Part 2: Rise to Power

Chapter 13: Desperate Measures

Ichigo was in a foul mood. With his hands tucked deep into his coat pockets and a hood obscuring his bright orange hair, he stalked the streets of Karakura, practically emanating an aura of hostility. His trademark scowl was out in full force, and people instinctively gave him a wide berth when they passed him.

The weak midday sun shone down on him, its rays barely providing any warmth. Temperatures were beginning to flirt with the freezing point, and the first snow of the year couldn't be too far off anymore. Perhaps as a result of that, some people were prematurely getting into the Christmas spirit, and every now and then he would hear cheesy Christmas songs from within a store as he passed by.

If he heard the words 'Jingle Bells' one more time, he was going to strangle someone.

The reason for his current, admittedly cranky state of mind was that he had just finished another training session with Ishida. It had been Urahara's idea: the logic here was that if Ichigo had any Spirit Energy left at all, and he learned to draw it out and use it at will, he might be able to naturally build up his store of Reiryoku again, reclaiming his former abilities that way. If not, it would at least serve as a jump-start for whatever method Urahara would eventually cook up. As an added bonus, if he started out with such low (if any at all) quantities of energy, he might be able to properly control his Reiatsu this time around, and perhaps even learn some Kido once he became a full-fledged Shinigami again.

So far however, the results were not promising.

Ichigo had expected it would be frustrating. He had known it was going to take time. He just hadn't thought that he would be making absolutely ZERO progress whatsoever after more than a week of doing this.

Uryu was doing his best to help, he really was. While Ichigo may have been hesitant at first in asking him, his friend-slash-rival had really come through for him. He had looked through his family's ancient Quincy texts for anything that might help, had attempted to forcefully draw out some of Ichigo's energy, had even taught him how to meditate properly... but so far nothing had worked.

A few setbacks weren't going to make him give up though.

While Ichigo was doing his best on his end, Urahara was looking into other methods. The scientist had been convinced there was something he could do to help. Lately however, it appeared other matters required his attention more urgently.

It had been a little over a week since Yamamoto had been taken out of the picture. From the snippets of news Ichigo occasionally received, he'd learned that Soul Society's political climate had become... turbulent, to say the least.

With Yamamoto gone, Captain Kyoraku had been promoted to Commander of the Gotei, and some of the nobles were less than happy about the way he did things. For one, he had already broken tradition by taking both Sasakibe and Nanao as his lieutenants. He hadn't been making it easy on Central either, arguing back and forth with them over matters they disagreed on, and even outright refusing to follow their orders when he felt they were unreasonable. Clearly, he was nothing like the old man in that department.

That wasn't the part that worried Ichigo though. There was clearly more going on than just some political squabbles. For one: why hadn't Yamamoto been freed yet in the first place? Surely, Soul Society had some Kido users among their ranks who were capable of unlocking Izanagi's Seal?

Secondly, how come Takahashi, the man responsible for it all hadn't been caught yet? Apparently, by the time Yoruichi had arrived with backup at the site of the battle, he'd already disappeared. No-one had seen or heard of him since.

Ichigo didn't believe for a second that this was caused by Captain Kyoraku's incompetence. He himself may not have interacted much with Kyoraku, but Yamamoto had personally chosen him to be his successor, and Central 46 had agreed with that decision. His capabilities as a leader couldn't have been the issue here. There had to be something more to it. Every time Ichigo thought it over, he felt like he was missing a piece of the puzzle.

He had asked his father about it, but the man refused to give him a straight answer. Ditto with Urahara, and none of his friends seemed to know anything more either. It was frustrating beyond belief.

The crowd thinned out as he left the shopping district behind him and entered the suburbs. Today was a Sunday, so he had the rest of the day to keep working on his exercises. Maybe he'd give Urahara a call later - try to find out what the shopkeeper was up to these days.

Upon entering his neighborhood, Ichigo instantly got the feeling there was something off. He looked around, and a flash of blue caught his eye.

"Grimmjow?!" The Arrancar's name came out at a somewhat higher pitch than Ichigo had meant it to. You couldn't really fault him for it. He hadn't seen hide nor hair of the Arrancar since the day of the Hollow invasion, and now he suddenly runs into him here? Heading... toward his house, Ichigo warily noted.

The Arrancar quickly turned around. "Kurosaki," he stated rather factually upon seeing him. "Huh. Had no idea you were there. Usually I can sense you coming from half a mile away."

So many questions were fighting each other in Ichigo's head to decide which one of them should be asked first. He probably should have focused on the important issues, like why Grimmjow was here, or what the situation was like in Hueco Mundo, something like that.

Instead, what he decided on was: "What the hell are you wearing?!" Just looking at the Arrancar nearly gave him frostbite. Grimmjow still had the same flimsy T-shirt on that Urahara had given him back when he first woke up from his coma, and aside from the obvious, that was all the man was wearing.

"What?" Grimmjow bit out. "This is what that stupid Gigai was wearing. Sorry if doesn't meet your high standards in fashion, princess." How he managed to say that with a straight face even as his teeth were chattering was beyond Ichigo.

"I'm not talking about your sense of style – or lack thereof, you moron," he replied as he walked up to Grimmjow. "I meant that you're going around wearing a freaking handkerchief in two-degree weather!"

Grimmjow frowned at him. "I can take a little cold."

Ichigo just about threw his hands up in exasperation. It was like dealing with a petulant child. He barely managed to suppress a snappy comeback and began moving again, gesturing for Grimmjow to follow. "Whatever. Just hurry up and come with me, so we can get you inside before my dad has to amputate your fingertips."

Grimmjow seemed to have no objection to that. When the sound of chattering teeth started up again, Ichigo felt something close to pity for his blue-haired companion. With a sigh, he removed his scarf and gloves and presented them to Grimmjow. "Here, put these on." The Arrancar looked at the offered items in confusion, then looked at Ichigo again, blinked, and finally opened his mouth to protest.

"Put the damn gloves on!" Ichigo ordered in a commanding voice, cutting Grimmjow off before he could get a word out. This time, he complied. He must have really been chilled to the bone if he gave in that easily. The steady click-click-clack of his teeth eventually came to a halt once he was somewhat protected from the chill.

Ichigo quickly put his hands back in his pockets. Having them suddenly be exposed to the biting winter air after being nice and warm inside his gloves was rather unpleasant. "Why are you here, anyway?" he asked the Arrancar as they marched along, side-by-side.

"Didn't have anything better to do, really," he shrugged. The scarf had been wrapped snugly around his neck, Ichigo noted. "Wandering around Hueco Mundo by myself is apparently 'too dangerous' now," he said, making air quotes, "and those fuckers over in Haven drive me up the fucking wall. I mean, Harribel is vaguely likable I guess, since she knows how to mind her own damn business, but Nelliel..." he shuddered. "Bitch won't leave me the hell alone. Every time I try to go out on my own, she's just there all of a sudden with her retard friends, and follows me all over the fucking place."

Ichigo sent him a nasty glare for talking about Nel like that, but knew there wouldn't be any point in getting into an argument over it. Besides, his interest had been peaked. Perhaps Grimmjow had an idea as to the reason his father and Urahara had been so tense lately.

"What do you mean, Hueco Mundo is too dangerous?" he questioned. Grimmjow should have been the second, maybe third (Nel was pretty damn tough after all) strongest fighter in Hueco Mundo right now. He was at the top of the food chain over there. Right?

"The shopkeeper didn't tell you?" He seemed rather surprised that Ichigo was so out of the loop. "Lots of weird shit is going on. A bunch of Arrancar went out to gather supplies for the camp, but they never came back. Even that jackass Mosqueda up and vanished, and even if he was a piss-poor excuse for an Espada, there shouldn't be much out there that could give him trouble."

Ichigo vaguely recalled Chad telling him about a guy named Mosqueda. He'd fought him in Hueco Mundo when they went to rescue Orihime. Apparently he was a Privaron Espada like Dordoni had been – the only surviving one, at that. Even so, the fact that Arrancar were disappearing from Haven only served to confuse Ichigo more. Could it possibly be related?

More importantly: "You're keeping in touch with Urahara?" Ichigo asked disbelievingly. He'd expected the Espada to bolt for Hueco Mundo upon regaining his freedom, never going near Urahara's shop ever again.

"Sort of." Grimmjow shrugged noncommittally. "We made a deal: I tell him about what goes on in Hueco Mundo, and he lets me keep using the room he gave me." When he saw the incredulous look Ichigo was giving him, he elaborated: "Sure the place is a madhouse, but at least it's an actual room. In Haven, everyone just sleeps in glorified tents, and Las Noches is a fucking ruin." He shivered briefly when a gust of icy wind blew straight through his shirt. "And those guys all have other things to worry about, so they leave me be most of the time."

Ichigo decided not to comment on the absurdity of traveling between dimensions just to get some peace and quiet. "Huh. I guess something big really is going then," he muttered. And both his father and Urahara had chosen to leave him entirely in the dark about it. That was just... great.

He shook his head in order to clear his thoughts. "Look, it's not that I don't want you here or anything, but I've got stuff to do," he said to Grimmjow. "I'll lend you some actual clothes when we get to my house so you don't freeze to death, but then I really have to get back to work."

"Oh yeah. You're doing some sort of exercises with that Quincy prick, huh? The shopkeeper said as much when I got here." A wolfish grin spread out over his features. "I've got a better idea."

Ichigo would be lying if he said that grin didn't make him somewhat nervous. "Which would be?" he asked, voice filled with apprehension.

Grimmjow didn't answer right away. His grin however, got just a bit wider.

Apparently, Urahara had let it slip to the Arrancar at some point that Ichigo used to practice Karate, and was a pretty good hand-to-hand fighter. Grimmjow, being bored out of his mind and frustrated from being confined to the relative safety of Haven, had chosen to take that as a challenge.

Ichigo had to wonder whether Urahara had set this up on purpose. Some sort of crazy scheme to have them both work out their respective frustrations on each other.

He was slowly coming to terms with the idea that he would have to kill Urahara someday if he wanted to hang on to his sanity and general well-being.

It had been a while since he was last here, but once again Ichigo found himself in the Arrancar's room. No-one had come out to greet the pair when they entered the shop, so Urahara and the others were probably all busy at the moment.

Despite his initial – and totally justified - apprehension, Ichigo had to admit having a good old-fashioned sparring match might not be such a bad idea. After all the meditating and other spiritual stuff he'd done at Uryu's, some physical exercise would do him good. Somewhat naively, he also couldn't help but think that the thrill of a fight might help stir something within him. Trigger his slumbering power somehow.

On the other hand, getting into a spar with Grimmjow, the most violent member of the already generally unstable Espada may have just been asking for trouble.

"Alright, we need to set some ground rules," Ichigo decided. The last thing he needed right now was to get permanently maimed - or worse.

Grimmjow was just putting on the sweatpants Ichigo had lent him when he looked up. "Huh? Now what are you bitching about?"

"Just so this doesn't get out of hand," Ichigo elaborated. He walked into the 'ring', which was really just an open area they'd created by moving the futons around, and began jumping in place to warm up. "I mean like no going for the eyes or groin, stopping when someone taps out-"

"Yeah, yeah," the Arrancar muttered, demonstrating a complete lack of interest. He joined Ichigo in the 'ring' and cracked his neck before adopting a fighting stance. "You about ready? Or do you need help putting on your training bra first?" He bared his teeth in an expression that was not quite a smile, not quite a smirk.

Feeling sufficiently warmed up, and somewhat ticked off as an added bonus, Ichigo stopped moving and put up his fists. Matching Grimmjow's expression, he said: "At least I'm wearing something," referring to Grimmjow's bare torso. He had offered him one of his spare tank tops, similar to the one he was currently wearing, but Grimmjow had opted to go without it. "Didn't know you had an exhibitionist streak," Ichigo quipped.

In response, Grimmjow closed the distance between them and opened with a swift one-two punch, which Ichigo blocked. "Like what you see, Kurosaki?"

Huffing out a laugh, Ichigo charged forward like he was going to ram Grimmjow with his elbow. The Espada twisted his upper body, narrowly managing to avoid the hit. In the same instant, Ichigo drew back his outstretched leg, attempting to hook it behind Grimmjow's foot, but the other man had seen the maneuver coming a mile away and jumped over the leg sweep.

In retaliation, he aimed a lightning-fast aerial kick at the teen's chest, like a sting from a giant blue hornet.

Knowing the kick was too fast for him to block or counter, Ichigo let himself drop to the floor, curling up his body to both accelerate the fall and roll backwards in one smooth motion once he hit the ground. Rolling over his shoulder, he got back up right away once his feet found purchase on the tatami mat and took up his fighting stance again.

They were roughly back at their starting positions now. After the short exchange, Ichigo had to admit that Grimmjow had some skill behind him. He was going to have to kick it up a notch if he wanted to find out just how good the Arrancar really was.

Before he knew it, his usual scowl had morphed into a grin. He was starting to enjoy himself.

"Don't flatter yourself, Jaegerjaquez," he continued their earlier conversation. "That huge ego of yours is making you a bigger target." Grimmjow didn't respond, but he could see the man's lips drawing back in a half-smile.

No further words were needed. The two lunged at each other again, neither of them holding anything back this time. Both of them seemed to believe that they were the better fighter, and they would make the other admit defeat, no matter the cost.

Thirty minutes and a nearly uncountable number of kicks, punches and even some rather painful headbutts later, the pair was kneeling on the floor, practically wrapped in each others arms as they both tried to put each other in a chokehold.

"What? Don't tell me you're getting tired?" Ichigo huffed, sweat dripping down his face and neck. His white wife-beater was plastered to his skin, almost having gone see-through in some places.

Grimmjow roughly pushed at his shoulder in an attempt to get him off-balance. "Hell no. Fresh as a fucking daisy," he rasped out hoarsely, making Ichigo laugh.

"I don't suppose-" Ichigo began, intentionally giving in to Grimmjow's push so he could use the man's own strength against him. Grimmjow fell forward once Ichigo stopped resisting, and Ichigo hurried to pin him to the floor. Mid-fall however, Grimmjow somehow managed to right himself and after some awkward shuffling about they found themselves in a deadlock once again. "-You'd be willing to call it a draw?" Ichigo finished lamely, disappointed that his plan had failed.

In response, the Espada attempted to headbutt him again, thus forcing Ichigo, with no other way to defend himself, to do the same. Their foreheads painfully collided, making Ichigo see stars for a second. "What do you think?" Grimmjow grit out, the slightest hint of discomfort apparent in his voice. Despite this, he stubbornly continued his offensive, like a stag locking antlers.

"Yeah..." the teen groaned painfully. "Figured as much." He was seriously getting tired though. Not just that, but between the two of them they must have collected over fifty bruises. His everything hurt like a bitch. Honestly it was the most fun he'd had in weeks.

Still, he wasn't planning on losing now. It was time to move on to riskier tactics. For a second, he used every bit of energy he had left to try and overpower Grimmjow - who eagerly pushed back, believing he could win a contest of pure strength – and abruptly launched himself backward instead.

Having invested so much strength, Grimmjow couldn't stop himself from faltering. Ichigo tightened his hold on the sides of Grimmjow's shoulders, tucked in his legs as his lower back hit the ground, and pulled the other man along for the ride.

Grimmjow's forward momentum launched him forward, and for a split second he was hovering over Ichigo, looking into his eyes. Disbelief and anger were clearly identifiable. Ichigo couldn't stop himself from grinning at the sight. In that same instant, Ichigo extended his legs again, mercilessly planted his feet into Grimmjow's stomach with a resounding slap of flesh hitting flesh, and pushed.

The Arrancar was flipped over like a pancake.

Not intending to let it end like that, Grimmjow desperately tried to land on his feet in order to regain his balance. Of course, Ichigo still retained a tight grip on his shoulders, and wasn't about to let him succeed. As soon as gravity kicked in again and started dragging the Arrancar back down to Earth, Ichigo decided to give it a helping hand.

The entire room shook as eighty kilos worth of Espada slammed into the tatami mat, landing flat on his back. Despite being disoriented and breathless after the impact, Grimmjow still attempted to get up right away. This time, Ichigo didn't let him.

Just as he was getting off the ground, Ichigo snaked an arm around his neck and applied a fair bit pressure, pulling him back down. With a choking gasp, the Espada sank to the floor and was forced into a sitting position.

"Sooo..." Ichigo started, smiling deviously as he tightened his hold on the man's neck. "Remember what I said about tapping out?"

An angry, strangled sound emerged from Grimmjow throat in response, which Ichigo imagined was probably meant to be 'Bite me, Kurosaki!'.

"Sorry, I didn't catch that last bit." Using both arms now, he tightened his grip a little. "Care to repeat?"

More grunting and choking noises emerged. It sounded vaguely like: 'This... is... bullshit!' Refusing to give up, Grimmjow clawed at the offending arm, trying to wrench it away from his throat, but to no avail.

"You know, you're getting awfully red in the face," Ichigo remarked innocently. It was really difficult to keep himself from sounding overly smug. He also wasn't trying very hard. "You sure you don't want to tap out? Struggling till you pass out isn't going to do you any good."

Grimmjow made one last, desperate attempt at breaking free, snarling and wheezing, digging his nails into Ichigo's arm and just generally making a nuisance of himself, but the teen was simply not letting go. The Espada furiously uttered some final, incomprehensible murmurs that may have included the words 'fucker' and 'kill', before falling silent at last.

Finally, Ichigo felt two quick taps against his arm, signaling Grimmjow's grudging surrender. Victory secured, he let go immediately, and the Espada fell forward onto his hands and knees, sucking in air. Ichigo breathed out in relief, and leaned back while he watched Grimmjow get some oxygen back into his system.

"Well. That was fun," he said, making Grimmjow glare daggers at him. "No, seriously." He held up his hands in mock-surrender, showing he wasn't just taking the piss. "I needed this. I've been out of the action for too long. It was a good fight."

Grimmjow crawled over and flopped down across from him, still breathing heavily. "I want a rematch," were the first words out of his mouth.

Ichigo grinned, and was about to answer when they were interrupted.

"I hate to spoil the fun," Urahara announced as he strode into the room, "but I'm afraid it will have to wait." Ichigo noticed right away how tired he looked. He was trying to act cheerful as always, but was failing miserably at it.

Frowning, Ichigo got up and went to talk to him. "What's up, Kisuke?" The man looked much the same as he had done the time Yoruichi had gone MIA in Hueco Mundo, only worse. He must not have slept properly for a week, if not longer.

His mentor fidgeted uneasily. "Do you remember how we talked about ways for you to regain your powers?" he began, keeping his eyes downcast. Ichigo nodded. "I promised you I would find a relatively risk-free way to do so... but we're out of time."

Before continuing, the man glanced briefly at Grimmjow. He must have been unsure if it was wise to let the Arrancar hear the next part. He eventually resumed talking anyway, apparently concluding that it did not matter. "I'm sure you have already noticed that something is afoot, Kurosaki-san. I assume Grimmjow told you of the disappearances in Haven? This is related to that."

He walked a few paces away from Ichigo. "I already know what your answer will be," Urahara spoke despondently, "but still I have to ask." Turning around again, he locked eyes with Ichigo. The severity of the situation finally got through to him when he saw that look on his mentor's face. Urahara was resolved, yet also saddened and deeply ashamed at what he was asking of him.

"After everything you have already done for us. All the suffering you have gone through for your friends, the Soul Society and even the entire world..." he trailed off. He swallowed and took a deep breath, steeling himself. "Will you lend us your strength once more?"

Somewhat exasperated at all the drama, Ichigo sighed while scratching the back of his neck. Honestly, he thought to himself, like there's even any point in doing this now... When he met Urahara's gaze, one corner of his mouth was slightly upturned. "Urahara. You really didn't need to ask."

He followed Urahara down the ladder to the underground training area. Grimmjow climbed down after them. After Ichigo had declared he was fine with him coming along, Urahara had allowed it, but only on the condition that he stayed in his Gigai for the duration of... whatever was about to happen.

The giant, featureless black cube that awaited them at the base of the ladder instantly captured his attention. Something about it seemed... off. Once they reached the ground, Ichigo wanted to inspect it more closely, but Urahara stopped him with a subtle shake of his head.

"Holy shit," Grimmjow muttered as he joined them. His eyes wandered around the room, and it was clear from his expression that he didn't like what he saw. Out of instinct, he reached for his sword even though it wasn't there.

"What is it?" Ichigo asked, seeing nothing out of the ordinary aside from the mysterious cube.

The Arrancar was glaring at what was, from Ichigo's perspective, thin air. "There's a fuckton of Shinigami here," he grumbled lowly. "Most of them have their faces covered."

Shinigami who obscured their faces? There were only two organizations within the Seireitei whose members did that. "Do they look like ninjas?" he asked Grimmjow.

The man raised an eyebrow at the strange question, but answered anyway. "Not really. They have these long strips of cloth. Covers their faces and reaches all the way to their knees. They look like idiots if you ask me."

So it was the Kido Corps then. What on Earth could they be doing here? They were probably the most enigmatic organization in Soul Society. Ichigo knew their members were skilled with Kido (obviously) but knew next to nothing about them aside from that. It was seriously annoying not being able to see them for himself.

"They're not the only ones here," Grimmjow continued. "I'm seeing six Captains as well, and two Shinigami in regular uniform,"

Six Captains? That many? Wide-eyed, he turned to Urahara again. "What the hell is going on here?"

The man smiled wryly at him, before looking at the black box. "Do you remember that first method I mentioned for regaining your powers? The potentially dangerous one? Well..." He nodded toward the cube. "This is it." Taking a deep breath, Urahara started walking forward. "Follow me if you would, Kurosaki-san. Stay right by my side. Grimmjow-san, please wait where you are," he ordered.

"I thought you said that method was too risky, and that you couldn't use it anyway, even if you wanted to?" Ichigo inquired as he walked with Urahara, leaving Grimmjow behind at the base of the ladder.

"I needed permission from Central 46 first. About two hours ago, I got it. I was planning to call you, but since Grimmjow already brought you here..." he trailed off. "Anyway, while there is a very real risk of this going wrong, we truly are running out of time. There is a disaster in the making, and you are one of the very few people who stand a chance of preventing it from happening at this point. While I apologize for being so vague, it will be easier to understand when you see the ah, 'problem' for yourself. Commander Kyoraku will fill you in on the details later."

Ichigo swallowed. Six Captains, including the newly appointed Head Captain were here, along with an entire regiment of Kido Corps troops from the sound of it. "I'm guessing all these people are here in case things go wrong?"

"Yes," Urahara admitted. "But they shouldn't. We were very thorough with the security measures." With a little less confidence, he added: "Though we are dealing with perhaps the two most unpredictable entities in the world here..."

At first, Ichigo just frowned a little harder upon hearing Urahara's cryptic remark. Then, it started to dawn on him. His eyebrows just about shot up into his hairline when he put two and two together. He examined the cube again, now realizing what that strange feeling he got from it was. "Kisuke. That thing came from the Soul Society, didn't it? How come I can see it?"

"It is made of a special material," he answered. "One used to build prisons for the most dangerous of criminals, namely those residing within the Muken. It is related to Seki-Seki, and virtually indestructible. It is apparently so dense even normal human beings can see it."

Ichigo's heart rate picked up. "From the Muken? Urahara, you cannot be serious about this." He looked back at Grimmjow, but the Arrancar did not seem to have noticed anything yet. He was still sending death glares at people currently invisible to Ichigo.

The teen did have a pretty good idea as to who he was glaring at. Grimmjow had mentioned two Shinigami in regular uniform, and he was willing to bet it was Rukia and Renji. Which meant Byakuya was most likely with them, and considering his and Grimmjow's respective personalities... Well, if Ichigo made it through this next part, there would probably be another problem awaiting him here when he got back.

If Central 46 actually agreed to this, they must have really been desperate, Ichigo thought to himself. Still, what the hell could have possibly gone wrong now? It hadn't even been a full two weeks since the last disaster. Was it really that hard to keep the place from falling apart without the old man there?

"Ichigo." Urahara's voice pulled him out of his musings. "Are you ready?" The man was wearing an unusually soft expression. It was as if he was saying that he wouldn't blame Ichigo if he chose to stop now. Obviously, that wasn't going to happen.

Taking just a second to steel himself, Ichigo nodded. "Now or never."

Urahara signaled someone - likely a Kido Corps member - and guided Ichigo forward. "There's a few barriers we need to pass through," Urahara explained when they halted again after walking just a meter. "I wouldn't want you to walk into one of them." They repeated this process two more times, before finally arriving at one of the pitch black cube's sides. With a grim determination, Urahara pressed his hand against it, and right away the material began to warp, reorganizing itself to form an entrance. The two of them stepped though, walking into the inky blackness that awaited them. The 'door' closed behind them once they were through, leaving them trapped.

At first, Ichigo couldn't see a thing. Then, while his eyes were still adapting to the dark, the walls themselves began to emanate a soft, dark purple glow that illuminated the inside of the cube.

"So we meet again, Kurosaki Ichigo," a familiar voice spoke. Ichigo looked then, at the man sitting before them. Wrapped from head to toe in thick, black restraints that tied him firmly to the throne-like chair he was sitting on, was Sosuke Aizen. Only his mouth and left eye peeked out from underneath the black wrappings binding him. He was wearing something best described as a cross between a straitjacket and a tight leather suit.

"I must admit," he continued smoothly, "I had not expected to see you again so soon... certainly not under these circumstances." His lone visible eye gave the prison a quick once-over, as if gesturing toward it in lieu of actual hand movements. "I must apologize for being a poor host. As you can see, I'm thoroughly tied up at the moment." He smiled pleasantly at his own joke.

He was every bit the prick Ichigo remembered. He still spoke with that same gentle, honeyed voice while putting on an air of being a kind, decent human being. It didn't fool anyone, of course. Not anymore.

"Figures." Ichigo scowled. "My friends are all invisible to me, but you I can somehow still see."

"But of course," he answered complacently. "I am no mere ghost, after all. I have become something far greater-"

"And at the same time, something far less," Urahara interrupted his monologue. His grey eyes smoldered with something close to hatred as he stared the traitor down. "We didn't come here to talk, Aizen. In fact, we're not here for you at all." Ichigo couldn't help but feel somewhat surprised at seeing his mentor show open hostility, even to Aizen. The stress and fatigue caused by this past week's mysterious developments must have finally gotten to him.

Aizen laughed politely at that, as if Urahara had told a mildly amusing joke. "Ah, yes." He put on that sickening smile again. "Your 'plan'." There was a vaguely mocking tone to his voice. "Talented though he may be, the boy will not possibly be able to learn the measure of control required of him in so short a time. Not even with the Hogyoku's assistance."

"I have faith in Ichigo," Urahara calmly dismissed Aizen's claim. A warm glow spread throughout Ichigo's chest upon hearing his mentor's mentor's unexpectedly bold declaration. Thankfully he managed to avoid blushing. He couldn't imagine two worse people in the world than these two to catch him feeling all warm and fuzzy.

"Having faith is the same thing as becoming reliant on someone," the traitor scoffed, clearly unimpressed.

"That's rich, coming from the guy who never once trusted another soul throughout his entire life," Ichigo interjected rather calmly. His gaze barely held any heat as he locked eyes with the man who had wanted to become a god. "Tell me, how's that working out for you?" He couldn't bring himself to hate Aizen. If anything, he pitied him. Despite all the evils the man had committed, he hadn't killed or done any lasting damage to Ichigo's friends. That was one thing Aizen had been right about.

For the first time, something close to annoyance showed on Aizen's face. "And what if your faith is misplaced, Urahara Kisuke? What if he fails?" Aizen pressed on, disregarding Ichigo's taunt. "Will you watch on as the world burns because of your mistake?"

"I do not recall asking for your opinion on the matter, Aizen-san." His voice was cold as ice. He turned toward Ichigo, refusing to listen to any more of the traitor's drivel. "Kurosaki-san. We've applied just about every technique we could think of to keep him from utilizing his abilities. Even so, we can't be sure he won't try anything. We should get this done and get out as quickly as possible."

Chuckling softly, Aizen spoke up once more, to Urahara's frustration. "If you are worried about foul play on my part, there is no need for that." As he spoke, the restraining fabric around his torso began to shift, pulling apart just enough to reveal the Hogyoku embedded within the center of his chest.

"I am physically incapable of harming Kurosaki Ichigo, or those he considers his allies. The Hogyoku will not allow me to," he explained. "When you defeated me, it selected you, and you alone as its true master, Kurosaki-san. The fact that it is fused with my body means nothing."

As soon as the weakly glowing sphere was revealed, Ichigo couldn't tear his eyes away from it. He could feel it calling out to him. He had felt it ever since he had laid eyes on the black cube they were currently in. He subconsciously took a step forward, and it seemed to throb in response to Ichigo's presence.

He felt Urahara put a hand on his shoulder. "Be very careful, Ichigo. Focus on what you want it to do, and if anything feels wrong, tell me right away."

The reality-warping jewel throbbed again. As it did, Ichigo felt an alien presence brush against his mind. Somehow, it felt... questioning. Curious.

"I have to tell it what I want from it," Ichigo muttered softly. It was as if he was falling into a trance. He began walking forward again, but Urahara stopped him.

"What are you doing Ichigo?" Urahara whispered, sounding concerned... a little scared even. Ichigo could feel the hand on his shoulder shaking slightly.

Mustering up all his willpower, he managed to tear his eyes away from the Hogyoku to look back at his mentor. Beads of sweat were dripping down the man's brow. He alternated between looking at Ichigo with open concern, and looking at the Hogyoku with a mix of fear, anger and regret.

"It's okay," Ichigo reassured him, looking him in the eye. He had never seen Urahara look so uncertain. His own resolve however, was unshakable. He had to do this. He made sure his mentor knew that. "I know what I'm doing. Trust me."

Urahara clenched his jaw. He looked at Ichigo as if this was the first time he was really seeing him. "I do." Giving Ichigo's shoulder one last squeeze, he slowly let go.

Directing his full attention to the Hogyoku once again, Ichigo closed the distance with quick, determined strides, coming to a stop before Aizen's bound legs. Very slowly, he reached out to the tiny sphere, hesitating just before he made contact.

"Go ahead." Aizen looked down at him, seeming rather amused by the whole situation. "I won't bite."

Ichigo resisted the urge to flip him off, and put his hand on his archenemy's chest, feeling warm flesh beneath his fingers, as well as the solid, softly humming mass of the Hogyoku pressing into his palm.

It was like an electric current ran from his hand directly to his brain. An otherworldly, completely incomprehensible entity briefly merged with his psyche, asking a thousand questions Ichigo could not understand, and extracting the answers near instantaneously without any conscious input on Ichigo's part. It retreated from his mind just as quickly as it had come, leaving him with what could only be described as a severe case of mental whiplash.

A blue light now shone from underneath his palm. The Hogyoku had reached a consensus.

Right away, a massive wave of vertigo slammed into him, making Ichigo lose his balance. He sunk to his knees, yet could not let go of the Hogyoku; it was as if his flesh had been welded to it.

He looked at Aizen's legs, which quickly became blurry and out of focus. Soon, his vision went black, and the floor seemed to give out from under him. He felt himself falling, faster and faster, yet there was no air resistance. Ichigo imagined this is what it would be like to fall into the black void inside a Garganta. Somehow though, even that endless void hadn't been as featureless and empty as this.

Eventually, he felt himself slowing down, before landing gently on a solid surface. While he tried to reorient himself, the sound of footsteps grabbed his attention. Slowly, a tall figure wearing a long, billowing coat came into view. Ichigo could do nothing but gape as the man closed in on his position.

The figure stopped moving when it was before him, and spoke: It has been a long time... Ichigo.

"...Yeah. Good to see you... Zangetsu."

A/N: And here. we. go.

As you may have noticed, I've made some changes to the Author's note at the beginning of the story. The most important change is that is that I put a warning for spoilers for the entire series now. Next chapter in particular will have a pretty big one, and I'm sure many people already know what I'm talking about. Plus, this way I get to incorporate some of the newly revealed Bankai into the story. It'd be a waste to leave them out.

So Grimmjow got his ass kicked and Ichigo got to be all smug about it, which is something I've wanted to write into the story for a while now. Next chapter will bring more clarity about both the Intermission, and about what's got Urahara and Soul Society all worried. Oh, and before I forget: all temperatures are in Celsius. I hope the 'two-degree weather' part didn't confuse too many people.

Anyway, let me know what you think, and see you next chapter!