A/N: Sorry about the delay. I've been wondering how to do this for a little while, and it's become so obsessive that I can't write any of my other stories without my mind drifting here. Oh well. Let's just get 'er goin'!
Ichigo scowled at Aizen, his two Zanpakuto spirits mirroring the action in his mind. "Okay, okay... Let me get this straight, for my sake. There is going to be a team of... Ryoka, was it?" Aizen nodded patiently. "And they plan on infiltrating Soul Society to save this Kuchiki Rukia, their friend, from unwarranted execution, fighting their way through Soul Society and the Gotei 13 if need be?" Aizen nodded. "And you want me to go in with them under the guise of someone who knows her, using a gigai to appear as my old self but as a Shinigami?"
Aizen shook his head. "No, you'll be in my newly created reigigai(spirit faux body). It allows one to change the appearance of their true spiritual form until it is exited, which allows them to blend in even better. The bigger the changes, the more reiatsu it takes, so you, who's only difference is skin tone and eye color, are the best candidate."
Ichigo sighed, accepting the explanation "As long as I get to keep the hair, it's fine. So a man named Urahara Kisuke is gonna use a matter-reishi converter and send all of us in their, me in a reigigai for no other reason than to get rid of suspicion. Then I'm supposed to, if need be, help them fight their way through soul society to the Shrine of Penitence, where she's being held until her execution time. The only reason you aren't letting her be executed is that the method, via the Sokyoku, is 'cause it might damage the Hogyoku, as you don't know how fragile it is. I got this all right so far?"
At Aizen's nod, Ichigo sighed before continuing. "So, then, I'm to wait until the day of her execution to rescue her, making the act of helping but being repelled believable, which will be helped by my partially sealed hollow powers 'cause of the reigigai thingy.
"Once I do rescue her, and do battle with some of the Shinigami, you'll come along, and take it out of her soul, as it was placed there by the very same Urahara Kisuke to slowly get destroyed by a Kido spell he imbued her original gigai with, using her own reiatsu to drain the Hogyoku because he wanted to destroy it but couldn't. Am I still good?"
Aizen nodded once more, prompting Ichigo to continue. "Once you get it out, you'll signal for a retrieval via Negacion, in the event that you can't get out on your own. I'm to come with you at that point, shedding my reigigai to show my current form and let them know that I'm the same hollow that kicked their asses before and that I've evolved, just to instill more fear. Then, when it's all over, you'll give me a boost with the Hogyoku and we'll start building an army. Did I get everything?"
Aizen smiled at him, nodding for the final time. "Yes you did, Kurosaki-kun. I'll leave the details of what to do up to you when you enter soul society, but I do believe you know the ones going in. This'll be much easier than you expect, if you act properly. Don't expect us to aid you, though. We must act as if we are your enemies." Aizen's somewhat hidden message was plain as day to Ichigo, though he hadn't seen the sun in over a year. "We'll kill you if need be." Gin, who was nearby, nodded cheerily.
After a few moments of silence, Ichigo took a deep breath, 'Breathe in. Breathe out. Repeat.' With a sigh, Ichigo was the one to nod. "Fine, fine. Let's just get this over with. How long should this shit take?"
The smile returned. "A week after you enter. I control central 46, which is the law of soul society during peaceful times as these, so I can move up the execution date, which is currently set to be 2 weeks from now. I must keep it realistic, unfortunately, else someone may get suspicious."
As he nodded, Ichigo wondered just what the hell he was getting himself into. 'There are 10 Taichos who will fuck me up if they get the chance, at least 2 who might have a grudge, then that Madarame guy, that pretty boy, Yumichika, and the big-tittied babe, Matsumoto something or other, none of which were all too easy, even if they weren't Taichos. That's not even putting any other Taichos into play.' Sighing, Ichigo looked back at his companions. "Any of you wanna take this one?" Starrk shooed him off, Lilynette looked uneasy, and Ulqiorra was staring at him unblinkingly, though she shook her head anyway.
Sighing once more, Ichigo just told Aizen to get the thing, but the man just pulled out a purple pill. Owlishly blinking his eyes, as he had his mask hanging on the side of his face, Ichigo just asked, "The fuck is that?"
Chuckling, Aizen explained. "This, Kurosaki-kun, is a reigigai. You ingest it and it allows you to change the look of your spirit body, which is normally restricted." Ichigo eyed the pill warily, but took it anyway.
After swallowing it, Aizen had told him just to imagine the shape he wanted to take. Following his instruction, he imagined his normal body, in terms of skin tone and hollow hole. He forget the tattoos and such, but didn't mind much. It didn't take long for it to start working, but when it began, Ichigo felt it.
It felt like his body was covered in a shell of sorts, pressing down on him in a not too comfortable way. It took a good bit of will power not to rub the purple covering that appeared on his skin to try and alleviate the feeling, but after a few seconds, it was over.
Looking himself over, he saw that his skin was back to a human shade and his reiatsu felt less... volatile, though, at the same time, it wasn't as potent. Looking down, he saw that his flaming reiatsu hakama pants had become... hakama pants, with the rest of a Shinigami's uniform hanging at the sides. His actual body, similar to his previous one, was well muscled and defined, but the distinct lack his hollow hole was odd to him. He did still have the markings. All except one, that is, or at least he couldn't see it. In place of his chain tattoo, there were white bandages wrapped up both arms, covering up to his palm, but leaving his fingers.
Bringing his gaze back up to Aizen, he saw the man already walking into a Garganta, heading back to Soul Society. "Uh, how do I make one of those?" he asked, noting his much clearer voice.
Aizen, for once, looked extremely surprised. "You don't know how to make a Garganta!?" Then he just shook his head. "I forget how little time you've been a hollow, Kurosaki-kun. Just focus reiatsu into the tip of your finger, or however you intend to open it, and push it into the air. Since your a hollow in part, it should form the correct pattern naturally. Remember to use reiatsu to create a pathway, else you will get lost in the abyss between worlds. Ah yes, and please remember that you have about 2 days before they should be leaving. Good luck, Kurosaki-kun" Having finished giving information, he turned around and walked into the blackness as he had just yesterday.
Shaking his head, Ichigo looked over to his companions, finding them staring at him. "What?"
Ulqiorra was the first to speak, though it seemed like she was accidentally speaking her thoughts again. "Is this what Kurosaki-sama looked like as a human?" Ichigo looked at her strangely for the honorific, but chose not to address it at that moment.
Instead he addressed all of them. "Yes, I used to look like this, but that ain't important right now. You guys should watch out for Baraggan and Grimmjow. Maybe even Nnoitra, 'cause that guy is a nut-job. You're on speaking terms with me, and that might be all it takes to set Grimmjow off and I don't got a clue as to what goes through Baraggan's mind half the time."
After they nodded, he turned around and tried his hand at making a Garganta. Once he put a foot inside, he looked back, changing his mind on addressing the honorific situation. "Oi, Ulqiorra! Don't call me Kurosaki-sama. It makes me feel all high and mighty. I hate that feeling."
As she nodded, he entered the Garganta completely. Just before it closed, he heard her say. "Alright Ichigo-sama." He face palmed, hearing both Zangetsu cackle/chuckle at his misfortune. Shaking his head, he made his way forward, solidifying a path of reiatsu under him. It was nothing fancy, but it was at least straight and stable.
Human World
After a few seconds of walking, he reached the end, hopping out in a section of Karakura town. The grave yard. "How fitting." Looking down, he saw his own grave next to his mother, Kurosaki Masaki's. Dropping down, he looked at his grave stone. It was a light granite with a grey outline. It was rather simple, but it rested on a pedestal that read "Rest In Piece" on it's angled upward side.
He traced his hands over the inscriptions, reading it aloud. "Kurosaki Ichigo, 15. Died protecting what he loved." in a separate line, in bold, it read. "BYE."
Ichigo began to tear up a little, which was an odd feeling, as hollows couldn't cry, normally. Wiping the lone tear that went down his face, he sat in front of his gave, cross legged. 'I think now is a good time to talk, yeah?'
Both Zangetsu nodded in his mind, dragging him in, as he didn't know how to enter freely yet.
Ichigo's Inner World
Appearing in front of his Zanpakuto spirits, Ichigo was surprised find that it was drizzling slightly. "The hell..." was his only comment, as he was still standing sideways on a building but it was raining as if gravity was normal.
Shaking his head, he looked around for both Zangetsu, finding one the black haired one standing on top of a flag pole and the Hollow leaning against it, both looking intently at him, scowling. Well, he thought it was them, at least. The previous teen was now a man in his late twenties, early thirties. He didn't have the hood anymore and stood a good 6 inches taller.
Hollow Zangetsu no longer had the mask he was wearing, even though Ichigo was on the inside. He didn't look like Ichigo either, but just had bleached skin, white hair, gold on black eyes, and a Shinigami's uniform. It was a bit unnerving to see a complete revamp of his look, but Ichigo brushed it off.
Walking up to the scowling duo, he greeted them. "'Sup!"
Zangetsu nodded in recognition, his scowl disappearing. "Hello, Ichigo. I must say that the rain isn't very pleasant in here. Can you imagine what it is like for it to rain in a world where your only company is a hollow?Sadly, we cannot just get rid of it, as it is another part of you. Do you know what it represents?"
Ichigo shook his head. Hollow Zangetsu took over, pushing off the pole to look Ichigo in the eye. "It tells us when your being an emotional fucking pansy!"
Zangetsu hopped down from his position on the flag pole. "As crude as his word choice is, he is correct. When your emotions are in turmoil, we know it immediately. What troubles you, Ichigo? If it is apprehension about this mission, fear not. I will lend you any power if it stops this rain." Hollow Zangetsu nodded vigorously, as he HATED the rain with a passion.
Ichigo, on the other hand, shook his head. "Sorry. I just remembered my family. I... I don't know what happened after I... died. I didn't see any of their graves, but they could be tearing themselves apart. I know Yuzu was destroyed for a long while. She cried for a month when our old goldfish died. I can barely imagine how she felt when I... you know"
Hollow Zangetsu looked at Zangetsu, gesturing for him to take this one. 'I ain't very good at that emotion crap.'
Zangetsu nodded before approaching Ichigo. "Do you wish to see them, Ichigo? Let them know you are okay?"
As Ichigo nodded, the drizzling died down, and the very light rain turned into a slightly cloudy day. "Yeah, I'll do that. First, let's talk." Both Zanpakuto spirits nodded, the hollow grinning at the lack of rain.
A few internal hours later, Ichigo felt like he knew his Zanpakuto spirits rather well. He understood the concept of Zanpakuto spirits pretty well now, and how his were... different. He'd even learnt that his mom's death was what allowed him to survive being eaten by the hollow, which he was eternally grateful for. It really allowed Ichigo to fall into despair, allowing his hollow powers to manifest instead of being suppressed.
He'd also learnt much about Quincies, much more than he thought there was to know. He also knew that it was a good thing he was somewhat separate from the Arrancar and currently opposing the Shinigami, because when the time came, Zangetsu, or Ywach, as his original name was, would likely have had to kill him, something neither of them wanted.
On a more positive note, he learned about how he could get stronger. Zangetsu as he knew him was in Bankai, the fully released form of a Zanpakuto. As he was now, it was his normal/shikai state, which was weaker but less reiatsu intensive, though it really wasn't a problem for him as he could absorb reishi and revitalize his own stores of it. Speaking of which, he was currently practicing doing this passively, trying to listen to his Hollow's long list of dislikes and maintain it at the same time.
He'd also learnt that the prerequisite for bankai training was synchronization with his Zanpakuto spirits, which he easily fell into, wanting to learn about them and work with them faster than most Shinigami, who came to the realization in a harsh moment when fighting on their own strength wasn't enough.
On the down side, he learned that he'd likely have to kill and rob a low ranking Shinigami and steal their nameless sword so he could imprint them onto it. It was a pain, but Hollow Zangetsu assured him it'd be worth it.
After Hollow Zangetsu finished his list with a laugh, Ichigo got up. "Well, as nice as this is, I do have a mission to do... actually, could you train me in a few of those Quincy techniques, Zangetsu-ossan." Hollow Zangetsu's eyes widened as his mouth fell open.
His head whipped over to Zangetsu, who, to his shock, smiled at the nickname. He was shocked out of his stupor when Ichigo continued. "You too, Shiro."
Hollow Zangetsu's mouth almost hit the ground when he heard the nickname, but it may as well have gone through the building they were sitting on when he heard Zangetsu chuckle. "YOU CAN LAUGH!?"
Zangetsu nodded. "I have the ability, yes. And sure, Ichigo, It would be my honor to show you some of the Quincy arts. You have long since grown strong enough."
His hollow Zanpakuto spirit wasn't as willing. "All I can really do is tell you is that the move you've been using is called the Getsuga Tenshou(Heaven Piercing Lunar Fang) and that the blade you use now eats up reiatsu and releases it in a compressed burst. The better you compress is, the more potent the blast; the way it works will never change. The real power comes in bankai, and you have to beat us both for that." He chuckled, looking forward to that fight.
Ichigo sighed. "Alright then. Sparring partner until then? I'm a soul out there, and a soul in here, right? It should still help."
His hollow grinned. "Now THAT I can do anytime. Kick your ass around the block anytime you want."
Shaking his head, Ichigo looked at Zangetsu to find the old man with a small smile on his face. Smirking, he asked, "Ready, Ossan(old man)?"
To his surprise, Zangetsu shook his head. "Not yet. Quincy techniques require you to understand the theory behind them before you can use them. We'll start with the one you inherited from your mother, Blut Vene(Blood Veine)." At Ichigo's wide eyes, Zangetsu nodded. "Yes, Ichigo. Your mother was a Quincy, a pure-blood, at that. That's why you were able to manifest the technique without any training. You used it by accident when you blocked a swing from that Baraggan fellow, as it would've cut through your hand."
Ichigo was quiet for a moment, thinking. "Wait, if Kaa-san was a Quincy, how did she lose to a hollow?"
Zangetsu looked a bit guilty. "I... Another time, Ichigo. You will learn of it all in time. Just know that things happened the way they did." Ichigo didn't like it, but nodded none the less, noticing the grimace that formed on Hollow Zangetsu's face and taking as a sign to let it go for now. "Regardless, to use Blut Vene consciously, one must draw reishi from their surroundings into their blood vessels. It's not complicated in theory, but it takes immense mental fortitude to keep it at full power mid battle. Try."
Ichigo nodded, drawing on the reishi within his inner world, which was perpetually there, as its being used by him, he tried focusing on the places where he knew the direct positioning of his blood vessels, like his forearms and neck. Working from there, he pushed along, lining the ones that followed them in totality, leaving not one uncovered.
Opening his eyes, as he'd closed them to concentrate, he looked at Zangetsu, who was looking at him, impressed. "Right now, Ichigo, you are using Blut, the basis for this technique. Now, harden it as best you can." Ichigo followed his command, closing his eyes to concentrate.
He didn't even notice the deep blue pattern across his skin, nor the gesture Zangetsu gave to Hollow Zangetsu. He only acknowledged these things when Hollow Zangetsu took a swing at him with a cleaver like sword, its edge being black while the body of the sword was white and the bandages that made up the hilt were black(Ichigo's Shikai).
It'd only been a few seconds since he'd accomplished it, but he was glad he did, because when he opened his eyes, he saw Hollow Zangetsu's sword bouncing off, the hollow stumbling backwards. "WHAT THE FUCK, MAN!?"
Zangetsu ignored the outburst in favor of nodding. "Perfect Blut Vene. But, now come the part where you practice doing this mid battle. You aren't allowed to use your sword. If you would... "Shiro"." The hollow seemed to glare holes into the Quincy before sighing.
With sudden speed and ferocity, he jumped at Ichigo, bringing his sword down. The hollow cackled in glee. "This'll be fun, Kingy."
A few hours later, Ichigo was panting, scratched, somewhat bloody, but happy. He'd managed to use the technique well enough mid-battle to completely stop Hollow Zangetsu's strikes when he wasn't using the Getsuga Tenshou, and mostly stop them when he was. It was a drastic improvement, but who better to draw out his instinct than the embodiment of his instincts. He'd also learnt that Blut Vene could stem the flow of blood out of his wounds.
Raising a hand for his to stop, Ichigo put his hands on his knees, panting slightly. Hollow Zangetsu was also a bit tired, but he sure as hell wasn't going to call it quits before the opponent without a sword. As such, he was rather thankful Ichigo was tired out after all that. "I-I think I'm good for today. Thanks, guys, I appreciate it. You need something, just ask."
Zangetsu nodded, not bothering to point out that there wasn't really much he wanted that Ichigo could physically give him, Hollow Zangetsu of a similar mindset. "Well, we aren't done quite yet, Ichigo. Do you feel the emptiness of your reserves? Try drawing the reishi you're using for Blut into your own store of energy." Ichigo did as he was told, finding it surprisingly easy. "Don't expect it to be so easy all the time, Ichigo," Zangetsu warned, as if reading his mind... which was completely possible, now that Ichigo thought about it. "It won't be as easy with reishi that doesn't already have your signature, so you must practice this technique in the real world more often."
Ichigo nodded, feeling revitalized. Suddenly, a thought occurred to him. "Uh, Zangetsu-ossan? How long've I been in here?"
Shaking his head, he placated Ichigo's worries. "Fear not, Ichigo. In the real world, it has only been a few minutes. You have not missed much of anything."
Sighing in relief, Ichigo gave a quick good bye to both of his soul partners before fading from his inner world. The moment he was gone, Hollow Zangetsu Stabbed his sword into the ground, leaning on it for support and letting himself pant. "Th-that guy's a god damn powerhouse, and he hasn't mastered all his powers... fuck, I ain't becoming King this millennia." Zangetsu laughed at the hollow.
Real World
Ichigo opened his eyes, only to find his family standing in front of him, staring dumbly at the shirtless Ichigo dressed from the waist down in Shinigami clothes, the upper body part still hanging off the sides. Blinking once, then twice, then thrice, Ichigo could only face palm. "Son of a..." was all he managed to mutter before he remembered Yuzu was still there, though they didn't hear him anyway.
Sighing, he got up, stretching his legs as his family stared at him dumbly. Standing up straight, he waved. "Hey, guys."
At the sound of his voice, the dam seemed to crack. Yuzu stepped forward hesitantly. "O-Onii-chan?" Nodding reluctantly, he allowed her to launch herself at him. She was still much shorter than he was, so she cried into his stomach the whole time. She couldn't even form words with how hard she was crying.
Feeling a bit awkward, he knelt down, letting her wrap her arms around him, which he did after a moment's hesitation. While rubbing a calming circle on her back, he muttered, "Sorry. I am so sorry." All the emotion about his death, suppressed by the hunger he'd felt and eventually buried deep in his mind, was being dragged to the surface, though he didn't cry.
After a few minutes, she cried herself unconscious, which Ichigo was both grateful and sad about. Standing to his full height while holding her in his arms, he looked up to find Karin crying and shaking her head while Isshin was frozen, though tears were also streaming out of his eyes.
Walking towards them he sighed. 'I kinda wanted to avoid this...' Stopping in front of them both, he chuckled at them, trying to lighten the intensity of the situation. "You two look like you've seen a ghost."
That seemed to shatter any reservations Karin had as she may as well have leaped at him, crying her eyes out while trying to stop the tears and talk. In the end, she ended up crying harder the Yuzu had, falling asleep even faster.
Sighing again, he looked up to his dad. "So, Goat-face, you gonna cry on me and pass out too? I'll have to ask that you don't." His eyes hardened. "You do, however, have some explaining to do... Shinigami." Isshin was still experiencing the shock of seeing his son, alive, at least in the soul, and just nodded dumbly.
When they got back to the Kurosaki household, Ichigo noticed candles on the sidewalk, his picture in a frame held above them and flowers in a vase right below it. Looking away, he just follow Isshin inside, carrying both his sisters.
Once he'd set them down on the couch, he looked up at his dad. There was a silence that passed between them, neither of them moving until Ichigo decided to speak. "So... sho-" With surprising speed, his father closed the distance, embracing his only son.
Ichigo just let him, giving the man a hug in return, for once, not pushing his dad off. Isshin pulled back, holding him at an arm's reach. "You're really here... You're not a hollow..."
Shaking his head at that, Ichigo decided to correct his father. "I am. But I'll explain that later, AFTER you fess up about being a Shinigami."
Isshin let go of his son and squirmed a bit under his gaze. The new golden eyes were more than a little unnerving. "N-not much to say, really. I was a Shinigami before, but I lost my powers and lived here in the real world."
Ichigo stared at him for a moment, not believing that the man was being silly at a time like this. Shaking his head, he reworded his demand. "No, tell me about what happened to you. If you don't want to tell me, then don't. I'll be back anyway."
His father was quiet for a bit before writing up a quick note for Yuzu and Karin when they woke up. Popping a green pill, he was instantly standing in front of Ichigo in full Shinigami garb, his body walking itself to a chair and "going to sleep".
Blinking at the oddity, Ichigo was unprepared when his father grabbed him and disappeared in a blur of shunpo(flash step), not that Ichigo knew it was called that. When they reappeared, they were in the sky above Karakura town, making Ichigo yelp and almost fall, though he instinctively solidified reiatsu under him to prevent that.
Whipping his head around to glare at his father, he saw the man looking down at their home with an uncharacteristically serious face, making the anger he felt die down, replaced by seriousness. "Ichigo... This wasn't supposed to happen. You were supposed to live out a normal, happy life, get a girl friend, leave the home, settle down, age happily, and die with a smile on your face. I owed that much and all the more to your mother. I couldn't even do that much for you... Now, your a Shinigami... Hollow... something. Killed in front of your sisters by a hollow, and I was powerless to stop it."
Ichigo stepped behind him, placing a hand on the man's shoulder. "I don't think it's my place to tell you whether or not it was your fault, but I don't blame you... I think we both have some explaining to do, ne?"
Isshin wiped a tear from his eye, finally turning to face his son. "Yeah. I'll go first. I was once Taicho of the 10th Division of the Gotei 13. I'd gotten a report about a mysterious hollow..." He went on to explain to Ichigo about his trip to the human world, how he fought the hollow, was injured by an unknown person, and was saved by a his mother. He then went on to explain how Urahara Kisuke saved her, telling of the hollow that resided in her from then on, held back by his Shinigami powers, preventing hi from using them.
Eventually, he got to the point where the explanation drew Isshin into his own memories, a smile forming on his face as he described Masaki to him. "She was like the sun, Ichigo. She brightened any room she entered. Everything was under her control, and I was happy to be."
Soon after, he got to her death at the hands of Grand Fisher, and how it changed the entire family. As the man started to break down slightly, Ichigo placed his hand on Isshin's shoulder again, breaking him of the trance. "Don't get all sappy on me, Goat-face."
Isshin nodded, recomposing himself and putting on a grin. "You're turn, Ichigo!"
Rolling his eyes, he began to explain what he could, as he didn't quite know all the intricacies of hollow evolution. "After that Fishbone D fucker -sorry about the language but being a Hollow tends to change you- ate me, I was in him, but not quite... assimilated, yeah. Probably because I'm part hollow. From what I can tell, the hollow latched onto my soul, and when I despaired at Kaa-san's death, it grew. Don't know for sure, but... meh, it's something.
"Anyway, he ate another hollow, which both pushed him above the power to evolve AND made him gain a taste for other hollows, so he went back to Hueco Mundo, and I'll assume you know what that is, and ate until he evolved. Changing like that is a battle of will power. I won, so I exist. I mean, they still EXIST, but they may as well not. After that whole fiasco, I beat some Shinigami Taichos, as a god damn Gillian, mind you- yeah, I'm awesome like that-, and they went back to soul society with their tails tucked between their legs. I mean, I didn't do it alone, but still.
"They left, I evolved into the next stage, Adjuchas, and they came back. This time, I DID beat them alone, but almost died, to be honest with ya."
Isshin actually interrupted him, which made Ichigo raise an eye. "Who were they?"
Shrugging, Ichigo recalled the more important names. "Uh, there was this small ice using Taicho, Hitsugaya, I think, and his Fukutaicho... uh, I don't remember, but she had a pretty nice rack, if memory serves." As he was immersed in memories, trying to recall the woman's name again, he missed his father's jaw practically fall all the way to the ground.
Isshin knew who he was talking about, but that wasn't what shocked him. 'Since when did my son admit a girl has a good pair!?' Composing himself, he placed a hand on his shoulder. "You've grown, my son. You finally understand... the amazingness of Matsumoto Rangiku's breasts."
Ichigo blinked in surprise. "You know her?"
Nodding happily, he explained. "Yup. She was my Fukutaicho when I was in the Gotei 13. Toshiro-chan, the ice guy you talked about, was my 3rd seat, but he got a bankai, so apparently he filled in for me."
Shrugging, Ichigo continued. "Well, I didn't kill either of them, though I came pretty close. Sorry about that. Anyway, there was this other captain, Kenpachi Zaraki, and his third seat, a guy named Madarame Ikkaku, and this other pretty strong guy, Yumichika, I heard he was called. Beat 'em all, sent them back after almost incinerating Madarame... again, just about incinerating Hitsugaya, and putting a few holes through Kenpachi.
"Anyway... after that, I ate and ate until I was too strong for the Menos forest, so I went to the desert above, and continued eating until I evolved. Hit Vasto Lorde at that point, but it was kinda painful. THEN, after things calmed down and I met a... friend, Ulqiorra, I beat the king of Hueco Mundo in a fight, and met this guy... "
Ichigo didn't know if he could trust his father with the information he had, so he had to confirm something first. "Do you still support the Gotei 13?"
Shaking his head, Isshin responded. "Nah. If I do go back, they'd have me either imprisoned or executed for extended stay in the human world without permission and helping a Quincy, if they found out. Gotta clear than up before I even consider it."
Ichigo nodded. "Good. Because, right now, I'm working with a rouge Shinigami, Aizen Sosuke, and his two allies, Ichimaru Gin and Kaname Tousen, and they're against soul society." Isshin's eyes widened, but he said nothing. "I have nothing against them except their corrupt government. Did you know that the Shinigami who screwed up and let me die was only given a slap on the wrist, if even, and let go back to her duties? They didn't even bother putting a more competent Shinigami in her place, from what I heard, as it would be an insult to a noble family. Don't know which one, don't care. All they did was send in one more.
"Right now, I'm on a mission to infiltrate soul society with this group of Ryoka, I think Aizen called them. They're trying to retrieve someone. I couldn't be bothered to care, really, but she has something hidden inside her soul by this Urahara dude, and Aizen needs it before he leaves Soul Society."
Isshin was quiet for a moment. "You shouldn't get involved with him, Ichigo. He's bad news."
Nodding, Ichigo responded. "If you mean Aizen, I know, but he can't to fool me with his illusions, so I can keep an eye on him. Besides, he promised me that I could come back to you guys."
Suspicion bloomed in Isshin's eyes, and he was unable to hold his tongue. "Illusions? But Aizen's Zanpakuto is water type... oh crap."
"Yup," Ichigo confirmed, seeing the realization bloom across his dad's face. "If you've seen his sword, you're under his spell. I figure it wears off after a while, though, so you MIGHT be fine. Fuck that power, though. I call life hacks."
Isshin just stared at his son for a little, before sighing. "Just be safe, Ichigo. The Gotei 13 are not enemies you want to have. I won't stop you if this is the path you wish to take. I know you won't hurt the innocent."
Biting his tongue, Ichigo nodded, though the initial stiffness of the gesture caught his father's eye. Ichigo knew himself well enough to know that, if it came down to it, he might. Neither said a word about it, prompting Ichigo to end the conversation before it delved too deep. "Why don't we just go back to the house? I'd love to talk to my sisters after so long." Isshin sighed, but nodded, going to grab the still tense Ichigo but failed when his arm was grabbed and twisted behind his back, hands placed at his jugular as if they were clawed.
Blinking, Ichigo released his father. "Sorry. Was a bit tense from... thinking about my mission..."
Isshin nodded, but rubbed his shoulder, wincing slightly before he put a big grin on. "At least your your reflexes haven't dulled, Ichigo!" At the roll of Ichigo's eyes, Isshin laughed sadly, remembering how they used to be as he grabbed his son's shoulder, taking them both to the house in a blur of shunpo.
When they arrived, Karin and Yuzu had already woken up and began to tear up, thinking it was all a dream. Appearing behind them, Isshin put a finger in front of his mouth, signalling Ichigo to be quiet. Then he put his hands around his daughters' shoulders. "Don't worry, girls. You'll be able to see him soon."
Yuzu's eyes widened, but Karin was the one to say something. "What!? Are we gonna die soon!?"
Isshin shook his head, subtly gesturing for Ichigo to show himself during the gesture. Stepping in front of them without them noticing, as they were staring up at Isshin, he cleared his throat. "No, because I'm right here."
An hour later, Ichigo was going through the door, a bad taste in his mouth. He couldn't tell his sisters what he was doing, nor of the world he was a part of. He refused to drag them into his world, if even only through knowledge of it, so he lied, which was still pretty bad when it came to his family.
Shaking his head, Ichigo stretched out his reiatsu and did the best he could to search for the other Shinigami posted in the city. "May as well get that random ass Shinigami's sword. Hope they haven't already imprinted their soul on it, else Imma have to do this when I get in."
The whole time he'd been muttering to himself, he'd been searching. Sadly, he was never the best at sensing, but the fact that he could barely feel the Shinigami when he pinpointed their reiatsu was a good sign; normally, a weak Shinigami wouldn't have gotten very far in the process, logically.
In a blur of his slower than usual sonido, due to the lack of hollow reiatsu he had access to, he made his way to the signature. Appearing behind them, as they stood on a roof, he grabbed the afro-bearing Shinigami in a headlock, slowly choking him out. "Sorry about this," he whispered in the man's ear, somewhat meaning it. "But, I need that asauichi and can't let you live to tell about this. You're just unlucky."
As the man slowly stopped struggling, Ichigo made a split second decision and just snapped his neck. He wasn't in the mood for a long, drawn out death. Picking up the man's sword, he looked down at the dead man, then knelt down beside him. Closing the man's eyes, he murmured, "Rest in piece." He didn't mind that the man was already technically dead. He just felt that it was right.
Getting up with a sigh, Ichigo looked at the sword, wondering what to do. 'Uh, Shiro?' At his nickname for Hollow Zangetsu, he heard a growl in his head, but ignored it. 'What now?'
'Just push as much power as you can into the thing, jackass. You have enough reiatsu to do this in one go. Others work on this, as the drain of doing it in a single go would kill anyone without as much reiatsu as a pretty strong captain.'
As slightly skeptical as he was, Ichigo did just that. He felt a significant drain on his power after a while, but kept pushing on, trusting the words of his Zanpakuto. Suddenly, the bandages on his arms began to disintegrate into particles, the left one red while the right was blue. Neither set dissipated after they left his arms though. Rather, they flew to the sword, seemingly fighting another presence Ichigo couldn't see or feel for half a second before bonding to the blade, sinking into it.
He felt the drain on his reiatsu spike, making him gasp, sweat pouring down his brow. Next to the sword he was holding in his left hand, a slightly smaller one seemed to fade into existence, though it was slightly shorter. In the end, he remembered, from his distant classes, that this was a daisho pair, one being a daito(long sword) while the other was a shoto(short sword). Specifically, the longer one was a katana while the shorter was an o-wakizashi.
Grabbing it with his left arm once it was solid, he felt the drain on his reiatsu stop. As he examined the two blades, he heard both Zangetsu in his head compliment the blades. He then saw the two sheathes that were on the ground. "Huh. Well ain't that convenient."
He sheathed both blades, putting the shorter one horizontally behind his back facing his right and the other right below it, hanging on the right side. He mostly hid the shorter blade under the top part of his hakama, which he left down.
After he finished tying the strings of the sheathes, he sensed around for any above average reiatsu signatures. In the end, he found 2 groups of... humans? One felt somewhat hollow like, but distinctly different, another felt like an animal trying to pose as a shinigami, or maybe the other way around, that felt like the masked Shinigami that he had to kill a while back(the Onmitsukido that were sent after him), and the last felt human but far stronger than it should've been.
Two others felt like Shinigami trying to pose as humans, along with two humans who were much stronger than they should've been. Shaking his head at the oddity of both groups, he took his time getting to the most shinigami filled one, making up a story for them with the help of both Zangetsu. They'd likely have, or at least know where Urahara was.
Arriving in a buzz of sonido in front of a candy shop. Looking around before shrugging, he stepped up to the shop opening up the door. "Uh, hello?" There was no one around, so he just followed the reiatsu until he got to the back of the shop.
He found a hatch that was opened, a decently bright light below blocking his vision. Sighing, he jumped down, hoping he wouldn't be lead on a wild goose chase. It was a relief when the group he'd felt was sitting there in front of a portal.
The moment he landed, everyone there turn to face him, though whether it was because of the sound or his reiatsu, he wasn't sure. Looking over the group, he saw that there was a slightly tanned man with cornrowed, black hair with a mustache and glasses in an apron, a red-headed boy, a black-haired girl, and a blonde man in a green and white striped hat wearing clogs.
After a moment of silence, he opened his mouth to speak at the exact same time as the red-head. "So..." He couldn't help but chuckle slightly at the synchronization of the act. Shaking his head, he began speaking again, this time before the kid could start again. "So, is one of you the one called Urahara Kisuke?"
The two kids tensed slightly, but the other two just stared at him. The hat wearing one with a cane looked at him calmly before pulling a fan out of no where and hiding his mouth behind it. "That would be me!" he said in a playful voice.
Nodding, Ichigo responded. "Thanks for not making this difficult. Just wanted to talk about somethin'."
Urahara snapped his fan closed as he raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"
"Yeah," Ichigo affirmed before Zangetsu told him that he was being a bit rude. "How rude of me." Bowing in an overly exaggerated manner in an attempt to annoy Zangetsu, though it was a fruitless endeavor, he introduced himself. "The name's Kurosaki Ichigo." At the confirmation of their fears, both Urahara and Tessai widened their eyes slightly. "Nice to meet ya."
Urahara chuckled as Tessai played along, trying not to alert the kids that anything was wrong. Rushing up to him, he bowed in front of Ichigo. "Wonderful! So rare to meet one so young yet polite. It's a pleasure to meet you Ichigo-san! My name is Tessai Tsukabishi." He got up from his soldier-like bow with surprising speed, shaking Ichigo's hand.
Blinking a few times, Ichigo was stunned silent for a moment by the enthusiastic response. After a few seconds, he nodded. "Nice to meet you, Tessai. Nice room you have down here." The man was about to cry tears of joy at his response to the underground room he'd worked so hard on, but Urahara interrupted.
"Ah, Tessai-san? I believe Kurosaki-san came here to discuss something, no?"
Ichigo nodded, his becoming somewhat serious. "Yeah. I... actually, Urahara-san, could we discuss this in private. I see you're a bit busy, but it won't take long."
Urahara, for a split second, looked at him with serious eyes, agreeing that they needed to talk. Then, he laughed behind his fan again. "Maa, maa. Don't worry about it; I was looking for an excuse to take a break anyway."
After they'd moved a distance away, they stopped, and Ichigo noticed Urahara staring at him. Feeling a bit uncomfortable, Ichigo finally asked about it. "What? I got something on my face or somethin'?"
Urahara shook his head. Instead, he spoke in a final tone, stating what was the truth in his mind. "You are supposed to be dead. No, gone, assimilated into a hollow."
Sighing as he rubbed his neck, Ichigo prepared to do some explaining before he realized he was talking to a complete stranger. He blinked twice before addressing him. "You know me? Or did Goat-face tell you about me?" Urahara blinked at him for a moment. "Oh, my dad, Isshin."
Urahara decided to be truthful, something a bit rare with him. "Yes and no. You're father did tell me about you, but I've been keeping tabs on you myself, checking in every once in a while." Ichigo's eyes showed suspicion, prompting him to raise his hands placatingly. "Maa, maa. Don't be mad. I assume you know about your mother, yes?" Ichigo nodded. "Well, I was trying to make sure nothing too bad happened to you because of her condition. You know, make sure you didn't turn into a hollow in the middle of the street or anything."
Ichigo stared at the man for a while. "Fine. Now, can we just move on?"
Urahara shook his head. "I can't pass up this chance. How did you come back?"
Groaning, Ichigo asked Zangetsu if he should tell him. Getting a response, he chose to tell the apparent scientist SOMETHING to sate his curiosity. "I'm part hollow from Kaa-san, got eaten by a hollow, the hollow part stopping me from being completely absorbed, and the hollow evolved. Gillian evolution, if you didn't know, is a battle of wills. I won, so I'm here, but I have natural shinigami powers, so once I hit Vasto Lorde, I regained a mostly human look. Now, can we move on!?"
Urahara could tell he skimmed over quite a few things, but agreed. "Fine, but only if you agree to tell me more another time."
With a roll of his eyes, Ichigo put the apparently recurring subject behind him. "Okay, don't ask how I know this, cuz that's a secret I'm not willing to reveal. I know that some humans are trying to get into soul society to get Kuchiki back, and I want in. I got my reasons."
Getting a suspicious look from Urahara, he continued. "Look, if you're trying to get by 13 Taichos that'll want them dead the second they enter, their fukutaichos, and at least a few seated officers of that strength, you'll need every bit of help you can get. I'm offering, and I doubt you'll be getting many others."
Urahara sighed, but acknowledged his point. "Fine. But you'll have to prove to them that you're strong, not me. I know how strong a Vasto Lorde can be, but they are barely aware of Gillians."
"Actually," Ichigo began, "Could you not tell them about all that." At Urahara's look, he explained. "I don't like all the questions. Let them think I got into Soul Society and became really strong quickly until I decide to tell them... if I do. As for the strength thing... you were a Taicho, yeah?" Urahara nodded. "Just spar with me in front of them, then tell them that you used to be a Taicho." The simplicity of the plan made Urahara pout slightly, but he agreed anyway.
After including Tessai, they hashed out the details for a few minutes before they decided that they'd done enough. Urahara and Tessai went back to finishing up the reishi henkanki.
They said Ichigo could train there if he wanted, though he felt like they just wanted an opportunity to study him. Taking the opportunity anyway, he sat down on a rock and began to talk with his Zanpakuto spirits. 'You guys think I could get to that whole bankai thing by the end of today?'
He could feel that the answer was a no, but Hollow Zangetsu just HAD to be vocal about it. 'Sure! Why don't I just pull fully mastered Quincy powers out of Old Man Shades' ass and give them to you as well.' He could also feel the glare that was exchanged between the two. 'Got a problem!?'
Not wanting to deal with the oncoming argument, he just tuned them out the best he could and tried experimenting with the the new move... well, newly named move. He drew both his swords, holding them to the side. 'Well, damn. I woulda thought I'd have to get used to this, but they feel... natural.' Shaking his head, he wondered if he could do the Getsuga Tenshou(Heaven Shocking Lunar Fang) without releasing his sword.
His ever helpful partner, H. Zangetsu, decided to answer the question before he even tried. 'Not right now, you can't. Also, it's called shikai, the initial release.' Ichigo didn't even bother asking how he knew that. His answer would likely be filled with complete bull.
Shaking his head, he just asked how to actually release the swords. 'That Ikkaku guy said a command, along with his partner's name. You guys have a command?'
Surprisingly, it was "Ossan" that answered. And he sounded just a bit sheepish. 'Yes we do. And we won't tell you it.' Just as Ichigo went to complain, he continued. 'It's not because we don't trust you or anything of that sort. The phrase-'
He was cut off by H. Zangetsu. 'Phrase!? That thing is a fucking story! I mean, it's cool, but ain't NOBODY gonna take the time to say that shit in the middle of a god damned fight!' Ichigo got the feeling that it was a good thing they didn't tell him after that outburst. 'Just call out our name. NOT the fucking nicknames, though, you asshat!' In the background, Zangetsu laughed, eliciting another argument... well, another round of H. Zangetsu shouting and getting an overly calm and angering response.
"This is my life...," Ichigo muttered before calling out his spirit's name. "ZANGETSU!" The two swords morphed into huge, cleaver-like blades, though one was still a bit longer than the other. The blades had a gold hilt, but they had bandages wrapped around the handle that continued up Ichigo's arms, stopping when it neared his elbows. The larger blade was curved, the lower edge reaching back and covering part of the hilt and majority black, though the edge was a shining silver. It's bandages were white. The shorter one was an identical copy in form, but it was majority white, the edge being a deep black, as were the bandages on it. (A/N: Ichigo's full-bring shikai, but the handle is bandaged.)
He looked down at his blades, inspecting them. "Well, damn. Giant-ass swords are giant." He felt a tremor in the ground, unaware that it was Urahara face-planting at the statement. Shaking his head at the odd acts, he just said, "Fuck it, I guess I'll try it out."
Raising both swords to the side, holding them at an angle to the ground. "Getsuga... TENSHOU!" Bringing them down in an X shape, he just pumped reiatsu into them, making the black bandaged one glow a light red as it fell and the white bandaged one glow a light blue. When their paths had ended, an X-shaped wave of energy flew from the swords, slamming into the boulder he was facing with unholy force, tearing through it in an instant.
There was silence as Ichigo, and his hidden audience observed the damage. There were trenches where his blasts had traveled, getting wider from his position. The boulder was... gone, as was much if the ground behind it. Ichigo didn't know if there were any other boulders behind that one before, but they sure as hell weren't there now.
Ichigo broke the silence, surprisingly frowning. "I didn't have an ounce of control over that."
'Hey Kingy?' Ichigo blinked at the sudden intrusion, but let him continue. 'Lemme drop some wisdom on ya... First, the Gestuga Tenshou works by compressing reiatsu. The better you compress it, the stronger it is. Also, the longer we're in motion, the more time you have to build up power. Do what you want with that shit. Now, the second, and more important, one. DON'T USE SO MUCH FUCKING REIATSU! I could feel my blade shaking to try and contain that much! You wanna fire off THOSE like nobody's business? Use your own god damned body!'
He was, surprisingly, used to the Zanpakuto spirit being angry all the time, so he didn't react much to that, only agreeing to be more careful, but what really caught his attention was the "use his own body" part. 'I can do that!?'
Scoffing, H. Zangetsu responded. 'You were already doin' it as a Vasto Lorde, Arrancar, thing. Whatever the fuck we were. It was all around your arms, remember?'
Ignoring the tone, he thought back to when he fought Baraggan. 'Huh. Would ya look at that.' Then a though came to him. 'I kept that around my arms... could I do that with Zangetsu...s?' A devious smile made its way onto his face. 'So much to experiment with, so little time. Guess I'll try hand to hand first. More used to that, anyway.' As if in reaction to his will, the swords dispersed into reiatsu that flew into the bandages.
"Huh. I don't know why I'm even surprised anymore."
A/N: Okay, so I was gonna make this chapter much longer, but I was more interested in splitting them up into intervals of the Soul Society invasion arc. So... this is more of a prologue. As for the theories shown in this chapter, well, I guess it's explaining time.
Warning: Super Nerding-Out Ahead. Skipping Recommended. Warning Delivered.
No Zanpakuto has been awakened without an Asauichi. That's how it's SUPPOSED to be. Ichigo only got around this because his Shinigami powers and hollow powers were, well, tied together. He became a hollow, so the Shinigami powers followed, growing together. Since it was really the hollow powers doing the growing, the Shinigami part was kinda tied to it, meaning that he could only use shikai as a adjuchas, if he knew about it, and only gained access to that bankai due to his evolution.
The problem here is that his Shinigami powers came about in an unnatural way, more or less forced to keep up. So, all that progress had to be transferred into an Asauichi. Sadly, it wasn't like the Gotei 13 would just hand him one, so he had to steal one, like Zaraki. The presence was the slowly imprinting Zanpakuto spirit of the other Shinigami, so he had to kick that out to put his already developed/developing one.
Once that happened, some changed occurred, partially due to the Asauichi presence, and partially due to the lack of hollow reiatsu, letting the Shinigami powers shine through(I planned this shit out, I tell you). Due to the way things began, along with the presence of Ywach's soul shard - which I have a whole OTHER theory on, though I may not include it in this story - there is a sense of malleability with his Zanpakuto that is uncommon in others. His main is compression of power. So, first his big ass sword. Then, while still in shikai, there is compressing all the power through his own body, which is his shikai's power. Won't spoil the limits and powers of bankai though.
Now, onto Inner hollow theories and such. The hollow that latched onto Masaki's soul was passed onto Ichigo, who was born with Shinigami powers, making him the first natural born Arrancar/Vizard(an alive one, at that). If anything, he is the perfect mix, beating Aizen to that "transcendent being" status from the get-go. He also gets a shard of Ywach from being part Quincy, then boom, mixing all three.
The hollow was subdued by Isshin's power, even if it left Masaki's body, due to Urahara's spell, but, when Ichigo felt true despair at his mother's death -and remember this piece of info for a later power- the hollow was able to, as cheesy as this sounds, awaken, as giving into despair is a sure fire way to turn a plus into a hollow. Well, it's Ichigo's soul, and, as the son of both a Shinigami and Quincy, he's pretty much destined to interact on a spiritual level, using his soul. Despairing when you may as well be a plus in a living gigai is pretty much asking for hollowfication.
The spell Urahara used, in my opinion, didn't break, it just moved onto the most ready source of Shinigami reiatsu, binding the hollow and shinigami halves together in an unforeseen way: permanently.
Make sure you follow me now. Ichigo started out with his own Shinigami powers, a hollow leech that tried to escape to his soul, and a shard of Ywach buried in him. The hollow got bound to him through a failed subjection by Urahara's spell, because I don't see how it can just assimilate like that. Now, with that as, well, him, it was his Shinigami-Hollow Hybrid of a Zanpakuto spirit and Ywach left inside him.
That became a part of him as well by being eaten. The whole not-being-assimilated-but-rather-becoming-a-part-of-Zangetsu thing came about because of the fact that he was still, well, alive. If any other soul had managed to get in, somehow, the same would've happened, but I didn't want him to be too OP.
Super Nerd-Out Over. Reading May Resume in 3... 2... 1...
Whoa. I had to get all that out. If you read that... wow, good job. If not, I don't blame you. Seriously, though, I love bleach, but there is so much that could be done with little tidbits of information that they neglect to follow up on. They just leave the spell on Isshin's powers alone, never bring THAT shit up again. Seriously, how would it become a PART of his Zanpakuto spirit!? They give us nothing for that, just say it and move on. You don't know how much small shit I pick up on. I could make a mountain of AU's on how bleach could turn out, and still only go through half my ideas. Well, let's see how much I can fit in this story.
Also, tell me what you want me to call the white Zangetsu and the shade-wearing one. Seriously, H. Zangetsu seems a bit boring, but I don't wanna just call him Shiro, as it's a bit cliche. I mean, I could just call him Kuro, because Ichigo is great at naming. Ha! Oh wait, that means I'm bad at naming... shit.
Whatever. I'll work on my naming skills while I write the next chapter. You guys just have to read it. Or not. Still haven't gained the power to force people to do what I want. Workin' on it, though. Until then, I will respectfully ask you to keep reading. Just you wait, though. Soon, you will have no choice but to read my stories!... Because I'll get that good at this, eventually. What did you think I was implying. I just wanted the power for free living, no bills or anything.