Continuing from the last chapter, its time my readers find out what happens to every one the Ichigo held dear.

Bleach: The Battle that Broke their Hearts

Aizen was dead, the Arrancar all destroyed, and Karakura Town safe from Los Noches. But to everyone connected with Ichigo, the price was too great.

Obviously, Ichigo could not return to the Living World; instead his body was sent to Soul Society by Rukia. As for his physical body, it was buried next to his mother.

Everyone who knew Ichigo showed up to lay flowers on his resting place.

"Ichi-nee!" screamed Karin and Yuzu.

"Shh... he's with mother now... he's happy where he is." said Isshin, Ichigo's father.

"Don't give me that crap," shrieked Karin, "Ichi-nee still had too much to do before he saw mom again!"

Rukia also wept openly for Ichigo, she had never thought that she would have to send his soul to the other side.

Renji too felt as if he had lost a brother.

Byakuya Kuchiki also showed up, "Despite how I acted to you, you weren't bad kid, I'm sorry you had to go like this."

Ikkaku, Yumishika, Ukitake, and every other captain (except for Mayuri Kurotsuchi) also joined the ranks of mourners.

Even Uryu came to pay his respects.

And of course Tatsuki, Kiego, Mizuiro, Chad, and Orihime where there too.

Only Ichigo's family were able to grieve more than Orihime.

Kenpachi did not weep, he simply bowed his head (he had mercifully abandoned his spikes for the occasion)

Yachiru did sob though, but then her face lit up, "Why are the Shinigami sad Ken-chan? Won't we see him again in Soul Society?"

"Probably not, and if we do he won't recognize us."

"Why? We're both going to the same place aren't we?"

"The Rukongai is very big, the chances of him finding Seireitei and becoming a Shinigami again is very slim, and there's the fact that it's very rare for Shinigami to remember their lives before they come to Soul Society."

"Harsh." said Yachiru glancing at Orihime.

Two Months later

Orihime walked home from school in a stupor. All she had been able to think about in the last weeks had been Ichigo. He had died to bring her home, but even the world that she had loved so much seemed empty without him.

Tatsuki shared in her grief, but she like Yuzu Kurosaki thought that Ichigo was happy with his mother now.

Without realizing it she walked straight into someone standing in front of her, she stepped back in surprise, and looked at the person she had bumped into.

The action probably surprised her more than the man she had walked into, "I'm sorry!" she said bowing.

"Don't mention it." said an eerily familiar voice, but something wasn't right...

"Kurosaki-kun?" she couldn't see the face, his back was to her, but he had the same orange hair, the same height, the sa-

"Nope." He said simply cutting across her thoughts.

"Do you... did you know Kurosaki-kun?"

"You could say that."

"What do you mean?"

He turned to look at her. She gasped, the stranger looked exactly like him! But at the same time he didn't look a thing like Ichigo. Ichigo's face was twisted into a horrible smirk, his face was paper white, even his hair looked unnaturally pale now that it was in better light, but the eyes... the eyes where the worst... the stranger's iris's where not brown, but a sickly venomous yellow, and what should been the whites of his eyes were as black as the soul within, "Well... He was the King." The creature said and disappeared in the blink of an eye.

Orihime fell to her knees, shaking.