Chapter 14 – Raining Blood

"Why won't defend yourself?" an irritated, younger Kurosaki Ichigo asked. Sado shrugged.

"I promised my abuelo that I would never fight for selfish reasons again," the silent giant answered. Ichigo narrowed his eyes.

"And apparently defending yourself is selfish?" Sado nodded again. Ichigo sighed.

"That logic is stupid..." Wiping the blood off his fist, he helped Sado up.

"We need to get you to a medic. It's on the house, by the way."

"It seems that I'm going to have to fight, now..." a man, with goatee of stubble, long wavy brown hair, said, "What a drag. I was hoping to stay here and drink sake with my dear Nanao-chan." The bespectacled woman in the room with him sighed.

"Then who's going to do your work?" she said, sharply.

"...I'll worry about it tomorrow," he said, hoping that was an acceptable answer.

"You said that yesterday."

"Eh...Then I'll keep putting it off until I have the time for it." Nanao glared at him.

"You have all the time in the world to do it."

"But who's going to fight the invader."

"I'll do it. Even though he made it this far, he doesn't seem too powerful. I can eliminate him." A soft fluttering was heard, and a hell butterfly landed in front of the man.

"Emergency! Emergency!" the butterfly announced, "A message, for Captain Kyōraku no Jirō Sōzōsa Shunsui of the Eighth Division, and second son of the Kyōraku family! Peace time precautions have been lifted! All Shinigami, including Captains and their Vice Captains are authorized to carry their Zanpakutōs on their person!"

"Who made this message? Suì-Fēng?"

"Message approved via the signature of Captain Suì-Fēng of the Second Division, Commander of the Stealth Force, Corp Commander of the Executive Militia, and ninth head of the Fēng family." Shunsui sighed.

"Of course it was..."

Last night...

"They even defeated Abarai-kun!?" Momo said, in shock. Kira shook his head, slowly.

"Renji was barely alive when Captain Ichimaru and I found him..." he replied.

"Those invaders are no joke," Rangiku said, leaning against a wall.

"Is he going to be okay?" Momo asked.

"He'll be fine. I stabilized his condition on the scene," Kira said, "But it's a miracle that he's still with us. He had lost a lot of blood..."

"Now what?" Rangiku asked.

"Throw him in jail," the calm, icy tone of Kuchiki Byakuya said, sparking a jolt of fear in the youngest Vice Captain in the room.

"Captain Kuchiki," Momo said, "I-I respectfully disagree with your decision..."

"What for?" Byakuya said, "Vice Captain Abarai willingly attacked the invaders, without reinforcements. He released his Zanpakutō, without permission. He willingly broke several laws of the Seireitei."

"But-"

"We will comply with your decision, Captain Kuchiki..." Kira interrupted, pushing Momo's head down.

"I...We comply..." she said, sadly. With a scoff, Byakuya left the makeshift resting room. Momo exhaled.

"Ooh, sooo scary~," Gin said, suddenly appearing in the room, producing a squeak from Momo.

"Captain, it's a surprise to see you here," Kira said, "Is Central 46 going to put Ren- Vice Captain Abarai on trial?" Gin smirked.

"Shockingly, no. I just they have bigger things on their plates..."

"That's good," said Momo, from under her breath.

"But, that does give the Captain Commander something to think about..."

"What are we doing with Vice Captain Abarai?" asked Kira. Gin shrugged, walking out of the room.

"Send him to the Med Hold barracks. Let them deal with him," he said, before disappearing from sight.

"Ah, Rangiku-san, will you help me take him over there?" Kira asked. Rangiku looked shocked that he would ask such a question.

"Eh, why me?" she said, "My wrists really hurt, after a day of endless paper work. I don't know if I will be able to help you." Kira narrowed his eyes.

"You were drinking all day."

"No I wasn't. I was working."

"You were working on getting drunk. Shūhei was with you." Rangiku's eyebrow twitched.

"Ah, I was-"

"Just help. I'm not going to let you free that that easily..." With a sighing, Rangiku ceased her complaining, and help lift the litter.

With the departure of the two, Momo was left in the room alone, to think.

"At least someone got her to work," Captain Hitsugaya said, appearing next to Momo, generating a genuine scream from her.

"Tōshirō-kun! Do Captains not make noise when they walk or something!?" she shouted, "What are you doing here anyway?"

"The proper term of address is Captain Hitsugaya," he said, "I worked very hard for this position."

"Fine, Hitsugaya-kun," Momo teased, smiling brightly. Hitsugaya groaned.

"So, what are you doing here?"

"I was looking for my Vice Captain, but I see that she is tending to Abarai-san...How did he get beaten so badly?" Momo's smile faded.

"The invaders...They're really strong..."

"Something doesn't add up..." Hitsugaya said, crossing his arms, "Ichimaru...He's hiding something..."

"What do you mean?"

"Just watch out for him...He might be up to something..."

"Stop meddling, Yū..." Aizen Sōsuke, said to no one in particular, practicing calligraphy in his room, when heard a knock.

"Enter," he said, sternly. With shaky, and timid motion, the door crept open, revealing Momo, in her nightgown.

"I sorry about disturbing you so late...It's just...It's just that I couldn't sleep/"

"You couldn't sleep?" Aizen repeated. Momo nodded.

"Is this related to the invasion?" Again, Momo nodded.

"I'm sorry..." Aizen smiled, and stood up.

"You're welcome her as long you want," he said, "You have a rough day. Let me brew up some tea."

"I checked on Renji-kun earlier. I heard he's going to make a full recovery," Aizen said.

"That's good..." Momo responded.

"Captain Kuchiki wanted to demote him, but everyone else argued against it. While his actions were reckless, he is a very talented young man, with a very bright future ahead of him. No one would like it if he was demoted."

"Thank you, Captain Aizen..." Momo said. Aizen just smiled, in response.

Day Three

"They're just stairs," Ichigo said, dead of humor, looking down at Ganju and Hanatarō struggling with the obstacle.

"Some just weren't blessed with your endless stamina," Ganju shouted.

"That's what your sister said too," Ichigo responded, with a grin.

"What?"

"Nothing. Just hurry up."

"I've finally found you, Kurosaki Ichigo..." a menacing figure from above said.

"An emergency meeting, and war time protocol has been called?" Shunsui said, "I guess these invaders are no joke..." Grabbing his Zanpakutō, he started walking toward the exit.

"Where are you going now?"

"To wake up Jūshirō...I guess I can take care of the invader too..."

Another body was sent flying, due to the immense power of Sado, and his right arm. No one had been able to challenge him. And he wasn't going to allow himself to lose.

"Young man, may I ask what you doing?" Shunsui said from above, falling from the ceiling, haori flowing dramtically in the wind. Sado narrowed his eyes.

"Wow, that was an impressive entrance...Wish I had my rose petals accompanying me. That would have made it perfect..." Sado tightened his fist, and charged forward, punching out. With a nonchalant motion, Shunsui caught the attack, with the butt of his katana.

"Don't you think my entrance would have been better with rose petals, gracefully around me, as I soared through the skies?" he asked. Sado pushed back.

"Ah, a quiet one," Shunsui said.

"Move aside." Sado said. Shunsui clapped, chanting, "He speaks!" as he did so.

"I don't want to fight you."

"Same here. So let's not. Let's just talk this out, and leave uninjured."

"...I have to advance past you."

"For what reason? To save Kuchiki-chan? You only knew her for a couple months." Sado clenched his fists.

"She is one of my friends. And if Ichigo wants to save her, I will back him, in every way I can. So you must move out of my way."

"Unfortunately for you, there is nothing beyond me..."

"Sl-Slow down..." Hanatarō said, struggling to keep up.

"I'm walking," Ichigo said, irritated. For some reason, his head was really hurting.

"Hanatarō, are you okay?" Ganju asked. Hanatarō shook his head, before collapsing. Ichigo pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Of course you would be the first to collapse..." he said, walking toward the fallen medic.

"Something seems to be wrong with him," Ganju said, "I don't blame him. This place feels...heavy."

"You felt it too?" Ichigo asked, crossing his arms and raising an eyebrow, "It sucks that I can't pinpoint what the hell is going on. It's just so widespread."

Jingle...

Ichigo took a step to the side, mere moments before a rusted blade penetrated his neck. On reflex, Ichigo grabbed his Zanpakutō, swinging it at a massive figure, who blocked it away.

"Nice one," the giant said, "Let's see if you can do that again." The man slammed his sword into the ground, where Ichigo was once standing, and grinned.

"I guess it wasn't a fluke..."

"Ganju, get him out of him," Ichigo ordered. Silently, Ganju lifted the body of Hanatarō, and ran off with him.

"Their taking the body away, Ken-chan," a little, pink-haired child, on the back of the giant shouted, "I wanted to play with it."

"...I hate this place so much," Ichigo said, tonelessly.

"Is this that guy Baldy was talkin about!" the girl asked. The man grinned madly.

"Looks like it." Ichigo narrowed his eyes.

"I really, really hate this place..."

"Good, your stamina is top class," Shunsui said, deflecting another attack away, smiling, "Now, if only the stability of your attacks could be improved, you might be a threat." With a grunt, Sado sent another attack, which Shunsui, with less effort than before, knocked away.

"Don't let your emotions get the best of you." Sado looked at the Captain, wide-eyed.

'How was he beating him like this. All that training. Nullified.'

"Are you done? I can arrest you, without harming you. That would be for the best." Closing his eyes, Sado summoned the last remaining bits of his power, and charged forward. Shunsui eyes widened as he drew his swords, and slashed Sado twice, both times on his chest. The burst of power flew off randomly, and crashing behind his barracks, creating a massive explosion.

"That could have been bad..." Shunsui said, "Sorry about cutting you. It had to be down."

"You're still here?" Nanao asked, walking through a hole in a wall, "I see you didn't do a quality job taking the invader down."

"Eh, he just needed a bit of consoling. Nothing major."

"Shall I apply the finishing touch?" she asked. Shunsui's smirk dissolved.

"No, let's give him the right to a fair trial," he said, "Or, at least the fairest trial we can give him."

"He's an invader! And he's probably an ally of-"

"Enough. He has the right to prove himself innocent."

"Kurosaki Ichigo," the man said, with a smirk, "I have been waiting for this."

"I got here yesterday," Ichigo said.

"My name is Zaraki Kenpachi! And as a reward for accepting my challenge, I will let you cut me where ever you want to." Ichigo narrowed his eyes.

"...That honestly might be the stupidest thing I have ever heard," he said, "That is so blantaly stupid, that I'm pretty damn confident that this is a trap."

"No tricks. No traps. Hit me with your best shot." Ichigo sighed, before charging forward, and with everything that he had, aimed a slash right at Kenpachi's jugular.

The sword hit skin, but did not penetrate. Blood was dripping onto the floor, but it wasn't the Captain's. Ichigo's eyes widened, before falling back into a neutral state.

"How disappointing," Kenpachi said, "I guess this will be easier than I thought." Ichigo grimaced.

"Well, shit..." he said, jumping away.

"I thought you would be enough to cut me. Ikkaku was completely wrong about you..." Ichigo smirked.

"I have a few tricks up my sleeve..." he said. Kenpachi grinned, before charging in, slashing wildly, nicking Ichigo a couple of times, but not inflicting anything serious on him. Ichigo calmly standing his ground, gathered his blade with both of his hands, slashed forward, cutting Kenpachi across his chest.

"You're leaving yourself way too open. Even someone relatively new with a sword saw that." Kenpachi grinned, as he looked at the shallow wound on his chest.

"So, you can cut me," he said, "What changed, Ichigo?"

"Nothing really," Ichigo answered, "I just...I'm just tapping into my strength a little more."

"Oh, you are," Kenpachi said, before the world seemed to shatter in front of Ichigo's eyes.

"What the..." he sputtered, as the most intense spiritual pressure he ever felt overcame him.

"You look nervous, Ichigo! What's the matter!" Kenpachi roared, in excitement.

"This isn't good..." Yoruichi said, "He can't win in his current state..." He started to go help him, before thinking back.

"This isn't Hollowification..."

"How did Kurosaki get so powerful?"

Grimly, Yoruichi resumed watching the fight from a safe distance.

"Well, Urahara did need something to go off, to help..." he said, "I'll get involved, if the fight escalates too far..."

Ichigo couldn't move. He couldn't lift his sword. He couldn't dodge. He couldn't block. He was reduced to watching Kenpachi make mince meat of his body. And Kenpachi was just...euphoric...Or so it seemed.

With a heavy overhead strike, Ichigo was blown into the wall behind him, blood sticking to the wall. His body crashed on the ground, and Ichigo couldn't move.

"Get up. You're boring me," Kenpachi said. Ichigo tried, but he simply couldn't. Kenpachi scoffed.

"Pathetic. I have no interest in killing the weak..." Ichigo, releasing a burst of energy, stumbled back to his feet, and glared at the Captain.

"Fortunately for you, I'm not weak," he said, surging with energy. He started to charge Kenpachi, Zanpakutō aglow with collected energy.

"Getsuga Tensho!" Ichigo roared, slamming his blade into the chest of the Captain, creating a massive blue explosion.

When the dust cleared, Ichigo's eyes widened, as not only was his attack completely ineffective, but his Zanpakutō shattered. Kenpachi chortled, as he plunged his rusted blade into the neck of the substitute, grounding him.

"That was interesting, Ichigo," he said, "But it just didn't work. For shame." The Captain walked away, the bells in his hair jingling.

"And to think that Ikkaku saw potential in you..." he said, lifting the blade over his shoulder, kicking up some dirt. Ichigo tried to get up, but he felt life escaping him.

Black. Ichigo felt himself being taken over by darkness.

It felt horrible.

It felt as if something was trying to absorb him, and smother him.

And that damned mask covered his face again.

"Damn it..." he said falling, until the familiar city rose, the skies pouring down in an intense rain. His Zanpakutō spirit stood in his favorite sport, waiting for him.

"Welcome back, Ichigo," the Zanpakutō spirit said. Ichigo frowned.

"Not this shit again..." he said, "I'm not-"

"I'm aware. I decided that I was going to take a different approach to this problem." Ichigo narrowed his eyes.

"Maybe, you don't deserve to use my power," the spirit said, "Maybe I could take over for you." Ichigo stood up.

"What are you trying to say?" Ichigo said, with a wavy double voice effect applied. The spirit chuckled, and summoned the sword Ichigo was accustomed to using for the past couple of days.

"You don't deserve my power, so I decided to take your approach on things," he said, charging Ichigo. With no weapon, the redhead was reduced to dodging the strikes. With a flick of his wrist, the spirit shot out a Getsuga Tenshō, which nearly decapitated Ichigo. Frustrated, Ichigo leaped in, and swung at the spirit, not connecting with any attacks, but at least forcing him back. With a growl, Ichigo clenched his fists, and a sword of bone appeared.

"I don't need you. You are just a blade," Ichigo said, holding the bone sword with one hand, "Just like the one in my hand now." The spirit fired off three more Getsuga Tenshō waves, which Ichigo easily dodged. Charging in, full of confidence, the substitute swung wildly at the spirit, who blocked every attempt.

"You refuse to see me as an partner," the spirit said.

"YOU. ARE. A. SWORD!" Ichigo roared, frustrated, energy bursting off of his blade, "I don't need you!" With a swing of his arm, the blade blade fired off an red Getsuga Tenshō wave, which crashed in the shocked spirit, blood exploding from the wound. Rolling back the spirit prepared to attack, but found a blade in the shoulder. Ichigo grinned.

"Turns out, I'm better without you..." Ichigo said, darkly, before blasting another Getsuga Tenshō, this one absorbed by the spirit.

Kenpachi felt an intense burst of energy from behind him. Turning around slowly, his grinned, awaiting his reawakened challenge.

Ichigo was standing, but it wasn't Ichigo. His Zanpakutō had reformed, but at the same time, it looked horrific. There was no glimmer of confidence in Ichigo's eyes. Instead, there was only anger and bloodlust.

"What the hell?" Kenpachi asked.

Ichigo's Zanpakuto had transformed itself from the butcher knife of the past, into a something that did not resemble a sword at all. The blade was jagged, and near the handle, large spikes protruded. On Ichigo's face, stood a mask resembling a Hollow's.

"This is new!" Kenpachi said, grinning, "This is great!" Ichigo's eyes turned from their natural brown color, to a bright yellow, as his sclera turned black. Black Xs crossed his wrist and chest, and something resembling a neck guard rose, made of the same material.

"Prepare..." Ichigo growled, before charging forward. Kenpachi rose his guard, and deflected the attack. Seeing a chance, Kenpachi recovered, and stabbed his sword forward, hitting Ichigo between his collarbone.

"Things never change," Kenpachi said. Ichigo, smirked.

"Sure they do," he said, Zanpakutō glowing a vibrant red shade, "Getsuga Tenshō!" The attack, instead of it former light blue complex, exploded with a furious scarlet shade. The attack ripped through Kenpachi, as if he was a piece of paper, and blood poured freely from the wound.

"I guess I can stop holding back," Kenpachi said, grinning madly, clutching at his eyepatch, "Finally, an opponent that deserves my full strength. Haven't had a fight like this in years!" Ichigo clenched his fist, as the spiritual pressure threatened to overcome him.

"I'll end you," Ichigo said, darkly, clutching his Zanpakutō tightly. Kenpachi charged forward again, but Ichigo was phazed. The Captain couldn't approach him anymore.

To prove his point, Ichigo lowered his stance, and allowed to Kenpachi to slash his chest.

"What the hell is happening back there?" Ganju said, suffocating due to the immense spiritual pressure. Hanataro still had not woken up, and he was still unsure where he was supposed to go.

"Damn it, this place is so confusing..." he said, as an explosion of violent energy happened, damaging several buildings behind him, and nearly crushing him.

"W-What the h-hell?" he whimpered, in front of a open door. From inside the room, Kuchiki Rukia sat, wide eyed, from the pressures threatening to suffocate her too.

"What is this?..." she said, struggling to stay upright.

The sword hit skin, but did not penetrate. Blood was dripping onto the floor, but it wasn't the substitute's. Kenpachi Zaraki, for the first time in a long time, found an opponent he could not cut. In response, Ichigo laughed, madly.

"How disappointing," Ichigo said, "I guess you just couldn't keep up." Kenpachi tried to swing his sword again, but Ichigo beat him to the punch, slashing across his abdomen, knocking him through a building.

"Don't you have any more tricks up your sleeve?" Ichigo said, walking through the hole he just created.

"Oh my God..." Yoruichi mustered, in complete shock. He had not see this coming. Ichigo instability was an expected side effect, but the ability to completely over power Kenpachi Zaraki was...shocking. And the Hollow mask appearing, yet Ichigo seems to be completely in control.

"I guess you were right, Kisuke," he said, "This isn't Hollowification...

"This is a million times worse..."

Blood splattered against the floor, as another one of Ichigo's attacks connected. Kenpachi's constant grin of madness had faded, and was replaced with a face indicating struggle. The child wasn't nearly this powerful minutes ago. What the hell changed.

With a heavy overhead strike, Kenpachi was sent sliding into a wall, with a fresh new wound, joining the company of other fresh wounds. Kenpachi finally grinned again.

"Still standing," he said, unsteadily, "Must be disappointing, eh?" Ichigo plunged his sword into the ground, prompting Kenpachi to raise an eyebrow.

"Hey, you're winning. No need to give up."

"I'm ending this," Ichigo said, calmly, as he pointed his right index and middle fingers at Kenpachi.

"What are you talking about?" the Captain shouted, as the two fingers collected energy, colored red. Kenpachi looked at the collecting energy, then glared at Ichigo.

"Kidō? Really?" he said, "In all of my lifetime, I have never been felled by a Kidō attack." Ichigo smiled, as the ball of energy he was collecting surged with electricity.

"Then try this one out for size," Ichigo said, as he fired the blast.

To describe the size of the explosion created would be almost impossible. The blast completely and thoroughly destroyed buildings around the arena, and a red streak of power was seen by the entire Seireitei. The force of the attack was felt throughout, and all action just froze.

"What...What the hell is that?" Ukitake Jūshirō said, looking at the explosion from his house. It was unbelievably powerful, to the point where he believed that one of the invaders couldn't have produced something as mighty as that.

"There is no way..." he said.

"...Holy crap..." Shunsui said, standing beside him.

"I...I can't believe it," Jūshirō said, "That's a Cero." Shunsui eyes widened.

"A Cero? Impossible!? With the force like that, that mean that this is a Vasto Lorde we're dealing with! We would have known about it before." Jūshirō, wide eyed, just shook his head slowly.

"I have no doubt about it. That was definitely a Cero." Shunsui looked at his friend, then back at the fading explosion.

"Then we have a serious problem..."

The bars keeping Rukia from escaping shattered, and the girl was knocked back. She tried to get up, but the floors around her were quaking, threatening to break apart, and lead her to her doom. Well, even if the floors were calm, she couldn't move anyway, because the force exerted by the spiritual pressure was soul rattling.

"This...This can't be Ichigo..." she said, "This is a monster..."

This wasn't just pain.

This was dying.

Kenpachi Zaraki, Captain of the Eleventh Division, and one of the most fearsome Shinigami to ever be bred, stood on his last legs, feeling his body give up on him. First was the lungs, as he felt that breathing was extremely difficult, and he had to make himself remember to collect air. Next, it was his heart, as the lack of blood in his body made the heart weak, and skip beats regularly. Or maybe it was slowing down, realizing that there was nothing to pump throughout his body, so there was no point. Then it was his sense of sound. He couldn't hear anything, but constant ringing, and it was driving him crazy. Muscle failure led him to the ground, on his knees, arms barely attached.

He was dying. He knew it. There was no point trying to stop it. He was going to die. He was broken beyond repair. Death was calling him.

And this substitute caused it. He was going to die, without fighting her again, all because this person who wasn't supposed to be a fucking Shinigami was here. And there was nothing he could do about it...

With the final, and most important muscle, the brain, giving out on him, the giant fell unconscious. Kusajishi Yachiru ran to her adoptive father.

"Ken-chan! Ken-chan!" he shouted, as Ichigo stood and watched, mask discarded.

"Please wake up, Ken-chan!"

Ichigo, deciding that letting Kenpachi bleed out, instead of decapitating him in front of his daughter, was probably for the best, turned and prepared to walk away, before his right arm exploded.

In a flurry of blood, connective tissues, and muscle, his right arm went limp, falling to his sides, blood dripping out. Within a few seconds, the rest of his body followed suit, and his fell to the ground, barely conscious, eyes returning to their original colors.

"...Came up a little short..."

With light feet, Yoruichi landed right next to him.

"A Cero with that kind of power...What the hell are you, Ichigo?" he said, "I guess I have to take you away from here..."

Early this morning...

"Did I fall asleep?" Momo asked, sitting up in Captain Aizen's futon, before her phone went off. Her eyes went wide.

"I can't be late!" she shouted, "Why didn't Captain Aizen wake me?" Making her way over a sign, that read "Only Authorized Personnel beyond this point", she though a small barrack, just off the Captain's main one.

"Well, he probably just recognized that I was stressed out by what's going on...Oh, I hope he doesn't think I'm unfit for my position!" she said, as she turned a corner and froze.

And screamed.

"What the hell is that noise?" Ichigo asked, from underneath a raised platform, seeing several Vice Captains run toward the source. It was just going to be one of those days...

Momo's eyes were frozen, transfixed on the sight before here, tears threatening to fall free. As Rangiku, Shuhei, and Kira ran behind her, and froze, seeing what caused her to scream.

The body of Aizen Sōsuke, impaled onto the wall...

"Raining Blood" by Slayer

Should I move the rating up? This chapter was a bit...gruesome, if I say so.