Disclaimer: I don't own Bleach
AN: Chapter Four is here. Now, as noted last chapter...until Chapter 6, this is broadly the same story as the old one. Thus, anyone who read it knows what's coming. I hope we made it a bit more logical at least!
Enjoy!
Squad 13 Barracks
"So, you're from the future?"
A nod.
"You had no idea I was a shinigami, or how I met your mother?"
Another nod.
"And you're back here because you're a moron and touched something you shouldn't have?"
An eye-twitch was the answer to that question.
"Well then," Isshin Shiba finished, "That's probably the craziest story I've ever heard."
Behind him, Kaien nodded quickly. Captain Ukitake merely wore a curious look on his face, seeming deep in thought. Across from the elder shinigami, Ichigo and Rukia had polar opposite looks on their faces. Rukia looked nervous, as she plucked at the sleeves of her shihakushō, worried that the Captain(s) would put her and the strawberry into an asylum or something.
Ichigo just had his customary scowl, and looked like he wanted to punch his father's grinning face in. Normal maybe, but that was the only thing normal about this situation in the slightest.
"What, don't believe me old man?" the teen asked, his voice dangerously low.
"Old man?" Isshin looked wounded, "I'll have you know I am not old!"
"You kinda are Uncle."
Giving his grinning nephew the stink-eye, the Captain turned back to Ichigo, "And you can't expect me to believe something like that so easily! That's crazy talk right there!"
Ichigo's eye twitched again, but before he could say anything- or more likely, punch his father -Ukitake decided to intervene. The Captain coughed lightly, getting an instantly worried look from Rukia and Kaien, that he waved off with a small smile. Turning to face the glaring father/son pair, Ukitake spoke up.
"While I will admit his story is hard to believe," the white-haired man began, "Kurosaki-san has some evidence."
"He does?" Rukia asked.
"I do?"
Ukitake smiled slightly at their reaction, before producing a stack of papers. Ichigo didn't recognize them, but Rukia gasped when she saw the Shinigami Academy's insignia on the top of the stack. There could only be one reason that Captain Ukitake had papers from the Academy, and that wasn't a good one. From the point of view of maintaining the 'Ichigo went to the Academy' deception at any rate.
"I was curious about Kurosaki-san's abilities, since Kaien has told me he is quite advanced for a new recruit, outside of kidō," Ukitake explained, "So I sent for the records of the Academy's latest recruits. I found Kuchiki-san, but no record of Ichigo Kurosaki. I was intending to wait for him to come to me himself, but I believe this is a perfect opportunity to bring this discrepancy up. Am I right?"
Ichigo scratched the back of his head, "Yeah...Kaien put me on the spot and I had to think of something. I couldn't just say 'hey, I'm from the future' could I?"
Kaien snorted, "I would have called you crazy."
"See, I'm not the only one who think's its insane!" Isshin shouted triumphantly.
"Be that as it may," Ukitake continued, "you have to wonder how Kurosaki-san was able to progress to his level without joining the Academy. The only other case I can think of is Captain Zaraki, and he lacks control of his power or a Shikai. Something that Kurosaki-san has."
"He hasn't always had it," Rukia muttered, getting a glare from the strawberry.
Amused glances went between the three older men in the room, regardless of the situation. They sobered up quickly enough though, as Isshin started to scratch his chin thoughtfully.
"I still think it's crazy," he said, "but crazier things have happened. Oi, kid!"
"Ichigo," the teen sounded more annoyed than anything.
"Whatever," Isshin waved dismissively, "release your Shikai."
Ichigo's eyebrow went up, but he did as told, "Cleave the heavens and moon, Zangetsu."
The massive cleaver replaced the elegant daito, and Ichigo's reiatsu was back to its old unrestrained self. Ukitake and Isshin both raised their eyebrows, feeling the teen's power for the first time. Even Kaien looked a fair bit impressed, realizing his protégé was actually using his full power for once. Probably to help his case.
"Hmm," Isshin muttered, before drawing his own blade, "Burn, Engetsu."
Isshin's power rose up in competition with Ichigo's, as flame-like reiatsu engulfed his blade. Normally a Captain releasing their Shikai was a moment to panic, considering few enemies justified that level of commitment from the powerful shinigami. In this case, there wasn't a battle...it was simply to establish just how similar Ichigo and Isshin were.
And even to the experienced Captain and Lieutenant of Squad 13, it was hard to tell a difference between their reiatsu signatures. Ichigo's was more uncontrolled, but also denser. Isshin's was more fiery, much like his release command.
"Huh," the Captain in question said, "It really is damn near identical. Even Kaien's not this close to me, and he's definitely related to me."
"Told you," Ichigo shot back, sealing his blade again, "believe me now?"
"No," Isshin replied cheekily.
Ichigo made a noise of frustration, and banged his head against the wall. Rukia looked torn between glaring at Isshin and laughing at her...boyfriend? Was that the human term? Pushing that thought from her mind, she refocused on the situation at hand. For what it was worth, her Captain and Lieutenant looked every bit as amused as she was.
"What the hell do I have to do to convince you?!"
Isshin shrugged, "Work at it. Show me stuff that only I should know, stuff like that."
Ichigo glared and looked ready to strangle his father, "I didn't know you were a shinigami!"
"Oh, right. That could be a problem."
Rukia decided to take pity on Ichigo, "I can do that with Kaien."
The Lieutenant's eyebrow went up, "Oh, really?"
Rukia grinned, and decided she was going to enjoy bringing up embarrassing things Kaien had told her...
West Rukongai, District 10
"Y'know Rukia," Ichigo said, walking with his friend through the Rukon district, a few days later, "Byakuya wasn't as stiff as I expected."
"Of course he wasn't," Rukia replied with one of her rare genuine smiles, "you're a noble, who never fought him. We're just lucky your dad was...well, what he is."
While Rukia smiled, her companion wore his signature scowl, "While I'm happy that I'm able to 'court' you, I still want to punch Dad's face in. How could he not tell me he was a shinigami? And damn it, it was easier to convince Kisuke that I went back in time than him."
Ichigo had been, while he wouldn't call it whining, at least complaining about his father ever since he had 'met' him. For various reasons, but most commonly annoyance at Isshin for never telling him what he was...and for making it so annoyingly difficult to convince him. It had taken Rukia making Kaien blush like a tomato to do it.
But, while he certainly tried to avoid showing it, white-hot anger for not saving his mother was also high on his 'annoyed with Isshin' list. Ichigo had stopped blaming himself for what happened to Masaki, in large part due to Rukia's influence.
But now that he knew his father was a shinigami, and hadn't saved his mother from Grand Fisher...well, it was fair to say that Ichigo was never this angry at his father. While he was sure that Isshin had a reason, perhaps losing his abilities, it didn't make the anger any lesser. That would take time...and a lot of help from Rukia.
"Let's not think about that right now Ichigo," Rukia tried to sooth her friend, feeling his temper spiking again, "remember, we're taking a break right now."
"I know, I know," Ichigo replied, forcing his temper down, "I need a break from that slave driver."
Rukia slapped his arm, "Don't talk about Kaien like that!"
Ichigo just dodged aside, "You try getting a break from him! I've never had a teacher push me so hard before!"
"Well that just means you've never had a teacher who cares as much as Kaien does!"
"He has a funny way of showing it then."
Rukia and Ichigo glared at each other, before they both broke down laughing. Behind this laughter, Rukia hid a small smile. She had once again gotten Ichigo out of one of his funks, and that was always a good thing. As much as he complained about her tendency to feel guilty, Ichigo had his own issues. And, really, Rukia was the only one who could get him out of one of his moods.
Probably a sign of just how much the two cared about each other.
"I can't believe he's your cousin though," the petite shinigami mused, as the two stopped laughing and began walking together again.
"Tell me about it," Ichigo replied, running a hand through his hair, "never would of thought I'd be related to Ganju and Kukkaku."
Rukia gave him a sly look, "Ganju I could understand though. He's every bit as stubborn as you are."
Ichigo raised an eyebrow, "That had better have been a compliment midget."
His answer was a kick to his shin, sending the tall shinigami toppling to the ground. Ichigo came up, spitting dirt out of his mouth, with a smug looking Rukia staring down on him. Her arms were crossed over her chest, her own elegant eyebrow going up in the way that only a Kuchiki could manage. Byakuya would be proud.
"What was that about being short Strawberry?" she asked smugly...before Ichigo's hand shot out like a snake and pulled her to the ground next to him.
The squeal from Rukia drew some attention, but the various Rukon residents turned away when they realized it was a shinigami. For her part, Rukia pulled out of Ichigo's grip and glared at him, as he gave her an innocent look. Rukia just sent her eyebrow up again, before slapping his hand away from her side.
He sure has changed. The old Ichigo was never this fun.
The thought brought a small smile to her face. A smile that didn't last long...as both of the shinigami stiffened. An immense power began emanating from further in the Rukongai, a power that was easily Captain level.
The problem was...it wasn't a Captain. It was definitely Hollow...at least mostly. Rukia had no idea what she was sensing, but Ichigo certainly did. His brown eyes narrowed, as the teen jumped to his feet, hand going to Zangetsu. The daito practically glowed with the energy the teen was leaking, as his temper rose to the front once more.
Sitting on the ground next to him, Rukia flinched slightly. She had never felt this type of energy from Ichigo. Even when he had fought her brother and Renji, he hadn't felt like this. Whatever this...Hollow-like...energy was, it was something that Ichigo did not like.
"What is this Ichigo?" the petite shinigami managed to get out, as she got to her feet.
Ichigo's scowl was out in full force, "An Arrancar."
Rukia's eyes went wide, "An Arrancar?! Here?"
Naturally, the Kuchiki heir was well aware of what an Arrancar was. It was standard material for any Noble Family, to know what their most powerful foes were. And rare as Arrancar were, they certainly qualified in that regard. And that was the thing...they were rare. So what was one doing in the middle of the Rukon District? And how come the Dangai hadn't stopped it?
"Hop on Rukia," Ichigo's voice broke through her thoughts, as he kneeled on the ground in front of her.
The shinigami nodded, and jumped on Ichigo's back just like she would have when they hunted Hollows. Wrapping her legs around his strong back, Rukia nearly screamed when she felt just how fast he could move when he wasn't holding back. And Ichigo was not holding back at all...not when he knew who was ahead of him. However impossible it should have been for him to be here.
Ichigo didn't care for the impossible. All he cared for was protecting Rukia and the innocent souls in the Rukon. And he would be damned if he didn't stop him.
I'm coming for you...Grimmjow...
West Rukongai, District 15
When the pair of shinigami arrived in District 15, they found the epicenter of the power they had been feeling. All the regular souls were avoiding it, those who got to close passed out or dead. Ichigo's eyes narrowed when he saw the source, while Rukia-looking over his shoulder-felt a chill run down her spine. For standing in the middle of a large field, was a tall man. If it weren't for his white clothing, she would have thought the man was a shinigami.
He bore a zanpakutō, the blue-hilted weapon poking out of his open uniform. His shockingly blue hair was the equal of Ichigo's in both spikiness, and eye-gouging color. But none of that was what drew her attention. What drew the Kuchiki heir's attention, was the center of the large scar on his chest.
For sitting right where his hear should have been, was a Hollow hole. Rukia had known the source of the power would be an Arrancar, she had been told as much by Ichigo. Knowing, and seeing, were two entirely different things however. Because seeing an Arrancar in person...was something she had never wanted to do.
"Get down Rukia...and stay back," Ichigo's voice broke her out of her stupor.
"Ichigo! I can fight too!" the petite woman protested, as she jumped off her boyfriend's back.
The orange-head just turned back slightly. A deadly serious look was on his face, his brown eyes only softening because it was her instead of anyone else.
"Rukia, you can't handle him," he said softly, "I'm sorry, but you can't. Even when I originally fought him, you almost died...twice. Don't make me see that again."
He didn't mention that he had almost died twice too, but he didn't need to. Rukia could see the earnest plea in his eyes...the plea to stay safe. And while it annoyed the hell out of her to step back and not help Ichigo in his fight...she trusted him. Regardless of Ichigo's instinctive need to protect, he would never force her to stay behind if he knew she was capable of fighting.
So she reluctantly stepped back, and let the teen move towards the Arrancar.
"It's about damn time you stopped with the sappy crap," the blue-haired man said, an annoyed tone to his voice, "I was about to throw up."
Raising Zangetsu's blade, Ichigo scowled, "Shut up Grimmjow. How are you even here? I thought Aizen hadn't created you yet."
Grimmjow laughed at that, "You honestly think that's why I'm here, because 'Lord' Aizen created me early? He didn't even create me you idiotic shinigami! Don't make me laugh!"
"Y'know, I really don't care how you were born Grimmjow," Ichigo replied, his blade never leaving its position, "but I do want you gone."
The Espada bore a feral grin, "Tell you what, if by some miracle you actually defeat me, I'll tell you how I got here. Don't expect me to go easy on you though shinigami, I have a score to settle with you!"
Ichigo's scowl deepened, as he vanished into a shunpo. Grimmjow grinned fiercely, raising his zanpakutō where he knew Ichigo would appear. Zangetsu's newly sealed form sparked off the smaller blade in the Arrancar's hand. The fighters pushed against each other, before Ichigo jumped back, his blade blocking a series of blows from Grimmjow. Taking a hand off of his blade for a split second, Ichigo grabbed Grimmjow's sword arm, and tried to use that to push the Espada's weapon out of the way.
The blue-haired maniac simply grinned, using Ichigo's own grip against him, as he twisted his arm. The shinigami went flying, crashing into a building.
Ichigo! Rukia jerked, barely resisting the impulse to draw Sode no Shirayuki and jump to her friend's aid.
As the teen clawed his way out of the building, Grimmjow merely spun his blade lazily. A smug look adorned his face, as he looked at the shinigami struggling to his feet.
"Hey what happened to that overgrown monster of a zanpakutō from last time?" the Espada taunted, "Don't tell me you sealed it?"
Of course I did you idiot, the teen thought, glaring at his opponent.
Of course, he also answered Grimmjow's question by holding Zangetsu in front of his face, "Cleave the heavens and moon, Zangetsu!"
A flash of brilliant blue reiatsu shot up around Ichigo's body, twisting and spinning into the heavens. The pressure from the release of his Shikai sent whatever souls that were still in the area scattering, fearing for their lives. Rukia merely watched the wave of energy dissipate from the sidelines. Unlike anyone else, she just found Ichigo's blanket of energy comforting. It was a sign of how powerful he was...and she knew he would do anything he could to use that power to protect her, and anyone either of them cared for.
On Grimmjow's end, he just started cackling madly.
"Good you're not holding back," the blue-haired Espada said, "now I can have some fun before I kill you Kurosaki!"
Ichigo just vanished once more, his blade angling for Grimmjow's undefended side. The Espada merely grinned, raising his empty arm to block the blow. The grin turned into a scowl though, when he felt the sharp pain of a blade cutting through his Hierro. Flashing away in his own high-speed technique, Sonido, the Espada looked down on his arm. And indeed, visible through the sleeve of his white shirt, was a small gash.
Grimmjow sniffed the blood, before turning to Ichigo. A slightly impressed look adorned the Espada's face, before it turned to a scowl resembling Ichigo's own.
"I'm impressed shinigami," the Espada reluctantly said, "I didn't expect you to actually cut my Hierro with just your Shikai. You won't beat me with little paper cuts though!"
Ichigo frowned, but didn't dispute the point. He had sharpened Zangetsu to near-breaking point with his massive pools of reiryoku, and he was well aware that the blade would break if he tried again. In fact, even making that small of a cut on Grimmjow's skin had cracked the massive weapon already.
Before he could put more thought into that issue, Grimmjow shouted, "But I know you're still holding back, bring out that pathetic Bankai if you don't want to die fast!"
I don't want to use Bankai if I can avoid it, Ichigo thought, my power is too powerful. I don't want to hurt the souls in the area. I really hope this works...
"Getsuga Tensho!" the teen yelled, brining his massive blade down.
A massive wave of blue energy shot forth, screaming right towards Grimmjow. The Espada blinked, bringing his own zanpakutō up to take the blow. A blow that pushed him back through several buildings, before it finally wore out. Ichigo panted slightly as he landed on the ground, recovering the energy he had pushed into that attack. He had never used so much power in a Shikai Getsuga...and he could only hope it had done some serious damage to his enemy.
Unfortunately for Ichigo, a flash of equally blue reiatsu shot into the sky from where the Espada hand landed. Grimmjow came trudging out of the building, his head and arms bleeding from the blow...but nothing more. No significant wounds, and no crippled limbs. If anything, the blood just seemed to have made him more eager to fight, like with Kenpachi.
"And here I thought that was your Bankai's move," the Espada said casually, "apparently not. Now stop holding back you bastard!"
Ichigo forced his emotions down, trying not to think about how little damage his Getsuga had really done. Zangetsu's blade snapped up in front of him, the cloth wrapping around his arm. Rukia flashed further away, realizing what he was doing even if she had never seen it before. It was impossible not to realize, with the power rolling off her friend.
The teenage shinigami didn't fail to notice that. He forced his worry for Rukia down, just as he had his worry about this fight. He couldn't go into a battle with thoughts like that plaguing his mind. Taking a deep breath, he said one simple word.
"Bankai!"
As a glowing white aura shot high in the sky, Grimmjow yelled, "Yes! This is what I was looking for shinigami!"
Rukia, however, was extremely worried watching the fight from her vantage point. Ichigo has to use his Bankai? How strong is this Espada really?
Meanwhile, the clouds of dust had cleared to reveal Ichigo in his Bankai outfit. The tight clothing whipped around in the wind, the long coat tattered just as Zangetsu's own. Snapping his blade down to clear the residual dust, the teen noticed something was off however. The black daito, was no longer pitch black. The edges of the blade had turned into a brilliant white, identical to that of his Hollow's Bankai. Even the broken chain was now interlocking links of white and black.
What is happening to my powers? Ichigo wondered, seeing the traces of his Hollow in his blade.
But before Ichigo had time to finish examining his blade, Grimmjow launched at him, zanpakutō in hand, to attack. The teenage shinigami brought Tensa Zangetsu up to block the blow, but the force of it still sent him tumbling away. Forcing his body upright, Ichigo brought around his blade, catching Grimmjow's next blow. The two pushed against each other, before Grimmjow jumped back this time.
"What happened to your Bankai, Kurosaki, it seems different."
Ichigo didn't bother answering that, as he attempted to use the greater reach of Tensa Zangetsu to get another blow in on the Espada. Grimmjow was having none of that however, as he Sonido'ed away from the blade. Ichigo followed with his own shunpo, the two fighters trading blows at high speed. They were nothing more than a white and black blur to any not fast enough to follow the blows.
Even Rukia couldn't make out what was really going on, and she was as familiar with Ichigo as they came.
What. The. Hell, was about the extent of her thought process at the moment.
"Cero!"
"Crap!"
As Rukia was watching, the blurs stopped moving for a split second, as a beam of red energy came shooting from the white one. The black one dodged the beam, as it shot into the sky above the battleground.
"Getsuga Tensho!"
A crescent of energy, white with a black-red rim, shot out from Ichigo's blur, forcing Grimmjow's white blur back. After that attack, the two fighters slowed down again. Rukia could actually follow their movements now...revealing a situation she didn't want to see. Ichigo was bleeding heavily from a gash in his right side, and was limping slightly.
Grimmjow bore even more numerous cuts on his body, including a nasty gash in his left leg from the transformed Getsuga.
"Looks like your most powerful attack couldn't kill me, Kurosaki!" the Espada yelled.
Ichigo scowled, "Yeah, well I don't see your Cero doing any better!"
Grimmjow grinned, "You thought that Cero was my best attack? No this is my attack!"
The Espada brought his zanpakutō up to his empty hand, and carved a line through the limb. The trail of blood this caused gathered on the tip of the blade, as Grimmjow pointed the weapon at Ichigo. A massive ball of blue reiryoku began to form on the tip of the katana, the power gathering making Ichigo pant slightly. Still, the teen brought Tensa Zangetsu up and began charging a Getsuga along the edge of the blade.
"Gran Rey Cero!" Grimmjow yelled as an insanely large blast of blue energy shot from his hand.
Crap, crap, crap!
Feeling the power behind that attack, and realizing that dodging or using his Getsuga wouldn't work, Ichigo dropped a hand from his daito and clenched his fingers over his face. The teenager tore those fingers down, his Hollow mask forming over his face. If he had seen it, he would have noticed it was different...for instead of the stripes along the side, it now bore two long stripes down the center.
As Ichigo couldn't see the change, he merely concentrated on his immediate survival. Tensa Zangetsu came up in front of the teenage shinigami's face, the Getsuga in its blade enhancing its strength. As the Gran Rey Cero impacted the black-white blade, Ichigo grimaced behind his mask, and pushed forward with all his strength.
Even that was not enough, as the attack shot him further into the air. It was only after it dissipated, that Ichigo was able to flash back down to the fight. His Bankai coat was even more tattered, both of his arms burnt and his mask cracked. But he had survived, and that meant he could win this fight.
Further away from the battle, Rukia's eyes widened, Is that really Ichigo? His reiatsu is so...heavy...
But the moment those thoughts ran through her head, the petite shinigami shook her head. A small smile lingered on her face however.
No, of course its Ichigo. No matter what power he may have, he'll always be Ichigo...
Grimmjow was just laughing insanely from his perch atop a building, "I knew you still had that power of yours Kurosaki! Time to see what you can really do with it!"
Ichigo just stared at him silently, as Grimmjow raked his fingers along his suddenly glowing zanpakutō yelling, "Grind, Pantera!"
A large blue blast of energy surrounded the Espada, and when it cleared it revealed him in a full suit of armor that made him look like a human-panther hybrid. As the dust cleared, Grimmjow roared into the sky. The force behind that roar nearly sent Ichigo flying again, making his eyes widen behind his mask. That much power from just a roar? Is this what an Espada's zanpakutō could do?
Grimmjow launched himself at Ichigo, taking advantage of his shock. The Espada so fast that Ichigo was unable to guard properly, Tensa Zangetsu barely getting in front of the new claws on the blue-haired man's hands. The teen was knocked to the ground from a kick to his side, that he hadn't even seen coming.
Damn it! He's faster than I am!
After impacting the ground Ichigo launched another Getsuga at the Espada. Amazingly, Grimmjow didn't manage to dodge completely. The wound on his leg hadn't healed properly, even through the release of his zanpakutō. That managed to slow him down just enough for the white attack to hit, cleaving a blade off the Espada's arm. But using a Getsuga of that speed and power took its own toll on Ichigo, as his mask cracked even further.
A quick rake of his fingers solved that issue, but it used up more of his rapidly depleting reserves of energy. Energy he couldn't spare...not in this fight.
"What do you know, looks like that mask of yours has a power limit, after all, just like your pathetic Bankai, Ichigo Kurosaki!" Grimmjow shouted, charging at Ichigo once again.
"Come on Ichigo, beat him, I know you can!"
Rukia's voice got the attention of both of the fighters. Ichigo's mouth opened in a warning, but Grimmjow beat him to it.
"Che, women always interrupting battles."
Raising his arm slightly, something black shout out of the back of the limb. Rukia was able to dodge it but the area it hit now had a very large crater. What Grimmjow didn't realize, perhaps because he continued to underestimate Ichigo Kurosaki, was that he had done the one thing guaranteed to make him fight even harder than he had been before.
Attack the woman he loved.
"Bad move Grimmjow."
Before the Espada could do more than blink, Ichigo was in his face, his Bankai holding a Getsuga along its blade. Grimmjow tried to bring his arms up to block the blow, but he was far too slow now. Ichigo screamed out the name of his signature attack, as the white crescent of reiryoku cut into the Espada's chest. The attack shattered Grimmjow's armor, and sent him careening into a building. Ichigo charged forward, prepared to continue the fight.
But when he arrived, the Sexta Espada was limp, his zanpakutō back in its normal form as he bled out on the ground. He wasn't dead, but Grimmjow wasn't going to be getting up anytime soon either.
Ichigo let out a sigh at that, dismissing his oddly changed Bankai and mask at the same time. Stumbling slightly as his wounds caught up with him, Ichigo was barely able to catch Rukia as she flashed into his arms. Her lips were on his before he could blink, the kiss filtering all her desperation for him to be okay into something that words could never convey.
The teen kissed her back just as hard, just happy that she was okay.
"Ichigo you fool, you should have gone for help!" the petite shinigami finally got out, once she broke the kiss.
Ichigo smiled at her and replied, "Sorry, midget, but I didn't exactly have time."
Rukia glared at her boyfriend, "I am not short, strawberry, and you could have been killed!"
"Yeah, yeah, I know," the teen replied with a smile that belied his happiness, "there wasn't anyone else around who could have fought him. Believe me, I didn't enjoy that fight."
Rukia continued to glare, before the expression faded from her face, "What now?"
Ichigo looked at the unconscious Arrancar, "Now? Now we figure out just how the hell Grimmjow is even here."
Training Ground
The training area under Sōkyoku Hill always seemed to see use when there was something needing to be hidden in the Soul Society. Whether it was Ichigo's training for Bankai, Kisuke and Yoruichi's own training, or the Vizards. Whenever something came up that needed to be hidden, it was always in there. Of course, that was the entire reason why Ichigo had brought the unconscious Grimmjow to the Hill. If he was going to hide the Espada for an interrogation-something that needed to be done, lest Aizen find him-this was the perfect place.
Rukia's reaction was just icing on the cake. Her eyes had been going wide a lot lately, and it never stopped being cute.
"What is this place?" the Kuchiki heir asked, her voice carrying a hint of awe.
"A training area that Kisuke built, apparently," the teen replied, shrugging Grimmjow off his shoulders.
"Urahara built this?"
"Apparently."
Rukia nodded, before moving past her friend. Grimmjow was still out-cold, but if his wounds weren't healed the Espada would probably bleed out within an hour. Neither of the shinigami would particularly mind letting such a dangerous Hollow die, Ichigo especially considering how close Grimmjow had come to killing Rukia three times, but...he could be a potential ally against Aizen.
That alone was enough reason to at least try to get him on their side. Nothing said that Rukia had to heal all his wounds after all.
"Why didn't you bring Captain Ukitake here? Or your father?" Rukia asked, as she healed Grimmjow's bigger wounds.
The taller shinigami shrugged, "Dad needs to do his work, and I didn't want to risk Ukitake trying to follow the laws. We can't let Aizen know Grimmjow is here, if he doesn't already."
Rukia nodded, "Makes sense. Think he'll actually help us?"
"Maybe. Grimmjow seems to care more about fighting than serving someone, kinda like Kenpachi. If we offer him a better deal than Aizen did, he'll probably jump ship."
"I hope you're right strawberry, because he's waking up."
And indeed, the blue-haired Espada began groaning, as his eyes shot open. Were it not for the kidō bindings Rukia had placed around his weakened arms, he probably would have shot his hands up and tried strangling her. As it was, the petite shinigami flashed away from the struggling Arrancar, allowing Ichigo to move forward.
Grimmjow glared up at the teen, his blue eyes narrowing in anger, "Why the hell didn't you kill me?!"
"Because you said you'd tell me how you got here," Ichigo replied, "now spill it."
Grimmjow turned his head away, "Why should I tell you anything shinigami? You should have just killed me, I refuse to be in your debt."
Ichigo let loose a little of his power, bringing sweat to the Espada's face, "I still might kill you Grimmjow, after all you've done. Tell me what I want to know."
Rukia watched the proceedings a bit nervously. It was entirely not like Ichigo for him to be so forceful. He would normally be kinder, even to a fallen foe. Grimmjow however...he wasn't showing any mercy. Using his immense power to force someone to talk...that just wasn't Ichigo. Why was he doing this?
Oh...of course...stupid strawberry...
The petite shinigami remembered what Ichigo had said during the battle. Grimmjow had almost killed her, twice, in the past. No wonder he wasn't going easy on the Arrancar. You don't hurt people Ichigo loved, and expect him to go easy on you after all.
"Fine, let up on the reiatsu already," the Espada finally said, every word feeling like pulling a nail, "'Lord' Aizen was monitoring Karkura Town, specifically for any signs of that diamond of yours."
"He knew?!" Ichigo's shock leaked into his voice.
Grimmjow snorted, "Of course he knew shinigami. Aizen is anything but stupid, however much I hate him. When Urahara was exiled, Aizen got to his research notes before anyone else. He found the earliest plans for that 'time machine' thing in there, and built a monitoring device."
"And his own?" Rukia spoke up, quickly figuring out where this was going.
"Of course. Since I was the most familiar with your abilities, I was the one sent back to kill you before you messed something up," the Espada continued, "of course, the moment I got here that damn thing broke so that doesn't matter."
And that shot down a hope for Ichigo. A hope that he could take Grimmjow's diamond and use it to go back to his own time. So he really was stuck here then...and so was the Espada too. That could be useful, if he could just convince Grimmjow to leave Aizen. And that probably wouldn't be very hard, if the way the Arrancar talked about the traitor was any indication.
Grimmjow probably only worked for Aizen because if he didn't he'd be killed. And for someone with his personality, that was probably especially grating. Ichigo wouldn't be surprised if Grimmjow was constantly training to kill Aizen. And that would make him easy to sway away from the traitor, compared to most any other Espada.
"Well in that case, how would you feel about joining me against Aizen, Grimmjow?"
If there was one thing that the Espada hadn't been expecting to hear, it was that, "You aren't going to kill me?"
"Not unless you give me a reason to," Ichigo replied, with a noticeable cooling of his tone.
Grimmjow turned his head, thinking over what the teen had said. A few minutes later, he turned back, his eyes narrow and cat-like.
"Whatever, I'll do it."
That was too easy, Ichigo couldn't help but think.
"How can I be sure you won't turn on me?"
Grimmjow just scowled, "I know when I'm beat Kurosaki. If I tried anything, you'd just kill me or turn me over to the shinigami who would also kill me. At least this way I have a way of getting back at that bastard who thinks he's better than anyone else."
"Hmm," Ichigo muttered, "in that case, we need somewhere for you to stay. The Rukongai or Seireitei would never work."
"You don't have to worry about me eating souls, if that's what you're thinking," the Espada informed him, "we Arrancar can live on nothing but the ambient reishi in the atmosphere."
That still didn't solve the problem of where to stick the Arrancar though. Ichigo wasn't about to let him lose in the Rukon or Hueco Mundo where he couldn't keep tabs on the idiot. Say what you will about the teen's intelligence, he wasn't that thick-headed. And the Seireitei was a no-go for various reasons. Aizen, of course, being first among them.
That left just one place really.
"Time to visit the Vizard."
AN: I liked the Grimmjow subplot myself. Like I said, I tried to make it a bit more logical this time. Still think he'd go 'screw Aizen' if given half the chance myself.