Imposter Among Heroes

Silas Wren was an ordinary man with an average family. Things were working well for him until he was fired from his job. Angered by this, he drove recklessly on the highway, only to swerve off the edge. Moments before his car crashed, he mysteriously awoke in Ichigo Kurosaki's body.

Ichigo, a character designed by the Japanese artist Tite Kubo, was a fictional animated character in the Bleach franchise. This franchise, comprised of several hundred episodes, movies, and light novels, had its overall success in various parts of the world.

The story plunges you into Karakura Town, where the seemingly ordinary high school student, Ichigo Kurosaki, encounters devilish spirits called Hollows. Thrust into the role of a spiritual warrior known as a Soul Reaper, he allied himself with another Soul Reaper named Rukia Kuchiki. Together, they battled these malevolent spirits and guided lost souls to the afterlife. Joined by allies like the quirky Orihime and the intelligent Kisuke, he navigates a thrilling world of Soul Reapers, rival factions, and hidden truths, all while balancing high school life and the weight of fate on his shoulders.

Of all these worlds Silas found himself in, this was that one. He never asked to be here, nor did he find any pleasure in living out someone else's fantasy. He was a grown man with responsibilities and a family that he missed dearly.

Living in the main character's skin didn't at all make him feel like a hero. The food he ate, the others he interacted with—all of them felt too real to just be a dream. And one of the things he didn't believe was that he had died. Something like that was not possible in real life.

Once someone died, there were only two places they would go: heaven or hell. Karakura Town was surely not heaven.

The only thing he could do was test out whether he had any control over his fate as Ichigo. That meant not seeking to follow the story written by this world's creators.

Silas was his own person, able to forge his own destiny. From the moment he understood a little bit of his predicament, he began ostracizing other characters. All of them acted so real that he almost believed they were genuine people. Their reactions, their responses, their emotions—not a single detail was missed. They were the exact characters the writers had created.

Characters like Orohime, Ichigo's future wife, were given the cold shoulder.

In the midst of Silas's desire to escape, he built his foundation by acquiring Ichigo's dormant powers. They were light but would soon grow to become a trivial matter for his enemies. To keep himself a secret, he played the role of Ichigo until Rukia's arrival.

Giving him such a long time to prepare was simply begging him to disrupt this world's balance. He knew the story better than most of its followers, so he befriended a main character named Uryū, a Quincy with exceptional potential. Doing that allowed him to blend with the story's premise without arousing too much suspicion.

When Rukia finally made her debut, the rest was history. Silas did exactly as Ichigo had, partnering with the Soul Reaper and going on harmless adventures. All while understanding the antagonist, Sōsuke Aizen, was targeting them both.

On the night Aizen made his move, the first change to the story was apparent. Characters in certain scenes were placed that weren't written to have been there before.

But every time Aizen adjusted his plans, so did Silas.

Who was the true antagonist? The one who sought to destroy the other at all costs and without mercy. As such, Silas devised a plan to enact the latter's demise.

Entering the Soul Society with only Uryū and Yoruichi, his group outmaneuvered many of their enemies. There were rarely any times that they were misguided. And this was thanks to Silas's premonitions. The more he followed Aizen's plans, the more he got closer to the Soul Reaper.

Yet that plan would often change. Unlike Ichigo, who fought weaker opponents, gradually getting stronger every step of the way, Silas was facing captain-level Soul Reapers. Sometimes it was three lieutenants at once, and sometimes it was two captains at once. No matter who Aizen sent his way, he managed to escape with his life still intact.

Things weren't just going according to Aizen's plans; they were also going according to Silas's.

Danger clung to the road like dust on his sandals. It was a truth underscored by his new Zanpakutō, Enrakyōten. Unlike any other, this blade offered immense power but demanded a grim toll—the wielder's life force.

After battle upon battle, Yoruichi deemed it necessary for him to learn Bankai, a Zanpakutō's second release. Little had she known that Silas was not on anyone's side. A clandestine clash erupted between the two, with her suspicions of his allegiance proving tragically true. Her death was inevitable and her body was hidden.

These things were necessary for him to pave the way for his ultimate prize: the Hōgyoku, a device that promised untold power. And the more he continued on this path, the closer he would acquire it.

Silas's Bankai was a storm of light. Using the dormant powers of Zangetsu, he unleashed it in a battle against Aizen. Aizen, caught off guard by the power shift, faltered. Because of that, his movements were bound and his infamous Kyōka Suigetsu was destroyed.

The Soul Reaper had been defeated and Rukia was ultimately saved in the end.

The Soul Society reluctantly accepted Silas's actions on account of how much irrefutable evidence was given. Even testimonies from Aizen's subordinates, Kaname Tōsen and Gin Ichimaru, were verified. There was nothing preventing him from moving on to his next goal.

With the death of Aizen, Rukia, Uryū, and Silas were permitted to leave the Soul Society. Pouts of denial of the Soul Reaper choosing a man over her duties were expressed by Renji (Rukia's future husband). But their development had not reached that stage, so his words fell on deaf ears as she chose to part ways from the Soul Society with Silas.

As the trio vanished into the Senkaimon, the Seireitei conducted a thorough investigation to prevent Soul Reapers like Aizen from exploiting their structures again. Under Sōkyoku Hill, the location where Silas achieved his Bankai, Renji discovered the lifeless form of Yoruichi hidden amidst the rubble.