High above the clouds of Atlantic ocean, an unusual looking airship glowed briefly before suddenly turning invisible as it was about to enter the Europe continent. The technologically advanced machine was none other than the one Toushiro Hitsugaya left behind in the Bloodied Borderlands before his sudden departure to the Wandenreich city. He once again used it to travel across the same ocean, albeit in opposite direction, and this time he was accompanied by the Quincy doctor Ryuken Ishida. The two had finally managed to find the time between their busy schedule after their return to the world of the living to go back there and retrieve their belongings. Though, of course it was one of the things they had to do as soon as possible, since most of the researches that could greatly affect the course of the upcoming war were being kept inside the airship.

"We're already back in Europe... (Sigh) Hitsugaya-san, surely you have noticed that I could hardly be considered a fighter any longer. Don't get me wrong, I'm completely willing to give you my assistance, but is there really a purpose for me to partake in the war?" It still baffled him that instead of leaving him behind, the Shinigami insisted that he came along with him again.

"Well, I've also noticed that given some time, it is more than possible for you to surpass most of the Sternritter if you're willing to try. Your help would be very important, Doctor. Whilst I trust that the Wandenreich would honor the agreement to spare my comrades, I doubt they could care less about saving them, or even the rest of the world for that matter." Still, it was a relief that somehow he had been granted the permission to lead such a dangerous force.

"How about those two Sternritter women? They seem to have developed a strong attachment to you already. I've also accidentally heard a rumor that you and the green-haired one has slept together -" The usually composed doctor had to hold back a scream as the jet suddenly moved wildly for a few seconds.

"Sorry about that. (Ahem) About the ridiculous rumor, I'm sure you're far too intelligent to even consider its possibility. That psychotic woman always finds some kind of sick pleasure in messing up with me. I've got to admit though... despite that, it's not hard for me to see myself sharing close camaraderie with her and Miss McAllon in the future." And strangely, he found himself in some way looking forward to it.

"That's a good thing, I suppose. It would be in our favor if you manage to befriend them. This unexpected turn of event is still hard to believe though. What is the chance that you a Shinigami actually has a strong resemblance with a fallen Quincy hero?" He had some theories behind it, but all of them seemed unlikely.

"I try not to think about it, but I would be lying if I said it doesn't bother me. Normally every cycle of rebirth always ends up in the world of the living, but is it possible for a Quincy to be reborn in Soul Society?" Honestly, he didn't want to accept the possibility, but it'd be better than letting it continuously bother him.

"No. The anomaly that is Quincy technically resemble spiritual beings more than human beings. There are no souls in us that would transmigrate to Soul Society once we died. And to my knowledge, every case of literal rebirth indeed always happens as a human." Ryuken could say that with such certainty because he had witnessed the proof firsthand when his wife passed away.

"I'm glad that it's out of the question then. Now I can focus my mind on the tasks ahead. It was stupid of me to even consider it." Seriously, there were credible records and claims that prove his identity as a natural born soul.

"Still, pardon me if it might be rather blunt, Hitsugaya-san. How much do you know about your parents or ancestors?" He was certain that the young Shinigami could easily figure out what he was trying to point out.

"The only blood relative I have is my grandmother. I really hope I still have her... I've lost contact with her for years. She once told me that her daughter was my mother. No one knows about my father though. (Sigh) You can't be serious, Ishida-san. My Reiatsu doesn't resemble those of Quincy in the slightest bit." If it did, he would've spent much more time in the S.R.D.I. since he joined the Gotei 13.

"True. Well, it's not unheard of to discover completely unrelated people that look similar to each other." Not wanting to cause unnecessary worries, he decided not to mention that developing Shinigami power could completely mask any traces of Quincy characteristic in an impure Quincy descendant's Reiatsu.

"Nothing but coincident. The case is closed then." He honestly enjoyed talking with the doctor, but at that moment he was content that they both wordlessly agreed to enjoy the silence for the rest of the flight.

A few moments passed and they were already near their destination. The airship slowed down considerably as it approached a grand medieval castle on the cliff-side of a mountain in Germany. It was the Startlicht castle, the place where the Quincy had first began their empire. The Reishi barrier around the architecture was powerful enough to hide it for over a millennia. The Sternritter and their two allies had arrived there six days ago through a portal from Silbern, followed by several battalions of Soldat a day later. They all had been working tirelessly to clean up and upgrade their new but very old base since they arrived. In result, the castle had surely regained its former glory. And the technological advancement done by their only Shinigami member had made it not less high-tech than any government's secret facility. All in all, the preparation was mostly done, and the war was ready to begin.


The day had finally come for him to set the real campaign of his last mission in motion. He already had a long discussion with the Sternritter Grandmaster regarding their plan and objectives in the war. All of their forces had already been briefed about the ins and out of the 'new' world as well as their methods to attain victory. Naturally almost every Quincy basically was against the decision to save the Shinigami if not for their emperor's decree. Even then, only select few were willing to help with the task. It was not until he pointed out the great advantage they could have by freeing the Gotei 13 from Aizen's control that more of them decided to cooperate. Of course, having the Grandmaster's full support also played a big part in how much influence his words had over them. And it boosted his confidence seeing the ones who supported him nodded at him as he entered the meeting hall for the final briefing.

"Once again under the banner of Lichtreich, the time has come for us to continue our grand crusade. It is time for the Quincy to claim our destiny as the God's chosen hierarchs. The emperor has given his blessing. By his words, you are not meant to see Toushiro Hitsugaya as a mere Shinigami. This man is now our general. Disregarding his words is a crime worthy of a severe punishment." After his short speech, Haschwalth turned towards the young man, giving him a silent permission to speak.

"Thank you, Lord Haschwalth. Alright, there are two foremost objectives in the upcoming war. Those are culling the false god's influence all over the world and disturb the solidity of their forces. Considering our clear disadvantages, it is preferable to utilize two different approaches to achieve both objectives."

"Basically, we are going to form a bait unit with the purpose of turning the world's attention to it, while the rest of our forces work with utmost effectiveness. I'm going to personally lead this unit since it has the highest chance to attract enemy's reinforcement, preferably from Soul Society for obvious reasons."

"Even then, we must not overlook the possibility that the other units encounter the Shinigami forces. Therefore, each unit is required to have at least one member who's knowledgeable about the method to counter Aizen's influence. If you succeed, contact me as soon as possible, so I can speak to them."

"I intend to convince my freed comrades to keep pretending that they're still under the perfect hypnosis and return to Soul Society. We'll make it seem like we ended up losing in most encounter with them. On the contrary, we'll do everything we can to decimate every Arrancar forces we face against. Our aim is to gradually make Aizen lose his trust in his Hueco Mundo minions. We'll break them from the inside without them even realizing it."

"I'm positive that as long as we're not vastly outnumbered, our units could win most of our battles. The Judgelight, the technology I've mentioned before, has been proven to be able to increase the amount of Reishi in the immediate area up to one hundred sixty percent of the Reishi amount in Seireitei. However, the effect cannot last more than sixty minutes and can only be fired consecutively twice before needing to recharge. So we can't afford to be careless."

"The details of our upcoming operations as well as the teams composition can be found in the information center. Please check them out after this. Thank you for your attention. Is there any questions?" Inwardly, he sighed in frustration when he saw a certain psychotic woman raised her hand.

"I happened to wander in that place earlier and caught a glimpse of this 'bait unit' member list. It seems very promising what with two Schutzstaffel in it. The other three are also pretty awesome if I say so myself. Still, I can't help but to wonder if there's any strategical reason why the three of them are females... Not that I blame you of course, if there isn't." Candice smirked mischievously as the general endured all the dirty stares he was getting.

"The reason is indeed strategical. It's true that I have not known all of you for long, but I've studied the data about the abilities of each one of you. Bambietta Basterbine, Meninas McAllon, and you Candice Catnipp are arguably the most destructive Sternritter. And since this unit is basically a havoc squad, I figured the three of you are the most suited individuals for it." It was then his turn to smirk slightly as the woman tried helplessly to make a comeback.

"If none of you have any intelligent questions, I will end this meeting. Begin the preparations immediately. Dismissed." If only it was okay for someone of his standing to do it, the Grandmaster would've groan, expecting another typical bickering between those two to begin again.

Following the order, everyone especially the ones who were going to take part in the first batch of their operations quickly began their work. A few minutes before the designated time, they were ready to move out. The bait unit was assigned with Hitsugaya's airship to get to their destination, whilst the other units utilized public transportation to remain low profiled for the time being. The course of their actions would be monitored by Haschwalth who was expected to stay in the Startlicht castle command center unless the situation absolutely required him to step up. From there, by utilizing the computer that had been entrusted to him, he would be the one to deliver the Judgelight whenever he deemed it necessary. However, the main purpose for him to stay behind was to be a great guardian for their sacred base if things turned badly.


It was a few hours before dawn that they landed at a remote location miles away from their target destination. They would then finish the rest of the distance 'by foot' to avoid unnecessary troubles with the airship. It was unusual for him to feel this tired after a flight, but quite understandable this time. Seriously, he had to deal with Gerard Valkyrie's persistence attempt to become his best buddy, while having no choice but to hear the Quincy ladies' bizarre version of a girls talk from the passenger seats. After having to endure all of those nonsense, the cool morning breeze felt like a blessing as he casually flash-stepped through the air. By the time the silhouette of a massive city came into view, he already felt freshened up enough to face a battle. It was magnificent indeed, the capital of the arguably strongest new human nation, the Grand State of America.

"What an amazing city... It's such a shame it has to be visited by Bambi-chan and Candi." For Meninas who had not been in the world of the living for more than a millennia, it was hard not to be captivated by the view of such a highly modern city.

"Shut up, Meni. We'll go according to plan. Sternritter, move out! Uh oh... Can someone tell me where we're going?" Once again after so many times, Candice impersonated Toushiro's blunder from the time they left Silbern, and again it still made them laugh out loud.

"(Sigh) We're going to the city to introduce you as a bad alternative electric power source. Now, let's do this." If he hadn't already been tied down to a certain scary Arrancar lady, he would've ravaged this bitch till she submitted to him completely and became as meek as a bunny.

"Heh, that's a good one, general. Don't forget about the deal. You watch and let me handle things... unless your old friends show up, of course." It was rather awkward, but Bambietta had begun to acknowledge this one Shinigami since he surprisingly cared to listen to her seriously despite her hostility.

And it all began with the Sternreitter T lightened up the sky and shaken up the whole city by creating numerous lightning explosions in close proximity with the skyscrapers. In no time, chaos spread out everywhere, and the nation's defense units came to evacuate the citizens. Meanwhile, the Sternritter E took over the city's local broadcasting station and forced the staffs to assist her. At once, the large displays located on various places all around the city showed a pretty but sinister young woman in white uniform. The dark haired woman proudly declared that the Light Empire had come to liberate humanity from the dark age of the fake god's reign. As predicted, every Arrancar stationed there that had been acting as the nation's government immediately showed up in their true form. Most of them were Aizen's newer type creations, and close to the level of the lower class Espada in strength.

As the dawn began to break, the excitement for a battle after being in isolation for so long drove all the Sternritter into frenzy. Thankfully, they still had enough senses to take the fights away from the ground level, sparring any unlucky humans from becoming unnecessary casualties. Wearing the Schutztaffel cloak with the hood up, the former Shinigami Captain observed the ensuing battles from the top of the highest tower in the city. His attention was mostly focused towards the other Schutztaffel, the one Quincy that he was most wary of. It was clear that the Sternritter M was toying with the five Arrancar he faced against, grinning widely for each blow he scored and suffered. He didn't even seem to use his Schrift while at the same time the girls had been using theirs to wreak havoc. It was a long outnumbered battle, one that took them almost a day to finish off the last of their foes.

"Listen up! Your fake guardians have all fallen. They were nothing but poorly disguised oppressors. Now with this, this land has become a part of Lichtreich!" Standing on a pedestal under a large griffon statue at the city center, Bambietta proudly wave around the Empire of Light's flag for everyone to see.

"Hey, Toushi. You know how you've actually been giving her the chance to further boost up her ego, right? Those cameras all around her surely made her think like she was some kind of celebrity." Both Candice and Toushiro were sitting rather closely together on a bench, watching the commotion from a distance.

"That means she does her part well, just like each one of you. And now that the war has officially begun, it's just a matter of time until Aizen responses to our invitation." Right then he paused to wave at his pink-haired comrade whom cheerfully approached them before taking a seat at his other side.

"Uh oh, am I interrupting something? You guys looked like a dating couple being lovey-dovey for a moment there..." Instantly, the poor girl received absolutely deadpanned looks from the other two for her unintelligent quip.

"Let's ignore this airhead. Just consider her as some sort of decoration for this bench. Anyway, any idea why those human didn't try to fight us? I heard they have some pretty cool war machines nowadays." During the battle she caught a glimpse of one of those things, but strangely it just did nothing.

"They believed their government consisted of the god's chosen heralds and were the true power behind this nation's greatness. Therefore, it is to be expected that they gave up completely once they saw them be defeated by four strangers." Actually he was glad that that the humans were rather rational this time.

"(Sigh) You guys are so mean. It's better to just leave the two lovebirds alone, I guess... Um maybe I should tell Gerard about this?" Ignoring her friends' annoyed looks this time, Meninas left to find the big Sternritter.


The Heavenswards' residence had become mostly quite these days, not that she minded it though. By her order, two of her sisters would still stay in the Negal Ruins for the time being. They had reported back to her, and she decided that they would be more needed there with the refugees than here with her. She was quite content living only with Mila Rose, and really appreciated her caring nature. Still, she felt bad that the brunette had made it her duty to do all of the house chores by herself to the point that sometimes she seemed more like a maidservant. Unfortunately, she knew all too well how stubborn her sister could be if it concerned her well being. So then, the only thing she could do to show her gratitude was by being closer to her, making her feel like they were not any less than real blood related sisters. It was by doing little things such as regularly watching TV together in their cozy living room.

"TV shows these days... (Groan) Even in silly romance series, there are rarely any episodes without some stupid Aizen worshiping in it." In irritation, Mila Rose switched the channel that showed a teenage girl who didn't appear to be clear whether she was actually confessing to her crush or to her god.

"(Chuckle) Well... Looking back, I used to be as cringe worthy as that silly girl, didn't I?" Ashamedly Tier still remembered how she was so captivated by her old master to the point that she considered him as her love interest.

"Hey... Regardless how much he deserves to rot in hell for what he's done, he still saved you once. It's normal for a girl to feel attached to someone who saved her. But, forget about that. You've already found someone whom you can trust your heart to now." It was clear to see to her that her pregnant sister honestly had fallen in love with Toushiro Hitsugaya despite her apathetic facade.

"You mean that kid who kidnapped me, restrained my power, and then knocked me up before leaving me behind once he got tired of me?" Well, that sounded much crueler than what actually happened, but she couldn't help it, what with her moodiness as of late.

"You know that's not true, Tier. You will see him again sooner than you expected." Not wanting to keep the blonde in a somber mood, she continued to browse the channel to distract her, until she stopped at a news channel that was having a breaking news.

It showed the chaotic view of Griffon's Arch, the new capital of a super power human nation in the aftermath of a great battle. The reporter mentioned that before dawn, a small band of invaders had appeared so suddenly following a series of great lightning explosions all over the city. A woman who was suspected as the leader then declared their intention against the new god's reign. In response, the government or the nation guardians to be exact confronted them and the city became a battlefield between powerful spiritual beings. It had only been about twenty minutes after the battle was over with their guardians' complete defeat to their despair. The screen then changed quickly to show the woman from earlier waving around a foreign flag while proclaiming their victory around the media. She was a quite beautiful young woman, wearing a set of unidentified white uniform complete with a white cap on top of her head.

"Lichtreich? Have you ever heard about it before?" She knew that her mistress had lived far longer than her and definitely possessed much more knowledge.

"The Empire of Light was an infamous Quincy empire. A thousand years ago back when I was still a lesser Hollow, I heard they waged war against the Gotei 13 and ended up lost. Since then, they has never been heard again... until now." Somehow she could still foggily remembered the memory from a very long time ago when she ventured to the world of the living and heard several Adjuchas talked about it.

On the TV, there appeared a few journalists making futile attempts to get an interview with the woman who identified herself as the Sternritter E. After a few moments, the camera zoomed up to catch the two figures on top of the griffon statue. There was a pink haired woman with a similar uniform as the other one, talking excitedly with a hulking man who wore a large cape. The view switched back down again suddenly. This time the camera moved a good distance away from the statue before showing another two persons sitting on a bench. A woman wearing a more revealing version of the white uniform could be seen resting her head on the shoulder of the man seating beside her with her eyes closed. The man himself wore a hooded cloak that at that exact moment got swept down by the wind, revealing him to be a very handsome 'teenager' with unruly white hair.

"You're right, Mila Rose. It is indeed sooner than I expected..." For some reasons, it hurt to look at his face again, so she decided to inspect the green haired woman who seemed to be asleep by his side.

"I - I don't think that guy is who you think he is, Tier. I mean, Hitsugaya-san is a Shinigami, and it's not a secret that Shinigami and Quincy are polar opposites. They hate each other. There's no way he would ever be that close with a Quincy." Never before had she ever seen the ex Espada looked so fragile like that, and it broke her heart to see her still trying to appear unwavering as usual.

"Don't be silly. That Quincy is a woman, a very attractive one at that. He's simply back to his true nature." How foolish of her to think that she alone would be enough to ever satisfy him, she bitterly realized.


It didn't appear on his still impassive face, but he honestly felt somewhat annoyed with his current predicament. Just several minutes ago he was having an unusually serious discussion with this woman, but when another bickering was about to begin, she suddenly fell silent. It wasn't until her head fell on his right shoulder and she unconsciously snuggled close to him that he realized she had fallen asleep. He then heard someone calling him from the top of the big statue, and saw Meninas winked at him and Gerard gave him a thumbs up. What the hell was wrong with his unit?! This was so messed up and to make it worse, he suddenly noticed that Candice Catnipp actually drooled on his exclusive Schutzstaffel coat. If he wasn't being considerate with her fatigue state, he would have strangled her already. When he suddenly felt several powerful Reiatsu appeared, he never thought he would feel this relieved.

"Wake up, you female dog. Wipe your drool. It's time to fight." He said it loud and close enough to her ear to wake her up in an instant.

"H-Hey! I don't mind being called a bitch, but a female dog?! Really, Toushi? Yeah, I know they basically mean the same, but - Wait, I so didn't drool!" For some reasons she seemed to be much more worried about keeping her reputation than the upcoming battle.

"Yeah yeah, you just licked my shoulder. Now, pay attention. There are nine of them, and all appear to be high ranking Shinigami. Our priority is to save them, but it means nothing if you have to risk your life to do so. Just... don't get killed, Candice." With that, he immediately headed to where the Senkaimon appeared without noticing a faint blush appeared on her surprised face.

It turned out he wasn't completely correct in his deduction, he realized as the opponents' Reiatsu turned to resemble more of Hollows all of a sudden. His mind already made a good guess on their identities, but as he was about to report back to the base, a pure black Zanpakuto coming from behind forced him to act on instinct. The hand he was holding Hyorinmaru with wavered slightly as it blocked the deadly blow from Tensa Zangetsu that was aimed at his back. In quick succession, he fired a Sokatsui spell backward with his left hand and then flash-stepped away from his reeling opponent. It felt rather nostalgic to finally meet an old friend again even in this unfortunate circumstances. Deep down he was somewhat glad that Ichigo Kurosaki had donned his Hollow mask, because that way he could fight without hesitation at seeing a friend's face.

"Getsuga Tensho!" The all too familiar powerful attack was launched with such intensity that made it impossible to evade from.

Toushiro reacted in time to encased himself with a Tozansho spell, protecting him from the destructive energy until it shattered just as the attack ceased. There was no time to breath though, because in a split second he had to avoid being impaled by the black blade as the wielder suddenly appeared from above. His opponent's attacks were absolutely relentless and brutal, possibly because Aizen's hypnosis had managed to even influence his Hollow. Hopefully someone from his unit had reported back to request the Judgelight, since he didn't think he would have the chance to do so. At this rate, only with quick thinking and strategic planning would the real objective of this operation possibly be accomplished. He decided to continue on the defensive against the Vizard's unrelenting assaults, but all the while also silently used Niju Eisho to prepare two Kido spells at the same time.

"Hado #63. Raikoho!" The violent golden lightning strike of the spell only manage to burn Ichigo's sleeve as he moved aside easily, but it was actually pretty much what he expected.

"Bakudo #99. Kin." Just as he had planned, his opponent stood exactly at the place where black spiritual fabrics suddenly appeared to bind his arms behind his back and then warped his entire body before pinning him to the ground with the help of several iron shafts.

"Finally... The battle has started to turn in our favor." He looked up in relief as a huge burst of light came from the sky and briefly engulfed the city in a complete brightness, resulting in a rapid increase of Reishi particles in the air.

"(Chuckle) I'LL KILL YOU!" The shout coming from the incapacitated Vizard was inhuman as some black and red Reiatsu wildly engulfed him until they dispersed a moment later, showing him in his complete Hollowfied form with the shredded remains of the binding fabrics around him.

"I don't think so." Sensing that the girls had all activated their Volstandig, he too decided to go all out as misty aura surrounded his body.

Just from a first glance, Toushiro could tell that his opponent's Vasto Lorde -like form was at least on par with Tier's Segunda Etapa. That meant the whole city would be reduced to rubble if he didn't move the battle elsewhere. With a Shunpo he then reappeared high above the city, and as expected the Vizard that had become more like a mindless beast followed him in a blink of an eye. To his surprise though, there in between the tips of the beast's horns, a big Cero was already in full charge and ready to be fired. But the distance between them was too close, so there was no other option for him but to endure the devastating attack head-on. Fortunately, thanks to his Reaper Shroud form's astounding durability and the fact that the Cero itself wasn't nearly as dangerous as Tier's finishing move, he managed to emerge from the explosion with only minor bruises.

The following fight happened immediately and if only they weren't this high in the sky, they would undoubtedly decimate anything that get in their way. With this much intensity, there was no room in this fight for anything other than melee clashes, but as usual it didn't keep Toushiro from thinking ahead. The best strategy against Hollows is to focus on breaking their masks, but it would be far from easy. It was not until he managed to cut off the beast's horns with Hitotsume: Nadegiri technique that he deemed it safe enough to proceed his plan. With a roar, his enraged opponent impaled his sword forward, but instead of blocking or evading, he thrust his own sword forward, making it closely parallel with the black blade. In an extremely fast pace, he used Hyorinmaru's power to freeze both blades in place, before sending a devastating kick at the mask with his metal boot, shattering it instantly.

"I'll welcome you back soon, Kurosaki." He didn't waste time to draw two special-made syringes containing the antidote that he then carefully injected into the momentarily stunned Substitute's Saketsu and Hakusui points.


Sometimes later, the newly appointed Schutzstaffel felt silly for being somewhat cautious about the state of the city, since it ended up devastated nonetheless. The Judgelight's contribution was proven to be more potent than even he had expected. Maybe his decision to bring the three most destructive Sternritter was not really wise after all, considering how much damage they had inflicted with their Volstandig. However, the one most responsible over the grand capital city's utter destruction was none other than the other Schutzstaffel. The man still didn't use his Volstandig, but the devastation he caused with his 'godly size' as he battled and won against three former Captain Vizards was simply unbelievable. Even though the human casualties were rather high, Toushiro decided to not think too much about it. He was not a hero and had no desire to be one, but he did take a moment to pay respect nevertheless.

As long as their objectives were completed, he would consider it a success. His new Quincy comrades in the end managed to incapacitated all of his old Vizards comrades. After they were freed, he surprised them by revealing his identity as the one and only Toushiro Hitsugaya. He then surprised them further when he explained his grand scheme as well as his alliance with the Wandenreich Quincy. After some consideration, the Vizards all asked to join him, but he denied their request by explaining his special plan for them. All nine of them would return to Soul Society 'victorious' and act like they were still under Aizen's influence for the time being. They reluctantly agreed and this time asked him to give them the antidotes so they could at least do something while in there, but once again he refused. It wasn't easy, but he managed to convince them that the method was too risky for them to use without being exposed.

"Now answer this, baldy. How in the hell could you become this tall, huh?! It's not fair! I've been waiting so long to grow up to be the hot woman I'm supposed to be. I want boobs too dammit!" Instinctively, the forever short Hiyori Sarugaki used her sandal to knock out a certain idiot as soon as she heard a snicker.

"Wait a sec. How tall was Toushi when you two last met?" Candice would never miss any opportunity to find out about anything that she could use against him.

"I was definitely taller than this loud brat -" This time it was his chance to taste the infamous sandal, but fortunately he could block it in time.

"Are you now a coward, baldy? Ha! You're afraid your girlfriend would know that you were so shorter than me!" Honestly, she also couldn't believe her rival in height had managed to get himself a girlfriend (she'd bet the slutty Quincy bitch was his girlfriend).

"Me? A coward? Ridiculous. I'm also in fact not bald. And who do you assume as my girlfriend? This psychotic female dog? Not a chance." At that moment, he was too annoyed with Hiyori to notice the said psycho's hurt expression and her best friend's disappointed glare.

"Okay okay. Enough, you two. We'll go back to Soul Society once Shinji wakes up. In the meantime, I need to talk with Toushiro. Come on, Toushiro." As the two walked side by side, the Substitute was still rather dumbfounded that he and the ex Captain were around the same height.

"(Sigh) I'm sorry for your loss, Kurosaki. Your family, I mean." He doubted anyone in the real Karakura town survived from being sacrificed by Aizen.

"Why did they have to die? Karin... Yuzu... It should've been me, the reckless stupid me... or the old goat who never told us that he's also a Shinigami all along. That moron... He should have been there to protect his daughters!" Once he met his old man again in Seireitei, he would so beat him into a pulp.

"It is fine to grief. It is understandable to be angry. But don't forget about the ones who are still there for you. If you want justice, you have to kill the reckless stupid you." He could tell already from first glance that the Substitute had matured a bit, and not just physically.

"You're right. There are still Chad, Ishida, Rukia, Renji, and the others. Someday we'll make everything right again. Still... This is what I meant to ask you, Toushiro. Inoue... I haven't seen her since that time in Las Noches. Do you know what happened to her?" He blamed Aizen for making him lose himself, but he also couldn't help but to blame himself for not remembering that sweet girl who had always been there for him.

"Unfortunately no. But you have to believe, Kurosaki. She needs you to believe, to preserve your hope... for the both of you." In the end he decided to not be honest, because there was a high chance the Substitute would go completely berserk and risk their plan if he heard the truth.

"Even though I got no answer, that is exactly what I need to hear. Thank you. I won't disappoint her... or anyone else ever again. Well, it looks like Shinji is up again. I'll see you later, Toushiro." Feeling much better, he patted the other boy's shoulder before heading toward his Vizards friends.

"The time will come, Kurosaki. We'll take everything back." He allowed himself a smile as he looked at the hero who even though didn't look back, raised his hand casually in salute.


So far I've been trying to prevent Toushiro from using his Bankai as much as possible. It's because I think the completed Daiguren Hyourinmaru's ability that can negate the functions and abilities of anything he freezes is overpowered. This combines with his Shikai Hyouketsu that allows him to freeze all matter in front of him and the fact that anyone who touches him will be flash-frozen could potentially make him invincible.