SailorStar9: After getting the prologue out, this is Chapter 1 of this fic. For everyone who put this fic on your favorited and followed lists and/or story alerts, thank you, but remember everyone, a lot of authors (myself included) sustain on readers' reviews.

Disclaimers: I own nothing, except for the plot bunny. Heck, even the pairings aren't mine.

Chapter 1: Byakuya, Disappearing with the Cherry Blossoms

"Zanpakutō will rule over the Shinigami?" Ukitake echoed. "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Exactly what it sounds like." Muramasa smirked. "I told you I've already freed your Zanpakutō."

"I'm taking this little conversation about Zanpakutō seriously, but where is Yama-jii?" Kyoraku inquired. "Yama-jii's the one who summoned us here. Now, will you tell us where he is?"

"We've locked the Goddess Tula and Yamamoto Genryusei away." Muramasa answered. "Ryūjin Jakka was unwilling to join forces with us. I had wanted to use the Goddess Tula to force Ryūjin Jakka's compliance, but Yamamoto Genryusei intervened. So your Zanpakutō, Katen Kyōkotsu, Sōgyo no Kotowari and Minazuki sealed them away with their Reiatsu."

"What?" Ukitake snapped.

"This can't be." Suì-Fēng breathed. "You couldn't seal the Captain-Commander, let alone Tula-sama. Is that even possible?"

"This is most intriguing." Mayuri noted.

"You can't expect us to believe this." Kyoraku stated.

"It doesn't matter if you believe me or not." Muramasa shrugged. "It's reality."

Ikkaku charged to attack Muramasa, only to be fended off by Hyōrinmaru. "Captain Kyoraku, Captain Ukitake, any further conversation's a waste of time." the 3rd Seat declared.

"I guess we must." Kyoraku relented, with Suì-Fēng taking the charge.

"Kyoraku, we should retreat." Ukitake looked on as the other Shinigami took on the various manifested Zanpakutō Spirits, neither side gaining the upper hand.

"Sounds good to me." Kyoraku agreed, when they heard Konjiki Ashisogi Jizō's screech.

"My, my, it's going to vomit poison at us." Mayuri noted, knowing what his Bankai had intended to do.

"Everyone, run for it!" Kyoraku ordered.

"There's no escape." Muramasa declared as Hihiō Zabimaru appeared behind him and fired off a 'Hikotsu Taihō' at the gathered Shinigami.

With the higher ranking officers seemingly fled from battle, the materialized Zanpakutō rampaged throughout Seireitei, wrecking havoc.

"Damn it, they're destroying everything." Renji cursed, having taken Rukia off.

"Do you think everyone's okay?" Rukia wondered.

"The Captains should be fine." Renji assured.

They were stopped when Gonryumaru blocked their path, with a laughing Kazeshini appearing behind them.

"Rukia, how's your Zanpakutō?" Renji asked, the two childhood friends were standing back-to-back, swords drawn for the pending fight.

"Not good." Rukia replied. "I can't release it. They're coming!" she warned as the two Zanpakutō attacked.

Jumping to dodge Gonryumaru's lightning, Rukia was attacked by the lightning Zanpakutō while Renji took on Kazeshini.

"Bakudō #61: Rikujōkōrō." Byakuya's sealing spell immobilized Gonryumaru before he could finish Rukia off.

"Rukia." Renji broke off from his fight against Kazeshini. "Are you okay? Captain?" he blinked.

"Don't let your guard down." Byakuya cautioned.

"I see." Muramasa noted from another building. "I suppose I should have expected as much from a Captain. After all, you're strong enough to have once enslaved a powerful Zanpakutō." stepping back, he let Senbonzakura take the stage.

"My name is Senbonzakura." the manifested Zanpakutō informed his former master.

"Go." Byakuya told Rukia and Renji. "I won't repeat myself." he moved in and engaged his Zanpakutō.

"You should know better than anyone how foolish it is to fight my thousand blades with a single katana." Senbonzakura reminded, his blade melting into a wave of Sakura petals. "You're soft." he mocked, sending the petal wave at the fleeing Byakuya. "It's futile!" the petal wave closed in on Byakuya, completely engulfing him, before sending the 6th Squad Captain crashing into a roof.

Renji and Rukia barely had time to react when they were attacked by Sode no Shirayuki.

The next day...

With the Squad 4 barracks remaining relatively intact, the remaining Shinigami had proceeded to use it as a temporal headquarters.

"So, the enemy made a mess of things and vanished, is that it?" Yoruichi inquired.

"Exactly." Ukitake replied.

"Seireitei's overflowing with people who got hurt." Kyoraku stated. "The 1st Squad's barracks caught fire, which spread to the other nearby buildings. It was horrible when they collapsed."

"It's a miracle that our first aid station was spared." Unohana noted.

"I've heard that the 2nd Squad and 13th Squad's buildings are still standing." Ukitake supplied. "Captain Suì-Fēng and the Onmitsukidō are searching for the Zanpakutō."

"And Captain Kurotsuchi has begun researching this new phenomenon." Kyoraku added.

"Let's use the 4th Squad's barracks as our center of communication for now." Ukitake suggested. "First, we need to find any Shinigami who can still fight and strengthen the security here."

"Please do." Unohana agreed. "With Tula-sama and the Captain-Commander gone, we must stand strong in their stead."

"What a pain." Kyoraku sighed.

"I'm going back to the real world." Yoruichi took her leave. "I need to ask Kisuke his opinion on this Zanpakutō revolution."

"You're just planning on asking him to investigate it, aren't you?" Unohana guessed the other woman's intentions.

"Pretty much." Yoruichi grinned.

Omake: Arrancar Encyclopedia

Ichimaru: Today, I'm gonna show you all the full names of all the Arrancar Resurreccións we never got to. Mamut. (Nirgge's Resurrección form is shown) Tigre Estoque. (Ggio's Resurrección form is shown) Cierva. (Apache's Resurrección form is shown) Leona. (Mira Rose's Resurrección form is shown) Anaconda. (Sun-Sung's Resurrección form is shown) That's how you write their names. (The kanji for each Resurrección is shown)

Ichigo: (Walks in) What's the point?

Ichimaru: (Sneaks up) You never know what the studio execs will do if we get too far from the source. Besides, they can't rest in peace if we don't do this. This segment's pretty tough to manage, you know.

Ichigo: How so?

Ichimaru: Why don't you give it a try sometime?

SailorStar9: In the next chapter, Yoruichi discusses with Ukitake, Kyōraku and Zaraki on how they are going to rescue Tula and Yamamoto, knowing that they will be running into high-class Zanpakutō. Ukitake, Kyōraku and Zaraki head into the cave in one direction, and Yoruichi and Ichigo head in another way. Kyōraku and Ukitake meet their materialized Zanpakutō, Sōgyo no Kotowari and Katen Kyōkotsu, while Zaraki and Yachiru, who get lost in the cave, come across Gonryumaru and Tenken. In the meantime, Ichigo and Yoruichi encounter Haineko and Tobiume, who both are defeated by Yoruichi. Ichigo heads on and is led to Kazeshini by Minazuki. Ichigo defeats Kazeshini, causing the latter to break into pieces, and Ichigo moves on to find Tula and Yamamoto.

Now that's done, read and review.