Why was he in the Soul King Palace?
The answer began flowing back into Higashi Shuuichi's mind as memories, long sealed, surged open.
It had been during that fabricated future—constructed by the Fullbringer Akizane—where Shuuichi, under the pretense of uniting against a common threat, requested training from Nimaiya Ōetsu.
Ōetsu, satisfied by the reasoning, agreed readily.
After inspecting Shuuichi's Zanpakutō, his first training directive was simple:
Complete the full liberation of your Zanpakutō.
But even for the forger of all Asauchi—Ōetsu couldn't just force a full Bankai.
The process had to follow its designed path, stage by stage.
Ōetsu could only accelerate it, not skip it.
There was one issue.
Each liberation step required Shuuichi to show genuine personal growth in power.
One or two upgrades? Doable.
But ten? Even Squad Zero would be strained.
So Ōetsu found a workaround: deceive the Zanpakutō by reclassifying external gifts as intrinsic growth.
Let the blade believe it had evolved alongside its wielder.
After hearing the idea, Shuuichi immediately sought out Hyōsube Ichibē.
He had a bold request: a resurrection clause.
Because he knew—Ichibē, the namer of all things in Soul Society, had terrifying power.
If Ichibē named something, it could be restored from nonexistence.
He could erase existence. He could reforge concepts.
Even if he himself died, as long as one person remembered and uttered his name, he would return.
So Shuuichi approached him with a carefully crafted lie:
He feared being killed while possessed by Akizane's version of Yhwach.
Ichibē, after brief thought, agreed.
Why not?
Reviving a single Shinigami cost him less than a blink.
And with such a plausible reason, Ichibē had no excuse to refuse.
But that wasn't Shuuichi's true aim.
"Since you're willing to grant me resurrection," he said, "could you make it… an ability instead? One that activates when I'm near death, allowing me to communicate with you, and triggering a guaranteed response—your voice calling my name?"
A convenient two-for-one.
In reality, Shuuichi planned to exploit this power upon returning to the real world—forge ties with Squad Zero.
Who would check?
No one remembered what he'd promised in that fabricated future.
The moment Ichibē agreed, Shuuichi's first act back would be to use it.
Even if the real Squad Zero was cold and detached, he had a winning script:
"I've seen the future. Yhwach returns. The Wandenreich will invade."
Add the fact he could speak directly to Ichibē?
They wouldn't dare doubt him.
After all, the Squad Zero of the simulation had believed him.
And if the simulation was built on real future templates, then their reactions would mirror reality.
Shuuichi was convinced.
But the aftermath?
Harder to measure.
Ichibē had agreed—but combined the favor with Ōetsu's work, encoding the resurrection as a triggered seal inside Shuuichi's soul.
Only if Shuuichi truly died would the switch activate.
Then Ichibē would be alerted, would speak his name—before Hell could claim the soul.
And this was only part of the problem.
Because Ichibē was the first to gift him power.
That meant, under his Zanpakutō's full liberation mechanics, Ichibē's gift was also the first to be forgotten.
Ōetsu had explained it:
When the blade reached final Bankai, all gifts marked as external would be temporarily erased—until the process completed.
Only then would they return.
But the fake future had been invaded too early—Akizane, possessed by Yhwach, attacked before the process finished.
The battle ended. Shuuichi returned to reality.
And he never had the chance to speak with Ōetsu again.
Which meant—
That key trump card was truly lost to him.
Until now.
And it wasn't just the resurrection.
He found fragments of ten different Bankai-stage enhancements he'd once forgotten.
Some were filler—like soul-forging techniques from Hikifune, or healing pool rituals from Kirinji.
Others were critical:
Ichibē's revival trigger, and Hadō #103: Tetsufūsha (Iron Wind Execution)
Ōetsu's personal forging of the technique Chōgetsu (Moon Sever)
A custom "plug-in" Ōetsu had crafted—sacrificing a permanent Bankai slot to give Shuuichi one shot at full liberation.
Only Kirinji's healing method and the Moon Sever technique had remained accessible—ones Shuuichi had unconsciously used in the real world, like when he effortlessly created a Quincy duplicate.
It had felt natural—and now he understood why.
He had already mastered soul molding, thanks to Hikifune.
"...No wonder I built that Quincy copy so smoothly," he muttered. "I'd already been taught how."
He had wielded powers he didn't even remember earning.
And Ichibē noticed.
"I see many familiar things in you. Have you… visited the Soul King Palace before?" the bald monk asked, voice edged with mirth.
The question hit hard.
He had been seen.
Of course Ichibē recognized the material of Shuuichi's shihakushō—it exceeded even Shutara's craft.
Her fury would be legendary if she found out.
And Shuuichi's Zanpakutō?
Not standard.
Within it, Ichibē saw a hidden blade, forged in likeness but wholly separate.
A forged twin.
Ōetsu's work—without a doubt.
Most disturbing of all?
The resurrection trigger in Shuuichi's soul.
An unmistakable signature of Ichibē's design.
Yet Ichibē had no memory of ever gifting it.
That unsettled him.
Who was Shuuichi really?
Not just a Shinigami.
Not anymore.
And Shuuichi realized—he'd been exposed.
Time to control the narrative.
"Ichibē-dono… do you know of the Soul King's twin eyes?"
He kept his tone sincere.
"I once granted a special Fullbring, using those eyes, to a human. Through that link, I traveled briefly into a future where Yhwach had returned—where Soul Society was once again at war.
And in that future, you acknowledged me. Trained me.
That's when you gave me the resurrection."
All true.
He just left out the context.
A perfect journalist's lie.
Ichibē didn't reject the claim.
Time travel? Alternate futures?
With all the strange phenomena in their world, it wasn't impossible.
"What else did you see in that future?" Ichibē asked.
No one—not even he—was immune to curiosity.
"I saw Yhwach's defeat," Shuuichi said. "And you turning him into the next Soul King."
Ichibē smiled.
Wider than before.
"Now that... that is good news."
To him, it confirmed everything.
Shuuichi had died.
He had been called back by name.
His soul bore Squad Zero's imprint.
And now his power—his presence—was worthy.
"I speak in the name of the Soul King," Ichibē intoned.
"I invite you, Higashi Shuuichi, to become a member of the Royal Guard. Will you accept?"
What?
Shuuichi froze.
That wasn't the plan.
He wanted to exploit Squad Zero, not join it.
Everyone knew the price:
Reshape your body with the Ōken—become a tool of the Soul King.
A walking embodiment of will.
Shuuichi wasn't ready to trade freedom for power.
He had to decline—carefully.
"Ichibē-dono, it's not that I'm unwilling. But you know why I was revived here.
I still have ties in Soul Society I can't cut.
And… the one I follow now—he has his own view of Squad Zero.
Until his path is complete, I can't join you."
He invoked Aizen.
The perfect shield.
Ichibē knew Aizen's deeds, knew the role he played.
And he also knew that letting Aizen run free had been a calculated choice.
To Ichibē, Shuuichi's answer proved he was honest, loyal, and patient.
Ideal Squad Zero material.
"I understand. Then what's your plan now? Stay here a while? Wait until Barragan's defeated?"
Ichibē was curious. Genuinely.
But Shuuichi had no time.
He needed Barragan's spiritual core.
This was the moment.
He already knew every trick.
And his Zanpakutō was now… fully unsealed.
This was the real test.
"I wish to return immediately," Shuuichi answered.
"But I ask for a future invitation. Once this is over, I want to return and speak with Ōetsu again."
Ichibē nodded slowly.
"Are you certain? You did just die, you know. No need to rush back."
Shuuichi smiled.
He had been outplayed once.
Never again.
Ichibē didn't know Shuuichi now wielded true full liberation—not just pieces of Bankai.
Shuuichi was done playing underdog.
Ichibē saw the resolve in his eyes.
One of a kind, this Shinigami.
The marks of Squad Zero were all over him.
So Ichibē scratched his bald head, chuckled, and said:
"Very well. When this is over, have the Shiba clan bring you back."
He drew a circle on the ground with his massive ink-brush Zanpakutō.
"Go."
Shuuichi jumped without hesitation.
Darkness passed—
And he fell, once again, into Las Noches.
"Dragon of defiance, filth-soaked land, unstoppable fury—
Source of nightmares, awakened origin,
Wind, flame, frost, thunder, earth—
Break karma. Return unbound.
Destroy all. Return to nothing.
Hadō #99: Five-Dragon Destruction."
Dragons roared from his body.
Spiritual pressure surged like a tide.
The palace didn't collapse—but it cracked deep.
Especially the central hall.
Its dome burst open—
Revealing Barragan and Atredis, still basking in false victory.
"Higashi Shuuichi?! Impossible! You're DEAD!!"
Barragan roared.
Shuuichi smiled.
"Just messing with you, old man.
You've played your hand.
Now it's my turn."
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New translation : Naruto : I Got "Return by Death" Kind Of Cheat
New story translated ! This one is interesting, give it a try !