Behind the Mask
A Bleach Fanfiction by J.H. Wolf(star)
Notes: First things first… this is going to take place in the mangaverse, and is going to be an alternate universe where Ichigo does not manage to regain control of his body when his Hollow side tries to take over in the fight against Byakuya. I'll have a cast of original characters, as well as some extrapolations and inventions of my own on characters we already know about.
With that said, I would like to point out that I am not Tite Kubo, and therefore do not own Bleach. However, any and all OCs in this and the changes in plot I have presented are in fact mine.
Now… on to the show!
Chapter One: A Winning Battle, A Losing War
The tides had turned once more on Ichigo Kurosaki as he fought against the man he considered his greatest foe, Byakuya Kuichiki, Captain of the 6th Squad. He had fought hard, reveling in the sheer power he had gained upon releasing his zanpaku-to into the Bankai state, but within minutes, it became apparent that even with Bankai, Ichigo did not have the strength to defeat Byakuya. Byakuya let go of all defensive powers in order to use his full strength and speed against Ichigo, which had given Byakuya the upper hand.
"You are at your limit, Kurosaki Ichigo," Byakuya stated after blasting Ichigo through the chest with the White Lightning Kido. He took cautious, yet confident strides over toward his foe, nearly certain that he had won the battle, that he had restored law and order to Soul Society. Ichigo waited, slumped against the ground and gasping for breath. He seemed to fight for the ability to move, yet that strength did not come to his aid. "Did you think that my speed increased after Senkei? That is not so. Senkei unites the scattered blades into complete swords. Its purpose is to increase the killing power of my attacks. It does not, however, increase my speed."
Byakuya continued to gloat, but Ichigo became too far off to care. He had failed Rukia. She would die by her own brother's uncaring hand, and so would he. Worse yet, the friends he brought to join the fight with him would also die. 'Move dammit… move!' he screamed in his head, yet the strength just wasn't there.
"It is over, Ichigo Kurosaki," Byakuya told him, his voice perfectly even, perfectly emotionless. Byakuya's zanpaku-to hung for a moment over his head, waiting for the proper time to fall and end Ichigo's life. A million thoughts raged through Ichigo's head as the sword seemed to fall in slow motion, the killing stroke that would symbolically mean the death of so many others.
"You are so weak, Ichigo," a contorted version of his own voice rang out inside his head. "I think it is my turn to play…" Ichigo's hand suddenly shot out to catch Byakuya's pink energy sword, stopping it from cutting into his flesh, but Ichigo had not given the command to his body to do so. "Idiot… I told you, if you die, I will suffer too." This time the voice spoke out loud, the words coming out of Ichigo's mouth, yet not formed in his own mind. He had no control over it at all.
Byakuya gasped for a second, pulling back out of reflex. "How is this possible? I should have killed you! Who are you?" A bone-white mask began to form around the right side of Ichigo's face. It was a Hollow mask, the mask of spirits that died with regret, then return to the living world to consume the souls of innocent people.
Ichigo's body began to laugh; a sound that would freeze the blood of even the bravest warriors. "Who am I…? I ain't got a name!" The thin, black zanpaku-to in Ichigo's hands flashed quickly, slicing into Byakuya's chest while rising to make a second cut, all before Byakuya could even react. The laughing continued, adding to the horrific scene. "You really are worthless after all… Ichigo! Let me show you how to use Bankai correctly!" Byakuya pulled back once more, but the monster that stood before him was not trying to slash him with the sword.
A dark energy circled Zangetsu as Ichigo's arm pulled back. As the sword whipped forward, the energy was released in a crescent wave of darkness, which ripped through the air at Byakuya. The energy was a Black Getsuga Tenshou, a wave of energy with more power than any Ichigo had thrown during the battle. Before the burst had reached Byakuya, the demonic Ichigo had already moved next to him, slicing once more with the sword, then pinning him down to ensure that the black energy smashed into Byakuya.
The monster that had replaced Ichigo jumped off of Byakuya, allowing the man to hobble to his feet once more before forming his resolve and steadying himself. The haunting laughter continued. "This spiritual pressure… and that mask…" Byakuya began slowly, staring his foe in the transformed yellow and black eyes slowly being encroached on by the still-forming white mask. "Are you a Hollow?"
A fresh burst of laughter rose up, as if the thing that now was Ichigo thought Byakuya was making a joke. "That, you don't need to know. Because soon you'll…" He was cut off short as Ichigo screamed inside his own head, trying to force control back to himself. He was putting up a good fight too, causing the thing that had taken over to thrash about.
"Go away!" Ichigo shouted into the void of his own head, desperately clawing into the darkness for a means of regaining control. On the outside, Ichigo could feel a hand obeying his command to reach up and grasp the edge of the white mask forming around him, trying to rip it away and crush it.
"Damn it!" the contorted voice cursed, whipping the other arm around to force Ichigo's influenced hand away from the mask. "Let go!"
Ichigo redoubled his efforts, pouring everything he could muster into removing the mask. "Don't get in the way… leave! This is my battle. Rukia is my friend, and I will save her!"
"You're the one getting in the way!" the voice screamed back, also trying more fiercely to stop Ichigo. "Just let me keep fighting and we'll win, don't you see? Damn it! Damn it, you idiot!" The mask began to separate from the skin of Ichigo's face, but with a determined growl, the inner Hollow released a dark tide that slammed into Ichigo, throwing him back into some obscure corner of his own mind.
Ichigo lost the battle, the battle within himself…
In the heart of Soul Society's Seiretei, Toshiro Hitsugaya, Captain of the 10th Squad, stood in the center of the main ruling body's headquarters, Central Chamber 46, appalled by the bloodbath that he had found. All of them, all the judges and sages, had been killed and left where they died. The blood was dry, and had been for weeks.
"Then that means…" his Assistant Captain, Rangiku Matsumoto began, stopping with a gasp before stating her thoughts. "Oh no…"
"The recent orders we've received, everything that had to do with the execution of Rukia Kuichiki and those ryoka that came from the living world to rescue her… all of it has been a fake!" Toshiro roared as he searched the room for clues, despite his anger.
"I thought you would be here, Captain Hitsugaya," a cold, male voice called from behind him. Toshiro and Rangiku whipped around at the same time to see the Assistant Captain of the 3rd Squad, Kira Izuru, standing in the entranceway, resting his zanpaku-to lightly on his shoulder. During the chaos of the last several days, Kira had proven that his allegiances lie with his captain, Ichimaru Gin, the one Toshiro was certain had been behind the treachery they stood in the middle of. Kira's eyes had shrunken to triangular slits, almost as if he were gazing upon them in a mix of pity and loathing.
"Kira!" Toshiro uttered in shock. "It can't be… did you do this?" Before the question had fully escaped Toshiro's mouth, Kira had run out the door. "After him, Matsumoto!" he shouted as he dashed off toward the opening as well.
"Yes sir!" she yelled behind him, wasting no time glancing back at the gore of the slaughtered sages.
Toshiro burst out of the chamber, instantly jumping across the rooftops of Seiretei, trying to catch up to Kira. "Hold it Kira!" he called out without slowing himself. "Answer the question! The one who killed the Central Chamber members… was it you?"
Without any sense of emotion, Kira answered simply. "No. I came in only moments before you did, Captain Hitsugaya. I was let in from someone from the inside."
"Let in by who?" Toshiro shouted ahead of him. He was about to force Kira to stop, if he would not give a straight answer.
Kira snorted at the question, yet did not pause in the slightest. "Obviously, the Central 46 members."
"Is this your idea of a bad joke?" Toshiro's anger was mounting ever higher. He wanted answers. He wanted the chaos to end. First, Captain Aizen was executed by some mysterious assassin. Then, his best friend from Rukongai, Hinamori Momo, incidentally Aizen's Assistant Captain in the 5th Squad, accused him of the murder, taking Ichimaru's side in their vicious battle just the evening previous. After all the unexplained happenings and mysterious agendas, the destruction of the Central 46 was barely a surprise.
"Are you sure you're doing the right thing, Captain Hitsugaya?" Kira asked over his shoulders as he continued to run. "Instead of chasing after me like this, shouldn't you be protecting Hinamori?"
"What do you mean by that?" Toshiro roared, nearly forgetting to continue the pursuit. "Right now Hinamori is…"
"She escaped, Captain," Kira replied, cutting him off. "She is an expert at Kido, after all. Surely you didn't expect that barrier to hold her in. She has been following you two this whole time.
Toshiro skidded to a halt, then began running the other way, shouting an order to Rangiku to continue the pursuit as he passed her.
Rangiku pressed on, pouring on the speed to close the gap between her and her quarry. Unexpectedly, Kira stopped suddenly on a broad rooftop and turned toward her.
"Are you done running?" she asked coolly as she also came to a rest on the opposite side of the rooftop, keeping her focus on him, keeping track of all his movements, even all his glances.
Without facing her completely, he answered her. "My mission is to keep you here, Matsumoto."
"Mission? Who gave you that mission? Was it Gin?" The last few days had been just as hellish for her as it had for Toshiro. Similar to her captain's relationship with Hinamori was her own with Ichimaru Gin. She did not like thinking of him as her enemy and constantly prayed that it was all a mistake.
"There is no need to answer you," Kira answered shortly, resting a hand lightly on the hilt of his zanpaku-to.
Rangiku sighed, bringing her own hand to rest on her zanpaku-to, and keeping her gaze level on Kira. "You've changed, Kira. I don't know what Gin did to you, but…"
"How persistent," he spat as he firmly gripped the hilt. "What I meant was that there is no need to answer someone who is about to die anyways. Raise your head, Wabisuke," he commanded his zanpaku-to as he drew it from it's sheath, activating its second form. "Matsumoto, I'm assuming that you don't know about my zanpaku-to's powers. Don't worry though, because you will know soon enough." The upper half of the sword bent down on itself, giving it the appearance of a cane that held a razor's edge.
Kira slashed at her rapidly, which she countered with her own zanpaku-to, always blocking, even at the high speed with which he struck. He withdrew for a second and took a step back. "How many of my attacks have you blocked?" She starred back at him, not sure what he was getting at. Suddenly, she felt a tremendous force in her hands, before she realized that her sword was dragging her down. It crashed straight to the ground, pulling her upper body with it. She stood doubled over, raising her head just enough to gaze up at Kira. "It's ability is to double the weight of anything it strikes. If it hits twice, it doubles twice, and so on. In the end, the enemy collapses due to the weight, bent down close to the ground, with a face lifted up, full of misery. Hence the name Wabisuke, or The Penitent."
Matsumoto laughed for a second. "So what? If I can't hold it, I just won't. Howl, Haineko!" Her zanpaku-to burst into a scattering of ashes, which scattered out around her, leaving her holding on to the handle of the sword, without a blade attached to it. "Now, let's get this over with, Kira. It is time for answers…"
Hinamori paused at the entrance of the Central Chamber 46, shuddering violently as her eyes took in the scene of gore arrayed before her. "Wha… What happened here?" she gasped, tears forming in the corners of her eyes. "What's going on? If Toshiro was the one that killed Captain Aizen, was he also the one that did this? Or was it Kira?" She sensed the presence of someone close behind her and froze. She thought her heart would refuse to beat.
"Welcome, Hinamori," Ichimaru said as he leaned over her shoulder, bringing his head close to hers to look at the scene in front of her. "Please, come with me." She only managed to shudder and nod as he led the way, until they left the carnage-splattered main chamber.
After a few minutes of walking, she came to her senses and stopped. "This is the Residential District for the 46 Chamber. Why did you bring me here, Captain Ichimaru?"
Ichimaru paused in the middle of another doorway, not bothering to turn around. "Have you ever been here before, Miss Hinamori?"
"Ne-never," she stammered. "This place is supposed to be off-limits to everyone. This is my first time here."
"There's someone here that wants to meet you," he said while he resumed his walk, motioning over his shoulder for her to continue. They came into a dark room. Both of them stopped in the center, then Ichimaru turned around to face her. "Go ahead, look behind you."
"Behind… me?" she asked as she turned, then nearly dropped to her knees. Captain Aizen filled the doorway, his form blocking most of the light that tried to pour in. Everything about him was right, even the friendly, open smile he always wore on his face. "Cap-Captain Aizen…" she stammered as the tears began to run for real. "Is it really you, Captain Aizen? I thought you were dead!" She took slow steps toward her Captain, trying to decide if it was just a dream.
"It's okay," Aizen answered calmly. "As you see, I'm alive." Hinamori collapsed against his chest, sobbing as she held onto him. "I'm sorry for worrying you like this, Hinamori. I'm sorry for making you suffer this much. But I hope you can understand. There was something I had to do, and it had to be without you. That is why I had to fake my own death."
"It doesn't matter," Hinamori managed in between her sobs, although they were lessening. "All that matters is that you are still alive, that you are here, Captain Aizen."
"Thank you, Hinamori," he replied slowly. "I was truly glad to have you as my subordinate." She looked up just in time to gaze into his eyes before a zanpaku-to pierced straight through her torso. "Goodbye," he told her as she fell back.
"This can't be…" she gasped before hitting the ground, a pool of blood forming around her instantly.
"Let's go, Gin," Aizen commanded as her consciousness faded into blackness.
"Yes, Captain Aizen," Ichimaru agreed with a nod as they strode together out of the bright opening of the room.
Note: Sorry, dear reader, that not much changed in this chapter between the true storyline and my storyline. I regret to inform you that the next chapter will probably also be very close, but after that… yes… that is when the fun will begin…