The old man opened his eyes only slightly as he looked down on Urahara and I, his face calm and neutral... even a little solemn. He lifted his cane just off the ground in front of him and brought it down with a resounding and unnaturally loud crack, and every head turned to face him. He glanced at me one more time and started to speak.
"Ichigo Kurosaki, as you surely know, the erosion of the seal on your power has forced your fate. You are formally forbidden from the World of the Living, lest your spirit crush humanity." I nodded my understanding as he continued.
"We estimate a week-long stay before the Guard comes for you. During that time, with your acceptance, everything possible will be done to attempt to stem your rapid growth." Here I opened my mouth to speak, but Urahara beat me to it. He pulled his hat low and opened his fan as he stepped forward. Yamamoto raised his eyebrows slightly but let the former Captain speak.
"Ichigo and I have actually devised a way to permanently limit his exponential potential." I could tell he was laughing a little inside at that as he looked at me, wondering if it was okay for him to continue. I nodded, and he kept talking.
"If his body is destroyed, fully and completely, he'd be dead, which would halt his growth." There was some muttering among the captains at that, and Yamamoto frowned as he spoke again.
"Urahara Kisuke, you do realize that Kurosaki's death would need to be final and absolute, as with every spirit of such strength to match the King's. If he were to be killed and reincarnated, the damage possible would obliterate everything. If this is indeed your plan, do you understand exactly what must be done?" Urahara nodded, but I just felt lost at this point.
"What?" I asked, slightly dreading the answer. Urahara had no change in his expression as he spoke, this time towards me.
"We'll have to use the Sogyoku on your body."
He said it so calmly; I almost didn't fully understand what he'd said.
"What?" I repeated, this time mostly out of shock. The shopkeeper nodded slowly.
"In order to prevent your soul being reborn even stronger than you are now, your body needs to be completely destroyed. The whole idea behind rebirth is having a bit of your original self as part of your new body. A few cells or molecules to tie you to your next body. The Sogyoku is rare and extremely effective because when it destroys something, every little bit, wherever it is, is burned as a whole. Any hair on a brush, baby teeth, nails, well, you get the idea. Every single trace of your physical body will be completely obliterated."
I stood in shock for a moment before a thought came to mind.
"Wait, that means…" Urahara traded glances with the Head Captain and bit his lip as I trailed off.
"You'll never be reborn." He finished my thought. "If your spirit dies, your soul will disappear forever. Of course, in the Royal Dimension, time doesn't exist, so you'll live until a stronger soul appears."
A whisper of "If a stronger soul than him shows up, there won't be any Soul Society left to rule." Informed me Captain Kyouraku had returned, but I ignored him.
I don't exactly know why this came as such a shock to me, because I hadn't really ever given the matter any thought. Or, maybe I hadn't thought about it because I'd always assumed there was a back-up plan. Now that I knew this was it, well… the idea was much heavier. I was vaguely of my reiatsu slowly strengthening, but I was freaking out to much to care. At least, until Urahara poked me with his cane and I looked at him, then at the struggling Captains. I scowled in anger before I turned on the spot and walked out of the room.

I heard Urahara talking about having a strong seal made for me, but his voice faded as I walked. Urahara had told me about a specially-prepared room for me, and I headed there. I didn't see anyone on my way, and I was grateful. I didn't want to have to explain anything to anyone else right now.

It was just as I walked into my room that Urahara came running around the corner, disheveled and slightly out of breath. I paused; hand on the door, waiting for him to say whatever he'd sprinted here for. He straightened and looked at me with wide eyes.

"They want to do it immediately. The entire Kido corps has already been summoned to retrieve the Sogyoku, revive it, and release it. I'd give them about two hours, because it'll take a while to break Ukitake's seal. They want you to burn off as much reiatsu as possible in that time so you can be there as a Shinigami." I listened intently, but when he got to that last bit I frowned.

"How exactly am I supposed to do that?" I asked. He smirked.

"Well, my old training grounds seals a lot of reiatsu inside, which is how you weren't found sooner when you were training for Bankai. My plan is to lock you in there and have you go all out. Hopefully the old place can take it!" He said, smirking, prideful as ever. I sighed and let go of the door. Kisuke bounced on his feet a little as he led me out of the building and into an easy shunpo towards the execution grounds. I kept up with him easily, even in my body.

We reached the cavern in short time, and Urahara all but pushed me in before sealing the door with a strong kido. I landed on my feet beside the ladder and silently cursed the insane shopkeeper before taking out my badge and looking at it. It really hit me then that it would be all but useless after this last time.

In less than two hours, my body would be destroyed by the very thing I'd nearly given it up to protect someone from. I'd gained an inner hollow, nearly become one myself, to save Rukia from the very thing I was now giving in to. The only reason I'd even gotten my powers in the first place was to protect my family. I'd lost them trying to protect Rukia, and I'd gotten them back saving her.

But now, I was too strong to protect anyone. If there was anyone they needed saving from, it was me. I'd gained everything I needed to 'save the world', but I couldn't stop gaining. The idea that ultimate power is how you 'win' is a horrible mistake. I wouldn't change anything though. If I never got my powers, I wouldn't ever have met Rukia, or Renji, or anyone else from the Soul Society. Aizen would be ruler of the universe, and I'd probably be dead by now.

I had just decided that life hated me when Zangetsu spoke up.

"Ichigo, your fate is what you make of it. You cannot change it, but how you view it may change the ultimate outcome. Treat this as an opportunity to better the world. Not many have seen nor accomplished your feats, and they have given you a perspective none share." Of course, the usual Zen teachings from my sword, but my hollow had his two cents too.

"Hey King, look at it this way. As far as we know, there's never been a King like you. You're barely eighteen, you have a hollow, and you understand more than you should. You have connections. Make it a better place for both humans and hollows. There's gotta be a way for you to figure out a way to make some semblance of peace with the remaining Espada, or there's gonna be another war. And with you out of the picture, there's gonna be heavy losses."

I decided that this conversation would be better face-to-face, and materialized both Zangetsu and Hichigo. Zangetsu was nodding his agreement with the hollow. I sighed.

"I know. But for now, I need to blow some steam. You guys up for some sparring?" I asked, and both nodded, Hichigo a little more excitedly than Zangetsu. I took a deep breath, and pressed the badge to my chest for the last time.