Chapter 74

I opened my eyes just in time to see my sword swinging toward Tamayo. In a panic, I redirected the swing to my right. With only one leg, I started to tilt, but Tamayo caught me before I could fall. "Seems you're finally back, Ryou-san." she said softly, gently helping me sit. I looked around, noticing the wounded Hashira, who all seemed relieved. Two familiar figures dashed into me.

"Ryou-sensei!" Tanjiro and Nezuko clung to me tightly. I sighed, patting their heads. "Yes yes, I'm alive and kicking. But isn't it best for you two to tend to the others?" They both nodded reluctantly. "I'll be right here among the wounded." I assured them as they let go. I tried to stand, but with one leg it was hard to balance until Gyomei came over to lend a hand. Thanking him, I limped my way over to where the injured were gathered, where Eri's body lay, wrapped in cloth.

Two days passed before things settled into a semblance of normalcy. I found out that Kagaya and his wife were alive when I met them at a hidden compound, a reunion that earned Kagaya a punch for making me think he'd died. Shinobu and Tamayo developed a drug to turn other remaining demons back into humans, like they had done for Nezuko, and had fashioned a wooden peg leg for my missing leg, along with an eyepatch for my left eye. I'd also offered Muramasa six years and four months of my life, leaving me with eight months to live. Why give the extra time? If I had only sacrificed enough to keep Eri's body from decaying, she would have still started deteriorating. Now however, my life force flowed into her bit by bit, sustaining her, though the sacrifice had turned part of my hair white.

At the moment, I was saying goodbye to everyone at the compound, every Demon Slayer, Tamayo and Yushiro, Kagaya, and his family. I turned away, walking off with Eri safely contained in Nezuko's travel box on my back, along with my odachi and wakizashi. I heard footsteps running toward me before catching sight of Tanjiro, Nezuko, Zenitsu, and Inosuke, all of whom were crying. "We'll miss you, Ryou-sensei!"

'They're responsible for her death.' I forced myself to shake off the thought, grinning and wrapping my arm around them as best I could. "And I'll miss you too, Tanjiro." I ruffled their hair, then turned to Zenitsu. "If you make Nezuko cry, you'll have more than Giyu-san and Tanjiro to worry about." He laughed nervously, and I gave him a final pat on the head before limping onward.

I'd been walking for about an hour before I had to stop and rest against a tree. 'More.' I heard, I started gritting my teeth. Yesterday, voices had started creeping into my mind. Some sounded no older than five, others older than humanly possible. Whenever I closed my eyes, memories of Eri replayed over and over. The Blood River knew I was close to my end.

Letting out a breath I didn't know I was holding, I straightened up and looked down at the Buddha pendant dangling from my wrist. Pouring cursed magic into it, I closed my eyes, letting the familiar lights pull me into another world.

When I opened my eyes, I was in a modern town. At first, I thought I'd returned home. Then, I grew worried when I grabbed a phone from someone trying to rob me. I wasn't home. I was in Bleach. I worried whether Soul Reapers could sense the controlled bloodlust and cursed magic I was hiding. Checking the date on the phone, I found it was 2003, which at least gave me hope the next jump would take me back home.

As I wandered, hunger began gnawing at me. 'I don't know Bleach that well, other than it has a few of my favorite characters.' I stopped for a moment. 'Orihime can heal wounds, maybe she can help me regain my strength. I just need to figure out how to convince her.' I turned a corner and nearly tripped over my wooden leg when I saw a familiar store, Urahara Shōten. 'What luck.' I thought. My stomach growled, so I sighed and made my way to the shop. 'I'm far too hungry to care.'

Once inside I was greeted with a tall, muscular man with a handlebar mustache who was sweeping. 'Tessai, I think.' We shared a brief stare before my stomach growled again. I took out my wallet and asked, "What would you recommend around this time of day?" Tessai chuckled, set down his broom, gestured to the wall, and handed me some instant ramen. "I'd recommend these. Would you like them heated?"

I nodded, limping over to the register. Just as he was ringing up the ramen, the door slammed open, and in walked Ichigo Kurosaki, Orihime Inoue, Yasutora "Chad" Sado, and Rukia Kuchiki. 'Should've ignored my stomach a little longer.' I thought, trying to focus on my wallet, struggling to pull out the money one-handed. I sighed and set the wallet down as they approached.

"Hey, Tessai," Ichigo greeted, and Tessai nodded back. "Woah man, those are some scars." Ichigo blurted out, only to get elbowed by Rukia. "You can't say that!" she scolded. I snorted, which drew the rest of their attention, but I was focused on finally managing to hand the money to Tessai. "It's fine, that's one of the better reactions I've had." I muttered, tucking my wallet back into my clothing.

I looked to Tessai again. "Would it be alright if I ate in here? My leg's killing me." Shinobu and Tamayo had warned me against putting too much weight on the wooden leg too soon, given the fresh scar. Tessai nodded, so I limped over to a step, sat down, and started digging in.

Eating one-handed was proving more frustrating than expected. Tanjiro or Nezuko had been there to help before, but now, I had to manage alone and the struggle was getting to me. On top of that, I never learned how to use chopsticks, which added to my irritation, as did the new depth perception I was still getting used to. I let out a sigh, trying once more to grab some noodles, when I heard footsteps approaching. I looked up to see a pair of legs and a skirt, and looking higher, Orihime's face, her expression full of pity.

"Everything okay, sir?" she asked gently.

I twitched and responded. "How old do you think I am?"

She put a finger to her lips, tilting her head thoughtfully. "Thirty?"

That stung more than I'd expected. "How old are you, uh...?"

Her face lit up as she clapped her hands together. "Oh, I'm Inoue Orihime, and I'm seventeen!"

I nodded, pointing my dreadful chopsticks at myself as her group approached. "I'm eighteen."

Everyone froze, Orihime included.

"That's right, I'm not old." I said, watching as Orihime's mouth opened and closed, searching for words. I returned to my food, struggling again, when a fork was tossed into the noodles. I looked up to see Ichigo grinning.

"I'm Kurosaki Ichigo, but just call me Ichigo! I saw you were having trouble with the noodles, so I got you a fork." He ended with a warm smile.

"Thanks. I'm Sasaki Ryou, but just call me Ryou." I nodded as each person introduced themselves, until it got to Rukia.

She crossed her arms, sizing me up. "I don't recognize you. What Division are you from?"