The trip through the Garganta had been a profane one, Soifon in the front, with her arms bound behind her back, and being pushed forward like a criminal by the person who had abducted her so brazenly. There had been many promises of death during the trip. Death to Ichigo, death to anybody associated with him, death to many people. Ichigo just smiled through it all.

"So, what is it that you intend to do with me, eh? Kill me?" she asked as she glared at her captor, who was ironically, still wearing the face of Mayuri Kurotsuchi. Finally, Ichigo responded.

"I almost thought about giving you a lesson in the art of flying, by giving you a slight nudge into the abyss of Garganta, but, hurting women isn't my style. It just isn't my cup of tea, so, I guess I will have to think about how I will have to deal with you," Ichigo responded as he pushed her forward.

Soifon did not know how to answer. Her bluster wasn't able to cope with the fact that her captors did not wish to harm her. She just didn't have the courage to, Ichigo decided.

"Why did you do this?" Soifon asked after a moment as Ichigo paused for a second, "Nothing too sinister, I guess it was more of a spur of the moment thing. I had received word that Soul Society was sending its foremost assassin to hunt me. Therefore, I decided to take up the challenge, but I must say, I find the lack of quality in opposition… disappointing."

Soifon's blood boiled at the insult, and she opened her mouth to retort, only to pause mid – point as she noticed what lay ahead at the end of the Garganta.

In stunned unflattering disbelief, she looked back at her captor as he led her into a lush valley, she glared at him, as if daring him to tell her, that this… this … heavenly place, was not Hueco Mundo. As they moved further into it, the air seemed to become more wholesome, it refreshed them, and even Ichigo's tight features relaxed.

Then, a mansion came into sight, nestled in between to cliffs, with a waterfall cascading over its roof, sending up a spray of droplets all over the surrounding area, making it appear as if it was raining pearls. Soifon had to admit that she had never seen anything so beautiful. Not even the famed gardens of the Kuchiki clan came close to comparing to the splendor of this place.

"This … is Hueco Mundo?" she stuttered as she tried to look around, while Ichigo smirked.

"You will find that a lot has changed, even in Hueco Mundo, Captain, and this is but a mere trifle compared to what we hollows have achieved in the last ten years," Ichigo retorted as he pushed her forward.

As they moved forward, suddenly with a loud buzz, a young man appeared in front of them, and bowed down, "Ezekiel – sama, we have been awaiting your presence," the young man replied as he stood up and as he looked at the baggage Ichigo had acquired, his eyes widened a fraction, before they returned to normal.

"I trust everything has been well in my absence, Ulquiorra?" Ichigo asked as he moved forward, while Ulquiorra automatically took his master's place, and grabbed Soifon before she could attempt to move.

"Well, Grimmjow and Yammy did get into another altercation with Nnoitra, when he came here to escort Lady Harribel, but apart from that, nothing of any significance has occurred," the stoic Arrancar replied as Ichigo nodded.

"And is Harribel still here?" Ichigo asked after a while, at which Ulquiorra nodded gingerly.

"Try to keep the news of my arrival from reaching her ears, for as long as possible," Ichigo replied wearily as he moved forward.

"And what about this prisoner, sir?"

Soifon was too caught up, in trying to analyze Ulquiorra's presence, to take offense at what had been said. In all her life as a shinigami, Soifon had never seen an Arrancar, even though she had heard about those legendary creatures, which were treated as myths in Soul Society. It was said that only the Sotaicho had ever faced these creatures in combat over a thousand years ago, in his youth.

Ulquiorra's appearance was that of a slender, yet fairly muscular young male of average height with a melancholic appearance; he was fairly short, had messy black hair with pale white skin, a black upper lip, and green eyes with slit-shaped pupils similar to a cat's. Part of his bangs fell between his eyes, and he had distinctively thick eyebrows. He also had teal lines that descended from his eyes, making it appear as if he was crying.

However, the things that were most fascinating about his appearance were the remnants of his hollow features, which took the form of a broken helmet, which adorned the left side of his head, and his hollow hole was glaringly visible at the base of his throat. His ensemble was completed by a white jacket, black sash and a white hakama, although his jacket had very long coat tails and high collars, and finally, a zanpakuto with a green sheath, was tucked at the right side of his sash.

She was broken out of her trance, as Ulquiorra's question knifed through her hazy thoughts. Furious, she turned around only to hear her captor's words.

"Release her restraints."

"Say what …," before Soifon could even comprehend what the man had said, the Arrancar behind her had cut the bonds, which had secured her wrists.

"I release her into your care, Ulquiorra. As long as she stays here, you will be responsible for her personal safety. Ensure that no harm befalls her," Ichigo ordered, and walked away, leaving a bewildered Soifon behind to ponder over what had happened.

"Move, woman, we do not have all day," Ulquiorra's voice cut in, at which Soifon glared at him.

Realizing the opportunity in front of her, Soifon went for her zanpakuto, which was still hanging behind her back, only to fall down to the ground on her knees as she received a painful jolt, which was akin to the feeling of electrocution, and began gasping for breath.

"Your bravery is admirable, but your sense of reality is deplorable," Ulquiorra retorted as he looked at her, in the same dispassionate manner.

"This place is designed to negate the abilities of any shinigami who sets foot here. The fact that you are even alive after setting foot here is because my master has deemed your life to be worth sparing. You, are our prisoner here, do not ever forget that. Now, stop making a mockery of yourself and get up," the Arrancar quipped at which Soifon stood up, still wincing from the aftershock of the jolt she had felt when she had touched her zanpakuto.

Ulquiorra stepped forward, and beckoned her imperiously. Resigned to her fate, the proud captain of the Second squad complied and followed meekly.


Meanwhile, in the Soul Society, in The Chambers of the Central 46,


For the first time in nearly six thousand years, all the Captains of the Gotei 13 found themselves in the one situation they had never ever dreamt possible. They, the Captains of the Gotei 13 were under trial for gross incompetence and negligence of duty, by the Central 46 chambers. Standing ahead of all his colleagues, the Captain Commander looked solemnly at the hidden members of the council while the remaining captains stood behind him, proud and erect.

"Shigekuni Yamamoto Genryuusai – Sotaicho – dono," a voice came up from the podium as the commander looked up at the empty space as the voice of one of the council members came out, "We have received the detailed report about the travesty that has just occurred. We are not pleased. Nor are we pleased with this fantastic error of judgment, which you and your subordinates have exhibited, when you allowed this wretched hollow to kidnap one of our Captains, right within the heart of our stronghold. What we wish to know from you, Sotaicho – dono, is what actually happened, and how did this hollow actually manage to evade detection by all of the Captains of the Soul Society combined, even as you stood alongside him, and what security measures were undertaken by you, to prevent this infamy from taking place!"

There was no fear in that voice, but Yamamoto knew it had to be there. This "fantastic error" had shaken the Central 46 out of their complacency, and had actually made the members of the ruling council of the Soul Society realize that they were not as omnipotent as they believed themselves to be.

Yamamoto was no stranger to fear. A millenia of existence had made him intimately aware of the existence of that particular feeling. Even he too had felt a tiny jolt of fear, as the implications of what had happened a few hours ago had sunk into his mind, when after he had had some time to actually analyze what had happened. But now was not the time to give in to such idle fears.

"Honored Council member," he began, "I do admit that a travesty has indeed taken place. However, I cannot imagine …,"

"Genryuusai Sotaicho – dono," another member interrupted, his voice floating in from another area, "We presume that you also could not imagine this unbelievable act of defiance enacted by this hollow. Now, you expect us to trust your judgment on this being as well?"

At this, quite a few of the captains stirred in anger, chiefly among them Kyoraku and Ukitake, who made to move forward to protest, but they were held back by Unohana, who forbade them from making any sort of movements by shaking her head silently.

"The most disturbing thing of all," another voice came from yet another different place on the podium up above, "is how shockingly inefficient all of you captains proved to be, when it came to this matter. We have had the records of the Twelfth division inspected, and we find that it has taken them, six years, six years, to merely confirm the existence of this 'King of Hollows', and now, we find that this being has been bold enough to actually impersonate one of our captains, after disabling him effortlessly may I add, and then, he had the gall to impersonate one of your colleagues in front of you, for a duration of more than three hours, and none of you, including even you, Sotaicho – dono, were able to detect his true nature, until he revealed it himself. I admit, that this brings the competence of the Captains into question, do pardon me if this sounds harsh, but it does not make your judgment appear sound."

"I do admit that all of us were taken off guard, by this unexpected assault, but, even you too must consider the fact that we are facing a enemy of the likes we have never faced before, and we had just gained the information about this hollow's existence, and I must admit that the information we had was not as complete as we would have liked it to be," Genryuusai countered.

"We have already considered that," another voice came out of the corner, "It is true that in this case, there is enough blame for more than one individual." Kurotsuchi Mayuri, who was still in bandages, and standing at the end of the line of captains, did not move, but the message was explicit: He was being held accountable for this travesty. He had failed to gain more information on this being; he was the one who had allowed himself to be beaten by this hollow effortlessly, leading to the kidnap of Soifon, and now he was being turned into the obvious scapegoat.

"I believe you are being extremely unjust," Genryuusai retorted with a bit of anger lacing his tone, as he objected, when he was interrupted, quite rudely at that, "Unjust? This hollow has literally made laughing stocks out of the entire Soul Society, by kidnapping not only a Captain, but also the Commander of the Onmitsukido, right in front of your exalted presence, when you were accompanied by every other captain in existence, effectively making you blunder about like newly castrated cattle, and you say we are unjust, just because we have pointed out your failings?" another voice retorted scathingly, at which many of the captains stiffened in impotent anger.

"Enough! Much has been said and done, but now it falls upon us to get out of this mess," another voice retorted, "Sotaicho – dono, you may stay here, as we discuss a means by which this crisis can be handled, the rest of you captains are dismissed," the voice concluded, while all the captains bowed and left without turning back, while the Captain – Commander, stood alone, contemplating how drastically everything had changed in a few hours.


"Miserable old bats, they have never faced a single hollow in their life, and yet they dare pass judgment on us all? Who do they think they are?" Ichimaru growled in frustration as he walked out of the chambers along with the other captains.

"Ichimaru…," Aizen warned his subordinate softly, to mind his words, although his own mindset was similar to that of his young apprentice's.

Suddenly, Byakuya Kuchiki punched the wall in front of him so hardly, that his knuckles began to bleed, while the other captains looked at him in alarm, "That hollow will pay for this insult with his life. No one, and I mean no one, does this to us, this will not be left unpunished," the man growled, while quite a few were surprised to see the stoic Kuchiki lose all semblance of self – control.

"At any rate," Ukitake continued in a somber tone, as everybody turned to look at him, while Unohana rushed ahead to take care of Byakuya's injuries, even as the man cavalierly denied any form of treatment, "This can never be allowed to leak out. If it leaks out that a captain of the Gotei 13 was kidnapped like a common person, it will devastate the morale of the soul society. Such a grave act of defiance against a Shinigami, especially against a captain, will make us seem incompetent and ineffective. We stand to lose all credibility if this leaks out. This can never be allowed to become public. We must take care of this on our own," the veteran captain spoke softly, while the other captains nodded gingerly in agreement.

"I too agree," the gravelly voice of Komamura came out from within his helmet, "It will have an extremely adverse impact on the morale of the Gotei 13, and the members of the Gotei will break into open revolt, bordering on anarchy if this knowledge gets out. No, we must resolve this on our own, and we have to do it quickly, before questions begin to arise about Soifon – taicho's absence," the captain of the seventh squad concluded, while others nodded.

"I suggest that we all retire to our divisions, and think about what has happened today, in solitude. It will not help us in any way if we bicker amongst ourselves like this, at this unfortunate time, not when our tempers are so frayed. I suggest that we adjourn for now, at least until Sotaicho – sama returns from the hearing to let us know what the central 46 has decided," Aizen spoke up, at which, many of the captains nodded gingerly, and began to leave one by one until only Aizen, Ichimaru and Tosen remained present.

"Kaname, monitor the events here, until we return," Aizen replied stiffly, as he moved ahead, followed by Ichimaru who looked unusually somber.

"What do you intend to do, Aizen – sama?"

"Send messengers to Stark & Barragan, obviously, to get some answers, one way or the other," Aizen replied in a scathing tone, as he moved ahead.

Stark and Barragan were about to have some very irate visitors in the near future.


Meanwhile, in Hueco Mundo, in Ichigo's realm,


It was so strange to see the three of them together, sitting around, drinking booze, and generally making a mess of everything. However, for Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez, Yammy Rialgo, and Nnoitra Jiruga, it was just another routine day. Meet with each other, bash each other, and then drink with each other.

Grimmjow and Yammy, along with Ulquiorra were the commanders of the hollow army of Ichigo's realm, while Nnoitra was an Arrancar who served under Barragan. Even though his primary function was that of a general, his secondary duty was to act as a bodyguard for Barragan's second daughter, Tia Harribel. Not that she needed a bodyguard, considering that the hollows who could best her could be counted on hand, but hey, he was not complaining, as long as he got free booze, and an unrestricted license to kill. He had nothing to complain about. All was well. In fact, things had never been better in Hueco Mundo.

Well, there was one fact that he did resent. He resented Grimmjow, Yammy, and Ulquiorra for the simple fact that their boss was the coolest badass Hueco Mundo had ever seen in a thousand years.

After all, Ichigo and his team(Grimmjow, Ulquiorra & Yammy) were considered as the cream of the crop that Hueco Mundo had to offer in military potential.

They were their world's elite.

Their first line.

Their finest.

They have faced countless menaces together. They have triumphed over them all. Individually their skills are unsurpassed, but when needs must – they come together into the greatest fighting force Hueco Mundo has ever seen.

They are the Espada.

Champions alone.

Unstoppable together.

And he, would never get the chance to be a part of this magnificent team of warriors, simply because he served another King. He would never experience the wonders that these four would experience when they battled, after all, service in Barragan Luisenbarn's court was a term for life. One simply did not resign from the court of the High King of Hueco Mundo.


Despite the fact that Hueco Mundo was divided into three kingdoms, because of his age and experience, Barragan was acknowledged as the High King, and technically, Stark and Ichigo were deemed his vassals, even though the real situation was vastly different.

However, Barragan had very shrewdly ensured Stark's loyalty to himself, by allowing his eldest daughter, Neliel tu Odelschwank, to marry him. Neliel was the elder sister of Harribel, and her power was vast, bordering just below that of the three kings themselves. But, despite the flawless success, Barragan's plan had somewhat misfired, as Neliel and Stark had found in each other a kindred soul, and their marriage had actually turned out to be a blessing in disguise. Her kindness had tempered Stark, and he was now all the better for it.

Barragan was now trying to ensure that his second daughter Harribel achieved the same success, and he was hell-bent on getting her married to Ichigo. However, Ichigo had stubbornly refused any such attachments, much to the old Vasto Lorde's ire.

The situation became more complicated by the fact that Harribel had developed, what could be termed as an obsession, concerning Ichigo. The fact that she, a princess of Hueco Mundo was rejected so cavalierly grated on her nerves, and she had declared to all, that if any female hollow was to ever get Ezekiel Nefarria as her mate, it would be she, Tia Harribel and no other.

Many other female Arrancars had been, literally, annihilated, when Harribel had learnt that they had set their sights on Ezekiel, but still, despite everything that she possessed, looks, power, and abilities, Ezekiel had always refused her, and that grated on her nerves heavily.

Many a times, she had journeyed to Ezekiel's realm, but each time, she had been blown away, but Tia Harribel was anything but persistent. What she wanted, she always got, and damn anything that gets in her way.


"So, like I was saying Nnoitra, you should have seen it, Rudobon was forced to make, like a thousand clones, just to clean up the mess that Yammy had made in the battlefield, the dude was literally crying his bonemarrow out," Grimmjow guffawed, even has he drank from a bottle of Sake, while Yammy was grinning from ear to ear.

"Heh, serves the bastards right, as if a single cero would take down someone like me," Yammy grunted as he too took up his bottle and chugged it down in one gulp.

"You guys to get to have all the fun," Nnoitra grunted, as he slouched in his chair, apparently sulking.

"Well, what can we say, our boss is way cooler than yours," Grimmjow muttered sneakily as he and Yammy high – fived each other, while Nnoitra pouted.

"Sheesh, get a room you two," Nnoitra retorted even as he looked around, "Hey, where is Ulquiorra?" he asked as he looked around for Ichigo's second – in – command, who was nowhere to be seen.

"Ah, he is around, poor guy, stuck on babysitting duty," Grimmjow snorted, while Nnoitra straightened up.

"Babysitting? What the hell, since when did Ulquiorra turn into a softie?' Nnoitra quipped back at which Yammy laughed aloud.

"It is that damn Shinigami Captain, who was captured by Ezekiel – sama," Yammy replied after a moment, at which Nnoitra shot up in his chair, so fast, that his neck cricked.

"A captain? Seriously, a honest, for real … shinigami captain?" Nnoitra asked in disbelief as he looked at the two, thinking that they were yanking his chain.

Seeing the sober looks on their faces, hit the bullet home as Nnoitra gaped at the two in stunned unflattering disbelief.

"Holy shit," Nnoitra muttered softly, as he sank into his chair, his eyes wide open in astonishment.

"When the hell did that happen?" he asked after a moment, at which the two shrugged.

"We don't know for sure," Grimmjow replied after a while, "But from what I heard from Ulquiorra, this shinigami is said to be the best assassin in the Gotei 13, and was assigned to kill Ezekiel; who after learning that, single handedly snuck into Soul Society, and kidnapped that Captain in front of all the other captains, and returned without receiving so much as a scratch in return," he concluded, while Nnoitra's eyebrows shot up into his hairline.

"Fuck! And he did it single – handedly, without any of you backing him up?" Nnoitra asked again, at which his two companions nodded again in agreement.

"Damn bitch was raising a hell of a racket some time ago, Ulquiorra had to straighten her up personally," Yammy grunted distastefully, at which Nnoitra paled for a second, as the implications of those words sunk into his mind.

"Her?" he asked hoarsely as he looked around at the both of them.

Grimmjow and Yammy nodded gingerly, at which Nnoitra paled even further.

"You mean to say, that Ezekiel Nefarria of all people, has actually kidnapped a woman and brought her to his home, personally, and to top it all off, you say she is a shinigami?" he asked quietly, at which Grimmjow's eyes widened for a fraction, as what Nnoitra was implying sunk into his mind as well, as his eyes met Nnoitra's.

Yammy who was slow on the uptake did not understand why the two Arrancar generals were suddenly feeling uncomfortable.

"What the fuck is wrong with her being a woman?" the giant asked disdainfully, at which Grimmjow shook his head.

"Yammy, think very carefully. In all the years you have known, have you ever seen Ezekiel show any sort of interest in a woman, in any woman, mortal, shinigami or hollow – wise?" Grimmjow asked carefully.

"Nah, can't say I have at that," Yammy shrugged, at which Grimmjow sighed.

"Now, think about this, for the first time ever, Ezekiel goes off on his own, on a mission without us accompanying him, something which has never happened before, and he returns with a prisoner, who is a shinigami, and a woman to boot. Now, what does this say? About that woman and the situation in general?" Grimmjow asked carefully, at which Yammy frowned in concentration.

"It means that he is somehow interested in this … woman," Yammy replied slowly after a moment's pause, while Grimmjow nodded.

"Now, what do you think Harribel is going to do, when she learns that there is a woman in this place, one who has captured Ezekiel's interest, and who is a shinigami at that?" Nnoitra asked carefully, at which the horrified realization dawned upon Yammy's face.

"Exactly... we are fucked," Grimmjow replied solemnly after a moment's pause, while the other two nodded gingerly in agreement.


"So, you say that Ezekiel has actually captured this woman, and has brought her to his home, personally?" the woman asked carefully, while the Arrancar maid who was kneeling in front of her, spoke tremulously, "Hai, Hime – sama."

"Where is she?"

"It seems that she has been placed under the care of Ulquiorra – dono, with the orders that she be well cared for, and to ensure that no harm is to befall her," the maid replied, at which, the woman wordlessly picked up her zanpakuto and walked out of the chamber, leaving a very relieved maid behind.

Apache, the maid, sighed softly, praying for the unfortunate soul who had captured the attention of Tia Harribel, the princess of Hueco Mundo.


Meanwhile, in Soul Society, in The Captain – Commander's chambers, One hour after the above-mentioned events,


All the Captains, minus Soifon, who was obviously absent, were now present in the chambers, as the Captain Commander read out the orders issued by the Central 46 Chambers.

Byakuya Kuchiki, Gin Ichimaru, Unohana Retsu, Mayuri Kurotsuchi, Kaname Tosen, Sajin Komamura, Hitsugaya Toshiro, Aizen Sosuke, Jushiro Ukitake, Shunsui Kyoraku, and Zaraki Kenpachi, stood in stony silence, as the Captain – Commander read the directives issued by the Central 46.

"Accordingly, as of now, due to being the main party responsible for allowing this travesty to occur in the first place, partly by failing to gather any proper intelligence about the enemy, and also for allowing himself to be defeated so effortlessly, thereby tarnishing the honor of the position of a Shinigami Captain, which also subsequently led to the abduction of another Captain, Kurotsuchi Mayuri is hereby stripped of his rank as the captain of the Twelfth division," Yamamoto concluded softly, while the other captains did not react, as they all waited with baited breath for the explosion of anger to come from Mayuri.

But what scared them the most was that it did not come. They watched, stupefied, and in shocked gazes, as Mayuri calmly allowed the guards from the Central 46 to strip him off his Haori, and confiscate his zanpakuto, even as Reiatsu binding handcuffs were slapped upon his wrists, as he was led off.

Thus, Mayuri Kurotsuchi left the chambers of the Captains, handcuffed in disgrace, and in a black rage.

It was the final accusation that had turned the already insane man nearly apoplectic. That wretched hollow had bested him, and he had not even seen the attack coming, and had come to his senses, only to find himself imprisoned within his own chambers, within his own division.

This would be a decision, that all of Seiretei would rue in the days to come.

Silently, Yamamoto stood by as he watched Mayuri be led off. What had just occurred was not even the tenth of what was supposed to come afterwards, on this night of misfortune, he told himself, as he prepared to hear the objections, that were sure to come, and he was not disappointed, as seconds later, his student stepped up to the plate, proving him right, once again.

"Yamamoto – sensei, this is highly unjust, we are all to blame equally in this. Do not mistake this for me for having any sympathy for Mayuri Kurotsuchi, but, is it not unjust just to make him a scapegoat, while we are all to blame equally for this lapse of judgment?" Ukitake asked quietly, at which the temperature in the room chilled as many other captains took deep breaths.

If Yamamoto heard his student, he made no visible reaction to it, as he continued reading the directives issued by the Central 46 Chambers.

"Also, the central 46 chambers have come to the conclusion that this lapse in our security occurred due to inadequate information, and also because of the fact that Mayuri Kurotsuchi was not competent enough to analyze the information that was in front of him. Furthermore, they have decided that Captain Soifon too is partly to blame, for having allowed herself to be captured in such a manner, which reflects poorly upon the position of the commander of the Onmitsukido," here Yamamoto paused as he looked around to gauge the reactions of his subordinates, which were turning quite vicious and turbulent.

"As such, they have decreed that if and when she is rescued, she will resume her duties as the captain of the second squad, but she will no longer be allowed to command the Onmitsukido, which will, from now on, be commanded by the Soshireikan of Onmitsukido. Furthermore, recognizing the need of the moment, the Central 46 have decided that the services of the following individuals are required, for us to effectively combat this threat, and as such, the central 46 has commuted the sentences of the following individuals, by revoking their banishment, and reinstating them in their former positions, since none of us present in this chamber currently, possess any of the skills that these individuals have," the old commander concluded, at which a horrified Kyoraku looked up at his teacher in alarm.

"Yama – Jii, you can't possibly mean…" the captain of the eighth squad began, when the commander raised his hand and stopped him mid – tirade as he nodded his head in agreement.

"Because of the emergency of the situation, the Central 46 Chambers, has hereby revoked the banishment orders issued against Urahara Kisuke, Tsukabishi Tessai & Shihoin Yoruichi, and has reinstated them in their former positions, as their skills are vital, and are required to combat this new menace," Yamamoto spoke in a heavy tone even as the chamber erupted in uproar, while shocking many of the people present, chiefly among them, Aizen Sosuke.


Authors Note

# Next chapter, Karin Kurosaki's initiation into the spiritual world begins, while Aizen begins to plan frantically to find a way out of the mess that Ichigo has inadvertently landed him in.

# Hueco Mundo's portrayal is vastly different in this story, as you can see by how I have displayed it.

# Harribel's obsession with Ichigo is a unique idea that I had, her acting jealously against any woman near Ichigo's presence is going to be a major plot in this story.

# Also, in the next chapter, Urahara wastes no time in making use of the gift that has been dropped in his lap, leading to a major headache for Aizen. And finally, Ichigo & Soifon start to get to know each other, and the foundation of their relationship is laid.

P.S. - While all the hollows will address Ichigo as Ezekiel, when writing things from his perspective, I will always address him as Ichigo only. So, please try not to get confused, and realize this simple fact, Ichigo Kurosaki is Ezekiel Nefarria, the third king of Hueco Mundo. Both are one and the same.