What Grimmjow had expected had not happened. The Head Captain had stared at him for a long moment, then asked him to elaborate. He explained everything, and they came to the same conclusion.

"Hyorinmaru was in that dust just as much as Kyōka Suigetsu."

"I think." Grimmjow said, but almost certain of it.

"It would explain why the boy has nearly his full powers but cannot manifest the blade. If it were simply destroyed, it could be made again...but trapped such as it is..."

"So..."

"Why are you still alive?"

"Yeah.."

"Because killing you could be just as much of a mistake as letting you live, but more permanent. As far as I know, killing you is what he needs to escape back into physical form, or maybe he'd take over your body."

Grimmjow felt his stomach starting to turn at the thoughts. His chest felt suddenly full, even though he knew it was just his mind tricking him. He kept thinking he felt something there.

"I think I'm going to be sick." he said but a hand closed over his eyes and then he knew nothing more.

When he woke, he was on a bed in a white room, one entire wall made of glass. Though there was no way to tell for certain looking around, every instinct told him he was deep underground.

The door opened and a blonde man stepped through. He had a chart and papers in his hands and didn't realize Grimmjow was awake until he asked who he was.

"Ah, you're up."

"I said, who are you?"

"Hmm, interesting question, I've been wondering that myself for more than a year now."

Grimmjow could tell straight away that he would probably never get a straight answer out of this guy.

"Okay, I'll start, my name is Grimmjow, the sixth espada. Your turn."

"Hmm, so you still refer to yourself by the rank he gave you–"

"Oh for Hell's sake, what is you're friggin' name and where are we?"

The blond man chuckled but Grimmjow just glared at him until he spoke. "My name is Kisuke Urahara, and that's about all I know except that I was a brilliant scientist who made many innovations for the Soul Society, and, fortunately, kept meticulous notes." He held up a bunch of creased and yellowed pages bunched together in his hand.

"As for where we are, we are in the twenty sixth sub level of the twelfth division research lab. And, now that you're awake..." He walked over and snapped a black band around Grimmjow's wrist, "there, now you are quite secured."

"So this is...?" he held up the wrist that had been encircled.

"A spiritual seal."

"I see, probably a good idea."

Urahara raised an eyebrow. "No protests?"

"No, I don't know much about this Aizen character, but he did try to destroy the world, so the thoughts of him...you know...in me creeps me out. But I also don't want him getting lose."

"Ah, I couldn't have asked for a better attitude. Now then, down to business eh? How are those wounds?"

Grimmjow looked himself over but there were really only a few bandages left and the pain in his arm was virtually gone now.

"Fine."

"Good."

"So what do we do?"

"For now, nothing much. I'll run a few tests, give us some options to consider..."

"You make it sound like this isn't serious."

"Oh it's serious, we all know that, but there's no point in getting all mopey about it."

Grimmjow didn't like this answer very much and couldn't decide what he thought of the man but decided to let it drop and let him do the tests.

It was true, there was very little Urahara could do to determine the state of things inside Grimmjow's chest, but he called in a little help from a pair of familiar humans.

"What're they doing here?" Grimmjow asked, though not particularly bothered to see the orange haired boy, though he still had something of a grudge against Uryu.

"I have borrowed a piece of equipment from the human world," Kisuke began. "But since they are the experts, I thought I would let them help."

"Experts? They're kids." Grimmjow said even as he clapped Ichigo on the shoulder in greeting.

"My dad's clinic remember? And Uryu's father owns a hospital."

"Well, then I stand corrected." Grimmjow said with not too subtle sarcasm in his voice. But it dropped when he took in the boys seriously for a moment. "What have they been doing to you?"

"Nothing." Ichigo said. "We've been staying in the fourteenth barracks, there are other people there who haven't remembered everything yet."

"Other people?"

"Okay, other Soul Reapers. I've learned a lot though."

"I believe you met Rukia Kuchki." Uryu said behind them. Grimmjow stepped past Ichigo to look down on Uryu.

"She tell you what she remembered?"

"Yes."

"And?"

"It only confirms what I've said before." Uryu replied.

"Tch." Grimmjow turned his back on the teen. "Its true though." he said after a moment. "I am an arrancar after all."

"What does it matter now?" Ichigo said, trying to lighten the mood. "You can start over, its your chance."

"It doesn't work that way kid, the past will always catch up to you." he raised his hand to his chest and Urahara stepped in.

"Okay, well let's get started then shall we?"

They left the white room for another one down the corridor. This was the first Grimmjow had seen beyond his room but it seemed every doorway and every stairwell was guarded heavily, as if Aizen might explode out of him at any second.

They came to a room that looked exactly like a hospital room from the human world.

"Wow." Ichigo exclaimed. "Its like you transported an entire room."

"Well, it wasn't quite that simple but..."

Uryu and Ichigo shot him a look and he just laughed. Then he guided Grimmjow to a table at the foot of a large machine and had him lay down.

"It's an MRI." Uryu said.

"Umm, I don't know how to use this, this is way bigger than anything in the clinic." Ichigo said hesitantly approaching.

"Its alright." Kisuke said. "I figured as much. Plus, I've read the manual..."

Uryu and Ichigo just looked at each other. Grimmjow pushed himself onto his elbows, looking alarmed.

"Wait, you do know what you're doing right?"

"Relax!" Kisuke said, pressing him flat again and sliding the table into the narrow opening. Grimmjow tensed but his body only went partway in and he could still see out. Still, it was incredibly claustrophobic.

"How long is this going to take?" he asked, his voice echoing back all around him in the metal tube.

"About half of an hour. Just relax and don't move or we'll have to start all over again."

"Fine, get on with it then."

The other three stepped into the small observation room and stared at a desk of controls. Urahara seemed to know what he was doing, and flicked a few switches and the machined hummed to life.

"So what are you looking for exactly?" Uryu asked.

"What, you don't know?" Urahara turned. "I thought you'd been briefed."

"No, we were just told that the chief scientist needed some help with human technology."

"Oh, well, its quite the puzzle actually." Urahara began excitedly. "The Head Captain was restoring some of Grimmjow's memories and they discovered that he has the shards of two zampakutos in his chest."

"Zampakutos..." Uryu said... "You mean, oh shit!" Just as the realization struck they heard the scream. "Shut it off!" he cried.

Ichigo grabbed for the handle to the door when the second scream ripped out of the man now writhing on the table and trying to push himself out of the machine.

"STOP IT!" Uryu cried. Urahara obeyed and Ichigo ran into the other room, Uryu right behind him. They yanked the table out and found Grimmjow breathing hard and clutching his chest. But the moment Urahara entered the room he pushed past the humans and leapt onto him.

"What the HELL?" He screamed in fury as they both fell to the ground.

"Grimmjow!" he ignored the teens behind him, lost in his fury. But Urahara was clearly more powerful and had him rolled onto his back in a second. With no spiritual pressure, Grimmjow had no chance, but Kisuke was not interested in hurting him. He just stood up and waited for Grimmjow to calm down before offering him a hand.

"I apologize, it seems I miscalculated something."

"No, simple physics." Uryu interrupted. "The zampakutos are as much metal as they are spiritual and an MRI Is essentially a giant magnet. Just how far into that manual did you read?"

"Shit." Grimmjow said, leaning back on the table after he finally accepted Urahara's help in standing. "It felt like something was trying to rip out of me..."

"Again, I apologize." the scientist said.

"No." Grimmjow said.

"What do you mean, no? Its going to be hard for us to work together if you don't forgive me."

"No, I mean, don't apologize. This is it. This is how you can get it out of me."

Everyone just stared at Grimmjow.

"If we wanted to kill you, there would be much less cruel ways to go about it." Urahara said darkly.

"No, think about is Kisuke, I have no heart, there are no vital organs there to be damaged. It could work."

No one answered, it was truly a gruesome concept but they couldn't help agreeing that it seemed a viable option. Surgery could never get all the pieces out for sure.

"I'll have to discuss it with the Head Captain." Urahara said finally. "Let's get you back to your room."

Urahara was an eccentric man, and Grimmjow knew very well that he didn't follow all the rules he was supposed to. He finally decided that he did indeed like him when he let Uryu and Ichigo stay for more than an hour after the MRI experience. It was the first chance he'd had to hear about the Soul Society and what was happening beyond his cell. But of all their stories about the people they met in the barracks: the bald and aggressive Ikkaku, the annoying Renji and his overprotectiveness of the quiet Rukia– ultimately, Grimmjow was only interested by one person.

"We haven't seen Toshiro at all." Ichigo said, and Grimmjow sighed.

"Well, there was that one day." Uryu interjected.

"What?" Grimmjow demanded.

"Rangiku, she's the one who runs the baracks most of the time–"

"I met her, she's his lieutenant."

"Well, one day she was really upset, it didn't take much to figure out what was wrong."

"She saw him, and he didn't remember." Grimmjow said knowingly. He could imagine it, the woman had been rather brisk with him but her emotions shone clear on her face.

"Exactly."

Grimmjow filled them in on what little he knew, mostly of Unohana, Rangiku and the Head Captain, and then they were separated again. He lay back on his bed, staring at the ceiling. It had been a long few days of this, but now the prospect of having those shards pulled out of him was something to...look forward to, and to fear slightly. In the end, he was only staring at the ceiling for about an hour before Kisuke returned, with the Head Captain.

"You've decided?" Grimmjow asked anxiously, trying to gauge the expressions of both men.

"We have." the Head Captain said, "And since there is no way of telling just what is happening while the shards are in you, we have decided it would be best to pull them out."

Grimmjow just nodded, not sure if he was glad or not.

"When?"

"Now."

He nodded again, he supposed there was no point in waiting.

"There is one other thing." The Head Captain added seriously.

"What?"

"I will be bringing Toshiro with me."

"What, why? He doesn't need to see this." Grimmjow protested.

"On the contrary, if Hyroinmaru is indeed in there as well, then he does. He may be able to reform the blade. In any case, it is his zampakuto, so he should be present."

"Can I talk to him first, so he know's what's happening."

"He's already been informed."

Grimmjow grit his teeth but the Head Captain ignored him.

"Please prep him, Urahara."

"Yes sir."

Grimmjow lay a bit nervously on the table. Kisuke had just finished strapping him down, assuring him it was just a precaution and that he would be unconscious the whole time. He heard the door open and someone else entered.

"Grimmjow, how are you feeling?" Unohana stepped in his line of vision and put a gentle hand on his shoulder.

"Ready for this to be over." he said shortly, she could see the anxiety he was trying so vainly to mask and smiled at him warmly.

"I wanted to explain what is going to happen."

"I know what's going to happen. We're going to turn on this machine and those things are going to rip out of my chest."

"Yes but its not quite so simple. I will be putting you to sleep with a powerful sedative and I will pre-administer a pain killer. When the procedure is finished, I and my team will heal you. When you wake up, you shouldn't feel much more that a bit or soreness. Alright?"

She spoke to him almost condescendingly but he couldn't help give into the comfort and trust she was offering.

"Okay." he answered. She nodded and withdrew and when she came back she had two long needles.

"Here is the sedative." she said, pushing the needle into his arm. As soon as she pulled it back out he felt the drowsiness and barely heard he say she was administering the pain killer. The room blurred into a greyish tinge and he vaguely felt himself sliding into the machine before everything went dark.

"Are we ready?" the Head Captain asked with Kisuke and Unoahana entered the control room. They nodded and Kisuke reached for the switch. He briefly glanced at the white haired boy who sat on a stool staring out at the machine.

"Here goes." Uraraha flipped the switch and the procedure began.

Unohana had not been lying. Grimmjow made no sound and the only movement was the involuntary jerks of his body as the shards released. It took a little more than half an hour for them to be sure all were out.

Only the Head Captain entered the room while the machine was still running. He used kido to collect the exposed shards from the magnetic hold of the MRI. When he had them gathered in a glowing orb in the air next to him, he nodded and the machine was shut down.

Unoahana hurried in, a few more healers entered as well. Toshiro tried to follow but Kisuke restrained him.

"Wait for them to finish." he soothed. Toshiro tried just once to shake him off then gave up to watch them work.

Unohana stared down at the mess that was Grimmjow. The pieces of the blades had been so tiny that there was no one hole but millions of microscopic ones that let the blood flow freely and had pierced his collar bone and rib cage making them incredibly weak. He was still breathing, so they had not touched his lungs, but he was in grave condition. She was glad she had insisted on this many healers.

Behind her, the Head Captain stared at the orb of kido. Inside was no evidence of Aizen, just silver dust.

"Toshiro." he commanded, walking back to the control room to shield him from the sight of his bloodied friend. "Please, hold out your hands."

"Is that...?"

"Some of it is Hyorinamru. If you are able to reform the blade again then all that will be left is Aizen's power and then it can be safely contained. Try to focus on Hyorinmaru."

"Okay..." He stretched out his hand and the dust filtered through the glowing orb into a neat pile in his palms. It was surprisingly heavy, but then, two Katana's worth of metal wouldn't be light.

He stared at the shards for a bit, they reminded him of home– or rather, Hueco Mundo, the silver sands that stretched to infinity, but this was even finer, and captured the florescent lighting of the room to glimmer back almost white. His bright teal eyes widened as he made out two distinct tones, one more silver while the other just a bit lighter and he knew this was his sword.

He focussed on the purity of it, the white light like snow. The cold. He did everything he could to reach out to the lost blade, that lost piece of himself.

"Toshiro?" He hadn't realized he'd been standing so lost in thought for at least ten minutes. He looked up at the Head Captain.

"I don't know, I don't feel anything."

"Try once more."

Toshiro glanced at the table where the healers still worked but obeyed. He went back to the memory that haunted him, back to that agonizing moment when his sword was destroyed, but he knew that that was the only genuine moment he had to his connection with his zampakuto. It was working. He was feeling the pain and panic, but he was also feeling a swell of cold power rushing around him.

"Good Toshiro."

He head but did not open his eyes. He just kept thinking about that moment, and reversing it, so instead of seeing his blade torn to shreds he played the memory back as if it were forming. The weight in his hands shifted, he could feel it spreading evenly outward, the surface on his palms turning flat and smooth rather than grainy...

"LOOK OUT!"

"GRIMMJOW!"

"IT CAN"T BE!"

Toshiro's eyes snapped open but it took a second to comprehend what was happening. The healers were all on the ground. The Head Captain had his sword raised and from the table, a form was rising, but it was not Grimmjow. Grimmjow was on the ground as well, somehow pulled back to consciousness. He was gasping and still breathing and slowly turned to see what Toshiro and Head Captian were staring at above him.

"No..."

The ghost on the table swung its legs off the edge and stood. Toshiro felt himself trembling in its dark spiritual pressure.

"Go back to Hell Aizen!" the Head Captain swung but his blade felt through the body harmlessly.

"No thanks, Yamamoto." He raised a hand but it was not directed at the Commander. Instantly he was before Toshiro, and the transparent hand was on top of his own, against the smooth patch of blade that had formed.

"I could not save all the pieces." Aizen said while Toshiro stared up at him in shock, the blade still slowly coming to life in his hands.

"Wha-what do you mean?"

"Only one blade can be formed from these shards, and I can assure you, I will not allow it to be Hyorinmaru."

The hand became a little more solid and pressed firmly against Toshiro's.

"No!" He cried trying to back away and again the Head Captian tried to attack but in a rush the form of Aizen was gone.

Toshiro stood rooted, his eyes wide in shock, his mouth open in a silent scream.

"Toshiro?" The Head Captain reached for him but there was a blazing white light and the katana finally took form in his hands. It was incredibly long, a deep grey silver but with a remarkable white light that shimmered off the surface. The handle was an intertwining of purple and green.

"No..." the Head Captain breathed, realizing what had happened. "They've fused."

"That's right old man!" The voice was harsh but came out of the lips of the boy. He clutched the blade triumphantly and Yamamoto didn't see his black eyes until he was hurling across the room. The next second, the small, menacing figure was before Grimmjow.

"Get out of him." Grimmjow demanded, still bleeding heavily. The mutated version of his friend just laughed before grabbing Grimmjow by the shoulder.

"Ah Grimmjow, my last soldier. You did your duty, you kept me alive, now, join me once more."

Grimmjow had no choice, he felt the grip tighten and the room disappeared.

Well, poor heroes, but at least they are reunited..sort of...

Also, when reading manga chapter 423, yes sad, but two thoughts occured to me: if Ichigo ever wants to see Rukia again she just as to put on her gigai, and secondly, Orihime's power to heal is really the power to reverse time on her subject, so couldn't she just do that to Ichigo and take him back to before he used up all his powers/went to the precipice world...? Anyway, just venting my thoughts, though I think this could be an interesting story line, could take things in a very different direction since usually Ichigo is the most powerful. And here's hoping that Grimmjow turns up again...perhaps as an ally? I mean, look at how Renji adn Ichigo became friends (or for that matter Zarakai, Byakuya, Ikkaku, Uryu...see a trend?)

Okay, ttfn,

Riza