Chapter 1

Hurry up and heal your friend.

I won't.

Perhaps you didn't hear what I said, but it wasn't a request! Get to work!

I refuse.

If I heal Ichigo, you'll just turn around and hurt him some more! I won't do it!

You damn tramp!

............

............

Let go of her.

Ichi...

Orihime...

Hn?

I'm asking you. Heal my wounds. And... I want you to heal his, as well.

Listen kid. You'll find that's a big mistake. I don't need your pity.

Oh, it's not pity. I assume you want us both to fight at our full strength, right?

Or am I mistaken? Do you plan to use your injuries as an excuse when you finally lose?

Hyargh!

............

Alright then, bring it on! Let's have a good fight, to the death!

Sounds good to me!

*sniffling*

Don't look at me like that. I'll be alright.

But Ichigo!

The same goes for you, Orihime. Trust me, I'll win.

............

Ichigo...

Let's take this battle elsewhere, Grimmjow.

Fine with me.

Be careful, Ichigo.

Are you ready?

Hn!

Ichigo! Ichigo...

It'll be all right. Ichigo will win the battle.

But you don't really know that for sure.

Oh, but I do. He said, 'Trust me, I'll win'.

Everyone says things like that! Even if they're not sure! There's no guarantee! You can't tell anything from those words!

You think so?

Absolutely! Ichigo's probably scared! People always say that kind of stuff when they're scared!

Ichigo wouldn't do that.

Huh?

He would never say he's going to win because he's afraid. And he wouldn't say it to try and fool himself, I can guarantee you that.

Ichigo is a very focused person. Whenever he tells you something this important, he says it like he's swearing an oath.

He did that when he appeared before me as a Soul Reaper for the first time. The same thing happened when we went to the Soul Society to save Rukia.

He's always been like that. He does it to reassure us, but more than that, he's making a promise to himself.

............

He makes a promise to himself, and then he recites it out loud so it will become a reality.

So it'll be all right. If Ichigo says he's going to win, you can believe that's precisely what he'll do.

You mean it?

Mm-hm. We just have to have faith. So we'll wait here and believe that he'll come back to us, very soon.