AN: Here we go another one. Rather quicker than my last update. Don't expect quick updates too often.

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(Disclaimer: I do not own Bleach in any way, shape, or form. All rights reserved to the appropriate owners.)

Chapter 8: Ichigo vs Sakkaku (Part 1)

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Tokyo Outskirts: Several hours before the outburst: 12:01 am

It was quite surprising of how much distant Ichigo managed to cover in his chase after the mysterious woman in white; Sakkaku. After a mere four hours, he found himself walking in a small secluded forest on the outskirts of Tokyo. Never in a million years would one think that Ichigo would end up being able to chase after a person's spirit thread having little experience in doing so and on just the presumption of a striped coloring. The coloring of the thread would only justify the difference between regular souls and that of soul reapers.

'What the hell am I doing?' Ichigo yawned as he strolled closer and closer to the giant clearing where Sakkaku had first appeared from. His eyes are heavy and he contemplates whether or not to take a quick nap before his upcoming fight. That's a death wish though. Ichigo was walking right into enemy territory and he dared to think of sleep. How embarrassing to be killed in your sleep after traveling to the enemy's base of operation. He mentally slaps the thought out of his system. Trying to avoid sleep, his next thoughts turn to a certain tanned skin goddess. 'She's going to kill me? Isn't she?'

Ichigo couldn't stop the small chuckle escape his lips. Despite what he would argue with, Yoruichi has clouded his mind over the years. Just what their relationship was becoming more baffling over each of her visits. She acted like she was interested, but only plays it off as harmless flirting. It was a very hard call for the poor young man. Yoruichi was a mystery to him in both body and soul, but Ichigo knew that something was there between them despite only knowing her for a couple years. And maybe just because of that connection that he began to think of her. He was only entering a battle with another enemy who is wielding the Hogyoku. And not only that, he was entering the battle blindfolded without his full powers. God help his poor soul.

With another yawn Ichigo would pause his trek in the woods to prepare the items he brought with him for his fight. If only the damn seal wasn't in place then he could easily mop the floor with whoever this person is.

'Aww thinking of kitty-chan are we? How cute.' A mischievous dark voice would soon ring around Ichigo's mind. Ichigo in response would heavily groan out with pure annoyance. Maybe they're just was a perverted side to Ichigo somewhere in his noble spirit. His zanpakuto spirits are of course the reflection of his soul and his Hollow spirit being his primal instinct; which fueled his battle senses and desires.

"Yeah I suppose." Ichigo responds allowed in the open air. He yawns once more and begins to review the items; his wood-katana, 3 viles of Ginto, 5 Seele Schneider, and a book. The past four years being sealed from his spiritual powers wasn't necessarily for nothing.

'Don't lie to yourself.' The voice rang out in a demonic laugh. 'Kingy has a crush on kitten.'

"Alright listen you!" Ichigo says to his Hollow, who in response would laugh; much to Ichigo's annoyance. "Ok that's it."

Ichigo quickly drops to the ground with a thud. The pack of items he took with him fall everywhere in a scramble. He would soon quickly cross his legs in an Indian style fashion and rest his hands on his knees. After mere seconds, his eyes close and his mind goes blank.

Ichigo's Inner World

Now one would think that Ichigo and his zanpakuto spirit were on much better terms now. After learning the truth from his Dad and the Royal Guards, Ichigo and his zanpakuto were finally accepted one another. However…

"God damn you!" Ichigo yelled while slashing his twin blades at the hollowfied creature that laughed and danced across the sandy desert floor. The two beings were in combat obviously. This wouldn't be the first time of course. Ichigo's Hollow half had become less of an asshole over the years and more of a jokester. But then again there were other complications that need to be addressed. Ichigo's inner world has very much changed.

"Why can't you just stay calm like your Quincy and Soul Reaper self?" Ichigo roared as he brought down his larger blade and formed a Getsuga Tenshou. The exceedingly powerful blast cut through a sandy dune and explodes.

"But that's no fun king." The Hollow responds with very little damage to his form. The Hollow of course was that of a Vasto Lorde. The Hollow is humanoid in shape and completely white. The only other coloring on its body would be the black tribal tattoos that ran along its abdomen and mask, its Hollow hole is located dead center on the upper chest and the Hollow has two large horns protruding from its head. The only other notable feature to the Hollow's form is its piercing golden-yellow eyes, lack of hair and its ability to change its hands and forearms into elongated black blades.

"Oh really then?" Ichigo would ask the creature before him while readjusting his stance. "I'm pretty sure you have the hots for a certain voluptuous teal-haired Arrancar that I'm thinking of."

If a hollow could blush then said vasto lorde would be doing so. In an annoyed response himself, the Hollow forms a cero between its large horns. Likewise, Ichigo prepares a cero of his own from his now extended pointed fingertip. The cero both charge to a substantially degree and are fired at one another. The resulting explosion backlashes outwards and sends Ichigo and his Hollow in opposite directions. Both however are uninjured.

"Don't bad mouth that hot ass." The Hollow growls out as he appears from the dust cloud with his fore arms now as black blades. Ichigo laughs as he appears from his own dust cloud.

"Who knew that my Hollow had that type of fetish?" Ichigo responds while having a hard time in controlling himself. "To think you are interested in small children. You are such a pedophile aren't you?"

Ichigo's Hollow as you would expect is not pleased. The Hollow lunges out angrily and slashes away at Ichigo. Ichigo almost had no room to dodge as he was caught off guard but does so just barely. "Touchy, touchy."

"Fuck off." The Hollow roars while continuing the assault. Ichigo, now alert, blocks, parries and dodges his Hollow's attacks. The sounds of clashing metal vibrate the sandy desert; neither of the two giving an inch in advantage. After several minutes, the two stop their advances. The pale moonlight of the crescent moon in the sky bathed their forms.

"Not bad kingy." The Hollow speaks very pleased with the sparring match and reverts the black blades into forearms and claws. The Hollow's tone soon turns to a more serious nature despite their previous comedic argument over Ichigo's potential 'girlfriends'. "Are you ready?"

Ichigo's face momentarily casts down before quickly deciding to answer the question his Hollow had asked. "We need to talk." The hollow simply nods his head in acknowledgement before disappearing from existence. Ichigo would soon disappear himself and quickly reaper in a glass domed room. This very room was at the center of his current inner world. While Ichigo has become accustom to the change in his inner world, anybody else would be surprised. The former underwater skyscraper world has disappeared and is replaced by literally three different biome type settings. To the south is the land of Ichigo's Hollow powers; an exact replica of Hueco Mundo. To the North-East is the land of Ichigo's Soul Reaper powers; a giant grassland with surrounding forests. And to the North-West is the land of Ichigo's Quincy powers; a giant city of ice-encrusted buildings. The three lands are evened out proportionally and are separated by large green force fields. The center glass dome room served as the only connecting point between the three domains.

This very layout was not designed by Ichigo. It was created specifically for Ichigo if he had wished to continue living in the human world. Ichigo's power had become so overwhelmingly powerful that he simply could not live in the human world without vaporizing anything before him, just like Aizen. Ichigo had the potential to walk down a common street and unwillingly vaporize the particles of every soul he walks past. And thus the very seal that now is stained on Ichigo's back is the cause of Ichigo's inner world. A seal that was created by the strongest group of Soul Reapers: The Royal Guard.

Now inside the glass room, Ichigo could only shrug off the lonely feeling that surrounded the very room. Unlike the desert or even the other biomes, the very center room felt empty. The room represented the breaking point of his inner world and the separation of his zanpakuto spirit into three-halves; the price to pay for being a transcended being. Soon enough, the three-halves of his zanpakuto spirit would enter the room via hallways. Each of the biome's had an entrance to the glass room and at the very center could the spirits speak as a whole rather separate. In the long run, the separation turned to be more beneficial than originally thought. Ichigo's unique ability to adapt and excel at increasingly surprising speeds led the idea he was a prodigy in his own right. This separation allowed Ichigo to train separately with each spirit and learn every detail rather all at once with the single combined spirit. Due to this, Ichigo learned every half equally and created an even stronger connection with his zanpakuto than ever before.

"Welcome back, Ichigo." A sudden voice erupted from all three entrances at once. Soon enough, the three-halves of Ichigo's zanpakuto emerge from their respective hallways. The main difference though, two of said spirits carried large chains, while inside the room, around their bodies and the third did not. It was the only complication that the Royal Guard could not seal away. And with that note, the three spirit halves walk in. The Hollow and Soul Reaper spirits were heavily chained while the Quincy spirit remained chainless; the reason? It's because Quincy are spiritual aware humans. It's already bad enough that Ichigo's spiritual form was being sealed away. If the Royal Guard tampered too much in Ichigo's human body, there would be potential of permanently killing Ichigo; body and soul.

"Thank you." Ichigo responds to his spirits. Even after years of practicing, he still found it weird that when all three entered, they would speak simultaneously; the conversations were always weird having to talk to a single entity in three different bodies. "But as you heard from the Hollow half. We need to talk about our situation."

"Indeed." They speak in unison. Ichigo would view over his other two spirits. His Quincy side regardless still looked like a younger form of the fallen Quincy king. However, the spirit did not simply wear all black. The cape had remained, but he has now distinguishable white Quincy attire. The sunglasses remained and the cape still flowed like spirit energy. The most notable of the three is the new presence of his Soul Reaper spirit. The Soul Reaper powers were always fused with the Hollow and Quincy side, so now that it has separated it was rather odd. The spirit was simply an exact replica of Ichigo, but the exception is that the spirit has black hair and eyes, wears a grey hood and has the mark of the Shiba clan on its back. "We are at a disadvantage being sealed away."

Ichigo nods. "I know." His eyes become an eerily sense of calm. Ichigo was as prepared as he simply could be, but it wasn't himself that he was slowly becoming fearful of. It was the fact that another being has taken possession the artifact that is the Hogyoku; not only that, the reiatsu the being possessed was very much similar to Aizen.

"Remember our training, our words, our thoughts, your instincts…" There was no turning back after all. Ichigo rushed out against an opponent who could easily transcend herself. Did Ichigo fear death? No… he had no reason to. The seal on his back sealed off from leaving his body via by any methods such as his spirit badge or soul candy. As an added bonus, the seal also cut off more than 85% of his spiritual fire power leaving the remaining 15% for defending himself if absolutely necessary. That remaining 15% was all he had and he planned on using as much as he possibly could.

"Then our thoughts are the same?" Ichigo would ask only to internally slap himself. What was he thinking? A zanpakuto spirit represented one's spiritual essence at its core. His thoughts were theirs and their actions were his. They were ready and Ichigo was without a doubt as well. The conversation is essentially meaningless, but to be able to hear the thoughts of your inner reasoning would put anybody's spirit at ease.

"Then let's do this."

Tokyo Outskirts: Several hours before the outburst: 1:30 am

Ichigo awakes from his inner world calmly. He notices that his items from his pack are spread about the forest floor. He hears a laugh in the back of his mind from a certain spirit who was distracting him at the time. He would only sigh in annoyance and pick up his items. He places three Seel Sheneiders on his belt and a single vile of ginto around his neck. The remaining items back into his pack. Ichigo then picks up his wooden sword and grips it tightly. He knew he would need this the most, so it would be a waste of time to attach it to his back.

Now rather prepared and a correct mindset, Ichigo walks the remaining feet into the large clearing that would be his battlefield with the mysterious woman.

"I have no interest with a fool. Be gone from this place." A sudden voice erupts throughout the clearing. Ichigo however, is not fazed. He only continues his advances towards the center of the clearing. "…"

"You know why I'm here." Ichigo responds after some time as he now reaches the center of the giant field. The only thing illuminating the field would be the stars and moon over-head. Ichigo grips his wood-kantana tighter and awaits a response from the woman he would soon be in battle with. Ichigo would be lying if he wasn't even just a tiny bit worried, but the end result didn't matter. Ichigo was Ichigo, and if he had the power to protect people he cared about, he would.

"Quite the foolish one indeed." Sakkaku speaks out and finally appearing before Ichigo or rather, now standing behind him. Ichigo does not turn immediately despite knowing her position. "I told you that you lost the power you once had. You are of no use to me."

Sakkaku's patience is running thin. This man had already disappointed her and he dared to have the nerve to face before her; a transcendent. It meant certain death just standing before her in her broken state.

"I am not sure why you say this." Ichigo responds and turns to face her. He places both hands on his katana and gets into a fighting position. "But, I am certain that you possess something that should be locked away."

Sakkaku would now coldly stare at the young human before her. Ichigo knew nothing of the truth of what Sakkaku is and just how dangerous she is. "You have no right to say!" She would growl out and close the space between them. Her blade, held in her right hand, now directly pointed at his stomach. Ichigo, now at such proximity from his opponent, could visibly see the Hogyoku infused into the woman's forehead along with anger and hatred in her piercing eyes. If he is to keep up with her, he would first have to match that amazing speed of hers.

"You may be right in some sense." Ichigo begins and backs off a few feet to get out of direct striking distance. "But I refuse to let anybody just walk out with the Hogyoku. Aizen was enough."

"Don't dare speak about that monstrosity of a man to me!" Sakkaku yells out frustratingly and swipes her sword in Ichigo's direction. The mere swing sent Ichigo flying backwards with such force that it could break a person's bones on collision of any objects. Fortunately, Ichigo managed to hold his ground and backflips to land on the ground safely. 'Powerful indeed that one.' Ichigo's inner Quincy speaks out in his mind. 'Be very cautious Ichigo.'

"Then hand over the Hogyoku and I'll be on my way." Ichigo responds after readjusting his fighting stance. He is now no more than 30ft away from her and even so, he could still feel the trembling sensations coming from her in her reiatsu. Her power was strong, so very strong, but unstable. Ichigo still had little clue of who this woman is, but he was quite sure he recognized her in some way.

"Enough!" Sakkaku screeches out in anger. "I spared your life once already foolish mortal. Do not make me change my decision. Be gone from this place. Now!" Sakkaku would release some of her reiatsu on Ichigo to show him just how serious she now was. But surprisingly to her, Ichigo did not falter. Ichigo in a very odd sense was extremely calm and unnerved by her overwhelming power. 'He's changed.' Sakkaku calms down at Ichigo's unnerving demeanor. 'What happened? He should have lost all is powers. Why this calm but confident attitude?'

"You look surprised." Ichigo would speak, breaking Sakkaku from her chain of thoughts. "Do you think that I couldn't keep up with your power? I'm being called a living legend among the spirits now. Don't think that I've lost my touch over the years of being in my human form."

A long silence would fill the air. Sakkaku's face becomes unreadable from the shadow of her hood. A brisk wind flutters across the landscape and through their clothing. This eerily silence would scare anybody who came across the sight. But after all, this is Ichigo. He always did things to the extreme. Soon however, the silence is broken by Sakkaku. "Hahaha…" Her laughter giving a rather mild surprised to Ichigo's face.

"So it would seem that you haven't. My sheer ignorance of not feeling your power." Sakkaku would laugh in between these words in a very comical manner. Ichigo however, would not find this amusing, especially not in a fight. He would grimace at her unpredictable behavior.

"You've learned how to control it after all. Most impressive and yet here you are in human form. Rather interesting I must say." Sakkaku's voice now calming down from her high. "You are way out of your league now that I am in control."

"Don't be so sure." Ichigo hesitantly responds.

"Hahaha. Very amusing you are, but it matters not. You will die tonight Kurosaki Ichigo by my hands." Sakkaku demeanor changes drastically into a very sadistic smile. Her sword now points to the ground as she slowly walks forward towards Ichigo. She shows no stance or readiness to engage battle, but Ichigo knew way better to even dare to try to engage in combat right away. Ichigo's natural fighting style was to charge in, however against her, he couldn't be so foolish. Her level of power after all was just too strong. He didn't want an early 'human' death. That was one secret that Sakkaku would find out about much later. If his human side were to die, she would have no change against his spirit form. In a litteral sense, a human body was a vessel for spiritual beings. If that were to be destroyed or killed, the spirit would flee the body. In Ichigo's case…well that would be a different story.

"However, I'm feeling quite merciful tonight." Sakkaku states in a more humorous expression; her playful like side returning. "You have no chance of winning, but I'll give you a free 10 hits. That wooden-blade of yours won't do much damage to me. So make it count."

Ichigo however, was not pleased, if not hurt; as if his pride was stepped on. His hands clutch on the hilt of the sword tightly and his eyes dart towards her direction in an angry stare. He was not going to be played off a as a fool who couldn't protect himself, let alone anyone he cared about. "You don't want to give me that chance." Ichigo would uncharacteristically growl out. 'Yeah king! Don't take her bull-shit!' Ichigo's inner Hollow would screech out from within. Sakkaku would actually stop in her tracks. Never before has she seen somebody 'supposedly' weaker than her and or Aizen give off the intensity of a wild ferocious beast. His expression is incredibly calm for an angry stare, but very strong in look.

"You have no chance against me." Sakkuku would state despite the sharp danger signal appearing in the back of her mind. She extends her arms out to the side and raises her head upward to view the stars. Her eyes close before speaking up once more. "I insist." This however, would be her last mistake she would make in this nightly battle.

The next thing she knew, she would hear a rush of air from the few feet in front of her. In her surprise, she would quickly open her eyes and force them in the direction where Ichigo once stood. However, her fear would spike instantly and her eyes widening. What she saw before her had left her throat dry and her body frozen. Ichigo was now in front of her with his wooden blade high over his head filled with a strong force of blue spiritual energy at the tip of the blade. She would have an extremely small margin to react as he brought the blade down.

"Getsuga Tenshou!"

The sheer blast and power is nowhere near anything what Ichigo was capable of. But, the size the attack he had produced in this sealed form was surprisingly strong. The attack had ripped a slit like crater into the landscape. Despite this though, the wood-katana had remained intact. Ichigo quite relieved at this revelation as he looked upon the blade's surface. His expression changes quickly though into a serious nature as the dust particles clear from area.

"You've underestimated me. I hope you understand not to make that same mistake." Ichigo calls out to his opponent. Ichigo is more than pleased to see the handy work of his attack. Sakkaku's left arm was ripped clean off her body and blood spilled from the wound. Her right hand clutches the hilt of her blade tightly from the agonizing pain.

"Incredible." She murmurs to herself as her body trembles from the pain. 'His transcendence wasn't lost after all. But I won't let him have that chance again. Not after that.'

"I'm putting my life on the line again to take you down." Ichigo states as he gets into another battle stance. "Take me seriously."

"Oh don't you worry." Sakkaku coughs out some blood. "You can be sure that you are not going to get another clean hit. It's time to die."

Sakkaku's blade starts glowing in rainbow like energy and her body soon relaxes. The Hogyoku resonates in accordance to her glowing blade. Soon after, magically her left arm, which had been cleanly cut off, fades into existence along with any missing clothing that is on her arm. Ichigo's eyes widen at the sight of this profound power. This was the first time he had seen anything like it. Sure there is a Hollow's high-speed regeneration, but one could see that process as a Hollow heals itself. But this, no, this was so much different. It acted like Orihime's power to reject reality. The missing body party faded into existence as if was already supposed to be there.

"What?" Ichigo asks slowly clearly surprised by the act.

"I'm not playing around anymore. This is a mere fraction of what I can really do. Prepare yourself, you will need it."