Chapter 14
The battles begin
"Great, I'm lost... I wonder where I am... I can't yell out to anyone, or some arrancar might come and take me out. Or that Nel girl will catch me. I wonder if Ichigo and the others are okay. Maybe I should just go back... maybe if I go back, I'll be able to return to the others." Rukia said to herself. As she ran, she noticed that the whole area started to get really dark. Pretty soon, it became pitch black. Fortunately for her, she had her kido for a light. "I'm probably walking into a trap, but I'm ready for whoever comes up."
With Gohan.
"You plan on fighting us both by yourself?" Ulquiorra asked.
"I can handle it..." Gohan said, unsure of how he was going to make it out with Orihime.
"Don't be an idiot, Gohan. You can't possibly fight two powerful opponents." Zero said.
"You're right about that, which is why I'm going to do this. SOLAR FLARE!" Gohan yelled. Zero and Ulquiorra were both blinded by the flash, and Gohan took this chance to get inside the room where Orihime was. "I'm here, Ms. Inoue!" Gohan took Orihime outside, but as soon as the flash died out, Gohan was carrying a doll, with an explosive attached to it. "Oh, that's nice... " BOOM! The explosive went off, and through the smoke was a black covered Gohan. "Really cute, Zero!"
"You didn't actually think Orihime was in there, did you?" Zero asked.
"Okay, so you tricked me. Let's say whoever loses this fight, has to answer a question." Gohan said.
"That sounds good, I guess. Ulquiorra, I want you to check on Orihime. Make sure the others didn't find her." Zero said.
"Fine. I'll let you have fight this time." Ulquiorra said, disappearing.
"Fine, it's just the two of us now. Let's see the fruits of your training." Zero said.
With Yamcha.
"Do you think we lost her?" Yamcha asked.
"Probably. You check, Ichigo." Uryu said.
"Why do I have to check?" Ichigo complained.
"Stop complaining and do it." Uryu said.
"Rrgh, fine." Ichigo turned around to look. There was nothing. "WE'RE GOOD!"
"Cool. Looks like all we have to do is find Orihime." Renji said.
"Uh... guys, there's 5 doors coming up. Any ideas, Uryu?" Yamcha asked.
"I say we should split up. If we do, we might be able to find Orihime quicker." Chad said.
"I agree with Chad." Uryu said.
"What about you guys?" Yamcha asked to Ichigo and Renji.
Ichigo and Renji looked at each other, then nodded. "We agree." Renji said.
"Good. Let's do this!" Yamcha yelled.
With Rukia.
"I wonder if the others were able to get away from that weirdo." Rukia said. Suddenly, she heard footsteps. She turned around in order to see who it was, but was tackled to the ground.
"I CAUGHT YOU!" Nel yelled.
"Put me down, you creep!" Rukia yelled.
"But Rukia, You're lost, and only I know the way out!" Nel said.
"I can find my way out. Believe me!" Rukia said.
"I'm going with you anyway!" Nel said.
"Fine, but can you put me down?" Rukia asked.
"Hmmm... OKAY!" Nel said, dropping Rukia.
With Gohan.
Gohan jumped at Zero without holding anything back. Zero tried to dodge, but it was too late. Gohan had already punched his face. Gohan then raised his leg to kick Zero in the back, but Zero regained his stance, and got Gohan in the private area.
"Gggh... Why did you hit me there!?" Gohan asked, a tear falling down his cheek.
"Sorry... couldn't resist. Heh heh heh..." Zero laughed nervously. The two fighters got into a fighting stance. "Too bad it's every man's weakness."
With Yamcha.
"Man, the power levels I'm sensing are really strong here... maybe it's not too late for me. I could just turn around and..." Yamcha said, but there were already footsteps coming toward him. "Oh, great... Who are you? Show yourself!"
"You seem to be afraid by what you see. Do not be concerned. We will tell you our name. It is Aaronriero Arruruerie. And you are?" Aaroniero asked.
"Um... My name's Yamcha. Are you one of those arrancar guys?" Yamcha asked.
"No. We are an espada. We are stronger than regular arrancars." Aaroniero said.
"Great. Even worse." Yamcha said, getting in a fighting stance.
"You know, we were expecting someone else other than you." Aaroniero said.
"Sorry about that. You're just gonna have to deal with me." Yamcha said, powering up. The small room started to shake violently. "Bring it on!"
With Ichigo.
"Whoa, is that Yamcha? I didn't think he was that strong. Pretty interesting." Ichigo said.
"Don't flatter that weakling, Ichigo!" Hollow Ichigo said.
"Oh god! I totally forgot that you were here. What do you want?" Ichigo asked.
"I came here to say that you use my powers like a wuss. If I were in charge, I'd find Orihime just like that. The only reason Gohan can't find her is probably because he likes fighting!" Hollow Ichigo said.
"Actually, if you were paying attention, Gohan said there's something blocking his senses. He can only sense me and the others. We have to find her without our senses. It sucks, but that's the only way to do it." Ichigo said.
"Okay, so you let me take over and then..." Hollow Ichigo started.
"WHEN THE HELL DID YOU GET TO THAT CONCLUSION!" Ichigo yelled.
"Watch yourself Ichigo, there's somebody behind us." Hollow Ichigo said.
"Huh! Where are you!?" Ichigo yelled.
"That's interesting... you have found me without even looking. Care to tell me how you did that." The arrancar said.
"Sorry, but that's for me to know." Ichigo said.
"Hmph. So be it. In honor of Lord Aizen, I shall see you defeated." The arrancar said.
"You didn't even introduce yourself And you're already itching for a fight!" Ichigo said.
"I see. My apologies. My name is Dordoni Alessandro del Socaccio!" Dordoni said.
"...Is that really your name, Donpanini?" Ichigo asked.
"IT'S DORDONI! Not Donpanini!" Dordoni yelled.
"Yeah, whatever..." Ichigo said, turning around and running toward his destination.
"Stop right there, Niño!" Dordoni yelled.
"What the hell do you want?" Ichigo asked, impatient.
"Aren't we going to fight? That's the real reason you came here, right?" Dordoni asked.
"No, the real reason I came here is to save my friend!" Ichigo said.
"Ah, yes. The Niña, right. Too bad you won't reach her, because I'm gonna be sure you don't make it out of here alive!" Dordoni said.
"Don't do anything you'll regret later... I'm leaving." Ichigo said.
"You seem to underestimate me niño. A big mistake on your part." Dordoni said, pulling out his sword. "Allow me to show you what I'm capable of." Dordoni attacked Ichigo quickly, but Ichigo was fast enough to pull his own sword out, blocking Dordoni's attack.
"Fine, I'll fight you. Just don't expect me to hold back." Ichigo said.
With Chad.
Chad knew how much Ichigo cared about Orihime, which is why he wants to be the one to find her first. He wanted to show how much stronger he's become. He didn't want Ichigo to worry about anything anymore. "I'll find her. And I'll keep her safe from harm." Chad said. He continued to run his path, but for some reason, he felt that someone was watching him. He spinned around to look for anything that might be a threat. Not seeing anything, he figured that nothing was there.
"'Sup!" A voice said. Chad turned around and saw a weird looking arrancar. "Nice to meet you!"
"Who are you?" Chad asked.
"My name is Gantenbaine Mosqueda! And you are?" Gantenbaine asked.
"My name is Yasutora Sado. You may call me Chad." Chad said.
"I welcome you to my room. Pretty homey, right?" Gantenbaine asked.
Chad said nothing. He got ready to fight. He picked up his left arm, and it was surrounded by a blue light. A second later, he was able to use his powers.
"Any particular reason why you want to fight?" Gantenbaine asked.
"I need to save Orihime. You're in the way, so I need to defeat you." Chad said.
"Suit yourself." Gantenbaine said, pulling out his sword. "Let's see what you got!"
With Uryu.
"WHY ARE YOU FOLLOWING ME!?" Uryu asked.
"I'm looking for master Nel. I figured she was with you Ichigo." Pesche said.
"I'm not Ichigo. I'm Uryu!" Uryu said.
"Whatever. Where's master Nel?" Pesche asked again.
"How should I know!? Maybe she couldn't stand being around you anymore." Uryu said.
"That's not very nice! You're a big fat jerk, Ichigo!" Pesche yelled.
"I'M NOT ICHIGO! GET LOST!" Uryu yelled, but then he stopped. He felt a presence around. "I thought Gohan said you couldn't sense energy. What the hell is this?" He looked around and saw a woman up on top of a bunch of pillars. "Who are you?"
"You don't say hi first? What a rude man." The arrancar said.
"I asked you a question, so answer it! Who are you!?" Uryu asked, impatient.
"I'll tell you my name. It's Cirucci Thunderwitch!" Cirucci said.
"I am Uryu Ishida, a quincy." Uryu said.
"Ooh, a quincy. I've never fought someone of your kind. I hope you'll be a bigger challenge than some of the hollows that live here." Cirucci said.
"Allow me to show you." Uryu said, pulling out his arrows.
"I thought you were a soul reaper Ichigo." Pesche said.
"I'M NOT ICHIGO! GET IT RIGHT!" Uryu said.
With Renji.
"I sense that everyone has started fighting. Which makes me think that I'll be fighting next. Okay then, I'll be ready for... what are those footsteps?" Renji asked, turning around, seeing a giant mask behind him. "AAAAAAAAH!"
"Waaah! Why are you screaming!?" Dondochakka yelled.
"You just came out of nowhere! How do you expect me to react!?" Renji asked.
"You could at least be a little nicer to me you know." Dondochakka said.
"Grrr I don't have time for this. Just... don't get so close to me and you can tag along, all right!" Renji said.
"Hmm... okay. I promise to stay out of your way when the fighting starts. Fair enough?" Dondochakka asked.
"That sounds reasonable. Just go back 10 feet okay." Renji said.
"Okay! But wait, I came to ask you a question. Where is Nel?" Dondochakka asked.
"You mean that green woman? I don't know, why do you ask?" Renji asked.
"So you don't know huh? Sigh, I was afraid you'd say that. Oh well. Maybe if I stick with you, then I'll be able to see her again." Dondochakka said.
A few minutes later.
"Have we been running around in circles?" Renji asked.
"I don't know. I'm following you!" Dondochakka said.
"Well, let's..." There was a trap door under them. "keep moving." Renji finished. "Whoa, yaah!"
"Where did this hole come from!?" Dondochakka asked.
"How should I know!?" Renji asked.
They continued to fall, until Renji reached the end, and fell flat on his face. Dazed, he tried to get up, only for Dondochakka to fall on him.
"Nice performance. Very nice." A voice said. To make Renji feel worse, the voice also clapped.
"Who's there?" Renji asked, struggling to get up.
"Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Szayel Aporro Granz. And you are?" Szayel asked.
"I am Renji Abarai." Renji said.
"How very nice to meet you." Szayel said. "You know, I've never met a live soul reaper."
"Damn you! What do you mean by that?" Renji asked.
"Can't you tell just by looking? I'm a scientist." Szayel said.
"I see. So you captured soul reapers and brought them over just so you could experiment on them. You sick bastard!" Renji yelled.
"Hey now, you soul reapers do the same thing to us hollows. I see it as only fair." Szayel said.
"Hmph. You leave me no choice then. I'm gonna beat you to the ground and crush you!" Renji said.
"Whoa there, I didn't come here to fight. You see, I'm not the fighting type. I want to make a truce with you." Szayel said.
"Screw you and your truce! If you wanted a truce, you should've gone to Gohan. I don't intend to be friendly with your kind!" Renji said.
"You seem awfully friendly with him." Szayel said, pointing at Dondochakka.
"The only reason I'm keeping him alive is because Gohan doesn't want him to die. Apparently, the saiyan wouldn't like it if I killed him. But enough of your questions. I have a few of my own. First off, I thought Gohan said you couldn't sense energy, so why can I sense you?" Renji asked.
"Interesting question. I'll give you the answer. The reason you can sense us is because we can allow you to sense us. We're keeping our power down until we reach one of you fools." Szayel said. "By the way, do you remember my last name? Granz?"
"No. Why should I?" Renji asked.
"Of course you wouldn't. How could you remember my brother. Yylfordt Granz. Do you remember now?" Szayel asked.
That's when it struck Renji! Yylfordt is brother's with this bastard. "Yeah, I remember now. Is that why you wanted me?" Renji asked.
"Don't be silly. Why whould I want revenge for a worm like him?" Szayel asked.
"If that's how you treat your family, then I don't think you should be allowed to live. Prepare yourself, Espada! ROAR! ZABIMARU!" Renji yelled. His sword suddenly grew larger with a few lines across them.
"Heh heh heh... This should be interesting." Szayel said, pulling out his sword.
The end of chapter 14.