Chapter 4: The Fight

Reentering the woman's assigned room, Ulquiorra was keenly aware that she was still smiling. It would be an exaggeration to say that this "pleased" him; rather it relieved him. He was still unsure of whether his actions toward her would be interpreted as "kind," so it was relieving when something he did seemed to add to her happiness. It meant that he was not failing in the impossible task to which he had been assigned. He still considered it impossible. If he succeeded at all, it would be due to chance and not skill on his part, therefore it would not be his success; it would mean simply that he had not failed. He was no nearer to understanding kindness than he had been when this started. He knew only that he should do what he could to make her smile. He had originally thought that he ought to do what he could to keep her from crying, but he had since discarded that thought. It still confused him that she could be happy and yet be crying, but he had seen what he considered sufficient proof that it was possible. Her tears, therefore, he now ignored. Her expressions were all that mattered.

Her expression, however, changed immediately to apprehension when they entered the room, and Ulquiorra knew instantly why. There, sitting on her couch, was a Shinigami with a wide, oily grin.

"Oy, ya've com' back after all, eh?" purred Gin. "I was startin' to wonder."

"Where have you been?" demanded another voice.

The woman jumped at the sound, but Ulquiorra had sensed Tosen's presence without having to see the dark-skinned Shinigami, standing in the corner of the room.

"Did Aizen-sama wish to see her?" asked Ulquiorra, unperturbed.

"Better than that," sneered a third voice. "He doesn't need her anymore."

Ulquiorra felt the human woman press against his side as she looked around at the three men surrounding them. Szayel had appeared at the doorway of the room, and he leered at her unpleasantly. Extending his senses to see whether anyone else was near, Ulquiorra quickly assured himself that none were. These three were all. Still, why were they here, and what could Szayel's words mean?

"Ya should be happy, Ulquiorra-san," smiled Gin, rising to his feet. "Yer annoyin' duties are over now."

"What do you mean?" asked Ulquiorra.

"Just told you," answered Gin. "Aizen don't need her now."

Ulquiorra didn't move. What they were saying didn't make sense. If, indeed, Aizen-sama had decided that the woman was no longer needed, then it would be a relief to him, but Aizen-sama would have to tell him that himself. Ulquiorra wasn't about to shirk his duties on the word of another, particularly this one Shinigami whom he knew was wont to lie for his own twisted pleasure.

"I will report to Aizen-sama immediately," Ulquiorra said aloud. "I will hear his order myself."

"Oy, ya can do that," nodded Gin, "but ya can leave the girl here."

Ulquiorra again felt the woman press a little closer to himself, laying a hand on his arm fearfully. She knows that I must protect her, he thought. I have been ordered to do so, and I will obey unless ordered differently by Aizen-sama. She does not understand that she is making it difficult to do by blocking the movement of my arm. Foolish woman.

"Well, Ulquiorra?" pressed Szayel, still grinning maliciously at him. "Are you going to hand her over?"

It was Tosen's presence that confused Ulquiorra the most and gave him pause. If it was just Szayel and Gin, Ulquiorra would have turned and left the room already, taking the woman with him. He would not trust the word of either of these two, nor would he listen if they claimed to have orders from Aizen-sama contrary to his own. Tosen, however, was not one whom he would suspect of trying to mislead him about Aizen-sama or his orders. The Shinigami's religious devotion to his leader was unquestionable. Why then was he here with these two? Was it possible that the supposed order from Aizen-sama was genuine? If not, it would be worth Ulquiorra's own life if he was to step away and allow them to do as they pleased. No, he must hear the order from Aizen-sama himself.

"The woman will come with me," said Ulquiorra at last. "I have been ordered to guard her, and I will not do otherwise until instructed by Aizen-sama."

"You're refusing an order?" asked Tosen in a low voice. "Again?"

"I am obeying my orders."

"You are questioning the word of Aizen-sama."

"I am obeying the word of Aizen-sama."

Deliberately, Tosen drew his Zanpakuto. Ulquiorra knew that he should draw his own, but the woman was still leaning against his arm. He would have to push her away from himself to do so.

"Yer actin' right strange, Ulquiorra-san," chirped Gin. "What's got ya so attached to this female? Ya like her, maybe?"

Ulquiorra ignored Gin's words. They were meaningless, and he had no time to consider them. He did not want to cross swords with these three here. It was not a fight he was likely to win, unless he drew on his ultimate strength, and that was forbidden in this place. The others knew this; they had the advantage.

"Step away from the woman," ordered Tosen.

Ulquiorra didn't move.

"Ah, there's no need fer that," came Gin's voice. Ulquiorra then saw that Gin had drawn his own Zanpakuto. Holding it in his right hand, Gin rested the blade lightly on his left forearm, the tip pointed at Orihime. With a sadistic grin, he murmured, "Shoot 'em dead– "

The sonido of a lower-level Arrancar would not have been quicker than Gin's Shikai, but Ulquiorra needed only to interrupt it before it fired. Ulquiorra's Zanpakuto connected with Gin's, knocking the tip of the blade upward. Gin's immediate smile of triumph, however, sent a slight shiver of fear through the Cuatro Espada, who had only a split second to block the incoming blow from Tosen. Fortunately, his own Hierro was stronger than was Grimmjow's and this saved him from losing an arm as the other had done.

As he had moved, Ulquiorra had thrust the woman toward one of the corners, and he fought now with his back to her, keeping the Zanpakuto of the Shinigami always in his field of vision. This was not always easy; both Shinigami attacked him at once, keeping to either side of him, so that he could not block both with his sword. Having to rely on his Hierro again and again, he had to catch the blades of his attackers with his Zanpakuto on one side and his bare hand on the other. How long, he wondered, before one or the other would exert enough spiritual pressure to piece his hardened skin? Both were capable of doing so. Of course, releasing that amount of spiritual pressure in this confined space would be destructive, and, if their actions were meant to be unnoticed by Aizen-sama, then they could not afford this.

As Ulquiorra deflected blow after blow, he became more and more convinced that they were not, indeed, acting under the orders of Aizen-sama. If they were, then they would not hesitate to use their full powers to defeat him. They were trying to subdue him, it was clear, but they were not trying to kill him. This emboldened the Arrancar; he was still the one obeying Aizen-sama, and these two were not.

"Ulquiorra-san!" screamed the woman suddenly. "Behind you!"

Ulquiorra's attention was diverted for a split second when she screamed as he looked toward her, realizing suddenly that he had not being paying attention to Szayel's movements, but this turned out to be a mistake. The danger did indeed come from behind him, but it was not directed at her. Szayel, waiting for the perfect opportunity, had appeared suddenly behind Ulquiorra and caught hold of the latter by the collar. Ulquiorra attempted to spin around, but he was met with Tosen's blade in his face, just as Szayel dropped something soft and slimy onto his neck. Lightning-quick reflexes saved Ulquiorra from losing an eye, and another sonido placed him with his back to the wall, the woman at his right hand, and his three enemies in front of himself. Fortunately, Szayel withdrew again immediately, and Ulquiorra was able to drive the Shinigami each back a step, such that he was once more between them and their prey. His back to the woman now and Szayel again in his sight, Ulquiorra once more deflected the blows of the two Shinigami as he attempted to determine what Szayel had put on him.

He quickly realized that whatever it was was a living creature. It felt like a thick worm or a slug as it draped itself around his neck and extended two tendrils down his chest, inside his jacket. It was with great disgust that he felt the ends of the apparent gastropod enter his Hollow hole, feeling about with a slimy horror. Was this meant to be a distraction? If so, it was almost working. If not, then was it something more sinister? A quick, full glance at Szayel showed the other to be grinning maniacally. Ulquiorra knew that he had to remove whatever the creature was from himself and quickly, but how? Both hands were required to fend off the attacks of the Shinigami.

As the two ends of the creature oozed through his hole and out the other side, Ulquiorra realized that the creature must be growing. The thick, soft body about his neck had not changed in size, nor had the pressure increased to indicate that it was tightening, but the ends were certainly increasing in length. He felt them now working their way up his back. Ducking under a blow from Tosen, Ulquiorra quickly thrust his free hand into his jacket, grabbing hold of the creature. Instantly, he realized that it had attached itself to his chest, in some way merging with his Hierro. To tear it off would be to tear through his own skin. He was willing to do that, and he started to try, when Gin, taking advantage of the momentary opening, thrust his blade at Ulquiorra's chest. The Arrancar spun sharply and threw his left hand up to block the blade. The tip managed to put a tear in the front of his jacket, but he sustained no immediate damage. As the attacks continued, however, Ulquiorra was forced to again leave the creature be in order to defend himself.

A cold, sinking feeling, not unlike the slimy touch of the creature, came over Ulquiorra as he realized that he could not quickly remove the beast. If it had, indeed, attached itself to his skin, then he would have to tear it apart in pieces. After all, it had draped itself around his neck, threaded its way through his Hollow hole, and was now beginning to wrap itself around his shoulders, clearly intending to move down his arms next. What would it do? It was causing him no pain, and he could not sense any difference in his responses.

No, that's not true. He realized now that there was a difference. His reiatsu was dimming. The creature was feeding off of his spiritual energy! Ulquiorra's stores of energy were so vast, and he was releasing so much less than his maximum – that which would have been used in his released state – that it had taken him until now to realize it. Whatever this creature was, it was absorbing his reiatsu at an alarming rate.

That's why they're not trying to defeat me! he realized with horror. They knew this; they planned this. My strength will last no more than a few minutes at this rate. A few more seconds, perhaps, and I won't be able to deflect their current attacks.

Ulquiorra realized suddenly that the woman was in no danger; he was their true target. But why? The moment he realized this, he launched past the two Shinigami to the middle of the room, giving himself more space to maneuver. The two spun on an instant, ignoring the woman and confirming his suspicion. Tosen leapt after him, but Gin stopped, lowered his sword, and chuckled.

"My, my," he grinned. "I think he's startin' t' figure it out, Tosen-san."

Tosen likewise paused, holding his battle-stance but not attacking. At the doorway, Szayel laughed.

"It's already been long enough," he said to the other two. "He can't remove it now."

At that, Tosen likewise relaxed and lowered his blade. Immediately, Ulquiorra thrust his hand into his jacket, took hold of the snake-like creature, and tried to tear it from himself. He couldn't do it. His strength was already drained to the point that he couldn't even rip it from his skin. As his breathing became labored, he looked at the Shinigami before him.

"Why?" he asked.

"Why?" repeated Gin, glancing back at Orihime. "Ya haven' guessed?"

"You were ordered to act kindly toward the prisoner," answered Tosen seriously. "You were ordered to pretend. It's been clear through watching you that you have gone beyond that. It was suspected that you had developed feelings for her yourself. You went so far as to actually take her to the Land of the Living. And now, when ordered to have her destroyed, you turned against Aizen-sama to protect her." His voice lowered even further. "You are a traitor."

Ulquiorra couldn't believe his ears. This made no sense. When Aizen-sama had ordered him to be kind to the woman, he hadn't even understood what he was expected to do; how could he have gone beyond what was required, when he had strongly doubted that he was fulfilling even the most basic aspect of it? He hadn't done even half of what they had advised him to do concerning her. This truly made no sense.

Feeling his strength continue to seep away, Ulquiorra realized that he had no choice. If he wanted to live, he was going to have to disobey Aizen-sama's orders.

"Enclose," he murmured. "Murci–"

That was as far as he got. Just has he had done with Gin, now Tosen did with him. The Shinigami leapt forward and swung his Zanpakuto with full force, interrupting Ulquiorra's release. Ulquiorra was scarcely able to block it with his quickly diminishing strength, but Gin came suddenly from the side, swinging his own blade with true seriousness this time. Ulquiorra felt the sharp edge pierce his Hierro. Almost before he could register what had happened, he saw his own Zanpakuto flying through the air, his disconnected right hand still gripping it.


Orihime screamed in horror. She still wasn't sure exactly what was happening, but she saw that Ulquiorra had been defeated. He sank to his knees, breathing more heavily than she had ever seen him do, gripping his severed wrist. Jumping forward herself, she pushed past the two Shinigami standing before him.

"Soten Kisshun," she cried. "I reject!"

The golden shield covered his wrist, but to Orihime's surprise, her Espada guard simply withdrew his arm from beneath it.

"That is not necessary," he breathed heavily.

As Orihime watched, Ulquiorra's hand regrew, even more quickly than she could have healed it. Even so, he remained kneeling, eyes downcast, looking defeated.

"We should leave," came Tosen-taichō's voice. "This took longer than it should have."

"Well, that ain't our fault," replied Ichimaru-taichō. "They weren't here when they should o' been."

"Come," said the other simply.

Orihime watched in surprise and confusion as the two Shinigami and the smiling, pink-haired Arrancar left the room, closing the door behind them. Turning back, she saw that Ulquiorra had again reached inside his jacket to take hold of the slug-like creature there. The Espada's weakened grip could do nothing, however, and he soon let go, dropping his hand to the floor to catch himself from falling.

"Ulquiorra-san!" she exclaimed. Touching her hairpins again, she called, "Soten Kisshun; I reject!" This time, the orange shield covered the Arrancar entirely, as she tried to reject all that had been done to him. Orihime frowned in confusion, seeing that it didn't work. There was only Ulquiorra's own spiritual pressure within the field. The creature on him wasn't hurting him.

Eyes widening, Orihime finally realized what the creature was doing. This wasn't something that she could reject. It had to be physically removed and quickly!

. . . . but how? Orihime blushed at the thought of reaching inside Ulquiorra's shirt herself.

As she hesitated, Ulquiorra's eyes seemed to glaze, and he slid to the floor.

"Ulquiorra-san!" she exclaimed again, catching him by the arm. Then she felt it. The creature had wound itself around his arm! If she could peel it off from him, perhaps there was still time!

"Forgive me, Ulquiorra-san," she whispered, then quickly opened his jacket and pulled it off of him entirely. Sure enough, the purplish-brown being had wound itself around each of Ulquiorra's arms, reaching nearly to the wrists. Orihime grasped at one of the thin ends of it and pulled.

"Stop," came the soft voice of her captor.

Orihime had drawn a few inches of the creature off of him, so she didn't understand his objection.

"Why?" she asked.

"It will enclose you also," he breathed.

Turning back, Orihime saw that it was so. The thin end that she held had already attached itself to her hand and began, very slowly, to wrap itself around her wrist. With a squeal of horror, she tried to pull her hand away. It was not without a little pain that she managed to rip it off of herself. Ulquiorra's arm then fell to his side, the loose end of the slug returning to its work of binding him.

"No," Orihime whimpered. Tears formed in her eyes, and she brushed them quickly away. "How do I get it off?" she asked.

Ulquiorra didn't answer. He looked up at her with the same deep, green eyes that she'd always seen, but now they seemed almost softer. Was it because he was in pain? Or because he was not afraid of dying? Or simply because he was dying? Orihime choked on her tears and pressed her hands to her face. This was her fault! She didn't fully understand what all had been said, but she knew that this was her fault. Somehow, they were killing him because he had defended her. If he had stepped aside and let them take her, then he would still be unharmed. It was all her fault!

"Onna," came his weak voice again. "Why would you cry for me?"

At that, the tears that she had been trying to hold back burst forth like a flood.

"No," she cried. "There has to be a way to get it off. There has to be a way!"

As a sudden thought struck her, she caught up the now empty jacket, wrapped a part of it around her hand, and took hold of the tendril with it. The creature tried to attach itself to the white cloth, but it didn't matter. Orihime continued to pull at it, dragging it slowly off of the Arrancar's skin. By the time she had reached his elbow, however, she found that it wouldn't come off as easily. She pulled and pulled at it, and she saw that it tore away the skin, just a little, as it came, but then she couldn't get any more of it off. It was stuck too fast.

"I can't get it off," she whimpered. "What should I do?"

Turning back to her guard's face, she saw that his eyes were shut and he didn't move.

"U-U-Ulquiorra-san?" she murmured softly.

The Espada didn't move. His breathing had either ceased or slowed to where it was imperceptible. Orihime reached forward and pressed a hand to his white cheek.

"Ulquiorra-san!" she exclaimed. "Wake up! Please, wake up! Ulquiorra-san!"

There was no reaction from the pale Espada, and Orihime found herself wrapping him in her arms as she cried, hugging his lifeless form to her chest as if she would infuse her own life energy into him.

"Ulquiorra-san," she continued to cry. "Please wake up. Please, please, wake up!"

"Orihime," came a deep, soft voice from behind her.

Turning her head in surprise, Orihime's eyes widened in absolute shock at the sight of a familiar black cat, standing in front of a quivering Garganta, there at the edge of her room.

"Yoruichi-san!" she gasped.