Preface: In my recent reordering of stories due to the moderators at FF really cracking down on things, my Random Stories file was threatened to being automatically deleted because I think some of my stories came from different genres or something. They restored it, but I decided to separate the various stories ideas into their proper slots, just in case. Unfortunately, I failed to realize that this story never got replaced until recently and I had to reconstruct a lot of it from my notes and memory.

My sincere apologies, but hopefully some people will appreciate this updated version of Spirit War.

The Seireitei
Division 1 Headquarters
The Present

He stood tall and erect as he gazed at the assembled group of Captains composing the Gotei 13. He inwardly winced as he spotted the empty spots denoting the missing presence of several Cap—traitors, he corrected himself savagely.

He strode towards his new position. It was … odd, looking at them from this perspective. He wasn't used to seeing them from this angle. Actually, he wasn't used to this at all. He wanted to run screaming from the Meeting Chambers but he had no choice. He had accepted the … honor.

He inwardly snorted.

It was no honor. It was a dreaded responsibility that he had reluctantly chose to bear. Or more like tricked into the damn post. I'm going to get Shunsui for this, he promised.

Jushiro Ukitake cleared his throat and solemnly informed them, "As of today, I shall assume the role of Captain-General."

Shunsui adjusted his sakkat and flashed a quick grin and a broad wink at him.

Ukitake tried not to growl. I'm really going to have to get Shunsui for this.

Spirit War

Chapter 1: Viva la Revolución!

The Seireitei
Division 13 Headquarters
Two Weeks Earlier

Two men sat in a small room in companionable silence. Finally, one of the men spoke. "You do realize that this is treason," he drawled.

His white haired companion nodded grimly. "I do."

Shunsui, Captain of Division 7 sighed dramatically and drained his saucer of sake. He put down his cup and scratched his scruffy cheek absently. "Old Man Yama is so going to be so mad at us," he whined.

His companion and long time friend, Jushiro Ukitake of Division 13 said nothing. He didn't have to. They both knew that was the least of their worries. Yamato had been mad at them playing pranks, slacking off, hitting on women … well, truthfully all that had been more Shunsui than Ukitake.

He had been more annoyed at Ukitake for letting Shunsui drag him along. This would be something new; he realized with some ironic amusement that he would be the one dragging Shunsui into trouble rather than the other way around.

No, this would be a whole new level of volcanic fury … and considering the several thousand year old Shinginami in question possessed THE most powerful fire zanpakuto in existence; volcanic was not exaggeration. It was more like … a sincere promise.

Shunsui shrugged fatally. "Oh why not? Maybe when he finds out about this, he might finally have that stroke he's been threatening us with for the past century or so."

Ukitake smiled faintly at the weak joke. Just a month ago Shunsui had cracked one about how the reason why Yamato-sama was so old was that Death was too scared of him.

Everyone had laughed heartedly at that but it was a trifle bit forced as there was more than a hint of truth to it.

Jushiro hesitated, feeling the urge to remark something troubling him. But before his courage deserted him, he quietly asked, "Do you think that Yamamoto is losing it?"

Shunsui looked at him sharply. "I think the Old Man can still whip both our asses—"

"I don't mean … physically. Oh, I think his stamina isn't quite what it once was. But the 46 Chambers seems to be acting rather erratically don't you think? I mean, execution seems unwarranted but don't you think this is odd how they keep pushing the execution date forward? It's unprecedented. But mentally—he's not—it's like he doesn't even care. Or if he realizes that something's wrong at all…" Jushiro trailed off, as the dam of his worries and fears had become uncorked and all of the dark thoughts that had been troubling him was released.

Shunsui stared at Jushiro in shock as he realized what Ukitake was hinting at. It was something he had never before considered. Never thought about really.

Was Yamamoto mentally fit to serve as Captain-General anymore?

He was the oldest Shinginami after all. And while he had always been a stickler for the rules and strict for discipline; he had always encouraged those who were leaders to be able to think for themselves and be able to make their own decisions…

Shunsui suddenly felt cold inside as he found himself wondering if Yamamoto, the man whom he had always thought of as a father; was losing his mental facilities…

But even though he had not wanted to think it, now that Ukitake had voiced it, he had to admit that he was troubled that he might very well be right.

It was a very disquieting thought indeed… even more than their treason plot.

Sokyoku Hill
Minutes After Sosuke Aizen's Defection

Or maybe not… Shunsui thought as he scratched his chin. Outwardly, he was studying the skies above the Sokyoku Hill for any lingering sign of the Menos Grande. Then he sighed, lowering his head and adjusting the brow of his sakkat absently.

Aizen. Damn, he thought to himself. He had never thought Aizen responsible. That bit with his dead corpse was a clever bit of misdirection he had to admit to himself. A red herring that sowed confusion and chaos into the rest of the Seireitei.

But never in his wildest dreams had he contemplated that Aizen had been conspiring with Hollows. What was the man's end game? Shunsui had no idea. But I don't think it was anything good…

Aizen had proven himself far more deadly and much more capable than Shunsui would ever had suspected. He had always viewed the man as being a competent administrator but his power levels was only at the lower end of the spectrum of Captains. Had it not been for the desperate need for a replacement officer, Shunsuke did not think Aizen would ordinarily been named for the Fifth Captain's Seat. It appeared that Aizen had deliberately been downplaying his abilities.

I'm going to have to seriously revise my estimations of how worse things could possibly get…

The Seireitei
Division 1 Headquarters
One Day After Sosuke Aizen's Defection

Shunsui felt cold and uneasy as he watched the various Captains were still struggling to come to terms with Aizen's treason. His betrayal.

Soifon was seething at having failed miserably to spot the presence of so many traitors while Komamura seemed to still be in shock. Or possibly in a daze. Shunsui surveyed the others quietly.

Unohana looked tired, no doubt from healing so many badly wounded Shinigami and the Ryoka. Toshiro looked worried. The freak Mayuri seemed disappointed that he had missed the chance to collect some good scientific readings. Other than the three traitors, Byakuya was the only other Captain missing; no doubt from enforced bedrest. Even Ukitake was present, thanks to the Ryoka girl.

Zaraki was snarling. "Let me go to Hucedo Mundo and I'll find the bastards and kill them all. Hell, let Division 11 go and clean up this mess. It'll be a good show," he remarked, licking his lips.

More like a bloodbath, Shunsui thought grimly. Of course of the entire Soul Society, the battle crazed lunatics of Division 11 might even enjoy taking on an entire realm of Hollows.

"We will naturally arrest the traitors Aizen, Tousen, and Ichimaru and bring them to justice in front of the 46 Chambers…" Yamamoto intoned solemnly.

Ukitake frowned. "But the 46 Chambers were all murdered by Aizen."

"Yes, of course. Our most important task must first be to reconstitute the 46 Chambers—" Yamamoto said crossly at the interruption.

"The most important—! Our most important task should be to hunt down Aizen and the other traitors!" Toshiro barked out.

Yamamoto slammed his cane down on the tile, cutting off the young Division 10 Captain. "We are the Guardians of the Soul Society itself, our greatest duty lies—"

Shunsui bit back the urge to groan as Yama seemed determined to start one of his long and dry as dirt speeches about the lofty responsibilities of the Shinigami. He had endured what must be at least a century of posturing and lecturing since his elevation to the rank of Captain—actually he was sure that he had been forced to stand and listen to Yamamoto's droning on about this topic more than he had at the Academy.

The other Captains had endured about the same endlessly boring lectures as well. He whimsically wondered if that was the reason behind the Trio's betrayal—not having to listen anymore to Yamamoto's droning voice. He briefly fantasized of joining them solely to escape.

"—only afterwards with a formal Declaration of War from the 46 Chambers, shall we begin our task of bringing these traitors to justice. Naturally, all Divisions must begin to reconstitute all members to full strength and preparations are to begin—"

Ukitake blinked. "Wait! What about Division 3, 5, and 9? Surely we have to—"

Yamamoto made a dismissive gesture. "Their Lieutenants will take command on a provisional basis naturally."

Ukitake tried not to gape. "The Lieutenants—!" he broke off speechless.

Shunsui looked up with narrowed eyes. Ukitake's comment the other day reverberated in his mind.

"Do you think that Yamamoto is losing it?"

He spoke up sharply, "Are we to entrust the loyalty of the Lieutenants who were nominated by the very Captains who turned out to be the worst traitors ever seen by the Soul Society?"

Soifon spoke up for the first time. "While Lieutenant Hisagi has demonstrated no questionable actions; according to Captain Toshiro and Lieutenant Matsumoto, Lieutenant Hinamori indicated that she was unwilling to move against her Captain even after his revelations of his crimes. Lieutenant Kira on the other hand, blindly followed the actions of his Captain in assaulting a fellow Lieutenant after learning of his collusion of the massacre of the 46 Courts. Neither have impressed me with their reliability."

Yamamoto snapped, "Nevertheless, they have reliably served in their positions for many years. We cannot remove them now in this time of chaos. We must—"

Shunsui felt horrified at this. He wasn't listening, he realized. It was like he didn't even acknowledge their views, their concerns, their fears. Yamamoto had always had a stubborn streak to him. But now, it was like he simply was incapable of acknowledging anyone else's opinion except his own…

He knew what he would have to do.

What was required of him.

He wondered if Old Man Yama would ever forgive him for what he would consider a personal betrayal.

He wondered if he would ever forgive himself…

The Seireitei
Division 13 Headquarters

Jushiro Ukitake silently nursed the tea even as Shunsui finished his explanation. He closed his eyes. Ousting Yamamoto would not be easy. He commanded a great deal of respect among the younger Shinigami. He was after all, the oldest Soul Reaper ever. He had molded generations of them in his image.

Even the Captains would be hesitant about going against him—much less voting for his removal.

"It will be difficult," he commented morosely.

"I know," Shunsui agreed sullenly and downed a saucer of his sake before he refilled it, gazing at the clear liquid.

"Do you think you can convince a clear majority of the Captains to support the motion?" he heard Jushiro inquire.

Shunsui sighed. "I haven't talked to anyone else yet. I got at least you and me," he paused thoughtfully. "I think Byakuya and Shiro-chan will back us. Relatively sure."

"Sajin will back Yamamoto," Ukitake stated firmly.

"I know. It's the other four that are the real question marks. Soifon might vote for us—or she might not. Unohana? Your guess is as good as mine. She likes being inscrutable. Zaraki and Mayuri? Flip a coin. I haven't a clue what those two maniacs will do."

Ukitake sighed. "Zaraki I think will side with us. I think he's chaffing under Yamamoto," he calmly tucked a strand of hair behind his ear absently. "Mayuri might back us if he thinks he'll get the chance to do … interesting experimentations."

Shunsui made a face, "I know we're low on available candidates, but surely there was someone else that we could have appointed in that post?" he sighed, remembering how reluctantly he had voted for the maniac to take the Captaincy a little over fifty years ago.

"No. I don't think Yamamoto was exactly thrilled either, but it's not as though we have qualified personnel," Ukitake said, rolling his eyes. He tapped his chin, "Still … if we remove Yamamoto; we might be able to get Yoruichi and Urahara to come back. Between Urahara and Mayuri, I'd chose Urahara any day."

Shusui scratched his stubbled chin. "What about that Ryoka kid, Ichigo? He's got Bankai too…"

"Not a chance. Not until he dies anyways. He's not exactly a real Shinigami. Still, in a few decades after he dies, we could fast-track him for Captaincy," Ukitake said, shaking his head. "But we're getting ahead of ourselves. We have to vote out Yamamoto first."

Shunsui grunted and tallied up the votes in his head. OK, figure Zaraki as in. We got at least 5 against 2 definitely against. Of the others, Mayuri isn't a strong supporter of Yama—figure 1 out of 3, he'll back us. Hell, he might not even care about who's in charge. Fon? Not sure—before Yoruichi's return, he would have placed her solidly in Yama's corner. But she's not as a solid supporter of his anymore. Unohana … she can think for herself, the fact that she broke off and went to the Central 46 Chambers argues for her support of us. Maybe. Hmmm, the vote is shaping not too badly… we might actually have a clear majority even without Fon or Kurotsuchi.

"—of course, once we do … who can take Captain Yamamoto's place as Captain-General of the Gotei 13?" Ukitake stated with a frown marring his aristocratic features.

Shunsui broke off his musings and grinned, clapping a companionable arm around his best friend. "Oh don't worry 'bout that minor little detail! I already got a brilliant choice in mind to replace him!"

The Seireitei
Division 1 Headquarters
The Present

I really should have asked Shunsui who his 'brilliant replacement' was, Ukitake thought sulkily.

"Former Captains Gin Ichimaru and Kaname Tosen are declared as traitors and a Class A Threat. Lethal force is to be employed if they are sighted. As for former Captain Sosuke Aizen, I am hereby officially designating him Class S. If he is spotted, you are to immediately fall back and request immediate backup and no less than 4 Captains are to try and assault him, more if he is accompanied by Gin and Tosen," Ukitake said solemnly.

Somber faces stared back at him.

He frowned. "We face perhaps the gravest threat that the Soul Society has ever seen. No less than three Shinigami Captains have defected and are now allied with the Hollows. In addition, Aizen is apparently in possession of a Class Ultima Item that is incredibly dangerous."

He waited a beat before he continued, "For that reason I am hereby reorganizing the Gotei 13 for war."

He exhaled mightily. It was done. War. Did he do the right thing ousting Yamamoto? Did he do the right thing declaring war? Or was he going to bring about the destruction of the Soul Society itself? He didn't know.

God, he really had to get Shunsui back for this.

A/N: Bleach is owned by Tite Kubo. Frankly, I thought that some of Yamamoto's decisions were really stupid and wondered if the old geezer was senile or something which is how this whole idea came to fruition. Basically, Jushiro makes an idle comment that makes Shunsui wonder if Yama has lost his marbles and after the whole botched execution of Rukia and his later decisions, Shunsui calls for a vote of confidence in Yama and he is ousted as Captain General and Jushiro gets picked to replace him.

Vote in my poll at the top of my profile page if you want to see this story continued!