Unfortunately, Ichigo was someone who dwelt in and longed for the past. He wanted to return to his glorious past, a past he tried in vain to grasp onto. He glanced down at Chihiro again when she spoke and repeated her words.

“...we never really forget someone once we've met them... I suppose that is true. Though I can't remember Mikazuki-dono, I do still feel a closeness to him... He told me our masters were together for a long time.”

But then he looked away for a bit when she said she was glad he was reforged. His reforging was a sore subject for him. Ichigo felt that his current reforged self as far inferior to what he once was and that it made him weak and brittle. That wasn't really true though.

The metal of his blade was so masterfully forged by his original swordsmith that though he was reforged by a far inferior smith who straightened the beautiful wavy pattern on the edge of his blade, the metal of his blade was still as strong and true as ever. In fact, unless one was told he was reforged, one could not see the difference. However, Ichigo did not see that. All he saw was a blade that was a Yoshimitsu Awataguchi masterpiece only by name... But this was something he tried his best to keep to himself.

“Thank you, Chihiro-chan, but I don't know if that's a good or bad thing... Sometimes I think it might be better if I wasn't reforged...”