The next story that takes place is "On Hollow Grounds"

Till We Meet Again

With a fierce eruption of reiatsu, Kein released her Bankai as links of beautiful chains hung from her belt, her sword now a giant gorgeous scythe, and her aura a darkened blackish red.

"That's more like it!"

Grimmjow stated with satisfaction. Her reiatsu could be seen and felt from afar as the other groups that were fighting took a moment to look in the direction. Without hesitation Kein came at Grimmjow with lightning fast speed, striking down her scythe upon the ground, but Grimmjow easily dodged as he jumped up into the air. Using a spinning output of her reiatsu into her hand, she caused her scythe to spin almost uncontrollably to make it a deadly spinning blade just as she had seen Ernesto do during their fight.

She caught onto the technique quite quickly as she came up with a variation to Ernesto's, throwing her blade and letting it fly in the air like a boomerang, but the minute it caught up to Grimmjow, he merely deflected it as it was shot back at her as she caught it, but barely missing a slice onto her face from the blade. She was a little surprised that he could so easily send it back, but it didn't deter her.

Suddenly Grimmjow appeared before her with a forceful punch, but she dodged and came up behind him with a sideways flying kick, but he countered her dodge with another as he grabbed her arm, pulled her in, and socked her right in the jaw, sending her flying into the ground. Using the end part of her staff, she forced it into the cement to push herself off of it from colliding, but Grimmjow was quick to come at her as he launched his body forward with a powerful burst of energy to impact into her directly, but she dodged at the last second by a mere hair's length.

The dent into the ground caused smoke to arise as she lost sight of him, but she could easily feel where his reiatsu was as she swiped her blade through the smoke as Grimmjow grabbed the edge of the blade with his bare hands. Pushing it away forcefully, he quickly went in and side kicked her into the stomach as she was plummeted along the ground, skidding like a bouncing rock on water. Impacting into a light pole, it bent severely as it slowly fell over in half as Kein got to her feet.

"Damn, this is going to cause a lot of damage," she stated as she jumped high into the air to give herself a better view of things as Grimmjow quickly came up to her to punch her square in the face. Using a form of hand to hand combat she was taught, she used her left hand to deflect his punch sideways, held onto it as she then swung her right foot to kick him upside the head, but he caught her foot, grabbed tightly, spun himself in such a way that her grasp upon his wrist and his grasp upon her foot sent her flying off into a direction. He used this moment to come at her, uppercut her from underneath as she catapulted in an upward direction and then teleported above her as he side kicked her sideways into her stomach, sending her downwards back into the ground as her body spun uncontrollably.

The ground shook as her body contacted the hard street cement as rubble and dust flew up everywhere around her. The wind was nearly knocked out of her as she staggered to her feet. She never in her life imagined that this Arrancar would be this powerful. She hadn't had such a hard time fighting an enemy since she fought with Gutierrez when they first met during the dimensional rift incident in Soul Society, but this fight was different.

Grimmjow was the first opponent that she has faced that preferred to fight with his hands instead of his sword. Either he did it because he felt it wasn't necessary to use his weapon, or he merely got a joy out of digging in the dirt with his bare hands instead of relying on a weapon. Either way, it didn't matter to her as she panted heavily, raising her weapon ready for his next strike.

This fight was turning out to be everything she was hoping for in an opponent. Within seconds Grimmjow burst through the smoke and debris as she swung her scythe in counter as his fist hit her blade, nearly cracking it as he then pushed it downwards, using the push to swing his body and kick the side of her face as blood spat from her mouth, sending her away once again as she bounced along the ground and finally skidded through asphalt until she came to a complete stop, smacking into a car.

Grimmjow began to slowly take his time as he began to approach her. She staggered more heavily as she found it rather difficult to get up. At this point it was obvious to her that her Bankai wasn't going to be enough, but then that very thought stopped in its tracks as she took it back.

"No…I refuse to use 'Rei de Seikatsu' to try to defeat this guy. I will not insult Ernesto and Bankaguna like that. If I'm going to defeat this guy, then it's going to be on my own standing and own strength. I will not rely constantly on a technique that is meant to be used as a last resort. No, I will stand…and I will take these beatings head on. Besides, even if I did use those techniques, something tells me this guy is hiding the depth of his true power. He's beating me and he's not even using his Zanpakutou. I'm just going to have to accept that I need to refine my abilities and come up with a better solution in battle. Either I'm using this blade improperly or it's just merely slo…no…it's not slowing me down. I'm just notgood enoughwith it yet. I will force myself to stray from fighting Grimmjow hand to hand. I WILL learn to fight with Bankaguna properly."

Despite how grave the moment probably looked on the outside, she couldn't help but grin and chuckle as her body trembled. Her laughing was cut short, finding herself covered in a daunting shadow as Grimmjow grabbed the top of her sweater and picked her right up off the ground. With his other hand he threw a punch at her, but she caught it at the last second as she continued to chuckle. She didn't mean to, but she couldn't help it.

"What the hell is so funny girl?"

"Heh, heh, heh, s-sorry…Grimmjow…" panting momentarily "…I mean no d-disrespect, but I can't help…but laugh…at how badly I'm getting beaten by you."

Her statement and reaction to the situation was unexpected. What at first he expected to be some defeated type of mocking taunt, instead turned out to be some strange form of nervous chuckling respect. His opponent was actually enjoying getting beaten badly? This was new.

"Heh, is that right?" He asked, his grin returning to his face as he let go of her, releasing her from his grasp, her feet touching back upon the ground as she dropped her weapon for the time being. He was going to swing at her again, but she countered once more and caught his fists as their hands were in a dead lock, however she was finding it incredibly hard to hold his fists in her hands to keep him from punching her face into putty.

"I can tell…that you're e-enjoying this…" blood dripping out from her mouth from panting "…just as much…a-as me. Well? D-Doesn't it excite you?"

"Ha, ha, ha! I'll admit it's refreshing to finally have an opponent that enjoys getting the shit beaten out of them! But don't let the fun cloud your mind into thinking that you have even an ounce of a chance at winning!"

Using the force from her gripping onto his hands, he swung his arms sideways as her grip was lost, allowing him to come up from underneath her to give her an uppercut so hard that it split the skin on her chin as blood gushed forth from it. The impact was so firm that she could have sworn the bones in her chin had fractured as her body was sent flying upwards.

Teleporting above her once again, he then kicked her right back down like a soccer ball being shot into a goal as she impacted into the same spot as before as a large amount of smoke erupted. Placing his hands inside his pockets and spitting to the side a large wad of saliva, slight irritation overtook his face.

"Is that all there is to your Bankai? You may desire to fight, but I gotta say you've turned out to be a real disappointment. You used your Bankai and all it gives you is average speed? HUH?"

There was silence in the air as he waited for the smoke to clear or at least to hear a response, but there was none. However, flashes of memories went through Kein's mind as she remembered witnessing the ultimate technique of her Zanpakutou from her fight with Ernesto as the name of the attack echoed and she got up and cried out, "GOUKYUU…JIGEN!"

Grimmjow gasped as he put up his arms in defense, watching as a strange Grim Reaper silhouette came at him, but then within seconds had flashed forth into a yellow ragging power as it hit against him in an incredible impact as it exploded against his skin. The attack burned like acid as it left some nasty marks against his forearms and most of all upon his chest.

When the attack had cleared, Kein was now heavily breathing from the release of such a powerful technique. Had she been at full power, it would have been more affective, but that attack took nearly everything she had as it was the first time she had ever released it.

"Damn…what the hell was that? Aizen didn't mention in his description of you about that attack, Kein! Not a damn thing."

Kein returned a grin to him as she replied, "Glad to see that you're not disappointed after all, Grimmjow."

"HA, HA, HA, HA, HA ,HA ,HA! Guess I might have been wrong about you! It may turn out that you're worth killing after all!"

As pleased as Kein was to see that Grimmjow was grinning at her again, she couldn't help but feel a bit worried about her attack. She was sure she had used it correctly, even though it was her first time shooting it in the real world, but upon looking at his body, Grimmjow seemed to just merely have burns and nothing more. She remembered the other affects of the attack, but he didn't seem to show any signs of weakening or his five senses being over clouded …or… maybe they were affecting him. Either way, he wasn't showing any signs of backing off.

"Hey Kein, just how long are you going to stand there?" He asked impatiently. "I noticed this entire time you haven't used your weapon. So since I so kindly showed you my Bankai the least you could do is draw your weapon against me."

"Pfft, you'll find that's a big mistake girl, but since you're so keen on dieing then I guess it's my turn!" He began to withdraw his sword, but suddenly a man appeared behind him as Grimmjow froze in place. Kein gasped as she instantly recognized who it was.

"What the hell…Tousen?" He muttered to herself in irritation.

"Put your sword away…Grimmjow." Upon following the order, Grimmjow slid his sword back into its sheath, "Tousen. You want to explain to me why you're here?"

"You ask…why? You can't be serious. You choose to invade the world of the living on your own and you took 5 Arrancars without permission. Then you lost them in battle! You have disobeyed orders. You understand that much, don't you?"

He approached Grimmjow close as Kein looked on in worry. If there was anything she couldn't stand more was a rude interruption in battle between her and an opponent she felt was truly worthy of bringing out her full potential.

"Lord Aizen is quite upset with you Grimmjow."

Upon listening to the conversation, she was getting a clearer picture of the situation at hand.

"Come…" he commanded as he opened a garganta within the air "…your punishment for these acts will be decided in Hueco Mundo."

"Kh, fine then let's go," Grimmjow grunted in defiant response. Punishment? She wondered as she could only imagine what Aizen would do to him. A strange fear hit her heart as she for some odd reason wanted to protect him, "Damn you Tousen LEAVE HIM ALONE! It was me that engaged him in battle NOT HIM DAMN IT! Just get the hell out of here and let us continue this battle you son of a BITCH!"

"Shut up Kein! I'm going home…back home to Hueco Mundo. This matter is none of your damn business."

"Damn it…HOW THE HELL CAN YOU PUT UP WITH HIS SHIT? Why don't you just stand against him and come back down here and FIGHT ME! You can return back home after you finish your FIGHT WITH ME!"

"GET OVER IT!" Grimmjow yelled back in an almost near rage. "Let me get this through your thickheaded skull. The only reason you're still alive is because I'm leaving."

She gasped as he continued, "Consider yourself lucky. That attack you just used obviously took its tool as well. I can see it in your face. I'd say you have 1 or 2 attacks left in you, but still, even if you were able to do it 100 more times, you wouldn't stand a chance of beating me in my release mode!"

"R-Release mode? What the hell is that?"

"Don't forget my name, girl,and you better pray that you never hear it again! Grimmjow Jaegerjaquez! Because the next time you hear my name, you'll be dead…I promise."

And as his last words were spoken, the garganta in the sky closed up. She was then left alone as her heart yearned for him to return. She wanted to fight him again more than anything as she fell upon her knees from the exhaustion and sat there quietly for a moment as she heard running footsteps coming towards her.

"Kein!" Ichigo called out to her as he and Rukia had finally caught up to her location and stood on the ground above the indentation she was in.

Kein sat in silence as Rukia asked, "Where's that Arrancar? Did you win?"

Kein sighed, "No. He went back to Hueco Mundo because he forced to." A hint of sadness was in her tone as Rukia added in optimism, "Well at least you're still alive. Sometimes you're so damn reckless it worries me."

However, Kein wasn't sad that she had lost. On the contrary it was the complete opposite. She had finally got to fight him, but she was sad that he had to leave. She was sad…at the thought that he was in trouble and that Aizen might kill him for whatever reason. She feared the worst for him. Letting out a heavy sigh she stood up and placed a hand upon her neck to fiddle with the charm on her necklace between her fingers, but instead of feeling a cool metal sensation, she found that her necklace was gone.

She gasped as she frantically felt around on her chest to make sure that she was feeling correctly, but it was simply gone. There's no way the chain could have broken that easily in battle unless…unless…"That…that bastard. He took it…heh, heh, he took my necklace," she muttered in whisper under her breath as she realized that when he had approached her after knocking her down and picked her up by her sweater, the chain must have got tangled around his fingers so that when he yanked himself away, he must have grabbed it by accident.

And just as she suspected, back in Hueco Mundo, Grimmjow was following Tousen in a hallway to meet Aizen. A shit eating grin was creased across his face, satisfied with the battle he just had, and twiddling between his fingers was a necklace with a number 6 charm on it. He found it rather intriguing that Kein had worn that number around her neck as he then placed it back in his pocket and kept it there.

As Tousen and Grimmjow stood before Aizen, he merely stated to Grimmjow in an almost sarcastic tone, "Welcome back…Grimmjow."

However, he refused to exchange pleasantries as he kept silent, giving Aizen a defiant glare. He wasn't exactly the type that liked dealing with authorities above his own.

"Why so quiet? Don't you have something to say to Lord Aizen, Grimmjow?" Tousen insisted.

"Not really," he replied nonchalantly. Tousen turned to face towards Grimmjow's general direction since he was blind and couldn't actually see him.

"What impudence!"

"It's alright, Kaname. The truth of the matter is I'm not really that upset," Aizen encouraged. "But Lord Aizen he…"

"…I believe that Grimmjow's actions were in an attempt to please me, but got carried away. That's how I view this incident. Am I right? Grimmjow?" Aizen gave him a long cold hard stare with a snake like smile as Grimmjow hesitantly answered in distaste, "Yes, my lord."

However, this wasn't good enough to Tousen as he reached out and grabbed Grimmjow by the collar of his jacket.

"What's the hell your problem Tousen?"

"Lord Aizen please! Give me permission to execute this traitor!"

"Kaname…" Grimmjow lifted his arm to release Tousen's grasp on him.

"Nice try Tousen. You've always hated me, that's what this fuss is about isn't it? Is this any way for a director general to act, Tousen?"

"I simply believe that anyone who disrupts the peace should have to pay for it. It's not personal."

"You would kill me for insubordination?"

"Yes, for the honor of Lord Aizen."

"HA! Why am I not surprised? All you ever think about is the cause."

"Of course. It guides my actions, something of which you have no knowledge. With no moral foundation behind it, killing is nothing more than murder, but on the other hand killing with purpose…" he stopped as he withdrew his sword and upon seconds of that moment he had cut Grimmjow's left arm clear off "…is justice."

Grimmjow cried out in agony as Tousen finished with, "Hado 54: Haien…Abolishing Flames!" A yellow fire surrounded the decapitated limb as it burned it to a complete dust. Blood splattered upon the ground as Grimmjow held the area where his arm was severed.

"Damn…damn…DAMN…DAMN IT!"

He looked up at Tousen with murderous eyes, "That's it pal, you'll pay for what you just did!" As he grabbed upon the hilt of his blade and ran at Tousen, ready to attack.

"I'LL KILL YOU!"

"Grimmjow…" he stopped at the sound of Aizen saying his name "…take a moment to think about your actions before you continue. I warn you. I'll be forced to reprimand you if you attack."

Grimmjow gritted his teeth with a glaring intensity. He hated nothing more than to be told what to do especially when he was attacked so severely and unfairly. He quickly turned his back and walked off in anger as the scene ended without another word spoken.