Chapter 7: The man in red appears! Nero's breaking point occurs

With the fight between Ichigo and Orihime's possessor finally over, we return to Nero the demon slayer's path as he endlessly fights against the various monsters who dare to block his path to save Kyrie.

"Damn it! You guys just don't know when to give up!" Nero yelled as once again, his path was being blockaded by the demons from this world which he recently discovered are called hollows.

Despite Nero's lack of experience in facing against the hollows, he found no difficulty in engaging in combat with them. After all, he had been taught exactly both the weak points and how to fight them.

Five hollows appeared in front of Nero and he was revving to kill them all. Time being of the essence, Nero had no time to waste on these persistent creatures.

With a sleight of hand like movement, Nero removed Red queen from his back and brought its power to full throttle.

"Get out of my way!" Nero yelled as he cut through two of the hollow's heads with a blazing fiery forward slash attack.

This only seemed to encourage the remaining hollows to attack him more tenaciously with the sudden decrease in their numbers.

"Go down!" Nero shouted as he used his devil bringer arm's power.

Nero with great force, used the devil bringers power and slammed another hollow's face into the ground smashing it through the reinforced surface.

"Be gone!" Nero shouted this time whilst his devil bringer changed its colour. From blue, to purple, to red!

Nero fired his revolver which he quickly released from its holster and took out the head of another hollow with a full powered blast.

Just when Nero thought that the battle was over, another 10 hollows appeared onto the battlefield, once again blocking Nero's path to go forward.

Nero's eyes suddenly shifted to a ruby shade, his body shaking in anger.

"I told you already… Get out of my way!" Nero losing all of his remaining patience, unleashed Yamato's power and wiped out those who dared oppose him with an amethyst slash attack in an instant.

With his path finally cleared up, Nero deactivated his devil state and dashed along the walkway.

The aggravated traveller of worlds quickened his pace, fearing the worst had happened to Kyrie.

This wasn't the first time that Kyrie was taken from him, hidden away somewhere dark away, so far away from his reach. He remembered her tears when she was sealed away by that senile old fool. He remembered the look of fear on her face when she first discovered his darkest secret. True despair was displayed on her face when she found out Nero was not in fact a human being after all, even though it wasn't completely part of him, one fact remained in reality. Nero is a demon. But Nero was able to save Kyrie last time by accepting this power. He lost another part of his humanity in the process, but this didn't matter to him anymore. Even if he has to give up on being human completely, Nero pressed onward with the resolve to save the girl he loved no matter what. Even if he had to succumb to the demon's power completely.

"Hold on Kyrie! I'm coming to save you!" Nero thought to himself as he came closer to an empty room.

Nero worried over what he would see when he finally caught up to her capturers, would she be hurt? Would she be in pain? Thought such as this, infuriated Nero and gave him the strength to take on anyone who dared to face him.

Nero's feet skidded to a halt when he realised his current predicament.

The room he entered was split into four other potential directions he could travelled down. But the question remained… Out of the four potential paths, which one should he take?

Nero's thoughts were interrupted by an unexpected guest.

"If you are searching for the other girl, she's down that way." An almost robotic voice said making Nero aware of his presence within the room.

"Who are you?!" Nero asked now drawing his sword again.

"My name is not important to you. Because in a minute, you'll be nothing more than another inferior fighter that I have cut down." Ulquiorra said as he too drew his sword.

"You bastard! Don't you dare underestimate me!" Nero yelled as he fired his revolver.

Ulquiorra made no attempt to dodge Nero's rapidly nearing bullets. Instead, he merely faced his open palm and stopped the bullets dead in their tracks.

However, Nero intended to use his firing as a decoy and just as planned, Nero dealt an attack with his sword.

A huge sound resonated through the empty echoing halls as Ulquiorra effortlessly blocked Nero's sword with his own.

"Interesting, you both have the same voice and possess the same emotional outbursts. Perhaps this fight will be worthwhile after all." Ulquiorra said as he took a step back and prepared for Nero's next attack.

"Deciding to finally take this battle seriously now are you? That's fine but I wasn't intending on half assing this battle even if you refused to draw your sword. I will kill you and save Kyrie!" Nero shouted making Ulquiorra suddenly step in and knock Nero back with the sudden force of his sword.

"Once again, you fight for what you humans call a heart. You really are similar to him aren't you?" Ulquiorra stated puzzling Nero.

"Who the hell are you comparing me to?" Nero replied revving his sword's bike throttle.

"It's true, you both possess the same way of thinking and similar fighting styles." Ulquiorra said as Nero closed in on him in a dance of flames.

Ulquiorra cut off Nero's confidence and momentum when he effortlessly extinguished the flames of Nero's blade with a swing of his sword.

Nero was swept into the air by the insane wind pressure and his sword scattered across the ground.

"But despite all of these similarities, you continuously disappoint me." Ulquiorra said as he hit Nero with a cero and sent him to the ground.

Nero slammed into the ground and coughed up blood upon impact.

"You are weak!" Ulquiorra said picking Nero up and throwing him at the nearest wall.

Nero was startled suddenly when Ulquiorra was staring directly at him.

"Why do you possess the same voice, and yet you are so much weaker than Ichigo Kurosaki? Is it your hair colour? Is it your eyes? I don't understand…" Ulquiorra said making Nero angry.

"I'm weak am I?! Try saying that when I kill you!" Nero yelled, drop kicking Ulquiorra backwards and then unleashed his devil bringers power.

After he extended his arm out towards his opponent, a ginormous hand came forth from his devil arm and grasped his opponent in its tight grip.

"Let's see how you like being slammed into the ground!" Nero yelled as he slammed Ulquiorra into the ground viciously from the ceiling.

"Well how's that you bastard?! Still going to shrug off my attack and say I'm weak?"

"Is that really all you have?" Ulquiorra plainly stated as he fried another cero.

This time, Nero saw the blast coming and managed to narrowly avoid it.

"You really think this is all I have? Fine! I'll show you the true power of Yamato!" Nero yelled as his eyes changed red once again and a giant blue demon wielding Yamato as well.

"So, is this your Bankai?" Ulquiorra inquired as Nero undertook his transformation.

"That word again? I don't know what the hell you are talking about. This is my true power!" Nero yelled as he unleashed an attack that Ulquiorra mistook for a Getsuga Tensho.

The slash attack was a direct hit! But Nero didn't stop there…

Nero continuously unleashed spiritual slash attacks at the arrogant pale swordsman who seemed disinterested in the fight.

Nero ceased fire and took off towards him instead.

Nero could not stop his charge and began to mercilessly attack Ulquiorra with both Yamato and his red queen. Though this was his first time using a dual wielding style, none of his attacks seemed to be missing.

"This is what happens when you underestimate humanity you bastard! I will take you down and go to her! I don't care if I have to become a demon… I will protect Kyrie!" Nero said suddenly grabbing the rag doll like Ulquiorra with his devil arm and spun him around, leaping into the air only to return to the ground with great force.

The floor was cracked and broken a cloud of smoke resulting from Nero's final spirit slash making contact.

Nero breathed heavily as he recovered from his intense assault.

"No way…" Nero plainly said when he saw his opponent was completely unharmed.

"I still find it strange… You have the same voice… And you fight for the same reasons. And yet you're still so weak boy." Ulquiorra coldly stated leaving Nero speechless and slightly afraid.

"Play time's over boy. It's time I show you true strength." Ulquiorra stated as a green black light swallowed him whole and exerted an intimidating pressure.

"You really are a demon…" Was all Nero could say when Ulquiorra's appearance had dramatically changed.

The fighter who wore human clothing and had the face of a mere mortal, had completely transformed.

His long white coat is gone, revealing his slender white torso, with his bare chest patterned so his Hollow hole which has become larger, appears to be dripping black, blood-like liquid. His waist becomes covered in something similar to black fur, which covers his arms and legs. His fingers grow claw-like extensions, and his feet resemble talons. The irises of his eyes turn yellow, and the sclera become green. The tear-like marks under his eyes increase in size and turn black. Ulquiorra's mask is completely gone. He has two large bat ears, and the #4 Espada tattoo is no longer visible on his chest.

"What's wrong? I thought killing demon's was your specialty?" Ulquiorra stated as he sent the off guard swordsman sky high once again.

Nero tried to rotate his body in a way that he could attempt to land safely on the ground. However, Ulquiorra was already in pursuit of his rag doll like form and wrapped his tail around Nero's neck.

Nero clutched his hands onto the whip like tail which currently strangled him tightly, but to no avail. Nero couldn't remove Ulquiorra's tail and began to lose consciousness.

"Not yet. I won't let you sleep yet." Ulquiorra said as he created a spiritual spear and stabbed it into the arrogant swordsman's shoulder.

"Ahh!" Nero cried out as blood spilled in miniature rivers out of his wound.

"Is this really all you have swordsman?" Ulquiorra asked following up his question with a painful kick to the prone Nero's ribs.

Even without the painful rib crunching sound, Nero was certain that a few of his ribs had definitely been broken.

Nero's still body struggled to stand, as if the body wasn't his own at all.

Nevertheless, the silver haired swordsman managed to stand to his feet in a staggering fashion.

Only to fall down again when the location of his sword was revealed.

An agonising pain came over Nero as the trusted red queen he always slayed demons with, was now plunged into his abdomen creating a huge hole in his stomach.

Nero collapsed to his knees in response to the shooting pain he was currently experiencing.

And just as Nero felt that one sword was painful enough, Nero's Yamato on which he dropped as he collapsed to his knees, was stabbed into him in almost the exact same spot as if his body was a human dart board and this was the bull's-eye target.

Nero coughed out the built up blood in his throat and fell to his hands and knees.

Ulquiorra grabbed the demon slayer by the head made hum stare directly into his lifeless eyes.

"What can I do to bring out your true power? Would it help you if I were to bring that girls head back to you? I'll sever it from her shoulders and give it to you as a present.

"Bastard! Don't you touch her!" Nero yelled as he tried to unleash the power of his demonic arm.

However, this only led to another bone crunching sound within Nero's body.

Nero cried out as his believed to be indestructible demon arm, swayed back and forth without a bone structure to hold it in place.

"That's enough, it appears I've overestimated your abilities. I will go kill the girl now, she no longer has any use to me." Ulquiorra coldly stated causing Nero to thrash around and lose more blood in the process.

"I will deal with you after I have dealt with the girl. Wait there." Ulquiorra said in response making Nero yell but as a result he passed out.

Nero reopened his eyes and found himself in a black void.

"Ah it feels so peaceful here. Perhaps I can finally close my eyes and take a break." Nero stated peacefully as his eyelids became heavier and heavier.

"Hey kid! What do you think you're doing? Your job isn't done yet!" A familiar voice shouted to Nero causing him to stand to attention.

Nero couldn't believe his eyes as he saw that nostalgic red trench coat and the hair that really matched his own.

"Dante?" Nero plainly replied to the hallucination.

"This isn't like you Nero! You can't grow up until you accept your power. Didn't you say that you would be happy to become a demon, if it meant you could protect your woman?" Dante said making Nero snap out of his relaxed mood.

"Truly pathetic, this man is the new suitor for yamato?" An unfamiliar voice stated causing Nero to search for who was talking.

Nero's eyes found the voices origin and spotted a man who looked a lot like him and Dante wearing a turquoise trench coat with his silver hair spiked back.

"Who are you?" Nero asked the stranger who now spoke to him.

"I am Virgil, the true holder of Yamato. Honestly this is pathetic to watch. You're not even close to using Yamato to its full potential!" Virgil yelled.

"Then what am I supposed to do?!" Nero questioned his two devil seniors and they both said the same thing.

"Unlock your devil trigger!"

Nero suddenly saw images of Kyrie in his head. The only person who didn't leave him behind after finding out he was a demon. He lost so much after his holiness turned on him and tried to kill both him and Credo.

"I won't…. I won't let her die!" Nero yelled as he felt his demonic arm move again and burn his insides.

Just as Ulquiorra was about to leave the room, he suddenly felt a chill run down his spine.

Ulquiorra suddenly got a huge wave of Déjà vu crash over him.

That monster that rose the last time he believed he had killed a man and crushed his spirit.

He recalled those lifeless monstrous eyes and that chilling hollow mask that covered them up perfectly.

Ulquiorra's leg and arm started to shake and cry out in pain.

"Is this hollowfication?" Ulquiorra questioned as he looked at Nero's newly formed appearance.

The devil arm that seemed to Nero's only demonic feature, had now suddenly increased its area on Nero's body.

What was once Nero's regular human body with his normal black and red coat, was now covered in a demonic skin matching the colour of his demonic arm.

The demon katana that was previously pierced into Nero's torso, was now in Nero's demon arm's grasp and had also increased in both size and power.

What used to be Nero's silver hair, was now decorated with demonic horns and samurai like helmet.

Ulquiorra suddenly started to connect the dots. The blue translucent ghostly demon behind Nero previously, had now merged with the swordsman.

Nero's red demonic eyes stared at Nero as he now stood in his newly awakened power.

Yamato's lost sheath now swayed back and forth from Nero's hip in his newly acquired skin.

"This is devil trigger! I said so already didn't I? If it means protecting Kyrie, then I don't care if I end up becoming a demon! You pushed me too far… And now I'm going to kill you and save Kyrie! Here I come you bastard!" Nero yelled as he took off towards Ulquiorra at frightening speed.

It's taken a while I know…. But here is chapter 7 :D. I figured that it was time for Nero to gain his original perfect devil trigger that he was originally supposed to have in devil may cry 4, but I added my own appearance to it. Just picture Nero's demonic arm and the pattern and colour it has, and now think of it as an armoured suit all over his body. So, who will win this battle? Or will Ichigo show up in plenty of time to defeat Ulquiorra himself? Find out in chapter 8 which I hope to get down next Tuesday . Chapter 8: Nero's devil trigger awakens! Demon vs Espada.