a wonderful error

On his first morning at Karakura High, Mizuiro hangs up on his mother mid-scolding and cheerfully tells his girlfriend he has no mother at all, privately reflecting that his link to the world feels broken even when everything looks fine. Walking in with Keigo Asano, he hears wild rumors casting the incoming Ichigo Kurosaki and Yasutora Sado as dangerous delinquents. The pair soon crash through a wall mid-brawl and, along with Keigo and Mizuiro, are surrounded by Reiichi Ōshima's group. Rather than deny knowing them, Mizuiro calmly introduces himself and warmly praises Keigo to the strangers. Amused, Ichigo asks Mizuiro to help him invent an excuse before charging in to rescue the pinned Keigo. Riding home afterward, Mizuiro admits the two defied his expectations and decides he is glad to meet this new world, sensing that his frayed cords may at last be communicating.

Mizuiro brushes off a call from his mother on the first day of term. Rumors precede Ichigo and Sado's arrival at Karakura High. Ōshima's group corners the boys. Mizuiro befriends Ichigo and Sado, who step in to save Keigo. Mizuiro chooses to embrace his new circle of friends.

This bonus chapter appears in Volume 12 (FLOWER ON THE PRECIPICE) and fleshes out how Ichigo's ordinary classmates first met him. It centers on Mizuiro's recurring imagery of human connection as fragile cords. Episode 227 adapts the material. Appearances include Mizuiro, Keigo, Ichigo, Sado, and Ōshima.