Black Joker

by dragonliege242

It's been 3 months since Aizen's defeat and Ichigo's powers have faded. Or have they? Pangs of pain constantly plague him, accompanied by bursts of unfamiliar reiatsu. One day, his ability to see spirits returns in time for him to see a Hollow chasing a Plus. What followed would change his life forever...again. True Longinus!Brave Saint!Strong!Ichigo IchigoxHarem IsseixHarem

7. Life 6: Second Act - Renewed Bloodshed

I'm back!

This chapter end Ichigo's training in the Soul King's Palace.

By the way, I have a new story posted, so go ahead and check it out if you feel like it.

On with the story!

---

What…is a Zanpakuto?

That was the question Ichigo had been pondering on for the last 20 or so hours.

20 odd hours that he and Renji had spent fighting against an army of Asauchis while thinking about the answer to the question that Nimaiya Oetsu had posed to them as their hint.

An army of Asauchis who kept getting up again and again no matter how many times Ichigo and Renji knocked them down.

This was just ridiculous. The two of them were completely covered in wounds, ranging from bits to scratches to fractured bones, but the Asauchis did not seem to have a single scratch on them.

It appeared that fighting them was pointless. They had to find the right answer to the question.

"What is a Zanpakuto?" Ichigo asked himself again.

He thought back to what he did know.

Zanpakutos…were the manifestations of a Shinigami's power, generated after an Asauchi, a nameless Zanpakuto, identical to who knows how many other Asauchis, was infused with a portion of the wielder's soul, thus gaining a name.

No two Zanpakutos were ever the same, except for extremely rare cases where two Shinigamis were so similar that they ended up creating identical Zanpakutos, like in the case of Hitsugaya Toshiro, the Captain of the 10th Division, and his late friend, Kusaka Sojiro.

All Zanpakutos had identical basic abilities: the ability to perform Konso to send a soul to Soul Society, the ability to cut souls, and the ability to purify Hollows and send their composite souls to either Soul Society or Hell depending on their human life.

The size of a Zanpakuto was dependent on the wielder's reiatsu. The more reiatsu the wielder had, generally, the larger the Zanpakuto was.

Of course, most Captain-Class Shinigami were capable of restraining the size of their Zanpakuto through refined control. Good thing too, otherwise all of them would be swinging swords the size of skyscrapers.

Once they had their unique names, Zanpakutos developed their own abilities, though most, if not all, were unusable in the sealed state.

Zanpakutos could fall under three categories: Melee-types, Kido-types, and Elemental-types.

Genryusai's and his father's Ryujin Jakka and Engetsu were Fire-type Zanpakutos, and Toshiro's and Rukia's Hyorinmaru and Sode no Shirayuki were Ice-type Zanpakutos. Because they had the ability to manipulate elements, they were considered Elemental-type Zanpakutos.

Shinji's and Aizen's Sakanade and Kyoka Suigetsu were Illusion-type Zanpakutos. Being Zanpakutos that are designed to make use of a special ability rather than focusing on close combat, they were considered Kido-types.

Ichigo's and Renji's Zangetsu and Zabimaru were melee-type Zanpakutos. Rather than relying on special abilities or elemental manipulation, their Zanpakutos were designed for up close and personal fighting.

Getsuga Tensho, Zangetsu's, as well as Engetsu's, ability, would make one think that it was a Kido-type Zanpakuto, but Getsuga Tensho's usage was rather linear, being a magnification of a slashing attack using his reiatsu . It could not be used in any other way, thus Zangetsu was considered a melee-type.

Moving on, once a Shinigami had learned the names of their Zanpakuto, they gained the ability to access the initial release of their Zanpakuto, Shikai.

A Shinigami activated their Shikai using a unique release command, though Ichigo and Kenpachi, whose Zanpakutos were in constant release, did not have ones, at least not one that Ichigo knew of.

Once Shikai was activated, the sealed Zanpakuto, usually in the form of a generic katana, though there were some variations, changed form in some way.

Rukia's Sode no Shirayuki turned pure white with a white ribbon attached to the pommel, Renji's Zabimaru turned into a large segmented blade, Byakuya's Senbonzakura dispersed into thousands of tiny blade fragments, Genryusai's Ryujin Jakka emitted huge volumes of flames.

Once Shikai was activated, abilities that weren't available in the sealed state became usable. Rukia's Tsukishiro and Renji's Higa Zekko were examples.

Learning Shikai was the mark of a semi-competent Shinigami, and was usually what Captains were looking for when looking for candidates to fill the ranked positions in their Division, and was a requirement for a Lieutenant.

A Zanpakuto's performance was largely dependent on the relationship between the Zanpakuto and the wielder. If their relationship was good, the Zanpakuto could exhibit most of its full potential. If their relationship was bad, it was unlikely that Zanpakuto would be able to bring out any significant amount of power even when released, not enough to make any real distinction between the sealed state and Shikai.

For example, Kuchiki Koga and his Zanpakuto, Muramasa, initially had a good relationship, but soon after Koga's betrayal, their relationship deteriorated rapidly, to the point where neither of them could hear the other's voice, and Koga became unable to use Muramasa's Shikai.

Communication with a Zanpakuto was possible with a method called Jinzen, involving the wielder going into a meditative trance with their Zanpakuto on their lap.

Doing this, the wielder could dive into their inner world where the manifestation of their Zanpakuto awaited.

Here, they could speak to their Zanpakuto, and even fight them in order to attain access to new powers that the wielder could not use just yet.

Of course, if the Zanpakuto didn't want its wielder to learn that ability, they would be in for a hell of a fight, much like Ichigo had when he was trying to learn the Final Getsuga Tensho 4 years ago.

Jinzen's trance was so deep that they wouldn't break out of it even if they were wounded. Furthermore, any wounds sustained in the inner world would be reflected in the real world.

There was one more form that a Zanpakuto could achieve: Bankai.

Though all Zanpakuto were capable of achieving this ultimate form, only a select few in history had ever accomplished this.

Bankai was by no means easy to learn, even with the best relationship between wielder and Zanpakuto.

To learn Bankai, a wielder must first learn to manifest the representation of their Zanpakuto in their inner world into the real world. That was the first step, and it was hard as hell to do.

Ordinarily, it would take as long as a decade for even the most talented Shinigami to manifest their Zanpakuto's representation.

Ichigo and Kisuke were the sole exceptions of that, because Kisuke created the Tenshintai, an invention that could forcibly manifest a Zanpakuto's representation, completely bypassing the first step.

In return for simplifying the first step, the second and final step became much more difficult than it typically was for a Shinigami trying to attain Bankai.

The second step of obtaining Bankai was to complete the task that the manifestation of the Zanpakuto set for the wielder. Most of the time, like in the case of Ichigo and Zangetsu, and Renji and Zabimaru, it was to defeat the Zanpakuto manifestation in a fight.

But supposedly, the task could be anything.

There was no time limit on the task, so the Shinigami could complete it at their own leisure.

The reason why the Tenshintai made the second step difficult was because it imposed a time limit that wasn't supposed to be present.

A time limit of 3 days. Kisuke deemed that it was too dangerous to use the Tenshintai for any more than 3 days, because it forcibly manifested a Zanpakuto, which posed a threat to the user, since the usual reason why it took so long for a Shinigami to manifest their Zanpakuto was that they lacked sufficient reiatsu to do so, which was why using this method could be fatal to the user, since the Tenshintai, despite manifesting the Zanpakuto, still needed reiatsu to stay active.

That, plus the fact that forced materialization could potentially damage a Zanpakuto.

Anyway, once the task was complete, both the Shinigami and Zanpakuto would be able to access Bankai, which would possess its own unique name, typically an extension of the Zanpakuto's original name.

Ichigo's Tensa Zangetsu and Renji's Hihio Zabimaru for example, though there were exceptions like Genryusai's Zanka no Tachi.

Once Bankai was attained, Shikai no longer required a release command to activate, simply the invocation of the Zanpakuto's name would suffice.

Bankai's activation was rather similar. It simply required the word Bankai, followed by the Bankai's name.

Like Shikai, the Zanpakuto would once again undergo a transformation, but on a far larger scale than before.

Renji's Hihio Zabimaru turned from a large segmented blade into a gigantic segmented skeletal snake. Byakuya's Senbonzakura Kageyoshi had the number of blade fragments it produced increase from the scale of thousands to the scale of millions.

All Bankais were massive expansions of their previous forms, because of the sheer power they contained, increasing the wielder's power in Shikai by 5 to 10 times.

The only exception was Ichigo's Tensa Zangetsu, which compressed his Bankai's sheer power into a smaller form to be used for high-speed combat.

All Bankais had powerful abilities, usually stronger versions of their abilities in Shikai. Ichigo's Getsuga Tensho turned from bluish-white to reddish-black, drastically increasing in power.

However, all Bankais had a common weakness: they possessed too much power. Thus, it required another decade of training with a new Bankai before a Shinigami could effectively use it.

Tensa Zangetsu was the exception, because it was such a simple Bankai that Ichigo was able to effectively use it after just a few tries, and even then, on its first real application, its sheer power almost shattered Ichigo's bones after a few minutes.

There was one more difference between Shikai and Bankai.

A broken Shikai could still be repaired even if it had been smashed into a thousand pieces, as long as the hilt was still intact, and the wielder possessed the will power and supplied it with their reiatsu.

A broken Bankai, on the other hand, as the Captain of the 12th Division explained, could not be repaired through any means, except by whatever method Nimaiya Oetsu had in his head that only he knew.

That was what he knew about Zanpakutos, but it didn't get him any closer to his answer. He had been repeating those facts to himself over and over again in his head, but the Asauchis didn't let up at all.

Alright, since that didn't work, then maybe he should be thinking about what Zangetsu was to him, rather than what Zanpakutos were in general.

Ichigo thought back to all the times he interacted with Zangetsu. When they first met back during the Shattered Shaft where he learned his Zanpakuto's name.

Then again, when Zangetsu saved him when Kenpachi fatally wounded him and had his inner Hollow fight him to teach him the proper way to use a Zanpakuto, and finally lending him his power to land a powerful blow that ended his battle with Kenpachi in mutual defeat.

The third time they met was when he used the Tenshintai to pull him into the real world when they fought so that they could attain Bankai.

Then, his inner Hollow finally grew stronger and became the dominant side of Ichigo's powers, causing the old man to turn into the white version of Zangetsu that his inner Hollow wielded.

Then, they met for the last time when Ichigo went to learn the secrets of the Final Getsuga Tensho.

Zangetsu was…a friend, a mentor, a father-like figure-

Ichigo was immediately cut off from his thoughts when the Asauchis suddenly seemed to converge on him rather than on Renji, becoming even more aggressive in their attacks.

Obviously, he had the wrong answer.

What else was there?

…Of course, he had already learned this four years ago, on the night True Longinus activated.

His inner Hollow…no, Zangetsu.

Who was Zangetsu, the Hollow half of Zangetsu, to him?

The first word that came to mind was, of course, irritation, on account of the number of times the bleached version of him had attempted to take control of his body, and had succeeded on a few occasions.

However, that wasn't all he was.

The other Zangetsu saved him when he was wounded by Renji and Kenpachi so long ago, manifesting its mask to take the brunt of the attacks that would have otherwise killed him or at least critically wounded him.

When it seemed like Byakuya was about to defeat him, the other Zangetsu took over and saved his life, overwhelming Byakuya with ease, and showing him the proper way to use his Bankai and how to use the black Getsuga Tensho in the process, even though Ichigo was forced to wrest control back from him before he killed the Captain of the 6th Division.

When Ichigo confronted Yammy and Ulquiorra for the first time, he hadn't yet realized he was badly outmatched, but the other Zangetsu had and urged him to let him do the fighting, though his wording was terrible enough that Ichigo thought that he just wanted to go on a rampage and attack anyone in sight, and thus resisted, which ended up paralyzing him instead and almost resulted in his death if Kisuke and Yoruichi hadn't arrived when they did.

When Hiyori seriously went at him with the intent to kill with the intention of bringing out his Hollowfication, the other Zangetsu went nuts and almost killed her, only stopping when the other Vizards subdued him.

Then, he entered his inner world to confront the other Zangetsu, who he had believed to be an inner Hollow born as a result of his near failure of his training in the Shattered Shaft at the time. The other Zangetsu had become the dominant part of his power, causing the old man to turn into his Zanpakuto, which he had used to great effect in their battle for dominance.

However, Ichigo won in the end and gained access to Hollowfication as a result. The other Zangetsu became dormant again, allowing the old man to return. He left Ichigo with a message to not die until the next time they met if he ever wanted to learn how to use his full power.

Ichigo had no idea what he meant at the time, but it was obvious now that the other Zangetsu was talking about the powers afforded to him through being the other half of the true Zangetsu.

The other Zangetsu would not reemerge until later, when Ichigo lost and perished in the battle against Ulquiorra.

He responded to Ichigo's desire to live and to protect Orihime, bringing him back to life, though at the price of emerging in a berserk, fully Hollowfied state, in which he almost killed Uryu.

And their last meeting would come during Ichigo's attempt to learn the Final Getsuga Tensho, emerging from Ichigo's gut when Tensa Zangetsu pulled him out, appearing in a bleached fully Hollowfied state. The two halves would merge into a single entity, who would challenge Ichigo to reluctantly teach him the true nature of the Final Getsuga Tensho.

The other Zangetsu was…frankly, a pain in his ass, which Ichigo was sure was what a lot of people thought of him as well. But, just like the old man, he was a mentor, though Ichigo only realized it after the fact, and though he hesitated to call him a friend, he was a comrade-

Ichigo yelped when a salivating maw almost tore out his throat, though he was saved when a timely kick from Renji knocked the attacking Asauchi aside.

But, they were quickly overwhelmed by the suddenly much more aggressive Asauchis.

So, evidently, Ichigo got it wrong again.

Then, what was it? What was a Zanpakuto? What was Zangetsu?

Ichigo wracked his brain, desperately searching for the answer.

Once again, he went through everything he knew about a Zanpakuto.

He didn't get far when he paused.

"Zanpakutos are the manifestations of a Shinigami's power, created when an Asauchi was infused with a portion of their wielder's soul."

In other words, they gained their uniqueness, emerging from the bland existence as Asauchis, when a piece of their wielder fused with them.

In other words, Zanpakutos…were basically extensions of their wielder's soul.

If that were the case, then that meant…

Ichigo stopped moving as the answer slowly came to him.

The Asauchis converged on him like a tidal wave from all sides.

"Zangetsu is…"

They were almost upon him.

"…Me."

The moment that word passed his lips, the Asauchis stopped, as though frozen in time.

Ichigo looked up at the wall of identical nameless Zanpakuto manifestations surrounding him.

He imagined that Renji was looking pretty bamboozled at the sight.

But, if they had stopped, then did that mean…he found the right answer?

That question answered itself when the Asauchis all suddenly fell to the ground and knelt down before him.

Ichigo held a hand out to the nearest Asauchi, who grasped it and immediately shed its black skin, revealing pure white skin beneath, and a face resembling Ichigo's Hollow Mask.

"…It's you." Ichigo said.

Ichigo understood that this was the true manifestation of Zangetsu.

But…why did it only resemble the other Zangetsu, and not the old man?

"…Well well well, I hafta say, Kurosaki-chan, I wasn't expectin' ya to be the first to get the answer. But, whatever, if ya got it, then Abarai-chan probably ain't too far behind. Well then, get up here with that Asauchi ya chose. Let's not waste any more time. I'll reforge yer Zanpakuto for ya." The God of the Sword called from the top of the pitfall.

Ichigo nodded and prepared to ascend from the pit, but turned to Renji.

"Renji, the answer is a lot simpler than you think. Don't overthink it." Ichigo said, offering a piece of advice to the red-haired Lieutenant.

As much as he wanted to tell him straight, there was no point in undergoing this test if the answer was just handed to him.

Renji seemed to understand that, nodding and turning back to the Asauchis, who were beginning to stir now that Ichigo, the only one who had obtained the answer, was leaving, and he, who had to do the same, was still around.

If Nimaiya Oetsu minded, he certainly didn't show it, not with the massive grin on his face as he directed Ichigo and the Asauchi that was Zangetsu towards a shaft located beside the shack…and then proceeded to kick them down it before jumping in himself.

"What the fuuuuuuuuuuu-!?" Ichigo screamed as the trio slid down the shaft, being cut off abruptly when they landed in a shallow pool at the other end.

"Ya alright there, Ichigo-chan? Man, I told ya how dangerous it was, but ya still jumped in head first! I gotta tell ya, I saw the mettle of a true hero in ya!" The God of the Sword laughed as Ichigo pulled himself out of the pool, coughing and sputtering.

"You kicked me down here, you bastard!" Ichigo retorted once he had gotten the water out of his nose.

"But hey! Look, yo! Look!" The God of the Sword ignored him as he gestured to the area they now found themselves in.

Ichigo blinked, and stared.

Mostly at the huge wall of water that surrounded the area, an underground cavern with a raised platform at the other end, where a metallic rectangular anvil rested.

"This is the reason why the real Hououden was built on top of a seaside cliff! If we didn't have at least this much water, I wouldn't be able to forge a Zanpakuto! Prepare yerself, Ichigo-chan! This is where you'll be saying goodbye to yer Zanpakuto, Zangetsu!"

---

"Form ranks and raise your crosses! Salute our Emperor, His Majesty, Yhwach-sama!"

In the throne room of the Silbern, the palace of the Wandenreich, all active members of the Wandenreich had gathered, forming straight rows facing the raised platform upon which the throne sat, where Yhwach had just appeared.

They raised their Quincy Crosses and greeted the Quincy King at the top of their lungs.

"Greetings, Wandenreich. I have an important announcement to make."

In contrast to his subordinates' enthusiastic, almost over the top, obeisance, Yhwach's own salutation was calm and collected.

He turned to the direction he had come from, towards a small alcove that the Wandenreich could not see from their position.

"You may come in."

All was silent for a moment as the Wandenreich wandered who it was that Yhwach was speaking to.

They broke into murmurs when a young Japanese man with straight chin-length black hair and blue eyes, dressed in an even more elaborate variation of the Sternritter uniform, stepped onto the platform and stood next to Yhwach.

"Hey, who's that kid?"

"Why is he standing on the same level as Yhwach-sama?"

Unease broke out among the ranks of the Wandenreich, who all got the strangest feeling that their world was about to be turned upside down.

Yhwach ignored the chattering of his subordinates and continued.

"This is Ishida Uryu, the last living Quincy in the world." Yhwach introduced Uryu to the Wandenreich.

Uryu remained silent and expressionless, even as the entire crowd fixed their gazes on him.

"I now name him my heir."

And with these six simple yet world-shattering words, the Wandenreich fell into chaos.

---

Standing in his office in the 8th Division Barracks a day after the Royal Guard's departure, Kyoraku Shunsui stared at the missive Central 46 had sent to him.

His destroyed right eye, lost to a shot during the invasion, throbbed painfully beneath an eye patch.

He supposed he should have expected this, but he had hoped that since Genryusai was only out of commission temporarily rather than outright dead, he would be spared.

He should have known that he wouldn't be that lucky.

He stared at the big black bold letters on the missive that seemed to be mocking him.

"Owing to his inability to fulfill his role, Yamamoto Shigekuni is temporarily stripped of his position of Captain of the 1st Division and Captain Commander of Gotei 13. Kyoraku Jirou Souzousa Shunsui shall hereby be appointed Captain of the 1st Division and the Captain Commander of Gotei 13 until Yamamoto Shigekuni returns to retake his position, should he choose to do so."

Central 46 certainly worded it in a very flowery fashion, but they were basically taking advantage of Genryusai's trip to the Soul King's Palace to remove as much power as they could from him, given that he had been opposing them a lot more than before, likely a result of Kurosaki Ichigo's influence on all of them.

At least they were still smart enough to recognize that in wartime like this, it would be the pinnacle of foolishness to have a figurehead rather than someone both powerful and experienced to take command of Gotei 13, which was why they had chosen him instead of just some Shinigami under their thumb.

However, the fact that they had chosen him meant that they believed that they could control him.

That was what was really bugging him.

*KNOCK* *KNOCK*

"Kyoraku-taicho?"

Shunsui did not react when he heard his Lieutenant calling to him from the other side of the door.

Anyone in Gotei 13 who saw that would immediately know something was wrong, because it had been a rather common sight to find him flirting with her almost any time of the day for the past few decades, ever since she had gotten the position.

"I'm coming in, Taicho. Excuse me."

The door creaked open, and Ise Nanao stepped in.

"Taicho, if you were here, then at least answer-"

"Nanao-chan…this might be the last time we ever meet." Shunsui said as he resolved himself and placed the letter back down on his table.

"…Eh?" Nanao let out a sound of confusion.

Shunsui did not enlighten her. She was a smart girl. The letter should be enough for her to understand the situation.

He had a meeting with Central 46 to get to.

If those old bats thought that he would easily manipulated, then they had another thing coming.

He wasn't a proud student of Yamamoto Genryusai Shigekuni for nothing, after all.

---

The 12th Division was in the middle of a major cleanup of its devastated facilities after Jidanbo's attack while under the thrall of the enemy.

Since the 4th and 12th Divisions' facilities were of the utmost importance in the impending war, and the 4th Division Barracks were mostly intact after the invasion, priority was shifted to the 12th Division, which was why Shinigami from other Divisions, as well as members of the Three Factions, were helping in the cleanup and reconstruction.

It was during this that a bandaged Akon stepped into the 12th Division's main laboratory, located underground, and was thus spared from Jidanbo's rampage.

"Oh, Akon-san! Were you discharged from the 4th Division already?" A female researcher, one of the few who hadn't been killed or injured in the invasion, asked as she saw him.

"Nah, everything still hurts. But, the place is swamped, and lying around in a bed doing nothing has never been my style. Where's Kurotsuchi-taicho?"

"Actually…he's been holed up in his quarters with the Lieutenant ever since they returned…"

"…They haven't emerged even once?" Akon asked.

"That's right."

Even by Mayuri's standards, that was strange.

Akon looked around, first up at a corner of the ceiling where a grotesque spider-like thing with a baby's head was located, its single eye closed.

Then, he turned to look at the corner of the floor opposite it. The multi-headed insect-like baby there had its eyes closed too.

Those were the surveillance bugs that monitored the entire lab, and both were deactivated.

Something was definitely up.

Akon walked over to the pillar next to the main terminal and opened a hidden panel on it.

It was the control panel for the surveillance equipment in the entire division, but all of it had been deactivated, with the Captain's access code, no less, meaning that it couldn't be turned back on by anyone other than Mayuri.

Akon frowned and started pushing a couple of buttons.

"What's wrong?"

"It's strange. The Captain's been cooped up in his room for more than 24 hours, but all the surveillance bugs in the entire division are switched off. Nothing like this has ever happened before. Did something happen to the Captain, or is he conducting some kind of experiment in his quarters that he doesn't want us to know about? Either way, we need confirmation."

Akon hit one last button, and a screen appeared above the panel.

The other researchers seemed surprised to see it. Not surprising in itself, since Akon had secretly built it in when no one was looking.

"Akon-san, what's that?"

"A live feed of the Captain's quarters that I set up while he wasn't around."

"Wha-!? How could you-!? Do you know what the Captain would do to you if he found out!?"

"Shut up! It's not like I use it all the time! And it's showing something!"

Just as Akon said, an image was beginning to surface through the static on the screen, showing Mayuri's and Nemu's silhouettes as they stood around a table, working on…something.

Some incoherent mumbling could be heard from the feed, which slowly became clearer along with the image.

Akon's, as well as the other researchers', eyes widened to the size of dinner plates when they saw what it was that Mayuri and Nemu were standing around.

"What…the hell is that!? What is the Captain working on!?"

---

In the meeting chambers of the Central 46 compound, a ruckus had erupted among the 40 'wise men' and the 6 judges that made up their numbers, seated around the 2 concentric rings that were their tables and chairs.

The cause of the ruckus was the man standing in the middle of the chamber. The new interim Captain Commander of Gotei 13, Kyoraku Shunsui.

Just as he had thought, Central 46 had believed him to be easy to manipulate, but before they could incorporate their own agenda, starting with appointing him a Lieutenant that was under their control, Kyoraku already started talking, destroying their pace and replacing it with his own.

"2 Lieutenants!?"

Ah, and there were the words that had caused this little outburst of theirs.

"Yes. Okikiba Genshiro will be in charge of practical affairs, and Ise Nanao will be my personal aide. They know how to do their jobs."

"You…! You cannot just do as you…!"

"Every Captain has the right to appoint and dismiss the Lieutenants of their Division. I believe it was you who decided this."

Central 46 immediately fell silent, unable to retort, given that it was indeed a law that they had passed.

They could just as easily rescind that law, but doing that would be seen as an abuse of authority by literally anyone, and incite protests and rebellions among Gotei 13, which they could not exactly deal with, since they themselves had no combat capacity.

Kyoraku had basically checkmated them into a corner.

"Well then, now that that issue has been resolved, let's move on to my first act as the new Captain Commander. I will now teach Zaraki Kenpachi the Art of Killing."

If the outburst earlier had been a ruckus, then the outburst Central 46 was making now could only be described as a panicked uproar.

"What!?"

"Yamamoto-zensoutaicho, as well as a Captain, 2 Lieutenants and Kurosaki Ichigo, are currently in the Soul King's Palace. We have no idea if they will return before the next attack. There is a need to bolster our combat capabilities. Zaraki-taicho's power in particular is crucial. He's no good the way he is now."

"Absolutely not! If he becomes any stronger than he already is, there will be no way to stop him should he revolt against Soul Society! Have you forgotten that Genryusai tried to teach him the sword, and stopped after just one day for that very reason!?"

"Then, what do you suggest we do? The way Soul Society is now, we won't be able to survive another attack like the one before. Unless of course, you're saying that you are capable of protecting yourselves on your own?" Shunsui asked, adding just a small hint of sarcasm at the end.

Once again, Central 46 fell silent, because they knew he was right.

Pretty much all of Soul Society's military might lay in its Captains, and as great as their influence was, not a single Captain was on Central 46's payroll.

If they had to rely on their guards to protect them from the Wandenreich, there was no doubt that Central 46 would be slaughtered, much like the previous generation by Aizen Sosuke.

"…It looks like I have your consent then. Come on in." Shunsui said as he turned to the doors that led out of the meeting chambers.

The doors creaked open, and Unohana Retsu, the Captain of the 4th Division, stepped in with a solemn expression on her usually serene face.

"Well then, I'll leave Zaraki-taicho to you, Unohana-taicho…No, the first Kenpachi, Unohana Yachiru." Shunsui said to the first Captain of what was now the 11th Division.

Unohana Retsu, or rather, Unohana Yachiru, did not respond.

However, the look in her eyes was enough of an answer for Shunsui.

---

Muken was the 8th and final level of the Central Great Underground Prison, located deep beneath the surface of Seireitei, right under the 1st Division Barracks.

It was the most secure prison in all of Seireitei, being a voided realm completely cut off from the rest of Soul Society, with the sole exception of its entrance.

It stretched on infinitely, which was why it was capable of holding any number of prisoners. However, only the worst criminals of Soul Society were ever sentenced here.

So far, the only prisoner here was the traitorous former Captain of the 5th Division, Aizen Sosuke, sentenced to 20 millennia in Muken by Central 46.

Normally, a criminal like Aizen would have been outright executed, but due to his fusion with the Hogyoku, he was immortal, unable to be killed, even after the Hogyoku had rejected him as its master.

Thus, the only thing Central 46 could do was sentence him to imprisonment in Muken, and the binding of his reiatsu.

Of course, Aizen's location of imprisonment was very, very far away from the entrance, practically unreachable unless one had either more than several lifetimes to waste wandering the endlessly vast realm, or a very detailed map.

Who knew what he was capable of? The safest thing to do was to keep him bound as far away as possible.

However, due to its nature as an infinite realm, it was capable of serving another purpose.

A battlefield.

The bolts on the massive metal doors that served as the entrance into Muken whirred and unlocked themselves, causing the doors to open.

Zaraki Kenpachi, the current Captain of the 11th Division, stepped into the infinite realm.

"…Hmph. Now this is what I call a stage. Good job getting permission to use this place." Kenpachi spoke to the person already waiting in Muken for him.

"…It was an order from the Captain Commander. An infinite realm like this is the only place in all of Soul Society where it's safe for us to fight. Otherwise, non-criminals like us would never have been able to set foot in this place." Unohana Retsu replied.

"…Non-criminals? Ha! Don't make me laugh! If we weren't good at killing people, neither you nor I would be anything more than a criminal!" Kenpachi guffawed at the sheer absurdity of her words.

However, his words rang true.

If Kenpachi hadn't slain the former Captain of the 11th Division in front of his subordinates, fulfilling the conditions for promotion to Captain, he probably would have been imprisoned in one of the Central Great Underground Prison's 8 levels for the crime of slaughtering thousands of Rukongai residents and hundreds of Shinigami.

And as for Unohana Retsu…

The Captain of the 4th Division turned to look at Kenpachi, revealing her appearance to him.

Her braid had been undone, and her long hair cascaded around her, revealing the scar on her bosom that was normally hidden by the braid.

The scar Kenpachi gave her when they first met.

Her normally kind and gentle eyes now looked gloomy and infinitely more menacing.

But, what excited Kenpachi the most was the sheer bloodlust emanating from her entire being.

Yes, this was just like it was so long ago, when he first met her.

This was not Unohana Retsu, the greatest healer in Gotei 13.

This was doubtlessly Unohana Yachiru, a founding member of Gotei 13 and a member of the First Generation of Captains, which was regarded as the strongest of all.

She was the first Kenpachi, the first Captain of the what was now the 11th Division, the one who had laid the foundations of said Division.

Before Genryusai sought her out and bought her power, she was the worst criminal to ever exist in Soul Society, beyond even Aizen Sosuke.

Having mastered all sword styles and techniques in existence, she gave herself the name 'Yachiru', literally meaning 8000 styles.

This was the only person that Kenpachi ever admired.

"True. The current you is too weak, which is why you're suited for a place like this. It's quite fitting, really." Unohana Yachiru said.

"Yeah, I figured that was it. That's fine. Win and become a Captain, or lose and become a criminal. Fighting to kill each other, and no way out until one of us dies…like some blissful, eternal hell." Kenpachi commented as he drew his Zanpakuto.

"You're unusually talkative today. I personally prefer it when you're quiet. When you talk, the scar you gave me just keeps screaming." Yachiru said as she turned to face him fully, slowly drawing her own Zanpakuto as well.

"Took the words right outta my mouth! Your scar ain't the only one that's screaming!" Kenpachi yelled in reply as he gestured to the scar over his left eye.

The scar Yachiru had given him in return for the one he had given her.

The bloodlust emanating from both of them shot up as they stared each other down.

Then, they both vanished in a burst of Shunpo, and reappeared with their Zanpakutos clashing against each other.

Using their physical strength, they pushed themselves away from each other.

Kenpachi ran towards Yachiru, his Zanpakuto raised above his head for a downwards strike.

However, Yachiru easily sidestepped his attack and even slapped the flat side of his blade with her bare hand, causing Kenpachi to momentarily lose control of it as it veered off course.

In the next instant, Kenpachi barely stepped back in time when he noticed Yachiru's Zanpakuto racing towards his throat.

His neck was spared, but the attack still managed to nick his clavicle, causing blood to spurt out.

Kenpachi ignored his wound and swung his sword at her again.

However, Yachiru jumped over it and landed on the hand holding the sword.

Kenpachi lost his balance and fell forward.

Yachiru swung her blade down at him as he fell, but reacting quickly, he managed to kick her in her arm and knock her away long enough for him to recover.

Yachiru angled herself to land her feet on a rock formation jutting out of the ground and push herself towards Kenpachi as he raced towards her.

Their Zanpakutos clashed again, resulting in another stalemate, neither of them giving any ground to the other.

"…Well, I'll commend you for removing your eye patch before coming here, but that also means that…this is the extent of your power." Yachiru commented with an emotion in her voice akin to disappointment.

Kenpachi didn't have time to reply, because she swung her free left arm at that moment.

Kenpachi felt a piercing pain in his left shoulder as blood spurted out of the new wound.

Again, he couldn't respond to it, and had to swing his Zanpakuto to block Yachiru's sword aiming for his head.

Once again, they pushed each other away and stopped momentarily.

Kenpachi turned to inspect the metallic spike sticking out of his left shoulder and scowled.

"Pathetic. Using only one arm to fight while the other just sits by idly. You cannot possibly enjoy fighting in such a manner." Yachiru said with a cold sneer as she drew another metal spike from her sleeve.

"…What about you? Look at you. Using cheap tricks like this to attack me. You've really changed a lot…since the time I used to admire you!" Kenpachi roared as he charged at her again.

"Don't use that word when speaking to an opponent you're fighting to the death!" Yachiru retorted as she met his charge.

They clashed once more, but this time, Yachiru overpowered Kenpachi, knocking his Zanpakuto out of his hand and sending it careening through the air until it embedded itself into the ground a distance away.

Yachiru backed Kenpachi into the rock formation, keeping the tip of her Zanpakuto at his jugular.

Kenpachi breathed heavily and erratically, already worn out from the brutal clash.

"…My fighting style has not changed at all since we first met. Back then, you simply never gave me a single opening to employ these tactics." Yachiru revealed.

"Are you saying…I'm currently weaker than I was back then?" Kenpachi asked almost incredulously.

He had only been a child when he first met and fought Yachiru. His fighting style, though still extremely wild compared to other Captains, was more refined than it was back then, and he now had the physical strength that his massive adult body granted him.

How could his scrawny, child self been stronger than he was right now?

Yachiru did not answer, but the look in her eyes told him everything he needed.

"…I…worshipped you. Trees, bug, people, no matter what I cut back then, all of it felt the same to me. I might as well have been swinging my sword blindly in the dark." Kenpachi spoke slowly, slight delirious from the blood he had lost.

Yachiru said nothing, and continued to stare at him.

"Then I met you. And when we fought, for the first time, I feared for my life. For the first time, I felt joy in fighting. Since then, I wanted to fight the way you did. But now…am I gonna die without being able to defeat you!?" Kenpachi lamented as a single tear fell from his right eye.

*SQUELCH*

In the next instant, Kenpachi felt his throat being pierced as Yachiru unsympathetically and mercilessly thrust her Zanpakuto into his neck.

Kenpachi coughed, and flecks of blood sprung from his mouth, two landing on Yachiru's face.

"…Shit." Kenpachi managed to get out before his vision started fading to black.

His limbs felt heavy, and paradoxically, his head felt light as the world blurred around him.

This was it. He was going to di-

Then, he was back.

Before he noticed it, his mind and vision cleared up, and he was once again pressed against the rock formation behind him, blade locked with Yachiru's.

Somehow, his Zanpakuto had found its way back into his hands without him noticing.

What just happened?

"What's wrong? You looked like you lost consciousness for a moment." Yachiru commented.

"Who the hell cares!?" Kenpachi roared as he pushed her away,

But even as he did, his mind was racing.

What the hell was that?

He had definitely been stabbed in his throat. The two droplets of blood still on Yachiru's face proved it.

But, the wound itself had disappeared, and Kenpachi did not feel any pain coming from that area.

"Hell if I know!" Kenpachi decided.

Thinking too deeply had never been his style. There was only one thing he needed to do here.

Fight with nothing more than his instincts.

Kenpachi grinned madly as he brandished his Zanpakuto, eager to restart the fight.

---

Unohana Yachiru calmly watched as Zaraki Kenpachi began to rush towards her.

How many times had she dealt a fatal blow to him? Even she had lost count by now.

But, she knew that he would not die. She was healing him immediately after mortally wounding him.

She was not aiming to kill him after all.

However, fatally wounding him was a necessity.

Because every time he was brought to the brink of death, he returned stronger than before.

That was the mistake he had imposed on himself so very long ago, and Yachiru's greatest sin in her opinion.

She still remembered when they first met.

It was so long ago, back during the time of the First Generation of Gotei 13.

Yachiru, who was still the Captain of the 11th Division back then, had let a squadron of her subordinates into Rukongai to get rid of troublemakers.

At least, that was her official story when getting permission from Genryuusai, who still used his real first name, Shigekuni, back then.

But, everyone saw right through her from the beginning.

Unohana Yachiru, the first Kenpachi and Soul Society's worst criminal, would never bother to step out of her office for such a trivial task.

Her real goal was to find someone capable of giving her a real fight.

After fighting for so long, she had grown apathetic to fighting.

That's why she had ventured out into Rukongai, searching for days for somebody strong enough to reignite her love for fighting.

But, she hadn't been able to find anyone.

It was on the day of a downpour that Yachiru finally gave up.

She had already ventured out to the furthest reaches of Rukongai, where the worst criminals of Soul Society lurked, but did not encounter anyone that could be considered anything more than trash.

Her subordinates noted the mountain of corpses next to her and took it as a sign of her displeasure.

Yachiru then stopped.

She wasn't the one who had killed them.

That was when she noticed the small figure moving at the top of the mound of dead bodies.

A scrawny boy with wild black hair, coal black eyes, dressed in rags, and wielding a sword, a Zanpakuto, that was far too big for someone his size.

But, what really got her attention was his dead eyes, staring at her as though she wasn't even a living creature, but more like a piece of furniture he was thinking of disposing of…with his sword.

Yachiru imagined that she had an identical look on her face as she looked at him.

It happened in an instant.

The child jumped off of the mound of corpses with his Zanpakuto raised at the same time that Yachiru drew hers.

Their blades clashed, and Yachiru got the shock of her life when her blade was knocked aside and the tip of his Zanpakuto stabbed into her chest.

She, the greatest swordsman in Gotei 13, was overpowered and wounded by a mere child with no formal training.

Her apathy quickly gave way to excitement and euphoria, much like the child, whose lips had curled into a grin.

Two murderers, bored by the world, drawn to each other by the identical desire to seek enjoyment.

Clashing against each other, the strongest opponents they had ever fought in their lives, they experienced a level of joy unlike any other before or since.

However, as Yachiru had realized, Kenpachi enjoyed fighting with his the absolute limits of his ability.

After being surrounded by fodder who died all too easily, Kenpachi finally found joy in fighting Yachiru, who he believed to be the first worthy opponent he had ever fought, able to match him blow for blow.

However, Yachiru was weaker than he was, and she almost ended up losing to him.

Kenpachi, who had finally discovered the joy of fighting a worthy opponent, out of the unconscious fear of losing that opponent, caused him to slowly compensate for her shortcomings.

Thus, he began to shackle his own power while not even realizing it.

Yachiru would end up defeating him, after he had already sealed most of his incredible power away.

She despaired at the knowledge that her own weakness had ended up handicapping the strongest person she had ever met.

After that day, they would not meet again for centuries, not until Zaraki Kenpachi strolled through the gates of Seireitei and slaughtered the then Captain of the 11th Division, usurping his position.

But, the shackles were still very much present. He was much weaker than he was back then.

It was only in recent years that she realized something.

Every time Kenpachi approached the boundary between life and death and returned from it, bit by bit, the shackles he placed on himself would break, just a little, inching ever so slightly closer to his true power.

Just like when he had barely lost to Kurosaki Ichigo, and when he barely won against Nnoitra Gilga.

Yachiru's path was made clear to her.

When the need for him to regain his true power emerged, she would kill him, over and over again, no matter how many times it took, and then revive him just as many times, until every last shackle he placed on himself shattered.

That was the only way she could make up for her sin.

Yachiru pierced him again, and immediately healed him.

Kenpachi's eyes shot open, and he swung his Zanpakuto down at her.

Yachiru withdrew the blade from his body and raised it to defend.

Parrying Kenpachi's Zanpakuto, she swung her sword at him.

But at the same moment she started to swing, Kenpachi had already stepped back.

Just a few minutes ago, he would have only started moving by the time her sword was already to cut through his neck.

He was no longer reacting to her sword. He was moving on pure instinct.

That was the proof that he was regaining his original power.

Yachiru landed another blow, slashing his torso open while applying Kaidou to heal him.

Not that it was needed, because Kenpachi recovered instantly and brought his blade down on her.

Yachiru felt searing pain as Kenpachi's Zanpakuto partially sliced through her shoulder.

Kenpachi paused as he registered the first clean hit he had landed on Yachiru during the battle.

A big mistake, one she did not hesitate to take advantage of.

She swung her sword at him, lacerating his cheek and causing him to jump back reflexively.

"Did you really think you had defeated me with that blow? How naïve." Yachiru reprimanded him as she pressed her hand into the open wound on her shoulder, applying Kaidou to close it.

The Kaidou she had mastered for the sole purpose of using it here and now.'

More importantly, she had confirmed it with that last attack.

He was almost there.

He just needed one more push.

And she intended to provide it.

"Bankai." Yachiru incanted as she swung her blade, releasing a torrent of dark red viscous liquid resembling a certain vital fluid both of them were intimately familiar with.

"Minazuki." Yachiru declared her Bankai's name, aurally identical to her Shikai's, but completely opposed in meaning.

The torrent of dark red liquid gushing from her Zanpakuto slowed down to a mere trickle, revealing the shortened blade, as though a portion of it had simply melted away.

However, despite its less than impressive appearance, that sword was doubtlessly a Bankai, and possessed the sheer power of one in its diminished blade.

Anyone could tell just by looking at it.

It was a weapon created for the sole purpose of killing.

It was the perfect weapon for someone who reveled in bloodshed, like Yachiru did.

"Now then, it's time to draw this battle to a close." Yachiru spoke as she brandished her Bankai.

Kenpachi stared expressionlessly for a moment…before his face was split by an impossibly wide grin, filled with bloodlust and malice.

"GYAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"

Kenpachi laughed, a deep, guttural sound that his vocal cords should not even have been able to produce, a noise capable of striking fear into the hearts of the most stout-hearted of mortals.

To Yachiru, it didn't sound anything more than the delighted giggles of a child who was experiencing the pure emotion of joy for the first time.

It was also the sound that signaled the beginning of the end of her long, long mission.

The two killers rushed at each other with bloodthirsty smiles on their faces, eager to start shedding blood anew.

The first clash between the two sent a massive shockwave reverberating through the infinite realm of Muken, so great that it wouldn't be a surprise if Aizen Sosuke, locked an infinitely vast distance away from the site of their battle, was able to feel it in its full force.

However, the victor of that instantaneous bout was quickly decided.

Kenpachi rolled across the ground, knocked away by the unexpectedly massive physical force behind Yachiru's blow.

But, he recovered and rose without missing a beat, his grin becoming wider and wider.

The two killers met again in a clash of blades.

And with every blow, Yachiru was able to tell.

Kenpachi was regaining more and more of his power with every passing moment.

Just as she planned.

That was why she chose to bring out her Bankai now.

Her Bankai, Minazuki, meaning The End of All Things, did not have an obvious ability like most Bankais did, other than shortening her blade and causing it to leak red liquid.

However, its power was incredible, so great that Yachiru had chosen not to use it since she had first obtained it, because it ended her fights far too quickly.

Minazuki's ability was simple. The red liquid it emitted released chemicals into the surrounding air.

Once the airborne chemicals, engineered for rapid, near instantaneous metabolizing, entered her opponent's bloodstream, they sent false signals to their brains and trick it into thinking that they were already dead.

Thus, the brain starts shutting down all bodily functions rapidly, causing her opponent to drop dead within seconds, without a single scratch on their person, and with no more effort than the simple act of activating her Bankai from Yachiru.

For someone like Yachiru, who enjoyed personally spilling the blood of her opponents, this was a very unpleasant Bankai for her to possess.

It was only just now realized why her Zanpakuto had evolved to possess an ability like that in the first place.

The same reason why she had mastered Kaidou: to bring back Zaraki Kenpachi's real power.

If she had used her Bankai at the beginning of this fight, she probably would have only succeeded into killing him very, very dead.

But, throughout the course of their battle, she had subjected him, and more importantly, his brain, over and over again to the sensation of dying before being immediately brought back to life, so much so that the brain was already used to the sensation that it now replicated the effect when the chemicals Kenpachi had breathed in were telling it that it was dead.

Essentially, Kenpachi was dying and reviving thousands of times in just a matter of seconds, all in his mind, each death contributing just a little more to breaking the remaining shackles binding his power.

It wouldn't be long now.

With every clash, Yachiru found herself gaining less and less ground, until it was her who was being put on the defensive.

But, she paid that no mind. She concentrated completely on Kenpachi, who had gained a look of wonder and gratitude in his eyes, underneath the layers and layers of maddened, bloodlust-driven glee.

It appeared that he finally realized that he had been suppressing his own power all this time, was finally awakening from his long slumber, finally experiencing true fighting for the first time since they fought so very long ago, and was thanking her for opening his eyes.

Their blades clashed again, and Yachiru felt something.

It was said that when two swordsmen clashed, their emotions would be transmitted to each other through their blades.

Yachiru had not experienced it for a very long time, not since her first clash with Kenpachi, in fact.

But, his emotions, his thoughts were being conveyed to her, as clear as the midday sun hanging in a cloudless sky.

His thoughts mindlessly roared of bloodlust, but beneath it all, Yachiru could hear Kenpachi, as though he was speaking directly to her.

"Hey, did you know? I…really love fighting. I love it so much…that I just can't help it."

"Of course. I knew before you did."

Yachiru replied to him through their blades as Kenpachi pushed her back with much greater force than before.

"Isn't it an odd quirk of fate, Zaraki Kenpachi? You locked away your own potential so that you could continue enjoying battle. I mastered the art of healing so that I could do the same. Or so I thought. But I realize that I obtained my power just for this day, when I could redeem myself for my sin."

Yachiru jumped into the air as Kenpachi lunged at her.

As she descended, she swung her sword down at him.

"The title Kenpachi can only be held by one person in a single era. That is an absolute, ironclad rule, an unavoidable destiny. When two behemoths like us clash, there can only be two results. Our blades will either nurture, or destroy the other. That's why…my blade will now…"

Kenpachi deflected Yachiru's blade, almost completely wrenching it from her hand with the sheer force behind the blow.

Kenpachi brought his blade back and thrust towards her open sternum.

"Ah."

Yachiru realized that it was over. That strike had hit her hand too far away for her to recover in time to block that attack, even if she wanted to.

It was finally over.

"Farewell, Zaraki Kenpachi. You…were the only man in the world who brought me true joy." Yachiru bid farewell as she saw the end of days she had been awaiting for so long finally approach her.

Kenpachi's blade pierced through her sternum, in the exact same spot where he had scarred her so many years ago.

The pain was terrible. It was excruciating, far greater than any she had experienced in her life.

But, even so, Yachiru could only feel joy erupting from the bottom of her heart.

Kenpachi stared down at her, at the blade, his blade, going through her chest, not quite comprehending what it was he had managed to achieve.

Yachiru smiled. She should probably do something about that.

"Splendid, Zaraki Kenpachi. With this…it's finally over."

Her strength draining from her body, Yachiru dropped her Zanpakuto, unable to maintain her grip on it.

At the same time, Kenpachi pulled his Zanpakuto out and threw it behind him, where it embedded itself into the ground.

Yachiru began to fall to the ground, but Kenpachi caught her with a hand, staring at her with an uncomprehending expression.

"Over? Oi…you're gonna die on me, are you?" Kenpachi asked her.

An expression of dawning horror emerged on his face as he finally understood what was going on.

"Oi, don't die. I haven't had enough yet. I'm begging you, don't die. Please…DON'T DIE!" Kenpachi roared in grief as he held the dying form of the strongest person he ever fought.

If Yachiru had the strength to do so, she would have laughed at the sight of him.

"Really…just like the child you were back then. Why are you sad? You recovered your true power and defeated me. Most fights will be nothing more than a nuisance to you from now on, but…you still have powerful enemies out there for you to fight, friends for you to bicker wit, and most important of all…your partner, who has finally awoken alongside you."

Yachiru clenched a fist and gently moved it towards Kenpachi's torso, as though stabbing him with an invisible blade.

"This blood-soaked legacy of mine…I leave it and everything else to you. There is nothing left for Unohana Yachiru to give. The title of Kenpachi that I never officially passed on…I now entrust it to you, its new rightful owner, the second true Kenpachi. I will now die, Zaraki Kenpachi, but this is a time to celebrate."

Yachiru smiled one last time as her vision began to grow hazy.

"Ah…I feel so much joy, even in death, knowing that I have finally fulfilled this task after so long."

"Who's there!? Who the hell is that calling my name!? Show yourself!"

Yachiru vaguely heard Kenpachi shouting at someone who was not her.

Her last smile widened just a little.

He could finally hear it. His Zanpakuto's voice.

With her task, spanning almost a full millennia, finally complete, Yachiru peacefully closed her eyes for the last time.

And thus, Unohana Yachiru departed.

---

The first sign that the tense calm before the next battle had come to an end was an odd black ripple that had appeared on the Sekkiseki walls surrounding Seireitei, only noticed by unranked Shinigami who were working on cleaning up the debris from the previous attack.

They blinked at the sight of it, wondering if they were simply hallucinating, but their confusion lasted only a second, because the black spot quickly multiplied in number, and rapidly grew and devoured the environment, replacing the feudal Japanese-style citadel with a Western-style palace that was either coated in, or completely made of ice.

Not a single person in Seireitei could understand how it had been done, but it was obvious what was happening.

Seireitei was vanishing.

Those who weren't panicking at the sight were panicking when they realized that this was likely an attack by the Wandenreich.

Gotei 13 descended into chaos.

And watching all this from what was once the Captain Commander's office, towering over what was once Seireitei, was Kyoraku Shunsui, the new interim Captain Commander, and one of his two Lieutenants, Ise Nanao.

"…Good grief. We prepared plenty of tricks beforehand in preparation for a second attack, but who would have thought that they would ruin our advantage like this?"

In contrast to most of Gotei 13 at the moment, Shunsui was the epitome of serene.

"T-Taicho, what's going on!? Why has Seireitei vanished!?" Nanao asked in a slightly higher voice than usual, conveying her inner turmoil at the sight of their home disappearing before her eyes.

"You could not possibly understand."

Shunsui and Nanao turned around when an unfamiliar voice cut in.

Walking towards them was a handsome man with a thin build, long blonde hair, and dressed in the white uniform of the Sternritters.

Shunsui recalled hearing about a man fitting this description, from a report by Kurosaki Ichigo, who had fought against Yhwach with Genryusai.

This was the man named Haschwalth, Yhwach's right-hand man, who possessed the power to break the oldest and strongest Bankai in Gotei 13.

"We Quincies, after losing our first war against you Shinigami 1000 years ago, fled from the human world to Seireitei, which was ironically the place you had left most unguarded, and used Reishi to create a realm within the shadows of the citadel. That is what we call the Wandenreich, the invisible empire. Unlike the human world, Reishi is found in abundance here in Soul Society, where it is the basic building block of almost all things. Reishi is the source of a Quincy's power, and with a nearly infinite supply of it, we could do anything we wanted. Thus, we Quincies have been waiting in the shadows of Seireitei, quietly building up our power for 1000 years, and once we were ready, we simply used Reishi to strip Seireitei away and replace it with the Wandenreich. In other words, during both the last attack and this attack, we never broke through the Shakkonmaru. We were already in the Shakkonmaru to begin with." Haschwalth explained to them.

"…Thank you for the information, and welcome. That certainly explains how you got to the Captain Commander's office so quickly. Our enemies can't be taken lightly, I see." Shunsui greeted him jovially.

"…I am the Sternritter Grandmaster, advisor to the Emperor and second-in-command of the Wandenreich, Epithet B, Jugram Haschwalth." Haschwalth introduced himself formally.

"I'm the interim Captain of the 1st Division and Captain Commander of Gotei 13, Kyoraku Shunsui. You might not know me since I just took up the post…or perhaps, you did, and that's why you're here?" Shunsui asked.

"Correct. That is why I was the first to arrive."

"So hasty. This is the grudge you've been waiting 1000 years to settle. Shouldn't you be taking your time to savor these battles?" Shunsui asked lightly.

"…His Majesty is fond of peace. He prefers battles that are not drawn out. Thus, he gave us only a single order. The immediate annihilation of all enemy forces."

"I see."

"I hope you don't think that it'll be that easy."

Haschwalth stopped moving when a red wall of energy appeared between him and the Captain and Lieutenant of the 1st Division.

Nanao had dropped to a knee and pressed her right hand on the floor.

He drew his sword and pressed it against the barrier, only for it to stop at the surface, unable to pass through no matter how hard he pushed.

"…And this is?"

"Hakudan Keppeki. It's only temporary, but for that period of time, it completely stops those who possess Quincy powers." Nanao briefly explained.

"…Lieutenant of the 1st Division, Ise Nanao. Is this barrier your doing?"

"I take it you've done your research on me. Then, you will know that I was selected to be a Lieutenant for my proficiency with Kido. Creating a barrier of this level is a simple matter. It was a mistake on your part to leave such large traces of your reiatsu throughout Seireitei during your previous attack. Thanks to that, we were able to devise various barriers capable of stopping you."

"…We?" Haschwalth questioned, his eyes narrowing at her wording.

"Ah, come to think of it, you haven't met them yet. Allow me to introduce them to you…" Shunsui said with a smile.

Haschwalth looked around when he felt multiple unfamiliar reiatsu signatures appear all around him, surrounding him.

Behind him, a handsome man with shoulder length red hair, green eyes, dressed in ornate armor, and 6 pairs of bat-like wings, was standing with a hand outstretched, forming a crimson wall of energy.

Next to that man was a silver-haired and eyed woman with a pair of bat-like wings, dressed in battle robes, placing a hand on the ground like Nanao, forming an ice-blue barrier under Haschwalth's feet.

On Haschwalth's right was a bewitching man with wavy hair of a black and blonde mix, serpentine eyes, dressed in a crimson robe, one pair of bat-like wings and releasing an ominous aura that formed the texture of his reiatsu. He was holding up a hand as well, forming a black wall-like barrier.

On his left was a tall man with short black hair, golden bangs, red eyes, a goatee, dressed in a purple trench coat and black trousers, and twelve black-feathered wings sprouting from his back. He too had a hand outstretched, forming a purple wall of energy.

Finally, above him was a handsome young man with gentle features, blonde hair, green eyes, dressed in ceremonial robes, with twelve golden-feathered wings and a golden halo above his head. His hand was pointed down at him, forming a golden wall-like barrier parallel to the ground.

The six barriers seemed to be identical at first glance, aside from their color, but Haschwalth was able to see that each of them was constructed in radically different manners, though they served the same purpose: to block Quincy reiatsu,

With the six barriers in place, Haschwalth was basically trapped like a rat in a cage, a complicated cage that did not allow Quincy reiatsu to pass through.

He frowned. The five newcomers all had reiatsu that easily matched Captains, but not a single one of them was a Shinigami.

He had heard reports about non-Shinigami arriving in Seireitei soon after the previous attack, but the Shinigami had not talked about them at all, not within the parameters of the citadel anyway. And since their surveillance was limited to within Seireitei, there was no way for them to find out who they were.

Yhwach claimed it was unimportant, since all beings were fated to fall before him, but who would have thought that this would come back to bite them in the ass now?

"Well, we were expecting Yhwach to come here himself, but the second-in-command of the enemy is a pretty good catch too." Shunsui said with a self-satisfied look.

"Now then, Quincy-san, you'll be sitting tight here for a bit. Our counterattack starts here."

Haschwalth sighed tiredly.

Obviously, this conflict wouldn't be going anywhere near as fast or as smoothly as Yhwach would have liked.

---

Buzzard Black, or as he was more commonly known as these days, Buzz-B, the young male Sternritter bearing the Epithet H, possessing red hair styled into a mohawk, green eyes, two metal nuts piercing his upper left ear and a metal bolt piercing his lower right ear, moved through the Wandenreich city that had replaced Seireitei, thinking as he searched for strong opponents.

So far, all he had met were a bunch of cannon fodder Shinigami, and one or two no-Shinigami, who all fell with a single blow.

Boring.

"Stop him! Don't let him through!" Some nameless, rankless Shinigami shouted to his fellow fodder as they charged at him.

Buzz-B yawned in boredom and waved a hand dismissively in their direction.

Immediately, a wave of red hot flames engulfed them, not giving them enough time to scream before the torrential inferno had already reached them.

Buzz-B sighed as he idly picked his ear.

"The hell do you mean 'don't let him through'? You guys already failed. Seireitei's long gone. No one's gonna give two shits whether you let me through or not." Buzz-B sneered.

He really wasn't in the mood for small fry at the moment. He was too busy worrying about the future of the Wandenreich.

How did Yhwach expect them to easily accept that a complete stranger, a man who was barely an adult, yet to live out even a hundredth of his lifespan, would be the one to rule over them once he decided to step down?

Sure, Yhwach assured them that the brat possessed power befitting his position, but seriously, what could one measly kid do in comparison to the senior members of the Wandenreich, who had lived for more than a millennia?

And what irritated him even more was Haschwalth's reaction, or rather, lack thereof.

For years, all of them assumed that Haschwalth would be the one to succeed Yhwach once he had croaked, and the bastard didn't even flinch when his rightful place was taken by a brat.

It made him want to burn the entire city down, and Buzz-B would have, if he wasn't sure that Yhwach and Haschwalth would rip him to pieces for devastating their home.

Well, at least he could vent a bit of his frustration on the cannon fodder.

Buzz-B paused when the smoke from his flames gave way to steam.

He noticed in the midst of his diminishing flames, a frozen construct had appeared, not even flinching when struck by the heat.

And through the ice, he could see the Shinigami he had tried to kill, looking terrified, but otherwise unharmed.

"What the…?"

"True, it might not matter whether you pass through or not, but at the very least, your flames won't be passing through."

Buzz-B looked through the steam produced by the contact between the flames and the ice to find a short white-haired, green-eyed Shinigami wearing a slightly tattered Captain's haori, and a cloth headband to keep his hair from falling over his eyes, his right hand lightly gripped around the handle of the Zanpakuto strapped onto his back, ready to draw at any given moment.

Next to him was a beautiful strawberry blonde woman with her huge bosom practically spilling out of her Shihakusho. She too was keeping a hand close to her Zanpakuto, sheathed at the small of her back.

Buzz-B figured that he should know them, since Yhwach had provided all of them with information on all of the Captains and Lieutenants of Gotei 13.

However, he barely perused it, confident that his power would be enough to defeat any Shinigami short of the esteemed former Captain Commander himself.

But, a tingling at the back of his head told him that he should know this Captain, as though he had heard about this one very recently, as in in the past few hours.

Let's see, other than Yhwach's controversial announcement, what else had happened in the past few hours?

…There was the debrief where the Sternritters who participated and survived the previous attack reported to Yhwach and Haschwalth.

It was quite a shock to learn that Gremmy and James, arguably the strongest Sternritter and one of the stronger ones respectively, had both been killed, by the same person, Kurosaki Ichigo, no less.

But other than that, the four Sternritters who had successfully stolen Bankais from four Captains also reported to Yhwach.

Sternritter Epithet E, Bambietta Basterbine, stole Komamura Sajin's Bankai.

Sternritter Epithet F, As Nodt, stole Kuchiki Byakuya's Bankai.

Sternritter Epithet K, BG9, stole Soifon's Bankai.

And Sternitter Epithet I, Cang Du, stole Hitsugaya Toshiro-

"Ah, I remember you now. The kid Captain whose Bankai got stolen by Cang Du. Captain Popsicle, right?" Buzz-B jeered, trying to get a rise out of Toshiro.

The childlike Captain just stared impassively at him as he drew his Zanpakuto.

"Captain of the 10th Division, Hitsugaya Toshiro." Toshiro introduced himself as he dropped into a relaxed posture that would still allow him to respond immediately if Bazz-B attacked.

"Sternritter H, The Heat, Buzz-B!" Buzz-B returned the courtesy as flames burst into existence around him.

"We're a pretty damn nice match, don't you think!?"

"Agreed."

The two fighters, possessing opposing powers, clashed, causing a shockwave of fire and ice that damaged the nearby buildings, shattered the ice formation protecting the foot soldier Shinigami and blasting them backwards, landing painfully on their asses.

Buzz-B noticed the Lieutenant moving towards them, but ignored her in favor of focusing on Toshiro, who had jumped a few meters into the air.

He waved a hand, sending another torrent of red hot flames at the ice-wielding Captain, who responded by swinging his sword, generating a wave of ice between him and the flames.

However, said ice was shattered instantly by the sheer force with which the flames had crashed into it, scattering it into tiny thin fragments before being melted and vaporized by the heat.

"Ha! That ice is so friggin' thin! That won't be enough to stop my flames! The only thing you're doing is making the place more humid!" Buzz-B jeered.

Toshiro's face remained impassive, and simply generated more ice to buy himself time to move out of the flames' path.

Buzz-B couldn't figure out what he was doing. As a Captain, he should already be aware that his ice wasn't capable of overcoming the flames Buzz-B was throwing at him.

But, he still kept repeating the same futile action over and over again.

Why?

It was at the moment that his Lieutenant returned, shouting something about the foot soldiers already evacuating.

Buzz-B took a moment to look around, to find that she was right. The rankless Shinigami that he had almost turned to ashes were long gone.

He turned back to the Captain-Lieutenant duo and saw that the Lieutenant had drawn her Zanpakuto.

"Growl, Haineko!" She commanded, and the blade of her Zanpakuto broke down into ash particles and formed a wall in front of them.

"Hm?" Buzz-B let out a sound of confusion.

What were they trying to do?

It was true that ashes couldn't catch fire, since ashes were basically what remained behind when a fire had consumed the parts of an object that could be burned.

However, the kinetic force of his flames was more than enough to blast through a flimsy shield like that.

They should know that.

His confusion increased when Toshiro generated ice over the ashes, forming the exact same structure that had protected the foot soldiers earlier.

Buzz-B scoffed.

"Ha! It's just the same damn thing again! I'll just smash it!" Buzz-B proclaimed as he directed a torrent of flames to crash into the ice formation at the same time that the Lieutenant swung her sword again.

Once again, a cloud of scalding steam rose from the collision between fire and ice, but Buzz-B got the shock of his life when the steam cleared, and the ice formation hadn't budged.

…No, that wasn't completely accurate.

"The surface definitely melted…but the rest of the structure is intact?" Buzz-B questioned as he stared at the droplets of boiling water on the ice formation, indicating that the initial surface had indeed melted, yet the rest of the formation remained untouched.

"Shinku Taso Hyoheki, the multi-layered vacuum ice wall. Matsumoto's Haineko formed a multi-layered wall of ash, each of which I covered with a very thing wall of ice. Once the ice had formed, Matsumoto returned Haineko back to its blade form, leaving only a vacuum between each layer of ice." Toshiro answered.

Buzz-B's eyes widened.

Having been born in medieval times, lived in the Wandenreich in the shadows of Seireitei for most of his life, and his own personality, Buzz-B's knowledge of modern physics was nowhere near as comprehensive as some of the more studious Sternritters.

However, he did study on the mechanics of fire, since it was crucial to properly manipulate his ability.

Thus, he knew that fire required oxygen to burn.

And in a vacuum, where no matter, including oxygen, existed, it was impossible for his flames to sustain himself, no matter how powerful they were. That's why they dissipated before they could break through more than one layers.

"Among all of the Zanpakutos of the Captains of Gotei 13, my Hyorinmaru is probably the one that has the least difference in its abilities in Shikai and in Bankai. The only real difference is that the ice produced in Shikai is ridiculously small compared to Bankai, which is why I can only use Hyorinmaru's more powerful abilities, which require massive volumes of ice, in Bankai. But since my Bankai got stolen, I had to make do and find a way to fight effectively with the small quantity of ice I could produce in Shikai. I was honestly worried about whether this would work, but it appears that against flames of that caliber, this amount of ice is more than enough." Toshiro calmly explained.

Buzz-B felt his eyebrow twitch as anger rose to the surface.

"Cocky little bastard!" Buzz-B yelled as he summoned another torrent of flames, one greater than the one before, to slam into the ice wall.

But, just like before, only the surface layer melted before the flames abruptly dissipated.

"Didn't you hear me? Your flames cannot penetrate this wall." Toshiro said as Buzz-B looked on, rendered speechless by shock.

Toshiro raised his blade and pointed it at Buzz-B beyond the ice wall.

"Now then…"

The ice wall began to break down and gather at the tip of the blade.

Buzz-B immediately realized that his opponent was going on the offensive.

"Shinku no Kori no Yaiba, the vacuum ice blade. Let's see how deeply this technique can cut you."

Buzz-B felt a chill run down his spine and immediately tried to get out of the way, but before he could, he felt burning pain erupting from his feet.

He looked down to see that each foot had been pierced by some sort of golden energy spike.

"Sorry, but it would be troublesome if you managed to dodge this attack."

An unfamiliar voice spoke to him from above, but before he could look, he felt cold pain erupting from his shoulder as a massive blade of ice pierced him.

---

Omaeda Marechiyo grunted in pain as he was slammed into a wall by his current opponent.

He was prevented from recovering when a very, very sharp tendril was placed at his throat.

He couldn't even swallow nervously without running the risk of accidently severing an artery.

The one holding the tendril to his throat was a Sternritter, the same one who had stolen Soifon's Bankai in the previous attack.

He…she…it was an odd-looking individual.

It had a helmet over its face, and it spoke in an odd monotonous voice, preventing him from saying with certainty whether it was a guy or a girl.

However, judging by the build he could make out under its white cloak, he was leaning towards it being a male.

[Where is Captain Soifon of the 2nd Division? This is the 3rd time I have asked this question, and I would like an answer. I have done an extensive search of Seireitei using a sample of her reiatsu which I took during the previous attack, but I was unable to locate no matter how I refined the search.]

"Hell if I know." Marechiyo answered as he gently pried the tendril away from his throat, meeting little resistance as he did so.

[Are you refusing to answer?]

"Are you daft or something!? How many times do I have to repeat myself!? I don't have any idea where she is because she didn't tell me! Usually, I'd just be covering for her, but this time, I seriously don't know where she is!" Marechiyo retorted.

He wasn't lying.

Soon after the Royal Guard had departed, Soifon just vanished without a word to him, so he had been waiting for her to return when the second attack started.

"If you know the first thing about me, then you would know that I'm the type of guy who would throw his superiors under the bus if it would save my own ass! Because…even if you find her, she'd wipe the floor with your ass." Marechiyo said with a tone of absolute certainty.

[…Refusing to answer 3 times. Perhaps I need to change my approach.]

The Sternritter withdrew his tendril and shot it into the building next to them.

Marechiyo was confused for an instant, before he had to duck for cover when the building was destroyed as the Sternritter lifted its tendril through the roof, and debris began to fall all over the place.

"Hey, what the hell are you doing all of a sudden!?"

"Onii…-sama…"

Marechiyo froze the moment he heard that faint voice and looked up.

At the end of the long tendril that the Sternritter had shot into the building was a little blonde girl dressed in a kimono.

The tendril had gone through her abdomen, and blood was dripping from the wound and her mouth.

Of course he knew who she was. How could he not?

His little sister, Omaeda Mareyo.

Before the Wandenreich's city replaced Seireitei, this area had actually been the Omaeda family estate, where he had been waiting for Soifon to return.

Mareyo had been bugging him to play with her when the attack began, and he immediately told her to run and hide.

He didn't think that she would hide so close by.

[This girl is one of your relations. Though there is little resemblance outwardly, your reiatsu signatures are over 50% match. Furthermore, there are 3 other reiatsu signatures that have more than 50% match with yours, all within a 30 meter radius. If you refuse to answer my question again, I will kill all of them.]

Marechiyo's reply was to slam Gegetsuburi into his head.

"Get your filthy hands off Mareyo!" Marechiyo seethed.

Marechiyo had many, many flaws. He was cowardly, loud, vain, elitist, snobbish, greedy, sluggish and a bit of an idiot.

But, if he possessed any virtues, there would be two that would stand out. His loyalty to Soifon…and his love for his family.

And it would be a very cold day in hell before he let his little sister die on his watch.

However, the Sternritter shrugged off the attack like it was nothing, despite the tiny dent now present in its helmet.

[…Two questions then. Was that a refusal to answer?]

Marechiyo fell back down when the Sternritter stabbed three more tendrils into his left shoulder.

[Furthermore, if I let go of the girl, a large quantity of her bodily fluids would gush out from the wound and her organs would cease to function one by one, leading to her death. Are you okay with that happening?]

Marechiyo threw Gegetsuburi at the Sternritter again, but yet another tendril shot out from within its cloak, stabbed through one of the chain links and pierced Marechiyo's right shoulder, immobilizing him.

[You may have temporarily lost your ability to speak due to the shock. I will allow you an additional 15 seconds to answer me.]

"I won't forgive you…I won't forgive you! I'll fucking kill you!" Marechiyo roared as he tried to move, but to no avail.

[15 seconds have passed. What a shame.]

The Sternritter brought something out of its cloak. A long cylindrical firearm with 10 barrels.

It was at a level of technology that wasn't seen outside of the 12th Division's labs, but Marechiyo identified it immediately.

It was true that Soul Society did not keep up with much of humanity's advances, but advances made in warfare was something was something they always kept track of.

That was a minigun.

A firearm capable of firing thousands of rounds in mere seconds.

It was impossible to survive direct shots from that without exceptional defense, something that Marechiyo currently lacked.

"FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCK!"

*CLANG*

Just as the Sternritter was about to fire, it suddenly turned on the spot, just in time to block a ball of compressed air that knocked it aside.

"Hmph. Dragging a child into a battle in such a manner. I didn't think that there was scum like you among the enemy's ranks."

Marechiyo looked to the side to see a handsome blonde man dressed in white battle armor, 6 pairs of golden feathered wings extending from his back, a gold halo atop his head, and wisps of wind gathering around him.

An angel. And a Seraph at that.

He had a very cold expression on his face, a sharp contrast to his otherwise gentle appearance. And in his arms was…

"Mareyo…!"

The Seraph crossed the gap between them and cut away the tendrils piercing Marechiyo's shoulders, allowing him to regain his mobility.

His expression softened.

"I've healed her wounds. You should get her to safety. Leave this one to me." The Seraph said to Marechiyo as he lowered the unconscious, but otherwise unharmed Mareyo into her brother's arms.

"T-Thank you." Marechiyo spoke, but his mind raced.

A safe place? Where would such a place exist within the enemy's territory?

Wouldn't the safest thing to do right now be to stay by the side of someone who was actually capable of fighting the Sternritters?

Like say, this Seraph?

Movement out of the corner of his eye caught his attention.

"Look out!" Marechiyo cried out a warning to the Seraph, who had already turned and slapped the rapidly approaching tendril aside with his bare hand.

The Sternritter was walking towards them, a few scratches on its mantle and helmet.

[And who might you be? Your reiatsu is not that of a Shinigami, Hollow or Quincy, though physically, you do resemble us.]

"I would thank you not to compare me to scum like you, and there is no need for me to speak my name to one who would harm innocent children." The Seraph said, the coldness returning to his features.

[I see. In any case, if you are an ally of the Shinigami, then you are an enemy of the Wandenreich. I will eliminate you here.]

The Sternritter raised its minigun and prepared to fire at the Seraph, who raised a hand.

The wisps of wind surrounding him began to converge at his open palm, forming a ball of compressed air like the one from before.

Multiple popping sounds could be heard as the barrel of the minigun rapidly rotated and spat out rounds.

The Seraph closed his open palm, causing the gathered wind to spread out into a perfectly circular barrier, but at the same time, the sound of gunfire was abruptly cut off.

Marechiyo, the Seraph and the Sternritter all started when they realized that the minigun had been destroyed without any warning, and the bullets it had already fired were nowhere to be seen.

"Hm, I thought that Quincies were just bow and arrow-using barbarians, but it appears that you're actually quite civilized."

The three of them turned when a new voice cut in, one that Marechiyo was quite familiar with.

Atop a nearby building, holding the damaged barrel of the minigun in one hand, dropping the bullets it had fired with the other, and with two wing-like streams of wind behind her back, was Soifon.

[…My sensors did not react.]

"I'd be laughed out of the Onmitsukido if I wasn't capable of concealing my reiatsu to this extent."

[Soifon, the 9th head of the Fon family, Captain of the 2nd Division and Commander-in-Chief of the Onmitsukido. What is that appearance?]

"Hm, you have all of that information, but you don't know what this is? It's Shunko." Soifon said with a smirk.

Marechiyo blinked. She had told him of the ultimate Hakuda technique that she and her predecessor, Shihoin Yoruichi, were capable of using, but he had never actually seen it before.

[I am aware. An advanced battle technique that forces Kido into your back and shoulders, resulting in the highest level of Hakuda known to Gotei 13. However, your Shunko is supposed to be far from an optimal level that can be used in battle.]

"Did you really think that I would leave my Shunko incomplete forever? After my battle with Yoruichi-sama 4 years ago, I finally completed my Shunko, and have been training ever since to perfect and refine it. And now…"

The streams of wind around Soifon suddenly expanded, turning into massive vortexes.

"The attribute of my Shunko is wind. Thus, I found a way to have my reiatsu swirl endlessly like a vortex once released. As such, once I activate Shunko, I can use it for as long as I please with it active. Allow me to thank you. If you hadn't stolen my Bankai, I would never have found the motivation to master my Shunko to this extent." Soifon said with a smirk.

The Sternritter sensed danger and seemed to be about to move away, but before he could, a small tornado enveloped him, keeping him in place.

Marechiyo blinked, and then noticed that the Seraph had moved next to Soifon.

"It pleases me to see that Gotei 13 has such powerful members among its ranks. If you are be willing, would you synchronize the timing of your attack with mine?"

"You…are one of Heaven's Four Great Seraphs, if I remember correctly."

"Yes, I am Raphael."

"I appreciate your assistance, but this is the first time I'm using this technique in real combat. I cannot guarantee that our attacks will not hinder each other."

"That is nothing to be worried about. Like you, the element I employ in battle is wind." The Seraph named Raphael said.

Then, as if to prove his point, a gale kicked up around him, possessing so much force that even Soifon almost lost her balance.

The Captain of the 2nd Division looked stunned for a moment before her smile widened.

"I see. In that case, let us work together."

The Shinigami and the Seraph turned back to the Sternritter, who was still enveloped and immobilized by the tornado Raphael had created.

Both of them vanished and reappeared in front of the Sternritter, thrusting their arms towards it.

"Mukyu Shunko."

"Vortex."

Soifon and Raphael spoke at the same time.

In the next instant, a giant squall crashed into the Sternritter.

---

"I don't know your name, but I thank you for your assistance." Toshiro spoke to the Fallen Angel who had aided him by stopping Buzz-B's movements at the last moment.

"I am Shemhaza, the Vice-Governor of the Grigori, and there is no need for thanks. It's only natural to lend aid to a comrade." Shemhaze replied.

The two of them were still in the same place where they had clashed with the fire-wielding Quincy.

Said Quincy was currently pinned against a building by the massive blade of ice Toshiro had launched at him, unmoving.

They hadn't confirmed it yet, but he was probably dead.

There was no reiatsu coming from him, but Quincies did not naturally emit reiatsu.

However, the blade of ice had perforated several arteries and a lung. No one could survive that.

They were also surrounded by unranked Shinigami, who were proclaiming their renewed hope now that Toshiro had demonstrated that a Bankai was not necessary to win against the enemy.

A massive influx of reiatsu from another direction drew their attention.

"This reiatsu is…Soifon's?" Toshiro wondered out loud.

Other than Soifon's reiatsu, he could also sense that of another. Not a Shinigami. It felt like Shemhaza's, but purer in nature.

"It appears that your fellow Captain and Raphael have finished their battle as well." Shemhaze commented.

Toshiro recalled Raphael to be one of the Four Great Seraphs, the leaders of Heaven after the Biblical God's death.

"Looks like things are beginning to look up, Taicho." Matsumoto Rangiku, Toshiro's Lieutenant, commented.

"Looks that way. In that case, we better hurry and help out with the other battles. The sooner we do that, the sooner this war will be over-" Toshiro replied and prepared to move out.

"Hey."

A single word, uttered by someone who could possibly be talking, caused Toshiro to halt in his step and turn back towards Buzz-B.

"Now you're really starting to hurt my feelings. You're just gonna toss me aside after using me like a guinea pig? I haven't even gotten started yet!" Buzz-B proclaimed as the temperature of the area suddenly shot up, and the part of the ice blade pinning to the wall melted almost instantly.

"Impossible…!" Toshiro gaped at the sight of the red-haired Sternritter, looking completely uninjured other than his damaged clothes, as though he hadn't been stabbed by a giant slab of ice.

"It appears that our opponent is hardier than we thought." Shemhaza commented as he created a spear of light in his hand and prepared to fight again.

As expected of a warrior who had lived for more than a millennia. Not losing his cool when the situation turned against them.

Toshiro too calmed himself down and prepared to fight Buzz-B once more.

The unranked Shinigami weren't nearly as adaptive.

"I-Impossible! You should have been skewered by Hitsugaya-taicho's attack!"

"Yeah, it got skewered. My mantle, that is." Buzz-B commented lightly as he unclasped his shredded mantle and threw it aside.

Just as he said, the only thing that had been damaged by Toshiro's Shinku no Kori no Yaiba was his mantle. Every other part of him, other than his feet, which had been pierced by Shemhaza's spears of light, was completely untouched.

How was that possible? Even with these new techniques he had come up with, was the power of a Shikai not enough after all?

"Ow! Shit…" Buzz-B hissed in pain and moved to balance himself on the heels of his feet.

Evidently, he couldn't ignore the pain from the holes Shemhaza had made in his feet.

"Damn, this really hurts…I'll have to pay you back for this later, old man. But before that…Captain Popsicle, just now, you were talking shit about my flames, weren't you? In that case, how about I tell you something nice? All of the Sternritters who got hit directly by your Captain Commander's flames are still alive, including me." Buzz-B revealed, looking from the Vice-Governor of the Grigori to the Captain of the 10th Division.

"What!?"

That was a real shocker.

The Captain Commander's power in Shikai, despite his old age, was comparable to an average Captain with Bankai.

It was not possible to survive a direct hit from his flames unless one had a seriously powerful defense.

"Wanna know why? It's simple. My flames are strong enough to negate that of your Captain Commander."

Toshiro watched in stunned silence as Buzz-B placed a hand on the blade of ice, which immediately turned into boiling water.

"It's a real pity you don't have a Bankai. I would have really loved to see the look on your face when I showed you that one finger was all I needed to defeat it." Buzz-B taunted him.

Toshiro responded by swinging Hyorinmaru at Buzz-B, generating a stream of ice that travelled towards the Sternritter.

However, it stopped a few meters away from him and melted instantly.

"That won't reach me." Buzz-B declared.

"Then, how about this?"

Buzz-B reacted to Shemhaza's voice and started to move when two slabs of earth rose from the ground and slammed into him from opposite sides.

An ordinary person would have been flattened into very gory pancake, but Toshiro seriously doubted if that was even enough to make Buzz-B flinch.

He was proven correct when he heard Buzz-B's voice from within the space between the two slabs.

"Burner Finger 3."

The two slabs of earth lost their solidity and turned into red hot molten lava, freeing Buzz-B, who looked perfectly fine despite being pinned between very heavy pieces of rock.

"Tch." Shemhaza lightly clicked his tongue and took to the air when lava washed over the spot where he was just standing.

Toshiro froze the lava solid, turning it into frost-covered obsidian.

"Matsumoto, fall back! We need to rethink our strategy! I'll stall him with Ryojin Hyoheki!" He called out to his Lieutenant, who responded in the affirmative.

Acting quickly, Toshiro generated fine threads of ice, weaving them together in a crisscross pattern to form a solid barrier.

"Hm, a barrier made out of fine ice, huh? Pretty creative and unconventional. But, I'll show you that I wasn't exaggerating about what I could do to your ice with just one finger." Buzz-B said as he pointed his index finger at Toshiro through the barrier.

"Burner Finger 1."

Toshiro barely saw the rod of blazing heat before he almost lost his balance as the ground underneath him surged upwards, elevating him into the air.

Buzz-B's attack pierced through his Ryojin Hyoheki and the rock formation that had taken his place with no visible resistance.

Toshiro gulped as he imagined what would have happened to him if that attack had actually hit him.

"Tch, you're really starting to piss me off, old man!" Buzz-B yelled as he looked upwards.

But Toshiro knew that it wasn't directed towards him.

"You saved me again, Shemhaza-dono." Toshiro nodded in gratitude to the Fallen Angel flying next to him.

"Think nothing of it. Let us concentrate on this battle. We will have to fight much more cautiously against such a dangerous opponent." Shemhaza replied.

Toshiro nodded in agreement and prepared to engage Buzz-B again.

His bag of new tricks hadn't been exhausted quite yet.

---

The first sign that Soifon's and Raphael's opponent wasn't dead yet was not a burst of reiatsu, or of murderous intent.

Rather, it was the whizzing sound of something travelling through the air at high speed.

Two somethings, in fact.

Soifon and Raphael caught the tendrils aiming at them and used them to pull their opponent out of the smoke cloud that had been created in the aftermath of their combined attacks, slamming him into a nearby building, causing it to collapse in a shower of debris.

"So you're still breathing, you damn monster?" Soifon mused.

The Sternritter emerged from the debris, having lost its mantle either to their attacks or to the debris, revealing its metal body beneath.

[I have never once drawn breath.]

"A robot?" Raphael muttered.

"Hmph, Kurotsuchi would have a field day with a windup doll like you." Soifon commented.

Her amusement was somewhat cut short when several parts of the robotic Sternritter's body opened up, revealing multiple capsules.

They did not look the part, but Soifon knew what they were. After all, her Bankai was similar.

Those were tiny missiles.

[I am Sternritter, Epithet K, The Kinematical, BG9. Captain Soifon, your Mukyu Shunko has provided me with valuable data. However, if that is the limit of your power, then there isn't a need for me to use the Bankai I stole from you. Compared to you, the unknown being next to you presents a far greater threat.]

"Hm!?"

Sensing the impending danger, Raphael immediately moved out of the way, in time to avoid a salvo of missiles fired at his previous position.

[Your attack also provided me with extraordinary data. I can easily keep up with your speed now.]

The Sternritter called BG9 appeared behind Raphael and attempted to bombard him with more missiles, but Raphael vanished.

[Hm?]

"Sorry, but I am capable of moving faster than just that."

It was Raphael's turn to appear behind the Sternritter, this time with a golden western sword surrounded by a small gale in his hand.

The space around the Sternritter distorted for an instant before it was sent flying by a giant windstorm, crashing into yet another building.

"Flash Strike: Destructive Gale. I must thank Kurosaki Ichigo-kun for coming up with the idea of infusing elements into our techniques. Who would have thought that the raw power would increase by this much?" Raphael mused.

Soifon blinked. She hadn't even seen him swing the sword.

That appeared to have been the one of the techniques that Kurosaki Ichigo had employed against the rogue former Cadre of the Grigori, Kokabiel, a battle that Gotei 13 had observed.

However, it was much faster, and much more destructive than what Kurosaki Ichigo had been able to utilize.

Had Kurosaki Ichigo been holding back, or was this simply the result of a millennia's worth of experience that allowed Raphael to refine his technique to this level?

Soifon didn't have any more time to wonder, because it was at that point that BG9 reemerged from the destroyed building.

The Sternritter certainly looked to be in worse shape than before. Portions of its helmet had cracked, as had the left side of its chest plate as well as other parts of its armor. However, it appeared that whatever was inside the armor had not been damaged, or hadn't damaged severely enough to cause it to cease its functions.

"Hmph. Though Flash Kill is not as destructive as the other Angel Sword technique, I can hardly believe that was all the damage that it received." Raphael said with a click of his tongue.

[Interesting. That was another technique that I did not recognize. However, now that I have catalogued it into my database, it will not work on me again.]

"Is that so?" Raphael asked skeptically as he brandished his sword again and began to move away at high speed.

[Yes, that is indeed the case.]

"What!?" Raphael cried out in slightly strangled voice when a tendril pierced his arm while he was moving at a speed even Soifon could admire.

[It matters not if you have become faster. I simply have to factor in your increase in speed, and I can easily predict your movements-]

BG9's explanation was cut off by two simultaneous occurrences.

At the same time that Raphael cut through the tendril piercing his arm, Soifon moved to attack it from behind.

The former succeeded in his task, but the same could not be said for the latter.

"Ugh!" Soifon grunted in pain when BG9 vanished and reappeared next to her, stabbing another tendril into her wrist as it did so.

[As I have said, your Mukyu Shunko also provided me with valuable data.]

Soifon barely managed to get a word out when she noticed the salvo of missiles about to be launched at her from point blank range.

"Shi-!"

"Miss Soifon!"

Raphael's cry was the last thing she heard before her aural, along with her other senses, was bombarded with continuous explosions.

---

"Hm, things really aren't going well for us, are they?" Mayuri commented lightly from what was once the laboratory of the 12th Division, now an unknown building somewhere within enemy territory.

It wasn't just the lab itself they lost. All of their equipment had also disappeared.

All but in one place: Mayuri's quarters, which had not vanished like the rest of Seireitei thanks to the Captain of the 12th Division's ingenuity and quick thinking.

He had surmised from the previous attack that the Quincies had the ability to move around using shadows.

Thus, he reconfigured the layout of his quarters so that there wasn't a single shadow in the whole room, and had even created gaudy outfits for him and Nemu to cast light over their immediate surroundings, getting rid of nearby shadows and putting a stop to any trickery the Wandenreich might have prepared within them.

The Sternritter who was here had already retreated, intelligently guessing that Mayuri was an opponent he really didn't want to fight, so the place was safe for the time being.

Thus, using the equipment that was in Mayuri's quarters, the 12th Division was keeping an eye on all of the ongoing battles.

It wasn't exactly going well.

Hitsugaya Toshiro and Soifon were being overwhelmed by the Sternritters without their Bankais, and even with the addition of troops from the Three Factions, they were only managing stalemates at the moment.

As Mayuri had expected, only he was capable of fighting effectively without his Bankai.

"Hello~!"

"!?"

Mayuri started when an unpleasantly familiar voice rang in his ear.

"Oh, I finally got through! It's me, Urahara!"

"Urahara Kisuke, you bastard…you put a bug in my clothes!?" Mayuri seethed in anger.

"Yes, yes, let's leave that aside for now! I have important news! I've found a way to retrieve the stolen Bankais!"

"…What?"

---

The sky zoomed past quickly as the figures sped down towards Soul Society from the sky.

The first was a red-haired tattooed man wearing a striped bandanna, black visors, a striped, fur-hemmed jacket and a white double-breasted cape over a standard Shihakusho.

The second was a short, black-haired girl wearing a long white shawl wrapped around her head, white fluffy earmuffs, a white visor over her eyes, and a long white cloak over her Shihakusho.

They were Abarai Renji and Kuchiki Rukia, two of the Shinigami who had been taken up to the Soul King's Palace, and were now returning to Soul Society.

"…I can finally see Seireitei…No, I guess it'll be more accurate to call that place the Wandenreich." Renji commented.

"…We're losing daylight. Let's hurry, Renji!" Rukia replied.

---

The two increased their speed and continued their fall towards the citadel below.

Ichigo walked cautiously through the marble corridor, the floor covered in royal purple carpeting.

A white mantle, similar in appearance to a Captain's haori, tucked at his waist trailed behind him. That was only a part of his new appearance.

After his business at Hououden was finished, Ichigo proceeded onto the next palace, where Shutara Senjumaru, the Great Weave Guard, was waiting for him.

She wove new clothes for him, starting with a replacement for his shredded Shihakusho, heavily damaged after the Asauchis' test, adding on two white shoulder plates, one covered in red scales, crossing his chest in an X-shape.

The two shoulder plates also served the additional function of serving as the scabbards for Zangetsu when Ichigo wasn't using them.

Ichigo's true Zanpakuto, or Zanpakutos, to be more accurate, were currently in their sheaths.

The first was a pitch black Khyber knife the same shape as his previous Zanpakuto, with a handle extending from the other end of the grip, with a thin hollowed out portion extending from the base of the blade to the middle. This was Zangetsu, containing Ichigo's Shinigami and Hollow half of his powers.

The other was a pure white trench knife with an enclosed handle, smaller than the first blade, about the same size as Ichigo's forearm. This was also Zangetsu, containing Ichigo's Quincy half of his powers.

While Nimaiya Oetsu physically forged Ichigo's true Zanpakuto, Ichigo himself was sent to his inner world to confront the truth.

And boy, was the truth hard to accept.

The God of the Sword revealed that his Inner Hollow was the true representation of his Shinigami and Hollow powers, and that the old man he had always thought to be Zangetsu's manifestation was actually the representation of his Quincy powers, possessing Yhwach's appearance from 1000 years ago.

The old man himself had confirmed it, and revealed that he never wanted Ichigo to become a Shinigami.

However, Ichigo himself had changed his mind through his actions, the trials and tribulations he had gone through 4 years ago.

The old man relinquished the hold he had over Ichigo, releasing his full power and the true Zangetsu.

But, Ichigo knew that was wrong. No matter what the old man or Nimaiya Oetsu said, both his inner Hollow and the old man were Zangetsu.

Embracing that truth, Ichigo returned to the material plane and took up his Zanpakutos.

After that and visiting Shutara Senjumaru's palace, Ichigo proceeded on to the final Lesser Palace, the one belonging to Hyosubei Ichibei.

It was there that Ichigo actually started training, with the leader of the Royal Guard no less.

There wasn't enough time for him to master his Zanpakutos, not when there was a war brewing, but he managed to familiarize himself with the abilities of not only his Shikai, but his new Bankai as well.

Since it was a good opportunity, he activated his Balance Breaker, just to get used to the sensation and work out any discomfort he still felt.

In the end, he had spent more time than Renji, Rukia and Byakuya, who had arrived in that order, and all departed before him, Rukia and Renji first, and then Byakuya after a while.

With his training done, Ichigo assumed that he would be returning to Seireitei, but that was when the Monk who Declares the True Name greeted him with more news.

Namely, that the enigmatic Soul King wished to see him.

That was why Ichigo here right now, in a hallway in the Greater Palace, following a royal attendant who was taking him to the Soul King's chamber.

Ichigo kept up a cool expression on his face, but he was experiencing a good deal of inner turmoil.

Why would the Soul King want to see him specifically?

Was it because of his unique existence? Was it to talk about Aizen? Or something else entirely?

He couldn't figure it out at all.

"We have arrived, Kurosaki Ichigo-dono. This is the Soul King's Sanctum."

Ichig blinked and emerged from his thoughts when the attendant spoke to him.

They had stopped in front of a giant set of doors on the top floor of the Greater Palace.

The attendant pushed the doors open and motioned for Ichigo to go inside.

Once he had stepped inside, the attendant followed him in and shut the doors behind them.

Ichigo looked around.

For the dwelling place of the King of Soul Society, it looked very simple. Even the corridor outside looked more elaborate than this room did.

There was literally nothing in the room, nothing except the raised platform at the other side of the room, and the giant hexagonal crystal partially hidden behind white curtains draping the platform.

"!?" Ichigo started when he realized that there was someone inside the crystal.

It was humanoid in appearance, but Ichigo could only tell when he got closer, because it had no limbs at all.

Other than its face, it was completely featureless, looking like a limbless skin-colored clay doll modelled after an average man.

Even its facial features were very plain. It had short, slicked back black hair, and an average nose and an average mouth, and average thin eyebrows

Yes, all of its features were average. All but one.

Its eyes.

Ichigo could not help but stare into those strange, oval-shaped eyes.

Each eye had four black pupils, separated from each other by the white sclera that was shaped like a cross.

And more than its appearance, it was its reiatsu that really caught Ichigo's attention.

There was none.

This thing was not releasing any reiatsu whatsoever, not any that Ichigo could sense, yet, it carried an immensely heavy presence, making Ichigo feel like he was the same weak Substitute Shinigami who had just watched his father, Kisuke and Yoruichi get their asses kicked, and was now facing a Hogyoku-enhanced Aizen.

Ichigo understood. It was not this thing did not possess reiatsu. Its reiatsu was simply so great that it stood on a completely level altogether, so great that a lower being like him couldn't sense it.

He was standing before a transcendent being.

"Is this…the Soul King?"

The attendant moved past him and walked up to the crystal.

Ichigo blinked when he heard the attendant muttering, as though speaking to the Soul King.

Yet, Ichigo did not hear a reply, and was thus even more confused when the attendant turned to him and spoke.

"Kurosaki Ichigo-dono, there is something the Soul King wishes to impart to you. Please place your hand on the crystal."

Ichigo blinked again.

He had to do what?

This guy was telling him to get close to a transcendent being and actually touch it?

Ichigo was a lot of things, but he wasn't suicidal. He had seen what transcendent reiatsu did to lower beings.

"Is something the matter? Please place your hand on the crystal. It is very urgent."

However, it didn't look like he was being given a choice in the matter.

So, Ichigo slowly approached the crystal and gingerly placed his palm on it.

He immediately regretted doing so.

"Hrk!?" Ichigo let out a strangled cry as he was rendered completely immobile.

The attendant was right. Something was definitely being imparted to him, but it was going by so fast that Ichigo couldn't make sense of it.

Creation. Arbiters. YHWH. Offshoot. Mistake. Correction.

Those words passed into his mind and departed just as quickly.

Then, hundreds of images appeared in his head, allowing him to process.

And as he did, Ichigo truly understood.

He was being shown the truth.

---

And this chapter is finally done!

The second invasion has begun, but Gotei 13 has the aid of the Three Factions! How will things turn out?

Also, we finally have a glimpse into the true nature of the Soul King. All will be revealed in time.

As you can see, I've taken a few liberties, namely Unohana's Bankai and BG9's ability, since they were never explained in canon.

Next chapter will continue the invasion.

Once again, I have a new story posted, so check it out if you want. I'm rather pleased with it, and it probably departs from canon far more than any of my other stories.

That's all. As always, please read and review.