Ichimaru hated to admit it, but he was bored. Hitsugaya wasn't enraged into attacking at full force – or if this was his full force, it was pathetic. Ichigo was only attacking without using that brain of his. The pigheaded bulldozer approach might have served in all his other fights, but Ichimaru had learned at Aizen's feet and had learned well. Already Ichigo was bleeding from half a dozen slashes and was nursing a stab through his left shoulder. Even the boy was faring better: only his ice wings were damaged, and he had only a gash on his right ankle.

Shinsou sang with delight at the exercise and chafed at the restraint. For the short while that it had been in its final form, it had fluttered and dazzled as Irotsubasa. Ichimaru had so seldom released it fully that Shinsou had been ecstatic at the chance. It now urged Ichimaru to let go of the chains and to let it dance again on multicolored wings.

Glumly Ichimaru stared at his opponents. Hitsugaya had taken to covering for Ichigo. They had tried to rush him again, neither learning that Ichimaru was the master of speed. Ichimaru believed that perhaps only the Goddess of Flash could outrun him, and perhaps Soifon. Byakuya might barely equal him, but Byakuya had always fought with instinct and intellect. The silver-haired shinigami found himself missing the prim and proper captain of the Sixth.

Ah well. Wishes and horses and all that jazz.

He felt the onrush of reiatsu and whirled about just in time to block an attack. The impact of swords shoved Ichimaru back about ten, twelve feet, and Ichimaru forced himself to halt in midair.

Isshin cricked his neck. "Been a long time since I did anything like this," he groused.

Ichimaru's smile grew. "I've been waiting fer this, Kurosawa-taichou."

"I remember you when you were still a cute lieutenant, Ichimaru," drawled Isshin. "Whaddaya mean, waiting for this?"

"That night, I asked for your help t'get Urahara's address." Ichimaru snapped his wrist and Shinsou transformed into bankai form. "Ya slammed th' door in mah face. I remember. Y'almost killed Aizen-sama 'cause you hadn't time to hear me out."

"I should have killed you then, so he would die too," said Isshin evenly.

"Oh really? Too bad ya didn't then." Ichimaru wrinkled his nose. "But I guess, since ya didn't help me, I was right t' watch Grand Fisher take your wife's spirit, hmm?" Ichimaru tilted his head, his gold-filigreed black armor having fully covered him now. Shinsou Arashi's blade tilted to catch the light.

"I can distract him," murmured Hitsugaya from behind Isshin.

"We'll attack together," Ichigo suggested. He was ready to charge. "That bastard let Mom die."

Isshin smiled lazily. "Stay back, boys. This is between us. Mano a mano."

"You don't even know what that means," accused the redheaded teenager.

"I know I need you to slay the adjuchas that have gathered since you started fighting," said Isshin. "Hitsugaya-taichou, tell the blockhead what to do."

Ichimaru rolled his shoulders. "Done chatting?" he called out.

"Bring it, boy," Isshin challenged. "Bankai. Kumo to Hedatsu, Nisshou."

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

Yuutsubame looked up at the calming surface of the inner world. Karin followed its gaze.

Something bright was now above them, so bright that its rays stabbed into the clear sea-green waters of Karin's mind. Yuutsubame frowned; it wasn't threatening, but it was powerful. Ignoring Karin, Yuutsubame flicked its tail and swam up to meet the light.

Left all by herself, Karin could only grind her teeth and wish to have a set of sushi knives.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

"Now that's more like it," grinned Ichimaru. "The clouds separate for the sun, hmm?" Then he turned his smirking gaze from father to son to obscured daughter under Kira's care. "Sun, moon and clouds? Not a bad combination."

Isshin didn't bother with small talk. His sword blazed with light.

Ichimaru twirled Shinsou almost leisurely, but there was nothing careless about the way he darted in and stabbed at Isshin. The bearded shinigami swung his sword, leaving an arc of brilliance in the wake of the blade, and again the blades clashed. Ichimaru was the one who slid back, forced down by Isshin's superior strength, but Isshin had to brace himself for a few steps too.

There was interest now. Ichimaru's smirk deepened into a malicious grin. His spear shimmered and suddenly there were tiny scale-like blades orbiting the already wicked point of the spear.

"I've always wondered what the final form of your bankai was," said Isshin conversationally as he slashed downwards, sending a stream of luminance at the younger shinigami. "That Harutakanna form didn't appear to be a powerful one, leastways not to me."

"I gotta ask: didja watch Star Wars?" asked Ichimaru, dodging and then twirling the point of Shinsou to shoot the small scales at Isshin. The dark-haired man dodged easily by wielding the sword into a circle and deflecting the scales. Shinsou's point pressed the advantage, straight into the center of the circle of light.

Isshin's sword guard almost got caught by Shinsou's point, but he grasped the black shaft just below the blade and slid Nisshou up the shaft. "Never liked the lightsabers. George Lucas didn't know how to use a sword – I kept thinking how laughable the fights were."

"I like Yoda," Ichimaru commented, exchanging grips and then jerking Shinsou out of Isshin's hold. His thin braid snapped out and then looped over his neck. "Lots of wisdom, his words have."

"Me, I preferred Hans Solo."

"I know Aizen-sama liked the Death Star."

"Compensating for something?"

"Completely not. He just likes the idea of a planetoid fortress."

"I'll have to take your word for it."

The weapons smashed together again, and the reiatsu impact crashed against the ground, raising dust and obscuring everybody's visions.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

Ichigo was staring at his father, mouth agape.

Hitsugaya sent Hyourinmaru out again, tearing down the wall of adjuchas that had almost encircled them. "What are you looking at, Kurosaki?"

"My dad," said Ichigo absently, "is talking Star Wars with the man who watched my mother die."

Hyourinmaru roared and froze another segment of hollows. Hitsugaya risked a quick glance above. "What's so engaging about that?"

"His immense stupidity," Ichigo snorted and sped into the mob of hollows. Against common adjuchas, Zangetsu was a wolf among sheep. Again and again Getsuga Tenshou roared out and sliced off heads and masks.

Hitsugaya rolled his eyes. Sometimes the Kurosaki family just plain did not communicate on a normal wavelength.

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

Finally seeing her spirit come back from whatever there was to see, Karin crossed her arms over her chest. "Now may I go back to being conscious?" she demanded angrily.

Yuutsubame was however unusually grave. "Girlie, that's not a good idea."

"Why not?"

"If you go up now, you're gonna become a hindrance. That's some serious shit going on up there, and you ain't up to that yet."

Karin studied Yuutsubame carefully. "Are you my zanpakuto spirit?"

"What are you on, drugs?" came the retort. Yuutsubame scowled. "Of course I'm your zanpakuto spirit. How many merthings do you know anyway?"

Karin returned the scowl. "Then why the hell aren't you trying to make me stronger instead of telling me to stay here and hide?"

Yuutsubame swam up angrily, its green hair forming a halo about its pointed face. "Listen, girl, I'm just telling you what's what. You can't take the truth, don't take it out on me."

"I'm just saying lemme give it a try, ok?" said Karin, equally angry. "My family is out there. People who came to save me are out there. I can't stay here all in my subconscious waiting to be rescued! I'm not a princess or whatever it is!"

Yuutsubame suddenly smiled. It was not a nice smile. It was a smile that said, I will watch you screw up, and I will celebrate it. Karin felt a tinge of fear at the back of her mind and she slapped it down like the annoying mosquito of a thought that it was. She had to get out and help, somehow.

"Let me out, Yuu."

"Fine. I'll let you out – and then you can tell me what the hell you can do out there."

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

Urahara was lost.

He was never lost, dammit. Never never never.

But Aizen Sousuke had rebuilt this place and made every corridor look the same, every door identical. Even the lighting was flat and gave no clue to where Urahara had come from. The shopkeeper grumbled as he tried to locate Kira by reiatsu, but there was too... much... interference.

"All right," he said at last. "I should've known. Come on out."

"Darn," drawled a tall and muscular arrancar. "Here I was, hopin' you wouldn't notice."

Urahara started to draw out Benihime, but the teal-haired hollow raised both palms outwards in a sign of truce. The blond man kept his relaxed hold on his sword though; he knew better than to let down his guard fully.

"My name's Grimmjow," said the arrancar. "Sexta Espada."

"Alright, Sexta Espada Grimmjow, what do you want?" inquired Urahara cautiously.

Grimmjow smiled lopsidedly, showing off sharp canines. "Can ya arrange a fight between me and that orange-haired shinigami?"

"Why?"

"Because," sneered Grimmjow, "I wanna kill'im. At the rate thigns are going, I ain't gonna get the chance."

Urahara frowned. "You're offering to change sides?"

"I was never on Aizen's side," Grimmjow clarified. "Always been on mine. And since what I want to get depends on his survival – for now – I'm gonna take steps."

"What are you offering?"

"That Inoue girl." Grimmjow raised an eyebrow. "I can get her outta that cell, no questions asked."

Lowering his hat and hating himself for his decision, Urahara hid his eyes. "No deal." Don't hate me, Inoue-san. There's just far too much at stake here than you.

Grimmjow seemed taken aback. "Then what will be the deal?"

"I want the hougyoku," said Urahara, gray-green eyes meeting wild teal ones. The Espada tilted his head before that feral smile returned. The blond shopkeeper smirked. "That belongs to me. Aizen stole it; I want it back."

"I can't bypass the security circuitry," said Grimmjow slowly.

"I bet I can."

"Then the deal will be that I show you where it is," said Grimmjow, "and in return, you set up a match between me and that shinigami."

Urahara paused. "You're risking a lot just for a fight."

"It's not as if Aizen gives a shit about us anyway," scoffed the Espada. "We die, he'll make new ones. Toy soldiers, one and all."

"He hasn't changed much then."

"You knew him from before?"

"Way before," said Urahara with a half-smile. "In fact, I used to be who he is now: an arrogant, self-centered, clever prick who thought everyone was beneath me since they were stupider."

"So what happened to you?"

"Someone smarter than me."

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

As a green-clad shopkeeper and a teal-haired Espada raced down the corridors, the corridors shifted. Aizen watched on the screen as Ulquiorra regenerated his eye. The Fourth Espada blinked once it was done. It was always painful, for the first minute or two, as his new eye adapted to its surrounds.

"Ulquiorra," said Aizen softly, "Deal with them."

"Yes Aizen-sama."

"Keep things clean and straightforward, Ulquiorra."

"Understood."

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx

Kira struggled to hold up the shield for Karin. The combined reiatsu of the released bankais of four captain-level shinigami were weighing on him, a mere lieutenant, and he was fighting to keep the shield steady. At least Kurosaki-taichou was able to keep the fight away from Kira; more than once Ichimaru had tried to shatter the shield and distract his opponent.

Then he heard the scratching inside the dome of his protective barrier. Before he could decide whether to let it down, the tip of a zanpakuto smashed through it. Kira bit down on the sudden backsurge of reiatsu.

Karin peered out and then up, before her eyes widen she stumbled back.

Kira took her hand and channeled reiatsu. "It's alright, it's alright..." he murmured.

Karin had broken into cold sweat. She understood why Yuutsubame hadn't wanted to let her out of the mind-sea: she was totally useless here. Ichimaru was already captain-level, but augmented further with vizard powers; her brother Ichigo had similar levels of reiatsu. Isshin was, for the first time, completely the shinigami captain, his sword of brilliance tracing curves and streams of light. Hitsugaya and Hyourinmaru were as one, stopping the adjuchas from approaching.

Karin was used to her brother's immense reiatsu pressure, and she had adapted to Hitsugaya's through training as well. But now a cold, liquid reiatsu wrapped about her like invisible constrictor boas, matched by a hard, blazing heat that tore at the cold even while adding its own pressure.

Her father and Ichimaru were battling at full strength, and Karin could barely breathe.

Kira wrapped Karin in a hug, trying to provide as much shelter as he could from the raging reiatsu about them, but he was trying to keep from buckling under the pressure himself.

"Let me," said Hitsugaya as he noticed. "Kurosaki can handle the adjuchas. They just keep coming!" His frustration was evident. He knelt on one knee by Karin but spoke to Kira. "Well done on the healing, Kira-san. At least she's not bleeding now."

"I believe her healing was accelerated with some internal assistance," said Kira quietly.

"Learn to accept praise with the same grace with which you accept criticism," said the young captain. He spread his ice wings. Instantly it felt better to Karin, and judging by the look on Kira's face, it was easier on him too. Hitsugaya frowned thoughtfully.

"Hitsugaya? What is it?"

"I'll erect an ice wall about you two again," he said at last. "Try to get out of here if possible. We will grab Inoue if we can, but the priority is to leave. If Aizen seals all of us in Las Noches, we can't hold out for long."

Kira's blue eyes darkened. "I will send the message, Hitsugaya-taichou."

"What? I don't understand," protested Karin ineffectually.

Hitsugaya squeezed her hand. "Secure an exit point. Whatever happens, someone must leave Hueco Mundo alive."

"Hey!" said Karin, grabbing the captain's wrist. "You owe me a date, Hitsugaya. Don't think dying will get you out of it."

"Yeah, whatever." Hitsugaya flashed a rare half-smile. "Hyourinmaru will prepare the way. Get ready to leave."

Kira nodded and released Wabisuke. Karin followed his lead, feeling Yuutsubame's tassels wind more tightly about her wrist than usual.

I'll be fine, Yuu.

:Yeah, yeah. Shut up.:

"Movie and ice-cream sound good to you?" Hitsugaya asked abruptly. He winked one of his large, ice-green eyes.

Karin grinned. "Sounds perfect."

"Alright." Hyourinmaru sprang out and soared straight and true, forming an ice tunnel. "Go."

XxXxXxXxXxXxXxXx