Her chest heaved with each terrified gasp.

"Oh no not again," she cried.

She peered around the edge of the pillar. The air bent around the creature. The thing stayed invisible until it snagged an electric wire. The impact caused the monster to briefly come into focus. Its massive form and bone-white mask became visible under the streetlight.

The girl gasped. Fear paralyzed her for a moment as she saw the full appearance of her pursuer. She shoved off the pillar and ran.

#

Ichigo frowned, trying to piece together everything this so-called Soul Reaper had just told him.

"Alright, so you're something called a Soul Reaper," he said. The girl nodded, and he continued, "And you're telling me that you've been sent here on a mission by something called the Soul Society." She nodded again. Ichigo opened one eye. "To deal with Hollows like the one you defeated in the street today, which was chasing after that girl's soul."

After the third nod, he bit back a groan. Part of him wanted to shout, but he just nodded instead.

"Mm-hm. That's all believable to me... But can you show me some more proof of that fact?"

The Soul Reaper blinked, caught off guard by how easily he’d accepted it. She hesitated before answering. "Why wouldn't you believe in Soul Reapers when you just admitted you can see spirits?" she asked.

"Well, I've been lied to before, but I've also been part of crazy stuff before." Ichigo thought about the colorful roster of people he dealt with during the Rider War. Some friends. Some enemies. He leaned back slightly. “You’ll have to forgive me if I want proof. I've never seen or heard of Soul Reapers before, and frankly, I would need some proof before fully believing you."

The girl frowned. "Well, you see me, right? Aren't I enough proof for you?" She pointed at herself and stood in front of him.

"Well, that's true, and I'd agree with the fact that you're not human. But that also doesn't rule out if you come from the mirror."

"The mirror?" She looked confused.

"I guess not..." Ichigo sighed. "In any case, you're still some sort of spirit. If you are a Soul Reaper, then whatever. I'm tired and want to sleep, so go be a Soul Reaper somewhere else, 'Kay short-stuff?" He placed a hand on her head.

The Soul Reaper stood motionless. The Soul Reaper froze, jaw tightening. “‘Short stuff,’ am I? Fine. Bakudo #1: Sai!" She pointed at his chest and jerked her arm to the right. Ichigo fell to the floor with his hands locked behind his back.

‘That was like an Advent card.’ "I can't move. What did you do to me?" he demanded. He tried to fight against the invisible restraints.

She smirked. "Paralysis. I've used what's called a Kido on you. It's a high-level incantation only we Soul Reapers can cast. It's useless to struggle against it. You're just wasting your energy. I may appear young to you, but I have lived nearly 10 of your lifetimes. I would kill you on the spot for your insults if it were not against my orders. So be grateful."

Ichigo glared up at her. "It was a joke. Jeez," he muttered. He continued to struggle against the paralysis.

"And now..." Ichigo flinched as she stepped closer, but instead of attacking, she pressed her sword hilt to the nearby ghost’s forehead.

"It's the ghost from yesterday!" he exclaimed. The ghost trembled in fear.

"Please don't. I don't want to be sent to the underworld," the spirit pleaded. Ichigo's eyes widened as the girl's serious expression softened.

"You needn't worry, because you are bound for a better place called the Soul Society. There your soul will be at peace." She removed the hilt from the ghost's head. They watched as the spirit slowly disappeared. A Hell Butterfly appeared in its place.

Ichigo reeled back. "Where'd he go? What did you do to him?" The disappearance resembled someone being eroded in the mirror world, except for the butterfly.

"I sent his spirit to the Soul Society. It's one of the main responsibilities of a Soul Reaper. People here sometimes call it passing on." She looked down at him as he looked up at her. "Now I'll explain to you why I'm here. And I'll use small words, so you can understand it."

"I'm not an idiot, you know," Ichigo muttered under his breath as she began her explanation.

"There are two types of spirits in this world," she started.

"Huh?"

The Soul Reaper drew on her sketchbook. "The first kind are the normal spirits called Wholes. The ghosts that you see are usually this kind. The second kind are evil spirits known as Hollows. The Hollows attack people, living or dead, in order to devour their souls. Any questions before I go on?" She held up the sheet of paper.

'These Hollows sound very similar to the Mirror Monsters who feed on life energy. I know they eat each other or other people if able. Did they also eat spirits? Then again, I never encountered other spirits during the war. Strange.' He focused on something else entirely when he answered.

"For someone 10 lifetimes my age, why do your drawings suck so bad?"

Ichigo yelped as she scribbled a mustache across his face. "Ah! You'll pay for this." He glared up at her while she spun her pencil in her hand.

"Let us continue with our lesson, monsieur. There are two main jobs for Soul Reapers. First, to lead Wholes to the Soul Society through Konso, as I just did. Second, to exorcise the Hollows wherever we find them."

"The Hollow with the bug body this afternoon. Why was it chasing that girl?" Ichigo asked. He looked up at her. He had already wiped the mustache off.

"That I don't know. We have yet to fully understand what motivates the Hollows to do the things they do." She sank to the floor, exhaling.

Suddenly, Ichigo raised his head. A loud roar startled him.

"What was that?" he said.

The Soul Reaper ignored him and continued talking. "One thing we do know is that there is still a second Hollow prowling somewhere nearby." She sighed and looked down.

Ichigo scowled. "Then what the hell are you waiting for? Go out and kill it." He heard the roar again and narrowed his eyes. His muscles twitched with the urge to act.

The girl looked away. "I would, but I can't seem to detect its location. Usually, I have no trouble finding a Hollow that's close by, but here it's as if my senses are being jammed by some powerful for-"

Ichigo interrupted her. "What are you, deaf? There's something huge howling out there! That sound has to belong to a Hollow!" He insisted. The howls were getting closer.

"Something howling, what do you mea-" Her eyes widened as a Hollow's howl nearly shook the house. She stood quickly. "Now I hear it! It's definitely a Hollow!" She spun and placed a hand on her sword.

"That's what I've been trying to tell you!"

A cry of fear and pain came from near Ichigo's door. His eyes widened.

"That's Yuzu!" he exclaimed. The Soul Reaper ran past him toward the door. Ichigo shouted after her, "Hey, wait! Untie me first!"

As soon as she opened the door, the Soul Reaper felt a rush of massive spiritual pressure. She raised a hand in front of her face.

"This spirit pressure is among the strongest that I've felt. How could I have not sensed it earlier?" she thought. She adjusted to the pressure just as Yuzu stumbled into Ichigo's doorway.

"Ichigo?" Yuzu panted in pain as she collapsed on the floor.

"Yuzu! What happened?" Ichigo asked.

"Ichigo, Karin's hit," Yuzu cried. "Ichigo, you've got to save her." She struggled to say the words as she collapsed into unconsciousness.

Ichigo watched as the Soul Reaper leaned down next to Yuzu. "Hey! You've gotta let me go!" He heard Karin's scream and watched helplessly as the girl ignored him and disappeared downstairs. "Hey!"

"Gotta break free," he muttered. He forced himself to move even while paralyzed.

The Soul Reaper charged downstairs and unsheathed her sword as soon as she spotted the Hollow with Karin in its hand.

"Ah! Put me down!" Karin grunted and struggled.

Ichigo tumbled down the stairs next to the Soul Reaper.

"Stay out of it!" she ordered him. She was shocked at what happened next.

Ichigo struggled to a standing position. The girl watched in amazement.

"How can he be on his feet when he's under my spell?" she whispered. She moved slightly when he stepped in front of her. "Fool, you'll only get in the way!"

"Shut up!" he screamed.

"Karin!" Ichigo grunted with effort.

"Stop!" The Soul Reaper was shocked that he would try to break free. "Kido is too strong for a human to break. If you keep trying, you'll only cause damage to your soul!"

Her eyes widened as the binding began to unravel.. "What? He's breaking the Kido. That's impossible."

Ichigo yelled with effort. The girl shouted, "Don't do it!"

She watched Ichigo's spiritual energy surround him as more layers of the spell broke. He released a powerful stream of energy and the Kido dissolved completely.

"Ichigo! Get me out of here!" Karin continued to struggle in the Hollow's grip.

Ichigo flexed his freed arms. The Soul Reaper could only stare. A memory from the Rider War: "Those who do not fight will not survive!" The mantra that had kept him alive during those brutal battles resurged with clarity. Even without his Advent deck, he would fight. He would fight to protect his family.

He charged towards the Hollow and grabbed a chair on the way. The girl called for him to stop. He swung the chair back. His focus was solely on his little sister screaming for help. Just when he was about to strike, the Hollow batted him aside easily.

The chair splintered against the wall. Ichigo hit the floor hard. His body remembered combat from the War, but he knew immediately that this thing was far beyond human limits.. Without his Advent deck, he had no way to hurt this creature.

"Karin!" he shouted.

The Hollow looked down at him. "I found you!" it said. It punched toward Ichigo. His reflexes from countless battles kicked in, allowing him to duck just in time. 

The Soul Reaper took the chance to cut the hand that held Karin. The Hollow dropped her. Ichigo caught his sister before she hit the ground.

"Karin! No!"

"Don't worry," the Soul Reaper said. "She'll be all right. The Hollow left without devouring either of your sisters' souls."

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. It's seeking a specific soul to eat, one with a much higher concentration of spirit energy. In fact, the Hollow earlier was hungry for that soul too. Not the girl's."

"But why?"

"For some reason, most of your spirit energy was hidden deep within you until now, when you needed it to save your sister. That's why I didn't sense anything unusual about you when I arrived."

"It also explains why the Hollows haven't come after you. The spirit energy you have bottled up inside you started to pour out when you made contact with that young girl's ghost. As a result, your soul became exposed. Those two Hollows today detected your soul through that girl. They were using her to track it down. Which means the Hollows are really after you."

"Those things want me?" The Soul Reaper turned to look at Ichigo. His face was grim.

The Hollow howled in the distance.

"It's back! Get out of here!" she ordered. She prepared herself for battle. Ichigo stood up. His face was shadowed.

"No! So the vicious attacks on that poor girl were because of me?"

"That's one way to look at it."

"And now both of my sisters could wind up dead, and the whole thing is my fault?" He could hear his sisters' voices in his head. His eyes were wide with anger and fear. He remembered the looks on both of their faces a few minutes before and gritted his teeth.

"Help us, Ichigo. Ichigo, do something!"

He ran past the Soul Reaper and into the street in front of the beast. "Stop! Coward! Quit attacking others. If it's my soul you want, come and get it. Fight me one-on-one, you ugly bastard!"

The Hollow howled and punched toward Ichigo, but he dodged like before. The monster's fist crashed through the wall where his head had been seconds ago. The Hollow swung again. Ichigo twisted aside, feeling the air split.

The third attack came faster. Ichigo twisted his body and barely avoided it. The Hollow grew frustrated and delivered more strikes. Ichigo weaved as best he could, but he couldn't keep dodging forever.

When the monster launched a particularly vicious swipe, Ichigo's fatigue slowed him. He knew he couldn't dodge in time.

The girl rushed forward in fright. The attack never connected. The Soul Reaper stepped in and was attacked instead. She grunted in pain as she pulled herself out of the Hollow's mouth and collapsed forward. The monster howled in pain.

"Soul Reaper!" Ichigo called out.

She panted on the ground. "You are a fool. How could you possibly have thought you were any match for a Hollow? Did you really think that everything would be over if you gave them your soul? One soul doesn't satisfy them for long. If you don't stop interfering, we're all going to end up as its food!" She forced herself into a crouched position. She dragged herself upright, one hand braced on the streetlight. "I'm too injured to fight. Do you want to save your family?"

"Of course I do. If there's a way, tell me how!"

She grimaced. "It will only be temporary. But you must become a Soul Reaper yourself."

"What?" He looked at her in shock as she continued.

"You must take my Zanpakuto and run it through to the center of your being, so that I may pour my powers into you." The Hollow continued to howl. "I can't guarantee that you will live. But if it doesn't work, it won't matter."

Each step from the Hollow shook the street.

"Then give me that blade, Soul Reaper."

"My name is Rukia. Rukia Kuchiki."

The Hollow howled again.

"And my name is Ichigo Kurosaki!"

With that, he stabbed her Zanpakuto into his chest. The street erupted with crushing spiritual pressure.

#

From deep within Ichigo, something reacted to the Shinigami energy. A familiar V-Buckle materialized on his waist, and a deck of cards with a dragon head symbol appeared in his hand. It was his Advent Deck, however, it looked different now. The yellow became gold and now sported new red and black decals.

Ichigo's V-Buckle not being summoned from a reflective surface was new. The last time he saw that was from Ryuga.

Beyond the reflection in a nearby window, a particular Mirror Monster heard its master's call, and its master sensed its presence in return.

The spiritual pressure from the infusion held the Hollow frozen in place. Just as the creature broke free to attack, a red metallic Japanese dragon emerged from the window's reflection. The dragon chomped off the Hollow's left arm.

The Soul Reaper stared at her current appearance with shock. "What? How could this have happened? I meant to give him only half of my powers, but somehow, he's taken nearly all of it." She looked up as the massive red dragon roared. Her eyes widened in disbelief. "What the hell!? A dragon?!” Her mind tried to rationalize it as some form of spirit creature.

She tried to stand but stumbled, weakened from the power transfer. She wasn’t prepared for this.

Ichigo grinned at the dragon. "Glad to have you back, buddy. Now, it's my turn."

She turned toward Ichigo, confused. "The power transfer should have turned him into a Soul Reaper, but that strange belt..." 

"Henshin!" Ichigo stood tall and held the deck in front of him. He swiftly thrust his left arm to the side, then brought it in a semicircular motion before attaching the deck to the belt on his waist. As the deck locked into place, the air surrounding him shimmered with energy.

The space around him shattered like glass. Several giant mirror shards appeared and hovered in the air. One of the shards slammed into him and broke into pieces, transforming into blazing flames that engulfed his body. Flames peeled away to reveal armor.

He wore a red bodysuit under black and silver plating. A draconic gauntlet was now on his left arm. His helmet concealed his face, except for wide red eyes beneath it. His armor now also featured robes similar to a Soul Reaper's uniform.

The Soul Reaper's jaw dropped. Ichigo definitely felt like a Soul Reaper now, but it's merged with something else entirely.

"This ends now!" Ichigo yelled. He attacked the Hollow with powerful strikes. Each punch and kick landed with tremendous force.

As he fought, Ichigo noticed his body responded differently. His movements felt faster, his strikes hit harder. The Soul Reaper power flowed through him and enhanced his natural abilities.

"I feel stronger than I ever have before," he thought as he landed another devastating punch. "This power combined with my Rider abilities makes me unstoppable."

"Where did that strange armor even come from? His fighting style isn't that of a Soul Reaper either. Even without a Zanpakuto, he's still effective against the Hollow," the Soul Reaper observed. "Did this have something to do with the mirrors he mentioned?"

Ichigo was about to pull a card from his deck when one card began to shine at the top. He pulled the glowing card and slid it into his gauntlet.

Sword Vent

Ichigo held out his hand, expecting the familiar Dragsaber to appear. The sky rippled as an object hurtled toward him. When it reached his grasp, he blinked in surprise behind his mask.

Instead of the Chinese Dao-style Dragsaber, the weapon in his hand was an enlarged blade that combined elements of his Dragsaber with the Soul Reaper's katana. The hilt resembled her Zanpakuto, while the blade maintained the curved edge of his Dragreder weapon.

Ichigo studied the transformed weapon with interest. He tested the weight and balance with a practice swing. The blade cut through the air with a satisfying whoosh. Ichigo nodded. "I can work with this."

The Soul Reaper leaned forward, her eyes focused on the weapon. "Is that his Zanpakuto? But the size..." She shook her head in disbelief. "No rookie should be able to manifest a blade of that magnitude. What exactly is he?"

He sliced through the Hollow's leg with a powerful swing.

"You will pay the price for hurting my family, you Hollow scum. Feel the wrath of Ryuki! Ah!" Ichigo shouted.

Both Ryuki and Dragreder attacked the Hollow simultaneously. With a final decisive strike, Ichigo sliced through the Hollow's mask.

As Ichigo expected, Dragreder consumed the remains of the Hollow. Small blue flames were all that remained after the dragon finished its meal.

Ryuki sheathed his sword and turned toward the Soul Reaper. She composed herself, preparing to ask the numerous questions that had been forming in her mind.

#

Ichigo Kurosaki: 15 years old

Hair Color: Orange

Occupation:

High School Student

Soul Reaper

Kamen Rider