Chapter 2

Zangetsu!

What the hell's going on here, Zangetsu?

...It's as you just heard.

I'm sorry, Ichigo... I am not Zangetsu.

Gh!

So then, you truly are Yhwach?! You're telling me that...that you're really not Zangetsu?!

What I am is the source of the Quincy power that lies within you. I am Yhwach, and yet I am not.

I don't get it! Are you my enemy or my ally?! Was everything that you said to me just a lie?!

Answer me!

...I'm not an enemy, nor am I an ally. But, my words held no lies...

...except for the name that I told you.

Ichigo, I know you've seen it. Think back. Whenever I taught you how to use your Zanpakuto, I always had help from the Hollow.

Whenever a time came when you couldn't handle your Zanpakuto's power... Whenever you were truly in danger of losing your life...

The one that always ended up saving you was not me... It was the Hollow.

I never wanted you to become a Soul Reaper, Ichigo. That's why I suppressed your true power, which had not fully matured. I took control of it and became the center of your power instead.

But why...?

Why, you ask? The answer is simple. I wished to keep you from danger and conflict. What else could I be after?

If you became a Soul Reaper, you'd be dragged into battle whether you wanted to be or not.

You'd get hurt... You'd suffer...

And eventually, even if I didn't want to, I'd have to kill you with my own hands...

............!

I couldn't let you become a Soul Reaper. Because if you did so, I'd have to kill you... I knew that's what would happen.

However, you chose the path of a Soul Reaper anyway. You seized your chance, honed your strength, suffered through pain and sorrow, and yet kept traveling down that path of your own free will.

As I watched you, I could almost feel my heart beginning to waver.

Eventually, I decided that I'd no longer try to keep you away from the Soul Reapers. My heart turned toward supporting your decision.

And now, as I stand here before you, I feel a great sense of joy at the thought of stepping away from you.

Ichigo, you've become strong. I've been able to stand right there beside you, watching you grow.

Now I'm happy to leave, knowing that you can stand on your own. I am satisfied.

No...! Wait, Zangetsu! I still need you!

Ichigo. What you've been using so far is merely a fragment of your total power. It's only the part I couldn't suppress.

But now no one can stop you from fighting with your own, full power.

Go on, take it. That is your true Zanpakuto...

That is Zangetsu.