User blog comment:Majestic Soaring Cloud/Ichigo's destiny/@comment-11976012-20130711172216

Ichigo's destiny will be linked directly to the Soul King. Having been referred to as both a "thing" (Aizen) and "the lynchpin" (Urahara) it seems to me that the Soul King is not a person, but a manifestation of the balance between the real world, soul society, hollows and plusses, etc. If that balance is destroyed, perhaps it's not only the two worlds that will collide, but the Soul King himself will be destroyed. Ichigo is unique in his lineage to either take over such responsibilities or to be assimilated into the Soul King to prevent the destruction of balance or restore it. This is also what I think Shunsui meant by "parting ways".