User blog comment:Xilinoc/Everything but the Rain op. 8 - "The Defenders"/@comment-6342763-20130424084611/@comment-4666155-20130424211950

I was always under the impression Ichigo inherited his powers from Isshin. I thought everyone thought that. Zangetsu even told Ichigo he had his own Shinigami powers, and Rukia's energy merely awakened the Shinigami power lying dormant deep in his soul.