Disclaimer: Lawyers are the scum of this universe, 'sigh' I don't own bleach.

Kubo Tite does, happy now?

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Return of the Moonfang

III The Journey

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He could see her again,

that would be enough,

even if he died a moment later,

just to see her face, he would.

"I will…"

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"Very well Ichigo, are you ready?"

"Just one question, Shirosaki? Is this your idea?"

The old man flickered briefly before being replaced by the white version of his soul, bloodied up rather similar to Ichi. The drawl of the elder was replaced by the bipolar hollow. His backwards voice was something that Ichigo still hadn't gotten used to, it was so unnatural. It did work rather nicely as a scare tactic when facing enemies though.

"Very clever king, you saw through my deception even in that rattled state."

Ichigo laughed silently for the first time in ages, since she left in fact.

"You wish to lead me back in time to a day when I am weaker, but retain your full power, crushing me would be rather simple wouldn't it?"

The hollow was speechless, which Ichigo enjoyed for a moment.

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The old man's voice returned…

"I told you who I was didn't I?"

"The spirit King right, snap your fingers and undo all this if you actually want me to believe you."

"What's done has been done, it cannot be restored, the rejection of situations died with your bubbly friend. But I can do this…"

A snap of a finger restored his life force and spiritual energy, visibly Zangetsu and Shirosaki were both drained, they couldn't have done this. It was real!

"Ok lets say I believe you, why did the hollow distract me?"

"I used the hollow within you as a guide to higher levels of power that you couldn't have reached as a shinigami. You needed the animalistic instincts of a hollow to survive. He alone pushed you farther than most of the shinigami dared to tread. Save your rival of course. He stepped outside the boundaries I placed on his kind, and even would come as far as replacing me.

"You could say I've had a hand in the fate department in regards to you. I knew what would transpire with Aizen's ambition, and it occurred to me what could happen had I made a minor alteration.

"Your mother died instead of you…"

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It all began then, only he hadn't realized it up until he said those words. He had just started noticing ghosts, and saw one about to drown. Using its bait, a young girl, the hollow lured a delicious young soul close enough to strike. His mother was conscious of the nature of his ability to see the undead, and sacrificed herself so her son wouldn't be eaten.

He had suffered for eleven years before learning what he believed at the time to be the truth.

She was killed by a hollow, a hollow which he wounded but could not kill. It fled before a killing blow could be delivered.

The fact that he had been unable to kill Grand Fisher haunted him to the very moment. Ichigo never knew that it was Isshin who served vengeance to the pseudo arrancar.

Ichigo fumed with an anger that surpassed his own dislike of shinigami, this went to the very core of his being. Within him burned a fire that the greatest of volcanoes couldn't hope to match.

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The hollow within him began to cower at the killing intent his king was sending at the old man.

Shirosaki didn't even want to trifle with this side of Ichigo. He had hoped he would've been able to persuade Ichi to a moment of weakness where he could pounce and rule. He was capable of doing it even as damaged as they both were. Ichi was content to die and it was Shiro's chance.

He had only felt a taste of the fury of Ichigo in their first squabbles. It was during the invasion of Hueco Mundo that Shiro offered Ichigo the full power of the Vizard, and he took all of it, more power than the hollow had originally intended to offer. That compelled with the desire to save everyone he became nearly unstoppable in regards to the Arrancar. He even managed to fell Ichimaru.

Aizen was not easily toppled. Ichi was not the only one who had powers beyond a shinigami. The fusion of Shiro and Ichigo were humbled and scorned by Aizen's complete power.

That alone burned Shiro to the depths of his being, but even that was inconsequential compared to the anarchy in the eyes of Ichigo at the moment.

If the king decided to take a leap into the past, the horse, his natural legs would follow.

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"I used you Kurosaki Ichigo, to prevent the end of days. Sadly not even my meddling could prevent such things from coming to pass. That being said, I will not let this game end without a parting gift for you…"

"A game?" Ichigo's eyes watered with tears for all of those who had fallen, Tatsuki, Inoue, Chad Ishida Renji and Rukia. All of the countless others he had befriended or tolerated for the sake of training. They were pieces of him that he was without, an uncompleted puzzle made so by the creator.

"How heartless are you?"

"Excuse my wording, I have a habit of being rather insensitive, being absolute does that to a person. I am absolute but not perfect. My inability to see the outcome of this gambit proves this more than anything else. I can forgive, and I have the ability to change it."

"Kurosaki Ichigo, I cannot give you any more power than you already have, but if I place you correctly, say the day you lost her the first time, You should be more than capable of handling your rival."

"Very well send me back to undo your mistakes."

"Repeat after me:"

To you I make the solemn vow,

Let me return to the dawn of my fight,

Endowed with the strength I hold this night,

This life in payment, soul entrusted to the younger self.

Zangetsu, you and I

Will rise once again before our time…………

Ichigo repeated quietly as he began to take an eerie white glow, much as his reiatsu did in times past.

"Complete the chant with:"

Art of supremacy: role reversal transcendence

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Ichigo did as requested, being motioned to stab himself with Zangetsu he cautiously did, ushering forth a brilliance he had never seen before.

All of time ceased in that instant, the clouds stopped, the world was mid breath. As the sun concluded its fall only to rise again in the opposite direction, Ichigo concluded that time itself would reverse while he remained still. It wasn't a matter of placement, he would remain while the world would reset.

Fights days nights, ages flashed by in minutes…

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He found himself once again among his 'chums' including two of his trusted companions. They were all alive!

Ichigo watched as he was unstuck from his safe dimension, moving by a higher will not affixed to his own, until he stood before his younger self. His younger self had leaned back against the wall to take a slight nap. The others failed to notice the subversion for reasons they at the moment were not capable of explaining later on.

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A single eye popped open gazing at his older self.

"Did Rukia just hit me? My shinigami soul is outside my body, and yet why am I able to talk in this body?" The sitting Ichigo spoke to the ears of himself and his reflection and no one else.

"No she didn't". It wasn't his voice it was an uncharacteristically darker tone. Like those who had visited a distant battlefield, it carried an unbelievable depth and lack of innocence.

"Pop out by mistake?" the younger Ichi replied.

The older Ichigo sat down legs crossed in the style of his younger self, sighing immensely.

"You could say that…"

"Don't mind if I return do you?"

"Just don't let it happen again, these guys will get suspicious."

"Got it," he spoke phasing himself back into 'his' body.

Initially his younger self began to notice changes in himself and the world he viewed as the soul had half way returned at which point he became alarmed!

"What's going on who are you?"

"I am you Ichigo, what you will become."

Halfway into his response the reasoning behind such words were suddenly inserted into his consciousness. Images flashed like a highlight reel, reviewing the course of things for his younger self.

"I understand, do what you can…"

"We will…"

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A/N: Well Now I've completed the sequence of the return, still no Byakuya I know you're crushed, he's coming but I'm not sure to be exact which chapter he may pop up in. Thanks to all those who have reviewed, I'm shocked I've gotten so much support in less than a day! You guys rule…

Review and I'll try to input your ideas as best as I can.

Peace and have a nice day! -CH